phoenixashes33 Reviews

Resurrection (2022)

Fabulous acting, horrible film

[3/10 · 6 October 2022]

I hated it. I love Rebecca Hall and Tim Roth but I had to struggle to get through this. It's the most uncomfortable and annoying film I've seen in recent memory. You just want to shake someone or slap em.

It's a slow burn that goes haywire somewhere and everything you thought you knew goes out the window.

It honestly gave me a migraine by the end.bWhich, I'll say nothing about but....yeesh.

The acting is phenomenal but Hall is always fantastic to watch. I can't even imagine what this film would have been with someone else cast.

It's dark, it's disturbing and really maddening. If that's up your alley, go for it. I however will not be recommending it to anyone or watching it again.

My Best Friend's Exorcism (2022)

It is what it is

[3/10 · 1 October 2022]

So, this is one of my favorite books. Unfortunately the film doesn't do it justice. The movie is fine in its own realm of existence but it lacks the heart, depth and weight of the novel.

I felt like the film just sped through the story. Sequences were out of order and there was a LOT that was completely reimagined or created purely for the film.

If I had seen this movie first, I wouldn't take the time to read the book. Though, thankfully they did skip something that happens toward the end of the book. I was worried they were going to do it but when I started watching it I knew they wouldn't cuz it wouldn't fit.

You don't get any of what the novel gives you from this film. It's almost a Cliff notes watered down version of the book.

The acting is pretty atrocious. The co-lead that plays Gretchen is its saving Grace even though the story is told through the eyes of Abby.

I really wanted more. It felt rushed and disconnected from the source. Absolutely despised the notes on the characters at the end. Was totally unnecessary.

It did have a solid soundtrack to get that nostalgic feeling going.

I wish they had taken more time to do this film. I wish they had stayed closer to the source material. I wish it had the heart the novel did. The relationships were so watered down that it was frivolous.

Sucker Punch (2011)

Even though I cant figure out if I love or hate it...I cant stop watching it.

[6/10 · 4 July 2011]

Things I like: 1. The story. Theoretically a good plot. Part drama, part horror, part RPG, and part super hero movie. 2. The visuals. Each shot is stunning. The art direction is spectacular. From costumes, to sets, and special effects....all of it was fantastic. 3. The music. Each song serves as a narration and fuels the story and emotion for each scene. Covers can easily become over the top, cheesy, and outright awful (especially if done by the lead actress in attempt to spark a music career), however this was not the case. Emily Browning is actually a great singer, and manages to nail these songs beautifully. However, I don't know about the musical number during the credits. That came out of left field for me, especially after that ending. It was weird.

Things I don't like: 1. The plot. I know...its the first thing on my list of likes...but its here too. I get the whole girl power aspect that they keep preaching ...but, realistically...its not. I mean, she WAS lobotomized and WAS being taken advantage of, right? Being so effed up that you create alternate realities in your mind to survive it is NOT a thing of empowerment. It's sad and tragic. You can dress her like Sailor Moon all you want, but at the end of the day, shes locked away in a mental institution and lobotomized. 2. The acting. This is partly due to the ridiculous dialogue. Emily Browning wasn't too bad...although very one note and had the same expression on her face no matter what was happening. The rest of the cast was just awful. Usually, I like Jenna Malone. However in this movie, I think I laughed every time she delivered a line. Vanessa Hudgens was just a meh of nothing with Snooki hair. Jamie Chung and Vanessa Hudgens' characters didn't even need to exist really. I had higher hopes for Abbie Cornish since I've liked her in other movies and think she's a decent actress, but here...she was flat and again, I pretty much laughed at every one of her lines. Again, I think it was just bad writing....but it almost seems as if it was intentional. 3. The every-other-shot-is-slow-mo craziness. If it were a drinking game...you'd be dead by the end of the movie. Do not try it please. It was over kill by the end. It was so much slow-mo that it was absurd. I almost felt like I was being "sucker punched" every time it happened. There was slow-mo when it wasn't even necessary. The movie is 10 minutes short of 2 hrs. With that much slow-mo, it felt like 4. And lastly, number 4. I actually rooted for the dragon. When she nudges her dead baby.....that moment was the most emotionaly invested I felt through the whole movie. That shouldn't have been the case. Zack Snyder, you have to make people care if your characters live or die. A hint of empathy or consideration at the very least....not have your audience root for the characters to be eaten by the dragon so they'd stfu!!!

So there it is. I like it and I don't. I don't regret buying it. So that says something, I guess.

The Manson Family (1997)

I threw my copy in the trash where it belongs.

[1/10 · 4 July 2011]

I'm a horror fan. I have a pretty high tolerance for gore, violence, and disturbing material. I have seen practically every movie made on the subject of Charles Manson. That being said, I was completely disgusted by this revolting, over the top, horrific "film" that really should be classified under snuff p*rn. The violence, nudity, and gore is continuously shoved down your throat in an attempt to shock and repulse you. In my opinion this is the product of a talentless director that is so obviously leaning on the shock value in order to compensate for his lack of artistic point of view. This crappola is such an insulting and degrading exploit of the people who were involved and who died. I barely finished watching it and promptly broke it in half and threw it away (wouldnt even look at the second disc). If you like to watch this kind of crap and on a human level NOT be disgusted and disturbed that, not only are we capable of horrendous acts like this, but some one wants to film it and make money off of it in the name of "entertainment", there's something seriously wrong with you. I guess thats who this sh*t is geared toward.

The Othersiders (2009)

The problem with this show

[1/10 · 14 July 2009]

Look, I have been boycotting this show since before it aired, along with others in the paranormal community. This review and post has nothing to do with believing in the paranormal or not. I don't believe it's my right to tell someone what to believe just as it's no one's to tell the same to me.

I have been studying the paranormal for the better part of my life and am currently in a paranormal investigative team and am very active in the paranormal community. My main issue with this show has to do with the fact that it is geared toward children on a network for children. Ever since the up-rise of shows like Ghost Hunters, Paranormal State and the like, there have been too many copy cat groups popping up all over the place and most of them are children who see something on TV and think it would be fun to do the same. What they don't realize is how dangerous this can be. Breaking into abandoned areas illegally is not safe, you never know what you are going to come across and most of the time the dangers are that of living people (i.e. gangs, homeless people, drug houses etc.) or instability of a foundation. These kids are putting themselves in danger by thinking this kind of thing is fun. This show in particular is marketed for children and I don't just blame these tweens that obviously don't know anything about the paranormal, but I blame the network. It's like handing a child a loaded gun. Kids are susceptible and look to others for guidance and to be role models. This type of show should NEVER have been green lighted, because it is going to cause more damage than good.

Whereas the show is completely fake and contrived, they are still filming in locations where paranormal activity has been documented. By putting these kids in places like this, it opens up a whole can of worms. They don't know what they are doing, they haven't spent 20 years learning as much as they can about the unknown and they are putting them in the position to have something happen to them that they are ill-equipped to handle. Every case is different, every situation is different. We are dealing with the unknown here and we are constantly learning and coming up with new theories, but the myth that a ghost or presence cannot hurt you is completely false. I have seen people hit, bit, scratched by things they cannot see, and until you experience those kinds of things with your own eyes, no words can explain how absolutely terrifying it can be. Why put children in this type of position? And you want to market this to 10 year olds who will want to go out and follow in their footsteps?

Of course The Othersiders information on locations and the "evidence" they come to find is completely set up. I know this because my team just did an investigation at the Morey Mansion in Redlands. Unbeknown to us, The Othersiders filmed there in January or February (which was told to us by the owner's son at time of arrival) and we were never told that this had been done until a few days prior to us investigating the property. David Morey did not die in the house and it is unknown if Sarah did or not. The misinformation this show puts forth makes it harder for legitimate investigative teams to do their jobs. When something starts circling on the internet is is harder to get down to to the truth. Thankfully we have a research and development part of our team that is able to access property information, birth and death certificates and the like to get the information we need.

Paranormal studies have just started to gain more clout due to shows like Ghost Hunters and people are starting to be more open-minded and give the field more credibility. Unfortunately The Othersiders hinders the paranormal community and it's reputation instead of helping it.

I don't care if you think Ghost Hunters is fake or whatever, everyone has their own opinion. The truth is yes, it is TV, but we have an obligation to draw the line somewhere. It's like making a show for kids like The Soprano's where kids are the mob and start offing people. You wouldn't want your kids watching that, would you?

The network needs to cancel this show for the safety of these kids and the kids that are going to follow in their footsteps. If they really want to learn about the paranormal there are so many reliable and trustworthy outlets out there, The Othersiders is not one of them.