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In case you haven’t seen the intro from my entry dated
1/26/19 (it’s in my archives whenever you want to read it), I’m no longer going
to review every single movie I see. I’m
going to review one, with the occasional bonus, and just give ratings for the
rest from now on (unless I decide to pick it up again in the future). You can always ask me why I gave the ratings
for the films without reviews though (via comments or the e-mail addresses
under the ‘About Me’ section).
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The Beach House G/VG
This bears the same title as several other films (as a
Google or All Movie search will prove) and an R.L. Stine novel (sans the The), but this is none of those films
nor an adaptation of that book; it is a recent Shudder exclusive. In it, a young straight couple head to a
family (wait for it…) beach house during the off season (it was filmed in Massachusetts
but I don’t recall a disclosed location) and see that an older couple (friends
of the family) are staying there as well.
The entire neighborhood seems to be deserted (as is often the case for
most beach towns from Labor Day to Memorial Day). Eventually, everything goes to shit and none
of it is caused by anything human. We’re
hinted of something rising from the bottom of the ocean in the beginning, there
are discussions of alien life on other planets as well as here on our planet, and
we do get glimpses of unearthly lifeforms among other things, but there really
are no direct answers and there didn’t need to be. I could probably compare it to a couple other
movies (particularly those of the cosmic Lovecraftian variety), but this eerie
well-shot film worked perfectly fine on its own and was thoroughly engaging throughout. Recommended.
7/19/2020
Daniel Isn’t Real OK/G
At least the title tells us right away that Daniel is just
an imaginary friend to our protagonist, Luke.
Imagine a darker Drop Dead Fred. After Daniel does something bad when they’re
kids, Luke “locks” him up in a dollhouse until years later when a psychiatrist
suggests he “unlock” that part of his life.
Of course Luke is going to be blamed and look like a psycho when Daniel
does something wrong since only Luke can see him. Yes, we’ve seen these scenarios countless
times before. Is Daniel an imaginary friend?
Is Luke simply crazy like his mother (who becomes institutionalized and
obviously went through a bad marriage as earlier scenes suggest)? Or, is Daniel simply the repressed evil side
of Luke many claim we all have in us?
While it does go on a bit longer than it should, hence my impatience for
it at times, I think it did a pretty swell job of portraying how real Daniel
may or may not have been without being too perplexing. 7/20/2020
Bonus reviews:
Blood Quantum OK/G
This takes place on the Red Crow Indian Reservation in
1981. The first Americans (yes, that
includes First Nations) probably get the least amount of screen
representation. Dances with Wolves, while great, is chock full of stereotypes. What I should’ve said is that there aren’t
too many modern representations of indigenous Americans. Sure, there’s Dance Me Outside, Smoke Signals,
and pretty much any movie directed by Chris Eyre, but this is the first time
I’ve seen them in their own feature-length zombie movie, let alone horror movie
(if there’s more, do let me know; I’m always learning). The Natives in this film seem to be the only
ones immune to becoming zombies if bitten (even fish and dogs can turn!), but
that still doesn’t mean they can’t be killed another way, i.e. ripped apart and
eaten alive. There is a theory (no
direct answer) suggested as to why, but I’m guessing it all metaphorically ties
in with the troubled history of post-colonial North America. I’ve been wrong before though. As for being a zombie film, it’s not bad and
there’s some praiseworthy gore, but I don’t think it’s entirely distinguishable
(save the Native immunity) other than containing fresh representation in a
stale subgenre. I know I’ve said it
before and I’ll repeat it---representation is great, but it doesn’t mean
innovative aside from that fact. 7/20/2020
Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street OK/G
Documentary focusing on Mark Patton, the star of A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge. Now, I love the Wes Craven-helmed A Nightmare on Elm Street from 1984 and,
while I don’t dislike any of the sequels, the only one that stands out for me
is part three (Dream Warriors;
ironically, Wes Craven co-wrote it).
Freddy Krueger just never was one of my favorite cinematic
boogeymen. The aforementioned sequel in
question has become known as a gay horror film whether that was anyone’s
initial intention or not. Mark Patton is
gay himself, but was still closeted upon its release in 1985, a time when being
openly gay was still embarrassing and arguably dangerous (I was a teen during
the Nineties and I can attest to society still being largely homophobic then). I don’t remember thinking of it as a gay film
when I first saw it, just simply another slasher film regardless of containing
gay characters and/or subtexts (I was also still mostly in the closet and
didn’t want to accept that part of myself).
You don’t necessarily need to have seen Freddy’s Revenge to watch this as it deals more with what Mark
Patton has been up to since that film and his struggles of life as a gay man,
particularly during his early years as an actor. All that being said, I’m not sure who this
film might particularly interest. I
could say it would interest horror fans, but not all horror fans like the A Nightmare on Elm Street series, let
alone A Nightmare on Elm Street 2. I could say it would interest gay men because
it might resonate with them the most, but not all gay men like horror movies,
let alone the A Nightmare on Elm Street
movies, let alone A Nightmare on Elm
Street 2. Gay horror fans would
likely be the most interested, but I never like to pigeonhole entertainment. All that being said, you decide if you want to
invest your time; I told you what it contains.
I, being a gay horror fan, liked it enough. 7/20/2020
Other
movies I've seen and their ratings (see above):
The Masque of the
Red Death (1964) >>>EH
The Premature Burial
(1962) >>>EH
Scare Package >>>OK
(Shudder)
Z >>>OK
(Shudder) ---Sean O.
7/21/2020
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