pure (2002). gillies mackinnon.

this is just another drug film. i wouldnt say it's far more than just that. but it's still aninteresting film worth watching. the whole film is wisely built around a young boy, played by fascinating Harry Eden, one of the best child actors i've seen. his mum, like everybody he knows in his east london neighbourhood, is a junkie. his mum is a quite weak n pathetic person craving only for her "medicine" n not caring much about anything else is contrasted to her mature and grown up kid that can almost live on his own, take care of himself and his mother. his only moments of actual happy fun childhood are short lived and shared with a young addict portrayed beautifully by Keira Knightley in one of her best performances and films actually. even if it's not something u havent seen before, it's still a good film because of the romantic realism, the firm leading hand of mackinnon, the excellent performances by the whole cast, the truth of the whole situation n the parents-children-social services-dealers and so on, but also the different and at times hopeful perspective.

texas chainsaw massacre (1974). tobe hooper.

what is texas chainsaw massacre?
it is a film everyone has watched or knows about. but it's not simple gore to the core. i don’t know if there is a point in describing the plot. it’s hard to imagine anybody out there doesn’t know, since it is basically everybody’s primitive nightmare. a group of young friends go out to visit a a grandpa's grave n then an old family home but they end up being hunted down by a family of completely demented cannibals who enjoy brutally murdering, introducing the archfiend, Leatherface (a man without a face with obvious connotations) n there is no escape.
the fascinating thing about it is how this film has managed to inspire hundreds and hundreds of films, bands, art, and to create extreme haters who fail to see the obvious n a cult following of obsessed lovers, which i happen to be part of.
first of all, despite the chainsaw n the hook scene this film is absolutely mild compared to today's standards of blood and guts. yet it seems like this film was born of a multitude of cosmic coincidences and a great deal of capability and understanding of the human psyche by tobe hooper and everybody involved.
one of the best parts of this film, is the natural documenting sensation of it. the horror and wild fear is actually feeling real to the spectator because of the lack of extreme special effects and the real accidental cadavers by the side of the road, the actual rotting, the semi-professional local cast, the tormenting insane texas  summer sun and heat. and luckily the lack of modern hollywood which would never allow a director to go about wildly, unihibited, uncensored, creating a chaos and decay that still remains unmatched.
then the fear of the unknown and the fear of madness, the most basic fears of man are both beautifully exploited to the fullest, the innocent kids that just pick up an unknown hitch hiker who turns out to be a real evil psycho bitch of a guy, the mute beast man behind the mask who represents the terror we civilized men feel when faced with the darker aspects of nature, since Leatherface is an animal more than an evil mastermind and hence harder to comprehend and much scarier to face. same goes for the madness of the rest of this family and the insane finale of this haunting family dinner sally is being treated to.
in the end texas chainsaw massacre remains one of the scariest films ever made simply because it depicts the scariest of all battles we have to face. it is modern man versus primitive, raw man. n the outcome of this in the film is exactly what we dread most to think about.

ah yes, another very notable fact is that this film contains my first recollection of a polaroid landcamera.

the stone tape (1972). peter sasdy.

this wasnt like the best film ever but it was neither the worst film ever.
it is about a group of computer scientists experimenting in an old big mansion. that is ofc haunted. when they find out they try to investigate the rumours about the ghost of a maid and to record the ghost. n they do manage to do so with all this new equipment. however, they find out that proving the facts isnt doing them any good and cant save them really.
all in all it s an interesting british film with a fairly good weird plot by Nigel Kneale and overall good acting. one more achievement is that despite the partly sci-fi theme regarding the analog to digital trinketry, it still manages to maintain all the characteristics of the classic haunting gothic tale and to be a bit chilling at times, not letting the computers get in the way of creating the needed atmosphere.
but ofc there were a few things that baffled and displeased me, such as the kinda slow beginning and the low standard of the special effects, but foremost: the screaming! it was excessive, nerve wracking. i do not know why, but jane asher was the only person speaking normally, while the rest of the cast seemed to be screaming their lungs out like madmen throughtout the entire film causing poor pretty jane an incredible headache, truly. it was plain to see.