Battle of the Netflix Stars #5

And the Halloween horrors just keep coming...

Bout #5: Battle of the Supposed Horror Classics

Movie:The ChangelingSuspiria
Year:19801977
Director:Peter MedakDario Argento
Star Power:George C. Scott, Melvyn DouglasJessica Harper, Udo Kier
Plot:After New York composer John Russell loses his wife and daughter to a car accident, he picks up and moves to Seattle, settling in at a sprawling mansion. When John starts to believe that the house is haunted, he does some digging and learns that the presence is the ghost of a boy who lived there nearly a decade ago. He also discovers that what happened to the boy is part of a secret that could destroy a powerful political family.American dancer Suzy Bannion travels to Europe to attend ballet school. On the night she arrives, she sees another girl hysterically fleeing the school. Suzy discovers that the mystery girl was murdered that same evening, and soon starts noticing that there are strange things going on at the school - like maggots falling from the ceiling and people disappearing. She soon discovers that the school staff are all a bunch of witches.
Pros:No gimmicks, lame special effects, or gore needed. Just a great story boosted by solid performances.
Uhhhhhhhh....
Cons:I can't really think of many, although I feel like the ghost suddenly became much more menacing and vengeful towards the end of the movie, which seems a bit inconsistent. But hey, I guess you never can really trust a ghost.The acting was bad, some of the dubbing was really distracting, and the plot (or lack thereof) was lame. It was apparent from the beginning that the movie was about witches so there was really no "big reveal." Worst of all, the same 3 annoying songs kept playing over and over.
My Thoughts:I would definitely put this in the "classic" category, not only because it is an engrossing movie, but because I saw SO many things that later horror movies (including The Sixth Sense, The Others, and The Ring) obviously "borrowed" from this one.I actually became really angry while watching this. It felt like it was 5 hours long. Prior to viewing, I had heard so much about how Dario Argento is a "master of horror" and how this movie is so suspenseful, yadda yadda yadda. Whatever. Apparently, Argento's idea of suspense is filming someone walking down a hallway for 10 minutes while some really loud, repetitive piece of music blares away, only to have the person finally encounter something that anyone watching with half a brain already knew was going to be there. In fact, one of the songs features a ridiculous voice that keeps whispering, "witch," so there's certainly no suspense over what this movie is about!
Final Grade:B+F

Comments

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Wow, I never would have seen The Changeling otherwise, but now I kinda want to.

Also, you're it.
Isn't there another movie called The Changeling out this year or something? That should be scary as hell. Angelina Jolie always creeps the bejeebus outta me.
Falwless said…
Interesting. Is that new Jolie flick Changeling taken from the title of this one? I probably could look up the answer to that, but, hey, I'm lazy.
Falwless said…
Bloody Awful Poetry and I were obviously on the same wavelength at the same time.

Which really should scare Bloody Awful Poetry.
Dale said…
The Changeling scared the shit out of me when I was a kid although I found it much less frightening on my re-viewing as a growed up boy. I tried to watch Suspiria once and gave up so I fully support your rating system.
Joe said…
They're both great in their own way. Suspiria is great in a "boy-this-movie-is-really-colorful-and-over-the-top-and -not making much sense-way"
dguzman said…
I too want to see The Changeling now!
katrocket said…
Anything featuring Udo Keir is usually super weird and creepy. And sometimes faaaahbulous, daahling.
Alice said…
aaaahahaha. i saw suspiria once - my old roommate was really into b horror movies. that fell so far before b-level horror... my god. it wasn't even bad in a funny way. just... tedious, like you said.
Red said…
I've been looking for something to watch Halloween night. Maybe I'll try The Changeling.
cube said…
Ah yes, thanks for reminding me of The Changeling. It's one I haven't seen in a long time.
Unknown said…
The bouncing ball sequence in The Changeling rocked so hard.

JDC
Chancelucky said…
Didn't know there was another movie called the "Changeling". So trade Angelina Jolie for George C. Scott?

Would be very cool to see her in the remake of Patton.
BeckEye said…
Re: The Changeling and Changeling

They're not related in any way, but there is a reason that both movies are called that. A changeling is "a child secretly exchanged for another." That's all I'm saying.
I remember being totally creeped out by the Changeling about a hundred years ago. And that is a good thing.

I may just have to grab it again for some Hallowe'ening.
Creepy said…
"Suspiria" was haunting, chills down my spine.
Gifted Typist said…
Yup the Changling is a classic by far. I would have given it an A.
But which one had more nudity? Hopefully the one with George C. Scott. Grrrrowl!