I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but lately it’s become commonplace to rewrite stories that we already know from a different point of view, in particular from the point of view of a character who is always the victim of events within the narrative, and so has reached the time when -something to give him his moment.
I could give you a long list of all the productions, big or small, that have adopted this combination of nostalgia effect + victim revenge over the past decade. Somehow very recently renfieldwhich our Casanova Wong Kar-wai destroyed in this harsh but very fair work is connected with this discourse, and in some way, to tell the truth, the film that we are talking about today is also with him.
Concerning renfield inspiration again, in the distant past, that Bram Stoker novel, but then, after all, we are talking about something completely different.
I’ll leave you the trailer below, watch it, see you again in exactly two minutes and 38 seconds.
Made? Fine. If you have been watching carefully now, you should have at least two questions for me:
- But Terrence, today’s film is not called. Ceremony? It is called Invitationwill you stop taking drugs?
- But, Terrence, am I wrong or does this trailer tell almost the entire movie?
You are very good observers, friends. The thing is, to answer the first question, the original title of this movie is Invitation but we don’t know for what absurd reason we decided to name it Ceremonyindeed, to be more precise Ceremony – Death Invitation. So I’m pretty sure the same movie with the original title exists somewhere in the multiverse. Ceremony but we distributed it like Invitation – Death Ceremony. Do you know what beauty is? Which was originally supposed to be called by another name.
The first real name of the project bride and would have seen producers Sam Raimi and his old friend Robert Tapert if they hadn’t quit almost immediately. So maybe somewhere in the multiverse there is a version of this film under their direction, a version in which Blair Butler (story and script belongs to him), who comes from comedy, is advised not to give up comedy too much; and director Jessica M. Thompson to further indulge in sticks and severed limbs.
Who knows, the movie would have benefited from this. I say yes.
But above all, who knows what an absurd and useless title we Italians would come up with this time.
A handsome, honest immigrant from England would have married an impeccable American.
Ceremony is the story of how Evie, a New York girl who, after her mother’s death wants to know more about her lineage, comes to a cruel realization that blood ties are not enough to call a group of people “family”. “., and curiously played by Nathalie Emmanuel, someone who has already explored the concept since 2015 when she joined FAMILY par excellence.
So Evie does an online DNA test to see if there are people in the world connected to her, and it turns out she has a cousin in good old England. They meet and he invites her to spend a few days in his neighborhood for a very stylish wedding that will include all family members. Invitation. Mortal. Ceremony. Fine? Fine.
From the moment Evie arrives at this princely villa and succumbs to the charms of its owner (one of the few non-relatives present, look at the combination), the film doesn’t miss a chance to show just how fabulous the life these rich people make is just for show. , and they do it by treating us like we’re naive to the point where it’s almost endearing.
That there is something behind this is clear from the moment when the English cousin invites Evie to participate in the ceremony: he has just met her and immediately invites her to such an important family event, in such a short time, even insisting? Come on, come on, what can go wrong?
But apparently this and other details are not enough, Ceremony he also has to show us a series of very benign deaths related to the family’s bondage, and at this point, connecting the dots, it’s clear where he’s going with this. And I’ll tell you: on the one hand, thank God, there are these very lazy murders, otherwise the whole first part would be a very banal and boring seduction story between her, who is struggling to make ends meet, and the one who shits on doubloons how rich he is.
Yes, of course, there are vampires in the middle, you saw them in the trailer, torturer fangs and goblets filled with blood, but I assure you – and here I am answering the second question at the beginning – that it is all there, there is not much else.
Aguzzini fangs, sharp claws and you go out to command
Because when it is time to get down to business, that is, at the moment of great revelation that it is not even mistakenly great, it is here Ceremony looks like that work colleague of yours who gives you two balls for a week with his very original costume that he will wear to the corporate costume ball, who, however, does not want to reveal too many details to you, but trust me, it will be a bomb that never seen before, and he eventually appears dressed as the Joker.
Terribly dressed like the Joker, on top of that. With a bright green wig bought from Tutto for 1 euro and the words “why so serious?” made from strips of duct tape on the back of a jacket that is clearly not purple.
And so what should I tell you Ceremony? You’ve been pulling the trigger on this rifle for half your time, and now that we’re down to business, now that it’s time to shoot, there are a few drops of blood coming out of the barrel, almost unmentioned bad digital effects, stupid explanations, and nasty fights. But have you really lived so little for so long?
Ramsey you are still loved
But in some places and completely unveiled, even well underlined in marker, damn you, this very unmemorable film offers the point of view that we talked about at the beginning. This is a film steeped in the fight against patriarchy, at least in its intentions: as stated, there is the notion of a family without blood ties, but also a lot of sisterhood, in essence it is a story in which (almost) all women rebel against male domination (“You modern women are so ungrateful,” someone very ancient will say at some point) and there is no doubt that racial issues and class struggle also play a role: Evie is a black woman with patches against a microcosm ruled by super-rich whites men.
It is a pity that in the end half a pack.
DVD quote:
“To hell with patriarchy with dog tormentors!”
Terrence Maverick, i400calci.com
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