What I\u2019ve been watching.<\/p>\n
The Gallows<\/strong><\/em>. Out now. To call it \u201cbog standard\u201d would be an insult to God\u2019s honest bog. This is a haunted-school\/revenge-of-the-past flick. Lead actor is handsome and appears able to act. The sets for the school play are terrific, very spooky and effective. Otherwise this feels padded at an hour and a half. Tons of yipping exposition and repetitive arguments from shrill teens; the girls are damsels in distress. Found-footage, which at this point, if you\u2019re just going to hit all the check-boxes of a found-footage film I feel insulted. Twist ending is fine, and well set-up, but overall no, save yourselves.<\/p>\n Ways to improve this movie: More stuff about its being set in Nebraska specifically\u2013more sense of place. Also, if you\u2019re going to take me deep into the creepy tunnels of an institution, I kind of think the movie should in some way be about the chilling past or complicity of the institution itself.<\/p>\n The Ruling Class<\/strong><\/em>: What if The Idiot<\/em> were written by Ippolit, who\u2019s also a British leftist in the early \u201970s? Also, what if \u201clove\u201d were just a euphemism for heterosexuality?<\/p>\n No, I mean, I never regret watching The Ruling Class<\/em>. And I\u2019m sure somebody has already done a dissertation on \u201csurprisingly positive portrayals of Jesus Christ in British satire of the \u201970s,\u201d with like this and Monty Python\u2019s Life of Brian<\/em>. Super acting, strong writing & direction sell a worldview that is not as mind-blowing as maybe it was back in the day.<\/p>\n