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New Year’s Evil 1980 ★★ Watched 11 Dec 2023
A slasher from the last year of the seventies with a big bang of eighties cheese to it. Though the idea of murders exactly one hour from each other on NYE is not all that bad. You can ask (more than) a few questions on the logistics of it all – like: would it not be better to kidnap people before december 31 and hold them hostage John Kramer-style instead of looking for randos on the street on the night? – but it's not that bad.
The killer has a hilarious voice changer – he's got nothing on Ghostface – and the performing bands look amazing: a bit of punk, a bit of vogue, a bit of Bowie, a bit of Billy Idol,... It's a sight to behold.
The reveal of the killer raises more questions than it answers and the final twist veers into silliness again. So that's what they were unsubtly hinting throughout the film when they went back to the son. Sequel bait or just one more kill?
Add some mostly offscreen kills and you're done. Kind of disappointing for a slasher when the kills are a (bit of a) let down.
For those who like their slashers a bit more cheesy.
Twins 1988 ★★★★½
I don't care if it's a cliché... they don't make em like that anymore.
The type of sleaze that De Vito portrays, Arnold expanding on his acting chops (even with the oneliners),...
Sure, it's predictable as hell, but the heartfelt moments (like when Vincent teaches Julius how to dance) are genuinely touching, the mirror image mannerisms are adorable and the Schwarzenegger-De Vito works better than it should.
It's as eighties as a feelgood movie can get.
Cannibal Holocaust 1980 ★★★★½
Is this entertaining/enjoyable? Well... certainly not in the doey-eyed, that's beautiful kind of way you would watch the end of, say, ET. That said, it keeps your attention and you are immersed in the story, even as you watch in total horror.
This cult classic deservedly counts as one of the all time genre greats as it shows just how far the horror/exploitation genre can go. Not to mention that the controversy and subsequent trial surrounding its release makes for the stuff of horror legends. Or that it inspired the career of Eli Roth and now counts as a precursor to what later became the found footage subgenre. After all, the professor literally finds the footage shot by the filmmakers.
Over 40 years after its release, the graphic depiction of the violence is still some of the most extreme stuff I have seen as a fan. This can easily go together with The Human Centipede and other “likeminded” pictures. Wether it's the gang rape, or the turtle or the scene where they murder the children,... from a certain point onwards, the documentarymakers turn into a group of monsters capable of the most horrid things. And all of his with... what provocation? From what I remember, none whatsoever. Perhaps the height of an era where excessive violence and cruelty were denounced by exactly pushing the enveloppe. This and the cheesy score were at least two things Cannibal holocaust has in common with Last house on the left.
Also, cheers to Eli Roth for casting Ruggero Deodato in Hostel 2.
Watch it once, and then watch four movies about cute puppies to recover.
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