Bloody Marie is the latest work of Dutch Cinema I’ve been asked to review. Sold to American audiences as a tale of rip-roaring revenge, it didn’t work like that for me. Marie is an artist that seizes on an opportunity to do something wrong. Now, she’s caught up in the crime that besets the neighborhood around her. Something tells me that the Safdie Brothers could direct an American remake that would just kill. For now, it’s passive curiosity.
Such A Funny Life is a crowdfunded family drama. Hell, at points it feels like a 70s underground director trying to do Mazursky on a Jack Hill budget. The acting is on point with plenty of uncomfortable realness. However, the film tends to enjoy its misery a bit too much. It makes it kinda hard for an audience to sink into the material.
Echoes of Fear goes the opposite direction. I love deep indie horror and I don’t get enough of a chance to cover it. It’s a fun haunted house style movie that seems to ape a little bit of The Grudge. While these kinds of movies are commonplace, the tight locales and acting kept me in the mix. Totally enjoyed it.
Eminence Hill is another one of those indie Westerns that I keep watching. There are some readers that give me grief for that, but damn if I don’t love these movies. What killed me is how Barry Corbin focused it was. Hell, I’ve been enjoying the latest Madden releases due to their in-game Longshot movie things. Mo-cap Barry Corbin is a thing to behold. Back to the western.
What makes Eminence Hill work is how much I buy Lance Henriksen as an older Western star. That gruff and grumble face makes me think of the Saint of Killers. Thankfully, he has the amazing Dominique Swain to balance him out. Solid work all around.
When do these movies arrive in November?
Bloody Marie arrived November 1st, 2019.
Such A Funny Life is in theaters November 6th, 2019.
Echoes of Fear is now in theaters.
Eminence Hill is in theaters November 1st. On DVD/VOD November 5th, 2019.
