Horror Movies Watched and Books Read (Sept 10)

MOVIES

The Omen (2006) **1/2
The remake of the classic movie is well made and acted. But why? Especially since so much of it is an exact copy of the original. Just not necessary.

Day of the Beast (1995) ***1/2
This horror comedy from Spanish director Alex de la Ingelsia is about a priest who deciphers a code which predicts when the Antichrist is going to be born. With the help of a death metal fan & a TV host of the supernatural he sets out to save the world.

MPD Psycho (2000) ***
Takashi Miike's miniseries is the blueprint for bizarre. A homicide detective sees his wife murdered by a serial killer and develops Multiple Personality Disorder. One of his "personalities" escapes and is transported from different individuals via a barcode on the inside of the eye. This personality commits copycat murders of the serial killer and the detective must try to track the "personality" down. It's unique and typical Miike, but at times very hard to follow.

Suicide Girls Must Die (2010) *1/2
Suicide Girls go to Maine to shoot a calendar. They start disappearing. Without giving anything away, which isn't hard to figure out, the movie is all over the place and never really knows who it wants to be a horror movie or a reality documentary.

2001 Maniacs: Field of Screams (2010) **1/2
Just cheesy, campy fun as the group of maniacs are forced out of their town and hit the road where they stumble upon a group making a reality TV show.

# True Blood, Season 3 (2010) ****
This season we are introduced to the were-creatures, mainly werewolves and a very old & powerful vamp bent on controlling the world. Of course there's the love-hate triangle between Sookie, Bill, and Eric. Jason falls in love & wants to become a cop. Tara is kidnapped by a deranged vamp. Laffayette falls for a man witch and discovers something about himself. Sam finds his birth parents. Plus we find out what Sookie is. All in all, another solid season from the characters of Bon Temps.

Colin (2010) ***
This ultra low budget zombie movie is unique as the point of view is told from the man who has just turned into one of the walking dead. A little slow at moments but definitely worth the watch.

The Last Supper (1992) **
A doctor with the taste for human flesh finds a subculture that caters to his needs. This Japanese movie is a bit strange, but really didn't keep me interested.

The Tormented (2010) **1/2
Rich kids bully another student until he commits suicide, then his ghost comes back for payback. Nothing really stood out in this UK import, maybe I'm just getting to old to enjoy these types of horror movies.

# Haven, Season 1 (2010) ***
A SyFy channel series based on The Colorado Kid by Stephen King where an FBI agent stumbles upon a town with several odd occurrences happening. A quirky little series with some ups and downs. The first season relies too much on the "strange thing of week" mold instead of focusing on the bigger mystery of what is causing "the troubles". Maybe that will change in season 2.





BOOKS


The Walking Dead 5: The Best Defense *****
This series is incredible. Each episode digs deeper under your skin. Just when you think it wont get any darker or nihilistic, it does. This is an amazing human survival opus.

Golem by Edward Lee ***1/2
No one writes poor, white trash characters (for lack of another term) and the lengths of horrific acts they are willing to commit better than Edward Lee. In this one, two old towns in Maryland have had a feud for years. One group summons the power of the legendary Golem to wipe them out. Flash forward to present day and the descendant of the original towns people try to re summon it to help take over the drug trade. Very unique.


The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan ****1/2
This book had me hooked from the first chapter. Very procedural at times with the details of what the CDC must do. But makes no mistake, there is sheer terror on the pages as this vampiric virus explodes onto the population. A must read.

Under Appreciated Horror Authors #8 - Scott Sigler

Scott Sigler combines horror, sci-fi, thriller, and action with ease to make an entertaining story which usually have a strong technical aspect to them as well. He releases much of work free via podcast, which made him into a best seller author with a loyal fan base. This is the way I discovered him. The podcast brings the stories alive and feels like old time audio serial.

The first novel I listened to was Infected, about a disease that ends up being an alien invasion. This was followed by it's sequel Contagious. Then a I listened to The Nocturnals about a group of secret mutants living underneath San Francisco.

Do yourself a favor and check out more from this author at


Notable Novels
The Nocturnal
Infected (nominated for a Parsec Award)





Contagious

Ancestor
Earthcore

Horror Movies Watched and Books Read (Aug 2010)

MOVIES

Bitten (2010) **1/2
A EMT rescues a vampire, nurses her back to health, and falls in love with her. A decent B-movie horror comedy.

Stagefright (1987) **1/2
A lunatic, who happens to be a former actor, escapes the mental ward and heads back to the theater. Deaths occur. Nothing special here.

# Being Human, Season 2 (2010) ******
In many ways, the second season is better than the first as trio of housemates (a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost) battle human forces who want them destroyed. Ina side story, the clan of vampires ween themselves off blood.

Graveyard Alive (2003) **1/2
A zombie tale told from the female perspective. Interesting movie that's worth a watch.

Paperhouse (1988) ***
More of a fantasy that has a couple of horror moments. A young girl finds one of her drawings allows her to escape into the picture she's created, where she finds a lonely boy living there.

Santa Sangre (1989) **1/2
A kid watches his father cut off his mother's arm and then commit suicide. The young man then becomes his mother's arm. Bizarre stuff as always from Alejendro Jodoworosky.

Blood Beach (1980) *1/2
A monster is living on the beach, attacking people. Cheesy doesn't begin to explain.

# Kolchak: The Night Stalker (197 )
This series from the early 70's is a precursor to much of the serialized horror shows today. A report finds himself always investigating the macabre. The show only lasted one season, but made a great impact and has a cult following.

A Perfect Getaway (2009) ***
Three couples hiking a trail in Hawaii. One of the couples may be murderers. An excellent first 2/3 of the movie which keeps you guessing. But the final act falls a bit short of the build.

Sorority Row (2009) *1/2
Piece of crap doesn't begin to describe this remake built on a very predictable premise. I'm not sure why I even watched this.

Hanger (2010) **
The usual fair from director Ryan Nichols. Gore and great special effects, lots of graphic nudity and language, and an over the top plot. Classic B-movie material, but this time the effort falls a tad short.

The Asphyx (1973) **1/2
An interesting premise that doesn't really have the big payoff. A man photographs the harbinger of death at the moment a person dies and attempts to be immortal by capturing his.

# Fact or Faked, Season 1 (2010) ***
This SyFy show has a team of investigators trying to debunk unexplainable videos found on the internet by going to the location and attempting to find causes behind the phenomenon and duplicate the video. Fairly interesting show, especially when the group replicates the video in question. But a lot of the team interaction feels forced and rehearsed.



BOOKS

Wolfen by Whitley Strieber ****
One of most unique werewolf stories ever written. Police discover a pack of undiscovered, super intelligent wolves who have lived in the shadow of man for centuries.

The Walking Dead (volume 1): Days Gone Bye by Robert Kirkman *****
I've been wanting to read this graphic novel series for awhile and with the upcoming TV show thought I might as well get started. The first issue is amazing. It sets up what is basically human drama in world over ran by zombies. Gritty and nihilistic. This is going to be a fun ride.


The Walking Dead, vol. 2: Miles Behind Us *****
The story keeps on rolling with more bleak and despair as the group of survivors attempt to find safety from the zombie uprising.


The Walking Dead, vol. 3: Safety Behind Bars *****
Once again this story leads us to the fact that even in the middle of a horrific zombie attacks, humans are still the most feared monsters.



The Walking Dead, volume 4: The Heart's Desire *****
The series just keeps getting better as the books come along.

Commuity: A love/hate relationship

After all the hype surrounding NBC's hit comedy Community, I decided to give it try. Actually I started watching it when the series debuted, but after the first three episodes gave up. I didn't care for the concept. But as the year went on and many people raved about the show, I gave it another try. So I finished up season one and still have mixed feelings about the show.

At times I find the series to be brilliant with it's writing. At other times I am simply annoyed with watch I watching.




WHAT I HATE ABOUT COMMUNITY
1. Joel McHale aka Jeff Winger: I have never cared for Joel McHale. There's something about him which makes me loathe him as an actor. The same goes for the character of Jeff Winger. Everything about that character I despise. He redeems himself on occasions but in between he's just a first class asshole. And the whole concept why Winger is forced to go back to college is ludicrous. If he was a secondary character instead of the focal point, I could handle him a lot better.

2. Chevy Chase: Chevy has always been hit or miss for me. When he's on as the goofball fuck up, it's classic (see Vacation). When the guy is off he simply looks pathetic. To many times in the show it feels like he's forcing the performance relying on physical gags and over exaggerations.


WHAT I LOVE ABOUT COMMUNITY
1. The rest of cast. They nail it every time out. Abed (Dani Pudi)and Troy (Donald Glover) are the oddball glue which keeps me tuning in. Annie, Britta, and Shirley round out the rest of the gang with strong and different female characters. And the secondary character are hilarious as well from Senor Chang to Dean Pelton to Star-Burns and even to Vaughn.

2. All the movie references. The show rips on classic and not so classic themes all the time and flat out mimics scenes from popular movies on occasions. Being a movie buff, I love this stuff. Either you'll get the references or you don't.






BEST EPISODES
"Comparative Religion" (Episode 12) - Anthony Michael Hall rocks as the bully and the fight scene at the end it epic. Also there's a good message about religious tolerance and acceptance.

"Modern Warfare" (Episode 23) - The paintball episode will goes down as classic television as it riffs on all action stereotypes.


The show usually makes me laugh. NBC has pushed the series from day one. The network is always putting guest stars on the show and with the successful ratings it isn't going anywhere. My DVR will be set and I'll continue watching.

Horror Movies Watched and Books Read (July 2010)

MOVIES

Voices aka Du saram-yida (2007) **1/2
A rather typical revenge, ghost story from Korea. Gets confusing at times. Or maybe that was because I was only half paying attention.

The Reeds (2010) **
Young 20's year olds on a cursed boat. Nice atmosphere and decent acting, but not much else. Very predictable.



Never Sleep Again: The Nightmare on Elm Street Legacy (2010) *****
Alright, it's a documentary. But it's about one of the most iconic horror figures of all time, Freddy "F'ing" Kruger. It clocks in at nearly four hours long and gets interviews from just about every person to be associated with the sereis (excluding Johnny Depp & Patricia Arquette). A great time for lovers of the films.








Mr. Frost (1990) ***
A slow, methodical psychological horror with Jeff Goldblum in top form as the title character. A man who finds is arrested after the police find several bodies buried in his yard. He is put in a mental institution and he claims to be Satan. Rather creepy.

Zombies, Zombies, Zombies (2007) **
Strippers and zombies, such a combination. I had no business sitting through this whole thing but the fact that it doesn't take itself seriously and a couple of good characters make up for the sheer stupidity of a plot.

Night of the Bloody Apes (1969) *1/2
A Mexican "grindhouse" type of film that is so absurd it's ridiculous. A man gets an ape heart transplant and turns into a man-ape. Watched because I heard it was overly gorely, and the surgery scenes were. Not much else.

Bad Biology (2008) **1/2
The cult director of Basketcase makes his return with a story about a woman with seven clits and man with an over-sized detached penis, both in search for love. Will they ever find each other. This is just good, campy fun.

Hush (2009) ***1/2
An early 20's couple gets drawn into a dangerous game with a trucker on the UK highways. There's a decent story here out of the typical narrative.

Mountain of the Cannibal Gods (1978) *1/2
Another entry to the European cannibal genre. I'll be honest, other the super sexy Ursla Anders there aint much in this movie that hasn't been done so much better by other movies.

Zombiamania (2008) ***
A documentary on the zombie craze going on in horror. Could have been longer & a little more in depth, but interesting none the less.

Blood: The Last Vampire (2009) *1/2
This live action version from the classic anime of the same name, doesn't even hold a candle to the original.

Simon Says (2006) **
Crispin Glover as a psycho. Good enough for me to watch, but nothing too special.

Autumn (2009) **
An over ambitious indy based on the David Moody novel about a virus which turns people into the living dead. Overall it comes up a bit short. Too much talking and not enough empathy towards the characters. And a few minutes should have been shaved off.

The Kingdom 2 (1997) ***1/2
The second mini-series from Lars Von Trier about a weird ass hospital and it's supernatural inhabitants continues with more of the same bizarre and macabre nature.



[REC] 2 (2009) ****
This sequel starts right where the first ended. It's just as intense. The story goes off on the origin of the virus, which ends up being for more supernatural than one may have imagined.











The Disappeared (2008) ***1/2
A UK ghost story which plays out like a J-Horror film. When the little brother of a teenager goes missing, he cant help but blame himself. Then the weird shit starts happening.

The Crazies (2009) ***
This remake isn't a complete waste. The first half was a good set up, but the second half just felt like the lead characters running away from danger. A missed opprotunity on to send a message, but decent for entertainment purposes.

Predators (2010) ****
I was very much surprised as this isn't a remake. There's a lot homage paid to the original, but it's a completely new story for the franchise. An awesome cast, decent action, some gore, and kick ass predators. Not perfect, but it's a damn fun film.

Death Bell aka Gosa (2008) **1/2
In this Korean film, high school kids & teachers must wit their way out of elaborate torture devices. Not all that original, but there's some great visuals and style to the film

The Sweet House of Horrors (1989) *1/2
A Lucio Fulci movie that has kids talking to their murdered parents ghosts and their aunt & uncle trying to cleanse the house of spirits. Not the usual splatter fest from the director, this one is so confusing and boring.


The Box (2009) ***
Richard Kelly's take on the classic Richard Matheson short story is a flawed piece of work, but manages to stay fairly intriguing throughout.



# Being Human, Season 1 (2008) ****1/2
This UK import about a vampire, werewolf, and a ghost who share a flat. A witty show that balances comedy, drama, and horror themes. The first season has each character dealing with their individual monstrosities and subplot of a vampire takeover. Excellent TV.












BOOKS
Earthcore by Scott Siglar ***1/2
A mining company gets more than they expected from a mountain holding the largest source of platinum ever discovered. They get creatures and death. The usual combo of multiple layered characters, high octane action, a touch science fiction, and horror from the author.



13 Bullets by David Wellington ****
The first book in a series about a Pennslyvania Trooper and a FBI agent hunting vampires.













American Gothic by various artist
Didn't read all the stories in this anthology but the ones I did were good.