Aggiungi una trama nella tua linguaAfter meeting up with his ex-lover Wendy, an ex-convict and thief named Boris gets persuaded to do one more heist. He is supposed to help Wendy rob her paraplegic, millionaire boss Lord Bres... Leggi tuttoAfter meeting up with his ex-lover Wendy, an ex-convict and thief named Boris gets persuaded to do one more heist. He is supposed to help Wendy rob her paraplegic, millionaire boss Lord Breston, for whom she has been working as a housemaid. But things turn out to be much more com... Leggi tuttoAfter meeting up with his ex-lover Wendy, an ex-convict and thief named Boris gets persuaded to do one more heist. He is supposed to help Wendy rob her paraplegic, millionaire boss Lord Breston, for whom she has been working as a housemaid. But things turn out to be much more complicated than expected, in this exciting horror thriller with a twist ending.
Recensioni in evidenza
I rated this film a 10/10 and meant it, a film this "bad" yet wonderful, is as rare as any "good" 10/10 film there is.
It's a shame that this film is rarely seen outside of Canada. A true cinematic treasure that will stand the test of time.
Bravo!
My initial keenness in seeing 'Beyond The Seventh Door' was in revisiting the spectacularly odd, engagingly hyperbolic acting of the majestically monikered, Lazar Rockwood, a singularly strange Thespian whose implausibly cool handle is no less conspicuous than his monumental lack of dramatic subtlety, but it is this very autistic overkill which adds considerable 'Bad Movie' grist to this joyfully absurd and winningly implausible tale of an evil plutocrat's labyrinthine castle and its myriad, puzzle-laden chambers that might, perhaps, lead our plucky protagonists to their imminent doom!
Happily, my giddy anticipation of, Lazar's 'acting' proved entirely justified, as maverick dramatist, Mr. Rockwood manifested yet another hysterical display of his sympathetically earnest, hilariously unrefined 'acting', while perhaps not quite on par with his tweaked epicness in 'Fearless Tigers' but still so consistently off-key and stridently bereft of nuance as to suggest that this was some warped satire, the subversive director repeatedly taunting the actors with his asinine dialogue and increasingly implausible narrative contrivances! While 'Beyond The Seventh Door' never quite reached the heroic heights of extreme B-Movie buffoonery, the quirky puzzles were suitably puzzle-y, and it was frequently very, VERY silly indeed! (One can also enjoy a brain-nuking drinking game by having a wee dram each time Wendy inanely calls out, 'Boris!!!???')
Rockwood's non-acting style takes some beating, it has to be said, and he ever makes the token female, Bonnie Beck, look good by comparison. The weirdest thing about this movie is the plot: Rockwood plays a burglar who becomes trapped in an underground complex of booby-trapped chambers and must use his brain to escape.
It feels very much like an early version of a CUBE-style storyline, or perhaps a fictionalised CRYSTAL MAZE. And it's fair to say that this is an inept film throughout, with direction that's even worse than the acting. It comes as little surprise that Beck is forced to divest her clothing as the running time progresses, leaving her parading around in her skimpy underwear. Otherwise, I'm not really sure what I just watched!
Ben Kerr as Dead Man or more accurately Dead (but still breathing every time he appears in the scene) Man was a delight and Rockwood could have taken a lesson from Kerr's restrained performance.
To be honest, this film is genuinely entertaining. Rookwood's lack of acting chops, Bonnie Beck's feminine charms, and Toronto street reformer Ben Kerr playing a breathing dead guy put this in my Pantheon of Great Cinema.
A trashy couple take a painfully slow journey through an empty castle with seven rooms of deadly traps in search of a mysterious millionaire's hidden treasure. The pair are guided by the voice of a man sounding identical to the voice of Canadian actor Dan Woods (aka Mr. Raditch on the original, and far superior, Degrassi series). Woods is not credited, but the voice is a dead ringer. You be the judge.
Story aside, Beyond the 7th Door is particularly infamous for the casting of phenom actor Lazar Rockwood, the movie's hypnotically hideous "leading man". Rockwood looks like a real-life version of Moe the Bartender crossed with The Toxic Avenger, his presence is nothing short of mesmerizing. Playing an ex-convict named Boris, Rockwood struggles through every line of every scene with broken English and autistic body language. Jerking and twitching spastically, wagging his tongue about, waving his tape measure and Batman-style tool belt, and hopelessly trying to maintain some small shred of dignity, Rockwood literally chews the scenery!
Forced to endure Rockwood's company is the only other cast in the film, Boris's ex-girlfriend and partner in crime, Wendy (or as Lazar might say, "Vendy"), played by Bonnie Beck. Beck is a porno-calibre actress, but next to Lazar, you mistake her for Katherine Hepburn. In a memorable exchange at a coffee shop, Wendy criticizes Boris by saying, "Boris, you're not even a good thief!". Rockwood earnestly replies, "I'm getting better!". Outstanding.
However, the true horror of Beyond the 7th Door is watching a shirtless and sexually charged Lazar Rockwood ravage Wendy's unfortunate body in a dirty, sludge-filled basement. The punchline being that she actually requests this! (I suspect this may have happened between takes and was accidentally caught on film, then thrown in by director Bennedikt for reality TV shock value...though it's a theory)
The hands-down greatest moment in the film is Rockwood jump kicking through a cement wall, flying mullet and all! This should have been looped at least a dozen times, then a dozen more in slow motion. It's genius! The second best part could have been the ultimate death of Boris in the final moments caused, appropriately, by his own unthinkable incompetence... but Rockwood can't even DIE properly! His body explodes OFF camera with not a trace of blood to be seen! (Though this does set it up for Beyond the 7th Door 2: Beyond the 8th Door! Did Rockwood really die? Who knows?)
In the end, Beyond the 7th Door leaves you with many more questions than answers, mostly about Rockwood himself and the events surrounding his involvement. Although these questions will likely never be answered, when the final credits role you will be left dumbfounded and perplexed for weeks to come.
Since Hollywood is on a never ending bender of butchering classic films in remake or "re-imagining" format, I suggest remaking this one. I also would like a Special Edition DVD of Beyond the 7th Door with 5 commentary tracks of Lazar Rockwood reciting one-liners from the film and a 3 hour featurette documenting Rockwood's entire career. A full-colour photo gallery of Rockwood would also be nice, plus some shirtless promotional stills and half a dozen international trailers.
I'll be waiting with my money on the table.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizA scene in which Lord Breston explains how he became crippled was shot, but ultimately cut from the film.
- BlooperThe character of the dead man who supposedly died from drowning can be seen breathing.
- ConnessioniReferenced in The Unknown Celebrities: B.D. Benedikt (2001)
I più visti
Dettagli
- Tempo di esecuzione
- 1h 23min(83 min)
- Colore
- Proporzioni
- 1.33 : 1