Labyrinth Within (2010) Movie Review

What makes a foreign film not so foreign ? How about when it has no dialogue at all ? That is what we have the the short film Labyrinth Within.

Labyrinth Within (IMDB) (Amazon)

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A short film with no dialogue. Chances are that is enough to know if you would like this film personally or not. I could speak to the extensive dance sequences in a ballet style and the classical music score that is excellent IMO but even without knowing those things the first line told you if you wanted to see this or not. I could add that there are 3 characters and it is about jealousy - because that is what I read.

Now, if you search for this movie there is a good chance you will be directed to the David Bowie song Within You from the movie Labyrinth, so if you want to take some time and click on the link - - I’ll wait for you. Of course the best part of that is his hair with the MS Escher - Relativity inspired room a close second. Did I get off track ? Labyrinth Within is a ballet short. Not for me, but maybe you’ll like it ?

Here is a link to watch the trailer:

Eye in the Labyrinth (1972) Movie Review

It’s time to review another maze/labyrinth movie ! This one is a standard low budget horror film from Italy called L'occhio nel labirinto or Eye in the Labyrinth.

Eye in the Labyrinth (IMDB) (Amazon)

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Nothing like an Italian film dubbed into English where the voice doesn’t match the person speaking ! This isn’t an old Japanese film where things get really wild when a character speaks but the version I watched was dubbed instead of subtitled and this did change the presentation of the film.

The film starts with a man being chased in what appears to be an underground concrete structure. Things do not end well for him. Part of me wanted to say SPOILER before that, but if something happens in the first minutes of a film to set-up the entire premise what are you really spoiling ? OK, on to the main part of the film - A woman ends up trying to find her missing lover, the psychiatrist we saw being chased in the first scene. Because if a person is missing there is one rule movies are famous for and that is DO NOT go to the police. The best thing to do is clearly to start your own investigation, because movies. I can’t tell you how many important investigations my friends and I have started throughout the years. Except we didn’t call them investigations we called them capers. So many stories.

Side note, the opening title card states “A labyrinth is constructed to confuse the human mind. It's architecture rich in symmetry, is subordinated to that result. - José Luís Borges”. And that’s the last of the maze/labyrinth references although there is plenty of confusion in the movie which may remind you of solving a maze.

Back to the movie. It is well directed, has good acting and nice camera work in some very nice settings (across Tuscany, Italy). But this is a mystery thriller that never felt tense. I felt bored watching it and that is a problem for a thriller. Say this is on tv and you are watching it and someone says ‘hey we need to leave’, you would not protest at all, just turn off the tv and go never caring what happened to the characters. I give it a boring, but well made 6/10.

Here is the trailer:

Prime Radicals (2012) Episode 16 Review

I have been reviewing movies about mazes and I found this television show online and thought I would add it to the fun.

Prime Radicals Episode 16 (IMDB) (Amazon)

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I am not someone who watches many kids shows, especially ones targeted to pre-teens but this one was about building a life-sized maze in a workshop so I decided to watch it. The best part of the episode by far is the field trip the characters take to Saunders Farm in Ottawa, ON and learning about the farm was worth every moment of watching this episode. Saunders farm features 10 different mazes on the property, the largest collection in the world ! And they have many different types of mazes also - definitely a place I want to explore someday.

Back to the episode. During the episode they show you how to make a grided make-like game, build a life size maze out of large boxes and use the term a-MAZE-ing at least 20 times. And there is awkward singing. The episode is worth a watch just for the Saunders farm, but then go ahead and turn it off unless you have young kids.

Here is a trailer for Saunders farm from 2008:

Haunted Maze (2017) Movie Review

It’s time to review another Maze movie ! This one is a standard low budget horror film. Let’s get to it !

Haunted Maze (IMDB) (Amazon)

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Clowns are scary. Unless they are in a movie that features bad acting a weak script and a low budget. Then clowns become a different kind of scary.

A group of friends enter a Halloween maze run by traveling carnies somewhere in a small town in the Midwest. I feel like we have seen this before. Seems similar to The Funhouse Massacre that I reviewed previously. And it is, kind of, except without Robert Englund and much much worse acting. The story also takes place with a story structure that involves 2 police detectives interviewing Clancy the Clown who insists on rhyming everything he says. I would rate this a 2/10 with a strong avoid.

Here is the trailer: