8 year old Bella loves her parents and in her spare time does what every little girl loves to do. Commune with a shape shifting trickster demon. Her playmate takes the form of her mother and Bella calls her, you guessed it, Other Mommy. The trickster demon does what every little girl loves to do. try to enter a victims heart and tear their life to pieces.

I wasn’t expecting much from watching the trailer and getting exposed to the intense marketing campaign for this movie. I expected another low effort Blumhouse one trick pony jump scare vehicle. Instead of conforming to the cookie cutter Conjurjng template, this movie borrows more from the pacing and meanness of the Evil Dead franchise. From the start it hits the gas, and never lets off.

Director Rob Savage previously directed the excellent low budget found footage movies Host and Dashcam, but also recently directed the family based supernatural film The Boogeyman. He creates something unique here, and is contamtly putting the audience off balance.

One could say this movie is predictable, but almost every cliche from the family-based supernatural horror subgenre that is included in this film is subverted eventually.

Regardless of the tropines, They stuffed a ton creativity in the form of interesting set pieces and visual effects that spanned the uneasy and uncanny, to the explosive and gorey.

The script is very thin, preferring action over words, but the acting is high quality regardless. Jessica Chastain sells Other Mommy very well, and Annabella Olivia Clark as Bella is an impressive talent as well.

Overall, I had a real good time and was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it.

8/10

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Synopsis

After the events in Twilight 1, we find Bella and Edward in a difficult position. Edward no longer believes that their relationship is safe, and decides that the only way to protect Bella is for him to leave forever. Broken hearted, Bella builds a friendship with Jacob, and kind and boy with long hair and a six pack. After Bella rejects Jacob’s romantic advances, she notices him grow distant and strange. He roams with a pack of outcasts and seems to be keeping dark secrets. Its not long before the truth comes out, her new friend and potential love interest is a monster. Again. Bella will need to decide if her love for Edward can survive his absence, or if the alpha will take his place.

Score: 4/10

When 2 20 something wanna be content creators find an opportunity to get views, Ben and Tina travel to a remote location to film their experience in an underwater home. After extreme flooding, the building sank into a local lake, making it the perfect spot for inexperienced divers to explore for YouTube. As things start to go south while deep in the house, the couple learns that this is no ordinary house, but a deep house. A Deep house with deep secrets.

The Deep House is a novel idea with poor execution. Almost the entirety of the film is done underwater, which must have been incredibly hard to accomplish. I heard that most of the movie was filmed in a large swimming pool, which gives it a unique vibe. Unfortunately, it seems that the filmmakers were wholly incapable of capitalizing on this. There is almost no plot, and the plot that is there is so minimal that the characters hardly have time to explain it to you. There’s a house underwater, some evil happened there, and evil will continue to happen. Why? Cause it’s a spooky haunted house horror movie. That’s what is supposed to happen. It feels shallow, pun absolutely intended, and I couldn’t wait for it to be over. Side note, lighting the set underwater must have been a nightmare, but as much as I want to give the crew their flowers, they did not do good enough. I couldn’t see what was going on in so many scenes, and that is probably because a flashlight underwater does not show up well on screen, but they should have done something because what the actual hell. The movie is so dark. I hope they do better in Deep House 2: Deeper House.

Score: 2/10

Bella is a 17 year old girl who just moved to the small town of forks to live with her father. As she begins to make new friends at her highschool she runs into a very handsome and very mysterious Edward Cullins. He is tall, pale, and very moody. The perfect speciman. As Bella begins to fall for Edward she learns about his dark and sparkly secret. He is a 120 year old vampire. The insane age gap aside, the two begin dating, but soon a traveling group of vampires come to the town to tear the love-bats apart.

Twilight is an objectively bad movie. Luckily I think it falls into the category of “so bad its good”. The dialogue is awkward, the acting is so bad it hurts. Its specifically geared towards teenage girls who fantasize about unhealthy relationships with undead monsters, making it an uncomfortable watch for a 27 year old man. But I do think those things are what makes it charming. I was watching this with my wife and we were laughing and talking throughout the whole movie, making it a pretty enjoyable movie experience. It isnt a good movie, but it can be a good time.

Score: 3/10

A small town lawyer Kevin Lomax is on a winning streak when he is recruited by a big New York City law firm. With significant wealth, and a beautiful place in the city on the horizon Kevin leaves with wife Mary Ann to pursue his dreams. It seems like he could really have it all, but beneath the glamour of his new life, Kevin discovers that winning comes at a price. His ambition grows into an obsession, and the more he indulges in his newfound wealth and power the further he drifts from the man he used to be. As Marry Ann’s mental health begins to deteriorate Kevin struggles to hang on to his humanity as he is tested by his biggest competitor yet, the devil himself.

The film definitely speaks to the times especially horror and suspense in cinema. Thematically it’s a reflection of our inner most struggles in humanity in a dark yet fun way.

The acting teeters between spot on and over the top depending on the scene. But undoubtedly brings a star studded cast. Al Pacino is at his most Pacino bringing life and energy to every scene he is in. Keanu does his best but at times can come off a little cheesy losing points for me. Charlize puts her all into the role and you can really tell. I love the relationship Kevin and his wife have. It’s beautiful, loving, passionate and then the depiction of its deterioration packs a punch

While the supernatural elements are eloquently sprinkled throughout the film it does not rely too heavily on it, it’s more implied and told in intentional small parts.

The film does run long at a 2 hour and 20 minute run time. I feel like quite a bit could have been taken out and a different ending could have made the film better but overall it’s very enjoyable with great performances and a universal message that as a human is easy to connect with.

8/10

A medical courier named Bryan accepts one last job to deliver to Raccoon City hospital. on his way he is beset by many misadventures involving zombies and monsters.

Zach Cregger was fingered to direct this after the wild success of Barbarian and Weapons. Here he enters the hollywood machine of rehashing tired IP, and in this instance comes out not just unscathed but triumphant. Resident Evil doesn’t have the complexity of his previous movies, but maintains his excellent timing and humor. He basically takes the junky character from weapons and gives him a job inside a video game and we watch the wacky high jinx. Bryan is a couple steps above simpleton and largely has single words as dialogue for the movie, but Austin Abrams gives a great performance as the everyman. I laughed out loud several times in the movie at the reactions of Brian as well as some of the absurd situations throughout. It also has some great jump scares that aren’t endlessly telegraphed like in most jump scares vehicles. The monsters and body horror are all well done and disturbing. It also is extremely well paced and comes in at a nearly extinct runtime of an hour and 30 minutes. Overall it’s a really fun movie and despite the nitpicks of Resident Evil fans it is objectively the best live action film in the franchise.

9/10

Based on the Richard Bachman/Stephen King novel of the same name, Thinner tells the story of an overweight lawyer who is cursed by a Gypsy to lose weight at an alarming rate.

It’s a simple premise that makes you wonder, huh what are they going to do with that! The answer is nothing. This is a big ol nothing burger of a movie. I remember seeing it when I was younger but I always assumed it was a made for tv movie, and now I understand why I thought that. The production quality and acting was so bad that it induced incredulity. The movie focuses so much on moving the plot forward that it fails to include a story with characters with clear motivations. It is so focused on getting to the next stage of thinness that it never takes a moment to really communicate what the characters think or feel about the situation. It ends up feeling as hollow as the protagonist’s former pants.

2/10

When young couple Brad and Janet become stranded in the rain, In search of a phone they run into a mysterious castle run by the alien sweet transvestite Dr. Frank-N-Furter. In the midst of an outlandish experiment the couple is given shelter and introduced to a variety of eccentric characters. Through the course of the night, they are put in situations that challenge their sense of self, sexuality, and their relationship.

With the recent passing of Tim Curry I wanted to review a movie this week that truly captured his presence as a person and an actor.

Every production he was in commanded attention and showcased something special that not all actors have, but I think no role of his is as unforgettable as Dr. Frank N Furter

The red lips, the corset …it’s giving

Originating as a theatrical production the Rocky Horror Picture show has a rich history which is why it is still so huge in pop culture today

Taking inspiration from the 70’s sexual liberation movement, british glam rock and THE David Bowie, this film is the definition of campy and comes through with stunning over the top performances

Tim Curry is simply magic and this is a true testament to his range as an actor

The music if fun, and the visuals chaotic yet cohesive at the same time and you are truly brought into their world of sex and exploration with nods to horror classics

I have a deep appreciation for this film’s intent and execution although it’s not necessarily my cup of tea

I think it transcends the need for a rating due to the cultural and historical impact, the safety it gave for the queer community at the time, the continued representation, and the balls to do something outlandish and fun.

8/10