Proud to admit that I am a horror junkie.
However, my definition of what falls under the realm of horror entertainment is fairly wide. Horror is an emotion experienced differently by individuals.
These are short reviews of the movies, television series, novels, comics, albums, and any thing else which crosses my path if I feel like falls into the wide world of horror entertainment.
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The Rating System
All opinions are my own. We are all different. What I may think is great, you may this terrible. Don't let my opinios stop you from exploring the vast world of horror in all media.
~Mind Blowing: Search for this movie immediately. It can only be described as pure greatness and possible an instant classic.
~So Good: Highly recommended because for one reason or another it stands out above the usual fair. Put the movie on your radar as it wont disappoint.
~In the Middle: The movie is a nothing special, average affair. It may entertain in the short term but it will be easily forgettable in the long haul.
~Warning: This movie is a cliched driven slop of familiar territory. Only watch if you're really of fan of this type of material.
~Steaming Pile: The movie is absolute garbage, a complete bore, and not worth the time or effort.
Premise:
A group of teenage female campers come across a swarm of deadly bees,
My Take:
The movie attempts to create suspense and fear but falls short. My nerves can only take so many teenage girls screaming at the top of their lungs.
Premise:
A man wakes up buried in the woods with no memory. He stumbles upon an empty cabin covered in blood. He starts piecing together the clues to figure out what happened.
My Take:
I normally dig weird ass movies like this which mess with the viewer's timeline. And while it does keep you guessing up until the end there's just too much bogging down things between important scenes.
Starring: Tatiana Maslany, Jordan Gavaris, Dylan Bruce, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Ari Millen
Premise:
A women discovers she is a clone. She searches and finds others. The sisters ban together in hope of trying to figure out who made them and why.
My Take:
The layers keep getting peeled away this season. But with every layer and answer it seems deeper questions remain. The acting is top notch especially from Maslany and Millen who play so many different and complete characters.
Starring: Fairuza Balk, Ryan Merriman, Rick Ravenello
Director: Christopher Glatis
Premise:
A bartender and his boss find a lady passed out in the restroom at closing time. She wakes up claiming to have been raped.
My Take:
The movie is rather boring for the majority. The actors give it their all, but unfortunately none are very likable. However, if one manages to make it to the end, then it does pack a nice punch (and one that could be very plausible).
Starring: Stan Rowe, Sarah Spencer
Director: Keith Wright
Premise:
A disease effects most of the male population slowly turning them into mindless, zombie like people. Harold, one of the original diagnosed, for some reason has been much slower to turn than others and a doctor wants to know why.
My Take:
Dont let the hokey movie poster and bad title throw you off from this flick. It is rather touching and has a tad bit of humor to balance it out. The story focuses on Harold and his caregiver Penny and how they deal with the disease.
Premise:
A mother and daughter get stranded in the desert after running over a snake. As they fir safety several snakes try to attack them.
My Take:
Damn pheromones! The movie tries for suspense but really ends up being rather unbelievable. The deadpan serious note doesn't help much either.
Starring: Christina Hendricks, Ian De Caestecker, Eva Mendes, Matt Smith, Sosirse Ronan, Ben Mendelsohn, Barbara Steel
Director: Ryan Gosling
Premise:
A struggling mother tries to save her childhood home by working at an underground club.
My Take:
An eerie tale with colorful, oddball characters set in the wastelands of Detroit. The scenery is urban decay at it's finest with beautiful visuals.
Starring:Michael Daniel, Jordan Graham, Corey Ankele
Director: Jordan Graham
Premise:
A tsunami and earthquake threatens a small coastal town. Though a group of college kids dont care to evacuate and would rather party. After the event strange occurrences begin to happen.
My Take:
Most of the time when watching a found footage style movie, I think to myself it would have been so much better shot as a regular movie. This film is no exception. While it does have an interesting story the set up is way to long before the weird starts happening. Thirty minutes of characters being idiots into a camera is not necessarily character building nor does it create sympathy. Or maybe I am just getting old and out of touch with the young people (see that sounded old). To be honest, I still really sure what happened in this mess.
Starring: Colin Farrell, Vince Vaughn, Rachel McAdams, Taylor Kitsch, Kelly Reilly, James Frain, Abigail Spencer, Timothy V. Murphy
Premise:
A murdered body shows in a park. Three detectives from different departments must team up to solve the crime.
My Take:
All I can really say is that I expected way more. It's not so I am disappointed with the story as it entails emotionally damaged detectives, rampant corruption, an underground sex cult, and a mobster trying to cut out his piece; but more in lack of depth behind it all. Everything felt rushed with no real layers to the crimes. The cast is good and fun to watch many going against their normal roles. Not to mention the series just oozes with sleaze (in a good way). Again, I just expected much more out the series.
Starring: AJ Bowden, Jennifer Blanc, Alyssa Lobit, Chris Meyer, Kane Hodder, Brianne Davis, Kamala Jones, Christopher Backus, Dana Daurey
Director: Danielle Harris
Premise:
A group of friends get together for a murder mystery party but soon the night takes a dark turn as one of them is actually out for revenge on them all.
My Take:
It's a fun little movie that isn't without faults. One could certainly do worse when choosing a movie to watch for the night.
Starring: David Hess, Annie Belle
Director: Ruggero Deodato
Premise:
Two guys crash a party and soon their violent intentions begin.
My Take:
A decent flick with David Hess at his creepy best. The suspense, uneasy situations, and nudity are ramped up. There's also a decent little final scene.
Starring: Michael Eklund, Tomas Lemarquis, Karoline Herfurth
Director: Eron Sheean
Premise:
While researching a cure to the disease which ended his son's life, a scientists discovers a lethal virus has been created and his is the first carrier.
My Take:
Michael Elklund is one of the more under rated actors working today. I am also captivated by his performances. This movie is no different as he carries this slow burning flick. However, the movie feels like something is missing to put it over the top.
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Hugh Dancy, Gillian Anderson, Laurence Fishburne, Joe Anderson, Katharine Isabelle, Caroline Dhavernas, Richard Armitage, Rutina Wesley
Premise:
An FBI profiler hunts down a renown psychiatrist who is also a serial killer.
My Take:
Bizarre horror-drama on television doesn't get much better this series. Too bad it's been canceled. The cast is amazing and creator Bryan Fuller once again proves he is a visionary when it comes to creating interesting television. Season three plays out like two mini seasons with the first half consisting of Hannibal in Europe with Will Graham going rouge to find him. The second half forwards their story a few years to where Graham is called in to help with a vicious serial killer dubbed "The Tooth Fairy".
