My most recent horror movie watch was Wither:

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Loved it. Basically a Swedish version of Evil Dead, and it doesn't quite reach the heights of either the original Evil Dead or the remake, but it was a really nice surprise.

I recently watched Texas chainsaw on Netflix...despite what I had already heard about the film I enjoyed it somewhat, that fairground scene had HUGE potential though but was wasted. Apparently there is a sequel in the works to it but because of it's slight change in direction I am not sure how it will be handled ??

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Obscure little 70s low-brow effort which will appeal only to hardcore 70s horror fans. A film unit is making a movie in a house where seven murders have occurred earlier. One of the crew finds a (supposedly) real book on witchcraft and raising the dead and thinks it's great to use recitals from it's pages in the film. Sure enough, the chants make a corpse rise from the nearby family cemetery who comes in to kill them all off one by one.

Absolutely nothing happens for the first 65 minutes out of it's 88-minute running time, except some cheap fake scares which make your eyes roll. And then everything else is rushed in the final 20 minutes, including a mind-boggling twist in the climax, which is so bad it will make your brains roll out of your ears.

John Carradine plays a caretaker (conveniently) named Price, 50s sci-fi hottie Faith Domergue grabs a lead role, but both are utterly wasted. (SPOILER ALERT) Carradine must be thanking his stars that he was the first one killed off.

The film lacks good production values (in one scene you can clearly see the sound mic extended on the bottom left of the screen), and the acting is atrocious. The absolutely slow pacing of the first half combined with nothing happening makes things unbearable. The one big plus of the film is the background score, which at times is oddly jarring, but tries to fill the atmosphere for the most part.

Not recommended to the casual 70s horror fan, nor to the Halloween fans. If you want a mediocre time-waster to dunk a few beers in with, this one is for you, specially if you want to doze off midway through. Rob Zombie must be thankful that the inspiration behind the name of his film is actually a forgotten, horrendous nightmare.

In the end, one mystery still remained unsolved - who the hell actually killed the cat?!

* ½


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"You are gonna need a bigger chopper!"

Piece of shit. But an entertaining piece of shit nonetheless. It's SyFy, it's superbad CGI, it's got a completely washed-out Tara Reid trying her best to look awful, and it has one-liners which will make you cringe. But forget all that and just enjoy the film for what it is - a cheap piece of riotous entertainment. You can laugh your socks off and thank me later. Just don't pay for watching it.

Oh, and the next time you are attacked by a shark on dry land, try whacking it off with a stool. Believe it or not, it actually works!

* *

Netflix again, watched a film called Evil aliens...heh put aside the rubbish acting and cheap computer effects and you have a bloody and somewhat funny movie:o

Zombie Hunter, with Danny Trejo in it, which is why I was interested. Not too bad, but nowhere near the best zombie movie, at all. A lot of character exploration, which wasn't screwed up too much, some cool action scenes. But really, not enough zombies. Also, thick, pink blood and weird two colored screens giving me a seizure whenever something happens. Movie seems to to give Texas Chainsaw an eye wink though. Takes a cue from Zombieland, as well. An interesting style, but it doesn't hold up.

Sushi Girl

I liked it, probably because I really enjoyed Mark Hamill's performance but Tony Todd was pretty good too. The story was alright, a lot of borrowing from Tarantino but not so much that it was a direct rip-off. For a watch-it-now flick that I've never heard of I was pleasantly surprised. Oh, and Mark Hamill...

This morning I watched the first part of BSB's 2012 production of Treasure Island ... it's somewhat "re-imagined", e.g. Trelawney has become a back-stabbing bastard for some reason or other, but it's a great watch so far, absorbing atmosphere and good fun.

A great cast too ... Eddie Izzard as Silver, Philip Glenister as Smollett, Rupert Penry-Smith as Trelawney, and various other faces I can't put a name to off hand.

Looking forward to part 2.

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Excellent film with some in-depth characterisation of the two male lead characters (pretty much the only 2 characters of the entire film), their sensibilities, their vulnerabilities, their confrontation and ultimately their acceptance of each other, as they go through the most turbulent time of their long-lost friendship when their car breaks down and they are stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Excellent story and script, and two very believable characters. Recommended to everyone who like dark, powerful, gritty, psychological nail-biters.

* * * ½


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My cousins recommended this Brit thriller-bordering-on-horror highly so I had to watch it. I thought the premise was a bit silly, and the reason for the whole setup went a bit overboard. Like some of the characters repeatedly say "It was just a prank", and that prank wasn't a big crime in itself. Seemed like the wronged character had too much of an obsession over the female in question, or was in mortal dread of his revenge-seeking enlisted brother, for being the wuss of the family. There's no third explanation of what he did to himself, except the eye-rolling twist which is highlighted below.

As usual, a bunch of annoying characters get together at one place where they have to answer for a prank gone wrong (shades of I Know What You Did Last Summer). The twist at the end is pretentious and bordering on absolute rubbish - why would a character with a solid crush on a female turn out to be gay? Why seek revenge in the name of family honor? Why is the trained soldier, who is out on cold-blooded, teeth-grinding, calculated revenge, really sloppy when handling ordinary half-minded teenagers? In the end, the bitchy female turns the tables and gets away scot-free for her actions?

Just too many plot-holes and hard-to-swallow facts which make this film not too entertaining either. Add to that, some of the most shoddy acting you will ever get to see, except for the guy who plays the soldier-brother. The second actress is pretty hot and provides some good eye-candy, and that's it. There's some decent amount of gore and blood, and a few impressive shots, but ultimately it isn't enough to save the film.

Guess it is tailor-made for today's generation kids who want a few quick adrenaline rushes to go with their Pepsis and popcorn. Ultimately it's an old wine served in a stale bottle. Best avoided.

* *

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2 road films in one day.

The makers from Down Under have impressed with their efforts in recent times, but this is one very decent Ozzie idea executed terribly.

The central premise of the road train and it's workings are intriguing, and the visuals flashing before the 4 central characters add a lot of surreality to the proceedings (including the 3 wolves with red eyes, signifying Cerebrus), but instead of a gripping, semi-decent story, we are treated to a hackneyed plot about teenagers camped in the middle of nowhere in the Australian wilderness, a completely unnecessary and graphic sex scene to open the movie, and character development which is non-existent. The only semblance of development happens with the lead male character, but even he takes some really unbelievable turns for the worst and ultimately he, along with the movie, goes downhill. The lead actress does her best, but it's too little and too late.

Things unexplained can be given slight nudges of explanation (remember The Car from the 70s), but here we have nothing to go on. The film takes itself too seriously and that's it's biggest downfall. Maybe a more campy approach could have salvaged it. Either that or a more serious, sinister approach could have enlivened the proceedings. Watch it only if you get a kick out of road movies and love yourself some gorgeous cinematographical shots of the Australian outback.

In short, Duel has just met The Mangler. If you have seen those two, skip this.

* *

^ Nicely summed up, it didn't do much for me either.

Today, Treasure Island 2012 part 2. Bleeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

So nicely made, such a great cast, but jeez why can't people just leave a good story alone??