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Jordskott - Season 1
Jordskott - Season 1
2015 | Drama
If you’re looking for something in the flavor of Grimm and Supernatural, the Swedish drama Jordskott may be right up your alley. Despite being found on horror streaming service Shudder, the series doesn’t have a whole bunch of the horror elements. What it does have, for the first season at least, is a decent storyline.

The characters in Jordskott are rather bland, unfortunately and they are not its strong point. The main character, Eva Thörnblad is an heiress who returns home to where seven years ago, her daughter Josefine disappeared. Much of her role in the series involved losing cars (she went through three in the first season), disobeying orders, brazenly rushing into things, and deflecting an all too beautifully sweet love interest. (I adore Tom Aronsson as a character.) After she’s put on leave from her job in Stockholm dealing with hostage negotiation, she manages to get herself brought onto the Silverhöjd case.

Wass is, perhaps, the strongest of the characters we meet, and certainly does the most actively throughout the first season.

In this world, myth blends into fantasy, bringing several creatures from Scandinavian and Norwegian lore into the story. These creatures are surfacing more and more frequently as the forest, facing certain doom from the company that Eva’s father founded, reacts angrily to human actions. It’s really a reminder that we should consider the natural world around us for what it is: a boon to our lives.

I lost interest in the second season, as it seems to mostly be a rehash of the first, with a slightly altered storyline. Now it’s something big in Stockholm that’s upsetting natural order, versus Silverhöjd. This series is definitely worth a watch of at least the first season.
  
The Poet (The Poet Series)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The only way out is through the blood.
When Rebecca Paige decides to vacation alone at an isolated resort in the woods, it's a welcome break from her position as the administrator of a psychiatric hospital. Little does she know, the poet is also visiting this peaceful hideaway, and his motivation is far more sinister in nature. On the last day of her trip, Rebecca has an unusual encounter with Jack Shelley, the man in the cabin next door. After he leaves, men with guns suddenly descend on the resort and take Rebecca and the other guests hostage. Rebecca is accustomed to dangerous situations at work, but can that help her escape multiple armed assailants? Who are these men? What do they want? How are they connected to the man next door? Who is the poet? Slightly twisted with a literary flair,
The Poet is the first installment in the new and captivating The Poet Series that will have readers thinking about the dark and wondering if love, redemption, and forgiveness really do apply to everyone.

The Poet is the first installment in the new and captivating The Poet Series that will have readers thinking about the dark and wondering if love, redemption, and forgiveness really do apply to everyone.
Decent start of a series with characters that have growth potential. Some surprises and a decent wrap up until the next installment.
I liked the character of the Poet but would have liked a bit more of some background on him. The flashbacks provided were chilling!
This is a fast action, hang on tight thriller.
Recommend reading!

Thank you to NetGalley, Gatekeeper Press and the author, Stephanie John Harris, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of The Poet in exchange for an honest review.
  
Bride of Chucky (1998)
Bride of Chucky (1998)
1998 | Action, Horror
5
6.5 (15 Ratings)
Movie Rating
One of those 'guilty pleasures' you here so much about
Bride of Chucky is a prime example of what Horror films were like in the aftermath of Scream.
Ditching the straight up horror path of the first couple of movies for a silly, self aware, and often humorous movie.

Quite simply, Bride of Chucky is trashy nonsense. It knows it too, and just about walks into 'so bad , it's good' territory.
Chucky has been promoted from villain to main character, and for the most part, it's pretty enjoyable. Brad Dourif works wonders with a cheesy script, dragging Chucky into a post Scream horror landscape, and creating more of an antihero that gained propularity pretty quickly.
Props to Jennifer Tilly as well for going along with the silliness with enthusiasm.

The main issue with Bride of Chucky is the protagonists were supposed to be rooting for. Nick Stabile and a young Katherine Heigl play a young couple taken hostage by Chucky, and I think they are definitely in the running for the most brain dead characters I've ever seen in a horror.
Most importantly, there is not a single atom within my being that gives the slightest shit about them, or their completely uninteresting eloping side story.
It very nearly stops the movie dead in it's tracks, but thankfully, any scenes that involve Chucky and Tiffany (which is often) is entertaining enough to make the film watchable.
The story is nonsense though, make no mistake.

The animatronic work on Chucky and Tiffany is genuinely impressive, and an obvious step up from the first trilogy. Chucky's design is also genuinely horrific.

Overall, Bride of Chucky is an un-scary, silly and cheesy experience, but it has some fun moments and is one of those horror films that I will probably watch until the end every time I see it on TV 😂
  
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
1996 | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Bloody Brilliant!
Seth and Richie Gecko are criminals who have escaped Prison and are on the run. They are staying in a Hotel trying to think of a way to get into Mexico, where a criminal friend is waiting for them at a Bar, and from there they are starting a new life. At the Hotel there is a Pastor and his Son and Daughter who have arrived in a Mobile Home; Seth sees this and holds the family hostage until he's met with his friend at the Bar over the border. They just manage by the skin of their teeth to get past the Mexican border and are onward to the Bar... which turns out to be a sleazy Biker Bar called the Titty Twister. When they get into the Titty Twister; the Gecko Brothers love this place, full of fighting, Tequila and topless dancing women. But when a violent and bloody confrontation between the Gecko Brothers and the Titty Twister Security happens, the many members of Staff show their true colours... and it means the Brothers and his hostages are going to have to fight for their lives the whole night.

I LOVE From Dusk Till Dawn. I've seen it so many times now and I think it's amazing everytime. Robert Rodriguez has given a unique lease of life to Horror and teamed it with quite the "Cops 'N' Robbers" storyline. It's an extremely visual movie; especially when you get into the Titty Twister and all the chaos happens, and speaking of that, I love how chaotic it is in the Titty Twister. It seems like there's always something happening and there's little background details that you pick up everytime you watch it. It's a wonderful, wonderful Horror Movie and I will definitely be watching it again and again. Bloodcurlingly awesome!!
  
The Hidden Face (Fifth Unmasking #1)
The Hidden Face (Fifth Unmasking #1)
S.C. Flynn | 2017 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
After a period where it became quite tired and unimaginative, fantasy writing over the last decade or so become a good vehicle for interesting story telling. The Hidden Face is no exception for this, being in the epic fantasy mould but with some fresh ideas thrown in.

The premise is that every few hundred years the god Akhen manifests in human form and reveals (unmasks) itself, resulting in a huge shift in the balance of power between nations. If someone could know ahead of time who was the vessel for Akhen then whoever controlled them would wield enormous power. And there are certain parties who want that power at all costs.

Standing in their way are Dayraven, former hostage and son of a famous hero, and Sunniva, daughter of a scholar and archaeologist. Between them they must solve scattered clues and prevent their enemies discovering the secrets that they know.

There is a lot that is conventional here, but there are some nice twists that avoid the usual fantasy cliches. It is also refreshing for there not to be some all pervading evil that must be defeated. Here the simple lust for power is enough to create entirely suitable adversaries. Also there a lot of factions, all with their own motives and allies, some of which change of the course of the book.

The writing is strong, with some great characters. Special mention must go to The Twister, one of the most interesting personalities I've come across with his own internal logic for his often bizarre actions.

A terrific start to a new fantasy series that looks to be something well worth reading. There are certainly plenty of mysteries still to be revealed in this fascinating world.
  
S.F.W. (1994)
S.F.W. (1994)
1994 | Action, Comedy, Drama
10
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
374. S.F.W. One of my fave movie of the 90s. I recently noticed that it was based on a novel. Read it, rewatched movie, and it was still dope... One day Cliff Spab and his best friend since birth Joe Dice head into a convenience store for smokes and beer. Unluckily for them this was also the day that a terrorist organization called Split Image decide to take the place over, and everyone that happened to be in the store as hostages. The masked men are also filming them the entire time, pretty much keeping track of them losing their minds, after all, they've only been eating junk food and beer for the past month. Obvi they make it out after putting up a fight when they've reached the end of their ropes. However, only two make it out alive, Cliff, who everyone calls Spab and a upper class young woman, Wendy. The tale starts at the end of the hostage crisis. Upon escape, Spab and Wendy realize they are now celebrities, every night on TV, millions watched the events unfold in the store. Cliff puts on a brave smart ass attitude making the public love him more, but inside he's suffering some ptsd, and he just wants to disappear. His family use him for the fame, his friends use him for the fame. His one true friend is dead. And the only one he can share any of this with is Wendy, and they are being kept apart by fame, family and all of that. Movie gives you a look at our news becoming just pure entertainment, based on money and popularity. And this was before the internet. Stephen Dorff as Spab and Reese Witherspoon as Wendy were awesome in this dark comedy, with a freaking kick ass soundtrack! Check it out! Filmbufftim on FB.