Category Archives: Horror

Cat Person

Cat Person          3 stars

The movie Cat Person begins with a quote by Margaret Atwood: “Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.” In one scene early in the movie 20-year-old college student, Margot (Emilia Jones of CODA and Fairyland) has a vision of a dog standing over the decapitated body of a fellow dormitory resident. These are early signs that things will not work out well for the movie’s characters. The movie is notable for being based on a New Yorker short story that created a sensation and for one of the most cringeworthy sex scenes ever to appear in cinema. Not having read the short story I can’t comment on it, and I won’t go into the history of the making of Cat Person. (But it did show at Sundance this year.) I can say the movie adaptation is a commentary on the perils of misinterpreted signals between men and women as well the dangers of basing a new relationship primarily on text messaging. The aforementioned sex scene takes place midway through the movie where it is clear that Margot is not into the first date awkward sex with Robert (Nicholas Braun of Succession), the 33-year-old man she met on her job at the local movie theater concession stand that shows revival films and monster movies. The scene is painful to watch as Margot has a conversation with her out of body self in a debate about whether to put a stop to it or just see it through out of pity to the insecure Robert. Prior to the scene we see how conflicted Margot is toward Robert as she alternately pictures Robert at a job, or in therapy sessions with a psychiatrist, but also as a serial killer who might try to murder her! We also see examples of women’s needs to please men such as a musical scene where Margot and her mom (Hope Davis) perform a dance routine to “My Heart Belongs to Daddy” for her stepdad. Fortunately for Margot she has a college roommate in Taylor (Geraldine Viswanathan) who provides the voice of reason telling her how she should handle her situation. Unfortunately I thought, is how the film eventually wanders into all out stalker movie mode in the stunning conclusion. I would have preferred that it stuck with the theme of differing expectations of men vs. women in a new relationship and stayed away from the more horror aspects. On the positive side, as we saw in the movie CODA (for which she received numerous awards), Emilia Jones looks like a major acting talent with a long future. Doctor Who fans can find her in a role on the show in Season seven. The film’s director, Susanna Fogel is also noted as having directed the 2019 hilarious female comedy, Booksmart. See Cat Person if you can tolerate the uncomfortable sex scene and some hateful text messaging.

Ginger Snaps

Ginger Snaps      3 ½ stars

It was Halloween night, October 31 so what better way to celebrate than to see an old-fashioned creature feature at a local theater nearly full of horror movie fans? I took in a viewing of director, John Fawcett’s Ginger Snaps, a horror movie set in a suburb in October, leading up to Halloween night. It is a revival of the feminist menstrual horror genre that got its start with Carrie back in 1976. Teenage sisters Brigette (Emily Perkins) and Ginger (Katherine Isabelle) are outcasts in their high school, but are close to each other and like to spend their time staging photos of teenage death scenes, a hobby that is useful when you want to cover up a murder. As the film opens, we learn that there is a vicious creature lurking outside that has been attacking and disemboweling the neighborhood dogs. Coincidently, 16-year-old Ginger is experiencing her first period, thus drawing the attention of the creature which claws her badly and bites her. Luckily, the creature, that seems to resemble a large dog is struck and killed by a van driven by Sam, a young greenhouse owner and local pothead. We then see how Ginger is slowly transformed into something foreign, as she starts to sprout hair, and grow claws and a short tail. Younger sister Brigitte is always there to keep Ginger’s secret from Mom and Dad and try to find a solution to the mess, even getting Sam’s help to formulate a cure using his knowledge of lycanthropic folklore and herbal cures. Unfortunately, things get out of control as Ginger must satisfy her appetite for human flesh at the expense of fellow classmates and unlucky school staff members! The film is quite bloody and violent as expected and a little weak on special effects as it was made back in 2000, making a measly $27,000 at the box office. But the writing is good enough to keep viewers in suspense as events spiral out of control but reminding us of the powerful connection between the two siblings. Ginger Snaps is a must for werewolf movie lovers everywhere and is best seen in the company of friends. If that isn’t enough for you, there was also Ginger Snaps II: Unleashed and Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning.