When I first heard Anna Kendrick was stepping behind the camera to direct her first film, I kind of expected it to be another Pitch Perfect film … but to find her instead doing a thriller about a real life serial killer and rapist who appeared on a game show in the 1970s was a curve ball I wasn’t expecting. But this isn’t simply a true crime story but instead is about how women were marginalized and heavily objectified. But the biggest takeaway I had while watching this was simply how dangerous things were back then and just how easily a serial killer could be prolific and walk the streets while no one suspected a thing. To get it out of the way, my major gripe with this film is that we meet Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) in the very beginning, and we see that he’s a vicious serial killer who lures his victims with charm while posing as a photographer.

"All right, kids. This is the part where you get to do the things the grownups don't wanna do anymore. Door to door on foot. Knock-knock, 'have you seen this man?' Just like in the movies. Partners have already been assigned so no one will get hurt feelings. Suspect likes to visit a certain kind of neighborhood. He's a middle-aged Caucasian male and not likely to go quietly, so let's always assume he's armed. We'll go alert and careful. That's all."

But that's really just the beginning. Writer/director Osgood Perkins has created one of those serial killer films that is bound to draw comparisons with some of the best of those films and most certainly Silence Of The Lambs. Let me just get that out of the way fast. This is a pretty solid film that deserves some attention, and is absolutely worth a look.

"I just love children's imaginations. What I don't like is when they get so violent."

Blumhouse is one of those horror factories that have changed the way horror films are created, seen, and marketed. There have been some powerful horror films to come out of those doors. When I think of Meg3n, the first couple of Paranormal Activity films, and even the Purge franchise, I see clever and innovative films. But the production house can be a bit feast-or-famine, and there have been a number of famine films on the bill.  Among the famine list of films you'll find Truth Or Dare and the crazy horror/hybrid take on the old Fantasy Island series. What do both of those films have in common?

"Let me tell you a story. A story of a great king."

Let me begin by admitting that the original 1994 classic animation feature film The Lion King has remained my all-time favorite animated film. It wasn't just the Elton John/Tim Rice songs, but that didn't hurt. I've been an Elton John fan as far back as I can remember. There was just something special, something timeless, in that film. Since that time I regard it as the very last breath of the Walt Disney Studios classic animation. It started the studio's last string of hits, and it was the end of an era. So that film has become somewhat bittersweet for me. The animated sequels were low-budget made-for-video quality, and the more recent "live action" version did not impress me with anything more than the technology it displayed. The heart has been gone for a long time. With the release of Mufasa, Walt Disney is attempting to pull on the heartstrings of people like me who love the original.