Sense of Dread

Welcome back! Welcome all! Poppa's back! He's ready for Fall! ...ok yeah, even I know that was pretty bad...let's...let's just get to the review... MIDSOMMAR was directed by Ari Aster and is his follow-up to the critically acclaimed  HEREDITARY . This time around, Aster has brought us a film that explores grief on a whole new 'WHAT THE F*CK' level. Sure, the things we saw in his previous effort were grotesque, they were depressing and dark, and we watched Toni Collette (seriously, the Oscars suck for snubbing her...) deal with loss and the supernatural in a way that I never thought could evoke such emotions in me as she could. But here we are...A new tale of dealing with grief, dealing with depression, sadness, loss, and picking yourself back up again, becoming empowered and gaining your strength to keep on, by eliminating the past and moving on. And for this tale of just...really creepy pagan ritualism, is our leading lady, Dani (played by Florence Pugh), an...

This time...she comes home...to scare the living crap out of us! Annabelle Comes Home  was directed by Gary Dauberman and stars Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman, and Katie Sarife, and takes place right after that opening sequence from The Conjuring  and happens during the events of that film. The film centers around the Warren's daughter, Judy, and her teenage babysitters, as the latter unknowingly unleash the demonic Annabelle in the Warren household. She wreaks havoc on the babysitter, her friends, and Judy. They must come together, overcome their fears and grief, to put the doll back in her case, and trap the evil that has been unleashed. So was this a good movie? I mean, it's definitely not the worst entry in the franchise. It's also not the best entry in the franchise. But I have to say...I didn't hate this movie. I also had a hard time viewing it...and I'll get more into that but first, as per the usual...what did I find were...

Holy crap just look at that cast.... The Dead Don't Die  was directed by Jim Jarmusch and stars...well look at the photo above...that is one huge cast! It features the amazing talents of Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Chloe Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover, Caleb Landry Jones, Rosie Perez, Iggy Pop, Sara Driver, Rza, Carol Kane, Selena Gomez, Tom Waits...like, just look at that list...an incredible cast. So what's this movie about? Well...the town of Centerville finds itself battling a zombie horde as the dead just won't die...all to the tune of Sturgill Simpson's single "The Dead Don't Die"  which is this movie's theme song...and has been all over this movie from beginning to end. So the question a lot of people have been asking is...is this a horror movie? A comedy? This is less a horror film, and more a dark, dry, comedy with a social narrative. So let's dive into The Dead Don't Die. A lot of people will be going into t...

Gone are Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones  from the original Men In Black  trilogy. So how does the rebooted film do keeping the world they helped build alive? Let's find out... MEN IN BLACK INTERNATIONAL was directed by F. Gary Gray  and stars Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, and Kumail Nanjiani (his voice at least), as the Men In Black , an organization above and beyond the the normal government organization, protecting mankind from the enemies beyond our planet. But this time, they must contend with a threat they've never had to face before: a mole inside the organization that is hell-bent on destroying the Earth and anyone that gets in their path. Oh, and it takes place internationally (hence the title). So the story sounds like it should be pretty exciting, right? I know I was when I got my tickets in advance after seeing the trailer. I've been a huge fan of the series since seeing the original MIB  films when I was younger. I'm...

GODZILLA - KING OF THE MONSTERS was directed by Michael Dougherty and stars Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown, and is about the crypto-zoological agency Monarch, as they face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. There are also some bad people doing bad things, thinking that the resurgence of the Titans (as they're called in this franchise) need to be brought back in order to fix the planet. So...was this movie any good? Let's get to the technical stuff... The bad? The story is kind of a dumb one. I mean, they had to find some reason to get these gigantic creatures that can wipe us out at any given moment a reason to fight eachother, right? So why not use the old "humanity is a virus and the Titans are the cure" method! It's...pretty stupid. I could not believe that human beings could be so cold as to just unleash the...

I can’t feel your presence anymore. You’re starting to fade away from me. But when I shut my eyes…there you are. My girlfriend vanished without a trace. As expected, the cops looked at me. There was no proof, no evidence, no reason for me to be thought of as the reason she left. Her family also thought I was the reason for her going missing. But I would never harm her…my Jessica. She was everything to me. Beautiful, smart, athletic, but had a soft side to her. She enjoyed reading, mostly romance and mystery, but she also loved hanging out and just playing video games, renting a cheesy horror flick and eating pizza…my best friend. And one morning when I awoke? She was gone, without a trace. All her things were gone, pictures…like she never existed. But I know she did, her family, the police…I didn’t imagine the entire relationship…the year of my life I dedicated to her. I knew from the moment I met her, she was going to be mine forever. In my head, it’s still not over. I could f...

BRIGHTBURN  was directed by David Yarovesky and stars Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson A. Dunn and asks the question...what if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he couldn't accept that truth, and was sent here to take over our planet, enslaving mankind, and become a God-like being? Basically, think Superman but without morals or a conscience. I was able to catch this movie on a Thursday night viewing ahead of the Friday premiere, and I gotta say, it really did scratch that itch for me. But let's get right down to the bits and pieces of the film itself... The movie has a very interesting concept that those outside of the comic book community would never even know has existed for...I don't know...forever? I mean, it's something I've always wanted to see in a live action setting that I never got to see in this scope before. So does the movie pull it off? Sometimes, it does. There were moments in the ...

We’ve all heard the tale of a spirit or monster that would take children away when they were being bad, naughty, or not listening to their parents. Lots of cultures have their own versions, with their own takes on what the creature does to those bad kids. It comes it many shapes, many forms, and appears in many places. But what I’m about to tell you, is not folklore, it’s not myth, and it sure as shit isn’t make believe. This is a true story…something that happened to my brother and I when we were very little, and something that plagued me well into my teenage years. Even now, as an adult, I can no longer go into the home where I first encountered it. Just writing this makes me think that the creature, or whatever the hell it is, is about to pop up and grab me. Maybe I should just…start at the beginning. Like all my messed up encounters, this starts when I was very young, maybe around 5 or 6 years of age. I grew up in Montreal, Canada, living on the same street as my grandparents...

The Curse of La Llorona was directed by Michael Chaves, and stars Linda Cardellini as a CPS worker/single mom, who must defend her children from a supernatural being of despair, one that is after her two children, after the death of two children she was assigned to be the caseworker of. With a faith healer, they battle the entity, to save the souls of her children...Oh, also, it's a Conjuring Universe tie-in. Yeah, the priest from Annabelle? He's in this one. So those of you who have read my reviews in the past know, I didn't particularly love the last Conjuring Universe film (The Nun). It didn't have enough tension, it had way too many jump scares, and was altogether forgettable. I saw the trailers for this film and I actually got a bit excited...it felt like there was going to be more tense moments, more build up to the scares, and since I am married to a lovely woman of Mexican heritage, I was amped up for this tale that had to do with a lot of the stories she h...

HELLBOY (2019)  was directed by Neil Marshall and stars David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane, Sasha Lane and Daniel Dae Kim, and has a pretty simple plot... Evil witch (Milla Jovovich) wants revenge against mankind for something that happened to her way way back when (think King Arthur times) and there's a prophecy (as expected) where Hellboy joins forces with her and they bring about the end of the world...yeah, simple. Now it's up to Hellboy to make a choice: defend mankind as he has been for years, or join the evil witch. The bad? This movie. The entire movie is a giant clusterf*ck of insanity and campy cheese. But that's besides the point...there are some weird jump cuts that really don't make sense, and you've got these strange edits in the film that made me go "really...? But how'd they get to this point...?" Because of this strange editing style, the pacing feels rushed. It feels like this movie should've taken a darker, slower p...

Have you ever felt a hunger so strongly...that it brings you to the brink of sanity? Something that gnaws on you? Something that slithers through your mind like an addiction...that tells you that you must feed? I feel that every single day. I sit quietly, watching people...eating their cattle and their pheasant, indulging in everything that this world has to offer them. They combine it with the crunch of various vegetables, maybe the warmth of a soup...Oh, how I wish I could feel that warmth. If only I could eat... To bite down on flesh, rip it, gnaw the bone, break it and suck out the marrow...much like this man I once saw. He gnawed on a rib of what I assume was cattle, broke the ends off, and sucked on the marrow. For a child, it was an odd thing to see, until my own father allowed me to give in to my curiosity and try it for myself. It was the most delicious thing I had ever eaten... But now? Now I cannot indulge in the delicacies of this world. I mustn't. It's not ...

So...Pet Sematary.........sigh.... PET SEMATARY (2019) was directed by Kevin Kölsch, Dennis Widmyer, and stars Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, and John Lithgow, and is about Dr. Louis Creed and his wife, Rachel, who relocate from Boston to rural Maine (not Derry...but it could be Derry...) with their two young children. The couple soon discover a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near their new home. But beyond the burial ground, the land is sour...and sometimes...dead is better. OOOoOOOoOO SPOOKY!!! Yeah, this is gonna be one of those reviews, where I just go off and rant like a crazy person or something...I guess...but let's go through the technical stuff before I go off on a tangent and lose my mind. The bad...and there is a bit of bad...For starters, there's an intriguing mythological element to this movie that just never gets fully realized. They could've just said "screw the book" and created their own adaptation of the novel. But instead...

SHAZAM!  was directed by David F. Sandberg and stars Asher Angel as Billy Batson, a streetwise 14-year old foster kid who is bestowed the magical powers of a wizard and becomes a superhero when he utters the magic word, Shazam (Zachary Levi)! Also starring in this epic adventure is Djimon Hounsou, Mark Strong, and Jack Dylan Grazer. As I always begin my reviews, I usually tend to talk about the bad stuff. I couldn't really nail down much except that this movie needed to be MAYBE a little more serious? I dunno. Maybe the CGI wasn't that great? Nah. Um...the acting? No. Directing? Nope....music? Sure, let's go with the music...the music needed...work...? I honestly can't tell if there is anything bad about this movie. Maybe it did need a bit more drama to work? Anyways, let's go with the good stuff...which is everything. The visuals are fun, not overblown and in your face as some superhero movies tend to be. The acting from the entire cast (including the kids ...

My story begins a little over 30 years ago. I was just a kid, living with my parents. Life was easy for my family and I. We weren't rich, but because my dad worked so hard, we were able to afford some luxuries, we were able to eat out, you know...the simple things a family does. My family was also very close with my aunts and uncles, so I always had them around the house. It also helped that we all lived on the same street for a while. My cousins and I became very close, we always hung out. It was a great time to be a kid. As my mom became pregnant with my brother, and my dad had gotten to a point in his job where he was making more money, we decided we needed a new home. My dad had purchased the lot next to my grandfather's home, and went to work to build our house. It was a great place, and I have tons of fond memories of it. Except...for this one thing. One year, when I was about 12, my family decided we'd go to the beach for summer vacation. We left our home in ...

Us is a horror/thriller written and directed by Jordan Peele ( Get Out ), and stars Lupita Nyong'o and Winston Duke as a couple who take their children to their summer home on the beach for a vacation. Their vacation quickly turns into a nightmare, as they are stalked, tormented, and attacked by their doppelgangers. To start off, as I always do, let me point out some of the downside of this film. I felt like it was maybe a little too short. I would've enjoyed a longer run time (maybe another 10-15 minutes). The ending also leaves a lot of unanswered questions (of which I won't give away...) and felt like a cliffhanger cheat. The cinematography could've used some work, but it didn't take me out of the film and looked okay. Other than that... On to the good! The cast is amazing. Lupita Nyong'o again gives an incredible performance. Winston Duke, who also played M'baku in Black Panther (and stole the show with his incredible comedic timing), is just as ...

There is a world beyond the light, beyond the darkness, somewhere in between, where the shadows dwell. This world holds the nightmares, the pain, the sorrow, the longing for life...to be free...to be able to take a breath, and be freed of this liquid like substance that pulls one into it. It's a trap, you see. It's a place where the soul is reminded of it's past, it's failures. It torments the soul. It traps the soul. There is no way out. No way to escape. This is neither Heaven, nor Hell. Some scholars name it purgatory, others call it an in-between, a waiting room for souls that cannot accept what they've done in life, what their failures meant for them in life, a reminder that they aren't worthy of passing into the light, or even the dark. They are trapped. Trapped... Scholars call this place purgatory. Others call it the in-between. It is a world of shadow, and of creatures old and forgotten to mankind. Creatures that were the first of God's creations...

Captain Marvel , the latest entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was directed by Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, and stars Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Jude Law, and Lashana Lynch. This story is the origin of Captain Marvel as she becomes one of the universe's most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races, the Kree and the Skrulls. Before I go into everything I liked and didn't like, let me start by saying this: the media and the marketing are way off. The Rotten Tomatoes audience scores are way off, as we all know that this movie is being hate bombed for one reason or another, and that makes me, as a critic, very sad. So regardless what I say, regardless what anyone says about any movie ever, if you're interested in a film, go check it out for yourself and form your own opinion. With that being said...let's get right into it. The bad: not much here was bad. I felt some of the performances were ...

Ok so I'm reposting this because...screw the haters...WAKANDA FOREVER! Also I edited quite a bit of it... Black Panther was directed by Ryan Coogler and stars Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan (wasn't he just the Human Torch...? How meta), Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, and Winston Duke. This film centers around T'Challa, heir to the hidden but advanced kingdom of Wakanda, must step forward to lead his people into a new future and must confront a challenger from his country's past. All of this takes place after Captain America: Civil War. So...the bad...The way the movie played out, however, suffered from what I felt was a lackluster script and from poor CGI moments. It lacked that OOMPH factor that previous Marvel Studios films had going for them. It lacked that fun that the other movies had. It lacked a villain that was actually, for lack of a better term, scary. His plan wasn’t well thought out, it wasn’t uniqu...

Yes...a reason...chosen for a reason...uh...sorry, I blanked out. Just like I did during the movie... Greta was directed by Neil Jordan, stars Isabelle Huppert and Chloë Grace Moretz as Frances, a sweet, naïve young woman trying to make it on her own in New York City, who doesn't think twice about returning the handbag she finds on the subway to its rightful owner. That owner is Greta (Isabelle Huppert), an eccentric French piano teacher with a love for classical music and an aching loneliness. Having recently lost her mother, Frances quickly grows closer to widowed Greta. The two become fast friends, but Greta's maternal charms begin to dissolve and grow increasingly disturbing as Frances discovers that nothing in Greta's life is what it seems. Now, I won't ruin the twist (which does happen pretty damn quick in the first act), but I will talk about the things I didn't like...which are plenty. This movie to me was just so damn boring. Not much about it left ...

TRUE NORWEGIAN BLACK METAL!!!!!!!!!...and murder... LORDS OF CHAOS was directed by Jonas Åkerlund and stars Rory Culkin and Emory Cohen and is a biopic and takes place in 1987 Oslo, where 17-year-old Euronymous becomes fixated on creating "true Norwegian black metal" with his band Mayhem. He mounts shocking publicity stunts to put the band's name on the map, but the lines between show and reality begin to blur. Just to put this out there, this is sort of a docudrama...that starts out sort of silly and then...well...let's just get to the things I noticed about this film... To start, let's talk about the bad...the editing in this film kind of took me out of it briefly, with strange jump cuts to the future, thus making the flow of the film feel awkward at times. We see Euronymous at 17, then 18, 19, 20, etc. but without anything happening in between really, just the highlights of his career. Also, the film is being marketed as a "true story, mostly"...

I've always wanted to tell you this, to explain to you, more than anyone else, what I'm going through. Unlike everyone else around me, you understood me. But Mark, and may I call you Mark? There's no easy way to say this...I couldn't have you running around. You're not stronger than I am. You're not better than I am. Wait, I shouldn't even say 'you're not' since...well...you can't even answer me anymore, especially since you're not breathing. Or have your tongue. You were probably thinking, as I cut it out, why I'd remove the tongue. Well, it's simple, I can't have you talking about what you've seen here. I can't have you droning on and on about how you're better and more powerful because blah blah blah...I needed silence. And you're not breathing because, well, you did attack me. Your own knife, used to slit your throat, cut out your tongue, and carve the sacred runes. But Mark...you let out a noise. I c...

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot was written and directed by Robert D. Krzykowski and stars Sam Elliott as Calvin Barr, a man who served his country during World War 2 to assassinate Hitler. Years later, his country calls on him to once again serve his country, to eliminate the mythical Bigfoot because it is spreading a deadly virus in the wilds of Canada and is making it's way South to the United States. The film co-stars Aidan Turner who plays the WW2 Calvin Barr, Ron Livingston, Caitlin Fitzgerald, and Larry Miller. A lot of people were talking about this film after Fantasia Festival in the summer of 2018. I didn't know what to make of it, really. A lot of movies with silly titles, such as this one, are usually films I take a pass at. I saw Sam Elliott was starring, and had a cast of actors that I did enjoy seeing before. A few friends passed along what they thought, and I instantly knew I needed to see this film. Alamo Drafthouse here in town was lucky e...

Welcome one, welcome all, we're here today to pay homage to a great horror franchise (and by great I mean 3 of them are great...and 2 of them are...ehhhhhhhhh...) This is a franchise that I love with all my heart. A franchise that I've seen every entry (thus far) in cinemas. I've enjoyed the lore, I've enjoyed the villains and the heroes, I enjoyed the family drama and the happy endings (...I mean except for like two of 'em...) The Conjuring Universe (as it's being called now) is one that follows the cases of renowned paranormal researchers Ed and Lorraine Warren. I've known about them since I was young, watching episodes of A Haunting on Discovery Channel, and then doing research about them online and following their cases closely. It's one of those things that got me intrigued by paranormal research in the first place. I do believe in ghosts. Being raised Catholic, I do believe the devil, God, demons and angels all exist. For me, this franchise hit...