The Crazies (2010)

So this is my favorite film from this horror month. I remember it coming out, the lack of press, and really not much buzz. I had assumed it would be another crappy horror film that flopped. I was very surprised at how good the plot and screenplay were.

The acting seems authentic, and the story has depth. Timothy Olyphant and Radha Mitchell were a good on screen couple, compelling to watch. The deputy was also really good, Joe Anderson, who has been in a number of small films over the last few years.

Pair this with Zombieland for a good halloween night.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0455407/

Share:

Read More

Cat People (1942)

Old of the last really old films on my 101 Horror Movie list. A film that was actually remade in the 80's, and was just as highly acclaimed. The premise behind the film is that a Serbian immigrant, Irena (played by Simone Simon) is courted by an American Oliver Smith (played by Kent Smith). They get married, and are living together, we aren't sure how long, and she tells him the story of her dissidents and how they turn into tigers when kissed.

So they are married and still haven't kissed, you can tell Oliver is sexually frustrated, and falls for a coworker. The film actually has some pretty good chilling moments. Not what I would really consider a "horror" in modern terms. Anything that gave you a scare or chill was a horror 70 years ago.

Still another "Just Average" horror film.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034587/

Share:

Read More

Zombieland (2009)

I find Jesse Eisenberg to be a little annoying. So you know this has to be pretty good if I consider one of his films to be worth watching.

This zombie comedy has some pretty fun special effects in the intro, and some pretty good acting from a fun cast. Woody Harrelson had a career year with this and The Messenger last year. Emma Stone ( Ghosts of Girlfriends Past and Superbad ) and Abigail Breslin ( Definitely, Maybe ) made a good sister pair. With a cameo from Bill Murray that was fantastic.

This really was a good watch. Watching it pretty early in horror month made me not appreciate how good it was for a couple of weeks. But it had a good mix of scary, funny, and action throughout.

If you want a good one for Halloween that isn't really a scary horror film, this one might be for you.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1156398/

Share:

Read More

Jennifer's Body (2009)

One of the worst movies that I've seen this year. Amanda Seyfried (from Mamma Mia!) and Megan Fox star in this film. Amanda plays Neddy, who we learn is inside an insane asylum. She starts telling a story about how her friend became possessed by a demon. It is pretty obvious why she is in the asylum, and everything in the movie plays out as expected.

The thing that makes this movie horrendous, and not sure a little bad, was the awful script. The one liners and excessive bad language is cheap and unnecessary. By bad one liners, there is a mom who just lost her son. At the funeral see tells some kids that they don't understand her pain, "Because my son is six feet downtown." Or a quote by Jennifer "You need a mani bad. You should find a Chinese chick to buff your situation."

The acting, plot, script were all just horrendous. Waste of time...

Vote: 1/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1131734/

Share:

Read More

I Walked with a Zombie (1943)

I didn't realize how common zombie films from the West Indies were. It seems like there was a transition in the 1960's from zombies being created by voodoo or evil spirits to being created by infection and results of an apocalypse.

This was one of those early films. The main character is hired in the States to be a nurse for the wife of a plantation owner in the West Indies. The wife is unemotional, and non-responsive to anything. Is she a zombie?

The plot is pretty complex, and the characters are pretty good. Overall a decent old film. I have no interest in watching it again so it falls into the just average pool.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036027/

Share:

Read More

Vampyr: Not Against the Flesh (1932)

I can't get part how annoying it is when a film becomes popular 50 years after being made because it was so artistic and people of that era were too stupid to realize how good it was.

This is one of those films. The director had a nervous breakdown because it was a flop, yet Criterion felt that it was so great it had to be restored.

This is an old German vampire film, mostly silent, but still with some talking. Very few subtitles, and some panels of text. It is VERY quiet, put you to sleep quiet.

This film has one redeeming quality, and probably the one that gets it some much recognition to this day. The exposure techniques to show shadows walking around were excellent. If I could cut out these one or two scenes, they would be the only portion worth watching. I still can't completely comprehend how they were made, but it was cool.

Not really worthy of any "top film" lists though.

Vote: 4/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023649/

Share:

Read More

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)

The classic story of the doctor who takes the potion to become someone else. I never really understood why Dr. Jekyll wanted to be come Mr. Hyde. This was explained very well in the doctor's dissertation at the beginning of the film.

He felt that there was good and evil in everyone, and that he could split these personalities into two. Then he could remove the "evil" one.... he wasn't very clear on how he was going to conquer the evil side. So you can guess were this is going to go...

Fredric March does a fantastic job with the part. For a film made in 1931 the cinematic effects and makeup are really good. For an 80 year old film, this was actually pretty good.

I would suggest it to those looking for some good classics.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0022835/

Share:

Read More