The ABCs of Death 2

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The ABCs of Death 2 The ABCs of Death Magnet Releasing Director: Kaare Andrews, Angela Bettis, Hélène Cattet, Ernesto Díaz Espinoza, Jason Eisener, Bruno Forzani, Adrián García Bogliano, Xavier Gens, Lee Hardcastle, Noboru Iguchi, Thomas Cappelen Malling, Jorge Michel Grau, Anders Morgenthaler, Yoshihiro Nishimura, Banjong Pisanthanakun Simon Rumley, Marcel Sarmiento, Jon Schnepp, Srdjan Spasojevic, Timo Tjahjanto, Andrew Traucki, Nacho Vigalondo, Jake West, Ti West, Ben Wheatley, Adam Wingard and Yudai Yamaguchi Written by: Kaare Andrews, Simon Barrett, Hélène Cattet, Bruno Forzani, Adrián García Bogliano, Lee Hardcastle, Noboru Iguchi, Thomas Cappelen Malling, Yoshihiro Nishimura, Simon Rumley, Jon Schnepp, Srdjan Spasojevic, Nacho Vigalondo, Dimitrije Vojnov, Ti West and Yudai Yamaguchi Not rated / 2 Hours, 3 Minutes Opens March 8, 2013; Now available on VOD (Of four) Some will think of The ABCs of Death, it is disgusting, appalling, tasteless, insane, obscene, royalty-free, childish and spoiled to come over the top. I agree that all of these things - probably in equal measure - and this is exactly the point, and that it is therefore not frightening at all, but actually quite pleasant. Note that I'm not saying everyone can easily go into the experience. While I was this kind of disclaimer, this film is about as not-for-everyone gets to usually avoid as not-for-each. But those who see filmmakers out the limits of their imagination a certain satisfaction - but dark and twisted could be these limits - are the audience this anthology was made. I do not know what the exact process behind the production of ABC, or was as collaborative (if at all) it was, but it plays almost like a game of one-upmanship. That, or the filmmakers themselves were only challenge themselves,. With the roughest, craziest or most "shocking" ideas that they could, and they ran with it The distinction must be made that, although the 26 segments (one corresponding to each letter of the alphabet - A is for Apocalypse, etc) are intrinsically horror-based, the vast majority of them have a comedic approach. So instead of a sick, twisted idea just sick and twisted, it is increased in absurd or surreal territory. Brazen depravity can make just for the ridiculousness of its existence, fun, and understand by and large, the filmmakers here. It is the feeling of absurdity that takes the film to its greatest heights and keeps things interesting, even in the parts that are not quite succeed. There is a segment (courtesy of Noboru Iguchi) about Japanese school girls and erotic farts that go out of the way, seems to be as immature as possible. It is not one of the highlights of the film by any means, but I at least admire his extreme dedication to his infantile humor. (After all, if you are to die in a series of sketches based on species involved, and you get "F is for Fart", there is really no way to class, the puppies on. So you might as well as childish as possible be.) Virtually every anthology movie you see (especially one with this many shorts) will be a mixed bag, and the ABC is no different. But what impressed me was that very few of the 26 segments are all equal, so there is not much repetition. In addition, the filmmaking itself is strong almost everywhere, even in the Misses. Fortunately, those who do the work paid off those misses. And it is the diversity that pays off. Thinking back through the strongest segments, I was of how absolutely idiosyncratic everyone was beaten. Perhaps the most impressive was Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani of "O is for Orgasm", a virtuoso piece of editing and sound design, which makes for the most abstract and most beautiful of the 26 films. It is also probably the least horror-centric feature - death is essentially an afterthought, the conclusion to a pure and unique experiment of Cattet and Forzani. Some of the movies are turning their chosen mode of death (which is identified in a title card at the end of the corresponding segment) in something like a punch line. (In fact, for Ti West's short, the letter M, it is the punch line.) Others use their chosen words as a springboard for something that only tangentially relate to the manner of death itself. And others take a relatively banal word and turn it into a completely unexpected and often disgusting, direction. (Just wait until you see with where Timo Tjahjanto lands "L is for libido.") Other highlights, among other things, come courtesy of Yudai Yamaguchi (J), a brilliant Looney Tunes-esque employs visual aesthetics; Angela Bettis (E), the basic premise of the simple people to entertain heights (especially the way she uses repeated point-of-view shots from the spider) has against spider; Xavier Gens (X) whose segment is a bloody, devastating, tongue-in-cheek comment body image; Marcel Sarmiento (D), whose almost dialogue-free piece of poetic uses subjective camera work and a dreamlike mood to tackle an essentially ridiculous premise; Ben Wheatley (U), the first-person camera work to stellar effect uses; and Thomas Malling (H), the insane combines cartoonish slapstick logic, burlesque dance and National Socialism. Unfortunately, the film ends on a down note with Yoshihiro Nishimura, the "Z is for Zetsumetsu" a stream-of-consciousness LSD trip the outrageous images that, despite my affection for his Dr. Strangelove homage ends long after it has worn out its glad to welcome. No doubt some are the same thing about The ABCs of Death say as a whole. But I can personally confirm only that the film - however mixed their findings could ultimately (and inevitably) be - an example of the kind of freedom and creativity that movies are made for.