Virus 1999

Not a bad science fiction thriller, I am surprised I missed it when it came out and just now in 2018 have viewed it. It wasn’t spectacular but I enjoyed it, I thought the pacing was good, it had a great cast, and the suspense in the earlier parts of the film was very well done. The plot centers around an alien entity made of electrical energy that makes it way to a Russian research vessel in the South Pacific. The ship, Akademik Vladislav Volkov, in communication with the Mir space station, is attacked by what looks at first like a powerful electrical surge, one that kills the cosmonauts and once on board the Russian research vessel, renders the ship a derelict at sea.

A week later, a tugboat named the Sea Star, captained by alcoholic and depressed Robert Everton (played by Donald Sutherland), along with navigator and apparent second in command Kelly Foster (played by Jamie Lee Curtis) and engineer Steve Baker (William Baldwin), make their way into the eye of a typhoon. In danger of sinking from the storm and the captain suicidal over losing a cargo to that same storm, a cargo they were towing that might have resulted in the loss of the Sea Star and all aboard, they discover a radar contact sharing the eye with them, something they soon come to realize is the Akademik Vladislav Volkov (Foster announcing its identity when the Sea Star is aside the Russian ship, reading from some sort of field guide to ships). Dreaming of a score from a salvage of research vessel with millions and millions of dollars of expensive electronics, robotics, and research equipment, they soon board the vessel, thinking they will be rich.

They find the vessel at first devoid of humanity, even bodies, and though this bodes well for salvage – if even one person remains, they don’t get to claim the expensive ship as salvage – they soon get an eerie feeling from the dark ship. Splitting up – because of course they split up, they don’t know there is an alien monster aboard the ship – they soon find why the ship is derelict, the crew dead or worse. Not to spoil anything I hope, but the combination of hostile alien being that is made of electrical energy and a ship full of robotics and science labs doesn’t bode well for the salvage crew.

Read more »

Action, Horror, Suspense,

Ghost Stories 2018

Intelligently written. Slow moving with lots of 'dead space' but It went in a direction that simply couldn't be predicted; which in a world of ripoff's and remakes is refreshing to say the very least. Martin Freeman is Brilliant as always. If you're looking for a gory and/or an ultra-violent flick, this one you should skip. It's a taut thriller.

Experience three spine-tingling tales of terror to haunt your dreams. A debunker of all things paranormal, Professor Phillip Goodman (Andy Nyman) has devoted his life to exposing phony psychics and fraudulent supernatural shenanigans on his own television show. His skepticism is put to the test, however, when he receives a file of three chilling, inexplicable cases: a night watchman (Paul Whitehouse) haunted by disturbing visions as he patrols an abandoned asylum; an edgy young man (Alex Lawther) involved in a hellish car accident deep in the woods; and a wealthy former banker (Martin Freeman) visited by the poltergeist spirit of his unborn child. Even scarier: each of the these macabre stories seems to have a sinister connection to Professor Goodman’s own life. Will they make a believer of him yet?

This, as they say across the pond, was bloody fantastic. There is no other way to review this movie without spoilers than to describe it as a ghost story, yet it does not constrain itself within the margins of what would actually be considered a traditional ghost story. There are no cheap scares, masked ax-wielders or any assortment of horror movie gimmicks to achieve the full extent of its chills. Your full attention is required to understand it, because every scene has significance. The ending came down like the slam of a sledgehammer, and when you finally realize what has been going on, that, I think, is where the true terror comes from... An excellent movie, but definitely not going to be for everyone.

Read more »

Horror, Suspense,

Shocking Dark 1989

In a polluted future Venice researchers work to improve the situation. One day, unknown forces start killing them. A team of soldiers and a couple of civilians is sent to investigate. Soon, they encounter strange murderous creatures.

Most of the reviews (especially the favorable ones) are for the Schwarzenegger film. This is actually an Aliens knockoff, despite the title (which is more commonly "Alienators" or "Shocking Dark"). This is good fun if you like cheap Italian versions of expensive American genre movies, which I do.

The plot concerns a group of actors in plastic armor running down many hallways and into several rubber aliens. I don't want to spoil it for you. There's not a lot to be found here in terms of traditional artistic merits, but there ARE a lot of funny costumes and a lot of bold, unselfconscious thievery from better films.

Read more »

Action, Horror, Sci-Fi,

Another WolfCop 2017

Alcoholic werewolf cop Lou Garou springs into action when an eccentric businessman with evil intentions seduces Woodhaven's residents with a new brewery and hockey team in this outrageous horror-comedy sequel.

Another WolfCop? Well, no actually, it's the same one as before-police officer and werewolf Lou Garou (Leo Fafard), who upholds the law by tearing apart the criminals. This time around, Lou tries to stop shady businessman Sydney Swallows (Yannick Bisson) from using his new line of stout beer-Chicken Milk-to impregnate the locals of Woodhaven with reptilian alien spawn.

As before, the emphasis is on excessive gore and low-brow humour, but the result isn't quite as effective, the sequel lacking the freshness of the original while throwing in too much poorly conceived eclectic absurdness that simply doesn't gel. Of the best stuff, Lou's crazy sex marathon with six-breasted werecat Kat (Serena Miller) is worth a giggle or two; of the less successful material, Kevin Smith as Mayor Bubba is the definite low point, a talking penile parasite that emerges from the stomach of Lou's sidekick Willie fails to generate the intended laughs, while the finale at a supposedly packed ice hockey match suffers for having a 'crowd' of approximately thirty fans.

Read more »

Comedy, Horror,

Big Legend 2018

An ex-soldier ventures into the Pacific Northwest to uncover the truth behind his fiance's disappearance.

Despite the nearly endless amount of monsters practically begging to be adapted to film, the wild world of cryptozoology remains a criminally underused source of inspiration for horror movies. While a few lucky cryptids have become ingrained in popular culture over the years, none have graced the silver screen as often (or as prominently) as the Big Man himself. The latest of these Sasquatch flicks is Justin Lee’s Big Legend, a surprisingly compelling survival story with more than a few surprises up its sleeve.

Big Legend stars Kevin Makely as Tyler Laird, a man haunted by the tragic disappearance of his fiancé during a camping trip. After a year in psychiatric care, Tyler returns to the woods that claimed the love of his life, hell-bent on finding the monstrous creature responsible. As he ventures through the mysterious beast’s territory, his suspicions that what he experienced was no mere animal attack are confirmed in the most gruesome way imaginable.

The film also features a brief but lovable performance by Adrienne Barbeau as Tyler’s mother, not to mention Todd A. Robinson as a quirky hunter/Bigfoot enthusiast, but the majority of the picture dwells on Makely’s interaction with the Pacific Northwest wilderness and the secrets that lurk within. The limited amount of characters and lonely backdrop make this a more intimate and contained ordeal when compared to most Bigfoot movies, while also focusing on the inherent solitude of Tyler’s journey and struggle for survival.

Luckily for us, Makely does a great job of carrying the film through these lonely sequences, and it’s hard not to feel sorry for Tyler after all he’s been through. The dialogue occasionally feels forced and the overall script could have used some more polish, but it’s still an entertaining experience.

That being said, there is a certain aura of cheapness permeating Big Legend, with nearly every element of the film feeling slightly rough around the edges. This is obviously a result of the limited budget, but I feel that many of these issues could have been avoided by beefing up the art direction and trimming some hammy lines from the script. Bigfoot himself also looks very mundane, but there are only so many ways you can depict a bipedal ape on film without straying too far from eyewitness accounts, so I can’t quite blame the filmmakers for that.

Read more »

Action, Horror, Thriller,

A Quiet Place 2018

Two parents do what it takes to keep their children safe in a world full of creatures hunting every sound they can hear. Not a sound can be heard from the family hiding in silence, but all it takes is one noise and everything can go wrong.

A Quiet Place starts with racking up the tension which doesn't let up in a nerve shredding 1hr 25. The premise is simple, we get no back story as to why the family have to stay silent, but within 5 minutes with an unexpected moment we can see what the consequence of making noise is. From then on our focus is on this one family as they strive to stay safe in what seems like a helpless situation. I enjoyed this film immensely. I found it to be nerve shredding and so tense to watch i had to try catch my breath a few occasions as i had been holding it so long. It is the silence for a majority of the film that makes this work and i was grateful for a silent cinema hall (this i will go back to) I found myself caring for the characters (rare in horror) and hoping for a positive outcome. It also doesn't suffer from an overlong run time and imo is not for the most part predictable.Those who like a decent movie monster i feel will be pleasantly surprised i believe as well. Those who are looking for gory in your face horror may struggle to engage and i think coming back to my point earlier if you end up in a hall full of restless noisy people filling the silence the tension will somewhat be lost. A solid 8/10.

Read more »

Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi,

Goosebumps 2015

After moving to a small town, Zach Cooper finds a silver lining when he meets next door neighbor Hannah, the daughter of bestselling Goosebumps series author R.L. Stine. Stine is very strange and mysterious and it turns out for good reason. He is a prisoner of his own imagination – the monsters that his books made famous are real, and Stine protects his readers by keeping them locked up in their books. When Zach unintentionally unleashes the monsters from their manuscripts and they begin to terrorize the town, it’s suddenly up to Stine, Zach and Hannah to get all of them back in the books where they belong.

Zach (Dylan Minnette) moves to a new town with his mother and soon meets his neighbor Hannah (Odeya Rush). The two hit it off but she's being overly protected by her father (Jack Black) and soon Zach finds out why.

I guess I should admit that I've never read any of the Goosebump stories and I haven't watched any of the television episodes. I was someone familiar with some of the monsters due to hearing about them as my girlfriend talked about them. I still went into this movie with high expectations and for the most part I found GOOSEBUMPS to be entertaining in its own way. The film is certainly flawed and it could have been much better but there are enough good things to make it worth watching.

What really helps the film is the fact that Rush, Black and Minnette are so good in their roles as is Ryan Lee who plays the nerd. I thought all four of them did a great job with their roles and I thought they certainly helped keep the film moving and entertaining. The monsters themselves were also fun for what they were. The CGI effects were of good quality as you'd expect and I thought the film was creative in the way that it got all of them on the screen.

I did have some issues with the film including the fact that I thought most of the humor didn't work overly well. I also thought the film dragged a bit too much and I really didn't think there was any suspense or tension. Again, going off what I had heard, apparently the show and books were meant to scare people but none of that carried over to this film version.

Read more »

Adventure, Comedy, Horror,

The Haunting in Connecticut 2009

Charts one family's encounter with the dark forces of the supernatural. When the Campbell family moves to upstate Connecticut, they soon learn that their charming Victorian home has a disturbing history: not only was the house a transformed funeral parlor where inconceivable acts occurred, but the owner's clairvoyant son Jonah served as a demonic messenger, providing a gateway for spiritual entities to crossover. Now terror awaits when Jonah, the boy who communicated with the dead, returns to unleash horror on the innocent and unsuspecting family.

First of all, Virginia Madsen proves once again that she is a very beautiful woman who can really act. She is superb as the mother of the cancer-stricken boy and carries this film. It starts out as a legitimately creepy film. I think I found the mortuary scenes to be more grisly than anything else. Also, I like many other people can unfortunately relate to the cancer-related treatments of loved ones scenes, which are very hard to watch. I just didn't find the film to be as scary and frightening as I had imagined it would be from the trailers and some of the critics comments. On the back of the dvd box, once such critic commented: "Will make you afraid to turn off the lights and go to sleep". Not me anyway. Did anyone else find the plot just a bit confusing when it came to explaining the history of the house?? I gathered the people who ran the mortuary were up to no good, but I sort of lost the plot as to just what they were doing and hoping to accomplish. I missed seeing this movie on the big screen and had to wait for the dvd release. I went for the unrated version and am not really sure just what was added to the original release. I enjoyed it for the most

part, but I do think it could have been a lot better. Ultimately I came away a bit disappointed. As for blood and gore making a scary film, not always. Sometimes the things you don't see, but only hear and imagine are far more frightening. The original 1963 film "The Haunting" is a fine example of this done on film. I wish I could say the same for this film. I am also puzzled as to why the film's running times have been listed as being 92 minutes and 102 minutes. My dvd player was displaying at nearly 103 minutes at the end of the unrated edition's credits.

Read more »

Drama, Horror, Mystery,

Death Smiles on a Murderer 1973

You have to see this movie more than once to understand and figure out what's going on.In short,after being reanimated from the dead,Greta Von Holstein(Ewa Aulin)seeks revenge on a lover who jilted her by faking a carriage accident and causing the death of its driver on the estate of the son of the man who impregnated her.She is in cahoots with the butler of the estate,who helps with a lot of her dirty work(then meets his end after she uses him).A doctor(Klaus Kinski)finds out her secret after ministering to her after the buggy accident and copies an Incan formula off of her gold pendant for his own use and fame.The pendant was made for her by her brother(with whom she had an incestuous relationship with)who brought her back from the grave after a miscarriage and inscribed her name,the year of her rebirth,and a mathematical formula for reanimation on the pendant.Greta causes the death of almost everyone in the cast,but you won't really understand anything until about halfway through the movie.And she makes sure no one is left to tell her tale!Surrealistic sound track by Berto Pisano keeps the movie on it's feet in the tradition of Phantasm.Definitely a must see!

When it comes to the giallo genre, fans can be just as obsessive in their pursuit of obscure titles as the hyper-violent, sexually deviant killers that feature in them so prominently. Death Smiles on a Murderer (1973) actually straddles the line between a typical over-the-top giallo mystery and a supernatural story straight out of the Italian Gothic tradition. Arriving with no memory at the home of a pair of wealthy landowners, Greta (Ewa Aulin) seems content to bounce between affairs with both husband and wife, covering her mysterious backstory with a trail of dead bodies, including an overly curious doctor (Klaus Kinski) convinced she holds the key to his scientific research.

Directed by sleaze-maestro Joe D'Amato (using his real name for the first time) the film is a kitchen-sink conglomeration of incest, murder, sex and super-science crafted with a sloppy sort of style. The period setting makes the film feel like a better-made cousin to some of Jess Franco's output from the era, but D'Amato's go-for-broke script holds your attention...even as you're trying to sort out just what the hell is going on! Lifting from Poe, Argento and even a dash of Warhol, the fact that Death Smiles on a Murderer attempts to inject some class into its overall crassness is what makes it so intriguing.


Arrow Video's Blu-ray transfer comes form a 2K restoration of the original camera negative, looking every bit as good as that description suggests. But the extras really seal the deal, including a fascinating peek into D'Amato's exploitation career, a lengthy interview with star Ewa Aulin, another spot-on commentary from Tim Lucas plus stills, trailers and a collector's booklet.

Read more »

Horror, Mystery, Romance,

Torment 2013

Newlyweds Cory and Sarah Morgan take Cory's 7-year-old son Liam up to the country for some much needed family time. When it appears as if Liam has run away, psychological suspense becomes straight-out horror, as Sarah and Cory must now confront a sadistic cult-like family who have been hiding in the house all along and have taken Liam for themselves.

After the death of his beloved wife, the widower Cory Morgan (Robin Dunne) marries Sarah Morgan (Katharine Isabelle) and they travel on vacation to an isolated house with his son Liam Morgan (Peter DaCunha). Cory expects that the resented Liam, who misses his mother, gets close Sarah along the next days. On the arrival, they discover that intruders have lived in the house and they summon the local Sheriff Hawkings (Stephen McHattie) calms them down telling that the strangers that have broken in have gone. During the night, Liam disappears and soon they witness Hawkings tied up to the steering wheel of his car. When the car explodes, they realize that they are under attack of sadistic killers and they need to fight back to survive.

"Torment" is a stupid slasher with a lame story, excessive use of clichés and poor development of the characters. The motive for the killing of the insane family is shallow and senseless. The brain washing in the teenager Mary Bronson (Amy Forsyth) is unexplainable and hard to believe. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Faces do Medo: Bem Vindo a Família" ("Faces of the Fear: Welcome to the Family")

Read more »

Horror, Thriller,

Train To Busan 2016 និយាយខ្មែរ

TRAIN TO BUSAN is a harrowing zombie horror-thriller that follows a group of terrified passengers fighting their way through a countrywide viral outbreak, trapped on a suspicion-filled, blood-drenched bullet train ride to the Safe Zone, which may or may not still be there.

2016 was a banner year for horror cinema. Don't Breathe. Lights Out. The Conjuring 2. It's a mini-revival that seems to have kept on to 2017, what with the white-knuckler, Get Out, still snagging 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. And yet, far and away, my favorite in this stretch of horror goodness is very much Train to Busan, a 2016 summer release. You may not have heard of Train to Busan because it's a foreign movie, and some folks treat sub-titles like cooties. Any self-respecting gorehound will tell you some of the best horror movies are found overseas. Train to Busan murdered at the Asian box office. American film studios are trying like mad to acquire the rights, and I hope they don't get them. I don't see the sense in recreating what's already a masterpiece. The Raid movie agrees with me.

Read more »

Action, Horror, Thriller,

Train to Busan 2016

ុ

TRAIN TO BUSAN is a harrowing zombie horror-thriller that follows a group of terrified passengers fighting their way through a countrywide viral outbreak, trapped on a suspicion-filled, blood-drenched bullet train ride to the Safe Zone, which may or may not still be there.

Last night, I watched "Train to Busan" streamed on Amazon. It cost $5; well worth it. It's the best zombie movie I have seen in a long time. Zombie enthusiasts will want to know, these are "fast zombies." Also, the zombie virus appears to kill mammals and reanimate the corpses. One interesting twist is the zombies can't see well in the dark. I've always thought that would be the case in a "real" zombie apocalypse because dead eyes aren't going to dilate or focus. Also, these zombies are stupid in the extreme. Too stupid to open doors. They're biting, running machines. Zombie movies are often allegories for something: Consumerism, terrorism, etc. "Train to Busan" is a study in selfishness. In other words, in a crisis, some people are quite selfless, and others are quite selfish.

In this movie, the higher up in status people are, they tend to be more selfish. So, the main character is a fund manager who is VERY selfish. But he does care about his very young daughter, who is extremely unselfish. This humanizes him, and allows him to succeed and grow. But the highest status person is the CFO of a transport company. He's on the train, and he is extremely selfish. And it shapes and warps his reactions to everything.

Read more »

Action, Horror, Thriller,