Movie Review: Rage (2014)

Nicolas Cage is becoming one of those names you just cannot avoid when it comes to direct to video type thrillers. Sure, there is the occasional theatrical release, but the man has been so busy the past few years there is no way he is going to have everything reach the big screen. Just looking at his filmography is mind blowing. If you start with this film, Rage, in 2014, he has had 13 movies released, plus there are six more in various stages of production. That is an enormous output for a three year span. To some his name has been something of a punchline, but to others he is a big draw. That includes me.

Blu-ray Review: Goodnight Mommy

Do you ever watch a movie that has an impact on you, but you are not sure you quite understand why? Then, when you watch it a second time, things become clearer and the effect becomes that much more profound? That is the experience I had with Goodnight Mommy. I watched it, was engrossed by it, was creeped out by it, and was left wondering what I had just watched. Then I gave it a second pass and things cleared up. Yes, a lot is left to the imagination, it is not exactly heavy on the exposition, but therein lies the beauty.

Blu-ray Review: Children of the Night

Children of the Night is an Argentinian horror film that tells a tale of vampires and is described on the case as Let the Right One In meets Twilight. Now, that is not entirely accurate. Well, not really accurate at all, so don’t let that description scare you off. I guess you could see some similarities between them. In any case, should you see this movie? the short answer is yes. It is interesting, well made, and seems to be pretty fresh considering the vampiric subject matter. It is not the bloodiest vampire film I have seen, but it also doesn’t pull any punches. This movie is not about romanticizing the blood suckers, but it does seek to provide a plausible reality.

Movie Review: Cub (Welp)

When I was a kid, I joined the Cub Scouts. It just seemed like the thing to do. I do not remember what led to me joining, but I do remember completing tasks for beads and pins and badges and things. I remember whittling a zood block into a car. I remember Den “parents” who did not seem all that involved, and I remember losing interest and never making it to the actual Boy Scouts. Oh yes, there was also the Tom Wat boxes filled with junk to sell (the equivalent of Girl Scout cookies), and that one camping trip that had cabins and someone got in trouble for showing us Friday the 13th, there was a cool bonfire, though. What is the point of all this? Well, I had a camping trip, but it was nothing like Cub.

Movie Review: Preservation (2014)

Survival horror can be an entertaining sub-genre of horror, it has turned out some excellent films of the years, from classics like The Evil Dead to more recent entries like You're Next. They can be grueling, horrific journeys into the lengths people will go to, the depths of being, in order to survive. Then there are movies like Preservation, on the surface entertaining enough, but feels like it could have used a few more rewrites. On one hand it tries to be realistic, on the other hand it goes a little over the top. Neither side goes to far and they kind of trip each other up, resulting in a middling affair.

Movie Review: Leprechaun - Origins

It was just a few weeks ago that I subject myself to the original run of the Leprechaun series. Overall, they are not good movies. Seriously, some are downright awful. Still, through it all there was always Warwick Davis, the only reason to give the series any time at all. Sure, I liked a couple of them enough that I would be willing to revisit, but not all that often. As if on cue, Netflix now has the one movie of the "franchise" I had yet to see, Leprechaun: Origins. You know, the recent WWE produced reboot/remake in an effort to get the series going again.

Movie Review: The Guest (2014)

Sometimes the best movies are the ones you find when you aren't expecting them. The Guest is an example of that. Sure, I had seen posts and such buzzing about how good it was and how everyone needs to see it, but I really wasn't buying it. Granted, I never really looked into it. I remember seeing the poster and the title and just thinking absolutely nothing of it. The poster was boring, the title seemed generic and I felt no reason to look into it any further. I guess I made a tactical mistake. The Guest is pretty fantastic. Seriously.

Movie Review: Starry Eyes

If anyone tries to tell you they don't make good horror movies anymore, you have my permission to scoff at them. Seriously, there are plenty of good horror movies out there, you just may have to search beyond the local cineplex in order to find them. Sure, we have the Insidious films and a few other solid to great mainstream horror films, but for the most part, they are just looking for a way to get the money out of teens pockets. Now, if you go beyond the theater and look a little deeper you may be surprised by what you find. The latest one to catch me by surprise is Starry Eyes.

Movie Review: The Houses October Built

It is a little out of season, but the other night I checked out The Houses October Built. Ideally, this is a movie that would best be viewed on or around Halloween, perhaps an October marathon. I don't know and in the end I guess it doesn't really matter. What matters is that this is actually a pretty good film. Despite feeling a bit unfocused on what it really wants to be, it still manages to build an atmosphere, feel creepy, plus it is actually interesting. Once you accept the fact that the characters are not going to be as interesting as the subject matter, you are all set.

Movie Reviews: Divergent/Insurgent

It was just about a year ago that a little movie called Divergent hit the screens. At the time I took a pass on it, as it looked a lot like all the other young adult adaptations that have been hitting the screen. Frankly, I just was not interested as they all seem to pale in comparison to The Hunger Games, which seems to have nailed to format in a worthy and entertaining fashion. I felt vindicated in my decision to skip it when I faltered and saw The Maze Runner, which attempted to hide narrative deficiency in fast moving action. The the trailer for Insurgent arrived, and I felt my resolve slip.

Movie Review: Mr. Jones

I am actually a little surprised to say this, but I am getting a bit tired of foud footage movies. Sure, I still like the good ones and I am still willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I think some fatigue is starting to settle in. The gimmick can be an effective format, but, I don't know, it is becoming a bit predictable. Even with those thoughts in the back of my mind, I took a stab at Mr. Jones. The movie proved to be interesting, to a degree, but sort of reinforced some of the things that are pushing me away from the style. Still, I think it is a movie worth giving a shot to, it is a blend of good and bad, resulting in a compelling mediocrity.

Movie Review: Cut! (2014)

Snuff films, legend or reality? I don't know, I only hope they remain in the realm of legend. I would never want to know, definitively, that things like that actually exist. Now, on the other hand, films that simulate them or pretend to be making them are a different thing altogether. Things like 8mm (you remember that Nicolas Cage movie, right?) and Mute Witness (underrated thriller that it is) are examples of this. Now we have Cut!, a movie that devolves into snuff film making and brings together a couple of recent trends in horror, torture porn (hate that term, but you know what I am talking about) and found footage. The end result is interesting, although it takes a little while to get going.

Movie Review: Violets Bloom at an Empty Grave

Over the past few years I have come to the realization that there is nothing quite like Italian horror of the 1970's and 1980's. In particular, I have become a big fan of Lucio Fulci. Granted, I have only seen a handful of his films, but his horror output is second to none, delivering some of the move surreal nightmares ever put to the screen. With that in mind, I approached watching this short, Violets Bloom at an Empty Grave. It is a short horror film written and directed by Chris Milewski (under the name Luciano Imperoli), and it delivers a nicely surreal tale that brings Fulci to mind.

Movie Review: The Town that Dreaded Sundown (2014)

The Town that Dreaded Sundown, The Town that Dreaded Sundown. Has a ring to it, doesn't it? It is one of those titles that stuck in my head the first time I heard it. That is sat, every once in awhile floating to the surface to remind me that it was there. It was a long time before I got to see it, yes, it was released back in 1976, but it took awhile for a release to find its way into my possession and longer still until I got to watch. As it turns out, I did not like it as much as I thought I was going to, but it had some really good stuff. Now we are faced with a remake, which bypassed a big theatrical release. That cannot be good, can it?

Blu-ray Review: The Zero Theorem

Terry Gilliam is an interesting filmmaker. I have not seen all of his films, fewer still on the big screen, but given the opportunity, you should check them out in any fashion that you can. His latest release is not is best, but it is still an entertaining excursion. It is called The Zero Theorem and it is rather fascinating. No matter whether you like it or not, you will have a reaction to it, even if your reaction does not reveal itself in logical fashion. With The Zero Theorem, Terry Gilliam has crafted a film that is as newly Gilliam as it is reminiscent of his past successes. To that end, I enjoyed this, even as I do not love it.

Blu-ray Review: Horns

Looking for something a little bit different? Something that dances on the fringe of the mainstream? Horns may be just the movie for you. Sound like a commercial, don't I? I really do not mean to, it is just that this movie is a little strange, a little odd, certainly experimental, and yet it remains wholly accessible. It is the kind of movie that should be championed on the big screen, but because it is different and not like everything else, it is left behind to find an audience on home video. This is a good film with an interesting central character and an execution that keeps the audience involved to the end.

Movie Review: Faces (2014)

You have got to admit, when approaching a low to no budget horror movie, you have got to at least be a little bit scared. It is true that talent has to come from somewhere and also that talented individuals can shine with little around to pick up the slack. Still, there is so much junk out there that it might be a daunting task, one which will scare even the heartiest of cinema junkies away, or at the least, leave them twitching from one too many no-budget zombie farces. On the other hand, all it takes is one good movie to make it all worthwhile. Is Faces that one good movie? Perhaps...

Movie Review: Whiplash (2014)

When it first arrived I really had no interest in seeing Whiplash. It was a movie that never popped up on my radar and based on what little I had seen about it, was not all that interesting. Then, for some reason, the title kept popping up and folks who had seen it, kept singing its praises, and then came the award nominations. Now, my interest was growing a little bit. I still wasn't really convinced, but it began playing at the local second run theater, I had some time to kill, so I decided to give it a shot. I needn't have had concerns. While it is not a great film, it is really very good.

Movie Review: The Interview

Well, I am happy to say that I finally saw it. Yes, yours truly has gotten to take in The Interview. In a theater no less. A local second run theater got it this past weekend, and since I was already interested in it since before the hoopla, I made it a point to go and check it out. Does it live up to the "hype"? Not at all, but that is to the movie's fault. Now, if you are one of those who believe this was a publicity stunt, you can stop reading now. No one in their right mind would go so far as to fake a hacking that legitimately damaged a company and a lot of regular folks. That is crazy talk.

Movie Review: Selma

I recall when I first saw the trailer for Selma, I was intrigued. While I do tend to not give as much weight to real world stories on film, it felt like this was a bit of an important film for the current state of the nation. No, I am not one to really comment in that arena, but it is hard to ignore the timing of its release with the events over the past year. There is no denying that some serious and heavy conversations, but that is for people smarter than I at another time. So far as Selma is concerned, it is far from a favorite film, but there is no denying its effectiveness.