Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 2nd, 2016
When certain stories become public domain, you just have to expect that there will be a lot of people creating their own “unique” versions of the same tale all in the name of making a few bucks. When it comes to adaptations of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, I think we can all agree every attempt to tell the story has not been in the name of preserving the art. What I do find surprising: despite all the attempts to bring the story to the screen, there still isn’t a version that I can say is a perfect retelling of the tale, though each may have its pros, for the most part it just never seems to translate well.
In 2004 there was a TV mini-series that attempted to bring the classic horror story to life, and the one aspect that seemed to work best is that finally we get a relatively accurate adaption from the original source material. For those who have read the material, you know that there is much more to the story than its fantastical elements of the macabre. Staying true to the source material is one thing, but what really got to me about this take on the story is that it played out more as a Gothic love story and seemed to completely lose its horror element. This is kind of a problem considering Frankenstein is considered one of the most beloved horror stories of all time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on February 11th, 2016
A detective appears to be trapped between heaven and hell in Convergence, which is not all that different from the way I felt watching this supernatural thriller. On one hand, I was impressed by some of the mood and unsettling imagery established by writer/director Drew Hall; the film is mostly set in an abandoned hospital, which inspires even more dread than spending time in a fully functional one. Then again, there are also a lot of nonsense characters and story elements here that don't get a satisfying payoff, making Convergence an occasionally confounding and hellacious slog.
The story opens in 1999 with a series of terrorist bombings targeting clinics in Atlanta. Detective Ben Walls (Clayne Crawford) is supposed to be enjoying a day off with his wife Hannah (Alysia Ochse) and new baby when he is called in by his captain (Mykelti Williamson) to investigate the latest bombing. But faster than Det. Walls can say, “I'm not even supposed to be here today” he and a few others are rocked by the bomber's latest explosion. The next thing Det. Walls knows, he is in an eerily empty hospital. Captain Miller is there too, but he insists that they can't leave.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 9th, 2016
Season one of From Dusk Till Dawn gave us a ten-episode remake of the hit original movie while setting up a mythology to stretch its story over numerous seasons. Season two wastes no time in blazing its new path as it continues the blood-soaked adventure that departs from the famed Titty Twister and takes us deeper into the vampire syndicate. How does season two fare? After making it through the 10-episode season, I can say I survived this bloody, testosterone-laced thrill ride, but it does have a few missteps along the way.
When we first meet Richie Gecko (Zane Holtz) and Santanico (Eiza Gonzalez), they are working together with the goal of taking down all the powerful vampire clans. The first episode is a telling glimpse of the direction Robert Rodriguez and his team plan to take the series as the episode unfolds around a heist that doesn’t go as planned. Separated from his brother, Richie now has a chance to make a name for himself, and as the season plays out, we get to see just how ambitious he really is.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 4th, 2016
Edgar Allen Poe is on a short list of writers that has long been deceased that just about everyone has heard of. At some point in school we all had are chance to read about the taunting of The Raven or a number of Poe’s other famous works. With Extraordinary Tales we get an animated treat in the form of 5 animated tales written by the master of the macabre. This is more than just a simple animated retelling of the stories as each tale is given its own unique narration and animated style. Is it worth the time to sit back and watch these classic tales or did they belong on the shelf to collect dust? Come along with me and I’ll tell you about my journey if you dare.
Whether you’re a fan of Poe or simply only vaguely recall the name from those Classical Literature courses you’re trying to forget, there is something on this release I’m sure will connect with each viewer. Using 5 of Poe’s more popular works isn’t the only bait the film makers have decided to use to entice viewers; after all there have been numerous adaptations of his work in the past. The appeal is that every story, though told in narration is animated with its own unique style, ranging from 50’s comic book style to oil paintings that have come alive. The styles are so drastic from one another that in ways it’s hard to even compare the works without tipping your hat so to speak on your own artistic preference. After all ones taste in art varies from one person to the next. I say this because this is a piece that is hard to show objectivity without personal preferences nudging their way in.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on February 1st, 2016
My first All Hallows' Eve experience was an unexpected fright delight. The 2013 horror film featured a trio of stories tied together by a creepy clown and a familiar “babysitter-in-peril” plot line; it was a fun, unsettling, and grungy throwback to low-budget scares. So you can't blame me for actually being pretty excited when I found out they'd made another one. Unfortunately, this sequel is a disappointing, thoroughly unsatisfying mish-mash that undoes practically everything that was good about its predecessor.
Things start out familiarly enough: a lonely woman (Andrea Monier) who conveniently owns a VCR find herself in possession of a ratty-looking videotape. The first film had a babysitter find the tape among her two young charges' trick or treat haul, and the action was tied together by Art the Clown, who brought back unpleasant memories of the first time I can remember being terrified. This time around, the woman is stalked by a pumpkin-masked, knife-wielding Trickster (Damien Monier) who deposits the tape at the woman's doorstep. Naturally, she pops it into her VCR and away we go.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 30th, 2016
Shout Factory is churning out the 1980's horror films to provide us with a steady diet of schlock-o-rama. Through their Scream Factory series we've been getting many double-header collections along with the occasional horror film that stands alone, if not standing out. The films are the kind of thing you gather a bunch of friends together and have yourself a marathon of films that make you laugh as much as make you scream. The latest in this series is the 1987 Zombie High. Of course, the film doesn't have a single zombie, at least not in the classic Romero style, and it appears to take place at a college instead of a high school. But let's not let plot points get in the way of a good title. In fact, Zombie High is remembered more for how it was made than for the final product.
The filmmakers literally invaded the campus of USC in L.A. In what many describe as a pretty cool con, they were able to convince the school's staff and students that a major film was being shot there, and the crew was given a ton of cooperation from the school. USC has the oldest film school in the nation, and you might understand why everyone would be eager to help out a big film that wanted to use its locations and resources. Those resources included everything from camera equipment to providing the labor both behind and in front of the camera. The movie was made for very little money, because so much of the cost was picked up by USC in their attempt to "cooperate". Zombie High just might be the only completely stolen film to be released to any kind of a wide audience.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 21st, 2016
"Did you ever have a dream but didn't know where it started?"
Some dreams did indeed start with the box office flop Nomads. It was the first starring role in a feature film for future James Bond Pierce Brosnan. It was also the first film directed by John McTiernan and his only screenwriting credit to date. Both would go on to have quite flourishing careers, and I suspect neither spends much time looking back at Nomads, and with good enough reason. And those careers did not take long. For McTiernan his next three films would be, in order: Predator, Die Hard, and The Hunt For Red October. The film also sports a score by legendary Bill Conti, the man who started his feature film career with Rocky and ended up with a Best Music Oscar for The Right Stuff. Conti teamed up with Ted Nugent, and they improvised most of the Nomads score with Nugent making coffee runs packing his trademark extra protection. With a dream team like this you might expect Nomads to be a pretty solid film. You'd be wrong.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 13th, 2016
In 2012 Sinister had its release and horror fans seemed to be divided on the film. For me, I dug the mythology of Bughuul, an evil spirit who appears in 8mm family films that seem to always end in some new gruesome way. He’s a character the horror genre needs, as I see him as a silent hybrid of Jigsaw (from the Saw franchise) and Freddy Krueger (from the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise), where he’s a killer who gives us unique kills in some unsettling locations. Now with the release of Sinister 2, do the filmmakers step up their game and deliver us more from the possible new icon of horror? Sort of; just not how I would have expected it.
Following the events of the 2012 film, we find Deputy So & So (James Ransone) is no longer a deputy, but a private investigator who is obsessed with his pursuit of Bughuul and is doing his best to stop him before anymore families are killed. So & So has managed to figure out the pattern that Bughuul uses and figures if he can destroy the next location before a family moves in, he may be able to save a family in the process. Unfortunately, the home he plans on burning to the ground, a location that was previously the site of a horrific murder, is already inhabited.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on January 8th, 2016
“I just have this sick feeling that something awful is going to happen.”
I pride myself on being able to keep a reasonably open mind when I pick up a new title to review. But sometimes I can’t help but judge a crappy movie book by its cover. That was actually the case with Kill Game, featuring an androgynous Michael Myers-lookalike brandishing a bloody knife on its cover. I was fully prepared to roll my eyes through this movie, which also nods to Saw, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and The Big Chill (a little). Much to my surprise, I found myself kinda-sorta getting into this twisty, nasty, low-budget slasher.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on January 4th, 2016
At this point, the most shocking M. Night Shyamalan-related twist would be for the director to make a movie that people actually enjoyed. (The “M.” stands for “maligned,” right?) Hopes weren't exactly high when it was announced Shyamalan — who was once fated to become either “the next Hitchcock” or “the next Spielberg” — would be dabbling in the fading found footage genre. So imagine my surprise to find that The Visit — a broad, nutty mix of comedy and horror — is the director's loosest, most playful effort since Signs. It's also his first (subjectively) non-terrible flick in about a decade.
We meet a harried single Mom (Kathryn Hahn) as she prepares to send her two children on a week-long trip to meet her estranged parents. Becca (Olivia DeJonge) is a 15-year-old aspiring filmmaker who decides to document the experience of meeting her grandparents on camera; she also wants to find out the reason Mom had a falling out with them. Tyler (Ex Oxenbould) is a 13-year-old freestyle-rapping, germophobic goofball who enjoys undercutting his older sister's self-seriousness. The pair take a train to the rural Pennsylvania town where their mother grew up and are met at the station by Nana (Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie), who take the kids back to their dilapidated farmhouse.
