Ice from the Sun

Description

One of the most acclaimed independent horror films in recent years, this experimental dose of future shock from acclaimed director Eric Stanze (Scrapbook) unfolds in a nightmarish world where cities are enclosed in ice, magicians match wits with angels and demons, lives are snuffed out without warning, and time itself can be manipulated for good or evil. Graphic, unflinching, stylish, and relentless, Ice From The Sun takes you on an unforgettable rollercoaster ride of the senses. Featuring a Blistering Punk Score by Johnny Magnet, Hotel Faux Pas, Free Dirt and Ded Bugs.

Customer Reviews:

Slow moving modern horror fantasy tale.......2006-10-11

Uhhh...I guess it is about a man named "The Presence" that rules an alternate universe between Heaven and Hell encased in "ice from the sun" (not making this up). A suicide victim named Allison is hired as an assassin to hunt him (still not making this up). She must make him remember who he was as a person to break the ice. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is that you must sit through 30min of dialogue before you watch her take what can only be described as a 60min trip through a NIN music video.

Okay, here we go again (see Savage Harvest review). Stanze insists on casting unattractive people with no charisma. You will not want to watch them on screen or care to listen to them talk. This is a problem considering his films boast 30 minutes of talky-talky before you see anything. I have a feeling he has good stories to tell, which is why he continues to bore us with lengthy tales before sending us some ghastly images. I dare you to watch this without hitting the fast forward button once. I get the feeling that if Stanze had a decent budget and hired good actors, his films would be better. He has good ideas, but does not achieve them.

There is decent gore and sound quality here. The only scene that would be of interest was an innocent woman stripped, tied to the back of a truck, driven a mile, then covered in salt as you watch her squirm. I have no idea who this person is or why this is happening or who the nice gentleman is driving the truck. Again, the dialogue was so boring, you fast-forward, and then stop when you get to a good scene, but it has no meaning.

Favorite Quote: Stanze during the commentary when he says that this was the lowest budgeted film made at the time. This would mean that any film up to 1999 cost more than this. I think Lloyd Kaufman would beg to differ. Stanze also mentions that Super 8 looks like a music video, not film, so my description of the film is correct.

DVD Extras: Trailers, Still Gallery, and Commentary.

Bottom Line: If you like slow-moving modern horror fantasy tales, then I guess you might dig this.

Rating: 6/10

Molly Celaschi
www.HorrorYearbook.com
MySpace.com/HorrorYearbook

(Side note- Hello Sergio. You were too kind in the review)

Now I'm going to tell you a scary tale........2006-03-24

Now I'm going to tell you a scary tale.

Listen.

A long time ago, in a Dark Age far, far away, there was an evil warlock named Ambolin. (This is the point where I ponder if "Ambolin" is a shot at Spielberg, who in the last decade managed to milk every genre that was once thrilling, from haunted houses to naziploitation. Even if that's not the case, makes me happy to think so). Rant mode off, moving on: Ambolin managed to create a parallel dimension encased within the ice he scraped off the sun (don't ask!). It was a dimension where heavenly and hellish creatures had no access. A place where Ambolin and his apprentice Abraham (the spooky DJ Vivona) pull six not-so innocent humans from Earth every few years, and proceed to play with their fears until they crack - sometimes, literally.

To the screenwriter's credit, those phobias aren't the over-the-top absurdities from the 80's horror, but real mundane fears like suffocation or being cornered on a dark alley by armed thugs. I don't know about you, but surviving a car crash only to become paralyzed from the neck down is ten times scarier than a proctological exam performed by Freddy Krueger... and Stanze did well by showing the terrors we read about in the daily newspaper and pray to God not to be victims of.

But power-hungry Abraham wanted more and, after overpowering and destroying Ambolin, became a more powerful being. He became... The Presence. But the idea of a soul-leeching dimension beyond their reach didn't sit well with all the angels of Heaven and all the demons of Hell, who joined forces to kick the Presence's arrogant ass. Problem is, only a being of flesh and blood can penetrate the ice that encases Abraham's realm. So they enlist a human, Alison (Ramona Midgett, a tad weak for such a demanding role), who just committed suicide in her bathtub. Alison's soul is intercepted on the way to purgatory and sent back to her body, so she can sneak into the Presence's lair along with the six humans selected for the next session of tortures and mind games. But why did they choose Alison? Well, you'll have to watch it and find out.

Such story, imagined by writer-director Eric Stanze (I SPIT ON YOUR CORPSE - I PISS ON YOUR GRAVE and SCRAPBOOK), screams for CGI effects, a bunch of Rob Bottin's creatures and an A-List cast to drag even non-horror fans to theaters (well, I surely would pay to see Freddie Prinze Jr's head exploding!). But you're not Amblin, you're just... Ambolin. All you have is 193 rolls of Super 8 film, some friends who don't mind being buck nekkid in front of a camera, a very limited amount of money and no Macs. What do you do, hotshot? What do you do? You do some real filmmaking, that's what!

ICE FROM THE SUN is a cheap movie with cheap sets, not-so-good actors and all the shortcomings of a Super-8 production. It just doesn't LOOK cheap, for Stanze and his crew managed to create an entire dreamlike universe using basic effects like grain, b&w and negative images, intentional scratches, over and undercranking, exquisitely clever editing choices and an astounding sound design that goes from subliminary noises to complete silence at the right moments.

Ah, you're not here for the pretty pictures? Don't worry; IFTC also delivers on the gore department. You have exploding and melting heads, graphic surgery images and some extremely sadistic stuff. The fact that some of the tortures can easily be done in real life by any sicko-wacko only makes the story ookier.

I must confess that I didn't like I SPIT ON YOUR CORPSE I PISS ON YOUR GRAVE. It looked like one of them porn flicks with plots. ICE FROM THE SUN was made three years earlier, so I popped the DVD in my player expecting the worst, but came out pleasantly surprised with Stanze's talents and skills. This is a guy who sure knows the tools of the trade and has plenty of imagination to burn. All he needs now is to be paired with someone with money to burn, cause I'm sure we can expect cool things from this fellow.

A BEAUTIFULLY BRUTAL LOW-BUDGET MASTERPIECE ! One of the best eva !.......2006-02-19

With 'ICE FROM THE SUN' Director Eric Stanze shows us all that low-budget film makeing is not a steping stone,it's an art form! I.F.T.S. is a Brilliantly creative nightmare that is sure to disturb the senses & fulfill the appetite of any fan of creative horror films. A truly ground-breaking film & one of my very favorites! This 2 disk collector's edition is beautiful! A must for true low-budget horror fans!

Expressive, creative indie filmmaking!.......2006-01-14

I already had the DVD from Sub Rosa, but when I heard about this new special edition, I had to check it out. Sorry. I don't know anyone who made this film. I just truly dig this flick. Yeah, I can understand why someone weened on slick, big-budget flicks would thumb their collective noses at a movie like this. It was obviously made for very little money with no name actors, but I truly admire films like this. You really get a sense of the effort that was made to bring this together. I worked on a few student films when I was in college, so I know how hard it can be to make a film when you don't have any of the resources a true budget can provide. But that's what makes films like this so great. It's really cool to see how filmmakers work around budget limitations, and Ice From The Sun did that in spades!

From its creative storyline (the dialog does get a little long-winded in the first act) to the colorful photography to the above average performances to the impressive gore effects, the filmmakers really put what money and resources they had to good use.

I know this probably sounds cliche, but if you're looking for something more "Hollywood", you should probably do yourself a favor and pass on this. This flick isn't for you. If you're like me, and if you love a cool horror flick, you might want to give this one a try.

It's pretty obvious what's going on, isn't it?.......2005-11-17

I've got to commend the director's friends and family for making such a concerted effort on his behalf, but this movie is a sloppy pile of dung and everybody on this list knows it. Anyone who wants a copy has about three days to retrieve it from my trash can before the city takes it where it belongs. Occupies a space in the annals of film lore somewhere between Plan Nine and Manos: Hands of Fate. Spend your money on meth instead. At least you'll have a few interesting stories.

Average customer rating:

hmmm...
Interesting, if not confusing
Like a highschool play gone horribly wrong
Just wretched
Cool film for those who like something different.

Ice From the Sun DVD
Starring: Angela Zimmerly
Director: Eric Stanze
Manufacturer: Sub Rosa Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00004YNWU
Release Date: 2000-08-01

Description

The angels in Heaven and the devils in Hell have a common enemy: The Presence, a being who dominates a dimension gorged with terror and bloodshed. Alison is the mortal recruited to hunt down and assassinate The Presence. She must journey through this universe of chaos and depravity, enveloped by the screams of the tortured and the stench of the long dead.

Customer Reviews:

hmmm..........2007-01-02

what can i say...i just didnt get much satisfaction from this film.

i just wanna say first off the bat i only watched the first 25-30 minutes of the film & this was a few months ago, so i dont remember every aspect to a "T".

sure it was imaginative. i will give it that it at had an interesting artistic point of view, & there were a few really good scenes but there was just way too many turn offs, both because of the budget AND just plain out what they decided to put on screen, they were either just too deadpan or it would start feeling wayyy too much like a troma movie.(no offense to troma, i proudly own a few copies of troma films, but that didnt feel like the presentation this film was "attempting" to give off)

all i can say is definitely not worth a purchase. who knows, if you are very into arthouse & out there cinema then check it out(especially if you dont mind [extremely] low budget-films, such as "cradle of fear" or handful of troma releases) but i would never recommend just randomly picking this up before buying.

Interesting, if not confusing.......2005-09-06

I have been collecting many of this director's films and find them all to have their own degree of charm. I was somewhat disappointed by this movie.

The basic premise and background story to this movie are very good. It's very thought provoking and allows for many interesting things to be done.

What disappointed me was that not very much was done. Much of the film has little dialog, and a scratchy picture. So much of it is pretty dull and confusing. The parts that do have dialog are iffy. The parts with the angels and the Presence are pretty interesting, but the ones with everyone else don't really seem to lead anywhere.

I rated this right in the middle because I was pretty much 'on the fence' with this one.

Like a highschool play gone horribly wrong.......2005-07-13

I bought this movie about a year ago, and had taken Cid upoun my first viewing. Therefore I thought It was pretty cool. However I whatched this movie again recently(clean and sober) and got the feeling I was whatching some amatuer movie on cable access. The acting is beyond bad, its way way way to long(the opening credits are about 4 mins) the sound is bad, the dialouge is bad. Its just.....not that great. Buy a david lynch or a miike movie instead

Just wretched.......2005-03-07

An incoherent mess from an anvil-handed hack, and a hell of a lot closer to "Plan Nine From Outerspace" than "Begotten". I wish I'd flushed my ten bucks down the toilet. At least that wouldn't have required 2 hours of my life. If anyone recommends this movie to you, there's a 99% chance his last name is "Stanze".

Cool film for those who like something different........2004-10-29

Eric Stanze, who directed the enjoyable SAVAGE HARVEST, has gone one step further with his newest film, ICE FROM THE SUN - a work of amazing creativity and craftsmanship!

With this film, he combines more traditional horror elements (as seen in his previous works) and expends them into an epic tapestry of dark surrealism and cinematic experimentation. The story focuses on the enigmatic Alison (wonderfully played by Ramona Midgett), a recent suicide victim who becomes the unwilling pawn in a cosmic struggle between the combined efforts of the angels in heaven and the devils in hell and the Presence (played by the equally excellent DJ Vivona), a murderous entity whose in control of his own dimension, a dimension of pain, death and chaos that can only be entered by someone of flesh and blood. Alison is given the task of wandering through this chaotic realm to find the Presence, and exterminate him. Her mission is masked by the arrival of six other humans, who are the latest players of the Presence's sadistic games of murder and mayhem. Who will survive?

Besides its unique story, ICE FROM THE SUN has a lot to offer! Stanze's direction is energetic and solid, and gets rewarding performances from his entire cast, including Todd Tevlin as the drug-pushing Aaron and Angela Zimmerly as the strong and resourceful Dana.

The editing is razor-sharp and wonderfully non-linear! The frame composition and the camerawork are equally stylized! The chaotic atmosphere is further enhanced by the moody lighting by Director of Photography David Berliner, who pushed the Super 8mm format to maximum effect! And to top it all off, Brian McClelland and Matt Meyer have created an amazingly textured soundscape, offering a wide array of dark sound effects and haunting musical compositions!

The special effects are another asset of this production. Tony Bridges (who created the effectively gory effects in SAVAGE HARVEST) teams up with Tommy Biondo and Jeff Bergeron to create numerous splatter set pieces that have to be seen to be believed!

All in all, this is a true work of passion and artistic exploration by everyone involved. Comparisons to films like LOST HIGHWAY, CLEAN,SHAVEN, BEGOTTEN are not out of place. It's films like these that aren't afraid to take chances and to step outside the boundaries of traditional formulaic filmmaking to break new ground! Fans of more mainstream entertainment may not enjoy this film (they'll probably be very annoyed with it), but people who are looking for something bizarre and original will be right at home here!

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