Category Archives: Dark

1986, Dark, Drama, Explicit sex, Gloomy, Grim, Mystery Film, Nudity, Religious Theme, Suspense, Torture, Violent

The Name of the Rose (1986)

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From NetFlix:

In this adaptation of Umberto Eco’s best-selling novel, 14th-century Franciscan monk William of Baskerville (Sean Connery) and his young novice (Christian Slater) arrive at a conference to find that several monks have been murdered under mysterious circumstances. To solve the crimes, William must rise up against the Church’s authority and fight the shadowy conspiracy of monastery monks using only his intelligence — which is considerable

Umberto Eco wrote his first novel The Name of the Rose in 1980. Eco is a well-known modern scholar.

Jean-Jaques Annaud, the director, has assembled a cast of the most unusual, distorted, exaggerated, cretinous faces I have ever seen. These faces are perfectly in tune with the dark, forbidding atmosphere of the Benedictine monastery in northern Italy. To keep all the characters straight, try reading the Wikipedia article on the film. Besides Sean Connery and Christian Slater, Ron Perlman as Salvatore is particularly memorable. Salvatore is the retarded hunchback whose garbled speech is a mixture of several languages. Whoever restructured and tonsured all those heads was a genius in the art of actor makeup.

Thanks to my Italian teacher ,Vincenzo Santone, for recommending this film. Of course, Vincenzo would like me to read the original Italian version, which is a challenge. Because I have not read the book, I do not know if it is so condemning of the Catholic church of the early 14th century as is the film. Certainly the film makes the church hierarchy into a pack of sadistic, ignorant, self-indulgent, greedy, superstitious cretins. Naturally, the Inquisition is cast as the fundamentalist, intolerant Taliban of the 14th century.

Here is one film that I could not stop watching.

2000, Could Be Hard To Watch, Dark, Drugs, Explicit sex, Gay theme, Grim, Horror, Nudity, Occasional gore, Sadism, Serial Killer, Suspense, Violent, Vulgar

American Psycho (2000)

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From NetFlix:

With a chiseled chin and an iron physique, Patrick Bateman’s looks make him the ideal yuppie — and the ideal serial killer. That’s the joke behind American Psycho, which follows a killer at large during the 1980s junk-bond boom. Bateman (Christian Bale) takes pathological pride in everything from his business card to his Huey Lewis CD collection, all the while plotting his next victim’s vivisection.

Opinions vary wildly on this controversial film. Despite the horror, I found myself laughing at the satirical approach to nonchalant mayhem. Moreover, in this vein I saw the obvious connection between this story and the TV series Dexter (2006) featuring a serial killer who kills serial killers.

Certain more objectionable parts were left in the uncut version that I got from NetFlix. Should I have felt guilty watching this film ? At any rate, let me just jot down some “notes” and let you decide. To help you form an opinion you might also read the Wikipedia article.

  • Christian Bale is a study in perfect acting. He put himself through intense physical training to look the part.
  • Much of the satire centers on the complete vapidity of the financial traders. They constantly try to outdo each other by creating fancy calling cards. At one point Patrick is so incensed that someone else’s card is nicer than his card that he goes out and vents his anger by murdering someone.
  • Another point of satire is the obsession about eating at the best restaurant, one-upping each other on begin able to get a prized reservation.
  • Reese Witherspoon does a great job as Patrick’s clueless fiancee. In one restaurant scene she babbles on about the personalities she spies while Patrick is drawing sadomasochistic pictures on the tablecloth.
  • Willem Dafoe is a totally different actor from his usual self. He successfully portrays a private detective affecting an exaggerated smile and cloying society manners.
  • Little by little I began to suspect that Patrick’s intimate circle of financial goons (who explicitly hated women) were all homosexual. Patrick calls this phenomenon the “Yale thing”.
  • As he prepares yet another victim for slaughter, he banters on and on to that unsuspecting victim about the marvels of some piece of popular music.
  • You never see damage being done to a human body. You may be there while it is happening, but you do not really see it. Just the very bloody aftermath. At one point you see a completely naked and blood covered Patrick running down a hall with a chain saw.
  • At one point Patrick really loses his grip and the film also seems to lose control.

My biggest disappointment was that I did not understand how the story ended. If anyone has the stomach to watch this blood bath, please tell me how Patrick gets away with his crimes. Did he kill someone who was pretending to be Paul Allen ? What happened when at the end he steals into an apartment being shown for rent only to discover that all his bodies stashed in the closet have disappeared ?

Not really a gore fest, but close!

2010, Could Be Hard To Watch, Cynical, Dark, Drugs, Grim, Occasional gore, Redemption, Suspense, Violent

Repo Men (2010)

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From NetFlix:

In the world of this sci-fi thriller set in the not-too-distant future, artificial organs are readily available to anybody with a credit card. But what happens if a buyer falls delinquent on his payments? Jude Law stars as an organ repo man who’s now fleeing his ex-partner after failing to keep up the payments on his own recently installed ticker. Miguel Sapochnik directs; Forest Whitaker and Liev Schreiber co-star.

Do NOT watch this film with your family in front of a cozy fire near the Christmas tree because “Repo Men” is easily one of the more gory and disturbing films I have ever seen. It is based on the novel Repossession Mambo by Eric Garcia. Having warned you, I now encourage those of you with strong stomachs to see this film. Jude Law, newly beefed up, and his partner Forest Whitaker portray chillingly a pair of opportunist thugs whose job is indeed to retrieve transplanted body organs from clients who have fallen behind on their outrageously expensive loans at more than 19% interest. You must be able to watch Jude Law use a stun gun to paralyze a “deadbeat” and then rip the client’s body open and reach in and pull out a heart, liver, kidney, or whatever. Perhaps you might prefer a Disney movie.

As with so many post-apocalyptic stories, there are abandoned, gritty sections of the city where the castoffs live. It seems most castoffs are hunted for their bodies filled with transplanted organs. For a similar situation see the film “Blade Runner”. Also note the theme of organ transplants in films such as “Dirty Pretty Things” and “Never Let Me Go”.

Before you click away from this description, I have to say that in a certain way this is a story of redemption. There is a point here. Whereas Liev Schreiber does a superb job as an amoral salesman for body parts, and whereas Forest Whitaker seems unconcerned about the ugliness of it all (after all, “a job is just a job”), Jude Law starts to regret and eventually realizes the horror of what he does for a living.

Because the ending confused me, I found it helpful to read the Wikipedia article. Perhaps reading the original book might help.

You have been warned!

2009, Car Chase, Conspiracy, Dark, Detective, Explicit sex, Gay theme, Grim, Nudity, Rape, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Violent

The Girl Who Played With Fire (2009)

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From NetFlix:

Tech expert Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) becomes the prime suspect when two journalists, including Dag Svensson (Hans Christian Thulin), die after Millennium magazine publisher Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) launches an exposé of the Swedish sex trade. In Part 2 of the trilogy based on the action novels of Stieg Larsson, the vampiric Salander vanishes as Blomkvist digs deep into a possible conspiracy.

Here we discuss the Swedish version.

You should first (read and) see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2009) which is the first book of the Millenium trilogy by Stieg Larsson. Actors from the first film continue into the second film which follows faithfully the book such that its ending will flow into the third book.

Fortunately the DVD from Netflix allowed me to have both English dubbing as well as SDH subtitles for the hard-of-hearing. The dubbing does not match exactly the subtitles, but that does not matter. Moreover, the dubbing is spoken with very clear diction. If your hearing ever suffers you may discover that American actors often mumble because diction lessons are not part of the American acting tradition.

This time around I appreciated the actor Michael Nyqvist better and found that he fit the part. He is somewhat inert, but perhaps that is the intent. In general it is revealing to first read the novel and then compare your mental pictures of the characters with the actors chosen.

There is an explicit Lesbian sex scene. There is a rape scene.

2009, British Mystery Series, Child Molestation, Conspiracy, Could Be Hard To Watch, Cynical, Dark, DO NOT MISS, Drama, Grim, Gritty, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Torture, TV Series, Violent

Red Riding Trilogy (2009)

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Those of you with weak hearts or stomachs should not watch this three part British crime series. The three parts are:

  • Part 1: 1974

    • Loosely based on the facts surrounding Britain’s notorious Yorkshire Ripper case, this grim thriller, Part 1 in the television adaptation of David Peace’s novels, uncovers rampant police and civil corruption in mid-1970s Northern England. Girls are disappearing, the Yorkshire community is abuzz with gossip and fear, and a young reporter (Andrew Garfield) is suspicious when a mentally handicapped immigrant is fingered for the heinous crimes

  • Part 2: 1980

    • After six years of vicious unsolved murders, Manchester policeman Peter Hunter (Paddy Considine) arrives in West Yorkshire to supervise the Yorkshire Ripper investigation, along with a copycat killer case, in this second installment of the Red Riding trilogy. Meanwhile, he must also deal with local police corruption and his struggle to remain faithful to his wife while working closely with his ex, fellow investigator Helen Marshall (Maxine Peake).

  • Part 3: 1983

    • When the current case of a missing 10-year-old becomes linked to the abduction and murder of Clare Kemplay in 1974, investigators torture the man who found Clare’s body in an effort to learn more in this final installment of the Red Riding trilogy. Meanwhile, solicitor John Piggott’s (Mark Addy) conversations with the man found guilty of the old abduction points to a wrongful conviction and a search for the real murderer.

Each part is self-contained. Cynical in the extreme, these hopeless portraits deal with insurmountable official corruption at every level: police, journalists, politicians, businessmen, etc. At times the violence is difficult to watch.

Two items of interest: One reader has supplied an interesting bit of Yorkshire history that may explain the title. Also, because the plots are somewhat complicated, there is a Wikipedia article.

So why would you ever watch such a difficult theme ? Because these three gems are just about perfect in every way, provided you can stand to watch.

2009, Child Molestation, Could Be Hard To Watch, Dark, Detective, Explicit sex, Nudity, Occasional gore, Rape, Revenge, Sadism, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Swedish, Violent

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2009)

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From NetFlix:

Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and rebellious computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) team up to investigate the unsolved disappearance of wealthy Henrik Vanger’s (Sven-Bertil Taube) teen niece (Ewa Fröling), only to uncover dark secrets about Vanger’s powerful family. Niels Arden Oplev directs this Swedish thriller based on the first novel from Stieg Larsson’s best-selling trilogy.

Note: This 2009 version is the Swedish version.

Currently (2010) Stieg Larsson’s Millenium trilogy is very popular. After having read the first of the trilogy, namely The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2005), I preferred the book to the film. Although there were many moments of good acting, in general there was also an awful lot of thoughtful staring (which in today’s films seems often like a substitute for more active acting). To control length the film omits many details from the novel. While not necessary, these details connect the books of the trilogy to one another.

Lisbeth Salander is striking. What was a surprise for me that the actor playing Mikael Blomkvist is a somewhat paunchy, not at all handsome, and often hesitant man. To his credit he shows fear when he should. To say it another way, he is NOT a macho character.

Needless to say, the film does preserve in explicit detail the famous scene in which Lisbeth’s lawyer guardian rapes her, together with her ingenious revenge.

2005, Book Review, Child Molestation, Complicated, Dark, Detective, Explicit sex, Kidnapping, Occasional gore, Plot Twist, Rape, Revenge, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Violent

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2005)

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From the book jacket:

Harriet Vanger, scion of one of Sweden’s wealthiest families, disappeared over forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to seek the truth. He hires Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently trapped by a libel conviction, to investigate. He is aided by the pierced and tattooed punk prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of unfathomable iniquity and astonishing corruption.

Stieg Larsson has written a trilogy entitled “Millennium” whose three books in order are:

  • The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
  • The Girl Who Played With Fire
  • The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets’ Nest

My Vintage Books paperback edition is 644 pages long. Because the book is such a page-turner I devoured the book in a weekend. I was intent on reading the book before I watched the Danish film version.

Much of the narrative alternates often between the activities of Blomkvist and Salander, somewhat like ships in the night. Eventually they work closely together. Take “closely” to have two meanings because Blomkvist in the course of the novel sleeps with three different women.

Expect some graphic rape scenes, sadistic serial killings, and really nasty members of the Vanger clan. Also expect to have a lot of fun.

Initially I tried to maintain a written list of the many characters. Finally the novel itself provides a table of Vanger family members to which I often referred.

2009, Black and White Film, Child Molestation, Dark, Explicit sex, German, Gloomy

The White Ribbon (2009)

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From NetFlix:

At a rural school in northern Germany in 1913, a form of ritual punishment has major consequences for students and faculty. But the practice may have bigger repercussions on the German school system — and maybe even on the growth of fascism. Celebrated Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke helms this Golden Globe-winning, sumptuously photographed black-and-white drama that stars Susanne Lothar, Ulrich Tukur and Theo Trebs.

Quite possibly the gloomiest, most depressing, hopeless, and exasperating film I have ever seen. The gloom is aided and abetted by the fact that it is filmed in black and white with an emphasis on black. In fact, the houses in this pre-electric period were probably quite dark.

If you believe this film, pre-WWI rural Germans were beasts. What a wonderful collection of men who commit incest, men who treat their sex partners like dirt, undiscovered villagers that maim horses, torture retarded children, kill house pets, burn down buildings, etc. The pastor is such a strict disciplinarian that he canes his children, forces them to wear white ribbons (which mean that they are bad people who need to reform), and ties his son’s hands each night to the bed lest the boy masturbate. Need I continue ?

If you can stand this atmosphere, then as an art film it is excellent. Assumedly you really get a feeling for life in that era. I just hope it is historically accurate.