Pulpmovies Reviews

Oscar (Oscar Castro) and Brett (Brett Poquette) are a pair of producers – their production being a public access cable TV show. They are also behind on their mortgage – three months behind, and facing foreclosure. Our heroes need to find funds, and quickly.

So begins an absurdist mockumentary about a group of film school graduates, a small time gangster and a Muppet as they try to find a way to keep themselves – and their programme – afloat. Their schemes range from the silly to the surreal until they finally hit upon the idea of making a film about making a cable TV show.

Making a film about making a film is something that has been done before, but what separates this film from similar efforts is that the programme at the centre of events – The Adam Bomb Show – really does exist. The people involved in the film are the same people that are behind the TV show (I’m not so sure about the Muppet, though) and this really does add to the sense of camaraderie amongst the characters.

This approach also makes for a unique combination of faux documentary, character comedy and absurdist sketches all of which slot together rather effectively. But what really carries this film forward is the sheer likeability of the two main characters.

The characters of Oscar and Brett are very well drawn and rounded enough to feel like real people and to generate some genuine empathy. The writing is thoroughly brought to life by the two actors who both put in strong enough performances that, even when things start to get silly, they remain both believable and sympathetic.

I found the film is a little hit and miss in places, although at least some of this is probably down to a lack of familiarity on my part with public access TV. However, the jokes do come thick and fast, and there are many more that work than don’t.

Overall, this is a fun film peopled with a collection of amiable characters whose circumstances do keep you genuinely interested in how things will pan out. The structure of the film also allows it to take a subtle dig at the accuracy – or otherwise – of more mainstream documentaries and, as a gentle satirist, I think that writer/director T. Anthony Moore could have a great future.

Lust for Vengeance opens with a gloved hand holding a small board with a list of women’s names on it. One of the names is already crossed out and, once we are into the film proper, it’s no surprise that a murder has already happened.

We’re then introduced to the characters – four women, all linked through friendship, each of whom has a dark secret and all of whom are being stalked (one by one) by our mystery killer. And I really couldn’t bring myself to care.

The cast aren’t bad and, apart from a couple of exceptions, put in reasonably solid performances but they are badly let down by a script that really doesn’t hang together.

The film plays out as a series of unrelated vignettes. In each case we are introduced to the next victim, who has a problem (usually drugs), has sex – explicitly - and is then murdered – remarkably bloodlessly.

Writer/director, Sean Weathers is clearly much more interested in the sex than the violence in this film but – given that this is supposed to be a slasher film - the fact that the slasher part of the film is such an afterthought really does let the film down.

This, combined with the jumpy narrative flow, left the film with no tension, no shocks and a painfully obvious final reveal.

With her relationship on the verge of becoming serious, Victoria (Giovanna Galdi) comes home to find an unexpected gift in the form of a black box containing a skull. Not surprisingly, she is less than thrilled at receiving such a gift and wants nothing to do with it. But this is no ordinary skull.

After experiencing some indications of the skull’s unnatural nature, however, Victoria finally gives in and takes the skull from its box. The skull is, of course, the Eye of Menw and it will grant knowledge of the future to the pure hearted. So Victoria asks about her own future…

With The Eye of Menw writer/director, Charles A. Christman III has set out to make a film that harks back to the horror films of the 1930s and 40s. And he has succeeded spectacularly.

Although the setting is clearly modern, the film is shot in black and white and the beautifully crisp cinematography on display really does capture a very classic feel. This is a film that relies on glimpses of the things that might lurk in the shadows and hints of horrors unseen.

It’s also a film that manages to generate a genuinely chilling atmosphere that thoroughly permeates every aspect of the steadily unfolding events.

The film is very centred around the character of Victoria – indeed, for much of the film she is the only person on the screen. Obviously, this means that a lot depends on Giovanna Galdi’s performance, and she acquits herself superbly.

You really do get a sense of who Victoria is and, not only does she manage to remain utterly believable throughout but Galdi also manages to bring a real sense of empathy to her character. And it’s this outstanding performance that really does carry the film.

Far too often these days filmmakers can rely far too heavily on gore and special effects for their, so it’s nice to encounter someone with the confidence to depend instead on a strong script and a convincing lead performance. And when the result is as spine-tinglingly good as The Eye of Menw, I really can’t recommend it strongly enough.