Posts Tagged ‘Hansel and Gretel’

RICHARD’S CTV NEWSCHANNEL WEEKEND MOVIE REVIEWS FOR JAN. 31!

Richard sits in on the CTV NewsChannel to have a look at the weekend’s big releases including “Gretel & Hansel,” a creepy re-imagining of a classic fairy tale, a lively revenge film called “The Rhythm Section” and the family drama of “Rosie.”

Watch the whole thing HERE!

RICHARD’S WEEKEND MOVIE REVIEWS FROM CP24! FRIDAY JANUARY 31, 2020.

Richard and CP24 anchor Jee-Yun Lee have a look at the weekend’s new movies including a lively revenge film called “The Rhythm Section,” the dark fairy tale “Gretel & Hansel” and the family drama “Rosie.”

Watch the whole thing HERE!

CFRA IN OTTAWA: THE BILL CARROLL MORNING SHOW MOVIE REVIEWS!

Richard sits in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk the new movies coming to theatres including “The Rhythm Section,” a revenge film that misses the beat, “Gretel & Hansel,” a grim retelling of a famous fairy tale, and the family drama “Rosie.”

Listen to the whole thing HERE!

CTVNEWS.CA: THE CROUSE REVIEW ON “GRETEL & HANSEL” & “THE RHYTHM SECTION”!

A weekly feature from ctvnews.ca! The Crouse Review is a quick, hot take on the weekend’s biggest and most interesting movies! This week Richard looks at the Blake Lively revenge flick “The Rhythm Section,” the dark fairy tale “Gretel & Hansel” and the family drama “Rosie.”

Watch the whole thing HERE!

CJAD IN MONTREAL: THE ANDREW CARTER SHOW WITH RICHARD CROUSE ON MOVIES!

Richard sits in on the CJAD Montreal morning show with host Andrew Carter to talk the new movies coming to theatres including “Gretel & Hansel,” a creepy re-imagining of a classic fairy tale and a lively revenge film called “The Rhythm Section.”

Listen to the whole thing HERE!

GRETEL & HANSEL: 2 ½ STARS. “comes just shy of making a lasting impression.”

For generations parents have used the German folk tale “Hansel and Gretel” as a way to lull kids to sleep. The story of two kids ditched by their father and step-mother in the forest has always had a scary edge to it but “Gretel and Hansel,” a new, dark reimagining starring “It: Chapter Two’s” Sophia Lillis, would likely leave kids with serious abandonment issues if watched before bed.

Set in the distant past, when we first meet the title characters—sixteen-year-old Gretel (Lillis) and younger brother Hensel (Samuel Leakey)—a lack of money and their mother’s madness see them sent off into a grim fairy tale to fend for themselves. To the ominous sounds of soundtrack by French pop/rock musician Robin “Rob” Coudert, the duo make their way, scrounging for food, desperate for shelter. They meet The Huntsman (Charles Babalola) who warns them against talking to wolves—“They are charming and handsome but dangerous!”—but doesn’t see fit to caution them against eating the hallucinogenic mushrooms the two starving kids find under a tree. One mind expanding trip later they come across a house. Peering into the window they see a dining table laden with food. Invited in by the elderly Holda (Alice Krige) to eat and rest, they make a deal to trade chores for rent. Holda agrees, but soon Gretel has nightmares. “Are they the result of too much rich food,” she wonders, “or are they a warning?” It seems there is more to Holda than Gretel and Hansel first thought. “We are made from the same matter,” Holda says to Gretel. “The same filth.”

The story is certainly based on the Brothers Grimm story of a cannibal witch but screenwriter Rob Hayes enhances the story with “Star Wars” allusions—Will Gretel embrace her Dark Side?—and does things with entrails that even the Brothers Grimm on their grimmest day wouldn’t dare include in one of their stories. The result is a movie heavy on atmosphere and unease but light on actual scares. Shadowy characters appear and disappear, providing some creepy visuals and the occasional jump scare but moments that make the hair stand up on the back of your neck are absent.

Instead, director Osgood Perkins (son of “Psycho” star Anthony Perkins) stresses the intense human side of the horror, the loss of a parent, abandonment and the decisions Gretel must make to ensure her brother’s safety during her coming-of-age. It’s sense of fear is primal, rooted in complicated teen feelings of someone forced to grow up too quickly.

“Gretel & Hansel” is witchier than any other version of the story and has some genuinely creepy moments but comes just shy of making a lasting impression.