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 I've seen a lot of horror and sci-fi movies, and this is among the best. For anyone who likes to read, this movie is a must. It blurs the boundary between what's fact and what's fiction. Neill goes in search of the elusive horror writer Sutter Cane, and finds that perhaps he is more than a good horror writer. The movie is scary without all of the expensive special effects that other movies rely upon to scare the audience. The ending is classic. This movie may make you want to think twice about settling down with a good book...
"In The Mouth Of Madness" is not an actual H.P. Lovecraft story; nor is it based on H.P. Lovecraft's work. It is, however, styled on and after H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos and short stories. And the film, like a fungus, grows on you. Should you not be too impressed with it on the first viewing (as I was not), I recommend watching it again. The premise of "In The Mouth Of Madness" is about a fraud squad detective (Neill) hired by a publishing company to find the whereabouts of a mysterious best-selling horror novelist, as well as to look into the growing hysteria surrounding readers of his books. The performances are first rate, the story engaging and thrilling, the locations are colourful, and the cinematography, music, and special effects work very well in complementing the aforementioned. What's particularly interesting about this film is the style with which it opens: very Stanley Kubrick. And Carpenter certainly doesn't waste any time, either: there's never a dull moment in this film. And despite some big name seasoned actors in the cast, Sam Neill (who's become a big name himself) absolutely steals the show. "In The Mouth Of Madness" is an extremely well done, professional film with a fairly original story. And Lovecraft fans will definitely see familiar Lovecraft elements and creatures in this film, as well as get the disorienting feeling, albeit a shallow one, that Lovecraft implements in his stories about a particular narrator going mad, etc. But the film isn't without its share of downsides. For instance, I can't say that I really felt the credibility of the "madness", myself. It is because of the cerebral condition involved in madness, a condition that only a reader through his or her imagination can realistically conjure up and interpret, that I believe Lovecraft's work untranslatable to the big screen. In addition, I can't say I found anything in the film particularly scary, either. Eerie, perhaps - maybe even tense. But scary, no. With all the usual John Carpenter "stingers" and horrific creatures and sequences, I'm led to believe that this film was supposed to be scary. (I think, perhaps, I've just seen too many horror films that use the same old tricks, which this film is guilty of, to be scared by any of them anymore. Of course, should this film have come out in the early 1980s, I would've certainly been scared.) However, I did get confused, "taken", and muddled, as there are a good deal of twists in this film that are meant to disorient the viewer. In fact, there are so many twists that the viewer will come to expect them - which ultimately kills any kind of credibility of any particular scene henceforth. This is a problem. Another downside is the editing: certain shots should've been deleted from the film entirely to leave something to the imagination; other shots should've just merely been briefer to give more impact to the shot. However, despite the drawbacks I mentioned, which may not even be a factor for some viewers, "In The Mouth Of Madness" is the kind of Horror Thriller that will withstand the test of time and that one will be able to appreciate and enjoy in more than one viewing. Personally, I would've liked to have seen some deleted scenes interwoven in this film, myself, to have it fleshed out more.
Well, here John Carpenter decides to cut out the middle-man, and rather than change Lovecraft around, he simply gives us H.P.'s worst nightmare: The Elder Gods are coming back....Run..... Sam Neill plays John Trent, an insurance adjuster looking for missing Horror novelist Sutter Cane. Cane has been incommunicado for weeks, sending his new novel in in dribs and drabs. The publication date is coming up fast, and Cane's less-than-stable fans are REALLY anxious to read his latest- So anxious that they're starting to have book store riots looking for copies. Trent and Cane's Editor (Julie Carmen) stumble upon Hobb's End, the FICTIONAL town that is the setting for all of Cane's books, and from there things just get weird. Cane is writing his latest, "In the Mouth of Madness", as a way to increase belief in The Old Ones, thus opening the doorway for their return to our plane of existence. The film is very entertaining, but seems kind of constrained by the budget...the deserted streets at the end just didn't seem big enough to convey the feeling Carpenter was trying for. I think Lovecraft would have enjoyed it, though. The disc has both widescreen and full-frame versions of the picture (Pick widescreen!), commentary by Carpenter and the Cinematographer, the theatrical trailer, and a filmography for Carpenter and the cast. (Jurgen Prochnow's filmography has an Easter-Egg- The trailer for Twin Peaks:Fire Walk With Me.) Also, look for a young Hayden Christensen (Star Wars Episode II's Anakin Skywalker) as the paperboy towards the end.
Movies that I would also recommend is: (1) Event Horizon |
I don't care for anything John Carpenter has directed after 1982's "The Thing". However, I am a fan of H.P. Lovecraft's literature, and I do like Carpenter's earlier films, so when I was in the rental shop the other day I thought I'd give this film a viewing. I'm glad I did.
