The Lady in White
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Movie Reviews of The Lady in White
Movie Review: "I really liked your story, Frankie. I wish I was as weird as you,"
Summary: 4 Stars
During the introduction, Frank LaLoggia, the writer and director of the film The Lady in White (1988), states this Columbia Tristar Home Video release marks the 20th anniversary of his film...which left me scratching my head as it seems like he's three years premature, if his film was originally released in 1988...maybe it was the 20th anniversary of when he actually started production of the movie. I guess it doesn't matter one way or the other as I thought this was a damn good picture, especially when compared to his previous, debut project titled Fear No Evil (1981). I don't know what happened in the seven years in between, but I'm glad I decided to give this one a try despite that earlier work. As I mentioned, The Lady in White was written and directed by Frank LaLoggia, and stars Lukas Haas (Solarbabies, Mars Attacks!), Alex Rocco (Detroit 9000, Freebie and the Bean), Len Cariou (About Schmidt), Katherine Helmond ("Soap", Brazil). Also appearing is Jason Presson (Explorers), Renata Vanni (Fatso), Angelo Bertolini (Homer & Eddie), Jared Rushton (Big, Pet Sematary II), Lucy Lee Flippin ("Little House on the Prairie"), and Tom Bower (River's Edge, Die Hard 2), who will soon appear in a remake of Wes Craven's 1977 film The Hills Have Eyes, written and directed by Alexandre Aja (High Tension), scheduled to be released in 2006.
As the story, told primarily in flashback, begins proper, we learn the year is 1962 and it's Halloween in the small, coastal town of Willowpoint Falls, where we meet a young boy named Frankie Scarlatti (Haas), his older brother Geno (Presson), and their father Angelo (Rocco). The boys head off to school, resulting in a series of funny sequences. Frankie's an imaginative boy, presenting one of his stories to the class, which results in, later on, two bullies from his class playing a prank on him by locking him in the cloakroom after everyone else has left...almost everyone. During the night, Frankie witnesses a disturbing vision involving the apparition of a little girl, followed by a very real attack on himself by someone he can't see. When he next awakens, the attacker is gone, his father and the sheriff (Bower) are standing over him, and the drunken, passed out African American janitor gets fingered for the assault, along with a series of brutal, unsolved child murders in the area that have baffled the police going on some ten years (turns out the girl in Frankie's vision was one of the victims). As time passes, Frankie is visited a few times by the little ghost girl, the local legend of The Lady in White is revealed, along with an important clue as to the identity of the real killer, all of whom seem to share some sort of relationship. There's definitely an evil, predatory presence lurking about the town of Willowpoint Falls, and its focus now appears to be on Frankie...
It's difficult to talk about a movie like this because I want to relate much, but don't want to give away too much for someone who has yet to see the film. It seems like it's been so long since I last saw a really good, old fashion ghost story as the one presented here. Was it scary? Perhaps not (to me, at least), but it was thoroughly spooky and well worth my time. The story does get a little convoluted, but director LaLoggia keeps things moving along very well along keeping the confusion at a minimum. The film is a bit lengthy, running nearly a full two hours, and I thought some of this running time could have been shaved off by removing part, if not all, of the accused janitor subplot which really didn't serve much purpose other than to provide an obvious scapegoat, allowing the stumped authorities to stop their investigation of a case opened for some ten odd years. The conclusion of the subplot included the most grisly scene of the film, one that didn't necessarily fit with the rest of the movie. I've noticed some comments about special effects, specifically towards their `amateurish' look, but I think it's important to keep in mind this was a low budget, independently produced film. Some of these effects did look comparatively hokey in relation to other films released at the time, but I found this very easy to overlook given the strengths of the film, and the very simple fact the filmmaker didn't try to use said effects to cover up inadequacies in other areas, as is often the case. For me, the strengths (the story, the characters, etc.) more than made up for anything lacking in this area. I thought the characters were finely detailed, and the performances exceptional, especially that of Haas, whose expressionistic features really helped enhance specific moods throughout the movie, assisted immensely by a strong, supporting cast, including Alex Rocco, Len Cariou, Katherine Helmond, and Jason Presson. One interesting aspect for me was I figured out the identity of the killer early on, well before it was revealed (which happens about an hour and half in). I don't think I was able to discern this because I'm all that intuitive, so perhaps something within the story tipped its hand, a predictability of sorts, I'm unsure, but knowing this critical bit of information before the actual reveal didn't diminish my enjoyment of the story at all. It provided a little twist my knowing something the main characters didn't, and heightened the tension in a few scenes. I think one of my favorite scenes in the movie was while Frankie was reading a story he wrote to his class on Halloween, and we see one child, in a bunny costume, completely mesmerized by the tale, displaying a slack-jawed expression on his face. I also loved the reply from the little girl who was Frankie's classmate after he finished reading his story, of which I used for the title of my review. There are quite a few of these comedic touches throughout, many including Frankie's live-in grandparents played by Renata Vanni and Angelo Bertolini, which all play off nicely against the spookier elements. All in all I thought this was a wonderful film, one that I'm glad I now own.
The picture on this Columbia Tristar Home Video release, presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1), look very sharp and clean, and the Dolby Digital Surround 5.1 audio comes through very well. There had been a previous DVD release of this film by Anchor Bay Entertainment, but that version, while presented in widescreen, was not in anamorphic format. There's a slew of special features including an audio commentary track by director LaLoggia, along with an intro to the film, a whole mess of deleted scenes, also with an intro by LaLoggia (with optional director's commentary), a behind the scenes photo montage, an extended photo gallery, and an original theatrical trailer.
Cookieman108
Movie Review: Zombos Closet Review
Summary: 4 Stars
Frank LaLoggia directs and writes this ghost story and murder mystery with light humor and a nostalgic touch. It's 1962 in Willowpoint Falls, and in the opening montage, he introduces us to the small town during Halloween, and to the Scarlatti family's eccentricities. Told as a flashback by the older Frankie Scarlatti (played by LaLoggia), we see the story lightly filtered through his memories as the sensitive young Frankie (played by the big eyed and big eared Lukas Haas) let's two bully boys trick him into getting locked into the classroom's foreboding cloakroom. All alone, and a stone's throw away from a cemetery to boot, Frankie soon falls asleep on the top shelf of the closet, by the window. An in-camera time lapse shot, done through the half-moon window of the cloakroom looking onto the cemetery, reminded me of a similar effect used in Hammer's Dracula, where the sunlight rapidly fades to darkness as seen through the tomb's window. Darkness is not a good thing when facing vampires or when locked in ominous cloakrooms on Halloween night, to be sure.
When 10 o'clock rolls around, it's quiet, darker still, and also time for the murder mystery and ghost story to begin. Right off the bat I can identify with Frankie: he's wearing a black cape and a Bela Lugosi mask. In a later scene in his bedroom, he also has the Aurora monster model kits displayed in all their magnificence.
An eerie reenactment begins as Frankie wakes up from a bad dream involving his dead mother. A cold blast of air enters the room, along with the ghost of a little girl, laughing and playing. An interesting touch here is that this is not an atmospheric haunting, where events merely play over and over again, but the ghost of the little girl responds to Frankie's presence in the room. She seems as startled to see him as he is to see her. But events must play out, and soon she is callously murdered by a shadowy adult figure. Using a black screen process to create the transparent apparition of the girl, the scene is a harsh contrast to the lighter tone presented earlier in the movie, and sets up the next, more violent scene, where young Frankie finds himself in the unenviable position of sitting on the top shelf of the cloakroom when the real child-killer enters, looking for something that dropped into the floor grate when he had strangled the girl some time before.
The killer soon realizes he is not alone, and shines his flashlight onto the small black caped form, wearing the Bela Lugosi mask, sitting in the corner of the top shelf. Frankie tries to escape, but quickly has the life nearly choked out of him. An effective out of body experience has Frankie meet Melissa Ann, the ghost of the little girl so cruelly murdered long ago. He finds out she is trying to find her mom. Frankie is brought back to consciousness, and he is soon delving deeper into this mystery.
True to form for the sixties, the school janitor, an African-American, is found drunk in the basement and is blamed for the attempted murder of Frankie and the murders of 11 other children, including Melissa Ann, who was the first victim. Reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird, the film maintains a good balance between the fanciful--Frankie's adventure with the ghostly Melissa Ann, the blue-lit night scenes in the fairy tale stylized woods, and his coming of age, and the true-to-life painful loss of his mom, the bigotry and pain of loss that eventually lead to murder perpetrated by a grieving parent, and the loss of someone close to him by finding out that person is not who he seemed to be. This theme of loss is borne also by the ghostly Melissa Ann, who is looking for her mother, the ghost of her mother, who is looking for Melissa Ann, and one sister mourning the loss of another.
LaLoggia, who, oddly enough, grew up in an urban environment, creates a charming small town nostalgia, and through the use of carefully controlled colors and lighting, brings the hues of Autumn inside to his interior scenes. The pharmacy window decorated for Halloween, and the classroom scene where Frankie reads his monster story to the class, is awash with shades of orange, yellow and the various colors of crisp Autumn leaves. In stark contrast, he uses reds and blues to denote the darker side of this story, and effectively uses dimmer panels to bring the light down or up to transition between important story points in the scene. The overall mood of the film moves from charming to alarming, and back to charming as the story unfolds to its incendiary ending atop the cliffs by the white cottage. LaLoggia's simple, old-time approach using in-camera effects combined with basic process shots enhances the story.
All in all, a wonderfully paced ghost story and moral tale.
Movie Review: Not Just For Halloween...
Summary: 4 Stars
In 1988, director Frank Laloggia treated unexpected audiences to a sentimental ghost story, which tugs at all the right strings and provides a few genuine scares along the way. There's so many reasons to like this film, from its wonderful cast, to the atmospheric soundtrack, to the well-crafted screenplay; it's easy to see how this became a sleeper hit during the late 80's. It sets out to achieve telling a simple ghost story, but accomplishes much more. Perhaps some of its charm can be credited to Laloggia himself, who apparently returned to his homespun roots to film this picture.
Lukas Haas stars as a precocious ten-year-old boy who stumbles upon a mystery while locked in the cloakroom of his school on Halloween night. The film takes place during the early 60's, and therefore Lagoggia devises a subplot revolving around the element of racism in the small-town. This perhaps was an unnecessary attempt to thicken the plot, but it doesn't distract from the main story too badly.
This DVD was originally released in 1998, and included the full musical soundtrack, and director's commentary, along with a host of deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes. For a short period, the film was out of print, and copies of the 1998 release had sky-rocketed on ebay. The print is surprisingly crisp on this film, and the sound is remastered for the 1998 edition.
Even if it isn't Halloween, this film is a treat to watch any time of the year. It may be too intense for children under 13, so preview this yourself before sitting down with youngsters.
Movie Review: A Classic That Brings Back Memories
Summary: 4 Stars
Lady in White is a great movie that brings back memories for me. For years I've had images in my head of a scary movie I saw when I was little with a lady, cliff, and a cloak room. My parents never allowed me to watch the really violent scary parts and I was too young to remember the name of the film. Finally after all these years I found the name of the movie and have watched it in its entirety and it still gives me goosebumps when I watch it. There is something about old women, white powdery skin, and fire that just scares the hell out of you. This is a must see for those who grew up in the 80s.Movie Review: Nostalgic Thrills
Summary: 4 Stars
This 1980's genre suspense film has both a nostalgic and whimsical feel. It is set in 1960s small town America.
A 10 year old boy witnesses a horrific murder of a little girl whose ghost enlists his help in finding her mother.
The problem is that the actual murder occurred ten years prior to his seeing it, and the killings are still happening in his home town.
Although this film is considered to be a horror story, it is actually about relationships and family.