moonmonday

This is a show that feels like it doesn't entirely commit to a lot of things, but it still manages to accomplish some things. Whether it's intended or not, though, this series goes into such horror territory that it's easy to take as intelligent and almost unimaginably dark. It may just be more honest than I'm used to, and it did resonate in a number of ways, but doesn't it seem like they're in hell?

In any case, the Japanese voice acting is very good, and well cast. The premise is easy to understand, if you've ever seen any of these programs that are usually aired for mothers and young children to watch. The songs are also well-performed.

This is also one of the parts where the series doesn't commit completely to anything, so it's highly interpretable. Are the kids aware of how bleak things are, and the problems with their adult idols whom they believe have got it all figured out? It depends on the episode and what they wanted to say. Is the song really like that, and the kids don't understand how horrifying the words are but like the sound of it? Some of them seem like it, and others don't, but either way, it's deep in horror by that point.

It's funny and even cute sometimes, but then it immediately becomes extremely heavy and honestly depressing. The final episode really seems to double down on the horror, or ease in interpreting things that way. It's weird, because in some ways, it seems almost uplifting, but then the question follows, because it doesn't like to really commit in any particular direction.

It has some nice moments with different kinds of people, who are either archetypes you know well, or ones you haven't really seen exactly like this, so it can throw you off if you're expecting an easy go because you were assuming this was a silly comedy.

It's one of the only things I've seen in a while that made me think this much about what story it was trying to tell, and the characters were most all very understandable, often likeable. The production overall is very solid, and it's a series that doesn't overstay its welcome, really. I can always appreciate something that when it's done, I still want a little more. This was like that. But it's also something where, perhaps thanks to its lack of commitment, I don't feel I should ever revisit it. Nonetheless, I think it's worth watching once, though if you're extremely depressed, maybe try to find something else. This will definitely upset you a lot.

This movie clocks in at just short of forever, or at least that's what it feels like watching it. It desperately wants to be Argento's Suspiria (and as noted, does a better job remaking Suspiria than Guadagnino ever did), right down to the music, but it doesn't really work very well, for a number of reasons.

The first and foremost is that none of the characters are remotely likeable or sympathetic, making it very hard to become invested in anything they do. In Suspiria, the characters were often simple, but they were immediately comprehensible and often sympathetic. If you didn't like them, their actions at least could make some sense, even if you weren't aware of the subtler motivations that would only come into play near to the end of the movie. With Masks, most every character is suspect and very unlikeable. Plenty of characters only appear to be extremely hard to like, and there are so many unpleasant characters that they all start to run together very quickly.

Additionally, there's no real buildup of suspense at all. Violence occurs with no real reason behind it, and we don't even know the characters well enough to be invested in them. It's just a vignette around violence, and it doesn't add anything to the story. The setting is weird and unpleasant, but it's also stupid and meaningless.

Ultimately, the whole film is pointless. It could have been ten minutes long and accomplished the same thing. In fact, it probably would have been better, because then the threadbare premise wouldn't have been stretched out so thin. There were some decent ideas in there, but none ended up done well. The acting, whether you know German or not, is very questionable and uneven, which doesn't help matters.

The sets and costumes were good. The makeup and style were generally good. There was also a lot of really engaging photography. The music, though derivative of Goblin's classic soundtrack, is well done and just distinctly different enough to work.

But the rest of the production really lets all of the good down. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: just a bunch of unpleasant people does not make for good horror. There was exactly one line, where the main character lost her temper close to the beginning, where someone got exactly what he deserved, but that was it. It would have been much more interesting and enjoyable if it had actually explored the character developing more, which it really didn't do.

All in all, it's not a movie I can recommend. It may be a better take on Suspiria than the pathetic excuse for a remake that deserves to be forgotten, but that doesn't make it really a good movie. They tried, but as with many films these days, especially homages, they would have done better to keep it brief and do a short film instead...and only then develop it if there's enough material to do so.

Cultural stereotypes abound in this test of patience from France, acted so broadly that it makes the Three Stooges look subtle. Vanessa Paradis is charming in her own way, but she can't carry this poorly-composed dumpster fire, even if it is beautifully-shot and has a gorgeous soundtrack from M83.

Make no mistake: this is a movie more about a failed lesbian love affair than it is anything else, and it's about as enjoyable as watching a series of hate crimes. Which is to say, not at all. It's unforgivably boring, and for a French film and a film dealing with gay pornography as a focus, it's also terrified of actually committing to the topic. There's barely any nudity to speak of, and certainly nothing surprising or even approaching shocking. If you're going to make a lurid horror film about a violent killer in the very sketchy territory of porn production -- especially gay porn -- you have to actually commit to it. Real giallo didn't exactly shy away from nudity or sex and, even if most of the movies weren't much count, they at least could keep an audience engaged with things happening, whether or not they led to a satisfying conclusion.

But speaking as a gay man and someone who has seen quite a lot of both French cinema and gay cinema (not to mention giallo), this was less than mediocre at best and incredibly offensive at worst. All in all, it's boring, and that's one of the worst things something supposed to entertain can be. Inane, pretentious, unhappy, unentertaining, unamusing, and incredibly superficial -- that's this movie. When it's at its lowest, it comes off as a homophobic parade of poorly-written and poorly-realized nonsense. When it's at its best, it relies on visuals and score...which makes the story pointless.

It's a shame, since the same director also did You And The Night, which was a fantastic film. You And The Night worked because it was a fantasy, with a tremendous magic to the thread of its story, and its at-times incoherent quality seemed dreamlike and engaging. It's a much better choice to watch than this turd, and it's also given a soundtrack by the brilliant M83. Watch it instead.