When a zombie film gets a sequel, the assumption is that the producers are looking for ways to make more guts, gore and money. But “28 Weeks Later” is just as sharp as its predecessor in nearly every way, primarily in continuing the sci-fi post-apocalyptic elements that have clearly been thought out and made believable as they were with “28 Days Later.” Read the rest of this entry »
Vampirism seems like a disease in Hollywood these days, so “Daybreakers” will fall immediately go under the lens of skepticism. Believe it or not, however, Michael and Peter Spierig’s film separates itself through high concept futuristic science fiction. Although it ultimately spirals into an emotionless bloodbath, kudos to the film-making duo for taking the out-of-control vampire sub-genre somewhere it actually hasn’t indeed been before. Read the rest of this entry »
The Wicker Man” is a peculiar little film. It begins as a typical mystery: a Scottish detective travels to a remote Island off Scotland’s coast where he is to investigate a report of a missing girl. Then the film mutates into a musical of sorts with numerous shots of topless women. Then it becomes a mystery again, this time fueled by religious beliefs. Undoubtedly paganism was an eye-opening concept in 1973 and while it doesn’t completely translate in terms of effectiveness today, it presents an interesting theistic argument and lays the groundwork for a number of future thrillers that would employ similar twists. Read the rest of this entry »
I don’t necessarily understand the phenomenon that “Paranormal Activity” became in the Fall of 2009, especially considering the success of “The Blair Witch Project” and “Cloverfield” bringing exposure to the documentary-style and low budget horror/thriller. Yet people demanded this film be shown in their cities and towns and this $15,000 movie grossed more than $100 million. We might never fully understand why, but my hunch is it’s partially because filmmaker Oren Peli is able to effectively do what bigger-budget horror filmmakers can with just a fraction of the resources. Read the rest of this entry »
One would suppose if Sam Raimi really wanted to do a masterfully frightening horror film that he could easily do so — but that would be too easy. “Drag Me to Hell” is like a thesis statement for why horror films should stop wasting their time with realism and trying to frighten people in the most “realistic” ways possible. Raimi possesses the ability to scare audiences in that way, but he doesn’t see the point. Instead, the cult classic horror director of the Evil Dead trilogy continues to employ his masterful skills for the sake of audience misdirection, outrageous gore and hysterical thrills. Read the rest of this entry »
George A. Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” is not standard horror. In fact, there are several minutes where this classic zombie film is just plain boring. There is brilliance, however, in the film’s static nature, like how one of the main characters, Barbra (Judith O’Dea), is in speechless shock for most of the film. And despite the horror fan’s craving for gore, suspense and active characters, “Living Dead” tantalizes its audience and then stuns it with unexpected turns of events instead of using the typical rise-and-fall horror structure. Read the rest of this entry »
