The Awakening (2012)

Starring: Rebecca Hall, Dominic West, Imelda Staunton
Director: Nick Murphy


Premise:
During the early 1920's in England, a woman becomes famous for exposing ghost hoaxes. She is hired by a boarding school to find out if the school is haunted.

My Take:
A nice movie with a lot of layers, most of which you probably wont see coming. Rebecca Hall is fantastic as the grief stricken exposer who wants to find a sign of the afterlife to help ease her own pain. Actually, the entire cast is excellent. And there is more than few eerie moments.

Rating: So Good





 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

Grey Knight (1993)

Starring: Corbin Bernsen, Adrian Pesdar, David Arquette, Ray Wise, Martin Sheen, Billy Bob Thorton, Cynda Williams
Director:George Hickenlooper


Premise:
Slave traders accidentally release an entity which possesses soldiers during the Civil War. Members from both the North and the South form an strong army of the undead and it's up to small group of Northern soldiers and their Southern captive to stop them.

My Take:
A stellar cast effortlessly makes their way through a very orginal story. The movie is heavy on atmosphere and suspense while keeping the gore almost nonexistent. It's hard to find new ideas in the genre of horror, but this brings something new to the table.

Rating: So Good

 



 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

The Beast (1975)

AKA: La Bete


Starring: Lisbeth Hummel, Guy Tréjan
Director: Walerian Borowczyk

Premise:
Two wealthy families arrange a marriage between their son and daughter. The daughter arrives at the estate, which has a legend surrounding it about a roaming beast, to meet the family.

My Take:
This film threw me off a bit. I simply was not expecting to see many of things put in this movie and it's rather hard to shock me. There is a lot of werewolf on human sex complete with phallus and multiple ejaculations. Granted it's all special effects and done in a dream type sequence, but it's really strange. It's very easy to see why the movie has been banned for so long in numerous countries, but it's also the reason film connisuers might want to watch it.

Rating: Warning

 



 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

The American Scream (2013)

Director: Michael Stephenson

Premise:
Three men in the same small town each prepare to make their homes into a haunted house for Halloween.

My Take:
A nice little documentary which showcases three individuals love for the holdiay by making their own home haunt. This is an annual thing which each do simply for enjoyment and out of their own pockets. They go through long preparations and stress on their families. And in the end, is it all worth it for one night of glory? For them, it is.

Rating: In the middle

 


 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

Mill of the Stone Women (1960)

Starring: Pierre Brice, Scilla Gabel, Dany Carrel
Director: Giorgio Ferroni


Premise:
A reporter comes to a small town to write an article on a sculptor, who lives on an island in an old mill. He starts to develope feelings for the sculptor's daughter and an old flame. He then makes a connection between local disapperances and secret experiments by a local doctor.

My Take:
There is a lot of good atmosphere in this flick. The plot moves a bit slow and leans heavily on drama but mesh works well. The love triangle is interesting and drives the mystery behind the local disappearances. A well done movie with loads of positives.

Rating: So Good




 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

Walking Dead, Season 3 (2012)

Starring: Andrew Lincoln, Sarah Wayne Callies, Michael Rooker, Norman Reedus, Laurie Holden, Scott Wilson, David Morrissey, Danai Gurira


Premise:
A group of survivors struggle to stay alive during a zombie apocolaypse.

Season three has Rick's group find shelter in a prison and end up in a war with the survivors and leader from a close by town, Woodbury.

My Take:
I'm not sure if there's ever been a more uneven and purely awesome television show. For a show set in a world of chaos, the talking comes to the forefront. Yet I still find little character developement in the secondary characters. Most characters enter and die off without the viewer ever really caring about them. Dispite that issue this show is so dam addictive! It runs through highs and lows during the season where a new villian comes to the forefront. Many people die as a result.

Favorite Episode:
"Made To Suffer" - The midseason finale was an epic piece of work (and closely beats of "Clear" for my favorite of the season). Rick's gang sneak into Woodbury and must fight their way out. Michonne does the worst thing possible to The Governor. The brothers reunite the are thrown in the circle to fight! There's action, drama, death, and great diaglog.

Rating: So Good

 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

The Awful Dr. Orlorf (1962)

Starring: Howard Vernon
Director: Jess Franco


Premise:
A scientist and his assistant kidnap beautiful women and use their skin to repair his daughter's flesh.

My Take:
In this early Franco work one can see hints of several themes and a trademark style the director explore later in his career. However the movie is a straight up, linear tale with many nods to German Expressionism as it is beautifully shot in black and white.

Rating: In the middle

 


 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.

Patient X (2009)

Starring: Richard Guiterez, Christine Reyes
Director:Yam Laranas


Premise:
A young doctor gets a message telling him the murders of his family have been held in an hospital. He goes there only discover the killer is an aswang, and now her family has come to save her.

My Take:
The movie has an interesting take on the Philipeane aswang legend. Unfortunately as the movie progresses it falls into more into a "killers stalking prey" survival story set in an abandoned building. And the run time is a tad long. Still, it's gets some points for originality and really good cinemaphotography.

Rating: In the middle



 


 
Fringes of Horror by Sean Kimmel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.seankimmel.com.