The Drive

So I made it all the way from Phoenix to South Florida.The trip was quite a journey,I knew what I was in for cause I have done long drives twice before but it still tests you.Started Wednesday night and made it home late night/early morning at 3am.It was a whopping 2300 miles.

And let me say that I don't know how people in Texas,mainly Houston can deal with the traffic and general confusion on the highways,it really was the most confusing highway(i-10)that I have ever dealt with.One lane goes there,the other lane says it goes there also but veers of to the right then ends abruptly,another lane says HOV,another says EZ pass,then you have dividers at certain parts of it...its just madness.Besides Houston, Texas wasn't bad to drive through,except the fact that its too god damn big,almost 1000 miles just going through Texas.

As the night goes on though you keep glnacing at the odometer hoping you've gone 250 miles but then realizing you've only gone 98 miles.

From Arizona to Florida

That's the drive I have ahead of me,roughly 2300 miles.I am not looking forward to the drive itself,well driving through Texas is the worst part because it's so damn big.I leave Wednesday,wish me luck

The only reason to watch whiteout

Is for the first 2 minutes when you see Kate Beckinsale's shower scene,unfortunately you don't see her nude but she is still super hot in the scene.

Quick Review:Daybreakers

Wasn't expecting to see this one in the theatre but I did and I found myself somewhat entertained.It was certainly nice to see a nasty,mean spirited Vamp film instead of a mushy,soft-teen-aged one.This was made by the Spierig brothers who did the 2003 zombie film Undead.

The storyline is pretty straightforward and simple.Its 2019 and Vampires rule the word after forcing the humans to assimilate.When the humans said no the Vampires decided to use them for their blood .There are not many humans left alive but the Vampires blood source is rapidly running out.And its up to Edward(Ethan Hawke)a vampire himself to come up with some plasma subsitute or else its the end of days for them.We learn although he is a vampire he doesn't agree with his own kind and wants to help the humans.He evenyually joins forces with Lionel(an Elvis obsessed Wilem Dafoe) who has a cure to vampirism and Audrey(Claudia Karvan).

It is a very interesting premise and I really dug some of the visuals.We see Hundreds of humans strung up in some huge glass room as their blood is taken from them.We see how the Vampires have adjusted ,as they have cars that are sunlight proof and homes that are also sunlight proof.It's a nifty take on a new world and I wish they would have showed more of this New Vampire world.There also are some really amazing looking monsters as we see how when deprived of blood they turn into sub-siders ....meaning more batlike.One scene in particular really showcases this and gives you a nice little scare.Its sports quite a few jumps that you don't see coming and startle you.There is a nice amount of gore as well,best parts being a decapitation and a blown-up head.

Daybreakers is Well acted,has a decent amount of scares and some nice gore but at the same time is also drags in certain parts and doesn't feature enough action scenes to really get you into it.But as I said earlier it was nice to see a more adult take on the Vampire surge.

7/10

Review:Trick R Treat

Originally suppose to come to screen October 2007 this film by Michael Dougherty had been delayed,delayed and delayed again before finally going straight to dvd in late 2009.Whatever reasons the studio had for not releasing this I will never know,cause hands down this is a damn fine movie(anthology) and maybe one of the best Halloween themed movies ever.

I have never seen a film that felt more Halloweeny(is that a word?)than this.The streets,the lite pumpkins everywhere,the costumes,the little kids trick or treating everywhere,the spooky cinematography,everything feels real and genuinely like Halloween.Just a treat...to watch.And its not just one story,its an anthology that all weaves together brillantly at the end.

First we meet Henry and Emma,a couple with different opinions on Halloween.Next we meet Steven Wilkins,a high school principal who catches a kid smashing pumpkins and his neighbor Mr Kreeg,a crabby old man with a dark secret.We next meet a group of pre-teens as they set out to pull a prank on the weird girl from school.And finally we meet an older bunch of teenagers who are trying to help their friend(the lovely Anna Pacquin)lose her virginity.Throughout these scene with get looks at a little weird figure wearing a burlap Halloween mask.We later learn he is Sam(from Samhain possibly)and is a protector of Halloween and its traditions.This little figure was the highlight of the movie for me.He is so smal,cute and cool looking,yet also kind of creepy and the reveal of his real face is a damn shocker.

All of these tales are woven together brillantly and doesn't feel forced or rushed at all.The acting is also superb.Anna Pacquin is awesome(her little red riding hood costume was the shit) and even though her role was somewhat small ,her character turns out to be something none of us would have expected.If you pay attention to some of the dialogue between her and her friends you can get little hints of what she might be.Steven Wilkins(Dylan Baker) has some funny lines and we soon learn what he is really up to.There are many little surprises for all the characters in Trick R Treat and most of them aren't good.

In closing there are enough scares and creepy moments to keep anyone interested.All the Halloween traditions seem to be covered in this as well,from carving pumpkins all the way to the stories we would hear about strangers with candy when we were younger.Everything just seems to work and it delivers the goods,which was a nice surprise because I had a feeling it might be too much hype...boy I was wrong.

yes thats the fat kid that was in bad Santa
9/10

Currently viewing:Happy Birthday to Me(1981)

One of the 80's gems I haven't seen since I rented it at Mega-Movies in the mid 80's
The poster is sick also

Halloween 2:The Directors Cut

As one of the very few who seemed to enjoy RZ's Halloween 2 I was kind of eager to check out the unrated directors cut of this film.So I watched it and found a few things I liked.

In the DC we see more of the Laurie-Annie relationship and how it is very fractured and not all peachy like the theatrical cut led us to believe.Laurie blames herself for Annie's experience and near death and to Laurie ,Annie serves as a constant reminder of that faithful night on Halloween.Because Laurie feels so guilty she has a sense of anger towards Annie and in the other way Annie is tired of kinda being the mom and taking care of Laurie.Very interesting watching these 2 best friends go at it through-out this cut of the movie.

Another part left out of the theatrical cut was a scene involving Laurie at her therapist.In the Directors cut we see Laurie is a lot worse than we think,begging for more pills to get rid of the pain and eventually cursing out her therapist before storming out.This cut shows a much more fractured and confused Laurie.She even turns to drinking to help get rid of the pain.

And another difference is the ending.In the directors cut ending we see Michael Myers actually talk as he yells "die " to Dr Loomis before eventually getting shot.This I did not care for as much,I would have preferred Michael not to say anything ever,and the fact he yells die to Loomis didn't work for me.

As a whole I think the directors cut answers more questions than the theatrical and adds more layers to Laurie's fractured character.

Review:Drag me to Hell

When I saw this in the theatre I didn't expect to love it so much but it is By far my favorite movie of 2009,a fun but yet creepy horror flick that bought Sam Raimi back to his rightful Genre.

When Christine Brown(Alison Lohman) a loan officer refuses to grant an extension to Mrs Ganush,All Hell breaks loose as Mrs Ganush puts an old gypsy curse on Christine that will take her to hell in 3 days.

Raimi really did an amazing job on this,reminiscent of the Evil Dead 2 in many ways.He uses everyday objects and awesome creepy shadows and visuals to spook us.And the way he shows the evil entity also through these shadows is pure genius and very old-school which was refeshing in todays world of movies.And yes you will get spooked at a few scenes.It's a very fast paced movie that gives us one efficient scene after another.Lots of tongue in cheek humor throughout this as besides being spooked you will definitely be cracking up at certain points.

Lots and lots of gross out moments,with my personal favorite being when Christine spews up blood all over her boss at the bank which leaves him asking,"Did I get any in my mouth".Eyeballs and teeth go flying,bugs are spewed up and even animals are sacrificed as Raimi really gives us a good time.There is an awesome seance scene and a great graveyard scene as well.Yes there were a few spots where the cgi kind of looked lame,but it's so brief and you are having such a blast besides those that you are easily able to overlook it.

Acting is solid in this as well as Alison Lohman really put on a good performance as the damsel in distress.There is something about her that is downright adorable and she becomes very easy to root for in this.You can't help but think this poor girl doesn't deserve all this. Justin Long who played Christine's boyfriend also did a wonderful job again.He has that nice-guy persona to a tee.And bravo to Lorne Raver who played Mrs Ganush.She is able to truly creep you out why also making you grossed out at the same time.

Once again though I can't stress what a good time this movie was.It's scary,creepy,disgusting and funny at the same time.A breathe of fresh air and Raimi shows he can make a truly terrifying film even with a pg-13 rating.Raimi please stay in this genre and make another Evil Dead.

9.5/10

Babe of the day:Alison Lohman

see her in:Drag me to Hell

Just finished Drag me to Hell

For the 6th time,and I must say I enjoy more each time.So glad Raimi came back to the genre he started in.Review coming later and oh yes Alison Lohman is adorable in this.

Wave of remakes

You had the Texas Chainsaw Massacre,Friday the 13th,Halloween,Prom Night,Last House on the left,The Hills have eyes,the Hitcher....and so and so on and next is Nightmare On Elm Street.Nightmare on Elm Street is such a classic and gave me so many scares as a child growing up,more so than any others,that its hard to imagine this remake coming anywhere close to my expectations.Maybe it's a little outdated,not in terms of the scares or anything but just in the fashions and dialogue,and maybe just maybe PD will make a respectable remake but one that isn't needed in my opinion.Some of others I didn't feel so strongly against,F13 and Prom Night for example are classic 80s horrors but both were not on the level of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,Halloween or A Nightmare on Elm Street.The Prom Night remake was garbage and the F13 remake was average at best.Then you had the Black Christmas remake which was more a black comedy it was so bad.Two remakes that have stood out for me in a good way are the TCM remake and the Hills have eyes remake,both were down well and added more storyline,which is kind of what Im hoping A nightmare on elm street does.

And one remake I pray never,never ever happens is a Candyman remake.That film to me is such perfection that watching a remake of that would be hard to swallow.You can't recapture or beat elements from that film,like Cabrini Green or Tony Todd's performance.And now I heard Hellraiser is getting remade,and my closing remark is I have an open mind with some remakes but certain films need to be left alone!!!!!TAKE NOTE!

A Nightmare on Elm Street to hit

Blu-ray finally on April 6th.Good to hear,have been waiting for this to come out on blu-ray,I will definitely be upgrading.

BD Horror News - New Footage From 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' in Behind-the-Scenes Clip

BD Horror News - New Footage From 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' in Behind-the-Scenes Clip

New Pic from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2010

I'm liking what I've seen in this and the other trailer so far,I really hope they are able to keep this film dark,scary and full of some of the same memorable scenes from the original.Jackie Earle Haley I believe will do a fantastic job,its more the story I'm worried about them him.Nothing scared me more than the Freddy Nursery ryhme and seeing those little girls in the white dresses jump rope when I was young.

Megan Fox..Jennifer's body

Ouch!

Review:Avatar

I hadn't been quite this excited to see a movie in a long-time.All I heard was how amazing this movie was and how amazing the visuals and cgi were.Well seems like everyone was right.This was one of if not the best movies I have ever seen in a theatre,luckily I managed to see this in 3d and at the imax.James Cameron definitely knows how to spend money on films wisely.

This movie is a technical breakthough,never before have I seen such amazing visuals,never before have I seen cgi look so real and flawless. Everything on the planet of Padora which is where this film takes place is breathtaking. The trees,the creatures,the sky, the night-light glow of the flowers make this one of the most beautiful movies and like nothing I've ever seen.There are floating mountains and thousand foot trees adding to the visuals.The Na'vi(the race that inhabits this planet)look so real that you would think it wasn't cgi.Scene after scene I kept getting more and more impressed.It was like being in another world,which is what this film managed to accomplish,I never once looked at my watch,I didn't want this one to end.It did ufortunately and I definitely plan on seeing this many more times.

The movie takes place in 2154,on the planet Pandora which is an earth sized planet in orbit around a huge star. Of course the US armed forces have been called to this planet to try and get a new minreal that the earth desperately needs and which Pandora is rich in. Pandora is not a threat to earth but we send in the military to disrupt,conquer and take what we desperately want.Pandora is inhabited by the Na'vi,blue skinned,golden eyed human like people.Each one nearly 10 feet tall with a tail.These Na'vi know their planet well and live in harmony with the nature and the creatures inhabiting it.

We soon meet Dr Grace Augustine(played by Sigourney Weaver),a scientist who has come up with a program that creates avatars which basically are genetically altered hybirds between human and Na'vi DNA or human minds in Na'vi bodies.These being are created to open communication between the two races in hopes of coming to sort of peaceful agreement.Paralyzed marine veteran Jake Sully(Sam Worthington) is asked to take part in this program created by Dr Grace Augustine but not to find a peaceful accord, instead to gain all the information about the planet and inhabitants and mainly find out information on the tree of life which is where this mineral mainly is.These are orders from Colonel Miles Quaritch who has no intention of any peaceful agreement.

Jake's avatar eventually gets lost on Pandora where he is saved by Neytiri(Zoe Saldana),an attractive Na'vi who happens to be the daughter of chief Eytukan and Shaman Moat. Jake ends up learning this Na'vi language,learning thier ways and eventually falling in love with Neytiri and going Native himself.He sides with them in an effort to help save their planet from devastationThat's the story in a nutshell,maybe nothing groundtaking there but it didn't need to be.

Everything worked flawlessly together in this movie,from the cgi to the story to perhaps the message,which I'm sure it somewhat aimed at politics. Everyone should go see this in the theatre just for the visuals alone,feel free to decide if the rest is good enough for you to enjoy,for me it certainly was.

9.5/10

Avatar

Just got back from seeing this...wow a visual treat for sure.Review coming later

As Charlie said

Cats do not abide by the laws of nature

Dayman

As Charlie said

Yes my good man,I'll have the milksteak,boiled over hard,and your finest jelly beans...raw

Quick Review:Paranormal Activity

We've heard all the praise for this film.."scarier than the exorcist".."the scariest movie in ages"....and so on. Those are to say it nicely,way off base. Not to say it wasn't creepy,it did have a couoke creepy scenes and made me jump once but thats about all it had going.

We meet young couple Kate and Micah who have a nice new house but are being disturbed by weird happenings and sounds at night,mainly bothering Kate. Micah decides to set up a camera in their bedroom at night to try and get some of these strange occurences or sounds caught on tape. Besides that Kate also has a pyschic come to the house and we learn Kate has a past of otherwordly encounters dating back to her childhood,during which a tradgic accident occured.The pyschic leads Kate to believe that it is a demon haunting her and not a ghost,he says he doesnt deal with demons and gives her a reference to get in contact with(she later does but he of course was out of town).Micah eventually tempts the demon with a foolish Ouija board moment after he'd be warned by the pyschic and Kate not to.Micah was quite an annoying character as he constantly provokes and trash talks to the demon. After that things get much worse for the couple.

The movie is very slow as we get to watch time recorded bedroom surveillance footage. We hear louds bangs some night,see doors close themselves some nights and lights go on and off themselves other nights.Those are light scares and I kept waiting and waiting for something more,something scarier to happen.It finally did towards the 50 minute mark when things got much more creepier. One effective scene to me was seeing front prints in the powder that Micah laid down which lead to the attic where he finds a picture of kate that she had not seen in years.Attics to me are just very creepy,and dark and you never know what is up there. That scene and the scene where Kate gets dragged away were the most effective in the film. There are also 2 endings..and a third that I haven't seen but have heard about...so if you havent seen this stop reading now

Theatrical ending...Kate wanders downstairs and then starts screaming,Micah runs to her aid, a seconds later he ends up screaming and we hear footsteps up the stairs....and bam all of a sudden Micah is hurled towards the screen,and Kate with blood on her stomach hovers of his body and smells it like some kind of animal.I didn' care for this ending much,what was the point of here acting like some kind of animal?was the demon an animal?..and why did she throw him and not just kill him first?

Alternate ending..same setup only this time Kate comes up the stairs and into the bedroom with a knife in her hand and blood on her shirt,she slowly looks at the screen and slits her own throat.To me this ending makes a little more sense to me,perhaps she has been possessed by this demon that forced her to kill her boyfriend and the only way to get out of its grasp was to off yourself.

The movie like I said had some creepy parts but I felt like you could have just watched the last 35-40 minutes of it and wouldn't have missed much at all. Not enough happened before that to really keep me that interested.But props to Oren Peli for pulling off a decent film for a mere $15000.

7/10