In the Mouth of Madness
|
Our Price: $38.92 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $19.99 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of In the Mouth of Madness
Movie Review: One of Carpenter's best
Summary: 5 Stars
The first thing that comes to mind with In the Mouth of Madness is the score by both Carpenter and Jim Lang. Carpenter's scores are usually pretty memorable anyway and this one is no exception. As soon as you hear it, it immediately reminds you of the early to mid-nineties. Even though the soundtrack is obviously dated, it fits the film incredibly well and it's difficult not to admire how great it really is.
Sam Neill is another huge factor to this film being so well done. He's at his best here. Plain and simple. His struggle with his possible insanity regarding everything that's happened to him with the Sutter Cane case is where he truly shines. John Trent scrambles to find a logical explanation with everything he's seeing due to his job, but he eventually runs out of reasoning and panic begins to set in. Watching him lose it is just as entertaining as watching every other event in the film unfold.
It's not like this film isn't flawed, but everything that happens in the second half of the film makes up for any flaw that takes places in the first half. John and Linda's journey to Hobb's End to the finale is what's held in such high regard. The Lovecraftian influences, the similarities to The Thing, the last showdown with Cane, the importance of repitition, all of it is just spectacular.
In the Mouth of Madness is not a perfect film. It's a little slow to get things rolling, Julie Carmen proves that she can't act, and the computer generated special effects in the film are clearly dated. The odd thing though is that nearly everything in the latter half of the film makes up for that. The H.P. Lovecraft influence, Sam Neill's top notch performance, and the originality displayed in the film seems to breath life into an idea that's been done to death. In the Mouth of Madness is arguably one of the best film's of John Carpenter's career.
Extras: The DVD contains extras you'd come to expect with bare bone DVDs. The commentary with John Carpenter and cinematographer Gary B. Kibbe is probably the only actual extra. I'm not a big fan of commentary to begin with, but this commentary seemed rather dull. Carpenter and Kibbe spent more time discussing lighting than what actually happened on set, which didn't interest me at all. I would've rather heard more stories about the sets, the actors, what happened while shooting, etc. The theatrical trailer and cast and crew filmographies are also included. Unfortunately, that's all the DVD has to offer as far as special features go.
The film is presented in English 5.1 Surround Sound with optional English subtitles and is also available in English Stereo Surround Sound. You also have the option of watching the film in full screen or widescreen.
Movie Review: Great John Carpenter film, one of my favorites.
Summary: 5 Stars
In The Mouth Of Madness was definitely one of Carpenter's best films and its one of my absolute favorites I thought it was an underrated gem and a great horror film, the film however wasn't a hit at the boxoffice cause it was released at the wrong time during the mid 90's which at that time horror films just weren't that popular. John Carpenter is considered to be one of the best and most prolific horror directors out there but during the 90's his career was abit uneven and his films were either a hit or miss but I consider this film to be a hit. The film was also inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft successfully capturing the nightmarish world of the mythology but not directly based on his stories, I wouldn't say it was a scary film but it does have a dark and creepy atmosphere especially when Sam Niel's character arrives at Hobb's End which is a small fictional town created by the evil horror writer Sutter Cane (nice performance by Jurgen Prochnow). There are some great scenes in this film that were simply mind blowing and it also has a great plot twist, John Carpenter was able to capture the madness and apocalyptic vision that happens later on. The story's about a new and highly successful horror writer named Sutter Cane, his fans have been obsessing over his books to the point that it creates mass hysteria. Sutter Cane's books obviously have a huge effect on its readers but its soon found out that the writer has disappeared. John Trent brilliantly played by Sam Niel is a special investigator for insurance companies that tracks insurance fraud done by people is soon sent out to investigate the disappearance of Sutter Cane by Cane's publisher played by Charlton Heston, he soon agrees and goes along with Cane's editor played by Julie Carmen at first he thinks that its some sort of publicity stunt by then he would find out the horrible truth. Trent was able to find the whereabouts of Cane by piecing together the covers of Cane's novels and discovers a town in New England called Hobb's End. As soon as they both arrive in the town they start having bizarre and horrifying visions and is not clear whether it is real or not and they just don't know what to expect, the special fx and gore scenes were brilliant they had some truly memorable scenes like the weird little zombie kids and slimy monsters. The story sort of crosses the barrier between fact and fiction and enters a terrifying world where there is no escape, the music was great and is highly effective and really compliments the mood and atmosphere. The opening and ending credits uses a hard rock instrumental track done by Carpenter but the rest of the film uses a moody synthesizer, I highly recommend this excellent horror film and two thumbs up!.Movie Review: Do you read Sutter Kane?
Summary: 5 Stars
What if you were fiction? Inspired by the writings of the Edgar Allen Poe of the Twentieth Century, H. P. Lovecraft, "In the Mouth of Madness" is a film so loaded with strange occurances, bizarre sights, and intruiging ideas that it's inevitable that most of them will be wasted/barely acknowledged/quickly forgotten as the plot demands to be followed and the story progresses from beginning to end. There's just so much going on in the brief hour and a half we're given to watch ... I would love to explore the locations of the town of Hobs End in more detail, observe its people, their pets, the shops, watch old movies of the townspeople constructing the church (why would a colonial American town even have a Byzantine Orthodox Church in the first place?) and most of all check out the creatures lurking in the shadows/behind everyone's backs (literally, sometimes)! But alas, we are not given a chance to do much of that... we're allowed by Mr. Carpenter only a taste if the feast and are then forced by him to turn our concerns to other matters (there is a story to be followed, after all). Sam Neil is an insurance agent that specializes in high-profile clients, who is sent to investigate the disappearance of horror writer Sutter Kane. He finds himself in the fictional town of Hobbs End, a place which up until that point only existed in Mr. Kane's novels, which seems to serve as the boundary between what is real and what is imaginary ... a boundary that is steadily growing weaker, as Kane's readership increases.
In the Mouth of Madness asks some interesting questions, presents some fascinating ideas, and treats us with some fabulous visuals. It's got every horrible thing you can imagine, from creepy little girls to a crazy mob of gun-toting small-towners to a homicidal grandma to pictures that change (uncomfortably) behind your back to sickening contortions to mental institutions to much much much much more. If you can imagine it, it's here. It's not pretty, but it's fascinating nonetheless. In the Mouth of Madness is one of my all-time favorite films, one I never get tired of watching or thinking about. Check it out, and pick up a volume of Lovecraft's short stories while you're at it (especially one featuring the first Lovecraft story I ever read, "The Dunwich Horror"). After mentally injesting both, you'll be sleeping with the lights on for a week, but it will have been worth it.
Carry on Carry on,
MN
Movie Review: "I think, therefore you are."
Summary: 5 Stars
Ever since I was 15 years old, I have had an on/off relationship with horror films. Right around 1994-5, I was going through an "off" phase for some indeterminate reason. At that time, ItMoM did not intrigue me in the slightest from what I saw in the trailer. So for about a decade and a half, I put off seeing it. About 2 weeks ago, I was reading reviews when those for ItMoM caught my attention. I told myself, "Self, you only live once." Then I put it in my Netflix Queue. Now I realize all too late that I should have championed this movie back in 1995 when all the critics were busy skewering it.
The basic plot deals with a matter of fact insurance detective name John J. Trent (Sam Neill in one of his better roles) who makes a living bringing down would be beneficiaries who torch their own properties. Fans of the horror novelist Sutter Cane are rioting around the bookstores worldwide awaiting the release of his newest novel. Cane, who literally outsells The Bible and has been translated into 18 languages, has been missing for two years. Cane's publishing company hires Trent and Cane's beautiful editor Linda Styles to find him. Their search leads them to fictional New England village Hobb's End. Once there, Trent's firmly rooted prosaic ideas about how the world is supposed to function slowly discombobulate.
What was it that I loved so much about ItMoM? Oh yes, it felt less like watching the typical horror movie I was half-expecting and more like reading a really great horror novel. There is a very strong Lovecraft influence at play that borrows from several of his stories. We have the unspeakable monstrosities that existed eons before man in which his readers are very well familiar with. Also there is a towering Byzantine church that could very easily be integrated into one of his stories. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that Phillip K. Dick was also an inspiration with the constant changing of reality. Far too many horror films take their inspiration solely from other horror films that were not that great to begin with. I can't tell you how refreshing it is to see one borrowing from literature. And fine literature at that.
Movie Review: A Lost Gem from Carpenter
Summary: 5 Stars
John Carpenter's "In the Mouth of Madness" is one of his older films and many people have never heard of it. Too bad, really, since this is one of his better movies. Once the slimy monsters show up, I think it lost a little bit of it's effect but other than that...It's pretty solid. The movie opens in an asylum, where a man is being thrown into a padded room as he insists that he's not insane. Minutes later, a man shows up and tells the insane man that he's here to get him out...He doesn't believe the insane man is insane either. Then the movie flashes back so we can see how the insane man wound up there. Sam Neill ('Jurassic Park') plays John Trent, an insurance claims investigator who is quite good at his job. While sitting at a diner, an axe wielding man asks him "Do you read Sutter Cane?" right as he tries to kill him. Sutter Cane is a world renowned horror author, who sells billions of books and is more popular than Stephen King. Problem is, his books affect many people...Drive them to do insane things. Trent is hired by Cane's publishers to track him down, but Trent doesn't believe it. After buying some of Cane's books, he discovers a map hidden in the covers that leads to a town no one knows about called Hobbs End. With Cane's editor, Styles, in tow Trent sets out to the mysterious town. When he gets there, he'll wind up straddling a fine line between fiction and reality. The movie is actually pretty smart...As I said, they should've ditched the slimy monsters...But, the movie 'It' should have ditched the giant spider. Everything that happens, technically, makes sense...There are no plot holes or anything. Neill turns in a surprisingly strong performance. This movie isn't as creepy as say..."Halloween" but it's entertaining. If you like John Carpenter, then you should like this movie. Also, look for appearances by a very young Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) and that kid from Transamerica & Air Bud (Kevin Zegers).
GRADE: A-