Search - Horror on DVD

A chilling mood piece

07/05/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"HORROR is a dream come true for fans of offbeat horror movies. This movie is not for everyone but if you like dreamlike sets and demonic music you're in for a nice treat. Lots of crazy, deeply creepy imagery and sounds here. What did it all mean? You Are Going to Hell, which I gather was the premise since the director talks about it during his commentary. I also read the article in Fangoria Magazine - Alice in Wonderland on Acid. I liked HORROR better than DESECRATION, the director's first devil-movie effort. I thought the acting was actually quite good for a film of this budget (only $200, 000 and House of 1000 Corpses was about 7 million!!!!). Tomaselli works wonders with such a low budget. Lizzy Mahon as the Reverend's daughter was definitely the stand-out here. Some of the other actors were questionable. I have to mention there is a scene on a torture rack that will make you squirm. Kreskin is demented and sometimes funny as Grace's grandfather (who may be alive or dead?). The cinematography is gorgeous. Even if you have no idea what's happening, Tomaselli's usage of colors and sounds to paint his landscape of eerie nightmares is impressive. Now I hear that there is a remake of SUSPIRIA coming out. I'm upset and ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE!!!!!!! that Hollywood will ruin it (Isn't this happening to Texas Chainsaw Massacre as well?). I'd only want to see the Suspiria remake if Dante Tomaselli is directing. Is he? If he's not - somebody should get him because he really REALLY should. It would be fascinating to see the results. I know the director has got to be a fan of DARIO ARGENTO. Argento's influence is all over this movie (and DESECRATION). All in all, HORROR is an interesting little treat, from an underrated horror director we will hopefully be seeing a lot more from in the future. I dig his freaky satanic-themed movies and I can't wait for the next. Keep them coming."

A filmmaker to watch out for!

Cubist | United States | 07/21/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Having seen Dante Tomaselli's first feature film, Desecration, his latest, Horror, demonstrates that this up-and-coming filmmaker is perfecting his own style of filmmaking. While he does harken back to Italian horror maestros like Mario Bava and Dario Argento, the complex soundscapes Tomaselli creates for his movies are quite reminiscent of David Lynch's movies. And like John Carpenter, he also composes much of the soundtrack for his movies. This puts Tomaselli in good company indeed.Horror is a creepy, waking nightmare a la Lost Highway where the protagonist is eternally damned. There are some truly striking images in Horror that linger in the brain long after the film ends. This is a truly unsettling, old school horror movie that is a breath of fresh air after the self-reflexive cycle of Scream films.The DVD is packed with some nice extras. The real stand-out is the audio commentary by Tomaselli. He provides many fascinating insights into what inspires and influences him and unravels a bit of the ambiguity that the film creates.Along with Larry Fessenden's Wendigo and the low budget Canadian werewolf film, Ginger Snaps, Tomaselli's Horror heralds a new wave of horror films that echo the no-holds-barred aesthetics of the '70s generation. Horror is definitely worth a look and remember the name Dante Tomaselli -- he's a filmmaker who's going places."

Don't watch before bed!

Jason Greeno | San Diego, CA | 06/08/2003

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This film is plodding, incoherent, and put me to sleep two nights in a row. Sure there are some frightening visuals (not as crazy as Desecration's scissor scene, however) and an eerie circular plot structure, but this film is just hard to get pulled in by. I kept wanting to pay attention and get "into" the story, but I found it too out-there to follow. I'm very glad to hear that Tomaselli's new film "Satan's Playground" will have a strong script and a plot that the audience will be able to follow. Buy this film if you like; however, I do expect you will be a bit disappointed in this sophomore effort from a hopefully soon-to-be-great filmmaker."

A dark, drug-fuelled piece of expressionist cinema

Matthew King | Toronto, Canada | 12/20/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The second effort from independent filmmaker Dante Tomaselli, "Horror" blazes much of the same trail set forth with his first film "Desecration". "Horror" is a non-stop assault of strange imagery, drugged-out hallucinations, unexplainable continuity jumps and zealous religious fanaticism. Despite the obviously limited budget, "Horror" manages to raise some serious scares and contains some memorable scenes. 5 drug-addicted teenagers escape from a rehab clinic, steal a van and head on their way to the house of Salo, a psychotic preacher who visited them while they were locked up and offered promises of salvation. On the drive to Salo's house, the youths indulge themselves in all the booze, marijuana and mushrooms that their hearts desire. Upon arriving to Salo's house "Luck" the leader of the gang and most intoxicated of the group, stumbles into the house to find a young woman (Grace) being physically abused by what he sees as two demons. After shooting them both with his revolver, he discovers that he has in reality shot Salo and his wife, Grace's abusive parents. Somehow, the killings trigger a supernatural force over the house and its surroundings. The woods bordering the house are now filled with satanic symbolisms, trippy-looking trees with candy canes and Jack-O-lanterns attached to the branches and hordes of night-crawling ghouls.It is noticeable right away that "Horror" is trying mightily hard to be a scary genre effort. For the most part, it succeeds. The woods bordering the house are filled with mist and fog and impending doom. This is one of the best examples I've seen in a while of a movie that effectively employs the use of sound as a tactic to scare the viewer using such devices as creaking doors, insane female giggling and blowing wind. And shooting the movie in the middle of winter amid heavy snow and blistering cold add to the feeling of dread.

Curiously enough, one of the things that failed to spook me was the goat itself. On the DVD cover as the film's mascot and a species that has long been linked with Satanism, the goat appears in several scenes, usually as the terror factor is mounting. But instead of being scary I found this goat, with its fluffy fur and "who me" look of innocence, to be kind of cute and cuddly-looking. I'm quite certain that's not the effect the director was hoping for but that's how I took it. And of course this being an indie low-budgeter, the acting is at times quite horrid. Although Reverend Salo Sr. (played by "The amazing Kreskin") and the character of Grace (Lizzy Mahon) gave admirable performances, everyone else's acting left LOTS to be desired especially the woman who plays Marissa, one of the 5 escaped addicts. To say that woman couldn't act her way out of a paperbag would be putting it kindly. Despite the low-budget cheapness, I found "Horror" to be highly enjoyable and very creepy. Dante Tomaselli is a stylistic director whose work conjures up flashes of Mario Bava and Dario Argento's classic Giallos. I admire Tomaselli for playing it straight-up and going for scares instead of resorting to comedic gore or self-referential nonsense like so many horror movies that are manufactured for the masses."