Sleepy-time Sunday at FrightFest

I guess there are days when I should cut myself some slack and take a break from obsessive film-watching, if I am really not up to it, for one reason or another.  This day proved one of them and while I had every intention initially of sitting through all six movies in the programme, after the first four, I had all I could do to stay awake -- which possibly says more about me than about the films in question (although they were to some extent pretty questionable):

Broken (2006): This was a singularly unpleasant British effort in which women are snatched and subjected to various indignities such as having to slice open their stomachs to get at a razor blade that's been left there in order to free themselves from hanging.  The film mainly focused on one such woman who was not particularly attractive nor a particularly good actress (but she was the director's wife!) who needs to free herself from "The Man" in order to establish what he has done with her young daughter.  Low-budget junk.

The Living and the Dead (2006):  Another British effort and a far-more ambitious one from director Simon Rumley, which yearned to be a cross of art house and Eastern psycho-horror, but which verged to my mind on the "trying-too-hard" side of good with mixed time frames, shifting characters, and confusing plotting.  It was also not helped by the frenetic lead actor (Leo Bill) who began to grate early on and whose action was speeded up to express...  Your guess is as good as mine.

Them (2006):  I had hoped that this French film (set in Romania) might wake me up -- if only because there were now titles to read, but it only managed to nail my eyelids tighter.  Filmed in a documentary style, it followed the night-time horrors of a youngish couple as they are besieged in their home by  telephone threats, bumps in the night and unseen stalkers from whom there was no escape.  Yes, it was creepy and the end-title explanation somewhat alarming, but over all not particularly involving, probably because the viewer had little opportunity to empathise with the leads in their plight.

Grimm Love (2006): I particularly (in advance) wanted to see this one since it had been banned in its home country, Germany, and this showing was the World Premiere.  Big deal!  I don't know exactly why it was banned -- probably not on the grounds of being boring, but you never know.  It was a fictional recreation of the Armin Meiwes case where he surfed the net to find a lover who wished to be eaten -- the so-called Cannibal of Rothenburg.  Visiting American student Keri Russell is intrigued with the case and tries to unearth the background.  It culminates with her finding the actual "snuff" tape and playing it, all the while beginning to lose her own grip on reality.  The film was competently made and reasonably well-acted, particularly by Thomas Kretschmann in the lead, but somehow did not deserve to see the light of day.

Monday was far more satisfying and that summary will appear soon.