I wanted to see a portmanteau movie... This one was successful in that each of the individual stories is well-paced, no matter how brief the length or scant the plot elements. As for the framing device ... The characters' discussions inside The Vault felt eerie enough, since it was difficult to tell what anyone
remembered about their real lives. The design of the overhead shots through the vault ceiling are a valiant attempt to modernize the gothic. But the rest of the cinematography consists of hack shots and quick gambits to jolt the audience -- like someone wearing a joy-buzzer and grabbing you by the wrist before you can shake hands. "Bargain In Death" is not getting much praise in the comments here, but it has the most unique plot and the real (untelegraphed) surprise of the whole movie. Otherwise, "The Neat Job" makes spectacular use of the energy and precision of the two leads. In "Drawn & Quartered", Tom Baker's presence is scarier than any of the black magic. Also in that episode, the filmmakers try to outdo the gunman's POV from Hitchcock's Spellbound. Don't think there's enough room in that idea to surpass the original, which was done stylish and dreamlike and somewhat artificial, but granted, it was uncomfortable to have a quivering gun pointed at my face for what felt like 3 minutes. It's like the movie is saying, "Be scared or I'll blow your head off." -- Fine, fine, you're so desperate, you're definitely starting to freak me out.
April 29, 2011
