zombieman1978 Reviews

Mercy Rule (2014 Video)

This Made Me Hate Movies

[1/10 · 3 February 2015]

Propaganda films are nothing new. Film has been used as a tool to promote/push ideals on an unsuspecting public practically since the birth of cinema. Whether they be made to warn against the "horrors" of marijuana (Reefer Madness) gain support for the Nazi party (Triumph Of The Will) or serve the Christian agenda (God's Not Dead) movies are a constant tool for those who wish to not only change the way YOU think, but the way EVERYONE thinks. More often than not, they serve as laughable excuses for films that could only serve to inspire the simplest of simpletons to change their way of thinking, or, as is most often the case, to preach to the choir. The fact that there are those who will change their entire mode of thinking based on any of these films is both disheartening and frightening.

Mercy Rule is a 2014 "film" starring Kirk Cameron (Saving Christmas, Fireproof) and directed by Darren Doane (Who also directed Saving Christmas) The plot concerns the manager of a Waste Disposal site who finds himself in hot water when an environmental lobbyist approaches him, threatening to shut him down to to environmental concerns. What you may find odd about this premise is the decision to cast Cameron as the manager of the dump, and not the lobbyist. Surely, there's no way they could be making him out to be the good guy, right? Mercy Rule is bloated, inane, and above all, morally reprehensible. It portrays Cameron's garbage king as a decent family man who's simply trying to provide for his family. What's a little irreversible damage to the environment when he's just trying to feed his family, right? And shame on that nasty, evil environmental lobbyist trying to shut him down. If he shuts him down, he's shutting down America!! The movie's ideals are so ass-backwards that I genuinely felt uncomfortable while watching it. It has production values that would make something like Disney's Cadet Kelly look like The Godfather, and performances that are about as convincing as a Junior High play. The film also suffers greatly from it's length. It painfully stretches itself to two hours, with sequences involving the lead character's son playing baseball in slow motion set to irritating and repetitive dub step music. These sequences made for painful viewing, as they gave the impression that the filmmakers had no concept of editing, timing, or even film-making.

What bothers me most, however, is the film's message. The movie enforces this conceit that environmental journalists, lobbyists and activists are un-American, unscrupulous communists who try to put good, hard-working people out of a job. But the filmmaker's obvious capitalist, right-wing politics make every single frame a chore to get through. Barely a moment passes when we don't see the "Protagonists" either spending money or enjoying their luxurious, expensive home. The strong ideals mixed with the absence of any artistic merit whatsoever make viewing this film all the more difficult. What is equally troublesome is Kirk Cameron's introduction at the beginning of the film, in which he states that he was trying to make "A good, clean and wholesome film with good values that the whole family can enjoy." (Paraphrasing) Knowing Cameron's reputation as a religious zealot, I was expecting Christian propaganda not unlike Left Behind, Fireproof, or the already oft-mentioned Saving Christmas. What I ended up getting, was unexpected, and possibly even worse.

This movie is among the most heinous form of torture I can think of. You watch in horror as it stretches itself paper-thin, right before your eyes. If anyone's mode of thinking was truly changed by this film, I simultaneously scream in anger and weep in distress. The only change it had on my way of thinking was it made me hate movies for two hours. I got my love back shortly enough after. But if it were up to me in that time frame, I would have had the entire history of cinema erased in a heartbeat.

Gummo (1997)

Profoundly unpleasant, and unpleasantly profound.

[10/10 · 28 January 2015]

Harmony Korine is one of the most provocative filmmakers who ever shot a frame. There (As far as I can tell) isn't a single taboo that's off the table with him, from underage sex, to incest, animal cruelty and twisted family values. In 1995, Larry Clark's controversial teen sex epic Kids, written by Korine, was released to wide acclaim and even wider controversy. Impressed by the acclaim his screenplay received, Fine Line Pictures (The "Indy" arm of New Line Cinema) gave Korine $1,000,000.00 and carte blanche to make any film he wanted as his directorial debut. After about six months of principal photography, this is what the result was.......

Gummo plays like the bastard lovechild of David Lynch and John Waters with the nastiness cranked up to eleven. It maintains a stream-of-consciousness state without ever getting caught up in anything that can be considered a plot. Instead, we weave in and out of several people's lives in the crumbling town of Xenia, Ohio. In a truly unsettling opening voice-over, Solomon (Jacob Reynolds), one of the leads (If you can call him that) describes a disastrous tornado that hit their town in the seventies. He describes the destruction in ways that are absolutely devoid of empathy, with lines like: "My neighbor was killed in that house. He used to ride bikes and three-wheelers. They never found his head. I always thought that was funny." It appears that Xenia never bounced back from that, leaving it's residents to while their lives away doing drugs, drinking, and other much more (And I mean much MUCH more) nefarious acts. The film has no real plot, which mirrors the lives of it's characters, who simply go about their daily, filthy lives with no real concept of the future. The town becomes almost a human dumping ground, devoid of any authority of any kind.

Gummo is a brilliant, once in a lifetime kind of movie. If the above description doesn't grab you, that's not even the tip of the iceberg in terms of what's on display here. The aforementioned stream-of-consciousness format perfectly puts you in this world. It gains a documentary feel as we have a series of vingettes that sometimes come off as out-and-out interviews. These scenes are especially unnerving when you find out that a great many of these people are not real actors, and they're not reading a script. Gummo is both hyper-realistic and surrealistic. There are a great many sequences in the film that are all too real-looking (The aforementioned interview vingettes, tales of incestuous sexual abuse, glue sniffing) and there are moments that are so absurd, you can't believe your eyes (Namely, a young boy, simply referred to as "Bunny Boy" on account of the fact that he tr traipses around this collection of human wreckage with nothing more than a pair of shorts, tennis shoes and a big pair of pink rabbit ears. I'm not making this up) The aforementioned Bunny Boy acts almost like the audience, seeing all this dysfunction with a look of detachment on his face.

The cinematography of Gummo is one of the liveliest aspects of the film. Employing grainy 16 and 8mm, video, and pristine-looking 35mm, it juts back and forth between styles so quickly that you never have a moment to catch your breath. And why should you? Harmony Korine has so much to show you. It never stays one way for too long, keeping everything moving at a good clip.

Let it be known, there is no hope in this film. While the movie never fully condones the actions of it's (Often) despicable characters, it never truly demonizes them either. These are lost souls, left to their own devices in a place where there are no repercussions for their actions (In one scene, the character of Tummler (Nick Sutton) is seen talking on a payphone, holding a dead cat by a rope around it's neck, with people and cars passing by, no one paying any attention to what he's doing) There is also never a sign of any police. law and Order are a myth in this place. As they go about their scummy lives, we see no future for them. Just as well, since they don't either. Therein lies the tragedy of the film.

I've left out some of the more memorable (That's putting it lightly) moments, as they've been mentioned before. However, if this, by some divine miracle, happens to be the only review you read before seeing the film, I hope you are just as shocked as I was. You'll thank me later.

When the Wind Blows (1986)

Heartbreaking, Disturbing, Profound and Animated

[10/10 · 20 January 2015]

When one thinks of animated films, one immediately (And for good reason) thinks of the works of Disney, and other like-minded, family friendly fare. And why shouldn't they? For decades cartoons have been a benchmark for children's entertainment.

But then, something happened. Differing opinions notwithstanding, Ralph Bakshi created what is widely considered to be the first full-length animated film for adults, entitled Fritz The Cat. The first X-Rated animated film, it pushed the boundaries of what could be done in the animated form, and changed the landscape forever.

When The Wind Blows is a British animated feature from Japanese/American director Jimmy Murakami, based on the 1982 graphic novel of the same name, by British illustrator Raymond Briggs. Set against the backdrop of the cold war in the 1980s. Jim and Hilda Bloggs (Voiced brilliantly by John Mills and Peggy Ashcroft, respectively) are both retired, living out their twilight years in the English countryside. The radio is making reports of growing tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, and things are escalating to nuclear war. Jim takes some government-issued pamphlets from the library on how to prepare for nuclear devastation (Both of which are decades-old) and they quickly go to work, "radiation-proofing" their home, all the while their heads are swimming with romanticized memories of childhood during World War 2.

The bombs drop, and Jim and Hilda wait for their government to rescue them. The longer they wait, the worse their situation, and their conditions become as they continue to be blissfully unaware that no one is coming for them....

When The Wind Blows is an intensely powerful drama that uses the animated form to tell the story in a way that is both elegant and savage. The desolate wasteland that the countryside becomes is incredibly ominous as they make observations that, to them seem normal (Lack of animals, the smell of "burning meat" and the disappearance of their neighbors) but the audience knows, and therein lies the film's power. We know our protagonists are doomed, and we are forced to watch them wait for a savior that will never come. Their optimism begins as heartening as you can't help but love these two as they try and make the best of it. Nuclear fallout takes it's toll, as they suffer from radiation sickness. Their hair falls out, their gums bleed, and they grow weaker and weaker as their water (What little they have is probably irradiated) runs out. But they remain ever-hopeful, mistaking their ailments to be associated with old age, and not radiation. This optimism begins to add to the tragedy as it becomes more and more clear that no one, be it their government, or even God himself, will save them.

The music, performed by Pink Floyd's Roger Waters is a character unto itself, as it guides our journey with Jim and Hilda into the heart of darkness. The opening song by David Bowie also serves as a wonderful tool to introduce us to Jim and Hilda's world.

One also cannot talk about the film without mentioning the animation, which spans several styles. From basic cartoon animation, to hand-drawn sequences. Even stop-motion is used at one time or another, making the whole thing that much more tangible.

When The Wind Blows is a scathing, and incredibly powerful indictment of war, nuclear weapons, and how our governments handle them. We're forced to question why anyone would leave such sweet and caring people like Jim and Hilda to suffer the way they do. And that is the most horrifying revelation of them all.

Perfect Sisters (2014)

Makes me ashamed of the city I call home.

[1/10 · 18 December 2014]

Two teenage girls (Abigail Breslin and Georgie Henley), frustrated and at their wit's end over their mother's (Mia Sorvino) alcoholism, concoct a plan to murder the matriarchal drunkard because.....teenagers.

To call this movie amateurish is an understatement, and about the closest thing to a compliment that I could ever hope to give to this film. There is no steady progression, and characters just leap to conclusions that no human being ever could. How a child jumps from sympathetic towards their mother to murderous in the time frame they did is insulting. The teenage airheads surrounding the leads do nothing more than justify the stupidity of the leads. Their indifference towards their friends' diabolical plans would be sickening, if they had even the shakiest grasp on the craft of acting.

And as if the supporting casts' acting abilities aren't bad enough, this movie actually manages to squeeze cringe-inducing performances out of the leads as well. Mia Sorvino is particularly painful to watch, as the only believable emotion she portrays is drunk. It's like watching your good friend fumble their way through a karaoke song while strongly intoxicated. The resulting effect is embarrassing and uncomfortable. Breslin and Henley are just as bad, with performances rife with tearless crying, no discernible moral compass (They are neither sympathetic, nor sociopathic as they zig-zag back and forth) and the exact same shortcomings as their supporting counterparts. James Russo stars as the mother's abusive Lawyer (This guy's a Lawyer?!?!?!) boyfriend, who makes sexual advances on Henley's character. Maybe with a better director, this character could have been menacing. But with a script as hackneyed as this, he comes off as too buffoonish to be truly intimidating. Any other roles are played like stock characters from a lifetime movie of the week.

Production-wise, the movie also suffers from stilted, unimpressive cinematography and some truly horrendous editing. An opening sequence shows the girls in a flashback as toddlers, spending a day at the beach with their mother superimposed over (What I would assume is) the beach in current times. The effects used to make this sequence look like something you would use in one of those booths at the mall that allow you to make your own music video.

The experience of watching this "film" is a grating and jarring one. The film was shot in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. As I'm sure you can tell by the title of this review, I'm seriously considering relocating.

Starry Eyes (2014)

Welcome To........Show Business?

[5/10 · 2 December 2014]

Starry Eyes is an ambitious movie with lofty goals, giving a dark, sinister edge to show business. It's unfortunate that it doesn't completely follow through on it's promise.

Sarah (Alex Essoe) is a young waitress trying to 'Make It' as an actress in Los Angeles. She gets an audition for a horror film titled 'The Silver Scream'. Sarah is an emotional wreck who resorts to a strange form of self-harm (She rips her own hair out of her head) After blowing the audition, she does just this in the bathroom, which catches the attention of the casting agents, and she is asked to re-enter the room and do just that.

After this, she has a call-back, which goes disastrously when she finds herself unwilling to "Do whatever it takes". After a third attempt, she begins her descent into madness and decay, and so does the plot.

Where this movie fails is in setting up even any loose logic as to why everything is happening. There's obviously a cult involvement, but there is absolutely NO explanation as to what they do, or how they do it. I'm not saying that I need everything spoon-fed to me, but completely ignoring any context altogether isn't surreal, it's frustrating.

There are some very effective performances, namely from the film's lead. Noah Segal is also serviceable as Sarah's aspiring hipster filmmaker friend, and Marc Senter is criminally underused as the assistant casting director. The special effects are also of note, which become both fantastical, clinical and down-right disgusting. The crisp, clean cinematography also enhances the effects, sparing absolutely no detail.

All in all, it's a decent movie, despite it's shortcomings. It's nothing overtly special, but it's engaging enough to keep you at least watching, even if you're not always terribly invested.

Brother (I) (2000)

Absolute genius.

[8/10 · 15 May 2006]

When I rented Takeshi Kitano's stunning masterpiece brother, it was simply because I wanted to get myself further immersed in Asian cinema. Although, I'm was a little bit iffy because of the fact that Omar Epps was in it, and I was worried that it would be some piece of americanized garbage. But when I watched it,I was completely blown away. It was intelligent without being terribly confusing, and it was violent without being overly gross. This is one of the best movies I have ever seen, and is quite possibly one of the greatest films ever made. The story concerns Aniki Yamomoto (Takeshi kitano, under the name Beat Takeshi) who joins a very well-to-do yakuza family in japan. But when a price is put on his head, he flees to America, to set up shop there with his younger brother Ken (kuroudo Maki under the name Claude Maki) and his gang, which includes a black man named Denny (Omar Epps). They run into trouble with other mobs in the city, but Aniki's style of war brings them on a steady inclination to the top. Underrated and under-appreciated, this little gem is definitely a good one to own, as it is truly a cinematic masterpiece.

The Dead Will Walk (2004 Video)

The ultimate DVD featurette.

[10/10 · 11 October 2005]

Being a huge fan of DAWN OF THE DEAD, naturally I shelled out the 50 some odd dollars to buy the 4-disc ultimate edition. In this set were all three versions of the film, with a disc of documentaries. On said documentary disc was THE DEAD WILL WALK, a comprehensive documentary chatting with the cast and crew on the 25th anniversary of it's release. There's no sense naming interviewees on account of the fact that if you can name them, they're probably on here ( to an extent ). Seeing the 4 main actors so long after the film is really neat too. Definitely worth picking up. The coolest part of the doc was at the end when they discussed what a cultural impact this film has made. I even caught Micheal Felscher, who works for anchor bay & won THE ULTIMATE FILM FANATIC game show. Who knows, maybe in 5 years, they'll do a 30th anniversary documentary, & I might be on there. Dare to dream.

The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961)

Undoubtubly the worst movie ever made!

[7/10 · 14 September 2005]

I've heard people say that Edward D. Wood Jr.'s PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE is the worst movie ever made, but after seeing this movie, I would have to disagree. This stinker is the most boring, annoying, tedious movie ever made. The narration is annoying, coming in quick sentences practically every 30 seconds. Now I know one can't expect a good movie considering the circumstances, but it is'nt even campy. Un like PLAN 9, & THE GIANT GILA MONSTER, etc, it is just boring. It's 54 minute running time seems like forever, the effects are'nt cheesy enough to be funny, nor good enough to be impressive, the dialog is maddening, the story, deplorable. Said deplorable story revolves around a scientist who gets turned into a hulk-like monster, & starts terrorizing people in this desert place called yucca flats.please, avoid this film at all costs.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Quite possibly the best horror film ever made!!!!!!!!!!!!

[10/10 · 29 August 2005]

Never, in my years as a horror fan have i found a review that has given good reason to why this film is sub-par. And only twice in my entire life have i found anyone who has disliked this movie ( one of which being my sister ). The film is one of the most intelligent horror films ever made. It quite cynically shows that we as a society would crumble in a situation such as this for the reason that we would more be fighting each other than the enemy at hand. Also it pretty much documents the rise of consumerism, in two ways:one, the characters feel that they are just fine as long as they have these material things, two, the zombies come back in instinct. This was one of the most important pars of their normal lives, & they try endlessly to get in. The story ( if you don't already know it) concerns a group of survivors, 2 swat team members, 2 television station employees ) steal a traffic helicopter & take to the skies to find a safer place of refuge. After a day of danger & no luck, they stumble upon a shopping mall. They hole up in a sort of emergency shelter in the roof, & slowly begin to make the mall theirs. Once they have cleared all the zombies out of the mall, they live like french kings, living it up while the poor starve outside their "castle". But a looting biker gang brakes their way in, & our main protagonists try to fight for what they have successfully stolen. The makeup is top notch, (i like blue-faced zombies), the gore is awesome, the music, catchy is an under statement, every little thing about this film is excellent. No matter what others may say, DAWN OF THE DEAD , will always the biggest cult phenomenon for decades, maybe even centuries to come.

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

the father to modern horror!

[10/10 · 21 August 2005]

When the younger generation of today scoff at this classic for being " too old ", & they do not realize that without it they would not have the horror movies we have today. It was the first horror film to show violence the way it did, & is the biggest trend-setter in horror film history. If you have not seen it, you're severely missing out. The plot revolves around 8 people trying to survive the night in a boarded up house surrounded by the living dead. While things are made much harder by the constant bickering between the two oldest men in the house. The overall outlook & feel of the film is grim & cynical, & that's definitely what Romero was going for. Followed by the 3 classics : " DAWN OF THE DEAD " , " DAY OF THE DEAD " & " LAND OF THE DEAD ", this film is definitely one of the 5 best horror films ever made. Impossible not to find on DVD & VHS. So go find a copy, you owe it to yourself as a horror fan. You won't be disappointed

Antibody (2002 Video)

fun & cheesy movie

[5/10 · 19 August 2005]

I would not go as far as calling it a good movie, but it is pure cheese. the acting is mainly awful, cgi effects cheesy, just a fun movie. what Roger Corman would make, except with computers. worth a look. the movie is about a team goes through a terrorist's blood stream to dismantle a tiny detonator for several nukes. it is a bad movie, but a fun one. i would recommend it to fans of bad movies. Lance henrikson is kinda good as an ex-bomb squad officer who is called in to duty. The cgi is hilarious, the acting deplorable, just a enjoyable movie with some of the worst actors i've ever seen, & one of the most confusing romances ever! i don't understand how lance henrikson could get her? oh well.

The Last Man on Earth (1964)

the first apocolyptic zombie movie

[10/10 · 17 August 2005]

When I first saw this film, one of eight in a boxed set, i was just plain flabbergasted.The whole movie was ( in my opinion ) the most entertaining film I've seen vincent price lead. He is good as a hero who was definitely not destined to be one, he's just a working class family man who ended up getting caught up in a situation too big for him to really handle. He was not prepared for this, & it shows. He is starting to go stir-crazy since he has pretty much talked to no one in three years. This is definitely one of his more memorable performances , he definitely gave an inspiring one.Now, one might wonder what makes this film different from the 1973 Charlton Heston film "THE OMEGA MAN", they are most likely ones who have not seen one of them. In "THE LAST MAN ON EARTH", we see a working class scientist in a situation he has minuscule control over, in " THE OMEGA MAN ", he is quite accustomed to it, & is very prepared if they should decide to attack. Although they were both based on the same book, "I AM LEGEND", they are actually very different. But differences aside, they are very similar, both films deal with a disease that mutates humans, & supposedly does so to all but one, they are hunted by those infected with the disease, they are'nt as alone as they think. Both are excellent films, but I'd probably have to lean more towards "THE LAST MAN ON EARTH", it's just more believable. Definitely worth owning. Any self-respecting horror fan should.

Final Cut (1993)

tolerable "horror" film

[6/10 · 27 July 2005]

through your viewing of this film, you might ask yourself why it is credited as a horror film. The fact is, it is'nt really much of a horror film, more along the lines of a realistic murderer drama. The film is about a young hitchhiker with aspirations of being an actor, who is picked up by an overweight man who tells him he's an independent filmmaker. When they get to his home in new Orleans, the young actor discovers that his obese friend makes snuff films, & he's his next actor. Now, you might wonder why I can tolerate this film at all, I do so because I see potential in the idea, if not the film itself. It could have been better, but was'nt. However, the ending was sort of disturbing, but I won't ruin it for you. Al in all, I'd say it's a worthwhile film to see at least once.