Cutting Moments | |
---|---|
Directed by | Douglas Buck |
Written by | Douglas Buck |
Produced by | Douglas Buck |
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Nicola Saraval |
Music by | William DiMartino |
Release date |
|
Running time | 29 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Cutting Moments is a 1997 short film written, produced, and directed by Douglas Buck, [1] [2] in cooperation with The New School. The film was first released on a VHS compilation also called "Cutting Moments" before being re-released in August 2004 as part of Buck's suburban holocaust collection Family Portraits: A Trilogy of America. [3]
In the center of a uniform, monotonous subdivision, married couple Sarah and Patrick have been living with their emotions kept isolated between themselves and their son, Joey. Patrick seems to be cold and harsh by ignoring Sarah's existence, and the affection Patrick once had for her has all but disappeared. It comes to the point that his sexual urges are manifested in his actions toward Joey. In one scene, Joey is playing outside and places two Power Rangers toys in a suggestive position on the ground. Sarah is left in bewilderment when she hears the discussion between her husband and son later that evening.
At the dinner table, Sarah tells Patrick that she had a conversation with a lawyer over the phone, and it is likely that Joey will soon be taken away. Patrick responds by saying, "It will all work out." The next morning, in an attempt to get Patrick to notice her, Sarah applies make-up and dons a seductive red dress. When Patrick shows disinterest and disdain towards his wife (by ignoring her and continuing to watch TV), Sarah goes to the bathroom and removes her lipstick. Thinking that something is still on her lips, she begins to repeatedly scrub them with a scouring pad until they are scratched and bloody. She then cuts off her lips with a pair of scissors, which leads to Patrick showing renewed interest in their relationship. The two then have tearful, bloody sex, which culminates with Patrick using hedge trimmers to sever his wife's breast and his own penis, with both promptly dying of blood loss. The following morning, police arrive and find their bodies, though Joey is uninjured and taken to safety by a CPS social worker.
Anita Gates of The New York Times wrote of the film "scenes are almost unwatchable but have a curious, grotesque power", and of Buck's work, "There is a sober intelligence behind his low-budget gore, but its shrill excess drowns out the ring of truth". [1] Brian Bertoldo of Film Threat wrote that the film "brings the viewer into a nightmare of insanity and mutilation as a married couple come apart at the seams", and noting that while real suburbia horror is almost too common to be a horror theme, "What does work is the gory execution, that's not something you'll see on the 11 o'clock news." [2]
The Ring is a 2002 American supernatural horror film directed by Gore Verbinski and written by Ehren Kruger. Starring Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, and Brian Cox, the film focuses on Rachel Keller (Watts), a journalist who discovers a cursed videotape that causes its viewers to die seven days later. It is a remake of Hideo Nakata's 1998 film Ring, based on the 1991 novel by Koji Suzuki.
10 Things I Hate About You is a 1999 American teen romantic comedy film directed by Gil Junger in his film directorial debut and starring Julia Stiles, Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Larisa Oleynik. The screenplay by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith is a modernization of William Shakespeare's comedy The Taming of the Shrew, retold in a late-1990s American high school setting. The film follows new student Cameron James (Gordon-Levitt) who is smitten with Bianca Stratford (Oleynik) and attempts to get bad boy Patrick Verona (Ledger) to date her antisocial sister Kat (Stiles) in order to get around her father's strict rules on dating. Named after a poem Kat writes about her romance with Patrick, the film was mostly shot in the Seattle metropolitan area, with many scenes filmed at Stadium High School in Tacoma, Washington.
The Hunger is a 1983 British erotic horror film directed by Tony Scott in his directorial debut, starring Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie and Susan Sarandon. The film is a loose adaptation of the 1981 novel of the same name by Whitley Strieber, with a screenplay by Ivan Davis and Michael Thomas. Its plot concerns a love triangle between a doctor who specialises in sleep and ageing research (Sarandon) and a vampire couple. The film's special effects were handled by make-up effects artist Dick Smith.
Faust: Love of the Damned is a 2000 Spanish English-language superhero horror film directed by Brian Yuzna. It is adapted from a screenplay by David Quinn and Miguel Tejada-Flores based on the comic book of the same name by Tim Vigil and David Quinn. It was produced by Ted Chalmers, Carlos, Julio and Antonio Fernández, Bea Morillas, Miguel Torrente and Brian Yuzna. It premiered at the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival on 12 October 2000.
Extreme cinema is a subgenre used for films distinguished by its use of excessive sex and violence, and depiction of extreme acts such as mutilation and torture. The rising popularity of Asian films in the 21st century has contributed to the growth of extreme cinema, although extreme cinema is still considered to be a horror film-based genre. Being a relatively recent genre, extreme cinema is controversial and widely unaccepted by the mainstream media. Extreme cinema films target a specific and small audience group.
Lin Shaye is an American actress. In a career spanning over fifty years, Shaye has appeared in more than a hundred feature films. She is regarded as a scream queen due to her roles in various horror productions, which include the films Alone in the Dark (1982), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Critters (1986) and its sequel Critters 2: The Main Course (1988), Amityville: A New Generation (1993), Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994), Dead End (2003), 2001 Maniacs (2005) and its sequel 2001 Maniacs: Field of Screams (2010), Ouija (2014) and its prequel Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), Tales of Halloween (2015), Abattoir (2016), The Final Wish (2018), Room for Rent (2019), The Grudge (2020), and the Insidious film series (2010–2023).
My Bloody Valentine 3D is a 2009 American 3D slasher film directed and co-edited by Patrick Lussier, and written by Todd Farmer and Zane Smith. A remake of the 1981 Canadian film of the same name, it stars Jensen Ackles, Jaime King, Kerr Smith and Kevin Tighe, with Edi Gathegi and Tom Atkins in supporting roles. The film focuses on the residents of a small town that is plagued by a serial killer in mining gear on Valentine's Day, who is believed to be the same murderer who was thought to have died a decade prior.
Wake Wood is a 2009 Irish supernatural horror film directed by David Keating and starring Timothy Spall, Eva Birthistle, Ella Connolly and Aidan Gillen. An international co-production between Ireland and the United Kingdom by Hammer Film Productions, the film is set in Donegal, Ireland. The story revolves around a grieving couple, Patrick and Louise, who move to a rural village after the tragic death of their daughter, Alice. They encounter strange rituals led by Arthur, a veterinary colleague, that can bring the dead back to life for three days.
Douglas Buck is an American film director.
The House in Marsh Road, known on American television as Invisible Creature, is a 1960 British horror suspense film produced by Maurice J. Wilson, directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Tony Wright, Patricia Dainton and Sandra Dorne. The plot centres on a benevolent poltergeist in a country home that protects a woman from her homicidal husband. It may be one of the first films to use the word 'poltergeist' in reference to a spirit or ghost. The film was never released to theatres in the USA and instead went straight to television.
The Flesh and Blood Show is a 1972 British horror slasher film directed and produced by Pete Walker, and starring Ray Brooks, Jenny Hanley, and Luan Peters. It follows a group of actors being stalked and murdered by an unseen assailant while rehearsing a play at a derelict seaside theatre.
Sierra McCormick is an American actress. She first became known for participating in the game show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (2007–2008) before making her acting debut with a recurring role as Lilith on the television series Supernatural (2008). She also starred as Scout Thomas on the comedy television series Romantically Challenged (2010), played Alice in the direct-to-DVD film Spooky Buddies (2011) for which she won a Young Artist Award, and Susan Kushner in the comedy film Ramona and Beezus (2010). She had her breakthrough starring as Olive Doyle on the Disney Channel series A.N.T. Farm (2011–2014).
V/H/S is a 2012 American found footage horror anthology film and the first installment in the V/H/S franchise created by Brad Miska and Bloody Disgusting, and produced by Miska and Roxanne Benjamin. It features a series of found footage shorts written and directed by Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, and the filmmaking collective Radio Silence.
At the Devil's Door is a 2014 American supernatural horror film directed by Nicholas McCarthy. The film had its world premiere on March 9, 2014, at South by Southwest. It stars Naya Rivera as a woman caught amidst ghostly events.
White Settlers is a 2014 British thriller-horror film that was directed by Simeon Halligan. The film had its premiere on 23 August 2014 at Film4 FrightFest and stars Pollyanna McIntosh and Lee Williams as a couple that find that their new home is not as hospitable as they would have hoped.
Hush is a 2016 American slasher film directed and edited by Mike Flanagan, and starring Kate Siegel, who also co-wrote the film with Flanagan. The film co-stars John Gallagher Jr., Michael Trucco, Samantha Sloyan, and Emilia "Emma" Graves. It was jointly produced by Trevor Macy through Intrepid Pictures and Jason Blum through Blumhouse Productions.
Nica Pierce is a fictional character in the Child's Play franchise. She was created by Don Mancini and is portrayed by Fiona Dourif. She is the protagonist in two of the seven films, first appearing in Curse of Chucky (2013) and subsequently in Cult of Chucky (2017). She is also featured in the USA Network and Syfy produced Chucky television series.
Inside is a 2016 independent horror film directed and co-written by Miguel Ángel Vivas, written by Jaume Balagueró and Manu Díez, and starring Rachel Nichols, Laura Harring, and Stany Coppet. Its plot follows a pregnant woman pursued by a psychotic woman trying to steal her unborn child on Christmas Eve.
What Keeps You Alive is a 2018 Canadian psychological horror film written and directed by Colin Minihan. It stars Hannah Emily Anderson and Brittany Allen and follows a young woman fighting for her life as her wife's murderous intentions become evident.
You'll Never Find Me is a 2023 Australian horror-thriller film directed by Indianna Bell and Josiah Allen in their directorial debut from a screenplay by Bell.