The Muse

A ghost helps out a struggling musician to help him find his groove as he struggles to find that NEXT perfect song. Little did I know that the ghost has a dark side and that translates to some good 'ol fashion lake house killings.

An interesting story line with some great music to boot. The characters offer a wide range of emotions as well as a wide range of death scenarios!!

What price do you want to pay for fame? That is the question in this movie. If you had an outlet that offered help in desperate times, would you take it?

I'd recommend it for sure...

I am not a big horror fan usually. But this movie was funny and scary at the same time. I thought the plot and the premise behind the movie was witty. The majority of horror movies are either too predictable or their humor is goofy at best. The main actors were excellent and made it believable. The humor that was in this film was funny in a real way and not overdone. The filming of the scenes was done extremely well. Some of the scenes seemed very artistic, without seeming too pretentious. In summary it was a joy to watch this movie and I would definitely watch it again. Would I recommend this movie? The answer is absolutely!

You know you've seen a great movie when you're wondering days later how the characters are. The music was fantastic! Fun and engaging!!! The locations that were chosen were perfect, exactly the right place for a struggling artist to be inspired.

Unfortunately the inspiration took a turn and became dark. The Muse caught your eye and kept your attention all the way through. There were moments brought to life by realistic sound effects that only enhanced the impact of what was going on.

I would love to see more by this writer/director and am hoping to send others to see The Muse.

I've seen the Muse a few times, and always enjoy the experience. Rufus Chaffee does a real solid job in conveying the tense mood of the story. He uses the sparse locale to its utmost, and I could get a feel of the space and how it effects the characters. The cast and crew are top notch. Great camera-work, great sound, and great pacing in the editing. The acting is all you could hope for too. Particularly the way Simons is able to get the main character's emotive disposition across is particularly effective. Anyone who has struggled to create something will really be able to identify with what he goes through. I definitely look forward to seeing what Rufus makes next.

Look, I'll be blunt: most of the first fifteen minutes are wholly unnecessary in the first place, and for the fact that we're treated to them, it's an inauspicious start to the movie as we get a taste of what to expect. The production values are so glaring as to be almost painful to behold, the dialogue is outright wretched, the characters are hugely unlikable, and if the protagonist's big hit song is really his claim to fame, then it's no wonder he's faded into obscurity. One can only desperately hope 'The muse' will improve from that weak beginning - but for as dubious as the scene writing is also, eliciting reactions of aggravated skepticism and deep reservations, the kindest thing to say is that it's going to be an uphill battle.

A little less than halfway through the runtime the plot does pick up a little bit. Those flaws don't go away, though, and more become evident. The cinematography, editing, and sound design come across much the same as the overall production values. "Blunt" and "heavy-handed" may be the best words with which to describe the picture, in fact, as there's an emphatic paucity of nuance at any time. This absolutely applies as well to the acting from all on hand. In fairness, it's clear 'The muse' is a rather low-budget production, and one can't fault a person for trying to make a movie even if they lack the best means or capability to do so. Even in the spirit of greatest generosity, however, this doesn't alter the fact that the viewing experience is direly trying on one's patience.

I like the story in the broad strokes; there are good ideas here. But the feature is so irritatingly bereft of tact as to almost completely subsume what value it could boast. We're supposed to recognize a change in protagonist Addison, for example, but the character is so tiredly, boorishly one-note that the change is all but imperceptible. Inexperience or meager resources can hardly account for every deficiency. And speaking of one-note, even in moments of violence the feature never wavers from the same lackadaisical tone. I hope Rufus Chaffee has grown as a filmmaker in the years since making this, and I wish him only the best, yet as it stands 'The muse' comes all too close to being unwatchable in its dullness and inelegance.

I hope other folks get more out of this than I did. For my part, I just can't recommend it.