The Machinist is a film that I'm looking to check out, soon. It's playing at a theater over in NYC not too far from my place, and hopefully this weekend I'm there.
Went to check out The Grudge this weekend. Have to say, honestly... it was better than I had expected it to be. Seeing as it was a remake, and I had already seen the original Japanese film Ju-on I had low expectations. But it delivered the goods (and the scares - just ask the bunch of 15 year old girls who were sitting behind me, who screamed every 6 minutes - or at least, that's how it felt). I think using the same director as the original used had a lot to do with that. And of course, the fact that Sarah Michelle Gellar is in it, and I just love SMG, didn't hurt either.
It was a creepy, dark film. Even though I knew what was about to happen, it still creeped me out at times. I think the fact that they used the same actor/actress for the two "monsters" in the film also helped to keep it feeling close to the original. And those two definitely are creepy looking in that film. If you're in the mood for a few scares, go check it out. Just make sure you see it in a theater with a better crowd than what I was lucky enough to see.
Let's put it this way - opening scene, guy jumps off his balcony and kills himself - crowd erupts in laughter?? I didn't get it. Not to mention that there are parts where the director goes back to his J-Horror roots with the direction of the film - that is, not presenting it in a straight forward manner. You know how Tarantino always jumps around in the "timeline" for his films? Well, he pretty much got that style from J-Horror. And this film uses it in some good ways. But the crowd didn't get it. In the beginning of the film, the sister calls up the house to find out how the mother is doing. Later in the film, we see the sister in her office, late at night, making the call. Some dumbass behind me says, "She left the same message earlier in the movie". I wanted to stand up and smack him in the head, and say "No, **** for brains, this is the earlier scene, but they are just going back in the story to show what happens!!!"
Kids....
Next up this weekend (hopefully): SAW