anythinghorrorscott Reviews

American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders (2024)

Well Presented, But With A Lot of Bias

[6/10 · 30 March 2024]

I can remember reading about Casolaro & the unfolding PROMIS software case back in the 1990s. This documentary presents the info well enough but it seems to have already made up its mind as to Casolaro's death & whether there's a conspiracy within the first 2 minutes of the first episode. It doesn't seem very balanced.

The segment with Riconosciuto was unnecessarily dramatic & felt staged.

The 2 filmmakers here are too connected to the story to be unbiased and where they might be good at laying out the case for a conspiracy, they offer no evidence whatsoever.

Danny Casolaro's story is worth being told. He can serve as a warning to other up & coming investigative reporters. Casolaro became obsessed.with the story he was working on and even in the face of underwhelming evidence for his claims, he tried to hammer a square peg into a round hole. And what about his health & the facts about his "publisher."

This is a tragic story about obsession and about some definite wrong-doings (the Justice Dep't & PROMIS software) that needs to be told, but perhaps these weren't the right 2 filmmakers to tell this story.

Modern Conspiracy (2021 Podcast Series)

No Research Provided

[1/10 · 14 January 2023]

I listen to a lot of conspiracy-based podcasts. The good ones provide a solid history of the conspiracy being talked about & addresses all sides of the conspiracy in a factual way.

Unfortunately, Modern Conspiracies does not do this. There is no research being done; there's no proof of anything being provided; there's no skepticism in the approach. The closest research listeners get is a kind of "Trust Me Bro" research (as in "trust me bro, I saw this online" & "trust me bro, I heard this from a reliable source").

It is clear the host has already made up his mind that all these conspiracies are true & he's just reading websites that share his same views. He's already made up his mind & is seeking out websites & others who share his view.

Very disappointing.

Assimilate (I) (2019)

Boring Invasion of the Body Snatchers Ripiff

[2/10 · 2 November 2019]

Nothing close to an original idea in this bland ripoff of the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Amateurish acting & a plodding story make this one tough to get through. Don't waste your time.

Medusa (IV) (2015)

A Fun, Nightmarish, Supernatural-Horror!!

[7/10 · 14 August 2015]

If there's one thing that unifies almost all modern-day horror fans, it is their desire to see something fresh and original. Hollywood isn't giving us anything original, that's for damn sure. Every once in a while Hollywood will take a chance on something kind of original–like say, INSIDIOUS. INSIDIOUS has an estimated budget of $1.5 million. If this film failed, no big loss to the studio. But, as we all know, this film didn't fail and became a huge success and spawned two sequels (at the time of this writing). But Hollywood's take away from films like INSIDIOUS aren't that horror audiences want something new and risky, Hollywood just assumes, "Since audiences loved INSIDIOUS, let's crank out 57 more INSIDIOUS clones and ride this out until audiences stop watching them."

If horror fans want something truly original, they need to go to the indie horror scene. Of course not every film from the indie horror scene is original, but audiences are more likely to find originality there than in Tinseltown. Take, for example, MEDUSA. MEDUSA is written and directed by Jorge Ameer, and is his first foray into the horror/supernatural-thriller genres. But instead of making a tired old ghost story, slasher flick, or alien-runs-amok picture, Ameer went with something wholly original and based his story around the ancient Greek mythological creature of Medusa.

In MEDUSA, Jack (Jeff Allen), a professor of ancient mythology, tracks down a mirror that he believes is somehow connected to the myth of that crazy old gorgon, Medusa. He meets an evil witch doctor Kao (Jorge Ameer) who summons the ancient creature and then gives Jack the mirror. When he gets back home, Jack immediately begins to experience hallucinations, crazy dreams, and other odd things. With the help of his psychologist friend Steven (Tom Struckhoff) and his girlfriend Lana (Britt Rose), they unravel what's happening to Jack and then try and prevent Medusa from using Jack's body to re-enter our world.

There's a lot of things to like about MEDUSA. The story is, as hinted above, original with enough going on in it to keep you guessing. There are a lot of references to ancient mythology, and I like Ameer's approach to Medusa. We all know her as being the snake- haired broad who turns people to stone with just a glance, but Ameer focuses on Medusa as a seducer. It is interesting learning about Medusa and what her background is. It would have been easy for Ameer to just use Medusa as a snake-haired, turn-your-ass-to-stone villain, but instead he delves deeper into her mythology and comes up with something that was really unique and interesting.

One of MEDUSA's other strengthens is the way it is filmed. Ameer has a fantastic eye and the nightmare and dream sequences he films are stylish with hints of surrealism. From the way Jack's dreams are filmed, the audience gets to experience the same confusion and anxiety as Jack.

MEDUSA, though, isn't a perfect film (as few films are). Some of the acting is spotty and the character of Lana isn't that well written. Lana comes across as a love-sick puppy. If her character wasn't in the film at all, nothing in the story would have changed. There was one other character, Oren (Jon Jacobs), that really ruined the flow of the narrative for me. Oren comes in towards the end of the film and is another expert on Medusa and serves to give a final push to the narrative. The problem with this character is that his big scene felt as though it was completely ad-libbed. For example, when Oren is explaining Medusa's plan he says, "Medusa is going to try and enter into Jack's dreams. He is going to seduce her." Then he takes a pause and you can almost see the look on actor Jacobs' face as he corrects himself by immediately saying, "She is going to seduce him." In the same scene, Oren issues the warning, "There's nothing we can do," when talking about Jack's face. He immediately follows this by adding, "There's something you can do." Mistakes happen, but the errors by Oren's character in this pivotal scene really pulled me out of the moment and ruined what could have been a tense and suspenseful scene.

The good far outweighs the errors in MEDUSA, and this is a solid effort by Ameer. I loved the originality of the story and Ameer has a beautiful style. The dream sequences are surreal and nightmarish and shows that Ameer has some serious directing chops. Another go-around in the editing room and re-shooting Oren's scene towards the end would strengthen this film immensely, but as it is, MEDUSA is a fun film that delves into and brings a frightening mythological creature to life. This is definitely one to check out.

Sledge (2014)

Welcome to the Dawn of a New Killer!!!

[9/10 · 12 August 2013]

SLEDGE is the passion project of writer and co-director Kristian Hanson, (along with John Sovie II). Hanson is a huge fan of the 80s-style slasher flick and he captures this tone perfectly in his debut film. What starts out as a seemingly typical romp with teens going into the woods and teens getting killed in said woods becomes something much more in the very capable hands of Hanson and crew. I'll admit that I was hesitant as I sat down to watch SLEDGE (seemed to be just another teens killed in the woods flick) but was more than pleasantly surprised. Hanson puts his own spin on things and doesn't just attempt to make another run-of-the-mill horror-comedy or homage to the 80s-style slasher flick. He does indeed pay homage to the golden era of slasher films but he also makes SLEDGE his own. This is a hugely fun and entertaining horror film.

SLEDGE begins with a fun early sequence that sets the tone for the entire film. After the mayhem of the opening we then switch to a girl settling in with some popcorn and wine to watch a movie on TV. At first I didn't know what the hell was going on, but it soon becomes apparent that Hanson is presenting SLEDGE as a film within a film. The host of the late night show is the beloved, foul-mouthed puppet, Assly. If you guessed that the B-movie Assly is presenting is SLEDGE, well you don't win anything. I thought that was pretty obvious. But as it begins we get the typical set up of a bunch of friends gathering together for a fun weekend excursion of drugs, drink, and donut dunking in the woods. But as usual, these teens didn't do their local folklore homework and end up in the wrong part of the woods. Around the campfire, Alex (Dustin Bowman), tells them all about the local urban legend of Adam Lynch (a name taken from two of Hanson's horror influences, Adam Green and Joe Lynch). As the story goes, Adam Lynch is a psychotic killer who lives in the woods and kills any and every one he comes across with his trusty sledgehammer. So I guess this isn't really a "slasher" film so much as it is a "smasher" film (yes; I'm proud of that one).

It doesn't take long for all chaos to break loose and when it does, hold onto your hats. SLEDGE is fast-paced, gory, fun, bloody, and gory. Did I mention gory? I read that the budget here was roughly around $2,000. You'd never know it, though. Sure SLEDGE has that low-budget, indie horror look to it, but it doesn't feel cheap. Hanson got every single penny up on the screen and it shows. I was also impressed with the assembled cast. For a low-budget flick, the cast does a really nice job. And the gore … the gore is terrific!! There's no CGI here, just practical effects and damn if they aren't done well!! I also really love the killer's mask. Very creepy and effective. Gore hounds will be very pleased because every chance Adam Lynch gets to smash skulls, pull out intestines, and just generally ruin the days of the cast members, he takes … and we the viewer get to see it all. Nothing is done off screen!! Bravo, Kristian, bravo. It's nice to see that there are still some indie horror filmmakers out there on a shoestring budget that can still deliver the gore.

But I think where SLEDGE really differs from other films in this genre is with the killer himself, Adam Lynch. Lynch isn't a killer because he has mommy issues. He's not a killer because he's out for revenge. Lynch is killing because he's crazy and enjoys killing people. Period. Do ya really need any deeper reason than that? So many times writers get caught up in the details that they forget Ockham's Razor: Less is more. Hanson doesn't forget this and he embraces it. Lynch is just a messed up guy who enjoys smashing and killing people. But there's another difference between Lynch and the traditional slasher. Lynch talks!! Not only does he talk when he's killing victims, but he taunts and belittles them. At first I was completely caught off guard when I heard Lynch talk. But he doesn't just spout out stupid Krueger-like one-liners that make you roll your eyes and wish he'd shut up. Lynch is actually funny and he provides a little much needed comic relief. The killings are pretty intense and Lynch helps to lighten up the mood slightly. The horror aspect isn't reduced from the comedy but the two elements actually work together and nicely enhance each other.

My only complaints about SLEDGE were that we didn't really get any character development and the dialog in some places was a little flat. Neither of these complaints hurt my overall opinion of SLEDGE, though. SLEDGE is a really fun, back-to-basics slasher (I mean 'smasher') film that fans of the genre are gonna love. I can't wait to see what Hanson comes up with next, and I hope SLEDGE isn't the last time we meet Adam Lynch. I think he's still got a lot of killing left in him!! Don't miss SLEDGE.

Some Guy Who Kills People (2011)

The Way Horror-Comedies Should Be!!

[9/10 · 25 July 2012]

I love this title: Simple, descriptive, and effective. The movie is indeed about a guy who goes around killing people. But wow there's so much more going on. SOME GUY is written by Ryan A. Levin and is inspired by Levin's 14 minute short film, THE FIFTH. The writing is every bit as clever as it was in the short and it's nice to see that Levin could make that leap from a short to a full length feature so effortlessly. But what director Jack Perez (yes, the same 'Jack Perez' who directed MEGA SHARK VS. GIANT OCTOPUS) smartly does is cast some terrific actors that do great jobs in making this story successful. SOME GUY is a horror-comedy and the best one I've seen since TUCKER & DALE VS. EVIL.

As the film opens we join Ken as he bolts awake from a recurring nightmare. in which he's tied to a chair with tape over his mouth being tormented by a group of guys. Ken arrives late to work (again) where his boss is angry (again) and his buddy Irv is there to cover for him (again). Ken has just recently been released from the local nut farm where he spent a few years after trying to kill himself. But it seems the prolonged stay in the loony bin did Ken some good. He's calm, stoic, introverted, and intelligent. He's constructed a thick shell around himself and doesn't let anyone in -- not even those closest to him like Irv and his nightmarish passive-aggressive mom Ruth.

Ken has a crappy job at the local ice cream shop where he must dress up like a giant ice cream cone and work catering jobs and pass out fliers on the street. One day in a random, chance encounter Ken bumps into a girl on the street who he later discovers is his eleven year old daughter, Amy. But Ken wants to make a change in his life and he really wants to make an effort connecting with his daughter. Ken seems to be on a roll and shortly after "meeting" his daughter meets Stephanie at one of the catering jobs he's working.

Amy hasn't been getting along with her mom lately so she decides to pack up and move in with her dad ... on a whim ... without letting Ken know about it. Now Ken's world is turned upside down as he tries to adjust to having an eleven year old daughter living in his house who he knows nothing about. But Ken also has an active night life killing those people from his past he believes ruined his life. Is it the same people who haunts his dreams? Did they indeed ruin his life or has Ken constructed this fantasy world in order to blame someone for his crappy life?

SOME GUY is a hugely fun flick. The dialog is quick and witty and cleverly hilarious. Writer Levin doesn't construct silly situations to create funny moments. All the comedy is completely organic in the film. SOME GUY takes place in a small town and the sheriff, Sheriff Fuller and his deputy Ernie are brilliantly written and provide some of the biggest laughs in the film. They aren't, though, bumbling small-time cops who resort to slapstick and low-brow humor. Their characters are aware that there's a serial killer in their small town and that they're extremely ill-equipped to deal with such a crime. They try so hard to figure out what's going on but they mostly come up empty handed until Sheriff Fuller stumbles upon some important evidence. Fuller and Ernie are extremely well- written characters and Barry Bostwick pretty much steals the show here with his deadpan delivery.

Beyond Bostwick, the entire cast does a great job here and Kevin Corrigan (Ken) plays his role beautifully. Corrigan is perfect playing a guy who's not just beaten down by life and unhappy with the direction his life has taken, but he also expertly plays a man who doesn't really fit in anywhere ... especially in his own skin. Corrigan is simply brilliant in this role.

Levin also manages to do something I never thought would be possible: Levin has written a horror-drama-comedy. What's a "horror-drama-comedy," you ask? Well the horror aspect of SOME GUY is pretty obvious. A serial killer is stalking and killing in extremely graphic and bloody ways various men in town. But the 'drama-comedy' part of this film is interesting. Levin has written a heart-warming story of a psychologically damaged man who's life hasn't really turned out as he expected and who's constructed a wall around himself in order to further shield himself against the outside world. But in a world he can no longer connect with, he discovers there's one final connection that he just can't abandon -- his eleven year old daughter. So we watch as these two slowly bond and connect amidst his nightly killing sprees. I know; it sounds bizarre and a very unlikely combination, but it works. Director Perez keeps everything moving along and he really surprised me here. For the last couple of years Perez has been a director of films for The Asylum. Yeah; I know. But this guy's got some great directing chops and knows how to make a great film, and SOME GUY proves that.

The final act feels as though it drags in some places, but it soon became apparent that Levin and Perez have something up their sleeves. They throw in a twist that I didn't see coming ... and it works. The ending gets a little dark and 'heavy' (which was a nice touch), but the ending is completely satisfying.

I really loved SOME GUY. The writing and acting are spot on and it has great energy. This is the way a great horror-comedy (sorry ... horror-drama-comedy) should be!!

It's in the Blood (2012)

It's In The Blood is the Way Indie Horror SHOULD Be!!

[9/10 · 29 May 2012]

Up until I sat down to watch IT'S IN THE BLOOD, I realized I knew nothing about this film It has a small main cast, is filmed in isolated and remote areas, and often times has a very hallucinatory feel to it. IT'S IN THE BLOOD is an indie horror film that transcends the genre and ends up being a lot more than what it starts out as.

IT'S IN THE BLOOD is about a father, Russell (Lance Henriksen), and his son, October (Sean Elliot, who co-wrote & co-produced) who're trying to reconnect after not seeing each other for years. A terrible trauma both binds them together and pushes them apart and it's this horrific event in their pasts that they're trying to move beyond. They go out into the wilderness to hunt and try to bond and Russell ends up injuring himself bad (real bad) in what might be one of the worst compound fractures ever put on film. With limited mobility and absolutely no supplies, the two are completely at the mercy of the elements, and just when they thought things couldn't get any worse they realize some kind of creature is stalking them down with the intention of killing them. From the few distant and blurry images we get in the beginning it's obvious this is not your typical woodland predator after them. This thing is big, intelligent, and fierce as hell.

The film unfolds with the father and son having to come together to survive, all the while trying to figure out what the creature is and what it wants. At the same time, Russell's compound fracture is getting worse (make that, disgusting), and October's recurring nightmares about his past trauma, which includes the girl he loved, Iris (Rose Sirna), start bleeding into his waking state. This is most definitely a "slow burn" flick and director/co-writer Scooter Downey does a great job controlling the material. We get scenes that go from the 'real time' in the film to flashbacks of the horrific event that changed all their lives, to hallucinatory scenes of the creature. In lesser skilled hands, IT'S IN THE BLOOD could've been a muddled mess, but Downey masterfully controls all the various elements like a well-seasoned pro. The film is also shot beautifully, really embracing the dark and the isolation of the situation, and the editing is phenomenal. The dark and isolation become imposing characters themselves as they threaten and consume Russell and October. Downey's style here reminds me a lot of Lucky McKee's style in THE WOMAN (my review here). There's a noticeable lack of a soundtrack in the first half of the film and he builds the story in a slow yet deliberate manner where you feel the tension building as if you were inside a pressure cooker. Downey does a fantastic job here.

As great as the direction of the film is, it's the acting from Henriksen and Elliot that really make this film. You all know that I'm a huge fan of Henriksen's. He's an iconic genre actor that's been in some of horror's best films. But lately I've been seeing him popping up in more and more B-movies. Hey look, everyone needs to pay the bills and I'm just glad to see Henriksen still working. But his performance in IT'S IN THE BLOOD will remind you why you fell in love with this man in the first place. He's absolutely amazing here in the range he plays and the depth of his performance. He's the sheriff in this small, rural town who lost his wife and had to raise his son alone (and who also adopted a young girl and raised her as his own daughter). He's a tough old man who fiercely guards his emotions and feelings and rarely lets anyone "in." He's also a heavy drinker who hates where his life has taken him and who still can't get beyond the tragedy that destroyed he and his family's lives. But beneath it all, Henriksen's Russell loves his son and is trying to find the way to reconnect with him and get them to both overcome their pasts. And if you've ever wondered what Henriksen would sound like imitating a woman having an orgasm, IT'S IN THE BLOOD will settle that for ya!!

Sean Elliot is perfect in this role as Henriksen's troubled son. Elliot's October is a highly intelligent guy with a photographic memory who essentially stopped living after that traumatic event in the woods that fateful day. With both Elliot and Henriksen we get believable characters who do realistic things and react in realistic ways to the events they find themselves in. The writing is excellent and the execution is pitch-perfect. I know this isn't usually the kind of film I rave about, but when there's so few elements in a film, it only takes one small screw up to ruin everything. The cast and crew in IT'S IN THE BLOOD came together and executed on a very high level and made something truly fantastic. My only complaint is that the ending of the film got a little redundant.

I'm not gonna talk about the creature or the traumatic event in any detail. This is a film I want you to experience in the same way I experienced it ... without knowing a damn thing about it. But be warned; besides one of the most hideous leg injuries ever put on film, there's really not too much gore in this film. There are, though, some really disturbing images that'll satisfy the horror crowd. Some may argue that IT'S IN THE BLOOD isn't even a horror film. I label it a horror-psychological drama. It takes it's time developing all the characters and themes here, but the entire time you can feel it building up in intensity. This is a great film that won't be everyone's cup of tea, but those of you that connect with it will have a great experience.

The Corridor (I) (2010)

A Slow Burn Film w/ an Explosive & Satisfying Ending

[10/10 · 3 April 2012]

THE CORRIDOR, directed by Evan Kelly and written by Josh MacDonald completely caught me off guard. Its description led me to believe that this was your typical friends-gather-in-the-woods-and-die flick. What I wasn't expecting was getting a wholly original horror film with sci-fi overtones, great acting, and a really intelligent script.

The film opens by putting us in the middle of a "situation." Tyler (Stephen Chambers) is crouched down in a linen closet with a bloodied face looking at a dead woman laying in the hallway floor. His friends come over and he attacks them with a knife, cutting several of them. Then as the opening credits roll we gather that some time has passed and the five guys are coming together to reconnect and do a little male bonding up in the woods at Tyler's cabin. Tyler has recently been released from the psych ward, has a fistful of pills to take, but is otherwise good to go. The other friends are Bobcat (Matthew Amyotte), Chris (David Patrick Flemming), Everett (James Gilbert), and Jim (Glen Matthews). They've all been friends for a long time and it seems they've all drifted apart as life has gotten in the way and carried them all off in different directions.

From the very beginning of this one I knew I was in for something different; something that wasn't gonna follow the typical killer-in-the-woods formula. The dialogue was intelligent, the characters weren't broad stroke caricatures, and the shooting style and editing was excellent. As the friends gather we learn a little about them all (don't worry; there's NO SPOILERS in this review) and learn how for most of them their boyhood dreams have been crushed underneath the reality of "Everyday Life." One of them is sterile and is afraid to tell his wife outta fear she'll leave him; one is an alcoholic who works in a bar; one is in a troubled marriage with a bazillion kids; and one can't seem to grow up and find a direction in his life. One night when Tyler is out walking around in the woods to clear his head he comes across something unusual. He stumbles upon what appears to be some weird wall of energy. Investigating it more he finds that it's more of a corridor (hey; we have the title of the film!!) that seems to get longer. Tyler thinks he's losing his mind (again) and wants to forget about it. But then he starts seeing his dead mother and knows he needs to reach out to the others. He confides in Chris and the next day they all go out, under the intention of humoring Tyler, to check out this 'corridor.' The guys are shocked when it turns out Tyler isn't hallucinating or losing his mind at all. There really is a corridor made up of some weird kind of energy force out in the woods. The guys are amazed and excited about this find. Almost immediately they all see this discovery as a way to make their mundane lives better. This is the point where I don't wanna give away anything else about the story. Let's just say that the story ends in a lot of violence. A lot. But one thing Kelly and MacDonald don't do is leave us hanging. We get a great explanation as to what's going on. We come to understand, just as the characters do, exactly what the corridor is and why it affected them the way it did. There's some really brilliant writing going on here people!!

The first half of THE CORRIDOR is definitely more like THE BIG CHILL than a horror movie. I categorize this in the "slow burn" sub-genre. But don't think that "slow burn" equals slow. Far from it. There's a lot going on in this film and Kelly keeps everything moving at a great pace. The last two acts will have you on the edge of your seats (literally), not believing the turn of events on screen. The acting by the entire cast is top notch, and considering the five main actors are relative newcomers (Glen Matthews appeared as a gang leader in HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN), they all exhibit a lot of range and talent and all look comfortable in front of the camera. I bought that they were all old friends trying to reconnect.

But perhaps director Evan Kelly deserves the most praise. He creates a really amazing tone and atmosphere from the first frame that makes you feel ill-at-ease even during the scenes where nothing "bad" is happening. Kelly also gets some really amazing shots out in the woods and uses shadows and light to his full advantage. The editing (by Thorben Bieger) is also extremely well done. Even the opening and closing songs (performed by the Canadian band Great Lake Swimmers) was a brilliant choice in helping set the tone and mood.

I don't know but maybe I connected with this movie because I've been going through a lot of the same the characters in this film were going through. We're all told when young that we can be "whatever we want when we grow up," and that the "sky's the limit." But after life, after real life, gets a hold of us we realize that we're not destined for something great. That if we're lucky we'll manage to be happy with our lot in life. That the "endless sky" does indeed have a bubble encapsulating it and thereby cutting off most of our choices. Life kinda sucks and what's really crappy is that you didn't even make the wrong choices. It's just the way life is. Like I said, it may just be me really connecting with this film, but I loved every second of it. I watched it for the first time on Saturday night about 9pm and when it was over I watched it again. It's a film that gets better with multiple viewings.

I can't recommend this one enough.

Doll Boy (2010)

DOLL BOY is Exactly what the Genre Needs!!

[9/10 · 28 June 2011]

This past weekend I watched DOLL BOY, by West Texas indie horror filmmaker Billy "Bloody Bill" Pon. DOLL BOY was screened at the 2011 Texas Frightmare Weekend, but I was in the press room getting some interviews and unfortunately missed it. I'm really sorry that I did!! DOLL BOY is a sick, twisted, scary, and disturbing short film (it has a 27 minute run time) ... all the things I've come to expect from the Texas indie horror scene (remember SWEATSHOP??).

DOLL BOY begins with a windowless panel van pulling up to a run down warehouse. A demented-looking clown (who really enjoys his work) opens the sliding door of the van to reveal eight people bound, gagged, and terrified. He takes them out of the van and throws them into the warehouse. Well if you thought the clown was scary and disturbing you should see what's waiting for them inside the warehouse!! As the people get used to the darkness and begin to help each other break loose from their shackles, they are attacked by the titular Doll Boy; a huge, hulking psycho wearing a very creepy mask that looks like a baby doll. It's truly one of the most disturbing masks I've seen in a while.

The rest of DOLL BOY becomes a fast-paced stalk-n-slash flick where Doll Boy hunts down and kills the eight victims with a sledgehammer, his preferred choice of weapon. Writer, director, producer, and film and sound editor Bloody Bill keeps the pace fast and the killings brutal and doesn't mind throwing in scenes that are bound to have genre fans talking. It's never explicitly shown, but I hate to think what that clown (who drove the van) did to the little girl from the beginning. Bloody Bill also has a rather odd sense of humor running through his film. In the beginning when we're following around the clown driving the van, the lyrics of the song playing on the radio are as follows:

He's not responsible for what he's doing/ because his momma made him what he is.

Bloody Bill also knows how to set up a shot and frames everything really well. The dilapidated warehouse becomes a character itself as the victims attempt to run away through claustrophobic hallways and hide between fake walls. But ultimately Doll Boy knows that warehouse like the back of his hand and there's no escaping his sledgehammer. But who he is and how he got the way he is is never examined and I sure hope Bloody Bill turns this short into a feature length film. This is a talented, demented filmmaker and I REALLY wanna see more from him!! In the letter he sent with the screener copy, Bloody Bill promises me that "This is only the beginning." I sure hope so!! Bloody Bill is exactly what the horror genre needs to wake it up out of the doldrums of boring remakes and pointless sequels.

Bloody Bill also includes two phony trailers before DOLL BOY that proves he is a child of grindhouse cinema. The first is for CIRCUS OF THE DEAD and the second is MISTER FISTER, about a psycho who wears a brutal glove and kills girls by ... well, just re-read the title and you'll figure it out. I'd be extremely happy seeing short or feature films of either of these faux-trailers, especially MISTER FISTER. This one has a scene where the titular psycho kills a broad in his unique way and it turns out she was pregnant. The next scene has the coroner saying the victim was pregnant, to which the cop asks, "Where's the baby?" Flash to the killer driving in his van with the dead fetus dangling from his rearview mirror. Like I said, Bloody Bill is exactly what the genre needs!! Real horror fans are always complaining that there's no directors out there willing to push the envelope and make some hardcore films, but I can tell you there is!! Definitely check out DOLL BOY and support Bloody Bill. I really need to see what he comes up with next. My Summary: Director: Billy "Bloody Bill" Pon (& writer, sound editor, producer, & film editor) Plot: 4 out of 5 stars Gore: 8 out of 10 skulls Zombie Mayhem: 0 out of 5 brains Reviewed by Scott Shoyer

Swamp Shark (2011 TV Movie)

SWAMP SHARK: Silly But Fun!!

[6/10 · 21 June 2011]

The middle part of 2011 is proving to be a good period for the SyFy channel and their originals. Earlier this year SyFy's 51 (see review here) and BEHEMOTH (see review here) were promising, but both failed in their respective executions. BEHEMOTH promised a huge, planet-destroying creature but simply gave us a lazy, Lovecraftian-influenced beast who was attached to a mountain. But then last weeks ICE ROAD TERROR really surprised me with how fast-paced, gory, and fun it was (see review here), and now SWAMP SHARK, premiering on Saturday, June 25th at 9pm (ET/PT), once again proves that when the boys and girls over at SyFy really wanna make an entertaining flick, they can do it.

SWAMP SHARK stars the original BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, Kristy Swanson as Rachel Broussard, the owner of the Gator Shack restaurant located right next to the swamplands of the Atchafalaya Basin. She runs the restaurant with her younger sister Krystal (Sophie Sinise, Gary Sinise's daughter) and her older brother Jason "Swamp Thing" (Jeff Chase). Everything's going really well as the town prepares for their yearly big event, Gator Fest, until crooked sheriff Watson (Robert Davi), who sells illegal exotic animals (??!!!?) accidentally releases a shark into the swamps. Yeah I know; it's a silly and completely absurd set up, but it actually fits the entire campy world created in SWAMP SHARK. Swanson is one of the first people to spot the shark and instead of balling up into a panicking, hysterical woman, she grabs her hunting rifle, a boat, and anyone else who believes her and goes out to hunt down the swamp shark. I loved Swanson's character and since her best known film is the original BUFFY, it would've been hard seeing her as anything other than a butt kicking hottie.

And what self-respecting SyFy Original would forget to include some kind of 1980's pop culture reference? Not too worry; SWAMP SHARK has Baseball Hall of Famer Wade Boggs as a red neck deputy. I would've like to have seen him in a bigger role, but his role is pretty fun.

One of the people Swanson recruits to hunt the shark down is Charlie (D.B. Sweeney; where's he been?), a mysterious man hanging around the town. Their first hunting party doesn't, as you can imagine, go very well and they loose their boat and are forced to regroup. But in the meantime the town is preparing for Gator Fest and the shark has really gotten a taste for human flesh. Of course we get tons of nods to the granddaddy of shark films (and arguably all "giant creature" flicks), JAWS, but everything in SWAMP SHARK is done with such a fun spirit that you just sit back and go along for the ride. Davi's sheriff Watson is so sleazy that you can't help but smile every time he's on screen. The man knows there's a shark in the swamp (because he's the one that accidentally released it) but does nothing to try and fix the situation. He doesn't send out a hunting party and he doesn't prevent people from swimming in the swamp even after the dead bodies start piling up (in pieces). I loved Davi's character and it's nice to see he still "has it"!!

And maybe I'm just getting completely desensitized to bad CGI, but I thought the shark looked pretty good!! SyFy actually exhibits some restraint and doesn't show off the beast at every opportunity. We see flashes of it here and there and get teased way more than SyFy usually does. Of course there's the standard, "must have" scene of the shark jumping out the water to kill someone. This is the best look we get of the shark (until the final reel) and it was actually pretty cool looking. The body count could've been higher for my tastes, but the killings we do get were well-filmed. Director Griff Furst (who also directed last year's flaccid SyFy flick LAKE PLACID 3), takes his time here and sets up some pretty suspenseful kill scenes. And if you're like me you'll wonder why the two twenty-somethings, who wanted some privacy to have sex, took a canoe out into the swamp not 20 feet away from their friends. Sex in a canoe? Hey why not!!

And just like in ICE ROAD TERROR, we get a little more blood than the usual SyFy Original. We get to see a lot of post-attack, ripped apart torsos and appendages, and we're privy to a lot of blood spraying all over various cast members. Yeah people, this one is pretty fun. Maybe it's because Summer's here? Maybe it's because I'm a sucker for a fun "beast attacks" flick? Or maybe it's just because the people over at SyFy are putting in some time and effort into their scripts!! But writers Charles Bolon, Jennifer Iwen, and Eric Miller give us a fun, light- hearted, and fast-paced script that despite the holes in logic keep you interested up to the end. And just wait until you see how they finally kill the shark!! I thought we were gonna get a very JAWS-like ending, but the writers took a hard left turn and gave us something original, fun, and very bloody. Nice job.

A great cast who're obviously having a really fun time, a solid script with some originality in it, and some well-crafted death scenes make SWAMP SHARK a really entertaining and fun summer flick. SyFy has renewed my love of the "attacking beasties" summer flick and I can't wait to see what they have in store for us next!! Catch SWAMP SHARK this Saturday, June 25th at 9pm (ET/PT) on SyFy. Seriously!!

Ice Road Terror (2011 TV Movie)

ICE ROAD TERROR Entertains!!

[7/10 · 21 June 2011]

Do ya think the SyFy Channel is even aware that all it's original flicks have pretty much ... scratch that ... have exactly the same plots and characters and simply plug in some new creature into the formula? I think they're fully aware of this and they embrace it. This way they can keep the budgets of all their Saturday night originals roughly the same (in the $1.5- $2mil range). With ICE ROAD TERROR we get the same plot and characters we've come to expect and we even get another prehistoric creature freed from the ice (more on this in a minute). But what makes ICE ROAD TERROR stand out from the pack is the fact that it's fun ... really fun. I found myself having more fun with this one than I have with a SyFy flick in a really long time. Let's find out why.

While blasting in the arctic for diamonds some prehistoric creature was released that lived under the ice and snow. The creature is angry and really hungry ... really hungry. As the creature tears its way through the workers at the site, we flash over to two ice truckers Jack (Ty Olsson; who was in TV's BATTLESTAR GALACTICA & the SyFy Original BEHEMOTH) and Neil (Dylan Neal; from DAWSON'S CREEK) who're loading up to haul a huge batch of explosives to the diamond mine site -- a site that is at the end of a very long ice road. Tagging along is a large-chested scientist-environmentalist Rachel (Brea Grant; who was in Rob Zombie's HALLOWEEN 2 & 16 episodes of TV's HEROES). I mean come on; ya gotta have the female love interest for one of these rugged truckers who has a heart of gold!!

There's some harrowing moments as we watch the trucks struggle on the ice road and wonder if they're gonna make it (yeah right). But the real fun begins once they get to the diamond mine site. Mostly everyone is dead and our threesome of heroes quickly find out there's a huge creature chomping on limbs and tearing apart bodies. So they high tail it out of there and the creature, which is some mythical Inuit legend, follows them for hundreds of miles to a cabin in the woods. Here the trio, as well as the couple who live at the cabin, make their last stand against the creature. There's sympathetic characters who die; heroic characters who sacrifice themselves for the others; and the standard last man/woman standing who finally get so angry they kill the creature. There's nothing new here ...

... except I found myself having a really fun time!! The film moves at a great pace and gives us lots of action. We wait all of five minutes before we see the creature (which as far as I can make out is called a "Wangchoke;" seriously) and it starts tearing apart the cast just as quickly. Plus writer Keith Shaw (who also wrote the very fun MALIBU SHARK ATTACK) and director Terry Ingram weren't afraid to show off a little blood, guts, and gore. The camera doesn't turn away as the creature rips people apart and throws around body parts and I was pleasantly surprised by the gore content. Of course this is no DEAD ALIVE, but for a SyFy Original we get some pretty fun gory moments.

Most noticeable here is the pacing. We don't get the typical "let's meet the characters for a while" scenes. We meet the characters and get to know them while they're fighting for their lives. The scenes on the ice road are pretty good (in a silly way) as the creature dives and re- surfaces in and out of the ice like some frigid version of the beasts from TREMORS. And of course there's some stuff that just doesn't follow. Example: You'd think Jack, who's an experienced ice trucker, would spend more than five minutes and use more than a bungee cord to secure the explosives in his truck!! His truck catches on fire and he and Rachel must jump into the cab of Neil's truck while they're still driving. After making them jump from one moving truck to another, Neil then decides he needs to stop to check something out. So why didn't he just stop and let them walk to the truck in the first place??!!

But the real fun comes when they make their way to one of Jack's old friends who luckily has the only cabin in about a 500 mile radius!! There they make their stand against the Wangchoke (I swear that's what it's called). Another stand out element in ICE ROAD TERROR is the acting. Everyone involved does a great job and they all look like they're having a really fun time. This energy was infectious and you'll feel it!! The Wangchoke is of course 100% CGI, but it looks way better than the typical SyFy Original. Not since the giant spiders in ICE SPIDERS have I been impressed by a CGI creation. The Wangchoke has realistic movements and has a lot of details in it's design.

For all intents and purposes I should be writing my typical "skip it" review for ICE ROAD TERROR. But due to solid performances, a good looking and scary CGI monster, a really fast pace, and lots of spraying blood and gory, meaty looking body parts being thrown around, ICE ROAD TERROR is a really fun "giant creature attacks" flick. Nice job guys and keep 'em coming like this one!!

Please note that I've given ICE ROAD TERROR, a SyFy Original, a higher rating that SUPER 8. Shame on you J.J. Abrams!!

Reviewed by Scott Shoyer

The Human Centipede (First Sequence) (2009)

The Human Centipede Only Manages to Disappoint

[4/10 · 21 June 2011]

Not since the brilliant French film MARTYRS (2008) has a movie come on the scene, grabbed you by the throat, and essentially dared you to watch it without flinching.  This is what was promised with THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE, which has gained quite the cult following. Does it deliver? In a word, not even close. This film is full of bad acting, pacing problems, and is a victim of being over-hyped so much that it couldn't possibly deliver what it promises. But who's fault is this?

As the film opens we join Dr. Heiter (Dieter Laser, resembling the love-child of Lance Henriksen and Udo Kier) who is sitting in his car in the shoulder of the road.  He's staring fondly at a picture of a canine centipede in which he joined three dogs to make one long creature.  The opening ends with  the good doc drugging and kidnapping a fat trucker.  Flash to our heroines, Lindsay (Ashley C. Williams) and Jenny (Ashlynn Yennie), two American tourists traveling across Germany.  They're getting ready to go to a party that is apparently in the middle of nowhere (judging by the roads they're traveling on).  On the way, their car gets a flat tire on a very remote road and after an encounter with an older, very creepy German guy they decide to walk and find help.  Guess which house they end up at? 

Is any of this sounding familiar?  It should - it's the set up for about 1,000 flicks.  The "strangers lost in a strange land" is nothing new. But those who bought into the hype will remain patient. I did. Unfortunately, this patience is never rewarded.

In case you haven't already noticed, it becomes obvious that there's something very wrong with Heiter. We learn that he was a world-renowned surgeon who specialized in separating Siamese twins.  Now retired, he's doing "research" in his home lab - that's never a good sign.  He's obsessed with creating a three-segment human centipede in which three subjects are connected mouth-to-anus, sharing one digestive track. Heiter sees the arrival of Lindsay and Jenny as a windfall opportunity.  He already has the fat trucker, so he does what any good host/mad scientist would do:  He drugs the girls, chains them up in his basement operating room and preps them for surgery.  It turns out the trucker's tissue samples don't match the girls, so Heiter kills the trucker and then kidnaps a Japanese tourist.  Perfect match.

Now THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE has all his pieces in place, and you can just feel a sick combination of dread and anticipation welling up inside as Heiter explains to his subjects what he's going to do to them:  remove their teeth, remove the ligaments from their knees, and alter their anuses in order to connect them mouth-to-anus.  Then just as he starts the procedure the scene fades to black and the operation is over.

Where's the horror we were promised - the stuff that was supposed to challenge us to keep our eyes glued on the screen? Presumably, that was left on the cutting room floor in order to rush to reveal the titular abomination about 30-40 minutes into the running time. We see the centipede (yawn) and then watch as Heiter trains, that's right, trains his new pet.  This is a huge problem; after writer-director Tom Six blows his wad in a most anticlimactic way, you quickly find yourself losing interest.  There's just nothing to keep our attention after the human centipede is revealed. The entire film suffers from a very slow and lumbering pace, and let's be honest here, there's barely enough material to fill a short film let alone a feature length movie. And is this material all that original? I seem to recall a novel written by H.G. Wells called THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU - in 1896!! In it Dr. Moreau is basically turning people into animals. Yes there are a lot of differences in the two stories, but if Tom Six focused on the story, characters, and social commentary more than trying to make a disturbing and graphic film, he would have had more success.

The only interesting character is Dr. Heiter. There's no doubt he's completely crazy, but what makes him so dangerous is that he's focused, intelligent, and determined. He doesn't look at his prisoners as people; they're simply subjects to help him with his research and are no different than a lab mouse.  It's pretty clear Heiter doesn't like people and seems to have grown tired of the human race.  People, to him, are subjects to be experimented on.  Laser plays the part beautifully - the one shining performance in this otherwise annoying cast. The girls, at least after being captured, are whiny and annoying.  During one of cinema's most epic-failed escape attempts, Lindsay makes so much noise you just root for Heiter to capture her. (At one point she actually tries to hide under water while Heiter stands by the side of the pool.) There's not one second when you think she'll succeed. This entire escape scene feels tagged on in order to pad out the running time.

For a supposedly disturbing flick, with a totally twisted premise, THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE is actually quite blood-less. One tag line for the film is "100% Medically Accurate," and that's the main problem.  The approach is so clinical that there's no over-the-top mayhem that could have catapulted it to cult classic status - or at least made it a midnight movie favorite. In fact, all the the "disturbing" imagery is included in the trailer.  So if you saw the trailer you've essentially already seen the entire film. Besides Dieter Laser's performance, there's nothing here to recommend, and on top of everything else, the sound quality is terrible.  Apparently, there's already a part two in the works with a 12 segment human centipede.  Meh.  Skip this one and go watch MARTYRS again

Hobo with a Shotgun (2011)

"I'm gonna sleep in your bloody carcasses tonight!"

[10/10 · 21 June 2011]

Catchy title, eh? I've been following the progress of HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN for about a year now. We all know the story about how writer-director Jason Eisener won a trailer contest around the time Tarantino and Rodriquez's GRINDHOUSE came out and then how fans everywhere demanded to see a feature length feature of HOBO. We've been through all over this before. But I can't remember another genre film that's gotten such attention and positive buzz based solely on it's title. I mean come on; who doesn't wanna see a hobo, who carries around a shotgun, clean up a crime-ridden town? And when that hobo just happens to be Rutger Hauer, all the better. So does HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN live up to the hype?

You can all let out that sigh of relief ... HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN doesn't just live up to all the hype and buzz, it goes way beyond it. This is a hugely entertaining film that's without a doubt my favorite film of 2011 so far. Rutger Hauer puts in a fantastic performance as the hobo who comes to a new city, a city which makes Tromaville look like Beverley Hills, to start over. He plans on saving up enough money to buy a used lawnmower at the local pawn shop and start up a lawn cutting service. But from the second he gets to town he's treated poorly, beaten up, spit on, and witnesses such out in the open horrors like a pedophile Santa, a night club that tortures hobos, pimps pimping out underage girls, and a "filmmaker" who pays hobos to fight each other to the death. The police are all corrupt and are owned by the local crime boss Drake (Brian Downey) and his two violent sons Slick (Gregory Smith) and Ivan (Nick Bateman). The people living in the town are in constant fear and all feel powerless to do anything about the horrible atrocities going on around them.

But Hauer meets someone who puts the faith of humanity back into him. He meets and saves the life of Abby (Molly Dunsworth), a hooker with a heart of gold. Hauer's Hobo finally snaps when he goes to buy the lawnmower and the pawn shop is held up by three thugs who're going to kill a mother and her infant baby. He sees a shotgun on the shelf and the rest is history. He goes on a murderous vigilante spree to clean up the city and help Abby find a better life for herself.

Now just know what you're getting into with HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN people. This isn't a serious film that tries to stay within the realm of reality. This is a grindhouse/exploitation film like the ones that used to play around the clock on 42nd Street in New York City. HOBO is full of dark humor and a lot of very disturbing images that will really shock and make you turn to your boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife and say, "Did they really just do that?" Don't believe me? Just wait for the scene with the school bus full of children and the guy with the flamethrower. Oh yeah; writer-director Eisener goes there. This is an over-the-top, gonzo film that's not afraid to tread into some truly disturbing territory and definitely not afraid to heap on the gore. Seriously; there's a LOT of gore here to satisfy even the biggest gore hound.

HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN, though, isn't just a gimmicky film that relies on gore and over-the- top set pieces. Eisener proves that he can really make a great film. The color pallet Eisener and cinematographer Karim Hussain (himself a brilliant experimental horror filmmaker) use is stunning. If Dario Argento made a grindhouse film, it'd be HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN!! Vibrant yellows, greens, and reds dominate giving every scene a kind of hyper-reality. Plus we get cool little tricks like accenting the blueness of Hauer's eyes. Whenever we see Hauer, no matter how filthy he is and no matter what kind of violent action he's doing, his blue eyes are always so prevalent that it reminds you that deep down inside he's a good man trying to do the right thing. He knows he's not gonna get any help from the corrupt police so he's cleaning up the town the only way he can ... with violence.

And the gore? Just wait until you see what Eisener puts on film!! He pushes the envelop in every way and uses only practical effects and uses them well. We get decapitations, compound fractures, a hobo hung upside down and beaten with a bat studded with razor blades ("When life gives you razor blades you make a baseball bat covered in razor blades"), children getting killed, a hand being torn apart by a lawnmower blade, and tons of shotgun blasts blowing off body parts and blown away abdomens. And this is just the tip of the iceberg ... or Eisenerberg (sorry, couldn't help myself). Just like in LAID TO REST there's some digital f/x in HOBO but they are only there to supplement and enhance the practical f/x.

I really don't have anything bad to say about HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN. The story is over-the- top but effective; the acting is strong across the board; the gore is extremely well done; and Eisener captures the feel for the old grindhouse flick perfectly (he in fact does a better job here than both Rodriquez and Tarantino did in GRINDHOUSE). And just wait until you meet The Plague!! HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN is one of those films that's really easy to review. If you get the chance you definitely wanna see this one on the big screen. HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN is a hugely entertaining film that I can't recommend enough.

Super 8 (2011)

SUPER 8 is Super Lame

[2/10 · 20 June 2011]

What a roller coaster ride!! I'm not talking about SUPER 8 itself, but am referring to the marketing blitz and mysterious buzz this film's had over the past year. Since May of 2010, this film's had a buzz even before the casting was finalized. There were rumors that SUPER 8 was either the prequel or sequel to CLOVERFIELD and then that it was a stand-alone "giant creature runs amok" film. Either way I was really looking forward to seeing SUPER 8 for the better part of a year. Then all of a sudden Steven Spielberg got involved. Hhmmm. Sure he terrified us with JAWS and somewhat scared us with POLTERGEIST, but since then I really can't say Spielberg has done anything all that interesting in the genre. And then I saw the trailer; the trailer where all you see are children and floating cars. I suddenly found myself not all that excited anymore. My gut was telling me this was gonna be a pathetic kid's flick; an E.T. for the new generation. My gut was right.

I'm angry people; seriously angry. I went to the midnight screening of SUPER 8 and realized that 90% of the cast aren't even allowed to stay up that late. Let me summarize what this film is and then explain why I did indeed hate it. That's right; I hated this movie. SUPER 8 is nothing more (and I mean nothing more) than THE GOONIES meets E.T. meets every single coming-of-age kids' drama ever made. Now let me be clear: I love THE GOONIES. It's a great film because I knew I was getting a fun kid's movie. SUPER 8 was marketed as a "giant creature destroying stuff" movie. There's more sentimentality and schmaltzy emotion in SUPER 8 than in most romantic comedies. I had to double check to make sure Rob Reiner didn't direct this one. Let's get to the story.

The film begins with a funeral. Little Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) lost his mom in a factory accident. A steel girder turned her into a pile of goo. Joe's dad, Jackson Lamb (Kyle Chandler) is the small town's deputy and is a good candidate for the Worst Father of the Year award. Now keep in mind that all the kids in this film are in middle school yet act and think like adults. It's a total Spielbergian world here. Joe's helping his tubby friend Charles (Riley Griffiths) make a zombie film. One night at midnight (that's right; midnight ... are there no good parents in this entire town??) Joe, Charles, Preston (Zach Mills), Martin (Gabriel Basso), and Alice (Elle Fanning) all gather outside of town at the train station to film a scene. There's a horrendous train wreck which some thing survives, and it goes on a semi-killing spree in the town. First the electricity is knocked out, then people and pets go missing.

The creature takes a back seat to the drama going on with the kids and Abrams doesn't miss any of the common coming-of-age/GOONIES/E.T. trappings. Does the main kid, Joe, go through some kind of trauma? Check. Does Joe have an estranged relationship with his father that gets reconciled with as much cheese as possible? Check. Does Joe have a sweet, innocent love interest? Check. Does his love interest, Alice, have an estranged relationship with her dad? Check. Is there a mystery that only the kids can solve because the parents are all ineffectual? Check. Do we have a funny, fat kid? Check. Is there an evil military dude. Check. Is there a semi-scary looking, misunderstood creature who's really just scared and is more "human" than the "monstrous" military guys tracking it down? Check. Yup; its all here, and when you add it all up there's nothing scary or horrifying in this entire film.

The best thing going on here is the train wreck in the beginning. Abrams knows how to film a great wreck (i.e., the plane crash in the pilot of LOST) and the train wreck here is spectacular. But after that everything takes a back seat to the kid's, their problems, and their drama. I was also confused with the tone/setting of the film. It obviously takes place in the 1980's, but it feels as though it's set in the 1960's. The tone was all wrong.

SUPER 8 is pure, 100% sappy schmaltz marketed as a genre film. Everything about this film is targeted at a young crowd and it blatantly and liberally rips off THE GOONIES and E.T. We even get floating bikes and a touching ending. Technically this movie is extremely well done. The acting is strong from the young cast and it's filmed beautifully. It's just the content that I hated. The story offers absolutely nothing new and what's worse, the movies SUPER 8 rips off are way more enjoyable. SUPER 8 will definitely find an audience but if you're looking for an edgy monster flick, SUPER 8 is definitely not for you. You never feel any of the kids, or even main adults, are ever in danger, and the only scares Abrams musters are from having a loud accent of music as something jumps out of a shadow.

SUPER 8 is a huge disappointment and a rare miss by JJ Abrams ... a HUGE miss. Even though the credits assure is that SUPER 8 was written and directed by JJ Abrams, there's no doubt this is a Steven Spielberg film. If you're looking for a sugary kid's flick a la THE GOONIES, then go watch THE GOONIES. If you're looking for a disgustingly sentimental film like E.T, then go watch E.T. If you're looking for a giant creature film like CLOVERFIELD, then go watch CLOVERFIELD. But if you wanna be completely disappointed and feel let down after 12 months of hype and buzz, then SUPER 8 is what you're looking for. I hated this film.

The City (I) (2009)

THE CITY: DIRECTOR'S CUT is a fantastic debut effort!!

[7/10 · 10 June 2011]

THE CITY: DIRECTOR'S CUT (2009) is a true indie horror flick. It's written, directed, produced, and edited by James Vogel (who also did the art direction, the set decoration, was the production manager, in charge of the costume and wardrobe department, and served as the location manager and script supervisor). I also bet he would bring in sandwiches to the cast and crew thereby making him the caterer too!! This is Vogel's directorial debut and I must say that I'm impressed. He gives us a well directed film with above average-looking production values. There are some script problems (more on this in a second), but this is a solid film from someone I'll be keeping my eye on for future projects.

The story centers on Scott (Ezra Stead, who also serves as co-writer and does some stunts), a student in film school who is writing his thesis in scriptwriting. He presents his script to his professor who tells him its crap and that he needs more life experience in order to make the script more believable. So Scott hooks up with T.K. (Greg Hernandez; also a co-writer and stuntman in the film), a sociopath who is more than happy to give Scott all the experience he wants in kidnapping, torturing, and killing innocent people. Scott's professor ends up loving the rewritten script and tells him he'll easily be able to sell it. Scott and T.K. end up becoming partners and continue their murderous spree in order to provide Scott with inspiration.

The film, which runs 68 minutes, follows these two around on their crime and murder spree. Besides having above average production values, you'll immediately notice the solid acting here. Greg Hernandez provides the best performance as the sociopath T.K. After a while you forget you're watching a movie; Hernandez is very natural. Stead does at times suffer from a little overacting but overall puts in a solid performance.

My biggest problems with THE CITY, as mentioned above, are with the script. I didn't buy Scott's sudden turn from a shy, introverted writer to suddenly becoming a sociopath who stabs, beats the poop out of, shoots, and then drinks the blood of his victim. It was too large of a character leap. And even at 68 minutes this does drag at points. I attribute this to there being really only the one storyline (there's no subplots or even secondary characters here). What also hurts the film a little is the too-early character development of Scott. Scott undergoes a major character change early on in the film whereas I would have liked to have seen the transformation occur more slowly over the course of the film. All these "negatives" with the film are marginal to the effect of the overall film. Vogel has given us a well directed and well edited first feature.

Make sure you get the newly released DIRECTOR'S CUT and be sure to listen to the commentary tracks ... there's some really great insight and funny observations about the film. I can't wait to see what his next project is!!

Director: James Vogel (& writer) Plot: 3 out of 5 stars Gore: 3 out of 10 skulls Zombie Mayhem: 0 out of 5 brains Reviewed by Scott Shoyer for AnythingHorror.com