Severance's Recent Activity

list Severance's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Severance on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg Severance's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 Film:Severance http://www.spout.com/films/Severance/264876/default.aspx

Title: Severance
Year: 2007
Director: Christopher Smith
Plot: When the president of a high-profile international-arms supplier takes his six best employees to an Eastern European mountain retreat as a means of rewarding them for all of their hard work, their team-building getaway turns into a life-or-death game of kill or be killed in Creep director Christopher Smith's suspenseful comedy thriller. Palisade Defense isn't just the leading supplier of weaponry for the war on terror, it's a company that truly cares about its employees. When the Palisade Defense's European sales division exceeds expectations, the president decides that his dedicated employees deserve a relaxing, corporate team-building retreat. The trip takes a turn for the worst, however, when a deadly enemy infiltrates the retreat with the singular goal of ensuring that no one gets out alive. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 29
Number of Lists: 14
Number of blog posts: 5
Number of discussion threads: 2
SpoutRating: 3
]]>Sat, 02 Aug 2008 14:45:44 GMTSeverance2007Christopher SmithWhen the president of a high-profile international-arms supplier takes his six best employees to an Eastern European mountain retreat as a means of rewarding them for all of their hard work, their team-building getaway turns into a life-or-death game of kill or be killed in <a href="http://www.spout.com/films/244583/detail.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Creep</a> director Christopher Smith's suspenseful comedy thriller. Palisade Defense isn't just the leading supplier of weaponry for the war on terror, it's a company that truly cares about its employees. When the Palisade Defense's European sales division exceeds expectations, the president decides that his dedicated employees deserve a relaxing, corporate team-building retreat. The trip takes a turn for the worst, however, when a deadly enemy infiltrates the retreat with the singular goal of ensuring that no one gets out alive. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide29Tag Target (>10)14523http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s264876.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Severance/264876/default.aspxFilm Spout Post: Missed It By That Much... No Not Get Smart -- Severance (2006) http://www.spout.com/blogs/rik_tod/archive/2008/8/2/33442.aspx

Post By: rik_tod
Post To: The Cinema 4 Pylon: SpOutpost
Post Date: 8/2/2008 10:45:44 AM
Body: [Originally published on The Cinema 4 Pylon, August 1, 2008] Director: Christopher Smith Cinema 4 Rating: 6 Dozens of bear traps. The torture dungeons. The booby-trapped woods. And a busload of whiny, horny, corporate-type arms dealers. Oh, yes… and a pair of Hungarian hooker hotties. Seems like heaven for a B-film drooler, doesn’t it? Severance, a British horror flick that comes packaged with a healthy dose of actual humor (and much needed, too, considering how easily this one could have slipped into mere torture porn territory) seems like that drooler's version of heaven (and often, I am that very drooler), and in fact, much of it is kind of nifty and lightly smart as well. Sure, the bulk of the characters are annoying, but they need to be annoying so you have someone to cheer getting bumped off. I enjoyed it more than I did either of the Hostel movies, and far more than any of the increasingly ridiculous and bloated Saw series. It also helps that the lead actress is just the sort of kittenish pixie I fall for over and over again in the movies. So, why do I come so close to giving Severance a pass? And despite the fun I had, why won’t it make its way into my collection? Why doesn’t it quite measure up for me to some of the classic horror-comedies or even some of the better genre films from the past two decades? What is it about Severance that disappointed me if it was obviously not much of a chore to get through the first time? The last question raises yet another one, but it is a question which answers the previous three: it is one regarding re-watchability… “Do I want to go through all of this again?” For me, so often the key to my enjoyment, especially in a genre picture, is the knowledge that somewhere in the future I will return to see that particular film again. It’s a mood that overtakes often about halfway through, where I sense the certain delight in store by renewed face time with this story. In the case of Severance, I asked “Do I wish to tread down this dark-as-pitch path again, ready to once more encounter these characters and their really not-too-unique situation?” (I say this since we have been inundated recently with roughly similar scenarios, just without the twist that these are all co-working sheep basically being led to the slaughter.) The answer would have been “Yes” with just a little bit more cohesion to the backstory – perhaps making it more openly a cleansing system for a crooked operation -- and with that certain something that I find so lacking in many of the genre efforts today: a steadier, more consistent tone. My frustration with Eli Roth’s efforts so far (which my buddies and I were discussing just the other day at lunch) has been due to inconsistent tone and an almost flailing attitude towards dialogue and structure. Roth’s talent is so obvious, and eventually, there could be a truly terrific film coming out of him. And so it goes for the makers of Severance. There is an attempt here to make more than just a standard psychos-in-the-woods film. It’s a shame that one never really gets caught up in the insane situation in which the chief characters are trapped. For a while, there is a drift from one tart-tongued zinger to the next, and then the film will drop the snappy patter for some generic horror action, instead of fully incorporating any of the disparate elements into one cohesive, fulfilling scene. The prime disappointment though, is in not fully realizing either the location or the prop devices which are at the ready for the filmmakers. We see a field full of traps but only a couple are ever employed; the same goes with the landmines. There are pits, nooses, loops and spikes galore at large in the section of the Hungarian wilderness where Severance takes place. But the manner in which they are triggered from scene to scene is far more rote than one would wish from a film that is so inventive for short bursts of time. I know you take what you can get with some directors, but I really wish a film with this kind of set up were being attempted by someone with even half the vision or energy of a Raimi or a young Pete Jackson. I kept imagining the film would build ever bigger on the wacky stunts early in the film, but such grander things never occur. Yet again, as I stated the other day, my maxim of “This much, and no more” seems to have taken the filmmakers by hand, leading them from scene to scene via the easiest route possible. All it would have taken was one solitary scene which lived up to my expectations, and I would have been much more satisfied with the entire effort. I would have praised the makers of this film far past the point they probably deserved, and I would have looked forward to their next production with a deeper reserve of optimism. I am still looking forward to director Christopher Smith's next joint -- a Bermuda Triangle thriller weirdly titled (hold for breath here) Triangle -- but I must admit I’m only mildly hopeful of the outcome. If you take a forest full of gimmickry and weaponry and only render it slightly above generic, and about two or three notches below its potential, there’s probably not much more you are going to accomplish in your career that is worthwhile. Hopefully, Mr. Smith will notice that ships are top-loaded with all manner of potentially interesting items and objects, and the ocean likewise filled with sharks and various creatures, which can be employed to create outrageous situations through which the characters must battle and eventually extricate themselves. Not just, "here's the scenario... ooh, isn't this dangerous?... how will they ever get out?... oh, they got out..." Severance, for all its fun, whimpers out near the end, the threats stop being actually threatening, and somewhat becomes the simple-minded paintball game it mocks earlier in its script. The villains, so looming in the early parts of the story, become stooges, but not the style of stooges that the premise sets you up for: to be dispatched in increasingly elaborate ways, not just to be knocked down like so many harmless clay pigeons. How can I be this mean to a film I actually liked? It's what makes the difference between a film like The Evil Dead and a film that merely emulates and strives to be The Evil Dead. It's what separates the men or women from the boys or girls. The films that truly contain a manic, unfettered imagination and those that play at it. The films that make me want to watch movies, not the passionless ones that merely fill up time and space (but certainly not my shelf space). For the time being, though, Mr. Smith will have to bunker down at Camp Squandered Opportunities, the summer home of wayward film crews. Hopefully, he won’t neglect the two hot Hungarian hookers in the same fashion.
]]>Sat, 02 Aug 2008 14:45:44 GMTrik_todThe Cinema 4 Pylon: SpOutpost8/2/2008 10:45:44 AM[Originally published on The Cinema 4 Pylon, August 1, 2008] Director: Christopher Smith Cinema 4 Rating: 6 Dozens of bear traps. The torture dungeons. The booby-trapped woods. And a busload of whiny, horny, corporate-type arms dealers. Oh, yes… and a pair of Hungarian hooker hotties. Seems like heaven for a B-film drooler, doesn’t it? Severance, a British horror flick that comes packaged with a healthy dose of actual humor (and much needed, too, considering how easily this one could have slipped into mere torture porn territory) seems like that drooler's version of heaven (and often, I am that very drooler), and in fact, much of it is kind of nifty and lightly smart as well. Sure, the bulk of the characters are annoying, but they need to be annoying so you have someone to cheer getting bumped off. I enjoyed it more than I did either of the Hostel movies, and far more than any of the increasingly ridiculous and bloated Saw series. It also helps that the lead actress is just the sort of kittenish pixie I fall for over and over again in the movies. So, why do I come so close to giving Severance a pass? And despite the fun I had, why won’t it make its way into my collection? Why doesn’t it quite measure up for me to some of the classic horror-comedies or even some of the better genre films from the past two decades? What is it about Severance that disappointed me if it was obviously not much of a chore to get through the first time? The last question raises yet another one, but it is a question which answers the previous three: it is one regarding re-watchability… “Do I want to go through all of this again?” For me, so often the key to my enjoyment, especially in a genre picture, is the knowledge that somewhere in the future I will return to see that particular film again. It’s a mood that overtakes often about halfway through, where I sense the certain delight in store by renewed face time with this story. In the case of Severance, I asked “Do I wish to tread down this dark-as-pitch path again, ready to once more encounter these characters and their really not-too-unique situation?” (I say this since we have been inundated recently with roughly similar scenarios, just without the twist that these are all co-working sheep basically being led to the slaughter.) The answer would have been “Yes” with just a little bit more cohesion to the backstory – perhaps making it more openly a cleansing system for a crooked operation -- and with that certain something that I find so lacking in many of the genre efforts today: a steadier, more consistent tone. My frustration with Eli Roth’s efforts so far (which my buddies and I were discussing just the other day at lunch) has been due to inconsistent tone and an almost flailing attitude towards dialogue and structure. Roth’s talent is so obvious, and eventually, there could be a truly terrific film coming out of him. And so it goes for the makers of Severance. There is an attempt here to make more than just a standard psychos-in-the-woods film. It’s a shame that one never really gets caught up in the insane situation in which the chief characters are trapped. For a while, there is a drift from one tart-tongued zinger to the next, and then the film will drop the snappy patter for some generic horror action, instead of fully incorporating any of the disparate elements into one cohesive, fulfilling scene. The prime disappointment though, is in not fully realizing either the location or the prop devices which are at the ready for the filmmakers. We see a field full of traps but only a couple are ever employed; the same goes with the landmines. There are pits, nooses, loops and spikes galore at large in the section of the Hungarian wilderness where Severance takes place. But the manner in which they are triggered from scene to scene is far more rote than one would wish from a film that is so inventive for short bursts of time. I know you take what you can get with some directors, but I really wish a film with this kind of set up were being attempted by someone with even half the vision or energy of a Raimi or a young Pete Jackson. I kept imagining the film would build ever bigger on the wacky stunts early in the film, but such grander things never occur. Yet again, as I stated the other day, my maxim of “This much, and no more” seems to have taken the filmmakers by hand, leading them from scene to scene via the easiest route possible. All it would have taken was one solitary scene which lived up to my expectations, and I would have been much more satisfied with the entire effort. I would have praised the makers of this film far past the point they probably deserved, and I would have looked forward to their next production with a deeper reserve of optimism. I am still looking forward to director Christopher Smith's next joint -- a Bermuda Triangle thriller weirdly titled (hold for breath here) Triangle -- but I must admit I’m only mildly hopeful of the outcome. If you take a forest full of gimmickry and weaponry and only render it slightly above generic, and about two or three notches below its potential, there’s probably not much more you are going to accomplish in your career that is worthwhile. Hopefully, Mr. Smith will notice that ships are top-loaded with all manner of potentially interesting items and objects, and the ocean likewise filled with sharks and various creatures, which can be employed to create outrageous situations through which the characters must battle and eventually extricate themselves. Not just, "here's the scenario... ooh, isn't this dangerous?... how will they ever get out?... oh, they got out..." Severance, for all its fun, whimpers out near the end, the threats stop being actually threatening, and somewhat becomes the simple-minded paintball game it mocks earlier in its script. The villains, so looming in the early parts of the story, become stooges, but not the style of stooges that the premise sets you up for: to be dispatched in increasingly elaborate ways, not just to be knocked down like so many harmless clay pigeons. How can I be this mean to a film I actually liked? It's what makes the difference between a film like The Evil Dead and a film that merely emulates and strives to be The Evil Dead. It's what separates the men or women from the boys or girls. The films that truly contain a manic, unfettered imagination and those that play at it. The films that make me want to watch movies, not the passionless ones that merely fill up time and space (but certainly not my shelf space). For the time being, though, Mr. Smith will have to bunker down at Camp Squandered Opportunities, the summer home of wayward film crews. Hopefully, he won’t neglect the two hot Hungarian hookers in the same fashion. Spout Post: FilmCouch #20 http://www.spout.com/blogs/paul/archive/2007/12/21/23048.aspx

Post By: paul
Post To: paul on spout.com
Post Date: 12/21/2007 4:15:18 PM
Body: Interview with Christopher Smith director of Severance, a fall-down-funny-then-cover-your-eyes slasher flick opening in theaters tonight. The FilmCouch group reloads discussion on what makes a villain from FilmCouch 18, and somehow draws a connection between American Beauty and Star Wars. A 33 year old German film is more relevant today than ever–Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), by New German Cinema pioneer Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Download FilmCouch #20 or subscribe in the iTunes store (search for “filmcouch” or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday. Films under discussion: Severance Star Wars American Beauty Ali: Fear Eats the Soul Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » Paul
]]>Fri, 21 Dec 2007 21:15:18 GMTpaulpaul on spout.com12/21/2007 4:15:18 PMInterview with Christopher Smith director of Severance, a fall-down-funny-then-cover-your-eyes slasher flick opening in theaters tonight. The FilmCouch group reloads discussion on what makes a villain from FilmCouch 18, and somehow draws a connection between American Beauty and Star Wars. A 33 year old German film is more relevant today than ever–Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), by New German Cinema pioneer Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Download FilmCouch #20 or subscribe in the iTunes store (search for “filmcouch” or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday. Films under discussion: Severance Star Wars American Beauty Ali: Fear Eats the Soul Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » Paul Spout Post: Severance - Bug http://www.spout.com/blogs/moviebabe/archive/2007/7/25/16209.aspx

Post By: MovieBabe
Post To: MovieBabe Blog
Post Date: 7/25/2007 5:20:00 PM
Body: By Tricia Olszewski Severance is a story of terrible things that couldn’t have happened to funnier people. British writer-director Christopher Smith’s second film (after 2004’s Creep) is a horror movie that thinks it’s a comedy. But it’s not a straight-up joke machine like Shaun of the Dead. Nor is it parodic, like the Scream series. Think more along the lines of what you’d get if the gang from The Office schlepped to the forest for a team-building weekend, only to discover that their bumbling boss may have very well led them to their deaths. The opening-credits scene, which pairs the bouncy oldie “Itchycoo Park” with an image of blood pouring over the face of a man hanging upside-down, is the first sign that Severance is going to be a bit different. The film then backs up to introduce an office manager and his six eye-rolling pawns. They’re from the European branch of Palisade Defence, an international weapons firm, and they’re unenthusiastically headed to a lodge in Hungary when a tree blocking a main road prevents their bus from delivering them to the accommodations. Reactions vary: The uptight Harris (Toby Stephens) just wants to go back to the hotel. Butt-kisser Gordon (Andy Nyman) thinks this is a great opportunity to begin to work on working together. Maggie (Laura Harris), Jill (Claudie Blakley), and Billy (Babou Ceesay) give up on trying to convince their boss, Richard (Tim McInnerny), that his map is worthless and agree to follow him on foot. Steve (Danny Dyer) is high off his ass and doesn’t care what’s going on. He claims to have seen someone in the woods, but the others figure that he’s seeing lots of things and ignore him. The employees lose even more team spirit when they discover that their “luxury” lodge is just a dump, despite Richard’s pathetic attempts to rouse them with platitudes such as “I can’t spell ‘success’ without ‘u’—and you and you and you!” (“There’s only one ‘u’ in ‘success,’” someone responds.) With nothing better to do, a few of them tell ghost stories: The lodge was once an asylum where the patients murdered the doctors. Or a prison for war criminals, against whom Palisade weapons were used. All of them—well, most of them—fancy themselves too smart to really believe any of the theories. But when Harris and Jill wander about the next day to hunt for a cell-phone signal and find their bus crashed and the driver dead in a non-accidental way, panic sets in. Smith and co-writer James Moran wait until past Severance’s halfway mark to really bring on the bloodshed, which the director makes selectively graphic instead of dripping each scene in gore. Every now and then there are bits of humor—such as an aftereffect of a decapitation that was foreshadowed in the earlier bickering—but the slasher element is primary. The action is the usual cat-and-mouse, but one important difference distinguishes Severance: From the spineless boss to the bitter smartass to the class clown, the stock co-workers and their dryly comic interactions warm you to these characters. They’re familiar, entertaining people, not clichéd targets, so you’re invested in them by the time the killing comes around. If nothing else, Severance will make you realize that even if you’re surrounded by people who drive you crazy, your worst day at the office isn’t really all that bad. Bug originated as a piece of theater—and arguably still is one. Tracy Letts’ adaptation of his own play, directed by The Exorcist’s William Friedkin, will bore the hell out of anyone approaching it as a movie. Especially one of the horror variety: “Experimental” is the description that sticks to Bug best, and though it’s got shades of other far-out fare like David Cronenberg’s work, the material is so deliberately paced and deeply psychological that it requires little more than a black-box theater, not a film set. A puffy-eyed Ashley Judd stars as Agnes, an Oklahoma barmaid living in a run-down motel. Agnes’ social life consists of drinking alone and getting crank calls from her estranged husband, Jerry (Harry Connick Jr.), who recently got out of jail. Jerry eventually shows his face to make threats and push her around, but she doesn’t worry too much, because the night before a friend introduced her to Peter (Michael Shannon). Peter’s weird stare matches his weird conversation—“They want you to know they’re there,” he says of “machines” that whir in the night—but because he has nowhere to go, Agnes allows him to crash on the couch. Love comes to town. So do bugs. Allegedly, at least. Letts’ story is ultimately an extreme cautionary tale about how a little bit of passion can make you do magnificently fucked-up things. Agnes at first can’t see the critters that Peter claims are biting him in bed. (He says they’re aphids, after patiently explaining the differences between fleas, lice, ticks, and the like.) But soon she feels them too and believes Peter when he confides that the military actually planted the bugs in his blood. Now it becomes the two of them against the world: Agnes accuses her friend R.C. (Lynn Collins) of turning on her when R.C. insists that Peter is bad news, and she believes that the motel manager is part of a conspiracy when he claims no other rooms have reported insect problems. The couple barricade themselves in their room and develop a logic all their own. Even if you approach the film with a made-for-stage mindset, Bug has its problems. Letts seems to have devoted most of his efforts toward developing Peter, and his character is terrific—his initial social awkwardness borders on the autistic, and the tangles of theories he slowly lets Agnes know are clouding his head are paranoid-schizophrenic intricate. You like him, though, because the complexity of his thoughts first makes him seem smart. And the way he patiently explains them to his backwoods girlfriend without talking down? Compared to the brutish Jerry, Agnes has found a prince. But the attention to Peter makes the rest of the film suffer: Mainly, Agnes catches crazy too fast. Though Agnes’ character has a psychological crack waiting to bust open—she and Jerry had a son who disappeared when she took him grocery shopping 10 years ago—her spiral into psycho-shrillness is unbelievably instantaneous. Letts doesn’t help her anti-heroine any by stuffing words into her mouth, with one monologue in particular running an excruciating length. Judd’s performance is manic and raw; you may dismiss Agnes as silly, but the sweet-faced actress is uncharacteristically intense. Shannon, however, is the film’s redeemer as he reprises the role he originated on stage. His wide-set eyes first offset his strong, squared jaw and suggest his Peter is merely a gentle giant. Later, though, the madness in Shannon’s expression combines with the drying blood all over Peter’s wound-covered body to give the impression of a monster. It’s this character, not the presence of creepy-crawlies, that provides the true horror in Bug. The problem is that you may have to mentally strip away the cinema to see it.
]]>Wed, 25 Jul 2007 21:20:00 GMTMovieBabeMovieBabe Blog7/25/2007 5:20:00 PM By Tricia Olszewski Severance is a story of terrible things that couldn’t have happened to funnier people. British writer-director Christopher Smith’s second film (after 2004’s Creep) is a horror movie that thinks it’s a comedy. But it’s not a straight-up joke machine like Shaun of the Dead. Nor is it parodic, like the Scream series. Think more along the lines of what you’d get if the gang from The Office schlepped to the forest for a team-building weekend, only to discover that their bumbling boss may have very well led them to their deaths. The opening-credits scene, which pairs the bouncy oldie “Itchycoo Park” with an image of blood pouring over the face of a man hanging upside-down, is the first sign that Severance is going to be a bit different. The film then backs up to introduce an office manager and his six eye-rolling pawns. They’re from the European branch of Palisade Defence, an international weapons firm, and they’re unenthusiastically headed to a lodge in Hungary when a tree blocking a main road prevents their bus from delivering them to the accommodations. Reactions vary: The uptight Harris (Toby Stephens) just wants to go back to the hotel. Butt-kisser Gordon (Andy Nyman) thinks this is a great opportunity to begin to work on working together. Maggie (Laura Harris), Jill (Claudie Blakley), and Billy (Babou Ceesay) give up on trying to convince their boss, Richard (Tim McInnerny), that his map is worthless and agree to follow him on foot. Steve (Danny Dyer) is high off his ass and doesn’t care what’s going on. He claims to have seen someone in the woods, but the others figure that he’s seeing lots of things and ignore him. The employees lose even more team spirit when they discover that their “luxury” lodge is just a dump, despite Richard’s pathetic attempts to rouse them with platitudes such as “I can’t spell ‘success’ without ‘u’—and you and you and you!” (“There’s only one ‘u’ in ‘success,’” someone responds.) With nothing better to do, a few of them tell ghost stories: The lodge was once an asylum where the patients murdered the doctors. Or a prison for war criminals, against whom Palisade weapons were used. All of them—well, most of them—fancy themselves too smart to really believe any of the theories. But when Harris and Jill wander about the next day to hunt for a cell-phone signal and find their bus crashed and the driver dead in a non-accidental way, panic sets in. Smith and co-writer James Moran wait until past Severance’s halfway mark to really bring on the bloodshed, which the director makes selectively graphic instead of dripping each scene in gore. Every now and then there are bits of humor—such as an aftereffect of a decapitation that was foreshadowed in the earlier bickering—but the slasher element is primary. The action is the usual cat-and-mouse, but one important difference distinguishes Severance: From the spineless boss to the bitter smartass to the class clown, the stock co-workers and their dryly comic interactions warm you to these characters. They’re familiar, entertaining people, not clichéd targets, so you’re invested in them by the time the killing comes around. If nothing else, Severance will make you realize that even if you’re surrounded by people who drive you crazy, your worst day at the office isn’t really all that bad. Bug originated as a piece of theater—and arguably still is one. Tracy Letts’ adaptation of his own play, directed by The Exorcist’s William Friedkin, will bore the hell out of anyone approaching it as a movie. Especially one of the horror variety: “Experimental” is the description that sticks to Bug best, and though it’s got shades of other far-out fare like David Cronenberg’s work, the material is so deliberately paced and deeply psychological that it requires little more than a black-box theater, not a film set. A puffy-eyed Ashley Judd stars as Agnes, an Oklahoma barmaid living in a run-down motel. Agnes’ social life consists of drinking alone and getting crank calls from her estranged husband, Jerry (Harry Connick Jr.), who recently got out of jail. Jerry eventually shows his face to make threats and push her around, but she doesn’t worry too much, because the night before a friend introduced her to Peter (Michael Shannon). Peter’s weird stare matches his weird conversation—“They want you to know they’re there,” he says of “machines” that whir in the night—but because he has nowhere to go, Agnes allows him to crash on the couch. Love comes to town. So do bugs. Allegedly, at least. Letts’ story is ultimately an extreme cautionary tale about how a little bit of passion can make you do magnificently fucked-up things. Agnes at first can’t see the critters that Peter claims are biting him in bed. (He says they’re aphids, after patiently explaining the differences between fleas, lice, ticks, and the like.) But soon she feels them too and believes Peter when he confides that the military actually planted the bugs in his blood. Now it becomes the two of them against the world: Agnes accuses her friend R.C. (Lynn Collins) of turning on her when R.C. insists that Peter is bad news, and she believes that the motel manager is part of a conspiracy when he claims no other rooms have reported insect problems. The couple barricade themselves in their room and develop a logic all their own. Even if you approach the film with a made-for-stage mindset, Bug has its problems. Letts seems to have devoted most of his efforts toward developing Peter, and his character is terrific—his initial social awkwardness borders on the autistic, and the tangles of theories he slowly lets Agnes know are clouding his head are paranoid-schizophrenic intricate. You like him, though, because the complexity of his thoughts first makes him seem smart. And the way he patiently explains them to his backwoods girlfriend without talking down? Compared to the brutish Jerry, Agnes has found a prince. But the attention to Peter makes the rest of the film suffer: Mainly, Agnes catches crazy too fast. Though Agnes’ character has a psychological crack waiting to bust open—she and Jerry had a son who disappeared when she took him grocery shopping 10 years ago—her spiral into psycho-shrillness is unbelievably instantaneous. Letts doesn’t help her anti-heroine any by stuffing words into her mouth, with one monologue in particular running an excruciating length. Judd’s performance is manic and raw; you may dismiss Agnes as silly, but the sweet-faced actress is uncharacteristically intense. Shannon, however, is the film’s redeemer as he reprises the role he originated on stage. His wide-set eyes first offset his strong, squared jaw and suggest his Peter is merely a gentle giant. Later, though, the madness in Shannon’s expression combines with the drying blood all over Peter’s wound-covered body to give the impression of a monster. It’s this character, not the presence of creepy-crawlies, that provides the true horror in Bug. The problem is that you may have to mentally strip away the cinema to see it. Spout Post: A Horror Comedy Corporate Holiday http://www.spout.com/blogs/laraemeadows/archive/2007/5/20/9048.aspx

Post By: laraemeadows
Post To: laraemeadows Blog
Post Date: 5/20/2007 1:45:00 AM
Body: Severance: the movie that tells us what happens when you take the characters from The Office, send them on a team building holiday and throw in some eastern European serial killers. A little quirky, and even though the humor/horror mix is just a little off, Severance is still a pretty fun movie. International contractor, Palisades Defense, sends seven of their employees on a team building excursion in Eastern Europe. When the road is blocked, on sage advice of the boss, the employees abandon the motor-coach and head down a heavily wooded road to find their luxury lodge. Little do they know a killer is waiting around the corner, bent on killing each of them. In proper British style, victims die with a stiff upper lip and killers kill in ridiculous ways. Don’t worry though, not everyone rolls over and accepts their fate. Severance’s biggest problem is that it can’t really decide if it is a dark comedy or a horror movie with brief moments of levity. There are a lot of bloody scenes but I can’t think of an explicit death scene. Just before the death, the camera pulls away and sometimes returns just after the death, so it doesn’t feel like a strict horror. There are a lot of attempts at comedy but only a few will leave you laughing out loud, so it doesn’t feel like a sinister comedy. Director/writer Christopher Smith and writers Toby Stephens and James Moran would have benefited from having an accomplished comedic writer there to touch up the scenes that were attempting humor. Severance isn’t completely void of humor. There is a scene that will redefine the expression “Heads will roll.” Later in the movie, there is a scene that made me laugh so hard at the misfortunes of the killer. The end of the movie made me laugh with reckless abandon. The scene that takes the cake involves a mini-fridge, a shoe and slippery fingers. I didn’t want to laugh, because it was just wrong, but I couldn’t help it! After the movie is over, stick around for the credits; they are brief but the character names of the bad guys are funny enough to make the credits worth watching. Andy Nyman, who plays Gordon, was my favorite male character. Gordon is an annoyingly optimistic character, much to the chagrin of the other Palisades employees. He tries to make every negative a positive. I wanted to strangle him about three minutes into the movie. I think he was fantastically written. I believe that the writers were trying to make him painfully cheery and they accomplished their goal with flying colors. There is a moderate amount of creativity in the kill scenes. They took all of the instruments of death they could think of, threw out the quiet ones, tossed the ones that wouldn’t create a mess, and scrapped the Plain-Janes, and were left with a collection of mercenary style implements of doom! Sure, there are knives and guns, but the kill scenes that use the classics aren’t done in the same-old ways. There is a scene where hundreds of people are killed and I snickered, rolled my eyes and finally gave into the laughter pushing its way up! I wish there had been a little bit more attention to the actual deaths of the characters. As I mentioned above, I can’t remember a single scene where you actually see someone die. I feel a little funny saying this, but it’s a horror movie, show us the money. I can’t believe that someone is actually dead unless we see them dead. In the horror movie rules it goes, 1. Never say “I’ll be right back.” 2. Never investigate a weird or strange noise, especially alone, and 3. Don’t assume they are dead unless you see them dead, and maybe even not then. How can I believe that the killers actually killed the victim if you aren’t following the rules? As always, I love it when there are bad ass bitches in horror movies that refuse to wait for some man to save them and Severance has its share of whoop-ass women! Not all the women survive but their attempts at survival are memorable and commendable. This movie would benefit from a re-visitation by someone a little more skilled at finding the proper mix of humor and horror. This may be the only time you hear this from me but I can’t wait until an American film maker finds the time to remake this movie. Even still, Severance is worth seeing, flaws and all.
]]>Sun, 20 May 2007 05:45:00 GMTlaraemeadowslaraemeadows Blog5/20/2007 1:45:00 AMSeverance: the movie that tells us what happens when you take the characters from The Office, send them on a team building holiday and throw in some eastern European serial killers. A little quirky, and even though the humor/horror mix is just a little off, Severance is still a pretty fun movie. International contractor, Palisades Defense, sends seven of their employees on a team building excursion in Eastern Europe. When the road is blocked, on sage advice of the boss, the employees abandon the motor-coach and head down a heavily wooded road to find their luxury lodge. Little do they know a killer is waiting around the corner, bent on killing each of them. In proper British style, victims die with a stiff upper lip and killers kill in ridiculous ways. Don’t worry though, not everyone rolls over and accepts their fate. Severance’s biggest problem is that it can’t really decide if it is a dark comedy or a horror movie with brief moments of levity. There are a lot of bloody scenes but I can’t think of an explicit death scene. Just before the death, the camera pulls away and sometimes returns just after the death, so it doesn’t feel like a strict horror. There are a lot of attempts at comedy but only a few will leave you laughing out loud, so it doesn’t feel like a sinister comedy. Director/writer Christopher Smith and writers Toby Stephens and James Moran would have benefited from having an accomplished comedic writer there to touch up the scenes that were attempting humor. Severance isn’t completely void of humor. There is a scene that will redefine the expression “Heads will roll.” Later in the movie, there is a scene that made me laugh so hard at the misfortunes of the killer. The end of the movie made me laugh with reckless abandon. The scene that takes the cake involves a mini-fridge, a shoe and slippery fingers. I didn’t want to laugh, because it was just wrong, but I couldn’t help it! After the movie is over, stick around for the credits; they are brief but the character names of the bad guys are funny enough to make the credits worth watching. Andy Nyman, who plays Gordon, was my favorite male character. Gordon is an annoyingly optimistic character, much to the chagrin of the other Palisades employees. He tries to make every negative a positive. I wanted to strangle him about three minutes into the movie. I think he was fantastically written. I believe that the writers were trying to make him painfully cheery and they accomplished their goal with flying colors. There is a moderate amount of creativity in the kill scenes. They took all of the instruments of death they could think of, threw out the quiet ones, tossed the ones that wouldn’t create a mess, and scrapped the Plain-Janes, and were left with a collection of mercenary style implements of doom! Sure, there are knives and guns, but the kill scenes that use the classics aren’t done in the same-old ways. There is a scene where hundreds of people are killed and I snickered, rolled my eyes and finally gave into the laughter pushing its way up! I wish there had been a little bit more attention to the actual deaths of the characters. As I mentioned above, I can’t remember a single scene where you actually see someone die. I feel a little funny saying this, but it’s a horror movie, show us the money. I can’t believe that someone is actually dead unless we see them dead. In the horror movie rules it goes, 1. Never say “I’ll be right back.” 2. Never investigate a weird or strange noise, especially alone, and 3. Don’t assume they are dead unless you see them dead, and maybe even not then. How can I believe that the killers actually killed the victim if you aren’t following the rules? As always, I love it when there are bad ass bitches in horror movies that refuse to wait for some man to save them and Severance has its share of whoop-ass women! Not all the women survive but their attempts at survival are memorable and commendable. This movie would benefit from a re-visitation by someone a little more skilled at finding the proper mix of humor and horror. This may be the only time you hear this from me but I can’t wait until an American film maker finds the time to remake this movie. Even still, Severance is worth seeing, flaws and all. Spout Post: FilmCouch #20 http://www.spout.com/groups/FilmCouch/FilmCouch_20/302/8975/1/ShowPost.aspx

Post By: paul
Post To: FilmCouch
Post Date: 5/18/2007 9:40:48 AM
Body: Interview with Christopher Smith director of Severance, a fall-down-funny-then-cover-your-eyes slasher flick opening in theaters tonight. The FilmCouch group reloads discussion on what makes a villain from FilmCouch 18, and somehow draws a connection between American Beauty and Star Wars. A 33 year old German film is more relevant today than ever--Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), by New German Cinema pioneer Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Download FilmCouch #20 or subscribe in the iTunes store (search for "filmcouch" or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday.
]]>Fri, 18 May 2007 13:40:48 GMTpaulFilmCouch5/18/2007 9:40:48 AMInterview with Christopher Smith director of Severance, a fall-down-funny-then-cover-your-eyes slasher flick opening in theaters tonight. The FilmCouch group reloads discussion on what makes a villain from FilmCouch 18, and somehow draws a connection between American Beauty and Star Wars. A 33 year old German film is more relevant today than ever--Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), by New German Cinema pioneer Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Download FilmCouch #20 or subscribe in the iTunes store (search for "filmcouch" or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday. Spout Post: Films I saw at Telluride http://www.spout.com/groups/Telluride_Film_Festival_2008/Films_I_saw_at_Telluride/144/2917/1/ShowPost.aspx

Post By: aaronBsmith
Post To: Telluride Film Festival 2008
Post Date: 9/11/2006 10:46:55 AM
Body: At Telluride, I saw:The Last King of ScotlandSeverenceJindabyneCatch a FireDirected by John FordThe ItalianVolverInfamousI would be interesting if anyone out there has seen the original version of Directed by John Ford. It came out in 1971. The version I saw at Telluride was more or less the same, but with more interviews from current filmmakers and actors as well as restored clips from many of John Ford's films.
]]>Mon, 11 Sep 2006 14:46:55 GMTaaronBsmithTelluride Film Festival 20089/11/2006 10:46:55 AMAt Telluride, I saw:The Last King of ScotlandSeverenceJindabyneCatch a FireDirected by John FordThe ItalianVolverInfamousI would be interesting if anyone out there has seen the original version of Directed by John Ford. It came out in 1971. The version I saw at Telluride was more or less the same, but with more interviews from current filmmakers and actors as well as restored clips from many of John Ford's films. Spout Post: what i saw at Telluride this year (2006) http://www.spout.com/blogs/wonga/archive/2006/9/9/2885.aspx

Post By: wonga
Post To: wonga's filmblog
Post Date: 9/9/2006 8:48:00 AM
Body: FRIDAY EVENING: SEVERANCE - don't like horror/slasher movies so this was not fun. i can appreciate that it was clever and funny (i was laughing when i wasn't cringing) but it was not for me. i'm sure it will be very popular! Laura Harris (Daisy from Dead Like Me) was fun to watch and made it tolerable. SATURDAY MORNING: A TRIBUTE TO WALTER MURCH - liked this a lot. only tribute we made it to. after some clips there was an on-stage interview and although technical it was really fascinating. highlights for me were when he talked about how he redid Touch of Evil using Orson Welles' notes and how he edited the Godfather movies. great storytelling and behind the scenes info. could have listened for another hour. SATURDAY AFTERNOON: THE SENTIMENTAL BLOKE - one of my absolute favorites. i love silent films and this rare one from Australia i'd never heard of. very charming, with live original music from an Australian composer. Telluride is known for it's "hidden treasures" and it's one reason why film-lovers keep coming back every year. SATURDAY EVENING: LITTLE CHILDREN - i love this book and was a little worried they would screw it up but it was great. i didn't really like In The Bedroom (same director) but this was really good and i think will be a big hit on the art-house circuit. acting was wonderful, especially Jackie Earle Haley (Moocher from Breaking Away). ending was a little different than the book but i think i actually liked the movie version better. the director talked and answered questions afterwards. a highlight of the weekend for me. SUNDAY MORNING: CALLING CARDS - series of 8 short-format films from around the world. we try and hit this every year. really original and fun (also free)! my favorite was "Useless Dog" from Ireland. very charming and made me homesick for our dogs who'd been left behind for the weekend.SUNDAY AFTERNOON: THE NAMESAKE - this was a preview or whatever they call it when movies show up that are not on the program. my absolute favorite of the weekend i think. it made me cry. Indian movie from Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) with universal themes about family, etc. surprised to see Kal Penn (Harold and Kumar) as one of the leads but he was wonderful. the director talked afterwards and answered questions. it's supposed to be released early next year. SUNDAY EVENING: PLAYTIME - never heard of this but it was 70 mm and so we wanted to see it. we were on the 3rd row, which kind of cancelled out the big screen experience but i liked it a lot. there was a skunk incident but it was outside the theater (not inside as some have claimed) and was not that bad. kind of dragged in the middle but really fun. i want to see it again. reminded me of Airplane-type movies with all the visual jokes. MONDAY MORNING: 20,000 STREETS UNDER THE SKY - from the BBC and i guess is a mini-series. liked it a lot. three intertwining period stories based on three novels by Patrick Hamilton. interesting enough that i'm going to look for the books. this one was free also. MONDAY AFTERNOON: DODSWORTH - presented by TCM (and free). i'd never heard of this 1936 movie directed by William Wyler. great story and acting. seemed very different from other movies of that time, especially the ending (everyone in the theater cheered at the end). true underrated classic. MONDAY AFTERNOON: VENUS - i heard great things about this from others and was not disappointed. Peter O'Toole was fabulous. made me cry. very funny and wise about what it's like to grow old. my husband and i are still arguing about this one since he didn't like it as much as me!MONDAY EVENING: DIRECTED BY JOHN FORD - this was from TCM. i confess i don't like westerns much but this behind the scenes documentary by Peter Bogdanovich was really fun. featured interviews with all his films great actors (John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, Maureen O'Sullivan, Henry Fonda, etc.) great storytelling and very fun. we live somewhat close to Monument Valley and it was interesting to see how they made all the great movies. will definitely watch for it again on TV.in summary, another great weekend, especially for not having a pass. we missed all the big premieres on purpose since we will get to see those later. did want to see Penelope Cruz but the lines were so long we didn't even try. monday is the best day to see films since they're usually all replays (TBAs) and a lot of people start home after sunday. we're now looking forward to the Denver International Film Festival in November!
]]>Sat, 09 Sep 2006 12:48:00 GMTwongawonga's filmblog9/9/2006 8:48:00 AMFRIDAY EVENING: SEVERANCE - don't like horror/slasher movies so this was not fun. i can appreciate that it was clever and funny (i was laughing when i wasn't cringing) but it was not for me. i'm sure it will be very popular! Laura Harris (Daisy from Dead Like Me) was fun to watch and made it tolerable. SATURDAY MORNING: A TRIBUTE TO WALTER MURCH - liked this a lot. only tribute we made it to. after some clips there was an on-stage interview and although technical it was really fascinating. highlights for me were when he talked about how he redid Touch of Evil using Orson Welles' notes and how he edited the Godfather movies. great storytelling and behind the scenes info. could have listened for another hour. SATURDAY AFTERNOON: THE SENTIMENTAL BLOKE - one of my absolute favorites. i love silent films and this rare one from Australia i'd never heard of. very charming, with live original music from an Australian composer. Telluride is known for it's "hidden treasures" and it's one reason why film-lovers keep coming back every year. SATURDAY EVENING: LITTLE CHILDREN - i love this book and was a little worried they would screw it up but it was great. i didn't really like In The Bedroom (same director) but this was really good and i think will be a big hit on the art-house circuit. acting was wonderful, especially Jackie Earle Haley (Moocher from Breaking Away). ending was a little different than the book but i think i actually liked the movie version better. the director talked and answered questions afterwards. a highlight of the weekend for me. SUNDAY MORNING: CALLING CARDS - series of 8 short-format films from around the world. we try and hit this every year. really original and fun (also free)! my favorite was "Useless Dog" from Ireland. very charming and made me homesick for our dogs who'd been left behind for the weekend.SUNDAY AFTERNOON: THE NAMESAKE - this was a preview or whatever they call it when movies show up that are not on the program. my absolute favorite of the weekend i think. it made me cry. Indian movie from Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) with universal themes about family, etc. surprised to see Kal Penn (Harold and Kumar) as one of the leads but he was wonderful. the director talked afterwards and answered questions. it's supposed to be released early next year. SUNDAY EVENING: PLAYTIME - never heard of this but it was 70 mm and so we wanted to see it. we were on the 3rd row, which kind of cancelled out the big screen experience but i liked it a lot. there was a skunk incident but it was outside the theater (not inside as some have claimed) and was not that bad. kind of dragged in the middle but really fun. i want to see it again. reminded me of Airplane-type movies with all the visual jokes. MONDAY MORNING: 20,000 STREETS UNDER THE SKY - from the BBC and i guess is a mini-series. liked it a lot. three intertwining period stories based on three novels by Patrick Hamilton. interesting enough that i'm going to look for the books. this one was free also. MONDAY AFTERNOON: DODSWORTH - presented by TCM (and free). i'd never heard of this 1936 movie directed by William Wyler. great story and acting. seemed very different from other movies of that time, especially the ending (everyone in the theater cheered at the end). true underrated classic. MONDAY AFTERNOON: VENUS - i heard great things about this from others and was not disappointed. Peter O'Toole was fabulous. made me cry. very funny and wise about what it's like to grow old. my husband and i are still arguing about this one since he didn't like it as much as me!MONDAY EVENING: DIRECTED BY JOHN FORD - this was from TCM. i confess i don't like westerns much but this behind the scenes documentary by Peter Bogdanovich was really fun. featured interviews with all his films great actors (John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, Maureen O'Sullivan, Henry Fonda, etc.) great storytelling and very fun. we live somewhat close to Monument Valley and it was interesting to see how they made all the great movies. will definitely watch for it again on TV.in summary, another great weekend, especially for not having a pass. we missed all the big premieres on purpose since we will get to see those later. did want to see Penelope Cruz but the lines were so long we didn't even try. monday is the best day to see films since they're usually all replays (TBAs) and a lot of people start home after sunday. we're now looking forward to the Denver International Film Festival in November! Spout Tag:murder http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/murder/MemberTagFilms.aspxmurder
Number of films tagged: 8748

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]]>Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:42:29 GMT8748157831Tag Spout Tag:scary http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/scary/MemberTagFilms.aspxscary
Number of films tagged: 155

Number of people who tagged: 104

Number of times used: 197

]]>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:30:07 GMT155104197Tag Spout Tag:sweet http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/sweet/MemberTagFilms.aspxsweet
Number of films tagged: 108

Number of people who tagged: 90

Number of times used: 170

]]>Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:28:46 GMT10890170Tag Spout Tag:slasher http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/slasher/MemberTagFilms.aspxslasher
Number of films tagged: 330

Number of people who tagged: 34

Number of times used: 91

]]>Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:55:52 GMT3303491Tag Spout Tag:hillarious http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/hillarious/MemberTagFilms.aspxhillarious
Number of films tagged: 32

Number of people who tagged: 25

Number of times used: 42

]]>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 01:45:00 GMT322542Tag Spout Tag:psychopath http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/psychopath/MemberTagFilms.aspxpsychopath
Number of films tagged: 517

Number of people who tagged: 22

Number of times used: 33

]]>Tue, 22 Sep 2009 04:51:04 GMT5172233Tag Spout Tag:woods http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/woods/MemberTagFilms.aspxwoods
Number of films tagged: 24

Number of people who tagged: 21

Number of times used: 33

]]>Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:47:46 GMT242133Tag Spout Tag:bus http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/bus/MemberTagFilms.aspxbus
Number of films tagged: 160

Number of people who tagged: 20

Number of times used: 30

]]>Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:32:04 GMT1602030Tag Spout Tag:europe http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/europe/MemberTagFilms.aspxeurope
Number of films tagged: 296

Number of people who tagged: 20

Number of times used: 29

]]>Sun, 20 Sep 2009 05:18:08 GMT2962029Tag Spout Tag:vacation http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/vacation/MemberTagFilms.aspxvacation
Number of films tagged: 1068

Number of people who tagged: 16

Number of times used: 52

]]>Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:34:39 GMT10681652Tag Spout Tag:weapons http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/weapons/MemberTagFilms.aspxweapons
Number of films tagged: 1335

Number of people who tagged: 16

Number of times used: 35

]]>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:54:00 GMT13351635Tag Spout Tag:teamwork http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/teamwork/MemberTagFilms.aspxteamwork
Number of films tagged: 189

Number of people who tagged: 8

Number of times used: 9

]]>Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:02:07 GMT18989Tag Spout Tag:horrific http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/horrific/MemberTagFilms.aspxhorrific
Number of films tagged: 6

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Number of times used: 6

]]>Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:38:58 GMT666Tag Spout Tag:telluride http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/telluride/MemberTagFilms.aspxtelluride
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Number of people who tagged: 6

Number of times used: 64

]]>Sat, 12 Sep 2009 00:39:36 GMT55664Tag Spout Tag:manager http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/manager/MemberTagFilms.aspxmanager
Number of films tagged: 115

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]]>Wed, 20 May 2009 13:02:11 GMT11555Tag