My weekly movie reviews. You can also read these on letterboxd.
This week focuses on three films shot by Maxime Alexandre who I recently worked with on my new film FRONTIER CRUCIBLE.
NEVER LET GO (2024)
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Why this film didn’t do better at the box office is a mystery to me… then again, most good films fall through the cracks these days. NEVER LET GO is far better than most new films I see these days.
This psychological horror story directed by Alexandre Aja is mystical and creepy. It’s an intelligent study of trauma and the passing down of trauma, combining elements of THE VILLAGE and THE QUIET PLACE in an original framework. It’s a movie that reminds you of being young when the shapes of shadows and trees could fill the imagination with fear. I also appreciate the third act twist and the scene with the hiker is one of the most chilling I’ve witnessed this year (besides the entirety of LONGLEGS). Could it be that horror movies will be the best of 2024? In a time when prestige pictures have become so dull and full of themselves, I find myself turning to genre films more and more.
My only complaint about this one is the heavy-CGI climax. They really didn’t need to go that big; the movie would be stronger with a more simplistic and practical finish. Still, this is fine work from Aja and my friend DP Maxime Alexandre.
Watched at Cinemark 10 in Sierra Vista, AZ.
THE HILLS HAVE EYES (2006)
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
I hadn’t seen this movie since it played in theaters but now working with DP Maxime Alexandre, I wanted to give it another look. The movie lived well in my memory, a standout in the horror remakes that flooded cinemas in the early 2000s. It was intense, fun, and smarter than its peers. I mostly feel the same way nearly twenty years later.
THE HILLS HAVE EYES does not feel as disturbing or scary nowadays, probably because it’s impossible to not compare it to the films that followed in its wake, but it remains a fun horror experience. The one sequence that truly disturbs is the trailer raid, specifically the breast milking moment and the very odd, almost cute shot of the mutant with the baby.
Otherwise, HILLS plays as more of an action/adventure film. It’s a fun ride watching the atypical leading man (who I quite like) fight through mutant land to get his kidnapped baby. And all the visuals make his journey riveting, from the sets (built in Morocco but selling well as the American desert) to the excellent makeup to Maxime’s sun blistered frames.
It may not pack the punch it once did and it may have some plot holes that are far too easy to step in but this remains a standout entry in in early 2000s horror and an enjoyable watch.
Watched on Tubi.
MANIAC (2012)
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
The third film I watched this month that was shot by Maxime Alexandre who I’m about to work with on my new film, FRONTIER CRUCIBLE.
This POV thriller is inventive and creepy. From a technical perspective alone, MANIAC is a delight to watch. Maxime basically gives a performance alongside Elijah as his legs and one hand, operating the body rig through nearly every shot. At the same time, the POV is pretty seamless and after the first five minutes you get absorbed in the story, forgetting the camera tricks. A couple moments where they break their own rules pulled me out of the experience and I have to stay that I wish they’d rigidly stuck to his perspective, perhaps only breaking it in the flashbacks. I also like that the movie is boldly sexual and sexy regardless of its disturbing nature. The ending is pretty unforgettable.
Watched on Amazon.
