You Spin Me Right Round, Baby Right Round...

I wasn't all that impressed with Adam Green's 2006 "Old School American Horror" film, Hatchet. I thought it was an okay, somewhat fun movie that I can enjoy to a point, but not love. I do give Green credit, however, for making it and for the marketing that went behind the film, as it was really geared towards horror fans with no soft bullshit about it. Since hearing about Green's 2007 (almost immediate) follow up, Spiral, I found my interest piqued. I've been curious to see if Green can actually make a film that was described as a complete 180 from what Hatchet was - a gore-fest throwback to the American Slasher - and make a psychological thriller in the way of Spiral.

Green doesn't go it alone and shares the Directors spotlight with "Triple Thrash Threat," Joel David Moore, who also is the films lead and with Jeremy Danial Boreing, one of the writers on Spiral…this dudes a maniac! I love shit like that; a guy in Moore (who also was the star of Hatchet) that is so invested and has so much involvement in a film…really shows he has a lot of passion for cinema.

We first meet Mason (Moore) in his apartment as he is having a sort of psychotic breakdown. He calls his only friend Berkeley (Zachary Levi) to tell him that he has done something terrible but a not to worried Berkeley just tells him to calm down, take a hit off of his inhaler and go back to bed. The next morning, Mason shows up to work and we learn that his friend Berkeley is also his boss at an auto insurance office. It's pretty clear that Mason is a socially awkward loner who talks to almost no one except for his good looking, cool guy boss and only buddy, Berkeley. While Mason is eating lunch on a bench outdoors one day, a girl named Amber (Amber Tamblyn) joins Mason and begins talking with him. Even though he doesn't seemed too interested or even having much to say back to Amber, she continues to talk and try to befriend the shy Mason anyways. After some time, Mason and Amber begin to build a relationship. Amber becomes a model for Mason (who is an accomplished artist), who is painting a series of portraits of her. As the two begin to push their relationship further and get closer and closer, Amber starts to see signs that something is a little off about Mason. She's not quite sure what, though, but her "Amber Alert" is going off for sure. Now, around this point is where Mason begins to act different towards Amber, as he slowly unravels and "Spirals!" out of control. How Rude!

Spiral is more of a slow burn thriller reminiscent of a Hitchcock film as many would describe it, and I myself can attest to those thoughts. It is very much a character driven film, with characters that I (for the most part) like and at times can even slightly relate to in some way. These are people that you may know in one way or another, whether it be friends, family, co-workers, or even possibly yourself.

I love that Mason (who rocks a Members Only Jacket that would make a few good buddies very proud!) on the surface, is a loner/loser, but underneath that pathetic exterior, is a man who really has a lot going for him. As stated before, Mason is a very good artist that takes his craft very seriously. He is also a major Jazz enthusiast that has a vast knowledge and love of the genre. These are hardly traits of a person that I would consider to be a loser…socially awkward? Sure, but not a loser in the same sense that maybe his best friend Berkeley is.

Berkeley is the successful, good looking, go getter, that on the surface most men would aspire to be like. But, under that facade, the real Berkeley is an insecure womanizer, who is more concerned with his image and other people's perception of him, than he is of being himself. This is a great dynamic for the Mason/Berkeley characters, as for most of the movie it appears that Berkeley maybe almost uses Mason to feel better about himself. A great example of this character comparison is Berkeley is always trying to get Mason to work on his "free throw" shot, and Mason could care less about Basketball, let alone perfecting his shot. I love that every time we see Berkeley take a free throw, (past the foul line I might add) he misses. Really sums up the differences between the two characters in a nice way.

Our other main character, Amber, is the pretty girl who you would never expect to want any sort of involvement with a guy like Mason. Realistically though, Amber is a kind of strange, hyper girl, filled with random thoughts that she has no issue with spilling out verbally without any censor or forethought. For her, she seems to be attracted to Mason because he more than likely wouldn't judge her and her somewhat charmingly cute but out there perky personality. Traits that a guy like Berkeley would find irritating in a woman after only a few minutes spent with her. Amber can be herself with Mason without any fear of him judging her, and I think she knows this, thus her attraction to him.

By the third act of Spiral, I found myself really rooting for Amber and Mason's relationship to work. I started to really like what they were building and that makes for a better psychotic downfall for the Mason character in the film. You don't want to see it happen with more being at stake for these characters, even though that's what you are essentially watching the movie for in the first place. Mason and Amber are characters that are very likable when on screen together as they bring the best out of one another.

All of the acting as far as our main three characters go is very strong. Moore, who normally plays more comedy, fits right into the role of the off kilter Mason. He is at his best at the times when he goes a little mad and some of the scenes towards the end involving his breakdown are genuinely creepy due to his strong performance. I could have cared less about "Joan of Arcadia" before seeing Spiral, but Tamblyn is pretty great and won me over with her charm by the films end. Levi comes from a theater background and is also the star of the NBC TV series Chuck. Levi has some impressive acting chops, and he also has a very natural star quality about him too, so it's not much of a surprise that he landed a network TV gig, and I am sure we will see a lot more from the young actor in the future.

Even outside of the great characters and acting, Spiral is one hell of a nicely made film with a lot of techniques used. Beautiful cinematography, with many nice long continuous panoramic shots, the slight fish eye lenses that are used are very well executed, and the way the camera moves around is amazing. Filmed in Portland Oregon, Spiral has some nice locations that are usually enveloped in rain, creating a nice dismal and haunting effect. I also dug the settings from Mason's drab, dull place of employment to his very eye catching, artistic apartment. Very impressive work for a film only made for $650k I might add.

Also, I should mention the incredible Jazz music used in the film, which was actually a band that played along to the movie itself and quite well at that. I'm not a Jazz guy for what it's worth, but I can appreciate it and its use in the film. This music really fits the tone of Spiral, from smooth to chaotic depending on how a scene may be playing out at any given moment.

Being that Spiral is rated PG-13 and has very little violence and absolutely no bloodshed, it may not be every ones cup of purple stuff. But, if you're looking for a nicely paced, slow burn, character driven psychological thriller, that at times has elements of a good romantic (BARF!) drama, then Spiral is for you my hairy little friend. Spiral is a film made by a group of good friends, that have and will continue to work together, hopefully putting out work as solid and cared for as Spiral is. I look forward to future projects from this crew of filmmakers who have really shown that they have a great love for the art form of cinema.

Bravo Mr. Green, Bravo.