Halloweenie Review: Krampus (2015)

October is Halloweenie month here at Flick Chicks, the month that Jenna and I put on our big girl pants and force ourselves to sit through a few horror movies. You can read more about it in our announcement post here!

Upon realising that Jenna and I don’t live close enough to watch every single scary movie together, I think I fell into my comfort zone a bit, Christmas movies! Krampus (2015) was originally going to be the movie of choice for my family’s annual ‘weekend before Christmas’ cinema trip, until I managed to convince them it was by no means a movie for children, and hey, perhaps we should see The Force Awakens instead?! I have since happily reported back to my Mum she would not have survived this movie.

Krampus is exactly what you think it is. One Christmas Eve, a young boy has a hard time understanding why his family have to get together every year when they clearly can’t stand each other, and in his anger, he accidentally summons a horde of Christmas demons to his home, led by none other than Krampus himself.

The opening scene to this movie might just be my favourite of any festive films I’ve seen. The contrast of the beautiful music “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” with the chaotic, hellish scenes of the rush before the big day, screaming children sat on the laps of miserable mall Santas, people barging others out of the way to finish their shopping, it was so well done. The movie also stars some of my favourite faces from TV, Adam Scott (Parks and Recreation), Allison Tolman (Fargo) and David Koechner (The Office) so I had plenty to look forward to.

As funny as it was, the first chunk of the movie felt like a poor man’s National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, but nonetheless, I enjoyed it. I’m a sucker for a cheesy festive flick. It’s actually easy to forget that you’re watching a horror, that it, until a once hopeful letter to Santa gets torn up and thrown out of the window. From there, it’s a fast paced, adrenaline fuelled ride to hell. It’s quite jumpy in parts, especially the scenes outside in the blizzard, but I got used to it after a while. Watching the movie through a layer of cardigan sure helps.

I do have a few issues with Krampus. It’s described as a Horror Comedy, but it doesn’t blend the two genres well at all. The first half is pure comedy, the second part is pure horror, but that cheesy kind of horror that makes you laugh because it’s a bit well, bad. Perhaps that’s what the team was going for, but it felt off to me. The characters were scary enough, that’s for sure. It’ll be a while before I forget that teddy bear’s face!

If you can see past the corny one liners, Krampus is actually quite enjoyable. It also has quite a sentimental lesson behind it, and although it felt rushed, I enjoyed the ending. It wasn’t as ‘happily ever after’ as I expected it to be. 

Review: A Long Way Down (2014)

I hadn't even heard about this film when I found it on Netflix so I thought I would just give it a go and although the critics may disagree with me, I'm glad I did.

A Long Way Down starts on New Years Eve, Martin (Pierce Brosnan) a disgraced TV personality is on the top of a building London all ready to commit suicide.  He is soon joined by Maureen (Toni Collette) an exhausted mother of one, Jess (Imogen Poots) and JJ (Aaron Paul) who are all there for the same reasons.  Instead of going through with it, they become each other's surrogate family and learn to face their problems.

I can understand why the critics don't like this film, there was a lot that could be done with such a sensitive subject that just wasn't.  It could have made it more brutal and heartbreaking and really touched on a taboo subject that most people are afraid to talk about.  Unfortunately, it actually makes it all too relateable (quite scarily in some places) and it somewhat belittles the idea too much for comedic reasons, which is more than likely why the critics didn't feel it was much cop.

I think the film hit middle ground perfectly. It could have been more honest and really dug into the heart of these characters, and it would have been a depressing drama. On the other hand, it could have skimmed over the serious issues completely, and it would have been a heartless comedy. For me, this was a true to life drama that made me smile just as much as cry.

That being said, I was engrossed.  I didn't look up from the screen or move once throughout the whole thing, I laughed, I cried, I cheered and I really loved the characters and the relationships they have developed with each other.  I've always been a fan of Collette's work, I think she has such a broad range, ever since I saw her in Muriels Wedding a loooong time ago!  I found it so entertaining considering it was a film based around depression and suicide but I also think it showed how one person (or 3 in this case) can have such a huge impact on your life and change the way you think about things. 

This might be the first thing I've seen Toni Collette in so I can't really compare her performance to anything else (Edit: Holy moly, I just realised she was in Little Miss Sunshine! Love this lady!), but as much as I loved the whole cast, Imogen Poots absolutely stole the show. She might be annoying in A Long Way Down, but she was spot on and I really hope she gets some bigger roles following this.

Its a common misconception that depressed people are sad all the time and never smile or laugh or enjoy some moments, I think this can be highlighted more.  Many cases of 'movie' depression find the character not getting out of bed or considering suicide, this turns that on its head and reminds people that you can be depressive and fully functional in the real world, sometimes you just need the right people around you. Absolutely true! 

I could be simplifying this too much but thats my opinion.  I really enjoyed the film and the sentiments attached to it, it got a bit cheesy at times but I could see past it and enjoy it for what it was.  Its worth a watch, just remember not to overthink it and just watch, you might like it.

It's definitely a slow burner! I wasn't bored at all but I was grateful for the shorter running time, as I really felt every minute. That probably comes across way harsher than I mean it to!

Maybe it was just my imagination running away with me, but I couldn't help but wonder whether the reason JJ was up on the roof had anything to do with a certain meth lab incident gone wrong... haha!! Amazing!

Review: Foster (2011)

I happened to catch this on Sky one Saturday afternoon when I was looking for something to watch that required no effort whatsoever, and that is what I found.

Foster (known as Angel in the House in some places) is the story of a couple played by Toni Collete and Ioan Gruffud who in the wake of the loss of their child and their inability to conceive face serious marital problems.  In order to try to mend their marriage they take a visit to a foster home and the next day Eli arrives on their door step (played by Maurice Cole), Eli is quite clearly wise beyond his years and becomes the bridge between Zooey and Alec and the key to mending their troubled marriage.

This all sound terribly boring but its not, it a beautiful story of hope and love and loss that is played out really well by Collette and Gruffud.  The heartbreak that is demonstrated throughout the film feels real and left me with goosebumps.  The story plays out as Zooey and Alec learn to deal with not only having a child in their lives again but a child that is significantly smarter than they are. 

Collette is a dream to watch as always (I have loved her since my first viewing of Muriels Wedding when I was 10yrs old) and she brings a real warmth to the character, starting from a depressed woman dealing with the loss of her child, to a confused mother figure to a child she doesn't know, to a loving Mom.  Gruffud's, Alec can't seem to find his place, his business is failing, his marriage is failing but you never blame him, you just want him to succeed. Even when the couple are arguing you are fighting for both corners because you like both characters.  It was odd for me, as a cynical man-hater (no offence to any male readers out there) I usually automatically side with the female character but this story gave me food for thought.

I wasn't even put off by Richard E Grant, who I usually despise in pretty much everything he has been in, he actually brought some much needed comedy to the table as homeless Mr Potts.  The winner for me though had to be Maurice Cole who played the extremely articulate 7 year old Eli, he was fantastic and I just fell in love with him the second he came on screen.  He was perfect for the role, I don't think I could name a child actor who could have done it better.

Overall, this is a lovely story with a lot of warmth.  Great to watch in the cold months with a big blanket and a cup of hot chocolate :-)