Movies
[Sundance Review] ‘Lizzie’ – Room and Borden
This take on the Lizzie Borden murders posits a sympathetic motive to Borden’s axe murders. By suggesting that her father was a homophobic rapist, Lizzie has the audience primed for her to deliver 40 whacks.
Bridget Sullivan (Kristen Stewart) comes to work for the Bordens and Andrew Borden (Jamey Sheridan) immediately takes to entering her room. Bridget also begins an affair with Lizzie (Chloe Sevigny) of which Andrew disapproves. He basically forces Lizzie into a position where she has to kill both her parents to survive.
Lizzie begins at the crime scene and flashes back. There is some scattered violence along the way, mini revenges on Lizzie’s part and some animal brutality on Andrew’s. There are some jump scares too so Lizzie deals in horror tropes as it builds to the money shots. We see a full frontal shot of Andrew’s face wound about 70 minutes in and the film does finally show the entire murder scene.
It shouldn’t be a spoiler to talk about the Lizzie Borden murder scene. That’s what you came for and Lizzie delivers. Lizzie strips off her clothes to keep from contaminating them with evidence. So you get to see Sevigny naked and splattered with blood as she delivers the whacks. I lost count but I don’t think they showed 40. Maybe 15 each parent.
The murder is methodical. Lizzie goes through the plan like clockwork. When one thing doesn’t go exactly as planned she is ready to adapt. Some legal details add an intellectual twist to the murder. Those details may be well known to Borden enthusiasts. If you didn’t know, the order of the murders makes a difference and could have established motive.
[Related] All Sundance Reviews, Interviews, and News
The plot and performances are all good. Some other details betray that Lizzie is an indie film made in 2017 so they did the best they could. The interiors of the Borden house are so white that the scenes are too bright. They’re blinding. Andrew receives some threatening handwritten notes and I have no idea what they said. The second time they’re shown I got that they had something to do with his sin. So they could implicate another character or they could be red herrings, but 19th century cursive is tough. You can hear an echo in the dialogue too. If you’ve ever been to Colonial Williamsburg, you know that the acoustics in those old houses aren’t good. I mean, they weren’t designed for production sound.
But it sure beats the Lifetime Lizzie Borden Chronicles, so Lizzie is the Lizzie Borden story for a modern generation. It’s a plausible inference, and since an educated guess is all we can make now, perhaps Lizzie will provoke further exploration into the history of this famous crime.
Movies
SCREAMBOX Investigates UFOs and Extraterrestrials: Several Documentaries Streaming Right Now!
As someone who is obsessed with UFOS (or more recently known as UAPs) and the concept of extraterrestrials, I love a good documentary. Sightings have been on the rise since the 1940s, with the atomic bomb seemingly acting as a catalyst for new visitors. But what are these UFOs/UAPs? Is there an explanation or are they simply beyond our explanation? Why are they here? Who are they? How much do our governments know? The questions are endless and so are the documentaries that attempt to uncover the secrets behind decades of sightings and alleged confrontations.
Whether you’re a seasoned viewer or new to the rabbit hole, there’s always a handful of interesting documentaries to get your neurons firing and leave you with sleepless nights. SCREAMBOX is investigating with the addition of several docs, all streaming now on the Bloody Disgusting-powered service. Here’s the breakdown:
Aliens (2021): Beam into this unidentified streaming documentary for a glimpse into Extraterrestrial life. Aliens are hypothetical life forms that may occur outside Earth or that did not originate on Earth.
Aliens Uncovered: Origins (2021): Before Area 51, hidden deep in the desert, the military discovered a hidden gem that helped them create Project Bluebook.
Aliens Uncovered: ET or Man-Made (2022): The crash of Roswell wasn’t meant for New Mexico. In 1947, a neighboring state had 3 major sightings that were swept under the rug.
Aliens Uncovered: The Golden Record (2023): In the late 70s, the US government launched a message to our distant neighbors.
Roswell (2021): This high-flying documentary examines the July 1947 crash of a United States Army Air Forces balloon at a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico. Theories claim the crash was actually that of a flying saucer, but what is the truth?
Also check out:
The British UFO Files (2004): Since the 1940’s the British Government has been investigating the Flying Saucer phenomenon. High-ranking military and government personnel, speak out for the first time, offering unique eyewitness accounts and inside information.
Alien Abductions and Paranormal Sightings (2016): Amazing Footage and stories from real people as they reveal their personal encounters of being abducted by Aliens.
And do not miss Hellier (2019): A crew of paranormal researchers find themselves in a dying coal town, where a series of strange coincidences lead them to a decades-old mystery.
These documentaries join SCREAMBOX’s growing library of unique horror content, including Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls, Here for Blood, Terrifier 2, RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop, Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story, The Outwaters, Living with Chucky, Project Wolf Hunting, and Pennywise: The Story of IT.
Start screaming now with SCREAMBOX on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Prime Video, Roku, YouTube TV, Samsung, Comcast, Cox, and Screambox.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.