![]() ![]() Enough for me to consider writing a review about the whole franchise that I've watched partially ("Ravager" hadn't even been announced back then) for the first time back around 2007 and now completely over the course of the last couple of months. It doesn’t feel like anything that came before it, and there is nothing in horror today that seems quite so interesting to look at and as surprising in its ideas.Last night, I watched "Phantasm V: Ravager" (or "Phantasm: RaVager", as it is sometimes styled), the last chapter in the long-gestating "Phantasm"-franchise (although as far as I understand, the first question asked during the Q&A following the first public screening of the movie was "So when's part six coming out?"). Despite its flaws, Phantasm is a genuinely original entry into the horror film genre. I have plans to watch the second film in the series, but beyond that, I don’t have much interest. He seems to have the most acting talent in the crew and every scene he is in ends up being very enjoyable. The standout character, in my opinion, was Reggie, the shotgun wielding ice cream man, such a uniquely original character for this genre of film. I think there is a fascinating seed of an idea in the film, a real chance to tell a great horror story, but the execution just never pays off. The acting is incredibly stiff, but I suppose some might chalk that up as part of the charm. When Mike discovers the gateway to the other world, we’re presented with a very striking and hellish image of another planet/dimension. The Tall Man as an antagonist is not like the slasher figure that was garnering so much popularity around the same time. ![]() Their design and the utterly brutal way they dispatch unwanted visitors was genuinely shocking for me. The chrome orbs are probably one of the most original concepts I’ve seen in a horror film. However, there are a nice handful of moments that show off some real cleverness and creativity. Phantasm is one of the films Lanthimos will mention when he talks about those late night childhood experiences.Īs a whole, Phantasm has a lot of flaws and doesn’t deliver on the promise of the horror it builds up. Director Yorgos Lanthimos spoke interviews about the working to infuse the film with an intense dream logic that focused more on playing with nightmarish imagery rather than a fully realized plot. I was reminded of Beyond the Black Rainbow, a very stylish horror film from 2010. When it comes to a logical story that makes sense, though, it falls apart. Certain images just feed the primal fears of a kid, and this film is chock full of them. Watching Phantasm reminded me of my childhood, flipping through the channels on a chilly October Saturday afternoon. Phantasm paints a surreal, dreamlike tableau of horror that stands as a singular achievement in horror. A tall menacing stranger stalks the grounds, sinister dwarves attack anyone seeking out the truth, and a chrome sphere makes quick work of trespassers. His brother Jody thinks Mike just imagines things as part of his grief over their parents’ death, but when Jody sees the evil firsthand. Something is going on at the old cemetery in town, and young Mike is determined to find out exactly what. ![]()
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