Tag Archives: horror

Nosferatu

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I have been looking forward to this movie for quite awhile. I have enjoyed every time Nosferatu has found his way onto the screen and so I expected to enjoy this too.

This is basically the Bram Stoker Dracula story with Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) in the lead vampire role. Orlok has become obsessed with a young recently married woman named Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) and he stalks her while tormenting the people of her town.

There are so many things that are great about Nosferatu. The acting was sensational from everyone. Nicholas Hoult played Ellen’s husband Thomas brilliantly. Willem Dafoe was Prof. Albin Eberhart von Franz, the bizarre professor with the idea on what needs to happen. Aaron Taylor-Johnson played Thomas’s friend whose wife, Anna (Emma Corrin) was friends with Ellen.

The cinematography and images on the screen were absolutely stunning. The shots of the sea with the Demeter was artistic as could be. The imagery of every shot on the screen was beautiful and compelling. There was a shot of Orlok’s shadow with Ellen at the very beginning of the film which was amazing. There were images everywhere in the movie that stood out, showing what an amazing job director Robert Eggers has done on this movie.

I loved the coloring of the film too. It made it feel special and even the most frightening moments of the film looked lovely. The craftsmanship of the film is stunning and this film will be earning several tech Academy Award nominations when it comes time.

The movie was violent and brutal. There are moments where the images were difficult to watch.

The only drawback I can say is that it is basically the Dracula story retread and it might be a touch long. Other than that, this is a masterful reboot of the iconic film. I had went into the film with high expectations because I had heard so many positives about it, so that is always a danger. All of my expectations were reached and exceeded. This is a fantastic movie.

5 stars

I Saw the TV Glow

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The other film I rented off Fandango at Home/Vudu was entitled I Saw the TV Glow, and Zi had heard plenty of buzz about this, in both positive and negative ways. I thought this would be a good film to give a try.

I have to say that this was very surreal, dream-like and metaphoric. It was a difficult movie to follow and so much of it was shot intentionally to create that feeling of confusion or interpretive.

According to IMDB, “Teenager Owen is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his classmate introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.”

One of the film’s main themes deal with reality and identity… who they were on the inside. I do believe that this was a metaphor showing the way some people can deny whom they are, pretending that they are something else. I have a feeling that this movie will reverberate with some people considerably more because of that theme.

I also believe that there are several ways that this movie could be interpreted and that no one way is exact. Since this narrative is not one with straight-forward situations and answers, the audience member brings a lot of what they infer with them centered around their own personal knowledge and background. That makes this material quite rich.

The film was trippy and psychedelic in the best ways. Some people are going to look upon this movie with disdain for any number of reasons, but I was fascinated with it and I was intrigued with what was happening with these characters. I’m not sure how many times I would watch this movie on rewatches, but the first time experience was worthwhile of my time.

3.6 stars

2024 Year in Review: The Gomers for the Biggest Surprise

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2024 had plenty of films that fell into the middle of the range between good and bad. Honestly, however, it had a bunch of films that were surprises too. Thus, we have this year’s Gomer Award being quite a challenge to present. There are so many potential choices.

The Gomer for the Biggest Surprise

Previous Gomer Award Winners:  The Gift, Ferdinand, Edge of Tomorrow, We’re the Millers, The Campaign, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Bumblebee, Crawl, Greenland, Free Guy, Deadstream, Totally Killer

Here are the runners-up:

First off, Late Night with the Devil from David Dastmalchian was a huge surprise because it just was something that I had not heard much from. I did hear Kevin Smith mention it on an episode of Fatman Beyond, but still. for it to be one of the best of the year, who saw that coming? Then, since I disliked the original film, who would have guessed that a new version of Roadhouse starring Jake Gyllenhaal that went immediately to streaming would be any good. It was and I couldn’t believe it. Another one that was a reboot of sort from a movie that I did not like was Twisters. No way that was a film I was going to enjoy and yet I did. Abigail was a surprise until I realized that Alishia Weir was the star. I knew it was going great after that. Hit Man was another I saw on streaming that had no right to be as good as it was. It’s the second film on the list from Glen Powell. Sharks in Paris? No way that was anything other than a member of the worst movies of the year list, right? Wrong. Under Paris was a lot of fun and way better than it should have been. Longlegs provided one of those shocking moments in the theater when you discover that Nicolas Cage was going to go over the top and still be awesome. I spoke about how much I was surprised that I enjoyed The Best Christmas Pageant Ever as I was trying to find an award for Best X-Mas Movie. Skincare? Another one that had no appeal to me that turned out to be fully entertaining. Strange Darling was weird, but really wonderfully constructed and engaging.

Yet after all of this, one film was the biggest surprise of the year. Spoiler for an upcoming Batman and Robin Award for Rottenness winner, this film one of the worst trailers of all time and nearly caused me to skip the film. Little did I know that this is probably a top 10 film of the year (certainly in consideration, at least).

Transformers One

This was an amazing movie and was one of the best animated films of the year. I never thought making Optimus and Megatron friends when they were younger would work. They weren’t Charles Xavier and Magneto, and yet this was done so well that everything made perfect sense. After so many years of utterly hating Transformers films, loving this one, especially after that horrendous trailer, was totally unexpected… and thus a Gomer winner.

PS: Interestingly enough, this is the second Transformers movie to win this award, with Bumblebee being the other. The original Transformers movies brought the bar so far down that I have trouble seeing them as a positive thing.

2024 Year in Review: I See Kid Actors

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Once again, we have the award for the best child actor award from movie or TV. This award goes to the actor who must be 17 years old or under. If they turn 18, they are no longer eligible for this award.

I See Kid Actor Award 

Previous Winners:  Emjay Anthony (Chef), Jacob Trembley (Room), Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Dafne Keen (Logan), Elsie Fisher (Eighth Grade), Noah Jupe (Honey Boy), McKenna Grace (Troop Zero), Jeremy T. Thomas (Antlers), Alisha Weir (Matilda the Musical), Madeleine Yuna Voyles (The Creator),

These are the runners-up:

In the coming of age movie Didi, Izaac Wang played the lead role and he carried the film. He had to do a lot of emotional work and he was certainly in the running for this award. Elliott Heffernan was the main protagonist in Blitz, and his trials on returning to his mother through war torn London were thrilling. William Fitzgerald debuted as Ezra alongside Robert DeNiro and Bobby Cannavale, and he held his own. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever brought a couple of strong contenders for this award in Beatrice Schneider, who played the lead troublemaker Imogene Herdman, and Molly Belle Wright, who played Beth, the eyes of the audience and perhaps the heart of the film. Cailey Fleming matched up wonderfully with Ryan Reynolds in IF. Dan Hough had to perform without any words in Speak No Evil and he delivered a sensational performance.

However, when I saw this movie, I knew this was the winner of this award. She is the first ever 2-time winner of the I See Kid Actors Award….

Alisha Weir (Abigail)

Alisha Weir won this award a couple of years ago for her performance as Matilda in Matilda the Musical, and you couldn’t get further away from that role with her role as the titular child vampire. Alisha Weir’s dedication and commitment to this performance dominated the movie and she picked the whole film onto her demure frame. She was the key element to why this horror/comedy worked. I wish they had not spoiled the reveal of Abigail as a vampire in the trailers because I can’t imagine how effective it would be if I hadn’t have known the twist.

The X-Files S7 E12

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Spoilers

“X-Cops”

Bad boys, bad boys… whatcha gonna do?

This X-Files episode was an extremely clever and creative one as it was a blend of X-Files and another of the big hits on FOX at the time, Cops.

Cops was a TV program that had cameras follow different law enforcement agents around and recorded their interactions with their cases. This X-Files episode crossed over with its fictional story of what we thought might be a werewolf, but turned into much more. It was a creature of some sort that was feeding on fear.

Some of the best and most classic episodes of the X-Files blended the bizarre, paranormal world with comedy. “Bad Blood,” “Jose Chung’s From Outer Space,” and “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose” being top examples the show’s comedy. “X-Cops” expertly mixed its comedy in with this ultra serious and realistic situation.

I loved how Scully was reacting to the camera crew. Every time she made some comment or turned a different way, Gillian Anderson showed off her remarkable comedic timing. For example, Scully, doing an autopsy, turned directly to the camera and said “The FBI has nothing to hide,” a statement Skinner had told Scully on the phone when she called him to let him know about the cameras involved in this case.

The episode started with a disclaimer about a special episode of the X-Files and followed that with the Cops TV show theme song. The title included some shots of Mulder and Scully, which was done to prevent any audience members from being confused and thinking that Cops was on instead of the X-Files.

This is one of the best episodes of season 7 and should be included on any list of the best X-Files episodes ever.

The X-Files S7 E10 E11

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Spoilers

“Sein Und Zeit”

“Closure”

The X-Files investigates the JonBenét Ramsey case.

Ok, not exactly, but they may as well have.

Only, they tied it into Mulder’s missing sister and his own family tragedy.

I was surprised when this turned out to be a two part episode as some horrible images were shown, including a mass graveyard of children. This was a shocking moment that I did not expect in this series.

You see, at first, I felt very dismissive of this episode, in particular “Sein Und Zeit” because it felt as if the fictional case of this episode was such a take off of the Ramsey case that it seemed exploitive. Then when they tried to connect it to Mulder’s sister, it really took another step away from what I wanted.

Then, Mulder’s mother, who had tried to contact him, committed suicide.

And the emotional power of the episode really took over.

David Duchovny brought some of the best work I have seen from him in a long time. The scene where Scully tells Mulder that his mother had a terrible disease and that she had committed suicide and not killed by some mysterious conspiracy was extremely powerful.

This was all building to answering the question about what happened to Samantha Mulder. As I am watching it, I did not believe that the show would give us a final truth. I saw on Wikipedia that Chris Carter believed that season 7 might have been the final season of the X-Files so I thought that maybe that elusive mystery would finally be revealed. The title “Closure” leads to the idea as well.

Cigarette Smoking Man showed up to see Scully, and I kept yelling at her to shoot him in the head. She didn’t.

As I continued to watch the episode, I started believing that the show might actually give an answer to the mystery. I did not grasp the idea of what in actuality happened. Samantha was apparently taken by “walk-ins” which was a concept told to Mulder by a psychic named Harold Pillar (Anthony Heald) who was also in search of his own missing son. A walk-in was a being made of starlight that would take children who suffered horrible fates.

That whole concept was strange, but the scene where the spirit of Samantha Mulder came to Fox Mulder and hugged him was quite beautiful and provided the character with some serious closure. He could accept that Samantha was gone and, as he said at the end of the episode, he said, “I’m fine. I’m free.”

I am still not sure how his mother played into this. What was her message? Did she know this was Samantha’s fate or what was going on. We saw Mulder’s mother’s spirit come to him and whisper something. I am just not sure that fit with what the show was telling us.

We also got the image of the little girl whose disappearance started this whole thing indicating that she too had become starlight and was, in fact, dead.

I am not sure I love the resolution of this seminal mystery, but I am happy that it is done. I am not sure that all of the different times when we learned bits about Samantha fit into this theory and it works best when you forget about some of those. The whole Samantha mystery was used multiple times over the seasons for episodes and I wonder how much they knew about what actually happened to Samantha.

No matter what, even if the resolution was not totally satisfactory, I am glad that it was addressed and that Mulder was given closure. It is good that this Samantha story ended here.

The X-Files S7 E7

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“Orison”

One of the most fascinating aspects of the X-Files has been the inclusion of religion and faith into the story. Fox Mulder, who believes in just about anything and everything, has a blind spot where it comes to God. To a point where he has been dismissive of spiritual belief over the years. Meanwhile, Dana Scully, the skeptic, the agent placed on the X-Files to debunk the craziness of Mulder’s work, believes in God and Heaven. This strange dichotomy continued in this episode “Orison.”

This episode was basically a sequel to the second season episode “Irresistible” where the character of Donnie Pfaster originally debuted.

The episode really brought it home as Pfaster kidnapped Scully with the intention of killing her, as the one who got away. Scully fought hard, and I was absolutely rooting for her as she showed some solid attack moves. Of course, stopping to try and use the phone was an error in judgment. She should have just found something to pummel Pfaster into oblivion.

I loved how Scully was able to get herself free and did not require Mulder to save her, even though he arrived and held a gun on Pfaster, she was already loose. Then, the dramatic scene where Scully shot Pfaster multiple times was surreal.

Was this out of character for Scully? Maybe, but it is absolutely understandable. This character of Scully has had plenty of close calls and this one felt even more personal. When Scully worried that it was not God that had spoke to her to kill Pfaster, that was chilling.

I would have liked more with the priest who had helped free Pfaster. The titular character, Orison, was a bit of a toss aside character in a story where his presence was vital.

I am never a huge fan of the religious based episodes of the X-Files because it feels as if Mulder’s total denial of God does not fit his character, but this focus on Scully made this a worthwhile episode.

The X-Files S7 E6

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“The Goldberg Variation”

“Luck isn’t a superpower…” said Deadpool to Domino in Deadpool 2. Well, we saw in that flick that it absolutely was. Longshot would also disagree with that assumption.

It seems that Fox Mulder would be in that camp too as Mulder and Scully come across a man who was thrown out of a window of a 300+ story building, falling to his apparent doom, only to walk away practically unscathed (he did have a bruise on his elbow).

“The Goldberg Variation” introduced us to the character of Henry Weems, who appeared to have the most amazing luck in the world, while people around him had to suffer to keep the balance. Cause-and-effect, as Mulder said.

This is a “monster-of-the week” episode where a sad sack individual has something weird or paranormal about them and have to spend time with Mulder and Scully. We see the same idea in Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose from season three, only that turned out more tragic than this one did.

Henry Weems got himself in trouble with the mob by getting involved in a poker game and winning big. The whole gangster part of the episode was a bit far, but I did like the overall end for the plot. It was nice having Henry connected to the boy in the building who needed a transplant. I thought from the beginning that Henry would wind up being the person who would be compatible as an organ donor and that he would die at the end to save the kid.

However, making it one of the gangsters was a nice twist, subverting the expectation of the trope. It also worked nicely with the theme of the episode.

Bates Motel S5 E9, E10

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Spoilers

“Visiting Hours”

“The Cord”

The rewatch of Bates Motel came to an end tonight as I watched episode nine and ten of season five. I did not remember any details of this finale so I had no idea of what was going to happen.

I was afraid that I would not feel that the end of this show would have a satisfying end. I was wrong.

It has been fairly clear the last season that this is not a prequel to the movie Psycho. It just had the character of Norman Bates and the setting in place, but they did not feel the need to keep things so they would line up with the movie.

I mean, Norman died at the end. That would make it difficult to have the movie come after this.

The scene between brothers with Dylan killing Norman in self defense, because Norman wanted him to. Dylan was shocked by the corpse of Norma at the dinner table. Freddie Highmore and Max Thieriot brought some amazing emotion and energy to this final confrontation.

What did feel like a letdown was the end of Alex Romero. The ending was always going to be about the Bates brothers and not Romero, but I loved Romero and Norma as a couple as I have mentioned several times so I wanted Alex to have some kind of retribution. Of course that was not going to happen. Alex’s emotions over the Norma body is what cost him his life. He should have killed Norman first, but he was not thinking, he was still in total grief.

I was very happy that Dylan and Emma wound up together. I was a little worried that they would no longer be together because Emma was mad about her mother being murdered by Norman. However, the end of the episode showed Emma, her daughter and Dylan meeting up and they shared a kiss. This was a wonderful moment that made me very happy. At least one of the great couples from Bates Motel made it through the series.

I am glad that I have made it through this series. It was a quality show that flew under the radar while it was on TV.

Bates Motel S5 E7, E8

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“Inseparable”

“The Body”

So much for Chick being the author of the novel Psycho was based on. One bullet to the head from Alex Romero took care of that.

I really do not remember how this is resolved, so I cannot begin to know where this is heading. I just have two more episodes left for the season and it is thrilling. I’m sure I watched this when it was released on A & E, but I legit do not remember much of this.

These two episodes had so many massive moments that it took my breath away.

The whole scene where Norman, as Norma, attacked Dylan and Norman prevented his other side from stabbing him was insane. I was telling Dylan to get out of there, I was so worried about him. Dylan is the conscience of the story, the heart of this family. His loyalty to his brother, despite all, is amazing. I do not remember Dylan’s fate, but I really do not want him to die. I want him to go back to Seattle with Emma and raise their baby girl, Katie. I feel a foreboding that those thoughts are pipe dreams.

Alex Romero is another character that I do not want to see come to an end. I think he is going to end up dying, but his will to come back for vengeance against Norman is downright Shakespearian. Alex is so damaged that you could see the pain constantly. The look on his face as Chick was telling him about what Norman had done (digging up Norma’s body and building a ‘mausoleum’ for her int he basement freezer) was very telling. There was one shot where his face looked to be like death itself, pale and conflicted.

I kind of loved watching Norma take over control of the body of Norman only to be thwarted by the new sheriff. ‘Norma’ thought she had everything handled, but surprises kept coming.

The police discovered the body of Emma’s mother in the lake alongside the guy Romero sent to try and kill Norman.

Just two more to go…

Bates Motel S5 E2, E3, E4, E5, E6

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“The Convergence of Twain”

“Bad Blood”

“Hidden”

“Dreams Die First”

“Marion”

Got on a bit of a run during the final season of Bates Motel. A couple of things turned out clearer than I remembered when I first watched the series on A & E.

First, I always had an issue with the Marion Crane storyline, which began to happen this season because I had believed that this was a prequel series to the Psycho movie from Hitchcock. However, I realized that this was not the case… or at least, I think that is the case.

When Norman chained Caleb in the cellar, Chick discovered all of the secrets of Norman and his “Mother.” He saw the frozen corpse of Norma in the basement. Chick, being the opportunist he is, decided he would write this story. He got a typewriter and was taking notes on a tape recorder. He told Norman that he was writing a suspense/thriller novel that he thinks could be a good movie someday. So the show is now an inspiration for the novel/movie instead of a prequel. I like that switch, and I wonder why I did not see it last time.

Understand, it might all be for naught considering I do not remember if Chick met an end during the series. If that turns out to be the case, then perhaps I will have to adjust my thoughts.

Second was the way Dylan and Emma finally found out that Norma was dead. It was a small scene, but it was really well acted. Dylan not knowing about what was happening with Norma was one of the more frustrating parts of the season. I know why they did it, but it was tough. Of course, Dylan lost both his mother and father. The scene with Dylan and Norman on the phone was powerful considering they were just on the phone together.

Third, I was not expecting Romero to get shot, but I do now remember it happening. Buckshot from a kid’s gun. He shows how tough he continues to be. I’m not sure if the show intends for us to hope that Romero fails, but I find myself rooting for him way more than I ever root for Norman.

Five more episodes remain in the series.

Heretic

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If you had said that Hugh Grant would be horror/thriller movie villain and completely rule at it, I might not have believed you. However, he absolutely does and he is one of the major factors to the new A24 horror flick, Heretic, being as exceptional as it is.

However, I could see how this movie might be polarizing considering its main topic is religion and the discussion of how and if religion is relevant.

Hugh Grant is the standout of the movie, but the two female co-stars, Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East, who play Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton respectfully, carry their own against the powerhouse performance from Grant. Both Thatcher and East are given characters with their own quirks that work very well in the context of this movie.

There may not be as many scares in this movie, but the script gives the film an uncomfortable feeling throughout, especially with the uneasiness provided by Grant’s work. You can tell that everything is just not quite what is being shown and you are anxious waiting for that hammer to drop.

However, while they are waiting and building the unease, the writing is sensational, with the debate between the different religions of the world. I loved how this was basically three people talking for much of the first act (or two) and it is able to build the anxiety. The writing was top notch. I also do not believe that it took one side and argued that in a preachy way. I do believe that someone could find their own opinions of religion given voice in this film.

I loved the writing when Sister Barnes retorted against Mr. Reed’s (Hugh Grant) metaphor comparing religion to Monopoly. This whole diatribe was expertly written and delivered.

The ending might have been a little weaker than the first half/two-thirds of the film, but I do love how these characters are smart and are shown to be smart.

4.4 stars

The Substance

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Very disturbing.

I have never been a big fan of body horror films, but The Substance has a few things going for it that a typical body horror film does not have. Namely, one Demi Moore providing one of the best, albeit horrific, performances of her career.

According to IMDB, “Have you ever dreamt of a better version of yourself? You. Only better in every way. Seriously. You’ve got to try this new product. It’s called The Substance. It changed my life. It generates another you. A new, younger, more beautiful, more perfect, you. And there’s only one rule: You share time. One week for you. One week for the new you. Seven days each. A perfect balance. Easy. Right? If you respect the balance… what could possibly go wrong?”

The dialogue was limited, but the performance from Demi Moore was so great. It was impressive how much she was able to emote from her face and her reactions.

The effects are unbelievably creepy and frightening. The imagery of the movie is horrific and mostly practical.

I do think the ending was not good. The last fifteen or twenty minutes felt truly more silly than most of the film and did drag down my feelings overall. Most of the movie was really good and creepy. It just did not finish well. However. Demi Moore should be recognized for an astounding performance.

3.8 stars

Bates Motel S5 E1

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Spoilers

“Dark Paradise”

The final season of Bates Motel got underway with a bit of a time jump. I just talked about time jumps in the Battlestar Galactica season 2 finale write up. This is another year jump.

Norman is running his hotel with ghost Norma hanging around making him breakfast. Ghost Norma is quite the helpful hand… baking, laundry, killing hitmen and helping to dispose of the body. Not sure how the physics of any of that happens.

The funniest moment in the show was when Ghost Norma grabbed Norman by the ear and dragged him up to the house to show him the body of the man she killed. All I could picture was Norman with his head tilted to the side, with no one actually pulling on his ear, but he acting as if someone was. If only someone could have seen that.

Dylan and Emma had a baby girl. Awwwww…. I did not remember that from the first time I saw this series and I thought that was great. Of course, Caleb showed up looking for some kind of connection. This story was very nicely handled and showed some emotion. Its funny that a teenage rapist who got his sister pregnant is not the worst one in the family.

One would think that after having a baby, Dylan might have reached out to his mother or brother…even once maybe. Didn’t Emma have a good relationship with both of them. Keeping them isolated does feel a bit convoluted, though I understand they would be building toward something.

Romero is beating the hell out of that punching bag in prison. He had parole denied and he apparently hired the guy that tried to kill Norman. I think Romero is meant to be seen as the bad guy, but I still feel like I understand his rage toward Norman.

They introduced a new female potential victim for Norman. Maybe she will be okay since she reminds Norman of Norma. Or maybe not. Females do not have a good track record around Norman.

Nine episodes remaining for this rewatch. I really have enjoyed revisiting this show. Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga have been on the top of their game every week.

Mad God (2021)

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The October 13 of 13

What a trip.

I went searching for a film to wrap up the October 13, which to be fair has been a touch underwhelming so far. I was really hoping to find something epic to end out the thirteen.

Well, I found something original for sure.

On AMC + on Prime, I found a stop-motion film called Mad God and it looked interesting. That would be an understatement for this.

According to IMDB, “Equipped with a gas mask and a crumbling map, the Assassin, an iron-clad humanoid, descends into a rusty, peril-laden underworld of grime, blood, and unsettling monstrosities. As the stealthy invader meanders through the labyrinthine post-apocalyptic wasteland on a mysterious mission, going deeper and deeper in the nightmarish realm, the Assassin gradually reaches his final destination: the heart of this grotesque tower of torture. But what cruel, vindictive deity allows fear and suffering to take its most complete creation further and further into despair? Only a Mad God would revel in humankind’s ordeal.”

That synopsis from IMDB is well done, but to be honest, the story is not anywhere near as straightforward as that description. I would venture to say that this film has a very limited narrative structure. The story seems secondary to the goals of this film.

Mad God has amazing, masterful stop-motion animation that creates an atmosphere unlike few movies that I have ever seen. It is frightening at times, disturbing at others. It imbues this nightmare realm with such darkness and alarming imagery that you can help but be taken aback from the visual daze.

The sound effects and score are very effective keeping you uneasy as the images build a surreal experience of monstrous creatures and violent despair.

Written and directed by stop-motion guru Phil Tippett, this passion project takes you deep into the mind of the director. And what a bizarre and warped experience it was. I usually prefer more of a story, and that is just short here, but this is an experience that I would not have passed on. I am conflicted on how I feel after watching this, which, I suppose, is a desired result.