“Paramedics” (*1/2 out of four) was a terminally dumb horror thriller about two brothers (Joe Bocian and Brian Landis Folkins) who kidnap their victims and then harvest their organs for the black market but their latest kidnapped victim (Jenice Marshall) turns out to be savvier and tougher than they expected and eventually turns the tables on both of them. Unfortunately, this stupid and lame horror show isn’t savvier or smarter than you might expect. Awful acting and dialogue makes this one really tough-going to sit through. Place this one in I.C.U.

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“Darkness Rising” (*** out of four) was a clever and spooky horror thriller about a girl (Tara Holt) and her two friends (Christian Ganiere and Bryce Johnson) who break into her childhood home where her mother went insane and to no one’s surprise- all hell eventually breaks loose. Opening scenes are routine and awkward but once the story (and evil spirits) get going, the movie packs enough sufficient jolts and scares. Yet another “haunted house” horror movie but more stylish and efficient than most. Strong lead performance from Holt gives this added impact as well.

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“The Drowning” (** out of four) was a ridiculous psychological thriller about a therapist (Josh Charles) who saves the life of a man whose suicidal (Avan Jogia) but doesn’t realize that he is a former patient who recently was released from prison and subsequently threatens his life and his wife (Julia Stiles). Muddled story has numerous lapses in logic and credibility but is given a strong boost by Charles’ first-rate and believable performance. Worth watching for at least a little while but story becomes overly reminiscent of “Cape Fear” especially in its second half.

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“SWAT: Under Siege” (**1/2 out of four) was an action-packed fourth entry in the series that began with the 2003 Colin Farrell/Samuel Jackson thriller about a SWAT compound that comes under fire from an international terrorist (Matthew Marsden) who will stop at nothing to apprehend a mysterious criminal (Michael Jai White) who has crucial information and is inside SWAT headquarters. Somewhat routine and features some uneven acting but is packed with enough firepower, hand-to-hand combat, and fast-paced action to give fans their money’s worth. Not at the level of the first-rate 2003 original but better than the last few “SWAT” entries.

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“Gremlin” (** out of four) was a thoroughly predictable and obvious horror programmer about a man (Adam Hampton) who receives a mysterious box with a sadistic creature that threatens everyone in his family unless he passes the box along to someone else he loves before it is too late. Absolutely no relation to the 1984 horror classic “Gremlins” besides its title and a few plot similarities. Competently made but without any scares or surprises that make this a box worth opening. Bring back Gizmo and Stripe for another round!

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“First Round Down” (*1/2 out of four) was a first movie to avoid about a former hockey star turned pizza deliverer and hitman (Dylan Bruce) who returns to his hometown to care for his younger brother but comic foils from his past come back to haunt him. Potentially funny story of a former hockey player turning into a down-on-his-luck assassin is undone by dumb writing and slapdash plotting. Yet another Coen Bros/Tarantino wannabe that comes up short and fires blanks.

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“Granny Of The Dead” (** out of four) was an umpteenth “living dead” movie about a young man (Marcus Carroll) in London who awakens and suddenly finds that his grandmother has become one of the walking dead and he is trapped in his house while he tries to stay alive. Neither the best nor worst of its type but you’ve seen it all before and done better, especially in George Romero’s “Night Of The Living Dead” which gave birth to this genre nearly 50 years ago. At least this moves quick and has flashes of macabre wit.

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“The Saint” (**1/2 out of four) was an intermittently entertaining remake of the 1960’s television series about Simon Templar aka The Saint (Adam Rayner) who is hired by a desperate rich man (James Remar) to find his kidnapped daughter but finds that he may be in over his head by having to evade the Feds and also a dangerous adversary from his childhood. A definite improvement over the 1997 fiasco with Val Kilmer but what was intriguing and stylish in the 1960’s comes off as tame and old-hat now. Made in 2013 as a television movie and then sat on the shelf where it didn’t age like fine wine. Original saint Roger Moore has a cameo at the very end in his final role.

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“Blind” (*1/2 out four) was an unsightly melodrama about the wife (Demi Moore) of a corrupt businessman (Dylan McDermott) who are both arrested and she is sentenced to community service to helping a former novelist turned blind invalid (Alec Baldwin); they hate each other at first but gradually they melt each other’s defense mechanisms and fall in love. Interesting at first but story soon sputters and turns hokey and banal. Reunites Moore and Baldwin after “The Juror” but they’re both wasted on this material; McDermott fares best as Moore’s sociopathic husband but he should keep his eyes open for better scripts.

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“Darker Shades Of Elise” (** out of four) was a sexy but empty thriller about a sensuous woman (Darcie Lincoln) who begins a steamy affair with a mysterious stranger but their relationship soon becomes an odyssey of obsession, eroticism, and danger. Plenty of sex scenes as you might expect with a title ripped off from “Fifty Shades” but story and characters are hard to care about and thus movie is hard to get involved in. Although come to think of it- this is better than both “Fifty Shades Of Grey” and “Fifty Shades Darker.” Lincoln is a real beauty in the lead role.

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