80's British Horror Part Ten

KRULL

(1983)

Dir - Peter Yates

Overall: MEH

A large-budgeted British production from Columbia Pictures, Krull stands out from the horde of sword and sorcery films that were made at the turn of the 1980s due both to its impressive scale and melding of science fantasy with medieval archetypes.  Though it has some inventive set pieces and a propelling musical score from James Horner, the film never captures that necessary sense of mystical whimsy.  This is because of bland characters, (including Ken Marshall's dashing hero who acts like a kid in a candy story throughout his adventure even though his enchanting bride is in desperate peril the entire time), stock storytelling, and director Peter Yates' sluggish pacing.  By Yates' own admission, he was overwhelmed with the undertaking as this bares no resemblance to the filmmaker's usual, modestly-scaled and unassuming dramas.  In hindsight, it may have been a mistake to put such a director in charge of a Arthurian space opera with a thirty million dollar price tag, but the film nearly gets by on its visual scope alone.  Largely shot at Pinewood Studios, the massive sets are spectacular, plus the special effects team does top-notch work for the era.  Only some rear projection and stop-motion animation comes off as dated, with everything else standing up against the best practical movie magic out there.  It is a shame that these positives are the only ones that is has to offer, but for popcorn fantasy, it may just be enough.

 

SCREAM FOR HELP
(1984)
Dir - Michael Winner
Overall: WOOF

Notable for featuring the last screenplay that Tom Holland would pen before making his directorial debut Fright Night, as well as being John Paul Jones first film work as a composer, Scream for Help is an odd exploitation movie that is almost worth tilting one's head at due to the moronic story, wretched performances, and confused tone.  A British production that is set in the US with American actors, it concerns an annoying teenager who is convinced that her douchebag stepfather David Allen Brooks is not on the up and up.  Even though her suspicious are validated halfway through, the diabolical plot that she uncovers has enough holes in it to sail a yacht through.  It involves said stepfather teaming up with two slimy criminals who pretend to be brother and sister yet are actually lovers, and even once Brooks finds out that he is being played, he still goes along with the plan that spirals out of control in unintentionally laughable fashion.  Everyone here performs like they are in a comedy even though they are not, but one could argue that such embarrassing acting is fitting for the character's baffling behavior.

BORN OF FIRE
(1987)
Dir - Jamil Dehlavi
Overall: MEH
 
An exercise in stylistically nebulous storytelling, Jamil Dehlavi's Born of Fire is visually compelling and has atmosphere to spare, even if its Middle Eastern mysticism never connects with a compelling narrative.  Shot in Turkey and making gorgeous use out of fire-lit caves and haunting deserts, (captured by Bruce McGowan's vivid cinematography), it concerns a professional flutist who undergoes a mysterious journey after the death of his mother and the arrival of an astronomer whose personality leans toward supernatural possession at regular intervals.  It all seems to tie around said musician's father, Djinns, and a bald, creepy-looking Master who dwells in the Arabic wilderness and shoots fire out of his eyes.  Shots of snakes, maggots, pool worms, erupting volcanoes, skulls, a wailing dwarf, lizards crawling on the ceiling, a slug baby thing, and other such random flourishes mix with pretentiously vague dialog and spell-binding music to create a cacophony of oddness that is slow if not impossible to make heads or tails out of.  This is a shame since it is more excessive than quirky, void of humor and lacking in any type of human element to make its evocative scenery and sounds come off as anything but aloof.