The box for City of Lust (aka Yellow) claims that it's a "modern Giallo horror film" - but I don't know if that does the film any favors. It kind of sets a highish bar that it just doesn't need to. I really like giallos, and just name dropping it gives is kind of a "for us (horror fans), by us" attitude that sort of raised my expectations. (I mean, even knowing that the subgenre exists is something - is "giallo" even a known thing outside of horror or film circles?) I think I would have been into it more had I just known it's a "horror movie" and watched it unfold rather than (kind of) knowing what to expect. Also, I have always associated giallos with a kind of style and slickish production. Sadly, City of Lust doesn't have the budget for that. It's still pretty decent - especially for a small indie - but with the "giallo" attached I had hoped for something more. Oh well, at any rate it probably got more eyeballs on the film.
Arianna (Margaret Grace) is a young woman who has recently moved to Chicago. It's pretty clear that she's running away from *something*, and she's having a hard time getting used to life in the big city. It doesn't help that she's prone to strange anxiety attacks, where she'll see some bizarre, bloody visions and occasionally black out. Also, her nose bleeds a lot. She likes her job as a hair stylist, but works with horrible people, and doesn't have anyone she could really call a friend. But that all changes one night when Arianna decides to call a phone sex line (1-900-SEXCHAT - which I'm sure is a real number) and is enticed by Jackie's pre-recorded introduction: "I'm here for the same reason you are - to make a connection." Arianna becomes increasingly dependent on Jackie, talking to her for hours until she feels like she's found someone she can trust. Eventually, the two meet and start a romantic relationship. At the same time, some of the "problem people" in Arianna's life are being violently dispatched of. Coincidence? The cops - or rather, cop - is onto Arianna, but who is the guilty one?
City of Lust has two noteworthy strengths. One is the performance of Margaret Grace as the mousy Arianna. Grace turns in a solid performance playing a very vulnerable character - you can feel her isolation and it's easy to read the misery she feels on her face. You can see Arianna slowly losing her grip on reality, and just the way she looks/carries herself can be heartbreaking at times. The second big strength is the stylistic flourishes of director (also writer/editor) David A. Holcombe. He eschews traditional story telling techniques in favor of something a little more disorienting. It's still an essentially linear narrative, but the editing is sometimes fancy (especially during Arianna's panic attacks) and really skillfully done. The film doesn't always look great - the color feels off and it's a little too dark - but conceptually the shots/angles/etc. are pretty cool. There are also a lot of nice little payoffs in the film (mostly involving Arianna's past), and you get some solid, economical story telling choices. (I felt like we learn more about Arianna during the pre-credit sequence that we learn about some main characters in the entirety of other films.)
Now, the stylistic risks don't always pan out. I thought the music in particular was pretty aggravating. The pulsing chorus-synths during the climax of the film just went on and on and on - it sort of sucked the enjoyment out of it for me. And I'm not sure if it was by choice or just unlucky casting, but just about everyone a Arianna's workplace comes off as a despicable human being, especially her boss. I get that the idea may be to build up some sympathy for Arianna, but the whole thing comes off like a bad Mean Girls-esque sketch. The one exception to the "terrible person" thing is Arianna's cross-dressing friend... he's a nice person, but something about his character just didn't seem authentic (granted I know nothing about that particular community). I think this was kind of symptomatic of a weakness of the film, actually. For a movie that relies so much on female emotions/interactions, it felt pretty male-gaze heavy. It never got into offensive territory, but I couldn't help but wonder how a female filmmaker would have handled the same material.
Horror-wise? There is some okay stuff here - and a lot of the obligatory nods to the giallo genre. You've got the gloved killer and some okay stalking scenes - and he's got a pretty good mask to boot. And Arianna's anxiety attacks are disorienting and nasty... even though they are kind of music video-ish, they succeed in being genuinely creepy, whereas a *lot* of other random WTF-type montages fail to do so. I suspect a lot of the gore was limited by the budget, but what you get mostly works. There is a *very* disturbing subplot that I won't spoil, but overall director Holcombe creates a good, unsettling mood that is sustained throughout most of the film. The momentum is only momentarily halted by a couple of unsuccessful attempts at humor.
Overall, I dug City of Lust. It's not perfect by any means, but it's a pretty ambitious for small indie and it mostly succeeds in what it tries to do. I've given Brain Damage Films a hard time in the past (and seriously, I don't need to hear that woman scream in your logo four times before the film starts), but this is the second film in a row from them that I've been impressed with. And special thanks to Family Video in Worthington, MN - it seems likely City of Lust would have stayed off my radar if not for their sweet sales on DVDs. It was definitely worth the $1.50. If you're not appalled by the indie sensibilities of the thing and can temper your giallo expectations, there's a lot to like here.
I would recommend this film.
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