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Dagon

Dagon

List Price: $14.98
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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not the ultimate Lovecraft adaptation but worth a look
Review: DAGON (which as other reviewers have pointed out, is actually based more closely on the Lovecraft story "Shadow Over Innsmouth") suffers from the usual problem with Lovecraft stories brought to the screen - it SHOULD have been done so much better. Knowing of Yuzna and Gordon's longtime ambition to film this story, I was keen to see the realisation - but disappointed to find it set in a SPANISH fishing village instead of good ol' Innsmouth in the USA where it rightly belongs. There is a reasonable use of atmosphere - shambling Deep Ones and so on - and the Esoteric Order of Dagon cult is depicted well - yet the Zadok Allen character from HPL's story being depicted as a Spanish speaker is outright odd; the budgetary constraints that led to the story being filmed in Spain mean it's just not quite correct in feel. I felt sorry for the lead actor, who is filmed stumbling through what seems continuous rain throughout the film. This is a noble and well-intentioned attempt; but botched attempts at Lovecraft are a dime a dozen; for my money, the movie THE RESURRECTED (based on Lovecraft's THE CASE OF CHARLES DEXTER WARD) is still the best movie adaptation of the Master's work. DAGON would be OK to show friends who know nothing of HPL and it does give some of the flavour - in fact in parts it reminded me of the creepy atmosphere of the Lovecraft CDROM game NECRONOMICON - but for diehard fans it lacks the true flavour of edlritch fear and horror. Let's hope for better in the future!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best Lovecraft movie yet!!
Review: I feel Dagon is the best movie-interpretation of H.P.Lovecraft to date, and certainly Stuart Gordon's best work to date. Some would argue that Re-Animator is better, but I feel it's too ... comical. Dagon is genuinely disturbing, as Lovecraft should be. Gordon throws in some pretty visceral gore, but it's not really out of place in it's own Lovecraftian manner. 7 tentacles writhing for this film!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Best Lovecraft Adaptation I've Seen!
Review: What else can I say? It's great. For the most part, it's an adaptation of "The Shadow Over Innsmouth", but bits of other stories ("Arthur Jermyn" and, of course, "Dagon" come to mind) weave their way into it, too. Lovecraft readers dissapointed by "The Dunwich Horror" and "Re-animator" should see "Dagon". Trust me on this.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not Bad...
Review: Ok, if you like suspense,horror, gore, you'll find it here. There are those "sit on the edge of your seat" scenes. You gore fans won't take your eyes off of the screen for a moment during the torture scene. However, The creature development in some areas don't really work for me. Occassionally you'd see an odd fish-like character existing in some truly bizarre fashion. The ending was very weird. While I did enjoy certain parts of this film, I would have been very upset had I stayed up late to watch it on TV.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good
Review: This movie was suprisingly good. I saw it on Sci-Fi channel, but the DVD has a lot more footage that I didn't see on the SF channel.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Looks and feels like Lovecraft reads
Review: I've found Stuart Gordon's films to be either hit or miss; brilliant or bad. Dagon is brilliant. There are many films (Gordon's included) that are based on or inspired by H.P. Lovecraft - some good, some not so good; but Dagon captures the feel of Lovecraft's creepy literations remarkably well, and with shocking credibility. And at times, it is frightening.

Although the film is called "Dagon", the film bears absolutely no semblance to Lovecraft's first short story of the same name, other than the fact that it takes place on an island and our (reluctant) hero is male. The film, which is very much like a short story, is actually closer to Lovecraft's "Shadow Over Innsmouth". But unlike "Innsmouth", the film "Dagon" is contemporary, is set in an island off Spain (which is come to by underworldly design rather than curiosity), has no development, and is more of a rollercoaster ride of panic and horror and gore than of Lovecraft's subtle ascent into an alienating nightmare and the narrator's literary descent into madness. Nevertheless, these changes don't stray from culminating Lovecraft's "feel", which is largely important.

All the performances are outstanding; especially Macarena Gomez's portrayal of a Dagon cult princess, who is engagingly beautiful and absolutely frightening at the same time. The cinematography, non-CGI effects and make-up are also outstanding, as is the subtle, thematic music score.

I really have only two complaints (and they are quite significant in the film, unfortunately) that keep me from giving this film five stars: actor Ezra Godden (Paul - the film's reluctant hero) and the amateurish CGI effects. I could've done without either; and neither add - only detract - to and from the film.

Whether you end up liking "Dagon" or not is a moot point: it is an experience through film that all fans of Lovecraft and/or horror must see.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A good Flick
Review: I can't say much different that other reviewers already have. If you are a Lovecraft or Stuart Gordon fan, or a horror fan in general, this movie is worth checking out. While not perfect, they did a good job with a low budget. My biggest advice would be to put on the subtitles once the old man character comes along. His accent is so bad that you won't understand a word of what he is saying. Also, the chanting of the cultists has some very familiar words if you are a reader of Lovecraft.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Deep Ones are Everywhere
Review: "Dagon" is my favourite film adaptation thus far of Lovecraft's works.

The Spanish location surprised me at first and I wondered how it was going to work as a substitute for HPL's New England settings. It did, and exceptionally well at that. The decadent and foreboding atmosphere blended very nicely with the (mostly) Spanish-speaking inhabitants to produce a tremendous sense of alienation and frustration on the part of the nerdy but likeable "hero." I shared his sense of having stumbled into a threateningly alien backwater from the first few minutes of the film.

Unlike the Sci-Fi Channel presentation of "Dagon," the DVD contains a number of additional scenes, some simply more "adult," others graphically gory (and very Lovecraftian, in my view). If you were turned off by the sanitised TV version, you might want to give the full version a try. It doesn't disappoint in "filling in the gaps."

All in all, I believe that hardcore fans of H.P. Lovecraft's books who have felt "cheated" by earlier film adaptations will be very pleasantly (??) surprised by this addition to the canon. "Dagon" creates and gives a distinctly foreign flavour to a new version of HPL's loathesome and murderously xenophobic Innsmouth and, in my opinion, goes a long way toward convincing us that the nefarious Deep Ones and their followers are indeed *everywhere*. Just be sure that the kiddies are in bed before you watch it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Whose got the tartar sauce?
Review: I wasn't sure of what to expect when I got this movie, and I was pleasantly surprised. Keep in mind that is is no Re-Animator or From Beyond, but I think it is still a pretty good piece of work. The story starts of with a pair of couples on a yacht who get caught in a storm off the coast of a small fishing village in Spain and thier boat is damaged. One couple gets stuck on the sinking boat while the other couple try to make it to shore to get help. The couple going for help find the town almost completely deserted and desperately try to get assistance for their stranded shipmates. Slowly the revelation is made that there is an aura of evil over the town, and the townspeople have a sinister secret. I think the director did a very god job in creating an air of creepiness through the movie, and the actors seemed to hold up their end pretty well. Not as gory or graphic as Re-Animator or From Beyond, but enough to keep fans satisfied. There is one scene where someone gets their face removed that was pretty graphic, so I wouldn't recommend this for mainstream audiences. I don't want to give too much away, let the movie reveal itself on it's own, but if you're familiar with H.P. Lovecraft and his work you can probably guess what's happening. And I agree with a previous reviewer in that the woman playing the priestess was completely and utterly freakishly haunting! This is a horror movie, but I enjoyed the comedic elements injected throughout the movie, as in Re-Animator or Evil Dead. One thing that did annoy me a little about this movie was that the main male character tended to spout a particular phrase about evey 15 minutes. I am still waiting for From Beyond to come out on DVD, but until then, this was a nice diversion and an interesting trip into the Cthulhu mythos.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Stuart Gordon's least satisfying Lovecraft adaptation
Review: 15 years after FROM BEYOND producer Brian Yuzna and director Stuart Gordon reunite again for another excursion into H.P Lovecraft territory.
Their latest collaboration centres around a group of people who end up stranded on an island where the townspeople worship a bloodthirsty pagan demon named Dagon, who predictably needs blood sacrifices from the mindless sheep who worship him. Sounds good (the movie was a Nominee for Best Movie at the 2002 International Fantasy Film Awards) but sadly this is nowhere near reaching the high standards of RE-ANIMATOR or FROM BEYOND. The CREATIVITY and HUMOR largely aren't there. If Gordon and Yuzna are hoping to return to their glory days, then they've failed in that respect.
But on the plus side there are numerous scenes guaranteed to satisfy horror fans; including a rather gory torture sequence in which a man has his face peeled off, as well as the crucifixion and ritualistic mutilation of a pretty girl who is about to be sacrificed to Dagon (Obviously this "god" isn't picky about his diet consisting solely of virgins).
Contains gore, graphic violence, nudity, and disgusting slimy squishy things that no self respecting homosapien would want to feel smooshing between their toes. DVD extras include a doco on the making of the film, the trailer and a commentary track.


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