Kingp35's Horror Viewing Log

Kingp35 · 16-08-2013 1:40pm

Dark Skies (2013)

Dark Skies is a film I managed to miss when it was in cinemas despite wanting to see it and although this is very much a by the book horror film despite the inclusion of

Aliens

it manages to be an entertaining watch with a solid ending.

The plot follows the Barrett family whose idyllic suburban life is thrown out of whack by a series of disturbing events which eventually leads them to realise that something is after there son and wants to take him for itself. There are all the usual horror elements such as loud noise scares etc but there is some every effective use of imagery throughout and the plot is done well enough to hold your attention throughout. The ending is also a brave one and doesn't take the usual Hollywood route. If your looking for some solid entertainment despite not doing anything overly new than Dark Skies is a film worth watching.

7/10

Kingp35 · 26-08-2013 2:26pm

A Few Quick reviews as I'm stuck for time:

Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)

I didn't manage to catch this in the cinema so I watched the 2D version at home. This has been pretty much universally panned by critics and viewers alike, the probable reason being the ending which doesn't quite fit into the world of Leatherface. If you disregard this then Texas Chainsaw 3D is not a bad film, it has plenty of gore, some nice kills and is well shot and acted for the most part. perhaps Leatherface running around in daytime scenes isn't quite as menacing and the ending is bound to annoy the fanboys but as apiece of horror entertainment it was perfectly acceptable to me.

6/10

Aftershock (2012)

This is a film both produced and starred in by Eli Roth so as you would expect it looks good and is much more glossy than usual direct to DVD fare. The plot tells the story of a group of friends who get trapped within a Chilean town after an Earthquake unleashes the maniacs from the local prison. The films biggest issue is the amount of filler material at the start, it simply takes too long to get going. The prisoners don't show up until at least 50 minutes in and there are some outrageously ridiculous scenes but once you get past the opening act it's an n ride some nice gore and and plenty of kills. It's not frightening in the least but manages to be passable entertainment.

5.5/10

Evidence (2013)

Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi of "The Fourth Kind" fame, Evidence is half found footage film and half regular horror film that managed to pull in a few recognisable actors/actresses for a film of this type. A bus load of people are found killed the American dessert but the police have found a number of camcorders and mobile phone footage of the day leading up to the incident that they must trawl through in order to find the killer. You do have to give the director some credit for trying to come up with a new way of using found footage to tell his story but at the heart of it it ends up being no different to the countless other films out there. That being said, what it does it does well right up until the downright crazy ending which is sure the annoy the majority of viewers. There are some tame scares ti be found throughout, very little gore though, and it is well acted but your enjoyment of this depends on whether you are a found footage fan and can stomach the ending. Average.

5.5/10

Kingp35 · 28-08-2013 2:14pm

Under The Bed (2012)

Under The Bed is the latest film from Steven C. Miller who seems to be have 3 or 4 films out a year these days. It's clear that he was trying to produce an 80's style kids horror film as the plot is about a monster that lives under the bed of a young boy, a bed to used to be used by his older brother. Nobody believes the two boys that a monster lives under there so it's up the the two to try and defeat it before it can cause some serious harm. The first 50 minutes or so are excellent as it's full of mystery and intrigue with Miller only offering hints as to what is going on. It's when the actual monster shows up that the film goes downhill rapidly with some dodgy effects and questionable story choices. There aren't many scares to be found here but it does get a little gory near the end which makes you wonder who the target audience for this film actually is. An eerie and entertaining opening 50 minutes is unhinged by a poor final act but I have certainly seen worse film, Millers previous film Silent Night being one of them.

5.5/10

Kingp35 · 04-09-2013 11:29am

You're Next (2013)

I have been looking forward to seeing this film ever since viewing the trailer and hearing quite a lot of positive reviews but I have to admit that despite enjoying it I was left somewhat underwhelmed which may have to do with the fact that the film is nothing like the one portrayed in the trailer. The plot follows a family and their partners that congregate at the family home for a break away. They are then attacked by a group of masked men but all is not as it seems.

The trailer make sit look like a straight up slasher film but instead it's a revenge film sprinkled with black comedy and odd straight up comedy moments, a very strange 80's style synth soundtrack and a few twists that are blatantly obvious. I just found the comedy moments a little strange when interspersed with the horror action which admittedly was excellent and full of gore. There were some inventive kills and effective jump scares and the revenge part of the film was great fun it's just the odd soundtrack and comedy moments that I felt were out of place.

7/10

Kingp35 · 11-09-2013 1:50pm

The Seasoning House (2012)

The Seasoning House is an intense and violent horror revenge film that tells the story of a deaf mute girl who is imprisoned within a house with multiple other young girls that are prostituted out to clients. Her task is to clean and bring the other girls food but she strikes up a friendship with one of the newly captured girls by accessing her room through various crawl spaces. When fate brings the men that murdered her family and captured her to the house, she begins enact a violent plan of revenge with a seriously bloody conclusion.

So there is nothing particularly new about The Seasoning House, the revenge tale has been told countless times before. Credit must therefore be given to director Paul Hyett for managing to create a film that seems fresh despite this and one that will entertain you from start to finish, The film wastes no time in getting straight into the action and never really lets up until the end. It is very well shot with bleak sets and a real foreboding atmosphere. Once the revenge segment kicks off it is very violent but never over the top, there is plenty for gore fans to enjoy here. In the end The Seasoning House is a film does what it intends to do very well despite being nothing new. It's violent, intense and entertaining and is well worth your time.

7/10

The ABC's Of Death (2012)

The concept behind this film is an interesting one; 26 different directors are each given a letter of the alphabet and they must come up with a word beginning with that later and create a short film based on that word. As you can imagine this films are very short considering 26 of them must fit inside a 2 hour run time which for me is ultimately why the film fails.

There is no point beating around the bush, there were only 3 segments that I enjoyed with the vast majority of the others being awful. Far too many of them try to be artsy and obscure instead of trying to tell a simple story. I was painfully bored for the vast majority of the film and couldn't wait for it to end. A sequel has already been given the go ahead so there are people that enjoyed this but it definitely wasn't for me.

2.5/10

Kingp35 · 18-09-2013 11:14am

I Spit On Your Grave 2 (2013)

Stephen R. Monroe's 2010 remake of the 1970's original was a surprisingly decent and successful film so I wasn't surprised when a sequel was announced. This sequel follows much the same formula as the original in that it is very much a revenge film. The plot follows a wannabe model who goes to a free photo shoot only to eventually end up being raped, kidnapped and taken to Bulgaria where she is held captive. She eventually escapes and begins to take bloody vengeance on her captors.

The actual plot isn't as strong as the original as there are a number of things that don't make a whole lot of sense, particularly how exactly they managed to transport the woman from New York to Bulgaria. The film also suffers from pace issues as it feels quite slow at times up until the revenge section kicks in. Once it does then it becomes an entertaining and violent revenge film that will please most horror fans. The rape scene is quite graphic as are the torture scenes and many people will find watching this film extremely uncomfortable. An argument could be made that the director was aiming for shock value but I think that it mostly works. There is plenty of gore here and there is one scene in particular involving a vice that really had me squirming in my seat. This sequel is definitely worth a watch despite the familiarity, the pacing issues and what some may consider to be far too graphic scenes. Just be prepared to ignore the odd plot hole.

6/10

Kingp35 · 01-10-2013 8:20am

Static (2012)

Static is a straight to DVD horror film that actually features some reasonably well known actors including Milo Ventimiglia and Sara Paxton. The plot features a husband and wife who are trying to get over the death of their child. A mysterious woman shows up at their secluded home in the middle of the claiming she is been stalked by a group of men. Said group eventually show up and try to get into the house but all is not as it seems.

On the face of it, Static is your run of the mill home invasion film. Two things manage to set it apart from others though; the first one is that for the majority of its running time it is painfully boring with very little in the way of action, gore, suspense etc which is eventually all explained by the second reason, an awful twist that the vast majority of people would have figured out long before its revealed. I really am becoming a little fed up with writers that come up with a twist ending and then try to write a film to suit that ending. Static is one of those films and it just doesn't work on most levels. The acting is fine and it's shot well enough it's just the lack of any real suspense and an obvious twist ending that make this one not worth your time.

3.5/10

Dark Circles (2013)

Dark Circles is the first of the "After Dark Originals 2" films to be released. Unfortunately the original part of that title doesn't quite ring true for Dark Circles. The plot follows a couple who decide to move out to the countryside after the birth of their new child. Once they get there they realise that construction work is happening right next door and coupled with the baby crying non-stop throughout the night they both begin to suffer from sleep deprivation. To make matters worse they both seem to be suffering from visions of the same woman who seems to be taking an unnatural interest towards the child.

First things first, not a lot happens in Dark Circles. Most of the films is spent dealing with the couples sleep deprivation problems with the very odd vision of the woman thrown into the mix. After you see her the first couple of times, any potential frightening aspect is lost due to seeing her far too often. Nothing really happens until the final ten minutes when we find out what's really going on. This isn't to say that Dark Circles is a bad film, it's well acted and well made and does have an interesting idea but it's just not all that compelling and just plods along without really grabbing your attention. Everything about it is average and you're left wanting a whole lot more.

5/10

Kingp35 · 07-10-2013 2:05pm

Come Out And Play (2013)

Come Out and Play is a remake of a 1970's Spanish horror film called "Who Can Kill A Child?" that unfortunately I haven't seen. I can only assume that it is a vastly superior film to this remake.

The plot follows a couple who are travelling world despite the fact that the woman is pregnant. They decide to head of to a remote Mexican island for a festival find the island completely devoid of adults with only children seemingly present. It soon becomes apparent that the children have been killing the adults and they must now try and survive.

To say that nothing happens for the vast majority of this film would be an understatement. It plods along at an infuriatingly slow pace and once the "action" gets going it is few and far between. The entire film is shot in daytime meaning it lacks any kind of atmosphere which isn't helped by the fact that the kids are not even slightly menacing. Clearly the director rounded up the kids that actually live on the island and asked them to be in his film. There is one interesting scene though that is genuinely creepy but by and large it's an uninteresting and slow film that isn't really worth your time.

3/10

Kingp35 · 08-10-2013 2:10pm

The Dyatlov Pass Incident (Devils Pass) (2013)

The found footage genre seem to be a love it or hate style of film making but I have always maintained that when it's done right it can be a very effective way to make a horror film. Not many "known" directors try their hand at the genre so it was with some surprise that I found out that Rene Harlin would be directing a found footage film with that film being The Dyatlov Pass Incident. Despite the films faults, I'm glad that he did.

The plot based upon The Dyatlov Pass mystery where a group of Russians were found dead in the Russian wilderness with no explanation for what happened. A group of Americans decide to film a documentary about the incident and head out to where it happened. Obviously they find much more than they bargained for.

First of all the film is very well shot. Despite it being found footage it still loves great, particularly the Russian wilderness which looks beautiful. It's well acted for the most part and it in no way relies on cheap scares that most found footage horror films rely on. Perhaps it takes a little while to get into the meat of the story and there will be people who think that the plot is a little too out there but there some very tense moments throughout and it never fails to keep you entertained. The ending itself will make you think a little which is always a good thing. I can't give away any more of the plot but it's suffice to say that Harlin has created a horror/thriller film that is well worth your time.

7/10

Kingp35 · 17-10-2013 2:29pm

A quick review as I'm stuck for time these days

V/H/S 2 (2013)

This is the follow up to V/H/S, an anthology film that did surprisingly well. Again it features a main wrap around story with four short stories as well. The main difference between this sequel and the original is that the sequel clocks in 20 minutes shorter which is definitely a good thing as one of the problems with the original was that it stayed too long.

The main story isn't all that interesting but the four shorts vary in quality with Safe Haven being the real stand out segment. It's set within the confines of a cult and it's a gory, violent and intense segment that is sure to entertain. The other three segments are passable without offering anything really original or interesting. It's well shot for the most part, does provide some occasional scares and has plenty of violence so there is plenty to admire here. It's certainly a step up from the original in my view.

6/10

Kingp35's Horror Viewing Log

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