Special Effects

Everything Delivered As Promised

Interviewer: "Who is your favorite filmmaker?"Neville: "Abraham Zapruder."Great off-beat thriller/satire by the great Larry Cohen.If you grew up in the 80s watching independent genre films on VHS, then you’re likely already familiar with filmmaker Larry Cohen. He has had his name on numerous titles over the years, directing Black Caesar (1973), It’s Alive (1974), God Told Me To (1976), Q (1982), The Stuff (1985) and writing credits on the likes of Best Seller (1987), Maniac Cop (1988), Abel Ferrara's Body Snatchers (1993) and Phone Booth (2002). His IMDb lists HUNDREDS of credits. He’s had a long and storied career, and now one of his personal favorites has been released on a superior (Olive is a generally lackluster outfit - usually bare bones) Olive bluray: subtitles, audio commentary, good specs.Larry Cohen's storied life is chronicled in the amazing documentary, King Cohen. Anyone on this page needs to see it. Cohen will be missed.Special Effects is an unusual thriller about egotistical film director Christopher Neville (Eric Bogosian, Talk Radio), whose career is in decline after making a big budget flop. When desperate actor Andrea (Zoe Lund/Tamerlis, who starred in Ms .45 and wrote Bad Lieutenant) finds and introduces herself to Neville, she thinks she’s making an important connection. But events take a shocking turn when the filmmaker murders her at his home and films it for use in his next project. Her hot-tempered boyfriend Keefe (Brad Rijn) arrives and instead becomes the prime suspect. The devious director decides to make a movie about the crime and hires Keefe and an Andrea look-alike (also played by Lund/Tamerlis) as cast members, with the intention of incorporating the actual murder footage into the feature.This was a very small movie and it shows to some degree. Honestly, it kind of plays like a low-budget knock-off of a Brian De Palma thriller. It’s surprisingly well shot but by comparison, this is simpler in its set ups and doesn’t possess as much visual oomph. Of course, that’s to be expected given the limited resources. The synthesizer-heavy score also comes on a bit strong. It’s occasionally distracting and dates the movie even more than the fashions do. Then again, maybe the clothing and décor was a comment on 80s aesthetics - not unlike De Palma's Body Double, another dark showbiz satire.Lund’s performance in two different roles is uneven, although the second character she plays comes off as more effective than Andrea does. Truthfully, it seems as if her voice track was rerecorded with an accent for the first twenty minutes. At least it all gets sorted out relatively quickly when the doppelganger character is introduced. While a lot of the performances are uneven, Bogosian is excellent as the megalomaniacal Neville. Despite it being his first lead role, he’s compelling and fun to watch from beginning to end, relishing his villainous turn. His performance is along the lines of Richard Dreyfus' role in the underrated Inserts (1975) - a reclusive/megalomanical H'wood director who makes X "loops" for the quick cash - but more importantly, because he can. Using hapless and delusional wannabes as playthings satisfies his sociopathic tendencies. Yup, triple bill: Special Effects, Inserts and Body Double.Sorry 'bout the digression...And the movie does have several fascinating elements. The concept of a killer using a real life murder and hiding it within a fictional narrative is interesting, as are the reactions of the characters. Despite the tragedy, the ex-boyfriend, look-alike and even police are only too happy to participate in the production. They quickly get caught up in the business and promise of being celebrities. Watching the characters struggle with these elements is the film’s strongest asset. Even if it isn’t perfectly executed, these aspects add a great deal of depth and interest to the story.I’m not sure where the transfer originated, but this is a great looking disc with a consistently sharp image. One almost wonders if the film elements didn’t come from the director himself (after all, he does contribute to the bonus feature). However they got a hold of these elements, there’s a lot of bright colors, red in particular, that pop off of the screen. The movie looks as striking and impressive as it is ever likely to. As noted: Olive Films typically do not rise above (often no subtitles, extras, poor specs, etc.) an average DVD - this bluray release is a welcome exception.And the commentary track with director Cohen is insightful, giving plenty of details about his working methods and the production itself. He explains that the film was made on a very low budget, that he and his location scouts found many real environments on the cheap, and that the movie was filmed quickly to maximize all of these visually interesting places. The locales clearly add an incredible amount of production value to a very modesty budgeted flick. Overall, Cohen an interesting (putting it mildly) guy and the informational audio track is a great bonus. An ace raconteur, Larry.Warts and all, one can see why Special Effects speaks to some pockets of genre film fans today. While some facets are seemingly passé, the themes were ahead of its time and are still applicable today. For those who enjoy Larry Cohen’s work, the incredibly crisp picture and audio commentary add another level of enjoyment, and make this disc well worth picking up.

The quality of the production shows this is clearly not a mainstream studio film. However the plot is engaging and the actors are trying hard. It's a watchable film, and I will watch it again.

FIrst I really loved Zoe Tamarlis...she is such a unique beauty and rail thin...she may not be the best actress but she truly was an artist..the movie is cheesy but Zoe maked up for that...

I am a fan of Law and Order Criminal Intent and therefore a big fan of the late great NYPD Major Case Captain Danny Ross played by Eric Bogosian. Eric is known for his off-the-wall comedy and thought provoking one man plays and his movies ( Talk Radio ) a movie I saw once years ago and never forgot. In fact I would think of him from time to time and wonder why he didn't show up more in movies I felt like his potential was wasted over time. I was thrilled when he made his first appearance in LOCI and found it to be the most reliable and mainstream thing he ever did. Just knowing that raving talent was under those stodgy police business suits was somehow comforting. Anyway back to this piece of crap. The main female character reminded me of a young Loni Anderson mixed with a blow-up doll. Only I think the blow-up doll would've had a better feel for dialogue. Eric delivers some of his mania that only he can do without it becoming just self-parody. He is young and tentative and shiny faced. His curls are alluring his eyes unique and his body perfect. But other than how cute he is wearing his clothes and all his ranting mood swings and phsychotic ramblings where he camps it up, even he cannot save this monstrosity. Just my opinion but even at the bargin price I see listed today, that movie is vastly over priced.

If you’ve ever wanted to see Larry Cohen’s take on Brian De Palma’s take on Alfred Hitchcock, Special Effects is the film that delivers on just that concept. The end result is by no means a classic thriller, but I think it is a fun watch and Cohen doesn’t hold back on the grit and nastiness. The narrative is serious in tone, but feels like a satire at times, as it is so convoluted and filled with cliche after cliche that the genre is known for. I’m sure some dislike the muddled plot, but I think it adds to the film’s ridiculous atmosphere. If you’re going to make a thriller with an overly complicated narrative, might as well as go for it, right? I also like flawed, dysfunctional style characters, so the movie had my attention throughout, as these are indeed characters with a lot of issues. And when you throw these characters into the overcooked plot of Special Effects, this takes the convolution to the next level, especially when some of the performances are dialed up like this. So if you want a serious, sincere thriller, Special Effects isn’t likely to satisfy that urge, but if you like a more ludicrous, almost satire of the genre, give it a spin. Visit my site for a full review!

Un filme de Larry Cohen siempre vale la pena, un director que se trabajó siempre desde la independencia que otorga el bajo presupuesto y el cultivo del cine de género sin coartadas ni pretensiones. En este caso su fuente principal de inspiración en Alfred Hitchcock, pero un poco a la par que otro fan del inglés, Brian de Palma, lo hace desde un punto gamberro, provocador. Quizá el apartado actoral no brille a la altura necesaria, pero se trata de una película a todas luces curiosa, por momentos original, donde el estilo inconfundible de su director luce orgullosamente.