Didn't really stray from the original movie at all from what I remember except that it seemed like there might have been less scenes meant to scare the audience, but it's been a while since I watched the original so I could be remembering it differently. I still enjoyed it for what it was - another fuckin' remade horror movie, but with the added benefit of Sam Rockwell.
For such a low-budget movie, I thought it was really well done. I found the narrative structure and directing style to be great, the lack of clarity in the universe to be more helpful than harmful, and the attempt to mathematically define the human condition to be refreshing.
I found the messages and themes to be a little outdated, and the movie explored them in an interesting way but added nothing new to the table. Things felt rushed and I never really cared about the characters, and the mysteriousness of this universe (along with the direction) prevented the "intense/high-stake" moments from hitting their mark. For example:
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I did not care about what the "cure" was, and when it was discovered to be music I was like "ok neat". The established universe was so unexplored it was hard for anything to have gravity.
When they find out that certain words can force people to commit actions, I also did not care because the weight of that in this established universe was never made clear. When it suddenly becomes a universal crisis spanning thousands of years it was kind of like "...well, ok. I still don't care".
Guy takes a job on Craigslist to go to a cabin and film a day in the life of a cancer survivor now dying of a brain tumor that wants to make a diary for his unborn son. It's kinda slow, but it's appropriate for the story and really creepy the entire way. There are quite a few jump scares which I don't think the movie really needed to keep using because it was unnerving enough as it was. It also manages to be pretty funny at times.
Guy takes a job on Craigslist to go to a cabin and film a day in the life of a cancer survivor now dying of a brain tumor that wants to make a diary for his unborn son. It's kinda slow, but it's appropriate for the story and really creepy the entire way. There are quite a few jump scares which I don't think the movie really needed to keep using because it was unnerving enough as it was. It also manages to be pretty funny at times.
Been wanting to see this for awhile, I love Mark Duplass
Download! It comes to Netflix sometime next month. It's weird though, usually when you can find the movie to download you can also find it streaming somewhere but I couldn't seem to find this one streaming. I will PM you a link - it's a direct download, not a torrent, so you don't have to fool with anything.
So much thought went into this, and I feel like I need to give it time to write down anything concurrently. Half point off comes from the fact that I felt, while the music was good, it was often misplaced. Suspense when suspense wasn't naturally occurring took me out of the movie at times.
I dunno, maybe I'm forgetting about the parts you're mentioning, but I remember thinking the music was pretty effective
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Especially the part where he's cutting himself and screaming into the mirror and the music keeps steeping up and up to an almost unbearable pitch. Really upped the anxiety in that scene
I thought it was entertaining. When it was introduced I had a feeling that wasn't just any old Mosasaurus, but a Chekhov's Mosasaurus and I was happy when it finally fired. Also I thought it was funny that both bad guys were Law and Order alumni. I hope Ice-T is featured in the next one pimp slapping a Triceratops.
Definitely the funnest experience I've had watching a movie in recent years. Would've enjoyed it more if they didn't spend so much time shoehorning how pathetic the protagonist is.
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Loved the movie within a movie within a movie. When I try to dissect what actually became of the protagonists, I realized the protagonist is the actual screenwriter who doesn't even make an appearance. That is such a strange concept to me, as he's writing himself into a self-realization in which a character writes himself into a self-realization. So fucking meta.
Adaptation is great. Love all the meta aspects, like how Charlie's (non-existent IRL) brother is given a screenwriting credit. It's such good commentary on the way we tell stories and the details that are omitted or changed.
