It's Thursday, time to hug your brother or your sister. Well, it's always time for that. It's also time for another edition of Thursday Movie Picks hosted by Wanderer at Wandering Through the Shelves. In case you're not familiar, that's a weekly meme in which our host selects a theme. A bunch of us bloggers then suggest movies that fit with the theme. We can either suggest three we think are the best, the worst, or hidden gems. I typically go for hidden gems. This week's theme is Sibling Relationships. The catch, though not much of one, is that the siblings in question must be biologically related. Since there are three types of sibling relationships, brother/brother, sister/sister, brother/sister, I've picked one movie for each. And I think I've dug pretty deep. Here are my picks, chronologically, as always:
Cat People
The Siblings: Irene and Paul Gallier
(1982)
The two siblings in this movie haven't seen each other since Irene was four years old. She's now an adult and moves to New Orleans to live with her brother. What she doesn't know, but soon finds out is that she suffers from the same family curse as he does. Whenever they become sexually aroused they transform into black leopards who kill his/her unlucky partner. Literally. As you can imagine, this makes a love life problematic. Paul has gotten used to it and basically has become a serial killer. Irene doesn't know that last part, but she avoids her brother anyway, because he's been trying to get a little too close to her. Why? Because the only way to actually have sex without turning into a man-eating feline is by getting your groove on with a sibling. Ummm...eww. Cat People falls squarely in the 'so bad it's awesome' category. See it for the completely bonkers performance turned in by Malcolm McDowell, if nothing else. (my full review)
Sugar Hill
The Siblings: Romello and Raynathan Skuggs
(1994)
After having spent their entire childhood being educated in the school of hard knocks, Romello and Raynathan have emerged as big time drug dealers. Romello realizes he's wasted his potential to do greater things in life and has become disenchanted with the drug game. He's ready to get out and begins making moves to do just that. The problem is that Raynathan only wants them to be the biggest, baddest drug dealers possible. He's resigned himself to the idea that he will either rule the streets or be destroyed by them and he wouldn't have it any other way. It's written by Barry Michael Cooper who also helped with the screenplays for 'hood classics New Jack City and Above the Rim. This doesn't have the flash of either of those, preferring a much more understated approach. In keeping with that, we get a deep, contemplative performance from Wesley Snipes. It's some of his best work and a reminder that before all the action flicks, he did outstanding work as an actor.
American Mary
The Siblings: The Demon Twins from Berlin
(2012)
Our siblings here don't have individual names (that I could remember, or find), and neither is the protagonist or antagonist. They don't even show up until the film's third act. However, they are an integral part of a truly twisted movie. The main character, Mary, has become world renowned on the black market of body modification. If you just want a piercing, she'll laugh you out of her office. If you want your genitals shown shut, nipples removed and all of it smoothed over so that you look just like a Barbie doll, she can work with that. When the twins come-a-callin', played by the Soska sisters who wrote and directed the movie, Mary has to decide whether to take on her greatest challenge, yet. They are so close and love each other so much, they want to make sure that no matter what, a piece of the other one will always be with them. They want to have Mary exchange their left arms for one another. Believe it or not, there is lots more going on in this movie. It also has a good deal of relevant social commentary to share. It just disturbs the hell out of you in the process. (my full review)
Check out other Thursday Movie Picks:
I think I've seen Cat People long, long, long time ago. I already forget my impression on that film. I know Sugar Hill, but I haven't watched it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard American Mary, but it looks extremely interesting and fresh!
Great picks!
Extremely interesting and fresh is an excellent way of describing American Mary. It's horror that has nothing to do with jump scares and boogeymen.
DeleteOK, I haven't seen American Mary but I have seen Sugar Hill and Cat People as I like those 2 films.
ReplyDeleteNot many people have. I recommend it if you'd like to see a twisted piece of cinema.
DeleteThere's a 1942 film also called Cat People that is considered to be the inventor of the false scare, also know as the Luton Bus named after the name of the director (Val Luton) and the object used to create the scare (a bus).
ReplyDeleteAmerican Mary sounds like my type of film.
The '82 version is a sexed-up remake of the '42 film. I still haven't seen that original, yet. And I had no idea it was considered the inventor of the false scare. Cool info.
DeleteI haven't heard of any of your picks! Sugar Hill seems interesting.
ReplyDeleteCritics slammed it, but I really like it. I hope you give it a go. I'd love to hear what you think.
DeleteCat People! That's a weird film. I remember when it came out and it seemed as if Natassja Kinski was going to be the next big thing, which of course didn't happen. I haven't seen it in years but I still recall the strange vibe it had. I haven't seen the other two, Sugar Hill sounds interesting but American Mary doesn't sound like my kind of thing.
ReplyDeleteUnlike last week where I struggled to come up with three I have a preponderance this week and could have kept going. As is I stopped at the required three and two extras.
A River Runs Through It (1992)-Set in a wide open Montana near the turn of the last century two brothers, Brad Pitt and Craig Sheffer, bond with each other and their minister father while fly-fishing. The film follows the brothers separate paths and is full of visual splendor. This pushed Brad Pitt over the top into full-fledged stardom.
An Unremarkable Life (1989)-Two elderly sisters, Frances (Patricia Neal) a friendly and sweet self-described maiden lady school teacher and Evelyn (Shelley Winters) a bitter, prejudiced widow have shared a home for 20 years. Having settled into a rhythm of memories and companionship with Evelyn the dominant, or more accurately domineering, decision maker their life is in a steady pattern until Frances meets kindly Asian mechanic, Max (Mako). They slowly fall in love which sends Evelyn, already resentful of Max’s ethnicity, into a combative tailspin and she sets out to end the relationship regardless of her sister’s happiness. Finally a confrontation between the sisters reveals long suppressed resentments and a degree of understanding.
This Is My Love (1954)-Linda Darnell's ironically named Vida Dove (peaceful life) is living anything but. Lonely and full of bitterness at having to live with her sister, Faith Domergue and brother-in-law the cruel, wheelchair bound Dan Duryea, Linda's former flame. Shackled to them and tortured by him she is desperate for any way out. Enter handsome Rick Jason and a possible escape until he gets a look at Faith, also seeking an escape from the viperish Dan, pitting sister against sister and setting the stage for unimaginable tragedy. Obscure, well made, tightly paced noir painted in the blackest shades but filmed in lurid Technicolor with a couple of great performances by Linda Darnell and Dan Duryea. Very hard to find but worth the effort.
Honorable Mentions:
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)-Blanche Hudson, once a great film star until she was crippled in a car accident, lives in her decaying Hollywood mansion with her slatternly alcoholic sister, former child star “Baby Jane” Hudson who is now her caregiver. Theirs has always been a tenuous relationship which ruptures when Blanche decides to sell the house and have Jane institutionalized, something that should have happened years prior. Jane finds out her plans and starts a campaign of fear and punishment that escalates to extreme proportions. A huge hit in its day which reinvigorated Bette Davis and Joan Crawford’s careers. A study of siblings broken by ambition and resentment. Both actresses are very good but Davis is quite brilliant.
In This Our Life (1942)-Bette Davis stars as Stanley Timberlake a selfish impulsive schemer who dumps her fiancée and runs off with her sister Roy’s (Olivia de Havilland) doctor husband. After marrying she emasculates him, eventually driving him to suicide. Returning home she finds her fiancée has now fallen in love with Roy and they plan to wed. Jealous and spiteful Stanley tries to steal him back, in the process becoming involved in a hit and run accident which she attempts to let a protégée of the family take the rap for. As Stanley Bette is at her hellcat best tossing off lines like “What I want I go after-and get!” Olivia as Roy Timberlake is more docile but does proclaim “I’m going to be hard-just as hard as she is!” Good soapy fun.
I've not seen any of your picks. Wow. Two of them, I have been meaning to watch for quite some time, though: A River Runs Through It and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Gotta get on the ball with those. As far as Cat People, yup, it's a weird one. And my own personal feeling is that Kinski didn't become the next big thing because she was terrible. At least, she was here.
DeleteBeside the excellent acting River Runs Through is so beautiful to look at and Redford's narration adds a really nice touch. As most prototypes Baby Jane is the best of its genre, the follow-up Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte isn't bad though. Bette Davis foregoes ANY movie star vanity to create the living gargoyle that she plays and manages to show the deeply damaged woman beneath. Her Oscar nomination was well deserved.
DeleteNatassja Kinski is very variable and like many performers better in films in her native tongue, though I've never seen any performance by her that has blown me away. Yes she is terrible in Cat People especially up against Malcolm McDowell's work.
I don't think I've seen any of Kinski's movies in her native tongue. It does stand to reason that she's better there, but I've no clue. Here, she was great to "look at," terrible to "watch."
DeleteI haven't seen any of your picks this week and the only one I've actually heard of is Sugar Hill. American Mary sounds morbidly fascinating. I'll have to check these out!
ReplyDeleteAmerican Mary is morbidly fascinating, indeed!
DeleteLike Britt, the only one I've even heard of is Sugar Hill, which I actually think I saw once upon a time. Don't remember much. Cat People seems interesting.
ReplyDeleteInteresting in a so bad it's awesome way, of course.
DeleteCAT PEOPLE. Love the 1940s Val Lewton version, and I've been dying to see this one. Haven't seen the other two, but American Mary sounds.... twisted and fascinating.
ReplyDeleteI'm just the opposite. I've been dying to see the original just to compare. American Mary, yeah, twisted.
DeleteBAH! Cat People. LOL, both versions suck, but love that you included it here. I haven't heard of the other two, but I love that you included them because they look kind of tacky awesome.
ReplyDeleteThe '82 version is flat-out bonkers, though. Had to include it.
DeleteYou always have such interesting pics Dell, I haven't even heard of any of these.
ReplyDeleteThanks!!!
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