Segredo de Sangue

Everybody should just relax and enjoy watching a red hot, middle aged Momma's sexual jealousy over her beautiful daughter in law. The photography was great, loved the rural location (without the stupid horses), and Gwyneth and Jessica look as good as they ever have. The problem is that the director tried too hard for believability, and that resulted in a very average, plodding, sometimes laughably bad movie. If they had taken it over the top, like what you find in good novels, (torture, perversion), then we would have had a classic.

Its a shame they held back because Jessica and Gwyneth looked amazing. Who cares if their performances weren't great? Their screen presence made up for it. They were ripe for a deliciously violent, twisted older woman/younger woman B-movie and the director blew it. (Check out Piper Laurie and Sissy Spacek in "Carrie." They set the standard for over the top, twisted mother-daughter action.)

I quite enjoy watching older movies (pre 2000), just to see the difference in films between then and now, so I saw this on Netflix and I took a punt. And I was quite disappointed to be honest.

So the beginning, the plot absolutely flies by, there's no dithering about and it throws you into the thick of it within minutes. 10 minutes in you know the characters, the plot, her mother's maiden name and what they had for dinner last June. This pace, in my opinion, is a good thing and I thought it would continue this way throughout. Then all of a sudden, it kind of just sticks to a standstill. Very little happens, even the ending is really underwhelming and nothing really of note happens. Between the 15 min mark and an hour all of what happened could genuinely be condensed into a single scene.

As you're watching you are waiting for THAT moment. The twist, the golden moment that makes you go "aghhh". But nothing happens, it's just really boring. You're waiting for something to go down, or even something to be said that kicks the film into gear. But no.

It also just got predictable, you knew what was going to happen in the scene and you knew what was going to happen in the next scene.

The saving grace to this film was the performances. Jessica Lange in particular played her role really well, but ultimately it's not enough to get this film going.

So yeah. Disappointed in this movie and perks ably wouldn't recommend. 4/10

"Hush" is the kind of film that's so easy that it should work right on the first view but it's not the case. I remember watching it a few years ago and finding one of the most boring things I've ever seen except for the outstanding acting of Jessica Lange. Fate pulls its strings sometimes and one of those nights when you're desperate for something to show up on TV and there you go, there was this and I got a little gripped into seeing it again, this time paying more attention to details. Well, it turned out to be quite a good film, undeserving the low rating that is getting now.

A twisted and thrilling tale about acceptance and skeletons in the closet? You can say that. Gwyneth Paltrow plays the lovable Helen, a successful and beautiful woman, loved by a man who's also both of the fore-mentioned qualities, the great Jackson (Johnathon Schaech) of the powerful Baring family. But he has a mother, the surprising Martha (Jessica Lange) of whom Helen always tries to please to the best since Jackson and his mom has some strong bonds between them and she wants to be part of this quite perfect family. Habitual to flicks of the same caliber, there's secrets, tension between both women and a certain disdain the old lady feels for the younger and it's up to Helen to discover what's the problem with the Baring family. Her only great ally is Jackson's grandmother (Nina Foch, excellent), father of Martha's late husband, and keeper of some family secrets that can storm a big mess in everyone's lives.

There isn't much to be said about "Hush" except that the cast is great, even though they're not at their greatest moment. Except Lange and Foch who are brilliant, and the memorable special appearance of Hal Holbrook as the doctor. But it's Lange who steals the show playing a pitiful villain, sometimes adorable, other times really cruel but most of the time always in control of the situation. The plot should include more characters to make this more tense and less concentrated in those three main characters. The relationship between Jackson and Martha could've go to more controversial ways, cause everything seems to indicate that (the scene where he's covered in mud and she cleans him, they're like pretending it's just a silly joke. There's something going on there).

I know Jonathan Darby has directed better films (like the criminally underrated and almost forgotten "The Enemy Within" with Forest Whitaker) but what he makes here is quite good, never cheap and at the most entertaining to watch for its cast and the beautiful cinematography. 8/10

Jessica Lange commenced her career by following in the (admittedly light) footsteps of Fay Wray. She seems determined to end it by stomping in the heavier footfalls of middle-period Joan Crawford. As the cyclonic star of this film, Lange runs the gamut. She flings her arms around, tugs at her hair, reverts to that coy, sideways glance that implies she's only about, oh, forty five, bellows out in growling chest tones, sobs hysterically - she does, to state it simply, the lot.

Which leaves her co-stars understandably bewildered. Gwyneth Paltrow manages to look more annoyed than frightened, and when, in the best Scooby Doo manner, she neatly ties up the loose threads of the plot, annoyance gives way to abject boredom. With her dead fish eyes and droning monotone, Gwyn obviously wants the whole thing over with more than we do. Quite an achievement.

And few could blame her. Of all the silly premises that have been put on film, the monster mother is surely the silliest. Its mighty hard to believe that Jessica's Ken doll son has managed to go thirty years without once telling the old cow to put a sock in it. Perhaps I'm a bit obtuse but I still don't quite get the bit about the murder with the suction pump (or whatever it was.) At any rate if some post natal, gormless drip can figure it out surely it shouldn't be taxing the police too much to make an arrest.

That would imply real life of course, and Hush has nothing to do with that. If you're in the market for an aged, raging southern belle then you can't go past this, but have a look at the genuine article - Joan Crawford in "Queen Bee" - first.

I've just finished watching this movie and the only thing I can think is "I should have done anything else in those 90 something minutes." What was that? I can't even say the plot wasn't OK because there was no plot at all. And how about the preview, full of shots that are not on the film, and give the wrong impression about it. How come Jessica Lange got involved in something like that? Was she in debt with someone?