Second Look at Videodrome

When you think about the best films in blu ray, you may not immediately think about this one. However, this is an example of when technology delivers on all fronts with something amazing. For those that aren’t familiar with this movie, you are going to be blown away as it is a marvelous work of satire, oddity, and horror. We are introduced to a character that is not only obsessed, but turns into an all-out psycho amidst a flurry of visualizations that you are probably not going to see with any other movie out there. Videodrome is one of the best examples of creativity and horror elements and definitely deserves another look.

People sometimes remember this movie as a James Woods movie more than they do a Cronenberg flick, but it’s definitely one of his better ideas and movies, regardless of which person you are going to credit most between the two. The story carries through Woods’s character hallucinating and trying to figure out what is wrong with his television and as the movie progresses he realizes that it’s up to him to not only solve the riddle but destroy what very well may be the most elaborate brain control device. The movie has a stark realization throughout that points to the notion that television is controlling us all. Just think, how much time do you spend watching television in any form? You may find that this is all too real, all too real.

Throughout the dreams, the Videodrome emits violence, sex, and a variety of other things that are playing to drive the main character mad. He completely loses it and in the end, we find that the only end of the manipulating is an untimely end of it all as the main character drops out of touch with reality, permanently. For those that read into a variety of things, this is going to be one of the more elusive pieces of entertainment that you watch, until you look more into the ideas, origins, and story behind the creation of the script and production.

When you consider Criterion collection films, you will find that this is one of the better options out there. It not only captures the original movie with great precision, but makes it so much more enhanced. You’ll definitely find yourself wrapped up in Max’s world of illusion and insanity, and beyond a shadow of a doubt, if you watch it late night with the sound up, you could very well be scared to death. (ok not death) Videodrome is one of the absolute best examples of how you can mix imagery, satire, and horror all into one unflinching movement. Cronenberg does that to his audience and it wouldn’t be pulled off without the fact that this is very much a James Woods movie. If you haven’t purchased it yet, what are you waiting for? This is seriously one of the best films in blu ray available today.

A Return To Form

As you may or not know, I have been somewhat absent from the world of Scary Film. I have been going through a lot in my personal life, mainly in the way that I make my living. I’m a professional writer and freelancer and have been going through struggles that most people go through. This site has been a savior at times, making me money from a variety of different things and has yet to come through with a good amount of promotional consideration. No one seems to want to buy anything, no one is subscribing and only a few people are commenting.

I had to return to my roots, why did I even do this, do I even like horror anymore? What was I thinking starting this site? This site has lasted more than my first marriage, and will most likely outlive me, if I can just get myself to watch something horror related. The real world is so much more horrific, where a thug is praised and marched for, and innocent children are killed for no apparent reason. Where children die from eating spoiled lunches, and no news coverage seems to talk about them or what it is that their needs are.

I’m sick of Los Angeles, and it’s pretense, expensive housing, and the fact that NO ONE comes over when you invite them. We sat at the house with an influx of food items and expectations that our so called friends would show up and instead, we get nothing. No one came, no one called, no one cared. So you know what, I’m going to create something for myself like I always have.

In the past I created my own record label and road that to another life. I then marched out of Los Angeles and made a case for who I am in another city, and right now, I am doing it again. I will be starting a literary magazine soon, and will publish works and put out an effort to make profit in a world that people often times miss out on. We will start free and build our way up, until we can say fuck you to Los Angeles and the rest of the idiots that say they are friends and then leave us out to dry.

This rant of course serves as a wakeup call, because I’m back, and I’m going to be reviewing everything and anything in the Scary Film fashion that you’ve come to love. So wake up and take notes, drop me a line, and let’s build something together that is not going to simply die because I’m depressed or because you have found that Facebook is more fun than this.

And for God’s sake do me a favor and visit Amazon through the links and bookmark it, and BUY SOMETHING, I need the money.

Your pal Sir Jorge of Culver the one that started this bullshit site to begin with!

Let’s do it!

Walking Dead Season 4 HD New Trailer

Season 4 of the hit series Walking Dead just got a trailer and thanks to Comic Con, and here it is. Get psyched, it hits this fall and that means that more zombie stuff to come. You know you want it.

The Angst (2010) Review

Sometimes the scariest things in life aren’t supernatural in nature, and they aren’t necessarily the boogie man waiting to jump and astonish your senses in a frenetic way. Sometimes it’s the real things in life that compel you to grow nervous, uneasy and fill your mind with the fear that drives you insane. That is the true nature of fear and something that has always driven this site from the inception. It’s with that in mind that upon viewing The Angst, a short film by Naga Kataru from 2010 that is so compelling and interesting.

What you get is a short about the panic, worry, and trepidation that follows many women as they take a pregnancy test. So much is said with silence that you can fill a great deal of thought, and emotion by simply viewing this short film. I for one thought it was interesting, to the point and better than most of the tripe that I have to review for this website. It’s funny how something so simple can resonate so much with you upon first glance.

While I didn’t think that the production was all that great, it still had enough gusto and talent to draw me into something brand new. Even jaded eyes will appreciate this very real, and somewhat scary short film.

Check out Naga Kataru’s imdb page here, and view the short below, you too may agree with my sentiments.

Bride of Chucky Review

I recall seeing this movie and the sequel in theaters a while ago, but I never sat down to review it, and therefore I am going to talk about it a bit. Today we will be dealing with the movie that brought back the doll of horror known as Chucky into the big screens and away from straight to dvd hell like so many others had to deal with. Bride of Chucky puts our little antihero in an interesting and sadistic realm with all the trimmings that you would expect from the classic horror franchise that started in the late 1980s. Gone are the slow moving plot points and lackluster scenarios and in comes a fast paced, black comedic horror film.

The movie looks great, and holds up quite well in the visuals department. Jennifer Tilly is quite the actress, and I couldn’t stop staring at her…..eyes. She has some assets that gets played up a lot here, and there are moments where some of you are just begging for a nip slip. But unlike the celebrity tabloids, the puppies are all covered up, even though they are bursting from her wardrobe at times. The cleavage is so much that one starts to wonder whether or not it ends up being a factor when she is playing poker in the World Series, but then again, it’s a matter of skill and not necessarily luck, right? I don’t know, I’m getting off topic.

The kills are brutal, but at times played up for comedic effect as Chucky is brought back by a former love. Chuck doesn’t like how he’s being treated so he kills his lover in a bathtub and gets her soul to get trapped in a doll and the two run amuck on a quest to find the original body of the soul so that they can get an amulet. This all moves along a road trip plot with two lovers that are the next serial murderers to gain fame for being a deadly couple.

Overall, Bride of Chucky is a guilty pleasure that is not really scary, but really does drum up some nostalgia here and there. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and does a lot to entertain, make fun, and present the whole series as one big joke. I like it, and found the inside jokes to be awesome, and the ending, well the ending is just another classic moment in horror history.

John Dies At The End Review

There are a lot of horror movies that come out on a regular basis and no one sees them. This is one of those many releases that no one cared to see in theaters, but alas the world of dvd and streaming can be glad to have another movie to watch and review. I myself finally caught this one, and after I wrote about the release of David Wong’s other book and of course this book as well, it’s about time. Clumsy sentences and bad reviews aside, I found myself watching this one in wonder, as it is truly an original take on a not so original genre, the horror one that is. John Dies at the End is the focus of this review, although I’m a bit tired from making less than minimum wage, applying at jobs that don’t call me back, and wondering where my life started to tailspin in terms of getting ahead in a career path. Heck, I have no career, who am I fooling?

The film is a complex and winding tale about a couple of friends that have found a drug that makes things come to life in a way that Hunter S. Thompson would be proud of. The whole movie weaves around a guy telling a reporter about what has happened to him in the past, and how he came in contact with this insane drug known simply as soy sauce. It is killing off anyone that comes in contact with it, but not before extreme hallucinations and other off setting problems happen.

Throughout the film gags of all types happen and you get to see a great deal of gore as well. In an effort to hasten the pace, you get a lot of intertwining elements, none of which seem to make sense and the whole pay off does a poor job with revealing what the hell is going on. I had more questions about the plot and where it was going than I usually do, and by the time things started to make a little sense, a giant eyeball was eating people. John Dies at The End is definitely a movie worth watching, however, it is not worth asking any questions because you will receive no major answers.

When it comes to finding original horror movies, this is definitely a good one, so make sure that you venture out and watch it, then try to figure out what is going on. The ending will come out of nowhere with an epilogue that is fitting, all things considered.

Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter Review

I was supposed to be working on Chemical Burn stuff, but their ROKU app decided to quit, and I haven’t had time to look into their screeners that were sent out, so I’ll have to settle for this update, or rather you will have to settle.

There are a series of novels that are essentially rewritten historical accounts of the lives of iconic people and places. This altered history happens to throw the 16th president into the role of a vampire hunter and while most people may not be so quick to say the premise works, the movie does a good job of making the basis for the novel, quite compelling to say the least. With that in mind, the following review is of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

The movie does a good job setting up the hero with the death of his mother at the hands of a vampire, than subsequently goes through some years of his training at the hands of another bloodsucker and the story starts to really move into a fast paced actioner, although it has horror elements. The movie plays more like an Asian cinema Kung Fu epic, but still maintains a certain sense of creep factor here and there. The muted and goldenrod filter on the cameras is a bit annoying, but otherwise, you get a full framework of what could have been a biopic done right. Of course the sensationalized action is something that probably never was a thing for Lincoln to deal with, but then again, his favorite sport was professional wrestling, so maybe he did see some action of this nature.

Overall the film has a good sense of humor about the whole thing, while maintaining serious tones for the slaying of vampires here and there. The slow motion is somewhat distracting and the constant computer graphics and design is not my favorite. However, the producers did a good enough job to get me to forget that and start thinking about whether or not some of the fight sequences were in fact possible. I had to remind myself that these things are NOT reality and are part of a horror-action movie, so maybe they did a good job after all.

Abraham Lincoln battled zombies before, he battled slavery, and most likely enjoyed some of Hulk Hogan’s favorite matches. (Seeing as though Hogan is sooo old, eh? Eh?) I liked this outing, even if it did have some slow motion fighting, but I liked it none the less. I thought it was interesting and it kept me awake, which is something that many other movies haven’t done in a long time. I’d suggest watching it and reading the book too.