Review of The Call of Cthulhu (2006) by Davey M — 15 Oct 2010

A pretty amazing little fan film from the Lovecraft that transcends fan film-ness. A very faithful adaptation of the story, capturing Lovecraft's mystery, fear, and atmospheric dread, and an evocative modern silent film that, at its best, becomes not just an homage but at times worthy of comparison to its inspirations ("Caligari," specifically, and a bit of Murnau and the other German expressionists).

Sometimes the blend of the classical and contemporary aesthetics doesn't mesh--the use of a zoom lens is pretty distractingly anachronistic sometimes, and the video frame-rate at times adds enormously to the ultra-low-budget look--and the dialogue scenes and scenes of people in offices and buildings look pretty shoddy and film-student-freshman at times.

But they also get a whole, whole lot remarkably right--though shot on video, they get a wonderful silent film look much of the time with the lighting, makeup, and post-production, the set design and effects can be really wonderful, the score is great, and just the mood and pacing and storytelling really show a lot of impressive craftsmanship.

And, when things really come together in some of the set pieces, montages, and little moments--wow. Color me impressed. I like the quote from Scott Weinberg at eFilmCritic: "If every 'fan-made' movie were this curiously cool and bizarrely entertaining, well, it'd put a lot of Hollywood suits out of a job.

" It's really true. This is artful, entertaining, and effective moviemaking.