Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Intcatinfo A Masterpiece!

xtehxsammehx Wow. So my boyfriend and I went to the movie store to rent a film. I like dumb horror movies, so I browsed the variety of terrible films they had to offer while he went off in search of Michael Moore's 'Sicko'. So then I found the worst of all of them (as I would soon find out). It looked good on the cover and the description on the back seemed decent enough. The fact that there was an IMDb quote on it as a review was proof that it would be bad in a good way. So the next night, we put it in the DVD player and from the first five minutes, we were so incredibly confused.The movie is utterly incoherent, with badly placed time-jumps from past to future that leave you asking a major 'WTF?' The plot has no sort of coherent story -- other than the vague allusion to a local myth about a murder, but this only actually comes into play in the movie in the last twenty minutes of it. So pretty much for the first hour you have this: random, confusing time jumps; incoherent plot; parents who don't age; bad acting; bad dialogue; a boy who magically changes hair colour; and a host of obnoxious characters for you to get bored with!The movie moves so slow that it's a chore to actually sit there and watch. I'd rather be scrubbing the toilets, honestly. Don't bother with it.

tom-1806 Often, the mark of a good film is that you're still thinking about it for days afterwards...The Toybox has, more than anything else, a strong visual identity. Credit to both the director and DOP for creating such a sickly visceral quality, especially throughout the third act, that delivers on the unsettling quirks and occasional jump-starts in the first two. There's no doubt that this movie has style and energy to spare, and yet as the visuals come together stylistically, the narrative slowly becomes more and more disparate that it unravels into several unexplored and unresolved avenues. It's a rare situation, but the film suffers from a surplus of good ideas, with the script juggling too many plot strands and is ultimately unable to catch hold of them all come the climax.However, for a while at least, the intrigue of the back-story, and the marriage of ancient folklore and modern-day sensibilities holds the attention. Unfortunately, the post-production ADR hasn't been kind to the performances, and some of the clunkier dialogue sometimes grates and strains to convince. In fact, it's most often the case that the more senior members of the cast manage to hold the script together and create some memorably uncomfortable scenes (Conrad at the family dinner is a stand-out for cliché-fish-out-of-water fun).There are more themes here that would arguably be more interesting and effective to follow through on if explored fully - and some pretty dark elements at that. Obviously, there's the witchcraft element, but beneath that lies a suggestion of an incestuous desire, which goes on to manifest itself in jealousy and rage. Elsewhere, the relationship between the Grandfather and his Grandchildren, and the shameful secrets they share, offers another interesting angle. Whilst the implications of these sub-plots open up several avenues ripe for exploration, they get lost amongst muddied stories of folklore, murder and possession (story-strands that also get lost and confused).In essence, there are several other (and better) films trying to get out, which unfortunately have to compete and jostle for attention amongst the numerous other story lines involved in the film overall. Some of the more hokey elements aren't successful either, although sometimes, the visual quirks land a sucker-punch that the audience won't be expecting. But whilst the script sometimes lack coherence, the visuals smack of certainty, assurance, and a general comprehension of how to provide the requisite shocks and scares.Regardless of the script's shortcomings, the brutal and primal climax is cranked up for all the visceral and visual carnage it's worth. There are some beautifully scenic moments, which make the most of the snow-laden fields and stark environment. Yet somehow the director successfully creates the impression of a brooding claustrophobic malevolence in contrast with the landscape shots which result in some genuinely disturbing and affecting moments.As a calling card to the British film industry, the film makers have a lot of talent to offer, even if the source material sometimes lets down the assured camera-work and flair. For every miss (teddy's glowing red eyes, clowns in the toilet) there's a hit (literally and brutally, but to describe it would give to much away!) Give these boys a budget and source material to match their obvious talent and there's a definite treat in store. And although the plot is largely forgettable, the film has such a strong identity that it will linger in the memory long after the final credits have scrolled...

thither I really wanted to like this movie, because it is refreshingly different from the hordes of everyday horror movie clones, and I appreciate that the filmmakers are trying for something original. Unfortunately, the plot just didn't hold together and none of the characters were likable enough for me to really care about them or their fates.Visually, The Toybox was pretty interesting. The director took a lot of somewhat risky moves, like adding in little bits of (Flash-looking) animation in parts and really cheesing up some of the special effects (such as the light from a certain amulet). Sometimes this worked and sometimes it didn't, but he deserves kudos for the attempt, and the cinematography was generally of high quality.Unfortunately, when this same approach of throwing lots of things at the wall to see what sticks was applied to the plot, the results were not very good. The film never really finds a tone that it likes, moving schizophrenically from black comedy to family soap opera to 80's witchcraft flick to childhood nostalgia to embattled-family slasher. Taken on their own, bits and pieces of each of these elements work fairly well, but nothing ever coheres into a satisfying whole. Besides that, large bits of the plot are never really explained. I'm not one who likes to have everything spoon-fed to me, and I like movies that leave things up to the audience to decide, but the parts that are left out from The Toybox just seem like they either ran out of money before they could explain them or they didn't really think things through to begin with.I look forward to the director's next project, since I think there is a lot of talent lurking under the surface here, but I can't really recommend The Toybox on its own merits.

saskiamontague I didn't want to see this at first - my friend described it as a British low budget horror, which was a right turn-off.But I was pleasantly surprised - whereas most horror/slasher movies don't care about subtleties and characterisation, this was at the heart of what the Toybox set out to do. This film isn't your bog standard slasher, you need to pay attention and concentrate.There was a fair amount of laughter in the theatre at the start of the film. But before anyone got too cosy, things starting turning nasty and weird and the audience weren't sure whether they should be laughing. This is was when the film got really interesting.The acting was exceptional - but special mention should go to Suzanne Bertish and Heather Chisen who turned in marvellous performances. Also the photography was impressive, it certainly was a lavish production and didn't look low budget.There have been a lot of British horror movies coming on the scene lately. Do we have a movement in British horror going on? I hope so. And certainly The Toybox is among the best of the present bunch.This film played at the Rex in Berhampstead a marvellous recently renovated art deco cinema and it turned out to be a fab Sunday night out. Although I think the Q&A session afterwards was a bit of an own goal. These things are always rubbish, just a load of half-jokes and sycophantic laughter.