Sense of Dread

  Oh man, where do I begin with this 90's classic...? Last Action Hero  was directed by John McTiernan ( The Hunt For Red October, Die Hard, Predator ) and stars Austin O'Brien  as Danny, a young movie fan who, with the help of a magic ticket, is transported into the fictional world of his favorite action movie hero, Jack Slater (action megastar Arnold Schwarzenegger ), and has to help Jack stop the bad guy! Let's start by saying what everyone is thinking...this is an Arnold film so obviously it's packed with action movie comedy and cheese. It's campy in all the right ways. It's got a script that makes you groan and laugh. It's got a kid playing the action star's sidekick...but what kid back in the 90's who was a massive fan of the Arnold movies didn't wish they could be a sidekick to the main man himself? Yes, I do think Arnold was the greatest action star of the 90's...(sorry Sly...) and yeah, my cousins and I would pretend we were action h...

  M3GAN is a science fiction thriller directed by Gerard Johnstone  and was written by Akela Cooper and the infamous James Wan , and is about a robotics engineer (Gemma) at a toy company who becomes the legal guardian of her niece, Cady. After Cady's parents die in a tragic accident and under intense pressure at work, Gemma decides to pair her latest invention, a life-like doll prototype named M3GAN, in an attempt to resolve Cady's problems and give Gemma more time to work on her latest inventions. As expected, bad things happen, and M3GAN begins to have a will of her own. As much of a fan of James Wan as I am, this is definitely under the umbrella of his campier works (think Dead Silence , Malignant ). If you're going in to this thinking you're going to see high art, think again. This is 90 minutes of cheese and camp and, as I found out first hand, lots of creepy killer robot fun. First off, the film is very low on substance. The performances by Allison Williams (Gemma...

  Antlers was directed by Scott Cooper and is based on a short story written by Nick Antosca ( Channel Zero ). The film stars Keri Russell, Jesse Plemons, Jeremy T. Thomas, where, in an isolated Oregon town, a middle-school teacher (Russell) and her sheriff brother (Plemons) become embroiled with her enigmatic student (Thomas), whose dark secrets lead to terrifying encounters with a legendary ancestral creature who came before them. This movie has seen its fair share of delays due to the COVID crisis that has been plaguing our world, but with cinemas finally opening up to full capacity, I was extremely excited to see that this movie was going to see the light of day. I had seen the trailer I think back in 2018 or 2019, and it was slated for a 2020 release. But, alas, the world had other plans for us. Thankfully, it's out now, and we can all enjoy it for what it is; a thriller with an ancient creature from Native American folklore (one that I actually believe exists...for real). The...

  GODZILLA Vs. KONG was directed by Adam Wingard and is the installment in the MonsterVerse franchise we've been waiting for...the epic battle between the two Titans, Godzilla and Kong, with humanity (or at least some of it) caught in the middle of it, but something sinister is unfolding in the background and while the two Titans battle, it's up to our human heroes to find out exactly what is happening. Aside from everyone's favorite giant lizard and badass ape, the film stars Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown reprising her role from King of the Monsters , Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza Gonzalez, Julian Dennison, Kyle Chandle, Demien Bichir, Kaylee Hottle...and a whole lot of destruction, so let's dive right in! I won't ruin any of the plot for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, but just know that in typical Godzilla movie fashion, some shady stuff is happening in the background while our two main stars (Godzilla and Kong) are fighting for s...

  Come Play was directed by Jacob Chase and stars John Gallagher Jr. as Marty, Gillian Jacobs as Sarah, a couple of parents with a special needs child named Oliver (played by Azhy Robertson). Oliver is a lonely young boy who feels different from everyone else. Desperate for a friend, he seeks solace and refuge in his ever-present cell phone and tablet. When a mysterious creature uses Oliver's devices against him to break into our world, Oliver's parents must fight to save their son from the monster beyond the screen. All this creature wants is a friend...a friend FOREVER (insert diabolical laughter here). So, what did I think about this movie? It was...I mean...it was there. Stuff happened. But I don't want to trash this movie outright because really, it's not that bad. Speaking of the bad...I didn't like Gillian Jacobs' character in this movie. Sarah was written decently enough, but the entire time I felt like the character was just looking for excuses to not d...

  Well...I'm back! Did you miss me? I know I missed me. It's been a long and difficult year and a bit for me, but I'm ready to get back into the thick of things! And what better way to get back into it than to review one of my (already) favorite films of 2021? Zack Snyder's Justice League was directed by Zack Snyder and stars Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Jesse Eisenberg, Jeremy Irons, Ryan Zheng, Ciaran Hinds, J.K Simmons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, Amy Adams, Joe Morton, Joe Manganiello, Jared Leto...and a ton of other people (like this cast is MASSIVE!) and comes on the heels of Superman's (Cavill) death during Batman V Superman  (also directed by Zack Snyder) where we see a world that is coping with the loss of the greatest hero mankind had ever known. But there is a war coming...and Batman (Affleck) sees this threat as something very real. Inspired by the hope that Superman stood for, he ...

  The Mimic is a horror mystery written and directed by South Korean filmmaker Jung Huh and stars Jung-ah Yum, Hyuk-kwon Park, Jin Heo, and is about a mother of a missing child who takes in a lost girl she finds in the woods, but soon begins to wonder if she is even human. I literally just finished watching this film, and even though I shouted it out on my Twitter feed, I just had to come here to write about it right away. I find myself loving Asian horror lately. Between this, Metamorphosis , and Impetigore , I'm finding that there are some very intriguing and intense films coming out of that region that really need to get more eyes on them. So, let's talk about The Mimic ... As per usual, I won't drop any spoilers, but I will talk about the technical aspects of the film, going over what I liked about it, what I didn't like about it, etc. So, what didn't I like? Well...the main character of the mom was pretty damn annoying. But I suppose if I were a mother dealing ...

  The Vast of Night  is the directorial debut of Andrew Patterson and is a sci-fi/horror thriller about a small town in the 50's where a strange signal is captured by a young switchboard operator and a local radio host. The pair then decide to go investigate the signal and find others who are also being influenced by it. The film stars Sierra McCormick as Fay, the switchboard operator, and Jake Horowitz as Everett, the radio host, and they are phenomenal as they race through this one single night in their small New Mexico town to figure out just what is going on. To begin, I'll say there's nothing really I disliked about this movie. The color gradient looked a bit weird at times, but it wasn't enough to distract me. That's it. That's the bad. Now to rant about the good... The acting in this film is just amazing. Both Sierra McCormick and Jake Horowitz have amazing back and forth and chemistry on film. The way they interacted made me feel like they had known each...

  The Hunt  is a horror...thriller...comedy...(?) directed by Craig Zobel and is about a group of 12 people who awaken in a field for a specific, violent, and bloody purpose...to be hunted by rich elitists with a bone to pick with them. The film stars Betty Gilpin, Hilary Swank...and a bunch of random people who are there to do nothing more than get blown the f*ck up or bleed to death the end. OK, not really the end...I guess I may as well talk about the elephant in the room so...**SPOILER ALERT** from here on out. This movie was and is one of the most controversial of the year. It got delayed a bunch due to the fact the media attacked it, stating that it was ultra violent and shouldn't exist. To be fair, it was about to come out during a time when there was quite a bit of gun violence going on in the country and would've been released in poor taste...? I dunno, I disagree with what the media were saying. I think the movie, and here's the spoiler part, is a satire of the cu...

  Holy frikkin shit... Survivor Song  is the latest novel by American author of science fiction, horror, and dark fantasy Paul Tremblay, and follows doctor Ramola Sherman and her best friend Natalie, as Rams helps her friend get to a hospital in time to give birth to her child. But here's the catch...this is all happening during a lock-down of New England, as a rabies-like virus has a strong grip on the entire area, infecting people and animals alike. What we're treated to with this story by Tremblay is something eerily similar to what's going on in America today with the current pandemic. We're seeing lock-downs, we're seeing people panicked and scared, we're seeing people getting sick. The amazing thing of it all is that this isn't straight up horror or just about the outbreak. It's scary, definitely, especially in the times we're living in, but that's all surface. The ways the infected animals and people act is somewhat standard 'zombie...

  So...uh...trigger warning cause this book I'm reviewing is pretty offensive... The Traveling Vampire Show is a novel written by infamous author Richard Laymon. The book follows three 16-year-olds on an idle summer day in 1963. The narrator, Dwight, and his best friends Rusty and Slim (a tomboy), find flyers for an exotic vampire show. They make a journey to a local clearing called Jank's Field in an attempt to sneak a peek at Valeria, who is billed as the world's only living captive vampire, but they are attacked by a dog and separated, leading to a series of misadventures. Meanwhile, Dwight's attractive sister-in-law Lee purchases four tickets from the show's frontman, Julian Stryker. Later that night the group is reunited and attends the titular Vampire Show, where they discover a sinister plot involving the 'vampires'. Speaking on the plot itself, it involves a lot of the sexual awakening of the teens...and it's a lot. Like, it's kind of disturb...

  Holy crap... Metamorphosis (original title Byeonshin ) is a South Korean horror film directed by Kim Hong-Sun and is about a family that move to a new house and town after a tragedy befalls their uncle, a Catholic priest named Joong-Soo (played by Bae Sung-Woo) who participated in a failed exorcism. The family was bullied and forced to move. At their new home, however, strange incidents begin to happen and the Devil himself walks among them, disguising himself as members of the family, and attempts to tear them apart. The only thing the father of the family, Gang-Goo (played by Sung Dong-Il) can do, is turn to Joong-Soo to help him save his family. And...I mean...well...I don't want to spoil it, so you're gonna have to find out... Some parts of this movie did bother me at times. I was treated to a spectacle of slow-burn style horror, which culminated in some of the most disturbing events and visuals I've ever seen from Korean cinema. I cannot describe just how messed up s...

  Woo…what the heck did I just watch?! (Sorry, Doug ! Go follow him for some awesome content!) Impetigore (original title Perempuan Tanah Jahanam ) is an Indonesian folk-horror film written and directed by Indonesian director Joko Anwar ( Satan’s Slaves ) and stars Tara Basro as Maya, a young girl living in the big city who, after being attacked randomly by a machete-wielding psycho, begins to unravel a mystery about her life and must return to her home village where she will uncover the dark history (and curse) that plague it. With her is her friend Dini, played by Marissa Anita, who thinks she’s the heir to a big fortune and a massive mansion. But things soon begin to unravel the more the friends discover about the curse and the mystery of this village. To begin, I’m going to let everyone know that this was my first Joko Anwar film. I’m unfamiliar with his previous works (which by the way are on Shudder so I have no excuse!) but I hear they’re great. I’m also a little unfami...

Wow...it's been a while since I did one of these. Welcome back, dear readers! I've missed you all. So, I've been busy as a senior contributor/editor over at one of my favorite websites ever,  Horror Bound , where I've created a great deal of fiction, made some amazing friends, and haven't really had some time to create one of these reviews lately. Thought I'd change that with my take on a new horror classic that recently hit Shudder , which by the way, if you haven't...seriously consider getting a subscription. It's inexpensive and you get tons of great content. So, without further ado, let's dive into this gem... HOST was directed by Rob Savage, written by the team of Gemma Hurley, Rob Savage and Jed Shepherd, and stars Haley Bishop, Jemma Moore, Emma Louise Webb, Radina Drandova, Caroline Ward, Edward Linard, and Seylan Baxter as a group of friends who hire a medium (Seylan) to perform a seance via a Zoom meeting during the Covid-19 lock-down. Some...

I...what? I mean...huh...? So I just got out of The Turning  and...I guess...it's a movie? There's moving pictures...and dialogue...and people.......I think....? So, where to even begin with this...oh, right... The Turning  was directed by Floria Sigismondi and stars Mackenzie Davis as Kate, a young woman hired to be a tutor? Nanny? Uh...let me check my notes here...ah, a governess (lolwut) at a...big friggin house...to take care of two kids, Flora (Brooklynn Prince) and Miles (Finn Wolfhard). What Kate doesn't know, is that there are sinister (OOOO SCARY!) things happening at this place and...yadda yadda, creepy kids, maybe ghosts, maybe losing her mind, etc etc etc. I don't know guys, I can't take this one seriously, at all. I have to make fun of it, because that's the only entertainment I got out of watching this piece of crap. Let's start with some of the way this movie was put together before I even get into my "why this movie sucks...

So because I wrote about this in the past on here, I figured I'd go back to my original blog to talk about this newest entry into this universe. Also, I'm changing my scoring system from a out-of-ten score to an A,B,C score. So, without further ado... The Grudge (2020)  was directed by Nicolas Pesce and stars Andrea Riseborough as a mom and police detective who just moved to a small town in Pennsylvania, and is investigating a murder that has connections to a house, a house where other deaths have occurred and people have reported sinister happenings. Soon after beginning her investigation and stepping into the home, she starts being stalked by the very same malevolent force that has taken so many lives before. Let's start out by saying that this is not a remake or reboot. This movie fits in between 2004 film, and the sequel which came out afterwards, that means it's more like a side-story or a soft sequel. It's also not a very good sequel. I'll flat out...

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...