Change Your Image
goregirl6
Reviews
The God Memoirs (2007)
Mistaken Identity
I will begin by warning you that in no way is this a great film...I am not saying go buy it immediately as this film will not be and should not be for everyone. It just did not deserve as bad of a review as the previous commenter left...I think by not recognizing the intention of the film...much is lost and i think there is a market for this film that would be lost if someone did not do the film a little bit of justice. If i had read the previous review I would not have watched it...I'm glad I did as the film is much more than I think anyone expects from a no budget picture.
Much like the first reviewer I did turn this film off 40 minutes in. Now I know why am I giving it a 6...well like the first reader I was expecting a violent, over-the-top gore fest. I wanted a vicious serial killer with no mercy and innocent victims being slaughtered...Why? well sometimes mindless horror is great...and the truth is that is how this film is being marketed. The site I saw it on before I rented it on NetFlixs compared it to Henry.
I would have returned the film...except I couldn't figure out why it was so bad...I love low budget; crappy production; home grown horror schlock...I have sat through the best and the worse and this film did not sit with me. So I watched it again.
The truth is...It's not a horror film and I don't know why they marketed it that way...but then again after watching it I don't know how they could have marketed it...I guess because it has blood and supposed ghost it becomes lodged in a genre. Then again IMDb does have it listed as Splatter/ Art film..which is very true.
The film is not so much about a killer as it is about depression...You have to listen and follow the monologues to understand anything that is going on...it's a movie about life and making sense of that beyond your control. This is not great film making..but then again it is novel and probably more true to true film development than pointless voice overs. It also gives the film more of a journal like structure which by the title I believe was intended. The film does an excellent job of putting the viewer in the role of the main character...who has no name and could be anyone. The film is dry...boring..even the murders that should be exciting are forced and uneventful...the whole film is comprised of beautiful shots..and the whole time you are think..when will this end. Unfortunately the director has nailed depression and anyone that has been severely depressed will find it all too familiar. I don't think anyone could do that without intention...every low budget film I have seen fails in trying to be over exciting..It's rare that someone under does the action and violence.
The killings and tortures are not real, but symbolic for parts of himself that he is losing...at least that is how I read it...the monster at the end that he is building to "save him" that he calls his God, can only be interpreted as the manifestation of his depression...this essence that has defined his life and guides him...a being that he gives into and stops fighting in hopes that it will make everything go away.
This is a rare attempt at film making indeed. A portrayal of a mental illness into the form of a monster. It's not a bad idea...and the film does run long. I think a tighter cut around 1:30 would do the viewer more justice...but I don't think the viewer was taken into consideration as much as the story and the feel of the film..which in itself is contrary to what most viewers want. This is one on the first times I think I can say that the budget on the film may have effected the product adversely. Again, I love the low budget, German circuit, and Subrosa type films. This, however, may have reach more people or have been taken more seriously by viewers if it had that smoothness behind it. The way it is shot..is for an audience that normally doesn't care what is being said or what the story really is...it is shot like a blood and guts picture.
The acting is not that bad...some of the victims are a bit over the top..and some of the screams seem fake...but for some reason that style feels right. The music in the film is probably some of the best music I've heard in a no budget production. It would seem lucky that the people who made it could also score it. Plus let's face it the whole metal and Horror thing is getting old, and so is the techno beat and synth pad arrangements.
I don't think you should rent this film unless you are aware of what you are getting into...it is intriguing, and novel...but boring and slow. do not rent this film if you do not have an appreciation for the real art film which in itself tells you it is going to be boring and dull; and do not rent or see this movie based on the idea that it is a serial killer film...I think the bad review before is the result of a mistaken identity...and if you watch this movie believing the intention is one thing...you will miss the intention that is there...much like the movie itself is trying to point out.
Scrapbook (2000)
Sadistic Violence...a Character Study of Torture
Okay...you are going to hate this film and here is why...there is a very low body count...there is no real chase scene or exciting action...it is obviously shot on video with no budget...But then again from most of the independent review I've been reading...you're probably missing the point...Here's why. The movie is a claustrophobic mind screw about the relationship that develops between a killer and his victim...it's not fun...it's not funny...and when the victim is truly helpless it is not exciting...seriously how much crap are you going to give an abductor when you are beaten and tied down? The Movie is brutal in that you have to get into the mind set of the victim...the problem with modern horror is that we have lost that..thank you House of 1000 Corpses...now people only want to be able to relate to the killers and cheer for them...Scrapbook is not about that...you might also have to be a little educated on the idea of Stockholm Syndrome...to understand the victims emphasizing with the killer and how the ending of the film comes about...it's not mention but it is assumed that most people have heard of Patty Hearst or have taken Pysch 101..but this too is a problem with independent horror is that it might expect too much from it's audience. Scrap book is not your traditional horror film...it is also not an over the top Gore feast like the August underground Films...what it is is a Psychological investigation into a killer and his last victim...it's not bad...maybe over ambitious...and the being shot on video actually adds to this film as it makes the experience more real and takes away the fantastic element that the film quality adds...that can be unnerving for some people...and I think that is in part...a factor of Stanze's decision to go that way.
Space Wolf (2003)
Cheap German Gore...I love it
Okay...let me start off by saying that this film is not for everyone. If you are looking Hollywood production values, suspenseful scares, and character studies portrayed by the best the industry has to offer...you can skip this film. If you are looking for over the top gore and a fun filled hour and a half. Go for it. The idea is basically a counselor is trying a new approach to deal with troubled children so he takes them camping...so its not an original idea but what is these days terror in the woods is s staple of the genre so you know hat you are in for. Once there trouble happens the kids need help...but there is a giant alien monster in the way...Okay so it's not Ittenbach's best effects work but at least he was trying something new with monster design instead of just visceral gore. There is a nice import version available with English subs so you can follow the story...well whatever story there really is; but these films are not about story they are about horror...they are amateur releases that I feel hold true to the essence that was horror..in the same vain as Texas Chainsaw massacre, the Hills Have Eyes; Last House on the Left, Blood Shack and other...they are low budget, low value, campy films that have more heart and soul than most of the crap released in America over the past ten years. What makes these movies great is not the acting, cinematography, elaborate story..but rather the energy that is behind the production; that is still felt in the finished product..Timo Rose who made this film..loved this movie and you know it...watching it..understanding where it came from ...you can see the joy and excitement in filming and desire to tell this story...whether good or not. The truth is I would much rather watch a film that has heart, than some over-produced cookie cutter film from a director with 6 million dollars who picked up a script from someone else and says to himself..."yeah..I'll do it because it sells..the kids like horror" Space wolf belongs in that genre of horror for the love of the art...and I think people who enjoy what horror is supposed to be will enjoy this film.