bowmanblue

Steven Spielberg may be one of the most well-known filmmakers of all time, but I must have missed his name in the credits, as I didn't know he directed this until I was writing this review and spotted his name. This is an early made-for-TV horror outing and, at just under seventy-five minutes, it's a short feature, yet somehow feels way too long, with very little actually happening in that entire span.

The story follows a family moving into a rural American farmhouse that-surprise, surprise-has a supernatural element dwelling there. On paper, it's a decent enough set-up for a ghostly movie, but the execution is just totally bland. Like I say, it's not long, but it's also not scary and it never produces a truly unsettling moment. Those hoping for creeping dread, memorable scares, or even a splash of gore will find none of that here.

Instead, the movie settles into the most restrained rhythms of 70s TV horror with soft lighting, slow pacing and basic storytelling. Spielberg's direction shows hints of what was destined to come, but I guess he had to make films like this so that his true classics like 'Poltergeist' could run.

If you're a fan of supernatural or possession films, there are plenty of better choices, such as 'The Exorcist, Burnt Offerings,' or, of course, Spielberg's own 'Poltergeist.' 'Something Evil' is more curiosity than classic, of interest only to die-hard Spielberg fans. For most viewers, it's a forgettable detour.

'The Three Faces of Eve' is an interesting film to revisit, especially as a product of its time. While it tackles multiple personality disorder (now more commonly known as dissociative identity disorder), the portrayal comes off as a bit simplistic (and definitely melodramatic!) by today's standards.

Certain elements feel overblown, simply to get across the affliction for the Hollywood audience of the time, but as someone who lives with a relative suffering from a similar affliction, I can't say the film mirrors much of what I've seen in real life. Still, considering it was made in the 1950s, you can forgive the filmmakers for getting a few things wrong-understanding of mental health was far less advanced back then.

The performances are what carry it. Joanne Woodward, in particular, does an excellent job differentiating the "three faces" (of the three different elements/women living inside her mind) and it's easy to see why the role was considered a landmark at the time. However, the story has to have that neat, "typical Hollywood ending," which sadly glosses over the reality that mental health struggles don't always tie up in a bow. For those who know what living with such a condition really looks like, that final note rings hollow.

Despite its shortcomings, The Three Faces of Eve is a decent enough attempt for the time of how the era perceived psychology and mental illness. Not perfect by any means, but worth a watch for its historical value and decent acting.

It's only been a few days since I watched 'Edge of the Axe' and, believe it or not, I've already forgotten most of it. Not that there was much of a plot to begin with - it's effectively a cheap 'Friday 13th' rip-off, complete with masked serial killer. The fact that I had to look up a plot summary just to write this says a lot about just how unremarkable this late 80s slasher really is. On paper, it has adequate ingredients: a masked killer, small-town characters who are oblivious to the menace among them and a - semi - mystery whodunit element. But in practice, it never sticks.

It just feels so dated, even for 1988. By this point, slashers had been around for nearly a decade, yet this one feels like it's some sort of cheap prototype for the 'Jason' movies. There are better in the eighties and many even made during the seventies. Even lower tier slasher films like 'Black Christmas' is better, let alone the classics like 'Halloween.' Any of them give us more atmosphere, more gore and more well-rounded, even likable characters. Compared to that, 'Edge of the Axe' feels flat, with its characters mostly existing as completely unlikable fodder for the killer.

The kills themselves are nothing special, so if you're hoping for either some creative or gory deaths, you won't find any here. Plus the pacing drags and the reveal of the murderer doesn't add much weight. It's not terrible, but it's the kind of slasher you watch once, shrug then forget about almost immediately-which is exactly what happened to me.