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Post by obliv326 on Nov 28, 2005 0:13:16 GMT -5
so i just rented "city of the living dead" aka "gates of hell"...i can remember this film having a rather dubious reputation when i was younger. in fact, i didnt know they were the same film, and rented "city...." after not being able to find "gates"...
i have to admit that, while i am not particularly excited or interested by gore, this fulci fellow does seem to come up with some of the more original, if completely disgusting, gore sequences i have ever seen...and having seen much of his ouevre (zombi, the beyond, this one and a few others), boy, does he like to dwell on the gore for a long time...
is anyone else familiar with his work? if so, what is your opinion: is he a exploitatiove hack who took advantage of the ratings system to indulge his sick tastes, or is he a genre bending genius who pushed the boundaries of cinema?
i seem to waver back and forth. id like to know what others think...
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Post by Michael West on Nov 28, 2005 9:29:51 GMT -5
I saw Gates of Hell way back in the day. I don't remember liking it as a film, but I remembered the girl who vomits her intestines. To be honest, many of the Italian films just seem exploitive to me. Of course I consider Dario Argento to be a genius of the genre, but many of his contemporaries just leave me cold.
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Post by kevinjames on Nov 28, 2005 11:07:09 GMT -5
To be honest, many of the Italian films just seem exploitive to me. I completely disagree. Italian films are some of the best horror movies made during their time frame. They don't tend to hold back or self censor themselves and have a perverse style that American films lack in general. There's a quality to the story telling that is unique and interesting as well to me. I can see why some wouldn't like it, just like I can't stand Asian horror while plenty seem to embrace it.
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Post by Michael West on Nov 28, 2005 13:49:50 GMT -5
I can see why some wouldn't like it, just like I can't stand Asian horror while plenty seem to embrace it. Horror and Comedy are two genres that are very subjective. I like dark comedies and British comedies. Many people don't. By the same token, what frightens me or fills me with suspense may not work for somebody else. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that all Italian horror other than Argento is bad and all Asian horror is good, I'm just saying that I have enjoyed more Asian horror than Italian horror. But then again, I haven't seen a vast amount of the stuff. I've never seen The Beyond, for example. Anybody got any great titles I should put into my Blockbuster Online que?
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tomoran
Citizen of Harmony
Posts: 173
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Post by tomoran on Nov 28, 2005 16:30:13 GMT -5
Although I'm not about to argue his merits (as I believe that he tends to be a "love 'im or hate 'im" kinda director) I LOVE Fulci's work. Of course, I am a gore fan and, like you stated, Obliv--he comes up with some nasty and original deaths. THE BEYOND is one of my favorite films as is CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD. I will admit that many of his films borderline on exploitive (and some are embarrassingly nasty), but I still find them fun. I actually discovered his work while hunting down Argento films and have been a fan ever since.
I must be strange as I love both Asian and Italian horror...LOL
T
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Post by obliv326 on Dec 1, 2005 2:28:53 GMT -5
you know, i can easily see some quality in his films. there are some scenes that are genuinely chilling, and that doesnt happen by accident, at least not with the frequency that he seems to do it.
on the other hand, i do think he goes a little overboard w/the gore...i mean, its one thing to have someone get, say, bullwhipped across the face and bleed. its another to zoom into the wound and hold on it as it gushes obviously fake gore...
OR, it is quite easy, were one's head, say, be pulled by a zombie toward a long, jagged piece of wood, to move your head slightly one way or another to avoid said spike...or at least make it so it hits your forehead, and probably breaks, rather than allowing it to go right into your eyeball...
that said, there are some scenes...like in the end of zombi, or the beginning of that film on the boat, that are solid and effective.
granted, i dont think hes an argento, but hes no slack, either.
and by no means do i think liking these films makes you any less qualified as a film fan, or horror fan, or whatever. i think, maybe, that fulci's taste for guts, and this extends into the lower end of italian horror, prob exceeds mine and most people's...but if you dig it, more power to you!
btw, mike, would you say that some of the gore in "the orivous project" were influenced by the works of fulci? for example, the face that "melts like a popsicle on a hot summer's day" is quite similar to a scene in the beyond...and the haed crushing sequence has several forbearers in gates of hell/city of living dead...
what do you say, mike...homage?
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Post by kevinjames on Dec 1, 2005 19:29:28 GMT -5
In the City of Dead in particular Lucio demonstrates a great style of atmosphere, and psychological trauma and not just gore in my view.
The scene with Mary in the grave is a great example of this, as if the opening scene with the priest and seance (spelling)
Lucio's does zoom in on scenes of gore, and perhaps dwell on them more then most directors, but he also tends to do extreme close ups of facial features especially eyes of his actors to convey emotion. There's a scene in the apartment where its just eyes. There's another scene with Mary in the grave with an extreme close up. These are very strong emotional/psychological images and way to film a movie. He does it to convey emotion/thoughts/atmosphere without high end special effects or over writing. That's the same reason he dwells on the gore. To convey the horrid. Not to exploit or to be a hack. Is it meant to be unsettling? Hell yes. If the viewer has an emotional reaction then he did his job as an artist. I don't know how many times I've seen a movie where I didn't feel anything for what was going on. Lucio is one of the few directors that know how to capture emotion - good, bad, happy, sad whatever. His work has soul. Not everything has to pleasant in art.
He's not for everyone, but that doesn't discredit his work to me.
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Post by obliv326 on Dec 5, 2005 1:38:17 GMT -5
hmmmm...
an interesting point of view. i certainly dont think the dwelling shots on gore necessarily discredits his work. its not what everyone wants to see, but i think by being, if nothing else, not afraid to use gore, he will get those fans who really want to see that excess.
i dont know if you call it bad taste, or courage to not shrink away in the face of what disgusts people, but it is one of the things that sets him apart.
i do think you are right...there are some really effective scenes in his work...but i personally think he goes a bit far sometimes...ie, squishing brains? eewww...
and a question...in the beyond, when the acid pours on the woman's face, why is there green mixed in with the residue of her face?
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Post by Michael West on Dec 14, 2005 11:04:30 GMT -5
i do think you are right...there are some really effective scenes in his work...but i personally think he goes a bit far sometimes...ie, squishing brains? eewww... Remember the now legenday Orivous Project where we stepped on your fake head and smashed the pig brains inside? (God, how I wish I could find that footage).
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Post by obliv326 on Dec 14, 2005 12:56:30 GMT -5
Remember the now legenday Orivous Project where we stepped on your fake head and smashed the pig brains inside? (God, how I wish I could find that footage). ah, mike, but you are forgetting the best part...when the balloon filled with blood refused to pop and bounded out towards the camera! i think you have it mike, and i think youve hidden it...but we will find it...oh yes, we will...
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