While not the greatest horror movie ever made, “The Ruins” is quite a nice little thrill ride. I read the book in 2006 and really dug it. The movie holds up very well against the book even though some of the events and characters have been switched around somewhat. I don’t guess we can really complain since the author of the book (Scott Smith) also wrote the screenplay. My main complaint would be the new ending that was added for the movie. It just really didn’t work for me. Otherwise, we get to enjoy a fun roller coaster of traditional scares and some pretty intense gore sequences. I think that Carter Smith has done a fine job with his first time major motion picture. The cast is really solid as well. I really bought into the characters and actually cared what was happening to them. Plus … who would have guessed that Jonathan Tucker was so freakin’ hot?!?!~
Horror
The Mist
Stephen King stories very rarely adapt well into major motion pictures. The man with the most success has been Frank Darabont (“The Shawshank Redemption and “The Green Mile”). And now he has tackled “The Mist,” a favorite novella amongst King fans.
Well, he has pulled it off in spades … in my humble opinion.
Darabont’s screenplay sticks very close to the source material up until the final moments. We are given a movie that has equal parts nasty monsters and nasty human monsters. I am not even gonna touch the plot here. I don’t want to spoil anything for those not familiar with the original novella. Let’s just say there are some great, great set pieces … the loading dock, outside exploration, the first night, the pharmacy and the escape. There are so many tense and scary moments in this movie. The tension is helped by Darabont’s decision to shoot the film in a hand-held documentary style. It just keeps building and building until you hit a resolution (added to the story by Darabont with King’s blessing) that is so incredibly bleak you really have to see it to believe it. I suspect that the resolution is gonna be the make or break for most people watching “The Mist.”
Marcia Gay Harden rocks the movie with her portrayal of religious nut Mrs. Carmody. Thomas Jane does a pretty nice job as the story’s protagonist David Drayton. The rest of the cast is rounded out by some really solid performances by Laurie Holden, Nathan Gamble, Frances Sternhagen (yes!), Andre Braugher, Toby Jones and William Sadler.
I really do regret that I didn’t see this one on the big screen last year. I can only imagine that it was even scarier in a darkened theater … as opposed to my living room couch with my 42″ flat panel. Oh well.
I highly recommend that you get wrapped up in “The Mist.”
New Romero Is Coming
It just screams “Dooooooooom!”
Hatchet: Some Thoughts
Yeah. I got totally suckered by that tag line “Old School American Horror.” “New School Cookie Cutter American Horror/Comedy Schlock” would have been more appropriate. “Hatchet” is so by the numbers that it hurt watching it.
When a group of tourists on a New Orleans haunted swamp tour find themselves stranded in the wilderness, their evening of fun and spooks turns into a horrific nightmare.
The premise for getting our cast of carbon copy victims (hard of gold guy that’s just been dumped by his long term girlfriend, his goofy best friend, feisty heroin, slutty girls, etc.) into the spooky swamp is laughably stupid. The killer’s back story is laughably stupid. The dialogue is laughably stupid. The kills are laughably uninspired.
Bottom Line:
Don’t get suckered by that tag line like it did!!! If you really want some true “old school,” go for the original versions of “Black Christmas” or “Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
Cool Shit from England
Wow. What’s up with all the cool special editions that get put out in England/Europe and not here in the States?!?!
Just released over the pond is a 2-Disc Special Edition of the George Romero/Stephen King horror anthology “Creepshow.” I love this movie and it’s been in desperate need of some “special” treatment here in the States.
Here’s what those lucky Brits get:
Disc 1: Main Feature
* 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
* English DD2.0 Stereo and DD5.1 Surround
* English subtitles
* Commentary by George A. Romero and Tom Savini moderated by Michael Felcher
Disc 2: Extra Features
* Just Desserts: The Making of “Creepshow” – 90-minute documentary
* 5 Deleted Scenes
* Tom Savini’s Behind-the-Scenes Footage
* Theatrical Trailer
* Stills Gallery
Damn. That sounds sweet. I have been poking around on the net and there not a peep about a possible Region 1 release. I just might have to hit amazon.co.uk … again.
The Burning: Some Thoughts
OMG! I watched “The Burning” this past weekend and … my God did it kick some ass!!! “The Burning” came out in 1981 (the same year as “Friday the 13th”) and boast quite a few names with it and it was the first “Miramax” film.
“The Burning” has a very similar story line to the aforementioned “Friday the 13th.” A mad killer stalks the woods at Camp Blackfoot for revenge. You can look for Jason Alexander, Holly Hunter and Fisher Stevens all in early film roles as campers in peril. And that’s one of the many things that I loved about “The Burning” is that it’s the young campers that are the main focus of the killings. All the deaths in “Friday the 13” are directed at the camp counselors and happen before the ‘lil campers even arrive.
But what really makes “The Burning” kick so hard are Tom Savini’s masterful makeup effects. I was totally floored by the masterful “massacre” scene right in the middle of the movie. All the deaths are extremely brutal for a film that played in 1981. Maybe Savini was trying to one-up his own work on “Friday the 13th.” Well … he one-ups it in spades.
So, if you like campers in the woods slasher films as much as I do, then you definitely need to check out “The Burning.”
For the Record …
“House of the Damned” is a terrible, terrible, terrible movie. The tag phrase (“13 Keys to Unleash the Living Dead”) and the description of the movie on the back of the dvd are totally misleading. Fans of old horror and haunted houses should avoid it at all costs!!!
One Great. One So-So.
Holy Mother of God …you must see “Audition!” This movie seriously messed my shit up. Not quite a horror film in the traditional sense, it has enough horror elements to ensure that you will have your eyes covered for the final 15 minutes. Genius!
Jonesy loaned me the first season of “Heroes” and I finished watching it this past weekend. Pretty good show until they hit the season finale. I thought it was a really anti-climatic end after the 22 episode build up.
House of Wax (2005)
I finally (thanks, Netflix) got around to seeing the 2005 version of “House of Wax” … which is a remake of 1953’s “House of Wax” which is a remake of 1933’s “Mystery of the Wax Museum.”
Now, I am not going say it was good but it was better than I expected it to be. I was expecting a really, really, really bad movie.
The plot is like 2,000 other horror films you have seen. Party-hardy teens stumble their way into a seemingly deserted only to be sliced, diced and covered in wax to be put on display in the titular House of Wax. What really amazed me was the total and utter dumbness of our leads as they encounter one sinister event after another in the lead up to murder and mayhem. Would you ignore a) creepy truck b) a dead animal dumping ground c) unpaved backwoods roads d) towns not listed on any map and the fact that the town looks like it belongs in the 1950’s.
The production design is really about all that “House of Wax” has going for it. The town of Ambrose is the coolest thing in the movie … especially the fact that the House of Wax is indeed entirely made of wax. This set piece could have offered us some really cool scary moments ala “Tourist Trap.” I mean, c’mon, who isn’t scared of mannequins and wax figures? Instead the screenwriter goes the easy route and offers us the standard stalk/chase scenarios that we’ve been seeing since “Black Christmas” gave birth to the modern slasher film.
Zzzzzzzzz.
One a good note though … I will say that Paris Hilton does get one spectacular death scene. At least (at that moment) the filmmakers knew what we wanted to see.
Chances of Survival
55%
[via empty beach]
Bug
Franke and I really dug “Bug.”
Opening This Weekend!
The Host: My Thoughts
On Sunday Franke and I trekked off to see “The Host” and “OMG!” was it great! It’s been a really looooong time since I have seen a horror film this fun, scary and moving. It helps that the writer/director actually give you main characters that you like and care about. It helps that the monster movie thrills are really well done. It helps the movie (and the horror genre in general) that the gore is kept to a bare minimum so those fans of “horror” and not “gore” can get into the movie as well. It helps that the movie has several subtexts (United States politics, pandemics, Agent Yellow!) that make it resonate more. There is some much good stuff in this movie that I couldn’t possibly write it all down. I love, love, loved it! Go see it. NOW!!!