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Horror Movie Review -The Collingswood Story

Title

The Collingsworth Story (2002)

Synopsis

A young girl staying in touch with her boyfriend via a webcam discovers an unimaginable horror linked to the house she just moved into.

Genre

Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Opinion

I’d started watching this movie some time ago. Something happened where I couldn’t finish it, and I never got back to it because I couldn’t remember the name of the movie! Luckily, or unluckliy for my time and temper, I rediscovered the movie while researching found footage movies. As you know, I’m a sucker for found footage, no matter how terrible, so I suppose in watching this movie, I got what I deserved.

The movie begins with some newspaper clippings and vague old-time pictures you know are going to come into play later. Yeah, yeah, let’s get to the movie. Stop with all the history you’re just going to repeat over and over throughout the movie.

The premise is a woman moves to New Jersey for college, leaving her boyfriend behind in Virginia. Because they are so very attached to one another, they use a webcam and video chat to keep in touch.

First of all, the Windows 95 interface and the silly looking software for the videochat kind of hooked me right away. Being a tech oriented person, I was really wondering how they were able to connect via video chat using a telephone landline. It looked like Prodigy or CompuServe interface. But my tech meanderings aren’t really important right now. Let’s get on to the movie.

Dude, really? He wore a backwards baseball cap so well, I should count it as the actor in the movie. Every single time he was on screen, dude was sporting that backwards hat. To be fair, the movie was made in 2002, so the style was HAWT back then. Other than that, he looked like a real desperate grease monkey trying to hold on to his lady friend.

On the other hand, the female lead was quite striking and charismatic. Now, I usually don’t go on and on about the leads, but when there is nothing but chit-chat going on, you have nothing to do but focus on the two actors involved. I enjoyed watching her performance.

The mystery itself was pretty intriguing, and we get some glimpses of early 2000 webcam folk, but I must say, the entire movie fell flat at the end. With all the web research, the spooky buildup and a scary psychic, the ending was a little bit of….what just happened. Hey, maybe it’s me and I didn’t get the deeper meaning of the movie or I missed something when I looked away from the screen. Bottom line is, The Collingswood Story held my attention, then dropped it like a lead balloon.

Not Recommended, unless you are interested in early 2000 computer technology.

Rating:

D

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Horror Movie Review -The Invitation

Title: The Invitation
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Drama
Director: Karyn Kusama
Writers: Phil Hay, Matt Manfredi
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2400463/

NO SPOILERS

After seeing this movie on Netflix, I will never say…

I no longer want invitations to anyone’s dinner party. Keep your invites, really.

Synopsis

Will and Eden were once a loving couple. After a tragedy took their son, Eden disappeared. Two years later, out of the blue, she returns with a new husband… and as a different person, eerily changed and eager to reunite with her ex and those she left behind. Over the course of a dinner party in the house that was once his, the haunted Will is gripped by mounting evidence that Eden and her new friends have a mysterious and terrifying agenda. But can we trust Will’s hold on reality? Or will he be the unwitting catalyst of the doom he senses?

Drafthouse Films

Opinion

I admit, the beginning of this movie bored me. The man seemed out of it and his mood was flat. I thought he was on some kind of medication. It also made me wonder why the woman was with him. Then, it turns out that they’re going to a party at the home of his ex-wife….with the new girlfriend. That earned an eye roll, because, I wasn’t sure this was going to be a good idea.

Plus, the party was in the hills of California somewhere. Ugh. I don’t like going out into old crazy country without a way to get out of there. In some of those places, you can’t even call a cab or Uber!!

Anyhoo, what a bunch of weirdos at the party. Folks not wearing any shoes. Folks with vacant smiles and blank eyes. As soon as all the characters get together, there’s a general feeling of unease. The folks seem loving and accommodating, but there is something just off about the entire gathering. The man finds strange things around his ex-wife’s house. In addition, we are subjected to hazy flashbacks about their shared past.

As the film rolls on we eventually realize that there is something going on, and it bubbles over the surface in a shocking scene. Obviously, I won’t give it away, but I will say I was glued to the screen until the end.

The film starts quite slow and threatens to lose the viewers’ interest. But I advise you to stick with it and go along for the ride. The ending will make you sit back in your seat, mouth open and head shaking. Additionally, this movie will keep you from going from any strange dinner parties in isolated areas, I promise you that.

Grade A-: Jeez, this was creepy and unsettling as hell.

The Invitation: Trailer

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Here’s to watching horror movies in the morning!

Dahlia