Them; Shoot 'Em Up

Them (David Moreau & Xavier Palud, 2007) - B

Really liked the classical horror film that comprises the lion's share of this merciless 77-minute jolt -- Them is a splendid title, but a more accurate one might have been Something, since for much of the film that's as much information as we have about the assailants who pursue the lovely French couple in their rural Romanian home. It's a minor masterpiece of atmosphere, timing, and shot selection; Palud and Moreau seemed to know just what would creep the hell out of me and when -- a fleeting glimpse of a hooded figure as a door slams shut, a play of light and shadow on a wall, the sudden appearance of a well-lit tunnel. The identity of the unseen villains doesn't really matter in the sense that the film's pleasures are largely formal anyhow, but of course it does "matter" -- though lots of people extoll "ambiguity," I don't think too many of them would really be content with total abstraction. So there is a reveal, and on its own it's actually quite good: an unexpected, chilling image followed by expository title cards that actually work. I'm just not sure I like this particular ending on this particular horror film, because the resulting effect is abrupt, heavily ironic demystification. To the extent that Them's what-the-hell trappings get our imaginations working, the ending is a letdown, raising the question of why the film played it so close to the vest to begin with. The only possible response is "for fun," which I guess is fair enough. N.B. Rating was a tough call -- it's just this side of the B/B+ borderline.


Shoot 'Em Up (Michael Davis, 2007) - B

"Violence is one of the most fun things to watch," says Paul Giamatti's crazy-ass villain -- and Oh My God, I thought! That's what I've been saying for years! By Jebus there's plenty of it here, non-stop, stylish, and exaggerated to a degree that transcends ludicrous and approaches unfathomable. A newborn's umbilical cord is shot off; Giamatti madly charges the camera with a knife; when the protagonists are interrupted mid-coitus, they dispatch the gun-wielding baddies and complete the act, topping off with the line: "Talk about shooting your load." It's hilarious, transgressive, offensive, and awesome. I also adored the subtext: tough guys don't need guns (the hero doesn't have one of his own), but they don't need gun control laws either, fuck you very much. A trifle, ultimately, but trifles like this don't come along often.