The Age of Commercialism

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A Masterpiece!

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

It's commonly known that Oliver Stone served in Vietnam and that his most acclaimed masterpieces, most notably "Platoon", are based on his own traumatic experiences and the agonizing real-life horror situations that he witnessed over there. Perhaps his Vietnam luggage turned him into one of the greatest directors of all times, but it also must have caused a bit of permanent brain damage, if you ask me! How else would you explain the madness of "Seizure"; his long-feature debut released not that long after he returned from his tour of duty? This is a truly bonkers horror movie, half brilliant and half unendurable, but fascinating and hypnotizing enough to keep you glued to the screen. Jonathan "Barnabas Collins" Frid stars as Edmund Blackstone, a writer suffering from recurring nightmares featuring the villains of the horror story that he's trying to finish. Nothing but a bad case of writer's block, you'd say, but when Edmund and his wife are hosting a party during the weekend and welcome several guests in their lakeside house, the trio of villains literally pops up at the dining room window! They are: the ravishing but deadly Queen of Evil, the black and heavily mutilated giant referred to as Jackal, and the viciously cruel dwarf named Spider. They start killing off the guests, which isn't a bad thing since they are truly horrible people, but poor Edmund can't seem to figure out if they are real or hallucinatory. Debuting director Stone generates a reasonably tense and mysterious atmosphere, and "Seizure" certainly contains a few strong sequences, but the film is overall too dull and far too talkative. Especially Edmund's "reflective" moments, guided by a voiceover, are immensely long and meaningless, but the Queen of Evil also jibbers too much and even the dwarf would have been far more petrifying if he shut his mouth a little more! As mentioned already, the supportive characters are downright nasty. You often see in horror movies that an alleged group of friends doesn't get along, but these people here are the most arrogant, selfish, treacherous and despicable trolls I've ever seen! There's not a lot of gore, obviously, but nevertheless a few efficient shock-moments and solid performances from Jonathan Frid, Joseph Sirola and the breathtaking Martine Beswick! The eviler she gets, the sexier she becomes! The finale is logical and effectively abrupt, but not exactly original. There's a certain horror milestone from 1962 that ended with a similar twist already.

Seizure (1974) ** 1/2 (out of 4)Horror author Edmund Blackstone (Jonathan Frid) is having nightmares about three characters that he created for one of his stories. In the nightmare, the three (a vamp, a dwarf, a strongman) terrorize him, his family and friends on a weekend. Sure enough, his friends gather around for a weekend of fun and the killers show up.SEIZURE was director Oliver Stone's first feature film and he has pretty much disowned the picture, which is a real shame. I say that because a lot of great directors got their start doing these type of horror or exploitation movies so for him to completely overlook it is a real shame. I also say that because the movie is actually a lot better than you might expect and it's certainly much better than some of the other horror movies that people got their start on.I thought Stone did a very good job in his role as director. Sure, there's not really anything here that shows proof that he would go on to make such great movies as JFK and NATURAL BORN KILLERS but at the same time it's evident that he had talent. I really liked the surreal nature that he brought to the film and I thought he also managed to create a very good atmosphere. The entire film has a dreamlike (or nightmare) quality to it and I thought this here really helped keep the viewing glued to what was going on.There's no question that the locations were quite good and I also really enjoyed the cast. Frid, best known for his Dark Shadows series, turns in a good performance as the writer and I thought the actor was very believable when it came time for his character to be terrorified. Jospeh Sirola is excellent as the meanest character and he's not even one of the villains! Herve Villachaize, Henry Baker and Martine Beswick are all extremely good as the bad guys.There were spots in the film where it dragged and it's basically a "home invasion" picture but I do think it's a bit harsh for Stone to just write the picture off.

Horror writer Jonathan Frid (as Edmund Blackstone) gathers friends and family for an extended visit at his spooky home in the country. Planning to pen a nightmarish novel for children, Mr. Frid is plagued by bad dreams (and Mary Woronov in black underwear). Unfortunately, the "Dream Curse" seems to extend to Frid's house-guests, who are victimized by a fantastical trio of uninvited gatecrashers - beautiful Martine Beswick (the Queen), quirky Hervé Villechaize (the Dwarf), and menacing Henry Baker (the Giant). Eventually, the murderers threaten Frid's wife Christina Pickles (as Nicole) and cute son Timothy Ousey (as Jason).The excellent cast, which could be described as "soap opera horror," also includes Roger De Koven (as Serge Kahn) and Anne Meacham (as Eunice Kahn). Several US daytime stars appear, with Frid's "Dark Shadows" being an obvious influence on writer/director Oliver Stone. Mr. Baker also appeared on the TV classic, in a role similar to the one he plays here. Generational icons include Troy Donahue (the 1950s), Frid (the 1960s), and Mr. Villechaize (the 1970s). Jack-of-all-trades Joseph Sirola (as "Uncle" Charlie Hughes) and risqué Richard Cox (as Gerald) are a tightly clad couple. Hopefully, deleted scenes are still a possibility.****** Seizure (1974) Oliver Stone ~ Jonathan Frid, Martine Beswick, Herve Villechaize, Joe Sirola

I agree with the previous reviewer who talked about the amazing casting done for this film. Hervé Villechaize was absolutely legit as the totally heartless Spider, and I have to admit gaining a new respect for him as a serious actor.Martine Beswick puts a lot of movie villainesses to shame with her "so cold, it's hot" take on the Queen of Evil. She even manages to make her strangulation of Troy Donahue look alluring.But for me, as viewer and as female, star Jonathan Frid makes the movie. He finally gets to move beyond Barnabas Collins a bit in the decidedly non-menacing main role of Edmund Blackstone. As the previous reviewer couldn't take his eyes off Ms. Beswick, I couldn't possibly look away when Mr. Frid was in the frame. The scene where the Queen of Evil attempts to seduce Edmund is still very steamy indeed.As for the plot, it is, by today's standards, very pedestrian. Yet, even though you know what's coming, you still get entertained when it occurs. Worth a look-see if you get the chance.