sábado, 24 de octubre de 2009

Daughter Of Horror


For years, I had read about this movie as being one of the most bizarre films ever made, some considered it great, some considered it worst. It’s more famous for being in the movie theatre scene of the original Blob film. After reading a review in the Angry Video Game Nerd’s official website, I decided that I better put up or shut up, and finally give it a watch. The story deals with a character named ‘The Gamine’, played by Adrienne Barrett, a young woman who is having a lot of nightmares because of the sins of her past, and has something of a surreal nightmare of a night as she’s ready to commit another horrible act similar to the first.

I don’t want to give too much away for the plot, because this is a really weird, really haunting and really surreal experience. The budget is tiny, almost non-existent. There is not a single line of dialogue and I can count the number of sound effects with my hands. But these limitations definitely didn’t hamper the experience of watching it. There are a lot of weird angles and shots, and the lighting is very similar to that of a film noir. Characters walk about without any faces, situations come and go without any warning, there’s murder and crime, gore. My favorite scene has to be the one where she’s with the rich patron (Bruno VeSota) who is probably in organized crime, a fat powerful slob who gets himself stabbed then thrown out the window. As he falls to his death, his corpse is followed by money falling from his pockets, adding to make a weird, yet powerful and memorable shot. The madness goes on from there, and it’s obvious that there was a lot of research into psychology involved when in came to the pre-production on this film. From fear of sex to the lust for wealth, it’s all there. Acting-wise, everybody gives a great performance, even by a cast of unknowns. The only one I recognized was the dwarf paperboy played by Angelo Rosito, who was also in Freaks.

There is one thing that kind of hampers the experience, and that is the narration by Ed McMahon. Yes, THAT Ed McMahon, the Ed McMahon from the Johnny Carson Tonight Show! Not only does it distract you from the suspense, but I was also expecting him to scream “HEY-O!” and laugh like a moron. It didn’t add anything to the weirdness, it just got more annoying. Other than that, this is an excellent film, a very underrated piece of surreal weirdness that plays like a psychological nightmare that is just waiting to be rediscovered again. Watch it!

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