Dahlia DeWinters - Author

Quirky Heroines, Happy Endings

Horror Movie Review – Grave Encounters 2

 

Title:  Grave Encounters 2
Genre: Horror, Found Footage
Director: John Poliquin
Writers: The Vicious Brothers
IMDB Link:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2231554/

NO SPOILERS

PLOT SYNOPSIS: (imdb.com) A film student who is obsessed with the movie Grave Encounters sets out with his friends to visit the psychiatric hospital depicted in the original film.

We’re back!

After seeing Grave Encounters, I just had to see if there were a Grave Encounters 2.  And, lo and behold, it was!  I quickly queued it up and sat back, prepared to be as scared as I was with the first one.

Alas, this was not the case.  Now, this is not to say the movie wasn’t pretty good. It just took a bit of a time to get to the point.

Don’t go into this expect a retread of Grave Encounters.  The screenwriter and director  went in a bit of a different direction, which saved the movie from being a boring retread of the first movie.

A film student who is obsessed with the movie Grave Encounters sets out with his friends to visit the psychiatric hospital depicted in the original film.

I will say the characters are a little less likable in this movie than they were in the first one.  They skewed younger and were less the “seasoned professionals” of the first movie and more snot-nosed college students.  Being a woman of a certain age, their antics grated on me a bit, but I was eager to see what the asylum would do with them.

And the haunted asylum didn’t disappoint.  

Things are not what they seem at the old homestead and the place starts acting up right away.  We, the audience, know what they’re in for, having seen the first movie, we’re just waiting to see how the asylum plays with the new crew.

There’s shouting, there’s yelling, there’s running. There’s spooky stuff afoot and a surprise.

Watch it, if just to have the story continue. Grave Encounters 2 is not as good or as chill worthy as Grave Encounters, but it’s still a pretty good ride. 

My advice:  Push through the annoying college age antics at the beginning and stay for the scary parts.  There is some lore added and maybe a door opening for Grave Encounters 3.

Here’s to watching horror movies in the morning!

Dahlia

 

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????

 

 

Enhanced by Zemanta

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.

 

 

 

 

 

Horror Movie Review: The Frozen

Hey all!  I know I’ve been away for a bit.  With three little ones, the end of school week can a be a bit of a blur.  Between the graduations, the teacher’s gifts and the parties, it is a miracle I was able to take a breath.  But I’m back with another review for you.

 

Though I titled this a horror, it could easily be classified as a thriller.  It’s a little strange and confusing at times, but I enjoyed it…though I would not watch it again.

 

Title: The Frozen
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Director: Andrew Hyatt
IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2363439/

The Frozen Movie PosterNo, this is not the Disney movie that took the world by storm. Look, I’m a huge sucker for going into the woods and bad things happening movies. Here is the synopsis according to IMDB:

After a harrowing snowmobile accident, a young couple is stranded in the woods and must survive while waiting for help to arrive. Events take a turn for the worse after the disappearance of Emma’s boyfriend, leaving her on her own not only to battle the elements, but also to elude a mysterious hunter who is tracking her through the forest.

I’m a simple chick. I like movies that scare, surprise and make me think. I’m not that kind of gal who tries to second guess the movie or make predictions on where the movie is going to go. No. Nope, not me. I just sit back and enjoy the narrative as laid out by the director and actors.

It’s such a simple movie and the backdrop of the cold, unforgiving wilderness serves to put a telling chill into the setting. What would you do if you were in an accident and your companion goes off to get help, leaving you alone in a tent? Then, you start to hear things…..

There is a lot of good camera work and convincing acting by the lead actress. The atmosphere was tense, especially when the pursuing bad guy was introduced. And the pervasive snow in the movie made me feel cold!

I see most of the folks on IMDB gave it a 4 out of 10. I say give the movie a chance. Go into it with fresh eyes and no expectations/predictions of what will happen. I’m not trying to say it’s a masterpiece and it’s nothing new and different, but somehow this quiet little movie endeared itself to me.
Grade: B-