Movies–Books–Music–Television

Blogtoberfest – The Shining

I’ll be honest, I saw the movie “The Shining” before I read the book. Saw it on channel seven, ABC’s channel here in the New York area. I’m not sure how old I was, but I must have been in high school because the movie was in the theatre in 1980.

That movie frightens me to this day, even when they show it on the Arts and Entertainment channel.

The whole idea of being snowbound and trapped while the “strongest” of your party goes slowly mad and there’s nothing you can do about it is frightening enough. The fact that the HOTEL itself is making it impossible for you to escape from him is even scarier.

There is also the helpless feeling you have that not only is there “no escape”, but it’s your spouse/someone close, the one person who you love and trust the most in the world, is the one who is menacing you.

The soundtrack adds to the dread with its Native American chants, droning underchords and well-used scare chords.

The most well used scare chord is at the very end. No matter how much I anticipate it, it gets me EVERY SINGLE TIME.

Of course, YMMV (Your mileage may vary). Each person watches a different movie.

[clickToTweet tweet=”‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’ #quotes #theshining #kubrick” quote=”‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.'” theme=”style4″]

Here’s a taste of Jack Nicholson, before he became the Joker. I must say, no matter what is said about Kubrick, he got excellent performances out of his actors. You can feel Wendy’s fear of her husband. However, no matter how afraid she may be, she’s still reluctant to really hurt him.

The miniseries remake with Steven Weber (from the show WINGS of all places) didn’t half faze me. I mean, this is the dude from Wings against Jack Nicholson for heaven’s sake. It’s a no brainer.

**“Come play with us, Danny. Forever. And ever. And ever.“**

The movie was made in 1980, but I’ll say SPOILER ALERT anyway.

The Shining is an example of chillingly great horror movie. The final shot of Jack Nicholson frozen in the hedge maze…that haunted me for quite a few nights after that!

So what’s YOUR favorite scary movie????

Horror Movie Review – The Ouija Experiment

Title: The Ouija Experiment, aka The Realm
Genre: Horror, Found Footage-ish
Director: Israel Luna
Writers: Israel LUna
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2364842/

NO SPOILERS

This was a movie that I stumbled upon perusing some streaming service or another. I suppose if you run a search for the title, it will tell you where it’s playing or where you can get it. Honestly, even though IMDB gives it a 3.4 out of 10, I actually enjoyed the movie. I’d even watch it again!

Here’s the setup. There’s a film student (already annoying, lol) who plays with a Ouija board with his four friends. Why? They want to solve the mystery of a drowned girl that happened some time ago. I’m really fuzzy on the details because, well, it just didn’t matter to me after a while.

Let me say upfront…it’s not scary. The acting is bad and the found footage-ish way of filming can by annoying at times. I don’t know if it was the mood I was in, but I thought the film was rather cute. I liked the dynamic of some of the actors, and the self-aware of “I’m a black person in a horror movie” of the black actress was pretty funny at times.

I felt the first hour was quite strong in the way it set up the story. The actors did a pretty good job for a low budget movie that looks like it was filmed in somebody’s house on the fly. In addition, trivia for the movie suggests the actors’ lines were mostly improvised during this first hour. They didn’t do a half-bad job!

As I noted above, when the scary stuff starts, the black actress is the best. She really made me laugh.

A note on the dialogue: this was the best part of the movie. The conversations and rapid exchanges seem real and unrehearsed. Also, the actors have such a good sense of timing, they did not stumble over each other’s lines as is often the case in the found footage movies where the lines are improvised. I just liked hearing the characters chit chat with each other.

Otherwise, the film and its eventual reveal of the long-ago murder was rather flat and boring. Do not watch this movie if you are looking to be frightened. It won’t happen. If you watch it at all, watch it for the actors’ performances and how they interact.

Film Grade: D

Actors Grade: B for snappy dialogue.

Horror Movie Review: The Houses October Built

Title: The Houses October Built
Genre: Horror, Found Footage-ish
Director: Bobby Roe
Writers: Zack Andrews
Stars: Brandy Schaefer, Zack Andrews, Bobby Roe
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1958043/

HERE MAY BE SPOILERS

Portions of the movie may or may not be revealed.

Synopsis: Beneath the fake blood and cheap masks of countless haunted house attractions across the country, there are whispers of truly terrifying alternatives. Looking to find an authentic, blood-curdling good fright for Halloween, five friends set off on a road trip in an RV to track down these underground Haunts. Just when their search seems to reach a dead end, strange and disturbing things start happening and it becomes clear that the Haunt has come to them…

Today we have the found-footage (i.e. some of the film was shot with a hand-held camera) movie.

The Houses October Built is quite a creepy movie. The gist of the movie is that five friends travel in an RV on old back roads of the countryside(you know that’s already trouble) to find the underground haunted houses which contain the REAL scares. Because, you know, the extreme haunted houses just aren’t enough scares for these people. And, I supposed bored twenty-somethings need a “real scare” to wake them out of their stylish boredom.

Of course, on the way, they’re asking the haunted house actors about the underground haunted houses where the terror is real.

Sigh. Mind you, the movie is framed as a documentary. Just seeing the interviews with these haunted house “players” was enough for me. Some of these folks presented a scary presence even without the makeup. In addition, it’s implied some of these folks are on the shady side of the law, and might not be the best folks to be trusted.

Eventually, the trip turns weird. They are being followed by a creepy crew who don’t speak but just stare, a la The Strangers. Instead of turning around and driving all night to get home, (because, movie) they continue on this trip and are stalked by some nefarious miscreants.

All in all, the movie was averagely (is that a word) satisfying and the haunted house themselves give you a bit of a scare, while the people they interview give you an overall uneasy vibe.

I do wish the ending had been different. If you want to know what I’m talking about, scroll past the trailer.

All in all I say, take the ride with the movie. If you resist the urge to get annoyed at some of the actors’ decisions, you’ll finish the movie with a couple of genuinely creepy moments.

Grade: B– The characters grew to be rather stupid and thus unlikable, but as a horror movie, they do deliver on the scares.

Note: There is a film of the same name from 2011. I have not seen that one, but from what I read about it, it’s more of a documentary than fictionalized horror movie. The same people are in it and they use some of the real clips of the interviews in the 2014 film.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

The ending was a flop for me because it ended up being just a bunch of killers. I would have liked it to be just an extreme haunted house experience. I think that would have made the entire movie much more interesting.

Thriller Movie Review: The Towering Inferno

Title: The Towering Inferno
Genre: Thriller, Action, Drama
Director: Irwin Allen, John Guillermin
Writers: Richard Martin Stern … (novel) Thomas N. Scortia … (novel) and Frank M. Robinson … (novel) Stirling Silliphant … (screenplay)
Stars: Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Robert Vaughn…..
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4392454/

HERE MAY BE SPOILERS

Portions of the movie may or may not be revealed.

Synopsis:
At the opening party of a colossal, but poorly constructed, office building, a massive fire breaks out that threatens to destroy the tower and everyone in it.

“To those who give their lives, so that others may live
– to the firefighters of the world –
this picture is gratefully dedicated.”

I decided to watch this one yesterday afternoon. Why? I had seen an article on “Airplane” and that got me thinking about the seventies disaster movies. I had two hours with nothing pressing to do, so I turned it on. The movie is over two hours long, which may be a little too much for those weaned on Michael Bay and Roland Emmerich. However, The Towering Inferno sticks to the seventies formula of disaster movies wherein it develops its characters, then does its best to kill them off.

Inferno also includes the list of Hollywood A-listers (for that time) such as Faye Dunaway, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen and Paul Newman (who my children know only as Doc Hudson from Cars), “faded stars” such as Jennifer Jones, Fred Astaire, William Holden as well as a few “in the background, I know that guy/gal: O.J. Simpson, Robert Wagner (Hart to Hart), and Gregory Sierra (as a child of the 70s, I know him from Sanford and Son as well as Barney Miller). They all interact in one way or another, giving the audience snippets of their personal drama.

By the time we get to love/hate the characters, the real villain of the movie, the fire, is in full force. While the special effects are a little spotty, I have to say, this movie does a lot better with its accurate portrayal of fire and people on fire than some of the movies today. Sure, you can see the stuntman’s gloves as he’s engulfed in flames, but I’m so impressed that they actually SET SOMEONE ON FIRE to get a shot, I don’t even care. It is a movie after all.

Since you get to know the characters (and are not a cynical person), the deaths aren’t throwaway set pieces. I mean, the scene was set so well, and the people involved were portrayed as real human beings, I found myself yelling at the security guard “Don’t open the damn door, can’t you see the smoke?”

It had been so long since I’d seen the film, I wasn’t sure who was going to live or die, which added to the suspense. The movie was well paced, in that it balanced action scenes with quick bits of drama and further character development.

The effects and shots of the burning tower were quite realistic: kudos to the model makers and special-effects photography – it’s a sight better looking than anything produced by the SyFy channel. In fact, I found myself so engrossed with who was going to live/die, that the effects were secondary, but quite convincing.

Is the movie dated? It depends, I suppose on your point of view. I went into the film to enjoy it, not to point out flaws or issues. I simply set all that aside and kicked back. Certainly, some of the fashions will make you look twice and comparisons to 9/11 are inevitable, but all in all, it’s a pretty good movie, even over forty years later.

Grade: A – Watch it for nostalgia, stay for the action and drama.

Horror Movie Review: 13 Cameras

Title: 13 Cameras
Genre: Horror
Director: Victor Zarcoff
Writers: Victor Zarcoff
Stars: Neville Archambault, Sarah Baldwin, Sean Carrigan
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4392454/

HERE MAY BE SPOILERS

Portions of the movie may or may not be revealed.

Synopsis:
Claire and Ryan, a newlywed couple, move into a new house across the country, only to find out that their marital issues are the least of their problems.

You can't deny the creep factor — You can’t deny the creep factor

This…ah…..film popped up on my Netflix queue and I clicked on it just to see what was up. I like the “secret watching” horror flick, whether it be through a window or hidden cameras.

Well. Well. Well. (big sigh)

The first thing I do when I turn on these movies is to turn off my over-40 brain and get into the shoes of the protagonist. The, I turn off my writer brain and simply follow the narrative. If I watch a film with any of these personas turned on, I end up either being overly critical toward the characters “I would never do that.” or overly critical toward the writing “I would never write that.”

I want to enjoy/be scared by/wonder at a movie. And I can’t do that when I’m twisting my mouth up in disgust. I will say, however, it is the writer’s business to get the viewer to at least sypathize withe the protagonist.

This movie did not do that. You know that gut feeling you get when you visit a house to buy or an apartment to rent or a place to stay (even if viewing it on a computer)? Most of the time sane people pay attention to that instinct. The female (pregnant) protag in this movie does not. And that’s where I had trouble with the movie.

But, since I was still intrigued by the premise, I watched on. (Cue bigger sigh)

The movie wasn’t a disappointment. It delivered all the creeps and chills you would expect from a movie where a weirdo landlord has installed cameras everywhere. The expected climax at the end takes place in near darkness and is rather scary.

What annoyed me about the movie:

Who moves into a house where you don’t have access to every room and closet? I mean Landlord indicates something is a locked “Owner’s Closet”…..nah, man, you might have drugs or a body or something in there.

If the landlord/handyperson gives you the creeps, why rent the house? The characters gave no overwhelming reason as to why they want the house. Give me a REASON folks, as to why you are gonna rent this damn house from this weirdo. Because I would have been like…umm nope.

The husband was a jerk and the pregnant wife was a whiner. The rest of the actors had little to no personality, leaving you to focus on the creepy landlord.

And the ending. Sorry, give me a break. I don’t mind suspending disbelief, but come on now. That ending required me to surgically remove my brain.
I won’t go on and on about the film. I will say the actor playing the landlord was excellent in his role. He gave me the shivers through the TV screen.

It’s on Netflix, so feel free to watch….but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Grade: D – Watch it if you’re bored and need a distraction.