Click images for desktop size: "Red As The Sin" by Janet Janesko I watched a Spanish film in the middle of last night: Thesis (Tesis).
In the past six years or so, when this became important I guess, I've been told I lack a feminine side. I've never figured out what they meant which was usually taken as proof!
I do know that this film, Thesis, was one of the few films that had me involved in the plight of a heroine. Thesis was made by the guy, Alejandro Amenabar,  who later made, “Open Your Eyes”, which Tom Cruise optioned and virtually destroyed in his revolting “Vanilla Skies”. (Except I really liked Cameron Diaz in this one.)
Thesis is about a young woman who sublimates her own slightly perverted sexuality in her school work; she's writing a thesis on audio-visual violence.  this sets up the plot which moves the entertainment along.
In her research her thesis director dies watching a film. Angela (played by a highly attractive Ana Torrent who I recalled with a jolt as the only good thing in “Spirit Of The Beehive” as a child actress) discovers the dead man and steals the video tape he'd been watching.
She's afraid to watch the tape, afraid of what could be on it that would kill a man. She turns off the picture and makes a cassette of the soundtrack. The soundtrack is of a woman screaming and pleading for her life.
She enlists the aid of the University bad boy, Chema. (they have a cute meet - in the cafeteria; when he looks at her we hear his walkman playing speed metal; when she looks at him we hear her music so vapid light classical piece).
The tape is of a snuff film. More disturbing is that they both recognize the girl being murdered and dismembered. It's a student who vanished 2 years ago.
It is through these machinations that the real beauty of the story is allowed to unfold. What film is worth anything unless it is about love and understanding it.
Chema and Angela investigate the killing. Chema because Angela is gorgeous and Angela because she is reluctantly turned on by the violence.
Angela is falling in love with a gorgeous student who Chema insists is the killer. Angela puts this off to Chema's jealousy but also believes him. She has dark sexual fantasies of the good looking student who is clearly stalking her.
As they live with life and the threat of the murders she begins to mistrust everyone around her, always with cause. She's falling in love and living in terror. One point being that isn't love a terrible and horrifying thing in and of itself?
There are so many wonderful moments of beauty in this film. Surprisingly there is very little blood and very little violence shown which somehow makes it creepier. The tech work is very good, approaching Hollywood and just below Japanese status.
This is a film to seek out and to see. Not quite a film to love and it's odd conclusion of valuing friendship over love is a bit heart rendering, but it is still a thing of beauty.

Which brings us to the conclusion of my little film:
Billy, the 16 year old gunfighter, in pursuit of his parent killers.
Billy enjoys his first night out alone and unshackled. He talks to his horse and makes coffee, staying up all night counting stars.
The next day, as things must in this sort of film, he runs by happenstance into the first of the killers: A vicious thug.
They meet in a cave that acts as a bar - a plank over two wooden barrels that has two bottles of whiskey (cheap set design). Billy lets him draw first and with blinding speed puts two bullets into the violent thugs heart.
Problem is that Billy doesn't react like a gunfighter but like a human being. He looks at the dead man, whitens and vomits.
Billy's a gunfighter supreme but he's no killer, not even for a thrill. He wanders the west confused as a 16 year old with a lifelong quest he doesn't want to fulfill.
In a torrential rainstorm. (It just happened) Billy rides into a small town and happily watches a bank robbery. Until one of the riders bandanas are torn off and Billy recognizes killer number 2.
Billy vaults his horse and rides off in pursuit. This is a loathsome vicious group. They sit around the camp fire complaining about their lot in life while knife fighting with each other to keep off the boredom.
Billy steps into the camp fire light, guns drawn. He has no interest in the bank robbers just the man who killed his parents. His plan is to release the robbers but to take the killer in to stand trial . . .
A gang member who went to the outdoor toilet sneaks up and conks Billy on the head. The gang tortures him with fire and knife throwing.
And on that I have to end tonight. What will happen to Billy? Why should anyone care.
My puppy has been a sheer pleasure for two whole days! She always is but she's becoming something special.
Last night I dreamed. I seldom do, as to in memory. I dreamt I was coaching a high school team in Kansas. They wanted us to play in a cornfield that was on a misshapen yellow hill. On the field, at the 50 yard line was a small barn.
I figured this would give us homefield advantage.
I pretend to see nothing significant in that.

The pain is the same. I get paid on Monday and them I can afford to get the penicillin for the general infection.

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