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All reviews - Movies (1084) - TV Shows (24)

Friend Request review

Posted : 7 years, 4 months ago on 3 November 2016 06:04 (A review of Friend Request)

I can't help but constantly think of Unfriended when I see this. I know the concepts are pretty different, but the names are way too similar. Anyways it does have a fairly decent cast. I've never heard of the director or the writers though. It's not received very well, but I'm going to give it a shot because I'm curious.

Wow this is extremely similar to that of Unfriended with the whole concept! The only difference is that this deals with Facebook and it's not found footage. It reminds me of Cyberbully and The Den as well. I think cyber horror is an interesting sub-genre, but I wish they would branch out with it. Most of their stories are way too alike. On a side note Black Mirror had a really well done story about it called "Shut Up and Dance". I thought the usage of the interruption noise that happens with audio was an interesting idea. Despite it not being all that original I actually got a kick out of it. They really got in depth with details about Facebook which was cool. I'm not going to lie I did actually jump a few times. The story as a whole was pretty interesting. Some of the deaths were pretty intense. There were some good twists and turns. It got much better as it moved along. The ending was particularly good.

I thought the acting was quite good. At least three of them were in TV shows I watch where I liked their characters. I'm glad William Moseley still acts here and there after The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. Sean Marquette looks a lot like his brother and I'm not used to seeing him not doing voice overs. I thought he was pretty good though. I really liked the characters and how they were developed over the course of the story.

It's not too original given that this is a small sub-genre to work with, but I actually liked it quite a bit. The kills were crazy. The scares were good. There were some pretty good twists and turns. The characters were interesting and developed well unlike most of the movies you see like this. I think the ending really makes it more enjoyable too. I'd say give it a shot. It might be a hit or miss kind of movie, but for me it was a hit.


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Finding Dory review

Posted : 7 years, 4 months ago on 1 November 2016 07:30 (A review of Finding Dory)

P Sherman 42 Wallaby Way Sydney. An imaginary address that I just can't ever forget lol. Of course I am one of the ones who loved the first one. I mean I was 13 at the time. I didn't even think about that until now. Once it was speculated of course I got excited. I was curious to see after all these years how they would do a continuation. I should have seen this sooner, but now it's time to see what I've been missing. I'm glad they got pretty much everyone back plus some great new cast members. I'm a bit sad there is no Bruce this time though. This is the first feature film for Pixar short films director Angus MacLane. Andrew Stanton has written and directed quite a few including of course Finding Nemo. Bob Peterson who is mostly known for voice acting also lends a hand to the screenplay. This will be the first time I've heard of Victoria Strouse as she only has one other writing credit. I should have seen this sooner, but anyways now it's time to see what I've been missing.

That was an absolutely great follow up to the original. It references jokes from the first film as well as characters. The new jokes are pretty funny. The sad moments are pretty heart wrenching. There seem to be a few more of them than the last movie. The adventure as a whole is fun and creative. There are so many elements that really made the story well rounded. The ending was great. The end credits were beautiful and the little snippets that joined it were amusing. There is even an after credits scene that got me excited.

It was great to see old characters and how they have grown since the original. I adored the new characters as well. I have to say Hank and young Dory were the best. Gerald was a fairly amusing character as well. Little Dory was just way too adorable and really makes her character that much more lovable. I have to say Dory is a special case in which a supporting character really holds her own as a lead.

I just loved this story. It has a great mixture of hilarity and sadness to it. It's a great watch for all ages and I do think the kids who watched the original when it came out would be perfectly satisfied with how this turned out. It's pretty fun from beginning to end with old jokes and new jokes. The characters are all great. I thought the new characters were great. Overall it's quite a satisfying story and even as a stand alone it would be a good one. I definitely recommend it if you liked the first one or you're just a fan of Dory.


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After Dark Horrorfest - Wicked Little Things review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 29 October 2016 02:02 (A review of After Dark Horrorfest - Wicked Little Things)

You don't really see After Dark Horrorfest films much anymore. I think there was a few last year apparently, but I'm not sure it has the same impact as it once did. This one has a very young Chloe Moretz which I didn't know. Also I hear two different things about this either being with ghosts or zombies. I'm hoping for the latter personally. I mean the cast does list people as zombie so I guess some people are just ignorant lol. I have only seen movies written by director J.S. Cardone which include Prom Night (remake), Stepfather (remake), and Covenant. None of which are particularly well received by anyone. Boaz Davidson though has a few pretty good action films under his belt included Undisputed 2 and Bunraku. It should be interesting to see a horror film from him. This is the only movie from writer Ben Nedivi though. Anyways let's see what kind of story this is and if it's any good.

Well that was disappointing to say the least. It moves fairly slow with not much happening until the last third of the film. Most of it is in heavy darkness and is way too quick to really have much of an impact. The twists were pretty obvious in my opinion. The ending was a bit dry. It has some decent moments though. It's not the worst thing I've seen, but for After Dark it's a huge disappointment.

The acting starts off pretty bad. Some get better while others just stay bad. The characters are a bit cliche and boring. The zombie kids reminded me of the vampires from 30 Days of Night. They are definitely the most unusual types of zombies I've seen. Chloe Moretz and the zomkids are the only interesting thing honestly.

It's a bit boring with most of the action that happens shrouded in darkness. The characters are typical and the acting doesn't improve them. I honestly didn't much care what happened after awhile. It's not the worst, but I was expecting more from After Dark. I guess you can't always have a winner. Pass on this one guys.


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We Are What We Are review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 27 October 2016 04:52 (A review of We Are What We Are)

This was made three years before the remake that was made three years ago from now lol. Anyways I was curious about this one and it's remake. I know they are about cannibals, but I know nothing else. This is directed by Jorge Michel Grau who is another to participate in the ABC's of Death. I have a few in my horrorfest that have directed shorts here. It looks like I didn't enjoy his segment all that much. He also directed a segment in Barbarous Mexico that was just average. I can only hope his storytelling here was better than his shorts. I noticed they had good elements, but they overall didn't accomplish whatever I had hoped for. Anyways let's see where this falls on things.

Okay this was actually pretty damn good. It's a bit of a slow burn yet it doesn't actually feel that way. It's also much shorter than I was expecting it to be. The violence is pretty gritty and quick when it happens. I loved the violins that played throughout the whole thing. There is an interesting shroud of mystery to the whole scenario too. The ending was quite excellent and unexpected.

The acting was quite well done. It is hard to feel compassion for any of the characters, but the actors do such a good job that you kind of care what happens. I hope that Alan Chavez is resting in peace. It would have been great to see how good of an actor he would have become after this.

This is a fairly unknown and underrated film. It's not what I was expecting it to be. It doesn't feel like your typical horror, but it shares some definite elements of the genre. It can be slow, but when things happen it gets intense. The acting is excellent and even with such characters you sort of root for them. The music really adds to whole thing. The ending was insane and that last shot was just great. I have to say if you haven't seen it yet you definitely should.


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Funny Games review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 23 October 2016 09:32 (A review of Funny Games)

So I have seen the remake and I thought it was pretty damn good. So I had to see if the source material was even better or what. Supposedly the director didn't intend for this to be successful or even a horror movie. It's another one of those films that is known for controversy which is always amusing to me. Yeah I see why some of them end up that, but for some it's like just get over it. Michael Haneke also directed the remake itself as well as a movie called Amour. Seeing as they were both excellent I don't see why this wouldn't be. I'm pretty hopeful to enjoy this. So let's get on with it.

Well it's almost entirely like the remake with very minor differences here and there. I think I felt just about the same as I did with that. The one thing about these kinds of films that does mess with me is that they could and do happen. The fourth wall breaking stuff was kind of amusing in this otherwise grisly and disturbing film. The whole thing isn't particularly gross, but atmospherically it's quite daunting. It can be quite upsetting when it needs to be though. It's kind of artsy with some moments that linger a little too long. The runtime is a bit long too. The major thing about this though is that the cliches are thrown out the window which makes this stand out. The way everything ends will stick with you long after the film is over.

The performances here were quite good. Of course some people do make some pretty dumb decisions, but hey you have to keep things going I suppose. The family had great chemistry and were very likable. The psychopaths were so proper and such that they came off as even more frightening had they been dimwitted.

It was pretty much the same as the remake. It had very few differences. I do kind of wish they had been done differently so I hadn't expected what would happen next throughout. It was still really well done anyways. The acting was excellent. The characters really made you care what would happen. The story is dark and grisly. It's not the typical horror. It's more like a shot a violence in media. It's a great story, but I can see why people would be turned off by it. It's not an easy watch and it lingers a bit too long at times. It sort of makes sense what it's trying to tell the audience about violence in media. I still like the violence in movies. Call me crazy or what have you. Though just because I am entertained by fictitious violence in what I watch, read, or play I cannot deny that I am disgusted by actual things. I would never do the horrible things and I don't even like watching the news about them either. When it's fake I am not so easily offended. This movie is against violent media apparently, but I still think it makes for a very well told story. I suggest giving this a shot, but know it can be a slight bit disturbing. If you have seen the remake though then there really is no point unless you are curious about the original.


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The Devil's Backbone review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 23 October 2016 06:27 (A review of The Devil's Backbone)

I can honestly say I don't know much about this except that it is pretty well known and the picture of the possessed boy is pretty much everywhere. I didn't even know this was written or directed by Guillermo del Toro. I don't have to say what I've seen from him as we know very well most of his films. I've never heard of anything else from the other writers associated with this film. Anyways let's see if this really is something that is as good as they say.

I have to say that was pretty brilliant. Guillermo Del Toro definitely used some of his atmosphere and ideas from this earlier tale of his for Pan's Labyrinth as well as Crimson Peak. You can even see that this is most likely a huge inspiration for The Orphanage of which he was the executive producer. It isn't really a scary horror tale in my opinion, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. Besides of course having ghosts it does have a sense of true to life horrors. I love the whole thing with the bomb that is sitting in the middle of the grounds the whole time. I loved that they bring attention back to some of more minor plotlines here which many films don't do. It has some great twists and a fitting end as well.

The cast is quite excellent here. They all manage to make full and interesting characters even the kids. I loved the design of the ghost kid. Then again you can always trust Guillermo Del Toro to have his creatures and such always looking quite unique. The character development is quite well done. This is something you don't really see too often in horror films. The characters aren't even all that typical either which I liked.

I can't believe I have waited so long to see this. The acting was great even from the child actors. The characters were all full and interesting. The story was excellent. There were some good twists and turns. The ending fit really well with the story. It's not so scary if you ask me, but it's very well done. It doesn't even really on jump scares. It uses constant gloom and sense of doom for the atmosphere. It keeps you invested from beginning to end. If you haven't seen this yet I strongly advise it.


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Sausage Party review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 21 October 2016 11:22 (A review of Sausage Party)

I have been desiring to see this for quite some time now. I just never had the opportunity to check it out until now. So I took advantage of the chance. There was a scene in Secret Life of Pets that reminded me of this a little bit too. I thought that the trailers were absolutely hysterical. Besides that I usually get a kick out of the Rogen squad. This is the first R rated film from Conrad Vernon who has only done Dreamworks films on and behind the screen. This is also a first for Greg Tiernan who made a few Thomas the Train films. Ariel Shaffir and Kyle Hunter are fairly new to the group after only working previously on The Night Before. Of course this is written by Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen, and Jonah Hill. There isn't much to say on that. It's time to see if this was worth the wait or not.

There are ways this kind of fits into my horrorfest of 2016. Your food is alive. Your food gets tired of your shit and wants revenge. Also given that it's from the minds of these filmmakers it could be a horror for children expecting to watch a funny children's looking movie. Yeah this doesn't even start out pretending it is for kids. It just goes straight for it. I have to admit that song was amusing even if somewhat offensive. Then again offensive is what they do best. Okay all the parallels to racial things are fairly funny. I actually enjoyed a lot of the little jokes here and there with food puns and innuendos. Oh man some of these jokes though good lord haha. It's some pretty sick stuff at times, but it's pretty creative. It get a kick out of these references they have throughout of different parts of pop culture as well. There is one scene in particular that stands out as being the raunchiest and probably most offensive to some. The way they kill off food and such is hilarious. There are quite a few moments that I liked. Call me sick if you want, but I actually liked it quite a bit. I have to wonder if there will be a part two with the way it ended.

I find it absolutely excellent and hilarious how many of the actors here are known for several kids films and television shows. It adds to the silliness of it being a parody of kids films. I thought a lot of characters were great. The voice overs worked really well too. I think of the characters Barry, Teresa, Douche, Gum, and Toilet Paper were my favorites. How they used the characters and such were pretty spot on.

It can be a bit offensive, but honestly you should know that going in to a Seth Rogen film. It's very much not for kids and it never makes you think otherwise. I got a pretty good kick out of it. It wasn't entirely what I was hoping for or expecting though. It had a lot of fun references, jokes, and innuendos which was a good thing. Most of the characters were great even the ones that didn't talk much or at all. The actors did an excellent job. While I enjoyed this I can see why others wouldn't. It really isn't for everyone. Also you can't go in this easily offended. It reminds me of Family Guy where no religion or race or sexual orientation is safe. Just take a break from the seriousness of the world and give it a shot.


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Shutter review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 21 October 2016 05:54 (A review of Shutter)

You know I honestly didn't like the American remake very much. I'm sure that isn't a huge surprise. I did want to see this to see how the original fairs. I was told that this isn't worth watching. For me that's a signal to go ahead and check it out and see if it really is not worth my time. Call me a glutton for punishment. Banjong Pisanthanakun is the only one of the writers/directors that I have seen before. He directed one of the shorts I actually liked from ABCs of Death. It's time to see how I feel about this one.

For the most part this was just okay. There really isn't a lot that happens for a majority of the film. It's mostly just atmospherically haunting with attempts at jump scares sporadically. A lot of the time it was easy to figure where the ghost would pop up seeing as it's hard to be inventive when so many stories have done that. There weren't even that many on-screen deaths which was a tad disappointing for me. That being said there were a few pretty important moments here. One in particular was very distressing, but it really sets how you feel about the whole thing. The reveals were excellently done and even unexpected. The ending shot was quite cool. It actually made the pretty bland and typical ghost story a bit more enjoyable.

The acting was great here. There was no problem with that. I thought how they handled the characters as well. You are made to like Tun for the majority of the film only to find out him and his friends deserve what has been happening. Natre was another wet looking dead girl kind of ghost. Her design was pretty cool though if you ask me. I kind of like the ghosty Asian girl look haha. Jane was a nice character as well.

This was obviously better than the 2008 remake. It's not particularly scary. At least for me it isn't. It doesn't even have gore or much in terms of deaths. It does however produce a few important moments that saved it from being too basic. The characters are interesting and the actors pull them off quite well. All in all it could have been much better, but I wasn't expecting all that much to begin with.


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Beyond Re-Animator review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 19 October 2016 07:23 (A review of Beyond Re-Animator)

Brian Yuzna and Jeffrey Combs return to the series after a 14 year break. It looks like they are the only ones to do so. This is the only writing film credits for Xavier Berraondo and Jose Manuel Gomez. Miguel Tejada-Flores however wrote Revenge of the Nerds series and even The Lion King! Anyways let's see if this final installment was worth it or not.

Well that was interesting. It's extremely silly. I thought the setting worked really well for the story. It's definitely the worst of the series though. It isn't the worst thing I've seen, but it's still not good either. There are a lot of awkward moments that just feel out of place. The opening scene was very weird albeit kind of amusing. They made the relationship between the siblings look weird after you realize that's what they were. I'm not sure if it was intentional, but I'd say it's a bit uncomfortable. Another thing that bothered me was a lot of stuff that happens with the warden. I won't go in to detail though. I have to say the chaos and gore was one of the best parts of the whole thing. The ending was actually pretty darn good. I always get into those types of endings. Without those things I would have hated this. There is a really strange scene during the credits which I didn't feel comfortable with lol.

Pretty much everyone here sucked besides Jeffrey Combs. I'm not sure if it's because this takes place in Italy and everyone is dubbed or they are just not very good. I absolutely despised the character of the Warden. There is nothing likable about him and whenever he showed up I felt uncomfortable. The main guard was ridiculously stupid for no real reason. The rat guy was intriguing. He almost felt like he could have been played by Tom Savini with how similar they look. The drug addict was just an awkward character played way over the top. The replacement of Dan Cain was lame. I couldn't find any interest in his character. Elsa Pataky is gorgeous, but she was also not very good here at least until close to the end. There are other characters that ranged from interesting to just okay. If the acting had been better this would have been more likable.

It's a bit over the top. Yes more so than the previous installments. That probably has to do with it being made in Italy and having cheesy Italian actors. It felt something like a Giallo film due to this, but not the best. It's pretty humorous though. It has the kind of gross I like and the kind that I really can't get into. Some of the things in the story felt uncomfortable at least for me anyways. Besides Jeffrey Combs pretty much all the actors were pretty bad. I do think that the characters were interesting enough. They just needed to have a better cast. The ending and the chaos that ensues are really what makes this film bearable. If they had done that differently I think I wouldn't have really kept attention on it.


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Bride of Re-Animator review

Posted : 7 years, 5 months ago on 17 October 2016 07:15 (A review of Bride of Re-Animator)

It's only fitting that the sequel to a Frankenstein style story starts with the "Bride of" as well don't you think? This another Brian Yuzna film. Hopefully it ends up being a good one or at least somewhat entertaining. The other writers also worked on Society (another weird one) with Brian Yuzna as well. Woody Keith also wrote the fourth Silent Night, Deadly Night that I watched last month. Anyways hopefully this isn't too bad.

It was actually not bad at all. It's pretty damn corny, but I was expecting that. The gore was insane and constant. The creations were wheels off. I mean they made quite some interesting combos. It had a few pretty amusing moments. The ending was alright. It kind of left a few things to wonder about.

It was nice to see our main duo return once again. Dr. Hill is still weird, but not nearly as creepy as the first one. You may recognize Fabiana Udenio if you watched the Austin Powers films. There is something about Italian women that coaxes me in. I thought Gloria was an interesting newcomer here. I kind of felt sorry for her character. I still think Bruce Abbott looks like Elias Koteas though nowhere near the same level of talent. The police Lieutenant was such an annoying character. His smug looks and his constant flipping of his badge really irked me. Jeffrey Combs is still great as the psychopathic Doctor.

There isn't really too much to say. I thought it was fairly amusing and enjoyable. Of course it's corny, but that's just what makes it what it is. The acting is a bit silly of course, but most of the characters are likable. I didn't like the Lieutenant and Dr. Hill was lame here. They did a few original things even though this is basically a Frankenstein parody from Lovecraft. Anyways it is a decent film with some great moments and it does keep you interested. I think it deserves a shot.


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