X Review

I wanted to see the movie “X” for quite some time. I first heard it was going to be in theaters, and for whatever reason I just never got around to seeing it. I then waited for it to be available for streaming, and finally got it, so that I can see the overall hyped up movie. The movie had a simple premise, and it followed through with it quite well, leaving nothing to the imagination, and it’s an interesting ride, albeit not one that I may want to revisit soon.

The movie is simple enough, a group of people set out to make an adult film on a farm that they rented and turned into a makeshift studio. They follow the protocols that you would expect, only they end up being thwarted by an elderly couple that is seriously creepy. The old couple find out what is going on and they don’t want that to occur, so instead of stopping production the old fashioned way, they do so with blood and guts.

Overall, the movie is shot well, it has decent cinematography and the acting isn’t horrendous. I found myself enjoying the movie for the most part, and there were definitely sequences that gave it a good measure of success in the scares department. There’s some limited gore too, and that’s definitely something to look out for with horror movies, and the likes.

The pacing was solid in this movie, leaving no dead air or boring spots, as the movie progresses. It does have a few jump scares, but it doesn’t rely heavily on those, and that’s something that I can appreciate overall. There’s a sense of homage to the film overall and you really do get this sort of feeling that the filmmakers are playing up to a smart audience. With that in mind, you don’t really get too deep with the characters, and they are taken out one by one.

“X” surprised me in a way. I thought it was going to be a bit more blatant in horror, and for some reason I just couldn’t get myself to want to watch it over again. It’s adequate, it has some gusto, and it definitely provides a good sense of dread, with great special effects that are modern and classic at the same time. I’d recommend seeing “X” for sure, but owning it, I don’t know, I’m on the fence about it still. 

The Curse of La Llorona Review

As a Mexican I grew up with the folklore of La Llorona, and so it’s always interesting to see it become popularized in other mediums. I didn’t see this movie when it came out, but was aware that it was out. I decided to finally sit down and watch it, with my girlfriend who happens to have great taste.

The movie has a simple premise, a couple of kids get drowned by their mother, and then in 1973 an investigation into a family occurs in which strange things are happening to a couple of kids. As the investigation furthers, we find that there’s something supernatural going on, and it’s La Llorona, come back for revenge. But why? The film doesn’t really answer that question, so you have to just run with it.

Produced by James Wan, you would expect a lot more out of this movie, but honestly, there’s a lot that makes it fall apart in a way. One thing that I noticed was a heavy reliance on jump scares. There’s a lot of them, and it’s not that great, it becomes expected to the point where you may get bored, and when things aren’t jumping at you, you’ll find that things are just not that grand in terms of gore or anything.

This movie does have that taboo, targeting children. Children in horror aren’t usually the victims, but in this case it’s just part of the folklore so there’s a constant push against them. Linda Cardellini and Raymond Cruz do well in the movie, and the story flows fast. You’ll find that the movie doesn’t seem that long, and it progresses fast, regardless of the predictability of the story.

As far as a haunting style movie, it’s not terrible. It’s predictable, but it’s not something that I would watch again. That being said, you may like it. There’s a little something for everyone, despite the predictable nature of the film. It has some good atmosphere, it has some interesting moments, and it’s filmed well too. It looks good. It’s ok at best.

Head Count Review

I love a good creature feature, and when presented with an option to watch I jump at the chance. That’s what I was told about “Head Count”. It was supposed to be a creature feature, and when I sat down to watch it, I was treated with something else, and while it may be creative, it definitely was not what I was expecting. In fact, it could very well be one of the worst executions of a film in a long time.

The premise is simple enough at first glance. A group of teens go to the desert for a party, and they begin to drink and have fun. In their fun, something sinister appears, and they can’t figure it out. It turns out that it’s a shapeshifting creature that emulates each one of them, and causes them to attempt suicide. This occurs after a chant is accidentally spoke of, similar to “Candyman”, if you recall that film.

There are no deep connections in this movie. The characters talk a lot, and not in a good way, it just falls flat. The creature is awful CGI and the story is convoluted at best. There are moments of dread, but it falls short of impact because there is something missing here, and I am not sure how to put my finger on it.

Overall, “Head Count” tries to be different. It has some gusto at times, but overall it’s a movie that you can skip. I haven’t seen a movie this bad in a while, and honestly, I don’t know if I’d recommend this to anyone unless you really like bad convoluted horror. It’s got horror elements, it just falls flat.