The brooding, ailing hero of “Synecdoche, New York,” written and directed by Charlie Kaufman, admires the pretty legs of his fetching psychotherapist (Hope Davis), which nevertheless extend to at least one foot that is blistered and bruised. Even THIS he has to put up with! It’s a nice touch in an otherwise spurious film–Spurious because it is excessively dark, wholeheartedly pessimistic.
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I didn’t find Sam Raimi‘s “Drag Me to Hell” entertaining. It is an intelligently directed, edited and photographed horror flick with some canny moments, such as the weirdness at the dinner party. But those scary jolts can be clunky if not silly, and the writing is spotty, concerning as it does a young woman who is cursed by a Hungarian crone when the former declines to further extend the gypsy’s bank credit. “Lamia” time. As a Christian I believe in damnation, but I don’t believe in this film. It handles the subject of “eternal burning” too lightly, too frivolously–and, needless to say, with bad theology. Also, horror movies with abysmally dark endings stick in my craw. They’re not fun. As if all this weren’t enough, Alison Lohman, though lovely, gives a superficial performance as the cursed gal.
Reviewed by my bro Dean.
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