Dead Before Dawn (2012)

PLOT

A bunch of college kids accidentally unleash an evil curse that causes people to kill themselves and turn into zombie demons aka Zemons

What do you do when a group of college kids accidentally unleash an truly evil curse that makes people kill themselves and turn them into demon zombies or zemons for short.

Dead Before Dawn takes a very interesting approach to the zombie genre as it brings something fairly new and fresh with the whole demon zombie curse, at first seemed silly but as the film went on it made more sense and actually worked.

I thought it was funny how when the group brought the curse forward they made a mockery of these types of curses in films because the zemon killed you by giving you hickeys and one way to stop them was to french kiss them.

The cast are relatively unknowns with the exceptions of Christoper Lloyd, Mullen used him again in her action thriller 88, here Lloyd is very much playing a version of Doc Brown from Back to The Future and even makes a few references to that film which is fine but he doesn’t get alot of screen time, but looks good as a zemon.

Martha MacIsaac who is best known for her role in Superbad here is very good and likeable, It’s kind of hard not to like her she just has that girl next door likability It factor.

Devon Bostick as the lead I had a few issues with through out the film, seemed to take awhile to get behind his character even though he’s the one as a viewer should be supporting from the word go, but overall he does a good job especially near the end of the film.

The supporting actors all play their roles perfectly and get what the film is all about, most notables being Brandon Jay McLaren who brings the funny one more then a few points and steals the show a few times, April Mullen and Tim Doiron are very good as well, doesn’t hurt that Mullen also directs and Doiron wrote the screenplay.

The team of Mullen and Doiron work very good together and after seeing 88 and now Dead Before Dawn to very different films but both with both films they show that they are good at what they are doing and have fun with it, hopefully bigger things are to come with future projects.

All in all I was very entertained with Dead Before Dawn which reminded me of a few classic horror comedies like The Return of the Living Dead, Evil Dead and Shaun of The Dead to name a few, if you are someone who likes over the top horror comedies then this is a most watch for you.

MY RATING 6/10

Cast

Devon Bostick-Casper Galloway

Martha MacIsaac-Charlotte Baker

Christoper Lloyd-Horus Galloway

Brandon Jay McLaren- Dazzle Darlington

Brittany Allen- Lucy Winthrop

Kyle Schmid-Patrick Bishop

Tim Doiron- Seth Munday

April Mullen-Becky Fords

Kevin McDonald- Professor Duffy

Ellen Dubin- Beverly Galloway  

The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014)

"It's been a long time"

PLOT

65 years after a masked serial killer terrorized the small town of Texarkana, the so called moonlight begin again. is it a copycat or something even more sinister? a lonely high school girl, with dark secrets of her own, may be the key to catching him




MY THOUGHTS

The Town That Dreaded Sundown is a remake(Sort of) to the original film of the same name which was made in 1976 which was based on the true story of the mask killer known only as the phantom that terrorized Texarkana back in 1946.

This film begins with a recap of the real life events that took place in 1946 and then references the 1976 film, then comes to current day where Jami (Addison Timlin) and her boyfriend Corey (Spencer Treat Clark) are at the drive in watching the original film which has become something of a yearly thing for the people of Texarkana who somewhat have embraced the tragic events from years ago.

Jami not being really into horror films wants to leave which Corey has no problem in doing, as they are leaving Reverend Cartwright(Edward Herrmann) is warning everyone about the movie they are watching, he’s something of the prophet of doom.

Jami and Corey ends up at lover’s lane the original phantom’s hunting grounds and while their after 66 years The Phantom appears and forces them out of the car, he tells Corey to get on the ground and for Jami to turn around and not look as he gets down on top of Corey and stabs him repeatedly.

Jami manages to escape and ends up in the hospital and when the rest of the town hears about what happened it causes the town to go into a frenzy and opens up once long forgotten feelings about The Phantom killer.

One thing I enjoyed about this movie was how the filmmakers made homages to the original film a few of the death scenes are play out exactly like a few of the ones in the original, most of note being the trombone scene.

The cast was a little interesting with a few known actors (Anthony Anderson, Gary Cole, Veronica Cartwright, Denis O’Hare,Ed Lauter and Edward Herrmann) showing up threw out, It would’ve been nice to have seen the police play a more important role in this film but they took a backseat this time too the main character.

Anthony Anderson character is based off of the Texas Ranger from the original film played by Ben Johnson and even dressed like him but isn’t given much to do, same with Gary Cole but he does have one of the more memorable scenes in the film.

Denis O’Hare does very well with the limited screen time he gets here as Charles B. Pierce, Jr. the son of the original filmmaker. It would’ve been good to see more of him here since he seemed to be the most committed to his role and what the film was all about.

The lead Addison Timlin as Jami does a decent job as the only survivor of The Phantom attacks and we’re given much of her own backstory but even with all of that there did seem to be something missing, maybe like I mentioned before if the police played more of a role in this film then it would’ve made her seem like a better character some how.

The Town That Dreaded Sundown does a good job of bridging the original with this new film and I was entertained through out, but if there is one big problem that I had with the film would be with the finale, I will not spoil it but the ending felt rushed and weak for the most part and some what slasher film cliched which this film wasn’t for two-thirds of it.

All in all if you are a fan of the original film or even if you are not The Town That Dreaded Sundown is a good watch and more violent then the original, the story is well pace and played out except for the ending but that shouldn’t ruin the overall viewing, it’s one of the better horror films from 2014 and seemed to fly under the radar for a lot of people.

So check it out since it’s streaming currently on netflix as is the original so you could have a double feature and make a night of it.


MY RATING
7/10

CAST
Addison Timlin-Jami
Veronica Cartwright- Lillian
Anthony Anderson-Lone Wolf Morales
Gary Cole- Chief Deputy Tillman
Travis Tope- Nick
Edward Herrmann-Reverend Cartwright
Ed Lauter- Sheriff Underwood
Denis O'Hare- Charles B. Pierce, Jr
Spencer Treat Clark- Corey
Morganna May- Kendra
Joshua Leonard- Deputy Foster 

The Taking Of Deborah Logan(2014)

"Some things just can't be explained"


PLOT
What starts as a poignant medical documentary about Deborah Logan's descent into alzheimer's disease and her daughter's struggles as the caregiver degenerates into a maddening portrayal of dementia at its most frightening, as hair raising events begin to plague the family and crew and an unspeakable malevolence threatens to tear the very fabric of sanity from them all.


REVIEW

Some things just arent what they seem...The Taking of Deborah Logan is another on a long list of found footage style films that have been released in recent years.

The majority of them have not been worth watching, but this one would be on the most watch list, as someone who isn't a huge fan of found footage films but this one brings a certain aspect that most of the others don't seem to possess(no pun intended)

What starts off as a normal documentary about the daily life of Deborah Logan(Jill Larson) who has been diagnosed with the beginning stages of Alzheimer and how her and daughter Sarah (Anna Ramsay) deal with her changing behavior . For film crew Mia (Michelle Ang), Gavin (Brett Gentile) and cameraman Luis (Jeremy DeCarlos) things start out somewhat on an awkward foot but as things go along they all find that everything isn't what they seem.

The main plot of the movie is something that a lot of people can relate too with an ailing family member going through a similar situation (I myself witnessed a grandparent go through Alzheimer) Deborah when being herself is a nice sweet woman, but when the other side takes over she becomes something very sinister.

I happened to like the overall tone of the movie and how things steadily built and the story unfolded, Jill Larson gives an stellar performance as Deborah Logan how she was able to play the character with great balance, you find yourself feeling for this woman as she is going through everything, Larson's performance reminded me of Ashley Bell's similar turn in The Last Exorcism, both did excellent jobs with their eyes that tells more about what exactly is going on with the characters then words could describe.

Anna Ramsay as concerned daughter Sarah gives a very true to life turn here as she is a strong character and goes to any length to save her mother, I think had an lesser actress took on this part the movie would have fell apart and in the climax of the film I felt myself rooting for her to succeed.

Michelle Ang, Brett Gentile, and Jeremy DeCarlos give fine performances as well, my favorite of the 3 was DeCarlos as Luis, he was the character I felt myself connecting with the most and even though he has the least amount on screen time, most of his lines are some of the best especially during tense situations where they searching around the house for Deborah.

If there were some complaints about the film they would have to be the found footage style of filmmaking. I will never be on board with it when I find myself being taken out of a lot of moments in the film particularly the ones during the finale in the miner where everything is dark and the camera is shaking around, every found footage movie does this and I really don't like it. I never get why its done and why/how this is supposed to make things better from an viewing standpoint.

Despite my feelings towards the found footage style I do recommend this film to anyone who likes a good story with true to life characters and some really good performances by Jill Larson, Anna Ramsay and an overall good horror suspense thriller with good effects and tense moments that will keep viewers interested all the way through the final moments.

MY RATING 7/10


CAST
Jill Larson-Deborah Logan
Anna Ramsay- Sarah
Michelle Ang- Mia
Brett Gentile- Gavin
Jeremy DeCarlos-Luis
Ryan Cutrona-Harris
Anne Bedian- Dr. Nazier
Tonya Bludsworth- Deputy Linda Tweed
Julianne Taylor-Cara

American Mary (2012)

"She's an artist"



PLOT

The allure of easy money sends Mary Mason, a medical student , into the world of underground surgeries which ends up leaving more marks on her then her so called "freakish" clients



REVIEW

American Mary are a breath of fresh air into the horror genre, the 2nd feature film release by Jen/Sylvia Soska aka The Twisted Twins.

American Mary is a dark, intense film about a Mary Mason (Katharine Isabelle) who is down on her luck while she's going to medical school, finds herself applying for a job at a strip club owned by a man name Billy Barker (Antonio Cupa) who finds Mary interesting because he actually reads over her resume and knows that she really shouldn't be there because of all of her schooling.

Mary is thrust into the underworld of extreme surgery thanks in large to one of the club dancers Beatrice(Tristan Risk), she has had a lot of surgeries that have transformed her into a real life version of Betty Boop, after witnessing some of  Mary's work that she performed on a guy at the club during her "Interview".

Beatrice brings more work to Mary thanks to a friend of hers Ruby RealGirl (Paula Lindberg) who wants to be transformed into a human doll by having her nipples and labia removed, which at first Mary isn't to comfortable with doing but after being offered a lot of money, she goes ahead with doing the surgery.

Things really take a turn when Mary who now is doing better with her life and has been doing her Residency at an local hospital is invited by Dr.Walsh( Clay St. Thomas) to a party where she runs into her med school professor Dr. Grant (David Lovgren) who drugged and rapes her, Mary herself transforms on the inside.

I really enjoyed this movie, its very well written and acted by the cast who outside of Katharine Isabelle were unknowns to me, standout performance for me goes to Tristan Risk who plays Beatrice, where all of the other characters seem very dark for varies reason, Beatrice is the one light character who even though she might look the oddest, might just be the most normal of the bunch.

Katharine Isabelle does a great job as Mary who transforms a few times threw out the movie not physically but mentality, she's like a sexy angel of torture if there is such a thing. the relationship she has with Beatrice is good and even though at first Mary seems bothered by her finds her to be her friend by the end, which is very well played out.

Antonio Cupa as Billy is a complex character who when first introduced in the film seems like the type of character that has been seen in other films  before but where he differs is that he has feelings for Mary but he never really is able to express himself towards her except for maybe one scene.

Directors Jen and Sylvia Soska make a nice cameo appearance in the film as two very twisted twins who call upon Mary to do some unique surgery on the pair, those two character should have a movie of their own that follows their travels around the world post surgery.

The special effect here are really done well, as a fan of practical makeup effects in films, in a era now where CGI has basically taken over its always good to see real effects on real people, not only are the gore effects done will but the ones done during the surgery scenes are top notch as well, also the makeup work done on Tristan Risk and Paula Lindberg are very realistic.

My only problem or complaint with the film is the ending, I get why it ended the way it did, but It seemed to come to quickly and felt like there were a few loose ends left but it doesn't take away from an otherwise very well made movie.

I must admit this is my first Twisted Twins film but it surely will not be my last and now I'll be going back to watch their first feature film Dead Hooker In A Trunk and also their newest film See No Evil 2 and anything that they make in the future, they have a new fan following their work now.


MY RATING

8/10

CAST
Katharine Isabelle- Mary Mason
Antonio Cupa- Billy Barker
Tristan Risk- Beatrice Johnson
David Lovgren- Dr. Grant
Paula Lindberg- Ruby RealGirl
Clay St. Thomas-Dr. Walsh
John Emmet Tracy- Detective Dolor
Twan Holliday- Lance
Sylvia Soska- Twin # 1
Jen Soska- Twin # 2

Def By Temptation (1990)

"Evil has never been this sexy"


PLOT

An evil succubus is preying on black men in New York, and all that stands in her way is a minister in training, an aspiring actor, and a cop that specializes in cases involving the supernatural.



REVIEW

Def By Temptation is a horror film Starring/Directed by James Bond III and co starring Kadeem Hardison(A Different World), Bill Nunn (Do The Right Thing).  The movie revolves around strange happens in New York that begin with a beautiful woman simply known as Temptress (Cynthia Bond) she sits alone at the bar of a local club, where a lot of hookups are occurring, no one gets to hook up with Temptress as the night goes on, until she allows the bartender (John Canada Terrell) to go back with her back to her place.

As things really get going between the two in her bed, suddenly the fangs come out(literally) The bartender tries to escape but fails and is killed. we don't know exactly what Temptress is as we see her pick up a few other victims one she kills during sex and another she lets live but she disfigures him and it leaves him ashamed for cheating on his wife.

One night in the club K (Hardison) goes into the same bar and notices Temptress sitting alone, before he is able to approach her he is warned by frequent club goer Dougy (Nunn) about Temptress, but K decides to take his chances anyway, and moves in on Temptress who flirts with him but things doesn't really go anyway and lives K shocked by this.

K friend Joel(Bond III) arrives in town and tries to talk K into getting back into the church and leading a better life but K doesn't want to hear any of that, Joel himself has been dealing with dreams of his dead father (Jackson) who was a Minister and who might have been killed by Temptress years ago.

Def By Temptation is probably one of the better in quality of films released by Troma Films, despite it being a low budget film, its is very well made. the subtle social community that is threw out the movie is very good especially dealing with sex and the risk you take meeting strangers.

The only real problems with this film is that James Bond III shouldn't have cast himself as Joel. he does a good job as director and writer but lacks very much so in the acting department, If there was a better actor casted in his role I believe more sympathy would've been with him from any viewer.

Kadeem Hardison does a fine job as K and is something different from his best known role of Dwayne from A Different World, anytime I watch the movie I always wonder how it wouldn't turned out if he was cast as Joel instead.

Bill Nunn is good for a lot of laughs threw out when he is trying to pick up women in the club and a lot of his lines seem improvised because I doubt anyone could've written most of what he says.

If you are expecting to see Samuel L. Jackson a lot in this movie then you will be disappointed even though the DVD cover suggest that he has a bigger role, he's on screen I believe no more then 3 minutes tops and most of that comes near the end of the movie. I would've liked to have seen more of his character not only because its Samuel L. Motherfucking Jackson but because the backstory between him and Temptress I felt should've been shown more then what is shown in the movie.

The real star of the movie is Cynthia Bond (Temptress) not only is this woman beautiful  and sexy, she plays the role perfectly and hits all the right notes about the character and of all of them seems to be the best developed character even though the character origins is least known. Is she Vampire or Demon?

Singers Freddie Jackson and Melba Moore makes cameo appearances, Moore also performs the song that plays during the ending credits.

There are some good gore effects threw out the movie most notable a character get sucked into a tv and is eaten and blood and guts are spit back out onto the floor.


All in all Def By Temptation is somewhat of a forgotten black horror movie that should be viewed more and if you're a fan of these type of horror movies then I highly recommend it, even if your not I still think it should be watched and enjoy it for what it is.


MY RATING

6/10


CAST

James Bond III- Joel
Kadeem Hardison- K
Bill Nunn- Dougy
Cynthia Bond- Temptress
John Canada Terrell- Bartender # 1
Melba Moore- Madam Sonya
Freddie Jackson- Himself
Samuel L. Jackson- Minister Garth

Split Second (1992)

"He's seen the future...Now he has to kill it. He'll need bigger guns"





PLOT

In a futuristic London the rising sea levels mean that large areas are under feet of water. Stone must track down a strange killer that killed his partner. or is the killer stalking him?





MY THOUGHTS

Split Second is a 1992 Sci Fi horror thriller starring Rutger Hauer, Kim Cattrall and Neil Duncan, the movie begins with a scroll detailing the why the water is rising in future London, 2008 to be exact, also first introduced to Harley Stone(Hauer) who looks like a tough as nails, no nonsense bad ass cop.

He patrols the back streets of London with a purpose looking for someone or something, he stops outside of a club and hears something down a ally way but doesn't see anything. He enters the club and does a typical tough cop routine with a few of club members after this fails, he gets on a pay phone while one the phone a young woman tells him to watch the bathroom so no one comes in on her.

After some time Stone senses the presence of the killer and begins looking around the club until he hears a loud scream from the bathroom, as he rushes inside, he finds the young woman dead, blood all over the place and her heart has been ripped out. It's the killer he's been looking for work.

Back at the police station Stone is being chewed out by The Captain (Alun Armstrong) in his office about not only what happened at the club but other incidents that Stone has been involved in including the fact that he is arm to the teeth with guns. It's revealed that Stone has been after this killer for a few years now because he killed his former partner and best friend.

After some back and forth The Captain pairs Stone up with Det. Dick Durkin (Duncan) who is a very eager about Stone and this killer. after being assigned a new case and more random deaths occur by the killer, the killer begins toying with Stone by sending him half eating hearts.

Stone becomes even more engrossed in his obsession with finding the killer, but things become very personal when the killer sets his sights on Stone girlfriend Michelle (Kim Cattrall) who was involved with his partner before his death which adds more tension.

The Killer begins a cat and mouse game to lure Stone and Durkin closer by kidnapping Michelle and leading the two men into the underworld of London.


Split Second Plays on different levels one its a Sci Fi horror but it is filled out with a lot of dark comedy mostly the relationship between Stone and Durkin are played up for a few laughs. most notably being one scene where the two men joke about each others names. also there is a running joke about Stone not believing that Durkin gets laid every night.

One thing about this underrated gem is that its very similar to Predator 2 which was released a few years earlier now I don't know if that was done one purpose or not but if you've seen both movies you'll know what I mean especially with the fact that the killer acts very similar to The Predator  but it kind of looks like an Alien from the Alien movies as well.

I've been a huge fan of this movie since its release and surprised that this movie doesn't get mentioned as much as it should because its a fun movie but has a really dark undertone to it and it blends well together, Rutger Hauer has to be one of the most underrated actors all time, this movie proves that because even fans of his films rarely know about it.

Kim Cattrall is beautiful to look at especially back during the time when this movie came out but I always felt she was miscast as the female lead, maybe it has something to do with her hair cut or maybe its just me but Uma Thurman look in Pulp Fiction is very similar to Cattrall look here.

The Killer is never fully seen until the final act which is a plus because it adds more to what this creature actually is at a few points threw out the movie its mentioned weather or not its a alien from outer space or if its a demon from hell, its never fully known which but I believe its a demon and the luring of Stone and Durkin underground is like having them go to the gates of hell type of thing.

If you haven't seen nor heard of Split Second I recommend checking it out. even though its been out of print for a number of years and its really expensive on Amazon, but someone did upload the full movie onto Youtube where you can view it.


MY RATING

7/10


CAST
Rutger Hauer- Harley Stone
Kim Cattrall- Michelle
Neil Duncan- Dick Durkin
Michael J. Pollard- The Rat Catcher
Alun Armstrong- Thrasher
Pete Postlethwaite- Paulson
Roberta Eaton- Robin
Stewart Harvey-Wilson- The Killer

The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

"In 1946 this man killed five people... Today he still lurks the streets of Texarkana, Ark."





PLOT

A Texas Ranger hunts a hooded serial killer terrorizing the residents of a small town.





MY THOUGHTS

I've been waiting a long time to finally see this movie, thanks to Netflix that wait has come to an end. The Town That Dreaded Sundown was actually a TV movie released back in 1976(yes there was a time TV had good original movies ). The movie begins with narration about the real life back story about what happened in 1946 and the hooded serial killer only known as The Phantom that terrorized the small town.

The beginning of the film plays out mostly like a documentary with the phantoms first appearance and his first victims that he follows up to lovers lane and slowly stalks Linda(Christine Ellsworth) and Sammy(Mike Hackworth) who are just listening to the radio when Linda decides she's ready to leave at first Sammy doesn't want to leave but he comes around to Linda's thinking.

The Phantom lingers in the shadows waiting for the right moment to attack as the car slowly starts up and begins driving, The Phantom appears hanging onto the car breaking out the Sammy's window and pulls him out the car, cutting him on the broken glass in the process.

The next morning Linda is found on the side of the road barely alive by the police who have surrounded the area as its now a crime investigation. The scene is led by Deputy Sheriff Norman Ramsey (Andrew Prine) who sees exactly what The Phantom has done to Linda.

After this first attack things seem to calm down until March 24 when Ramsey is back out at Lovers Lane and finds Howard Turner dead and his girlfriend Emma Lou Cook tied to a tree she is dead as well, this time Ramsey gets a look at The Phantom as he's fleeing away but isn't able to catch him.

The town is now in a state of panic as The Phantom has struck again and the two victims this time are both killed, The Sheriff Department decides to bring in the best criminal investigator around Captain J.D. Morales (Ben Johnson). Morales comes to town and quickly takes over the investigation he is partnered up with Ramsey and a driver Patrolman A.C. Benson aka Sparkplug( Charles B. Pierce) who is good for moment then a few laughs threw out the movie.

The Town That Dreaded Sundown seems very tamed compared to a lot of movies that followed it but after watching it, it has influenced more then a far share of horror movies that's followed it most note worthy being Jason Voorhees look in Friday the 13th part 2 (1981) and Michael Myers Halloween (1978).

If you are expecting a lot of blood and kills you won't see to much of that, but where this movie lacks in that area it surely makes up in the atmosphere of terror since the majority of attacks take place at night and The Phantom stalking ways add a lot to the movie.

The biggest thrill scene in the movie is when The Phantom attacks another couple, after shooting the boyfriend, The Phantom attaches a pocket knife to the girls trombone and pretends to play it while using it to kill her, you'll rarely see a scene like that in a movie today.


Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine and Charles B. Pierce are the standouts acting wise, especially Pierce as Sparkplug with his Barney Fife like Patrolmen character who is heavy footed on the gas and had no business behind the wheel of a car.

Also Dawn Wells (Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island) makes an appearance as one of The Phantom's victims, her appearance is a interesting one but adds a great deal to the movie since she always has that girl next door/ very likeable quality about her. who is just wrong place, wrong time in this movie.

The finale of the movie is one that's very exciting as the police seems to have caught up to The Phantom and despite wounding him a few times he manages to get away or as the narrator says dies somewhere out in the swamp but no one knows for sure. leaves audiences with the feeling that just maybe he is still out there. The Phantom killer just like Jack The Ripper, The Zodiac real identity was revealed in real life.


MY RATING

8/10



CAST

Ben Johnson- Captain J.D. Morales
Andrew Prine- Deputy Norman Ramsey
Dawn Wells= Helen Reed
Charles B. Pierce- Patrolman A.C. Benson
Cindy Butler- Peggy Loomis
Christine Ellsworth- Linda Mae Jenkins
Steve Lyons- Roy Allen
Mike Hackworth- Sammy Fuller
Misty West- Emma Lou Cook

Cabin Fever: Patient Zero (2014)

" This Is why the water went bad"



PLOT

When a group of friends enjoying a bachelor cruise in the Caribbean stumble upon a research facility on a remote island, a deadly virus is unleashed, The group must find a way to survive before the flesh eating consumes them all.




MY THOUGHTS

Let me begin by saying I'm a big fan of Eli Roth's cult classic Cabin Fever that started this whole thing off. when the sequel came out I was thrilled about a sequel but after seeing that movie, I was highly disappointed where they took things, so when I heard about this next installment I wasn't really looking forward to another movie thanks to the second movie.

After sometime of its released I decided to give in a finally sit down and watch this movie to see if I would enjoy it or further be disappointed by the Cabin Fever sequels.

After a few days have passed since viewing Cabin Fever : Patient Zero I admit I enjoyed it way more then the second movie. Patient Zero  has a much darker tone then the first two movie which is a contrast but at the same time refreshing but it still has the black comedy moments that the first movie had a few stand out examples is when one of the friends goes down on his girlfriend and comes up with blood all over his face (every guy and even some girls worst nightmare during sex) and another which is a big highlight being death by a huge black dildo LOL

The acting here is good with the exception of maybe one or two characters but that's typical in these type of horror movies, Sean Astin (The Goonies, Lord of The Rings trilogy, The Strain) as Porter aka Patient Zero does probably some of his best stuff here with how he plays the role. I guess he's finding a new niche in the horror genre now since his Lord of The Rings big Hollywood days are gone.

Cabin Fever: Patient Zero is basically what the direct sequel should've been with how it further moves the flesh eating virus story along and also introduces something new to the franchise as well.

It wouldn't be Cabin Fever with out the gore fxs and this movie delivers that in big ways and every horror fan would appreciate that. with how this movie ends hopefully there is another sequel that follows the events of this movie since this is supposed to be a prequel to the first and could lead into how the events of the first movie came about.

MY RATING 6/10



CAST
Sean Astin-Porter
Currie Graham- Dr. Edwards
Ryan Donowho- Dobbs
Brando Eaton- Josh
Jillian Murray- Penny
Mitch Ryan- Marcus
Solly Duran- Camila
Lydia Hearst- Bridgett
Claudette Lali- Katia

The Purge Anarchy (2014)

"See What All The Good The Purge Does"








MY THOUGHTS

The Purge Anarchy is the sequel to the sleeper hit of last year's The Purge that starred Ethan Hawke (Training Day, Daybreakers) and Lena Headley(Game Of Thrones) which takes place in the not to distant future where once a year for one night all crime is legal.

The Purge Anarchy differs from the first movie not only with characters but also with setting as with instead of being solely in a house that becomes over run, the main characters who for all varies reasons find themselves outside after The Purge has began and they all have to survive the night.

One thing that I liked about The Purge Anarchy was the fact that we were going to see more of what goes on in the streets this time around instead of the somewhat clichéd invasion scenario that the first movie gave us ( If you want to see more about my thoughts on that you can read my review of the first film).

The Purge Anarchy begins a mere 2 hours before the Purge night is taking place as we are first introduced to a couple Shane (Zach Gilford) and Liz (Kiele Sanchez) who get stranded outside because they become targets of a purge gang. at the same time a waitress Eva (Carmen Ejogo) makes it home just before The purge begins and locks down for the night with her daughter Cali (Zoe Soul) and her father Papa Rico (John Beasley) and while somewhere else in the city a man only known as Sergrant (Frank Grillo) who is gearing up to go out and purge. 


STORY

I liked the story more in the sequel then in the first movie, where this time around the social commentary was amped up a bit more and really hits home in regards to why The Purge was created and who it was intended to be beneficial too and who it was intended to truly get rid of, I'm sure if another movie is made they will continue that story even further and hopefully see the system coming down at some point.

Also the way the main characters come together here makes sense unlike in other movies that have similar setups from the word go you know that those characters will link up but here the three stories lines didn't really have to but things felt more by chance in that sense.


ACTING

For the most part the acting in this movie was better then in the first movie, but once again there had to be a few characters that really pissed me off as a viewer namely Cali, Shane and Liz who threw out the movie if they got killed you probably wouldn't feel bad that they were dead (when/If you see the movie you'll understand my view point on that.

Frank Grillo as Sergeant is the stand out here as he has a real purpose threw out the movie and is the only character you find yourself truly rooting for (the crowd I saw the movie with sure did a few times) there isn't to much backstory giving about him but what you do find out about him is why I can see why audiences will like him plus he's a badass who people would want on their side in a crisis situation such as The Purge.

As a big fan of The Wire I'm always pleased when I see any cast member from that show in anything else and when I found out Omar Little himself (Michael K. Williams) was in this movie I really wanted to see it more. the character he plays is very interesting, I won't give to much away but his character is very important and in one scene he seems to channel his former shotgun wielding ghetto robin hood( you'll know the scene when it comes) also there is one character who shows up from the original in this one as well to help bridge the two films together.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Purge Anarchy takes everything that was good about the first movie and expands it further and shows what takes place on the streets during the crazy purge night and shows that things people will do to each other and any cost and for varies reason, like I said before the social commentary is very important in these movie especially in this installment and hopefully we get I say atleast two more of these films  before they stop.

If you were a fan of the first movie you should be pleased with this movie and even if you haven't seen the first movie you can actually skip it and go right into this movie and not be loss with the concept of The Purge.




There is a lot of action which never makes the movie feel slow or boring and everything moves at a good pace which is always good with any movie. so go check out The Purge Anarchy on the big screen.


MY RATING

8/10


CAST

Frank Grillo- Sergeant
Carmen Ejogo- Eva Sanchez
Zoe Soul- Cali
Kiele Sanchez- Liz
Zach Gilford- Shane
Michael K. Williams- Carmelo
Jack Conley- Big Daddy
Justina Machado- Tanya
John Beasley- Papa Rico
Noel. G. Diego

The Purge (2013)

"One Night , All Crime Is Legal"





MY THOUGHTS

I finally got around to watching The Purge after not really being to interested in seeing it when it was first released last year, for awhile there was nothing but a lot of The Purge this, and The Purge that talk and a lot of people went to see it hence why we are getting a sequel The Purge:Anarchy.

So I decided to put aside my preconceived feelings towards the movie give it a watch for myself and see if maybe I had unfairly judged the movie, which I will admit a few times in the past I have done and have no problem admitting when I'm wrong about a movie being better or worst then my expectations.

Let's get to the movie so The Purge takes place in the not to distance future 2022, where society seems to have found a way to have a stable economy and also keep the crime rate down, what the law makers decided to do some time between current day and 2022 is have their annual Purge where one night every year all crime is legal (Could you imagine if this actually happened).

So it is an hour before its time for the purge as most people are either locking themselves in for the night or they are gearing up to go out and purge. James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) a security salesman arrives home and is in a very good mood not because he wants to go on a purge but because he has sold the most home security at his company and is getting a big bonus for doing so. the large numbers are thanks to him selling to all of his neighbors.

we meet the rest of Sandin's family, his wife Mary(Lena Headley) has a talk with one of their neighbors Grace (Arija Barekis) who throws a party every year during the purge, but decides to not have a party this year, son Charlie( Max Burkholder) is some what of a tech geek who has a little robot that he uses to watch everyone and everything. daughter Zoey (Adelaide Kane) is in her bedroom with her boyfriend Henry (Tony Oller) who has decided to stay at the house so that he can talk to James about his and Zoey's relationship.

As James locks down for the night with what his company has dubbed as the best home security, the family decides to got about their normal routine to pass the time, while Charlie seems to be the only one paying attention to what's going on outside he sees a man (Edwin Hodge) who looks to have been either shot or stabbed yelling for help.

Charlie disarms the security and allows him inside, at the same time as James comes down to confront the man , Henry follows him downstairs and instead of wanting to talk to James he pulls out a gun and the two have an old fashion duel, the stranger seemingly disappears and Henry is shot and dies a little while later.

The family is confused as to what is going on as to who the stranger is and where exactly did he go and also why did Henry try to kill James, but a bigger threat comes from outside when a Purge Gang shows up wearing mask, The Gang Leader (Rhys Wakefield) tells the family that the man they have taken in is homeless and the main reason for the purge and that if they return him to them the family will be spared any harm.

OK one thing about The Purge that really stands out to me and kinda pissed me off is that Charlie seemed to be the only one in the family that actually was paying attention to what was going on around them which when looked at has a message that a lot of times people seems to get to complacent when it comes to home security.

The other huge issue I had was that for the most part all of the characters in the movie are white and the outsider of the group the stranger was black, I guess they were trying to say something about prejudice and racial issues but why make him black and homeless????

I didn't want to read to much into those things but I felt watching those two things were really heavy handed but I guess since the less is more approach in films seems not to happen anymore, so I won't dwell on it to much here (Maybe)

As I watched the movies I noticed that there were a few similarities to a few other movies mainly Straw Dogs (1971) in regards to James Sandin who starts out one way but changes and becomes just as violent as his family's attackers, didn't have a problem with that, because what would you do in the same situation?

The other movie that it really reminded me of was John Carpenter's Assault On Precinct 13 (Ethan Hawke starred in the remake) where the family takes in a stranger not knowing what is going on outside or why the gang wants the stranger but finds themselves fighting to save him and themselves.

The ending almost seems to come out of left field but at the same time not really I thought the explanation as to what happens in the finale was stupid because it was their own fault that they allowed it to happen, would've been nice if one character was apart of it so they could have been more debate but it is what it is I guess.

MY FINAL THOUGHTS

The Purge isn't the greatest movie or really turns anything on its side which I think the filmmakers were trying to do, does it have social commentary? Yes. Is it presented in a heavy handed way? Yes I think so, I've seen the themes in this movie done in other movies much better. Is The Purge worth a watch? Yes it entertaining enough and could be looked at as a reflection of where we could go as a society because of how we are right now.

I didn't hate the movie but I didn't truly like it either, if that makes sense. anyway I am looking more forward to seeing the sequel just because that one looks to be taking it to the streets and showing more of what actually goes on out there instead of just in the nice quiet neighborhood.

So if you like movies like this then I saw check it out.


MY RATING 6/10





CAST

Ethan Hawke-James Sandin
Lena Headley- Mary Sandin
Max Bunkholder- Charlie Sandin
Adelaine Kane- Zoey Sandin
Edwin Hodge- The Stranger
Rhys Wakefield-Polite Leader
Arija Bareikis- Grace Ferrin