Horror Movie Reviews

You will find on this page all the latest Horror Movie Reviews. My reviews are usually short and avoid spoilers. The idea is to give you a quick feedback on whether I believe a movie is worth watching or not.

Feel free to agree and disagree in the comments or submit your own reviews.

Kiss of the Damned (2012) Review

January 6, 2014 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: The vampire Djuna resists the advances of Paolo, but soon gives in to their passion. When her trouble-making sister unexpectedly comes to visit, Djuna’s love is threatened, and the whole vampire community becomes endangered.

My Quick Review: Probably the sexiest vampire movie in recent history, Kiss of the Damned goes back to the roots of vampire movies. No emo-type vampites who glow in the sun, the vampires in Kiss of the Damned are sexy but also afflicted by their condition. They are also potentially dangerous blood-thirsty creatures, as shown with the character of Mimi.

Xan Cassavetes has truly crafted with Kiss of the Damned, the renewal of the vampire genre. Sure, the movie isn’t without its own problems (the script never really goes anywhere, some of the dialog seems forced), but it is superbly supported by its lead actresses (the 3 french leads are perfect in their roles) a haunting score, and an eroticism brilliantly shot.

I certainly hope we will see more from director Xan Cassavetes soon (and why not a sequel to Kiss of the Damned), since we need more feminine sensibility in our horror genre.

My Rating: 6.5/10

Director: Xan Cassavetes

Origin: US

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Home Sweet Home (2013) Review

January 5, 2014 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: A young married couple comes home from a date night to discover that they are imprisoned in their own house with a methodical killer inside.

My Quick Review: Home Sweet Home is a pointless home invasion movie.

There is unfortunately no redeeming factor in David Morley’s (the french director behind the great zombie flick Mutants) movie. The script is non-existant and has zero originality. We can’t get attached to the main characters since they are as generic as can be. The “bad guy” is very bland, if not for his cool mask, and there is close to no horror/torture to even save us the viewers from total boredom.

What’s even worse is that David Morley fails to provide the necessary tension this type of movie requires, despite a few cool shots.

If you’re looking for a fun home invasion movie with a killer who plays with his victims, check out The Collector instead!

My Rating: 4/10

Director: David Morley

Origin: Canada

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Home Sweet Home – trailer by elbellavistas

YellowBrickRodad (2010) Review

January 2, 2014 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: In 1940, the entire population of Friar, New Hampshire walked up a winding mountain trail, leaving everything behind. 2008: the first official expedition into the wilderness attempts to solve the mystery of the lost citizens of Friar.

My Quick Review: YellowBrickRoad (YBR from now on) is the first feature from writers/directors Jesse Holland and Andy Mitton, whose segment in Chilling Visions: 5 Senses of Fear, was one of the highlight of the movie.

Music, and its influence on people, is a recurring theme in both of those stories. In YBR, the music is a conduit that drives people to madness while they are hiking on a secret trail through the woods.

While not getting into too much details, it’s never really explained how or why the music is being played on the trail but it doesn’t really matter since YBR is more about the journey than the destination (there are plenty of The Wizard of Oz references throughout the movie, another journey-type movie).

The movie itself is about human relationships and the slow slip into madness. It’s the story about what might happen to a group of people who start to lose their bearings, as well as the story of the perpetual search for life’s answers.

While the scope of YBR is ambitious, and the first half of the movie entertaining, the plot is already running on fumes by the two-third mark. At that point everything has been said and there is nothing much left to keep viewers engaged.

Jesse Holland and Andy Mitton might have bitten more than they could chew since YBR could have benefited from a shorter length (75mn or so maybe) and better editing near the end, but for a first full feature, YellowBrickRoad shows great potential and I’m looking forward to what they have in store next.

My Rating: 6/10

Director: Jesse Holland, Andy Mitton

Origin: US

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Wither (2012) Review

December 31, 2013 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Original Title: Vittra

Synopsis: Ida and Albin are a happy couple. They set off to a cabin in the vast Swedish woodlands to have a fun holiday with their friends. But under the floorboards waits an evil from Sweden’s dark past.

My Quick Review: So, this year’s Evil Dead Remake actually came from Sweden?

Wither is a gruesome movie clearly inspired by Evil Dead, with a Swedish folklore story twist. Unfortunately Wither suffers from the same problems that plagues this year’s Evil Dead Remake: plenty of gore does not necessarily make for an entertaining movie experience.

The buildup to the expected massacre is boring, most of the dialog is ludicrous (probably not helped by the subtitles) and all of the character’s decision are extremely stupid (even more so than usual for a cabin in the woods type movie).

Despite the low budget, most of the gore effects are quite impressive and add to the ick factor the same way the new Evil Dead did. But that’s about the only redeeming factor of Wither, a swedish import that fails to recapture what made the original Evil Dead such a horror classic.

My Rating: 5/10

Director: Sonny Laguna

Origin: Sweden

Chilling Visions: 5 Senses of Fear (2013) Review

December 29, 2013 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: Five short films based on the human senses.

My Quick Review: If you find yourself wanting to quit watching Chilling Visions after the first 2 or 3 stories, DON’T. The last 2 stories alone make Chilling Visions worth investing your time into it.

All the stories in Chilling visions are somehow interconnected, not only through their themes (the human senses) but also through the recurrence of a big corporation doing experiments and products based on the 5 senses.

The first segment, Smell, directed by Nick Everhart is about an elixir that gives attractiveness to the person using it, but has devastated side effects. The story is a bit on the goofy side and feels like an average episode of Tales From the Crypt.

The second one, See, by Miko Hughes follows an ophthalmologist turned vigilante who can capture people’s visions. While the pitch is intriguing the output is too conventional and way too predictable.

The third story, Touch, is directed by Emily Hagins who made headlines a few years back when she directed her first full feature zombie movie when she was only 13. Here, a blind boy is in a car accident with his parents, looking for help in the woods where a serial killer awaits. This short might be the weakest of the bunch mainly because of a pointless script.

Chilling Visions finally delivers with the 4th story, Taste, directed by Eric England (Madison County, Contracted). We are introduced to Aaron, a hacker going in for an interview in the same big corporation that we’ve seen glimpses from in the other stories. Once there, things start to go bonkers and the less said about this segment the better. Fans of Saw will enjoy this one 😉

The last story, Listen, from Jesse Holland and Andy Mitton (Yellowbrickroad) takes the found footage angle and shows us disturbing footage about a song that can kill people listening to it. This story is again strongly connected to the one before and culminates in a great gory scene showing what happens when a guy plays the song in front of other people.

Thanks to the last 2 stories (that deserve the title chilling) and the fact there is an unifying theme connecting them, I can say that Chilling Visions is a must see for horror anthology fans. Since it was shot on a very tight budget and under 4 days for each segment, I can only applaud the whole project and hope for a sequel that could share even more light on the mysterious corporation playing with our senses.

My Rating: 6/10

Origin: US

Click Here to Watch Chilling Visions: 5 Senses of Fear Online Now!