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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 23:57:15 GMT -6
You own the dossier, so stop complaining Very true. But for those poor saps who don't and know nothing of the kidnapping angle... What you don't like about my cut is that - in your eyes - it's not the full-meal, original deal. But what you've always somehow failed to realize - is just how shitty the original movie really is. I literally took a hog of an animal and properly trimmed off all the necessary fat, leaving only a nice, lean-mean meal to enjoy, with nothing tasty and necessary being sacrificed in the process. Like testicles, penises, tongues, feet, and eyeballs. ... but somehow you still prefer the original, fatty and gross version. Wow. I think there is something else you're not taking into consideration: sentimental value. Book of Shadows came out on home media in 2001, and that was a very interesting year for me and contained a lot of personally eye-opening events. There is a lot from that year that I consider sacred and Book of Shadows may just be on that list for all I know, hence why the original cut is so near and dear to me. I remember renting it the day it came out at Blockbuster (VHS was released first, then the DVD+CD combo) because I wanted to see it so bad after watching the Blair Witch Webfest on Sci-Fi days before the theatrical release. I was so tired that day I didn't even remember the walk home (Blockbuster was about a 10-minute walk from my house at the time), so it really shouldn't have surprised me that I fell asleep trying to watch the movie instead of going to bed. I tried again the next day, and just fell in love with it, despite its shortcomings. There's more to it than that, more that made almost everything about that year important to me for one reason or another, including the original cut, but it isn't the kind of stuff I'm going to talk about on here or outside of my close circle of family and friends. I have never shown overall disdain for any of your cuts of the film, at all. As a matter of fact, I have done my best to make sure that I always have the most recent, polished, finalized version you have to offer. I may have been critical of a decision or two in your editing process, but that's kind of what I do. I see the good and bad in everything, and I don't shy away from sharing my findings in either category. Your efforts are still immensely appreciated by me, even if I don't exactly praise them as the best thing since sliced bread. There are a ton of things about your version that I whole-heartedly prefer over the original (the splicing of introductions being after the group picked up Kim being a big one). I am currently watching your latest cut, by the way.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 21:57:00 GMT -6
I always forget that we got a better background for Jeff in that two-minute teaser than we ever did in the movie.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 17:50:31 GMT -6
But they didn't! Cuz they was ghost teens sent to get Kim all riled up! Well, if they were ghost teens, then they did die somehow, someway before riling up Kim (which Peggy and Ham Lady did a much better job of. Kim just laughed the three idiot ghost teens off), so they deserved it!
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 17:42:50 GMT -6
Yeah, Kim, obviously. Kim Director's face is absolutely gorgeous, and her blue eyes are beyond alluring (even if they are color contacts, the way she uses that asset is amazing). Likewise, Tristen and Erica are nothing to balk at. Tristen looks like hell through most of the film, which is intentional, but during the first 25 minutes? Just look at her smile when she is talking to anyone during that time. Stunning. I'm a sucker for redheads, so Erica easily caught my eye, but that face she gives when telling Kim the marks on their bodies are growing... you just want to protect that.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 17:25:06 GMT -6
In fact, upon further thought .. those rowdy boys may have never really been there, just like the Burkittsville 7 that Kim saw ... or they were all really ghosts. Unfortunately, we never get a real clear shot of the back driver's side window again for the remainder of the film (we get a brief glimpse of a sliver of it during the news crew taking a shot of the van, but it does not appear to be broken... which really doesn't confirm or deny anything considering that shot was likely filmed before it was broken... or the broken glass was removed or fell out as Kim drove back to Jeff's), so we'll never know. Either way, I say those teens deserved to die one way or another.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 15:55:48 GMT -6
I found this awhile back and tried (unsuccessfully) to verify it. Sounds like that rumor is nothing more than a rumor...
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 14:52:00 GMT -6
That's pretty good. Keep going. I concur. This first part has been an enjoyable read so far. Neat and coherent in the storytelling, shaped well enough to tell the tale of what is going on in the present while intertwining parts of our protagonist's past into the mix to give a better feel for her and her sense of justice. The quick nod to the history of the evil of the land was also a nice touch. Looking forward to reading more.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 13:10:07 GMT -6
Also interesting to note that in the tapes, Kim kills the male Chinese tourist as well as the tour guide with the dark, short hair. In addition to Peggy, that gives her three kills... above and beyond anyone else. Erica had one (female German tourist), Stephen had two (female Chinese tourist, Tristen) and Jeff had two (long-haired tour guide, Erica).
And, no, I'm not going to count the owl as a kill.
And... if just saying something nasty and acting like a jerk costs you your innocence, Cravens is screwed, Peggy was screwed (if she was indeed that rude to Kim), the Blair Witch Walk tour guides were screwed, and the three teenagers are really screwed.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 5, 2018 1:33:30 GMT -6
So, just to build on this nice little thread a bit, I watched Book of Shadows again today with the intent of getting a near-100% idea of the complete musical layout of the film from start to finish. This took... a little while. To my surprise, there are actually a lot of score pieces that we did not get on the CD side of the DVD release. Or they were alternate versions. Either way, we just didn't get them in CD format, or any way outside of the movie. There were also three score tracks listed that I just couldn't find in the movie. Maybe I just missed them or didn't recognize them while watching (I am pretty tired). There are some short score cues listed in here as well, and a scant few some may consider as part of the score that I simply didn't (like the little snippet of sound from the start of the film that plays until Heather screams). Anyway, here was my waste of time today...
01. Funny Farm (score) 02. Disposable Teens 03. Streamlined 04. All or Nothing 05. (Score segment not included - Unloading the van) 06. (Score segment not included - The Tree/Communing with Elly) 07. (Score segment not included - Camp setup scene) 08. Feel Alive 09. Goodbye Lament 10. Mind 11. Human 12. Old Enough 13. (Score segment not included - The two tour groups meet) 14. Feel Good Hit Of The Summer 15. Stream Dream (score) 16. Red Snow (score) 17. Wrong (score) 18. Still in the Hills (score) 19. Soul Auctioneer 20. Dirge 21. I'm A Doggy 22. Marked (score) 23. All or Nothing (a-freakin-gain. either they had a shitty country station there or Peggy really liked that track) 24. The Lord Is My Shepherd 25. Lie Down 26. (Score segment not included - Transition to next day) 27. (Score segment not included - The search for Erica. The begining of Beasts is used, but then it becomes something else) 28. Beasts (score) 29. (Score segment not included - Call from Cravens/Owl Crash) 30. Forest Ranger 31. (Score segment not included - Erica on the Bridge) 32. (Score segment not included - Stephen comforts Tristen. Not really sure if this could be considered a part of the score) 33. Dragula 34. (Score segment not included - Kim discovers the files. Plays over Dragula) 35. (Score segment not included - Cravens at the door) 36. (Score segment not included - Erica's body discovered) 37. Shadow Dance (score) 38. Hanging (score) 39. The Truth? (score) 40. Haunted 41. The Reckoning 42. PS 43. Arcarsenal
CANNOT FIND: Rock Wind Water (score) Barely (score) Rain (score)
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:53:49 GMT -6
Honestly not all that different from yours. There really isn't any way to argue that they were all screwed with how the end played out, and Kim and Stephen were going to spend multiple life sentences in prison. Maybe even being finished off by the death penalty (it was not abolished in Maryland until 2013). Jeff, however, I believe would be institutionalized for the rest of his life. I know that Kim supposedly saw a vision of him frying in an electric chair (but that was archaic even by 1999/2000 for Maryland) and Rustin Parr was hanged, so it couldn't have been a vision of his death, but I just can't make myself believe she was seeing Jeff's death in any way. Furthermore, he already had a history of having mental instability and being institutionalized for years. The most practical end for him would be going back to the 'loony bin' for life.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:41:57 GMT -6
Ok then (again) From now on it's official: we will all forever ignore the reenactment intro title thing. Yaay! Fantastic!
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:40:53 GMT -6
Not to be the turd in the punchbowl, the owl (and the brief nudity) are a result of a test screening, which was the poster child of patheticism. When Artisan was reviewing the final cut, at the very last minute (I believe it was as late as August or even possibly September), they decided the film needed more of the "Hollywood formula" to assuage the thirst of the theater goer. "Not good enough, 'needs some blood." "Yea, and some tits." At the last minute they tossed in the owl scene, as well as the tits. Seriously. I kinda figured the eating of the owl scene was random filler (it just never sat right with me, even if Jeff was really losing it by then or the evil was just messing with everyone in different ways) and it felt like a no-brainer that the nudity was added at the demand of the studio, but every appearance of the owl was from test screening? It seemed like it had some sort of unknown stigma to it in the first shot with Kim noticing it.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:32:44 GMT -6
Last night I hit "no" because I honestly don't want to know what happened to them. Because I already have a very good idea of what happened to them. The three went to prison and Jeff "may have been" eventually executed. Understandable, I suppose. Much like you, I'm content with my own ending, and there is no way anything would ever feel 'official' now, but I am always curious to see what others may come up with.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:26:03 GMT -6
Whatever. None of it makes any real sense. Unfortunately, that is it exactly. Too many cooks in the kitchen. While the movie comes with a 'reenactment' warning at the beginning (something I was never fond of, even if it was at the behest of the director), the dossier ignores this little tidbit entirely and presents everything to us as if the movie we watched and the characters we experienced it with were all real (which I really liked). Aside from that, the dossier can exist in the exact same universe as the movie because it treats itself as an extension of it. The mocumentary, though, is another matter entirety.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:12:25 GMT -6
Someone just recently voted for 'No'. We now have one 'No' vote. *glares at person responsible for disturbing the peace* You know who you are...
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 15:10:18 GMT -6
It's from Shadow of the Blair Witch, which I believe was released on television just prior to Book of Shadows hitting theaters. But even then it doesn't matter because the two don't exist in the same reality (the movie and the mocumentary) Yes, but even then, it was not created until after the movie had been mostly fleshed out (if not already shot), and outside of the dossier and the mocumentary, there is no mention of a book even from cast and crew who talked of the film, hence why I called it revisionist in relation to said movie. That Book of Shadows dossier is a companion to Shadow of the Blair Witch, while the movie stands alone. so confusing .. Interestingly enough, I think the dossier is a companion piece to the movie moreso than the mockumentary. It references characters and directly from the movie, taking different paths than the Sci Fi TV special that went with a more 'realistic' approach in the the families of those involved wished not to be shown and a different actor was used to portray Jeff since it is going with the 'reenactment' angle for the movie. If the dossier was more linked with the mockumentary, I would think it would have used the actor from the TV special in images of Jeff his image was not blurred, while almost everyone else's was), and not used nearly as many images of the movie actors (think of the headshots of Tristen and Stephen used in the book) if it was not linked to that more.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 14:56:30 GMT -6
*enters because he is called* *notices that Tenebris removed post invoking him* *looks at current topic* *rolls eyes* *scours memory of useless movie scenes for a moment* *leaves*
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 2, 2018 14:33:10 GMT -6
Also, Jeff had written a screenplay for what he wanted a BWP sequel to be, and named it "The Book of Shadows". Though it should be noted that that piece of Jeff's history was not exactly created until after the movie had been made, so it is still a revisionist addendum (in relation to there being no Book of Shadows in Book of Shadows, at least).
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 1, 2018 18:11:51 GMT -6
Like most things, they are only reliable for someone if they fit the narrative they're going for. Hell, let's say they're 100% reliable though - they still don't give any kind of explanation as to why the numbers are the way they are. So, still misleading and manipulative.
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Nov 1, 2018 17:57:36 GMT -6
According to crime statistics it probably would be. Yeah, cause those are reliable...
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Oct 28, 2018 16:57:51 GMT -6
Have you seen that movie Black hills hermit? No, I can't say that I have seen that specific one. I have seen others like it though (such as The Stanford Prison Experiment). Those kinds of movies are always unsettling to me because, moreso than a scary movie, they reflect what horrible creatures humans are really able to turn into when desperation and ultimatums are brought into a miserable situation (and the fact that the Stanford Prison Experiment is based off a true story just makes it all that worse).
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Oct 28, 2018 16:43:32 GMT -6
I also had watched "brain wash" it looks like it's frum the 1979ish era, it's a movie about a group of employee's from a big company going to a weekend workshop kinda thing out of the city and once they are there its like a series of situations or exsersizes they are put into with no way out of, the goal of experiencing these exsersizes is to have the experience give the person growth and strength in them selves so they can be stronger people as well as stronger employees for the company. The situations were messed up,I'll desrcibe one. The group hasn't had any food or been aloud to have sleep for along enough time to make them uncomfortable, Moody and desperate, the men had been separated from the women in the next room and in this case one guys wife was in the other room, the facilitator of the program explains that if the rest of them, like 6 guys or whatever, can stop the husband of the lady in the next room from making it to the other end of the room and touch the wall with his hand, then they will all be able to have a meal and go to sleep, and they ahve been depreived of that for awhile and they really need and want food and sleep, but, the guy is told by the facilitator that if he can't touch the wall at the other end of the room, one of the staff who is a unfreindly security man, a big mean man who's basically there to b#tch slap people back into line of they try and leave, will "spend the night with your wife". And I remember it was a hostile exserize when they were put against each other like that. Crazy movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_of_Power
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Oct 28, 2018 15:49:09 GMT -6
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Oct 28, 2018 1:30:26 GMT -6
Just found out James Karen passed away on Oct. 23. He made it to 94. Not bad at all. Still, sad news.
"It's not a bad question, Burt."
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Post by BlackHillsHermit on Oct 27, 2018 23:19:08 GMT -6
The School (2018)
It takes a while for the plot to be fully revealed, but that is what you expect from a horror-mystery mix. If you really like these kinds of movies and know you should pick up on small reveals as they come to light throughout the film, you will figure out the plot fairly quickly (surprisingly, that was one of the main two things people whined about - not being able to figure it out until the movie straight up told them). The other thing that people griped about with this movie was that it wasn't really horror. I'll side with them on that. There were aspects of horror in this, but not a lot, and even when they got a little screen time, it felt like an afterthought. Regardless, I still really liked this flick. Nowhere near as good as The Orphanage (still my all-time favorite foreign horror-mystery movie), but it can definitely stand on its own if you known what the ride is going to be like before starting it (i.e. slow burn, flashbacks placed throughout, being equipped with a developed attention span would also help). The plot feels like it borrows heavily from Silent Hill (fog/mist that creatures - or Weepers for this movie - come from, a mother seeking her lost child, the backstory of the school, etc.) and Lord of the Flies (the whole child-gang thing), but it manages to twist the source material into a story of its own.
The only two things I was not very find of in this were the ending shots (not the ending itself, but the two scenes in the school before the credits began to roll. One felt like it was just starting to show a transformation and the other made no sense at all unless it was referencing a scene that was cut) and how much of a non-threat the monsters turned out to be overall (an example is that we are warned to not let the Dead touch us nor the Weepers bite us, but we may have just left those warnings out because neither even come close to happening in the movie. There are also creatures call The Hungries in the basement, but we only ever see one, and it just snarls at our protagonist and runs away).
I was pleasantly surprised overall, especially considering the flack I had read about it.
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