Screening Log
This new site feature is a collective effort to summarize our viewing habits. Occasionally, you will find titles here that are coming to a theater near you, in addition to films viewed on television, and even films viewed in piecemeal. The screening log is archived each month; to view past entries select a month in the menu below.
October 2006 activity
Total Log Entries: 57
- Adam (6)
- Andrew (0)
- Chet (0)
- Chiranjit (3)
- David (0)
- Eva (0)
- Evan (0)
- Ian (3)
- Jenny (0)
- Katherine (0)
- Leo (9)
- Megan (0)
- Rumsey (16)
- Teddy (0)
- Thomas (4)
- Timothy (0)
- Victoria (0)
Total Comments: 43
- Don’t Look Now (1)
- Little Children (1)
- Running with Scissors (0)
- The Prestige (2)
- Dumbland (0)
- Art School Confidential (0)
- Aguirre: The Wrath of God (0)
- The Hills Have Eyes (0)
- Brick (0)
- The Host (0)
- Sólo con tu pareja (1)
- Marie Antoinette (0)
- Lighten Up (0)
- Heavy Metal Drummer (0)
- Click (0)
- Poseidon (0)
- Dracula (0)
- Kissed (0)
- The Pit (0)
- Airplane II: The Sequel (0)
- Endless Descent (0)
- Wolf Creek (0)
- The White Diamond (1)
- The Departed (1)
- The Queen (0)
- The Last King of Scotland (9)
- Bobby (1)
- The Science of Sleep (1)
- The Departed (0)
- Storefront Hitchcock (0)
- passage à l’acte (0)
- pièce touchée (2)
- The Spirit of the Beehive (0)
- Death Of A President (1)
- The Da Vinci Code (1)
- The Hard Way (1)
- The Departed (2)
- The Departed (0)
- Frenzy (0)
- The Trouble with Harry (0)
- The Best of Everything (0)
- Purple Noon (3)
- Election (11)
- A Journey to Avebury (0)
- Blue Velvet (1)
- Old Joy (0)
- Blood Sucking Nazi Zombies (0)
- World Trade Center (1)
- Silent Hill (0)
- The Last King of Scotland (0)
- Army of Shadows (0)
- Harlan County, U.S.A. (0)
- 9 Songs (0)
- Shock Treatment (0)
- Children Of Men (1)
- Happy Gilmore (1)
- Manic (0)
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Endless Descent / The Rift / La Grieta / Spain / USA / 1989
“You Can’t Hold Your Breath and Scream at the Same Time”
Breakneck low-budget Alien—Abyss imitation pits a gaggle of inept sailors against a subterranean cavern rife with the deviant offspring of a DNA-splicing experiment gone wrong. Who’s to blame for such ill-conceived nature meddling? Why the U.S. government of course. Realizing their imprudence, the feds send a loose cannon submarine designer and a hard-nosed Navy captain down with a hapless NATO crew in hopes of quashing the burgeoning power of the mutant horde.
Designating only a modicum of screen time to character development and back-story, Descent throws us right into the middle of the fracas—we learn of the disappearance of the submarine Siren I, meet Wick the designer, and board the Siren II for the unfathomable depths. Soon enough, the cavern is found, the bloodthirsty fish-insect-amphibian abominations are discovered, and the firefight for survival begins.
The catastrophic implications of humanity’s arrogance are hinted at, as are the ethical implications of DNA fiddling. But thankfully, Descent avoids any of Cameron’s annoying humanity-is-bad proselytizing and lets this story go where it wants to—fanged aqua-beasts munching limbs, and evil undersea plants toxically devouring the unwary. Such rapid pacing, coupled with impressive-for-the budget special effects and a creative horror setting, keeps the film from faltering, and elevates Descent beyond forgettable rip-off into the realm of impressive homage.
by Thomas Scalzo | Source: Live Home Video VHS
16 Oct 2006 7:04 PM | Submit Comment