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

Day 24: Wind Chill

Finally...a ghost story, with Emily Blunt!  That counts for something right?

I have to say this film is more effective at what it sets out to do, than the movie "Occupant" I watched last night.  Of  interest to me was the fact that this little ghost story was executive produced by none other than George Clooney AND Steven Soderbergh.  I'm really an Emily Blunt fan as well, and this little tale definitely has atmosphere and more than that to burn.  What we have here is a ghost story about a road, and the horrible things that have transpired on that road repeating themselves over and over.  It was kind of nice to just see a traditional ghost story...no real twists to be had here...just a decent film.

I mean there has to be a reason we never find out either of their names.  Emily Blunt plays a girl and Ashton Holmes plays a guy.  Emily is trying to get home for Christmas and so she is looking for a ride Delaware.  She see's a posting on the campus board and then meets up with Ashton Holmes.  Then they set about on their way to get her home.  Ashton tries to impress Emily by taking a shortcut on route 606 (clever), and pretty soon they find themselves stranded after being involved with an accident involving another car...that just kind of vanishes.  It's winter and the two get to know each other over the course of the film, but distrust is the name of the game with Emily..at least at first.

Pretty soon, we get weird stuff happening.  Figures are shambling by the car.  There appear to be priests just kind of walking about in groups, sort of oblivious to our protagonist's cries.  And then there is the sheriff (played with menace by Martin Donovan), who just seems to be evil.  The problem is, they might just be freezing to death...and food is low.  The crash injured both of them, but Ashton much more so than Emily.  Everytime that radio starts playing that 50's song though, watch out...Sheriff gonna getcha!  Can they survive until morning, and what exactly happened here that made this road haunted to begin with?  Just sit back and all will be revealed.

I really liked the chemistry between Blunt and Holmes.  Because we care about them, it adds a sense of urgency to the film.  They also do a good job of painting Holmes as a possible stalker.  And when the wierd stuff starts happening, they have no choice but to band together to survive.  The setting is appropriately creepy...cold and fogged over windows you can barely see through.  The act of surviving just the cold weather itself becomes a major factor.  And when we find out where all the ghosts came from, it fits together quite nicely.  Urban legend by way of ghost story...nice.  Production values are pretty high on this as well...the sound effects are creepy and made me jump more than a few times.  Hey, I yelled out at least once...it was just too quiet and "bang"...haha loved it! :)

But even with all of that, there is something missing from the film.  I just kind of feels hollow to me for some reason.  The ghost story is pretty good, the effects are decent, and the dialogue between Blunt and Holmes is engaging, especially when he is trying to convince her that he's not going to hurt her.  And considering "where" they are, the cell phone not working makes perfect sense.  Also nice that Blunt is an engineering major and is kind of smart for that reason...so we don't just see her do these wonderful things...she has the backing to prove she can do them.  The title of the story turns out to not be about the weather, but about some properties of the ghosts themselves.  They kind of take liberty with what a ghost can do, almost giving them powers...some people might be turned off by that.

All in all, this is an above average ghost story, with nice production, and pretty good acting all around.  It's not a perfect movie by any means, but the explanation behind what is going on makes sense within the framework of the story, so I can't be that harsh on it.  If you are looking for a ghost story that takes place on a frozen winter road, then  you could do far worse than watch this film.  So take a ride down route 606, and you might just find the sheriff waiting for ya.

7.5 out of 10

Day 23: Occupant

This "haunted" apartment slow-burn, could have been so much better!

This movie really had potential, but somewhere down the line of the "days" it counts, it just kind of goes off the rails and the conclusion is unsatisfying to say the least.  There are shades of classic films like Rosemary's Baby and The Tenant all throughout this...even Apt 1408 and The Shining at times...but it's just a pale comparison to any of them.  And it's a shame, because for the most part it's beautifully shot, decently acted, and fairly engaging.  It just doesn't go anywhere.  Where to begin...

We start off with an old woman in a bed in her dying throes.  We don't know why she is dying, but we assume because it's a horror movie, that it's a ghost, demon, something...right.  Ok, now the premise for this is pretty solid actually.  The idea is that her grandson Danny (Van Hansis) can move into her "renter" apartment for the same price she paid for it (which is cheap for the area I guess...I don't know).  The doorman Joe (Thorsten Kaye) seems awfully friendly though...very touchy-feely and he wants to take care of Danny.  So he hooks Danny up with a lawyer and they are going to swindle the landlord by saying the Danny has lived there with his grandma before she died.  If he can stay in the house for 12 days, the house is his...or says the doorman and the lawyer anyway.  

On the way to his first visit to the apartment he runs in a self described "web blogger" (Cody Horn), who soon enough is visiting his place and videotaping them having sex.  And then she kind of gets up and wanders around and "something" happens to her.  And there are creaking noises and that hole in the closet door that just likes to re-open...and the cat doesn't like the place at all.  And wierd jewelry and shoes keep appearing where they were disappearing, and the pesticide guy dies in the apartment..and.  Well the movie takes place over the 12 days, and we see Danny getting more unhinged the more the days pass.  The question is, is it because he is being forced to stay in the house and is developing cabin fever?  Or is there something in the apartment that is making him crazy.  And more importantly, can he keep his sanity for the next 12 days.  I mean the wierd black guy come in and drops a Bible with it open to a verse about "demons" being in his presence.  So what is really going on here?

Ok, I liked Danny's character and most of the supporting cast (very small cast) is not bad in this.  I have also said that I like the way it's shot, but that's only half correct.  Towards the end, they go for some wierd techno music and sped up editing which totally clashes with the more calm focused shots of the start of the movie.  This is where it began to lose me.  It's like, "hey look i'm all indie, if you have any doubt i'm going to throw alt rock at you and speed up the camera"...it just wasn't needed.  There is one murder in this film that I have to say was very kind of inventive, but at the same time, so incredibly pedestrian...but the visual was striking.  The audio is fine, with us hearing the sounds of "demons" in the apartment I guess.  It's just that some of the things that Danny does towards the end of this, make no sense.  And maybe that is the reason he does them, but as a viewer I really felt cheated.  The payoff is really insulting, and there is really no sense of closure.  And with a movie like this, it really needed something like a Rosemary's Baby ending...because what we are left with is zero motivation or explanation as to why any of it occurred.

As such, even though I thought some of the characters were engaging...the script is just a mess and unravels towards the end.  Also, at times it seems that Danny is perfectly ok, but then the transition to the way he acts the next day is just jarring and not very realistic.  The actor is doing ok, I think this is a problem with the pacing and it should have been drawn out a few more days.  So, while I would not say this is a terrible film by any means, some artistic decisions and a vague ending really hurt the overall production.

6 out of 10

Day 22: The Fields

I've seen what lies in the fields, and believe me none of it is as scary as Tara Reid's acting!

What we have here is a movie that tries to be a horror film, and fails utterly.  I mean, look at the cover on the DVD wrapper for the UK.  I guarantee  you, that you will not see one grim reaper character in this film...well unless you consider hippies to be   Now, that is not to say that it's that bad, but the blatant mis-marketing is criminal.  What this is, is a coming of age story masked under a lot of horror movie trappings.  Well, not really even that, we do see a dead body, and there is some suspense, but that's it.  I almost feel like i'm cheating by reviewing this as it's not a horror film.  I did watch A Serbian Film tonight (Google it!) as well, but that's not a horror movie either, and it would hard for me to review that due to the violent pornographic content...so i'll do my best to cover this.

Steven (Joshua Ormond) is upstairs in his room when his mommy Bonnie (Tara Reid) and daddy Barry (Faust Checho) are fighting.  Steven comes downstairs to find Barry pointing a gun at Bonnie's face.  Just an aside, Tara Reid's acting here is soooo bad.  She doesn't even act like she's scared, angry, or anything else.  It just totally pulled me out of it to begin with.  So, little Steven is sent to stay with Barry's parents Gladys (Cloris Leachman) and Hiney (Bev Appleton), and is told to stay out of the cornfield!  But Steven gets tired of listening to Gladys cuss consistently and runs out into the cornfield and finds...a dead girl!  Of course no one will believe a little kid, and it's all because of Glady's monster movie watching habits that Steven is so freaked out.

Life in the country in the 70's can be exciting though, what with all the talk on the radio of Charles Manson and the wierd Eugene (Louis Morabito) that works at the "milkshop".  And then there is Glady's sister Tootie (Karen Ludwig) that is in love with a "colored" man Charlie (Brian Anthony Wilson) as Glady's calls him and her other sister that has some ailiment and has passed it down to her children.  We find out later that Barry was apparently sent there during a confrontation with his father.  So, Steven wanders around and goes into the cornfield a few too many times and then there are the hippies he keeps meeting when he's out with Hiney.  And then the family starts getting harrased...stuff thrown through the window.  But just who is behind it all, and what is lurking in the cornfield.  The answer is about as pedestrian as they come.

Ok, this movie is not a bad drama.  I liked Cloris Leachman's performance and especially liked Bev Appleton's role as Hiney.  It was just one of those grandfatherly roles that can be acted so well.  Steven doesn't say much and his immaturity as an actor shows, but he did grown on me some as the movie progressed.  I did find Gladys to be a bit over the top with the profanity...too many F bombs.  Eugene and the hippie girls were kind of creepy from the offset, and with the exception of Reid, most of the supporting cast is ok.  But Reid, not one scene does she sell...it's really sad to watch...i'm glad she is barely in this, as it would have dropped my score by another 3 or 4 stars probably.

Overall, if you are looking for a coming of age story, with a mystery behind it...this might be up your alley.  Most of the acting is decent and Tara Reid only has a few lines to butcher.  It's nicely shot, and may give some nostalgic feelings for the past.  Although it's not a horror movie, I'm going to grade it on it's merits.

6.5 out of 10

Day 21: May

Lucky McKee scores with this tale of a lonely girl who will do anything to KEEP a friend!

Have you ever felt that you did not fit in?  Or when you finally got the chance to do so, you just didn't know what to do, because it was so alien to you in the first place?  I think this film exemplifies all of the above.  In truth, I have at times felt like May.  I was never a popular kid, so seeing May struggle to connect was something I could identify with.  No one wants to be left out or alone.  And I think that is why this film works as well as it does.  Everyone has felt like May at one time or another.  But May is just a little unstable and takes things to Frankenstein levels.

The movie starts off with an unsettling shot of a girl with blood all over her face, holding her hand over one eye.  Then we are given a brief backstory of May (Angela Bettis), who was born with a lazy eye.  She undergoes surgery to try to fix it, and has to wear a patch over it while it heals.  The kids are cruel to her at school and ask her if she is a pirate.  Her mom feels badly for May, and so decides to give her a doll that she had as a child...she tells May that the doll can be her best friend, since she can't make any on her own.

Then we catch up to May in current times.  She works at the animal hospital, loves to sew, has a crush on the auto mechanic Adam (Jeremy Sisto) near where she works, and still has that freaking creepy doll.  And her co-worker Polly (Anna Ferris), may just have a huge crush on her.  Watching her attempts to try to get Adam's attention is awkward and at times frantic.  May seems to be as fragile as glass, and indeed we are shown the glass case the doll is held in slowly crack as the movie progresses.  May finally gets Adam to notice her and things pick up in her life.  And we are shown that she will do anything to fit in, even pick up Adam's smoking habit.  It seems that for the first time she is happy.  But there is something odd about her fascination with Adam's hands.  She tells him they are "perfect".  A bad romantic hookup leads to Adam dumping her and even Polly seems to have betrayed her.  What follows is a complete breakdown as poor May comes to the conclusion that there is only one way to keep someone around and they be faithful!  The finale is just chilling and heartbreaking at the same time.

Angela Bettis really is a fantastic actress.  She plays awkward to a tee, always shaking, sometimes being silent because she doesn't know what to say.  Anna Ferris is fun to watch as Polly, who really has a thing for May, and hookers apparently.  Jeremy Sisto also gives a good performance as Adam, who at one point falls in love with May, but can't figure out how to stay in love with her.  The acting is just good all around.  Gore in this movie is kept to a minimum, but it is shown, and at times is quite graphic.  The soundtrack features indie bands, and fits the material well.

There are a few things that I loved.  I loved that May tried to identify with blind children because they couldn't "see" her.  And there is a scene involving May, the doll, and a group of these children that turns something very innocent into carnage.  It's difficult watching May keep trying and keep failing, and falling deeper into psychosis as it goes forward, until she just can't take it anymore.  In theme with the movie I reviewed yesterday, Adam is a Dario Argento fan and has a poster of Argento and his movie "Opera" on his wall.  This poster depicts an "eye" as well.  May wants people to see her, as she sees herself.  McKee really is a great visual director...the scene with the blind children is really horrific because of the innocence of it all.  It's just very well done.  The isolation theme reminded me of Carrie as well.

I liked this movie because it had depth.  It had a protagonist that is easy to identify with, and the acting is stellar.  Watching May deconstruct, is at times horrifying and heartbreaking.  She just wanted acceptance and to be loved. If you like your horror with a little bit of depth, then you will probably dig this.

   

9 out of 10

Day 20: Giallo

One of Dario Argento's weaker affairs, this is a competent but sterile giallo!

Argento is a legend in movie cinema.  He's been called "the itallian hitchcock", and usually has a very visual style of directing.  He's know for lavish colors and "artistic" murder set pieces.  The giallo movie itself came from yellow paperback murder mysteries.  They were usually identified by graphic depictions of violence, horrific if you will.  This is the tie of the giallo to horror movies, the fact that usually the deaths are quite horrific to behold.  Unfortunately, aside from a few scenes of carnage here, this just does not live up to what I expect from Argento.  The story goes something like this...

A killer is masquerading as a taxi driver to disfigure and murder beautiful women.  He targets mainly foreigners, and after subduing them in his cab, he takes them back to his "lair", where he proceeds to disfigure them.  All of this sounds much more horrific than it actually is, and we are shown only quick glimpses of the mayhem.  Adrien Brody plays a New York Detective (Enzo Avolfi) who is trying to figure out who is doing the murders.  He is brought onto the case when Linda (Emmanuelle Seigner) has her model sister Celline (Elsa Pataky), not show up at her hotel after making a call from a cab and being abruptly cut off.  And that's how the movie goes, we see Enzo and Linda go from place to place trying to track down the killer...and we get to see some of his handiwork on his victims as he holds them captive.  

One of the oddest things, and something that is far removed from general Argento fare, is the fact that we are  shown the killer early on.  Since a Giallo, is a "murder mystery", well...the mystery portion of the movie is gone.  Then all we are left with it a race against time to save Celline from being the killers next victim.  It's all very paint by numbers too...I mean it's just a standard detective story with a few horrific scenes here and there.  It's not scary, it's definitely not funny (well I guess a case can be made for Emmanuelle Seigner's acting ability; she never changes facial expressions).  We are given a dark story behind how Brody came to be a detective and we see a little bit of the old Argento in the murder scene (that we see 3 or 4 times for some reason).  But honestly, that's about it.  It's all about tracking down the killer.

Ok, so I have to talk about the directing here, since Argento is such a prolific director.  We do get some of Argento's style.  He loves to put the camera on the far driver's side so we are kind of hanging off the car as it moves...this is done with Brody's car and the killer's taxi.  Also, the flashback sequences to Brody's past are very dreamy, with the camera tilting left and right very slowly and a slight haze over the picture.  The murders themselves are quite tame for Argento.  Even if the prosthetics of his old films looked really cheesy, the method of murder was always, for the most part, inventive.  Here, the only thing that is inventive is where the killer likes to inject his victims to make them sleep.  I have to admit that seeing a needle go into one of the victim's tongue's made me wince.  Also the blood still looks like paint to me...in all of Argento's films it looks this way...there's the "artistic" murder reference I decribed earlier.  Oh and there is an opera scene, a girl running in the rain...but sadly no Goblin score to heighten the effect.  Geez, I remember the music in Suspira by itself creeping me out so much I looked in all my closets before going to bed.  None of that is here.

Brody's acting is adequate, but he doesn't have much to work with.   Aside from the typical, "tortured youth" background, there is just nothing to make Enzo compelling.  And as I have said before, Emmanuelle Siegner might as well have slept through this role.  She's all pouty lips and uninspired acting..bleh.  The supporting cast is small, but Inpector Mori (Robert Miano) does a pretty good job with the scenes he is given.  Other than that, it's basically bland.  The killer himself comes across as something like the hunchback of Notre Dame and Igor crossed.  He mostly babbles in caveman style language...that is eye rolling at times.  And his reasoning behind doing all of this is really not made clear.  Ok, so he was picked on...the young child they have playing him is not exactly ugly...so I don't get it.  Eh...

Sadly, this is about as subpar as Argento gets, and aside from The Card Player, probably his worst film.

5.5 out of 10

Day 19: Bloody Birthday

This campy 80's classic is a lot of fun

Understand that I am giving this movie a good review based on a "so bad it's good" scale.  None of the acting is going to win any awards here, the music is strictly cheese (even at times ripping off Psycho), and there is plenty of sex and nudity.  In short, this is a prime example of the slasher films of the 80's, but I think this is a little more fun to watch.  Every cliche you can think of is here, but most prominent are the "clueless" cops.  So, I'll talk a little bit about what the story is about...not much depth here...lol!

So, the movie starts off with an total eclipse and 3 children being born during it...in the same town of course and at the same time.  As we are told later on in the movie, being born during an eclipse is bad mmmkay, because during this time, Saturn is blocked and it gives you emotions.  Yes, this is uttered in this film...complete cheese and it's great!  So the kids born during this, lack emotions and therefore have no problems with killing anyone they see fit too.  And no one is safe from their murderous shenanigans.  They are a hoot too, there is Curtis (played by Billy Jane of Parker Lewis Can't Lose fame...I knew he looked familiar), Debbie (Elizabeth Hoy), and Steven (Andy Freeman).  When these 3 get together watch out.

There is some great camp to be had here.  I loved the fact that Debbie is already learning the art of good business by charging 25 cents to watch her sister undress (via a hole in the closet).  The sister (Beverly) is played by Julie Brown of MTV fame, hamming it up here.  Also of note is Joyce (played by Lori Lethin) as the girl that no one will believe and her kid brother Timmy (K.C. Martel) who just always seems to avoid death at the hands of these little monsters.  Joyce reminded me a lot of Alice from the first Friday the 13th.  The acting is just as bad too...lol.  

What can I say, I enjoyed watching these little demons and their murderous rampage.  There is a great scene involving a car in a junk yard and Joyce that they lured there.  I dunno though, the note they used to get her there was supposedly from her brother Timmy and it starts off "Joyce"...I am...  I just kind of found it hard to believe he would address his sister that way, or that she bought that.  Also hard to buy is the fact that the cops can't tell the difference between someone being beat to death with a baseball bat and slipping on the steps on a skateboard.  But as long as it keeps the mayhem going, i'm good with it.  I did find Curtis' fascination with sex and nudity a bit disconcerting.  He's practically a voyeur, and watching sex makes him want to kill who is doing it...but at the same time he seems to enjoy watching it momentarily...odd.

Also, that's kind of odd in and of itself, I mean I know this is supposed to be an 80's slasher, but the nudity is  copious here and for a movie that has a lot of children in it...just strikes me as wrong somehow.  !!!Spoiler alert!!! - one of my favorite lines in the entire movie is after Debbie dispatches her sister and then calls the other kids over to help clean up the mess.  They get there and say "Why didn't you wait on us?" to which Debbie replies "I can't help it, she had it coming".  LOL.  As said before the music is classic overblown 80's music that could have been on the Brady Bunch.  It almost at times gives the movie a sitcom feel.  The film is shot like any other film of this decade in the slasher genre...we even get some POV shots at the start when a couple that decide to do their business in an open grave meet Curtis and Debbie for the first...and last time.  Oh yeah, and there is nothing like teamwork.  Kids back then...

So, how do I rate this movie.  First off, understand that this is a hard R movie.  Not so much in the language dept as the sex and nudity.  Also, the gore is like a toned down Friday the 13th.  But all in all, this is a fun way to spend an hour and 24 minutes.  If you don't have an aversion to campy 80's movies, you are likely to have a good time here, just know what you are getting into beforehand.

8 out of 10

Day 18: Kidnapped

A very bleak home invasion thriller!

Ok, here is a genre that I have not yet covered.  I guess you could compare this most to The Strangers, but it's much more raw than that...and maybe more artistic.  This is one of those, bad things happen to innocent people type of movies, where you just know it's going to end up badly.  The problem is that you don't know how you would respond in a situation like this, there is no way to know.  Maybe some of the things that people do in this film are dumb things, or not thought out.  But, could you really trust these kind of thugs to do what they say they are going to do?  It's an unsettling question and it fits the tone of this film.

The plot is very simple.  It's a home invasion movie, where the victims do anything they can to survive.  Man, the opening scene in this movie is really jarring.  It's a guy on the ground with a plastic bag over his head...we see this still shot for what lasts 2 or 3 minutes....and then he breathes or tries to...and gets to his feet and stumbles right into the freeway and gets hit by a car.  This sets the stage for the horror you are about to witness...and a lot of it is very horrific indeed.  Jamie (Fernando Cayo) has just moved into his new home with his wife Marta (Ana Wagener) and daughter Ilsa (Manuella Velles).  They are all ready to eat dinner in their house when 3 masked men smash in the glass door behind them and take them hostage.  They are terrorized and told to give their credit cards and cell phones and nothing will happen to them.  And then Jamie has to go with one of them to ATM's to get money out, while they hold his daughter and mom hostage.

This would not be that bad, except one of the kidnappers is more than a little crazy and loves to do his own thing.  We also have a sympathetic member, that tries to stop things when they get a little too crazy.  I mean there is really not much to say here.  We are treated to scenes of the two women trying to escape and paying for this in various ways...and their friends have to suffer too.  Some of this is very disturbing to say the least...they really don't hold back.  And it really boils down to desperation, what would you do to survive.  You witness just what, all the way to the terrifying conclusion.  This is not a happy movie folks, or a feel good film.  It's dark and gritty and unashamedly violent.  And takes place in real-time.

I have to say the acting in this is quite good.  Both actresses really are able to convey horror well...and Jamie looks desperate in trying to figure out how he is going to save his family.  Also, there is a way of shooting this film where we see split screen a lot of the time and at pivotal moments.  Things going on with Jamie and his gun toting driver, are split with the horrors going on in Jamie's household.  This is really effective, as some scenes and the duality of the horrors are simultaneous at different places.  There is no music in this, so that helps it feel more realistic.  Hearing footsteps pounding down the hall, or hearing the banging of a door to get Isa to open the bathroom are horrific against her hysterical sobbing...looking for anything to defend herself or cause harm.  And in one of the films most shocking scenes, she does exact brutal, bloody vengeance. But is it any worse than what has been done to her?  Probably not.

I feel like this film is effective for what it is, and the ending is truly shocking.  You won't be smiling that's for sure.  Well acted and imaginatively directed...this is horror that we all fear and can relate too.  Being captive and hoping that you can get out alive.  The crazy thug really ratchets up tension and his quarrels with the more understanding one make for an interesting dynamic.  It makes you wonder what the original plan was, and how it went so far south.  Brutal and chilling, this is an unnerving look at people being reduced to their most animalistic to try to survive.

8 out of 10

Day 17: Detention

A Prom slasher sendup that doesn't quite make the grade!

When I set out to do this, the goal was to watch different types of horror, and this film definitely fits that bill.  It's quirky, meta, funny at times, goofy at times, and really confusing at times.  It's like they took all these different types of shows and threw them in a blender.  Now, don't get me wrong, this is not one of those "Meet the Spartans" films that just take random pop references and throw them together as skits.  No, this movie does have a storyline, but the story is also one of it's biggest downfalls...

The film starts off with Taylor Fisher (Alison Woods) giving us the low down on her life.  It almost comes across as Disney tv, until some expletives are hurled at us and some naughty humor...it's just so darn meta.  You know, with the signs on the screen telling us things (Zombieland), and she is griping about the world and how "little miss princess" is getting ready for Prom and then...she is promptly butchered in her bedroom, by a guy wearing a mask...natch.  This is quite graphic, but completely played for laughs.  

Cut to Grizzly Lake high school where we are introduced to our cast.  The film focuses on Riley (A very likeable Shanley Caswell), who is doing her best to make it at school.  She is in love with Clapton Davis (Josh Hutcherson of the Hunger Games), but he is infatuated with Ione (Spencer Lock).  Ione is on the cheerleading squad and Riley is the mascot...how uneven.  And we have the guy that is really in love with Riley, Sander (Aaron David Johnson).  We are shown how Riley just doesn't fit in and in a bit of comedy that does work, she tries to hang herself in the middle of the school, only to be attacked by the killer.  Some great choreography follows as the killer repeatedly misses her and keeps knocked down.  I found this to be really funny.  There is a chase scene that sort of follows the same blueprint later on, and it's equally as great.  

So a party is thrown and during the middle of it, the school bully Billy (Parker Bagley) is savagely chopped up.  This is one part of the movie that did not work for me.  They try to do this send up of The Fly and give him this whole backstory, which amounts to nothing because he's slaughtered a few minutes later.  And this leads us to the Detention part of the movie, as they all try to figure out who the killer is.  Oh and the principal is played by a very dour Dane Cook.  This is the part of the movie where it goes completely off the rails, incorporating time travel, body switching...you name it.

I have to confess that this was rather easy to watch, it's just too bad that the story becomes so incoherent.  I don't really understand why they would throw time travel into this.  It just made the story really confusing.  On the brighter side, I loved the way this was shot...really bright and vibrant and the murders are also done in these environments which really seems odd now that I think about it.  It's not traditional for this genre.  At times this movie reminded me of stuff like Parker Lewis Can't Lose.  There is even a send up of a Prom Night style killer named Cinderhella.  But the soundtrack is really cool.  They use music to frame different time periods and it works out very well.  It took me back to my college days.  So, this movie is kind of hard to rate, it's definitely inspired and kind of fun to watch...but some of the elements just don't work.  The ending is just a complete mess..even parodying Iron Man of all things.  But, it's just kind of fun to watch, and Shanley Caswell is great as the central character.

7.5 out of 10

Day 16: The Shrine

An exercise in mediocrity!

Some horror movies are drawn out, but have a cool twist ending.  Some horror movies have something to say about society.  Some horror movies are goofy and bloody at the same time.  And then some are like "The Shrine", totally average in every way.  Man, when I first started watching this, I knew what I was in for...and pretty much everything I thought would happen did happen.  But, at the same time, it's not the level of terrible that Midnight Movie was.  I still have a hard time recommending it though, most of it is so "blah", and "give me a break".  So let's dive into...wait if you try to dive into this you are going to hit bottom fast, as there is no depth!

The film starts off with a young man being ritually sacrificed by having a mask hammered into his head.  Now that I have that out of the way...we meet Carmen (played by Cindy Sampson of Supernatural fame...and so much better in that!) and Marcus (played by Shawn Ashmore of X-men fame...wondering how he went from that to this).  They argue because Carmen just wants to be the next Lois Lane, and Marcus just wants to be loved.  And it's not like this journalist gig is getting her anywhere, I mean her boss is only interested in bees dying out.  But Carmen happens upon the story of poor Eric Taylor, that has gone missing in Europe, and with her sidekick Sara (Megan Heffern) by her side, and after visiting Eric's mom Laura (Laura de Carteret), and procuring Eric's journal, off she goes to convince Marcus to come with them.

To no one's surprise they are in Europe the next thing you know, and this village where Marcus was last seen...I mean it has creepy little girls, and not-friendly locals...and a mysterious fog bank that just hangs in the air.  And after being threatened, what else is there to do but go investigate...and find a creepy bloody statue in the fog...both girls, because one is not enough.  At least Marcus is smart enough to not do this.  But before you know it the little creepy girl is back and tells them that she knows where Ben is...so like lemmings they follow her into a trap.  And of course when they escape this trap they run into the last place that Ben put in his journal...an old barn.  I don't know...if that was his last entry, I think I would choose somewhere else to hide.  And we are treated to one of the girls being ritually sacrificed after they are captured...and of course none of this is as it seems....

I know that I spoiled a lot of this movie, but really there is no reason to watch it.  How many horror movies have you seen where the overly ambitious girl leads the entire group into danger.  You know, I would like to see a horror movie parody, where the person in the group that starts spouting out ideas we know is going to get them all killed, is promptly knocked out and the person that did it says, "I'm sorry, I had to do it, she was going to get us all killed!"  In fact, I would applaud that scene.  There is not much here, it's just so paint by numbers that by the time you get to the "twist", you don't even care.  And that's kind of a shame, because that's when we get some pretty cool gore effects...and some really plastic looking masks.  Err...

The acting in this is really subpar.  There is no intensity, and I have seen both Ashmore and Sampson do much better than this.  There is nothing striking about the music..standard horror movie fare, and the sound effects..well at one point I was just laughing at how ridiculous it was.  Slight spoiler here, but can anyone tell me why demon's growl like lions?  It robbed what could have been a pretty intense scene, by making it ultra campy.  And the twist ending is not bad, I didn't see it coming...but too little too late.  All of the cliches that came before...it's not like getting a fantastic dessert after eating a mundane meal.  It's really not.  If you are looking for an average occult horror movie...then enter "The Shrine".

5 out of 10

Day 15: Intruders

A "better than it should be", childhood nightmare come to life!

This movie has it's problems.  In fact, I would say that it has a few glaring plot holes, or maybe I just missed a few details.  I can do that, be listening and paying as close attention as possible and still miss a few details.  But there are some things that are done here just to advance the plot, and one of them is rather integral to the entire story...in fact, without it there wouldn't be one.  So, before I confuse anyone else let's dig in shall we?

The movie starts off with a young boy Juan having a nightmare.  I tall figure with no face attempts to abduct him from his room and his mom saves him just in the nick of time.  It's a great little action sequence, that sets the mood for what we are about to witness.  Oh, and the boy and his mom both speak Spanish, so we are reading subtitles.  Flash to a birthday party being held for 12 year old  Mia (fantastic performance by Ella Purnell). They are currently at John's (Clive Owen, also very good here) grandparent's house.  Her grandparents cat goes into the woods and Mia follows him up a tree.  The cat seems interested in a hollow in the tree, and so Mia sticks her hand down into the hollow to see what is in there.  Ok, I don't think I would ever stick MY hand in a hollow in a tree.  I kept expecting her to get stung by bees or hornets or something. Regardless, she retrieves a box with a partially written story in it.  It's a kind of horror story about a character called "Hollowface", and she uses it as her own story in class.  But it's unfinished and her teacher wants her to complete it, so she sets about the task of finishing the story.  

Bad stuff starts to happen.  We are shown dual stories...one of the boy Juan and his mother trying to get rid of "Hollowface", as it is stalking her son...and Mia and her confrontations with Hollowface.  So the story sort of switches between the two.  The more Mia writes, the more Hollowface makes his presence.  It's as if what she writes is coming to life.  Juan on the other hand is just terrifed, and his mom too.  Great performances as well by Izan Corchero and Pilar Lopez de Ayala in these scenes from Milan.  She is driven to see a priest to try to exorcise the demon, but he and his fellow clergy are skeptical that there is anything wrong.  Meanwhile, things in Mia's world are getting violent, and John actually has an altercation with "Hollowface" in her room.  The mom (Carice van Houten) just does what she can to try to protect her daughter.  But when Hollowface attacks her again and "steals her speech", by covering her mouth, things are taken up a level.  Meanwhile Juan's attacks are seemingly getting worse as well.  The question you should ask is, why is "Hollowface" after both of these children.  As things get increasingly traumatic...they install camera's to try to catch the intruder that attacked Mia from her closet.  But the camera shows no one there.  Is John insane, and what does it have to do with Juan?  All shall be revealed as it speeds towards a mostly CDI conclusion.

The acting in this is really good.  Clive Owen is fantastic as the father trying to deal with his daughter's plight.  And Ella Purnell plays Mia with aplomb.  It's top notch from all performers and it helps sell the story.  I also loved the cinematography in this.  "Hollowface" is really creepy looking, and it reminded me of the "death" character in The Frighteners.  Also, it has a pretty stunning symphonic score, that is used to accentuate the tension.  I will confess that while I do understand most of the film, there are some things that remained unanswered afterwards.  But despite this, I would be lying if I said I didn't really enjoy this film.  It definitely kept my interest and the acting was really solid.  I just wish they would not have relied so much on CGI for the ending sequence...as the rest of the movie went for more practical effects.  But as far as childhood nightmare films go, this is a really effective spookfest.  The dual storylines keep it interesting, all the way to the surprise twist ending.

This film is really underrated in my opinion.  Despite some logic flaws, this is a very clever and engaging thriller.

8 out of 10

  

Day 14: Sinister

Though overly long at almost 2 hours, this movie has some decent scares!

So i'm sure you have all heard the hype over this film, that's it's the next Insidious, that it's really scary.  Well, they are half right.  I'm not sure it's as good as Insidious, or let me re-phrase that...as "tight" as Insidious.  There is a reliance on "jump" scares, but there is also a creepy unsettling mood that permeates this movie.  The last time I felt a sense of dread like this was when I was watching The Ring.  Overall, I don't feel like I wasted my money on a matinee.  Synopsis time...

Ethan Hawke plays Ellison Oswalt, a crime author that has fallen on hard times.  His last few books have not done so well, but he did do a true crime novel called "Kentucky Blood" that was very successful.  In order to try to catch lightning in a bottle twice and "leave a legacy", Ellison decides to move into a house where an entire family was murdered in the backyard.  He keeps this a secret from his wife Tracy (Juliet Rylance) and his two children Trevor (Michael Hall D'Addario) and Ashley (Clare Foley).  The Sheriff (Nice to see Fred Thompson in a role again) and law enforcement are not exactly his biggest fans though.  Well there is one guy that is a fan, the Deputy (played by James Ransone), and it kind of serves as comic relief..where there really is none.  Ellison decides to expore the house and finds a box full of old tape and an old film projector upstairs.  But he is horrified as he watches what appears to be family movies, but always end with someone holding the camera filming the murder of the family.  In each case, a child has gone missing.

Ellison becomes obsessed with finding out the link to the murders and catches a very erie figure during one of them, then in all of them he sees the "face".  Then he looks out his window and see's the face.  The entire time this is going on  though, we see him drinking whiskey constantly, and there is the idea that maybe he's just gotten a little too into this work.  Especially when you hear noises and wake up on the couch holding a baseball bat.  His wife is certainly worried and tries to get him to leave, but Ellison is adamant about writing the book that will establish his legacy and provide for his family.  Things just get more unnerving, as the projector will turn itself on at night, and even the Deputy thinks Ellison should just leave because he's just gotten too close to the material.  Moving into a house where murder was committed is getting to Ellison, or is it?  What is the face he is seeing, and what are the symbols on the wall of every house that had a murder committed?  What happened to the child that disappears from every crime scene?  I will tell you that the answer to these questions is more than a little unsettling as the movie hurtles towards it's shocking finale.

Ok, first things first; the acting in this is solid.  Ethan Hawke does an excellent job as the writer that is slowly becoming unhinged, or is he?  Juliet Rylance also does a great job as the concerned wife/mother, who just wants what is best for everyone.  The Deputy, well that i'm not so sure of.  The movie is really dark, and he almost plays a comedic role...but i'm not sure it fits here.  It kind of feels out of place.  The children have very few lines, but what they do have is effective.  Overall, I thought the acting was great, and had no problems with any of the performances.  

The best parts of this movie are the actual films that Ellison views.  They are very effective in the creep factor as we are essentially voyeurs to a murder scene.  The juxtaposition between the family outings and then seeing them all helplessly lined up for slaughter is unnerving.  And without giving anything away, the last film he watches of the original tapes, is the worst of the murders.  When I realized what was going to happen, I really wondered if they were going to show that on screen!  I'm not going to tell you that though..haha.  

The cinematography is decently done, and the sound is used to great effect in the "jump" scares.  But as mentioned before, it's more the sense of dread that envelopes the film that works the best.  Bad things are happening to decent people and has Ellison brought it on his own family by being too ambitious and not knowing when to quit?  As I have said, there are some decent scares here, and I felt the ending was spooky and unnerving, but it just takes a little bit too long to get there.  It feels like it drags, and that's unfortunate, because it is a competently put together little thriller, with some excellent performances.

7 out of 10

Day 13: The Aggression Scale

A grown up "Home Alone" that pulls no punches!

Well, I'm really torn on this movie.  Some of the acting is good, some not so good.  I can't exactly call it original either.  But at the same time, there were some moments of true suspense that had me on the edge of my seat...and I was always waiting to see what was going to happen next.  It had no problems sucking me in and keeping my attention.  Let me give you a quick synopsis and delve a bit further down.

A mob boss (Bellevance, played with giddy glee by Ray Wise), gets out of jail and tells his hitmen that he is missing 500,000 dollars.  He wants the money found and he wants them to kill everyone that is on the list of people that might have it.  I kind of missed where he got the list, but I assume it's money that people borrowed and never gave back.  He tells the men to make examples of each of the individuals and kill with impunity.  And some of these early kills are quite horrific as these people don't seem to know why they are being attacked and killed.  The violence is brutal.

We are next introduced to the Rutledge family.  It's apparent early on that something is not quite right about son Owen (Ryan Hartwig), as he doesn't seem to talk much.  But his dad Bill (Boyd Kestner) is trying to convince him that the move to the new home is just what he needs.  Owen's new sister by marriage Lauren (Fabianne Therese) is not particularly happy to move either and is giving mom Maggie (Lisa Rotundi)  a hard time about it.  And is it normal for Owen to be drawing a maze in the shape of a gun...he seems obsessed with violence.  Lauren finds this out as she goes into Owen's room for the first time after they have settled in, as she steps on sharp "jacks" that Owen has scattered about the floor.  Pretty soon the hitmen make their way to the house and then the violence really starts.  This is not Home Alone folks...although I did find some of it amusing, but in a painful way.  The traps seem pretty realistic, and when they are applied, so do the results, and they are painful.  The plot at this point really is "Home Alone"...can Owen and his Sister survive and outwit the hitmen.

This is strictly an indie film affair.  The acting is decent with the best performances coming from hitman Lloyd (Dana Ashbrook) and Derek Mears who plays Chissolm.  Mears played Jason in the remake of Friday the 13th and he gets to be on the other end of the punishment this time.  Ryan Hartwig does what he can with his part as Owen, but basically he just makes faces to try to emote.  Better is Fabianne Therese who does a good job of being the "protective" sister.  I felt the dad's part was weakly acted and not very believable.  The mom has a short roll and it's decently acted as well, but better than the father.  

So, what did I think about this film?  I have to say I did enjoy it.  It's not the most original thing i've ever seen, but does what it does well enough.  Some of the real world traps are quite ingenious, and as I have said before, there is a certain degree of suspense that lasts throughout once the chase scenes start.  In particular, a car lot scene is particularly tense and something happens that I did not forsee, so good on the writers for that.  I guess the main thing is that you have to buy that Owen and his past (that's where the title of the film comes from) is sufficient for us to buy that he is this miniature Rambo.  At times, some of the things he does are quite sadistic, but they are usually to protect his sister.  He's not a bad kid, he just has a murderous edge?!?!  Regardless, we are rooting for them to get away, so I guess it works for the most part.

As I have said before, I enjoyed this film.  It's not so long that it wears out it's welcome, and it's fun watching this kid take revenge.  It sort of works on the same principle as Home Alone did, but with realistic consequences...and at times just some good old fashioned knifing when traps are not working.  But, at the same time we have seen this before, and the acting is just average.  If the sound of this appeals to you, by all means enjoy the film...but if you hated Home Alone, then just steer clear.

7.5 out of 10