The Monk: (2011. dir Dominik Moll) Only Vincent Cassel could play this role. It's why they waited these two centuries to make the film(*). Only he has the intensity which can slide credibly from inspired holiness into depravity with the twitch of a few muscles.
This is a slow and lyrical translation of one of the original Gothic novels. It was the author's visit to Geneva and his reading from the book which inspired both Mary Shelley to write Frankenstein and her husband's circle of friends in their dark musings during what has come down to us as The Haunted Summer of 1816.
* Addendum: It turns out that Franco Nero played the role in 1972 in Greece and Paul McGann in England in 1990. Until this moment I never heard of either one, so I'll get back to you when I find them.
Kiss of the Damned: (2013. dir: Xan Cassavetes) Cassavetes is a director to watch. This one is so gorgeous, so stylish and smooth, so flawless both visually and aurally, that you almost forget it's wrapped around one of the most pedestrian scripts ever written about vampires, a genre not renowned for its erudition.
It owes a great deal to Daughters of Darkness, possibly a nod to Argento as well.
Sex, Lies and Death (Sexo, Mentiras y Muertos)(2011. dir: Ramiro Meneses) Strangers on a Train transported into some bizarro Latin soap opera world where all women are lesbians, and all lesbians are smokin' hot and dress like street hookers. A truly strange endeavour, but not particularly interesting beyond any titillation it might afford.
Avalanche Express: (1979. dir: Mark Robson) This was Robert Shaw's last movie, and what a stinker. It's badly shot, badly edited, and it uses ugly colors. The dubbing is horrible: this is Robert Shaw without Robert Shaw's voice, and it's mortifying. Partway in, I thought they were going to pull a Seagal/Russell Executive Decision on us, getting rid of the ostensible hero prematurely, but it was a fake-out. The movie would have been far more interesting had they done it.
In fact, the most interesting thing about it may be Joe Namath in a secondary role. Wrap your mind around that.
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