Thirst- not crappy

My Husband came in with a last-minute save on Friday and said "Lets go see Thirst!" saving me from sitting through H2 (which people either love or hate) or "Final Destination 4-the one in 3D." Instead we saw a non-crappy film: "Thirst," directed by Park Chan-wook (Oldboy.)
Confession: I have not seen "Oldboy." It is on my Netflix que right after "The Tudors Season One" and "Night of the Comet," really. After seeing "Thirst" I might have to move it up because I really like this guys style: which is bloody, sexy, more bloody, and visually arresting.

A young, idealistic Priest signs up for a medical experiment to find a treatment for a dreaded virus that has a 100% death rate. Part of the virus includes loosing copious amounts of blood (I hate that) and when the Priest starts spewing forth the red stuff he is given a blood transfusion. Well, this bastard donor happened to be a Vampire and although the Priest is cured of the vicious disease, he is now among the undead. Now, anyone would have a hard time adjusting to being a Vampire, but imagine how hard it would be for a man of God... pretty fucking hard. Now the Priest has to deal with bloodlust, sexual desire, people wanting him to make them Vampires. Of course, there is a girl, and this girl is CRAZY. Big time. And the poor Priest, a sucker is there ever was one (pun intended) falls for her hook, line, and sinker.

"Thirst," from the Priests point of view, deals with the philosophical and moral dilemma of being a bloodsucker. The filmmakers don't hit you over the head with this (the Priest isn't a brooding, Edward "I hate being a Vampire" sort) but it is the central theme of the film. What I really loved about this film, and I haven't seen much written about, is the fact that it is a Vampire Film Noir. Its "Double Indemnity" with fangs! There is a sucker (The Priest,) the Femme Fetale (Tae-ju, the woman who seduces him,) the plot (get rid of the husband,) and the payoff (comeuppance and redemption.) I could see this being made in the 40s with William Holden as the Priest and Joan Crawford as Barbara Stanwyck. It would be a lot less bloody but just as crazy.

Conundrum

VS.

What to see this weekend? "Halloween 2" or "The Final Destination" (aka Final Destination 4-the one in 3-D.) Why not see both you might ask? Well, I have 20 bucks to my name until next Friday and although I know in my heart of hearts these are both going to suck and I should just go see "District 9" again... I feel obligated. So H2 is directed by Rob Zombie: who I admire both as a musician and horror freak. Final D is in 3-D. H2 has Malcolm McDowell, who is all kinds of cool. Final D is in 3-D. H2 will have interesting music.....Final D is in 3-D. You catch my drift. I guess I should see the 3-D flick, but then I will feel left out on what everyone is bitching about
on Saturday. H2 it is! That is what my black, black heart is telling me to go see....

Zombie Attack in San Jose..

So Jonathan and I decided to drive out to San Jose last night for a pint and a walk. Things did not turn out so well. By the way, I love the soft focus "Barbara Streisand" lighting on this picture here.

As we were walking around downtown San Jose we were attacked! By Zombies!!! I know, its a dream come true.

Two Zombies post-meal. Amazingly enough, Jonathan and I both had cameras and we were just quick enough to be able to snap some pics and run like hell before they ate our brains (I did tell one Zombie that my brain was no good anymore and he went along his way...)

Zombies in love. Pretty sure the white orb in the lower part of the picture is a ghost, so I got a two for one deal. Sweet.

Is this the cutest baby Zombie you have ever seen or what?

The Zombies seemed to converge at this park where the film "Shaun of the Dead" happened to be playing. The Zombies were fascinated by the bright lights and sounds so Jonathan and I were able to walk among them without too much fear for our lives.

Slow moving Zombies...

There she is again! Kind enough to pose with my husband... He is the blur on the right. It is really hard to photograph Zombies in low light....

Finally! Someone to protect us....

Our protector was quickly devoured by these guys... Fast moving Zombies, sorry for the blur..

Here I am about to be attacked by a Zombie. Jonathan pulled me away after snapping this pic..

Beauty queen Zombies..

Persistent Zombie. All in all being attacked by Zombies was just as awesome as I thought it would be. I can mark that off my life goal list...

Basterds and Kittens

"Basterds and Kittens" would have been a good blog name. I should have named the blog I do for my parents that. Anyway, I have basked in the glory that is the awesomeness of "Inglourious Basterds." Let me say right away that this is in no way my favorite Tarantino flick, but it is pretty damn close. Strangely enough it reminds me quite a bit of "Jackie Brown" but don't ask me to explain that because it is close to lunch and by belly is rumbling.

"Basterds" has all the Tarantino hallmarks starting with great performances. Brad Pitt is hysterical as the leader of the Basterds. I am glad he is willing to take on these smaller roles (similar to "Burn after Reading") because he really shines in them. The best performance is by Christoph Waltz as the feared "Jew Hunter." It is no wonder he won best actor at Cannes. He is terrifying, intelligent, good at his job, and, as all great villains are, dangerously enticing.

Even Eli Roth is good as the base-ball bat wielding "Bear Jew" (guess what he does with the bat.) Eli Roth might even be growing on me, what with his "Trailers from Hell" commentaries and this flick. Still haven't forgiven him for that shaving scene in "Cabin Fever" though. Gross.

Watching "Inglorious Basterds" is like reading a book- or a fairy tale. The story is told in chapters and the relationships between all the players don't become clear until the bloody, audacious, "I can't believe he is doing that it is so awesome" end. Rumor has it "Basterds" was once going to be a multi-part television show. I could totally see it. Watching the film you want to know more about all the characters, even those that are just on the screen for a few minutes.

So I wouldn't classify this as horror film in anyway, but there is plenty of blood, gore, and head-trauma if that is your kind of thing. It is definitely a geek-out film. It made me as happy as watching this video does....

See, I promised there would be Kittens.

Zombie survival rules

Looks like I won't make the Zombie crawl tomorrow night in San Jose (damn stinkin' job) but I will be there for the aftermath (outdoor showing of Shaun of the Dead and rumored Thriller Dance re-enactment.) Good news is that I do have a cast-iron skillit.

Alive in Joburg

This short film, "Alive in Joburg" was directed by Neill Blomkamp and served as the basis for the AWESOME "District 9." Shot in 2005 the short was produced by Sharlto Copley, who stars in "District 9" and has a small part here. It is interesting to see the changes that Blomkamp made for the feature length film. This is a great short, and can be enjoyed even if you don't plan on seeing the movie. But come on, see the movie. It is really, really good.

Yeah! Another Saw.

Two things I like about the Saw films: Shawnee Smith, who wasn't in the last one (or two, I lose track,) and the posters, which are usually pretty cool. What I hate about the Saw films: that they now have a lock on Halloween and instead of seeing "Halloween 2" or "Trick or Treat" or anything even mildly interesting, we have to sit through more of the same crap.

PS: I had the teaser trailer posted here but it kept playing automatically so I took it off. The flick is not even out yet and I am already annoyed.