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Post by thwak is T.hawk on Oct 15, 2010 14:56:18 GMT -5
Really, if you're gonna remake stuff, why not remake public domain horror or the early 40's/50's/60's stuff? I get the newer stuff is based on name value, but you have a lot of interesting themes and stories, stuff that fell tot he wayside in the rise of slashers flicks that they are remaking now. That worked so well for dark castle Really though, the idea of dark castle always made me laugh. "OK guys we're going to remake william castle's movies but instead of using some of the money we got for the budget on creating gimmicks WE'LL CAST MATTHEW LILLARD!"
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andrew8798
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Post by andrew8798 on Oct 15, 2010 19:18:56 GMT -5
Tonight TCM is running several movies related to The Mummy
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Lick Ness Monster
Dennis Stamp
From the eerie, eerie depths of Lake Okabena
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Post by Lick Ness Monster on Oct 15, 2010 19:38:39 GMT -5
Tonight TCM is running several movies related to The Mummy I'm watching one of them right now. Peter Cushing is rapidly becoming one of my favorite actors. Others probably knew this well before me, but just in case you didn't, he is quite simply amazing in these Hammer films.
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Post by Rorschach on Oct 16, 2010 3:12:08 GMT -5
One more FRIGHTFEST review comin' at ya! Grimm Love (2006) Starring: Keri Russell, Thomas Kretschmann, and Thomas Huber Directed by: Martin Weiz Written by: T.S. Faull It was a story that shocked the world, and made headlines in nearly every country: a man searched the Internet to find someone willing to be a victim of his cannibalism…and he succeeded. That man was actually named Armin Meiwes and his victim named Bernd Jurgen Brandes. One can read more about their case on Wikipedia, as due to forum rules I cannot post the details of their final encounter here…however in the horror film Grimm Love names have been changed (to protect the guilty?) and so Meiwes becomes Oliver Hartwin, and his victim becomes Simon Grombeck. Grimm Love is not entirely their story, for if it were, it would be a MUCH better film than it ends up being. No, Grimm Love is the story of an American woman named Katie Armstrong (Keri Russell, doing her best in what is essentially a nothing role that plays third fiddle to a flashback story) who is majoring in criminal psychology and has come to Germany to finish out her master’s thesis. After arriving in Germany, she becomes fixated on the case of Hartwin and Grombeck, delving into the history of each man in order to determine just what led them down their ultimate paths in life, and what made one man want to eat another…and another so WILLING to be eaten. As in the case of The Haunting, another Fangoria FRIGHTFEST title, Grimm Love tells more than one story simultaneously, but in this case, both of the backstories (the origins of Hartwinn and Grombeck AND their eventual fateful meeting) are so much more interesting than Russell’s arc as a student and researcher who becomes frighteningly obsessed with such a hideous crime that one wishes the film had left her out entirely and focused only on telling the story of Grombeck and Hartwin. It doesn’t help that both of the male leads (Kretschmann as Hartwin opposite Thomas Huber, turning in a truly moving, deep performance as Grombeck) far outshine the former “Felicity” star in charisma. Literally, the film seems to lag when Russell is onscreen and only pick up again when we resume the men’s stories. Why that is, I cannot say; Russell is a fine actress and it’s not her fault that her role is so non-essential…she’s just overpowered by the emotion behind the two men’s tale, and the lack of emotion in hers. If anything, Russell plays the role of Katie as TOO buttoned-down for my liking; honestly that role should have been (and God forgive me for saying this) played more akin to Nic Cage’s turn in 8 MM, where the subject is SO disturbing to the researcher/detective researching it that it literally drives him/her mad. It is only in her final scenes in the movie that Russell is allowed to come unglued, when growing signs of insanity are what was called for the entire time. So aside from Russell’s dull line delivery in narrating her pursuit of the Hartwin story, the great character turns by Kretschmann and Huber as killer and victim are really what’s worth seeing in Grimm Love. As a FRIGHTFEST title, this is surprisingly good ( I know, I keep saying that, but that’s what a few years of 8 FILMS TO AVOID DIE FOR will do to you…lower your expectations enough and anything seems awesome by comparison) and by saying that, I am by no means trying to sell this film short…it’s just that these “film fest” titles tend to err towards the awful more often than they do the awesome. So in short, if you’re willing to tolerate Russell, you’re in for an intriguing film. *** and ½ out of five. Rent it, or Netflix it…not worth a buy necessarily, but worth a watch certainly.
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Lick Ness Monster
Dennis Stamp
From the eerie, eerie depths of Lake Okabena
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Post by Lick Ness Monster on Oct 16, 2010 7:22:37 GMT -5
One more FRIGHTFEST review comin' at ya! Grimm Love (2006) Starring: Keri Russell, Thomas Kretschmann, and Thomas Huber Directed by: Martin Weiz Written by: T.S. Faull It was a story that shocked the world, and made headlines in nearly every country: a man searched the Internet to find someone willing to be a victim of his cannibalism…and he succeeded. That man was actually named Armin Meiwes and his victim named Bernd Jurgen Brandes. One can read more about their case on Wikipedia, as due to forum rules I cannot post the details of their final encounter here…however in the horror film Grimm Love names have been changed (to protect the guilty?) and so Meiwes becomes Oliver Hartwin, and his victim becomes Simon Grombeck. Grimm Love is not entirely their story, for if it were, it would be a MUCH better film than it ends up being. No, Grimm Love is the story of an American woman named Katie Armstrong (Keri Russell, doing her best in what is essentially a nothing role that plays third fiddle to a flashback story) who is majoring in criminal psychology and has come to Germany to finish out her master’s thesis. After arriving in Germany, she becomes fixated on the case of Hartwin and Grombeck, delving into the history of each man in order to determine just what led them down their ultimate paths in life, and what made one man want to eat another…and another so WILLING to be eaten. As in the case of The Haunting, another Fangoria FRIGHTFEST title, Grimm Love tells more than one story simultaneously, but in this case, both of the backstories (the origins of Hartwinn and Grombeck AND their eventual fateful meeting) are so much more interesting than Russell’s arc as a student and researcher who becomes frighteningly obsessed with such a hideous crime that one wishes the film had left her out entirely and focused only on telling the story of Grombeck and Hartwin. It doesn’t help that both of the male leads (Kretschmann as Hartwin opposite Thomas Huber, turning in a truly moving, deep performance as Grombeck) far outshine the former “Felicity” star in charisma. Literally, the film seems to lag when Russell is onscreen and only pick up again when we resume the men’s stories. Why that is, I cannot say; Russell is a fine actress and it’s not her fault that her role is so non-essential…she’s just overpowered by the emotion behind the two men’s tale, and the lack of emotion in hers. If anything, Russell plays the role of Katie as TOO buttoned-down for my liking; honestly that role should have been (and God forgive me for saying this) played more akin to Nic Cage’s turn in 8 MM, where the subject is SO disturbing to the researcher/detective researching it that it literally drives him/her mad. It is only in her final scenes in the movie that Russell is allowed to come unglued, when growing signs of insanity are what was called for the entire time. So aside from Russell’s dull line delivery in narrating her pursuit of the Hartwin story, the great character turns by Kretschmann and Huber as killer and victim are really what’s worth seeing in Grimm Love. As a FRIGHTFEST title, this is surprisingly good ( I know, I keep saying that, but that’s what a few years of 8 FILMS TO AVOID DIE FOR will do to you…lower your expectations enough and anything seems awesome by comparison) and by saying that, I am by no means trying to sell this film short…it’s just that these “film fest” titles tend to err towards the awful more often than they do the awesome. So in short, if you’re willing to tolerate Russell, you’re in for an intriguing film. *** and ½ out of five. Rent it, or Netflix it…not worth a buy necessarily, but worth a watch certainly. I remember reading about that case in the infamous Serial Killer Files book that has provided me with endless hours of fascination/scared me to my very core. It didn't seem possible to make an entire movie around the subject matter, and I'm guessing the film-makers felt the same, hence the extraneous Russell character. Maybe that's just the nature of the beast. SPEAKING OF real-life serial killers (RD mode ;D), I've long maintained that one hell of a horror film could be made about the life of Elizabeth Bathory, the "Blood Countess" of the late 1500s. Google that name, kids. Wrong doesn't even begin to describe some of the things that she was accused of doing.
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Post by YellowJacketY2J on Oct 16, 2010 13:23:16 GMT -5
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2010 13:25:14 GMT -5
Oh, nevermind...you posted it. ;D
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Chainsaw
T
A very BAD man.
It is what it is
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Post by Chainsaw on Oct 16, 2010 15:19:31 GMT -5
Really, if you're gonna remake stuff, why not remake public domain horror or the early 40's/50's/60's stuff? I get the newer stuff is based on name value, but you have a lot of interesting themes and stories, stuff that fell tot he wayside in the rise of slashers flicks that they are remaking now. That worked so well for dark castle Really though, the idea of dark castle always made me laugh. "OK guys we're going to remake william castle's movies but instead of using some of the money we got for the budget on creating gimmicks WE'LL CAST MATTHEW LILLARD!" Hey, man, I dug House On Haunted Hill. Their other efforts were weaker, although 13 Ghosts has some great ghost designs and gags.
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Lick Ness Monster
Dennis Stamp
From the eerie, eerie depths of Lake Okabena
Posts: 4,874
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Post by Lick Ness Monster on Oct 16, 2010 17:04:30 GMT -5
Very much enjoyed that. There's a small but vocal cult who disagree, but IMO, Nightmare 2 is a movie that deserves every bit of the criticism that's been thrown its way over the years. Even by the very hit-and-miss quality of the ANOES series, it's mediocre at its best and damn near unwatchable during some of its more WTF moments.
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Post by Zabel Zarock on Oct 17, 2010 5:28:37 GMT -5
Anyone see Monsters yet? I've heard it's leaked and it's a movie I've been wanting to see for awhile, love the concept.
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Post by YellowJacketY2J on Oct 17, 2010 8:04:52 GMT -5
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Post by DSR on Oct 17, 2010 14:04:44 GMT -5
Here's some s*** I watched recently:
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD 3D (2006) - Remake of the George Romero picture.
Barb (she doesn't like to be called "Barbara") and her brother travel way out into the country for the funeral of a relative. They're attacked by zombies, Barb runs and winds up in a secluded house. This one is occupied, unlike previous tellings of the story, by stoners (ugh). The stoners also grow their own weed, so calling the cops for assistance won't do, 'cause they'll find out about the dope.
So the house gets swarmed by zombies, which wind up killing some other stoners who were f***ing outside. Some hope arrives in the form of a local mortician (Sid Haig), who reveals the reason for this zombie plague: he doesn't like cremating bodies (he's afraid of fire), but he IS willing to burn up anything people want to disappear (if they're willing to pay). Some of that burned stuff is a weird chemical that causes dead bodies (which ol' Sid simply hid rather than cremated) to move around as though they're alive and crave the flesh of the living. This isn't the only secret the old mortician is keeping from people, though...
The best word I could use to describe this picture is "Average." Nothing stands out as being particularly good or particularly bad about the picture. Gore effects, writing, direction, acting, its all just kinda there. Barb is a perfect example. In the '68 original, the character completely shuts down, in shock over the circumstances she finds herself in. In the Savini remake, she's a strong-willed "action babe" (well, I think Patricia Tallman's a cutie, your mileage may vary), more than willing to face down the zombie apocalypse. In this picture, Barb's...the chick. After her initial flight from the zombies, the only thing that makes her stand out at all is a character is the fact that she's not a stoner.
2.5 stars out of 5. Again, average. Oh, and the red/blue 3D works okay, I guess, except for when they try to make something actually pop out at you. But there is at least the illusion of depth. *shrug*
Also watched recently:
THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE (FIRST SEQUENCE) (2009) - We're all pretty familiar with the premise by now. I'm not going into a full review here. I'm simply going to say that this could've been a really disturbing picture, but some really hammy performances and a few stupid/annoying character moments dull the impact of the picture. This film has already become something of a meme/punchline, as evidenced by the clip from The Colbert Report that aired on the Emmys earlier in the year. Aside from that, I don't think the film is good enough, or bad enough to warrant its cult following. 2.8 stars out of 5.
SON OF DR. JEKYLL (1951) - This film is perhaps most interesting because of the time in which it came out. By 1948 Universal's gothic horror pictures had moved into self-parody (as evidenced by the ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET... series), and we're still a few years away from Hammer revitalizing the genre with CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and DRACULA. How exactly would this "between the cracks" picture treat its horrific subject matter?
After an angry mob torches the home of Jekyll/Hyde and causes him to leap from the roof to his death, his infant son is adopted by his lawyer Mr. John Utterson. 30 years later, the full-grown Edward Utterson is a scientist like his birth-father, and when he learns his true heritage, Edward moves into his father's abandoned home to find out if Dr. Jekyll's experiments really did bring out his evil side, or if Mr. Hyde was merely the result of mental illness.
Edward's research is in no way helped by the public, frightened at the thought of an heir to the Jekyll/Hyde legacy. The true monsters of this motion picture are the prejudices of an angry mob, and the unscrupulous journalists who set up events that would make Edward look enraged (like breaking into his house, or having children throw rocks through his windows) in an effort to keep the public in high levels of fear (and, of course, to sell more newspapers).
Okay, there's another "true monster" here, as someone is following Edward around, committing horrible acts in the vicinity of him, so that everyone thinks its Edward himself committing them! Edward's gotta find a way to clear his name, and his family name, before the citizens turn their fears into action...
If you were expecting a straight-up mad science/killer-on-the-loose picture, this isn't the movie for you. As mentioned above, the monsters of this movie are largely paranoia, prejudice, and conspiracy. And, this film having been released after WWII and in the early stages of the Cold War, I imagine the film's message wasn't one people were particularly ready to accept. One of the film's writers was actually uncredited because he was blacklisted as a Communist.
Like I said before, this isn't truly a "monster movie" but if you're looking for a film about psychology and paranoia, this is pretty good. Not real big on action, but there are a few thrilling chases towards the end. And the acting is quite good, as is the direction. There is one Jekyll-into-Hyde transformation that is well done for the time period. 4 stars out of 5.
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Sinestro
Samurai Cop
I wonder how many words I can fit in this spot. Probably not many, but maybe a few. Yeah that many
Posts: 2,275
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Post by Sinestro on Oct 18, 2010 4:08:37 GMT -5
I think Craven has officially went off the rails, as Carpenter hasn't directed a movie since his Ghosts of Mars misfire. Actually Carpenter had a movie come out this year: The Ward www.imdb.com/title/tt1369706/ By all accounts it's not to good, though I haven't seen it yet, but will as I have enjoyed what Amber Heard has brought to the table in the few movies I've seen her in, (All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, ZombieLand, and The Stepfather remake). And for those of you that like Adam Green's Frozen I highly recommend Spiral. It's a tightly woven film about loneliness and a man's downward spiral. It stars Joel Moore who was also the "hero" in Hatchet but in a totally different role. Really good stuff.
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Lick Ness Monster
Dennis Stamp
From the eerie, eerie depths of Lake Okabena
Posts: 4,874
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Post by Lick Ness Monster on Oct 18, 2010 11:25:54 GMT -5
Some hope arrives in the form of a local mortician (Sid Haig), who reveals the reason for this zombie plague: he doesn't like cremating bodies (he's afraid of fire), but he IS willing to burn up anything people want to disappear (if they're willing to pay). Some of that burned stuff is a weird chemical that causes dead bodies (which ol' Sid simply hid rather than cremated) to move around as though they're alive and crave the flesh of the living. Talk about the art of plot convenience - our mortician character won't burn up the bodies that we need to provide our movie with zombies, but he WILL burn up the magical zombie-creating checmical. Guh. On some level, I find that funny. As for Carpenter's possible future, I'm still holding out hope for that rumored project with Hilary Swank. If that happens, I'll be there on opening day regardless of how far I have to drive.
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Post by mysterydriver on Oct 18, 2010 12:17:10 GMT -5
Watched Pandorum last night.
It's an okay movie if you can ignore the bad/irritating points...problem is that there are plenty.
Dennis Quaid is good in his role, which I appreciate because he at least tries in every film he gets. Although, I think Ben Foster should probably slap his agent for this one. He's a really talented actor to be in a role where he's babbling movie science or shouting for people to "Run!"
I read that the movie was originally planning on being a low-budget (around $200,000) film with unknown actors, but some studio exec read it and loved it, pushing it to be a bigger film. However, I'm pretty sure that this shows that bigger isn't better.
I'd go into more detail, but I'm not sure it'd interest anyone. So instead I'll just say:
Grade: C-
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Post by Skeptical Mind on Oct 18, 2010 13:00:58 GMT -5
I got the impression the 2006 Night of the Living Dead was more of a comedic homage to the original, including the obligatory conversation about real zombies versus movie zombies, like the scene where they talk about vampires in From Dusk til Dawn. The people in the house are also watching the original on TV.
I liked the part where Barb gets the famous "They're coming to get you Barbara" as a text on her cellphone, written like "comin 2 get u barb". Also the part with Sig Haig knocking down naked zombies with a shovel and trying to carry them back into the funeral home before anyone notices.
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andrew8798
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Post by andrew8798 on Oct 18, 2010 14:32:37 GMT -5
Update on the Hellraiser Remake
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Post by DSR on Oct 18, 2010 23:19:03 GMT -5
I got the impression the 2006 Night of the Living Dead was more of a comedic homage to the original, including the obligatory conversation about real zombies versus movie zombies, like the scene where they talk about vampires in From Dusk til Dawn. The people in the house are also watching the original on TV. I liked the part where Barb gets the famous "They're coming to get you Barbara" as a text on her cellphone, written like "comin 2 get u barb". Also the part with Sig Haig knocking down naked zombies with a shovel and trying to carry them back into the funeral home before anyone notices. Aside from that early Sid Haig scene you referred to, I didn't really get the impression that this film was supposed to be funny. Though, that may just be me and my hatred of potheads in horror cinema. *shrug* I did like that cellphone text bit you mentioned, but I didn't really think that was a joke. An homage, sure, but that's it.
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andrew8798
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Post by andrew8798 on Oct 19, 2010 18:47:24 GMT -5
Piranha 3-DD
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Post by YellowJacketY2J on Oct 19, 2010 20:42:01 GMT -5
I'm down for another Piranha flick. Enjoyed the first one.
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