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Andrew Kennedy (199 KP) rated Hellraiser: Judgment (2017) in Movies
May 30, 2019
I like the kills (1 more)
Should get a sequel
No Doug Bradley (2 more)
Detective bits drag
Dimension still only put a film out to keep the rights.
Time to deliver judgement on the new Hellraiser.
Just finished watching this and i have to say while its not perfect, its leaps and bounds ahead of Revelations.
The main crux of the story is the hunt for a killer called "The Preceptor" who is killing his victims in line with the 10 commandments. A pair of detective brothers are trying to crack the case and are assigned a new female partner.
The Cenobites are again things macrabe beauty. The Auditor is superb and played by director Gary Tunnicliffe. The Butcher and The Surgeon deliver a wonderful kill early on. Finally theres Pinhead, he looks amazing and Paul T Taylor gives a rousing performance throughout.
The theme of judgement is carried through with an assesor and a jury. The guilty cleaned.
The detective bits drag a bit and really slow the film down. The kills are delivered with gore and gutso and this feels like a new start for the franchise.
So in final Judgement, this new outing for Pinhead should see more sequels to come but if the quality of the Cenobites in this film is maintained then we have such sights to look forward to.
Just finished watching this and i have to say while its not perfect, its leaps and bounds ahead of Revelations.
The main crux of the story is the hunt for a killer called "The Preceptor" who is killing his victims in line with the 10 commandments. A pair of detective brothers are trying to crack the case and are assigned a new female partner.
The Cenobites are again things macrabe beauty. The Auditor is superb and played by director Gary Tunnicliffe. The Butcher and The Surgeon deliver a wonderful kill early on. Finally theres Pinhead, he looks amazing and Paul T Taylor gives a rousing performance throughout.
The theme of judgement is carried through with an assesor and a jury. The guilty cleaned.
The detective bits drag a bit and really slow the film down. The kills are delivered with gore and gutso and this feels like a new start for the franchise.
So in final Judgement, this new outing for Pinhead should see more sequels to come but if the quality of the Cenobites in this film is maintained then we have such sights to look forward to.
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Jason X (2001) in Movies
Oct 17, 2019
Deep Space Jason
So the reason why this film excist is because new line was just waiting for Freddy vs. Jason to happen. So while thier were waiting, their put out this. And ohh boy it was bad. So bad its good, yes its one of those movies. With already Hellraiser and the Leprechaun had movies in space, so the next villian to be up in space was no question Jason. Also this movie toke place in the future, oh my. So whats the plot then....
The year is 2455. The Place is Old Earth. Once the shimmering blue jewel of the galaxy, Old Earth is now a contaminated planet abandoned for centuries. Yet humans have returned to the deadly place that they once fled. Not to live, but to research the ancient rusting artifacts of the bygone civilizations that caused this environmental disaster. And little does the most recent landing party of intrepid young explorers realize the fate that awaits them.
Their are intresting kills in this movie, also Uber-Jason that is a plus in my book.
The charcters are not intresting, dont even bother with them, expect for Jason. Jason is the only one that you should care about.
Would i reccordmend this movie, yes i would, even though its a dumb movie and that makes no sense. Its still a fun movie to watch.
The year is 2455. The Place is Old Earth. Once the shimmering blue jewel of the galaxy, Old Earth is now a contaminated planet abandoned for centuries. Yet humans have returned to the deadly place that they once fled. Not to live, but to research the ancient rusting artifacts of the bygone civilizations that caused this environmental disaster. And little does the most recent landing party of intrepid young explorers realize the fate that awaits them.
Their are intresting kills in this movie, also Uber-Jason that is a plus in my book.
The charcters are not intresting, dont even bother with them, expect for Jason. Jason is the only one that you should care about.
Would i reccordmend this movie, yes i would, even though its a dumb movie and that makes no sense. Its still a fun movie to watch.
AmyBee (4 KP) rated The Damnation Game in Books
Sep 6, 2018
This novel has to be one of, if not THE sickest, goriest horror novels I have ever read. For that reason, I LOVED it! The plot is strong, the characters are entertaining and the scare-factor is off the scale!
It soon becomes clear that the author of this novel is the same guy who wrote and directed the first HELLRAISER film. His ability to 'think outside the box' in his writing is evident with certain tropes in this novel that I wouldn't have even thought existed but are absolutely terrifying. I was blown away.
I love the way that horror and comedy seem to be interchanged in this novel in a way that makes the horror even sicker. As the reader, once you realise that certain scenes are actually making you chuckle, it makes YOU feel like the sick one for daring to laugh at such a grim scene. It takes a great writer to be able to do this and to pull it off without coming across like they are just trying to cash in a cheap gag and Barker has this skill down to a T. Excellent stuff!
Just one thing annoyed me about this and that is the two young Jehovah's Witnesses who make an appearance somewhere like halfway through the novel. I thought their characters were far more 2D than all the rest were, and they could have been written much better. To me, they were just not believable at all.
It soon becomes clear that the author of this novel is the same guy who wrote and directed the first HELLRAISER film. His ability to 'think outside the box' in his writing is evident with certain tropes in this novel that I wouldn't have even thought existed but are absolutely terrifying. I was blown away.
I love the way that horror and comedy seem to be interchanged in this novel in a way that makes the horror even sicker. As the reader, once you realise that certain scenes are actually making you chuckle, it makes YOU feel like the sick one for daring to laugh at such a grim scene. It takes a great writer to be able to do this and to pull it off without coming across like they are just trying to cash in a cheap gag and Barker has this skill down to a T. Excellent stuff!
Just one thing annoyed me about this and that is the two young Jehovah's Witnesses who make an appearance somewhere like halfway through the novel. I thought their characters were far more 2D than all the rest were, and they could have been written much better. To me, they were just not believable at all.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Cronos (1994) in Movies
Jul 27, 2019
A Vampire film?
Contains spoilers, click to show
The feature film debut of now Academy Award winning director Guillermo del Toro does not disappoint!
A mysterious scarab is found after 400+ years in hiding by an old man. He decided to use the device which activates and attached to his skin. He initial pain is followed by the man starting to feel and look younger.
The situation deteriorates as the man continues to look worse and worse but gain in strength becoming able to withstand pain that would slay a normal man.
I really enjoyed the tone and look of this film. Even though it was low budget, del Toro made the most of it and it never felt cheap or the special effects look fake. The scarab was an interesting device and reminded me of the puzzle box in Hellraiser or the flying silver balls in Phantasm.
I liked the slow developing degenerative story and it never really says it is a vampire film although it feels more and more like that as the story develops.
Whenever you are watching a great foreign film, the subtitles just go away and it feels like you are watching an English speaking movie.
It's too bad there was never a sequel to this as I would've liked to see where the story went once the movie ended.
Highly recommended. Thanks @Erika
A mysterious scarab is found after 400+ years in hiding by an old man. He decided to use the device which activates and attached to his skin. He initial pain is followed by the man starting to feel and look younger.
The situation deteriorates as the man continues to look worse and worse but gain in strength becoming able to withstand pain that would slay a normal man.
I really enjoyed the tone and look of this film. Even though it was low budget, del Toro made the most of it and it never felt cheap or the special effects look fake. The scarab was an interesting device and reminded me of the puzzle box in Hellraiser or the flying silver balls in Phantasm.
I liked the slow developing degenerative story and it never really says it is a vampire film although it feels more and more like that as the story develops.
Whenever you are watching a great foreign film, the subtitles just go away and it feels like you are watching an English speaking movie.
It's too bad there was never a sequel to this as I would've liked to see where the story went once the movie ended.
Highly recommended. Thanks @Erika
Strindberg: A Life
Book
Novelist, satirist, poet, photographer, painter, alchemist, and hellraiser-August Strindberg was all...
Awix (3310 KP) rated Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) in Movies
Jul 30, 2020
Slightly discombobulating horror sequel. Following the events of the first movie Kirsty Cotton unsurprisingly ends up in a loony bin run by brain surgeon and keen puzzle-box fan Dr Channard (Kenneth Cranham tries mightily to bring a touch of Peter Cushing-style class to an underwritten part). As Channard is a lunatic, he resurrects Kirsty's evil stepmother, and because he is clearly either very forgetful or slow off the mark, together they give a puzzle box (which he already had) to a traumatised patient who's good at puzzles (who he likewise already had about the place) and together they begin to explore the realm of the box.
Meanwhile... oh, does it really matter? As you can perhaps begin to discern, the plot of Hellraiser II Makes No Sense Whatsoever (the Cotton house appears to have teleported from London to New York City in the gap between films, and this is only a minor issue), and there is something baffling and miraculous about the fact the film is as coherent and watchable as it is. Then again, it's not actually about logic, plot, or the motivation of the characters, just a succession of grisly, visceral, nightmarish, surreal images. In this respect at least the film is an astonishing success. Doesn't stop the story from being nonsense, though. Manages to be a very bad movie but also a terrific one, frequently at exactly the same time. Like I say, discombobulating.
Meanwhile... oh, does it really matter? As you can perhaps begin to discern, the plot of Hellraiser II Makes No Sense Whatsoever (the Cotton house appears to have teleported from London to New York City in the gap between films, and this is only a minor issue), and there is something baffling and miraculous about the fact the film is as coherent and watchable as it is. Then again, it's not actually about logic, plot, or the motivation of the characters, just a succession of grisly, visceral, nightmarish, surreal images. In this respect at least the film is an astonishing success. Doesn't stop the story from being nonsense, though. Manages to be a very bad movie but also a terrific one, frequently at exactly the same time. Like I say, discombobulating.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Cube 2: Hypercube (2002) in Movies
Jan 14, 2021
Christ, I did not have fun with this. Cube 2: Hypercube is unfortunately a downgrade of its predecessor in every single way, so I'll start with a couple of positives - 1. Kari Matchett gives us a likable enough lead to follow. 2. When the film first introduces parallel dimensions around 30 minutes in, it became vaguely interesting for about two minutes. And that's about your lot.
Every single character is a walking cliché. The introductions to all these people go on for waaayy too long, and I found myself pretty much immediately wanting them to die, but we're not even allowed to enjoy that aspect. The little gore on display looks awful, nothing done practically, and instead with CGI that looks like deep fried turd, CGI that is draped liberally all over the movie.
Then there's the titular cube itself. Gone are the intricate and Hellraiser-esque aesthetics of the first film, to make way for a clinical white series of Cube rooms (with a grey trim just to spice things up a bit). It just looks terrible.
The narrative isn't too compelling either, with twist after twist thrown at the viewer, but none which have any impact. It even throws in one at the very end which just isn't explained in any capacity. A lazy script with a lazy plot.
I'm pretty sure I had even more negatives to say about Cube 2, but honestly, I'm getting bored just thinking about this film, so yeah, it's poo.
Every single character is a walking cliché. The introductions to all these people go on for waaayy too long, and I found myself pretty much immediately wanting them to die, but we're not even allowed to enjoy that aspect. The little gore on display looks awful, nothing done practically, and instead with CGI that looks like deep fried turd, CGI that is draped liberally all over the movie.
Then there's the titular cube itself. Gone are the intricate and Hellraiser-esque aesthetics of the first film, to make way for a clinical white series of Cube rooms (with a grey trim just to spice things up a bit). It just looks terrible.
The narrative isn't too compelling either, with twist after twist thrown at the viewer, but none which have any impact. It even throws in one at the very end which just isn't explained in any capacity. A lazy script with a lazy plot.
I'm pretty sure I had even more negatives to say about Cube 2, but honestly, I'm getting bored just thinking about this film, so yeah, it's poo.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated The Void (2016) in Movies
Aug 10, 2020
I watched The Void with absolutely no prior knowledge of what it was, and what it is, is certainly...something.
The Void felt to me like a series of homages to other horror classics. The overall plot seems like an obvious nod to Prince of Darkness. The creature designs are reminiscent of The Thing, albeit with a sprinkling of Guillermo Del Toro. The climax reminded me sometimes of Hellraiser. One of the villains gave me Re-Animator vibes. All the while, there's a distinct Lovecraftian undercurrent from start to finish.
All of this is a good thing though. The Void never feels like it's ripping off any of these movies, but rather wearing it's heart on it's sleeve.
As mentioned above, the creature designs reminded me of The Thing. This is further bolstered by their nightmarish aesthetic, and the fantastic use of practical effects. In fact, there's very minimal use of CGI at all, something you don't see too often these days.
My only criticisms are aimed at the plot. It's starts off well enough, and evokes a feeling of tension and uncertainty, well realised by a decent cast. Before long however, it's clear that a lot is left open to audience interpretation. The fever dream approach to the filming style leaves you questioning what is real and what's not, a plot technique that I'm usually all for, although The Void is a film that I feel could have benefited from a little more explanation and resolve.
Overall though, it's a gory, entertaining horror creature-feature, that I would recommend watching, even if it's just the once.
The Void felt to me like a series of homages to other horror classics. The overall plot seems like an obvious nod to Prince of Darkness. The creature designs are reminiscent of The Thing, albeit with a sprinkling of Guillermo Del Toro. The climax reminded me sometimes of Hellraiser. One of the villains gave me Re-Animator vibes. All the while, there's a distinct Lovecraftian undercurrent from start to finish.
All of this is a good thing though. The Void never feels like it's ripping off any of these movies, but rather wearing it's heart on it's sleeve.
As mentioned above, the creature designs reminded me of The Thing. This is further bolstered by their nightmarish aesthetic, and the fantastic use of practical effects. In fact, there's very minimal use of CGI at all, something you don't see too often these days.
My only criticisms are aimed at the plot. It's starts off well enough, and evokes a feeling of tension and uncertainty, well realised by a decent cast. Before long however, it's clear that a lot is left open to audience interpretation. The fever dream approach to the filming style leaves you questioning what is real and what's not, a plot technique that I'm usually all for, although The Void is a film that I feel could have benefited from a little more explanation and resolve.
Overall though, it's a gory, entertaining horror creature-feature, that I would recommend watching, even if it's just the once.
What it Feels Like For a Girl
10.0
Rate It
Book
Thirteen-year-old Byron needs to get away, and doesn't care how. Sick of being beaten up by lads for...
Non Fiction Memoir Transgender
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Suspiria (2018) in Movies
Feb 25, 2019
Not the Suspiria you were looking for.
"Reimagined" would be the only word to describe this new vision of the original cult horror Argento classic from director Luca Guadagnino. It reminded me of a lot of other 70s and 80s horror including the original Hellraiser, The Wicker Man, or some early David Cronenberg body horror films.
The same basic story of American dancer Susie Banion coming to join a famous European dance company only to discover its leaders are a coven of witches is still there, but with much more complexity. As with the original, the coven does not take kindly when girls try and leave the group and usually meet with some sort of gruesome outcome.
Things get intense slowly over the 2 1/2 hour runtime with the last 20 minutes being some of the most explicit freak show, sadistic, torturous bloodbath I have ever seen. Not sure how this would play with a mainstream audience. I think some would be bored with the beginning and then get up and leave during the extreme climax scene.
Since I watch a ton of movies, I seek out the strange and unusual at this point and this one did not disappoint. It is interesting to see another director's take on the story and going in a completely opposite direction. Argento was always known, especially in this film, for his use of wild colors and patterns and this new version stands as a stark contrast opting for more neutral tones and white and black.
If you have a strong stomach and crave an interesting challenge, I highly recommend. Then let me know so we can discuss.
The same basic story of American dancer Susie Banion coming to join a famous European dance company only to discover its leaders are a coven of witches is still there, but with much more complexity. As with the original, the coven does not take kindly when girls try and leave the group and usually meet with some sort of gruesome outcome.
Things get intense slowly over the 2 1/2 hour runtime with the last 20 minutes being some of the most explicit freak show, sadistic, torturous bloodbath I have ever seen. Not sure how this would play with a mainstream audience. I think some would be bored with the beginning and then get up and leave during the extreme climax scene.
Since I watch a ton of movies, I seek out the strange and unusual at this point and this one did not disappoint. It is interesting to see another director's take on the story and going in a completely opposite direction. Argento was always known, especially in this film, for his use of wild colors and patterns and this new version stands as a stark contrast opting for more neutral tones and white and black.
If you have a strong stomach and crave an interesting challenge, I highly recommend. Then let me know so we can discuss.