Kafka (1991)

Soderbergh is a hit and miss director for me. With Kafka he categorically hit. It's not based on any one specific story but is rather an amalgamation of the author's themes. Translating them into film was achieved with occasional canted angles and a beautiful canvas of B+W contrasts courtesy of DoP Walt Lloyd. The deceptively simple depth of field holds within it things that stand out without being pointed out directly - there's a trust that the viewer will know not just where to look but how to look. Influences are plentiful, from Murnau to Lang, Huston, Welles, Reed and even Hitchcock, there's always something interesting to admire (that rooftop!).
Obviously, some knowledge of Kafka's published works will help with placing of references, but it's not necessary to enjoy the film.

4½ internal reverberations out of 5

The Company of Wolves (1984)

A strange Gothic film that does visually what I imagine Hammer Studios could've eventually achieved had they evolved properly and not succumbed to desperate mimicry. It’s a surreal take on the Little Red Riding Hood story, even more full of symbolism and allegory.
The majority of it takes place within a nightmare/fever dream that mixes fairy tales, folklore and fear from the perspective of a young girl on the verge of womanhood. She’s repeatedly told by certain elders not to stray from the path (ie. keep your legs closed when the boys come calling), but like her mother says, the animal in man finds its equal in woman.
It’s marred by laughably bad acting, but the animatronics help offset that.

3 wolf tears out of 5

Alien³ (1992 / 2003)

It's as bleak as a British winter and it'll piss off many fans of Aliens (1986), but I doubt pleasing Cameron's crowd was ever on the agenda of the creative team. If you've seen the Theatrical Cut, then you'll know how messy and lifeless it was. Fincher declined an invitation to do a Dir. Cut himself, so instead we got an Assembly Cut (by editor David Crowther?) that takes a xenomorph sized shit all over the studio's preferred version.

The bad CGI and hasty rewrites are still evident, but the forced camaraderie, the crushing despair and the multiple malignancies are more tightly woven into the narrative structure. Ultimately, if you're a fan of the series and haven't seen the 2003 version, then you really ought to.

1992 Cut: 2½ wall-runs out of 5 | 2003 Cut: 3½ parental instincts out of 5

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

Two Americans backpacking in the moors of Europe… yeah, yeah, you know the story already. There’s lycanthropy and the only way to break the curse is by killing the source. The transformation scene is still one of the most painful things to watch. Make-up and practical effects are top notch. I fall in love with the Jenny Agutter nurse character every time. I consider it the greatest werewolf movie ever made (along with The Howling); at the very least, better than The Wolfman …and all the rest.

5 dreams-within-a-dream out of 5