matthew d
Faith and clairvoyance bring misery to the masses.
Mike Hodges' supernatural-horror mystery thriller Black Rainbow (1989) uses his previous expertise in crime thriller directing with Get Carter and Pulp to great violent use for Black Rainbow's gritty world. Hodges' direction feels creepy with this dark atmosphere that settles into the desolate North Carolina and South Carolina backdrop. Voytek's scarce production design pulls you away from decent society into the rural outskirts of American civilization. You can feel the religious fanaticism and devotion in these Evangelical type supporting characters that seeps into your sense of dismay and devastation at the dark events within Black Rainbow.
Hodges creates a moody atmosphere immediately alongside cinematographer Gerry Fisher's crawling panning shots and beautiful framing. John Scott's eerie score draws you in with an unearthly aura complementing Black Rainbow's mystique. Mike Hodges drives you right into this eerie mystery and then suddenly flashes back with the slam of a door, only to close the movie with another door slamming us back to the hard reality. Black Rainbow is an intriguing mystery thriller with crime and horror elements, while simultaneously being a moving art piece on our faith. I believe any atheist, agnostic, or devout believer could watch Black Rainbow and gain something from it.
Rosanna Arquette is adorable as the clairvoyant Martha Travis. Her enigmatic charisma and charming personality make Martha immediately endearing. You feel for her plight of not being believed and struggling with her faith, spiritual abilities, and father daughter relationship. She is just drop dead gorgeous in Black Rainbow with an effervescent beauty and natural charm. Rosanna Arquette is an underrated actress in my opinion as she was delightful in Desperately Seeking Susan alongside Madonna and devastating in Black Rainbow.
Jason Robards (Once Upon a Time in the West) is hilarious as Martha's alcoholic father Walter Travis, who possesses his daughter as a business expense, not seeing her humanity and suffering. Robards is perfect as this selfish monster, squandering a fortune, and emotionally abusing his own beloved daughter. It's fun watching Robards be a straight up atheist here too. Jason Robards is quite powerful like Rosanna Arquette in Black Rainbow as he comes to terms with his fate, faith, and sins. Similarly, Tom Hulce has never been better than in Black Rainbow as a curious journalist named Gary Wallace, who falls for the sultry and sweet clairvoyant played by Rosanna Arquette. Hulce is great at portraying an unashamed atheist, who essentially witnesses a miracle. Does he become agnostic or turn to God after what he's seen?
Olek Krupa cameos as an Irish man named Tom Kuron, with his usual Polish accent. John Bennes is great as this rich, old lecher CEO Ted Silas. His presence wears on you the entire film as he's introduced on TV, billboards, and in person. The greed of man is embodied in the shriveling elderly wretch of Ted Silas. Marty Terry and Helen Baldwin are great as two of the affected widows in Black Rainbow.
Mike Hodges' script is stuffed with brilliant religious commentary on what faith provides us. Is it comfort in the hereafter or escape from our present woes? Hodges destroys any notion of peace on Earth, while allowing the audience to at least try to understand clairvoyance, religion, faith, God, and those desperately seeking a sense of the universe we reside in currently. Also, Hodges really pounds the nail into you about corporate greed skipping health and safety precautions unethically, causing catastrophe for society.
Malcolm Cooke's steady editing gives Black Rainbow a quick pace with time to reflect on each person's beliefs as the story progresses into mayhem. It's amazing that Black Rainbow is only 103 as it contains a multitude of character arcs and revelations. From the faithful finding that her gifts as a spiritual medium con artist is actually real and she also bears the gift of foresight. But, seeing into the future lets her feel the consequences of knowing who dies early. I also appreciate the two skeptics both ending up believing in a divine God, but one is haunted forever by his newfound knowledge and the other is immediately obliterated for his past sins.
In conclusion, Black Rainbow is completely captivating in each haunting moment with a chilling effect. It's not a jump out of your seat horror thriller, but a psychological dive into the psyche of those who believe in God and seek solace in Heaven.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
laurent b
Absolutely fan of this movie. A rare movie that is before its time. It's talking about faith, reality and illusion, about ecology, and above all about the fact that "we make an entertainment of everything, ecology, politic, religion" (approximative quote, sorry). The cast is stunning, with Rosanna Arquette vibrante and emotional, Jason Robards great as usual, and Tom Hulce so gripping. If you like deep questioning about humanity and society, if you like drama and fantastic equally, with a thrilling plot just Don't miss it !
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Surreal movie, that makes you think... ind of liek John Edwards but wihout all the fake stuff..
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
01/15/23
Full Review
Audience Member
It was dark, but had a weird ending. But I loved the acting
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/15/23
Full Review
Audience Member
For an older,low budget movie it was ok.I don't think they explained well enough for some at the beginning that she and her father were fakes until she started really hearing voices of dead people.I also didn't care for the weird ending.Not the very end,but the whole scene right before with her father and the killer and her "presence".It seemed out of place and sort of just thrown in.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
01/18/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This enjoyable supernatural thriller is set in the fundamentalist society of crumbling industrial towns where folks have a deep-rooted faith in the spiritualist movement.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/25/23
Full Review
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