dmidtrui

The Entity isn't subtle about the nature of the supernatural phenomena it portrays - within the first few minutes Barbara Hershey's character is attacked sexually by the "entity". Thereafter the attacks repeat and escalate and the film revolves around questioning the cause of them - which involves psychiatric analysis of Hersehy's childhood and the possibility she is hysterically creating the attacks herself. What is especially good about this film is that - atleast for the first half - it avoids black and white views by any characters. Everyone is ambiguous about what is going on. Later on the serious special effects start and the lines are drawn between the metaphysical and the psychiatric/materialistic camps. This movie apparently predates POLTERGEIST by a year though it is quite reminiscent in the second half. The acting, writing, direction, and music in this film are very good -- a well-handled look at a difficult subject (a woman being repeatedly raped by an invisible entity.)

Don't be fooled by directing credit for Corey Yuen, famed Hong Kong action director, or Luc Besson's production and script -- this is strictly Hollywood action fare, same old garbage. There is one fight sequence with some of that HK flourish, but the rest is tired formula mandated by studio. Also, Shu Qi is nice to look at but there are no sparks with the hero, and the obligatory love scene has no glimpses of her lovely figure unclothed, and is just awkwardly stuck into the movie with no reason other than it had to be there. Don't insult yourself - pass on this!

Blow Off! takes it's noir seriously, and pays homage to the past, while winking a bit at the genre - a form of deconstruction one could say. The script has its share of classic noir-like lines - my favourite being, "He had a personality like a turkey stuffed with sexual indiscretions." Plot is the old detective-paid-to- spy-on-woman-having-sex, with a twist something like in Chuck Vincent's The Voyeur. Who said porn went bad after '85?