Weekly Movie Roundup: 2-5-12 to 2-11-12

The Baby (1973)
So while most everyone else in the world was watching the Super Bowl this past Sunday, I decided to watch this movie. It's an odd little cult classic about a social worker who becomes increasingly interested in a family with 21-year-old son, known only as "Baby," who acts, speaks, and is treated by his family like an infant. Surprisingly, the movie really isn't that bad. I was expecting something much more along the lines of sleazy exploitation film. While the overall concept of the film coupled with its horde of unlikable female family members is enough to give you the willies, the movie actually boasts some pretty good acting from the main women. The ending was supposed to some big shocker, but I actually found it rather sweet - morbid and creepy, yes, but sweet. It's not a movie you're gonna forget any time soon, that's a guarantee.

Wicked Little Things (2006)

Oh, the After Dark Horrorfest. Sometimes I'm just not sure about you. I mean, are these supposed to scary movies, or even good movies, or what?! Wicked Little Things was not overly terrible but it sure as hell wasn't anything special either. It's a cliche ghost story about a mother and her two daughters who move into a new house in the Pennsylvania woods and find out that there are about dozen murderous kids roaming the forest - children who died in a mine accident 100 years ago. Blah. The movie is kind of boring with nothing really new or interesting to see. I will give it props for having the kids be so brutal. They use their pickaxes and shovels and hammers to beat the shit out of people and then they eat their insides like zombies. Some nice gore work here, especially in the scene where the kids attack the teenagers in their car. Otherwise, a forgettable movie.

Paranormal Activity 3 (2011)
Paranormal Activity 3 brings our happy little story of ghosts and demons back to the beginning of when the supernatural occurrences started for Katie and Kristi. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the first two Paranormal Activity films, and though the formula is starting to wear a little thin after this third film, I thought it was okay. The girls playing the younger Katie and Kristi are adorable and really wonderful little actresses. There are several great and unexpected scares - the sheet, Katie bumping into Toby, all the kitchen stuff falling from the ceiling - that were effectively executed with the filmmaking style. The camera on the oscillating fan was a genius way to introduce these scares. One thing I also like about these movies is that no one has to come out explain what is going on with the story. They give you all the pieces to the puzzle in subtle ways, but the story is clear. So like I said, this movie was pretty good but I think any more might be overexposure. And yet, number 4 is on the way. We'll see.

Contagion (2011)

Many of the previews made this infection outbreak movie look like it was going to be all shiny and exciting, but instead Contagion is a slow burn, realistic drama with some of America's current favorite actors. Director Steven Soderbergh uses his same multilinear storytelling technique (which I just figured out is called a "hyperlink narrative" but whatever) to tell the story of different people involved in the outbreak of a new disease - a man whose wife died of it but he is immune, an investigator for the CDC, and a blogger trying to expose possible government conspiracies concerning the epidemic. The movie is not really about how gross they can make the disease look on the poor victims, which I'm sad to say, I was kind of hoping to see. But I liked the approach taken here, even though I'm sick of the post-apocalyptic, mass hysteria and panic, and loss of law and order thing. However, the acting is wonderful by all involved, with each character making their story the most interesting one in each scene. It flows easily despite the hectic editing and multiple characters, and I thought it was beautifully shot. Two thumbs up!