Then Playing — Children of a Lesser God; 5 Against the House; Personality Crisis: One Night Only

Children of a Lesser God (Randa Haines, 1986). Much as I admired Children of a Lesser God at the time it was originally released, I’ve long mentally consigned it to the category of earnest nineteen-eighties dramas that probably looked fairly … Continue reading Then Playing — Children of a Lesser God; 5 Against the House; Personality Crisis: One Night Only

Donahue, Hitchcock, Lang, Scorsese and Tedeschi, West

The Sacrament (Ti West, 2014). Following a couple elegant, artful horror features, West finally goes where all modern directors with a propensity to scare must. The Sacrament is a “found footage” that relies on the conceit of a couple Vice News reporters who tag along when a fashion photographer acquaintance goes looking for his sister, who has become a resident with a cult-like commune that has recently relocated to a remote area in South America. The plot draws heavily on the 1978 Jonestown Massacre, right down to the notorious beverage of choice when it comes time to draw the experiment … Continue reading Donahue, Hitchcock, Lang, Scorsese and Tedeschi, West