Weekly Round Up (9/4/11 - 9/10/11)

Nosferatu The Vampyre (Werner Herzog) ***1/2 - Werner Herzog's remake of the 1922 classic German horror film Nosferatu, though heavily references the original film is such a unique and strange (in a way that could only be Herzog's) vampire horror film, it's almost insulting to call it a remake. Though the film calls the vampire "Dracula", the film goes to all sorts of directions, different from both the book and the original film (which will delight some and infuriate others) and it's at times quite surreal, lyrical, even sad and romantic at times. Klaus Kinski (with the help of the makeup which emulates the Max Schreck design) is appropriately creepy as the vampire. The cinematography, sets and soundtrack adds to the spooky atmosphere.

Contagion (Steven Soderbergh) *** - I would say this qualifies as a disaster movie (someone pointed out that the huge big-named ensemble cast is reminiscent of the Irwin Allen disaster movies of the '70s) only instead of an earthquake or a tornado, it's a super-virus. This falls in the good-but-not-great category, considering all the talent involved. Everything in the film is solid: The acting, the directing, etc. But the film doesn't quite manage to go up to the next level when it could have easily did. All in all the film is a somewhat better and more realistic and believable remake of Outbreak.

Fright Night (Craig Gillespie) *** - I have not seen the 1985 original film so I'm rating this purely as a standalone film without any comparisons to the original. As it is, it's a pretty darn good horror-comedy that's highly enjoyable. I have no idea how fans of the original will react but the film made me curious to check out the original so I guess that's good news. The cast is terrific. The film is no masterpiece but there are worse ways to kill your time.