It Lives Inside

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I missed this horror movie when it was in the theaters, and I have not rented it on Vudu while the price was high. I found out that this movie, It Lives Inside, had dropped the price on Vudu down to a more realistic amount and so I rented it this weekend. I am certainly glad that I did not spend 19.99 to rent this one.

I found this movie to be pretty boring for much of the runtime. The third act wasn’t too bad, but, in my mind, this movie could have been more scary had they spent less time showing us this monster.

According to IMDB, “Sam (Megan Suri), an Indian-American teen, lives in an idyllic suburb with her conservative mother (Neeru Bajwa) and her assimilated father (Vik Sahay). Sam’s cultural insecurities grow due to her estranged friend, Tamira (Mohana Krishnan), who mysteriously carries around an empty mason jar all the time. In a moment of anger, Sam breaks Tamira’s jar and unleashes an ancient Indian demonic force that kidnaps Tamira. Sam searches for Tamira, following the trail of a young man who performed a deadly ritual, until the demonic entity starts targeting her, murdering her boyfriend and shattering her reality with terrifying visions. Sam must band together with her parents and a sympathetic teacher (Betty Gabriel) to save Tamira and put an end to the terror of the demon.“

Megan Suri does a good job as the lead protagonist. She is an interesting actor and does not seem that she fits as the lead.

I like the idea that the monster was more specific to the culture of Indian-America, but much of the story was fairly typical. Nothing about this stands out in the horror genre.

It Lives Inside is not the worst movie of the year by far, but it is not a great one either. I’m glad I waited to see it.

2.3 stars

Five Nights at Freddy’s

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The brand new video game adaptation was released this week. It is called Five Nights at Freddy’s. I originally was planning to go to the theater to see this, but I discovered that it is also streaming day and date on Peacock so I decided to save myself some gas, make it a weekend lounging at home, and watch it on the streaming service.

I’m glad I did not drive down to the Quad Cities to watch this because it was not that enjoyable.

I have no background with the video game, but, for me, there was a better version of this released a few years ago starring Nicolas Cage that was called Willy’s Wonderland. It is not a literal adaptation, but the idea is very close.

Five Night’s at Freddy’s starred Josh Hutcherson (from Hunger Games fame) as Mike, a troubled man struggling to overcome a haunting memory from his youth and take care of his little sister Abby (Piper Rubio). As part of a way to move forward, Mike is hired by Steve raglan (Matthew Lillard) as a security guard for a closed down restaurant that had been popular in the 1980s. His job, just keep people out.

Desperate to discover the truth of his younger brother, Mike found that the animatronics from the restaurant where more than what they seemed.

Overall, the story in this movie was messy, did not have enough moments that paid off for what it as asking us to watch and included a bizarre ending that felt out of place.

Hutcherson’s character did not give us the required emotional depth for us to really connect to him. I never believed in this character’s arc and found him to be disposable. Hutcherson did not elevate this role with his performance.

The movie featured a lot of dull moments with the monstrous animatronics really being regulated in the film. There were a few fun horror moments, but nowhere near as creative or enjoyable as it should have been.

The film added a character named Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) who was absolutely terrible and the film utterly wasted Mary Stuart Masterson in a throwaway ‘evil aunt’ character that was completely unnecessary and one-dimensional.

I have seen comments on how this could be used to introduce kids to horror. To that I would say that there are considerably smarter movies and TV shows that would do that better than this.

I was disappointed at Five Night’s at Freddy’s as I hoped that this would be more than what it was. Watch Willy’s Wonderland instead.

2.4 stars

Goosebumps S1 E7

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“Phantom of the Auditorium”

The next episode of Goosebumps arrived on Disney + this Friday and it is a major moment. I will say that there were parts of this episode that I found to be sillier than we have had before, but I did still enjoy watching it.

In this episode, we find out where Mr. Bratt has been. He shows up to the kids who have been trapped in the house. They had just found out that Bratt had been possessed by Harold and now they were meeting the ‘real’ Bratt.

The episode was spent with the kids trying to find a way out of the house and several of the moments felt too comedic at time. The fact that Bratt was able to retake his original body when he was feeling pain and the kids kept punching him to make him switch. It felt a little odd to me.

I did enjoy Nora’s standing up for herself and getting out of the asylum. The parents story was more interesting to me in this episode than the kids.

Gen V S1 E7

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“Sick”

Episode 7 of Gen V made some massive shifts in the story that I did not see coming.

We found out last week that Dean Indira Shetty had been ordering Doctor Edison Cardosa of the Woods to create this virus that kills supes and she wanted it to be contagious. They revealed this episode (or at I think it was this episode. I don’t remember this before..) that Shetty’s husband and daughter in the plane crash that Homelander caused.

However, the virus storyline took a twist when Cate got involved. The show made us think that Shetty was manipulating Cate once again, but when the others arrived at Shetty’s house, she forced Shetty to tell the truth and then slit her own throat. Cate prevented Marie from saving her.

Earlier, Marie had gone to see Victoria Neuman, making a cameo from The Boys, and she revealed everything about the virus. Neuman told Marie that she would handle it. That meant that she contacted Cardosa, had him bring the virus, and then exploded his head as she did to many others on The Boys.

I do not know if that virus storyline will be picked up again in The Boys since Victoria left with it, but it feels as if it is over on Gen V.

This is the penultimate episode of the season with next week’s finale coming. But with the virus seemingly done, Shetty dead… what is left? Is it a showdown with Cate? Maybe it is the increasingly agitated Sam, who is started to embrace the philosophy of Homelander.

This has been a solid first season and a great addition to the universe of The Boys.

Loki S2 E4

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“Heart of the TVA”

Holy F-ing crap!

Episode 4 of Loki is one of the best episodes of Marvel TV ever.

This was so beautifully created and laid out. The fact that there were several examples of ouroboros as OB and Victor Timely geek out over each other and we see whom pruned Loki from episode 1.

And those were the minor parts.

I was literally shouting at the screen several times. I felt like a YouTube reactor as I watched the show. I usually do not do that, but I was fully engaged in this story.

One moment that shocked me was the arrival of Renslayer and Miss Minutes in the cell with Dox and her team, who had been imprisoned at the TVA, and they got crushed in the box that we saw Brad in earlier in the season. I was literally yelling, “no, no, no.”

Then ending of this episode with Victor trying to head out to fix the Loom and he got spaghettified… absolutely shocking. Never thought it.

The scene with Loki and Sylvie in “Pie Land” is brilliantly written. “Hope is Hard.”

There were so many shots that were so beautiful. The direction of this episode was just spectacular. It was the same director from episode one, and he did an amazing job.

I had a empty feeling in my gut at the end of this episode. I was speechless and breathless.

I loved this episode and I love this series…so much.

Apostle (2018)

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The October 13 of 13

So The October 13, the watch of thirteen horror/Halloween/thriller movies that I had not written a review for on the site, comes to an end with the final listed film, the Netflix film called Apostle starring Dan Stevens.

According to IMDB, “The year is 1905. Thomas Richardson (Dan Stevens) travels to a remote island to rescue his sister after she’s kidnapped by a mysterious religious cult demanding a ransom for her safe return. It soon becomes clear that the cult will regret the day it baited this man, as he digs deeper and deeper into the secrets and lies upon which the commune is built“

The first feeling, vibe, I got from this film was that it reminded me of The Wicker Man. This turned even more brutal and certainly avoided the hammy clichés of the Nicolas Cage’s movie.

This started really slow. In fact, almost an hour in, I was not finding much to enjoy in Apostle. Dan Stevens is always solid and his performance was basically what was keeping me with the film.

When things picked up, there was some horrific scenes involving a father and his daughter that were shocking and disturbing. It was at this point that I found myself more invested than I had been at any point prior to this.

The third act of this film was brutal and bloody, with some horrific imagery that pushed the story into a new level. However, I am not sure that I enjoyed the resolution of this film.

This wrapped up The October 13 with a bit of a downer. Apostle had some ups, but I’m not sure there are enough ups to recommend it.

Moonlighting S1 E7

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“The Murder’s in the Mail”

I was not remembering this episode at first… and then I realized that this was the episode with the following, absolutely brilliant dialogue:

David: We’re looking for a man with a mole on his nose.

Maitre’D: Mole on his nose?

Maddie: A mole on his nose!

Maitre’D: What kind of clothes?

Maddie: (to David) What kind of clothes…?

David: (to Maitre’D) What kind of clothes do you suppose?

Maitre’D: What kind of clothes do I suppose would be worn by a man with a mole on his nose? Who knows?

David: Did I happen to mention, did I bother to disclose, this man that we’re seeking with a mole on his nose?

I’m not sure of his clothes or anything else except he’s Chinese, a big clue by itself.

Maddie: How do you do that?

David: You got to read a lot of Dr. Seuss.

Maitre’D: I’m sorry to say, I’m sad to report, I haven’t seen anyone at all of that sort.

Not a man who’s Chinese with a mole on his nose with some kind of clothes that you can’t suppose.

SO…get away from this door and get out of this place

Or I’ll have to hurt you…put my foot in your face.

David: Oh..!

Maddie: Time to go!

David: Time to go! *hasty exit*

This whole Dr. Seuss bit was so fantastic that it is one of the most iconic scene of the show. I’ve seen some bloopers of this scene that were hilarious as well.

This episode included a car chase scene with Maddie behind the wheel while David tried to give her instructions on where to turn and what to do. This was very funny and worked well.

The story was messy as always. Once again, the story is always the secondary aspect of Moonlighting, although this plot was a bit more involved than some of David and Maddie’s cases. And this was another example of David and Maddie stumbling into a case without a client. It happens quite a few times.

This was the final episode of season one of Moonlighting, which was a midseason series. It was a solid one ending with a food fight and including a Bruce Willis Three Stooges sound effect.

Bonus Action Vol.1 Episode 2

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“Pit Stop in Star-Top”

Week two of the Bonus Action Dungeons & Dragons adventure from the pReview’d crew was the shortest episode yet, but felt like the heaviest.

This was a sensational episode all based in character and backstory.

It started with some really goofy action from the crew, especially with Todd, Bric and Bar’b. And it had to do with food, of course.

However, when they were talking with one of the survivors who had gone after the MacGuffin that our new group is after, suddenly, Victor’s back story was front and center.

And it was heartbreaking. It was powerful. Adam Lash was amazing. He had been straight-faced with Victor for most of the time and we found out why. A great back story with Victor and his father brought Victor into conflict with his teammates as well as Alistair (via rock communicator).

It was tense and uncomfortable. And fantastic.

It brought some true drama into the campaign of goofiness and gave the comedy characters a chance to be more than just fun.

Congrats to Adam on the creation of a truly compelling character that doesn’t seem to fit, but he has an arc for the ages.

Totally Killer

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“Time travel! … What? I see this as an absolute win.” – Bruce Banner, Avengers: Endgame.

Time travel movies are crazy. And they all have rules that change. Back to the Future. Avengers Endgame. LOST. 12 Monkeys. Dozens more.

You can add another time travel movie to the list with the film Totally Killer, which is available on Prime. And it is a total hoot.

This was a really fun and inventive movie with a lot of humor and creativity. Does the time travel rules get broken? Oh yeah. Are there a few weird plot points that do not make sense? Sure. Did they leave a dangling plot or two? Yes. But I had an absolute blast watching it and was totally engaged all the way through.

According to IMDB, “When the infamous ‘Sweet Sixteen Killer’ returns 35 years after his first murder spree to claim another victim, 17-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) accidentally travels back in time to 1987, determined to stop the killer before he can start.“

Kiernan Shipka was great as out protagonist who was desperately running around in the past trying to use the information that she knew in order to prevent the three killings and to change the future that she left.

The film wisely alluded to several of the time travel movies, comparing what was going on to the situation they were in. Every time Jamie made an allusion to a movie, she was like the audience, who must have been thinking the same thing.

The final showdown with the killer was not the best moment of the film, but it did not detract from the overall enjoyment of the film. I have said this before, but when a film is funny, it gets extra grace when dealing with storyline. This movie was funny.

Some of the best jokes were about the 1980s and how people kept doing things that she thought, in her 2023 mindset, was just crazy or dangerous. There was a scene with the red rubber dodgeballs that I literally screamed out about. Our generation knew what it was like to be hit in the face with those red dodgeballs and get past it. That does not happen in today’s schools.

This film knows that it is silly and slight, and it plays into it big time. By doing so, they have given us a spectacularly good time in a film that is like Back to the Future combined with Scream combined with Happy Death Day. I loved this.

4.5 stars

EYG Comic Cavalcade #64

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October 22, 2023

Sadly, looks as if I am missing Avengers Inc #2. Not sure where that one was. It was due out last week according to Marvel.com

Lots of good books this week. Let’s just jump in to it:

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #1. Written by Brian Buccellato and art by Christian Duce. Drew Johnson and Romulo Fajardo Jr. did the cover art. I liked the match up with the monsters and the JL, but this felt weird. Did this fit into continuity anywhere? The whole Clark and Lois proposal thing… didn’t that already happen? Maybe I shouldn’t worry about continuity in DC, but as a Marvel guy, I prefer when it meshes up. Is this an Elseworlds? Will we ever know?

Godzilla #3. “A Tale of Two Saviors” Written by Doug Moench and drawn by Herb Trimpe. Speaking of Marvel, in honor of the other series coming out, I picked up an issue from 1977 when Marvel had the Godzilla license. They had the Champions, Hercules, Iceman, Angel and Black Widow taking on Gidzilla outside of San Francisco. I knew where this fell into continuity.

Spine-Tingling Spider-Man #1. Written by Saladin Ahmed and penciled by Juan Ferreyra. A cool issue with Spidey winding up somewhere where no one knows who he is and he is being pursued by some horrific creatures. No powers either! Beautiful interior art.

Omega the Unknown #9-10. Steve Gerber wrote both of these issues. In fact, they list him on the cover as the “author of Howard the Duck.” I wrapped up the ten-issue Omega series. I really enjoyed the path through and I will be heading to the “conclusion” of Omega’s story in the pages of an old issue of Defenders. This series had a distinct feel to it, different than what we were used to in the Marvel Universe while still being planted firmly in continuity. I’ve used that word a few times already today.

Crypt of Shadows #1. Five short stories featuring Scarlet Witch, Hulk, Deadpool, Daredevil and Werewolf by Night. Narrated by Victor Strange, who is on his way to the pages of Dr. Strange. This was a fun Halloween special that highlights the weird corner of the Marvel universe.

Klik Klik Boom #5. Written by Doug Wagner and art by Doug Dabbs. Klik Klik Boom wrapped up after a really enjoyable five-issue run. Sprout found some secrets and kicked some massive butt. I do hope that this series receives another arc sooner rather than later.

The Sensational She-Hulk #1. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Andres Genolet. Jen Bartel did the cover art. This started the She-Hulk series over at a number one, but feels exactly like the previous She-Hulk series. Still had the Punch Club. Jack of Hearts. Law work with Mallory Book. Not sure why it needed to be a new number one (yeah, I know why…$$$)

Daredevil #2. “Introductory Rites” Part Two. Written by Saladin Ahmed and drawn by Aaron Kuder. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marco Menyz did the cover art. Father Matt continues his conflict with his past life as Daredevil. And someone close to Matt has sicced the police on the church where he is working. Ben Urich? What’s up with that?

Big Game #4. Written by Mark Millar and drawn by Pepe Larraz. Watching all of Millar’s characters come together only to get butchered is really a hoot. Everything seems to be coming to a huge conclusion next issue and I will be anxious to see if anyone will be left. Maybe they all just die and Millar retires.

Local Man #6. “The Dry Season.” Written and created by Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. Art was by Tony Fleecs. Local Man returns with his next story arc which starts off with a shoot out at Auntie Inga’s. There always feels like there is more than what you can see going on with Local Man.

Astonishing Iceman #3. “Out Cold” Part Three. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Vincenzo Carratù. Cover art was done by Jesus Saiz. Iceman faces off with the Orchis forces led by Mister Clean. Aaron Fischer, the Captain America of the Rails is right there to help. Fun with the Omega mutant. Next issue includes the Amazing friend, Spider-Man!!!

Invincible Iron Man #11. “The Honeymoon is Over” Written by Gerry Duggan and guest artist is Andrea Di Vito. Kael Ngu did the cover art. Tony Stark and Emma Frost are on their honeymoon. Unlike most couples, this entails Tony going on a covert mission to Krakoa in search of some of the special metal.

Incredible Hulk #5. “Riddle of the Man Thing.” Part Two. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art by guest artist Travel Foreman. Hulk continues his adventure in the Nexus of Realities with the Man-Thing. Honestly, I was not a fan of the art in this book and it made it difficult to read.

Deadpool: Badder Blood #5. Story by Rob Liefeld and script by Chad Bowers. Pencils were by Rob Liefeld. This mini-series with Wolverine, Spider-Man, and Venompool joining Deadpool comes to a conclusion with some success. This was a fun team-up book with some excellent characters.

Other books read this week: Ghost Rider #19, Hexagon Bridge #2, Miles Morales: Spider-Man #11, Scarlet Witch #9, Grim #14, Moon Knight #28, Antarctica #4, Kill Your Darlings #2, Guardians of the Galaxy #7, Star Signs #5, Black Panther #5, and Tenement #5.

Jennifer’s Body (2009)

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The October 12 of 13

The penultimate film in the October 13th watch was a horror/comedy called Jennifer’s Body, which featured performances from Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried.

This one was up and down for me. There were things that I thought were clever and enjoyable, but there were other aspects of the film that I found disappointing and dumb.

I really liked the relationship between Seyfried’s Needy and her boyfriend Chip (Johnny Simmons). I thought that relationship defied the typical relationship you would see in a teen film and I thought they had a rooting interest. I was very unhappy with the resolution of this coupling.

Megan Fox was actually pretty good in this role, even if a lot of it was dumb. Fox as a demon-possessed creature oddly fit.

Unlike some of the other films I have seen lately, this one’s conclusion was much better and provided some satisfaction after much of the disappointment of the story up until this point.

The film was lacking any real funny moments as I may have laughed once. The scares were almost minimal as it just depended on having some blood on Megan Fox or having her make scary faces when she attacked her victims.

The parents and teachers (especially the terrible wigged up version of JK Simmons) were so lost and were lacking in this story at all. Everything was so unbelievable that when the parts that were supposed to be normal is difficult to believe, the fantastical isn’t going to work either.

This is not the worst movie I have watched during the October 13, but it is down the list for sure.

American Horror Story: Murder House S1 E1

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“Pilot”

With the mid-season finale of American Horror Story: Delicate airing this week, and with the news that the second half of the season would not be here until some time in 2024, that opned up Sunday morning for something else. This gives me a chance to go back and revisit (or watch for the first time) some of the previous seasons of AHS.

I’m starting first with the season of TV that grabbed my attention and helped make me more of a horror fan. That is season one, which was later entitled Murder House.

When I first watched the show, I was not much of a fan of horror movies. I watched some horror, but that genre was not near the top of my list. Thanks to the wonderful characters and downright creepy nature of American Horror Story, I was more interested in the genre.

Rubber Man is one of the scariest and hauntingly creepy characters on TV and the show was filled with unbeleivable actors providing some of their best work. Jessica Lange is utterly perfect as the neighbor Constance. Evan Peters showed us what a star he would be as Tate, the troubled teen that Ben (Dylan McDermott) was seeing out of his home office. Ben and Connie Britton’s Vivien and their marriage problems were both understandable and warped. Frances Conroy’s Moira, who changed her appearance depending on whom was looking at her… old or young.

This pilot episode does so much to set up Murder House as a sinister location with mysteries and ghosts abounding. Taissa Farmiga helped to kick off her scream queen persona with her troubled Violet.

I love this episode and the whole season only gets more exceptional. I’m excited about watching this every Sunday morning moving ahead.

Saw (2004)

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The October 11 of 13

I have never had any interest in the Saw franchise. The torture/gore films do not appeal to me and I have always connected the Saw franchise to that form of movie.

However, I decided that this movie watch, The October 13, I would give the original Saw a try. I had heard that this was the best of the franchise and did not resemble the gore fests of the sequels that followed it. So I added it to the list.

Who would have thought… I liked this a lot.

For me, the film benefited from its cast because it featured Cary Elwes, whom I loved from The Princess Bride, Danny Glover (whose inclusion surprised me), and two of my favorites from LOST, Ken Leung (who played Miles) and Ben Linus himself, Michael Emerson.

The film also did not include nearly as much gore and torture scenes as I expected. It was there, but it was more psychological torture than anything else. It felt like the graphic scenes all were earned and not just tossed in for a gross-out quota.

Unfortunately, I knew the answer to the twist of the film because I had seen the previews for Saw X which was out this year (and I have not seen) and I knew the actor who was behind Jigsaw. I wished I had not known that because it did affect my viewing of this.

Some of the storytelling aspects of the film was confusing, especially the flashback sequences which kept the narrative from being told in a typical structure. While that is usually a cool feature, this caused more confusion as I was not sure when the events were taking place and in what order we were supposed to put them in. Still, I give director James Wan credit for trying to frame the story in a different manner than other slasher films.

I did not like the ending scene of the film as it felt tacked on or unsatisfying. I found that it really stretched credibility of the film that already required a lot of stretching. Plus, I did not like the way they left everything up in the air and how we really do not know the fate of some of the characters involved.

In the end, I was impressed overall with Saw and I am pleased that I watched it. It was a much better film than I thought it was going to be. However, I do not plan on watching any of the other, universally panned sequels that followed this.