Two For the Price of One (Gemini Man, 2019)

Henry Brogan is the best sniper there is. He has spent his life shooting terrorists and those who help them. But when he retires, he discovers that his most recent target may have been an innocent man, and retiring from the top secret government agency is permanent.

He ends up on the run with help from an old friend and a young agent as they try and piece together the facts. But the biggest issue is the incredibly skilled young men sent after Henry. As the trailers revealed, Henry has been cloned and it was sent off to kill him. Younger and all his skills give Junior the advantage over Henry.

But Ang Lee is not interested in simply pitting two forces against each other. Instead, Henry is more interested in altering Junior’s path from that of a brutal killer. It helps keep things from getting two formulaic in the action genre. The action scenes are really well choreographed and well edited. I like the characters, but the story kind of falls apart towards the end.

The big talk around the film is the use of High Frame Rate. I saw this film in the standard frame rate, and I must confess, I am not sure the film would benefit. There were outdoor scenes that looked like characters were just in front of green screens, HFR seems like it would make that stand out more.

The film uses cutting edge digital technology to create a digital Will Smith that is imposed over another actor. And it never quite looks natural. While the digital de-aging Marvel did with Nick Fury in Captain Marvel looked like a younger Samuel Jackson, the digital puppet for Gemini Man looks like an artificial creation.

Gemini Man is an okay film with some good performances and great action, but it is not destined to be a sci-fi classic.

October 25, 2019 0

Who Can You Trust? (Goodnight Mommy, 2014)

Lukas and Elias have been waiting for their mother to return to their remote home after some surgery. But when she arrives, face encased in bandages, the twin brothers instantly start to question if their mother has truly returned.

What unfolds is a terrifying tale of parental and child relationships gone terrifyingly awry.

It is really hard to talk about this film without giving away some of the most horrifying twists and turns of the story. But this slow burn ends in an excruciating crescendo of horror.

If Hereditary and Midsommar engaged you, this is likely to be your jam. It becomes painfully uncomfortable to experience towards the end, with a very bleak set of reveals and resolution.

October 24, 2019 0

Never Sleep Again (The Nightmare, 2015)

Never Sleep Again is focused on the condition known as Sleep Paralysis. People afflicted by it describe the terrifying experience of being visited by specters while being unable to move. Some reference aliens, others demons and some, simply dark and ominous men.

It is a waking state of sleep, where they are aware of their surroundings, but powerless to change or protect themselves.

Through interviews and recreations, the viewer is taken through a world of fear. And the recreations are very creepy and even outright scary. It is hard to not be drawn in…and then?

Well, the end just kind of unravels. There is no real discussion as to what might be causing these experiences. We hear the first hand accounts, and see representations of what it must be like…but we are not treated too much in the way of medical theories or possible cures. Well, except one. A few people talk about prayer to God…but little else in the way of research or medicinal break through.

So, while this is a really engaging view for most of it’s run time, it feels kind of empty when you get to the end.

October 23, 2019 0

The Viral Legend of Wrinkles the Clown (Wrinkles the Clown, 2019)

In 2015, videos of a creepy clown called Wrinkles emerging from beneath a child’s bed went viral, followed by various sightings and then stickers inviting parents to call Wrinkles to scare naughty children.

This documentary focuses on the phenomenon from both the perspective of the man (or men) behind wrinkles, the parents and kids who became obsessed with the clown.

The kids are, honestly, the most disturbing part of the documentary. We hear audio of voicemails received at the public number Wrinkles has set up, and it is kind of chilling to hear just how terrified these kids are.

Initially, we are introduced to a retiree (who is not shown) who really seems disinterested in how it might impact the kids. Later, as the film reveals another individual (also hidden) stating to be the creator of the clown (explaining they hired the retiree to play the role) who created a lot of the viral videos of Wrinkles being seen in public. That individual states they are not really thrilled by parents calling wrinkles to scare their kids, suggesting it is pretty abusive.

For awhile, the documentary carries along at an interesting pace…but it kind of peters out towards the end, like they kind of were unsure where to take the film. Still, it is a pretty interesting look at a creepy viral phenomenon.

October 22, 2019 0

Unstoppable Trickery (Trick, 2019)

One Halloween at a party of the local high schoolers, one student suddenly shocks everyone by slaughtering almost everyone at the party. The student, nicknamed Trick, is wounded and while in the hospital breaks free, after taking several bullets and falling out a window, he disappears.

While everyone else is sure he is dead, believing he had leaped into the nearby river, Det. Mike Denver is not so convinced. He believes that Trick is still out there.

The following Halloween, he is proven right as Trick starts appearing in different masks, wearing creepy face makeup beneath. Like Jason or Michael, Trick seems capable of surviving multiple wounds and appearing anywhere at any time.

So, Trick is the latest from Patrick Lussier (Drive Angry, My Bloody Valentine) and screenwriting collaborator Todd Farmer (Drive Angry, My Bloody Valentine and Jason X) have created a fairly by the books action slasher. This is not bad, as they show they have a pretty solid grasp on the tropes and find a way to explain them in a late film twist. The film is fairly tense with some thrills.

The cast is quite good, led by Omar Epps. But he is supported by genre vets like Tom Atkins and Jamie Kennedy. And the faces I was less familiar with, such as Kristina Reyes and Ellen Adair were good as well.

As noted, the film is not breaking new ground, but it is a pretty fun and exciting slasher film over all.

October 21, 2019 0

No Escape (Haunt, 2019)

A group of friends go to an incredibly remote extreme haunted house to try and take one girl’s mind off her boyfriend problems. After turning in their cell phones and signing a waiver, they enter.

But it does not take long before they discover that they may never be leaving the Haunt alive.

From the screenwriters of A Quiet Place comes this rather simple tale. It is also a very well done one. Haunt is both fun and scary, with a lot of uncertainty.

I don’t have much to say beyond I recommend this film to fans of intense slashers. It works very well, with a decent (but unfamiliar cast) and the ending worked really well for me.

October 20, 2019 0

No More Orphans In Zombieland (Zombieland: Double Tap, 2019)

So, I loved 2009’s Zombieland. I found it largely a clever and hilarious take on Zombie movies with a terrific cast. Amazon tried to do a series based on the film, recasting the characters with lesser known performers and a rather blah pilot episode. I eventually gave up on the idea of ever getting a sequel…and then last year, on the heels of director Ruben Fleisher’s successful but critically maligned Venom, it was announced that a sequel was in the works…and that it would have the central cast returning. But revisiting Zombieland ten years later feels like a risky proposition.

Probably one of the original’s most notable flaws is how it feels like a lot of ideas strung together without a central story. lots of really entertaining sketches. The film still works, just maybe could have used a more centralizing story.

However, while the film begins feeling a bit the same, a cohesive tale and goal for the group comes together. The film adds some very fun new characters, and the jokes really land a good 90% of the time.

I appreciate that they kept a lot of the first film’s visual identity and this film feels like a surprisingly natural follow up to the first. If you enjoyed the first Zombieland, I feel confident you will have a great time with Double Tap.

October 19, 2019 0

Precious Memories, How They Linger (We Are Still Here, 2015)

A grieving couple move to the countryside beyond New York to come to terms with their loss. But what they discover in their new home is they are not alone.

The house’s previous occupants have never left and seem intent on not only destroying the couple, but to even claim the soul of their late son for hell.

Starring Barbara Crampton and Andrew Sensenig, We Are Still Here is a good haunted house film that sets itself apart from films like the Conjuring or Amityville Horror by its visuals. The spirits are distinct looking with white eyes, but otherwise charred black with red and orange cracking through.

This design plays into a later reveal in the film that makes for a fine surprise. Larry Fessenden and Lisa Marie appear as friends who are believers in psychic phenomena, and this results in a solid performance from Fessenden as he attempts to communicate with the spirits.

We Are Still Here manages to be an effective and entertaining little film that deserves to be seen.

October 18, 2019 0

A Psycho Cop’s Work Is Never Done (Psycho Cop Returns, 1993)

In the late 1980’s going into the 90’s, it was not hard to get the direct to video sequel horror. So, it is not a huge surprise that, like Maniac Cop, Psycho Cop got a return.

Back in the uniform of Officer Joe Vickers is Robert R. Shafer. Unlike the first film, which was a bit more self serious, Director Adam Rifkin and writer Dan Povenmire opt for a much more comedic tone. Kind of the Hangover with a slasher killer.

A bunch of coworkers plan to have an after hours bachelor party, but attract the attention of Joe Vickers. After the building is locked up for the night and the strippers have arrived, Joe starts wandering the building and killing folks.

Compared to the previous film, Psycho Cop Returns a lot more fun. Everybody clearly is in the same film, and the acting is largely over the top. This is especially true of Miles Dougal who is the quintessential 80’s office nerd.

This film is pretty crass with a lot of gore and nudity. But it is pretty mindless slasher fun.

October 17, 2019 0

He’s Not a Maniac Cop-He is a (Psycho Cop, 1989)

A year after Maniac Cop hit screens, we were greeted by yet another killer cop. The titular Psycho Cop is Officer Joe Vickers. A bunch of disposable kids go to a remote house to party and get picked off one by one by Vickers.

There is not a lot to say here, the film is not all that special. It follows the standard of the wise cracking killer. The kills are not terribly unique. The dialogue is pretty standard.

Vickers is a servant of Satan, out killing people for sacrifices, but it does not make a lot of sense… his victims are people being punished for transgressions, would he target the innocent? Why does he care if people are misbehaving?

Truthfully, the only memorable part of the film is Robert R. Shafer, who is pretty obviously having fun with the role. But this is not a memorable slasher at all.

October 16, 2019 0