George Romero's first film after the cult success of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is a big disappointment for his fans, and proves that Romero should stick to what he does best, i.e. make zombie films for the masses. It starts off so well, too, with a hallucinogenic trip through a woods complete with time-loops, crawling babies, and all manner of oddities. Sadly, from here it quickly goes downhill and descends into some kind of human drama which lacks both the spark of interest and any kind of incident whatsoever.
Now I'm not condemning all slow-moving films - last night I watched UNBREAKABLE, and loved it - but the pacing here is almost non-existent, which I find criminal. After the initial introduction to our characters, basically nothing happens until the end. Sure, there are a couple of arguments and some sex and drugs, but what I'm talking about is horror content. The only horror comes from the weird dreams that the housewife has, which are commendably surreal but are also quite pointless. The avenue of witchcraft isn't even fully explored, instead the effects it has on a person as a release rather than the supernatural horror that is associated with it.
The lack of gore and violence - there's a single scene of it, at the end - is another factor that will dwell unfavourably on fans of the Dead trilogy, complete with its stark cannibalism. While Romero's use of sound is admittedly atmospheric, it can't compensate for the silly dialogue, obnoxious characters, and lack of suspense and thrills. This feels more like a family drama, with characters having affairs and the like.
The acting looks and feels amateurish in nature; Jan White is okay as the lead I suppose, but her character is irritating in the extreme. In fact all of the characters in this film are either selfish or unlikeable, making it very difficult to sit through indeed. Fans of human drama might like this one, but I can't find it in myself to recommend it to anybody except the most die-hard of completists.
Now I'm not condemning all slow-moving films - last night I watched UNBREAKABLE, and loved it - but the pacing here is almost non-existent, which I find criminal. After the initial introduction to our characters, basically nothing happens until the end. Sure, there are a couple of arguments and some sex and drugs, but what I'm talking about is horror content. The only horror comes from the weird dreams that the housewife has, which are commendably surreal but are also quite pointless. The avenue of witchcraft isn't even fully explored, instead the effects it has on a person as a release rather than the supernatural horror that is associated with it.
The lack of gore and violence - there's a single scene of it, at the end - is another factor that will dwell unfavourably on fans of the Dead trilogy, complete with its stark cannibalism. While Romero's use of sound is admittedly atmospheric, it can't compensate for the silly dialogue, obnoxious characters, and lack of suspense and thrills. This feels more like a family drama, with characters having affairs and the like.
The acting looks and feels amateurish in nature; Jan White is okay as the lead I suppose, but her character is irritating in the extreme. In fact all of the characters in this film are either selfish or unlikeable, making it very difficult to sit through indeed. Fans of human drama might like this one, but I can't find it in myself to recommend it to anybody except the most die-hard of completists.