February 23, 2021 “Gatecrash” (*1/2 out of four) was an uninvolving psychological suspense thriller about a loving couple (Olivia Bonamy and Ben Cura) who are involved in a hit-and-run accident involving a stranger (Anton Lesser) who it turns out is still alive and re-appears in their lives and puts them in a personal and psychological tailspin. Writer Terry Hughes adapted his own play into this film version but what may have worked onstage becomes tedious at feature-length. Plays almost like an arthouse version of “I Know What You Did Last Summer” but there’s no fishing hook nor Jennifer Love Hewitt here. Continue reading →
February 23, 2021 “His Killer Fan” (*1/2 out of four) was a killer mistake about an obsessed fan (Brooke Butler) of a rock singer (Ryan Cooper) who finally gets the chance to play a duet with him but then goes berserk when he shows an interest in her best friend (Teressa Liane) and will stop at absolutely nothing to turn both their lives upside down and have him all for herself. Terminally predictable story lacks any suspense or conviction; cross-pollinate “A Star Is Born” with “Fatal Attraction” and you have an idea on the giant pile of cliches here. Doubtful to attract many “fans” of its own. Continue reading →
February 22, 2021 “Dead Air” (** out of four) was a rambling melodramatic thriller about a deceased father whose dedicated son (Kevin Hicks) discovers his dad’s buried radio and soon strikes up a relationship on-air with a female (Vickie Hicks) on a different radio frequency but he soon discovers that she is living in a different decade and there are twists and information that can soon affect the fate of them both. Interesting story is drably and awkwardly done although the two leads (who both co-wrote and co-directed) do their best. 2000’s “Frequency” told a similar story with much more mesmeric intensity and spark. Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “Beauty Is Skin Deep” (*1/2 out of four) was a superficial suspense thriller about a series of murders in a small town which affects a cliquish group of high-schoolers (Taylor Cynthia Halsey, Mercedes Gutierrez, Tiffany Kerr, and others) while a hard-nosed detective (Cheyenne Buchanan) investigates. Obvious and predictable at every turn and never builds substantial fire or momentum. Made only for die-hard thriller fans who will watch anything on Netflix or Redbox. Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “The Wrong Valentine” (*1/2 out of four) was a mindless suspense thriller about a high-school girl (Mariah Robinson) who meets a guy (Evan Adams) who sweeps her off her feet and seems like he is perfect; to the surprise of no one, though, he turns out to be a serious sicko who terrorizes her and her mother (Arie Thompson). Umpteenth entry in Vivica Fox’s “wrong” series is one of the weakest yet with jarring gaps in continuity and logic and a final plot twist that’s pretty hard to swallow. It’s movies like these that make you wish Fox would start making some “right” choices in her career again and pick some different material. Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “Red Carpet” (* out of four) was an unbearable melodrama about an aspiring actress (Wittie Hughes) who arrives in L.A. but soon gets sucked into the underworld of drugs and sex trafficking and has to use all her acting skills to physically and psychologically survive. Highly exploitative and ugly film wallows in the lurid morbidity it seems to be decrying. Hughes is good under the circumstances but can’t do much to enrich this deeply unpleasant film. Writer/director Scott Altman is a relative of director Robert Altman but let’s just be kind and say this is no “Nashville.” Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “Suburban Mayhem” (*1/2 out of four) was a pretty dismal melodrama about a sultry young woman (Emily Barclay) who creates havoc for everyone in her life and the various men and neighbors (Steve Bastoni, Laurence Breuls, and others) who she has an affect on. Barclay is a real knockout and does what she can to keep this afloat but is there a point or a plot? Interesting beginning soon sputters to a halt and film soon subsides. Filmed in 2006 and could have stayed on the shelf. Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “Paranormal Prison” (*1/2 out of four) was a haphazard horror mess about the creators (Todd Haberkorn, Paris Warner, Don Shanks, and others) of a paranormal YouTube channel that is in danger of shutting down if they don’t have a video to upload in time; in desperation, they go to a prison to attempt to solve a long-unresolved mystery with numerous personal and paranormal consequences of terror. Relentlessly moving hand-held camerawork and direction may cause you to reach for the dramamine but at least it’s a welcome distraction from the dumb characters and performances. Even at only an hour-and-10 minutes, this is still pretty tough going. Continue reading →
February 20, 2021 “Return To Splatter Farm” (* out of four) was a splatteringly awful throwback to ’80’s horror about a serial killer who returns for unfinished business in a rural town of Pennsylvania and numerous members of the town (Danielle Donahue, Nico Bryant, Mel Heflin, and others) try to band together to stop him. Lame and low-rent movie makes you think that maybe all those “Friday The 13th” and “Halloween” sequels in the ’80’s really weren’t that bad in retrospect. Scariest thing about the movie is it leaves the door open for a sequel. Continue reading →
February 17, 2021 “Galentine’s Day Nightmare” (*1/2 out of four) was a thoroughly routine suspense thriller about a woman (Camille Stopps) who meets a seeming Mr. Perfect (Anthony Grant) who turns out to be a real nutjob who frames her for murder and turns her life upside down. Anyone who has seen “Fatal Attraction” (or any other suspense thriller) will pretty much guess this entire film from its opening reel. This is the Valentine’s Day equivalent of a box of moldy chocolates. Continue reading →
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