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Finally - something different. I've been really disappointed with horror films like Van Helsing, Cabin Fever and to some extent 28 Days Later mainly becausethe stories tend to be very flat and uninteresting. The characters are people we have seen 1000 times before and you know exactly what they are going to do.Also, the stories don't make a lot of sense - there are enough plot holes in 28 Days Later (is there really only one way out of London and it's through atunnel?) and Cabin Fever (not to mention the lousy acting of the latter) to make anyone roll their eyes. However, Jolliffe's film feels real, looks real and takes a bold chance by mixing horror and social realism in a truly frightening way.I love how Jolliffe take us into a world that few Americans ever see - a Scottish slum and make a poltergeist film out of how one might actually happen. Mostpeople who experience this phenomenon are young teenage girls who have alot of stress or trauma in their lives. It is dark, dingy, nasty world filled with harsh characters like a very un-Hobbitish Billy Boyd as a stuttering loan shark who live life with twisted view. A woman gets pregnant at 16 and thinks it's the greatest thing ever because she can go on welfare. That's f-ed up. It's no wonder that the lead girl, who I thought did a fantastic job balancing her emotions betweentrying to be a "cool" teenager and a "scared little girl" is a prime candidate for a poltergeist happening. Refreshingly there's none of these ghosts swirlingaround the room - they are much more subtle and hence much creepierbecause they fray on your nerves instead of blowing their wad in one hugeaction sequence. That's what Spielberg did with Jaws for most of the film.But two things really make Urban Ghost Story stick out. First, is that the story takes the viewpoint of "what would really happen" to people who experiencethis situation. They would go to as many "doctors" to fix the situation. So we see scientists, exorcists and religious figures all trying to put their spin on it - and they all have a valid argument for their belief. But, ultimately we are dealing with something that humans can't defeat with "weapons" - that is what makes thistruly supernatural and scary. Only from the lead girl's confession does all go back to how it should. Humans have to appease the situation - make amends for wrong doing - not try to get away with something through sorcery or statistics. Fantastic. The second thing is that the film from what I have read was made for about $300,000. And yet the filmmakers managed to have a spectacular highfall and a frightening car wreck with a thunderous explosion. They really know how to put every dollar on screen. It really is inspiration for indie filmmakers out there that you can make something great with very little.Go see this film and open your mind. You won't get the same obligatory plotpoints and cardboard cutout characters. You'll get something 100 times better.
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