Archive | Sean Willey RSS feed for this section

Lord of the Flies (1963) on Kanopy

12 Mar
An illustrated film poster showing a young boy’s face painted with white and dark markings, staring forward with an intense and focused expression. Abstract shapes and muted earth tones surround the figure. The title, “Lord of the Flies” is integrated into the artwork.

There haven’t been many film adaptations of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies (I believe this one and one in 2001 from MGM), but Peter Brook’s 1963 experimental film (available on Kanopy) might be the only one we need because the novel itself is an experiment. When a plane of schoolboys crashes on a deserted island, they are forced to decide how they will survive. Will they follow rules and order, or descend into chaos and savagery? Will order prevail, or will the fun of living untamed win?

Brook leans more heavily into this moral conundrum than into traditional character development, which is why I’d recommend reading the novel first (it’s a short read). The terror of this film is more so rooted in what unfolds, not necessarily in one particular scene (although there are certainly a few gut wrenchers): the bullying of Piggy, the low self-esteem follower who looks to Ralph as the fair-minded leader versus Jack, the “big man on campus” whose authority acted out through intimidation rather than reason. Between these opposing forces are a handful of boys we can feel for, none more than Simon, the timid and curious observer quietly grappling with his own moral compass.

Hunting and playing all day looks fun, but can fun save them, or is it just a slippery slope into madness?

The film rolls at an even pace, and the boys’ turn toward order or disorder is implied rather than drawn out. The transitions happen quickly, sometimes too quickly, but by the midpoint it becomes very clear where Golding believed humanity would drift when in this situation. Brook captures this sentiment brutally well. He doesn’t ease the message into us but instead twists it in with the roughness of a whittled spear.

Black-and-white close-up of two boys facing each other outdoors in an island jungle. One wears round glasses and grimaces mid-sentence while the other listens closely as they share a confrontational discussion.
Black-and-white photograph of a group of young boys standing and crouching on rocky terrain, many with painted faces and holding spears, as if guarding something or about to go on a hunt.

When the credits rolled, I didn’t feel like I’d just watched a movie, but more so an apocalyptic study on the tenacity of human innocence.

Watch now on Kanopy: Lord of the Flies (Free with your library card). You can reserve the book in BCCLS here.

Comment below your thoughts once you’ve had a watch.

Hit subscribe to get Hoboken Public Library Staff Picks to your email!

Written by:
Sean Willey
Information and Digital Services Assistant

Tags: , ,

Day or Dusk, Dawn or Dead of Eve: The Night House Sticks With You All Day

26 Feb

The Night House scared me in my bones and through my veins.

Film poster showing a woman standing alone at the end of a wooden dock at a lake in the dead of night. There is a shoreline in the background with a distant house beneath a red moon through heavy clouds. The text reads “The Night House.”

The director plays with angles and shapes to distort your vision while the writers weave the slightest and most intriguing details into the character’s background and behavior to keep you guessing. The scares are well-timed and effective. Each serve a purpose. Every twinge of dread or outright jump in your seat is vindicated. From the bumps to the spooks to the visual distortion and to the realism of the suspension of belief, the fear and unease of this movie lives in human flaws, moral debate, and in the spinning wheel of grief.

The Night House (2020; R) blends psychological horror, suspense, and mystery. You can reserve the DVD here in the BCCLS system or find a copy at the Hoboken Public Library.

Beth is reeling from the death of her husband and, in that grief, has decided to stay in the lakehouse they built together. She puts up a strong front and continues with her day-to-day life, but she can’t hide from the night and the tricks on her mind in her dreams. Soon, she cannot tell what a dream is and what is real. Or are they the same? Either way, a ghostly presence is luring her in. So, she begins digging for answers and going into her husband’s affairs. There lies a trail of dark and disturbing urges. ​

The film is about the seductive battle between not wanting to let go without all the answers, vs. the monsters in our mind that feed on us as we walk through that rotted, dark tunnel. On its simplest level, too, it’s the classic sparring between what lies in this world and what exists beyond it, and at what stages in our lives is it possible for them to blend. ​

Watch under the caution of your lamps and with blankets by your side. Don’t think about the souls that once walked through your room now, perhaps hiding under the couch as you reach for your drink. You might find yourself noticing, too, how angles in your home, at just the right tilt, silhouette the human form. Ghosts and spirits prey on our lazy, presumptuous vision and blind expectation that everything will be as it is when we turn around.

My heart is still pumping tight to the chest, and my throat clenches when I consider the story’s morality. It could happen to any of us, and I, for one, will take extra notice the next time I’m at a secluded cabin of every boat rock, every vacant house, every angle shift, every depth beyond dark windows, and every light across the lake.

Reserve your copy in the BCCLS system here to pick up at the Hoboken Public Library.

Comment below your thoughts once you’ve had a watch.

Hit subscribe to get Hoboken Public Library Staff Picks to your email!

Written by:
Sean Willey
Information and Digital Services Assistant

Tags: , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →