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ANIMATION. MYSTERY FEAR(S) OF THE DARK (12A) 85min 0000
The Gallic term ‘outre'. meaning beyond or excessive. perfectly describes this imaginatively conceived and immaculately executed French language portmanteau horror. Much of its impact is derived from its unique nature: the Paris-based producers commissioned six cartoonists to work with animators to make five short films, plus a linking segment. that exploit our dread of the gloom. So it‘s a subtitled. black and white. feature- length animation. utilising a variety of styles from digital imagery to woodcuts. directed by comic creators. That alone makes it weird and wonderful to behold. but beyond its inherently unusual nature this chiller is as gruesome and nerve shredding as horror films get.
A balmy Saul Bass-style strobosc0pic credit sequence featuring a gloriously demented musical score by Laurent Perez sets the tone for what's to come. But little Will prepare viewers anticipating a cartoon for Blutch's Opening tale in which an 18th century Marquis hunts children with a pack of hell-hounds. or Charles Burns' nauseating nightmare abOut a man who's abused by his girlfriend after she becomes hesi to an intelligent insect. or Marie Caillou's blood-splattered Japanese anime concerning a young girl who's terrorised by the ghost of a dead samurai.
The final sequence by Richard McGuire alone. in which a terrified man fumbles around an old dark
house with only a box of matches to EYE amounts of bomb-making equipment in his flat. illuminate the dark corners. makes this (12A) 117mm ... Determined to find out who is ordering him around, a worth the admission price. (Miles flustered Jerry goes on the run with fellow dupe Rachel Fielder) Reuniting the talent from last year’s sleeper hit (Michelle Monaghan), allowing Caruso to make full use I Cameo, Edinburgh (matinees only) Disturbia and featuring a similar surveillance theme, of his big budget, staging both razzle-dazzle car- and selected cinemas from Fri 24 Oct. Eagle Eye is a busy conspiracy thriller featuring chases and foot pursuits with agreeable intensity. See preview. left. manboy-of-the-moment Shia LaBoeuf and directed by Eagle Eye. confusingly, is a bait and switch thriller DJ Caruso. With two major franchises under his belt in marketed as a straight techno-action film. Much as the form of Michael Bay’s Transformers and as the son Disturbia rehashed Hitchcock’s Rear Window for 21 st of Indiana Jones, the mercurial LaBoeuf isn’t doing to century teens, Eagle Eye’s plot feels cobbled together badly for a 22 year-old; by contrast, his character in from leftover ideas from The Manchurian Candidate, Eagle Eye, Jerry Shaw, works in a photocopy shop and North By Northwest, The Matrix and 2001. The idea of is having trouble meeting his rent. The death of his self-aware technology apparently stems from executive armed-forces brother deepens Jerry’s depression, but producer Steven Spielberg, but it’s explored without there’s no time to mourn as an anonymous voice on his much insight, merely providing a cast-iron McGuffin. mobile phone starts depositing large amounts of (Eddie Harrison) money in his bank account, accompanied by large I General release from Fri 17 Oct.
ANIMATION. COMEDY IGOR
(PG) 86min 00.
It's a tough life for hunchbacked assistants of mad scientists. lgor (voiced by John Cusack) ekes out his precarious existence as humble servant to the sinister Dr Glickenstein (John Cleese). an evil genius set on winning the annual evil seience fair in the badass province of Malaria. But when Igor decides to enter the competition himself, his stitched-up creation of life takes the form of a mountainous Bride of Frankenstein-style creation called Eva (Molly Shannon).
Whether Igor can ever forget his hump and find true happiness with Eva is the question posed by Anthony Leondis' decent but uninspired animation. which skews towards kids with a twisted sense of humour. or adults who enjoyed the Tim Burton/Henry Selick collaboration, The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Chris McKenna‘s gag-heavy screenplay clumsily posits an inverted world where evil is a better career move than good. but hits a stride when Eva turns out to be unexpectedly wholesome lass. Even when she's picking bunches flowers in the meadow. Igor‘s lab-rat chums forlornly hope “Maybe she'll form them into a club and beat us with it.‘ But Leondis' style is far to close to Tim Burton to pull many switches. with Igor's derivative nature highlighted by a jive soundtrack that only points out the pathos of Danny Elfman‘s score for Corpse Bride. (Eddie Harrison) I General release from Fri 17 Oct.
10—30 Oct 2008 THE LIST 45