Room 237...delve deeper into the mind of a genius

      Going back and watching the films of Stanley Kubrick I always found myself perplexed, not knowing exactly what I had just got down watching. Movies like A Clockwork Orange,2001; a Space Odyssey, and Eyes Wide Shut always seem to have an undertone that delves into the realm of the macabre, conspiracy theory and other weird shit that you delve into late into the night under a bare lightbulb while click clacking away at a typewriter. Most of Kubrick's filmography have abrupt endings, the protagonist lack any real sense of closure...at least in the conventional film sense. You experience a set of finely tuned images, put in precise points to convey a certain emotion or an underlying theme that most of his film have, terrible tragedy, the looming past, and an overwhelming sense that there is something there...right beneath the curtain, Kubrick seems to allude to a greater evil, ever vigilant in its slight of hand ways.
     Room 237, is a documentary that delves into the aforementioned subliminal messages. More specifically the messages in the film which is arguably Kubrick's magnum opus; The Shining.  Following its '80 release, The Shining was followed by bad reviews, citing that it was hardly a horror movie and that it tossed aside the incredible source material. But still...certain people remained awestruck, noticing small clues left by Kubrick as to what the movie was really about. Room 237 interviews a handful of these people, and let me tell you this gets all kinds of bat shit crazy, getting into genocide, Freudian topics, and even the faking of the '69 moon landing. Most of this would have you signing this off as a paranoid hour long special that plague basic cable, but no. These points are backed up by some well thought out theories and observations that have been rattling in these peoples brains the 1980 release of The Shining. The selling point for me was the breakdown of certain key scenes in the film, every little detail meticulously planned by the grand master himself. Like most of the initial reviews I thought that the film was lacking in the horror department, but the analysis of the film changed that at least with me...the subliminal message kinda creeped me out, they slipped under my radar...now they are blaring. Room 237 changed the way I look at Kubrick's Films and movies in general.
         This is movie should be watched by Kubrick fans yes...but more importantly by those of you who love films and have any remote interest in becoming a filmmaker.

Suspiria, Witches be hating

 

 
If I learned one thing in my many years of watching horror movie aimlessly into the wee hours, it’s that most of the time “good”American horror movies are “highly influenced” by foreign movies. I use quotations lavishly to protect my ass from the internet backlash from my “many” readers. Recently, the plague of one word titles from Japan at the box office has had me sticking to the subtitled counterparts from years prior. I blame this solely on one particular film from Italy from decades ago, highly influential in its subject matter, use of camera, colors and lights and that creepy music. Dario Argento’s Suspiria heavily influenced movies like Halloween, Friday the 13th, The Shining and Nightmare on Elm St.  Before I delve further, I recommend to watch it unlubricated, as the saying goes. Horror films have a better impact when you  don’t know what to expect, just know it is one of Papa Rex’s favorite movies of all the time, not just of the horror genre.

Suzy, the cute big-eyed American teen finds herself  in Freiburg, a small German town famous for both its prestigious school of ballet and fits of sudden monsoon rain. When she arrives at the school for the first time she is turned away, while leaving, Suzy sees a young women running out of the school in terror, fleeing into the dark forest. As Suzy’a cab pulls away she sees the scarred girl fade into the dense forest. The next day when she is let in to her new school, Suzy witnesses several unsettling events happen, things of an occult nature, missing students, night terrors, sudden plague of maggots and the eerie breathing of an unknown sleeping figure behind a curtain.

Suspiria uses colors, shapes and symmetry to paint a horrific picture in your head and leave it there long into the night. The strong visuals and lurking musical number will leave you unsettled from start tot finish, really feeling the terror of those haunted by…whatever it is that lives in the bowels of the school. The writing and pacing of the film is done well, what this means for horror flicks is that there is a constant state of anxiety the spaces between build up and kill scene are just right, there is never a “come on just kill the bitch” feeling that most slasher films are famous for. Like any good slasher movie, it must be filled with believable terrified women, Suspiria is no slouch. Filled to the brim with scantily dressed, pasty skinned teenage girls with big brown eyes, which I find better convey a look of utter terror.

Dario Argento’s Suspiria is an overlooked genre staple, wich is a damn shame because it so clearly influences the who’s who of horror movie directors. Get your hands on this classic and find out exactly what you have been missing.