John of the Dead's Horror Flick Reviews

Director – Freddie Francis

Cast – Joen Collins, Peter Cushing, Roy Dotrice, Richard Greene, Ian Hendry, Patrick Magee, Barbara Murray, Nigel Patrick, Robin Phillips, Ralph Richardson

Release Year – 1972

Reviewed by John of the Dead

While searching for films directed by Freddie Francis, a classic horror director of the 60s and 70s, I came across one whose title stood out to me…Tales from the Crypt. The first film to take on the stories provided by the famed EC horror comic series, this effort was the inspiration for the Robert Zemekis-created TV show that scared scores of youngsters during its reign from 1989 to 1996. While this flick is nowhere near as scary as I would like it to be, it does provide a pretty engaging experience and consists of good horror for its time, sure to please those who love their 70s horror.

While touring a crypt five strangers become lost and stumble upon the crypt keeper’s lair where they are each told stories of how they died and wound up there.

If you know my love for anthologies, as well as the Tales from the Crypt TV series (plus Demon Knight), then you know why I just had to watch this piece, and why I enjoyed it. The story takes off right away with our five protagonists embarking on a guided tour of an old crypt and eventually losing the rest of the group and winding up in the crypt keeper’s lair, and once the first story kicks in we are given horror that would never relinquish for the rest of the film.

I could go into what each of the five stories was about, but they were quite simple and I would rather you watch the film for yourself and enjoy what I enjoyed. Some were obviously better than others, but each carried a good feeling of dread and came with positive kill sequences as well, but with this being a PG film you can only expect so much horror, therefore there was nothing too gratuitous or overly scary. Did I mind the lack of great scares? Not really, I saw the film for what it was and saw that the horror was scary in nature despite the lack of on-screen spooks. Of course, no anthology would be right without a positive wraparound story, and the wraparound closes out the anthology in the greatest way possible, and providing the most dread for the five protagonists as well.

Freddie Francis did a positive job directing this piece, giving us fantastic atmosphere and good performances by all involved, including horror legend Peter Cushing who was told to “as as himself” portraying a man who uses a Ouija board to contact his dead wife, an ironic role given Cushing had just recently lost his wife in real life (IRL for you noobs). The horror provided was well executed and came with a decent amount of gore at times for a PG film, and I applaud Francis for turning this very simple horror film into a classic that I am sure will be remembered for many more decades to come.

Overall, Tales from the Crypt is a great horror anthology that brings that awesome feel of the 70s along with good horror that did well for being a PG effort. The film’s rating may have been what held it back from providing horror that would have aided it in keeping up with other notable 70s films (Halloween, Dawn of the Dead, etc.) but in the end this is one flick worth watching merely for its original ties to the famed comic series.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Banjong Pisanthanakun, Yongyoot Thongkongtoon, Paween Purikitpanya, Parkpoom Wongpoom

Cast – Maneerat Kham-uan, Witawat Singlampong, Apinya Sakuljaroensuk, Chon Wachananon, Nattapong Chartpong, Kantapat Permpoonpatcharasuk, Pongsatorn Jongwilak, Wiwat Kongrasri, Laila Boonyasak, Nada Lesongan, Plai Paramej, Wirot Ngaoumphanphaitoon, Piyakarn Butprasert

Release Year – 2008

Reviewed by John of the Dead

Like most other American horror fans I had heard of a great Thai anthology film titled Phobia (4bia) but for whatever reasons the piece was not widely available to viewers here. I remember desperately searching for a copy over the years so that I could finally see for myself whether this piece would live up to its name, and while I was not happy to wait for years I can say that I am glad to finally get this one off my queue. Horror anthology films are some of the most fun the genre has to offer thanks to them essentially providing three to four horror films in one sitting, and Phobia brings us four tales all centering around the supernatural elements often associated with Asian horror. While I should know better than to do this nowadays, I went into this piece with high expectations and hopes that I would enjoy this piece as much as I wanted to, but that was not exactly the case here. I did enjoy this one, but this was not the anthology powerhouse that I had read of and was expecting to see, but after a slow start and a great finish I was left with a positive experience in the end…barely.

The first segment, titled “Happiness”, centers around a young girl forced to reside in her lonely apartment for an extended period of time due to a leg injury she suffered during an auto accident. Late one night she receives a text message from a young man asking to befriend her, and after exchanging photographs she begins to feel him filling the lonely void that has plagued her since the injury. Of course, not all love stories are fairy tales, and she soon learns the intent behind the stranger she thinks she knows.

“Happiness” was an OK way to start the anthology, giving us elements we can all relate to as I am sure most of us have spent late night hours texting someone we hardly know, and that made this a pretty fun entry besides some cheesy faults. The story takes place mostly in one location, the girl’s apartment, and her being apartment-ridden made added to the conflict given she would not be able to run very far if her new friendship turned sour, and turned sour it did. As expected, we eventually learn the reasoning behind why the boy began texting her and desired her friendship, and it lead to a bittersweet climax. I felt that this story could have done more and been a bit less cliché, and also provided us more horror given our protagonist is an injured girl with no place to run. “Happiness” came written and directed by Yongyoot Thongkongtoon (Thai names are so much harder to spell/say than other Asian names), whose direction was about as good/bad as his writing. He provided good atmosphere and used great locations for his sets, but the horror just was not potent enough to match the good atmosphere he had to work with.

Next up is the worst entry of the film, “Tit for Tat”. When a young boy exposes his classmates for doing drugs on campus they exact revenge on him for getting them suspended, ultimately killing the boy by mistake. What follows is a vengeance-fueled story centering on the young boy’s black magic avenging his death and killing off those who took his life.

Given my love for vengeance you would assume that I’d enjoy this one right? Well, I did enjoy the vengeance part. It was great watching the young boy exact vengeance from beyond the grave, especially after seeing just how innocent and good-hearted the young boy was before his death. The writers did a great job selling his character, pulling at the viewer’s heart as he was tortured and eventually killed by the heartless bullies and their girlfriends. However, aside from the vengeance theme I found this story to be pretty odd and not as engaging as I expected it to be. There are some cool kills written into the film and it definitely had more horror than its predecessor, but once the final act of the film kicked in we are thrown through some twists and turns that I found uninteresting and sometimes downright silly, ruining what could have been a decent experience. This may be a result of “Tit for Tat” having four different writers contributing to the 30 minute story, but director Paween Purikitpanya did not do as good a job selling the film himself. We have some good gore here and there, but there was way too much lame CGI during the final sequences that hindered his horror in addition to the messy storyline.

The third installment is ‘In The Middle”, and was the campy entry in the anthology. Four young men go on a camping and rafting expedition and experience an adventure from hell when one of them dies while rafting and returns to haunt his surviving friends.

“In The Middle” comes to us written by Banjong Pisanthanakun and directed by Parkpoom Wongpoom, the two filmmakers responsible for one of the best Asian horror films of all time, Shutter. Naturally this film appealed to me given I love flicks where our protagonists trek off expecting loads of fun but instead find themselves over their heads and in a horrific situation, which is the case for most slasher films, and “In the Middle” provided enough fun for me to enjoy this one. The story begins with one of the four friends stating how if he ever died he would come back to haunt his friends, preferably the one that sleeps in the middle of the other two, and it was only fitting that after their raft capsized he was the only one to drown, or so they thought. Eventually the friend shows up and surprises the other three, but there is obviously something different about their friend: he’s dead. This was the only film to not only be “fun” but also provide some good comedy as well as we watch the three friends frantically run about the woods trying to escape their dead compadre, which eventually boils down to a climax the three never saw coming. This entry was both written and directed pretty well and made for my second favorite entry in the series thanks to good execution of the horror/scares, and some good laughs as well.

The final entry is “The Last Fright”, and was my favorite of the four stories. The last fright comes co-written by Parkpoom Wongpoom and another writer, Sopon Sukdapisit, and once again directed by Wongpoom. The story follows a young flight attendant tasked with attending to the Princess of Khurkistan onboard a Thai airline, which proves to be the most terrifying night of her life.

This was definitely the scariest entry in the piece, which is of course why I enjoyed it more than the others. It takes a little while to get going, with the flight attendant attending to the bitchy princess taking up the first half of the film, but once the princess suffers an unfortunate accident the horror and spooks kick in full throttle. 90% of the film takes place on the plane, which provides for a nowhere to run scenario that creates great tension and leaves our protagonist facing horrors that would leave me defacating my pants if I saw what she saw onboard that plane, making for an entry that was not just the best, but consisted of the level of horror that I wish all of the entries would have brought with them. The direction is solid and expertly sells the story with great atmosphere and perfect usage of the horror written into the film, Despite this being a 30 minute watch it honestly felt longer than the others because of how much I was enjoying the drawn-out horror sequences, showing that despite the other directors lagging, Parkpoom Wongpoom and directorial overseer Banjong Pisanthanakun possess talent like no other when it comes to Thai horror.

Overall, Phobia/4bia is a positive horror anthology that had it not been for the horrible “Tit For Tat” would have been a solid 8-rating. The first entry was enjoyable, the second horrible, and while the last two got better and better they were not able to elevate this piece to where it should have been. Nonetheless we are given good horror in at least two of these entries, making for one of the better Thai horror experiences and one of the better horror anthologies of recent day.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Drew Goddard

Cast – Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Brian White, Amy Acker, Sigourney Weaver

Release Year – 2012

Reviewed by John of the Dead

When I first heard someone mention The Cabin in the Woods a few months ago I thought to myself, “Cool, another slasher film. I’ll check it.”, completely oblivious to just  how awesome this experience would be.  After viewing a trailer for this piece I saw that this would be much more than the usual slasher experience, but despite the trailer and hearing of praise from the critics (surprising for a horror film) I still was not prepared for what this piece had to offer.  With a supreme storyline unlike any other I have ever seen in the genre and excellent direction from a first-timer with little horror experience in other ventures, The Cabin in the Woods makes for a truly memorable and highly enjoyable experience that results in one of the best horror films I have seen in years.

Five friends embark for a weekend trip at a family member’s newly purchased cabin deep in a secluded, wooded area.  What they expected to be a weekend of fun and boozing soon turns to terror when they find themselves bombarded by unforeseen and unspeakable horrors, leading them to discover the apocalyptic truth behind the cabin in the woods.

First and foremost, because I am posting this review on release day for the film I will do my best not to expose any spoilers or plot twists.  This may force me to not go into great detail over the positives the plot offers, but trust me, you are going to thank me.

Don’t you love with you think you know a story, but instead it kicks you in the face and gives you more than you expected?  Writers Joss Whedon(writer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Alien: Resurrection, Toy Story) and Drew Goddard(writer: Cloverfield, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, “Lost”, “Alias”) did a fantastic job writing this story, which plays off of the usual slasher-esque film involving a group of naive friends venturing off into elements outside of their comfort zone in search of a good time, only to be hacked to bits by a crazed madman.  It is obvious from the get-go that something “behind the scenes” will be going on with this slasher storyline, and I found this “behind the scenes” element to be a highly engaging factor that made this a very unique and creative storyline in a genre where creativity has been long gone.  The slasher element is not abandoned though, as Whedon and Goddard poke fun at most of the horror/slasher cliches in the book, and they do so with justification in why the cliches were used.  How did they do it?  By being brilliant, that is how.

There are have been numerous films in the genre that have employed a creepy cabin in the woods, with the most famous of them being The Evil Dead, and it was Raimi’s horror classic that lead to how our protagonists introduced the horror that plagued them.  After discovering an old dairy in the cellar of the cabin, they unknowingly unleash a horror that I never saw coming but dearly welcomed due to the brutality they brought with them.  Keep in mind that the horror going on as a result of the diary is horror that is resulting from the behind the scenes element mentioned earlier, which ultimately erupts into possibly the most horror I have seen in a film in ages.  Once the horror gets going it never relents, giving us one element of horror after another until this piece results in what I claim to be the Sucker Punch of horror films in that it literally throws EVERYTHING at us regarding the genre.  I never once thought that filmmakers could give us a horror film that blended so many different antagonists, but this writing duo did the unthinkable and threw the book at us AND finished with great results.  The kills are fantastic and come with high intensity and in surprising fashion, and for a horror film I was very impressed with the usage of our characters.  They all provided well for the story, although some less/more than others, but the five of them managed to keep me engaged throughout thanks to the awesome character play between everyone.  What I was not expected regarding our characters was the humor they provided, which came mostly from one of the protagonists and a select few other characters.  I honestly found myself laughing out loud on numerous occasions, and that occurred not only as a result of some funny dialogue but some kills that were so incredible I had to laugh out my excitement.

During the first two acts I was sold on this being a solid piece, but after the third act I realized that I had just seen one of the most enjoyable horror experiences of all time.  I really wish I could give more away on the story, but this is one story that is best viewed in theaters and not read about.

Co-writer Drew Goddard also serves as the film’s director, and also one of the film’s many surprises due to this being his first directing effort, and a damn good one at that.  From the beginning his execution makes it obvious that this is going to be a fun film that we should not take seriously, but by the end of the film you realize that despite the quirkiness and loads of humor this was a very serious and truly horrific masterpiece.  The acting performances were good, especially from Fran Kranz as Marty, the character most responsible for the film’s comic relief, but all of the actors contributed well for their roles and sold their parts positively.  Of course, the actors and their performances pale in comparison to my expectation of horror in these films, and the horror provided by Goddard’s direction was about as incredible as it gets.  His execution of every antagonist was supreme and he provided loads of gore to go along with the insane kill sequences.  The kills were executed so well that I actually jumped in my seat a few times, and I did not feel that these were cheap jump-scares but in fact scares that were just too shocking to stay still and sip my slushee without interruption.  While his execution of the entire film was great, he really sold the film to the viewer with the third act, which consisted of so many antagonists, gore, and kills that I really did not know what to do with myself, which left me in awe at how a first-timer with little horror experience (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” does not count) could have succeeded so well in the genre, but I have a good feeling that this guy has harnessed this talent for way too long and we got the talent explosion he has been dying to release (ugh, that sounds so wrong but I am not going to rephrase).

Overall, The Cabin in the Woods is one of the most enjoyable horror films I have ever seen and one of the best I have seen in the last few years.  This piece gave me everything I want to see in a horror film, but did not stop there and gave me more than I expected, MUCH more.  The horror is fantastic and consists of numerous shout-outs to pretty much every horror sub-genre there is, and with loads of gore and excellent execution this is a highly recommended piece that I suggest you check out as soon as you can.

Rating: 9/10

Director – Barbara Brancaccio, Joshua Zeman

Cast – As Themselves

Release Year – 2009

Reviewed by John of the Dead

Cropsey was a very interesting experience for me because it marked the first time I viewed a documentary horror film based on REAL events.  The object is not so much to scare the viewer as it is to make us aware of an engaging and creepy set of crimes that plagued a community for decades, and thanks to good execution I found this horror-docu to be a very worthwhile effort that I recommend to you.

Throughout their childhood Zach and Barbara were bombarded with tales of a grisly killer named Cropsy, a man who lurked in the woods and killed children who wandered away from home.  Eventually five children from a single community near “Cropsy’s woods” went missing over the years, and Zach and Barbara investigate into whether or not the man charged with the crimes is the Cropsey that plagued their nightmares years ago.

At first I was not sure whether or not what I was seeing was fictional or in fact a telling of a real crime, and sure enough I was pleased to see that for once we were given real events.  Real events tend to make a story scarier (so long as it really is scary) due to the fact that it shows such acts could really happen to anyone, anywhere, and while I never found this story scary it did provide some decent creep and lots of engaging material.  It never really felt like a “movie” but actually did come off with a documentary feel and used real archive footage to sell its point.  The film may bring back painful memories for those who resided in Staten Island, New York during the series of child disappearances and the eventual trial of their alleged kidnapper, Andre Rand.  On another note, it may also bring back memories for fans of the 1981 horror classic, The Burning, whose antagonist was also named Cropsey and started off as an urban legend that was all-too-real for his victims.  Conveniently, Andre Rand was a very creepy and psychotic looking man, and his appearances helped bring on the creepiness provided in the film.  Did he do it?  That is the question and focus of this piece, which not only shows how the media can depict someone as guilty with no physical evidence, and how impulsive and emotional behavior leads a community on a hunt for justice at any cost, but aims to find a link between Andre Rand and the urban legend of Staten Island, Cropsy.

Overall, Cropsey is a positive documentary that for once actually gives us a real documentary into horrific events.  The horror is not outright and lies mostly in the actions of the purposed “Cropsey”, but despite that this effort comes well written and well executed to make for an engaging and worthwhile experience.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Bob Keen

Cast – Craig Fairbrass, Toni Barry, William Marsh, Jennifer Calvert, Robert Firth, Margot Steinberg, Ricco Ross

Release Year – 1995

Reviewed by John of the Dead

My love for creature flicks mixed with a cold boring night lead to my finally giving this a watch and getting it off of my queue after sitting there for about a year or so. Back in “the day” I would pass this film all the time at my local video / rental store but always assumed that it would be a bad film despite it’s cool poster, and it turns out that I was very right about that. The budget is low and so is the filmmaking experience from both writer and director, and it shows in this experience that is not as bad as some make it out to be but is still a pretty bad watch overall despite some cool creature usage.

When a group of heroin smugglers find their boat catching fire they board a seemingly abandoned oil drilling vessel for shelter. Unfortunately for them, their troubles worsen when they learn that the rig is not abandoned but stands as a cover-up for genetic experiments that left the crew decimated by a large creature still on the loose.

I love storylines where criminals with a mission find themselves coming across problems they never foresaw, especially when it involves heinous creatures and a nowhere-to-run scenario (like a ship out at sea). We see all of these elements also used in the much superior late 90s film Deep Rising, which is a film I recommend you watch instead of this one. Writer John Brosnan adapted this screenplay from his very own novel “Slimer”, as he did for Carnosaur a few years earlier, and sadly his screenplay did little to aid the film. While the overall story is cool there is an abundance of poor dialogue and bad storytelling regarding our characters and the mystery behind the experiments going on. He did manage to write in a fair amount of action sequences that involved some sweet-looking creatures, but in the end this story was one that should have been left in Brosnan’s study.

Director Bob Keen did a decent job with this one, giving us great atmosphere and sweet sets that would have been great in setting up good horror but of course the low-budget and low-quality actors kept the film flat. The horror is poorly executed overall, with shotty camerawork and poor usage of the antagonist doctor, however Keen managed to provide good creature carnage that reflected his background in special FX. The look of the creatures was great and most of them were huge (which means more fun) in size, with the only negative feature being that they did not provide good kills despite Keen’s background in FX.

Overall, Proteus is a low-budget mess that despite a cool storyline and good creature action is one that you should avoid. The execution is poor and the writing is just as bad, so just watch Deep Rising instead, OK?

Rating: 4/10

Director – Mark Goldblatt

Cast – Treat Williams, Joe Piscopo, Lindsay Frost, Darren McGavin, Vincent Price, Clare Kirkconnell

Release Year – 1988

Reviewed by John of the Dead

While discussing actor Treat Williams’ role in the recent slasher flick Mask Maker with a few lovely commenters I was made aware of this late 80s horror film starring the famed and under-appreciated horror actor. Going into this piece I expected some heavy cheese (see the poster?) and fun horror, and much to my surprise my expectations were exceeded. I had no idea that Dead Heat would be as brainless and maniacal that it was, leaving my thirst for horror cheese quenched and only wanting more of what Dead Heat had to offer.

Partners Roger Mortis (Treat Williams; Deep Rising) and Doug Bigelow(Joe Piscopo) are two hardened cops with little respect for civil rights when it comes to dealing with criminals, but they will have to really hone their ass-kicking skills if they wish to defeat a new wave of criminal plaguing their streets. They find themselves doing battle with criminals impervious to bullet wounds and eventually learn that the perps are pawns in an evil game in which the dead are resurrected to do someone’s evil bidding, making for the case of a lifetime that Mortis and Bigelow will die trying to solve.

You know what happens when you get a first-time feature-film director paired with a first-time writer? You get cheese beyond belief – and when you throw in two badass actors to lead the cheese you get an incredibly fun experience known as Dead Heat. The storyline is a simple yet effective one, and one that I have honestly never seen used in the genre. We get “cop” films every now and then, but I had never come across one in which the antagonists are the living dead ordered to create chaos for a higher entity. The living dead in this piece are not like the usual living dead we see in traditional zombie films – slow moving piles of flesh – but instead we get hardened criminals back to doing what they did best in their previous life. Following Mortis and Bigelow doing their thing was fun and came adorned with numerous silly one-liners from the smart-lipped Bigelow and the usual brooding from them both usually seen from Neanderthal-ish men with power. Writer Terry Black did a swell job providing numerous fun elements in this story, giving us positive characters that I found enjoyable and used fairly well for the most part. He threw in plenty of action sequences that came with equal amounts of horror as well, giving us good zombie and creature action that I did not expect to come across. He is also obviously at most to blame for the brainless nonsense going on throughout pretty much the entire film, some of which is pretty BAD. There are numerous sequences that will force anyone with a brain to think to themselves “What the HELL? How does that happen?”, and for me (and those who appreciate these films) it only made the experience even more fun. Much to my surprise this simple story contained more than what I expected as we eventually learn the reasoning behind the usage of the living dead and a creative way to even the playing field and help our protagonists beat the living dead and those behind them.

Director Mark Goldblatt, who despite a short career gave us the awesome The Punisher following this film, did a great job in his execution and is the biggest reason behind Terry Black’s ridiculous writing not sinking the film. There are certain ways to execute cheesy stories, and thankfully Goldblatt was on page with them and managed to only further the cheese provided by Black. Treat Williams and Joe Piscopo were great in their roles and carried themselves respectfully despite the zany antics and dialogue they were forced to produce, and much to my surprise we were also given horror legend Vincent Price in a role very much reminiscent of the classic roles he played decades prior. Goldblatt’s execution of the action and horror was exactly what I wanted to see, coming at me via live-action FX complimented with heavy amounts of gore and ridiculous scenes of our protagonists doing some pretty acrobatic feats not taught at the police academy.

Overall, Dead Heat is an awesome and uber-cheesy experience that despite complete nonsense going on throughout the piece we are given great horror thanks to a fun story and great direction from Mark Goldblatt. Tons of gore and action adorn the screen and make for one of the most fun horror films of the 1980s and one you should check out if you enjoy flicks like these.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Paul Andrew Williams

Cast – Andy Serkis, Reece Shearsmith, Jennifer Ellison, Steven O’Donnell, Danny Nussbaum, Logan Wong

Release Year – 2008

Reviewed by John of the Dead

As fun as they are I tend to stray away from horror/comedies due to them normally not providing as much horror as I’d like. Every now and then I get an itch for the blend of two of my favorite genres, and that this time that itch brought me to The Cottage – a fun UK gem worth more than the light attention it has received. Coming with the usual witty and dry British humor, The Cottage also brings us good horror and fun antics that made for a pretty enjoyable experience in the end.

After fumbling the kidnapping of a crime boss’ daughter, brothers David and Peter find themselves with even more deadly problems when they learn of a dark rural secret plaguing the countryside.

One element I do not see too often in the horror genre is the usage of crime, specifically a heist. I saw this employed wonderfully in Botched, and a year later The Cottage also used it to positive advantage. The genius of it is that the characters, first deemed antagonists due to their ways, soon find themselves in trouble they never could have planned for, which then turns them from “bad guy” antagonists to the only “good guys” we have to root for. Writer Paul Andrew Williams did a great job giving us fun characters, from the bumbling brothers David and Peter to the bratty girl they kidnapped, Tracey, the brothers’ sidekick Andrew, and of course…the killer himself. Each of these characters involved provided well for the story as none of them were useless, however we did get a few thrown into the mix that could have been done away with. Things start off as they should,with the two brothers executing their demands for the kidnapping (which took place before the film started) and while fun things stay safe for a while until the horror finally kicks in towards the halfway point of the film. What I really saw as a brilliant idea was the location change involved with the discovery of the dark secret held within the countryside, which not only brought a fresh change of pace but added to the mayhem and the ever-worsening day for those involved in the kidnapping. As the film progresses you know that something is definitely wrong with the area the brothers are in, brought on mostly by the odd townsfolk, and while I knew to expect something antagonistic I had no clue that we would be given a maniacal killer with a large stature and hideous face. He managed to provide many zany and gory kills, which resulted in a fun climax and lots of great character play (deaths) that show Williams has a knack for drama in his horror.

Williams manages to replicate his positive writing with great direction, giving us awesome sets and good atmosphere in a film that takes place entirely at night – and we all know nothing good happens at night when you’re out in a rural area. His execution of the characters was great, giving us surprisingly believable (given their antics) performances and in very fun fashion. The actors involved were great, as was the killer who brought his own level of fun as well as terror. At first glance the killer is menacing and epic in his looks and mannerisms, but right away Williams pokes fun at that by making it inherently obvious that the guy’s disfigured face is obviously a mask, and in pretty hilarious fashion. The kills were fun to watch and contained enough gore to please horror buffs and gore hounds alike, although I did wish we had more characters to result in more kills, but that more of a story-related issue.

So how is the comedy in this horror/comedy? I enjoyed it. As expected it is a bit dry and simple, but it is always classy despite some ridiculous scenes here and there. Also, the fact that the horror played well into the comedy (especially via the kill sequences) made for comedy that I can definitely appreciate.

Overall, The Cottage is a fun UK horror/comedy that gives us a fun tale following several bumbling characters whose bad day only gets worse and worse. The horror is good and the comedy compliments it with sweet kills and fun execution, making for a recommended flick if you are looking for a nice mix of horror and comedy.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Philip Ridley

Cast – Jim Sturgess, Clémence Poésy, Noel Clarke, Luke Treadaway, Justin Salinger, Fraser Ayres, Ruth Sheen

Release Year – 2010

Reviewed by John of the Dead

I heard mostly positive remarks about Heartless ever since its festival releases in 2009 and its official release in 2010, but I took my time getting to this one because I just did not trust what I read. Many unsettling remarks were made that lead me to assume I would be going into a love/hate film, and after finally viewing this film I can see why those remarks were made. Heartless is much more than the usual horror experience as it gives us a heavy drama element and keeps you out of the loop over what is really going on for almost the entire film, but in the end this was an experience that I found some joy in whose faults kept it from being a truly positive experience.

We follow Jamie Morgan(Jim Sturgess), a young adult plagued with a large heart-like scar on his face. For his entire life Jamie has seen his scar as a social hindrance, especially with the opposite sex, and one day after encountering a gang of demons living in his neighborhood he is presented the opportunity to repair his ailment, but with a heavy cost that he never sees coming.

I expected a unique experience from Reflecting Skin director Philip Ridley’s first film in 15 years, and he gave me just that coupled with a few elements that I did not expect to come across. From the get-go we are thrown into the awry world that Jamie lives in, developing his photography work and cherishing the only person his this world who truly cares for him, his Christian mother. He first notices the demons in his neighborhood while walking home late one night, and after they commit a heinous act that hits close to home he seeks to exact vengeance on them in any way possible. At this point in the film I was thinking “awesome, we have a revenge element going on”, but Jamie’s vengeance only lasted a short while until the film’s next development kicked in, involving a devil-like figure with whom he makes a deal with to remove the hindering scar from his face. I did not see anything wrong with him making a pact with the devil, but I really wish we would have been given more of the revenge theme, especially given how traumatic the original act against Jamie was. It is at this point that the film somewhat turns into a love story when Jamie meets a girl who in turn falls for him and his new appearance, but of course his happiness is short-lived when the devil comes calling for payment. Jamie is forced to exercise heinous acts upon innocent people to repay his debt, and when he refuses to continue the devil’s bidding we are given a sweet revelation that I never saw coming but one that sure made a lot of sense out of the film. I did find a few faults in this piece, with the most prominent of them being the pacing which left me a bit bored at times, but that could also come from the fact that this is more than just a horror flick and partly a drama as well. At times the confusion played a hinderance on this experience, and while the climax made sense of it all in fairly beautiful fashion it did come with its own cliches that I cannot mention without delivering some heavy spoilers.

Philip Ridley did well with this piece, giving us great cinematography and awesome sets that made for great gloomy atmosphere to compliment the film’s sad and somber tone, and his musical score improved the atmosphere even more. We get mostly-positive performances from those involved, especially from Jim Sturgess(Across the Universe, 21) as Jamie. Jim expertly portrayed the kind-hearted and socially-awkward lad as if he really had been plagued with a hindering scar on his face for his entire life and he also managed to get nasty when the film called for it. Ridley’s execution of the horror was good, giving us some gut-wrenching scenes at times, although the overall horror in the film is not overly scary. The demon scenes are definitely the scariest the film has to offer, and they are few and few between and leave the viewer going through long bouts without anything horrific going on. That may play more on the storyline than Ridley’s direction though, but in the end his pacing made for a slightly boring film at times and one that could have been much better had it found its identity early on in the experience.

Overall, Heartless is a film that I really want to say that I like, and while I did find this to be a beautiful piece in its own right this is not a horror film that I can outrightly recommend. The story is one that will take you through several twists and turns until the climax makes sense of it all (in astronomical fashion), but the constant horror vs. drama going on in this piece, as well as the side-effects (poor pacing) of such a mix of ideas held it back from being the great film that it could have been. You won’t waste your time with this one unless you are looking for a non-stop horror trip, but Heartless is a flick that lives up to its name at times.

Rating: 6/10

Director – Rodrigo Cortes

Cast – Ryan Reynolds, José Luis García Pérez (voice), Robert Paterson (voice), Stephen Tobolowsky (voice), Samantha Mathis (voice)

Release Year – 2010

Reviewed by John of the Dead

I wanted to see this film for quite some time, but it never debuted at my local theaters and I instead had to wait for this to hit DVD for me to get my hands on it. While I did not expect this to be outright horror, because it is not, I did expect good tension and horror-esque elements to emerge during this piece, and that is exactly what I was given. Few truly miniscule films carry a punch with them, and Buried breaks the odds by giving us one of the most highly tense films of 2010, albeit not being an actual horror film.

Ryan Reynolds (The Amittyville Horror remake, Blade: Trinity) stars as Paul Conroy, a civilian contractor in Iraq who after being ambushed by gunmen finds himself in a fight for his life when he awakens in a coffin buried underground with only a cell phone and a lighter at his disposal.

The story is simple, and this film is simple. I have come across films in which people wake up in rather unfavorable places, I.e, every Saw movie, but never have I seen one that leaves the protagonist in such a place for the entire length of the film. Yes, that is right, the entire film takes place inside Conroy’s home away from home…a coffin. Thankfully there is much more going on than the overall storyline, and that is where things really get interesting and the tension alleviates to supreme levels. As Conroy awakens we are immediately thrown into the same dark and claustrophobic mess he is in, a brilliant idea given by our filmmakers that really lets us feel as if we are in his shoes. As panic begins to kick in we are exposed to just how horrifying it must be to find yourself in such a situation, and things only become worse for us (and Mr. Conroy) when he learns that his captors have unsavory plans for him if their demands are not met within a short amount of time. The race against time speeds up from then on out as Conroy desperately tries to dial anyone that will listen to him and can provide the right resources to the right people in order to free him from his subterranean prison. At times I really felt sad for Conroy and the pain he was feeling, both mentally and physically (although more the former), and that plays out thanks to a superb writing job from first-time feature film writer Chris Sparling. Now, Buried does not come without faults, which I expected to be inevitable given we are watching a 90 minute film that occurs in only ONE location. There are a few instances of downtime that I felt could have been polished a bit to give us better pacing, however overall the pacing of the film was great and Sparling did much with what little he left himself to work with. Of course, Sparling really outdid himself with the shocking climax that left me with such a sick feeling that I will chalk this down as one of the best horror climaxes of recent memory. This is definitely not an outright horror film, but the elements of horror are very much present in this piece and ring true until the very last moment of screen time.

Director Rodrigo Cortes did a fantastic job with this effort, giving us supreme atmosphere from the get-go and employing awesome sets that combined kept me much in the same cramped and confused mindset as our protagonist Conroy was. His camerawork was tricky and creative in making us feel right at “home” with Conroy, who was also expertly portrayed by Ryan Reynolds, a man not commonly known for good acting performances. I felt his pain and his anguish, as well as his fear and his hatred for the helpless situation he found himself in (which he did to aid his struggling family), and for once I never really found myself laughing AT him. Cortes’ execution of the horror is great, which albeit not ever really “scary” in terms of spooks was downright scary if you place yourself in Conroy’s shoes, and Cortes’ direction sold these scares and highly tense scenes in awesome fashion. The fear is real, the tension is real, the claustrophobia will engulf you, and in the end Buried is a fine horror experience.

Overall, Buried is a highly-recommended film that gives us what we horror fans show up to see but without the horror title. More of a supreme suspense thriller, we are given a great storyline with numerous developments and awesome character usage that made for an engaging experience from an actor I would not expect such things from (for this type of film). Cortes’ direction is awesome and he provides us with the scares and tension that we seek, making for a horror experience you should not pass over.

Rating: 7/10

Director – Sean McConville

Cast – Brittany Murphy, Thora Birch, Tammy Blanchard, Marc Blucas, Claudia Troll

Release Year – 2009

Reviewed by John of the Dead

I never really had an interest to watch Deadline, although it has been on my queue for quite some time, mostly due to the constant negative remarks I had come across regarding this final film of actress Brittany Murphy. Despite the bad reviews I decided to finally give Deadline a watch due to its recognizable status within the genre, and surprisingly found this film to be much better than expected. This is not a positive film by any means, but in the end Deadline gave me an end-result better than the numerous reviews bashing the film.

Suffering from writer’s block and with a deadline approaching, screenwriter Alice takes a producer’s offer and shuts herself in an old secluded home in hopes of her new environment allowing her to bypass the distractions of her life and focus on her work. Little does she know, the home harbors a terrible secret that slowly transcends her psychological state to full breakdown.

I can understand how horror fans may not enjoy this film, but the horrid reviews it has received on other sites are not as warranted now that I am able to form my own opinion of this piece. My initial thoughts during the first act were “Wow, this doesn’t suck at all.”, due to the engaging material and fair execution as well. I know I mention this often, but it never fails that a film involving someone moving/residing in a new home and coming across the horrors associated with that home will always appeal to me, especially when a supernatural element is thrown in. The horror is subtle at first, however it was quite engaging if you enjoy ghost or haunted house films, and thankfully as the film progressed so did the horror – which you would assume should be the case but I have come across numerous films where the horror stayed minimal throughout, and hes I’m talking about YOU Apollo 18. Sadly, it is when the horror really surfaces that the story-related faults surface as well. As Alice begins to uncover the mystery behind the haunting events taking place we are given very cliched developments that lacked creativity and inspiration, and furthermore consisted of material that I really did not care about. It was unique in a sense, but not my cup of tea, and ultimately brewed into a shocking climax that I saw coming miles away, although it was still a nice twist due to the dread it brought with it.

Writer/director Sean McConville did an OK job executing this piece, giving us fantastic atmosphere and creepy sets that kept me mostly-interested in what was going on thanks to these visuals. His execution of the horror was so-so, with most of the real spook going on early on in the film when we were exposed to minimal paranormal events, and sadly once things really got going the horror itself began to lag. I mentioned that the storyline lost its steam when the bulk of the horror surfaced, and that was also when the horror began to die down as well given the subject matter was not the least big scary and in fact quite silly. Brittany Murphy did well in her final acting role, which sadly had to come via film that could have been much better and lost whatever potential it had when :gasp: the horror kicked in.

Overall, Deadline comes with plenty of creepy atmosphere and sweet sets, and the horror at first is genuine and scary, however once the story kicks in and the real horror erupts we are given nothing but the usual run-of-the-mill DTV crap that left an ever-lasting skidmark as the exodus of Brittany Murphy’s career.

Rating: 5/10