Celluloid Diaries: November 2013

Monday, November 25, 2013

Life lately - Monsters, chestnuts and autumn dreams

roasted chestnuts
Trick 'r Treat Critters
Autumn Dream smoothie
porridge with almond milk, apples, cranberries and walnuts
De Coqisserie in De Haan
De Haan

1/ Roasted chestnuts. 2/ to 3/ Trick 'r Treat: Tales Of Mayhem, Mystery, and Mischief by John Griffin. 4/ to 6/ At the comics, sci-fi and anime festival FACTS. 7/ Smoothie with pear, yogurt, cinnamon and maple syrup. 8/ Lunch at Helvetia in Bredene. 9/ Brunch at Le pain Quotidien in Brussels. 10/ Autumn in Bruges. 11/ and 12/ Breakfast on the patio of De Coqisserie in the Belgian seaside resort De Haan. 13/ and 14/ Walking around the Belgian seaside.

Monday, November 18, 2013

Reading / watching / listening to...

Trick 'r Treat: Tales Of Mayhem, Mystery And Mischief by John Griffin

Reading

* Trick 'r Treat: Tales Of Mayhem, Mystery, and Mischief by John Griffin. This Halloween coffee table book is actually a making of to the movie Trick 'r Treat, but the main reason you should get it is because the visuals are so stunning. The book also contains several extra booklets and surprise packages: the comic book Season's Greetings (based on Michael Dougherty's short film), Halloween greeting cards, Jack-o-lantern cut-outs, Trick 'r Treat stickers and a Sam Halloween mask. Trick 'r Treat: Tales Of Mayhem, Mystery, and Mischief is a Halloween must-have that will be on my own coffee table every October from now on.

* Night Chill by Jeff Gunhus. Horror novel about a man who tries to save his daughter from an ancient evil. Sometimes I was getting into the story, sometimes not at all. I stopped reading after about sixty percent. Night Chill is getting many rave reviews from others, though.

* Koorts by Saskia Noort. A Dutch novel about two thirty-something girls who go to Ibiza for a fortnight of sunbathing, drugs, dancing, and Eyes Wide Shut parties. When one of them goes missing, the other goes looking for her. The novel is lots of fun, but simple. Way too simple. There are not many sentences containing more than five words. Reading this novel while actually vacationing on Ibiza certainly helped in my appreciation of the story.

* A Streetcat Named Bob by James Bowen. No wonder this true story of a street musician and his cat is such a bestseller. I think it's James' heartwarming personality and the special bond between him and his cat that made it so enjoyable. I dare you not to fall in love with this book.

* Angel Cats: Divine Messengers Of Comfort by Allen and Linda Anderson. A collection of true stories about how cats have changed our lives. Some of the stories are really unique; such as the one in which a cat keeps her owner's heart disease under control, or the one where a little girl protects her deceased mother's cat from the ongoing war. The majority of the stories is rather common though and don't go much further than saying that cats can be fun playmates. However, all the stories were definitely cute. As you could have guessed from the title, the events in Angel Cats are also linked to God's will and divine interventions from angels. This makes the book way too naive for its own good. I don't have anything against Christian thinking, but if you start believing that a stray cat that comes into your garden for the first time is a divine messenger from God, I'm out.


Watching

* Source Code. A man relives the same eight minutes over and over while trying to dysfunction a bomb on a train. Well-directed and entertaining, but not a movie that will stick.

* Lucia y el sexo. I watched this strange, beautiful and intriguing movie by Julio Medem the day after I visited its filming locations on the Mediterranean island Formentera. As most of Medem's other movies, Lucia y el sexo too is about odd coincidences and the symbolism of circles. When Lucia learns that her novelist boyfriend was in an accident, she visits Formentera where he once lived to recover. There, she meets his ex-girlfriend and learns about his secret past – a past that is linked with his fiction.

* Curse Of Chucky. The worst of all the Child's Play series. I stopped watching this after an hour, but apparently, I missed the best part.

* V/H/S/2. The new installment of this horror anthology is very much like the first one. Each story is a (visibly digital) VHS recording found by a group of private investigators. The found footage-style makes it impossible to get into the film. However, every story has at least one inventive find: there's an alien invasion seen from a dog's point of view, a bike ride from a zombie perspective, and some very cool-looking creatures.

* Big Ass Spider. When a giant spider escapes from a military lab and spreads chaos in Los Angeles, a pest exterminator might be the only one to save the world. With a title like Big Ass Spider, you know you're not in for a serious film. While not all the humor and storylines work equally well, Big Ass Spider is definitely a fun watch.

* Ghost Shark. Because the ghost shark attacks from any watery environment, you can expect shark attacks from bathtubs, water hoses, and buckets. It's silly to the extreme, of course, but it's also fun.

* Carrie. It's been a while since I last saw this. Though I know this film by heart, it's still surprising how excellent Sissy Spacek is in this film, how deftly layered the story is crafted, and how well Brian de Palma's trademark visual style matches the theme.

* Halloween 3: Season Of The Witch. I watch this almost every Halloween. The film got a bad reputation when it came out because people were expecting another Michael Myers film and this one had spiders and snakes coming out of children's heads instead. Halloween 3 is one of the first horror films I saw and it'll always be a favorite.

* Frances Ha. Woody Allen-style film about an irresponsible NYC girl who annoys everyone, including the audience. The filmmaker tries to impress with B&W photography and a theatrical, childish performance that matches Frances' behavior. Not sure why this gets so many good reviews. Maybe because it's so pretentious.

* Gravity. I'm glad I never pursued my childhood dream of becoming an astronaut. Gravity shows how scary space can be and how working and surviving it is almost impossible. No monsters and big action scenes here. Gravity works because of its realistic approach and claustrophobic space shots. If only the dialogue could have been less lame, Gravity would have been perfect. Glad I saw this in 3D in the cinema, because I don't think it would have had the same impact on a small screen.

* Prisoners. Denis Villeneuve is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. His previous film, Enemy, which I saw at the Sitges Film Festival, is by far the best film of the year. He surprises once more with Prisoners. The story seems straightforward: when two children go missing, the parents take matters into their own hands as the police pursue multiple leads. But don't be fooled. Prisoners is intense, clever, multi-layered, a delight.

* Last Days On Mars. I like the idea of putting zombie astronauts on Mars. But where is the suspense? Where is the character development?

* Villa Captive. This was one of the better rape and revenge movies. It's all light material, both in content and violence, but it's a fun hour and a half. Look out for the Zeno Pictures edition as it contains a booklet and multiple DVDs with extras.

* Midnight. Obscure horror movie from 1982 in which a teenage girl runs away from home and bumps into a family of Satanists. Great early eighties atmosphere. Director/writer John Russo based this upon his own novel.

*Summoned. TV movie in which five jurors find themselves followed by the ghost of a serial killer they sentenced to death. Summoned is the kind of story where you can guess the twists way before they happen and where the only decent acting comes from a dog.


Listening to

* Owl Splinters by Deaf Center. The ideal background music for writing thrillers.

* Paris by Dido. This song has been on repeat ever since I heard it while vacationing on Formentera. So beautiful, especially the lyrics.

* Ballroom Stories by Waldeck. One of the better trip hop albums in recent years.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Razor Reel 2013 wrap-up

Cinema Liberty

I just spent five days at the Razor Reel Fantastic Film Festival where I hosted several Q&A sessions with filmmakers. Apart from those Q&A sessions, I also had to chance to see thirteen movies. Here's a little overview.

Friday

The Razor Reel Fantastic Film Festival started on Friday with a fun film quiz hosted by Zeno Pictures and RRFFF.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Halloween at the seaside

Halloween at the seaside

When it comes to Halloween, Koksijde en St. Idesbald are some of the best places to visit in Belgium. Usually we don't celebrate Halloween in Belgium, but these coastal towns do their utmost to organize Halloween activities such as a Halloween parade, ghost trail, live music, free pumpkin soup, pumpkin carving contest, haunted house and Halloween 3D World. This past Thursday, a representative of the municipality of Koksijde guided me through all their Halloween events. Here's a little overview of the day.

Haunted house

The first place I went was called Thriller, a three-storey haunted attraction for kids. It's your typical roller coaster ride through a maze of fog, darkness, spooky puppets, ghostly wind, sound effects, and finally a crazy man chasing out through the exit.

spookhuis
haunted house Thriller
spookhuis Thriller

Halloween 3D World

Halloween 3D World was next, a hall with nine creepy decors to photograph the kids. Most of the decors have holes through which the children can stick their heads.

Halloween St. Idesbald
Halloween 3D World
Halloween 3D World
Halloween St. Idesbald

Pumpkin carving contest

After Thriller and Halloween 3D World, we went to the beach promenade of St. Idesbald, where dozens of children participated in the local pumpkin carving contest.

Pompoenen uithollen
Pompoenen uithollen
Pompoenen versieren
Pompoenen versieren

Live music

After an excellent waffle snack in 't Zwart Schaap and a look at the local Halloween decorations, it was time for the festivities to really kick off with street theater and live music.

Halloweenstoet zeedijk
Halloween St. Idesbald
lelijke kat
Halloweenstoet St. Idesbald
Halloweenstoet
griezelige vleermuis
griezelige muizen

Pumpkin soup

As the dark grew closer, the air filled with the scent of fresh pumpkins as a stall distributed free pumpkin soup to all the passers-by. Children collected their prizes for best-carved pumpkins and most original costumes.

pumpkin soup stall
Jong El Fuerté
vuurspuwende draak

Halloween parade

Around seven, the evening sky lit up with the colors of autumn as the Halloween parade concluded the festivities. Among the parade's signature features were monsters, giants, ghosts, goblins, witches, werewolves and vampires. Seeing those creepy creatures against a beach backdrop definitely added to the atmosphere.

Halloween Belgische kust
halloween west-vlaanderen

Halloween party

After the Halloween parade, we went to Glam Events' Halloween party, held in a church and complete with unlimited champagne and tasty snacks.

Halloween fuif
Glam Events
Glam Events Kortrijk

Ghost trail

The best part of the day, however, came at the end: a ghost trail through the dunes and woods of St. Idesbald with moonlight as the only guide. Spooky ghouls and goblins startled those who dared to venture into the dark. Stalls with free pumpkin soup and drinks marked little pauses now and then.

spookwandeling
Halloween spookwandeling
Halloween ghost trail

Many thanks to the municipality of Koksijde for the opportunity and good care.

And while you're here, have a look at some of my previous Halloween posts: Avalon, the pumpkin king / Happy Halloween / Spooky Halloween treats / Best Halloween stories / Giving me the creeps October contest / Halloween in Ireland / Halloween truffles and chilling books / Halloween board game giveaway / Halloween pumpkin drinks / Halloween giveaway

Friday, November 1, 2013