Lamb of God - Walk With Me in Hell. I have Walk With Me in Hell in my hands and I have watched both disks of this expansive set. What I have witnessed is nothing short of excellence. It is not the music, it is not even the people, it is the insight which we are given into the lives of these five men, musicians, friends, and family. You see, this DVD is not a collection of on the road videos, nor is it a concert DVD; it is an actual documentary. This is no Voluminal (Slipknot) nor is it Volume 1 (Mushroomhead), this is an actual documentary. I was transfixed as I watched the disk. These five guys believe in their music, believe they can make it, but are completely unsure of how it is going. Essentially, we get to experience their coming of age as a band. Now, it is not all heavy stuff, these guys know how to have fun. I was particularly taken with a scene in which Chris and Willie Adler jam on a street corner in Japan using gear belonging to a couple of street musicians. I also loved seeing how taken they were with crowds singing their words at the shows.
Outsourced. With a name like Outsourced, it is pretty easy to tell what a big part of this story is going to be about. It's true, it does concern a severe case of outsourcing, but it is not a serious film dealing with loss and betrayal giving way to fright and ultimately violent revenge; oh no, this is a lighthearted film that deals with self-discovery through necessity and being open to moving into the next stage of life. It is actually rather sweet and touching. Essentially, this is a fish out of water story. Todd, whose misunderstood name results in people calling him Mr. Toad, is forced to figure out some way of dealing with the vast cultural differences where the ultimate result is his discovery that these people are no different from himself, making their way through life the best way they can.
Teeth. This movie takes the myth of vagina dentata and gives it an exploitative twist en route to a story that is sure to get a rise out of an audience. The myth in its original form has appeared in stories and legends from cultures all over the world. It was used to explain the dangers of sex with strange women, or under inappropriate circumstances, by feeding on the male fear of castration. It is something that survives to this day in the form of crude jokes. I am sure that there are many, like myself, who have heard at least one or two of these jokes but were unaware of its origin in the vagina dentata myth. With Teeth, first time writer/director Mitchell Lichtenstein has taken the myth a step back from the current level of crude joke, injecting it with a sense of humor, immediacy, and genuine fear. In other words, he is giving it some real weight. For too long the myth has languished as the butt of a joke; it is time that the real fear from which it was born so long ago be given back to it. To that end, Teeth is a very dark comedy that preys on the fears of men, empowers women, and gives it substance unlike any joke has been able to do. It is a very well done film. Sure, it could have been bloodier and more over the top, but it is a very entertaining and cringe-inducing film. The central performance is charismatic and the story is one that has applications outside of the exploitative. Make it a double feature with Hard Candy and you are in for one heck of a night!
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