TENEMENT
PLOT-A series of stories that take place over the span of two decades, centering around a tenement building with a history of murderous mayhem.
VIOLENCE-Numerous bloody deaths by stabbing, beating, strangulation, dismemberment, and acts of cannibalism. You'll see guts, severed limbs, spurting neck wounds, you name it.
SEX/NUDITY-Some brief toplessness from a virgin sacrifice, and a strip club scene featuring enormous bouncy boobs.
WHY I WATCHED IT-I'd read about this one in a past issue of FANGORIA magazine, and noticed a photo of actress Suzi Leigh tied to a big wooden cross. I recognized her as "Kelli Summers" from a couple of my favorite Seduction Cinema films, SATAN'S SCHOOL FOR LUST and LORD OF THE G-STRINGS. At the very least, I knew it would be a very different role for her, and an interesting flick (based on the article I'd read).
THE DOPE-The problem with a lot of serious-minded independent horror films I've seen lately is that they seem to try and pad out the running time with needless, boring details that make the movie crawl at a snail's pace, making me reach for the fast-forward button till I see something happening. Anything. Sure, most of them have a solid story, but only about 45 minutes of movie at best, and the other 30 could go out the window.
Light And Dark's latest production TENEMENT has the right idea. Like any collection of great short stories, the horror is divided up into sections. It never gets dull, something's always happening, the blood and scares come frequently, and the desired effect is always achieved. Not a moment is wasted, thankfully, and this construction makes for a solid movie-watching experience.
The film begins with a creepy old man asking the question, "Do you believe a building can be inherently EVIL?", then the camera pans up to the title subject, the "tenement". Just as we start to wonder what the hell he's talking about, we're assaulted with a quick barrage of violent, brutal, graphically gory snippets of the atrocities that have occurred in said building over the years. And with that, the ride begins.
Watching TENEMENT is like taking a trip through the cursed building itself. You get a peek at all its dark corners, stroll down its creepy hallways, and every door will open...revealing things more twisted than the ones before as you head deeper inside. The longer I watched the movie, the more I enjoyed it. It has a streak of black humor that never gets corny and eases the tension at just the right moments.
I recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a good twisted horror yarn, and who doesn't like their intelligence insulted or their time wasted. Thankfully, the filmmakers understand what it takes to really make a fright flick work. I was impressed.
MEMORABLE SCENES-Michael Gingold's performance as the asshole B-movie producer brought a smile to my face, and Suzi Leigh looked like she was in absolute true agony in the first segment! Great work indeed.
NOTES-Look for a DVD release of this film in April 2004 from the fine folks at BRAIN DAMAGE. Go to LightAndDark.net for more information.
(February 2004)
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