to me the whole movie feels like the work of an amateur. it's got some really cool imagery, what with the black blood (i'd first seen Simon on the Boogeymen DVD, too), but in its entirety the film was poorly carried out. i mean, why did the orderlies look like they should be trafficking drugs and beating people up in shifty back alleys? one of them didn't even have his shirt buttoned, for god's sake. and the whole thing between that old lady patient and Marlowe (cuz they obviously had some sort of "thing")... that was strange, too. the place just gave me a feeling that the real doctor had been done away with, and now the place was run by the crazies themselves. it seemed like they'd just rented out an office building in an industrial district and did a half-assed job in making it look like a mental recovery... erm... place.
and up until the point when Simon first threatened Karen and she herself saw The Ugly, the audience is uncertain of their existence. or, at least, i was. i didn't notice things like the lack of a first name on Dr. Marlowe's credentials, but even without those little goofs, the whole atmosphere of the film is hardly plausible.
still, The Ugly and their black blood... that kicks ass.
"... That's all I have to say about that."
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Zodyac
20 years ago
I don't think the purpose of the film is to be realistic.
I think there is a lot more to the characters than is shown. you must use your imagination.
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Freedomisanillusion
20 years ago
Of course, NERAK was used far better in "The Watcher In The Woods". And a far better movie, at that.
Die, Aragog!
Bright Eyes, Bushy Tail - A squirrel on crack!
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Zodyac
20 years ago
The word nerak as used in the ugly was more mysterious. They never
explained it and thus it was more thought provoking and enigmatic.
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bodyhammer12
20 years ago
I don't know how many times it was used, but I know of at least twice. At the beginning when that old lady attacks the Shumaker, the psychiatrist that runs the place instructs the security guys to give her some Nerak if she doesn't calm down. Later on when Simon goes looking for a job, the company's name is Nerak. I don't know if it was meant to imply that Simon was going to apply at the same company that makes drugs for medicinal use, or if they just felt like using the same word to make it's existence more profound.
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Zodyac
20 years ago
Nerak was also written on Simon's cell walls. In the beginning when
Karen first enters the asylum they flash a piece of paper on the screen
that says "No NERAK kept on premises after 9 pm."
It may be used more I'll have to keep looking.
They also show a sign that says "Fire Drill management wish to announce
new no Escape Route." And a piece of paper that says "I'm terrorfied be
warned"(spelled like that).
It seems like every time I see the movie I notice something I didn't see
before.
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amyrc
20 years ago
NERAK is also carved on the cell walls in Simon's room. Right beside the door
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