February 14, 2024 “Down The Chimney With A Shotgun” (* out of four) was an unbearably awful horror “comedy” about a tortured wife (Nikki Carlson) whose sleazy and abusive husband (Eddie Benevich) comes back from the dead dressed up as Santa Claus and prepares to wreak more havoc. In-your-face and sleazy and stupid movie made with poor production values which are the icing on the moldy cake. For no apparent reason, Benevich’s character speaks almost exactly like “Macho Man” Randy Savage. Continue reading →
February 12, 2024 “Attack Of The Meth Gator” (** out of four) was a cheesy horror thriller about a pile of meth drugs that are consumed by an alligator that turns them into a propulsive and murderous monster on the loose and the various townsfolk (LaRonn Marzett, Ray Acevedo, Vanessa Tamayo, and others) have to unite together to stop. Yet another movie obviously inspired by the surprise success of “Cocaine Bear” and won’t win any awards for script or originality but having said that it’s CGI effects are decent and it does provide some gruesome and gratifying kills. OK for what it is. Continue reading →
February 11, 2024 “Float” (**1/2 out of four) was a mildly endearing love story about a young Asian-American woman (Michelle Krusiec) who is saved from drowning by a Caucasian dedicated lifeguard (Robbie Amell) and they unexpectedly fall in love and start to develop feelings for one another, despite their cultural and critical differences. Moments of effectiveness and insight are offset by film’s meandering nature and predictability that dwarf its overall absorption. Both Krusiec and Anell are strong and have good chemistry together but are unable to keep film sustained and “afloat” for film’s running length. Continue reading →
February 11, 2024 “Tales Of Babylon” (** out of four) was a reheated recipe of Quentin Tarantino, Michael Mann, and (especially) Guy Ritchie fragments about various hitmen in London (Clive Russell, Aaron Cobham, Billie Gadsdon, and others) who find themselves all working on the same job and not knowing that all of them have different contracts against one another and have to find various ways to outwit and outsmart each other and stay alive. Writer/director Pelayo De Lario shows some intensity and talent but can’t transcend film’s derivations and story origins and the seams show obviously as film goes on (and on) for over two hours. Not bad but not “a tale” worth watching. Continue reading →
February 10, 2024 “Lover, Stalker, Killer” (**1/2 out of four) was an intriguing documentary about a mechanic (Ryan Avis) who tries online dating for the first time and met a psychotic woman (Jessica N. Johnson) who takes dangerous obsession and fatal attraction to the extreme and how it turned his life upside down. Grippingly told especially for anyone who’s been involved in the unpredictable (and unstable) world of online dating and maintains interest throughout but stops just short of hitting the mark. Never groundbreaking exactly but still overall worthwhile. Continue reading →
February 10, 2024 “Skeletons In The Closet” (*1/2 out of four) was overblown hooey about a husband (Terrence Howard) and wife (Valery M. Ortiz) whose daughter (Appy Pratt) is terminally ill so they make various dealings with religious and criminal figures (Udo Kier, Louis Mandylor, Clifton Powell, and Cuba Gooding Jr.) for the wife to be possessed to free their daughter from her sickness. Fine cast is wasted on tired material; isn’t it about time horror filmmakers moved on from films about ill and possessed children? Howard also co-wrote. Sally Kirkland picks up a few bucks in a few scenes as an elderly clairvoyant. Continue reading →
February 10, 2024 “The Shift” (* out of four) was a dizzyingly awful psychodrama about a man (Kristoffer Polaha) who meets a stranger (Neal McDonough) who prompts him into another dystopian world in which reality is fantasy and vice-versa and he must escape this to reconnect with his wife (Elizabeth Tabish) while other various strangers (Sean Astin, Emily Rose, and others) attempt to intercede. Bewildering and incomprehensible jumble rehashes elements from “The Matrix” and other sci/fi classics from over 25 years ago! And it’s cheesy and overlong to boot. It’s clunkers like this that resulted in the down “shift” in McDonough and Astin’s careers. Continue reading →
February 9, 2024 “Gods Of The Deep” (*1/2 out of four) was a pretty soggy underwater sci/fi thriller about a deep sea submarine team (Makeena Guyler, Jim Harris, Kane Surry, and others) who uncover a mysterious opening on an ocean floor that takes them into a new underwater world which awakens its terrifying race of beasts that want to destroy them. Heavily derivative sci/fi amalgam of elements of the far superior and underrated “Deep Star Six” and “The Abyss” but the film this might unfortunately remind cinemaphiles and geeks of most is “Virus.” Pretty underwater photography by Charlie Steeds is film’s sole asset. Continue reading →
February 7, 2024 “Somewhere Quiet” (** out of four) was a middling and mild horror melodrama about a woman (Jennifer Kim) who has to readjust to normalcy after a kidnapping and travels to her husband’s family compound and spends time with some of her family members (Marin Ireland, Micheal Neeson, and others) and her sense of reality begins to deteriorate. Good performances and atmosphere help to keep you watching but at its heart this is another “Shining” derivation and ripoff that the world did not need. Too long and not really for horror fans. Continue reading →
February 6, 2024 “ClearMind” (* out of four) was a mindless psychodrama about a young woman (Rebecca Creskoff) who uses virtual reality to enact revenge on her friends (Rob Benedict, Jessica Peraz, and others) until they realize what she is doing and try to turn the tables on her. Promising story for an intriguing mind-bender is static and boring. The concept of virtual reality doesn’t have much concept when there’s no reality and you don’t believe (or care about) any of the characters. Continue reading →
dlepikcom 