The Evil Dead - No more messing 'round, We mean business this time.

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Plot
An injured and staggering girl is captured in the woods. She awakens tied to a post in a basement, with many people present. The girl's father is about to light her on fire, and she initially pleads for him to save her, but then quickly reveals she is possessed. She is set ablaze before Harold shoots her in the head with the iconic double barreled sawed-off shotgun.

Some time later, a group of friends meet up at an old cabin deep in the woods. The group consists of Eric, Olivia, Mia, Mia's brother David, and David's girlfriend Natalie. The group has arranged this getaway as a rehab for Mia. Her drug addition previously caused her to overdose, nearly killing her. Olivia suggests that Mia will attempt to bail out, and they should keep her from leaving, to which they all agree.

Upon entering the cabin, Mia complains about a stench of death, to which the rest of the group appear oblivious. After David's dog begins sniffing at a rug in the main room, they discover the door to a cellar. There, they find various animal corpses suspended from the ceiling and wrapped in barbed wire, a double-barreled shotgun, a book covered in a black trash bag and wrapped in barbed wire. It is the Naturom Demonto, and Ignoring repeated warnings scrawled on its pages, Eric ends up reading a passage from the book aloud.

A demon that starts haunting Mia. Terrified, she pleads the group to leave, but they refuse. Mia tries to drive away, but the demon, now taking the form of a darker version of Mia herself, chases her into the woods and possesses her using a long wooden tendril.

The group finds Mia and take her back to the cabin where she attempts to warn David, but the group dismisses her pleas as an excuse to leave. David then finds his dog bludgeoned to death with a hammer and he attempts to confront Mia about it. He finds her locked in the bathroom and with self induced burns on her face from the boiling hot shower. David attempts to drive her to a hospital, but a flood has blocked the roads. 

Back at the cabin, they try to sedate Mia, but she shows up in the living room with the shotgun and shoots her brother in the arm. Mia tells the group in a demonic voice that they will not survive the night before she collapses to the floor. Olivia tries to seize the shotgun, but Mia attacks her, vomiting blood on Olivia's face. During the struggle, Mia falls into the cellar and is locked in. Olivia goes to the bathroom to retrieve more sedatives for Mia, but strangely does not return right away. Eric goes in to check on her, only to find that she has become possessed and has cut off a large portion of flesh from the side of her face. Olivia attacks Eric, stabbing him with a broken piece of a mirror and a syringe, but Eric manages to beat her head open with a broken piece of the sink.

Immediately after, as David attempts to patch up Eric's wounds, Natalie hears Mia crying in the cellar, and goes to check on her. When Mia's treachery is revealed, she traps Natalie in the basement, bites her hand, and then vomits blood into her mouth. Natalie is rescued by David, but a black infection starts spreading quickly up her arm from the wound in her hand. However, Natalie is able to regain focus long enough to cut her own arm off with an electric knife in an attempt to stop the possession. 

Eric's attempts to destroy the book are shown to be futile; he reveals that the book describes a prophecy by which a demon known as the Taker of Souls needs to devour five souls in order to release the Abomination from hell. To achieve this, the Taker has taken Mia's body, and the only ways to release her are to burn her, bury her alive, or dismember her. A possessed Natalie attacks David and Eric with a nail gun and crowbar before her remaining arm is shot off by David and she bleeds to death.

David resolves to burn the cabin and Mia with it, but after being overcome with emotion as Mia sings a lullaby from their childhood, he devises another plan. He enters the cellar with tranquilizers but Mia attacks and kills Eric. David immobilizes Mia and buries her while she taunts him. After Mia dies, he digs her up and using an improvised defibrillator he revives her, now free from the possession. David goes back into the house for the car keys but he is then attacked by a possessed Eric. The mortally wounded David gives Mia the keys, tells her to leave, and locks her out of the house. David shoots a container filled with gasoline igniting the house on fire, killing himself and Eric in the process.

Shortly after, the final stage of the prophecy from the book takes place: it begins to rain blood, and the Abomination crawls out of the ground and goes after Mia. During the chase, Mia cuts off the Abomination's feet with a chainsaw, but then is forced to rip off her hand when it becomes pinned under David's jeep. Mia then manages to kill the Abomination with the chainsaw, and its remains sink back into the ground. The blood rain stops as dawn breaks, and Mia wanders away from the aftermath, oblivious to the Naturom Demonto on the ground as the book closes on its own.

During the end credits, audio is heard, from the original film, of Professor Raymond Knowby telling about his discovery of the Naturom Demonto. Then, in a brief post-credits scene, an older Ash Williams recites his iconic line from the original films, "Groovy", and turns to the audience.

The Good, the Bad, and the Gorey

The Good
The Progression
I didn't want to officially label "The Plot" as a good quality, since I take some issue with it. The plot is a new twist on the classic story, but it still feels a little formulaic. Weird Noise--> Investigation--->Gore--->Repeat. But honestly I should criticize, because the creativity and humor of these bloody encounters was more than enough to suck me in. Each new little scene of broken glass, spitting blood, or nail guns, freaky (and sometimes funny) with just a light breather between each episode. Once the action starts, It doesn't slow down.

The Bad

The Acting

With the added plot line, our actors get more screen time to strut their stuff. And really it's not that bad. They are decent, and horror decent is like Hollywood Oscar-worthy. I didn't come here to watch acting. I don't remember any of the actor's names or faces, but I do remember every way they died on screen  

The Scares

I almost don't want to criticize The Evil Dead on this point, mainly because compared to a lot of modern horror, this film is very traditional. So many horror flicks today rely on the Cheap Scare. They build up the music and slow down the action, just building tension before they jump out at you. I've always been a bigger fan of situational horror or disturbing horror. The Exorcist crab-walk down the stairs didn't make me pee my pants because it jumped out at me, it was because that was some messed up sh**. The Evil Dead does deliver some good traditional horror, but I did find myself kicking the seat in front of me and cursing a lot. 

Nitpick and Loose Ends

Even with the new fancy plot line, this new film left a couple holes. Unlike the original, it doesn't explain the origin of the Book. Also, we get some story set up in the intro, but never hear anything else about it. What happened to the father? Who were those weird and deformed people?

Also, when I think of The Evil Dead (1981) I immediately think of that twisted lullaby sung to Ash by a demon peeking up from the basement. I know we couldn't get everything we wanted, but come on, that was my favorite.

The Gorey

If any movie gave birth to modern Splatter flicks, The Evil Dead (1981) would be it. Sure exhibition films had been around for a while, but gore reaching comical levels was still taking roots in movies like Braindead. That being said I was counting on some great gore in this movie, and it was delivered. We got dismemberment, self mutilation, blood vomit, burns, stabs, and blasts. Most of the work is done with CGI, but I was okay with it. I'm normally a purest for cornstarch blood, but all the CGI gore was realistic and tasteful. They don't go crazy with it, only using CGI for the tough shots. 

This is not a movie for kids. This is not a movie for teenagers. This is not a movie for adults. This is a movie people that delight in the morbid and ghastly. This unyielding level of gore is usually only seen in Torture Porn flicks.

Nitpick Note: I hate when a film uses raining blood or head-to-toe soaks a character in blood. If the canvas is already red, blood and gore becomes less dramatic.

Cool Featurette!

My Take on It All
There are plenty of reasons to like this movie. It is action packed and doesn't have a overloaded plot. Frede Alvares saved us from some a Six Sense or Wicker Man with their hour plus back story and instead gave use terror and action. The creativity of the gore and the simplicity of the special effects are sure to be a benchmark of modern horror cinema.

But honestly, this movie is wonderful because of what its not. Remakes are often crippled with the decision to please the die hard fans of the original, or to deviate from the cannon and attract new viewers. If a director chooses the former, they're called unoriginal (think the remake of Psycho) if they choose the later, they're called a sellout (think Planet of the Apes remake). This is the tightrope that Frede Alvares had to walk, and walk it he did.

To the horror novice, this was a flick full of guts and gore, scares and thrills. Just like a good horror movie should be. It makes sense even if you haven't  seen the original. But to the horror/Evil Dead devotee, this is a beautiful offering to the golden shrine of Sam Raimi, but all very subtly. It gives us a rickety cabin  the case camera view, the quick cut scenes effect, the necklace, the sawed-off shotgun, the chained-down cellar door, the rape in the woods, the Naturon Demonto, two severed hands, a chainsaw, and freakin' Bruce Campbell saying, "groovy". Its enough to make an Evil Dead fan jump for joy.

See it if you love Evil Dead, and see it if you aren't one yet. 

SPOILER FREE REVIEW
Sam Riami should be proud of the remake of his classic Evil Dead by director Frede Alvares. A quite vacation to the woods leaves a group of college kids trapped with an evil book and demonic possessions. This splatter-flick turn the gore up to extreme while still maintaining a decent story line. The acting can be *meh at times, but you'll forget all about it once the blood is flying. For Evil Dead novices and fanatics alike.

Final Grade: A- 

Trailer!

Fido - Zombie is Man's Best Friend

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Plot
The film takes place in a 1950s-esque, alternate universe where radiation from space has turned the dead into zombies. This resulted in the "Zombie Wars", where humanity battled zombies but ended with humanity's victory. In true Romero fashion the radiation still leads to zombification regardless of death. In order to continue living normal lives, communities are fenced with the help of a governing corporation named Zomcon. Zomcon provides collars with accompanying remote controls to control the zombies' hunger for flesh. Zombies are domesticated as slaves/servants. 

In the town of Willard, housewife Helen Robinson (Carrie-Anne Moss) buys a zombie in spite of her husband Bill's (Dylan Baker) zombie phobia. Bill has had bad experiences with zombies in the Zombie Wars. Their son, Timmy (K'Sun Ray), befriends the zombie as a loyal pet, naming him "Fido". One day, Fido's collar malfunctions and he kills their next door neighbor, who in turn becomes a zombie. Timmy "kills" the zombified neighbor later, but not before she kills and infects another person, causing a small outbreak. Zomcom security forces quell the situation and then investigate what caused the outbreak.

When a pair of local bullies are blamed for the missing neighbor, they capture Fido and Timmy. Fido escapes and runs to find Helen, who comes and rescues Timmy from the now zombie bullies. During all the excitement Fido acted without his collar on, overcoming his hunger for human flesh.

Several days later, the neighbor's body is found and the murder is traced back to Fido, who is taken away to Zomcon for destruction. But Timmy learns that Fido is simply working in a factory at Zomcon. Timmy sets out to rescue him with the help of Mr. Theopolis (Tim Blake Nelson). After causing a small zombie outbreak at the factory, Timmy locates Fido, but is captured by Mr. Bottoms. Mean Mr. Bottoms attempts to throw Timmy into the zombie-infested "wild zone", but Papa Bill comes to the rescue. Bill is killed by Mr. Bottoms and Mr. Bottoms get's killed by Fido. The film ends with Fido as a surrogate father and husband to, Timmy and Hellen. They, along with a few neighbors happily enjoy their new domestic lives together, including the zombified Jonathan Bottoms who is now more attentive to his daughter.

The Good, the Bad, and the Gory

The Good
Satire
I bet a few people out there would call this movie a comedy, but a movie with zombies is automatically classified as Horror, which I'm fine with. I love zombies and wouldn't want to push them any farther away from my Horror-filled heart. While low on the horror side, Fido is rich in comedy.

The film's setting is great. I grew up watching TV Land reruns of Leave it to Beaver, The Andy Griffith Show, and I Dream of Jeannie. I understood the concept of the idealistic, innocent portrayal of the 1950's. It was the image of a wholesome time, when life was simple, without scandal or tragedy  Back when men were men, and women were content. This false-reality America is a great place for writers and directors to contrast the harsh reality of life, as seen in movies like Pleasantville and The Stepford Wives. So why not throw in zombies?

This whole movie is hilarious.  Kid's practicing shooting at school, zombies doing yard work, paying extra for a 'head coffins'  at your funeral. It's great to see the morbid, cruel realities of a zombie apocalypse so dismissed as trivial in cheery neighbourhood.  Kids sneaking into the zombie-shoot simply get a stern talkings-to when they shoot a cop. I think it's all so funny because we tend to accuse the past of trivializing the ugly truth to meet their simplistic vision of life. And I don't care who you are, it is always funny to see people living up to their own stereotype.

And, on simpler note, I love that they treat the zombies like dogs. Putting them on leashes, tying them up at night, only able to respond with grunts (zombie bark). The obvious analogy of Timmy and Fido to Lassie is funny enough. I'm sure you could pick out any number of Lassie episodes in the movie. I just love watching Fido put on his big puppy dog eyes when he's sad.

The Setting
I found that throughout this whole movie my eyes didn't stop darting around the screen, trying to take in every little bit of detail. Everything looked so authentic and life like. Now that might be due to the fact that all the other 50's-set shows I've seen were sitcoms made in the 70's, and I was now just now seeing a 50's portrayal filmed in HD. But whatever, it looked cool to me. I think the dynamic use of color was also used to accent the falsehood and superficiality of the period.

The Casting/Acting
This movie had a dynamite cast (note their movies). All of them were experienced and all of them understood acting in a satire. Henry Czerny (Mission Impossible, Clear and Present Danger) pulls off the stern, militaristic, misogynist excellently. Tim Blake Nelson (Lincoln, O'Brother Where Art Thou) steps in as the creepy neighbor,  Mr. Theopolis, but manages to bring humor and even sympathy into his bizarre role. Dylan Barker (Spider man 2 & 3, The Cell) has had an amazing career as a supporting actor, and shows off his acting chops in Fido. He plays the dumb and distant father. The Father to son talks are so awkward, and Barker manages to look physically uncomfortable throughout the whole move. It's perfect. 

Kesun Loder hasn't done much since his break out roll as Timmy, but he was perfect for the part. He was a small, skinny, smart looking boy. He was able to pull of victimization in a sympathetic way. But the star of the show has to be Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix, Chocolate, Disturbia). She plays the mother. And I'll just say this with no same, even as she has gotten older, she has entered a whole new stage of sunning beauty. She's hot enough to make corpses turn heads, and literally does in the movie. Moss plays a dynamic character going from a shallow, plastic, always-smile mom to an understanding, independent, fight-for-what's-right mom. A fantastic performance. And of course Billy Connolly (Boondocks Saints, The Last Samurai) does a wonderful, albeit quiet, job as Fido. Go listen to him off set, he's got a huge Scottish accent.

The Bad
Ok, honestly, I couldn't think of many bad elements in this movie. Now that doesn't mean this is a perfect movie. Just because it doesn't have as many bad's stacked against it, doesn't mean it outshines other movies with some bads.

Plot
Some people will take issue with the plot of this movie. The plot starts out strong and has a good direction, but kinda fizzle out towards the end. It doesn't have the solid A->B->C plot line formula that lots of people expect. But that being said, I've seen a lot of movies with much better plot lines that were much worse than Fido.

The Gory
If you were hoping this movie would bring all the brain splattering, skull cracking, gore of Shaun of the Dead, then you will be disappointed. In fact this is probably the least graphic zombie movie you could find from the last 30 years. With no nudity, no drugs, and only minimal blood and a couple rubber severed limbs, I'm kinda hard pressed to find any reason for the R rating. This could easily be PG-13.

Canadian Director Andrew Currie

My Take on it All
I am a lover of all things zombie. Hand's down, my favorite Horror Subgenre. I grew up watching all the zombie apocalypse movies, and loved them, but then as an adult, my tastes changed. While I still enjoyed the classic 'zombie outbreak' movies, I really enjoyed the 'after the apocalypse' concepts like Zombieland, I am Legend, The Walking Dead, and of course the soon to be movie WWZ. I don't just want to see how people survive zombies, but how they live in a world of zombies. Probably because I'd always wonder what the horror hero's did after the credits rolled.

I explained all that simply to say I loved Fido because it showed a post zombie-apocalypse world that returns to innocents and good cheer.  Most films show a hardened, rugged group of survivors and this film shows a fatter, happier group of survivors. I love the contrast.

I love the era too. Even if you took the zombies out of this movie it would still be a funny, sarcastic look at the 50's. Timmy tells his mother about bullies pointing a gun at him, but she is quick to point out the more pressing issue of his dirty shirt. Father Bill has to ask for 'propriety' after receiving his wife's kiss in front of their son. Bill gives his son some sagely advice, "to get over that", 'that' meaning his feelings. Fido gives you what's great about the 50's while making fun of what we hated.

And if you really don't like the 50's, then there is a little string of social defiance just for you. The character of Helen shows a growth of persona in coming to understand her son, their zombie, dancing to the radio, ordering men around, and other such improper things. She is clearly set up as an independent, firm-minded, defiant women.

But the thing that makes this movie is the casualness of it all. I love to imagine a world where the zombie-apocalypse is no big deal. Zomcom officers watch a murderous zombie attack from the comfort of their cop car. While Helen says this isn't normal, she calmly burns the bodies of Timmy's class mates. Little girl Cindy actually prefers her dad as a zombie on a leash. The contrast is funny, and bizarre, and awesome.

The flick is lacking in the scare and gore department, but hey, your nerves could use a rest every now and then.


SPOILER FREE REVIEW
Fido is a comedy/horror about a 1950's world after a zombie-apocalypse where mankind won, and zombies became pets. This film is a satire of the classic, 50's Leave it to Beaver/Lassie story-type. It pokes fun of the era while poking fun of zombies. The humor is dry, and ironic, so slapstick fan's beware. While there are zombie attacks, the gore is low, and I'd be hard pressed to even call it bloody. The movie could really pass for a PG-13. If you have a friend who is terrified of horror movies, this might be a good one to ween them in on. A must see for all zombie and humor fans alike.

Final Grade: A-

Trailer

Leave your thoughts bellow!

Carrie - More evidence that Proms are deathtraps

Click here to jump to the boring, but SPOILER-FREE REVIEW


Plot
Carrie White, the shy and aloof high schooler, has her first period while showering after gym class (As a guy, I feel compelled to say, gross). Because of her sheltered life, she thinks she's dying. High school hotties Chris and Sue lead the locker room girls in mocking Carrie. Miss Collins, the gym teacher intervenes, but in all the commotion a light bulb bursts. Miss Collins brings Carrie to Principal Morton's office where Carrie's frustration results in an ashtray flipping onto the floor. Also a kid mocking Carrie gets knocked off his bike.

Carrie's religiously fanatical mother, Margaret, receives a call from Miss Collins about the locker room and tells Carrie that the "curse of blood" is punishment for sin. She locks Carrie in a closet and forces her to pray. That night Carrie stares at her bedroom mirror until it shatters.

The next day we meet Carrie's heartthrob Tommy Ross. Sue, feeling guilty for teasing Carrie, convinces Tommy to take Carrie to the prom. Miss Collins punishes the girls in the gym who tormented Carrie. They get detention and possible revoking of their prom privileges. Chris manages to lose her prom privileges.

Carrie suspects she may have telekinesis, and researches it in the library. Tommy asks Carrie to the prom, but she fears another trick. Tommy asks her again at her house and she agrees. Carrie tells her mother she is going to the prom, and Margaret forbids it. However, Carrie causes the windows of the house to slam shut, revealing her telekinesis. Margaret believes this is Satan's power, but Carrie insists she will go to the prom.

Chris tells her delinquent boyfriend, Billy, that she wants revenge on Carrie. She goes with Billy and others to a farm, where Billy kills a pig. After draining the pig's blood into a bucket, Chris has Billy place the bucket above the school's stage.

Chris makes a deal with her friend to rig the prom king and queen election so that Tommy and Carrie will win. Though her classmates are surprised to see Carrie at the prom, they treat her normally. Sue, who was unable to attend due to lacking a date, sneaks into the prom to ensure everything goes well for Carrie.

To Carrie's surprise, she and Tommy are named prom king and queen. As the crown is placed on Carrie's head, Chris pulls the rope and Carrie is drenched in pig's blood. As the crowd looks on in silence the whole room starts laughing and jeering at her. Carrie's telekinesis takes over, closing the doors to the gym and turning on a fire hose. Miss Collins is killed by a falling ceiling rafter, principal Morton is electrocuted and the whole place catches fire. Leaving her classmates inside the school as it burns, Carrie walks home covered in blood. Chris and Billy intend to run her over with Billy's car, but Carrie flips the car over, causing it to burst into flames, killing them both.

At home, Carrie breaks down in her mother's arms. However, by this time Margaret has gone completely insane and literally stabs Carrie in the back. Carrie gets cornered in the kitchen by her mother, but sends kitchen knives flying at her mother, killing her. Overcome with guilt and grief, Carrie uses her last ounce of strength to collapse the house upon her and her mother and the house burns down to the ground.

Some time later, Sue, the only survivor of the prom, visits the plot where Carrie's house stood. As she places flowers on the ground and a bloody hand grabs Sue's wrist. The movie ends with Sue waking up, screaming, in her mother's arms.

The Good, the Bad, and the Gorey


The Good
Cinematography
What do the dramatic slow-mo finale in Scarface, and the intense slip-screen action in Mission Impossible both have in common? Carrie. Brian DePalma was far from an amateur when he gave us Carrie. With a number of productions under his belt, he was establishing his own directing style. Most of the shots are very wide, reminiscent of Steven Spielberg You really get a feel for the characters' surroundings. I like that just because so many horror movies are shot tight and confined. But DePalma was ahead of his time in the 'special shots' department. His shots were meant to draw emotion out of the viewer. The spinning shot around Carrie and Tommy makes you feel lost and dizzy in love. The slow motion sequence of the impending blood bucket makes the pain feel more drawn out, like pulling off a band aid slowly. The split screen during the rampage lets the viewer witness Carrie's deranged eyes as she kills. DePalma's work was the inspiration for much of great cinematography we see today.

The Ending
It is worth noting that DePalma essentially created a horror genre staple. The last-scare shot. When the lone survivor, Sue, comes mourning she almost looks angelic. Dressed in white, a back-lit glow, bringing flowers, and a single tear she looks so sorry and so pure. Then to have Carrie's bloody claw tear up at her, it simply destroy's the viewers sense of closure and safety. It's a good scare. This last-scare shot is iconic in movies like Friday 13th and Nightmare on Elm St. Scream even makes fun of it saying the bad guy "always comes back for one last scare." On behalf of horror fans everywhere, thank you Brian DePalma.

The Actors
When Carrie came out, these were basically no-name actors:
Sissy Spacek(The Help, In the Bedroom, Hotrod), PJ Soles(Halloween, Stripes), Nancy Allen(RoboCop, Dressed to Kill), Michael Talbott (Miami Vice, First Blood), Sydney Lassick (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Unseen) and of course John Travolta. Time has proven that horror movies make good actors.

A deeper look at the casting and acting in Carrie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aD6zm3B394

The Bad
The Story
Hold on, don't stone me yet, hear me out. This movie was biased on a book written by the horror master, Stephen King. Not only was this King's first book adapted for film, it was the first book King had ever gotten published. Now I'm not enough of a Stephen King disciple to say how that reflects on the film, but I will say this, the movie feels like a book. The blood bucket doesn't drop until the 1:15min mark. The whole time leading up to it is just preparing for the prank and Carrie getting ready for the prom. Seriously, this movie could almost be a high school romantic comedy. It has all the elements. Jerk popular girl, nice popular girl, jerk popular boy, nice popular boy, understanding teacher, wallflower girl turned homecoming queen. If it wasn't for the telekinesis and murder it could be 10 Things I Hate About You.Carrie has the same problem all book-adaptation films have. It's hard to make mundane things look interesting. A book can go for chapters all about what a character is thinking while the character is doing something mundane like reading in the library. But if you try and make me watch someone reading a book for more that 15 seconds, I'm gonna flip out. So while I'm sure that in the book the lead up to the rampage is engaging and thrilling, the lead up in this film left me kind of bored.


The Gorey
This movie has a lot of pig's blood, some gross lady blood, and that's about it. The most gruesome scene would probably be the mother's death by telekinetic knives, but it's pretty tame for most horror film standards. The film is rated R due to the female nudity in the opening shower scene. If they could have re-worked that scene, it might have been bumped down to a PG-13.

My Take on it All
Ok, forget everything I said about the story. The long, drawn out set up of "the prank" is really just a tool DePalma uses to create "the scene". The Rampage Scene that is. The entire film is simply buildup to it. We see poor Carrie. Her life at school is full of ridicule and embarrassment, her life at home is full of shame and subservience. The only glimmer of joy she has is from the dreamy, untouchable Tommy. Add to that the discovery of mental powers that are new and powerful. She is a victim through and through. The pain she suffers is in innocence.As we see a hope for happiness, because of Tommy and Sue's good deeds, we also see the set up of the prank. The viewer can figure out pretty fast that the plan is to drop pig's blood on Carrie at the prom. The dramatic irony makes the sweetness of the prom that much more painful. If that wasn't enough DePalma literally goes into slow motion, to draw out the anxiety of the impending disaster.

Then comes the scene. The Rampage. This single scene is what made this movie. It's what made a mediocre movie into an amazing movie. Carrie, covered in blood, proceeds to murder everybody. In this moment, all the innocence we saw in Carrie is stripped away. She kills friend and foe alike. With her psychic strength she is untouchable . Killing and burning it seems that she has lost control, but looking at her we see she is in complete control. I didn't know I could be scared simply by the look in someone's eyes, but the bottom-lit eyes full of intensity dart back and forth, sparking fires and dropping rafters. In my opinion, one of the scariest/eeriest scenes ever is a bloodstained Carrie, with her arms and hands tense with rage, slowly walking across the gym as it erupts in flames. It's like watching a banshee or ghost.


That one dramatic moment made all 96 mins of set up worth it. This movie is a must see for any horror fan. But this is a necessary see for anyone who wants to understand difference between cheap, gory jumpy, scare-tactics flicks and the true horror genre.



SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
Carrie follows the tragic life of a high school girl. On top of teenage difficulties, she must face her fanatical mother and growing psychic powers. Carrie earns it's place at the foundation of the horror genre. While it is slow to start, the film brings a horror packed ending matched by few films. Take a night off from your guts and gore flicks and enjoy some iconic terror. 


Final Grade: A-

Trailer!

The Return of the Living Dead - Do you want to party?

I love me some zombie movies. I feel drawn to them, like zombie is drawn to brains. But to understand something you have to understand its roots. And after three or four George Romero movies, you will end up here on your zombie journey   So hold on to your brains for The Return of the Living Dead.

Click here to skip to the end for a SPOILER FREE REVIEW.

Plot
This show opens with Freddie getting his orientation for his new job at "Laid Back Medical Supplies". Freddie is wearing a sleeve-less t-shirt and suspenders, just to make sure we know we've arrived in the 80's. Trying to impress the new kid, the idiot Frank accidentally busts open a government barrel holding a zombie and a crap-load of orange zombie gas. When the two regain consciousnesses they discover the the cadavers, both dog and human, are alive again. They decide to call the boss.

During all this we meet Freddie's gang. With the exception of Freddie's girlfriend, they look like they were donated to the film by the Punk High-Schooler Emporium. Looking "to party", they go to wait for Freddie in the cemetery next door. There they listen to music, act tough, and get naked.

When boss-man Burt comes to the warehouse and determines they've got to kill the zombie cadaver. Follow the logic of the movies, they try to destroy the brain only to discover they can't be killed. Each separated body part is still out for murder. 

Burt determines the only way to get rid of the zombie is to cremate it at the mortuary inside the cemetery. After hauling in bags full of dismembered-zombie to the mortuary, they convince the mortician to cremate the body parts. As the ash-filled smoke rises from the crematorium  it's washed down by the ran onto the cemetery.At the same time Freddie and Frank are getting real sick. The original exposure to the zombie-gas is poisoning them. They call an ambulance to come get them at the mortuary. 

As the cemetery and the kids are getting washed down, Tina goes looking for her boyfriend at the warehouse. Instead she finds the zombie from the government canister. She ends up trapped, but not to fear, because the 80's Rock Band comes to save her. Mr. Tough Guy get's his brains eaten out, but the rest manage to trap Tar Man in the basement.

Then the action really picks up. All the zombies in the cemetery rise up, eat Ms. Naked Girl, eat the ambulance paramedics, and chase most of the kids to the mortuary. Everyone barricades the mortuary and in the process capture a zombie. The zombie (which is both conscience and talkative) explains that eating brains placates the constant pain of death.

It becomes apparent that Frank and Freddie are turning into zombies and they get locked away. Burt and Mr. Token-Black-Kid jump in a car and head over to the warehouse, leaving Tina and the Mortician to hide from the Zombie Freddie.

All the while cops keep showing up and getting eaten. The situation is really getting out of hand, so Burt calls the number on the military canister  This activates a military protocol in the form of a nuclear strike on the town.

The Good, the Bad, and the Gorey.
The Good
I love the period that this movie represents in the Horror Genre. Return of the Living Dead came out in the mid 80's. This is my favorite period of monster movies because it was all about the spectacle.  It was a time that horror movies were established enough to start looking back at themselves. The genre started with the classic movie monsters like Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstine, but as time went on, those monsters were revamped anew. The Howling and The Lost Boys were horror films that didn't establish the monster's background, assuming the audience already understood. 

Return of the Living Dead does the very same. It even mentions George Romero's zombie movies by name. We don't have to have the annoying, "What is that? I think its a zombie. No it's just a crazy person. No wait, you were right, it's a zombie." Instead we just have complete focus on dealing with the zombies.

Now, I love George Romero. He will forever be the Godfather of all things Zombie. But Return of the Living Dead was pivotal to the creation of the zombie as we know it today. In this movie, writer and director Dan O'Bannon gave use the first fast/running zombies, the first speaking/logical zombies, and the call of zombies everywhere, "Braaains!" Granted it took a silly, humors movie to establish these elements, but movies like 28 Days Later and the Crazies all developed the concepts further.

As I've said before, I'm no lover of CGI gore, and this flick gave me models and makeup too my heart's content. The over-the-top theme of this movie is seen in the ridiculous gore. While not up to any Evil Dead levels, brains and blood fly freely on screen. I loved the zombie dubbed "Tar Man". He looks like a monkey covered in tar, but there is something about they way he moves his long, slender arms and legs that creeped me out good. And the amputee zombie made me jump for sure. Sometimes the models could come off as cartoon-ish, but in a funny, ridiculousness movie, I'm willing to forgive.

Once the movie takes off, the action is top notch. Zombies breaking down windows, tricking cops, charging checkpoints, biting open heads like nutcrackers. The accelerator jams down for the whole second half.

The acting in this movie isn't great, but it isn't suppose to be. All the characters are suppose to be one dimensional, clearly seen by the stereotypical personalities of "the Gang". The movie isn't about the characters, but about the events themselves, evidenced by the fact that everyone got nuked. 

All that being said though, I do love watching James Karen loose his sh*t over the course of the film.

The Bad
My biggest concern with this film is the pacing. The zombie hoards don't start amassing until 50 min in. Maybe I'm being picky but I think that is a lot of time to get going. Especially for a farce with no need for monster-background or character development.

I could pick at the cataclysmic  everyone dies ending, but if you are watching horror movies for the neat, tidy endings, then you need to pick a different genre.



Why I Liked It   
Humor
You might recognize Dan O'Bannon from his co-writer title on Alien. That's right Alien. One of my all time scariest movie. So it's clear that O'Bannon knows horror. Which was lucky for all of us because in order to do a farce of anything, you first have to understand it. Return of the Living Dead is funny. It pokes at the horror genre in general. You have blatant unnecessary nudity, the bumbling idiots of Frank and Freddie, the innocent damsel in distress, the unscrupulous business men in Burt. Plus the zombies themselves were funny. They talk and trick policemen into becoming their snacks.

It's fun
I like this movie simply because it's fun. I love horror movies for all their classic dark terror, but it can be refreshing to see a movie break the norm every once and a while. This movie has scares and gross zombies in it, but it doesn't have the dark melodrama of most horror movies. There aren't any grave moral decisions to be made, no mirror of man's inhumanity, no condemnation of the hubris of scientists. Nope. It's just a zombie movie. Pure and simple.

I mean the zombies come out of the ground essentially singing.

SPOILER FREE REVIEW
The Return of the Living Dead is a must see. The film throws teenagers, medical supply employees, a graveyard into a bag, shakes it up, and spits out a classic zombie movie. With classic 80's gore and a couple of jump-at-ya scares it well fits the label of horror. However, set more as a farce of traditional, Romero-ian zombie flicks, this movie is funny. Enjoy the cliques and the stereotypes. It isn't horrifying or nail-biting, it's just fun.

A classic, humorous, fun. Let's not try and over think it. 

Final Grade: A-

   Trailer!

REC - Found Footage Zombies

Simply put, Blair Witch Project + Dawn of the Dead = [REC] . But don’t let that simplistic definition turn you off, because I guarantee this movie isn't what you think it is. In a world full of the most awful made-for-Netfilx Zombie movies, this is a much needed breath of fresh air. This movie will definitely get you airborne out of your seat and leave you peeking around corners in your own house. So get ready for a Spanish lesson in this soon-to-be-canonized zombie flick [REC].

Jump to the end for a SPOILER FREE REVIEW.

The Plot

This found footage news story follows the young, up-and-coming journalist Angela and her cameraman Pablo. They are spending a night with the local city fire department, hoping to show the firemens’ selfless service to the city. And lucky (unlucky) for them a call comes and firefighters with reporters in tow, rush off to a small apartment building. Meeting the police and the distraught tenets of the apartment, they soon discover a little old lady, bloodied and hungry for cop neck. Rushing downstairs with the wounded officer the group finds they have been placed under military quarantine.Everyone is rather upset and pretty curious about this disease, especially after having to gun down the little-old lady. It’s announced that a health inspector is coming in to test everyone. And wearing his full hazmat suit. the inspector comes on in. While tending to the wounded, some handcuffs aren't put on quite right and some more of the tenets get bit. The inspector fesses up that a deadly virus, spread by saliva, was traced to their building, hence the quarantine. The virus has deferring effect times based on different blood types. The tenets, cops, and firefighters are quickly whittled off, leaving Angela and Pablo in the penthouse trapped by a dozen zombies. They discover the eerie writings and recordings of a catholic priest who was investigating a possible disease causing the possession of a local teenage girl. The priest ended his investigation by locking the possessed/zombified girl in the apartment. Angela and Pablo get the unfortunate joy of meeting said girl and getting hammered to death by her.

Here’s what was Good About It
Found Footage Fear

I've never even seen Blair Witch Project (I know, it’s on the list) but I can tell you that I share with the rest of the world an aversion to the found footage style. Shaky cameras, fast moving/blur, and strange angels can at best leave the viewer uncomfortable or frustrated, at worst they can make you physically sick. And the found footage style just completely controls the direction and tone of the movie. Even single shot you make has to be justified as reasonable or natural to the characters. And it was a novelty that had pretty well worn off by the mid-2000’s.

But all that being said, it was the greatest choice the directors could have made for [REC]. This movie wouldn't work with any other style. The plot and characters weren’t big enough for a traditional set shot movie. The found footage made it so personal and real that the viewer can’t help but feel drawn in. So often a zombie movie is showing the apocalypse and worldwide destruction. I mean do we have to be fighting for humanity's survival every time? It was refreshing to see zombies on a small scale, where the stakes were very personal.

I was amazed at how steady and blur-free they were able to keep the shots in [REC], even in a multi-floored environment. Found footage is great for cutting out unnecessary dialogue and low energy scenes. And while I’m not sure how I feel about night vision in movies in general, it was great in this movie. It was very Silence of the Lambs, except the protagonist/villain view was reversed, and the villain was a teenaged zombie, not a sadistic serial killer. Ok, they were nothing alike, but it was still great camera work.

Glorious Gore
The effects in [REC] were very well done. If you were looking for splatter fest, this isn’t the one you are looking for, go watch Planet Terror. This is a movie of realistic gore. Most of it wasn’t even CGI, just good old fashioned makeup and corn syrup. The first zombie bite was disturbingly realistic. Seeing someone’s neck stretch before it snaps makes my stomach do back flips. The CGI of the teen girl zombie at the end is decent. It is put in night vision mode, which easily covers up any quality issues.  
An anecdotal note. The scene where the fireman falls from the ceiling and splatters with blood? The body  was dropped without the actors prior knowledge. Their reactions were as real as mine when that fireman splatted and I launched out of my seat.

Why I liked this movie
Originality
No, [REC] is not the first found footage movie, not even the first zombie found footage movie (Diary of the Dead), but it a found footage movie that makes sense. The first act and setup are a little slow, but they are believable. The scenario itself is believable and logical. The viewer isn't forced to make huge assumptions about the plot and can simply follow the logical response to the events. I could complain about the one dimensional characters or shallow acting, but I think it actually helps the plot. You don’t look for characters when you’re watching the news. And essentially this movie is just news. It’s a documentation of events as they happen. It doesn't need to show the why, just the what.
[REC] is able to quickly ramp up the terror in a hurry. From essentially the second zombie bite, things start spinning out of control. That fear, of things going from bad to worse, is great at causing terror. It builds quickly and becomes enveloping. Plus throw in a few scary cheap shots and by the end of of the movie you are completely sucked in. The camera might as well be your own eyes peeking around corners.

SPOILER FREE REVIEW

[REC] is a found footage zombie flick that delivers the fear. You get to follow a news crew as they investigate a call for help and end up trapped in a building full of hungry tenets. It’s a movie that jumps up to scare you without losing the realism and simplicity that is lost in so many horror movies. While the effects aren’t anything special, I think terror is most often what you don’t see, as opposed to what you do see. A must for any lover of zombie flicks and guaranteed good time.

Trailer!

Final Grade: A
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