BONES (2001)
I remember renting Bones when it hit video shelves in early 2002. I liked it. Does it hold up to further scrutiny? Actually, this is a rare case where my opinion has not weathered with time. I feel exactly the same way about it as I did when I was seventeen. Apparently, Snoop Dogg is a big horror nut. I don't know how the hell my memory retained this information, but in an interview with Fangoria magazine, he claimed that his favorite horror film was Phantasm. I can see the parallels, as they are both effects-heavy features (especially Phantasm II). Snoop pulls just as much inspiration from 70's blaxploitation, a sub-genus of pop culture that is quite fashionable in the Coccaro household. No, really. I adore Blacula. Not to brag (that's what I say when I'm bragging), but I have an original one-sheet for Scream, Blacula, Scream. It's hot pink. Gotta love the 70's.
The plot is barebones. Snoop plays a paragon of virtue in his community. After he is gunned down by crooked cops, the ghetto practically disintegrates in his absence. Cut to modern day. The blood-spattered dress of an old flame (an emphatically foxy Pam Grier) aids in reconstituting his remains. Maggot storms ensue. Bones was shepherded by Ernest Dickerson. That dude doesn't play around when it comes to crafting stylish, spook-infused fright flicks. He also directed Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight, if that tells you anything. There are so many cool, creative shots here (my favorite involving a bleeding billiards table). Bones is an easy recommendation, although it's far from perfect. I didn't care for the lopsided stabs at comedy, and our main coterie of characters comes across as flat. A post-Ginger Snaps Katharine Isabelle is completely wasted. But I digress.
I wouldn't be mad if someone gifted me the soundtrack. Just saying.
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