Recent viewings

[claws]

House of Death (1982) aka Death Screams

Friends meet up at the carnival and decide to share ghost stories at the local graveyard. When a storm approaches the friends find shelter in an old and seemingly abandoned house. But a stranger with a machete is already awaiting.
Slasher that doesn't rip off anything so it gets points for that. Pacing drags however, but the cheesy final act makes everything good again. 4/5 cheese

House of Death victim that deserves to die 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgk89MtJaug&feature=player_embedded
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[claws]

claws- I haven't sen [rec]. I recently saw the Nameless, one of the directors earlier works and was unimpressed.

Never seen Nameless but I did enjoy [Rec] + [Rec] 2. Apparently they are making [Rec] 3 + [Rec] 4 at the moment. A new franchise to look forward to 

[lester1/2jr]

The Girls of Belarus* (2006) - Here in the US The movie of the week has degenerated into either overheated Lifetime type pron for girls or Hallmark dreck. This offering from the UK would be a good template for a new direction: more substantial and emotionally complex yet still to the point and topical. It's very compelling.


*(note: searching for this title brings you to some colorful sites that are not at all related to this movie)




story: Belarus got the s**t end of the stick from the Chernobyl meltdown. Most of it's farmland was destroyed and now kids are born with Cancer and so forth. So there is a group that brings kids to England for a few months to give them a break from it, basically. A middle class family through the efforts of the wife and a mix up at the place, ends up taking in two girls and grow attached to them.  

The girls, age 8 and 11 or so, don't speak English and don't even know how to use silverware. Probably the thing you take away from this movie most is how sweet the girls are. I don't know if they are really from Belarus or not but they are very convincing and remind me alot of my myraid russian neighbors and their goofy kids. There are conflicting emotions about growing attached to the kids and the various problems with the culture shock and some awkward moments when the girls screw up, but in general its pretty "feel good " if not out and out saccharine.

I thought this was going to be a gritty documentary and probably wouldn't have rented it if I knew what it was but I'm very glad I did. Some amazing fight choreography and state of the art CGI too, no I'm just kidding. highest recommendation

5/5

[Doggett]

Big Bad Mama (1974)

There are some old fashioned gangsters and stuff. Not really sure what the plot is, its B movie stuff. Pleanty of nudity, possibly too much...


Fun though.

3/5

[Couchtr26]

Finally, saw The City of Lost Children.  It was excellent.  I'm happy to finally take the plunge.  The story had its odd moments but went very well.  I liked the pacing and I liked Ron Perlman in his part.  He did surprisingly well, different then I was expecting from him.  Overall 4.5/5.  Will have to watch again and see things I missed. 

[claws]

To All A Good Night (1980)

Slutty girls stay at their school during x-mas holiday because of party opportunity with guys. Meanwhile a bad Santa is slicing and dicing the teens one by one.
Average slasher with a few neat kills and fun characters. The ending is funny for all the wrong reasons. 3.25/5 Cheese

[indianasmith]

Last night I watched HARPOON: WHALE WATCHING MASSACRE, an Icelandic horror film about some whale watching tourists who charter a boat off the coast of Iceland. But when their captain is mortally wounded, they are stranded at sea - until a former whaler comes to their aid and takes them to his rusty old whaleboat.  There, he and his mother and brother begin to systematically slaughter them, as the panicked tourists flee all over the ship.  Bizarre and bloody, with a strange twist ending.

[claws]

Humongous (1982)

Five friends trapped on an island must face a gigantic disfigured and mentally challenged man who is the seed of a rape 30 years ago.
Canuckploitation that looks like a Slasher but is more like a Backwoods bleeder. Low budget but solid, and maybe a bit misogyny. A tiny notch above average though, and bonus points for being the inspiration for Hatchet (2006). 3.25/5

[Jack]

Manticore (2005) - SyFy Original that doesn't miss a single cliche, but manages to be moderately entertaining due to its likable characters.  US soldiers are in Iraq, and some Islamic Sheik brings the mythical Manticore (sort of a horse-sized dog with wings) to life to kill the infidels.  This CGI monstrosity prowls around ominously and bites somebody in half every once in a while.   Robert Beltran is the leader of the US troops, and he's a fairly decent, likable guy.  Heather Donahue gives us a tight tank top scene early in the movie that is really second to none.  Chase Masterson is a feisty reporter who adds some variety to the cast.  Predictable low budget junk, but I enjoyed it enough to buy the DVD and have watched it several times now.  4/5.

[claws]

New Year's Evil (1980)

TV host of a New Year's Rock show is stalked by crazed killer with distorted 'rofl' voice. Very entertaining psycho-slasher with cool soundtrack, a lead actress with too much make up and a few neat kills. 4.5/5 Cheese

[Trekkie313]

F/X 2 Pretty good, but not memorable movie. Interesting plot device though.

[Jack]

Feast II: Sloppy Seconds (2008) - A group of subhuman bikers show up in town the day after the first Feast movie ends.  They're looking to take revenge on whoever (actually whatever) killed one of their gang members.  There are also some idiots in town, and monsters lurking about.  I spent about 40 minutes hoping all these "people" would die, realized that it would probably take quite a while, and stuck this thing back in its Netflix envelope.  1/5.

[lester1/2jr]

frivolous Lola - If want to see a Tinto Brass movie see Cheeky not this. The female lead is hot and her nude scenes are great but the rest if a very silly comedy that is very ff able. the girl is f able, the movie is ff able. 2.5/5

[RCMerchant]

Humongous (1982)

Five friends trapped on an island must face a gigantic disfigured and mentally challenged man who is the seed of a rape 30 years ago.
Canuckploitation that looks like a Slasher but is more like a Backwoods bleeder. Low budget but solid, and maybe a bit misogyny. A tiny notch above average though, and bonus points for being the inspiration for Hatchet (2006). 3.25/5

I seen this! On USA UP ALL NIGHT in the 80's! Linda Blair,right?

[Rev. Powell]

GENTLEMEN BRONCOS (2009): A successful pulp author who's run out of ideas steals a teen author's sci-fi novella.  The beyond-offbeat tone, which might be characterized as "nerd grotesque," is uneven and takes some serious getting used to, but the movie is never boring; Jemaine Clement's often hilarious performance as the pompous Dr. Chevalier and the bizarre dramatizations of the epic "Yeast Masters" (which feature cyclopses, flying stags and stolen gonads) makes it worth the price of admission. Not for everyone, but sci-fi nerds who remember pulp novels of the 30s-70s may connect with it.  I'd give it a cautious 3.5/5.