Horror Movie Talk

Synopsis A teenage girl named Quinn and her father relocate to Kettle Springs, Missouri for a fresh start after Quinn’s mom dies. Quinn quickly falls in with the ‘wrong crowd’ as a potential serial killer clown targets her and her new friends. Review At first I liked this movie. I was in for the goofy ride, I wanted to play into the corniness (pun intended) and enjoy it, but it very quickly became redundant, vapid, and unfunny. The kills are okay, the premise is whatever, but the jokes miss the mark almost every single time. The acting is good and all of the teenagers are very convincing as gen alpha, but the script severely lacks. I wanted this to be a lot more fun than it actually was. It’s not to say that I didn’t particularly enjoy it, I just got bored at one point and I couldn’t shake the boredom for the rest of the runtime. There is a joke that one of the characters makes about being “stuck in a stupid 80s slasher” and that was just plain offensive, because every 80s slasher I’ve seen is better than this one. It’s not the worst movie ever made, but it’s really nothing special. Shoutout to Kevin Durand though, love to see him pop up in a horror movie. To sum my feelings about this film up in a sentence, this felt like Scooby Doo if it was bad and also rated R. Score 4/10

Synopsis 28 Years Later picks up exactly where you think it will: 28 years after the initial rage virus outbreak in the U.K. All these years later, the movie focuses on a small Scottish island off the coast of the quarantined mainland, where the only way to and from is a small causeway that disappears in high tide. This story follows Spike, a twelve year old boy who takes his rite of passage by venturing to the mainland for the first time with his father, to see the virus’s impact for himself, and hopefully kill a few zombies. Review Everything about this film was wholly unexpected for me. Danny Boyle takes us on a journey like no other. Having a child as the main character/focus in a horror movie is not a new plot device, but in this film you really feel for Spike, you see everything in his perspective, you feel his fear, his guilt, his confusion. Everything that Spike is going through feels immensely personal to the viewer, and this is due to incredibly effective storytelling in Alex Garland’s fantastic script and Boyle’s dynamic storytelling.  28 Days Later was such an innovative and harrowing zombie movie, something unlike viewers in 2002 were used to seeing. Boyle shot it on low quality camcorders for the most part and relied heavily on the script, practical effects, and just damn good acting. This film isn’t much different. Although film as a medium has progressed in the last 23 years, 28 Years Later feels so new, so fresh, so unexpectedly radical. The cinematography had me speechless, breathless, on the edge of my seat throughout the entire runtime. It is a masterclass. This film made me feel things that a typical zombie movie does not make me particularly feel. Having the foundation of a good but almost played out antagonist, zombies, and building a house upon that with an exceedingly emotional and moving script, topped with out of this world acting by Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor Johnson, and newcomer Alfie Williams, makes this a perfect film. I’m already planning on going to see it again in theaters. Score 10/10

This week we review the dark and twisted retelling of the Cinderella fairy tale in The Ugly Stepsister. Synopsis As the name suggests, The Ugly Stepsister is a retelling of the Cinderella story from the ugly stepsister’s perspective. In this gritty realistic telling, it starts out with the marriage of Cinderella’s father and the revelation that both sides of the marriage are expecting great wealth from each other, but are actually poor. The step mother’s daughter Elvira dreams of marrying the Prince and is given a chance by being invited to his Ball. Her mother, knowing that a advantageous marriage is their only way out of poverty, plans on using her last money and her cunning to transform Elvira into a beauty. What follows is a series of visceral 19th century plastic surgeries, self inflicted illness, and a series of insults that turn Elvira into a pitiable and sympathetic protagonist. Review of The Ugly Stepsister The Ugly Stepsister is clever and a more complex retelling of the fairy tale that we all know and love. It’s a more realistic exploration of the power dynamics of money, privilege, and beauty. It tells two sides of the same fairytale, the original is really about overcoming poverty and class through natural beauty and magical helpers, this telling is about how despite class and access to money, you still need to overcome beauty standards. None of the characters are particularly “good”, including Cinderella. Each has their own motivations, and Elvira is essentially a pawn in her mother’s game.  Max is going to argue that this isn’t a horror movie, but it undeniably is. This movie at its core is a body horror movie. It explores the brutal reshaping of Elvira’s body through mechanical and organic means. She will stop at nothing and sacrifice everything for her goal. I thought it was really well done. It was clever, brutal, and at times even funny. It’s very similar in themes, but much more subtle than The Substance.  Score 9/10

Synopsis Bring Her Back follows siblings Andy and Piper as they go into foster care after their father suddenly passes away. They are placed with a woman named Laura, who already has another foster child that seems a little bit off, somehow. As the kids try to stick together to mourn their father, Laura is trying to deal with her own grief in a shocking and disturbing way. Review This movie makes you feel really bad, like really really bad. I think some movies are exceptional at making you feel bad with no reprieve, i.e. Angst (1986), High Tension (2003), Funny Games (1997). But in order to properly achieve a good feel-bad movie, there needs to be some TLC put into the filmmaking and/or the viewer needs to care about the characters, whether they are good or bad people. In this film, I didn’t see much love of the craft put into the style of editing or shooting, and although I hated seeing the kids get hurt in this movie, I didn’t care that much for the characters. Maybe that’s due to minimal backstory, or maybe the script was not connecting for me. That’s not to say this isn’t a good film, per-say, because it is a horror movie unlike I’ve seen in awhile, it makes you feel really bad and it is pretty original while also utilizing tried and true horror tropes. I wanted to cry at the end of this movie. There were a lot of times where I audibly said what the fuck. It’s insane, vile, sad, and creepy but I just can’t say it’s amazing. It’s more shocking than anything, it wants to shock, and shock it did. I kind of want to rate this higher but I was just so baffled by all of it, and by the time something happens I really didn’t want to watch it anymore. I think this may be an evil film. Score 7/10

Today’s episode, voted by our patrons is I Saw the Devil, the Korean revenge thriller/horror film. Synopsis I saw the Devil is a 2010 Korean thriller about Soo-hyeon (Lee Byung-hun), a grieving husband seeking revenge against his wife’s killer (Choi Min-sik). Unlike most revenge films, this one is not about him finding the killer to bring them to justice, it’s about tormenting and psychologically breaking a monstrous serial killer. It helps that the husband is basically Korean James Bond and has accrued plenty of PTO. Review of I Saw the Devil This is legit one of the best thrillers I have ever seen. It’s well written, and it doesn’t waste a minute of it’s 2:24 runtime. It makes me miss the serial killer thrillers of the late nineties and 2000s. As with any thriller, people may argue whether or not it is a horror movie. I ignore these people, because they have too much time on their hands. and this is on letterboxes top 250 horror movies, so that’s something. I will say if you are looking for disturbing and gory imagery, this film has it. I Saw the devil doesn’t shy away from giving us the killer Jang Kyung-chul’s perspective, which can be disturbingly voyeuristic and horrifying in its simplicity. The brutal confrontation scenes with the protagonist being a proto John Wick balances out the film with a sense of catharsis and perverse satisfaction of the killer getting his comeuppance. However, they come at a price. The film asks the viewer “can a man use evil against evil and come out unscathed?” . This is one of those movies that’s so perfect in its concept and construction that it makes me wonder how it hasn’t been done before. It’s deceptively simple, but is actually an impressive balancing act of being disturbing, thrilling, funny, and ultimately satisfying. Score 10/10

Synopsis In a post apocalyptic world, Nic cage raises two teenage boys he rescued as babies. Unfortunately for cage he is made aware of the simple fact that teenagers don’t stop being teenagers just because everyone’s lives are at stake. These two boys couldn’t be more different and are constantly arguing, picking on each other and getting into mischief. Each night the young boys and their father batten down the hatches and prepare for the invasion of strange and mystical creatures that threaten to break down the doors and devour them all. It is soon discovered that their bunker may not be as safe as they once hoped and the family must learn how to take responsibility for themselves and survive in this impossibly desolate world.  Review of Arcadian Another day, another random horror movie starring Nic cage. This man will really take any role at this point, which is unfortunate because I feel like he was underutilized in this film. Not that I think cage has to be the main character in every movie he is in, but his character is pretty quickly disposed of for the majority of the movie which i think may not have been the right move. This cant even really be classified as a true Nic cage movie, as he is more of a supporting character with very little screentime. Despite that, I think the other characters manage this movie pretty well on their own. I like the brothers and their differing personalities. Each one brings their own emotional struggle to the film and I felt like I could relate to each of them in different ways. For the first half of the movie the monsters are well obscured in the darkness, and the glimpses that we do get of them are pretty terrifying. However eventually we get a little more “showing the monster” than I think is warranted and they end up looking a little silly by the end of it. There is some good character development, emotional moments, and intense scenes which make this movie a pretty easy watch. I didn’t find myself checking the time hardly at all, and I was really interested to see how things would play out. The themes of having to grow up too fast, and taking ownership of your own mistakes are well played out. Score 7/10

Synopsis In this installment of Final Destination a young woman named Iris defies death while on a romantic date with her boyfriend saving many lives. But death wont be cheated so easily. These sleepy citizens may have lived to see another day, but fate is on a mission to hunt them down. Years later, Iris’s children and grandchildren are caught in the crosshairs as death creeps along their bloodline leaving them in…shall we say…sticky situations.  Review of Final Destination: Bloodlines I have never been a fan of the final destination movies. They have one gimmick, and they stick to it no matter what which usually leaves me counting the remaining survivors in an attempt to guess how much longer I have to sit there and watch the movie. I was pleasantly surprised by this film. Don’t get it wrong folks, it is exactly the same gimmick as before, but I felt like this movie uses a little more charm than other Final Destination movies I’ve seen. There are multiple nods and winks to the audience as the film sets up laughably stupid death scenes, just to pull back and be like “just kidding. You really thought we would kill the character off with this stupid trick?” Only for the rug to be pulled as another equally as stupid death scene unravels in a bloody mess. It subverted my expectations a couple times and genuinely caught me off guard with some horrific events that I did not see coming. The red herrings keep the movie interesting, as you can never really know when something is about to happen. The camera is zooming in on this warning label showing a man being crushed by a vending machine. Is that important? No. But for a second you thought it was. The deaths are gruesome but somehow look kind of real. These movies have a history of showcasing the most elaborate Rube Goldberg death scenes that while creative have never felt interesting to me. But this movie felt different. I really liked every death in the movie and I think its worth going to the theatre to experience them on the big screen.  Score 7/10

Tigers Are Not Afraid is a harrowing tale of young children trying to survive among cartels, ghosts, and dream logic. Listen to our full review this week on Horror Movie Talk. Synopsis Tigers Are Not Afraid is a horror/fantasy/drama that takes place in a border Mexican town devastated by drug cartel crime. Estrella is a young girl who is given three wishes by a teacher and after she discovers her mother has been killed, she joins a gang of other child orphans. While they are on the run from a cartel, Estrella tries to use her wishes, but they don’t come true how she wants them to, and she is haunted by the ghosts of cartel victims. Review of Tigers Are Not Afraid This is a beautiful and ugly movie. Very quickly you realize that the real horror in the movie is the reality in which these kids live and not from the supernatural elements. It is reminiscent of early Guillermo del Toro movies and reminded me of the Brazilian City of God. However this film is unique in its composition and blend of genres. The majority of the plot and suspense comes from the dramatic real life elements of the story. You are drawn in by these children who are too young, too helpless, and too poor. They are pathetic in the truest sense of the word, since the strongest emotions elicited by the film are pity and sadness. The supernatural and horror elements of the film are ever present, but take a backseat for the most part. The audience is give. room to interpret whether they are “real” or only in the mind of estrella. For me, it’s an undeniably effective film. I was brought to tears several times throughout the movie, especially at the end. It’s a beautiful evocative film. Moments of beauty are created in the ugly apocalyptic surroundings. Moments of wonder and hope are present but rare, giving contrast to the horrors surrounding them. It’s a great film, and has stuck with me for the past three days since watching it. I’d put it up against any of my favorites in the genre. Score 10/10 Support Guest Alicia Berbenick @bene_and_the_gesserits https://www.beneandthegesserits.com https://www.etsy.com/shop/beneandthegesserits

Synopsis This film follows Kakihara, a sadomasochistic yakuza whose boss goes missing. He sets out on a path of kidnapping and torture to find the man who did this, only to find out that the culprit, Ichi, is a complete sadistic psychopath. Chaos and gore ensue. Review This movie is a lot better than I remember, and I remember loving it. The opening sequence hooks you immediately, with sped up camera movements and manga like color grading at times. This reveals to the viewer that what you’re about to watch isn’t a typical action/horror film. This movie does have its problems, as it has laughably bad CGI at times, but if you can get past those three or four shots you can enjoy this movie. My other issue with the film is the treatment of the women on screen. It’s absolutely devastating, depraved, and nausea inducing. To be fair, mostly everyone dies in this movie and whether you’re a woman or not in this world, you’re gonna get tortured. So I guess it’s kinda fair in the end. At first glance it’s very much torture porn, but there’s a real story there that provokes humanity’s most suppressed subconscious emotions. Ichi the Killer exemplifies the unpredictability of human perseverance and the utmost underbelly of society. This movie does not beg you to sympathize or revel in its grotesqueness. It wants you to be uncomfortable, it does not want you to like these characters at all. I love cinema that makes me squirm. I would be remiss not to mention that the costumes are divine, especially our main man Kakihara’s fly suits. The iridescent one he wears in his final scene is stunning.  I really do love this movie, it can be extremely tough to watch at some particularly gory times, but it’s great if you can stomach it. Just don’t try to eat dinner while you watch it.  Score 8/10

Synopsis Peter Neal played by Anthony Franciosa is a famous author of crime/mystery novels. After the release of his new hit book Tenebrae, Peter travels to Rome to promote his story through interviews and morning talk shows. However, Peter is quickly caught up in a real-life mystery involving brutal deaths linked to his book. The police (big fans of his work by the way) keep Peter in the loop as they work together to crack the case, but things quickly get out of hand as the murders stack up. But forget about the violent crimes, the real question everyone is dying to know the answer to is, “Are Peter’s books sexist?” Review of Tenebrae Tenebrae is a 1982 Italian Giallo film written and directed by Dario Argento, who you may recognize from the hit classic Suspiria. For some reason, I really struggled to get into this movie for the first thirty minutes, but as the themes of the movie started to reveal themselves I became far more interested in seeing the rest of the film play out. I expected this movie to be just as easy to predict as most mystery horror -who-done-it movies tend to be these days, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that I guessed the killer incorrectly not once, not twice, but like six times. The movie does a great job at misdirecting your focus and creates a web of motives for everyone involved until you are sure the killer is definitely this person! Only for that person to die in the very next scene. This happens all the way up to the end of the movie, and the audience is left in the dark about a lot until the last 10 minutes. I enjoyed this more than I expected to.  Score 8/10