I love both Peter Stormare and Jason Flemyng, and I’d been wanting to see Bruiser (2000) for awhile. Not to mention I’ve been trying to see all of George A.Romero‘s films, and Bruiserwas conveniently free to watch on FearNet.
Jason Flemyng plays Henry, a hardworking sweetheart of a guy who is betrayed and lied to on a regular basis. He has brief moments where he imagines himself acting out in violence towards those who mistreat him. In reality, he never sticks up for himself or confronts anyone. Eventually he actually loses his identity. His face transforms into a featureless white mask (it is very creepy to me that you can’t see his eyes). His personality changes, and he eventually exacts revenge on those who have wronged him.
The movie spends plenty of time making certain you feel bad for Henry and at the same time feel complete disdain for Henry’s boss Milo (Peter Stormare). Milo is a wealthy, rude, overindulgent sleaze, who treats everyone badly. The people who work for Milo simply refer to him as “the ass hole”. I’m not the best person to say if Stormare did a good job because I always like him, no matter how over the top or subdued he is in a role. I’m certain some would disagree with me, but I really did not mind the slower pace of the film. In fact I really enjoyed the time spent getting to know the characters, especially Henry and Milo. I did think the death scenes were pretty unoriginal. So much time was spent showing Henry as this weakling, and you think once he becomes anonymous he is going to go completely crazy and finally kick some ass. But not really, only sort of. This only really bothered me the first time I watched it. I still really enjoyed Bruiser and even watched it a second time to see both Flemyng and Stormare. I will probably watch it again, ya know to see Flemyng and Stormare.
I’ve always been a fan of Brittany Murphy. I watched Deadline (2009) a few days before her death was announced, and didn’t feel like writing about it until now. I would say if you are a Brittany Murphy fan then you will enjoy her performance in this creepy thriller written and directed by Sean McConville. Murphy plays Alice, a young writer past her deadline who chooses to stay in an isolated house for a few days so she can avoid distractions and get some work done. It becomes quickly apparent that Alice has had some sort of trauma and wants to be secluded because she is hiding from something. She is very fragile and her friend very reluctantly leaves her in the secluded home without a vehicle. Once Alice is alone a series of strange events begin. Is someone from beyond the grave trying to ask her for help? Is it all in her imagination? Is someone else in the house tormenting her? These are all questions you’ll ask while viewing this film. Deadline also stars the wonderful actress Thora Birch, who can also be seen in American Beauty and Ghost World, two of my favorite non-fear films. Marc Blucas also stars in Deadline, but for me it’s difficult to see him as anyone but Riley from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series. The performance of Brittany Murphy was outstanding, I really felt the terror and complete anguish her character experienced.
Written and directed by Nathan Hope, Elsewhere (2009) is a thriller with an entire cast of recognizable and somewhat famous actors. Most notably are Anna Kendrick (Jessica in the Twilight films, and recent Golden Globe nominee for Up in the Air), Tania Raymonde (probably most recognized as Alex Rosseau from LOST), Paul Wesley (Stefan from The Vampire Diaries), and Jon Gries (who has a really long resume but I mostly recognize him as Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite).
The plot: In small town USA two teenage girls, Sara (Kendrick) and Jillian (Raymonde), are best friends and complete opposites. While Sara is training for the school track team Jillian is posting revealing photos of herself on the Internet and meeting men online. The two girls work at the same shop with the very sheltered Darlene (Olivia Dawn York), whose overprotective father (Gries) is constantly stopping by. When not smoking pot or meeting men on the Internet Jillian also enjoys tormenting her on again off again jerk boyfriend Billy (Wesley).
One evening, Jillian goes out with a mystery man from the Internet and disappears. Sara is the only person concerned that her best friend is missing. With help from Jasper (Chuck Carter), the nerd with a huge crush on her, Sara is determined to find Jillian.
It’s difficult for me to describe my feelings about this film. It’s far from genius, however I was entertained throughout the film so I can overlook a couple holes in a fairly simple storyline. All the actors were perfectly cast and Anna Kendrick was especially good in the leading role. If you are a fan of Anna Kendrick I would recommend watching this just to see her performance. Overall, the acting and the production value of this film are both very good.
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