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Ligeia (2002) The Undertaker

Here’s an interesting little indie flick filled with soft core sex, hot naked chicks, and a twisted plot of cheatin’ hearts, murder, and weirdness. This movie kept me watching ‘til the end, mostly for the nudity, but the crazy shit going down in this couple’s life will hold your attention as well. How would you like to meet an ex-lover for a fling only to find out they’ve undergone a sex change? Guess the wife here didn’t mind a bit, as they swap spit within 10 minutes of meeting. Speaking of bit, she also bites off a good portion of a male friend’s ear off during a swapping session gone bad. Maybe she’s a Mike Tyson fan? Perhaps she was possessed by a demon? Who knows? You’ll have to watch this one for yourself to find out. You’ll enjoy though cause it’s a twisted, slightly kinky little ride. Some of you guys might sympathize with the husband’s plight, pussy whipped in the worst way it seems. How can you not like a film where a couple plays sex games dressed in a kitty cat and a bunny costume respectively?

Monster News

Inspired by the Edgar Allan Poe classic of the same name, Dave Lawler's latest film, "Ligeia," takes the Poe tale of love lost and found again via supernatural means and puts his own unique spin on the story. Along the way, Lawler also examines (with a healthy dose of dark humor) married life and infidelity in the early twenty-first century.

The story revolves around a married couple Rowena and Keiran (Brownyn Knox and Martin T. Davis). Life goes topsy-turvy for Rowena when an ex-boyfriend, Bobby, re-enters her life. Instead of meeting up again with the man who broke her heart though, Rowena discovers instead the woman that Bobby has become (Yvette Lenhart). Although no reasons are given, Rowena apparently is either bored or unhappy with her marriage to Kieran and starts up an affair with Bobby. Like I said, no reason are given for Rowena's boredom and unhappiness, but it could be that she knows that her husband is involved with their married neighbor, Kelly (Masha Sapron) in some really kinky sex games. Add on top of all this, Rowena has flashes of insanity that cause her to turn violent. She has no knowledge of these outbursts though. Still, if Rowena's life has gotten out of hand for her, it is nothing compared to Kieran who finds his mistress wanting to get out of her marriage to her husband, Bill (Ronald O'Ettare). She goads Kieran into killing her husband and once the deed is done, she forces him to take steps to do the same with Rowena.

I found "Ligeia" to be a very entertaining film and impressed to see how much Lawler has grown between this film and his last movie, "They Only Come Out at Night." It is always exciting to see a young film-maker come into his own and you can see a good progression in the work of Dave Lawler via these two movies. The cast for this film has its stand-outs. Brownyn Knox turned in another steady performance for Dave Lawler, one totally different from the role she did for him in "They Only Come Out at Night." Martin T. Davis, Knox's husband in the film does a a wonderful turn as a a poor schmuck who just can't catch a break. It seems he is getting grief from either his wife or his mistress and is easily manipulated by both. It is the type a role that if not cast right, could blow-up in the face of a lesser actor. Davis manages to deliver a good blend of sympathy and loathing for this character though.

The character that I really enjoyed though was Masha Sapon's Kelly. Sapon has really got the goods and nails her role as a the cheating wife who is looking to trade up for someone better. Kelly is one of those women that you would really love to hate, but you can't for the simple fact that her being a bitch is what makes her so enticing and intriguing. There is that and she is so damn sexy also. Heck, if she asked me to knock someone off, I'd seriously have to ask who the person was before I could say yes or no.

Overall, Dave Lawler delivers another winner. As in his previous film I saw, Lawler proves again that sometimes true horror comes from the least likely places and can happen to the least likely of people. It is that factor that makes his movies so entertaining and so engaging for me. I just can't wait to see what he comes up with next.

"Ligeia" - Film Review
by Dan Johnson

Cinetrange

Synopsis :
What the hell is Ligeia about anyway? Well, it's about love, and hate, and possibly murder and adultery. It's about people who refuse to let go of the past. The original story by Poe is about a husband obsessed with his dead first wife, Ligeia. He gets remarried, but cannot bring himself to care about his new wife. His lovefor Ligeia her calls her back and when his new wife falls ill, Ligeia slowly takes her over.

The film Ligeia takes this basic concept and adds a few modern touches. Rowena and Kieran are the Mr. and Mrs. who are far more interested in their old and new lovers then they are in each other. Kieran begins the story by bringing his new wife to live in the apartment he once shared with Ligeia. However, he is not very committed to his new life. He carries on his friend's wife, Kelly by day but dreams of his first wife, Ligeia by night. Ligeia, it seems, is not ready to let go of him just yet. How will Ligeia get his attention away from his new wife, and his girlfriend?

The bored and ignored Rowena takes up with Bobby, a lover from her schooldays. Bobby has come to tell Rowena that he is not the man he used to be. How will Rowena, who was hoping to re-light their old flame, deal with the new changes? Will she be able to fall in love with Bobby all over again, or will she always be longing for the past? Something struck us as unusual. No one ever seems to take the time to explain themselves and their actions to others. No one ever cares what others think. No one ever thinks about consequences. This is bottled madness.

Dave Lawler realized that filmmaking was demanding a lot of money and it doesn’t allow you to make a decent living. The main asset of this movie is the casting, made of good looking ladies and good actresses at the same time. The reason is the actors aren’t just beginners or just any neighbours of the director. They are experienced in acting and Ligeia is not their first project. Martin T. Davis plays Kieran, the main character. He’s done several movies before : What’s the soup by Shana MacDonald and The Arrangement by H.H. Cooper.
This lucky guy is surrounded by women : Yvette Lenhart who appeared in several films and plays. Theresa Young (Ligeia) was featured in Debbie does Dallas at the 2001 New York Fringe Festival. The movie is centered on relationships and dialogues. The original story is about the love of a man for his dead wife he can’t forget. But Lawler included today’s issues between a man and a woman, that are : sex, adultery, and eventually murder.

Dave Lawler’s filmography :
The Tell-Tale Heart (2000)
They Only Come Out at Night (2001)
Ligeia (2002)

The Dog Pile

Ligeia
by Sue Catalano
Rating: 5 out of 10 stars

This quirky film is a madcap romp. It is very apparent that the writer, producer, and cast had a great time producing Ligeia. Too bad they got a little silly. Too bad they couldn’t have been honest with themselves and each other and said, “Hey, now that would be going overboard.” Too bad they let some poor acting slide. If they had the guts to draw these lines, Ligeia could have worked. The story is based on an Edgar Allen Poe short story of the same name. What would Poe think of this?

The promo for this film asks a few pointed questions that deserve answering. Is it art? No. Is it pornography? Sometimes, yes. Is it sick? Absolutely. Is it funny? A little. The director’s questions brought to mind a few other questions from the reviewer. What were you thinking? What was your intention? Ligeia gives the feel of a film made haphazardly, then sorted out. Well, maybe.

The plot is a mishmash of slivers from too many other B-movies all thrown together. There is murder, couple swapping, transsexuals, gore, and no redemption. Rowena and Kieran are a low income couple already bored with each other. Rowena pines after her old boyfriend Bob, who is now a transsexual named Bobbie. Rowena and Kieran’s friends are Bill and Kelly. At a get together, Kieran and Kelly hook up (literally-right in the next room) at Rowena’s suggestion. Kelly likes what she samples and talks Kieran into killing Bill so Keiran and Kelly can be together. That not being quite enough, Kelly then wants Kieran to kill his wife Rowena. Then Bobbie moves in with Kieran and Rowena under the guise of a high school “friend” of Rowena’s, which then turns into a lesbian (I think) love affair. Rowena becomes spooked when Kieran’s first love haunts all these romances as a ghost because she’s dead at Kieran’s hands too. Rowena’s craziness drives Bobbie away. And they all end up dead or a mess. Whew!

Dave Lawler wrote, directed, and produced this screenplay. The writing was weak in many places, which could have been intentional. There was a sarcastic tone to the whole film, which could have been Lawler’s point. Taken as a whole, the plot did follow through regardless of its triteness. Ligeia comes off like it was directed by the actors. It has the feel of a director that gave too much latitude to his cast, even though they weren’t ready for that type of freedom.

Lawler was the musical director as well and the music was fun. The action takes place around Christmas. It was well worth choosing this time frame, just to have used the Nutcracker Suite mischievously in one of the beginning “getting to know the story” scenes. Eric Chercover sings his own song beautifully in the foreground upon the discovery of Bill’s body.

The settings were all shot on location in actual houses in an urban neighborhood. This choice worked well for the film. The cameras follow the actors through the rooms in order to follow their everyday lives. Great choice as the characters were supposed to be real, everyday people. Edited into the film were shots of the skyscrapers of downtown Los Angeles. It was never made clear why these shots were actually included in the film.

Martin T. Davis plays Kieran. For the most part, his acting was bad. His lines were forced, and he seemed to have the least fun of all the actors. Davis would do well as a thug in a CSI episode though. He never lets the viewer in on where Kieran’s loyalties lie. Davis’ character is supposed to be nuts, but Davis plays Kieran too deadpan. To boot, the chemistry between Davis and his leading lady, Bronwyn Knox as Rowena, just wasn’t there, and the blame appeared to lie with Davis.

Knox gives a much better performance as Rowena. She’s got spirit, and it was obvious she had fun, especially killing Kieran. Yvette Lenhart is sweet as Bobbie, but she isn’t believable as a transsexual. Much too petite and sweet.

Kudos goes to Masha Sapron as Kelly. Sapron gave the role her all, especially considering the ridiculous lines she was given to read. One of the best scenes in Ligeia is Bill’s death scene. Sapron wins the acting award as the widower. Sapron made this scene funny and just plain fun.

The most adorable award goes to Robert Graham in his role as Detective Ferguson. Stereotypically written, but cutely delivered, Graham made Ferguson memorable. He was sweet and gullible, but didn’t come across as an idiot. Ferguson is emphatic that a burglary is not botched if things were successfully taken.

All of which leaves one remaining question. Is Ligeia worth the ride? Probably.