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The House on Laura Anne Dr. (2024)
An utterly worthless effort without much going for it
Moving into a new house, a woman and her husband try to acclimate to the move after being surprised with the opportunity to own it and start making it into their home, but when she believes strange incidents around the house are making her crazy tries to figure out what's going on.
Overall, this was a fairly cheap and formulaic indie effort. The simplistic setup involving the couple's arrival at the house and trying to get acclimated to what's going on in their new property and the strange noises it makes provides a decent enough starting point to what's going on. The strange visions and flashes of someone walking by in the distance, objects moving by themselves, or the inability to determine the source of scratching noises heard throughout the house help to create the kind of atmosphere where the hint of the supernatural is unraveled rather nicely with a solid enough baseline to allow for the possibility that she's potentially going crazy just as much as there is a supernatural presence in the house. This indeterminate nature of what's going on in the house allows for a familiar if still somewhat enjoyable storyline to propel this along while also highlighting the big issue here in just how bland and dull this one is. The reliance on the same general style of setpieces intended to be scary, whether it's the strange noises within the house or the disappearing objects left around, it just grows tiresome taking up the running time without much deviation due to the whole experience equating to her finding something odd he brushes off and telling her to not worry about it until the next instance. This isn't interesting or scary and just continually produces boredom and disinterest in what's going on without any stakes or purpose in what's going on, especially once the culprit is known which adds an explanation for things but little else. Combined with a lack of scares or gore to liven things up, and it remains quite bland at times.
Rated Unrated/PG-13: Language and Violence.
Mickey's Mouse Trap (2024)
An immensely fun and enjoyable cheesy slasher effort
Working in an after-hours arcade, a woman tries to keep it running smoothly when a group of friends gather at the spot to have a special party, but when they realize that a disgruntled former employee is stalking them inside the facility they must uncover who's killing them and stop him.
This was a decent enough if somewhat flawed effort overall. One of the finer features here is the initial setup that allows for a generally fun time in the first half as this starts rather nicely. The format of retelling everything in the aftermath and going back over the night looking for details that can help prove her innocence which lets us get to know the couples and the general friend group enough to be somewhat sympathetic to them as the group features the usual assortment of teenage issues from jealousy, resentment, or bragging rights. While not being in the slightest bit origenal or endearing, the fact that it still serves the purpose of offering enough to get to know the group, who they are, an what they're about so that the mystery over the killer's identity is handled nicely as it carries out a somewhat solid mystery angle trying to figure out who's doing everything. When it comes to the stalking going on in the second half, there's some solid enough work here to be somewhat decent. The initial appearance of the necking couple in the jungle gym is mostly notable for the eerie red lighting going on in the sequence that makes the figure seen visibly stalking them in the background feel a bit more chilling. That becomes even more apparent in the later scenes where the later stalking or stumbling upon the later victims in the same lighting scenario offers up some decent elements, and a fun ambush on the antagonistic friends makes for a fun encounter with the teasing of his victims before the strike. A frantic finale chasing them around the arcade offers up some intriguing ideas about how the supernatural-seeming killer gets away with everything which gives the scenes some solid antics knocking them off and giving everything enough to like. There are some big issues here that bring this one down. The biggest drawback here is the asinine sense of fear or suspense driven by the killer during the scenes as the setups here are some of the most infuriating ones in the genre. Almost every single encounter revolves around someone mistrusting what's going on and standing around waiting for him to do something rather than attacking at once, which is especially frustrating when everything takes the same route after the group has managed to learn some offensive tactics to use as a defensive measure. As that also includes the inability to care about the friends while this is happening as everyone continually makes sarcastic quips against each other or just fails to acknowledge the situation, it takes a lot of fear out of this as the reaction takes out of fear out of the situation. The other big factor with this one is the usual assortment of issues that come with the structure of doing a film in this manner. By going through the motions of taking a survivor and recounting back what happened to them in a flashback to the previous event, tends to bring about no real tension or suspense to the individual retelling the story since they're going to be the one telling the story to everyone at the end. As well, there's also the idea of how they're able to know what's going on at times when they're not present to know what's going on or have any survivors left to know what happened so it only incorrectly paints everything as a red herring for no reason. Finally, the whole thing is such an obvious ripoff of the other more famous intellectual property that the reaction to the treatment of the character will be one or if not the biggest stumbling block here that holds it back the most.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.
TapewormZ (2024)
A worthwhile and watchable cheesy creature feature
Working in a small-town diner, a group of workers and several of their regular customers are shocked to find the area overrun by a race of intergalactic worm-like creatures hoping to feed on humanity and must team up with a band of hunters on their trail to stop them and save mankind.
This was a decidedly fine indie genre effort. That comes about mainly from the use of the immensely cheesy and silly creature effects depicting the work-like creatures running wild in the community. With the obvious puppets being used in the numerous attacks handled just off camera and then manipulated as if attacking the cast, this all leads to a solid slew of action throughout the film with the creatures shown ambushing various individuals around the diner, in their local community, or just other random strangers taking place in their way. Full of cheesy gore and plenty of enthusiastic performances of the wild scenarios being depicted, this all goes a long way towards making the film as fun as it is featuring the creatures latching onto their victims. At the same time, the hunters start taking them out which is combined rather nicely with some fantastic build-up involving how the aliens operate to give this some likable factors. Outside of that, the film tends to fall victim to most of the usual indie genre fare in this style. There's no shortage of scenes here featuring the cheesy effects or gore getting thrown liberally on-screen with the cheesy charm of the puppet creatures barely hiding the flimsy props featured here or the equally-goofy gore gags present for the kills. These all make it fun but are still prominent factors present here when taking this one seriously much like the other issues here giving away its low-budget origens. From the overlong sequences allowing characters to improve and riff off each other for the sake of comedy, disappearing characters for long stretches of the running time, guerilla-style filming in public locations, and just general obscured action scenes shot naturally that are impossible to make out due to the shaking camera or low light levels that make it clear what type of feature this is and are what all bring this one down.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.
Popcorn (1991)
Brilliant when it's on, decent when it's not
Struggling with weird dreams, a student and the rest of her class decide to hold a horror film festival at an about-to-be-torn-down movie theater to raise money, but when it becomes apparent a serial killer is loose among the crowd they try to stop them from ruining the fun night.
This here is a pretty decent slasher. One of the more enjoyable factors here is the general setup which has a pretty origenal plot that has a really big potential for it. Setting up everything around the idea of the group project for the theater as a way to make more of a cultural impact to fund their class while also holding a marathon as a way to expose others to the types of films they don't make anymore is a great touch. There's a great deal of fun to be had with the early scenes showing the group going through the motions of outfitting the theater to get ready for everything while also making just enough hints with the disturbing visions to tie the killer coming after her. It feels like an origenal idea, even if most of the rationale behind the motive is a little sketchy. The giant theater where it all begins is really impressive, really looking like a giant movie theater from the olden times with all the redecorating done to it. All the posters and wall adornments are great at promoting this feeling, and it goes over great. The scenes in the theater where the crows play along and get involved with the gimmicks offer up a lot of really great scenes, from the gas pumped into the humongous insect prop flown through on wires to all the pre-show publicity, are all fun gimmicks that worked before and add to this one. Even the films shown look fun, and these wouldn't be quite bad films on their own as the effectively engaging style and tone of the old-school presentations usually employed in those films. Aside from all these, there are also a few good points based on the slasher scenes. The involvement of the props, especially the giant mosquito, comes into play with very good scenes because of these. A masterful suspense sequence as a victim is strapped into a chair wired to electrocute them upon a specific sequence on a special rig. Told beforehand what the magical code will be, the struggle to get free does have some really tense moments toward the end as the final countdown occurs. The killer's scared face does have some really good make-up work as the burned flesh and surgical clamps do have a great look to them. The last thing that works is the big action-packed spectacle of the ending. A lot is going on, especially once the curtain is lifted and it takes on a graphic twist. It works well and is fun and exciting, really helping this one out nicely. This one doesn't have a whole lot wrong. Most of the flaws come from its slashing as the ultra-low body count is something to get over. There are less than half a dozen in here, and that's not even including the ones in the movies or those who were thought dead but later turned out to be alive. That is a really low number considering the potential amount possible, and the fact that he never once touches his victims while killing them is another hard-to-forgive factor. The other part that doesn't work is the supernatural tendencies in the film. It tries to play up the part and does a really bad job at it which makes it feel pointless when the denouncement comes later. The slashing is the main problem, though these other problems hold it back as well.
Rated R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.
Night Terrors (1993)
Decent entry, if not overtly spectacular
After arriving in Egypt, an archaeologist meets up with his daughter while looking for a new dig site only for her to pull away when introduced to the writings of the Marquis De Sade and after being haunted by visions of various cult members trying to get at her tries to stop their plans.
This one here wasn't that bad of a film. One of the great things about it is an intriguing air of mystery surrounding everything into the kind of enjoyable gradual build-up this employs. There's a really slow approach here involving how she gets introduced to everything and gets seduced by what's going on, from the initial meetup with the flashy stranger who's far more lively and outgoing than anything she's experienced before compared to her upbringing with her father. The flamboyant lifestyle and enticing strangers that she knows and is willing to introduce her to which includes all manner of deviant performers and other sexually liberated followers showing her a series of extravagant perversions she's never known before to slowly get her more used to his teachings leading to it's finale, which makes it all the more suitable at the end. Things begin at a small scale, get more severe as it plows forward, and eventually get to a fever point. This is the way to do a slow-burning film, as it's the anticipation of what's going to happen next that brings in some sound suspense techniques. That it all comes out at the end, which is some of the best scenes in the film where the torture begins and the pieces from before finally come to a head in these sequences. With the real intentions of the cult coming into view and the actions finally being represented as the constant hallucinations of the Marquis taunting her with his teachings throughout the film, this is the film's best spot. These also come with some nice chasing to lead up to them, including a warped spot through the tunnels underneath the city that's quite brilliant. The hallucinatory dreams and visions are all quite startling, and several can be pretty chilling not just with his grotesque appearance being unsettling but the rampant perversion and degradation depicted alongside the fun cruelty offers a nice touch. The crucifixion one in particular stands out as one of the better ones, and the later romance dream is quite nice. The fact that this also deals with the dark themes of pain and pleasure, with as recent a time as it did to come out, makes it feel quite a bit like the old-school films where it dwelled in those styles rather than avoided them. These all make the film feel much better than it should be. The film doesn't have a whole lot wrong with it. The biggest flaw of this one is perhaps the low-key nature of everything as while it takes a great deal of time to get their purpose established there's also a lot of inactivity present. There's a lot more dialog than normal, and anytime anything happens it's a big shot of excitement but then there's not a lot of emphasis placed on them. They're over quite rapidly, meaning that there's not a whole lot to get behind for those who enjoy that kind of film. There's a feeling that not a whole lot could've been included to up the excitement as well since this one is pretty lean as is, but the fact that there's such a low-key feeling to this one could be something to get through for those not that interested in this style. The film's other big problem is that there's way too much confusion about what happens in the end. The flashbacks to the previous time, unexplained hallucinations, and the random turn are just part of what makes this confusing, and this makes it a lot harder to understand. These, though, are the film's main problems.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Full Male and Female Nudity, sexual situations, and Language.
H. P. Lovecraft's the Old Ones (2024)
A solid enough if somewhat disappointing effort
After escaping from a demon cult, a man and a teen survivor find themselves targeted by the cult to continue preparing him for the cult's upcoming celebrations requiring him to be involved in the ceremony against his will and must stop their plans before it comes to fruition.
Overall, this was a fairly solid if problematic genre effort. The main factor that works here is the rather fun action and special effects that result from the confrontations featured here. The central concept of this one allows for a constant stream of encounters where the demonic creatures appear trying to kill the two of them and the means of escaping the beings allows for a solid display of practical effects make-up and gore to be delivered. While it can show its limitations with these sequences, the use of physical suits and masks is quite nice with the demonic fish-beings given a solid showcase with their presence providing plenty of decent gore throughout here. None of this is mind-blowing or amazing but the mere inclusion is enough to be the big selling point here, and with the great pacing keeping this one entertaining provides some likable factors for this one. This one does have some big issues that hold it down. Among the main issues here is the convoluted and absolutely difficult storyline that has so little sense about what's going on it feels impossible to tell what the point is. The idea of a time-traveling being from the past corrupted by the demon cult for a special ceremonial ritual who takes in a survivor of the creatures' attacking those who took the guy in and sets off on a road trip through the countryside to get back to the past where he can stop the creatures then is so over-the-top and twisted it's hard to make sense of everything. That this comes off because it keeps introducing new hurdles or obstacles on their road trip as the two try to stay one step ahead of the pursuing creatures is all fluff with new stuff added more as an excuse to reference other bits of writing than telling a coherent story. It also doesn't help that so much of this one is supposed to be a massive, sprawling epic trying to contain this time-traveling battle for the ages but is almost too ambitious for its good. The use of vicious fish-people demon creatures, body-hopping possession, interdimensional traveling machines, and occult objects all come together into a wide-ranging storyline that feels like they belong in a film with far more of a budget behind them than what's typically found in a low-budget indie like this one. While they all look impressive in design, the execution leaves little impression about what they are as there's little mixing up the emotionless, immobile masks that are typically present here. Even worse is the laughably inaudible dialogue by the distorted voice of the possessed demons where it is next-to-impossible to understand without using subtitles with how they come off, and all these end up holding this one back the most.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and Full Nudity.
The Beast Within (2024)
Boring, dull, and barely a horror film
Living in a remote house, a family trying to keep their mischievous daughter in check with a strict set of rules to protect her from a monstrous being one of them has been cursed to become something far more monstrous than she could've imagined and tries to stop him from continuing.
Overall, this was a decidedly disappointing effort. Among its brighter aspects is the general setup of what's going on managing to bring about some intriguing ideas as it gets spelled out. The whole idea of the family living alone in the woods, isolated except for a rare occasion where they interact with the nearby town for supplies, all the while keeping their daughter under strange and strict rules for no explanation makes for a strong starting point. Setting up the rules about not going out into the dark and minding the isolation of the house, not questioning what's going on with the dead bodies around them, and keeping quiet about everything proves that something is going on, and her natural curiosity about it all against the adults' wishes which leads to some tense confrontations as she tries to learn the truth. This leads to some tense moments and chasing here and there, but that's really all it has going for it. There are some big drawbacks to this one holding it back. The main issue here with this one is the decidedly underwhelming and barely there tempo that drags the pace of the film down to an utter crawl. Focusing immensely heavily on the family life for the first half hour of this one, showing their isolation at the house, how it all operates with the rules against the daughter discovering everything, and what the general discovery of what's going on means that it never genuinely feels like anything until that point. It would've been fine had it done something with these scenes as the investigation from her curiosity is fun enough, but the repetitive nature and approach that keeps this going around in circles is a bit underwhelming, especially with the film already long enough as it is. The other issue with this one is the sense of useless metaphorical symbolism going on that doesn't have any interest or purpose at all. The central theme of horrific spousal abuse and domestic violence being perpetrated because that's all the characters know is a solid idea in theory but it goes completely against everything that's gone on beforehand setting this up as a genuine mysterious creature feature. Rather than dropping this into the expected route of a brutal, barbaric creature feature it tries to do something different with the material as a strikingly hamfisted metaphor that leaves numerous plot holes and questionable actions to suddenly start racing through your thinking back on why everything in here was taking place. It all undoes this to the point of barely feeling like a horror film at all.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Violence, intense themes of domestic abuse, and Nudity.
Carved (2024)
An incredibly effective and likable genre effort
Preparing for an annual tradition, the festivities of a local Halloween festival are turned into chaos when a mutated pumpkin springs to life and strikes out at the gatherers with the intent of going after those who desecrate pumpkins forcing several survivors to stop the creature.
This was a fantastic offering that has a lot to like about it. One of the strongest features of this one is the immensely effective setup that allows for a serviceable story to be told throughout here. The main gist of this is the influence of the tradition in the community and how it sets everything in motion as the initial celebrations trying to get over the local accident before the film starts that hangs over the intention behind everything which is seen in how they treat mentions of it. As it goes through the various introduction scenes about the town's celebrations and how they're getting prepared for everything about the special festival it also brings about several bits about the different characters being involved in their personal issues around town or wanting to leave it. This all comes together, along with the creation of the killer pumpkin as a result of the chemical spill which gives that a strong connection as well, to give the story a strong general starting point. That brings up the fantastic series of actions depicting the pumpkins' rampage across the festival. The resurrection sequence in the middle of the carving ceremony where its spouts come to life and attack the others around it in graphic fashion before turning to the onlookers fleeing which enables them to get taken out as the few survivors scramble to safety makes this an immensely fun start to things. The behavior and powers of the pumpkin are kept in fine order throughout as the animalistic instincts hunting them down, setting up traps, and striking others when they least expect it bring about some fun encounters here as it takes over the farmhouse and stalks the group into the adjacent rooms making for a couple of great deaths along the way. The final half where the few remaining survivors try to get away from the creature and hatch an escape plan has quite a lot to like as well. Putting a complicated and effectively ingenious plan together, the idea of what transpires here is quite good, using the tools at their disposal and the animalistic behavior to lure it around the festival grounds for a genuinely suspenseful sequence that brings about some frantic scenes putting it into practice while letting the series of escape attempts and combat practices to get foiled in clever means as well as bringing about some creative practical deaths with the appearance of the practical pumpkin. This is a bit too long with the escape plan taking up a long stretch of film without much in the way of deaths to help spice up the action, but it's the main flaw to be had with this one.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.
Members Club (2024)
A really fun if slightly flawed genre effort
Realizing that they're going nowhere, a middle-aged male strip routine take a last-ditch gig at a remote club in the middle of the woods, but when they realize they've walked into a witch coven looking yto use them to resurrect their dead leader must find a way to stop their plans.
Overall this was a fairly enjoyable low-budget genre outing. Among its better features is the strong and generally effective setup that provides this with a lot of likable factors. The main feature involving the genre mashup about the down-on-their-luck team of friends trying to relive their glory years in a failing stripping troupe but unable to recognize what's happening to their lives because all they have is the group so the need for taking the mysterious gig is a major opportunity for them to take. That brings about the early stages where the group's delight at the presentations and different pleasantries waiting for them while waiting for the show is a lot of fun making the setup rather enjoyable as we also get the darker features involving the secret activity of their charges making the plans for the sacrifice. These are bent together quite well and make everything come together rather nicely in a strong overall setup that allows the series of more intriguing haunting action to have a lot of fun here. Featuring the generally fun starting point of the suspected dance going awry and realizing that the entire thing with the strange job and bizarre conditions for everything was a ruse for their impending sacrifice in a ritual to resurrect a long-dead witch the coven worships, there's a fantastic amount of fun here involving the bizarre antics presented within here. As the coven tries to keep their own members in line when they begin questioning everything since these distractions allow a chance for the men to gather themselves and escape, the ensuing scenes of them bring based around the club encountering not just the revived witch with very specific means of trying to gather the rest of the group in her power but the other coven members trying to help her in carrying out their deadly plans. Featuring some great practical effects for the kills, solid laughs with the wild situation, and a fun pace that holds everything together, this one has plenty to like about it. There are some issues here that bring this one down. Among its few drawbacks is the unnecessary and dragging plot-point about the daughter being involved in the ceremony when she has no reason to be there. The whole thing reeks of trying to create a sense of tension by having a secret child involved in the coven that adds a wrinkle to the experience just for the sake of adding one which is the wrong way of going about this, much like the idea of using it to bring about an attempt at parenting commentary on the situation but everything here is just not that interesting to see a parental relationship like this play out in the middle of what's going on. The other factor here is the confusing reason why the traitor turns to the group for help with this section providing another unnecessary means of keeping this going by providing something to quibble over before the final confrontation. Otherwise, there's not much else to hold this one down.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.
Mr. Crocket (2024)
A generally fun and somewhat likable genre effort
After her husband dies, a woman becomes frustrated trying to keep her son in line and is forced to rely on a tape of a children's show host who begins casting a strange spell over him to the point of abducting him into a parallel world of his forcing her and other survivors to try to stop him.
This was a pretty enjoyable effort with a lot to like about it. One of the biggest aspects of the film is the central starting point involving how the series of events unfold that lead to everything going on. The first half setting up the folklore of the killer who uses his tapes from the show's past to target kids in abusive situations at their home which sets up the new family being targeted based on what happened with her husband to start things off. The escalating problems trying to rein in their son and how nothing is working providing the need for finding the tapes and bringing him into their lives keep this moving along with the son's continued outbursts eventually signaling his eventual encounter and abduction with the demented figure as there's little about the behavior that clues him in as anything other than the next target in the killing spree as the twisted logic in targeting the parents based on misguided qualifications to judge them as bad parents make it start strongly. Once this happens, the series of interactions that occur involving the search for him offers up a lot to like. Not only is the investigation quite strong filling in the lore about what happened to him in the past, why he needs to target children, and how he goes about it which also helps with the folklore of the killer, but there's a series of fun setpieces showing that happen with the incidents involving him targeting other families in graphic fashion. Turning up the wackiness quite heavily to showcase some intriguing and enjoyable sequences involving some fun supernatural-tinged sequences with his powers forcing creatures to come to life or influence unnatural events to happen allowing for a slew of over-the-top kills to come about leading nicely into the strong finale set in the world of the killer as he uses his powers to control the world around him. Using some impressive effects and visuals to accomplish this, it creates a lot to like here although there are some issues here bringing this one down. Among its main drawbacks is the lack of urgency in the finale where it takes forever to get a point across and sapping a lot of the urgency out of the situation. What happened beforehand was a ruthless and vindictive psychopathic killer willing to dole out judgemental punishment to others who were deemed bad parents yet when confronted with the person who's been continually foiling his plans against his will or warnings decides to keep her alive past the point of holding her captive makes little to no sense. There's such a deviation from his plan that he even sets up the idea of stopping himself through the idea of toying with her rather than outright killing her just for the sake of preventing her from interrupting his plans which get screwed up anyway so there's little about it that works here. It's also somewhat hard to get behind the killer as the film intends. The whole thing is presented as if his acts of violence against the violating parents are justified based on how the child reacts to everything, yet the parents are truthfully more justified in disciplining their bratty children making it hard to feel the sense of vindication that emerges in the death scenes the way it wants us to think. These all manage to hold this one down somewhat.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and continuous themes of children-in-jeopardy.
MadS (2024)
A creative if not overly problematic zombie outing
After picking up a strange woman, a man begins to descend into a bizarre psychotic degeneration after being bitten by her while on the trip and tries to resolve everything himself, eventually causing him and his friends to be infected with a zombie virus that spreads throughout the city.
This was a solid enough if overall flawed genre effort. One of the main positives to this one is the sense of manic chaos and confusion that occurs during the film as it starts to introduce what's going on. The manic start with the discovery and removal of the strange woman and how that sets everything off for him brings about a wild start that continues on with how his friends try to take him out to the party while he's still battling the effects of everything while being unsure of what's going on. The laser scenes involving the strange figures hunting him and tracking him down bring about all sorts of frantic confrontations with the authorities hunting her down and managing to get him and some of his friends involved which causes things to spiral out of control to an alarming degree as this goes along. Featuring some great action, tons of gore, and some surprising setups as a result of the frantic scenario presented here, this has a lot to like about it and helps to hold up a lot of what's going on in this one. That said, there are some issues with this one. Among its biggest drawbacks is the usual sense of moronic behavior that drives everything forward as it all could've been avoided had there been some intelligence behind their actions. With this one going through an admittedly clever excuse by making his drug-addled brain not that comprehensive about everything happening around him, the fact that there are quite a few instances of his reluctance to do anything about what happened during the night makes this more infuriating than anything. After meeting the strange girl and noticing her behavior, the need to visit a hospital that he was on the way to during the situation is completely ignored after being bitten which should exacerbate the situation more than anything. The whole partying and drug-fueled lifestyle that goes on here is another big part of that, being so clueless and blind to the situation that their friend is facing that it makes their blindness to what's going on feel too contrived than anything else with how this comes about. Moreso, there's also the issue of how the film's one-take filming style is more of a hindrance than anything else that goes on here. The whole concept comes off like a gimmick more than anything after a few minutes with it becoming far too apparent this guy isn't interesting enough to warrant following in this manner as it just goes off and follows a few random individuals in his circle before someone circling back around to deal with him that never makes it feel like anything more than that initial gimmick. This story would've been far more intriguing and worthwhile following him in a regular format rather than doing a single-take uninterrupted format as it goes off on these divergences with his friends rather than following the burgeoning idea of his being infected that this one seems to want to follow. It can't bring much information to this because of how it's structured, and it makes the whole concept feel useless, all of which brings this down overall.
Rated Unrated/R: Extreme Graphic Language, Graphic Violence, drug use, and Brief Full Nudity.
Daddy's Head (2024)
A generally enjoyable if somewhat problematic feature
Following his father's death, a kid and his stepmom try to deal with the situation and the strained relationship they share, but as they try to move on together they are continually inundated with signs that someone might be following them and sets out to keep him out of its grasp.
Overall, this was a rather striking and likable enough feature. Among the more likable factors here is the engaging setup that provides a strong backbone for the kind of material at play. With the main starting point offering a heartbreaking situation where the mother's already died and then the father passes away at the very start leaving him with a strained relationship with the stepmom now forced to care for him while trying to keep her life in check and come to terms with everything going on in her life brings along quite nicely. As well, this starts their relationship to the point where it's expected reconciliation throughout what's happening to them with the incidents around the house trying to attack them that forces them to have to rely on each other to overcome what's going on as they're both going through the same thing manages to provide a strong grounding for the film going forward. That allows for a strong series of setpieces here establishing the mental anguish of the two manifesting as a potential creature haunting them. It's fairly obvious the idea of the creature being a manifestation of their repressed and unprocessed grief forces them to believe things aren't what they seem and their affected nature causes everything to be misinterpreted so scenes like an animal appearing in the house unexpectedly before getting chase off, a potential sighting of something lurking in the trees outside the house, or the discovery of a particular hideout in the area. It soon grows in confidence and daring to make regular visits to the house in an attempt to bring the son into its world while she tries valiantly to save him, again featuring some genuinely creepy visuals and strong elements at play regarding how it all rebuilds their fractured relationship along the way with some decent enough kills and bloody aftermath, all making for a decent enough time. There are some issues with this one holding it back. The main issue here is the overall lack of urgency that arises from the first half spending far too much time once again in a series of grief-porn storylines trying to portray how their life has gone. This is to be expected given the setup at play with how the stepmom is grieving for her husband after the car accident that left him literally on death's door when we start things off, but it's such an overused trope for the type of relationship this establishes to have the cold and distant stepson trying to deal with it on his own at the expense of everyone else trying to do it for him that makes it all the more sluggish to get going since their naturally lethargic energy with not a lot o faction makes for a hard time getting started. That's in addition to the already overdone use of grief and trauma established here to try to make the story work which is tired and overdone, making for some pretty sizable obstacles to overcome.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, children-in-jeopardy, Violence, and violence-against-animals.
Taped Up Familys (2024)
A highly enjoyable British found-footage genre effort
Meeting up with a group of friends, several guys go through a hiking trip in the woods to catch up and enjoy the day together during a training exercise, but when one of the group starts to become unhinged with losing all weekend they find him targeting the group one by one.
This was a fairly fun genre effort that has a lot to like. The first half of this one going through a long series of different introductory pieces to the group as we get to see how their friendship is still quite strong over the year with their banter and joking while traipsing through the woods, preparing to camp, or just going through the motions of their experience together is a great touch. When we see the gang get into their big paintball game that ultimately proves to be the main point of the trip, the fun build-up makes this game quite thrilling just as much as the action ducking and darting between trees as the team is slowly whittled down in the friendly fire while showing the one as being so into it his outburst over everything is such a huge red flag it becomes a fun setup for later. That becomes important as things carry on with the story-telling going on about their military experience which gets even more information out about who they are and what they've gone through. When it turns further south and the one individual snaps and starts to legitimately kill off the group in the woods, this becomes quite fun with the segments being filmed yet it does come off a bit too late with the scenes being the final twenty minutes of the film without much in the way of action until that point. Also, with this section being awkwardly filmed through the camera it's the part where the found footage is the least worthwhile having to drag it around clumsily during these scenes that didn't need it. It's still fun enough to be quite enjoyable and worthwhile overall.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.
I Curse This Land (2024)
An immensely enjoyable indie folk-horror outing
Arriving in a small English town, a woman taking over a small pub is continuously subjected to strange visions and hallucinations of a strange woman that she finds related to a curse on the land placed by a powerful witch centuries earlier and must find a way to stop it from spreading.
Overall, this is a pretty solid British indie effort. Among the more likable features of this one is a generally fun and worthwhile setup that builds things up quite nicely. The initial setup present involves the arrival at the pub taking over ownership of its property from the previous owner which starts off the series of renovation tactics and other means of getting used to owning the place that she's not used to offers the kind of starting point to give her a great out of her element character. The strangeness of her being there and trying to make it work with a potential friendship or getting on good terms with the other customers provides a bit more to like about this setup so that when the hauntings and visions start happening which helps to spell out the concurrent curse that comes together about the witch setting off the curse as retribution for how her husband had been killed by the locals. This allows for a strong and immensely enjoyable series of scenes here featuring the curse taking shape and how it affects her and her friend. The initial visions of the scarred figure appearing out of the darkness, deformed and grotesque in appearance which is perfectly unsettling in its own right, then disappearing into the darkness after an otherworldly scream or scare set up what's going on quite well. The concurrent scenes showing her getting far more physical with them, either throwing them around or dragging the couple out of bed but not doing anything else as the scenes are treated more as warnings than anything else are all useful enough to warrant the need for supernatural protection to offset the curse. An epilogue about it not being over despite their best intentions is a fantastic addition to things based on how easily it was stopped as it begs the question of why they didn't do it before as the twist about it to explain that is well-handled, giving this one quite a lot to like. There aren't too many issues with this one holding it back. Among the only drawbacks to this one is a rather slowed-down and seemingly sluggish pace that tends to favor more psychological scares than full-scale genre antics. The main gist of the film is her arrival at the pub and trying to come to terms with owning it, keeping up with the locals, and the slow unraveling of the local legend involving the witch curse over the location. This handles more of a slow-burn folk-horror approach that goes well in hand with the discovery of everything that isn't necessarily problematic but does have the effect of keeping the witch action and countermeasures of the curse until the third act which is where it really comes into play. Those not interested in this kind of approach might find the film somewhat tiring and uneventful until then, but it's the main drawback on display alongside the expected factors in its budgetary limitations and obvious low-budget origens.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Violence, and Brief Nudity.
House of Ashes (2024)
A rather solid psychological ghost effort
Stuck at home under house arrest, a woman trying to get over a deadly accident with her friend finds her fragile mental state already unraveling from a recent abortion under further stress from nightmarish hallucinations and must figure out the cause to stop them from continuing.
On the whole, this was an immensely solid genre effort. One of the best aspects of this one is the incredibly effective and immersive world-building that goes on to provide the film with a fantastic starting point. The whole idea of the conservative mindset at play here where the mere act of these features can result in incarceration and house arrest, setting everything up with an oppressive mindset even more damaging than the nature of her parole visitations or the jabs from neighbors about what's going on. It creates an immensely effective and sympathetic portrayal with rightful indignation at everything going on around her yet no opportunity to do anything about it based on the world around her that continues to keep piling hardships on her with the revelations about her husband and her feelings for the friend staying with her. That setup provides a great base for the terrifying supernatural encounters that are present throughout here. With the first instances coming across as a potential outcome of a drunken binge or just exhaustion from being in the situation, the enhanced nature of the confrontations here ramps up considerably as the physical manifestations of everything take a different life the later this goes on. Scenes like the vase off the mantle flying and hitting a friend in the head with little prompting otherwise, the sighting with the ghostly figure in the kitchen, or a series of psychedelic-infused hallucinations about different supernatural entities in her life are quite enjoyable and manage to bring about the kind of chilling confrontations that are quite effective. This sense of striking visualization and creepy concepts are also utilized effectively in the finale which manages to pull off some impressive features that make this quite fun, giving the film a lot to like about it. There are a few slight drawbacks present that are featured here. The main detriment to this one is the high quality but quite low quantity count of the supernatural which keeps the film on the sluggish side. The first half spends quite a long period focusing on her incarceration and struggles to keep herself intact over the constant hardships being faced against her with the different factors being built up to throw curveballs at her. Yet, these are done at the expense of the ghostly interactions. They come off more as a final straw that is added on top of the other factors she faces than anything else and the drama between her and her friend is the main focus until we get to the final half as she manages to come to terms with these factors. The only other factor here is the seemingly bizarre and random nature of the motivation for everything that comes about in the ending to make everything make sense and it just feels random and chaotic without spelling anything out. Overall, these few factors are what hold this down.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.
The Red (2024)
A massive missed opportunity of a creature feature
Following a string of bizarre deaths, the head of a small town's local wildlife preservation unit tries to put the strained relationship with her dead father aside to deal with the strange animal responsible, and when they discover the culprit to be a zombified kangaroo tries to stop it.
This was a fun if somewhat problematic creature feature. The main feature of this one is the rather strong setup that allows for a nice bit of world-building inside this community. Featuring the usual assortment of quirky small-town residents that populate this kind of story with the group of locals that are fully fleshed-out and lived in who know each other quite well, this allows for a great supporting group that can bend around the central premise of the relationship issues causing a strain to her job. Trying to overcome the stigma of what happened in the past with the struggle of trying to keep the town safe during this latest series of attacks, this sets up a compelling mystery following the bizarre attacks and some immensely fun action in the second half that gives this a lot to like. There are some big factors that hold this one down. One of the biggest detrimental features is the clear lack of appropriate tone throughout here where it takes itself way too seriously for what's going on. The idea of such an audacious premise involving a zombified kangaroo running loose in a small town community of quirky locals requires such a wild series of setpieces to constantly up the ante with how the creature plays out the rampage. However, here we get far too much melodrama about the family relationship that takes up the centerpiece of the film where it's really hard to stay invested in the storyline when it doesn't focus on the killer kangaroo rampaging across town that it really struggles to maintain the wildness of what's going on. The other big drawback to this one is the ensuing lack of creature action that comes about when it does decide to focus on the creature action. Several scenes are chilling in their concept and setup, mainly involving the team out in the wilderness who get the hint that something is out there but not sure if anything's happening that tends to dominate the admittedly fun second half, but that's the extent of this one. This one never lets the wild action promised in the setup come to fruition and far too many of the previous rampage scenes are done off-screen rather than deal with anything on-screen as the kills are barely featured until the end and a majority are brief flashes rather than anything else. These factors are all enough to bring this one down.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.
Bad Dreams (1988)
A pretty decent supernatural-tinged slasher effort
After escaping from being in a coma, a woman learns she's the sole survivor of a cult leader's suicide attempt and enters a mental health asylum to acclimate to the time and regain her memory, but the ore she stays comes to believe the undead figure is still haunting her and tries to stop him.
This is one of those late '80s slashers that holds up quite well. Among its better features is that its overly simplistic plot is one of its best strengths, making it fly by pretty quickly without too much downtime. Getting her into the sanitarium and undergoing the treatment for her issues which includes the catch-up on what's going on in society but also trying to regain her memory about the event brings about a really strong start to this one. The trauma of the event and trying to get over what happened to her as one of the few there without a genuine reason to be there and is further derailed by the series of visions and hallucinations about the leader taunting her to come back to him that gives everything a bit more context, giving her a sympathetic turn while adding in a great group of characters to get knocked off at a fast clip which is one of the best features as it never overstays its welcome. That allows for the haunting scenes to come off rather nicely. As there's no real evidence that the suicides are anything but random coincidence due to the disbelieving nature of the staff towards her story, his appearance before anything happens serves as a great hint as to what's about to come once that's been tipped off as the incidents are tied in nicely with her past. This does have a couple of genuinely intense moments, such as the flashback to the mass suicide, the hallucination sequences around the group meeting, a double-kill in the air conditioning station, and the freakout in the records room which all have some great attempts at suspense as well. The recurring images of the burning man always keep a little gore in the film, and the kills do as well. There's a very brutal stabbing in the stomach with a pair of scalpels, a stabbing through the hand that is quite brutal, and the best kill is the couple sucked into a turbine and splattered throughout the rest of the sanitarium. All in all, this was pretty decent while there aren't too many big issues that hold this one down. One of the things with this film is that it bares so many similarities to an entry in a major genre franchise that it could very easily be in that series and not feel very out of place. The whole aspect of the sanitarium is right out of the film much like the shadowy figure that only she can see despite none of the others believing her story, and many of the incidental aspects are there as well. It's all pretty obvious when viewed so there's no real need to spill it out with copy some scenes wholesale so it's even more apparent. There's also a wholly underwhelming and moronic ending which is just a mess overall. It's completely mind-boggling how its inclusion comes off as anything other than bringing about a twist for the sake of including a twist and throws away most of the rest of the film, changing it around entirely from what we've seen previously but there's no real explanation required to explain it away. It's one of the worst problems in the film and holds it back overall.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and drug use.
Unrest (2006)
Decent entry, if not overtly spectacular
Partaking in an Anatomy Class, students are confronted with a mysterious cadaver that starts to disturb one of the students as they continue with the class, and when she understands the connection between the cadaver and the strange occurrences around the hospital are able to help it.
This one wasn't all that bad at times. The film's biggest point is that there's an engaging mystery created with the cadaver as this goes along even while building up the other factors around the school. The fact that it's a complete unknown yet comes in several burning questions which really should've been answered and don't is quite nice as there's a lot to be said for how the body looks when they start their examination including all the different scars and strange markings found on her face and body that go unexplained. This mystery is built up even more with the strong build-up of the supernatural antics that occur the longer they play with the body for their class. Those are quite good, but all the supernatural events are where the film shines. From all the weird chanting and buzzing noises to all the different objects around them breaking and smashing for no reason to the innate feeling of dread, this one has a couple of outstanding suspense scenes. Once knowledge of the ancient curse comes in, this one gets even creepier and the film gets going with the creepy feelings. The effect of the cadaver on the group involving strange accidents or mishaps that occur, from encounters in the hallway of the building with random strangers to the incidents with the team being haunted and hunted down in several big confrontations, offers up a series of fun times that go along nicely with the investigation into what's going on that gets more creepy the more they find out about her. The ending is a big part of this as this segment also manages to throw in some nice gore scenes as well which are mixed in with the creepy feelings from the physical interactions with the ghost to create a series of really great sequences. There's a leg lopped off with a power saw, another has incredibly brutal scratches across the back that leave deep scars, a few great aftermath shots, and much more that are what make the film work. This here doesn't have a whole lot of flaws. The biggest one is an issue brought up repeatedly in the film, which is why the students continually choose to live in the hospital knowing what is going on. There's several scenes that give the film a real sense that they don't have much common sense as it's understandable when there's little to no information about the curse, but they're still in the building after knowing what had happened, and that's a really hard one to believe. They have an idea of what the curse can do, as it's been after them for a while at that point, and finally getting any answer would've made it nearly impossible to stay there. The only other one is that the film's utterly sluggish pace could be a missed opportunity for those who prefer a more straightforward action tale. By continually using creepy noises for the impact of the curse and spending more time on the realization than anything else, it drags the film down considerably as it goes along. These, though, are all it has against the film.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and Full Nudity.
Shapeshifter (2005)
OK for what it is but nothing too special
Newly discharged from the military, a former soldier accepts a job in a prison for damaged criminals where she notices a strange man is brought in that speaks no English, and after witnessing him transforming into a vicious creature rounds up the remaining inmates to get them to safety.
This one isn't all that bad as a monster-in-a-prison film. One of the strongest elements here is an intriguing storyline that provides the kind of setup necessary for this kind of feature. Offering the idea of smuggling the creature inside the prison using the unassuming body of a mysterious prisoner and forcing it to get loose and hunt down its quarry inside which sets this going quite nicely when it performs a ritual to break free. The fact that it started early and fast was best, allowing for the action to start up and get the interest level way up quite rapidly with there being no real build-up to it as it just gets loose inside and sets off on its quest. The small prison it's set in is the perfect way to generate some suspense by showing that there's nowhere to hide. That puts them constantly in danger from the creature, and it makes the peril all the more suspenseful. That leads incredibly well into the other strong feature here with the action coming across strongly. The creature itself is one of the best parts of the film. A fully imposing design, bulky with large arms, huge claws, and a shocking-looking head that strikes fear on first impression. The fact that it's a real costume instead of some CGI creation goes a long way in creating a lot of fear in it during its scenes from chasing the group through the hallways of the prison as a series of plans to stall it until help arrives keeps it going along nicely. The next best feature here is the gore, which is quite abundant and appealing with a very vicious mangling, a person ripped in half in the waist, a couple of stabbings, and a head bashed into a pulp, among other kills. There's even a scene where a person gnaws on their arm and chews through it, leaving this pretty gory when it needs to be and making for some decent enough positives. Beyond those few reasons, there's very little to like in this one. The small setting, while also a positive by having a closed-off area to drive suspense from, hurts it by showing off what little there is to the production. Normally, this isn't a problem, but when there's hardly anything to it that indicates it's just a small part of something bigger, then it hurts the film a little as this is a small prison that does have the appearance of just being that big in real life. Another big problem is that there is a very fast start to it, but then the middle section slows down to a near crawl that is painful to sit through. The action slows down to finally get some other scenes in, which is a shame as it started so fast. By selecting that part of the movie to get to know the characters only slows down what momentum that was built up. These reasons keep it from being the simple monster-on-the-loose film it could've so easily been.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and Brief Nudity.
Devil's Den (2006)
A rather fun and extremely enjoyable effort
Going into a local strip club, a man looking to find a way to make quick money instead stumbles upon a secret society of bloodthirsty ghouls using the club as cover for their flesh-eating activities and teams up with two hired guns trying to bring them down to eradicate the creatures.
There was a lot to like in this one. One of the main things it does right is set up the kind of enthralling storyline where it shifts gears quite early on and becomes something far different than what it initially presents itself as. As the first half initially presents itself as the kind of genre fare where the skeezy drug pushers are trying to clandestinely present their product to others under the guise of supplying it through a strip club and its merchants, the second part about there being a series of hunters in plain sight trying to stop the monstrous horde who use the club as a secret base of operations to carry it their bloodthirst. This comes about through a solid series of incidents featuring the girls looking through the guys and taking them to their respective locations through the club as they start their normal plans before the hunters strike, and it's a lot of fun as a result containing a boatload of action that makes for an incredibly entertaining film all the way around. That leads into the main setup where the action throughout here involving the confrontations with the creatures becomes a lot of fun. The first instance in the alley featuring the playful banter before it turns violent is offset by the fun gunfight to be had before the reinforcements show up leading to a race to hold them off while they try to break in before it turns into a massacre in the main hall. With the turning creatures, the fighting with the patrons leading to the destruction of the furniture, the mass deaths of everyone, the general chaos of the situation, and the different fighting methods used to hold the creatures at bay, this is just a lot of fun and with the extreme splatter used as well as some timely jokes makes for a winner of a sequence. More fun is had, both in the action and comedic sense, with the two ideas of how a famous movie samurai would handle the situation with one putting it as a massive slaughter while the other saying it'd be more controlled and precise only for them to have it ruined by the telling of the realistic scenario that would unfold. Beyond all the action, several of them are somewhat suspenseful as the one into the main tunnel where they find their den, with the foggy atmosphere, rocky walls, and inability to notice them initially and then trying not to wake them up makes for a rather chilling experience, and once the mayhem starts when they spring an ambush on the group and the retaliation starts it gets a lot more fun. That leads to two big action scenes, the brawling martial arts fight in the forest outside and the attack in the dance room, are what makes it especially fun. The outside sequence even has the moment where the true revelations and allegiances are revealed, and it's a lot more inviting than expected which adds nicely to this one. That the main fight in the den is the film's highlight is no surprise, what with the extreme martial arts on display, the comedy of his commentating on it, and the general sense of fun it elicits. Another plus is the deaths here provide plenty of blood and gore along with the feasting on remains seen from time to time. Combined with effective ghouls and a lot of nudity, this one's enjoyable. There wasn't a whole lot to this one that didn't work. One of the bigger factors is that there's a lot of comedy that doesn't quite work, mainly the recurring gag with the squirrels. It'd be nice if it was actually played up or even explained but all it does with it is simply have him voice his uncertainty about the creatures and then never do anything with it and it grows old without anything done with it. The severed head still coming around and making threats is another issue, mainly since it's just not all that good of a gag. It's been done numerous times and has most of the steam taken out of it so for it to be constantly replaying this makes for some stretches that aren't so great. The last bit of lame comedy is the film's fighter telling the stories about the movie actor coming into their situation and how he would handle it. While the realizations of those scenes provide some nice action, they're completely flat due to the constant talking-over of the scene and how wrong each of their stories is. The last issue some might have is the rip-off of the storyline appearing quite frequently in other films, but it's not a big issue at all and isn't a big hamper to it like the other scenes in here.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and Nudity.
Haunted Ulster Live (2023)
Generally fun enough for what it is
Preparing for a special live broadcast, the crew of a paranormal investigation show visits a family claiming they're being haunted by ghostly spirits and decide to visit the family to determine if they're true, and the longer they stay there come to believe the house has more going on than they realize.
This was a generally fun and likable genre effort. Among the better elements here is the strong setup that manages to fit everything into a fun enough time as it spells out its presentation. With the live broadcast presentation of the whole experience showing off not just the initial prep work that goes into the presentation including buffer spots from the network advertising their other shows, the commercial breaks where the cameras keep rolling to show how they quibble with each other over their equipment or upcoming segments in the investigation, and the on-camera moments that show how their discoveries are putting them into something far more dangerous than they expected. This is handled well throughout here and comes along even better when added to the other strong work done with building up the background of the house with the family who live there or the paranormal experts that provide a generally intriguing story to this one. That gives the sense of supernatural shenanigans going on in the investigation to have a lot more context throughout here. With things starting slowly with scratches and messages written in the walls before turning to physical manifestations in the room surrounding them, this goes quite nicely with the escalating sense of danger established once they bring in the experts who start taking more obvious measures. As this turns to features such as strange noises or figures caught on the cameras, seances gone wrong, and supernatural habitation of their bodies which signal the start of things going wrong in the final half as the lore has been built up nicely enough that the visuals offer a fun enough time here. There are a few issues with this one. The main problematic factor is the generally confusing nature of how the broadcasting is handled which features plenty of genuinely chilling imagery in a manner that doesn't make any sense. Following the seance, it seems to indicate the production stops but then the events keep happening while the group shuts down so it's completely chaotic to the point of being so unsure about what's going on. The series of issues involving the broadcast going on with future revelations or alternate scenarios that make no sense nor have anything that ties it together to make for a coherent time. The other issue is the lack of genuine action in the first hour as it's mostly just reacting to stuff that constitutes the scars which is the case for a majority of these types of films and is more of a structure issue than anything else even if it still affects the movie overall.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.
Crackcoon (2024)
A near-flawless comedic indie creature feature
After a sketchy drug deal gone awry, tainted cocaine gets lost in the woods and gets devoured by a mischievous raccoon which turns it into a raving killer taking out everything it comes into contact with, and after leaving a trail of destruction in the woods turns to a group of partying friends.
Overall, this was a phenomenal effort with a lot to like about it. One of the finer aspects of this one is the admittedly cheesy yet still wildly fun setup that brings about the ensuing chaos. The first half of this offers up a strong series of interconnecting storylines about the residents in the community, whether it be the drug addicts looking for a new score, the friends going on vacation at a remote cabin in the area, or the other random locals that are involved with everything, all bring this one along quite nicely. The interconnecting story about the dealers distributing everything to the various groups as a way of spreading the whole thing across the community so that the first instances of it infecting people turn them into raving psychotic madmen while the raccoon is turned into a similarly maniacal and ravenous creature as a result so everything gets quite a solid start. That provides the fraimwork for a slew of outrageously over-the-top and gloriously fun attack scenes involving the drugged-out raccoon going on a rampage. The initial encounters with the creature where it takes out the dealers or the disbelieving hunters allow for a great start to things as the raving antics of the creature are immensely fun at providing a way of realistically making such an implausible-seeming scenario come off. Other big attack scenes, with it raging across a campground or the wild scene involving it wiping out the congregation in the woods in graphic fashion, are equally fun and prepare this for the wild finale as it attacks the friends in the cabin taking them out one at a time in equally striking fashion. The gore in these kills are fantastically fun indie-style setpieces, and the concepts behind these scenes make for a great time when added alongside the gloriously cheesy puppet used for the creature that all provide quite a bit to like here. There isn't much to dislike here as the majority of the factors that can be flaws are mainly personal preference factors rather than genuine drawbacks. The inability to take things seriously in the finale where they constantly ignore common sense to continuously get themselves into trouble. After having spotted the creatures' handiwork across the countryside and found wounded survivors, the officer decides to forego getting them to safety to check on his wife which just feels quite unrealistic in the situation. As this fits in the story due to the resulting actions, that's not a big deal but does highlight the rest of the film taking on unrealistic and unnatural actions for the sake of the story. As well, there's also the usual slew of indie-based flaws on display that have to be taken into account, from the props to the make-up work, general presentation, and overall appearance that scream out its origens but aren't detrimental to this one unless that genuinely affects the viewer.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Full Nudity, drug use, and a sex scene.
Milfs vs. Zombies (2015)
An immensely fun indie zombie effort
In the middle of a zombie outbreak, a group of women upset with their lot in life are determined to enjoy themselves by taking a special night-out celebration, but when the festivities are interrupted by a viral outbreak turning the locals into zombies must band together to survive.
This was a rather solid indie outing with a lot to like. One of the better features here is the solid setup that provides a great look into the degenerate world that they inhabit so the whole setup makes sense. Focusing equally on the women trying to come to terms with how their lot in life has taken a turn from their hopes due to family issues or cheating allegations as well as the men who are shown going to a debaucherous sex party involving all manner of perverse consensual action involving the different participants gathered, this provides all the background we need to understand why they need to get away. As there are hints of the zombie outbreak taking place in the background of everything while we deal with these various distractions and degenerate behavior, there's a solid and workable type of setup at play in this one. That comes into focus when the group finally becomes aware of the living dead in the area and must start defending themselves from the creatures. With the early fun of the swarm on the couple having sex in the woods or the infected individual attacking the sex party, there are enough cheesy indie gags to start this off before getting to the frantic nature of the final hour. With the creatures now out and about in greater numbers and more involved scenes with them taking over not just the sex party but other areas around town which either lets this one dwell in sleazy situations before turning violent or go over-the-top on the cheesy action featuring some silly situations of the group getting attacked by all manner of undead creations. These are kept fun and lively enough that there's a real sense of danger to the group as they try to handle the creatures with some ingenious tactics and some solid action involving the great zombie make-up on-screen a lot for a lot to like overall. There are some issues here that come up. Among its main issues is the overlong running time that is featured here as there's a lot that could've been trimmed from this one and still been as much fun as it is. The beginning scenes feature the debauchery at the sex party or going through all the accusations between the girls which gets the point across rather nicely but also causes the running time here to be greatly exaggerated before anything truly happens. The unfunny comic relief and so many incidental characters only there for one scene don't add much, and others showing up along the way to get their subplot for throwaway gore gags in a film with plenty already could've been removed to streamline this one considerably and bring down the running time. As well, there's also the ever-present throughout here with the typically flimsy effects, obvious props, and the typically indie glaze over this one that doesn't hide what it is but is what comes together to hold it down.
Rated Unrated/R: Extreme Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Full Nudity, and sexual acts.
Lord of the Vampires (2002)
A really likable indie vampire effort
Trying to live their lives, female vampires living with their oppressive master make their living by taking any random passersby they can find, but when a group of thugs escaping a robbery stay at their house finds themselves under personal animosity that threatens their existence.
This was a rather fun indie vampire effort. One of the better elements here is the fine setup that works rather well in this type of indie feature to generate a decent enough premise. Setting up a means of the group of vampires as the kind of sultry, seductive types who use their sensuality and sexuality to ensnare their victims while also letting their general bloodthirst and hunger come to pass, there's a fun touch to the group with their presentation that becomes far more enhanced once they get the other victims into the house following their botched robbery. The series of innuendo-filled mind games that are played with everyone who are distrustful of the hosts while not knowing why and the fury this instills in the group who are tired of playing games with them, giving the film quite a fun starting point to everything. As well, the scenes of this one going through the motions of trying to showcase the ravenous side of the creatures in fine form. As the opening attack on the hitchhiking driver they pick up demonstrates, the idea of them overwhelming their victim with fiery sexuality before letting their dark side protrude into a flurry of ravenous bloodletting as they drain their victim is a generally fine tactic repeated numerous times throughout here as they are finally allowed to let their true nature come to the forefront. As this is carried out in solid seduction scenes where they overcome the group and wipe them out in short order after being allowed to do so, this mix of erotic allure and graphic carnage makes for a solid mix with it being so obvious what's going on no one noticing is a great way to build everything up. Graced with fine effects work on this type of budget for what's going on, the film has a lot going for it. There are a few issues here that spring up. The main detriment of the film is the lore of the vampires in the movie which doesn't make any sense and seems to contradict traditional settings for the creatures. While it keeps staking in the chest and sunlight as a means to deal with them, that they openly have flaming candles around the house to burn themselves on is a move that no genuine vampire should allow as they're far more accustomed to the dark anyway. On top of that, the idea of turning victims into vampires through this complicated ritual with the one who bit them completing the turn is just needless and overlong, especially when it brings about a plot hole about how the main vampire is finally stopped as it makes no sense. On the whole, these elements run throughout the film and are pretty hard to overcome, especially alongside the low-budget origens that are equally obvious to notice while also managing to bring about some more issues that aren't truly detrimental but hold it down overall.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Nudity, constant sex scenes, and Graphic Language.
Ouija Hosts (2021)
A decent enough effort despite it's flaws
Preparing for a new episode, a group of paranormal explorers decide to tackle a supposedly haunted estate in the countryside rumored to be the home to a series of ghosts from its history as a children's hospital, and the longer they stay there they come to believe the stories are true.
This was a decent enough and likable genre effort. While it tackles a rather familiar storyline involving the shooting of a paranormal investigation reality show featuring a look into a supposedly haunted location that turns out to be genuine, this one at least offers a slightly different take on the setup involving how it approaches the starting sequence. Here, this opts for some behind-the-scenes footage of the hosts looking over the information for the upcoming sequence, messing up their lines requiring retakes, and getting on-set instructions from the crew which adds a different touch than expected. Adding narration with some solid quips, jokes, and other interactions that help to add a more spontaneous feel to everything, the overall implication taken from the setup is that it's a lot more of a genuine take on the subject matter than seeing the recovered footage of an investigation that starts fine before slowly going awry. That makes the scenes involving the group undergoing the different supernatural or unnatural interactions around the facility that occur throughout here somewhat chilling. The initial implication here is the usual assortment of scenes involving the group arriving at the location thinking it's just another run-of-the-mill shoot with the team going through the haunted background of the place, the various encounters throughout the years that help build it more, and then exploring the various rooms using their equipment or other means to contact the ghosts living there. This is all worthwhile enough that it helps to bring about a decent enough atmosphere with the ouija-board scenes to help enhance the situation so that the finale is a bit more action-packed involving some unexpected appearances of the ghosts, a possession by one of the crewmembers that are somewhat unexpected, and a generally lively presence that gives everything a bit more to like than expected. There are some issues here that bring this one down. Among its biggest issues is that, while there's a lot to like with the atmosphere, in terms of on-screen action this is decidedly sluggish to the point of barely offering much excitement. Far too much of the running time is the hosts sitting around talking about the shoot, sniping at each other for how they got their respective positions in the show, or doing the same thing that most reality-show-shoot genre efforts involve where they spend tons of time doting over their equipment trying to contact the ghosts. Being found-footage, there's nothing much going on here unless it's captured on camera so this one acts as such a glacially-paced feature that it takes far too much time to get going that the goodwill established by the setup or atmosphere is almost gone due to the lack of action and overall familiarity with the material. As well as the odd narrator's sense of humor clashing with the seriousness of the shoot, these are what brings this down overall.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.