Don't Look Up

I originally picked this movie to watch after reading the plot. It seemed different from most movies so I thought I was seeing something new that would grab my attention. When getting the movie home, I read the reviews on here and saw it was a "bad" horror film. Still, I took my chances.

I can see why many do not like this film. There is no definite beginning or end, leaving you to question the purpose of the entire movie. The plot seems to change focus from the movie production to the mental state of the producer.

Let it be known, this is NOT a horror movie. There are "intense" images placed in scenes without much thought (i.e. the flashbacks the main character gets). The idea is probably to shock the viewer when they least expect it. The "gore" in the movie is less frightening than taking a stroll through the butcher's shop to pick up dinner. I do not understand how this movie is rated R. It lacks the core elements which would make a movie "R" - gore, language, and nudity. This movie is all about the deteriorating mental state of the "producer" inside the movie, which is fun to watch if you're into that kind of thing. The acting was subpar; I think a high school play crew could act the scenes better than the actors hired for this movie. Overall this movie gets a 3/10. They tried and came up short.

Here's a film which seems to be all over the place in terms of story, which is needlessly complicated and as a result feels rushed and unsatisfactory. This is apparently a remake of an Japanese ghost film, given a western twist and cast, and directed by Chinese director Fruit Chan (who made the sickening DUMPLINGS).

The story tells of a film crew attempting to shoot a tale about a cursed production, only for themselves to fall foul of the evil spirit of a witch inhabiting the set. The witchcraft/ghost angle is entirely predictable, although there are some cool CGI effects involving swarming flies, but that doesn't stop the film from feeling disjointed and more than a little unfocused.

There are familiar cast members here, from a cameoing Eli Roth as a Hungarian director to Henry Thomas and Shiloh Fernandez, but the actors fail to bring life to what is a very stale script. You can tell Chan is trying and indeed DON'T LOOK UP is unsettling in a few places thanks to his efforts, but as with most remakes I'd recommend checking out the original instead.

There was a time that Japanese or Asian flicks were the next big thing. Gore galore and brutality used was a common thing. Sadly, Hollywood saw the dollars coming in and started to remake most of those flicks, many of them flopped. Even worser, those eastern directors were asked to make Hollywood movies. Bad idea, they are really crap. Here, Fruit Chan, the director couldn't deliver the stuff. And even as the granddaughter of actor, Charles Chaplin, plays in it it really is a dreg. The idea is okay, but done before a year ago in two other films. The movie in the movie, remember The Hills Run Red and Midnight Movie. Here a director would like to remake a movie that was never finished due to, as legends go, evil spirits. Those evil spirits are killing all crew members or anyone involved in the making of the movie. The supernatural is a main thing in this flick but appears too much via CGI. No gore, no nudity, no suspense, no nothing. I would recommend it for teenagers seeking for a good time with a beer and some crisps.

A lot of the other reviews are kinda harsh and seem to come from the Uber-Film High-Brow Horror Critic's row of the theatre. Whereas I just wanted to see something. . .different.

What grabbed me was the notion of a ghost story set current day, in Transylvania, that didn't involve Vampires. Period.

I'm sick of Vampires: Old, Young, Teenagers, the black leather thing, suburban dark sex. . .whatever. Just sick of it all. And here was a story about a modern day haunting in Transylvania on a movie set.

Now I'll be honest, the plot is confusing. I'm not quite sure on exactly WHAT was haunted: The Movie Set, the Film, or the 'Set Specialist' himself, But I like the fact that you're not quite sure whether the 'Set Specialist' Marcus is hallucinating or really seeing things. The build-up of havoc on the filming set and the deaths here and there followed by the final send-up of the ghost/apparition at least did not follow the usual formula, so I was entertained. And to the Nay-Saying Aficionados who were expecting more linear, explainable plot, I say that the lack of an explainable plot was excusable because the action still drove towards a weird conclusion. And what held me was the fact that it wasn't a PREDICTABLE Plot. I STILL wanted to see what the End would be. And on that score, I say the movie scored a point.

The FX were nicely done and the flies were a nice touch. There's gore, but it's more Ick than Splatter. Warning: Girlfriends with weak stomachs or sensibilities may need you to cover their eyes a bit. Oh, and refrain from a genuine male desire to get some pizza out of the Microwave. . .the GF will NOT understand and will give you troublesome disgusted looks.

Nah, it's not Horror Movie Gold-- but it has it's own Honorable Mention Category and definitely a good passable Saturday Nite Horror Flick.

And when you watch, don't Siskel & Ebert it. This is Elvira material! Enjoy!

Marcus Reed (Reshad Strik), a film-maker troubled by strange visions, travels to Romania to try and make a movie based on a long lost film by legendary '20s director Béla Olt (Eli Roth). Reed's film is hampered by strange accidents on-set: is Marcus losing his mind or is an ancient gypsy curse causing his problems?

Don't Look Up is a remake of the 1996 Japanese film Joyû-rei; it is an American/Japanese/South African co-production starring an international cast and directed by Asian film-maker Fruit Chan. No wonder it's a bloody mess. The first half of the film is extremely boring, while the second half makes no sense whatsoever.

A couple of gruesome death scenes and frequent clouds of CGI flies do nothing to make this garbage any more bearable. Boring dialogue, terrible acting, horrible editing effects, a set that looks like an old derelict junkyard, an irritating Romanian character who says 'Mr. Marcus' every few seconds: this sorry excuse for a horror film is a total dud from dull start to utterly incomprehensible finish.