Day of the Dead: Weekly Review #5

Review of the Week:

A Bloody Celebration

 

Considering the fact, that The Walking Dead will be making its return to television on October 23^rd, I figured it be the perfect time to review a zombie movie. I thought, if I were to do a review, it had to be on something from the original creator of the modern zombie: George A. Romero. This movie represents the third entry in Romero’s Dead series, starting with Night of the Living Dead.

            The film takes place in an underground silo, where a group of scientists and military personnel are trying to both, figure out the cause of the epidemic and merely survive. Just from the first thirty minutes of the movie, the viewer can already tell that the situation the characters are in, is a hopeless one. Both the scientists, and the soldiers assigned to protect them are starting to doubt their mission and are considering to abandon the silo. Most of the men are feeling claustrophobic and are slowly losing their minds. Some of them are more screw loose than others, especially one of the scientists, that the survivors nicknamed Dr. Frankenstein. It doesn’t take long before everything goes wrong in ways the audience never expected! Don’t worry, no spoilers from me.

            Most of the cast in this film aren’t well known, but they do an excellent job of expressing the characters slow decent into madness. For me the stand-out characters are Colonel Rhodes, played by Joe Pilato and Sherman Howard who plays a zombie named Bub. Pilato’s performance as Rhodes is amazing, it’s incredible how unlikable he portrays his character, he’s someone you just love to hate with all your heart. Howard’s portrayal of Bub is great. He’s supposed to play a zombie who’s slowly evolving human traits and Howard does it brilliantly. The performance reminds me of Andy Serkis’ performance as Caesar from the Planet of Apes reboot series, where a creature slowly learns to do human tasks, even at one point learns how to use a gun. Coincidently, this film stars Greg Nicotero, the main zombie makeup artist on The Walking Dead, just thought I should mention it.  

            Fair warning, for whoever decides to watch this movie, there is a SHIT ton of gore in this movie (sorry about the language, but it’s true). If you’re not used to that sort of thing, I recommend at least checking out the original Night of the Living Dead, the gore is much tamer than this movie, there’s hardly any at all. If you’re not that kind of person, then you should check out this film from the OG creator.

Final Rating:

            Day of the Dead is available on Blu-Ray and DVD, my copy was made by the lovely people at Scream Factory, their collector’s edition is well worth your time and money (they did not pay me to tell you this, it’s just my opinion). As for alternate recommendations, I first point you towards Dawn of the Dead, the second entry the Dead series, it’s not as dark as Day, but has a really cool setting with memorable characters, lastly I recommend checking out 28 Days Later, while it’s not exactly your typical zombie flick, it does provide an interesting scenario.

Until next time, remember to aim for the head…

 

Evil Dead 2: Weekly Review #4

Review of the Week:

Bruce Campbell + Demons = Groovy

When it comes to ‘80s horror, no movie is more iconic than Evil Dead 2, John Carpenter’s The Thing is a close contender in my opinion. The first movie was already a house-hold name in the horror community, but the sequel cemented itself in the minds of fans and casual moviegoers alike.

Evil Dead 2 takes place almost immediately after the first one, be it with some slight variations. (Spoilers Alert) During the first Evil Dead, five friends spend the weekend at a cabin in the woods. It is there that they discover Necronomicon Exmortis also known as, the book of the dead. I’m pretty sure you can guess what happens next. After witnessing the death of his friends and his girlfriend, Ash, the movies main protagonist, gets ready for round two against the forces of darkness, that are coming to swallow his soul! Ash soon faces new challenges both physical and mental, his only hope is the daughter of a scientist who was previously studying the book of the dead. It’s going take a ton of effort from the both of them if they want to survive the night.

This movie solidified Bruce Campbell, who plays Ash, as one of the greatest heroes in the horror genre. He carries this movie from beginning to end, becoming more bad-ass with every scene. Most people are familiar with his current appearance in the new TV show on STARZ, but if there are those that still want to see how Ash became the way he is, then they should definitely check out this movie.

Most of the effects in this movie can be considered outdated by some people, as for the rest, they’re pretty impressive especially the makeup. Even to this day, after watching it several times, some of the jump scares still get me, that’s pretty impressive on its own.

If you’re looking for a horror movie classic, then this is the one for you.

Final Rating:

Evil Dead 2 is available on Blu-Ray and DVD for very reasonable prices, both at your local store and online. As for alternate recommendations, I point you towards Army of Darkness, the third installment in the Evil Dead series, this one’s much cornier and has awesome one-liners, lastly I recommend checking out BeetleJuice, this movie takes some notes from Evil Dead when it comes to dark humor and most of it is hilarious.

Until next time, when you see a book wrapped in human flesh, BURN IT...

 



Fright Night: Weekly Review #3

Review of the Week:

Cornelius Versus Humperdinck 

 

Since their humble beginnings, Vampires have struck terror into the hearts of numerous horror fans, they were portrayed as vicious, un-dead creatures of the night, that feast on the blood of the living and have supernatural powers. Then Stephanie Meyer stepped in and re-did everything we knew about vampires and pretty much ruined them for everyone, who was familiar with the traditional blood sucker. Note, I will NEVER, EVER, review the Twilight Saga, but if there is one modern vampire movie I can make an exception to is this movie.

            Fright Night takes place in a suburban neighborhood during the mid ‘80s, where a high-school kid, named Charlie, discovers that his new next door neighbor, Jerry, is a member to the un-dead club, or simply put a vampire. With not many people to turn to for help, Charlie puts it upon himself to defend those that are close to him and ultimately the entire neighborhood from Jerry’s thirst for blood.

            This movie has two amazing stand-out actors, Chris Sarandon (Prince Humperdinck, from The Princess Bride) and Roddy McDowall (Cornelius, Planet of the Apes!). Sarandon plays the vampire, he’s easily my favorite horror movie villain, he OWNS every single scene he’s in, and does a great job of being both charming and frightening at the same time. Meanwhile, McDowall stars as a run-down TV host, who Charlie goes to for help, but refuses at first. In my mind, I think it’s hilarious seeing Roddy McDowell without a ton of ape makeup and transitioning from a calm, collective character to a spineless weasel. Besides those two, the rest of the cast is great, don’t get me wrong. 

            Overall, if you’re tired of Stephanie Meyer’s interpretation and looking for something that both respects the traditional vampire mythology and brings it to the modern era (sort of), then you should DEFINITELY check out Fright Night.

FINAL RATING:

            Fright Night is available on Blu-Ray and DVD. You can find this at almost any video-store and online at a decent price. As for alternate movie recommendations I first point you towards From Dusk Till Dawn, it’s an awesome ‘90s movie from the creative duo of Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, and lastly I recommend checking out the remake, if you’re not into the 1980s setting, then you should at least check this one out. This one takes place in Nevada and has David Tennant replacing McDowall as the run-down host, but make no mistake he is great.

The next review will be posted shortly, until then be mindful of your neighbors…

 

Tremors: Weekly Review #2

Review of the Week

Watch Where You Step...

 

Everyone loves a good monster movie every once and a while. Me, I am a HUGE fan of monster movies, especially the ones from Japan. I grew up with these kinds of creatures, gigantic spawns created by radiation who's only purpose is cause mass destruction. When it comes to giant monster films, Tremors is no exception.

            The movie takes place in the fictional town of Perfection, Nevada, where the residents are terrorized by enormous subterranean monsters that can sense their every move. Now, the townspeople must ban together if they’re going to survive this. Among them are two handymen that decided to “leave this place just one damn day too late.”

            This movie has quite the cast, it includes Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward and Michael, Freaking, Gross! Gross is the poster boy of the series (they made five of these movies total) and he’s one of my personal favorite movie characters of all time. Michael Gross plays Burt Gummer, a survival freak and gun enthusiast (note, enthusiast is only putting it lightly). He’s one of the film’s most memorable characters, that alone is not an easy task, considering that Kevin Bacon’s in it.

            Despite its cast, the movie has plenty of horror clichés, including false jump scares and bad decision making. The beauty of this movie is the way the characters handle the clichés, for example, when an annoying kid creates a panic, Fred Ward’s character warns the kid to cut it out or else, most other characters would have just shrugged that off.

            Overall, this a great way to start off the month of scares. If you’re looking for a non-conventional monster film, this is the one for you.

Final Rating:

You can find this at your local video-store, on Blu-Ray and DVD, for a decent price these days. For alternate recommendations I point you towards the sequel, Tremors 2: Aftershocks, it's a great continuation that builds upon what made the first movie great and lastly, I highly recommend checking out Starship Troopers, it's on the more militaristic side, but still has same, awesome B-Movie feeling Tremors has.

Until Next Time, Keep Up the Scares... Mu ha, ha, ha!



Jackie Brown: Weekly Review #1

*This Review Was Originally On The Main Page, But Was Moved to This Page*
Review of The Week:

An Esteemed Underrated Film

 

I have an eye for the underappreciated. When I find a film that's been given the label "underrated," I have to find out why. Just why did this movie fly under everyone's radar? Especially when it comes from a filmmaker like director Quentin Tarantino. After watching this movie several times, I'm still asking that same question.

 

Jackie Brown, played by Pam Grier, is a flight attendant/associate of a local crook by the name of Ordell, portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson. Through unfortunate circumstances, Jackie's has to cooperate with the federal government so they can put Ordell behind bars. Meanwhile, She's trying to stay on Ordell's good side, at least until she can rip him off on half a million bucks.

 

From beginning to end, Jackie Brown is engaging, smart and entertaining. This is a movie that's both familiar and new for those Tarantino fans that haven't seen this yet. As for those who haven't seen his movies, this is what I'd like to call a "soft" introduction to his style of filmmaking. Within the rest of Quentin's films you can find, over the top violence and a mountain of profane language. Though there are a couple of f-bombs dropped in Jackie Brown, the violence is tone down to a considerable level. A trademark in all of his movies is a lot of dark humor and Jackie Brown is no exception. There's a death scene in this movie that still cracks me up for some unknown reason. A lot of this movie can't be possible without Tarantino's direction and his star-studded cast.

 

The cast includes previously mentioned Grier, and Jackson, also Robert Forester, Michael Keaton and a timid Robert De Niro. I can honestly say that Quentin is an absolute genius when picking his cast members. He can bring out the best out of anyone who joins his projects, and he does it again in this film of course that magic has been around since then, if your a fan, then you know what I'm talking about. Also he has a great thing for music as well.

 

If your still wandering what my opinion is of this movie, it's this: It's a great film, anyone who's looking for a long, well-directed movie, then you should see this movie and if your looking for something fast-paced, then you should look somewhere else.

 

FINAL RATING:

 

Jackie Brown is currently available on  Blu-Ray and DVD. You can easily find it in any video store in the U.S. I'm not sure about other regions of the world, but I'm confident you'll find it. It's well worth your time and money.

 

Alternate Recommendations: Inglorious Basterds, it has a lot of qualities that many Tarantino fans are familiar with and lastly, I recommend, The Hateful Eight, the latest film from Quentin and it does not disappoint.

 

Till the next review, I bid thee adieu...