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phil-37442
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Reviews
Blackwood (2014)
An English family moves into a new estate, apparently haunted, but things are not at all what they seem.
This a terrific chiller set in the moody English countryside (with a real "Hound of the Baskervilles" atmosphere) where a family, whose father suffers from emotional problems, settles into a large estate apparently haunted by the ghosts of the groundskeeper's family. However, nothing is as it seems in this extremely well-written, intricate, and devious plot that makes terrific use a "red herring" technique to lead the audience astray and to set them up for an explosive ending and a finely wrought denouement in which every haunting clue of the preceding 75% of the film is quickly explained in a haunting twist and which turns the basic haunted house motif on its head.
I went into this expecting an average horror flick, based up the description I read on the back of the DVD case in the video store. That description does not do it justice. The film starts off slowly as what seems to be a basic supernatural mystery as the father, a film-maker who makes history documentaries, researches the background behind the apparitions appearing in his house that only he can see. The suspense maintains a steady, but slow pace in the first 75% of the film, gradually climbing, so gradually that I started to doze off once or twice, guessing that the ending would be what I thought it would be. I was seriously wrong. Suddenly, the father realizes the tragic truth of the situation and rushes to save his family. Then everything becomes clear very quickly to him and the audience and one revelation after another springs up combining into a mind-boggling ending.
I recommend this film very highly. It is worth viewing, even if you are not a fan of the genre, just to see how great films, not to mention great stories should be written. This is one of the best suspense/supernatural mystery films I have seen come out of England in a long time.
The Theatre Bizarre (2011)
A contemporary update of the Grand Guignol?
Theatre Bizarre reminds me of the Grand Guignol, a type of French theatre popular in the 19th and early 20th centuries, which presented short plays of the macabre, the gruesome, and the cruel. The stories presented here are certainly that, including the framework that brings them all together. These are not great works of literature or of cinema, but they are entertaining. They are certainly entertaining for fans of the cruel, gruesome, and gory. The one about the mother telling her daughter about death is out of place here, not being cruel, gruesome, or gory. I guess it has some deeper meaning connecting all the other stories together, but it is lost on me, because the segment is so boring that I lost interest in it. Overall though, it's worth watching late at night with a few friends.
We Are Still Here (2015)
A couple grieving over the loss of their son moves into a haunted house with a gruesome past
Jackthehack's review of this movie is spot on. I will attempt to add to it, though that will be difficult.
This movie is definitely well-paced with excellent characters and excellent acting. The suspense starts off slow and builds steadily until all hell breaks loose at the end and surrounds the main characters (played by Barbara Crampton and Andrew Sensenig) suddenly from all sides and the gruesome history of the house and its horrifying connection to the local townsfolk is revealed.
The basic plot is not very imaginative (couple moves into a haunted house with a dark past and suffer accordingly), though the connection to the town is something you don't see too often. However, the suspense, acting, backstory, and direction all make up for this. It is a credit to the producer and director that they can take a standard plot and work it into something that is not only enjoyable, but exciting, suspense-filled, and dramatic as well. The characters are well-developed and you feel for them, thus enmeshing you deeper into their terror.
Overall, an excellent film that I recommend highly.
Bone Tomahawk (2015)
A posse pursues a cannibalistic tribe who has kidnapped three town-folk.
This is one hell of a movie. This movie is definitely character-driven. This is not some mindless, gore-filled slasher flick. The dialog is terrific and the language, attitudes, and perspectives are genuine Old West. This movie makes the characters very sympathetic and you really feel for their suffering and determination. They are also distinctly individual and not Hollywood cookie-cutter stereotypes. This is a true iconoclastic western that breaks all the stereotypes, tropes, memes, and any other lazy writing tricks and develops a truly original product. I found myself holding my breath and sitting on the edge of my proverbial seat waiting to see what would happen next. This is not a movie to just vicariously satisfy 21st century blood-lust, but to tell a story about human endurance, determination, and courage.
The first scene exemplifies the intensify when it shows a sleeping cowboy getting his throat cut in the first fifteen seconds after the initial credits. The center section in which the posse takes a few days to track the tribe to their home valley, may drag for some people, but it shows the posse's determination to suffer hardships and endure suffering in order to rescue their friends. There is not much gore for fans of gore, but that would not contribute significantly to the plot in any case. However, there is one scene in which the cannibals consume a captive (I won't say which) that will satisfy gore-fans desire for blood, torment, and intensity.
I won't continue out of fear of giving away too much and because I could write about this movie in depth for some time. Let me conclude by just recommending this movie very highly not only for horror fans, but for anyone in seeing quality screen writing and movie-making.
The Diabolical (2015)
A mother struggles to defend her family against spectral monsters destroying her home.
I will side with those reviewers that think this is a good movie. The acting was good as were the special effects and writing. This starts off as a standard haunted house movie, but as the story progresses it becomes obvious that these are not ghosts haunting the house, but something from another time, which is somehow connected to a corporation that is trying to persuade the owner, Madison (Ali Larter), to sell the house to them.
The story starts the suspense right from the beginning and keeps it building until the final scenes that explain what is going on. As another reviewer mentioned, this is not a slasher flick and it delves more into character than other sci-fi/thriller/horror films. There is a little blood, but not much. Nonetheless, the action and intensity built throughout the film and the film did a good job of keeping the viewer guessing to the end. I can't think of a way to improve on "The Diabolical" off hand, except to perhaps ramp up the intensity and suspense a little. Unlike other horror movies I have seen recently, this one did keep me awake and intrigued throughout the entire performance. I would say "The Diabolical" is a good film, but not a great film.
The Stranger (2014)
The curse of vampirism torments its victims in a small coastal town.
Although most critics gave this low ratings in spite of citing some good aspects, I found this movie to be much better than average because of its thoughtful, understated style which is a relief from so many vampire films in which the violence hides the subtler qualities. This film does have its violent moments (I thought the death of Caleb was one of the more interesting ways I have seen one vampire kill another), but they support the storyline instead of overwhelming it.
The best quality I found in "The Stranger" was its way of continually maintaining a haunting, eerie suspense without letting it flag. I never knew exactly what was going to happen next or to where the film was leading me, although this is easier to see in hindsight of course. I also thought its minimalist approach to the portrayal of vampires as average people afflicted with a horrific, contagious disease was a refreshing relief from the clichéd motif of vampires as hyper-erotic, ultra-violent super-humans. The vampires here are average people tormented by an ailment that forces them to kill for blood while constantly threatened by incineration by the sun. The vampires here do not revel in evil and, other than being able to heal very quickly from mortal wounds, do not have supernatural abilities. This allows the viewer to become more sympathetic to their plight and to root for them when threatened by the antagonists.
The plot is not overly innovative, but it manages to be a decent vehicle for the suspense.
Babysitter Wanted (2007)
A freshman college girl takes a job as a babysitter at a remote California ranch only to become trapped in a night of horrors.
If you see this film on the shelf at your local video store, pick it up, read the summary and comments on the back of the case, put the DVD back, and walk off. The summary on the DVD case is interesting, but the film does not live up to its promise.
The storyline: As mentioned, a college girl takes a job babysitting at a remote California ranch while the parents go out for 3-4 hours. The child, Sam, is about five years old and always wears a cowboy outfit and hat. He also has a special diet that mom keeps in its own containers in the fridge.
After the parents have left, Sam awakes from his nap and wants to eat. The babysitter discovers that the containers contain cubes of raw meat. Just before the parents return, the child's hat comes off revealing two demonic horns. The parents subdue the babysitter and tie her up in the basement, while the dad brings in a girl they caught while out and butchers her while telling the babysitter that Sam will feed only on the flesh of young, virgin females and that the babysitter is next on the menu. Of course, over the remainder of the movie, the babysitter escapes, the parents are killed, a few minor subplots are resolved, and Sam, whom the babysitter thought she had killed, turns out to have escaped and has found new foster parents somewhere else.
The basic storyline is rather cliché and the film builds the suspense slowly and deliberately, perhaps too slowly and deliberately. The set-up for the action takes too long in exploring the main character's good-girl religious background, which doesn't add anything significant to the story--other than setting up a justification for being a virgin, which could have been done more concisely anyway. The child being babysat is creepy, but in a corny (sometimes almost laughable) way. The movie would have been much improved if the writer(s) had had a more imaginative concept for Sam.
I watched the movie starting at 2:00 a.m. and fell asleep for several minutes during the center section, but when I woke, I felt I hadn't missed anything worth going back for, so I continued on. It says something for a movie if you can miss several minutes of the central storyline and still know what's going on.
There are some genuinely creepy and occasionally tense moments, so it's not all bad. It's worth watching if a friend (who doesn't have great taste in horror) pays for it and you're going to watch it at his/her place while making out. But for something you're going to pay for and watch on your own, there are better flicks. If you're part of a teen girls' church group having a sleepover at a member's house and you want to watch a horror film the pastor wouldn't approve after the member's parents have gone to bed, this is the film for you.
The basic premise of the film, a babysitter sitting a child who turns out to be a demon, has potential if done in a more imaginative way, but this film just couldn't make that happen.