March 15, 2022 “The Burning Sea” (** out of four) was a pretty banal suspense melodrama set on the Norwegian coast about an oil rig that suspiciously shuts down and the various crew members and politicians (Kristine Kujath Thorp, Henrik Bjelland, Rolf Kristian Larsen) that realize this is the start of a major ecological disaster and race against time to evacuate. “Deepwater Horizon” told virtually the same story with much more intensity and excitement, so much so that one of the characters even compares this story to that film. Film works best in its final third during the evacuation scenes but is still lost in a “sea” of cliches. Continue reading →
March 13, 2022 “Studio 666” (*1/2 out of four) was an utterly stupid horror comedy about the Foo Fighters who move to a mansion in Encino to record their 10th album but this mansion has a grisly history and they soon begin to encounter strange occurrences and gruesome murders. Witless attempt at doing a comic musical documentary crossed with a ’70’s slasher horror movie; where’s Rob Zombie when you really need him? John Carpenter has a small role as well but this is for die-hard fans of the Foos only. As for Dave Grohl and their acting talents, well let’s just be kind and say this won’t exactly lead to an everlong film career. Continue reading →
March 12, 2022 “The Last Possession” (** out of four) was a proficiently made but obvious, empty horror thriller about a family (Tom Proctor, Cassie Shea Watson, and Stephen Brodie) who move back to the husband’s childhood home and are immediately terrorized by evil spirits and loud shock noises that threaten to destroy their sanity. Film is well-made and does have some occasional scares but is yet another umpteenth variation on “Paranormal Activity” and gradually decays into sheer corn. Here’s hoping this is “the last” of these thrillers but we all know better by now. Continue reading →
March 12, 2022 “Ash And Dust” (** out of four) was a mild suspense melodrama about two couples (Michael Swatton, Anne-Carolyne Binnette, and others) on a vacation who find a mysterious box and then are subsequently tormented by a vicious gang (Dave Coleman, Blake Canning, and others) who want to keep the box and its secrets hidden. Good-looking film is atmospherically lensed and well-made but never builds sufficient momentum and thus doesn’t have the impact that it should. At least it’s better than “The Box” which it in some ways resembles. Continue reading →
March 12, 2022 “Offseason” (** out of four) was a languid horror melodrama about a woman (Jocelin Donahue) who travels to a desolate nowhere town which soon turns into a nightmare as she tries to escape for her life but soon finds that there may be no way out. Initially creepy and intriguing but you soon realize that film is gradually going nowhere, as it plods instead of builds. Another wannabe cult film from writer/director Mickey Keating and yet another film ripped off from “The Shining”. Continue reading →
March 12, 2022 “The Seed” (*1/2 out of four) was a stale horror thriller about a group of young girls (Lucy Martin, Chelsea Edge, and Sophie Vavasseur) out on a girls weekend in the Mojave desert when they soon become overtaken by an alien invasion that pits them against one another. Yet another collection of ideas derived from other (and better) movies including (yet again) “Invasion Of The Body Snatchers.” Here’s hoping that horror filmmakers start developing the “seeds” of more original ideas and concepts for the future. Continue reading →
March 10, 2022 “The Changed” (* out of four) was a lackluster horror show about a group of people (Tony Todd, Clare Foley, Jason Allen Smith, and others) who are thrown together in a home in which they have to do battle with an otherworldy force that has cloned and replaced their families, friends, and neighbors. Obvious and lame rip-off of “Invasion Of The Body Snatchers” but unfortunately the filmmakers here were unable to clone that film’s talent and skill. Todd is wasted here again; after all these grade-Z horror films, perhaps it’s about time he “changed” movie agents. Continue reading →
March 9, 2022 “Heckle” (*1/2 out of four) was a grindingly unpleasant horror show about a vindictive stand-up comic (Steve Guttenberg) who encounters a heckler (Clark Gable III) at several shows who he realizes is stalking him and subsequently trying to ruin his life in payback for all the customers/fans whose lives he ruined. Guttenberg’s strained performance cast against type as a jerk provides plenty of “heckles” but film is otherwise lame and grim. Sadly, Gable III subsequently died shortly after this completed. Continue reading →
March 9, 2022 “Operation Overlord” (**1/2 out of four) an overall well-done historical action drama set during the week before the battle of Normandy in which two soldiers (Thom Hallum and Billy Blair) have to infiltrate a Nazi fortress to rescue a prisoner of war (Stacey A. Sheffield) and face treachery and death at every turn. Too limited in scope (and budget) to achieve maximum impact but better-than-usual screenwriting and acting plus good byplay between the two soldiers make this surprisingly watchable and worthwhile, especially for fans of war films. Continue reading →
March 8, 2022 “Romeo And Juliet Killers” (*1/2 out of four) was an overstylized and trendy melodrama about a rebellious young teen (Leigha Sinnott) and her boyfriend (Zachary Roozen) who decide to murder her oppressive mother (Kelly Sullivan) in California and then take it on the run and attempt suicide themselves to die together and live on in infamy. Or something like that. Allegedly based on a true story but almost everything in it rings false and hollow. It’s hard to make a young-lovers-on-the-run movie when you don’t like (or care) about either of them. Continue reading →
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