"THE CALL OF CTHULHU" - O FILME

 

"THE CALL OF CTHULHU" (2005)

Direção: Andrew Leman / Roteiro: Sean Branney, baseado no conto "O Chamado de Cthulhu" de H. P. Lovecraft / Produção: Sean Branney, Andrew Leman, Chris Lackey / Lurker Films, Inc. / Fotografia e montagem: David Robertson / Música original: Chad Fifer, Bem Holbrook, Troy Sterling Nies, Nicholas Pavkovic / Elenco: Chad Fifer, John Klemantaski, Ramón Allen Jr., Leslie Baldwin, Daniel Kirsner.

Product Description:
Written in 1926, just before the advent of "talking" pictures, The Call of Cthulhu is one of the most famous and influential tales of H.P. Lovecraft, the father of gothic horror. Now the story is brought richly to life in the style of a classic 1920s silent movie, with a haunting original symphonic score. Using the "Mythoscope" process _ a mix of modern and vintage techniques, the HPLHS has worked to create the most authentic and faithful screen adaptation of a Lovecraft story yet attempted. From the cultists of the Louisana bayous to the man-eating non-euclidean geometry of R'lyeh, the HPLHS brings Cthulhu to the screen as it was meant to be seen. Eighteen months of production and a cast of more than 50 actors went into making this film a period spectacle that must seen to be believed. The DVD includes The Call of Cthulhu (47 minutes, black and white), the high-fidelity and "Mythophonic" soundtracks, a 25 minute "making-of" documentary featurette, two slide shows, deleted footage, a prop PDF of the Sydney Bulletin and more. To appeal to Lovecraft fans throughout across the globe, this DVD provides intertitles in 24 languages including: Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Euskera, Finnish, French, Galician, German, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Lithuanian, Luxembourgish, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Welsh. These aren't just subtitles either: they are the real title cards rendered tastefully in each language. If you thought the story was scary before, wait until you see it in Welsh!

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THIS IS WHY INDIE HORROR FILMS ARE BETTER THAN STUDIO ONES

By Cubist (from USA)

In the past, adaptations of horror writer H.P. Lovecraft's short stories have been downright awful (The Dunwich Horror) or faithful in spirit only (Dagon). Some of the best efforts (In the Mouth of Madness) have been more homages to his fiction than actual adaptations. The clever folks at the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society have filmed their own adaptation of one of Lovecraft's most famous stories, "The Call of Cthulhu" and done it as a silent movie that looks and feels like it was made in the 1920s - the time period in which Lovecraft lived and set most of his stories in.

The Call of Cthulhu faithfully recreates the look of 1920s silent films complete with a slightly scratchy, artifact-laden print. The rich, black and white cinematography (filmed in Mythoscope no less) of David Robertson is fantastic. It has a texture to it that looks just as good as Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow's retro-sepia tone look but for a fraction of the budget and with no CGI anywhere to be found. The cinematography also gives the movie the atmosphere and mood of a classic horror film and creates believable and very authentic feelings of dread.

The special visual effects by Dan Novy - especially the dream sequences - are well done and totally believable within the context of the movie. A trip to a foreboding, unearthly land is something right out of Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari with a dash of Ray Harryhausen for good measure. There are a few moments where the effects take on a slightly fake quality but it only adds to the charm of the movie. In this day and age it is so refreshing to see a film that does not rely on CGI but opts for real, tangible effects that are still as effective as ever.

The film's trailer, presented in "Mythoscope" sound, effectively conveys the look of the movie without giving away too much.

"Hearing `The Call'" is a 28-minute making of featurette. One gets the impression that this was a labour of love done by a group of friends who got together and made this wonderful film. The cast and crew talk about their experiences with good humour for this highly enjoyable extra.

"Photographs From the Set" is a three minute montage of behind the scenes pictures.

There are "Production Stills" from the final film.

Finally, there are eight minutes of deleted footage, including several takes of the stop motion Cthulhu doing its thing and some amusing improvisations by the actors because they didn't have to memorize dialogue.

 

HEAR THE GENUINE CALL OF CTHULHU - IN A BRILLIANT SILENT FILM!

By Michael R. Gates (from USA)

The works of venerable horror writer H.P. Lovecraft have, in some ways, become the backbone of the genre, especially cinematic horror. An astonishing number of relatively contemporary horror flicks and genre TV shows--everything from 1965's DIE, MONSTER, DIE through Rod Serling's series THE NIGHT GALLERY (1970s) to Sam Raimi's THE EVIL DEAD (1981) and beyond--have either borrowed elements from Lovecraft's literary mythos or attempted to adapt one of his stories.

In spite of Lovecraft's unquestionable influence on the genre, few filmmakers have been able to accurately or faithfully translate the writer's works to either the small or large screen. At best, most attempts to adapt Lovecraft either vaguely evoke the nihilistic subtext of the author's work (e.g., Stuart Gordon's 1985 classic RE-ANIMATOR) or pay simple homage by making a reference or two (as Raimi does by building his EVIL DEAD stories around Lovecraft's ubiquitous fictional book of the occult, the Necronomicon). Until now, that is. Under the guidance of director Andrew Leman and screenwriter Sean Branney, the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society has filmed and released a little film entitled THE CALL OF CTHULHU (2005), based on the author's story of the same name. And it is being praised by critics and fans alike as being one of the most faithful Lovecraft cinematic adaptations ever.

The film follows the three-part narrative construction of Lovecraft's original story, using flashbacks and similar devices to shift back and forth to various time frames. The story centers on a young man who has inherited his late great-uncle's research documents pertaining to the Cthulhu Cult. Intrigued by his uncle's obsession with the cult, the nephew studies the documents closely and pieces together the dread implications of the research, and soon after he himself resumes his uncle's investigation of the Cthulhu Cult. When he finally understands the dreadful and disturbing reality of what his uncle has uncovered, his own sanity begins to crumble. Unable to cope and ultimately institutionalized, he passes the information on to his psychiatrist, who in turn hears Cthulhu's call....

In a daring but clever and creative move, filmmakers Leman and Branney decided to cinematically adapt Lovecraft's influential 1925 horror story THE CALL OF CTHULHU in the form of a faux early silent film, complete with black-and-white photography, title cards for dialogue, and a classical music score. There are even artificial scratches and wear marks, making it appear as if the film were indeed made in mid-1920s--the period in which Lovecraft wrote many of his famous works--and only recently pulled from the studio vaults and dusted off for posterity. By making the film look like a product of 1925 instead of one from 2005, the filmmakers have been able to utilize old-school FX like stop-motion animation, in-the-camera trick-photography, and miniatures, avoiding the temptation to heavily rely on CGI and other high-tech contrivances that could bog the film down and cause distraction or deviation from the actual story. The result is a "vintage" film that draws the audience into another place AND another time as it faithfully unfurls Lovecraft's tale of ancient mystery and hair-raising horror.

The cast does an excellent job in realizing director Leman's Lovecraftian vision and writer Branney's script. Acting in a silent film requires skills foreign to most contemporary actors, and it is consequently a dying art. Yet the performances in THE CALL OF CTHULHU are very effective. Especially good are Matt Foyer, who portrays the nephew, and Noah Wagner, who plays the captain of an ill-fated island expedition. It is obvious that, before stepping before the camera, both actors carefully studied classic silent cinema to learn the pantomime and exaggerated facial expressions required to relay emotion without the benefit of sound. Not only do they and their fellow actors do an on-target job of recreating the "feel" of a genuine film from the Silver Screen's silent era, they also do a great job of acting and thereby create a credible populace for the world of Lovecraft's mythos.

In addition, the special FX by Dan Novy and crew are very well executed and totally believable within the context of the film. Dream sequences are reminiscent of the German Expressionist silent classic THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920), and the stop-motion sequences are a clear nod to the master of the form, Ray Harryhausen. True, some of the sets and FX are obviously of the low-budget ilk, but this really only adds to the overall old-school charm of the flick.

The DVD edition of THE CALL OF CTHULHU from Lurker Films is well worth the price of admission. Not only does it offer a pristine digital transfer of the faux silent-era flick, it also offers a very interesting making-of documentary (with sound) that features some behind-the-scene footage and interviews with cast and crew. Even the menu screens on this disc are cool, evoking the style of the art-deco movie houses of the 1920s and 1930s. This DVD is a must-have for fans of Lovecraft, and it will make a fine addition to the film collection of any true fan of horror cinema.

 

THE BEST ADAPTATION OF LOVECRAFT YET

By John T. O’Connor (from USA)

It's black and white, and silent. Not a combination that would excite a modern movie fan. But this is the very best movie of a Lovecraft story yet made. One other reviewer said that the stop action Cthulhu was cheesy. Well, yeah, but cheesy in a wonderful way. If you are a Lovecraft fan, you need to see this movie. Very well done, a lot of fun to watch and very true to the original story. Well worth 5 stars, or more.

 

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MARVELOUS HOMAGE TO BOTH SILENT FILM AND H.P. LOVECRAFT
By Vivian Zetetick (from United States)

By ingeniously adapting an "un-adaptable" short story from the 1920s as if it were actually filmed in the 1920s, Andrew Leman and his cinematographer David Robertson have created a beautiful homage to both the silent film era and the writings of H.P. Lovecraft. A rare and wonderful example of maverick movie making, full of painstakingly detailed set pieces, props, and brilliantly re-worked historic locations.

H.P. Lovecraft's "Call of Cthulhu" is a tough story to bring to the screen. Even more so for independent filmmakers financing an adaptation out of their own pockets. Andrew Leman and Sean Branney -- the founding fathers of the "H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society" -- devised a perfect solution: make the movie as if it were mounted as a silent era super-production. All the old special effects are dusted off and re-submitted for your approval with loving attention to detail. Forced perspective (miniatures photographed in combination with real sets), stop-motion animation for monsters too big and slimy to build full size, beautifully artificial set pieces (such as a fabric ocean), and of course, thanks to the marvels of modern technology, a handful of digitally composited sequences which look great. Finally, the entire movie has been digitally glossed with a tastefully restrained "silent film" look which the filmmakers cleverly dubbed "Mythoscope". "The Call of Cthulhu" is a victory of imagination pitted against lack of finances, and it's also a darn good movie.

 

FAITHFUL, CREEPY, EXCELLENT!
By Buchreitz (from Denmark)

The Call of Cthulhu, written in 1926 by H.P Lovecraft is a central piece in the horror-genre. Lovecraft renewed Horror with his style and ideas. Many have tried to adapt his books to the big screen, but none has been as successful as the HPLHS who just recently completed their black and white silent version of Call of Cthulhu.

Not only did they attempt to make a faithful and creepy adaptation, but also to make it look as if it was made in the time of Lovecraft.

The movie is blessed with terrific actors who all seem like they genuinely care about the portrayal of the story. All performances are top notch which signifies that the actors are very talented as well as great directing on part of Andrew Leman. This is truly one of the great strengths of Call of Cthulhu.

The movie has a really authentic 1920ties feel to it. The producers have payed much attention to detail; so everything looks and feels genuine. Another strong point.

The adaptation itself is magnificent. Never before have I seen such a faithful adaption of any Lovecraft-story in my entire life. Nothing is rushed, its all there and even though the movie is only 45 minutes long it is just as good at telling the story as Lovecraft himself.

The movie is full of special effects, stop motion animation and so forth. This movie is low budget and independent; and yes Universal studios would be able to create more convincing effects, but that is entirely unessential to this film as it is made to fit the 1920ties era. If Cthulhu himself were made with fancy computer animation the movie would have failed at its objective; to be faithful to the silent-movie genre. To be honest I love the effects in Call of Cthulhu. They strengthen the feel of authenticity and you never miss the big and pointless explosions that mainstream cinema offers.

I would personally recommend this movie to anyone with an interest in HP Lovecraft, Horror, Independent films and vintage films. It truly is remarkably good. I've already watched it three times, and I love it more for each time. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have.

 

BEST LOVECRAFT ADAPTATION
By Aaron Vanek (from Los Angeles, CA)

You may have already heard the buzz on this film, because there's been a lot and it has been loud. You should also know that I had a teeny tiny part in the making of the film (although I got a lot of "exposure"), plus I consider filmmakers Leman and Branney friends, so there's a big bias in this review.

That being said, this is the GREATEST LOVECRAFT ADAPTATION TO DATE. Yes, it is. After watching (and making) Lovecraft movies for more than ten years, including independent shorts and big budget extravaganzas, I aver that if you are a fan of HP Lovecraft, you MUST see this movie.

Some people will hate this movie: it's 45 minutes, black and white, and made as a SILENT film. That's right, there are title cards you have to read. Nevertheless, this is the original Lovecraft story on screen, nearly verbatim. The attention to detail, every detail, that Leman and Branney and the whole cast and crew put into this is, frankly, pathological. However, what they made was not only true to the story, true to the spirit of Lovecraft, true to the time period, it's also a damn entertaining flick. The filmmakers managed to make a film as engrossing as any I've ever seen of any age, simply with their great music (I bought the soundtrack), and modern style of editing (quick cuts and constant information revelation). The cast is amazing, the transitions between scenes genius, the effects outstanding (for low budget), and, I will go so far to say, that this is a true work of art (not commerce). This wasn't made for money (although I am sure they would love to have lots of it), but for the love of the story and the craft of making movies. It shows, and we viewers are fortunate that Lemand and Branney and their collaborators are so talented.

The hubris in making a black and white silent picture (shot on video) in the 21st century is galling; the fact that it still turned out so well only adds to the legendary genius (madness?) of Leman and Branney. I will even go so far to say that this is a film that all future Lovecraft adaptations will be compared to. This is the watermark, people.

So my biggest complaint: How is the HPLHS going to top this? Watch carefully, this could be their breakthrough film into the world of bigger budget features.