Ghostbusters Review

The amount of hate that hit this movie before it was released was shocking. People apparently love to hate on anything and everything. The saddest part for me is that they make money off of this. I have been reviewing horror movies and culture on this site and others, and yet I don’t make a dime. I try, but no one buys anything, no ad companies are asking to help, and I can’t even find writers to help me write reviews. I forge on alone, and well, that’s not a bad thing, but it’s draining sometimes. So much negativity. Well, I put on my pants, and I went into see this travesty that some called it, and you know what? I didn’t know what to really expect. Ghostbusters opened this past weekend, and I got 2 tickets, a large soda, a large popcorn, and a very good Ecto Cooler cocktail at the AMC bar before the show.

Ghostbusters is a fun movie. It starts out really hard, and then softens up a little. The jokes are not insane, they are subtle at times, they are fun too. This is not the 1980s, and the pacing of this movie shows it. Things go by a little faster. The cinematography wasn’t terrible, the story wasn’t insane, but rather in line with a lot of the elements that you would expect from the series.

The acting was not bad, the movie heralded some good, overall moments. I didn’t hate anything I saw in this movie, and at times, I wanted to join in on throwing tomatoes. Instead, the plot of a few scientifically driven women to capture paranormal activity was done well. From the opening to the finale, I had a good amount of fun with Ghostbusters. I didn’t take it too seriously, and I viewed it with an open mind.

I am older than most of the idiots that are talking bad about this movie. I loved this. I really wished I had a daughter to share the amount of empowerment showcased in this movie. The standout for me was the interaction between the women. There’s a lot of little things, from hand gestures, to looks, to smiles, that make this movie fun. The plot is simple. Someone’s trying to open up portals to ghosts and become a super power. It’s up to these women to stop it. The movie then moves forward into a hero’s story with this team getting through some great visual effects, and some fun musical cues.

There’s a lot of cameos that you may not realize, and some that are absolutely obvious. Overall, Ghostbusters didn’t deserve the hate. Not even from the Angry Video Game Nerd, which has let the money go to his head. Must be nice to be rich. I’m not. I loved this movie, and am still impressed with some of the set designs and notes that made it into this movie. Look, if you love movies, you will love this. It’s a popcorn flick, simple as that. It’s not meant to be Oscar Award Winning cinema, and it never feels that way. So there you have it, go see it, disagree with me, and review it for yourself. Don’t let idiots sway you, this is a fun romp.

Love the original Ghostbusters? Then here's the complete box set for the originals, buy it before they change it for good:

Nailbiter Volume 1: There Will Be Blood Horror Comic Book Review

I have been on a little break from viewing horror movies, simply because I have reached horror review number 890 with that last opus. So today, I wanted to talk about a book that I recently picked up and read. It’s a graphic novel volume of the first few comics from the Nailbiter series. I had nothing to really consider about this option, other than the cover. They say you shouldn’t judge a book by the cover, but I say, you should always do so! Judge it, and read it!

Nailbiter is written and illustrated by Joshua Williamson, Adam Guzowski, and Mike Henderson. These guys have created one well of a story, and it is not too unlike what made “True Detective” such an epic first season run.

The story of Nailbiter follows an NSA agent, and local sheriff in Buckaroo, Oregon. This city is famous for producing the 16 serial killers, all of which are absolutely insane, and horrific. Why this town? Why now? Well, a fire, a murder, and a lot more mystery starts to unravel in the pages of this horror comic series, and it holds you tight, until you absolutely buckle.

I loved the way that the dialogue flowed, the images showcasing just enough gore, and the frightening elements found within the narrative. Nailbiter does a good job of going for gusto, and then reeling back when you have been hit with something heavy visually and dramatically. It’s a solid focus that will absolutely give you chills, and make you think through the last page.

Nailbiter asks the question, “Where do serial killers come from”, and then knocks out an answer that will stun you. It’s a work of great fiction, rooted in the detective narratives, and horror movies that you may love. This is a thrilling first round up, and one that will make you a true believer, no doubt.

You can pick up Nailbiter Volume: There Will Be Blood by clicking here, it’s well recommended.

Late Phases Review

If you have been following me along 800 plus reviews, then you know I love a good werewolf movie. I love the concept. I even gave an escort a copy of “Howling II” when I was in Las Vegas one year. She wanted to be a writer, and told her that she would benefit from writing about werewolves. It was a brief encounter, but last I checked she was in San Francisco writing for the Huffington Post. Good for you! As for this movie, it’s a different kind of werewolf movie. It is a drama that was directed by Adrian Garcia Bogliano. This was his first attempt at an English language movie and he knocked it out of the park if you ask me. Written by Eric Stolze, and starring Nick Mamici, Ethan Embry, and Lance Guest, this is a tightening screw of a horror film that pushes your emotional buttons until it breaks down your guard and eats your heart out. Like that? Good!

The plot is simple. A blind veteran moves to a small town. He wants to live on his own and doesn’t like a lot of people. One night a werewolf visits him and attacks, his dog goes down and he has to kill it. It’s a gut wrenching scene, especially since seeing eye dogs are masterful helpers and well this guy is now left without his best friend and guide. He thinks a werewolf is at play, and through the course of the movie you see him gearing up for a fight.


Pick Up Late Phases Blu Ray (click image)

Meanwhile the villain is turning all the individuals in the town into wolves, and things are going to rise up, creeping closer. As the body count starts to rise, our main hero, Ambrose, gets ready to take on werewolves, all the while blind, mind you. The ultimate battle takes on a very unique twist, with our hero’s disability taking center stage.

Late Phases has a lot of dramatic leads. It is a slow moving fire. I disagree with “Shock Till You Drop” completely. I do NOT think that they were going for a “Bubba Ho-Tep” vibe at all. That is ludicrous, and stupid to compare. This is not the same, it’s not a comedy in my opinion. Needless to say, this movie is far more dramatic than you may think. It has some serious soul, feeling, and then when you think it’s done, it unleashes the wolves.

Look, the wolves aren’t great. The costuming is lackluster, but the transition was good, and the overall meaning isn’t lost. The bites, the gore, and the horror that sets in is vibrant, with a lot to offer even the most jaded of horror fan. This is a well put together movie, regardless of what pundits said about it. It’s acted well enough, and it truly has a heart. I liked it. I liked the climax, and the overall visual tone of the movie. The “sheep’s” clothing metaphor works just as well here as it did in “Stephen King’s Silver Bullet”. I recommend this one, I liked it a lot, and think that “Late Phases” is worth checking out.

You can purchase “Late Phases” by clicking here, and reviewing it yourself, you know you want to.

Stalled Review

What would you do if you were in the bathroom when the zombie apocalypse happened? Seriously? What would you do? That’s the premise that comes forward in this cult classic, Stalled. Stalled is a movie that I didn’t want to watch for a while, but eventually had to, because I didn’t want this site to die. So here we go, my thoughts and opinions about one of the cleverest zombie movies I’ve seen in a long time. I kid you not, this was creative, and fun.

Stalled came out in 2013. I was aware of the movie, but didn’t really watch it at the time. The movie was written and directed by Dan Palmer, and boy did he do a good job. Hats off to you Mr. Palmer, what a hell of a movie you created, with the help of others of course, but still, this is written very well if you ask me. Of course, no one asked me. If you are looking for a zombie Christmas movie, here it is, a Christmas treat with zombies and a bathroom stall from hell!

The plot is simple. W.C. is a maintenance guy at a high rise and he gets trapped inside of a bathroom stall when the zombie apocalypse goes down. That’s it. Simple plot, and it slowly moves forward into a nightmare. The movie progresses from W.C’s point of view. He eventually realizes that there is a girl in another stall, and the two try to escape, only for the woman to eventually has an emotional crisis about being fat, and gets eaten alive while our anti-hero ends up watching through a peep hole. There’s an identity crisis going on, and I wrongfully thought that it was another cheap ending, but nope, this was smart, it swerved me.

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Overall the gore is tight, the cinematography is good. However, I do have one major critique. The camera stops moving a lot. There are times when you don’t hear anything, and the camera is fixed, with nothing going on. It’s worse than Kevin Smith’s early work. That’s really jarring, but perhaps the method is to get you nervous, sucked into the plot, and waiting for what goes on next. Whatever the case is, Stalled really picks up steam in the third act and never lets go.

There’s comedy, there’s horror, there’s gore, and there’s even a little hot lesbian action! (I kid, but not really)

At the end of the day, Stalled is one of my favorite horror movies that features zombies. This is a quick, 84 minute romp through a “what if” scenario that you no doubt have talked about with your friends, while throwing back a few drinks. I loved it. Even though the pacing was a bit off sometimes, and the quality of film isn’t on par with a lot of mainstream releases, this British horror movie got me hooked fast. I recommend checking it out, especially for the brain bashing toilet humor that is sewn throughout. Great job!

You can purchase Stalled on DVD by clicking here, and why wouldn’t you? It’s damn good!

Blood Lake Review

Blood Lake here is NOT the porno

A while back I was told to check out Blood Lake. So I finally did. Well, was I surprised to find out that Blood Lake was a pornographic movie that was put out by WCA. If you’re into hardcore, perhaps this is for you, but alas, I was then redirected, as this is NOT the horror movie that I was supposed to watch. But hey, we all make mistakes, right?

The Asylum production studio put out what should be an instant classic with their science fiction, horror movie, that was in conjunction with Animal Planet, of all people. James Cullen Bressack is the director of this one, and it was released in 2014. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and honestly, can’t really say it’s terrible, but I can’t really say that it’s spectacular either.

The movie’s plot revolves around lampreys, which have mutated and are breeding like crazy. These are invading a small town and it’s up to animal control to stop it all. With a limited cast starring Shannen Doherty, Jason Brooks, Christopher Lloyd and others, this one is a shoe string, made for television horror movie with a lot of slow moving plot steps. By the time you get moving through the majority of the movie, you’re grateful to see anything go down.

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The computer graphics in this one are on par with what you’d expect from ScyFy, so I can’t really say much to that. The movie is ok, it is paced slowly, the cast goes through their lines with a semblance of ability, but honestly, it’s not grand. I tried to like this one, but more often, I was shut down by lackluster effects, non-sensical reactions, and attempts at gore.

As far as made for television horror movies, this is not a terrible movie. It’s not the worst thing I’ve ever seen. However, it is far from the best. I wouldn’t recommend Blood Lake from The Asylum, unless you’re a collector or horror movies, are a diehard fan of the actors, or stream it for free. It’s just not worthwhile, in my book. I won’t see it again.

You can always pick up Blood Lake on dvd by clicking here, if you so desire.

The Twilight Zone Season 1 Episode 7 The Lonely

A Prisoner Falls In Love With A Realistic Robot? What is Love? 

One of my favorite movies from the past few years was “Ex Machina”. But did you know that the Twilight Zone explored this notion long ago? Seriously. On November 13, 1959 the notion of loving machine came into play, and it really shook things up. Rod Serling once again tapped into a very unique circumstance, and gets you thinking about the “What if” factors of what love is. Long before movies started to come into play with this, you are going to think about sex, love, and loneliness when it comes to robots, artificial intelligence, and the realities of loneliness in the seventh episode of the first season of The Twilight Zone.

The plot of this one is simple, as many are. A prisoner is cast off to a planet, alone. He wants to go back to Earth, but the powers that be won’t let him. The same time warp that was in “Interstellar” is described here, as a crew comes to the planet to check in on the prisoner. They say that there is no hope and he is going to stay put. He is given food, and supplies, and the crew leaves. Later a box arrives and in that box is a woman. A woman that is in fact a robot, but has all the elements of humanity, including synthetic skin, and anatomical elements, with an artificial intelligence that feels, cries, and more. It’s essentially a sex robot, come on. The prisoner doesn’t want her at first, but over time, learns to love this robot woman.

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The crew comes back. And our prisoner named Corry is allowed to go back to earth! However, they have to leave in 20 minutes, and that’s it. The crew that is there to pick him up only has room for him and a few of his things, and not the robot, whom is named Alicia. Corry screams and runs after the robot, and swears that he loves her, and that she loves him, only to find out that the world is a cold, cold place, with Alicia taking a gunshot to the face and dying.

What is love? Can you love a robot? The story here is fascinating, and it truly is epic in light of “Ex Machina” and the themes presented in that movie. There are only 5 people in this cast, and yet you get full emotion. Jack Warden and Jean Marsh put on a good performance, and you really start to feel for the lonely. But reality sets in and shakes you up. What is love? You’re left thinking as Rod Serling’s narration gives you a jolt.

“On a microscopic piece of sand that floats through space is a fragment of a man's life. Left to rust is the place he lived in and the machines he used. Without use, they will disintegrate from the wind and the sand and the years that act upon them. All of Mr. Corry's machines, including the one made in his image, kept alive by love, but now obsolete.”

And that my friends, makes for one of the best episodes of The Twilight Zone yet. It’s beyond good, seek it out. Buy the box set, holy crap. It’s an intellectual proponent that you can easily study as an academic, or at least enjoy as entertainment.

The Twilight Zone Season 1 Episode 6 The Escape Clause Review

The Twilight Zone Explores Immortality 

What if you could be immortal? Would you go for it? That’s the question posed with the sixth episode of the first season of The Twilight Zone. In this case, “The Escape Clause” is the title, and it stars David Wayne, Thomas Gomez, and several others. It was first aired in 1959, and it really does showcase an interesting premise. One that we have explored in horror literature and movies for quite some time. Often, it’s the werewolf or the vampire that lives forever, but what if you didn’t have to be either?

Walter Bedeker is always thinking he is sick; he thinks he’s dying. But out of the blue comes a rogue. The devil shows up and tells him that he can in fact make sure that he lives forever. There is of course an escape clause, and Bedeker can choose to die when he’d like. Simple enough, right?

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What would you do? I don’t know what I would do, it’d be insane. Bedeker in this case uses his immortality to try and collect on a lot of money. He throws himself into insane situations, and collects money from accidents. After he gets bored of all of this, he ends up losing his wife to a fall off a roof. He admits he murdered her, hoping to go the electric chair and surviving, but nope. He gets life in prison and that’s where he asks for the escape.

And that’s that. It’s not a huge twist, but one that got me thinking yet again. This is a morality tale at heart, and one that asks what you would do with immortality? I don’t know what I would do. I can’t imagine living forever, unless I had a bit of money. I guess that’s the big deal here. Money. One has to live, right? And forever? What a cost! Oh well. This is just an example of how great Serling’s mind was. There is only one Rod Serling, and this morality play showcases that. I loved it.