Lawbolisted Powerful

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Brainsbell The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

Rio Hayward All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

TdSmth5 If you and your friends got together and shot a movie on VHS-C with no budget then you'd have what Nature Morte looks like.And it looks ugly. The lighting is non-existent unless they purposely covered all lighting so that every scene looks dark even outdoor scenes. Couldn't they have gotten someone to hold a flashlight at least. There are some girl-girl sex scenes that are also too dark and edited so poorly, not even those make for interesting viewing.It doesn't look like any actors got involved, because no one can act one bit, except for some of the strippers. And the people playing the parts here couldn't afford make-up either apparently.The sounds is no better, with dialogue so low volume it's hard to understand while some sound effects exceedingly loud.So technically, this movie is a disaster. Production values are zero and it shows.The story involves a sadistic killer and supernatural works of art. The police get the help of an arts expert to hunt down the criminal. That takes them to Thailand for some reason. Not that we get to see much of that place and what we do see is so poorly shot, it's useless. The artist gets deeply involved: drugs, women, a crime perhaps? Back in London and with the criminal supposedly dead, killings starts again. And so the story goes on. This movie seems to have no end, it goes on and on and on "one month later" then "six months later" it's the same over and over with some lady in a wig seducing other women and making them suffer apparently. So the work of the original artist keeps spreading beyond him. That's the supernatural part of all this. Then there some mysterious bald character that takes care of things but he comes and goes without any explanation.I like low budget horror movies, they usually show a love for the genre that the Hollywood industry couldn't even begin to understand and I look for whatever good there is to find. I can't find much in this movie that is watchable let alone enjoyable or entertaining. It is just too poorly shot. This is one of the few movies were I had to fight the urge to fast forward most of it. Unlike most movies today, there is quite a bit of dialogue but what good is that if you can't understand it. There's a story here with plenty of characters. I wish the filmmakers had waited to raise more money and film this in an acceptable quality.

Brian Boyle I saw his film last week at a test screening in London. I read some other website reviews on this before I saw it and to be honest I expected to like it. It as it had been compared to Jean Rollin and commented on by Jess Franco, two of my favourite lunatic directors. Buit I didn't like it, I loved it.A word of warning, it's a pretty complex tale for a low budget horror flic and you really have to watch, the guy in front of me didn't understand it at all. Perhaps it was George Bush.But, I like complicated movies as long as they make sense, and this does, and it's got lashings of kinky lesbians and general sex and violence.A story and sex and violence? In the same film? Shurley shome mishtake? And there's more....it's got a fantastic villain in the skeletal Frenchie Laurent Guyon, and a really great sultry female lead in Carole Derrien as his bonk- anything-mentalist girlfriend. Nature Morte is a massively ambitious project, get this: it takes place in London, France and Asia and features cool old cars, weird costumes (check out Lec's suit), massive houses, a boat, some pretty seamless SFX, and it looks terrific (particularly for a DV movie) with a lot of wild use of colours. Oh yes, and the excellent score is by ex-Banshee Steven Severin and his missus, Arban Severin. Before I get too carried away, there are some so-so bits, and the budget occasionally creaks under the strain of something that was probably written with a much, much bigger production in mind.But it's original, and that's a big big plus, there's nothing like this out there. A refreshing change from the current crop of Hostel copies, oh- so predictable Hills Have Zombie Saws III and desperately unfunny horror comedies (Severance excluded, I loved that one).As it turned out, Nature Morte isn't really much like Rollin (apart from the kinky lesbians), and it's less like Franco (not enough kinky lesbians for that) but, I tell you what, I absolutely loved it, and not just because of the kinky lesbians. Highly recommended.

ohyena I caught this a London preview and I was really impressed. What I thought initially was going to be murder romp had me gripped as an intriguing story unfolded. It kept me guessing and there's a supernatural twist to it that I was not expecting. It is so refreshing to find a such strong storyline, all too often films rely on blood and shocks alone.I found it reminiscent of Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray", the link to the portrait that holds sway over the personality of the killer. This took me a while to pick up on but it is the clever twist the tale. There is also a very haunting dream sequence that rather reminded me of Corman's "Masque of the Red Death", good company to be in.The film is very atmospheric, madly decadent, stylish and erotic. Everyone seems just so damned cool! There is a brooding darkness that pervades the movie and the score is very "Twin Peaks" - absolutely right for this genre.The first victim, Livia, is so convincing, her screams are as utterly blood curdling as her demise is disturbing. Artist Lec is one of the best screen psychos I have ever seen, there is something just so eerie about him - and his dance, well you just have to see it.You really should check this one out when you get a chance.

boomer02 I was fortunate enough to see this film recently and was excited to find a film that uses the classic style of movie direction in the like of Hitchcock (if updated and liberated)in that uses mood and suspense as if a character in the film. Although not a high budget film, it is a well made movie that carries a dark mood which sends chills down your spine while peaking your erotic interest.In this day and age of special effects and ultra violence it is refreshing to see a movie that uses suggestion along with blood and gore. This is not to say there isn't a bit of blood spilled, but the effect is created mainly by the acting and not just special effects gore. What is very special about the movie is the way it transports the viewer to the dark side of sex. You get caught up in the characters' over the limit fetish and come away with a guilty feeling of enjoying watching it.Special note to Carole Derrien's performance. Her alluring and erotic presence blends effectively with a dark and dangerous soul to draw you into her world even though you know it is fatal. All in all a very good film that not only makes you think, but reaches out and grabs you (and twists a bit for good measure).