MovieChat Forums > Without Warning (1980) Discussion > Responding to davannacarter's thoughtful...

Responding to davannacarter's thoughtful post...

posted 10 years ago by Akzidenz_Grotesk
2 replies | jump to latest

(Responding in this new thread so the "Horrible Movie" titled thread gets bumped down the board.)

davannacarter said:

Jack Palance, Neville Brand, Walter Landau, and Sue Anne Langdon (the platinum blonde bartender) are actors who I enjoy watching. I was pleasantly surprised that the movie actually tried to have a plot, good characterizations, and a variety of characters. It's always been extremely hard to find a horror where actors past the age of 40 have a significant amount of screen time. You know damn well if this movie had been made today Jack Palance's character would have been played by a more handsome (but bland-looking) actor between the ages of 20-40. Martin Landau's character would have been some grizzled redneck with a stereotypical southern accent. So I found it good at least for the diversity of characters.

It's true how prior to the 90s they made a lot of bad horror like they do today. But I am always amazed how diverse the characters and actors were in some of those movies in terms of age, gender, characterization, and race are compared to today's horror. It's sad how filmmakers today (both indie and major Hollywood) are so afraid of taking risks in filmmaking.

So I liked the movie. Plus, I liked the fact that there wasn't the usual "gotcha! the monster's really not dead" type of ending.

This was a well-crafted movie by all involved. The use of those veteran actors was a smart choice by Clark and the casting director. They added a dose of realism... even Martin Landau's crazed "Sarge" (Fred Dobbs) character which has been universally panned by critics. I guess these critics never encountered a crazy person on the streets? Kudos to Landau for playing a crazed person as crazy and I'm glad he won Oscar later on in the 1990's.

"Judge and defendant, sacred brothers
Drop the charge and accuse the others."

[–] davannacarter 10 years ago

Yeah, I really liked this movie for its unique story and characters. One thing I definitely liked portrayed the alien. I think giving him only the necessary screen time was a great idea. If they had showed him too much they would have ruined his forbidding presence. Plus, it's great how they didn't make him talk. Making him talk also would have diluted his forbidding presence. Instead, they mainly had him silent and stealthy. That was good. At the end, when he was by the shack and his was just standing there silently, that was real creepy. You just knew he was going to do something terrible but his silent presence made it seem as if he was all-powerful and could wipe them out with ease. That's a good way to present your villain.

[–] Akzidenz_Grotesk 10 years ago

That's a good way to present your villain.

Totally agree. I wish more directors these days had Clark's classic sense of suspense and characterization.

"Man was meant to grow, not stop!" -Robert Browning