Comedy Horror is never easy and this summers Zombieland has set the bar pretty high. Although (to continue the crap analogy) Jennifer’s Body doesn’t clear the bar it gives it a bloody good try and very nearly makes it. Following the success of Juno, Diablo Cody is the star name outshining the director and the stars of the movie. Whatever she had done to follow Juno would disappoint many people, and would be criticised by others. Firstly, she should be credited for such an amazing début not criticised for a weaker follow-up, secondly, Jenifer’s Body is actually a prety good film with more to praise than criticise.
Its always difficult to describe a film without giving too much away, but when the trailer has already given so much away I am relatively safe in this instance. In fact there are key quotes in trailer that succeed in giving a lot of the plot away but then don’t appear in the finished film. Jenifer (Megan Fox) is a cheerleader, in other words high school royalty. As with all poplar people at school she needs a best friend who is less attractive and less popular in this film the role is filled by Needy (Amanda Seyfried) who incidentally is the best thing in the movie. During an incident that I won’t describe Jenifer is possessed by a demon, as a result of which she needs to kill and devour people in order to retain her looks and strength. Before long Needy realises what is going on and is compelled to take steps to stop her friend. The most telling thing about the transformation is how long it takes for Needy to notice and that no one else ever sees any difference.
I said above the film doesn’t completely work. Where the film suffers is that it doesn’t know where to place itself between horror and comedy. It fails to match Drag me to Hell for scares and Zombieland for laughs, it would have been that little bit better if it had the confidence to choose a side. For me Karyn Kusama was a director with something to prove, she appeared almost from nowhere nine years ago to direct the brilliant Girlfight then after a five year absence came up with the appalling Æeon Flux (based on a great animated series). With Jenifer’s body she has certainly restored her reputation and has also given us a glimmer that she has even more to offer.
The marketing is all about Megan Fox, she is so perfectly cast that it could have been written for her, whether it was or not she is unlikely to ever find a better part. Playing on the preconceptions of her looks, personality and reputation who else could have played the part? She is clearly having fun and actually puts a strong performance in. I have heard criticism of her for being too old to play a teenager. At 23 she is 11 years younger that Stockard Channing was is Grease (playing a 17/18 year old) so I think we can let that one go. I have already mentioned that Amanda Seyfried is the best thing in the film, even behind the props of the character she is too attractive and talented to play the dweeby friend. I read this as the character being a satirical look at teen movies. Two things that become clear, Jenifer needs Needy more that Needy actually needs Jenifer and untimatly Jenifer is the real victim of the film. The other performance of note came from Adam Brody as the lead singer of the band. Brody had a great part in Mr & Mrs Smith but failed to build on it and is probably still best known for his part in the TV show The O.C. This could be his chance to expand his appeal.
The film actually spends little time in school but it still works as a satire of high school movies like Mean Girls. As teen comedy horror its ultimate target should really be The Lost Boys, again it isn’t that good but does have a similar appeal. The film actually offers a few surprises, it is very well shot and extremely well constructed, I’m not sure if this is to the credit of the script or the editing, either way it really works and the film moves along nicely. Other surprises are found within the story, plot and snappy dialogue; the most notable of these is a teenage sex scene that is actually tender sweet and realistic as well as being funny at times.
Diablo Cody is well versed in horror movies, The Wizard of Gore – Suspiria discussion in Juno demonstrates that, that’s why I leave this film with a twinge of disappointment, I would love to see what she could do if she set her mind to an outright horror movie. Having said that, despite its faults the film is light-years ahead of the “torture porn” and remakes that the horror genre has presented us with in recent years. Maybe she is saving her best ideas for her inevitable directorial debut?
As described by Bond in the novel: 
In preparation for this post I have watched my favourite three David Fincher films in a week, it’s a hard life! There aren’t that many directors around these days that you can truly call an auteur, David Fincher is a member of a very select group of directors who makes films accessible, enjoyable and entertaining and can be described as both movies and art. His movies often have an Existential feal without being esoteric or elitist. For this series of blogs I have decided to limit the directors to those who made their feature début as a director within the last twenty years. I already have an idea of who I will be writing about but suggestions are welcome.
Fight Club (1999) Based on the novel of the same name by Chuck Palahniuk Fight Club is better than the book it is based on. Director David Fincher had read the book and tried to buy the rights himself before being hired by 20th Century Fox. He cast Edward Norton against the advise of the studio and Brad Pitt who he had worked with on Se7en. Helena Bonham Carter completed the leading cast, playing against type and beating actresses as diverse as Courtney Love and Reese Witherspoon. One of the most controversial and thought provoking films of the late of recent years it works as a precursor to the lack of hope and direction. The film challenges personal cultural values and consumerism, it is best summed up by the quotes of Tyler Durden: “You’re not your job. You’re not how much money you have in the bank. You’re not the car you drive. You’re not the contents of your wallet. You’re not your fucking khakis”. And: “Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who’ve ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War’s a spiritual war… our Great Depression is our lives. We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.” Poorly marketed the film made a small profit on it theatrical release it found its true audience on DVD, I saw the film at the cinema then went back two days later to see it again to make sense of what I had seen. The other thing about the film that people often forget, it is at times very funny. But the true genius of the film lies in what it does. It lulls an unsuspecting viewer into thinking they are watching a dumb action movie about illegal fighting, what it then gives them is an intelligent thought provoking satire. 
Se7en (1995) A film about a serial killer with an elaborate theme is not original, we have seen it many times before most notably in Manhunter and Silence of the Lambs. But Se7en was different, not because of the clever (or contrived depending on your point of view) use of the seven deadly sins as both a way of choosing the victims and the manor of their death. It offered the viewer so much more, or so much less to be precise. The film is very economical, there is nothing going on that is not relevant and integral to the story. Even the domestic scenes and the interactions between the characters becomes relevant as the plot unfolds. One of the most notable things about the film when I first saw it was Brad Pitt, although I had enjoyed some of his previous films this was the first time I actually looked at him as an actor and not a movie star. Set in an unnamed metropolitan city where it constantly rains the film is filed with despair and is virtually devoid of hope. The dark and gloomy interiors and exteriors have a perverse beauty, shot by Darius Khondji who had previously worked with Jean-Pierre Jeunet on The City of Lost Children and Delicatessen, he went on to work with directors as diverse as Bernardo Bertolucci, Alan Parker, Roman Polanski, Kar Wai Wong and Michael Haneke. Reminiscent of but more subtle than Hitchcock’s Vertigo the photography is unnerving for the viewer, this is achieved in the angles, the framing and the use of colour as well as the lighting. Making full use of the dark build-up the juxtaposition of image and plot is staggering in that the story reaches is darkest despair in the films only bright and sunny scene. It ends with Morgan Freeman quoting Ernest Hemmingway: “The world is a fine place and worth fighting for” he follow this by saying “I agree with the second part”. What else can you say about the film? What more do you need to say about it! 
The Game (1997) After the success of Seven The Game had a lot to live up to. It received mixed reviews and I was very unsure about it when I first saw it. I felt cheated by the ending. But watching it again over the last few years I have grown to both appreciate and enjoy it more on every viewing. Although not as good as Fight Club or Se7en it is still a great film with lots to offer. The great thing about the game is you are never exactly sure what is going on. We learn at the start that Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) has been given a gift by his brother (Sean Penn) that is some type of game but the viewer and the character alike are never really told what the nature of the game is. This combined with the slow building plot helps create a sense of frustration in the viewer and the protagonist. The unfolding of the plot is like a magicians slight of hand trick, we know he is being played but we aren’t sure how or why, is it the game or is the game a cover for something more sinister? This is played out perfectly when he is told by Christine (Deborah Kara Unger) that they are after his money. Is that part of the game, is she playing her part in the game? The casting is superb, Michael Douglas is totally believable as the cold and ruthless banker, where the baggage of having played Gordon Gekko could be a hindrance to some parts it is a benefit here. It is the strength of the performance that makes it acceptable to relegate the talent of Sean Penn to a relatively small part. Set in San Francisco, the director shows great maturity and restraint to avoid lingering shots of clichéd locations. The film is shot in a very similar style to Se7en although he used a different cinematographer, Harris Savides. These days he is probably best know for his collaborations with Gus Van Sant but he did work with David Fincher again ten years later on Zodiac. The film isn’t as dark in its look or subject matter but don’t let that fool you, although a far more hopeful and atomistic film with themes of salvation and redemption it still digs it to the mind sole of its characters and audience.