REVIEW: There's Some Spooky Stuff in Silent House, But It's Mostly Just Arthouse Wigwaggery

Silent House is not just a horror film but a Very Important Piece of Social Commentary, as youll see when you get to the movies third-act twist. In other words, its not asking you to watch a terrified womans face for some 90 minutes -- in sort-of real time, no less -- without an allegedly good reason. This is good-for-you, arthouse-style horror. Which doesnt mean its necessarily any good. The gimmick goes like this: A young woman named Sarah (Elizabeth Olsen) is shown rattling around her familys lake house in a series of long takes designed to give the effect of real time. We see her wandering by the water as if lost in a dream; coming back to the house to greet her father, John (Adam Trese), whos fixing up the joint with an eye toward selling it; being puzzled when a mysterious dark-haired beauty around her own age, Sophia (played by Julia Taylor Ross), shows up at the front door, reminding her of all the fun times the two had as kids -- Sarah cant seem to remember a thing. But she does tell Sophia, in an extremely obvious bit of horror-helper dialogue, The phone lines arent set up and our cells dont work out here -- information that will later, of course, prove useful for someone to know. Other stuff happens: For instance, Uncle Peter (Eric Sheffer Stevens), whos helping his brother and Sarah fix up the house, eyes her with somewhat inappropriate lasciviousness and says, Look at you -- I cant get over how grown-up you are. Then Uncle Peter takes off, and Sarah and her dad are left to wander the inky shadows of the old homestead, their faces illuminated only by the camping lanterns they carry around. Minutes later -- or is it hours? -- Sarah hears a noise upstairs. Dad goes up to investigate, and all seems well until theres an ominous thunk. Much of the rest of the picture is an extended study of Sarahs face, which is more often than not twisted into a mask of fear and dread. It takes forever for things to start happening in Silent House. And when they do, you wish they wouldnt. The picture is a remake of the Uruguayan film La Casa Muda, directed by Gustavo Hernndez, which made a mild splash at Cannes a few years back on the basis of the one-shot gimmick. Chris Kentis -- who also made the 2003 shark-sadism drama Open Water -- and Laura Lau have done the refashioning here, and whatever the movies flaws may be, there are stretches that are suitably suspenseful and atmospheric. Thats thanks in part to the pictures sound design: When we hear footsteps treading perilously close to Sarah, we can tell the wearer is shod in heavy boots with rubbery soles; the sound of a discarded bottle rolling across an uneven wood floor is hollow and mournful; now and then the house groans ever so slightly, as if in denial of the horrors its hiding within. But then theres the music, courtesy of Nathan Larson, which isnt really music, but more of a low, migrainey hum. And poor Elizabeth Olsen: Her face is luminous and compelling by itself -- she doesnt have to do much. But she has too many unbroken minutes to fill in Silent House: One second shes grimacing, the next shes practically biting her wrist to keep from screaming, the next shes back to grimacing again. Please! Theres only so much an actress can do to fill up these endless long takes. In the end, Silent House just comes off as a highly accomplished bit of arthouse wigwaggery -- and a reminder that judicious editing, and not languorous love from the camera, is the actors truest friend. Follow Stephanie Zacharek on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

Alexandre Aja Craving Great Love

In foretells direct the vamp thrillerAside in one sci-fi blip together with his planned adaptation of manga/anime series Cobra, Alexandre Aja appears firmly dedicated to developing horror-designed qualities. Because though Great Love seems like maybe it's a brief side trip into romantic drama, it's really Aja searching to obtain his teeth right into a little vampire action, thanks to the graphic novel.Warner Bros. acquired the privileges to Tomm Coker and Daniel Friedman's Image Comics series last This summer, planning to show the genre mash title right into a film.Love finds an old soldier falling for any youthful lady. She works out to become a person in the fang club, which may discourage many paramours, but our hero decides that he will save her. Regrettably for him, which means dealing with her creator, a effective bloodsucker protected by an military of particularly harmful monsters within the Hong King Underworld.Coker and Friedman happen to be hammering away in a script, which Aja is within discussions to direct. His newest writing/creating job, horror remake Maniac, features Elijah Wood as serial murderliser Frank Zito as well as in has become slaughtering its way with the editing process. This could be bloodying up our movie theaters prior to the year has gone out. He's also working up a motion picture version of Joe Hill's ace scare tome Horns.

Allison Volk...Got the Part

Allison Volk...Got the Part Role: Host in 'Sideshow Memorabilia,' webisode series By Melinda Loewenstein March 3, 2012 The audition process could be daunting, therefore it is a relief when booking employment results in more offers. When Allison Volk saw the casting notice for "Sideshow Memorabilia," she'd no clue it might lead to around a year's price of focus on webisodes along with a part inside a short film. Volk was doing her weekly reading through of Back Stage when she saw a notice for hosting a number of webisodes for that Sideshow Memorabilia products of movie, TV, and comic collectible figurines and toys. Despite the fact that she wasn't active in the collecting world, she states, "I am a bit of a nerd. After I was attending college, I had been in 'Star Wars the Musical,' so when I saw what the organization was all about, I simply understood it was something which I thought about being associated with, since i like this genre."Travis Watkins, then your manager from the multimedia department at Sideshow Memorabilia, and producer-director from the webisodes, states he published the notice searching for a speaker to assist promote the items online. After studying the distribution, Watkins questioned four candidates. Of the quartet of runners up, he states, "Allison would be a stand-out undoubtedly." He hired Volk, and she or he arrived and shot spots to advertise roughly 15 items. Watkins states, "Allison only agreed to be awesome in each and every way. She was precisely what we needed."If this came time for that Sideshow Memorabilia Halloween event known as "Spooktacular," Watkins states he wanted to obtain more ambitious having a video clip known as "Help Wanted." "Allison was such as the bridge that may type of begin there around and elevate the project to a different level," he states. Volk states with that time she'd a following online, and Watkins desired to include her around the team. "And So I think he authored the part for me personally,Inch she states. There is little testing time, but based on Watkins, Volk was always prepared. He states, "She was very open-minded willing and able to go ahead and take direction and type of absorb it a brand new place."Rapid film would be a great experience for Volk, because she not only had the part handed to her but additionally had the chance to complete lots of eco-friendly-screen work, that was a brand new experience on her. She states, "[Eco-friendly screen is] certainly a trippy a part of acting for film since you just need to opt for it. That is what you are getting compensated to complete.Inch Volk states due to the eco-friendly screen, she was surprised how everything looked within the final film. Besides acting, Volk also analyzed playwriting and it has had certainly one of her plays, "The Final A Couple around the Platform," created in the Loft Theatre and Film Center in La. She's thinking about going after both acting and writing.Has Back Stage assisted you receive cast previously year? We'd like to inform your story. Maintain the weekly column by contacting casting@backstage.com for NY or bswcasting@backstage.com for La with "I Acquired the Part" within the subject line. Allison Volk...Got the Part Role: Host in 'Sideshow Memorabilia,' webisode series By Melinda Loewenstein March 3, 2012 The audition process could be daunting, therefore it is a relief when booking employment results in more offers. When Allison Volk saw the casting notice for "Sideshow Memorabilia," she'd no clue it might result in in regards to a year's price of focus on webisodes along with a part inside a video clip. Volk was doing her weekly reading through of Back Stage when she saw a notice for hosting a number of webisodes for that Sideshow Memorabilia products of movie, TV, and comic collectible figurines and toys. Despite the fact that she wasn't active in the collecting world, she states, "I am a bit of a nerd. After I was attending college, I had been in 'Star Wars the Musical,' so when I saw what the organization was about, I simply understood it was something which I thought about being associated with, since i like this genre."Travis Watkins, then your manager from the multimedia department at Sideshow Memorabilia, and producer-director from the webisodes, states he published the notice searching for a speaker to assist promote the items online. After studying the distribution, Watkins questioned four candidates. Of the quartet of runners up, he states, "Allison would be a stand-out undoubtedly." He hired Volk, and she or he arrived and shot spots to advertise roughly 15 items. Watkins states, "Allison only agreed to be awesome in each and every way. She was precisely what we wanted.InchIf this came time for that Sideshow Memorabilia Halloween event known as "Spooktacular," Watkins states he wanted to obtain more ambitious having a video clip known as "Help Wanted." "Allison was such as the bridge that may type of begin there around and elevate the project to a different level," he states. Volk states with that time she'd followers online, and Watkins desired to include her around the team. "And So I think he authored the part for me personally,Inch she states. There is little testing time, but based on Watkins, Volk was always prepared. He states, "She was very open-minded willing and able to accept direction and type of absorb it a brand new place."Rapid film would be a great experience for Volk, because she not just had the part handed to her but additionally had the chance to perform a large amount of eco-friendly-screen work, that was a brand new experience on her. She states, "[Eco-friendly screen is] certainly a trippy a part of acting for film since you just need to opt for it. That is what you are getting compensated to complete.Inch Volk states due to the eco-friendly screen, she was surprised how everything looked within the final film. Besides acting, Volk also analyzed playwriting and it has had certainly one of her plays, "The Final A Couple around the Platform," created in the Loft Theatre and Film Center in La. She's thinking about going after both acting and writing.Has Back Stage assisted you receive cast previously year? We'd like to inform your story. Maintain the weekly column by contacting casting@backstage.com for NY or bswcasting@backstage.com for La with "I Acquired the Part" within the subject line.

Jane Alexander Tackles Edward Albee's 'The Lady From Dubuque'

Jane Alexander Tackles Edward Albee's 'The Lady From Dubuque' By Simi Horwitz March 1, 2012 Photo by Joan Marcus Jane Alexander in "The Lady from Dubuque" Imagine playing an amorphous figure who may or may not represent impending doom. Not that the title character, Elizabeth, is delineated as such in Edward Albee's "The Lady From Dubuque," now running Off-Broadway at the Pershing Square Signature Center. But she's clearly on another plane, says the patrician Jane Alexander, who's tackling the part in the intense drama centering on Jo, a dying woman (Laila Robins), and her tormented relationships with her spouse and their friends. After a raucous evening, mysterious strangers Elizabeth and Oscar (Peter Francis James) arrive, seemingly out of nowhere, to soothe Jo. "Edward says you cannot play a character as a metaphor," Alexander says. "Edward won't define her, not even in private. So I play it as I feel it, as a flesh-and-blood woman, who's there as a comforter. That's what Jo needs. Edward says reality is defined by what we need."Often playing aristocratic women, Alexander has had a stellar career in theater, film, and television and garnered a shelf-ful of awards along the way. She also served as the chair of the National Endowment for the Arts from 1993 to 1997. A lifelong activistfrom civil rights to anti-Vietnam protests to feminismAlexander now focuses her attention on environmental issues, with a special interest in conserving natural habitats for wildlife.Though she never envisioned a life in government, Alexander had her sights set on acting when she was growing up in Boston. But to accommodate her father, who firmly believed everyone should have a fallback career, Alexander majored in math as well as theater at Sarah Lawrence College. Computers were beginning to appear, and Alexander thought if acting didn't pan out she could work as a programmer. Her junior year abroad at the University of Edinburgh, however, changed the course of her life. She performed with the school's drama club, and her talents were touted by the local papers. No longer open to pursuing backup gigs, she dropped out of college and forged ahead with acting. "My poor dad," Alexander recalls. "But he told me to go ahead with it and gave me two years."As it turned out, within that deadline she was working as an actor. Throughout her career, she honed her craft and played an array of parts in regional theaters. But a pivotal momentindeed, an artistic epiphanyoccurred when she was starring in "Saint Joan" at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. Her future husband, Edwin Sherin, was directing. At the time she had been studying with a teacher in NY"who will remain nameless," she chortles. "Ed said to me, 'There's only one problem with your acting. You can't be seen, and you can't be heard.' So I jettisoned the method I had been working on and listened to Ed. I learned how to put more emphasis on the vocal and took ownership of my roles."Her professional watershed was starring opposite James Earl Jones in "The Great White Hope," playing a black boxer's white mistress. It was launched at the Arena Stage and moved on to Broadway in 1968 before becoming a major film. The production established the careers of both actors. "We both got Tony Awards, Academy Award nominations, and were off and sailing in all three mediums," she remarks, sounding thrilled even in retrospect. " 'The Great White Hope' was remarkable especially during the height of the civil rights movement. There were 63 actors in the cast, playing over 200 roles, and more than half of them were African-American. The audience was diverse. It was incredible to be part of that."A Proactive CareerNever one to rest on her laurels, Alexander decidedafter close to 20 years of working steadilyshe needed to become proactive and produce her own work. It was not simply to give herself choice roles: "I felt there were stories I wanted to tell," she says. The projects she produced and starred in included "Calamity Jane" for CBS and "A Marriage: Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz" for PBS.But mounting self-generated work was not easy, and Alexander soon tired of the relentless struggle. "Being in Hollywood when you're a woman in your late 40s was very tough, especially then," she points out. "There was a lot of pressure and humiliation. Many of the producers didn't know who I was."Interestingly, for mature screenwriters, she felt there was far more discrimination than for female actors of a certain age. "Producers were known to have said, 'Don't send me scripts written by writers over 35' or some other young age," she recalls. "The only discrimination I felt as an actor is that there have always been more roles for mature men than mature women in film." A major shift in Alexander's life took place when she was tapped by President Bill Clinton to helm the NEA. It was the capstone of a lifetime dedicated to progressive movements. Still, she was not fully prepared for what came with her new post."I became the focus of media attention," she says. "It was during the time of the NEA Four, Andres Serrano, and Robert Mapplethorpe." This was a brouhaha surrounding the public funding of four controversial performance artists and two equally provocative visual artists. "I became the target during the Newt Gingrich Congress," she continues. "During those four years I was shifted into a political arena."Alexander does not regret her role at the NEA. Indeed, she met fascinating artists and politicians who never would have crossed her path otherwise, she says. "And I have wonderful stories to tell about Newt Gingrich." Still, it took her close to seven years to be viewed as an actor again and make the transition back to the stage. She likens acting to riding a bike. "You never forget it," she says. Alexander has indeed had a fortunate career. There are no roles she's dying to do. She concludes, "I made that list when I was 16, and I've now done most of them.""The Lady From Dubuque" will play through March 25 at the Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 W. 42nd St., NYC. (212) 244-7529 or www.signaturetheatre.org. Outtakes Mother of Jace Alexander, an actor, a director, and a co-founder of the NY theater company Naked AngelsAppeared on Broadway in 13 plays, was nominated for six Tony Awards, and won a Tony for "The Great White Hope"Has more than 55 film and TV credits, earning four Academy Award nominations, six Emmy nominations, and Emmy Awards for her performances in "Warm Springs" and "Playing for Time"Wrote a memoir, "Command Performance: An Actress in the Theater of Politics," and co-wrote "The Blue Fish Cookbook" Jane Alexander Tackles Edward Albee's 'The Lady From Dubuque' By Simi Horwitz March 1, 2012 Jane Alexander in "The Lady from Dubuque" PHOTO CREDIT Joan Marcus Imagine playing an amorphous figure who may or may not represent impending doom. Not that the title character, Elizabeth, is delineated as such in Edward Albee's "The Lady From Dubuque," now running Off-Broadway at the Pershing Square Signature Center. But she's clearly on another plane, says the patrician Jane Alexander, who's tackling the part in the intense drama centering on Jo, a dying woman (Laila Robins), and her tormented relationships with her spouse and their friends. After a raucous evening, mysterious strangers Elizabeth and Oscar (Peter Francis James) arrive, seemingly out of nowhere, to soothe Jo. "Edward says you cannot play a character as a metaphor," Alexander says. "Edward won't define her, not even in private. So I play it as I feel it, as a flesh-and-blood woman, who's there as a comforter. That's what Jo needs. Edward says reality is defined by what we need."Often playing aristocratic women, Alexander has had a stellar career in theater, film, and television and garnered a shelf-ful of awards along the way. She also served as the chair of the National Endowment for the Arts from 1993 to 1997. A lifelong activistfrom civil rights to anti-Vietnam protests to feminismAlexander now focuses her attention on environmental issues, with a special interest in conserving natural habitats for wildlife.Though she never envisioned a life in government, Alexander had her sights set on acting when she was growing up in Boston. But to accommodate her father, who firmly believed everyone should have a fallback career, Alexander majored in math as well as theater at Sarah Lawrence College. Computers were beginning to appear, and Alexander thought if acting didn't pan out she could work as a programmer. Her junior year abroad at the University of Edinburgh, however, changed the course of her life. She performed with the school's drama club, and her talents were touted by the local papers. No longer open to pursuing backup gigs, she dropped out of college and forged ahead with acting. "My poor dad," Alexander recalls. "But he told me to go ahead with it and gave me two years."As it turned out, within that deadline she was working as an actor. Throughout her career, she honed her craft and played an array of parts in regional theaters. But a pivotal momentindeed, an artistic epiphanyoccurred when she was starring in "Saint Joan" at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. Her future husband, Edwin Sherin, was directing. At the time she had been studying with a teacher in NY"who will remain nameless," she chortles. "Ed said to me, 'There's only one problem with your acting. You can't be seen, and you can't be heard.' So I jettisoned the method I had been working on and listened to Ed. I learned how to put more emphasis on the vocal and took ownership of my roles."Her professional watershed was starring opposite James Earl Jones in "The Great White Hope," playing a black boxer's white mistress. It was launched at the Arena Stage and moved on to Broadway in 1968 before becoming a major film. The production established the careers of both actors. "We both got Tony Awards, Academy Award nominations, and were off and sailing in all three mediums," she remarks, sounding thrilled even in retrospect. " 'The Great White Hope' was remarkable especially during the height of the civil rights movement. There were 63 actors in the cast, playing over 200 roles, and more than half of them were African-American. The audience was diverse. It was incredible to be part of that."A Proactive CareerNever one to rest on her laurels, Alexander decidedafter close to 20 years of working steadilyshe needed to become proactive and produce her own work. It was not simply to give herself choice roles: "I felt there were stories I wanted to tell," she says. The projects she produced and starred in included "Calamity Jane" for CBS and "A Marriage: Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz" for PBS.But mounting self-generated work was not easy, and Alexander soon tired of the relentless struggle. "Being in Hollywood when you're a woman in your late 40s was very tough, especially then," she points out. "There was a lot of pressure and humiliation. Many of the producers didn't know who I was."Interestingly, for mature screenwriters, she felt there was far more discrimination than for female actors of a certain age. "Producers were known to have said, 'Don't send me scripts written by writers over 35' or some other young age," she recalls. "The only discrimination I felt as an actor is that there have always been more roles for mature men than mature women in film." A major shift in Alexander's life took place when she was tapped by President Bill Clinton to helm the NEA. It was the capstone of a lifetime dedicated to progressive movements. Still, she was not fully prepared for what came with her new post."I became the focus of media attention," she says. "It was during the time of the NEA Four, Andres Serrano, and Robert Mapplethorpe." This was a brouhaha surrounding the public funding of four controversial performance artists and two equally provocative visual artists. "I became the target during the Newt Gingrich Congress," she continues. "During those four years I was shifted into a political arena."Alexander does not regret her role at the NEA. Indeed, she met fascinating artists and politicians who never would have crossed her path otherwise, she says. "And I have wonderful stories to tell about Newt Gingrich." Still, it took her close to seven years to be viewed as an actor again and make the transition back to the stage. She likens acting to riding a bike. "You never forget it," she says. Alexander has indeed had a fortunate career. There are no roles she's dying to do. She concludes, "I made that list when I was 16, and I've now done most of them.""The Lady From Dubuque" will play through March 25 at the Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 W. 42nd St., NYC. (212) 244-7529 or www.signaturetheatre.org. Outtakes Mother of Jace Alexander, an actor, a director, and a co-founder of the NY theater company Naked AngelsAppeared on Broadway in 13 plays, was nominated for six Tony Awards, and won a Tony for "The Great White Hope"Has more than 55 film and TV credits, earning four Academy Award nominations, six Emmy nominations, and Emmy Awards for her performances in "Warm Springs" and "Playing for Time"Wrote a memoir, "Command Performance: An Actress in the Theater of Politics," and co-wrote "The Blue Fish Cookbook"