The Call of Cthulhu
The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society recently released on DVD a 47 minute silent treatment of Lovecraft's 1926 tale. Very much a labour of love, which shows just what can be achieved by a small but committed team of individuals, this stylish black-and-white production beautifully re-creates the feel of an original silent movie, with imaginative set design, good use of miniatures, and with stop-motion effects more akin to the original King Kong than to more recent efforts. The acting however, whilst a little larger than life is perhaps more naturalistic than the overblown performances found in the original silents, which is no bad thing, making the film more acceptable to a modern audience. A splendid, light-hearted behind-the scenes documentary details the production and there is also deleted footage to enjoy.
The film features a symphonic score by composers Ben Holbrook, Troy Sterling Nies and Nicholas Pavkovic, which is very effective and of course traditionally wall-to-wall. There is little I can add to Randall D. Larson review in his "The Song of Cthulhu" feature for http://www.cinescape.com, which I strongly suggest you visit. The feature extends into a full-length examination of the music composed for the many Lovecraft film treatments and those inspired by his stories. Whilst there, you should also check out his "Voice of Gojira: Remembering Akira Ifukube" - a splendid tribute to the recently deceased composer.
As for The Call of Cthulhu, I would certainly recommend the DVD to all Lovecraft fans out there and suggest you visit http://www.cthulhulives.org for further information on this and the Society in general.
The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society recently released on DVD a 47 minute silent treatment of Lovecraft's 1926 tale. Very much a labour of love, which shows just what can be achieved by a small but committed team of individuals, this stylish black-and-white production beautifully re-creates the feel of an original silent movie, with imaginative set design, good use of miniatures, and with stop-motion effects more akin to the original King Kong than to more recent efforts. The acting however, whilst a little larger than life is perhaps more naturalistic than the overblown performances found in the original silents, which is no bad thing, making the film more acceptable to a modern audience. A splendid, light-hearted behind-the scenes documentary details the production and there is also deleted footage to enjoy.
The film features a symphonic score by composers Ben Holbrook, Troy Sterling Nies and Nicholas Pavkovic, which is very effective and of course traditionally wall-to-wall. There is little I can add to Randall D. Larson review in his "The Song of Cthulhu" feature for http://www.cinescape.com, which I strongly suggest you visit. The feature extends into a full-length examination of the music composed for the many Lovecraft film treatments and those inspired by his stories. Whilst there, you should also check out his "Voice of Gojira: Remembering Akira Ifukube" - a splendid tribute to the recently deceased composer.
As for The Call of Cthulhu, I would certainly recommend the DVD to all Lovecraft fans out there and suggest you visit http://www.cthulhulives.org for further information on this and the Society in general.
posted by jeffhall | 9:34 PM
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