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Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated What We Do in the Shadows in TV
Jul 7, 2020
Ridiculously Funny And Absurdly Delightful
What We Do In The Shadows s a 2019 comedy/horror mockumentary television series written by Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi. It's based on the 2014 movie of the same name. The show was produced by FXP, Two Canoes Pictures, and 343 Incorporated. The series stars Kayvan Novak, Matt Berry, Natasia Demetriou, Harvey Guillen, and Mark Proksch.
After an unexpected visit from their dark lord and leader, four vampires who've "lived" together for hundreds of years in Staten Island are reminded they were tasked with total and complete domination of the New World over a century ago. A verite camera crew follows along and gives a documentary-style look into their daily lives as they go about achieving said domination.
This show is ridiculously funny and just as good as the movie it's based on. It is a great mix of two genres that don't always mix well horror and comedy but with a mockumentary style akin to The Office. The only thing I would say is that the show's sense of humor isn't for everyone. But I like it and enjoyed it and am super excited it's been renewed for a second season. I love how it expands on the vampire lore of the world that they built upon and how they satirize the whole vampire genre. How they aren't afraid to make fun of the cliches and tropes often overused and familiar for fans of the genre. I give this show a 8/10.
After an unexpected visit from their dark lord and leader, four vampires who've "lived" together for hundreds of years in Staten Island are reminded they were tasked with total and complete domination of the New World over a century ago. A verite camera crew follows along and gives a documentary-style look into their daily lives as they go about achieving said domination.
This show is ridiculously funny and just as good as the movie it's based on. It is a great mix of two genres that don't always mix well horror and comedy but with a mockumentary style akin to The Office. The only thing I would say is that the show's sense of humor isn't for everyone. But I like it and enjoyed it and am super excited it's been renewed for a second season. I love how it expands on the vampire lore of the world that they built upon and how they satirize the whole vampire genre. How they aren't afraid to make fun of the cliches and tropes often overused and familiar for fans of the genre. I give this show a 8/10.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Happy Death Day 2U (2019) in Movies
Dec 31, 2020
There is enough increasing absurdity in Happy Death Day 2U to ensure that it's just as fun and entertaining as the first movie. It's sadly less rooted in horror this time around, and instead opts for a sci-fi/comedy approach, with the occasional sprinkle of PG-13 slasher tropes.
Jessica Rothe is honestly, for a second time, fantastic. Neither of these films would work half as well without her. Her character Tree, is hugely likable, and has great chemistry with the other cast members. This goes double for when director Christopher Landon decides to blindside the audience with an emotional beat. There's one scene in particular with Tree and her Mother that has all the potential to be a cheesy mess, but thanks to Rothe and Missy Yager, hits all the right notes. It's all good stuff that is unexpected from what is a standard family friendly Blumhouse flick on the surface.
As mentioned, the plot is so silly, but it's attempts to explain how the events of the first film even happened are admirable, and shakes up the formula enough to ensure it doesn't get boring, even though it has familiar moments. Some of the twists are a little convoluted, and the comedy aspects go a tad overboard sometimes, but overall the dumb narrative works a treat.
Happy Death Day 2U is a great if flawed switch-off popcorn movie, that's frequently funny, and has just enough horror elements to belong in the genre. Worth checking out!
Jessica Rothe is honestly, for a second time, fantastic. Neither of these films would work half as well without her. Her character Tree, is hugely likable, and has great chemistry with the other cast members. This goes double for when director Christopher Landon decides to blindside the audience with an emotional beat. There's one scene in particular with Tree and her Mother that has all the potential to be a cheesy mess, but thanks to Rothe and Missy Yager, hits all the right notes. It's all good stuff that is unexpected from what is a standard family friendly Blumhouse flick on the surface.
As mentioned, the plot is so silly, but it's attempts to explain how the events of the first film even happened are admirable, and shakes up the formula enough to ensure it doesn't get boring, even though it has familiar moments. Some of the twists are a little convoluted, and the comedy aspects go a tad overboard sometimes, but overall the dumb narrative works a treat.
Happy Death Day 2U is a great if flawed switch-off popcorn movie, that's frequently funny, and has just enough horror elements to belong in the genre. Worth checking out!
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) in Movies
Nov 5, 2020
Peter Crushing (1 more)
Christopher Lee
The Monster Inside
The Curse of Frankenstein- is a great movie. Hammer films is a excellent studio, cause their brought back the universal monsters and put their own spin on it. And with The Curse of Frankenstein their put their own spin on Frankenstien. And did it work, yes.
The plot: Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) is a brilliant scientist willing to stop at nothing in his quest to reanimate a deceased body. After alienating his longtime friend and partner, Paul Krempe (Robert Urquhart), with his extreme methods, Frankenstein assembles a hideous creature (Christopher Lee) out of dead body parts and succeeds in bringing it to life. But the monster is not as obedient or docile as Frankenstein expected, and it runs amok, resulting in murder and mayhem.
It was Hammer's first colour horror film, and the first of their Frankenstein series.
Professor Patricia MacCormack called it the "first really gory horror film, showing blood and guts in colour".
Peter Cushing, who was then best known for his many high-profile roles in British television, had his first lead part in a movie with this film. Meanwhile, Christopher Lee's casting resulted largely from his height (6' 5"), though Hammer had earlier considered the even taller (6 '7") Bernard Bresslaw for the role.
Unlike the Universal Frankenstein series of the 1930s and 1940s, in which the character of the Monster was the recurring figure while the doctors frequently changed, it is Baron Frankenstein that is the connective character throughout the Hammer series, while the monsters change.
Its a excellent film.
The plot: Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) is a brilliant scientist willing to stop at nothing in his quest to reanimate a deceased body. After alienating his longtime friend and partner, Paul Krempe (Robert Urquhart), with his extreme methods, Frankenstein assembles a hideous creature (Christopher Lee) out of dead body parts and succeeds in bringing it to life. But the monster is not as obedient or docile as Frankenstein expected, and it runs amok, resulting in murder and mayhem.
It was Hammer's first colour horror film, and the first of their Frankenstein series.
Professor Patricia MacCormack called it the "first really gory horror film, showing blood and guts in colour".
Peter Cushing, who was then best known for his many high-profile roles in British television, had his first lead part in a movie with this film. Meanwhile, Christopher Lee's casting resulted largely from his height (6' 5"), though Hammer had earlier considered the even taller (6 '7") Bernard Bresslaw for the role.
Unlike the Universal Frankenstein series of the 1930s and 1940s, in which the character of the Monster was the recurring figure while the doctors frequently changed, it is Baron Frankenstein that is the connective character throughout the Hammer series, while the monsters change.
Its a excellent film.
Dawn Marie (22 KP) rated The Watcher in the Woods (1981) in Movies
Jan 19, 2018
Contains spoilers, click to show
Disney had a dark period they were not making money horror films and sci fi films were all the rage so Disney decided that they needed to try to get away from the animated film and musicals to scary and sci fi films. This was one of the films. It had problems from the get go the watcher when showed to the preview audiences was not finished and people thought it wasn't scary which caused Disney to get scared and pulled the movie to refinish the movie with a new ending. If you get a dvd copy in the special features you will see the two different cut scenes with the watcher there are other scenes that anchor bay the distribution company wanted to put on a laser disc and a dvd but Disney refused to corporate so we may never see the deleted opening. That being said Jan and her family move into a family manor where the mrs. Elwood played by the great bette Davis lives in the cottage next to her old house. Jan finds out that mrs. Elwoods daughter disappeared in the woods during an eclipse and spooky things start happening to Jan and her sister Ellie could the watcher have something to do with this and could Jan or Ellie be the watchers next victim! The movie has some flaws and is a little cheesy but it is one of my favorite Disney forgotten films! Enjoyable but not what it could of been and defiantly better than the lifetime remake which changed everything that was good about this movie
Scott Tostik (389 KP) rated Strangers: Prey at Night (2018) in Movies
Mar 11, 2018 (Updated Jan 10, 2019)
Bailee Madison is a bad ass (2 more)
Great storyline
A sequel that doesn't ruin the original
Some jumps and gasps and WTF's... fun for the whole family
Going into a sequel that is ten years after an origin film is dangerous water to tread into for any horror film fan. Raised expectations can drown out what you are hoping happens and it takes the fun out of the movie for you.
The second installment of The Strangers was not a fun movie... for poor Bailee Madison. She is stabbed sliced and beaten up like she has never been before. Everyone remembers her as the little girl in Guillermo del Toro's Don't be Afraid of the Dark. But in this film she really establishes herself as a young Scream Queen in the making. Defining the Final Girl role in spades.
The Strangers themselves are all terrifying giving the viewer jump scare after jump scare by just popping up at random throughout the movie, causing scream after scream in the filled theatre I was in.
Though I am positive that there will not be another installment in this mini franchise. It would not surprise me in the least to see Pinup Girl, Dollface and The eerie monster, Man in the Mask once more.
If not... the writers have done a great job keeping my interested in what happens in this movie to satisfy my taste buds for gore blood and story... and I hope in all honesty that they don't go to the well again expecting clean drinking water.
8 out of 10 knives to the back with a special twist for good measure.
The second installment of The Strangers was not a fun movie... for poor Bailee Madison. She is stabbed sliced and beaten up like she has never been before. Everyone remembers her as the little girl in Guillermo del Toro's Don't be Afraid of the Dark. But in this film she really establishes herself as a young Scream Queen in the making. Defining the Final Girl role in spades.
The Strangers themselves are all terrifying giving the viewer jump scare after jump scare by just popping up at random throughout the movie, causing scream after scream in the filled theatre I was in.
Though I am positive that there will not be another installment in this mini franchise. It would not surprise me in the least to see Pinup Girl, Dollface and The eerie monster, Man in the Mask once more.
If not... the writers have done a great job keeping my interested in what happens in this movie to satisfy my taste buds for gore blood and story... and I hope in all honesty that they don't go to the well again expecting clean drinking water.
8 out of 10 knives to the back with a special twist for good measure.
Lee (2222 KP) rated Pet Sematary (2019) in Movies
Apr 2, 2019 (Updated Apr 5, 2019)
Not only have I not read the Stephen King book that Pet Sematary is based on, I haven't even seen the original 1989 movie either. As much as I feel ashamed for completely missing out on both of those, it also meant that I was able to head into this movie with nothing to compare it to and no idea of what to expect, other than a bit of creepy-burial-ground-raising-the-dead type stuff that the first trailer covered. One quick note on the trailers before I begin though - the most recent one, which luckily I only saw after I had seen the movie, pretty much gives away the entire plot. Granted, if you're a fan of Stephen Kings work, or even the original movie, then you're going to know what to expect anyway. But, if you're like me - someone who enjoys a good horror movie, but doesn't read books and has gaping holes in his movie viewing history, then try and give the trailers a miss on this occasion before heading into the cinema.
Louis Creed (Jason Clarke) is a Boston doctor who moves his family to the (hopefully) less chaotic setting of rural Maine - wife Rachel (Amy Seimetz), 8 year old daughter Ellie (Jeté Laurence), toddler Gage and friendly family cat Church. However, the family soon discover that their house is located right alongside a road which is prone to noisy trucks suddenly speeding past - our first jump scare and something already given away by the trailers! Those trucks also have a tendency to end the lives of any local pets who might happen to wander out in front of them, so it's pretty handy that there happens to be a Native American graveyard out in the woods at the back of the Creed's new house.
The local children make good use of the area, carrying out a funeral procession while wearing masks before burying deceased pets there, and they have also erected a sign - "Pet Sematary", which is nailed to one of the trees outside of it. Unfortunately, it's not too long before Church falls victim to a passing truck, at which point friendly neighbour Jud (John Lithgow) tells Louis of a special burial ritual which can be carried out on an area of ground located even further into the forest. It's a ritual that can bring the dead back to life so, in order to avoid upsetting daughter Ellie, Louis keeps the death a secret until he and Jud can head out late that night to perform the ritual with Church. Sure enough, Church is back with the family the next morning - alive, but looking very disheveled and in a seriously grumpy mood. He's not quite the cute little bundle of joy he once was - as Jud puts it, "Sometimes dead is better".
After banging on earlier about spoilers for movies, I feel it would be wrong of me to go and do the same thing here. If you're familiar with the story, then you'll know what happens anyway, although there is a moderate change of detail in this particular version which has already had a few die hard Stephen King fans up in arms. I'll just say that the special properties of the burial ground get used on a few more occasions during the course of the movie, with increasingly devastating consequences, and I personally felt that the change to the source material totally worked within the confines of this version of the story.
Ok, so what did I think of the movie overall? Well, I found Pet Sematary to be pretty intense, even more so than 'Us' recently. There were a couple of guys to the side of me in the cinema who were sitting forward on the edge of their seat for the majority of the movie just hyperventilating - I thought they were going to have a heart attack at one point! Yes, there are some jump scares, but this was more the kind of nightmare horror that I loved while watching 'Us' and it had me gripped to my seat for a good 80% or so of its run-time. Everyone involved in the movie is on top form - the children are outstanding, as is Jason Clarke, John Lithgow, even the cat! The dread-filled atmosphere, the tragedy and the horror of it all, it really resonated with me and I came away from this exhausted but happy!
Louis Creed (Jason Clarke) is a Boston doctor who moves his family to the (hopefully) less chaotic setting of rural Maine - wife Rachel (Amy Seimetz), 8 year old daughter Ellie (Jeté Laurence), toddler Gage and friendly family cat Church. However, the family soon discover that their house is located right alongside a road which is prone to noisy trucks suddenly speeding past - our first jump scare and something already given away by the trailers! Those trucks also have a tendency to end the lives of any local pets who might happen to wander out in front of them, so it's pretty handy that there happens to be a Native American graveyard out in the woods at the back of the Creed's new house.
The local children make good use of the area, carrying out a funeral procession while wearing masks before burying deceased pets there, and they have also erected a sign - "Pet Sematary", which is nailed to one of the trees outside of it. Unfortunately, it's not too long before Church falls victim to a passing truck, at which point friendly neighbour Jud (John Lithgow) tells Louis of a special burial ritual which can be carried out on an area of ground located even further into the forest. It's a ritual that can bring the dead back to life so, in order to avoid upsetting daughter Ellie, Louis keeps the death a secret until he and Jud can head out late that night to perform the ritual with Church. Sure enough, Church is back with the family the next morning - alive, but looking very disheveled and in a seriously grumpy mood. He's not quite the cute little bundle of joy he once was - as Jud puts it, "Sometimes dead is better".
After banging on earlier about spoilers for movies, I feel it would be wrong of me to go and do the same thing here. If you're familiar with the story, then you'll know what happens anyway, although there is a moderate change of detail in this particular version which has already had a few die hard Stephen King fans up in arms. I'll just say that the special properties of the burial ground get used on a few more occasions during the course of the movie, with increasingly devastating consequences, and I personally felt that the change to the source material totally worked within the confines of this version of the story.
Ok, so what did I think of the movie overall? Well, I found Pet Sematary to be pretty intense, even more so than 'Us' recently. There were a couple of guys to the side of me in the cinema who were sitting forward on the edge of their seat for the majority of the movie just hyperventilating - I thought they were going to have a heart attack at one point! Yes, there are some jump scares, but this was more the kind of nightmare horror that I loved while watching 'Us' and it had me gripped to my seat for a good 80% or so of its run-time. Everyone involved in the movie is on top form - the children are outstanding, as is Jason Clarke, John Lithgow, even the cat! The dread-filled atmosphere, the tragedy and the horror of it all, it really resonated with me and I came away from this exhausted but happy!
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated 47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
Shark Movie That Struggles To Stay Afloat
47 Meters Down Uncaged is a 2019 survival/horror movie directed by Johannes Robert and written by Robert and Ernest Riera with producers James Harris, Mark Lane and Robert Jones. It was produced by They Fyzz Facility and distributed by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures. The film stars Corinne Foxx, Sophie Nelisse, Brianne Tju and Sistaine Stallone.
Mia (Sophie Nelisse), has had trouble fitting in living in Mexico which includes trouble with girls at school and adjusting to living with her father, step-mother (Nia Long) and sister. Three teenagers, Sasha (Corinne Foxx) her step-sister and her two friends convince her to go swimming with them at a secret lagoon rather than go on a glass bottom boat tour. The lagoon happens to be near a sunken Mayan city where Mia's father Grant (John Corbett) is working. The girls grab some scuba gear and decide to seize this opportunity to see the discovery for themselves and find that it is the hunting ground for deadly great white sharks. With their air supply running out and having to navigate the labyrinth of tunnels the girls find themselves in a race against time and the deadly sharks to try and survive.
This movie was okay but I thought it was going to be better. I hadn't seen the first one so I don't know if they are connected in anyway but I believe they are not. I wanted to see a good shark movie especially since during shark week a while back I had seen a lot of shark shows this year and the movie they did called Capsized which was pretty decent. This movie started off good but failed to set the tension in a gripping way. I didn't like the fact that since they were swimming in caves the lighting was dark and didn't allow for a lot of visuals. It was good for mood setting and ambiance but I thought it was a little gimmicky when they used the flares and it changed everything red. I say that because the CGI of the sharks left me underwhelmed as well. The sharks were supposed to be blind for having evolved or lived in caves the whole time and also adjusted to be more sensitive to sounds. To me the CGI looked unbelievable and threw off the emergence from enjoying the movie. They could have been better or the way they built the tension could have been better. The movie did have a couple of frightening "jump scares", one of which surprised and got me. For some reason I really didn't like the ending, for me it was the main character acting out of character and then there being to many "jump scares" back to back at the end. If you see it you'll know what I'm talking about. Anyways I give this movie a 5/10.
Mia (Sophie Nelisse), has had trouble fitting in living in Mexico which includes trouble with girls at school and adjusting to living with her father, step-mother (Nia Long) and sister. Three teenagers, Sasha (Corinne Foxx) her step-sister and her two friends convince her to go swimming with them at a secret lagoon rather than go on a glass bottom boat tour. The lagoon happens to be near a sunken Mayan city where Mia's father Grant (John Corbett) is working. The girls grab some scuba gear and decide to seize this opportunity to see the discovery for themselves and find that it is the hunting ground for deadly great white sharks. With their air supply running out and having to navigate the labyrinth of tunnels the girls find themselves in a race against time and the deadly sharks to try and survive.
This movie was okay but I thought it was going to be better. I hadn't seen the first one so I don't know if they are connected in anyway but I believe they are not. I wanted to see a good shark movie especially since during shark week a while back I had seen a lot of shark shows this year and the movie they did called Capsized which was pretty decent. This movie started off good but failed to set the tension in a gripping way. I didn't like the fact that since they were swimming in caves the lighting was dark and didn't allow for a lot of visuals. It was good for mood setting and ambiance but I thought it was a little gimmicky when they used the flares and it changed everything red. I say that because the CGI of the sharks left me underwhelmed as well. The sharks were supposed to be blind for having evolved or lived in caves the whole time and also adjusted to be more sensitive to sounds. To me the CGI looked unbelievable and threw off the emergence from enjoying the movie. They could have been better or the way they built the tension could have been better. The movie did have a couple of frightening "jump scares", one of which surprised and got me. For some reason I really didn't like the ending, for me it was the main character acting out of character and then there being to many "jump scares" back to back at the end. If you see it you'll know what I'm talking about. Anyways I give this movie a 5/10.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Hereditary (2018) in Movies
Jul 19, 2019
I'm going to piss people off with this one! (Nothing personal)
I will agree with some who have said either this film is weird, not for everyone or horror is a tough genre to get correct. I felt kind of like I was watching Drag Me To Hell or even Suspiria toward the end of this creepy thriller/horror film, but I was along for the ride.
I will say now more than ever in the world of no opening credits anymore Marvel/Disney CGI Conjuring/Insidious universe modern horror movie crap, this film is a standout above most of those for sure. I am not sure why people can't let a story unfold and be in the mood for a gradual buildup of tension rather than stupid jump scare movies or some random computer-generated pukefest.
If you don't like slow build movies (which they don't make much anymore because of modern moviegoer attention spans) then make sure you don't watch Jaws, Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind, E.T. or even The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby because you will be thoroughly bored.
I'm certainly not saying Hereditary is the best of its genre, but it is certainly unconventional and keeps you guessing as to what will happen next. Toni Collette is really good playing a nutty mother whose family is continually torn apart and I feel the screenplay has enough interesting elements to make this a thoroughly entertaining film.
So there! I still love you all. :)
I will say now more than ever in the world of no opening credits anymore Marvel/Disney CGI Conjuring/Insidious universe modern horror movie crap, this film is a standout above most of those for sure. I am not sure why people can't let a story unfold and be in the mood for a gradual buildup of tension rather than stupid jump scare movies or some random computer-generated pukefest.
If you don't like slow build movies (which they don't make much anymore because of modern moviegoer attention spans) then make sure you don't watch Jaws, Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind, E.T. or even The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby because you will be thoroughly bored.
I'm certainly not saying Hereditary is the best of its genre, but it is certainly unconventional and keeps you guessing as to what will happen next. Toni Collette is really good playing a nutty mother whose family is continually torn apart and I feel the screenplay has enough interesting elements to make this a thoroughly entertaining film.
So there! I still love you all. :)
Extreme Asia: The Rise of Cult Cinema from the Far East
Book
How shrewd marketing engineered the East Asian cult film boom in the UK. Japanese horror. South...
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated Mr. Vampire (1985) in Movies
Jul 24, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
When a 20 year old corpse is exhumed for a re burial Master Gau and his two students find that the body hasn't rotted. When the corpse re animates as a vampire the trio have to protect the vampires family and find a way to stop the monster.
Mr vampire is a Chinese horror/comedy and a breakthrough 'Jiangshi' (Rotting Copse) movie due it's mixing of slapstick comedy, kung-fu, Chinese folklore and western vampire myth and has a number of sequels.
The humour is very slapstick, with people getting hit with furniture or getting their head stuck in prison cell bars and the horror level is quite low and most of the effects are quite cheesy.
The Kung-Fu aspect makes the fight scenes entertaining and both the vampire and the ghost have to be dealt with slightly differently..
The image of the living corpse, be it vampire or zombie, being controlled by a yellow paper talisman stuck to it's head is though to have come from Mr Vampire and has been used in many subsequent Jiangshi film as well as many other shows, including the recent Netflix show 'Kingdom' where we see a scene of villagers selling the talismans when the zombies are threatening their village.
Mr Vampire manages to pull off Horror comedy in a way that is watchable by almost anyone. The film has a 15 (UK) rating and does contain vampires and ghosts but neither are overly frighting, partly due to the effects of the time.
Mr vampire is a Chinese horror/comedy and a breakthrough 'Jiangshi' (Rotting Copse) movie due it's mixing of slapstick comedy, kung-fu, Chinese folklore and western vampire myth and has a number of sequels.
The humour is very slapstick, with people getting hit with furniture or getting their head stuck in prison cell bars and the horror level is quite low and most of the effects are quite cheesy.
The Kung-Fu aspect makes the fight scenes entertaining and both the vampire and the ghost have to be dealt with slightly differently..
The image of the living corpse, be it vampire or zombie, being controlled by a yellow paper talisman stuck to it's head is though to have come from Mr Vampire and has been used in many subsequent Jiangshi film as well as many other shows, including the recent Netflix show 'Kingdom' where we see a scene of villagers selling the talismans when the zombies are threatening their village.
Mr Vampire manages to pull off Horror comedy in a way that is watchable by almost anyone. The film has a 15 (UK) rating and does contain vampires and ghosts but neither are overly frighting, partly due to the effects of the time.