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remo007
Reviews
Nailbiter (2013)
Solid low budget independent horror flick!
I thoroughly enjoyed this aptly named movie. After a slightly slow opening, the movie picks up and pulses with tension. It builds a story, gives us real characters, and features several goosebumps moments - meaning I got them watching it - no reference to any kid stuff horror - this is grown up scary stuff, so buckle up, buttercup! Beautifully shot by Rea's frequent collaborator Hanuman Brown-Eagle, this looks very sharp - from the gorgeous aerial shots that add copious production value through to the intense and artful lighting effects in the basement scenes, this movie looks amazing. The acting is not bad at all, with McGrane and Saricks standing out - which is good as they have the bulk of the dramatics on their plates. The other daughters bring a lot of enthusiasm to their roles, and handle them just fine. The supporting cast is good as well. There's not a lot of humor in the movie, as this is a mostly dark toned feature, but that works, as snarky humor too often gets out of hand in a movie like this. The CGI visual effects are well handled, maximizing the storm scenes without drawing very much attention to the fact that there is CGI going on by staying brief and quickly edited. Even better are the practical effects, with truly wicked looking creatures that take their time showing themselves, but make it worth the wait when they do appear. The film's not a gorefest - but has violent moments that will make you cringe. Every department handles their assigned tasks with talent and aplomb, and it is all marshaled to the screen by the fine direction of Patrick Rea. It is a low budget independent movie, so there are points where the budget is strained, or a performance might hit a rough patch, but once again Rea and his producing partners have worked wonders with the money they had and turned out a feature that I definitely recommend
What They Say (2011)
What I Say About What They Say...
Troubled young women. They battle the world day in and day out - anger, loathing, despair - sometimes they spill over into violence - against others - against themselves. But what if there's more inside than seething rage and dark thoughts. And what if the cutting is a desperate attempt to get it out?
This short film explores those notions across a sixteen minute running time filled with raw emotion, nightmare imagery, some shocking violence, and several chilling moments that had me uneasy for quite a while after the movie had ended. It is all anchored by a compelling lead performance from Heather Dorff as the unnamed lead. She brings a laser focus to the role, jittery with pent up energy and swathed in disdain for the mundane world that refuses to see just what is going on inside her.
I don't want to say too much more as that would only lead to spoilers. The short is well produced; the acting from the supporting cast is pretty good across the board; and director Justin Romine marshals it all to the screen with a fine visual style and solid editing.
The short has been garnering awards at festival screenings all over the place - and hopefully will be available for everyone to see soon - as I highly recommend giving it a watch. My thanks to Heather Dorff for arranging a screening for me!
Butchered (2010)
Old school horror like they used to make!
Butchered (2010) What we have here is an old school horror flick that could have been made after John Carpenter's Halloween put scarepics back in as Big Business again, but before Tom Savini brought on the graphic violence in Friday the 13th (1980). The story gets going with the convicted murderer called The Butcher escaping custody and picking up right where he left off. And by picking up, I mean as in sharp implements he puts to bloody use. In the meantime, while he's dodging the police and picking off a couple of victims, we meet our leads, seven high school students just graduated and about to go their separate ways. To celebrate their friendship they boat out to an island just offshore for a weekend of partying they hope will forever stay in their memories. Unfortunately for them, the Butcher just landed his stolen boat on the other side of the island, and when he gets through with them, there might just be nothing left of them but memories. All in all, this one shapes up as not bad. It's obvious this was a very low budget affair, but it moves along, clocking in at a spare 71 minutes. Probably the biggest problem I have with the film is not in its production, but in the marketing. Calling the film Butchered and touting it as unrated on the box sets up expectations that are not so much not carried through as I'm guessing not ever planned for. Quite simply, the direction, credited to Charles Stewart, Jr, co-writer/producer Sheila Brothers, and co-writer/producer/actor Shaun O'Rourke doesn't dwell on the kills. They are quick, snappy sequences more interested in eliciting a jump from the audience than a grab for the barf bag. There are some gruesome moments, but the movie doesn't shove them in your face and linger on the blood and guts, which is why it seems so much like a movie made 30 years ago. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. Without going into spoilers, the body count is a respectable double digit number, and I'm not counting the victims the Butcher killed to get his nickname or the murdered police dog everyone seems to mention a lot. I think the film is unrated because it wasn't submitted to the ratings board, not because it is the ne plus ultra of extreme gore and sex. Speaking of sex, we do get a couple of nice nude scenes sprinkled in, always a plus in this kind of endeavor. I would call this a solid R based on the violence, nudity, and language. Breaking it down, the film looks very nice, with crisp cinematography and gorgeous seaside locations; the script is decent, with some funny lines, if no game changing twists or turns; the acting is okay, although sadly the better actors stay on shore instead of going to the island; and always important - the killer: The Butcher is a big brute of a guy, at his best in the night scenes, framed in fog with his big ol' axe; and losing some of his scary mojo in the last few scenes as we see him a bit too well. This isn't the best horror film you'll ever see, and I'd guarantee it isn't the worst one either. It's worth a look for those so inclined, so check it out! Starring Tim Woodward Jr, Melissa Lukon, Shaun O'Rourke, Cari Moskow, and DJ Naylor as The Butcher.
Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966)
Goofy stuff, but a must for old monster movie buffs
Yeah, it's nutty, with an accentless Dracula popping up in the old west like the ultimate dirty old man, leering at and biting the neck of just about every nubile young woman who wanders by. Somehow, Drac ends up at the very ranch where Billy the Kid has gotten a job in an attempt to hang up his bad guy ways. Whew. Still in all, you get a lot of the always wonderful John Carradine, playing Dracula yet again, and even better, his main nemesis isn't actually Billy the Kid, but instead Mrs. Olsen from the long ago Folger's coffee commercials!!! She is an immigrant Swedish/German woman who knows Dracula's real agenda, and is much more of a thorn in his side than the mostly ineffectual cowboy hero. So there you go--you old monster movie buffs should definitely check this one out!