Film Filter: Off So I was waiting diligently for this film to come out, and I even went so far as to watch the original (which I'm embarrassed to admit, I don't do often enough) before I went to the theater. Needless to say, after watching the trailer and hearing all the hype, I was pretty stoked to see this movie.
Pros- This film followed the plot of the original pretty closely, which I consider a good thing. There is definitely a difference between a re-make, a re-telling, and a sequel, and it's pretty clear that this is a solid re-make, with some dollops of ingenuity thrown in as well.
I can't really say a whole lot about the actors, as it doesn't really take a lot of strong ability to portray frightened adolescents, however I will say that they were very well cast for their roles. Each character had their own little niche that they fit into to make up the story, and some of them even had to act possessed and be psychotic, which I assume would be pretty hard on its own. Add into the equation that they must also go back and forth between said possessed state and their normal character state and then you get a decently challenging role.
This movie, based on previews, appears to be 90% gore. Surprisingly, despite the fact that there is almost a sufferable amount of blood, it is fairly evenly balanced with other scare tactics as well. The build up to all of the gory scenes was fantastic, comparable to some scenes in Sinister where you KNEW something was going to happen, but it scared you anyway. Those are pretty magic moments, right thurr. They also have a good, though slightly over the top, system of incorporating music into the film. Again, like most horror flicks, it strongly foreshadowed an event, but if that's something that bothered you immensely, than maybe scary movies aren't your thing and you should check out some rom coms.
One of the things this movie does well that separates itself from the pack is its ability to show the un-showable. Some movies go there, but the vast majority leave you with the individual parts to piece together the grotesque moment ahead, and let your imagination fill in the gaps. This film does not, it's pretty much all right there on the table for you to see. The jury's still out on if it made the film better, but the movie certainly gets points for being ballsy.
Holy intro. I watched a pretty unsettling preview (The Conjuring...pretty stoked to see that one!) and felt relieved when the movie actually started, since I knew the plot would work its way into the scary parts and not start with them. Wrong. It did a throwback to a much older time period, which did two things 1) set the movie up with some background info, and 2) be delightfully unpredictable for those of us expecting the beginning to mirror that of the original film. Genius!
Lastly, as I could probably go on, this movie refreshed my faith in re-makes, as there are some pitiful excuses for them out there. It did not derail itself form the original, but instead added very important background information, refreshed plot points to make them applicable to modern day while also furthering the story in a believable way, and filled in gaps in the story line. Sure, it was quite different in parts, but the story is pretty much the same thing with a more modern feel, which is how good remakes should be. That being said, there is a time, place, and reason for a remake, and not every horror movie made circa 1980 needs to have a makeover. There's a lot to be said for antiquated horror, and we also have to remember that, at the time, some of those movies were the best of the genre.
Cons- Other than slightly over-the-top musical excerpts, and some slight inconsistencies with the storyline, I really didn't have any cons.
Wrap up: If you're not interested in blood and gore, this movie is most definitely not for you. If you can stomach the gross parts (which is more than half the movie) then I highly recommend it.
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