Don't Breathe Review

Horror movies have a way of going to eleven fast, at least many of them. They jump at you and give you violence overall. Some of them, however, take their time, and wind you up before they get macabre. “Don’t Breathe” starts with a nod to the macabre, and then slowly introduces you to the characters. We are given slight back stories for the trio that we are dealing with, and you start to feel as though they are the protagonists. They are flawed heroes, each with their own vision of what their future wants and needs are, and yet they are the villains.

The way the story moves forward is simple enough, we have a trio of individuals that steal their way through life. There are different motives for each, and one that is heartfelt, but at the end of the day they are doing something bad, breaking and entering, in order to steal. So let’s not wax too poetic or feel good for these people. I’m just rambling now aren’t I?

The trio target an old man that supposedly has a 300,000 dollars in his home somewhere. They enter his house and they discover all kinds of wrong, including a woman tied up, and they get more than they bargained for trying to get out of the home.

“Don’t Breathe” is a slow moving, atmospheric horror movie. I would make it more akin to a thriller than straight horror, but it was in the horror section so I’ll keep it that way. The movie is tightly wound, and doesn’t let up in the tension department. You don’t want to root for the characters, but you’re intrigued as to what is beyond closed and locked doors. What we find is unsettling, and something that you don’t expect overall. The old man fights back, and that’s what our main characters get in a way, but the movie makes you feel for Rocky, giving the movie a little heart.

The movie has a sense of movement, quality pacing, and pulls the right punches at the right time. I liked how it is organized, and like how things aren’t always black and white. “Don’t Breathe” hits you hard at times, and squeezes through the plot with ease. It has atmosphere, and it is tense throughout. It’s a highly recommended movie with horror, heart, and sheer intensity.

Add “Don’t Breathe” to your collection or stream it byclicking here.

Cold Creek Manor Review

Modern horror escapes me a bit, because I usually am lost in the 1980s or something. “Cold Creek Manor” came across my desk and I didn’t want to see it at first glance. It didn’t really appeal to me at first, but then I gave it a try, and decided it was well worth my time, especially with a cast that featured good actors. Dennis Quaid and Sharon Stone are starring so that’s a plus side, making this an interesting option overall. The plot is simple enough, a family wants to get out of the hustle and bustle of the city so they decide to buy an old mansion somewhere far from the city, and they plan on fixing it all up. However, things go awry when the original owner shows up and haunts them, causing a world of chaos for them to have to deal with overall.

The movie looks good, and that’s due in large part to the budget. This was not a made for DVD movie or anything like that, and it shows the way the film is setup, as well as the quality of the acting. The plot takes some time to develop. It crawls at times, trying to build tension, and it just never feels too scary. Is “Cold Creek Manor” scary? Nope. “Cold Creek Manor” just kind of meanders its way through the plot points, and they are ridiculous at times.

The family is convinced to hire the old owner, and things just go awry from there. Weird things start to happen, including being chased in a vehicle, snakes being found in the home, and a horse dying. These are all supposed to lead us to believe that Dale is the main culprit, and well, there’s no reason to not believe it since he is the one issue that keeps coming up.

I gave “Cold Creek Manor” a fair chance. I watched it, and I mulled it over, and can’t recommend it. It’s convoluted at best. There’s no reason why a family well off enough to own the property would hire some stranger to fix things up, even if he lived there before. There’s a deeper story to the house, and of course Dale causes some issues too, but meh, by the time you find that all out, you have most likely given up on the movie. I know I wanted to throw in the towel several times. It’s not a great movie, and while it visually looks ok, it just can’t salvage a slow moving plot design. I don’t recommend it. 

The Evil Within Review

Creepy movies usually have stellar openings, and some of my favorites come to mind when it comes to that notion. “The Evil Within” goes for the gusto right away, with a full blown creep factor of nightmares. In fact, you aren’t going to expect it, as the movie pulls no punches in positioning our  main character in the nightmare that is unbalancing his core. Is he dreaming? What is real? In first person narration you hear the story start to unfold and it’s one that features an unnerving juxtaposition of dream and reality, with set pieces that are truly macabre.

There’s a real creative push in this one, and while the plot slowly develops, it does so with good imagination. By the time you’re introduced to a more horrific creature, you’re ready for it, and you feel for the main character, especially with his mental disability. You cheer for him, even though the nightmares and the mirror become the central pivot of the scary moments. The scares are done well, and there’s a bit of gore overall.

The effects are good, there’s a good practical nature to some of them, and there’s CG involved too. However, it looks good throughout, and the story unfolds with great focus on the growing nightmares that our main character has, even if the pacing stalls at some points. Despite the hiccups, the threat of the nightmares grows and we get a centralized horror figure that wants everyone dead, and our hero conflicted, and being pushed into things further and further through the mirror that is setup.

The identity crisis in movies is not my favorite, I’ve written about that beforehand. I don’t appreciate the lazy element of it, but in this movie it works. It works in a lot of movies, I admit, but I used to hate it more. This one plays on that and really pushes your buttons, making it a crazy movie at times.

“The Evil Within” is a good psychological horror picture. It slowly tightens your senses, and squeezes your synapses, making you empathize at times, and then realize you’re hero is not really a hero at all. It has heart, it has fear, it’s a good character study, and I recommend it for sure.

Add “The Evil Within” to your DVD collection or stream it byclicking here.

The Shining Review

“The Shining” is one of my favorite books. I loved the characters that Stephen King put together, and the flow of the novel, and ending was great. There’s a lot of tension built into the book, and it is not like the movie. In fact, from what I’ve read, King though the movie was not as good as the book and took too many liberties. That caused friction to the point where King had a mini-series made that was closer to the books more dramatic moments.

There’s not much more that can be said about the movie that hasn’t been said already, but then again, the point of blogging about cinema is not always so cut and dry. I am well aware that there’s plenty of reviews of this movie, so what my thoughts are, well, are my own and therefore worth posting right? I don’t know, I’m rambling.

The plot is very simple for The Shining. A hotel requires someone to keep watch over the winter months, and so a family moves in. The movie follows Jack Torrance and his family in a peaceful, serene, isolated location. He’s a writer and he is looking forward to getting to work on his novel, and getting time away from the big city. Through the course of the movie however, he begins to go mad. The hotel has a history, and a tragic past, leading to the hotel to be haunted with the past. This causes Jack to go nuts, and try to kill his family.

Jack Nicholson puts on one hell of a performance in this movie, making it one hell of a visual throughout. He really resonates on screen, and Shelley Duvall does great as Wendy. I found myself glued to the screen, even though I’ve seen this movie many times over. Stanley Kubrick’s direction is great too, pushing the cinematic scope to the limits, making every shot, and visual design flow look perfect. There’s great cinematography on this one, and it has stellar sound to boot.

“The Shining” can be a little slow for some, but the way that it is presented, and the overall story captures the imagination and doesn’t let go. It’s a solid movie that deserves the praise it gets, and is definitely worth your time if you haven’t seen it in a while. I highly recommend it.

Check out The Shining on Blu Ray by clicking here, or stream it, I don’t care. 

Last Shift Review

There’s something about being isolated, and alone in a job. I used to sell caskets for a living, and that job had me alone with a lot of caskets all day and night. It was a job that left me with a lot of boredom, and well, it just wasn’t fun at times. Dead jobs are relatable to me, so when I heard about “Last Shift” I immediately thought about that isolation. However, the movie is a lot more horrific than anything I had to deal with, even though the premise starts out quite simply.

The movie is about a cop that is working the last shift at a station. As she moves through her shift, a madman shows up and starts to cause trouble. Then as the movie progresses, so does the strange happenings, and a lot of things just don’t seem right. We’re talking supernatural moments, with locked doors, moving chairs, and lots of jump scares to cause you alarm.

“Last Shift” does a good job in presenting the isolation of working overnight in a building, let alone a police station. There’s a sense of boredom that our main character feels at first, and then things go off the rails as the film progresses. There are plenty of jump scars, as I stated, and there’s an attention to details related to the loneliness and boredom that comes with isolation. However, the movie takes a turn into the macabre several times, and you are in for a great treat if you stick with it.

The pacing is a little slow at first, but it slowly builds drama, and eventually unleashes a torrent of scary moments. It isn’t full of gore, it features very few people involved, and it just simply works on several levels. You don’t need much to make a good horror or psychological film, and “Last Shift” is definitely one of them. It has a lot of tension, and supernatural elements to make you keep watching. Even though it starts off slow, it picks up just in time and leaves you enjoying the moments. It’s not the best movie, but man does it get you at times. I liked it. I recommend it, and of course you should check it out.

Add “Last Shift” to your dvd collection or stream it byclicking here. 

Maniac Review

There’s just something about the 1980s. I can’t seem to move away from the decade when it comes to horror movies for review on this blog. I find myself with a list to go through and well, I’ll get through it eventually. Today we focus on a movie from 1980 that was shot on a tight budget, and features all the makings of a slasher, it’s called “Maniac”.

The plot is simple enough, we are introduced to a maniac, hence the title, who is on a serial spree of killing. The action starts up fast, and the first ten minutes give us an initial look at the villain and what he does, only for him to wake up from a dream lying next to a victim. The opening credits showcase our villain much like “Nightmare on Elm Street” did, giving us a look at the villain in different light, but mostly darkness. The movie flows well enough, focusing on various characters and their routines, only to come face to face with the killer. It’s a straight forward slasher in that way.

“Maniac” is an odd film at times, focusing on characters you can’t really invest in overall. It’s definitely a product of the time, and it flows well, with a focus on the brutality of the slayings, and good special effects from Tom Savini. I found that to be interesting overall, and the framework of the movie to be good. I didn’t find myself bored at any time, which sometimes happens with some of these older slashers. If there was a critique to this, it would be that the movie focuses on the killer more than any other character, so it really is a character study more than a  standard horror movie where you get a protagonist up front doing a lot of work to capture the villain.

There’s some gore, especially with the scalping that goes on. Tom Savini’s special effects are always great to see, and he does a good job with this one. I appreciated the practical effects, which you don’t always get with modern horror movies today. “Maniac” lives up to its name, it features a sick villain, and a story that is very much in the horror category. It’s an exploitation film for sure, and something that will rattle you if you’re not a fan of this type of horror film. That being said, I recommend “Maniac” for anyone that is looking for a cult film.

Add "Maniac" to your DVD collection by clicking here!

Splatter University Review

We return to the 1980s and this time around we are going to take a look at a Troma Entertainment release. The budget on this was very low, and it shows, but hey, that doesn’t necessarily mean the movie is bad, right? “Splatter University” is a low budget slasher film, and it has a lot to offer, even with a limited budget, and it is a surprise I didn’t see it sooner than I did.

The plot revolves around an escaped insane asylum patient that goes on a killing spree. Through the movie, however, you don’t see where he lands and when the body count starts to rise, things get hectic and fingers start getting pointed. There’s a sense of “Giallo” in this one, as you only see the knife that kills, and nothing else. It’s interesting to see  how that works, but it’s an effective way to slash. After the body count starts to rise, there’s a reveal of the killer and you start to root for the final girl, even though this breaks tradition.

The pacing of the movie is a little slow at times. I found myself wondering when the next victim was going to take a fall. However, whenever I started to think that, something would happen and things would definitely ramp up. The music is good, the shots are ok, and the kills are creatively done in first person view. There’s a sense of suspense throughout and there’s even a misdirection with who the killer could be, making this an above average slasher if you ask me.

“Splatter University” is not going to win any awards, and of course it didn’t. It’s a movie that diehard horror fans are going to love, and casual viewers will watch once and move on. I for one think it’s not half bad, and would rate it a 3 out of 5, with some good overall action, and interesting premise. It’s straight to the point, gives you a good deal of shock, and well, I won’t ruin it, just watch the movie and see if it’s up your alley, I know it was up mine for sure.

Orphan: First Kill Review

I reviewed “Orphan” a while ago, and I did not see the sequel right away. I saw that it came out, but I didn’t know when I would be watching it, until now. I finally sat down to check it out, and while the original had a twist to get me, this time around we knew that there was something wrong with the main character. That may have been the main reason why the first got me, while this one seemed to tread water at times.

The plot of “Orphan: First Kill” focuses on a young child that is really an adult. We know this from the first film, and while she is locked up in a mental institution, she learns how to escape and gets moving forward with a new plot. She poses as a lost girl and gets united with a couple in the United States. She poses as Esther, and the parents in the United States assume it was their lost child. This of course proves disastrous as the story unfolds and they find out that Esther is more than meets the eye, and is really a grown woman.

The movie starts swiftly, and doesn’t really hold up at first. You get thrown into the situation that would lend itself to the rest of the film with ease, and there’s some disturbing moments. The body count begins fast, and that’s one thing to appreciate with this movie, it pulls no punches to start. However, it pumps the brakes and slows down some, causing some sort of break in communication. I found myself a little bored in the middle, with the slow moving process of Esther getting to know her family and the family having doubts that it’s really her to begin with. As the movie progresses, however, the tension starts to really pull you in, and the third act really brings about some strong horror elements.

Overall “Orphan: First Kill” lacks the secret weapon of the first movie. The first movie held that secret and was well paced, delivering interesting moments, and sub plot to allow you to really get hooked. This one, knowing the premise already, really hurts it, and causes you to second guess the need for the movie to begin with. That aside, it is a strong horror movie with thriller elements, and really pushes some buttons towards the end. While it is a good enough movie, I don’t think it is as good as the first release, and it really does seem too slow at times. I didn’t hate the movie, don’t get me wrong, I just felt that it was missing something, or really just didn’t do the original justice, at least not like I expected. 

Howling IV Review

“Howling 4” is the fourth movie in the “Howling” franchise, and it is not what you expect. Instead of continuing the original story, the producers decided to remake the original in a way, and it was so good it went straight to video. This did not have a theatrical release, and it shows. Fans of werewolf movies will definitely want to seek this one out, and those that love the series, will be in for a surprise, as I was for sure.

The plot is simple enough, a woman is having dreams of a wolf, and she is starting to panic. To offset that she goes to a secluded cabin in the woods where she can rest with her boyfriend. However, things go from bad to worse as she keeps seeing wolf attacks in her dreams, and slowly causes her distress. I do mean slowly because the movie has a pacing that is snail pace. I managed to watch the whole film, and while I did like the throwback to the original, I found myself bored with the way the production went through certain channels. If you’re a fan of werewolf movies, then you’ll no doubt expect to see transformation, battles with the wolf, and more, but you don’t get a lot of that with this movie. In fact, this is lacking in a lot of horror ways, which is disappointing considering the name. I found myself a bit taken a back as a result.

There is some good overall symbolism, don’t get me wrong, but the majority of this movie is slow moving. It’s so slow that I almost turned it off at one point. However, because I’m a fan of horror, I stuck with it, and saw it through to the end. I don’t necessarily recommend this one, but there are horror movie collectors that will want to have the collection and for that I say go for it. If you’re not a collector, then I would say you can skip this one. You’re not missing much with “Howling 4”, and it’s a shame. I really had high hopes for it. There are some practical effects in this one, and while the third act and final act do have some compelling moments, it is a slow burn that makes you really wait for that to come. If you hang on to the film as a whole, you’re going to get treated to some cool moments, but only diehard fans of werewolf movies are going to recommend this one. I definitely don’t, but I managed to sit through the whole thing. 

The Fly II Review

The original Fly movies are interesting, and were science fiction classics. Then a release in 1986 came out, and it blew away the critics and those that watched it. Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis really did a great job in that movie, and it truly was an interesting science film. It was grotesque as much as it was dramatic and it really did a great job in positioning the question of man playing god. Now, if you loved that film, you’re going to be sour when you really look at what “The Fly II” has to offer, and that’s the best I can say about the movie at first.

The plot is simple enough, we are treated to several months after the original movie, and we see the birth of a new fly, but this time around a baby is born through the sack that comes out of the woman, that’s supposed to be Geena Davis, but isn’t. There is a growing sequence and stops where we learn more about the child, and the child is doing well and rapidly aging working through various tests and different things to see if he’s normal, which of course we all know he isn’t.

Now, the story isn’t too bad, it’s slow and definitely lacks the depths of the original, but you have to accept that as a sequel. The filmmakers assume that you’ve already seen the original, so they aren’t going to do much to keep that balance, I think. There’s a great deal of gore in this one, and they try to make it a bit more grotesque than David Cronenber’s version, which is quite good overall. The effects and gore really make this one a worthwhile sequel if you ask me, but aside from that, the movie derails with some outlandish story telling. You’re going to either love or hate “The Fly II” as it really doesn’t do much to continue the saga, as much as it tries to position itself as something different, but can’t seem to really get going. I did appreciate the effects though, and I’d watch it again just for that, because it has some cool moments, but overall, it’s a slow moving horror movie that tries to be better than the original, but can’t hold a candle. It’s just not the same. I’d go with the original more than this one, but as a collector, I have to recommend this one as well. 

Bloody Birthday Review

Ah yes, the 1980s slasher genre. There are so many slasher movies that came out in the 1980s that it is hard to keep track of them all, but we do what we can here at Scary Film Review to get to them even if it takes us years to do so. We are upwards of 916 posts, mind you, so that’s something to celebrate. With that in mind we took a look at the horror movie from 1981, “Bloody Birthday”.

The movie starts off easy enough, three children are born on the same night, during a solar eclipse. These children grow up to become sinister as they begin to slowly terrorize their small town, murdering adults. The movie throws you into the scenario fast, with the first kill within ten or so minutes of the movie’s starting point. Although, at first glance you don’t know who is doing the sinister deeds, it becomes apparent that the three kids are not so innocent. Mix that up with some nudity, and a small body count, alongside adults that are in disbelief and you have yourself some of the standard tropes of a slasher film.

As far as the movie’s plot is concerned it’s thin. It’s not too heavy, but it doesn’t need to be, and it flows well. The movie is paced well, and you get through the motions fast, and with a certain level of dread, and emotion. Even though the deaths are done, there isn’t a complete gore factor. In fact, they nuanced the death sequences so that it’s not as punishing to the senses as some other flicks in the genre. That being said, it almost doesn’t feel like a grindhouse or a traditional horror feature. The camera cuts away at times, and you get sharp edits that leave you knowing what happened but not necessarily seeing it go down. Even the final death isn’t caught on camera, as you see the cause and effect, but not the literal transition, making this an interesting little horror movie to take a note of overall.

“Bloody Birthday” is not going to win any new fans to the genre of horror. It is not slick, it is not produced well, and it hasn’t aged very well either. While I found the pacing to be good, and the notion of killer kids fascinating, the movie lacks a sense of balance and story. There is just something missing, and perhaps it’s the heart of a protagonist that you want to cheer for, if nothing else. It’s a solid movie, don’t get me wrong, it just seems to be something for the horror fan, and no one else. Even some casual horror watchers will turn it off, as it is not rewarding, and ultimately leaves you with nothing more than a sense of dread over solar eclipses, children, and their sinister ways. It’s a nice twist on the slasher genre, but it’s lacking, and therefore I probably won’t be watching it too many times over. But you may think differently, especially with blu ray releases of the movie. 

Annihilation Review

I admit, I don’t always see movies when they come out. It takes a bit of time for me to catch up with a lot of modern stuff. That’s not to say that I don’t come around to them, but it just takes a little longer than the average blog. Then again, this is not your average blog, so there’s that going for it. Today we are looking at the 2018 movie “Annihilation”, and it’s a doozy in some ways, and a dud in others.

If you go by the numbers, you’ll find that the movie flopped, and it didn’t seem to find an audience when it came out. In fact, it made roughly less than the budgeted amount, and when people saw it, they weren’t exactly thrilled with what the movie was like. I didn’t know what to expect when I came into this movie, but it seemed interesting enough.

The plot features a biologist and a team of scientists and former military personnel that go into special mission to a lighthouse that has been covered in some sort of mist. This is called the Shimmer, and the team must go in, get some samples and come out, something that no one has done before. With the sole exception of Lena’s husband Kane, who is our main protagonist.

In the Shimmer things start to unravel and our group starts to turn on one another and gets picked off one by one with nature fighting back. The team slowly dissolves and you are face to face with some mythical creatures, mutations, and much more as the movie progresses. The team also begins to lose their minds, which is an interesting trope that is common in these types of movies.

Overall, “Annihilation” is an interesting movie but I must warn you, it is a slow burn. The slow burn is broken up with some scenes of chaos and violence, but there is a lot of walking around and waiting. If you are patient, though, you’re going to get hit with some good effects, nice character acting and good overall story. I found the story to be captivating, and interesting through several chapters. The final act is a little flat, but getting there really is a ride that is worth taking. The movie features a good cast including Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Oscar Isaac and more. Overall, this is a good science fiction movie that fell under the radar of most, and is really worth taking time out to see it. It’s not for everyone, but for those that can appreciate a moody science fiction film, this is definitely going to be a good one to check out.