Supernatural

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones (2014) Review

February 5, 2014 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: Jesse begins experiencing a number of disturbing and unexplainable things after the death of his neighbor. As he investigates, it isn’t long before Jessie finds he’s been marked for possession by a malevolent demonic entity, and it’s only a matter of time before he is completely under its control.

Quick Review: Many people dubbed the marked ones: The latino paranormal activity. Sure, we are going away from the usual white upper class neighborhood to some more middle class grounds but there is not much in terms of latino culture, if not for some tired cliches (the funny grandma who only speaks spanish, the gang-bangers…).

So what are we left with here? Paranormal Activity The Marked Ones plays out a bit differently than its predecessors, for the best (we are getting out of the confine of one main location) and the worst ( I did miss the security cameras from previous episodes.

The story is all about possession again and, similar to recent previous entries, ends up within the witchcraft community.

What really bothers me this time around was the actual reason behind the whole camera shoots: there is simply none. I know the found footage concept is getting tired but somehow it was made more obvious in this movie than any other Paranormal Activity before.

There is a reason to set up security cameras around one’s house to check for “paranormal activities”, there is none to follow your pals around with a camera and always keep it in your hands while being chased by crazy and/or possessed people.

My verdict: The Marked Ones is slightly better than Paranormal Activity 4 but still not up to the scare factor of the first three entries.

My Rating: 5.5/10

Director: Christopher Landon

Origin: US

The Human Race (2013) Review

January 29, 2014 by Eric S. Leave a Comment

Synopsis: Veronica suddenly finds herself in a surreal and horrifying marathon race. The rules are simple: If you are lapped, you die. If you step off the path, you die. Many will start but only one may cross the finish line alive

My Quick Review: The Human Race is clearly inspired by Stephen King’s novel, “The Long Walk” but has its own “spiritual” twist, or so would the producers have you thought.

Clearly a very low budget indie movie (apparently shot within the span of 4 years) The Human Race is showing us humans at their worst: when faced with death, there is indeed not much humanity left in most of us.

There is nothing new here when looking at the themes on display and the script is thin as cigarette paper. It also does not help that most of the acting is off and/or down right annoying (looking at you, deaf couple) and that the gore is mostly limited to one special effect used over and over again.

There are some nasty things on display here (especially one scene involving a pregnant woman) and I actually liked both twists (the one in the first 10mn and the one in the end) but is it enough to actually recommend this movie?

Hard to say but it was entertaining enough and a nice escape from the usual slasher/found footage/zombie movies we usually get these days.

My Rating: 5.5/10

Director: Paul Hough

Origin: US

The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh

January 11, 2014 by Eric S. 1 Comment

Synopsis: An antiques collector inherits a house from his estranged mother only to discover that she had been living in a shrine devoted to a mysterious cult. Soon, he comes to suspect that his mother’s oppressive spirit still lingers within her home and is using items in the house to contact him with an urgent message

My Quick Review: It’s tough to be too negative with a movie that shows a lot of heart and is trying something new with the genre.

With that being said it’s also hard to recommend a movie that should have been a short segment in an anthology and that is stretched way past the point of boredom.

The Last Will is all atmosphere and rests on the shoulder of his main character, perfectly played by Aaron Poole and voiced by Vanessa Redgrave. This is a movie about loneliness and fanatic religion and as such it works and makes you think. That is, if you can stay awake and get involved with the story.

Because if you’re looking for genuine scares, you might have already turned off your screen before anything really exciting happens.

Rodrigo Gudino (founder of Rue Morgue) shows talent behind the camera but The Last Will should have been another short of his since it does not have enough meat to sustain a full length feature.

My Rating: 5/10

Director: Rodrigo Gudiño

Origin: Canada

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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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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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