Darko's Recently Viewed Diary

Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story - A loving look back at one of the forgotten greats of American genre cinema. Derided during his life time, Castle is one of the all time greats who recognized what his audience wanted and repeatably delivered just that. As the documentary progresses it leaves you constantly wishing that film makers like William Castle still existed.

Been awhile since I posted here but with the month that's in it I decided to do my 31 Days of Fright where I watch a minimum of one horror film a day.

First up was the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street. Far as remakes go it's one of the more interesting. It's a visually striking film that has a very music video look and feel, which considering the director was to be expected. There's a surprisingly bleak feel to the film and one of the few entries in the Freddy series where he truly is a despicable human being. By making it clear that Freddy was a child abuser makes it hard for the audience to enjoy the kills as much as they should. It's a brave move on the filmmakers part as they paint Freddy as a truly despicable villain and have the audience root for the teens in danger, or it would were the teenagers a little bit more developed. One thing that left a bad taste in my mouth was the motivation for Freddy's killings. There's a line of dialogue near the end where one of the teens states, "We were wrong. He's not after us because we lied. He's after us because we told the truth." Even with that in mind the ANOES remake is a decent way to kill 90 minutes and the fact that it was shot and released as an R rated horror and not some cut to pieces PG13 makes for a pleasant surprise. It's still a long way from the remake heights of My Bloody Valentine which is easily the best modern horror remake.

Next up was The Barrens. From writer/director Darren Lynn Bouseman who gave us a number of the Saw sequels, the rather excellent Mother's Day remake and the brilliant Repo A Genetic Opera. The Barrens is one of the more effective low budget horror films in a long time. It's more concerned with building tension and atmosphere than it is with blood and guts. There's a real sense of unease to the film that makes a change from the cookie cutter jump scares of most modern horror. That said it's not without it's problems, it looks rather cheap having at times the feel of a SYFY original, some of the acting is far from convincing and the ending is both a stroke of genius and a mistake considering how it turns an interesting character study into just another creature feature. Still it's ahead of trash like the Chernobyl Diaries.

After the surprisingly enjoyable The Barrens I sat down to watch Famine, the latest genre entry from Ryan Nicholson. Don't think I've been as disappointed by a film in a long, long time. At only 65 minutes Famine is a dull, plodding, poorly made mess of a film that could easily lose 30 minutes and still feel overlong. The plot is thread bare, performances are woeful and the kills are lackluster and boring. There's not a single redeeming aspect of the film, from the amateurish direction, to the sound which appears to have been recorded underwater, Famine is easily one of the worst films of 2012.

To kick off day 3 of 31 Frights I watched the rather decent SYFY original Roadkill. Shot on location in Ireland the film follows a group of young American adults who get together for one last road trip before they begin their adult lives. The plan to travel around Ireland in an RV visiting castles and ruins is cut short when our group accidentally run down and kill an old gypsy woman who curses them shortly before she shuffles of this mortal coil. Soon our attractive looking young adults are on the run from a giant evil bird and the gypsies relatives who have control over the beast aswell as plenty of shotguns. It's pretty standard low budget fare, imagine Thinner by ways of Jeepers Creepers and you get Roadkill. But for what it is Roadkill is an effective 85 minutes that is head and shoulders above most of the drek produced by SYFY. Watching a bored looking Stephen Rea cashing a quick pay cheque is one of the films highlights as are the numerous shots of the comically bad CGI baddie. While nowhere near as good as Grabbers, it is pretty decent post pub fun, just don't go in expecting anything other than a bargain basement creature feature and you won't be disappointed. Looking at the image of the DVD cover on imdb and noticed that it and Absentia use the same image of a woman clawing at the ground.

On my phone so keeping this short. Day 5 of 31 Frights was something a little more light hearted and fun, the Pierce Brithers rather wonderful Deadheads. The low budget nature of the film is obvious and some of the acting is a little too broad but none of that matters. There's plenty of laughs, the two main leads are great, there's some great FX and there's a sweetness to it all that's hard not to warm to. If only ever zombie film had this much wit then the genre wouldn't be so derided.

Day 7 of 31 Frights was a double  bill of Splinter and The Clinic. 

Splinter is for all intents and purposes a calling card, a film made to show the talents of an FX artist cum director and as such the FX work is brilliant.  The creature design and its usage is highly reminiscent of Evil Dead II and Bride of Re-Animator. There's a subtle charm to the low budget nature of it that's hard not to love and the creature is used sparingly in order to create just the right amount of tension.

The cast including the brilliant and underrated Shea Whigham all play it with just the right amount of tongue in cheek. A strong script and tight direction give the film the look and feel of a much larger production making Splinter one of the best creature features to come along in years.

The Clinic, a low budget Australian shocker is more thriller than out and out horror but most would argue otherwise. Ignore the preposterous   and downright ridiculous motivation behind the villains actions and there's a lot to like here. The script is decent and the actors are all fine though none of them has much to do beyond running around and looking scared. 

There's some great moments that heighten the tension and the initial set up is interesting but there's nothing here we haven't seen before. Now that doesn't stop it from being an interesting and enjoyable experience just one thats extremely frustrating considering how well the first hour and a bit plays out. Ignore the final 15 or so minutes and The Clinic is a damn fine low budget suspense film that does a low with very little.

Day 8 of 31 Days of Fright was Adam Giersch's Night of the Demons remake. 

The plot is straight forward enough, a group of friends attend a Halloween party in a gothic New Orleans mansion where 85 years ago a multiple murder occurred. As expected the night takes a turn for the dark when the police shut down the party and our 7 friends find themselves locked in the house and at the mercy of some rather nasty demons. 

It's clear from the off set that Night of the Demons is a rock n roll horror film that sets out to entertain the hell out of the viewer. Giersch infuses the film with a sense of fun and it feels like he has made the kind of film that every 15 year old boy wants to see. Full of big breasted babes, gallons of gore and the rare ability to poke fun at the sheer absurdity of it all NotD is just a blast from start to finish.

Yes the plot is pretty basic and the characters are one dimensional as hell but you know what, who the hell cares considering just how much fun it all is. 
Once the films gets into gear and the demons appear its non stop, over the top absurdity that's hard not to love. There's so much blood, guts, slime and bodily organs onscreen that 80s horror fans are going to be in heaven. Throw in the awesome soundtrack, good cast and  some really interesting shots and you have the sleaziest, trashiest and most down right enjoyable horror film to come along in many a year.

Night of the Demons may not be the smartest or most original horror film around but it sure as hell is one of the most fun filled ways to spend an evening. 

Day 10 of 31 Days of Fright was the rather bloody good The Collector.

Writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunst, best known for their work on the Saw sequels have with The Collector created one of the more inspired and enjoyable horror films of the past decade. The set up couldn't be simpler. Arkin, played by the underrated as hell Josh Stewart is a handyman who uses his day job to case potential targets. With loan sharks leaning on his wife to repay what she borrowed, Arkin breaks into the home of a wealthy family who are supposed to be away on vacation. Things are far from simple and instead of finding an easy score Arkin finds himself trapped in the house where a masked madman has set dozens of lethal traps and torture devices and plans to spend the night tormenting the family. Arkin, finding himself trapped faces a moral dilemma, to help the family or simply save his own skin.

The Collector has something that most modern horrors would kill for, a straightforward narrative that doesn't get bogged down in overtly complicated character development. The film is for the most part a one man job and with the focus almost constantly on Arkin, Dunstan, making his direction debut doesn't waste time trying to flesh out the character of the Collector. Far too many recent slashers have went out of their way to develop over convoluted and complicated back stories for their antagonists. The Collector is a silent, brooding presence that feels like a force of nature and brings to mind such genre greats as Jason and Michael. He exists solely to inflict plain on others and takes pleasure in watching as innocent bystanders fall prey to his traps.


The Collector is a strangely beautiful film. The acid washed look of the film perfectly captures that foreboding atmosphere that the film drips. There's a grittiness to the film which is perfectly augmented but the superb soundtrack from Jerome Dillon. The Collector is at it's most impressive when it marries together striking visuals with the pulsating score to create a nightmarish reality for the Arkin.

The biggest problem with The Collector is that it's one of those films that doesn't know quite where to end. There are at least 4 moments in the final 15 minutes that would mark the perfect ending to the film but as far as complaints go it really is a small one. The Collector is a taught, well made horror that knows exactly what it's audience wants and gives it to them. The superb central performance by Stewart who does a hell of a lot with very little and the superb visuals help make the Collector one hell of an enjoyable ride. Roll on part 2, The Collection.

Day 12 of 31 Frights was The Tall Man. From the director of the superior Martyrs The Tall Man is one of those films that was missold as a horror film. It's a rather mundane thriller that id one of the most peculiar things I've seen in a long time. It's not quite the worst film of the year as there are some interesting ideas but theres also something inherently insulting about it all. The set up hits all the expected genre cliches and for the first 45 minutes appears to be you basic every day horror but then it gets interesting and for all of 20 minutes it looks like the film could actually be something special before the entire thing just falls apart. The final 5 minutes
are amongst the most insulting things I've ever sat through.

It may be an over used metaphor but The Tall Man is like watching a car crash. The whole thing makes absolutely no sense and the overall message/attempt at social commentary is childish and offensive. It really is hard to take any of it the least but serious.

Visually it's one of the dreariest, flattest and down right ugly films in a long time. It's like watching some early 2000s shot on handy cam student film.

Today's horror was Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter, a fine example of trashy action cinema that is never less than watchable. The novel concept and setting help the film stand out a little but the script is weak and really doesn't expand upon the basic idea. Still it's well directed and has a number of fantastic set pieces and is never boring which is all you really want in a film such as this. No one is every going to mistake it for a classic and in 10 years time it will be largely forgotten but for some throwaway nonsense you could do a whole lot worse.

Another day another Fright and after last nights underwhelming SyFy original wannabe I opted for a genuine cheap as chips SyFy original with Mandrake. Which is perhaps the only film ever made where an attractive looking non Japanese are menaced by tentacles. 

Mandrake does quite well by attracting and then wasting the abilities of two talented and successful TV actors, Max Martini from the Unit and The Shield's very own Benito Martinez. Watching them struggle with the poor characterisations and weak dialogue is painful considering how much they've impressed in numerous other projects. 

 Mandrake does a bit right, there's a decent sense of tension and a foreboding atmosphere for all of 15 minutes but everything is so by the book and run of the mill that you've seen it a dozen times before in similar SyFy originals. treasure hunters getting attacked by some mythical entity seems to be their most popular story considering they've made the same film a dozen times at this stage.

The problem with Mandrake is that it does nothing the least but innovative or fun. Films such as Frankenfish and Boa vs Python work because of how much fun they are. They embrace the absurdity and go with it whereas Mandrake plays everything straight. There's not a single genuine laugh to be found and few unintentional ones either. It also features the worst green screen **** in years and by the time the credits roll you'll find it difficult to recall anything from the previous 80 minutes. 

For a killer vine film with wit, intelligence and a sense of fun check out the rather great The Ruins. 

 

Day 18 of 31 Days of Fright was the criminally underrated The Hole.

Not to be confused with the Keira Knightly starring teens in trouble horror from a decade or so ago, The Hole 2010 is a low budget PG13 horror from the cinema legend that is Joe Dante.

The story follows two brothers who settle with their mom in small town USA. Exploring their new home they stumble across a locked door on the floor of their basement. With the assistance of their attractive neighbour the brothers open the door and discover a hole that seems to have no bottom. In the days following all three are forced to face their fears as all manner of evil behind stalking them.

The Hole is very much a throw back to 80s horror cinema and brings to mind such genre classics as The Monster Squad and Gremlins. The young cast all impress and make the most of one of the stronger genre scripts in years. Few horror films have tackled the theme of child abuse in such a mature and intelligent manner and it's a credit to both the script and Dante's assured direction that it never feels exploitive or heavy handed. 

The Hole is a film that has sadly never gotten a chance. Bypassing theatres it was dumped unceremoniously onto DVD and Blu-Ray which is a shame. It's an intelligent, well made and genuinely unsettling horror that makes great use of a talented cast, a string script and some great old school fx work. 

Day 20 of 31 Frights was Cockneys vs Zombies a film that is far more enjoyable than it has any right to be.

The set up is simple, two brothers team up with a rag tag bunch of criminal **** ups in order to rob a bank and save their grandfathers nursing home. As per the title their simple plan goes awry when legions of the undead rise up and begin to feast upon the living.  It's nothing we haven't seen before and is similar in style and time to Shaun of the Dead and Braindead and as such the laughs cone quick and fast. There's  numerous sight gags and some fantastic one liners that make the film one of the best comedies of the year. The undead football hooligans versus a rival firm to the theme of Match of the Day is comedy gold. The gore is equally well handled and rather inventive. The metal plate in the head is equal parts comedy genius and gore soaked insanity. 

Cockneys vs Zombies will never be mistaken for a genre classic but its a hell of a lot of fun and is destined to be a cult classic. 

Day 22of 31 Frights was another SyFy original, the rather nicely titles Arachnoquake.

It's another in the long line of cheap as chips creature features from the channel and while it'll never be mistaken for a classic it's a relatively entertaining 85 minutes. 

The plot is the same as a dozen others. A natural disaster allows ungodly creatures to escape and spend their time tormenting the local populace. Amongst the carnage we follow a rag tag team of heroes who go out of their way to get into ridiculous scrapes and battle wave after wave of giant spiders.

The FX work is not exactly impressive but it does have a certain rustic charm. At least the film makers are striving for a little ingenuity and use their money where it matters. 

At the end of the day a lot can be said when it comes to criticising Arachnoquake but it embraces the ludicrous premise and has a little fun with it. It's not a film likely to blow you away but it'll keep you entertained for 85 minutes and is certainly a step up from most SyFy creature features. 

Dat 24 of 31 Days of Frights was another SyFy original creature feature, the rather enjoyable Ferocious Planet. It may be of particular interest to Irish viewers considering it's from an Irish director, features a largely Irish cast and was shot in some woodlands around Dublin. But to be honest the main reason for watching the film is the presence of Joe Flanigan and lots of pissed off evil aliens.

The plot is the same as pretty much every other SyFy original. A rag tag group of soldiers and scientists are caught up in an inter-dimensional vortex and transported to an alternate dimension where a number of pissed off man eating creatures spend their time hunting down and killing our heroes. It's pretty basic stuff but there are some memorable moments along the way and it even has a few interesting ideas though at the end of the day it feels like a lesser Stargate script that was deemed too poor to film and spent the past half decade gathering dust.

As with all SyFy originals the FX is ropey, the acting ranges from passable to terrible, it all looks incredibly cheap and you can't help but feel like you've jsut wasted teh past 80 minutes of your life but there's a few nice deaths along the way and Joe Flanigan is always watchable. Ferocious Planet is not a genre classic and I doubt I'll remember it a week from today but there are a lot worse ways to spend a hour or so after a few pints.

Day 26 of 31 Days of Fright was a double bill of Fido and Midnight Movie.

Fido is a rather fun homage/piss take of Douglas Sirk melodrama with the added bonus of fleash eating zombies. It's a witty and enjoyable film that follows a young boy and the bond that grows between him and his pet/servent zombie. There's little in the way of gore but there's a charm that's hard to overlook and Billy Connolly does a hell of a lot with very little. The film does at times feel like a short stretched out to feature length but there's a real sense of fun to it all.

Midnight Movie is a low budget slasher with an inventive and fun central premise and a real sense of fun. The deaths are fun, the killer memorable and the premise is far more rounded and intelligent than the generic killer on a rampage. It's not a classic but it's far more memorable than most and leaves you hoping for a sequel.

Day 28 of 31 Days of Fright was a double bill of war time horrors.

First up was the rather moody and well made The Devil's Rock. Set the day before the D day landings the film follows two Kiwi soldiers sent on a special mission to destroy a gun placement. After setting charges on the gun the soldiers hear screams from within the fortress and venture within to explore and discover a fiendish Nazi plot involving the summoning of a demon.

The Devil's Rock is the first feature from one of Weta's leading FX experts and it shows. Visually the film impresses and the creature make up is excellent but the script really could do with some work. The initial set up is very well handled but the mid point reveal and subsequent scenes lack any real sense of urgency. 

Still far as genre cinema goes its one of the more interesting to come along in awhile. Acting is decent though the German SS officer with no hint of a German accent is hard to take seriously and the demon as good as it looks is not in the least but frightening. 

The Devil's Rock is an enjoyable and well made low budget horror but you can't not watch it and think what could have been. A little work on the script and a bigger budget and it could easily be something truly special.

Next up was Deathwatch, a WWI horror which follows a group of English and Irish soldiers who stumble across a deserted German trench and quickly realise that there's evil at work.

Much like The Devil's Rock there's a lot to admire here but sadly it's an underwhelming experience. The cast are fine but the characters are straight out of genre cliche 101. There's the overtly religious one, the commander with no field experience, the new recruit who lied about his age and so on. With a little more wit and inventiveness and this could have worked in the films favor but Bassett does little to examine the horrors of war. That the films most unsettling and effecting moment is the sight of a sick soldiers rat eaten legs says it all. War is hell and the addition of the supernatural really only distracts from examining how man can do easily lose his humanity. 

Far as the horror is concerned, well Deathwatch does a lot right. There are a few incentive kills and a great sense of mouthing claustrophobic terror as the days drag on but the ending is lack struck and the script just not strong enough to impress.

It's hard to hate on Deathwatch as it really tries hard to be something a lite different but sadly beyond its setting there's not a lot of originality to be found and it really could do with losing 10 minutes from the middle section. It's a valiant effort and is never boring but again, there's do much promise there that you can't help but feel let down by how generic it all feels.