Celluloid Diaries: June 2013

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Brussels Film Festival

Flagey open air screenings

I just came back from the Brussels Film Festival whose focus is on European films. Here are a few photos and an overview of the films I got to see...

Thursday

The Brussels Film Festival started on Thursday with two matinee press screenings. The first was Post Partum, a Belgian film about a young mother coping with postnatal depression and the inability to love her newborn. Many women will sympathize with Mélanie Doutey's believable character as they'll recognize her fatigue, doubts, anxieties, and attempts at being a good mother. I particularly loved the scene where her water breaks when she's at work in a veterinary office, yet she takes her time to put a client's dog to sleep and to give its owner the possibility to say goodbye. Post Partum is a film Belgium may be proud of.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Antwerp Zoo

Tiger

As you may remember, visiting the Antwerp Zoo was part of my to do-list for this year. I'm at my happiest when I am in a zoo; I could go every single day and never feel bored. The last time I've been to the Antwerp Zoo was fifteen years ago though. I was there for a press conference and it was raining cats and dogs, so I didn't see many animals. Before that, I only visited this zoo when I was a child. So after our visit to the Parc animalier de Bouillon in May, Gilles and I decided this past Tuesday to indulge ourselves once more in our passion for animals. Here are a few snapshots of our visit.

From top to bottom: tiger, Antwerp Zoo, pink flamingos, red-billed curassow, crested caraca, penguins, white-lipped tree frog, golden poison frog, rhinoceros iguana, spectacled owls, okapi, giraffes and zebras.

Antwerp Zoo
Pink flamingos
Red-billed curassow
Crested caracara
Penguins
White-lipped tree frog
Golden poison frog
Rhinoceros iguana
 Spectacled owls
Okapi
Giraffes
Zebras

What is your favorite zoo?

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Currently reading / watching / listening to

Strange Seed by T.M. Wright

Reading

* Seed by Ania Ahlborn. This novel about a child possessed by a demon took me by surprise. It's one of the better horror novels I've read in a long time. Written with style, well-structured, and so entertaining and creepy.

* The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing. The Fifth Child was a good example of how to create in-depth characters. Good build-up and theme (a mother trying to love a horrible child), but a weak ending.

* The Influence by Ramsey Campbell. Campbell's writing is controlled and lyrical, so I get why he's considered one of the most influential British horror authors. For me, it was too descriptive though and I couldn't get into the story, despite all the good elements.

* Strange Seed by T.M. Wright. A couple moves into a new home and finds several children living in the woods surrounding their house... But are they really children? The premise is intriguing, but the editing is non-existent, the characters unbelievable and the action repetitive. Also, characters repeat each other's names incessantly which makes the dialogue almost unreadable: "I'll understand, Paul." "I asked why I would want to stay, Rachel." "How soon will they die, Paul? It's their last night, isn't it, Paul?" "Rachel, they want us to stay."

* Nightmare Child by Daniel Ransom. Daniel Ransom is the pen name for horror author Ed Gorman. In Nightmare Child, he tells the story of a couple who kills the child under their custody for the financial benefits and the child comes back from the dead to seek revenge. Ed Gorman's writing is sleek and concise, but Nightmare Child never turns into something satisfying.

* That Sadie Thing and other stories by Annalisa Crawford. I'm IN LOVE with this new short story collection. I read the first story out of curiosity and while I had the intention of finishing Nightmare Child first, I just wasn't able to put That Sadie Thing aside for so long. The stories are short yet profound, simple yet stylish, emotional yet grounded... A delight.

* Chi's Sweet Home volume 9. Don't even try to understand how hooked I am to this cute cat manga series. Volume 10 has just been made available for pre-order and I can't wait till it comes out on August 27.


Watching

Orphan Black (episode eight to ten). Maybe not the most stylish and intelligent TV series around, but definitely one of the most suspenseful and fun.

* Shame. I loved the minimalist and intimate style of Shame and Carey Mulligan was excellent as usual. Just a pity that the characters were too scarred and bizarre to identify with.

* The Dark Half. I was still in college when I first saw The Dark Half and I was a fan from the start. It's still fun, but does the second half really have to be so silly?

* Come Out And Play. This was the remake (read: exact copy) of Quién puede matar a un niño? (Who Can Kill A Child?) from 1976. In this extremely atmospheric and sinister film, a couple goes on an excursion to a Mexican island where the local children have murdered the adults. Fun fact: the director of Come Out And Play (Makinov, as he calls himself), prefers to stay anonymous and directed the movie with a mask on.

* The Bad Seed. Made in 1956 and based on the novel The Bad Seed by William March, this story was pretty shocking and progressive for the era, but not entirely devoid of flaws. The Bad Seed is too talkative (it's like a filmed play) and a good forty minutes too long. The last fifteen minutes in particular were unnecessary as they only softened the shocking ending.

* Evil Dead. Over-the-top gore and downpours of blood don't necessarily make for a scary horror movie. Even my sister didn't think it was creepy and she usually watches nothing but romantic comedies.

* Clash Of The Titans. Nostalgia personified. I lost count on how many times I watched this battle between gods and humans. It's old-fashioned to the extreme, but I'll never get bored of it.

* Paperhouse. I saw this fifteen years ago and I never forgot about the dreamscape visuals, the desolate landscape and the house resembling a children's drawing.

* Behind The Candelabra. If you liked Boogie Nights and Auto Focus, then Steven Soderbergh's new movie about Scott Thorson's relationship with the piano player Liberace is just the thing for you. The story is both touching and hilarious (the plastic surgery scenes are my favorites) and Michael Douglas is beyond amazing as Liberace. Based on Thorson's autobiography My Life With Liberace.

* The Exorcist III. What's not to like about demonic nurses and old women crawling on the ceiling? Such creepy elements make you forget that most of the film is actually quite boring.

* Only God Forgives. Nicholas Winding Refn opts for Greek tragedy with a setting in the criminal underworld of today's Thailand. The extreme violence is efficient. So it the excessive use of red, the lack of dialogue, Ryan Gosling's stoic performance and Kristin Scott Thomas' foul-mouthed blonde character.

* Bad Influence. Remember that 90s movie in which Rob Lowe destroys James Spader's life? I used to enjoy this one and I was curious if it would still have the same effect on me. Well, the beginning is definitely strong, but once the realism goes, so does the fun.

* Bloody Birthday. Watched this again with my sister last night. I introduced her to this film when she was still a child and she remembers it as her very first horror movie. Even though it was made in 1981, it's still extremely entertaining today. So what makes Bloody Birthday so cool? Either the evil kids are killing someone... or planning to kill someone. No boring transition scenes in between. It's a rollercoaster ride of cute evilness. It's not always logical, but who cares when it's so much fun?


Listening to

* Cliff Martinez' soundtrack for Only God Forgives (but I'm skipping the karaoke parts).


What are you currently reading, watching and listening to?

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Abandoned haunted convent

Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis

Last weekend I visited one of the creepiest urbex destinations in Europe: the abandoned haunted convent Het Hoompje in St. Anna ter Muiden in Sluis, Netherlands.

Many have seen ghostly nuns walking through the walls or walking on the nearby highway. EVP recordings have detected clear voices and warnings. Things have gotten worse since witches and Satanists have performed rituals in the cellar. No wonder that the entrance of the cellar is marked with the words: "Welcome to hell!"

I went into the abandoned haunted convent by myself (my fellow travelers didn't dare go in), but no ghosts have tried to seek my company. I personally don't see any ghosts on the photos either, but friends who adore the subject claim there are several ones on these pictures. Can you see them?

If you're interested in visiting Het Hoompje, you have to go to St. Anna ter Muiden, which is part of the municipality Sluis in the Netherlands. The convent is on your right, just before you enter Sluis. Pay close attention because the building is hidden by lush vegetation and only the top of the tower is visible.

More abandoned buildings => Abandoned horror-themed restaurant | Creepy WWI fortification |  Haunted house in Bredene

Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden SluisHaunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis
Haunted convent in St. Anna ter Muiden Sluis

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abandoned haunted convent urbex sluis

Monday, June 3, 2013

Life lately

Roquefort salad
The Deli Brussels
Restaurant Hemisphere
Beehouwersstraat Orval beer
Nieuwvliet Bad
Knokke Bouillon

Life lately has been pretty good as you can see, with lots of good food and time spent on the beach. From left to right, top to bottom: (1) Roquefort salad for lunch at a seafront restaurant, (2) Walk on the beach of Knokke, (3) and (4) Lunch with my boyfriend at The Deli in Brussels, (5) and (6) Lunch with my parents in law at l'Hémisphère in Brussels, (7) and (8) An afternoon at Bruparck with my sister, followed by a screening of Evil Dead, (9) My boyfriend's neighborhood, (10) Icecream made from Orval beer, (11) Lunch at The Windsor in Bouillon, (12) Visiting Niewvliet Bad in the Netherlands, (13) A day in Knokke, (14) Visiting Bouillon.

P.S. I've been on an urbex trip this past weekend. I'll be updating soon with some fascinating photos.

What were the highlights of your life lately?