Its a Horror Kind of Month

Okay,
So it's been a while since I've posted anything here but I'm back with a vengeance. Tonight I'm going to review three horror films, one main stream and two smaller indy films.

Scream 4
Now when the original film came out it was a complete revision of the teen horror film. There was nothing supernatural, nothing demonic, just a good old serial killer and his need for blood. By the end of the film you've got a new reason to fear the dark and the best part is, it's a real fear. Now when the second and third films came out they beat the dead horse with battle axe until that horse was nothing but blood and goop. Yes, it's neat to have a single film parody horror films, mimicking them while bringing genuine fears to the audience. But that's almost impossible to recreate and Wes Craven learned that with the second and third film. There are only so many times a bad guy or woman comes after Neve Campbell, Party of Five really wasn't all that bad. Whether it be her dead boyfriend's mother or a jilted half brother, the tale is done.

Scream 4 is not really different. The film starts out with high hopes, a fresh cast, a smooth and clear plot point, and then the villain is revealed, as well as their plans and goals, and the hijinks ensue.  Again, we play on the old jokes as if they are new, and then reinvent an already reinvented idea. All Scream 4 did was remove the reason behind the killing and just made it mindless and kind of pointless. My advise, skip the new one, rent the old one and send Wes Craven a few letters reminding him that are extra points for originality.

Grave Encounters:

Here is a film that most people will turn down purely on face value. There are NO known actors in this film, there are little to no special effects, just some real smart acting, smooth camera work, and a rejuvenated feeling of the Blair Witch Project. The film centers on a skeptic reality show that heads to a haunted insane asylum to search for ghosts. The only problem is, that they brought a fake psychic, a pussy camera man, and a half nutty chick to a place with REAL ghosts. The film begins to evolve into a paranoid fear fest that pumps up the actors and the audience alike. There are some real genuine scares and the film is well worth the the look see. You probably won't be able to rent this one at the red box, but it is on netflix, and I full recommend you check it out.

The Skeptic:

Yet again, another film that people will turn away just by first look and Tom Arnold, lol. This small indy film has NO special effects and a damned good acting crew and an even better plot. The plot centers around a workaholic who loses his aunt suddenly. He moves into her house to arrange her estate to be sold and begins to experience a "real " haunting. He takes this event to a local doctor and even to his family shrink and begins to come to the conclusion that this haunting is not as random as it seems. Sure, again there is no top billed cast, but the film is well made and is just a good old fashioned ghost story. I fully recommend you head to Netflix and check it out.


Anyway, that's what I got. Some things that are coming up are Pirates: Band of Misfits, The Avengers, Columbia, and Larry Crowne. But until then, go rent a movie, and have a date night with a loved one.

J.