Welcome back gang to the newest addition to the weekly update. We are no officially in week 1 of horror movie month and this week was a doozy for me. There's two non horror in there because I'm only human and fuck you I don't get paid for this. The horror may not be too varied, as I watch the entirety of a series and two exorcism movies. But I was very busy this week and hopefully I am again next week. So sit back and enjoy the blood drenched ride.
Hatchet (September 28th, 2014)
Director: Adam Green
Starring: Joel David Moore, Tamara Feldman, Deon Richmond, and Kane Hodder
God bless Adam Green. In a time when horror movies have to be deadly serious and deal with ghosts or remakes. So thank him for deciding to make a straight up 80s slasher movie, complete with over the top gore, gratuitous nudity and a mentally challenged murderer. This movie is just fun. It's not deep or subtle. Hell, it's not even scary. But Green isn't trying to. The movies these are inspired by are the Friday The 13th sequels and they hit the target. It doesn't hurt that Jason himself, Kane Hodder, plays killer Victor Crowley. The cast is all game, knowing what movie they're in. Except for Feldman Not that she'd bad, she just plays everything like this is a dead serious horror movie with no sense of fun. Which is fine, since she's essentially the hero of the story, but it's a bit of an odd tonal discrepancy. The gore is unbelievably done, topping the 80s stuff since it seems like there was almost no trimming for a rating the way the 80s movies were. The movie is a blast, but it isn't for everyone. For those with a fond memories of watching Jason, Freddy or Michael running rampant on sex starved teens, this is the movie for you. Anyone else might not get it or act superior to it.
Rating: 8.5/10
The Last Exorcism (September 28th, 2014)
Director: Daniel Stamm
Starring: Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell, Louis Herthum, and Caleb Jones
This was a pleasant surprise. It had good word around it, and Eli Roth produced it so there was no reason to be dreading it or not seeing it. But the found footage angle really kept me away from this until recently. And its a shame, because this is a really good movie. Focusing on Cotton Marcus, a preacher who has lost his faith and is trying to disprove the notion of possessions. So he goes to a small town to deal with a potential "possession" and gets in over his head. Now, first off, this movie is very low key. And not like Paranormal Activity where nothing happens. This is a movie with real characters with arcs and real sense of mounting tension. Cotton is a great character and Patrick Fabian plays him superbly. You really believe this man and understand his problems. There's also Ashley Bell as the girl who may be possessed and she is astounding. She goes from innocent little closed off wallflower to demonic force and it is all believable from a performance stand point. The rest of the cast is solid, but it's these two that anchor this movie. Now, the movie goes off to points that are very surprising and break free from typical possession movies. It may come off as random, but it is all laid out in the movie. It's a big and bold story and ends with a bang. The movie is a little short and I wish it was longer, cause this world is so interesting and the story is much more so. More time wouldn't have hurt but what we got is good enough. For those that wanna see found footage done well, this is a damn good example. It's a pretty solid exorcism movie too.
The Exorcist III (September 29th, 2014)
Director: William Peter Blatty
Starring: George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, Brad Douriff, and Jason Miller
This is a movie that didn't do well at it's time of release and it's not surprising. The second Exorcist movie was an abomination and it was close to 15 years between that and this. That and there is only one cast connection to the first one (barely) and it almost barely has anything to do with exorcisms. But it's reputation has gotten better as time has gone on, and rightfully so. This is the sequel that, if not necessarily needed, the one that the original deserved if it was to be sequelized. Set 15 years after that fateful day, Scott takes over as Detective Kinderman from Lee Cobb. A serial killer is haunting Georgetown after a long absence, seemingly copy cat killing like a serial killer who died 15 years earlier. But this killer knows things anyone not involved in the case would know. And when the case comes to a personal level for Kinderman at a hospital, the rug is pulled out from under him when it seems that Father Karras may actually be alive. Or is he? First thing first, this is barely a horror movie. It has some tense and creepy scenes, but it's a murder mystery and character piece before horror. Scott is an old man, who still hurts from losing his friend Karras and he has no faith. So when all this starts to happen, he is lost at sea. It's a haunting movie that, fittingly, is about faith like the original. Douriff shows up for a bit and knocks the creepy killer role out of the park, as per usual. Miller shows up for a bit, and it's nice to see Karras back. But he only really plays Karras for a little amount of time. But for a movie that is essentially about a fight for his soul, it only makes sense for him to not be him the whole time. And Scott is fantastic as the detective in a world he doesn't get or necessarily even like. The weakest part of the movie is Blatty as director. He is competent and does some decent work, but his lack of experience shows a lot. A better director could have made something really special here. But that's neither here nor there. This is a very good little movie that is nowhere near the original, but is a fitting entry into the series.
The Drop (September 30th, 2014)
Director: Michael Roskam
Starring: Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, John Ortiz, and James Gandolfini
Tom Hardy is the best actor working today. Maybe a week ago it would have been a contest between him or Fassbender. But this movie seals the deal. Between this and Locke this year alone, he's taken the crown. He has not repeated himself at all, making big choices and nailing them. He fully disappears into a role and you never feel a false moment from him. It's quite a feat, going from the precise welshman in Locke to this, a simple and friendly man with a dark side. There is nothing in this performance that is similar than anything in Locke, Bronson, The Dark Knight Rises or RockNrolla just to name a few. It helps to have such a dedicated performer in a role like this, since this is a simple movie that isn't going to change the world. It's a low key crime film that is more performance driven. Watching as Hardy does his best to do the right thing and not go bad, to stay his own man is very riveting thanks to him. Gandolfini showing up as a Tony Soprano who lost all power. A weasely, desperate man with an ego and an axe grind. Rapace playing the woman who helps bring Hardy out of his shell, as well as the puppy they bond over. There is no groundbreaking material here, just a story told very well with performances that let us know what these actors are capable of.
Gone Girl (October 3rd, 2014)
Director: David Fincher
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Kim Dickens, and Tyler Perry
David Fincher strikes again. Going back to the well of a super popular pulp novel, Fincher adapts a twisty turny mystery that has captured the attention of the world. What sets this apart from his last movie, an adaptation of a twisty turny mystery is that it has a lot to say and it isn't about raping/treating women like absolute shit. On their fifth wedding anniversary, Affleck comes home to find that his wife (Pike), is missing. What follows is a look at an investigation that wants us to figure out if Affleck is involved and what happened to their marriage. Tackling the very nature of marriage and the absolute shit show that is the news media, Fincher shows a hunger he hasn't shown in a while (either since Zodiac or Social Network). There is a lot in this movie that shouldn't be spoiled since it is all about the unfurling nature of the story and the turns it takes, especially this close to release, so this is going to be quick. Affleck gives one of, if not the, best performance of his career. Perry shows that he is actually talented when he's not doing a minstrel show. The star though is Pike, a knockout performance for the ages that has just made a star. To go into any reasons why these performances are great would be to give away even the tiniest of bits. While most would assume this is a mystery with some thriller or suspense aspects, this is really a black comedy. To keep the mystery, I'll just say to take a dive into another powerful film from a man who has been on a roll since 2007.
Hatchet II (October 4th, 2014)
Director: Adam Green
Starring: Danielle Harris, Tony Todd, AJ Bowen, and Kane Hodder
Once again, thank God for Adam Green. Returning with a sequel to his cult hit, Green ups the ante and the hilarity with the bigger and bloodier entry into the Victor Crowley series. Set literally at the same point as the ending of the first one, we follow Marybeth (Harris stepping in for Feldman) as she once again runs afoul of Crowley. But this time she isn't alone. She is now accompanied with a hunting crew out to take Crowley down. Obviously, it doesn't go so well. This movie is a blast. Now, it's not going to change anyones minds. This is firmly for fans of the first/the genre. But for those into these things, it's like heaven. Deepening the mythology and running Marybeth through the ringer, this works better than those 80s sequels it so obviously loves. It also has one of the funniest sex scenes I have ever seen. It's insane. That's really the key word for this whole movie. Insane. Bigger and bloodier than the last, this is a winner.
Hatchet III (October 4th, 2014)
Director: BJ McDonnell
Starring: Danielle Harris, Zach Galligan, Caroline Williams, and Kane Hodder
The Victor Crowley saga comes to a close (for now at least). Stepping down as director but still working on it as producer and writer, Adam Green helps bring the series that launched his career to a close. Yet again kicking off at the ending of the last one, Marybeth finally thinks she has ended Crowley. But looking a little too suspicious since she's holding a shotgun, covered in blood and holding Crowley scalp she is arrested and is the suspect in the massacre the police find in the swamp. But Crowley isn't dead (obviously) and all hell breaks loose. Upping the ante yet again in blood and humor (much of which is meta at this point), the movie is still a blast. Not as perfectly tuned as the last, but it's still fun and better than the awesome original. The weakest part of this is the sort of sidelining of Harris while more murders are taking place, all of whom are new characters. Not that it really matters since everyone is just cannon fodder, but it would have been nice to have more with the only character we've followed for three movies. But that is all moot with a great finale with Marybeth and Crowley. We seemingly have the end of the Crowley/Marybeth saga, and it ends nicely. Would I like more insane Crowley stories? Sure. But it would be great if a series so indebted to 80s slasher sequels knows when to call it quits. That itself would be the best meta joke of it all. Final words on the series. Well made on every technical level, filled with performances that get the tone it's going for (for the most part) and written much better than would be assumed, this series is a winner. I'm glad to have seen them but sad I wasn't in the know at the beginning. Special shoutout to the makeup effects crew for truly astounding work.
Top Movies
1. Gone Girl
2. The Drop
3. Hatchet II
4. The Last Exorcism
5. Hatchet III
6. Hatchet
7. The Exorcist III
7. The Exorcist III
Top 5 Performances
1. Tom Hardy - The Drop
2. Rosamund Pike - Gone Girl
3. Ben Affleck - Gone Girl
4. Patrick Fabian - The Last Exorcism
5. Ashley Bell - The Last Exorcism
Top Moments
1. The Sex Scene - Hatchet II
2. Nick Finds The Shed - Gone Girl
3. Victor Crowley Arrives - Hatchet
4. You Embarrass Me - The Drop
5. Nicks TV Interview - Gone Girl
4. You Embarrass Me - The Drop
5. Nicks TV Interview - Gone Girl
- Tom Lorenzo
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