Orphan Black, Season 1 (2013)

Starring: Tatiana Maslany, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Kevin Hanchard, Dylan Bruce, Matt Frewer


Premise:
A woman see's her identical commit suicide by jumping in front of a plane. She assumes the dead woman's identity and finds out she is one of several clones trying to find out answers to who made them all.


My Take:
After hearing so much praise for the series I finally got around to watching the first season. It's great as the concept hooks the viewer from the beginning and each following episode answers questions while posing new ones. It's a great mystery that has begun to unravel. Major props goes out to the lead actress Tatiana Maslany who portrays several clones all with distinct personalities and backgrounds. I am hooked and on board for this mind bending series!

Rating: So Good






Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Knights of Badassdom (2014)

Starring: Steven Zahn, Peter Dinklage, Summer Glau, Ryan Kwateen, Danny Pudi, Margarita Levieva
Director: Joe Lynch


Premise:
A group of live action role players (LARPers) accidentally summon a demon from an ancient book and must find a way to stop it.

My Take:
A fun little movie that I wanted to like much better because of the people involved. It falls a tad short of what it could have been. Still it's rather enjoyable with lots of viscera and laughs.

Rating: In the middle






Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Walking Dead: What We Become [volume 10]

Author: Robert Kirkman


Premise:
Rick and the survivors from the prison and the newbies continue their journey to get the scientist Eugene to Washington DC. Along the way Rick, still grieving from the death of his bay daughter and wife, sanity is tested when Carl is put in harm's way by a group of strangers. Also Rick and Abraham butt heads then sort of form a bond.

My Take:
This is sort of a transition chapter in the saga as the group tries to regain composure after the prison attack from The Governor and try to mesh with their new comrades. There is however a couple of very intense scenes in the novel, including Rick going in full on mental and protection mode when Carl is about to get violated by strangers.

Rating: So Good






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Elfie Hopkins (2013)

Starring: Jaime Winstone, Aneurin Barnard, Rupert Evans, Steven Mackinstosh, Ray Winstone
Director: Ryan Andrews


Premise:
A teenage girl investigates her neighbors after strange disappearances in the village.

My Take:
To me the movie plays like a Y/A novel with a nosy teenage girl thinking her neighbors are cannibals. And then she finds out she is right. It's not bad, but not my thing. The superb cast makes it enjoyable to watch.

Rating: In the middle

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Crawlspace (2012)

Starring: Amber Clayton, Ditch Davey
Director: Justin Dix


Premise:
A special military unit is sent to a secret compound with orders to take control of the base. They find out the place has been a ground for making alien-human hybrids and other ghastly experiments which now puts all their lives in jeopardy.

My Take:
There is lots of homage to horror-sci fi of the past. The movie has believable action, good effects,  and decent story. It's worth watching.

Rating: In the middle

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Rewind This (2013)

Director: Josh Johnson


Premise:
The story of how VHS tape changed the movie industry.

My Take:
Being from the era of the tape I enjoyed this documentary immensely. It covers tape traders, current collectors, how the media came out, Beta vs VHS evolution, how VHS impacted the movie industry and particular genres, the rental store experience, current VHS re-sellers, and much more. Sprinkled in with great interviews from directors, collectors, fans, and industry experts to reveal much insight. A must see for film buffs or people wanting to relive the classic days of VHS.

Rating: Instant Classic

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Last Kind Words (2012)

Starring: Brad Douriff, Spencer Daniels, Alexia Fast
Director: Kevin Barker


Premise:
A family move back to their rural home town for work. Their teenage son is attracted to the woods where he finds a perfect girl. He also finds skeletons hanging from trees and starts piecing together who they were.

My Take:
A watchable, Southern Gothic tale about a depresses teenage boy adjusting to his new home and talking to the girl he visits in the woods. It's slow and moody, but packs a decent tale even if the mystery isn't difficult to figure out..

Rating: In the middle

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Werewolf In A Woman's Prison (2006)

Starring: Victoria De Mare, Eva Derrek, Dlmiziano Arcangeli, Jackeline Oliver
Director: Jeff Leroy


Premise:
A woman is put into a foreign prison after her boyfriend is killed by werewolf.

My Take:
If you want campy then you got it. The movie is literally what is sounds like with a corrupt prison, lots of nudity, bad special effects, and worse acting.

Rating: Warning

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Miss December (2011)

AKA: Calender Girl

Starring: Jensen Bucher
Director: Derek Lindeman


Premise:
A serial killer is loose in Philadelphia and a romantically challenged waitress thinks she may be his next victim.

My Take:
This movie was far better than I anticipated. It's not very hard to figure out who the killer is and the gore is minimal, but the performance by the lead character and comedy undertones more than make up for it. She's a mess and she's knows it and she doesn't care and that's why she secretly hopes to be the next victim. Take a chance on this flick because while far from perfect, it is definitely worth watching.

Rating: In the middle

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Secret Sunday (2010)

AKA: 9 Wat

Starring:
Director: Saranyoo Jiralak


Premise:
Three people visit nine different temples to help clear up their bad karma. Soon they realize that each of them is connected from past live experiences and paying for them together.

My Take:
A decent film with a decent little mystery and plenty of ghostly spirits which is typical in Thai horror. It's worth a watch but didn't really stand out to me either.

Rating: In the middle

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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The Wind Through the Keyhole [Dark Tower 4.5]

Author: Stephen King


Premise:
Roland and his ka-tet (Susannah, Jake, Eddie, and the billybumbler) seek shelter from a stakblast, a freak ice storm. While shacked up he tells a story of his youth when called upon a small village to investigate a shapeshifter. While there, the young Roland tells the story of "The Wind Through the Keyhole" about a young boy he travels through a dark and magical forest to find the wizard Mearlyn.

My Take:
The Dark Tower is my favorite series of novels, so it was a pleasure to pick a new tale. While most of the story within a story within a story has nothing to do with the ka-tet on their current journey, it does reveal more about a young Roland. And the story which the book is titled is an great little tale. A fan of the series should not hesitate to pick up this book.

Rating: So Good






Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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The Boogens (1981)

Starring: Rebecca Balding, Ann-Marie Martin
Director: James L. Conway


Premise:
Creatures are accidentally released from an abandoned mine and cause havoc on a small town.

My Take:
A somewhat watchable creature feature from the early 80's. It's got a little of everything one could want in a cult flick. The monsters are actually decent, but the scares and acting leave a tad to be desired.

Rating: In the middle (maybe a tad generous)

Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Helix, Season 1 (2014)

Starring: Billy Campbell, Hiroyuki Sanada, Jordan Hayes, Kyra Zagorsky, Neil Napier, Mark Ghanime, Meegun Fairbrother, Luciana Carro


Premise:
A group of CDC scientist are flown into a base located in the Artic to find a cure for a virus outbreak that is mutating it's carriers. Soon the teams finds out there is much more going on at the facility.

My Take:
I thought the series started out strong but got a bit too convoluted and wacky as it went along. There were some answers needed instead of layers on layers of questions. It made for a lot of what the heck is happening here. So far, it's held my interest enough to keep watching season two next year.

Rating: In the middle



Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Germ Z (2013)

Starring: Marguerite Sundberg, Michael Flores
Director: J.T. Boone


Premise:
An alien germ comes to Earth and cause people to turn into zombies. 

My Take:
Boring. And in the end not very original, except the concept of how the infected happen. There's a lot of talk in the first part and the second part is a lot of running from zombies. I've seen it before and done lots better than this.

Rating: Steaming Pile






Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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The Corpses Grinders (1971)

AKA: Night of the Howling Beasts

Starring: Sean Kenney
Director: Ted V. Mikels


Premise:
A cat food company starts using dead bodies as a source of meat and the animals feeding on it develop a tast for human flesh.

My Take:
This is a bad movie which has developed cult status over time. I am not sure why. The idea of killer cats is rather amusing but where thins quickly

Rating: Warning (extreme style)

 




Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Documenting the Grey Man (2011)

Starring: Patrick Hussion
Director: Wayne Capps


Premise:
A group of actors pretend to be supernatural investigators to set up a documentary on a local legend. They find out the legend just might be true.

My Take:
I am getting so sick of this type of movies. The majority of the movie is worthless characters talking into a camera with an occassional creepy thing happening in the background. It's not refreshing and lacks anything new to the sub-genre.

Rating: Warning

 




Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Walking Dead, Season 4 (2014)

Starring: Andrew Lincoln, Scott Wilson, Melissa McBride, Norman Reedus, Lauren Cohan, Steven Yeun, Dania Gurira, Chandler Riggs, Emily Kinne, David Morrisey


Premise (season 4):
The Governor heads out to rebound from losing his city. He finds a family to take him in and they end up with another group of survivors. The Governor ends up convincing them to attack the prison. In the meantime, Rick's group is just trying to adjust to taking on the extra people from Woodbury when a virus breaks out. Eventually the two groups come head to head and a battle ensues. After casualties and chaos the survivors are separated. The spend time coping with what has happened. Eventually all roads lead to a place called Terminus, which claims to welcome all people with open arms.

My Take:
Season 4 was a wild ride with a lot of character development for many taking place at the beginning and the end; with a lot of action, death, and gore squeezed in the middle. The season has more than it's share of shocking moments and gut turning emotions. Truly any character can be taken at any give moment, in case you haven't figured that out by now.

Favorite Episode:
"The Grove" - Carol and Tyrese, along with the young sisters Lizzie and Mika, find shelter in an abandoned house. And that's all I am giving away. This episode is pure emotion and is bound to cause debate.

Rating: So Good



Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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Toad Road (2013)

Starring: Jason Banker, Sara Anne Jones
Director: Jason Banker


Premise:
A group of young 20 somethings hang out, drinking, and doing drugs. The new girlfriend of one of the group wants to explore the legend of Toad Road, which is apparently leads to the Gates of Hell.

My Take:
An interesting movie where the majority is about people getting messed up on drugs. Then this local legend gets thrown in the mix where supposedly on this road there are seven gates and no one has ever been past the third gate. This girl wants to get all messed up and  walk it with her boyfriend because she believes there is a bigger meaning behind it. They do and the guy is found months later which no memory of what happened during the walk or what happened to his girlfriend. With the editing and pacing, everything is a tad delutional which might be why it held my interest. I'm gonna have to watch this again soon to see if I pick up any extra details.

Rating: In the middle






Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
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