Mysteria

source: Mysteria

Aleister Bain (Robert Miano) is a washed up Hollywood screenwriter desperate to finish his script. He becomes the center of a noir investigation into the murder of a prominent politician's wife Lavinia (Meadow Williams). She's a fan who tracks him down for a dinner date. Danny Glover plays the investigator, Martin Landau is the hotel manager, and Billy Zane is the producer. It's a little noir indie from newbie Lucius C. Kuert. The best thing is the acting talents involved. They are all people who have the parts in them. However this is just so badly made. I almost feel like the washed up hack writer in the movie wrote this tripe. Somebody watched too many black and white noir movies and wrote something for film school. It has nothing interesting or new. They don't do the femme fatale right. Robert Miano has the gruff look but he has nothing else going for him. It moves at a snail's pace and it dies a slow death.

I was skeptical to start and 5 minutes into it I turned it off. Maybe I didn't give it a chance but after a phone rings for 45 seconds in a scene I was utterly annoyed. Who writes, directs and produces a film and thinks people want to hear a phone ringing that long?! Torture.

This is one of those movies not so easy to warm to, as is evidenced by the polarized reviews here. But I found as I got more accustomed to the quirky pacing and flashback/flash forward style I liked Mysteria more and more until it became as they say compulsively watchable. It's difficult to categorize Mysteria: the closest to a broad brushstroke description would be neo-noir, but more specifically it's a kind of existential retro-thriller parody, with lots of B movie overtones, which I suppose is a more circuitous way of saying neo-noir. The story takes place in a Los Angeles-like environ in a frozen, late 80s (or thereabouts) gestalt, but it's all a little vague. To some extent Mysteria has to be catnip to fans of noir, and of course several noir films are specifically mentioned, including The Killing, the choppy, nonlinear style of which Mysteria mimics. Other films that are referenced, either by design or no, include Dead of Night, and more recently, Usual Suspects, Memento, and especially Mulholland Drive. Mysteria is well-cast. The familiar names – Landau, Zane, and Glover – have what amount to little more than extended cameos. But it's Robert Miano's movie and he's perfect for the role: he essays the confused, unkempt, unshaven, needing-a-shower, always late, always-smoking-a-cigarette hero in in eminently underplayed style and somehow it works perfectly. Mysteria pulls out about every neo-noir trope in the book: along with the murky look and labyrinthine plot we have near-caricatures of the sleazy private eye and especially the down-on-his-luck screenwriter (is there any other kind?). Aleister Bain is a gin-swilling, chain smoking, disheveled, onetime success who lives in a low class hotel where he can't pay his rent, and of course he has writer's block. A bright spot in his life is a beautiful blonde film student (played by Meadow Williams) who's his biggest fan and a kind of Gal Friday wannabe. Ultimately the story leaves quite a bit unresolved, to say the least. And I like that. Maybe I'm just easy to please but I give this one a solid seven stars.

If you see this movie anywhere, buy it and then immediately pull the tape out and throw away. Do humanity a favor and do not let anyone else waste their money on it. Do not buy into the great acting. These guys owed somebody a favor. No plot. No mystery. No ending. GOD IT WAS AWFUL. Oh they try to convince you that this old man who once could write movies might once again have skill. That their is some incredible mystery surrounding his current life, a oversexed girl who cannot act and the police, or maybe not the police, or maybe in the end not one thing in the hack of a film makes any sense or will for one single moment make you enjoy it. OK, there might be a few moments when you think a great ending might really make this good. Well do not wait for it. Turn the TV off and stare at a blank screen. It will be a huge improvement. I want my money back. Spent $2 for the garbage.

I rented this movie from the video store because I noticed Danny Glover was in it. I picked it up trusting I would not be disappointed. It also introduced me to the lovely Meadow Williams. Had I ignored this movie I might not have been made aware of her. This movie will not "entertain" people in the way most desire a movie to do. It will make you think, then it will make you wonder, "What the heck just happened? What is going on?" About twenty minutes into the movie you won't be certain if you are watching a movie, or a dream. There were some things that struck me funny. The cab numbered 666 made me smile. Pay attention to the conversation inside the cab. Then there is the suggestion our main character was murdered, but then we see him at the police station answering questions. Oh, and look for the watch that always shows midnight. You will encounter a cop that accepts a drink while on duty, and a woman who pays the main characters rent which makes him a main suspect in her murder. I think once in awhile everyone should watch a movie like this instead of the usual fare that always leaves you with a clear explanation and a nicely wrapped up ending. In fact, I am chuckling as I write these words knowing someone who watches this movie is going to let out a yell in disgust at the ending. I can almost hear them saying, "That's it? That's the ending? What the hell kind of movie was that?" I actually laughed at the ending knowing it will mess with some people's minds. You might not laugh when its over, but I guarantee it will stir your gray matter. You need to have a sense of humor and a penchant for mystery to enjoy this movie. If not, don't bother with it.

OK. Well, to start with, Mike Rooker, who has p****d me off for DECADES with over-acting, and never quite making it, deserves a supporting Oscar in this. Yes, his script is good, but, at last, HE's good. BUT The film is just, I dunno, not quite there. Too clever? Don't get me wrong, I liked it, it left me guessing, but that's just it. The back-story, the narrative in the writer's/director's mind, never quite made it to screen. I'm left knowing I saw something good, something very good, but somehow, just a little, empty. Unresolved. And I'm not trying to say EVERYTHING should resolve - I mean, hey, I live in the UK - we can't even get the weather right - but.... I liked the film (it's gone from 7 to 8 while I wrote this, and the cinematography, script, acting, are all top notch...) But then hey. I admired, and was irritated by Mulholland Drive. For similar reasons. Very similar. watch it. Definitely watch it. But don't blame me if you get just a little bit lost when the credits roll.

Washed-up former Hollywood screen writing bigshot Aleister Bain (Robert Miano) is living a sad existence in a seedy apartment, trying desperately to finish a script he is months behind on before his agent (Billy Zane) cuts off his funding. The arrival of a beautiful film student (Meadow Williams) coincides with Bain's mixing up with the murder of the wife of a powerful Senator. Two cops (Danny Glover and Michael Rooker) separately try to get to the bottom of the mystery. The cast draws you in to "Mysteria" and the plot keeps you interested. Miano is the star, and ably performs as a beat up, put down has-been who is thrust into a world that seems a perfect match for one of the scripts he was noted for writing in his past. The countless twists that come from arrivals of new characters keep Bain on his booze-soaked feet to find out what his connection is. "Mysteria"'s supporting cast is strong. Danny Glover whispers his way through hearing Bain's story, while Michael Rooker proves his underrated worth as the tough Captain who has more mystery than he lets on. Meadow Williams is the weak spot, she tends to say her lines as if they were held up behind the camera. Academy Award winner Martin Landau has a couple of funny scenes as Miano's elderly landlord. Cinematography and design came together strongly to portray the grime of the setting, which was shot in Los Angeles but never said to be where the film took place. Strategic shots of an empty bottle of booze in the foreground while Bain continues his investigation serve as a recurring motif of what the film is making it's main character out to be. What keeps the film from a better score is a soundtrack that seemed perpetually off track. A large ensemble score didn't match the interior shots of a grimy apartment. The script rambles a bit too often, especially at the beginning, and might lose some viewers who don't get hooked in soon enough to see a far better second act. Overall, "Mysteria" is an able, interesting low budget thriller that doesn't disappoint but doesn't really thrill, either.

I felt compelled to keep on watching this movie to see if something was going to happen. Unfortunately, nothing really happens, it really is the worst movie I have ever seen, it was a total waste of 90 minutes of my life. I will never get that 90 minutes back. I do not know how anyone could possibly give this movie a positive rating. It was totally mind numbing! I will not give any spoilers to the movie or mention the plot. The plot may seem clever, but is incomplete. Mysteria seems like half a movie, and is extremely slow moving. It could have been highly edited leaving most of the tape on the floor, and adding an ending. Perhaps the production company ran out of money when making Mysteria and left in the 90 minutes of content to recuperate some revenue. I do not know of anyone that I would recommend this to.

source: Mysteria