Thursday, March 17, 2022

X

A24 strikes gold once more.





I haven't been this into and loving a modern horror film since Candyman, even I'm shocked how much I was getting into it. Texas 1979 is our setting as we follow a lowbudget porn crew traverse into a deserted area of Texas to shoot their next film when things get a bit more raw than intended. Where do I begin? Gotta be methodical about this so I don't forget anything. The production is wonderful, perfectly capturing that grain of 70s grindhouse while still keeping the colors at a natural consistency, surprise of surprises this was shot in New Zealand which fooled me throughout cause it looks like a spitting image of more rural areas of Texas. The effects, oh my God, what a gloriously gross showcase throughout done with practical magic and enough fake blood to slake any gorehounds appetite. The cast is really good, with I think the best material going to the old folks they shack up with and they are proper great in this when they start offing people. Hell I think the best scene in the whole friggin' movie is actually after the first murder, it's horrifying, it's beautiful, it felt like a gorgeous piece of cinema that I was happy to watch and admire. This is a movie that does some out there wild stuff and I adore it endlessly. It has little sprinkles of artistic and even the above mentioned avant garde scene, so it's properly directed here and knows what it is but still does things it's own way and beautifully so. I was really appreciating the dialogue at points and character moments, sort of tackling the stigmas and mindset of being an actor in a pornographic film and it handles it really well just stating they are just people, who are young and have a good time doing what they do without taking it super seriously. But I do absolutely feel the best writing stuff goes to the homeowners, the fact they're bastards all along and didn't just snap overnight, the time they spend elaborating on their past and what they were like, how they still have that passion in their hearts for each other, until the ball dropped that they were killers I really did think they were just slightly misunderstood and even thought one of the film crew would have been the killer. Now there's a twist I want to see happen! The soundtrack is glorious, with a fair bit of hey hey classic 70s lovemaking music and some staples of late 70s rock. Needless to say I need to get my hands on this soundtrack, for multiple practical reasons. I did feel like a touch of a perv when I was the only one who laughed at the Debbie Does Dallas reference, but I have fine taste what can I say? And okay bear with me, don't switch off, I'm not...I'm just saying for 1979, there should have been a lot more bush down there. Just saying. And on that bombshell it is time to end. Go see it. It is great! It's one part Boogie Nights, one part Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with a tiny sprinkle of cinematic art thrown in. 4 stars, 9/10! And another anniversary is almost upon us so I figured to look at a lesser regarded kaiju series to celebrate.

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