Day 31: V/H/S

A moderately successful "found footage" horror anthology!

Every year there is buzz about the next great horror film.  One year it was Martyr's, one year it was Serbian Film, y'know the must see horror pics.  So the movie that was getting the biggest amount of hype this year was V/H/S.  It's not half bad, well maybe half of it is bad.  I would say that all of the shorts here are competently done, but some suffer storywise.  And it's been awhile since a decent horror anthology has come out.  Most of the time you just think about Creepshow.  It is kind of hard to beat after all.  So let's take a closer look at these shorts.

I struggled with how to review this.  Most of the shorts are not that long and almost any amount of description just ruins the plot.  I will say that I thought the first "official" short and the last "official" short are probably the best of the bunch.  Ti West does the "Second Honeymoon" skit, which I thought was typical for his stuff.  Like all of his films, the "big reveal" is usually just a "that's all"?  I guess you could say his stuff just doesn't do it for me, and this short is no different...although aside from the first segment this is by far the bloodiest and most graphic.  It just involves a couple on a honeymoon and a mysterious stranger that comes knocking at the door.  While I would say that what happens is horrific, I wouldn't necessarily catagorize this as "horror" per se. Most of it is just the guy trying to get the girl to agree to sex on film.  It takes awhile to get going.  While I will say I didn't see the ending coming, I just wasn't that blown away by it either.  Standard stuff with a mildly shocking ending.

The next skit "Tuesday the 17th" doesn't fare much better.  It's just about some kids going to some lake that apparently has a history of violence.  There is some horsing around and mucho shaky-cam (I'm kind of sick to my stomach as i'm writing this), and then people start to die.  There is an effect on the tape that I just didn't get.  This segment was not scary at all, but fairly gory.  Also, the acting is not up to par with the other ones.  Think of it as "found footage" Friday the 13th I guess, but a heck of a lot shorter.

Next up "The sick thing that happened to Emily when she was Younger".  This is by far the weakest of the skits.  The actress can't even act that scared, and I thought that the reveal was kind of stupid.  Basically a girl is talking to a doctor (she is in love with?) and it appears that her apt is haunted.  She contacts him at night when the weird things start happening, so he can get them on tape.  Like I said, things are not what they appear to be.  Emily suffers bruises and the like when she sleeps, and constantly tells her beau that she thinks she is being haunted.  Eh...

Much better are the two I think are the best.  "Amateur Night" and "10\31\98".  In Amateur Night a group of guys get the idea to make their own amateur porn video, so they go scouting the local bar and pick up two girls.  One of the girls Lily, "just keeps saying" to one of the guys, "I like you".  Also, this clip is kind of clever as his glasses are the actual recorder...so we see everything through his eyes.  This is also the most hard R of the whole anthology, as there is plenty of nudity (both male and female).  I almost thought of it as a horror version of Porky's...but it worked for me.  The special effects are nicely done once the blood starts flowing, and there is a surprise ending.  

The last sort "10\31\98" is the next most clever.  In it a bunch of guys are on their way to a costume party, and arrive to find an empty house, with a sinister secret being held somewhere in the house.  There are a lot of cool effects in this piece, and even though I kind of figured out the reveal beforehand, it was still fairly shocking.  The acting is not half bad here either.  And then we have the wrapper video "Tape 56", and this is the worst of them all in terms of acting especially.  Basically we see a bunch of guys raising havoc and doing stuff like assaulting a girl in a parking garage and exposing her breast   We then find out they were paid a lot of money to break in an old man's house and steal a video tape.  And of course even though they think they are safe, they are not.  But the acting is really weak in this segment, phoning it in.

So, in summary this is a decent found footage horror anthology.  Some of the stories work better than others, but there are a lot of horror staples here as well.  Exposed breasts, nudity, gore...V/H/S has you covered in that department.  It would have scored higher, if not for the 3 subpar skits that almost look out of place here.

But, if you are just itching to watch a horror anthology and don't mind massive amounts of shaky cam, then this might be one worth the video rental.  But, there is no reason to get this on Blue Ray...as it doesn't make VHS recordings look any better...

7.5 out of 10

And so ends my blogging for now.  I really enjoy finding good horror films that have been overlooked, or that have not had much exposure, and I would say that I have found some real gems here.  Several of these films I would not mind seeing again with someone that hasn't seen them, just to see their reactions to certain troubling scenes.  I think Borderland was the most disturbing to me though...that film was bleak with barely any humor at all....and had some really fine performances.  I'll never look at Sean Astin as a friendly hobbit again.  But, please avoid Midnight Movie.  If you want 80's cheese, then check out Bloody Birthday.  And The Reef is great if you are afraid of sharks, or just want some nail biting suspense.  The Loved Ones fills the torture porn category nicely and was also one of my favorite of these films.

I may still keep this blog around and review movies from time to time.  If I update it, I will post it on Facebook so you all know.  I want to thank everyone that supported me through this, and all of the viewers. I know I need some work on structure for the reviewing, but I think i'm off to a good start.  Feel free to leave comments on any good horror movies  you have seen lately.  Although Halloween is now officially over, my love for the horror film goes all year round.  Thanks again for the support! :)

Sincerely,

mtaffer

Day 30: Wilderness

A pretty good survival horror movie!

So yeah, as this blog starts to wind down I needed to see something I haven't seen yet.  And my prayers were answered by this little gem from the UK.  I don't think that any of this is original, but at times it did remind me of Eden Lake and maybe even some of "Lord of the Flies".  It doesn't waste a lot of time, but the effects vary from pretty good gore effects to shameless CGI.  Still, the story that it tells is altogether too human, and we see the beast come out of humanity.  In other words, this movie is a survival horror movie to the core.  And the acting is pretty good as well.

We are introduced to a group of juvenile delinquents and clearly there is a pecking order.  Two boys in particular are bullied by the rest of the group, and Steve (Stephen Wight) and Lewis (Luke Neal) are the alpha males and antagonists of the group.  We also have Blue (Adam Deacon) who always plays second fiddle, and Jethro (Richie Campbell) who kind of stays out of it...he's just kind of neutral.  But, they get a new mysterious roommate to join their ranks when Callum (Toby Keebell) makes his appearance, and shows them firsthand how much rage he has inside him during a psychology meeting.  The two boys that are bullied Dave (John Travers) and Lindsay (Ben McKay), just want to be left alone.  But after a particularly humiliating day of bullying, Dave decides to take his own life.

For this act, the group is taken out to an island by Jed (Sean Pertwee of Dog Soldiers) to learn better communication skills.  And they find out that they are not on the island alone as they meet up with Louise (Alex Reid) and her girls.  They make an agreement to stay on different sides of the lake, and of course this does not happen.  And then on a routine trip to get water Jethro, does not return and a grisly discovery is made...and then the arrows start flying.  What follows is a fight for survival against the unknown assailant, a pack of dogs, and..well...the students themselves.  It seems that some of these guys were put in juvie for a really good reason, as some really horrific acts occur when the group loses it's leadership.  The group continues to breakdown and more and more victims are claimed until the suspense filled final 20 mins.  

For the most part this is a very good looking film.  It seems like they spent a ton on certain gore effects and went the cheap route on others.  We are definitely shown the good and evil in man through this, as people make their choice as to which side they want to fall on.  There is some truly shocking stuff here in terms of what people do to each other.  Survival kind of brings out the beast in everyone.  The action is well paced and at times has an action movie feel.  Some of the deaths reminded me of Eden Lake as well.  Out of the delinquents, it's kind of hard to choose a hero.  Nevertheless, we have a few that do step up.  For the most part I was completely engaged in the story, and that being with me not having much sleep the night before.  The musical score by Mark Thomas adds to the scenes of intensity, of which there are quite a few.

Overall, this is a better than average UK survival horror thriller, that has the extra bonus of the fact that the antagonists are also the protagonists at certain points.  Not only are they fighting the unknown "out there", they are also fighting the "previously unknown" murderous intentions within their own group.  I enjoyed this film, but it does have it's flaws.  Still above average.

8 out of 10

Day 29: Borderland

Unrelenting, unflinching, horrific occult thriller!

I feel like I just got run over...i'm literally exhausted.  This movie drained me, by the end everyone is affected in horrific ways.  Innocence is destroyed, lots of people are dead.  Emotion is really going to fuel this review, so bear with me.  This is by far the most affecting film I have watched thus far, and maybe the most terrifying, because this could happen and is based on true events.  And bad things happen to people we have grown to like.  These are characters we have grown to care about by the time that things start going wrong...and they go very very wrong!

The film opens up with two Mexican detectives Ulises (Damian Alcazar), and his partner on the trial of some cocaine.  They enter a building and find ritualistic trappings...and then get separated.  Then Ulises is horrified as he witnesses his partner get ritually slain.  This is just a taste of what is to come.  We meet 3 guys including genre vet Rider Storm (Cabin Fever) as Phil, Jake Muxworthy as Henry, and Brian Presley as Ed, on the beach.  They are about to be split up and Henry convinces them to all take a trip to Mexico with him.  He wants the religious Phil and conservative Ed to lighten up and let loose.  Pretty soon Ed hooks up with a barmaid Valeria and they start their tour of Mexico...via shrooms and alcohol.  Henry tries to get Phil to lose his virginity with a Mexican hooker, but he has a change of heart.  Neither of the guys are like Henry.

A few altercations with members of the cult and soon Phil is in their clutches.  Held captive by a very unrecognizable Sean Astin as Randall, he starts to understand that his life is in danger.  Henry and Ed try to report his absence, but the police seem to not care.  In fact, the only one that does care is Ulises, who has been staking out their drug farm.  Will they find him in time, and whose lives will be changed in the process?  The answer is brutal and terrifying as a brave attempt to save Phil is launched, with horrifying results.

This movie bothered me more than Hostel.  The scene's of violence in this film are so realistic and the look of the film is so gritty and dirty.  I mean it kind of feels filthy, but at the same time it's so beautiful.  The acting is really good, and it helps sell the characters...and that is important.  Phil makes a stupid decision, but he is high at the time and is taken advantage of...so I really don't see it as him being stupid.  He is lulled into a false sense of security...you can decide for yourself.  And you see people change in this film...some of them that appear fearless, show fear, and it's real and visceral.  The scary thing about this film is that everyone knows what is happening, but no one will help.  I mean it's one thing to be isolated in the woods with a killer, but another to be surrounded by multiple killers in an apartment that is full of people and no one will do a thing but let you die a horrible death.  I mean there is a feeling of helplessness that surrounds this movie that I rarely feel.  This cult is crazy and will do anything to hide their drug trafficking, including human sacrifice.  

Be warned, there is some extremely graphic violence here, but it's shown very realistically.  It's a very well done horror/thriller that will get under your skin.  I don't know, some of you may watch this and be utterly unaffected by it, but it got to me.  Much like Eden Lake, I have never wanted someone to live so badly.  Raw, emotional, terrifying, and powerful!  I think this movie will stay with me for awhile...

9 out of 10  

Day 28: Dog Soldiers

A true modern werewolf classic in the vein of Aliens!

So i've been doing this blog for 28 days now, and have been reviewing mostly obscure films that no one has heard about.  Even though i'm a horror fan, there are some "classics" that I have yet to watch.  Well, we can scratch this film off my list now, and yes it lives up to all the hype I have heard through the years.  A masterful, action-filled suspense thriller, Neil Marshall really knows how to do this!  His other movie The Descent is great claustrophobic fun, and this film is just a rollercoaster ride.  This is how you do it folks...

Much as in Aliens we are dealing with a group of military men against a foreign beast.  The movie starts off with an exercise involving Pvt Cooper (Kevin McKidd) trying to gain entrance to special forces.  He is caught and ordered to shoot a dog by Capt. Ryan (Liam Cunningham).  He refuses and does not get in.  Flash forward to another training exercise with Cooper and his fellow men, Sgt. Harry Wells (Sean Pertwee), Prvt. Terry Milburn (Leslie Simpson), Spoon Witherspoon (Darren Morfitt), Prvt Joe Kirkley (Chris Robson), and Cpl Bruce Campbell (Thomas Lockyer) against a special forces group in the wilderness.  They are soon summoned by a flare shot by Capt Ryan who has been mauled by "something"...and he utters "there should have only been one".  

Soon after they are attacked and are on the run from a pack of werewolves.  Oh and Harry is hurt pretty badly, so it's lucky that they run in Megan, who has been studying the creatures for awhile.  He takes the platoon back to a house nearby to hold up until sunrise.  Cooper takes over the leader role, while the Sgt. tries to get over his wounds caused by one of the werewolves.  And then Megan gives them the bad news, that they are miles away from any kind of help.  It's just them, in the house, fighting for their lives.  Can they survive until dawn?  What is capt. Ryan up too, and why does he act like he's up to something.  Are the prvt's experienced enough to survive the encounter?  These answers and more are answered as plot twist after plot twist turns this film into a thrilling exercise in action horror filmaking.

Once again the acting is fantastic in this.  Cooper is a very likable hero, and I really liked Sarge as well.  His story about a friend of his getting blown up overseas while on drill is heartbreaking...very good acting here.  The main thing this movie has going for it is the pacing....Marshall knows how to create suspense and delivers some great action along the way.  You get the feeling watching this, that there is no safe place in this house period, that you are always just one step away from a gory death.  And the gore in this movie is quite graphic at times.  Get used to seeing intestines hanging outside of bodies...both dead and alive.  The musical score by Mark Thomas just builds suspense like all good horror movies do.  And, much like Aliens, once this movie gets cranked up, it does not slow down...edge of your seat suspense and action all the way to the explosive finale.  Just a great movie overall...I didn't spoil much for those who have not seen it, because it should be seen by all horror fans.  I dont' know why I waited as long as I did.

Overall, this is a must see.  Great action, performances, creepy effects, gore...what more could you want from a horror movie.  There is a reason this movie is held in such high regard amongst horror enthusiasts.  The best werewolf movie i've ever seen!

9.5 out of 10

Day 27: Fragile

Jaume Balaguero does a bang-up job on this hospital ghost chiller!

I'm going to be frank...ghost stories really don't do much for me.  I don't get into Ghost Hunters or anything like that, and never have.  Although I do remember reading Jeffrey's Alabama ghosts when I was a child.  The idea of ghosts is that it's time captured in a bottle, and usually that time is surrounded by tragic occurrences.  For instance, I still remember the story of the man that was innocently convicted and was looking at the mob outside the window before his execution.  As he put his face to the window, lightning stuck and imprinted his face into the window pane image.  He was found innocent after his execution, but the image of his face remained almost like a curse to the townsfolk that wronged him.  Stuff like that I like.  But when you have a ghost story that involves innocent children getting hurt, well that raises the stakes quite a bit.  This is one of those films...

This movie starts off disturbingly enough, with a clearly troubled nurse Susan (Susie Trayling) and doctor Marcus (Richard Roxburgh) dealing with a young boy Simon that has mysteriously broken a leg bone in bed, and then has another fracture before than can finish X-raying him.  Also, there seems to be a bond between Susan and the girl patient Maggie (Yasmine Murphy).  Enter Calista Flockhart's character Amy to take over the night shift duties.  She also forms a bond with Maggie and starts to realize that maybe things in this hospital are not quite what they seem.  Nurse Folder (Gemma Jones) doesn't put up with a lot of nonsense, especially ghost stories told by children and threatens Amy her job if she doesn't settle down.  But fellow nurse Helen (Elena Anaya) seems a bit distraught herself...yelling at the children and not having a lot of patience.  

Amy hears Maggie talk of a girl called Charlotte, and we learn that Amy herself has some history.  While it's not explained thoroughly, we do know that some negligence on her part caused a child to either die or be injured and she lives with that guilt, popping pills on a regular basis.  The hospital is being closed down and only a few children remain, and the more that are taken out the worse things get.  We are told that Maggie has Cystic Fibrosis and doesn't have much longer to live, and Amy finds out that she has "seen" Charlotte.  She also finds out that the former nurse Susan fled the hospital out of fear.  Amy is becoming more and more unglued and what is with the 2nd floor that the elevator cannot reach....at least on it's own means of operation.  Who is Charlotte and why are the children getting hurt?  This all leads up to some detective work and the shocking truth is revealed, but can the children be saved in time?  Can the hospital be saved in time?

There is some great acting in this, especially by Richard Roxburgh and Calista Flockhart.  The supporting cast is equally impressive especially Roy (Colin McFarlane) as an aide to the hospital..  And this is beautifully shot by Xavi Gimenez...the halls of this hospital just echo atmosphere.  As far as gore is concerned, this is really not bloody...it's more about the mystery unraveling about the history of hospital and one of it's patients.  I was satisfied with the story they wove here.  The reveal is pieced together quite nicely.  Although we do see some graphic depictions of surgery, they are brief.  And, there may be a plot hole or two here, and the movie doesn't exactly move at a lighting pace, but I appreciated the character development, especially the bond between Amy and Maggie.  People you care about makes it much harder to watch when they get hurt.  I have read some of the IMDB forum postings and they accusations that this film is boring...but in order for a ghost story to be good, the history has to be established, so i'm on the other side of the fence and think this one of the better ghost story films I have seen.  I gave it 4 stars on my netflix queue based on acting alone.  This is a superbly well acted little ghost story, that IMO is a cut above the rest.  Just be warned that it is more story than special effects.

8 out of 10

Day 26: Clownhouse

Three young boys VS three insane clowns in this 1989 thriller!

I still remember the first the time a clown show scared me.  It was a circus my dad took me to, and they had this skit about "pulling teeth", and for some reason it bothered me...made me feel really uncomfortable.  But, I do not have a fear of clowns now.  Nor would I say that I really ever did, it's just that at the time, the act they were mimicking seemed so dang violent.  But I understand that a lot of people are creeped out by clowns, especially the one in Poltergeist.  And i'm sure that this particular film gave clown-o-phobes, a reason to check their closets before going to bed at night.  The only thing creepier than seeing clowns in the big top, is to have them running around inside your house trying to murder ya, as these unfortunate young men find out.

Casey Collins (Nathan Forrest Winters) is afraid of clowns, very afraid.  So much that he has nightmares about clowns that cause him to wet the bed, much to the delight of his oldest brother Randy (a very young Sam Rockwell).  Much nicer to him is his brother Geoffrey (Brian McHugh), who seems to sympathize with Casey's phobia.  Indeed, he really does take up for him quite a bit..standing between Casey and Randy at times.  So, a carnival is coming to town and the boys are going to go, even to watch the circus.  Then an unfortunate incident involving a clown disgraces Casey in front of "the whole town" (Randy's words).  Meanwhile, three mental patients have escaped the ward and are headed that way.  

So before you know it, the three mental patients have killed the three clowns and donned their attire.  They spot Casey and follow him back to his house.  And since it's near Halloween (and mom and dad are not home), the boys decide to tell ghost stories which spooks Casey, who then goes to the window and sees all of the inmates.  This sets off a series of "cat and mouse" chase scenes, involving Casey, the murderous clowns, and his brother's who don't believe him.  The clowns are always just right out of sight, and only appear when Casey is looking.  And then...the clowns get inside the house!  What follows is a fight for survival as they are stalked throughout their home by the clowns.  Can the boys band together and defeat the clowns, or will they become their latest victims?

I kind of liked this flick.  This is not one of those films where you just have helpless victims being victimized...these boys fight back.  At times some of the scenes reminded me of Halloween, and the soundtrack done by Michael Becker and Thomas Richardson, really ups the creep factor.  However, if you are looking for copious amounts of gore, look elsewhere.  This film is about as tame as they come in the blood department.  I enjoyed all of the young actors.  Sam Rockwell is the annoying, jerk brother to a tee...but at the same time he doesn't have a problem holding Casey's hand when he gets scared.  And when the stakes get high, the boys pull together in order to get out of deadly situations.  I have to say this film reminded me of the movie Halloween in several instances.  Especially all of the stalking that the clowns are doing, hiding in the shadows, and yes...in the closet!  But, as I have stressed before, this is pretty tame fare for a "slasher" flick.  I can't argue that it's not well done though, because I did enjoy it.

This is a pretty entertaining blast from the late 80's past.  It relies less on blood and gore than it does just pure suspense.  Probably a lot scarier to people that are actually afraid of clowns though.  In fact, it might terrify them.  Victor Salva does a pretty good job in his first feature film.  Difficult to find this, but just do a google search and you can find it streaming for free somewhere.  Not bad...not bad at all.

7.5 out of 10

Day 25: Wake Wood

Bringing back a dead child is never a good idea!

The pain of the loss of a child that dies horribly.  The grief stricken parents that are trying to put their lives back together after the senseless tragedy.  The ceremony that brings back the dead girl so that mommy and daddy can be with her again...but only for 3 days.  Sigh...haven't these people seen Pet Sematary?  Nothing good ever comes of this.  But for some reason I'm going to be lenient with this picture, because I can tell that a lot of work and effort went into it, and it's well acted.  It's just a pretty good little parable about knowing when to let go, and that too much of a good thing, might just be that.  But let's dig in:

We are introduced to Patrick (Aiden Gillen) and Louise (Eva Birthistle) and their daughter Alice (Ella Connolly).  They have just moved into the town of Wake Wood and everything is going swell.  Dad works at a...well i'm not exactly sure what they do where he works.  It's just the first scene at his job, has him splitting open the side of cow and pulling out a baby calf.  I thought it was kind of gross, but anyway...they get Alice a hamster.  Alice goes next door to a kennel of some sort and the big dog doesn't seem to like the hamster, and despite the fact that Alice has brought it some meat...the dog bites out her throat.  The parents are devastated.

Now we move forward in time.  The mom is still having trouble letting go, but Patrick is trying to force it.  We learn that Louise works at a pharmacy when I girl with asthma comes in the store with her mom and tries to get a refill that is over a year old.  So they are driving in the rain one night (I cant' remember where they were going or why) and the car mysteriously just quits on them.  So they hike to Patrick's employers house, but no one appears to be home.  That's when Louise goes around back and watches a ritual of some kind where it appears that a man is birthed from mud.  Shaken she runs away, but Patrick's boss Arthur (Timothy Spall of Harry Potter fame), is in their house and tells them that they can bring their daughter back...but only for 3 days and in order to say a proper goodbye.  All of this will work provided the girl has been dead less than a year.  

Patrick tells him that she has been dead 11 months and 3 days or something to that effect, so they proceed with the ceremony.  Alice comes back alright, but even though she is cute as a button, there is just something not right about her...and then the newly found dog that they nursed to health is found horribly mutilated...and Alice is re-enacting her "birth" by pushing dolls through garbage bags...and her fingers and nails are dirty.  And then the townsfolk all show up and tell the parents, she needs to go back early, something is wrong.  And we get to see that as we race towards the finale, which I found to be kind of clever and would like a sequel to see just what happens when...but that would be telling.

I think the performances here are pretty spot on.  The film has a very nice look to it, and the proceedings are rather grim.  The mythology behind the ritual is well done, and involves some very ghastly scenes.  Of particular note, they have to get a "token" from their daughter that involves digging up her grave.  I have to say this scene was hard to watch, as they have to look at thier skeletal daughter's face and snip off one of her fingers.  Also of note is a "death by cow" scene that looked really painful and is something I don't think i've ever witnessed in a film before.  The cinematography is quite breathtaking, and the gore is not exactly plentiful...but we do get to see Alice do some ghastly things and some blood does flow.  Overall, i'd sum this up as a cross between Pet Sematary and The Wicker Man (not the Nick Cage one, but the original), and I kind of thought it worked for the most part.

8 out of 10