Monday, October 31, 2022

31 Days of Horror (Films) - Day 30

STARRY EYES

This film is an unabashed homage to Dario Argento's Susperia, albeit with less emphasis on rich colors and set design. But it keeps all the eerie and off-putting elements intact, often ratcheting them up to 11.

It's also a pretty damn bueno critique on the Hollywood mystique and people's continued quest for fame and adoration. And it presents a genuinely creepy view of casting calls that predates the Harvey Weinstein MeToo revelations of 2017 by a good three years.

Essentially unfolding as a descent into madness, the film follows the ambitions of wannabe star Sarah, who slums at a fast food restaurant between attending auditions. She's surrounded by other like-minded individuals, all grasping for the elusive Tinseltown Dream. The cattiness displayed between the competing actresses, the lechery and power plays of low-level management, and the seedy underbelly lurking beneath the Silver Screen are all delivered with vim, vigor, and tremendous verve. 

The ending is a bit hammy, but the journey there is so taut and teeming with sinister undertones that it's worth the trip.

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