GREEN ONION
"I can't die here". I don't blame ya, especially when the grimy juice from the floor is below your feet.
Anyway, after performing a show and witnessing a murder, a punk rock band is confined to a small room by a bunch of skinheads bent on eventually eliminating them. That's the rub to 2015's Green Room, a barely creepy, horror thriller in which its dark hues prevent you from seeing what the heck is going on. I mean how did this guy get all bloodied up? And who got attacked by the killer dog? And um, who's fighting to the death?
Watching Green Room, you figure it could've worked had it had that Texas Chainsaw Massacre vibe. Not! Instead we get a weak whiff of Assault on Precinct 13, all cat and mouse-like where it doesn't feel like anything is really at stake. Suspense? Lacking. Foreboding logic? Not really there. Tight and succinct editing? I wish. Down-and-dirty and grubby tone? Well at least Green Room has that going for it.
Taking place in Oregon and feeling like it's from a different decade (I didn't know punk rock was still a thing), Green Room stars Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, and Patrick Stewart. These actors are game but the screenplay by Green Room's director (Jeremy Saulnier) is littered with inconsistencies and unclear motives. I mean we know who the protagonists and the antagonists are. We just don't know what they're trying to convey or why it's so difficult for them to get their words out. It's like jibber-jabber told in monosyllabic fashion (if that makes any sense).
Vexing dialogue exchanges aside, the trailer for Green Room gives you the feeling that you're in for a spine-tingling ride. Sigh. The execution for this film is unfortunately sloppy when it could've sent you away with your knees knocking. "Room and bored".
Written by Jesse Burleson
No comments:
Post a Comment