The oracles at Wikipedia tell me that Tunisia is among the quickest developing nation on the African continent, with high rankings on the Human Development Index and a fast rising national capita. I, being an ignorant dumb-ass, wasn't aware of any of this. What I did notice, however, is that Tunisian cinema is something people all over the world are talking about a lot more often. In 2013, a Tunisian director won the Palme D'Or at Cannes for the first time. In 2021, “The Man Who Sold His Skin” became the first film made in the country to be nominated for an Academy Award. A documentary from the next year, “Four Daughters,” became the second. 2018, meanwhile, saw the country cross a far more important cinematic threshold: It started making horror movies. At least, that is how “Dachra” sold itself. I've seen more than a few sources refer to the previous year's “Beauty and the Dogs” as a horror movie. Nevertheless, “Dachra” was certainly the first Tunisian film to make an impact on the global genre scene.
Yasmine, her entire life, has had troubling dreams about a strange woman in black. Her grandfather has been her caretaker as long as she can remember. Now a journalism student, her professor challenges the class to present him with stories about something other than the cultural revolution. Yasmine's friends, Bilel and Walid, suggest they make a documentary about a local urban legend: The story of Mongia, a woman kept in a near-by insane asylum said to be a witch. Yasmine is doubtful of the story until the administrator of the hospital denies all knowledge. From there, the trio are sent down a strange path that leads them towards an isolated village in the forest, populated by people practicing strange customs and eating unusual meals... Which Yasmine quickly realizes she has a personal connection to.
Like several of the recent attempts by international countries to break into the horror game, "Dachra" also resembles a few western films. It certainly fits into clichés about the modern "elevated horror" and folk horror movements, with a slow and deliberate pace that values atmosphere over shocks and a story invoking witchcraft and obscure rituals. Giving the story element of characters being journalists trying to make a documentary, it's easy to imagine a version of "Dachra" that was a found footage movie. The scenes of the trio getting lost in the woods and coming across the isolated village resemble "The Blair Witch Project" and "The Sacrament." As in far too many found footage films, the main characters are also kind of assholes. Yasmine Dimassi gives a totally solid performance and none of the actors are at fault. Aziz Jbali and Bilel Slatnia are both well cast as Walid and Bilel. However, both characters are a kind of posturing, macho asshole that are difficult to relate too. Walid starts arguments all the time. They sweat at each other, sexually harass women, and generally act like jerks. I'm sure this is all very intentional. The guys seem far less willing to leave the village, despite the obvious concerns Yasmine has. However, that doesn't change that these aren't the most pleasant characters to be around and that factor drags "Dachra" down, especially during its slower going earlier scenes.
"Dachra" doesn't reinvent the wheel. Its narrative is fairly predictable. Several sequences are obviously beholden to other films, the project clearly being influenced by modern trends in horror. Some disagreeable characters and an approach that is a little too distant kept me from getting truly absorbed in the film. However, if this actually is the first horror made in Tunisia, then it's a good first effort. "Dachra" contains some decently executed scares, a fitting atmosphere of creepiness, and several well done moments that go for the throat. (Or gut, as the case may be.) The script clearly has bigger issues on its mind too, reflecting the Tunisian identity of those that made it. African filmmakers are underrepresented in the global cinematic scene, the genre corner of things more so. I hope that films like this, "Achourra," and "Saloum" from Senegal getting decent distribution over here means we will see more horror films coming out of those countries and others in the near future. "Dachra" doesn't break new ground but the fact that it exists at all is, in my opinion, neat. [6/10]
After impulsively purchasing "Shadow Zone: The Undead Express" on disc and discovering it was part of a series, I knew I was already doomed to watch the second one. That's the kind of nerd I am, the obsessive compulsive sort that must finish what he starts. It's only two movies so why not watch and write about them both? Why not fill up two slots in my Halloween Blog-a-Thon schedule that easily could've been devoted to actually good movies? I had already made up my mind about this when the sad news broke that Shelly Duvall had passed away. Duvall's utterly unique screen presence served her well through the seventies and eighties, while her "Faerie Tale Theatre" series made her a beloved part of many people's childhood. That program set the tone for much of her career throughout the nineties, which is presumably how Robert Altman's muse and the star of "The Shining" ended up in the second (and last) "Shadow Zone" movie. "My Teacher Ate My Homework" is probably not the best tribute to the late, great Duvall but I guess it's more suitable to October than trying to convince anyone "3 Women" counts as a horror movie.
Jesse Hackett is a young kid with a busy life. Both of his parents work long hours, forcing the boy to take care of his little sister and look after the house. These responsibilities means he often has to cancel plans with his best friends, usually causing him to make up elaborate excuses. It also means he is frequently behind on his schoolwork. This makes the strict Mrs. Fink his archenemy and worst nightmare. While out with his pals, Jesse enters a curio shop and spots a weird old doll that looks like Mrs. Fink. He brings it home and discovers that, if an accident befalls the doll, Mrs. Fink will feel the effects too. The doll also has a mind of its own, walking and talking. It puts in effect a plan to take over Jesse's life, punishing him for perceived faults and threatening his mom and sister.
This is especially evident in that "My Teacher Ate My Homework" is mostly about a children's toy coming to life. The popularity of "Goosebumps'" Slappy the Dummy was surely a factor in producers choosing this premise from the "Shadow Zone" book series. However, Mrs. Fink's porcelain doppelganger bears more than a passing resemblance to Chucky, though a lower budget version. She swipes his habit of biting people too. The way the doll's face stretches and contorts, while her little body scurries around, is creepy in a way that strikes me as unintentional. However, the film can't seem to decide what the uncanny doll is doing. Sometimes, she expresses a desire to reorder Jesse's disorganized life, in an almost benevolent way. Other times, she is a control freak that wants to make the boy her slave. She attempts to kill his mother by pushing a chair she's standing on away. The finale revolves around the doll attempting some sort of magical ritual that endangers both the little sister and the teacher. The rules around the doll are poorly explained in general. Its connection to Mrs. Fink is never explained, the link the two have being forgotten quickly. The doll's goals and powers shift from scene to scene, the finale being almost incomprehensible because of this. "My Teacher Ate My Homework" can't seem to make up its mind about whether the spooky plaything is a figure of fear or comedy, her tiny wrath often being played for laughs too. (Such as the scene that depicts the title literally, the sole justification for the movie being called that.)
As a showcase for Duvall's talent, "Shadow Zone: My Teacher Ate My Homework" is not exactly comprehensive. As Mrs. Fink, her effervescent quirkiness is reigned in by the role of a strict teacher. As the voice of an unhinged doll, she does get to shriek and go nuts, which isn't without its entertainment value. "The Undead Express" was mostly an example of genetic nineties kiddie slop with enough weirdness to not be totally dismissible. "My Teacher Ate My Homework" is weirder but also much worse, feeling far more tossed together and half-assed than the first movie. More than anything else, the impression that this series should've been half-hour episodes, instead of feature films, is unavoidable. The shoddy script might have been a lot more easily forgiven if this only ran thirty minutes, instead of ninety. No further "Shadow Zones" followed, suggesting that these films failed to draw an audience to Showtime. (Already a kind of weird network for a kids-centric program.) Which, based on the quality of these two movies, was no great loss. Unless you are a comprehensive connoisseur of nineties horror programs aimed at children, there's no need to seek the "Shadow Zone" duology out. As for Miss Duvall, let her story no longer be manipulated by social media weirdos or exploited by predatory shit heels. She was a delightful star and will not be forgotten any time soon, despite appearing in generic nonsense such as this. [5/10]
The episode of overlooked Norwegian horror anthology series "Bloodride," I watched last year was quite good, so here's another episode. “Three Sick Brothers” involves Erik, who has recently been released from a mental institution. Shortly after arriving at his apartment, he is greeted by his two older brothers: Otto, the wild and unpredictable one, and Georg, the more controlled brother. The two convince Erik to go on a trip to their father's old cabin. While stopping at a gas station, they pick up a female hitchhiker, a psych student named Monika. After arriving at the cabin, it becomes increasingly clear that Erik has violence in his past. The more time Monika spends with the three brothers, the more uncomfortable the situation becomes. The implication seems to be that their father was murdered and that Erik went to mental home as cover for one of the other brother's crime... And they are eager to reoffend.
Whenever a movie or TV show introduces the plot point of someone recently being released from mental care, immediately the audience expects that any other character introduced from then on could potentially be a hallucination or split personality. Since “Three Sick Brothers” has two unusually acting brothers showing up unannounced to Erik's place, you certainly anticipate where things might be headed. The script, from Kjetil Indregard and director Atle Knudsen, doesn't subvert expectations any. In fact, the only way the episode manages to catch you off-guard is concerning how many of these characters are elaborate hallucinations. Unfortunately, it's difficult for the story to build much tension once you figure out the destination. (Which is immediately.) It doesn't feel like a cheat, since the twist is so obvious, yet it doesn't do much to make the execution more compelling.
When "Hereditary" hit like an atom bomb in the horror scene back in 2018, to many it must have seemed like Ari Aster emerged out of thin air. Those with longer memories might have recalled a short film that went viral online a few years earlier however, for its shocking premise. "The Strange Thing About the Johnson" begins when acclaimed poet Sidney Johnson walks in on his teenage son, Isaiah, masturbating. He handles an awkward situation as well as he can but doesn't see what his son was pleasuring himself to: A picture of his own father. Years later, at Isaiah's wedding, his mother accidently sees her son forcing himself on his distressed, shell-shocked father. The same night, Sidney attempts to share a manuscript explaining the abuse with Joan but Isaiah discovers it and commands his father to destroy it. The abuse escalates, Sidney taking desperate measures to escape his monstrous son. A confrontation between the Johnsons and their own child becomes inevitable.
"The Strange Thing About the Johnsons" was Aster's thesis film at the American Film Institute, only the second work he made, and the first thing from the filmmaker anyone in the general public saw. It shows that the director of "Hereditary" and "Beau Is Afraid" had a distinct style from the beginning. Like those films, "The Strange Thing..." is a story of familial secrets and resentments boiling over into shrieking, hysterical emotions. While it doesn't quite have quite the precise, microscopic level of detail Aster has shown in the features, the same approach of slightly exaggerated, unreal looking sets and locations is present. The director's collaboration with cinematographer Pawel Pogorzelski begin here and the two create many striking images together. A scene of Isaiah's shadow cast ominously into the room while his father sits in a chair being an especially memorable one. More than anything else, "The Strange Thing About the Johnsons" is marked as Aster's by its extremely disturbing approach to its very fucked-up premise. A sense of barely contained terror resonates through the whole thirty minute presentation. When Isaiah kicks in a bathroom door and assaults his father while he lays in the bath, the camera zooming in on his screaming face, Brendan Eder's horror movie score blaring, it's a moment that hits like a punch to the chest. A similar feeling of frenzied violence appears when the son turns his fists on his mother at the short's end. All throughout, there is this quivering sense of full-bore screaming, weeping emotion that can barely stop itself from leaping off the screen and frequently doesn't.
Those that consider Aster an obnoxious smart-ass, who have the image of him as someone who presents shocking material while smirking under his breath, wrapping his stories in a layer of absurdity, won't be convinced by "The Strange Things." The fucked-up joke ambiance of the premise permits every scene. The rape plays out against Sydney listening to a self-help tape with a goofy author in a sweater on the box. Is that Aster contrasting the sickening act against something mundane or an intentionally absurd joke done to make the whole moment a self-aware act of irony? I mean, I find that scene disturbing, so that should tell you where I fall. Similarly, the hyperventilating performances could come across as forced camp. Brandon Greenhouse plays Isaiah as a heartless monster, who never misses a chance to belittle his father or otherwise establish his power over him. Billy Mayo, as Sydney, spends the entire short with eyes locked straight ahead, petrified with horror at the secret and shame he's forced to carry. However, Greenhouse is terrifying to me, a screaming monster of a human being that is pure malevolence while Mayo gives a fearless performance of someone broken by having what is supposed to be a trusting, loving relationship violated. Am I the fool taking an act of fucked-up satire at face value, seeing a horror film in an overblown "Tim and Eric" sketch? Perhaps. Either way, love him or hate him, Aster's interests and style was concrete from the beginning. [9/10]
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