Archive 81 on Netflix

What's it all about, Scopey?

 

I don't do horror, except for Little Shop of Horrors.

 

How about a synopsis? An opinion? Any info? This is simply not useful in any way.

 

I would recommend this with a few caveats. It is typical of the sort of horror I absolutely love. It's probably worth watching to simply enjoy the characters opening various doors and cabinets with no birds or cats jumping out for gotcha scares.

Early on it put me in the mind of The Sentinel, and I don't think that is totally off base.

I generally recoil when any dramatic effort uses art as a special effect. The "works" are always not very convincing and in this case the faux historical art movement seemed too light-weight for the overall piece. Still, the larger historical context is correct and other trappings are well studied and spot on.

 

I just did a bing search on the name and "review" and got everything I needed. It's not the type of stuff I'm into.

 

Feminist, historical, psychological, occult, paranoid, folk horror.

 

I like historical and psychological. But the rest I can do without. Honestly, I've noticed that new movies are having a harder and harder time getting me into "suspend disbelief" mode. It's usually because the characters act more like cartoon characters than how a real human being would act.

 

Very good observation. I found it similar in tone to the book "The Shining" by King. The lead actors are pretty solid, the storyline is compelling. So far I am enjoying it. Some of the tenants in the apartment building are creepy. As of now I am at episode 5. Probably finish it in a few days.

It is relatable to Dante's "Divine Comedy". Main character is "Dan T".

 

Yeah, there are a many, many threads and similarities. I always fall for movies with some musical hook, so the intonation brings that "close encounters" tip of the hat. If you like Tarkovsky (Stalker I'm thinking of in particular) they loop or repeat some scenes inside these underground spaces as an homage. The Victorian fascination with mysticism and photography is solid. They flesh out some of the classic trance induction techniques casually, like breath control, intonation, etc.

And I really appreciate the core thread looking at the question of what a mother would do to protect a child vs. the crone who would use a child "as a battery" as they discuss.

I really sensed the hand and perspective of the women who produced and wrote it.

If you like it you might look for a series titled "Requiem" that was released in the last few years. It pulls on the John Dee mythology. I think it was overlooked.

 

We thought it was pretty good. I liked the Dan actor/character a lot more than the Melody actor/character.

Quick synopsis, Martin Donavan rich guy hires Dan to restore a damaged archive of video tapes made 25 years earlier. Melody is the one making the videos, interviewing and researching a NYC apartment building looking for information about her birth mother. She finds weird things, he finds weird things, etc. More mystery than outright horror IMO, though there is some horror.

 

I'm unfamiliar with Andrei Tarkovsky, so when there was a direct reference to "Tarkovsky" in the show I thought of Genndy Tartakovsky and that *really* confused me.

 

Two alternative ways of saying the same thing. Freud would probably have loved the internet.

 

It's all my mother's fault.

 

I liked it. Trying to describe it for a friend, after watching the first 3 episodes, I said it mixed up some elements of The Ring, Ex Machina, and Eyes Wide Shut. Once it was over, I added Dark to the mix.

 

And Rosemary's Baby, there's even a Cassavetes reference.
We enjoyed it quite a bit, watched it in two extended viewings. If you poke at it too much it will come apart, but the supernatural horror/mystery thing holds together really well, and for once it's not a gore fest except for one scene. A metaphorical search for identity/family/ home shrouded in atmosphere and dread. Seems as if they left it open for a season 2.

 

Here's the 'Cliff's Notes" version:

 

Thank you for this. It sounds like there may be a 2nd season. I finished watching it yesterday and thought it was really good overall, although the ending was fairly predictable. The environment where Dan ended up, however, does give a sense that it’s a parallel universe rather than a creepy, weird “Otherland”so maybe there is a different spin here.

 

The show runner has actually cleared that question up. I won’t post it here in case you want to keep the mystery alive in case there is a season 2 however if you want to know just do a quick google search as it’s easy to find her interview explaining that part.

 

Keeping this spoiler free.

Binged it in two days and loved it. I liked how the end had a Twilight Zone like ending with him in the window and something reflecting in another window that tells us exactly when and where he is. No long explanation or exposition, just an image panning out like the end of a Twilight Zone episode.

 

We finished watching the other night. For the most part I liked it. The acting was good and the story compelling. The actress portraying Melody was grating to me. But that's just me. Not sure if they can keep it going for Season 2, but I will give it a try.

 

I liked it. Being in covid isolation, i binge watched it.

 

I enjoyed the show and look forward to season 2. However, the ending is very similar to the way Season 1 of Fringe ended. Not identical, but it immediately sprang to mind.

 

Video taping on audio cassette, was that real?

 

Yes. I wanted one as a kid and when I got to college one of my roommates actually found one of those cameras.