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Halloween Kills (2021)
Over the top and vulgar
The reason why the original Halloween was so popular and effective is ......it wasn't graphic. In fact, very little blood was actually shown. This film is a vulgar, over the top gorefest. And it's rather dull.
Another problem now is after all these years nothing can kill Michael. Wasn't he beheaded in H20? You could cut this guys head off in another sequel and the following year there'd be yet another sequel. Doesn't anyone find that a bit strange?
If they kept this film simple, moody and shortened it it might have been a better film. But it's way too long, way to graphic, crude, and too unrealistic.
The Pope's Exorcist (2023)
Sadly marred by bad acting, bad dialog, bad editing.
The film is rushed. That's one of its largest faults. There is very little back story and what is even worse is the weak acting. Alex Essoe needs a lot more studying and coaching. I found myself thoroughly distanced from the film just by her inability to show any emotion.
Very little time given to the story, very little depth or thought put into dialog. The only actor who got decent dialog was Russell Crowe and even then his character's sarcastic wit is misplaced here.
The director didn't care about any of this or he would have let the mother act like a mother. The sister? A Hollywood cliche'.
Very disappointing. Russel Crowe deserved better. I felt bad that he took this and put so much work into it. I'm sure when he saw the finished product he had to remind himself it was a paycheck.
This really is a big piece of garbage. Terrible.
Inferno (1980)
A stylish bore
No. No. No!
This is made by the same crew that made Suspiria, one of my favorite films. However, Suspiria had a great story and script. This does not have a story. The script is maybe 5 pages of dialog? That's it.
Inferno offers nothing except Black lacquered walls, panes of glass lit from behind with Red lights, Blue lit velvet walls, art deco styling, people going into basements which, oddly enough, are also lit with Red lights. Aside from those stylish set pieces, you get......NOTHING. No story, no suspense, no ideas.
You'll see exploding glassware and statuary, many fires, and falling timber. If that's all your looking for then this is for you.
Good luck.
The Void (2016)
A ridiculous mess
Come on, a gem? No way. This film makes no sense at all. They couldn't figure out what their story really was so they used some good ideas with no solid foundation, threw them all together and hoped that it would all somehow work as a story.
It doesn't.
The hooded figures are a real nice touch but they're obviously human. It would been more effective had they not done anything at all but going after someone with a knife made them earthly and human.
Once in "the void" nothing is makes any sense. No story, no complete ideas. Don't waste your time.
Further Tales of the City (2001)
7.7? Can't be! This is repulsive.
What can I say? Mother Mucca is a character I just can't quite get into. I find her crusty, salty and slightly repulsive. You just know if you got too close to her she'd have that old person's smell. And with the cigarettes added to that well,......ugh. She doesn't have ANY of the love-able quirkiness Mrs. Madrigal has.
And the rest of this? It becomes tawdry and tedious. And then,........oh dear, we add in the terrible Jonestown Massacre and how two characters escaped and a fake Jim Jones. No, no, no! This is something out of Mary Hartman Mary Hartman, not Tales of the city!
If you've seen the first one there is something innocent and charming about it all. It may be very cliched but it works. The dialog here is bad, there are no real intimate conversations or situations with the characters. Maybe by this point in life we had lost that so no writer could quite come up with any ideas. We had moved on to empty sex and that was supposed to just hold everyone over.
Eh,.....hope they don't do anymore of these.
More Tales of the City (1998)
7.9, you're kidding.
I look and see a 7.9 rating here. For what? Certainly not the dialog, not the acting or the script so, what then?
The new actors here are very miscast. The new Mona was relentlessly gloomy and depressed. She had no character or charm whatsoever. She sat and stared. Not good.
The new Michael? The only reason the actor got that role was because he agreed to the nudity. Instead of recasting Michael they should have just created a new character. Mona and Michael in this had NO chemistry at all and no attempt was made to create any.
The dialog or script was poorly written and there are too many low production values. The actors are TRYING, especially Olympia but it's kind of sad to see her and Laura Linney stuck in this contrived and flat mini-series.
Hungry Wives (1972)
A creative oddity
Not sure what the title of this film actually is. The cover says "Season of the Witch" but when the opening credits role I could have sworn it said, "Jack's Wife". WhatEVER. It is an odd film indeed.
The lead character, a woman, is having strange dreams brought on by her desire to seek some meaning in her life and to escape her awful husband who has a hot temper and sometimes abuses her, and then apologizes as if he just accidentally stepped on her foot.
She often stares blankly at other people, even at parties and when she finally discovers something that she decides to pursue she still carries that odd blank stare and grim face. She meets a woman who claims to be a witch and intrigued decides to learn more about witchcraft and to try to make things happen by casting spells. She even joins a coven, still with the same grim, static face.
She continues hoping that witchcraft will change her life but it is SHE who finally changes everything with a bang! She has finally found who she is.
Obviously, the film is about oppression and sexual frustration and breaking out of that. But does she? Or is she now a witch with the same exact problems?
Martin (1977)
Very dated but oddly engrossing
Martin is a rather dated, low budget film however, it's also very interesting to watch. John Amplas, the lead actor, who plays Martin is very interesting. He stares at people with a world weariness not often seen in a young person.
He appears to be distrustful and vulnerable. He says that he has not been well liked by people and he does indeed act like someone alienated.
His older cousin looks at him with fear and disdain and in fact, at the beginning of the film he tells Martin he WILL destroy him.
There is also something rather repulsive about Martin and the film. He appears slightly unkempt, too thin and he is not neat and precise. He's sloppy when he decides to get what he needs. He's not a well refined vampire. And he is not a vampire in the traditional sense. His vampirism is more aligned with those in "The Hunger" but he is not as sophisticated as those characters. He does not have their money or tastes.
Despite the dated look and feel to the film it's not hard to sit through to the end. And the black and white flashbacks are are very interesting as well. Martin does indeed have a past and John Amplas gives him a certain look that is very curious.
Kynodontas (2009)
Repulsive!
I was repulsed nearly 10 minutes into the film. The actors are not attractive, none of them, the situations the characters are in are odd, the dialog stupid.
It is rather hypnotic mainly because it is so strange and you want to see just what exactly the characters will come up with next. Some of it makes absolutely no sense at all. Some of it does but it's very disturbing.
And I hate it when animals are killed in a film. Especially domestic pets.
I kept wondering what kind of person would create this setting? A family isolated to the large family compound with only one person allowed to leave? What is the point? There doesn't seem to be one.
And the ending? I guess you have to decide for yourself what happens. Very odd but not all that enjoyable.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)
Not enjoyable but hard to stop watching.
I can't deny that I became interested in the film and lost track of time, couldn't stop watching it but did I enjoy the film? No. The actors all speak in a low key, monotone as if they've all taken some strong medicine that makes them tired.
It's a strange film. I don't think any of the characters were likable at all which is a problem. You need someone to like and none of these people were very pleasant.
Despite all of that I couldn't turn it off so there is something interesting about it. I just think that a lot of people will become irritated with the way the actors act and speak, almost as if they're all very tired and weary.
It leaves me feeling a bit revolted and I doubt I would sit through it again.
*pay very close attention to what Martin tells the doctor in the hospital cafeteria. He explains what is going to happen but not how. But he does explain why.
Nightmare (1981)
Cheap and amateurish nightmare
The film is a complete.......nightmare!
This is a cheap, amateurish, poorly done pile of garbage. There is nothing here to enjoy at all.
I love horror films and have become fans of some others consider mediocre. But this film couldn't end fast enough for me! A total waste of time.
Everything about this film is poorly done. The sound, the acting, the camera work, the editing, the story, the dialog, the gore. All of it. Cheap, stupid and dull. Yes, dull. I was falling asleep.
There might be one, maybe two scenes that are creepy but they're over in two seconds. Just pure garbage. Please don't waste your time.
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965)
Excellent!
Obviously an influence on Quintin Tarantino. This is a fascinating film that you cannot take your eyes off. From the very beginning you know you're in for a treat.
The film has a sparkle and life to it from the get go. It's fast cars, women who worked as burlesque dancers, fight scenes and open desert. No claustrophobic cities here.
Very creative shots, excellent acting and you never know what's going to happen next. And it doesn't end the way you might think.
Because it's so hip and well done it could have been made today and people would have probably given it high praise. It does feel like a Tarantino film.
Sole Survivor (1984)
Have you seen this? Watch it!
Here is a very interesting, low key but haunting horror film.
Two of us watched this and when it was over we both said, "Wow!". Don't be put off by the low key, casual, easy going nature of it. There is a naturalness to the acting that we don't normally see. But these actors are very good.
Yes, there are a few scenes with some odd characters and one wonders why the casting directors chose these specific people but, the film is haunting and I thought about it for several days after I saw it. It is not easy to forget.
Some horror films try to make you jump or gross you out. This isn't that type of film. This is genuinely creepy and thought provoking. And the lead actress is very likable.
Give it a change and you might end up enjoying as much as we did. I've actually watched it again since that first viewing and I don't normally do that.
The Redeemer: Son of Satan! (1978)
Nothing redeemable here.
There is nothing redeemable about The Redeemer.
Low budget, lousy dialog, poor acting, and a dumb script leave one feeling frustrated. And does anyone really understand what it is about? I don't think so.
There are so many other great scary films from the 1970's why bother with this weak and shallow film? I can barely fill the space required here to talk about it. There isn't anything to it.
Yes, it DOES have a few odd scenes here and there but it's not enough to be awe inspiring at all and I can't think of ONE reason to sit through it again!
Horrible.
Doctor Sleep (2019)
Starts out good, spirals into mediocrity
Doctor Sleep isn't a bad film but aside from a couple of scenes it feels like a made-for-TV film. It actually would be a better sequel to the made-for-TV The Shining that was made after the original theatrical film.
We've seen this scenario before. A group of nomadic people sense and hunt down others who have a strength that either they need to strengthen their group or themselves individually. We saw something very similar in "Near Dark" with a lower budgeted group of vampires.
And the last 45 minutes were so predictable that when they finally came into play it was rather a let down. We already knew what was going to happen. Very much lacking in originality. In fact, some of it very, very tired.
Ad Astra (2019)
What is the prize at the end? NOTHING.
I'm a fan of Brad and I do tend to be one who loves a slow, somber burner but this has no big bang at the end. It starts out slow, proceeds slow and ends slow AND dull!
As the film progress' there is a hint that something interesting is coming. But nothing along the journey makes any sense and when we finally get to the end with high expectations it's a huge let down.
No suspense, no interesting story, no clarity, no explanations. It's just all a bunch of emptiness. Nothing redeemable at all. What a waste of time and money.
Dark Waters (2019)
We've seen this story before
Great acting but really, we've ALL seen this story before.
This is for the generation who never saw this story before because they weren't around. For those of us who HAVE seen the story before this becomes tired and frankly, the movie is too long.
Mark does an amazing job but Anne Hathaway's wig was comical.
You're Next (2011)
Very well done, very intense.
I really liked this. I liked it BETTER when we didn't know who the killers were though. Something to take note of. It could have been much more mysterious but I understand they had a story to tell.
I did like it though. It is intense! The acting was quite good as well.
I don't want to give much away but if violence really bothers you this will probably be tough to watch. But I think horror fans will be very pleased. This is NOT a low budget, poorly acted slasher flick. No way.
Suspiria (2018)
Cold, austere, over the top flowing blood.
If you can forget the original Suspiria, very hard to do, I know, then you MIGHT enjoy this obscure and cold film.
But you must forget the original. This is a different story with a different attitude and a different ending.
This is about a dance company in Germany that a young American girl joins only to find that it is run by a coven of witches. That's where the similarity ends.
This film is cold, austere, disjointed and doesn't make a lot of sense. It can be confusing at times. I didn't understand all of it. However, despite it's strong flaws it is engrossing and somewhat intoxicating. It's hard to look away from.
The ending to me seemed like a mess. I couldn't tell you what was going on. Three mothers, a fight within the coven? I don't think that part of the story is well told. But, is it interesting? Yes, but just not very fun. And you're not really rooting for anyone here.
I think the ONLY reason the film takes place in Germany is to make it feel foreign and unfamiliar. As if this could only happen in a foreign place.
Had potential but they went way too far and should have kept it much more subtle.
Judy (2019)
Sad and tragic but not very deep.
Rene Zellweger delivers a great performance as do the other actors. You can literally see the anguish behind the make-up which was true of Judy Garland herself.
There is a bit of remoteness to this film though. A couple of marriages were skipped over, there wasn't a lot of depth to the dialog or story. The obvious was shown but without a lot of deep discussions. We see she is tired, anxious and nervous, that is obvious, it's right there in the performance. But something is missing.
The script itself could have been deeper to match the soul bearing performances.
But the actors are just speaking what has been written for them. And a lot of it is just obvious stuff. Exactly what you'd expect.
It's a sad story, gut wrenching actually, but it could have been deeper.
Halloween (2018)
Another mask, another pair of coveralls
I think we've reached a point where we've seen enough of Micheal in his dark coveralls and mask. It's become repetitive. Is the public really interested in yet another film of Micheal slowly walking through the dark killing young people? You're not bored yet?
This may be called Halloween and Jaime Lee's character may be called Laurie Strode but it's all an imposter. This isn't Laurie Strode and the holiday has become watered down and thinned out.
Also, there really isn't anything very deep here. We've seen it all before.
Tired. Very tired. Enough.
Messiah of Evil (1974)
Drenched in atmosphere with genuine creepiness
I'm a horror fan. Some of my favorites are Suspiria, Daughters of Darkness, Angel Heart, moody atmospheric horror.
This is especially interesting. The set up at the very beginning- a young woman who had kept in touch with her father via letters suddenly becomes concerned because her father's letters are gradually devolving in thought and frequency so she gets in her car and drives to his home in a different city.
The house is very uniquely decorated. Murals on the walls depict well dressed people in town standing, staring at the viewer. Very unsettling. Soon she learns the secret of why her father painted those murals on the walls of his home.
Great set design, great lighting, wonderful atmosphere. The acting is similar to what you get from a foreign film or a Hammer film. Slightly off kilter but done by talented people. Don't miss this!
Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood (2019)
Disappointing
8.1? Really? This film meanders aimlessly going nowhere. There are basically two different stories and the scenes don't add up to much. There is nothing invigorating or interesting happening. Sharon Tate at the theater watching her own film, smiling? So what? Amateurs could have pulled that off.
Let me cut to the quick here-the very best part of this film, literally, is the last 10 minutes. And frankly, anyone could have pulled that off too.
This is Quinton Tarantino? The same man who supposedly made Kill Bill? So then I have to ask; who really made Kill Bill?
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
Much more enjoyable on second viewing.
When I first saw Blade Runner in the theaters it was not my favorite film. It seemed obscure, hard to relate to, I couldn't get into it. Maybe being young I was wanting something more friendly, more lightweight. I knew it was something special but I couldn't relate to it.
Decades later I saw Blade Runner on DVD and I fell in love with it. It just seemed so timely.
When I first saw Blade Runner 2049 I thought it was a mess and I couldn't relate to it. I thought they blew it. But.....months later I've re-watched it and.......I like it! It isn't perfect, I'm not quite sure of the beginning, seems a little grim but I do like it.
It would be nice if the hologram partners could have been male. Why does a helpful, loving hologram ALWAYS have to be some sweet, slightly vulnerable female? Starting to become predictable and tired.
May have to see this twice to really get it. Give it a chance.
Los amantes pasajeros (2013)
Awful. Putrid.
I've seen nearly all of Pedro's films. Many of them I love. But this? This is tired, stupid, boring, disgusting, nasty, and it stinks. I could literally smell it. It's that bad.
There is nothing imaginative or creative or funny here. I didn't laugh even once. There is nothing to laugh at.
The characters are all awful. The dialog is awful. The story is awful. The situations are awful.
This was just NASTY! That's all I can think of.