September 15, 2020 “Silence And Darkness” (*1/2 out of four) was an uninspired thriller about two sisters who are both blind and deaf (both played by Joan Glackin) who live in a secluded house with their father (Jordan Lage) but soon begin to realize his vindictive nature and deteriorating mental state and that he has lied to them and kept them hidden from the world their entire lives. So little actually happens in this movie that this really is much ado about nothing. Solid performances do what they can but are unable to inject much life into this drab material. Continue reading →
September 14, 2020 “Archaon: The Halloween Summoning” (* out of four) was a mindlessly low-rent horror story about four college students (Christopher Dalton, Jaire George, and others) who stumble onto a 15th-century Celtic artifact and the resurrect the horror legend Archaon whose spirit haunts whomever puts on his mask and causes (yawn) all Hell to break loose. Utterly cheesy and unimaginative from the beginning; this snooze summons on its own the memories of much better films such as “Halloween”, “Invasion Of The Body Snatchers”, and also “Scream.” Give yourself a Halloween present and check those movies out instead of this time-waster. Continue reading →
September 13, 2020 “A Dark Path” (** out of four) was a lukewarm horror thriller set in Eastern Europe in which two girls (Makenna Guyler and Ade Dimberline) on their way home from a rave party end up stranded in a local forest in which they become under siege from a ravenous beast and they have to fight back together in order to stay alive. Impressively creepy atmosphere and elegant direction from writer/director Nicholas Winter hold your attention for a while but it soon sputters to a halt and starts to fizzle out just when it ought to be peaking. Not the worst of its disreputable genre but horror fans still needn’t bother going down this “path.” Continue reading →
September 13, 2020 “Parallel Minds” (**1/2 out of four) was a fairly engrossing thriller set in the not-too-distant future in which a revolutionary contact lens called Red Eye 2 can record data and help resurface buried memories; when a researcher (Tommie Amber-Pirie) at the Department Of Memory finds the owner of the program murdered, she teams up with a world-weary police detective (Greg Bryk) to uncover the murder and the larger business/governmental conspiracies at hand. Ultimately too derivative of too many other time-travel/futuristic thrillers but told with style and holds your attention with its gimmickry and good performances. Refreshingly tight also at less than an hour-and-a-half long. Continue reading →
September 13, 2020 “Switched” (*1/2 out of four) was an utterly bland teen comedy about a high-school outcast (Miya Horcher) who prays that her nemesis- a popular teen princess (Madeleine Byrne)- knows what it’s like to walk a day in her shoes and be bullied and her prayers her answered when they are unexpectedly switched. Engaging performances by the two girls do all they can to buoy this story but the execution is all wrong; it’s too silly when it should be sharp and biting and becomes maudlin and sentimental in the final third as the two become friends and understand one another. For a much funnier look at a similar story, watch “Vice Versa” or “Switch” instead. Continue reading →
September 12, 2020 “Parched 2: Hangry” (* out of four) was an abysmal horror show about a social media influencer (Remiara Eve) who brings her friends (Angelica Adams, Justen Chu, Steve Machita, and others) for a weekend at the lake for sex and boozing when an appetite stimulant is mistakenly dumped into the lake and turns them all into ravenous killers. Yet another horror sequel that virtually no one was asking for although it’s a worthy sequel in that it’s just as awful as the original. Hard to tell which is more annoying- the nonstop whining characters or the irritating handheld camera movements but it’s a scoreless tie. This is unlikely to make anyone “hangry” for part 3 Continue reading →
September 12, 2020 “Range Runners” (** out of four) was a thoroughly predictable suspense melodrama about an athletic woman (Celeste M. Cooper) hiking along on an isolated trail who is besieged and tormented by (what else?) two redneck hillbillies (Sean Patrick Leonard and Michael B. Woods) who want to steal her backpack but don’t count on her turning the tables against them and attempting to escape. Strictly for those who’ve never heard of or seen “Deliverance”, “Mother’s Day”, or even “Wrong Turn”; relatively well-made and well-acted but is overly familiar and overlong at nearly two hours. Bravura rock-to-the-head finale, though. Continue reading →
September 12, 2020 “Evil Under The Skin” (* out of four) was a limp pile of horror cliches about a mother and daughter (Helen Udy and Angela Banjaras) who head off for a weekend at a secluded cabin but- to the surprise of no one- find that it attracts some strange figures and characters which threaten them and their sanity. Genuinely bizarre and weird story is done with little flair or energy and thus has almost no interest or impact. Even at only an hour-and-30-minutes, this still feels pretty padded. Originally titled “Fading Flowers” until right before its release. Continue reading →
September 12, 2020 “The Owners” (*1/2 out of four) was a sodden horror show about a group of burglars (Andrew Ellis, Ian Kenny, and Jake Curran) who break into the home of an elderly couple (Sylvester McCoy and Rita Tushingham) thinking it’s an easy score for cash but soon find that the couple turn the tables on them and they try to escape with their lives. Violent and unpleasant but (worst of all) pretty dull as the story rips off elements of “Don’t Breathe” and “Home Alone.” Performances do what they can with thin material but still- this is hardly worth owning. Continue reading →
September 11, 2020 “Robin’s Wish” (*** out of four) was an absorbing documentary about the final days of actor/comedian Robin Williams whose legendary comic electricity and charisma was declining as he was struggling with the mental and physical problems brought on by Lewy Body Dementia which resulted in him taking his own life at 63 years old which sent shockwaves around the world. Reverently done with many touching and revealing interviews with his wife Susan Schneider, director Shawn Levy, Williams himself, and many others detailing the final days of a sad clown. Continue reading →
dlepikcom 