if i'm recalling this correctly the last time vicki saw barnabas before widows hill was when he caught fire.

she ran from him in fear. and that didn't exactly call out "vampire". just that he was some sort of supernatural creature.

so i can't see how she "knew" he'd bite her on the way down unless josette was involved somehow.

not just the ball but there were several points in the film where it seemed like it had fallen victim to some harsh editing...

during the "top of the world" montage there were numerous shots that looked like they were supposed to be actual scenes with dialogue(such as the shot of barnabas and vicki reading 'love story' on the beach)that just ended up being blended into that pastiche.

and it certainly seemed like there was much more to the barnabas/julia plot that hit the cutting room floor. that felt really underdeveloped.

i think that there are certain character/storyline changes that can be sort of jarring on a first viewing. at least for me there was.

once absorbed subsequent viewings are more enjoyable.

it was my impression that vicki was under angelique's spell when she took the leap.

didn't barnabas demand that ang release her from her spell before she died?

and it seemed to me that not just roger, but also barnabas and julia, were meant to resemble the original actors who played the characters.

but the rest, no. i wonder how those decisions were made?

i enjoyed it more the second time as well. save for the two plot developments i've already called out.

the humor didn't bother me. not in the least. since the promotional material has lead one to believe it was an all-out farce it was rather underplayed in the end.

the "macrame" scene was actually sort of cute. and the ultra-wierd dining room scenes fun.

visually and in terms of costuming of course it was stunning. the collinwood set was incredible. and only in DS could a story about a vampire and a witch have a backplot about a fish cannery.

the ball scene seemed like alot of buildup and bother for not alot of payoff. and as i knew it would the alice cooper cameo took one "out of the story" so to speak. i get it. but i think it was a misfire.

unlike previous tellings of the story where victoria is given this rather nebulous history and backstory here at least it's solid. and it doesn't even hint that she's somehow related to or connected with the collins family or, more importantly, elizabeth. that's out.

her purpose is just the runup to the josette revelation at the end. we don't get to know much about her otherwise. she's prim and rather reserved. that's about it.

funny but bella is not really playing two characters but three. unlike past variations on the story where vicki or maggie is some sort of present day incarnation of josette here the three are linked inextricably. but in the end she's josette. who she really is, or is pretending to be, almost becomes irrelevant in retrospect.

still bella's charming. i wish we had seen more of her. i love the early dinner scene where she's sitting at the dining room table calmly eating her new england boiled dinner while all these crazy people act out around her. and the fact that they gave her this rather girlish, early 1960's fashion sense(which makes sense over time)sets her apart visually in an arresting way. it was an interesting choice on the part of the director and costumer.

i suppose at this point nothing should surprise me but there are a couple FB "boycott" and hate groups that have gleefully reproted every negative review and disappointing box office report as some sort of validation or vindication of their position on the film...despite the fact none of them have actually, you know, seen it.

none of them can generate more than 70 or so "members" but it's still gross.