A House's Burden of Murder

A young woman inherits a cosy old retirement home in 1982's Next of Kin. And that's the word for this movie: cosy. I found it really pleasant to settle into this big old Victorian estate with beautiful wallpaper and carpets with the beautiful young woman who inherited it. Sinister things start happening around her, and it's pretty effective. According to the Wikipedia entry, Quentin Tarantino compared this movie to The Shining. I don't think it builds quite that sense of dread--again, my overriding experience was "cosy". But I can see something of The Shining in the way it subtly introduces creepy elements and unobtrusively puts a threat onscreen. I could tell I'd have enjoyed the movie more if my internet weren't still shit. But it's a good thing Criterion allows the viewer to manually change the resolution. Usually I watch Criterion at 540p. Last night I was forced to go all the way down to 240p. So it was a little muddy but at least it wasn't constantly stopping and loading. I find flow more important than resolution. The cinematography is really good, though, with lots of pitch black shadows, always serving to emphasis or draw proper attention to subjects. The only times it was difficult to see anything was when the protagonist was also having difficulty seeing. The film stars Jacki Kerin, who doesn't even have a Wikipedia entry. But she's terrific in the role, coming off as really panicked and unhinged, with just the right, subtle hint of madness. Next of Kin is available on The Criterion Channel. Twitter Sonnet #1637 Reversing hides were jelly 'neath the roof. The walls were walked a stair a day for weeks. The prints desist, displacing ev'ry hoof. The birds exchanged a bag of extra beaks. The swirling circle slows the movie time. So solid methods turned the tide to red. For drinking blood, we eastern mountains climb. The people of believed in living dead. Deceptive baths were waiting back in mind. Resurgent vans were waiting out the yard. A sugar house was sweet as melon rind. Another turn demands a wild card. The cosy house was stocked with danger beer. We travel light to make the boozy mere.