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Phantom (2013)
Thrilling and claustrophobic submarine film reminiscent of days of great war movies!!
Go see this film - you will love it! It boasts a fantastic story - fascinating characters and an oh so quiet -but action-packed scene chewing! Ed Harris is one of the finest actors like, EVER- the second officer is William Fichtner, whom I didn't know, but you guys probably do. And of course David Duchovnny whom I adore,though he didn't convince me AT FIRST as believable his character - he plays a bad guy, a rogue KGB agent. But as the movie progressed, so did his character.Duchovny will always be "Fox Mulder" to me. Ed Harris elevates ANYTHING he does to a 10 for me, so for he and Fichtner's portrayal 10/10 all the way!
If you love war movies ( which I have from the time I was a little girl), if you love boat or submarine movies,(which I do) if you are terrified by the thought of nuclear annihilation ( which I have always been since my elementary school days of "Duck and Cover" and that giant awful and most destruction "mushroom cloud", which I have always), if you want to feel a knot of a tension ball in your gut, if you want to experience the claustrophobic , experience of a submariner GO SEE THIS FILM! Not a moment of it's short run time is wasted. Oh if you are late to the film by 5 minutes - you will miss our beloved Lance Hendriksen- so don't be late!(Boy , is he ever looking old!) This movie ain't" glasnost"( look it up kids)- and poses THEE most terrifying existential "what if" scenario. It draws you in immediately. Well done.
The Thing (2011)
Poor continuity, poor writing = mediocrity
MAJOR SPOILERS!!!!
PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN YET! Or maybe even John Carpenter's fantastic film.
"The Thing" paid homage to both previous versions, even "Alien/Aliens" which was great.The scenery was great outside, and inside too. Another plus, no romantic garbage.
But,now I'm going to rant !
Plot inconsistencies, anachronisms , poor character development, silly CGI, ruined it for me. There were few creepy moments- when the Thing is cut from the ice, the drilling for tissue, and my favorite scene of the entire film- the two-faced thing on all fours, searching room to room for the helicopter guy.
The most awful horror rule broken- we see the Creature much too early! That really bugged me.
Then ,all of a sudden , the last girl ( or is she?) is taking the entire operation of the camp away from the other researchers? So, she figures out the "diabolical" alien plot, just like that, not speaking to anyone? Academic politics even in Antarctica. Who knew? Plot holes, clichéd writing.
I learned the director always kept a copy of Carpenter's film near-by, to keep it real.He should have referred to it a great deal more.
And the camp personnel- who are they? Should we even care what happens to them? We know very little about them,so we really don't care what happens to them. With the exception of, maybe, two people -Lars and the girl. The rest are clichéd characters.Where was the slow and steady paranoia building to a climax? Yes, there was a little, which was good, but certainly no where near to Carpenter's.
And don't get me started about the dog!! We first see the dog, who appears to be some kind of large border collie. Maybe it's a northern breed of which I am not aware.But it WASN'T a damn husky!!!!! Where on Earth did the husky come from? AND I DIDN'T EVEN SEE IN THE CREDITS - THE EVER PRESENT 'NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS FILM'!!! WHAT GIVES?
The guy's earring?? Give me a break. Straight guys in 1982 weren't wearing earrings! And why would he touch the wrong lobe?
And what about the flat-screened computer in the girl's lab? Didn't know they had those in 1982 (sarcasm)
The doctor/alien thing in the spaceship reminded me of Buffy and Dr Who episodes. Silly.
So what happened to the girl at the end? Was she out of gas, or the cliffhanger, is she a Thing? This film screams sequel, sequel. Was Lars infected? Did he absorb the 'final girl'? Too many unanswered questions.
My recommendation - if you're a fan of science fiction horror you'll probably like it. If you're a 'creature feature' fanatic you'll probably like it. But if you are a very big fan of John Carpenter's 1982 film, or Howard Hawks' version ,the latter happens to be my favorite movie of ALL TIME,ANY GENRE, simply avoid. Completists will probably need to see this film. Everyone else, eh.
S. Darko (2009)
Complete and utter disregard for the Darko tale
This movie lacks the profundity of the original tale. The characters are wooden, uninteresting and stereotypical. There is a slap-dash , convoluted , abstract-wannabee plot.
It's apparent to me ,that neither writer nor director really recognizes the subtlety and poignancy which makes "Donnie" so special. It's as though they created a "Cliff Notes" of a movie. Elements of the first film, were tossed about in this sequel. I can hear them saying, "Let's throw in a bunny mask, that'll be cool. While we're at it, let's add some really cool time travel CGI".
If not for the darkness of the missing kids sub-plot, I can almost see this film as a parody. As soon as I saw the meteorite lesions on that one character, I thought of a 1950's B-movie creature feature.
I suppose if you want to find out what happens to the cute little 10 year-old Samantha Darko of the first film, you may want to check this out. But that's the only reason to see this film.
Isolation (2005)
"Alien "meets "Farmer in the Dell"
Spoilers!!!!!!!!! This movie started out very well. It was tension-filled, and had an eerie apprehension to it. A great setting and dreary atmosphere always manages to pull me in. I wasn't all that thrilled with the cow being harassed the way she was, but it was a necessity of the plot. ( I hope the indignities were not really being put upon the old girl).
But about the 2/3 mark, I think it just fizzled and was reduced to a bad attempt at "Alien". I'm not sure where I would have taken the plot, had I been the writer, but I feel it could have been so much better. I really can't recommend it for a horror 'go-round', but if you want to see a so-so attempt at some great settings, then take a look -see.
Altered (2006)
Pretty good, and with homage to some others
I was pleasantly surprised with Altered, and I really enjoyed it. The storyline is rather different than your run-of-the-mill alien abduction themes. However, it definitely pays homage to some classics.
Warning: intense language. Although, I don't mind some obscenities and vulgarities in movies when warranted, there were times that I thought the characters forced them gratuitously.
There is no nudity in this film (well, except for the alien!), nor is there sexual content.
I was also unimpressed with the woman's character. I think she added little to the plot. The actress portraying her was sub-par.
Spoilers!!!!!!!
The plot: some years ago, seven youths were abducted by aliens for experimentation. Present day, has some of them turning the tables on the aliens ,when they kidnap an alien scout. The alien escapes and havoc ensues.
Though a new take on this genre, I couldn't help but see similarities between this film and Predator - the illusive nature of the alien, the cat and mouse chase in the woods ,the design of the creature; Signs - the creature in the protagonist's home; Close Encounters of the Third Kind and the X-Files - alien spaceship shining lights into windows and freaky cacophony.
End spoilers!!!!!!
Overall, I recommend this film. If you can tolerate some cliché characters and dialogue , hover to your favorite store and abduct Altered.
Soft for Digging (2001)
Imaginative and spooky!
Don't be swayed by the naysayers. This is a wonderfully spooky film. This was a thesis project for the writer/director , JT Petty. He did a great job of having me on the edge of my seat. I never really knew what to expect, and for a jaded horror-movie goer, this is Nirvana! The film concerns an elderly man who lives in a isolated log cabin in the woods. One day, while searching for his cat in the woods, he witnesses the murder of a child, or does he? He agonizes about this the rest of the film. What is most unusual about this film is that here is no dialogue until the last few scenes. I found this to be intriguing. The writer manages to get hold of your senses and gives them a relentless tug. Give this film a go, you won't be disappointed.