‘Fiancée of Dracula’ (Shriek Show, 2002)

Directed by Jean Rollin 

French director Jean Rollin has been exploring his romantic obsession with the undead for five decades now, starting with his riot inducing (really) 1968 gothic-erotic art film ‘Rape of the Vampire’ and continuing on up to the present with this latest offering.  If you’ve never seen a Rollin film before, this makes a very good introduction.  It’s far more coherent and professional looking than some of his films, but still contains all the elements that define his work; atmospheric locations, clueless “heroes”, sexy living dead girls, and a strong sense of romanticism and mystery throughout. 

Isabelle is being held captive by a group of nuns called The Order of the White Virgin.  Fated to be the bride of Dracula, her mere presence exerts a powerful influence on her captors.  This leads to bizarre behavior by the sisters, including cigar smoking, goofy ranting, and a little bit of lesbianism.  The legions of the undead (a diminutive jester, a scantily clad vampire girl, a baby eating blond who calls herself The Ogress, and a pair of aged black magicians) plot to bust Drac’s betrothed out of the pokey.  On the side of “good”, a Van Helsing type and his apprentice are trying to get to Isabelle first.  Apparently if she and Drac hook up, then everyone’s favorite lord of the vampires will be able to escape his prison.  As usual, the director seems to be rooting for the undead. 

While the plot might sound like a recipe for cheese dip, Rollin makes it compelling with his visual flair and sincerity.   He reuses a few bits from past films, notably the idea of a vampire emerging from a clock, but this feels more like a culmination of his themes than an attempt at rehashing them.   It’s a shame that big budget Hollywood horror and hardcore pornography have all but eliminated this sort of poetic erotic horror from the marketplace.  In a way, Rollin has become almost like his protagonists; a lonely survivor from another time, still carrying on and yearning for an age long past.  (Bob Ignizio)

‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers’ (New Line, 2002)

Directed by Peter Jackson 

I love a good sword and sorcery movie, and Peter Jackson’s ‘The Two Towers’ is in my opinion a great one.  Of course a lot of the credit goes to J.R.R. Tolkein for providing such excellent source material, but turning book into film is a tricky business.   For the most part, Jackson handles the task admirably, although some purists might disagree.  At three hours, the film still has to gloss over or omit certain sequences in the book.  Some characters and events are condensed, and perhaps most controversial, Jackson expands on the relationship between Aragorn (Vigo Mortensen) and Arwen (Liv Tyler), an element of the plot which doesn’t figure at all into Tolkein’s book, and only merits brief mentions in the first and third installments of his trilogy.   

In general, however, Jackson stays more or less true to the book.  The segments with Frodo (Elijah Wood), Sam (Sean Astin), and Gollum (a CGI creation voiced by Andy Serkes) are almost exactly as I imagined them.  Ditto for Merry, Pippin, and the Ents, and Gandalf’s (Ian McKellen) miraculous return.  Legendary horror star Christopher Lee as Saruman deservedly gets his part beefed up a little, providing a more tangible foe to hate than the disembodied eye that is Sauron, and Brad Douriff is perfect as the duplicitous Wormtongue, one of Saruman’s spies.  John Rhyss Davies as Gimli and Orlando Bloom as Legolas also get some prime screen time kicking orc ass in the closing battle scene at Helm’s Deep. 

The biggest problem with the film, and in my opinion a minor one, is with the events in Rohan, kingdom of the horse lords, and the Battle of Helm’s Deep which takes place there.  A lot has been tweaked and altered in this segment.  Jackson has also added a battle sequence in which Aragorn falls over a cliff and is presumed dead by his companions.  This alteration is just plain stupid, unnecessary, and repetitive considering we’ve already had one major character presumed dead show up alive and well in the movie.  Some of the new supporting characters, notably Boromir’s brother Faramir, also behave differently than in the book and in my opinion these changes are not in the movie’s favor.  Minor misgivings aside, I strongly recommend fans of intelligent fantasy/action films see this one on the big screen.  No doubt there will be an expanded edition released on DVD next year that corrects some of the issues fans of the book might have with the film, but this is the sort of movie fifty foot high screens were made for. (Bob Ignizio)

Midnight Skater (Speedfreak Productions, 2002)

Directed by Luke Campbell 

(No cover scan available)

A serial killer is on the loose and drug dealers are selling a highly addictive designer drug called ‘Z’ to the campus party crowd.  But worst of all, a skater has been rolling around at night plastering the walls of Kent State with graffiti.  Luckily there’s a group of do-gooders around to put a stop to this appalling vandalism.  That’s their plan, anyway.  When they decide to have a stake-out to snap the skater’s photo, however, things don’t go quite as planned.  ‘Z’ addicts are turning into literal zombies craving human flesh almost as much as a fix.  On top of that, the serial killer is really going off the deep end, starting a full blown killing spree.  Peppered with gratuitous violence and low brow humor, ‘Midnight Skater’ is the kind of movie that would make H. G. Lewis proud.   

While most shot on video horror films have me reaching for the fast forward button (if not the eject), ‘Midnight Skater’ kept me entertained from start to finish.  In all seriousness, the parties responsible show genuine talent.  On a technical level, shots are framed and lit well, editing is professional, and the pacing is good.  The gore effects are extremely unconvincing, but that just adds to the fun. The quality of the performances varies from actor to actor, but Ezra Haidet, Stacey Silvers, and Corey Maidens all display natural screen presence in their respective roles.  The video also makes effective use of location shooting on the Kent State campus.   

‘Midnight Skater’ is by no means great.  Given the budget and resources these guys had to work with, however, it’s amazingly watchable.  For sheer entertainment value, this easily beats most of the formulaic crap put out by Full Moon, Troma, or Roger Corman these days.  Currently these guys are working on a new feature, but in the meantime you can visit their website and order this or one of their other videos dirt cheap.  Two of their videos (this one, and ‘Teenage Zombie House Massacre’) are also available for rent at B-Ware video in Lakewood.    (Bob Ignizio)

Scotland, PA (IFC, 2002)

Directed by  Billy Morrissette

When I first heard about this movie, which takes Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ and places it in a small Pennsylvania town in the 1970’s, I really didn’t want to see it.   It’s an idea that’s been done to death, with mixed results.  However, instead of having contemporary characters spouting Shakespeare’s dialogue, the script takes the basic plot of ‘Macbeth’ as a foundation and then runs with it.  It also turns Shakespeare’s tragedy into an inspired black comedy full of its own witty dialogue and characters that are recognizable as their Shakespearian counterparts while at the same time being fresh, original, and well developed.   

McBeth (James LeGross) works at a fast food restaurant called Duncan’s with his unsatisfied wife (Maura Tierny).  While out walking one night MacBeth runs into 3 mystical potheads who tell his fortune, and leave him with a vision of a drive through window with intercom system.  When McBeth finds out from his friend Anthony ‘Banco’ Banconi (Kevin Corrigan) that the manager of Duncan’s has been stealing money from the restaurant, he figures it’s his big chance to be made head honcho of the hamburger stand and tells the owner, Duncan (James Rebhorn).  When Duncan tells McBeth his embryonic ideas for a drive through, McBeth helpfully offers the idea of using an intercom.  His reward turns out to be somewhat less than he and his wife had hoped for, however, as Duncan wants his son to be manager, despite the fact that he’d rather be “rocking out” with his band.  At his wife’s urging, McBeth plots to kill Duncan before anyone else finds out about the drive through idea.   

Duncan’s demise, an accidental death by fry vat, leaves Mrs. McBeth with a small grease burn on her hand.  Even after the wound heals, she sees a huge ugly sore that requires constant applications of ointment.  In the meantime, Walken’s detective McDuff starts putting two and two together, leading to more murders to cover up the first.  Performances are excellent all around, and Christopher Walken is…Christopher Walken.  The script also boasts some great bits of original dialogue like the exchange when a lady asks Duncan’s son how he’s doing and blissfully ignores his answers.  One of the best comedies of 2002. (Bob Ignizio)