I like films. I like the medium, I like what films can do, I like the way films do what they do. I like films. But as I look back over the posts I've written about films, you might get a different impression, as I never actually seem to write about films that I like, so I wanted to be clear: I like films.
Exactly what film I'm going to like is sometimes difficult to predict. Some films that I think have my name written all over them - say hello, Prometheus - turn out to be pants. Other films that I should hate, I turn out to love - I'm genuine in my affection for The Core and Lifeforce, even though I know how truly and utterly terrible they are. Some are growers while others hit me straight away. So rather than bitching about a film I didn't like, I thought I'd rave about a couple of films I saw recently that I do like.
One that hit me straight away quite recently is a film called Cutie Honey. No, it's not what you think. I can say that with total confidence because, no matter what you think it is, it's not like that. It is, in fact, completely indescribable, which isn't going to stop me trying but does mean that, even if you read the following paragraph, you won't be any closer to actually understanding what Cutie Honey is.
If you imagine a live-action cross between the Powerpuff Girls, Power Rangers and the most bizarre, drug-induced dream you ever had, then you might be close. It's the story of a super-hero who... oh, never mind; the story isn't important (and doesn't really stand up to much scrutiny, anyway). The fact is, even though everything about this film is wrong, it all adds up to so much more than the sum of its parts. It's funny, oddly touching and seems to have been made with so much love, energy and humour that it's impossible to dislike: it's an Andrex puppy of a film and I highly recommend it.
The grower is harder to recommend because, unlike Cutie Honey, it's not a feel-good film. In fact, The Divide is the very opposite of a feel-good film. I won't say too much about it because I think part of the impact comes from not knowing much as you go into it. That's the great thing about it, in fact - it really doesn't explain much of anything at all. Like the people in the film, the audience has almost none of the answers - all we know is what happens. Why it happens, what the background is and so on is a mystery - just like it would be in real life.
Suffice it to say that I loved it, the ending blew me away and the soundtrack is absolutely beautiful. It's not a big budget movie and has all the hallmarks of being adapted from a play. It isn't perfect but it does what it does very well indeed. It created (in me, at least) a growing sense of unease and dread which I haven't really got from a film since the ending of The Mist. If you like a film that makes you feel bad deliberately, then The Divide is well worth your attention.
So there you go, some films I liked for a change, should you be remotely interested. Coming soon, Dredd and the new Bourne movie - I have high hopes...
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