Mad at the Moon

Firstly, this strange, moody and fascinating film reminded me what an amazing actress Mary Stuart Masterson really is. She grows in front of our eyes without betraying for a moment the romantically lyric aspects of the film. I've noticed a similarity with "Male Di Luna", an episode of "Kaos" a remarkable film from the Taviani brothers, but "Mad at the Moon" explores a universe all of its own and it does it with a score worthy of an Academy Award. The look of the film is also a standout. Hart Bochner, Stephan Blake and Fionnula Flanagan give subtle, moving performances but what I felt as soon as the movie ended was the need to shout: Long Live Mary Stuart.

First, I'm not out to bash this movie, the marketing did that. Simple storyline is: Masterson seems to be the only single girl in area that she lives. Blake is the only bachelor of worth in this area. Masterson has the hots for bad boy Bochner, but, he's a card playin', hard drinkin' drifter type that wants nothing to do with marriage. Masterson's mom wants her to marry Blake, and after Bochner turns his back on her, she agrees to the marriage. We are subjected to a drama of Masterson's unhappy marriage. Now, it is a western, but, not a shoot 'em up, fist fighting, John Wayne-type western. The west is simply a backdrop. It also claims to be a horror story. NOT. If director Donovan had kept the "werewolf" angle, and played it straight, it could have been a chilling, exciting story. NOT. In the first 50 minutes, the most exciting thing happening is Masterson's wedding to Blake. By 55 minutes, Blake has gone outside to spend his first full moon alone since the marriage. Now, in that five minutes, there are some tense moments, and if taken further could have been good, but, there is NO werewolf, there is no further excitement. It dribbles back into the "unhappy marriage, want the other guy" story that we started with. This is 98 minutes of good acting, good drama, but rather boring waiting for the horror to kick in, and the flame to rage. It just doesn't get there, so if your ready for a drama, it's here, if you want more, check out something else, you'll be happier.

Not worth watching. Not worth watching. Not worth watching. Complete waste of time. I need more characters to finish this review I have said enough. Still have to add characters to get this review published.

I had it transfer from VHS - very dark copy - to DVD - Wow! Somebody mentioned the word "hypnotic" in a review. Well, yes, hypnotic applies but also moving, strange, gorgeous. Where is Mary Stuart Masterson? My God! She's sublime here. Hart Bochner is mysterious and heartbreaking. And who is Stephen Blake? He's compelling here but looking at his credits on IMDb, he hasn't done much. Great face. The score by Gerald Gouriet is sensational. A lyrical western with dark undertones. The aria at the beginning "La Notte Scotta" an unexpected stroke that takes you somewhere immediately. The ending feels a bit rushed - maybe because I wanted to go on. But I recently found out the film was shot in Simi Valley, California in 18 days for less than a million bucks. I don't know many people who've seen this movie. I sometimes introduce it in after dinner parties, always a success. Thank you.

I don't know what a spoiler is, but checked that box just in case. I loved this movie, even though I found it to be odd and its meaning ambiguous. Just to be able to look at Hart Bochner and Mary Stuart Masterson as the two leads was a treat. The best way I can describe this movie is that it is artsy. The story must have something to do with the opera scene at the beginning, otherwise, why have that scene at all? It doesn't seem to serve any other purpose. Hart Bochner is perfect as the alienated, confused-as-to-his-identity, loner with whom Mary Stuart Masterson's character is obsessed. She longs for the "bad boy" and there is a scene at her wedding to another man that shows the bad boy is probably, in his own way, obsessed with her. I did not understand the ending. It was not explained by its context, and the whole film seems sketchy. Something about that appealed to me though. I would highly recommend this movie. It is romantic, tense, scary (it scared me at least),and interesting.

Not worth watching. Not worth watching. Not worth watching. Complete waste of time. I need more characters to finish this review I have said enough. Still have to add characters to get this review published.

I had it transfer from VHS - very dark copy - to DVD - Wow! Somebody mentioned the word "hypnotic" in a review. Well, yes, hypnotic applies but also moving, strange, gorgeous. Where is Mary Stuart Masterson? My God! She's sublime here. Hart Bochner is mysterious and heartbreaking. And who is Stephen Blake? He's compelling here but looking at his credits on IMDb, he hasn't done much. Great face. The score by Gerald Gouriet is sensational. A lyrical western with dark undertones. The aria at the beginning "La Notte Scotta" an unexpected stroke that takes you somewhere immediately. The ending feels a bit rushed - maybe because I wanted to go on. But I recently found out the film was shot in Simi Valley, California in 18 days for less than a million bucks. I don't know many people who've seen this movie. I sometimes introduce it in after dinner parties, always a success. Thank you.

This movie starts and ends with a rather elegant-looking large music box. A large metal wheel with notches cut out moves up into place, and the backlighting makes it look like a sky full of stars. In the beginning, there's an opera performance in a well-lit tent that is painted fancifully. There's some beautiful and interesting images in this movie like that, and the cinematography might be very good but it is hard to judge from the pan & scan job I watched. However, the movie didn't work for me as drama or horror. A romantically-inclined and perhaps naive young woman is proposed to by a shy, polite, awkward man she's known since childhood. Her mother is pleased with him, even though he's much poorer than their family. The young woman is more interested in a "saintly sinner" who hangs out at a saloon playing cards. What sort of relationship they have, if any, isn't clear. She sends him a poem, and he comes out to meet her, but doesn't talk at all except to repeatedly say "don't touch me!" when she tries to, and he even puts a gun to his head to drive the point home! So, she marries the awkward guy, but doesn't want to have sex with him. She writes her mother claiming he doesn't want to touch her. One morning she finds him boarding up the windows from the inside, and she doesn't seem surprised by this. That evening she gets scared as he tells her he'll be spending the night outside, and she's not to let him in. I've got to say, I didn't understand this movie. The ending made no sense to me. It's not surreal, it just doesn't explain itself well. Another user praised a scene in which several characters have a meal together without talking. I thought it was ridiculous. Perhaps there's something more interesting about it when it is in widescreen. Definitely not recommended to anyone expecting a horror movie. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking for a drama either, though.

First, I'm not out to bash this movie, the marketing did that. Simple storyline is: Masterson seems to be the only single girl in area that she lives. Blake is the only bachelor of worth in this area. Masterson has the hots for bad boy Bochner, but, he's a card playin', hard drinkin' drifter type that wants nothing to do with marriage. Masterson's mom wants her to marry Blake, and after Bochner turns his back on her, she agrees to the marriage. We are subjected to a drama of Masterson's unhappy marriage. Now, it is a western, but, not a shoot 'em up, fist fighting, John Wayne-type western. The west is simply a backdrop. It also claims to be a horror story. NOT. If director Donovan had kept the "werewolf" angle, and played it straight, it could have been a chilling, exciting story. NOT. In the first 50 minutes, the most exciting thing happening is Masterson's wedding to Blake. By 55 minutes, Blake has gone outside to spend his first full moon alone since the marriage. Now, in that five minutes, there are some tense moments, and if taken further could have been good, but, there is NO werewolf, there is no further excitement. It dribbles back into the "unhappy marriage, want the other guy" story that we started with. This is 98 minutes of good acting, good drama, but rather boring waiting for the horror to kick in, and the flame to rage. It just doesn't get there, so if your ready for a drama, it's here, if you want more, check out something else, you'll be happier.

I don't know what a spoiler is, but checked that box just in case. I loved this movie, even though I found it to be odd and its meaning ambiguous. Just to be able to look at Hart Bochner and Mary Stuart Masterson as the two leads was a treat. The best way I can describe this movie is that it is artsy. The story must have something to do with the opera scene at the beginning, otherwise, why have that scene at all? It doesn't seem to serve any other purpose. Hart Bochner is perfect as the alienated, confused-as-to-his-identity, loner with whom Mary Stuart Masterson's character is obsessed. She longs for the "bad boy" and there is a scene at her wedding to another man that shows the bad boy is probably, in his own way, obsessed with her. I did not understand the ending. It was not explained by its context, and the whole film seems sketchy. Something about that appealed to me though. I would highly recommend this movie. It is romantic, tense, scary (it scared me at least),and interesting.