Sunday, January 25, 2015

Ghostbusters (1984)

As a child, this was one of those films that I could not get enough of. We had gone through at least 3 VHS copies of this movie, seen practically every episode of the cartoon a minimum of five times each and collected all the toys I could get my hands on. Ghostbusters were second best only to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which was still, at times, a very close call.

I remember sleeping in my Ghostbusters tent which I had received for one of my earliest birthday's a countless amount of times. I basically used it till it could no longer stand. Anywho, let's get back to the review shall we?

Written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. Directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Rick Moranis.

After losing their jobs, a trio of parapsychologists decide to open up a ghost hunting business, utilizing a variety of homemade gadgets. They become successful on their first assignment but soon find out that the city has a lot more to offer them when it comes to catching ghosts.

Classic in the best way possible! State of the art special effects, amazing acting, dialogue and comedy all rolled in together with paranormal beings. Can a fan boy really ask for much more than this?

Next to the obvious exclusion of cell phones and the internet, which is a given, this movie holds up extremely well and can be enjoyed by children in this day and age as well.

I have nothing but great things to say about this film but I will cut it short. If you have seen it, you already know and if you have yet too see it. Then I suggest you make it a family night and watch this movie!

It's been 30 years and it's still one hell of an amazing movie! 10 out of 10!

If you have any suggestions feel free to comment or e-mail us!

Don't forget to follow us @FLIX4NERDS on Twitter!


The Loved Ones (2009)

I was 110% sure I already had this film figured out before I even pressed play. Holy crap was I ever wrong. This has to be one of the best horror films I've seen in quite some time.

I was honestly thinking this is gonna be a cheap rip off of Prom Night mixed together with Carrie but came out of left field with something new and different with a small dose of different film aspects thrown in together to create something special.

This is an Australian film written and directed by Sean Byrne and stars Xavier Samuel, Robin McLeavy and John Brumpton.

After having her prom invitation rejected by a boy at school, Lola, with the help of her father, take actions into their own hands in order to ensure Lola has the most wonderful and exciting prom night ever. Unfortunately for her date, it's not the way he was expecting to spend his last high school dance.

Seeing that the film was from Australia, I was immediately cursing my friend for suggesting it to me as I had a very hard time deciphering Wolf Creek when that one was first suggested. Luckily, the language barrier was minimal and all the terms used were natural to the North American style of slang.

All the actor were awesome in their roles and the dialogue was excellent. The kind of dialogue that just sucks you right into the movie, helping to bring it to the next level of entertainment.

The last 20 minutes of the film were just fantastic, turning a good film into a great one and forcing me to raise my rating instantly. Give me a great ending I can remember and I'm gonna love it even more!

Now, without wasting anymore of your time so you may go on an enjoy this film for yourself, I give The Loved Ones an excellent rating of 9 out of 10!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, email or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Hellraiser IV: Bloodline (1996)

In the year 2127, a young man open up the puzzle box to once again unleash to wrath of the cenobites. However, as the box is in an unauthorized area he caught by authorities and must explain to them the history of the box.

Directed by Kevin Yagher (credited under Alan Smithee) and Joe Chappelle (who went completely uncredited for the film). Written by Peter Atkins and starring Doug Bradley, Bruce Ramsay and Valentina Vargas.

For a quick moment I would like to talk about "Alan Smithee". For those of you whom are unaware, Alan Smithee was a pseudonym used by directors who wanted to disown a specific project. Basically, if they didn't like the final product and could convince the director's guild that they could not have done any better due to unforeseen circumstances, the guild would allow them to use the name to cover up their work with the rules of not speaking about the project nor admitting to anybody that it was their work.

This basically tells you, in a nutshell, where this review is going.

Working as a prequel and a sequel bloodline shows not only the history on the lament configuration, but it's present and future as well.

The film lost my interest the moment they jumped back in time to explain the origin of the box. I just can't get into a film that looks like a period piece. It's something I personally have no interest in even though I know the importance of origins.

The future acting was decent, at first
The present wasn't so great and the past was just laughable. Sure they had the outfits and all but they were not acting in the ways of old. They seemed more like a bunch of people who may belong in the crazy home as opposed to those actually living in the Victorian era.

The ending also was not very good in my books. Let's use advanced technology cause it's the only way we can kill these demons. So you're telling me the previous entries really should have all ended differently then? Cause if you can't kill a cenobites, how you gonna get rid of it for good? The answer? You just can't thus  ruining the story line in all the other films.

I found this to be not only a waste of time, but the film itself ruins any momentum the franchise had going. This may be the sole reason why all the following films have been direct to video.

2 out of 10 and the only reason it gets that much love from me is because Of Doug Bradley's reprising of the Pinhead role.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment, email or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


The Devil's Rejects (2005)

Following the events of the first film, the Firefly family is resting peacefully in their beds until the entire county's police force came knocking on their front door.

Knowing it's a kill or be killed scenario, the family prepares by arming themselves and start to fight back. After a few deaths, Baby and Otis find their way out of the house and start running for their lives in order to find refuge.

Once again written and directed by Rob Zombie and starring, Sid Haig, Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Moseley, Ken Foree and Matthew McGrory.

The storyline for this sequel has much more depth than it's predecessor. As opposed to just being a gory slasher, Zombie has taken the characters he has created and gave them more emotion by turning the tables and putting them in the same situations they would typically have had their victims in.

The characters being portrayed didn't really show me anything new and played the same old crazy killers they had in the first which did nothing to help me enjoy the film more. In example, the scene's where the Firefly's were torturing and holding prisons captive seemed almost repetitive from the first as well as many other low key horror films.

Although watchable, it's not a film I would go out of my way to see. Zombie does get better from here in his filmmaking endeavors so do not take this as a warning to stay away from his films because you will regret missing out on his better work as it is excellent. If you don't believe me, I implore you to watch both his versions of Halloween. You will see exactly what I mean.

With everything being said and done I will throw this sequel a 5 out of 10!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, email or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!




The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day (2009)

Following the events of the first film, we find the MacManus brother hiding out with their father somewhere in Ireland.

They are soon confronted by a priest who informs them that someone back in Boston has attempted to sully the name of the Saints by executing a priest in the same manner the brothers would have done it in.

This prompts them to return to Boston to give the city another cleansing from evil.

Once again written and directed by Troy Duffy and starring Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus,  Clifton Collins Jr., Julie Benz and Billy Connolly.

In the opening scene, the brothers look like they haven't seen a shower, razor or a pair of scissors for the entire length of the last eight years they have been in seclusion which made for some very ridiculous looking special effects on their hair and beards making them look like they just came out of the stone age.

Following this things seem to smooth out back to normal and it begins to carry-on  like the first film had.

With the exceptions of who they were going after and the final two scenes, the movie felt almost identical to its predecessor. But again there isn't too much you can change about the premise of the story. These characters, no matter what you put them in, have ultimately the same goal of killing their target. Plain and simple.

One thing that really did bother me was how they used Julie Benz in the same identical matter as the used Dafoe in the first film. Their characters were practically  identical.

It still is enjoyable to watch, even if it is just for the final few scenes to see how the story progresses. There's a lot of action and a lot of jokes to go around in this sequel. 6 out of 10.

If you have any suggestions feel free to comment or e-mail us!

Don't forget to follow us @FLIX4NERDS on Twitter!




House of 1000 Corpses (2003)

While on a country wide journey, four friends whom are attempting to write a book about roadside attractions runs into a clown named captain Spaulding who tells them about a local legend named Dr. Satan. The group, now intrigued, decide to hunt down Dr. Satan's place of death but are interrupted by a passing hitch hiker who drags them all to her family home and to their possible demise.

Written a directed by Rob Zombie and starring Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie, Rainn Wilson and Chris Hardwick.

If you are a fan of fun, gore filled slasher movies, loaded with more maniacs than you can shake a stick at, then look no further! Zombie takes the Texas Chainsaw Massacre "family" idea, throws in a few extra crazies and cranks it all the way up to eleven and you have yourselves the Firefly family!

The story line seems to be all over the place with the unexpected and unexplained just popping up every which way making this slightly confusing among somebody's first viewing on the film. After watching it two or three times you should be able to pick up on all the little things that would help piece it all together.

The special effects were excellent to say the least. They really gave out the effect it needed too in order to bring up the creepy factor.

Not Zombie's best work, but still good, especially considering this was his first go as a director. Corpses gets a 6 out of 10.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, email or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Saturday, January 24, 2015

The Boondock Saints (1999)

After having an epiphany (message from God), two fraternal twin brothers decide to hunt down and kill the most notorious and dangerous men around in order to rid Boston of all that is evil.

Written and directed by Troy Duffy and starring Norman Reedus, Sean Patrick Flanery, David Della Rocco, Billy Connolly and William Dafoe.

Filmed in a very artistic manner, Boondock Saints shows the results of the brother's actions prior to the showing of the actual events in where they use the FBI agent (played by Dafoe) to explain what had taken place and walks through the events with the audience as it plays out of screen.

This is a very fun an enjoyable flick that never seems to slow down. The story is simple but goes above and beyond for each and every scene. All in a mostly realistic manner. It shares a great mix of action, comedy and a serious aspect.

All the acting was spot on, everybody portrayed their characters without a hitch and made all their characters to be very easily likable, but I do have to go on record to say that William Dafoe's character, without a doubt, absolutely steals the show by playing a gay FBI agent who is on the top of his game. He also gives us a fun little twist near the end of the film that is just incredibly hilarious.

Without ruining anything about the film for anybody I will leave you with this. Get out there and see this film if you have not done so yet. Buy it, rent it or Netflix it, I don't care. just check this out ASAP!

Easily a 9 out of 10!

If you have any suggestions feel free to comment or e-mail us!

Don't forget to follow us @FLIX4NERDS on Twitter!





Open House (2010)

A deranged couple travel around, staying in homes which are for sale. In order not to get caught they kill the owners of the homes and move on after a few weeks. But this time, the plan seems to have changed.

Written and directed by Andre Paquin and starring Brian Geraghty, Rachel Blanchard, Tricia Helfer, Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin.

Directed by the brother of Anna Paquin know by most as the lead in the HBO series True Blood, he seems to be taking advantage of his sister's fame in order to gain a fair bit of star power in which he uses as fully as possible to garner media attention. He even went as far as putting his sister and her True Blood co-star (Stephen Moyer) front and center of the film poster although their appearances are very minimal.

It was unfortunate that the director was unable to promote the film in a proper manner without the use of his sister, but sometimes you gotta take the easy way out which is highly unfortunate as the more popular of the cast members really took away from the actual film's leads.

If you take away the name dropping, you have yourself a decent story which is only able to hold itself entertaining for a minimal amount of time but thanks to a small twist reveal it keeps the interest up long enough to finish the film.

I did find a good portion of the scenes to be repetitive but understand that it was used to portray on of the characters traits.

Altogether it was a watchable film, but nothing to go out of your way too watch. 5 out of 10.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, email, or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!




Finders Keepers (2014)

Following a divorce, a woman and her daughter make the move to a new city where they purchase a house with a history. Inside the vents of the home, the little girl finds a doll that was once owned by one of the previous tenants which she becomes quickly and violently attached too.

Directed by Alexander Yellen. Written by Peter Sullivan and starring Jaime Pressly, Kylie Rogers and a brief appearance by Tobin Bell.

Now, first thing I have to make mention too is the fact that the two lead actors in the film are found near the bottom of the call sheet on IMDB and the lead spot going to one Steve Austin who acts as a garbage man for about twelve seconds in the film. Seriously?

A ridiculous excuse for a movie, made for television or otherwise. The acting was incredibly poor by all counts and this includes Tobin Bell who was doing a fair job considering how much camera time he actual had and then came his death scene. Just a purely laughable performance when he fell over and died.

Jaime Pressly who I personally believe cannot act to begin with is overbearingly bad. Half the time her accent is fully present and then all of a sudden it disappears making this even harder to watch.

And don't get me started on the little girl. It was basically watching a typical kid lose their mind over not being able to get a cookie. There was nothing evil about it next to the fact that she murdered my ears. I don't want to be too harsh on her as she is young and just learning how to do these things, but come on, the director couldn't take an extra 5 minutes to try to make those scenes a little bit more realistic? I would have even taken a voice over in post in this case!

The story line seems like it's trying to be far more complicated than it actually is and tried to accomplish this by filling the story with plot holes.

This has been one of those films that I would not ever suggest to anybody. It is a waste of time and not worth even considering. Typically the Netflix ratings are wrong but I have to come close to agreeing with them on this one. 1 out of 10!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment, email or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Friday, January 23, 2015

Batman: Year One (2011)

Returning after twelve years of being abroad, Bruce Wayne has made his way back to his home town of Gotham. He has taken the years to prepare himself to become the main source of crime fighting within the city as he knows the police force is completely corrupted.

After a failed daylight attempt, Bruce is forced to find a way to strike fear into the hearts of the scum in Gotham, this is when he takes on the persona known as Batman.

Starring, Benjamin McKenzie, Bryan Cranston and Eliza Dushku.

It also follows the first year James Gordon works for the GCPD showing that no matter what they do, he will not stray from looking for justice for those who deserve it, such as what Batman is doing.

I've always been a fan of the 1987 story arc as it gave the reader a most in depth look at the history behind some of comics most popular characters and when I first heard it was being brought into animation I couldn't wait to see it. And when I did I absolutely loved every aspect of it.

It shows off how green Batman was in his first year, having been shot on multiple occasions, going out in public without a proper costume nor any real gadgets and how his martial arts training hasn't fully been put to the test until now.

The voice cast was perfect I found, although Benjamin McKenzie (who now ironically plays a young James Gordon on the Fox television series, Gotham) was a little bit hard to take in when he first started speaking at the start, but quickly it started to sound much more natural.

Bryan Cranston as James Gordon however was spot on through and through. It seems like no matter what the man does he can always nail a role whether it's comedic, serious or even a voice acting job, he seems to always come to the table fully prepared and ready to make things happen the right way.

Again, I loved it all and have to throw a 9 out of 10 out there for it. Almost perfect in my eyes!

If you have any suggestions feel free to comment or e-mail us!

Don't forget to follow us @FLIX4NERDS on Twitter! 

  

   

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Tusk (2014)

After finding a delightfully amusing posting on craigslist involving a man with a special request seeking a roommate. Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier decided to build a story out of it for fun on an episode of their ever popular podcast entitled "SModcast".

What happened instead was the creation of a genius screenplay that fully involved the fan's of the show. Kevin Smith simply asked his audience, if you want to see it tweet #WalrusYes if not then #WalrusNo. Plain and simple.

And of course the answer was an overwhelming #WalrusYes!

Starring Michael Parks, Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, Haley Joel Osment and Johnny Depp.

Wallace is the lead podcaster on the NOT-SEE Podcast and goes to great lengths to find crazy, unusual and hilarious stories that he can learn about and return home to record his findings while explaining them to his co-host Teddy. After making his way to a city in Manitoba, his lead story goes cold but quickly finds a replacement story that could either make his career or break his soul.

First off, I have to make mention to all the easter eggs in the film for fans of the different podcasts the SModcast radio network have to offer. If you are a fan of either SModcast or Hollywood Babble-ON you will be rolling around in tears laughing.

Now that I got that out of the way, I have to compliment Kevin Smith on the dialogue scene's between Wallace and Howard. They just seemed so natural and sucked me in right away, Park and Long definitely brought both their roles to life and kept me wanting more!

The costume was also something that I was shocked and amazed by but absolutely loved it, it was exactly what it should have been, grotesque, realistic and still capable of showing of Long's emotions even under all the rubber layers and makeup.

And finally, being Canadian and French (no I do not have the Lapointe accent) I could not stop laughing when Johnny Depp's character, Guy Lapointe, came into the film. He was absolutely hilarious throughout his entire time on film.

I was looking forward to this one since I first heard it on the podcast and could not get over not being able to see it in theatre as I did not have a showing anywhere near me. But I held my breath, caught the trailer minutes after it was released online and once again awaited patiently for it to show here in Canada.

I loved every aspect of it's originality and how he pulled this off was even more amazing which makes me appreciate the film more than I probably would have otherwise so I can not give this film anything lower than a 9 out of 10.

Thanks for reading! Fell free to leave a comment, e-mail us or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Night Of The Living Dead (1968)

The 1968 classic and original, Night of the Living Dead, written and directed by George A. Romero, has been one of the main reasons we have so many amazing movies, comics and television shows which revolve around the use of zombie's. This is the father of all zombie films (White Zombie being the Grandfather of the genre of course) and has not only helped spawn a countless amount of media, but also a gained a series in itself by generating five distinct sequels.

Starring Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastman, Keith Wayne, Judith Ridley, Bill Cardille and Kyra Schon.

This film follows the story of five strangers who are seemingly stuck in a farm house relying on each other in order to survive the night after they hear reports that the dead has begun to rise.

One of the most well known horror films out there thanks to it's effects in pop culture as well as it's numerous amounts of remakes, night of the living dead is on the top of most horror fans what to watch list and can be thanked for helping create great properties such as Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead.

The black and white can take away from the film for somebody raised with computer graphics enhancing everything they watch but it's one of the most important films out there and should be viewed by every horror fan at least once in their lifetime.

For a movie made in the late 60's the gore was unbelievable, and really a statement to show the effect of what was happening to these survivors.

Another piece of the film that I always loved was the news reports the survivors watch on the television. It was something that was able to add that extra vibe to the viewing and really helped suck my into the film.

Although the ending threw me for a loop the first time I had watched it, I was still able to understand and appreciate the film as a whole and for that I give this classic a 10 out of 10. This is not only because of how great it is, but for what it has helped bring to future writers and film makers.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Cabin in the Woods (2012)

Cabin in the woods is a new take on the slasher genre by Drew Goddard (Director and co-writer) and Joss Whedon (Producer and co-writer) who have worked together in the past on Buffy the Vampire Slayer as well as Angel.

Starring Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz and Jesse Williams.

The film follows a corporation which sets up an 80's style slasher type of reality series to sacrifice young college students. Question is, are they doing it for the greater good? Or just so they can place a few bets on the outcome?

It started out in a very odd way, turned into something you would find at camp Crystal Lake and then just exploded into something completely mind blowing. It continued to progress with each and every scene and once it came to an ending all I could tell myself was "holy crap!".

Unlike any movie I have ever seen in the horror genre or any other genre for that matter. It was dark, witty, funny, exciting and made you wonder what the hell was going to happen until the finally reveal it at the end of the film.

I was concerned with the choice of actors for a couple of the roles due to their actual age as compared to the age they were portraying in the movie but was quickly shown they only mentioned an approximation of age at the beginning during a conversation in regards to being on break from college. The remainder of the time I was so enthralled by the story I completely forgot about my concerns.

Awesome effects for some of the reveals and especially in the motorcycle scene. Mix that with the top notch storyline, the great acting, the all around twists in the story and you've got yourself a great movie in which I thoroughly enjoyed. This will be something I am guaranteed to watch again in the very near future to pick up on things that I have missed out on in my first viewing.

Easily a 9 out of 10 from my point of view!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on Twitter!

Have a Great day!




Sunday, January 18, 2015

Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth (1992)

In the continuation of our series review, Hellraiser: Hell on Earth is the third entry in the series and the first to take everyone's favorite cenobite leader on a walk through the city streets for a large dose of destructive action.

After the events in Hellbound, Elliot Spencer has been free'd from the grips of hell and is no longer forced to be the leader of the cenobites. Unfortunately, the force of life surrounding Pinhead is much too strong to just die and starts to take on a life of it's own, on earth.

Now, with the help of her dreams, news reporter Joey Summerskill must try to stop Pinhead and send him back to hell.

Directed by Anthony Hickox and starring Terry Farrell, Paula Marshall, Kevin Bernhardt and Doug Bradley reprising his roles as Pinhead and his human counterpart Elliot Spencer.

Being that the storyline is a little different than the other two entry's I was kind of skeptical about this film when I had first watched it. After about the halfway point of the movie I realised it was probably the smartest thing they could have done with this series and it made the remainder of the film a real treat to watch giving us a whole world of greatness.

The greatness I am referring too is of course all the new aspects they added into the film. First off, the new cenobites looked awesome and is always a great idea to keep secondary characters of this nature fresh just so people don't get bored of them and of course the scenery change was beautiful!

Having the cenobites in the streets of a city was another genius idea! Not only is it fresh, but they have a ton more they can do with the environment that doesn't just involve the use of chains with hooks on the end.

The storyline itself was a little confusing but like I've said in the past for this series and surely, it will be said again with some of the next films, it's mainly used to show off gore which again, everyone who likes the 80's type of slasher horror films, will enjoy this one for that reason.

Don't get me wrong, I love a great storyline, but most times in this genre you just have to take what you can get.

Better storyline than the first, more confusing that the one from the second but the new baddies and scenery really took the cake for me in this one and so i will give it a 7 out of 10!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment, e-mail or DM us on Twitter with any suggestion you may have for a book or movie review!

Have a great day!


Thursday, January 15, 2015

Book Review: Kristopher Rufty's Jagger

While racing against time, a man is forced to kidnap a large breed dog in order to use it to win a dog fight and recoup money he has lost for a very dangerous man. But when desperate times call for desperate measures, Clayton finds out that he may have caused himself an even bigger problem.

CUJO ON STEROIDS! 

That is the best and simplest description I can give you of this book!

The opening chapter get's you hooked into the book immediately and keeps you reading for more thanks to a very great use of description to detail every little aspect of the different characters throughout the book as well as the environments the scene's are set in.

The last 3 chapters were amazing and the ending was awesome. I thought I had this novel figured out after the second chapter but Rufty kept the surprises coming which kept me on my feet throughout most of the book.

Otherwise, I had two slight issues with it which both ended up being resolved prior to the ending of the book, one being that I could not get into the characters until it seemed like it was too far into the book. With the exception of the character of Janice and her son, I was not a fan of anybody till about 70% into the book. After that point in time I felt like I was better able to connect to most of them but it still felt like it may have been too late.

The other issue that I had was I noticed a lot of repetition in the middle of the book which slowed down the momentum for me. But, once again, it picked itself back and and finished strong which I enjoyed thoroughly.    

I am looking forward to reading more of his work and hope to eventually check out some of his film contributions as well

With that being said I will be giving Jagger a 7 out of 10.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on twitter

Have a great day!


Horror Shoot Contest!

Up for grabs are two digital downloads of The Guardians Of The Galaxy! 

This contest is free for anybody who wants to enter. No age restrictions, no country restrictions no restrictions what-so-ever! It's a free for all! 

So now, how do you enter the draw you ask? Simple!

All you have to do to enter is follow the Horror Shoot Twitter Page (@horrorshoot), retweet the post stating "Horror Shoot Contest: Follow us and Retweet this post the enter the draw!" and you are automatically entered into a draw for one of two digital copies of the Guardians of the Galaxy movie!

As a small bonus for our current followers, all those who Retweet before we hit 100 followers gets triple the entries. those are some very good odd's in your favor!

Don't delay! Contest end on Wednesday, January 28th at 12 PM Eastern Time!

Good Luck to all who enter!

Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)

Hellbound is the second entry in the Hellraiser series and continues the story of Kirsty Cotton and her dealings with the aftermath of the cenobite attack on her home which had been provoked by her uncle Frank's insatiable need to escape hell.

Directed by Tony Randel and stars Clare Higgens, Ashley Laurence, Kenneth Cranham and Doug Bradley reprising his role as Pinhead.

After waking up in the hospital, Kirsty is quickly questions by detective about the events that had taken place in her father's home. Although the detectives have a hard time believing her, Dr. Channard decides to take the information and uses it to his advantage thus prompting a series of events leading back to the return of the cenobites.

The gore factor is once again all over this movie just like it was in the first one. The biggest difference in my opinion is the story line. I find that it was much more thought out and kept me more interested and entertained than the story it's predecessor had to offer. There was much more substance to it as they several story's happening at the same time in which they all intertwined to come to the film's conclusion.

As you already know, we here at Horror Shoot are real suckers for great practical effects and Hellbound was not lacking in that department. They were able to once again make the cenobite costumes look great, the "revival" make-up looked even more realistic than they made it seem in the first film and the C.G.I. they did use was not the greatest due to the time period they were in but were still able to make due and use it as best as they could.

The biggest downside to this movie for me is that when you're going to make the scenes brighter, the practical effects can easily be ruined and made to look completely fake. An example of this is the final scene in the film in which you can see how everything looks like pure rubber.

I did enjoy this entry more so than the original. But still found as a stand alone movie it's not overly great. But if you like a lot of gore then you can't go wrong with having a double feature night consisting of part 1 and 2. I will have to give Hellbound a 5 out of 10 and yes I know. I bitched about the first one much more than I have about this one but this is a sequel and does not have that originality to it that the first has which kills it a bit more for me.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment or send me an e-mail with any suggestions for book or movie reviews you may have or do so by following us on Twitter!  

Have a great day!


Monday, January 12, 2015

Hellraiser (1987)

Hellraiser is a 1987 film written and directed by horror icon Clive Barker and was based off of his novella "The Hellbound Heart".

Starring Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Sean Chapman, Ashley Laurence and Doug Bradley.

After solving a mysterious puzzle box he purchased, Frank Cotton mistakenly summons a group of Cenobites who take him back to hell with them to torture him for eternity. But after a small household accident causes Franks brother to bleed onto the floor where his brother was killed, he ends up making an escape from hell by rising from the dead.

Seeing this movie yet again after all these years has made the story line very plain and very long for me. The reason I enjoy it so much is because of the amazing special effects. No matter how bored I get with the plot, I know that the effects of the kill scenes, the cenobites and the body rebuild (if you have seen it you know exactly what I mean) will always get me excited to watch this film. There is just so much to appreciate in it.

I will be honest with you, I had a hard time writing the plot for this film in a manner that would not ruin it for anybody as the story line is pretty thin and straight to the point.

Now, I don't want to go out and say that this is a boring movie next to the effects. I only sound like I am speaking this way due to the fact I have seen it a minimum of 60 times now and know it inside and out.

For someone who has not seen it in years or who has never seen it at all, I can guarantee that they will love it all around, plot, dialogue, effects and the iconic characters such as Pinhead. And I say this with the utmost confidence. Eight sequels can't be wrong can they?

Based on my history with this film I would give it a lower rating as the story did not hold up for me and I found myself getting bored very quickly but once again the special effect came in to save the day and locked down a 6 out of 10 for the original flick.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on Twitter!  

Have a great day!



The Drawing Of The Three: The Dark Tower Part II (1987)

The Drawing of the Three is the continuation of the Stephen King story "The Gunslinger" and is the second of eight parts in the "Dark Tower" series.

The story once again follows Roland Deschain on his quest to find the Dark Tower. After the events of the first book, Roland awakens to find himself being attacked by what he deems to be a "lobstrosity" a large, vicious beast resembling a lobster. Due to the attack, Roland loses two fingers, part a toe and has been poisoned. This forces him to race against time to not only find a cure to his ailment, but to discover the three doors that will help lead him to the Tower.

Another great book by King. The beginning of the book kind of threw me for a loop but it quickly got right into the action taking my attention away from the starting events. Throughout most of the book I was easily kept entertained and was unable to put the book down. There was however a section that dragged on for me, for those of you's who have read it or plan on reading it that portion would be in "The lady of shadows".

Most of the characters introduced throughout the novel are very well developed and mostly all very likable.

Though it is very action packed, the story line does not progress very much as they are using this part of the series to introduce a few very important characters, each in great detail.

I did not like this entry as much as the first due to the progression, but I understand that if you're going to have such a long series it's good to build up your important characters early on to avoid any questions the reader may have, With that being said I give The Drawing of the Three 7 out of 10.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


  

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Jaws (1975)

Jaws is the classic 1975 Steven Spielberg film based off of the Peter Benchley novel of the same name.

Starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dryefuss, Jaws follows the story of the small summer destination town of Amity and how it is being plagued by a great white shark with the acquired taste for human flesh. The town is then forced to close all their beaches causing an uproar with the townsfolk as their livelihood is at stake.

Now, if you are over the age of 15 and have never seen this movie in any setting at all then you need to come out from the rock you've been living under and watch this damn movie!

I have seen Jaws a countless amount of times and I can tell you right now that I have never gotten sick of it and will probably never be able to get sick of it due to the greatness it portrays.

Great actors, great dialogue, top of the line animatronics and special effects and something that could potentially happen anywhere due to the fact that it takes place right off of a beach. And what city or town doesn't have a beach. It scared the shit out of me when I had first seen it as a child and several times more after that as well causing me and some of my friends to refuse going swimming for a very long time.

I absolutely loved all the under water scene's from the sharks point of view while he was hunting and attacking his victims, something several horror films followed suit with for years to come.

Another thing that I have to mention, and yes I know, now we might be getting a little too geeky for your tastes but if you can get the blu ray edition of the film, please check out all the special features, mainly the making of Jaws (which amazed me and got me hooked on this film when I saw it as a kid) and the two hour documentary. They are both phenomenal pieces and will make you love the movie more than you did before.

Without actually having to say it, this beauty is getting a 10 out of 10 from me!

Again if you have not seen it, go find a copy and watch the damn thing!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on Twitter!

Have a great day!


Wednesday, January 7, 2015

The Exorcist III (1980)

The final installment of the Exorcist film franchise simply entitled "The Exorcist III" is based on the second novel in the book series entitled "Legion" written by the director and writer of the films screenplay, William Peter Blatty.

Starring George C. Scott, Jason Miller, Ed Flanders, Scott Wilson and Brad Dourif.

The film takes place fifteen years following the events of the first film and follows Detective Kinderman as he investigates a string of murders that appear to part of a series of satanic rituals believed to be linked to an already deceased killer.

Many fans including myself have hailed this as the true sequel to "The Exorcist", some going as far as to completely ignore The Exorcist part II: The Heretic from even being considered part of the franchise.

I was actually lucky enough to find a VHS copy of this film at a yard sale when I was in the hype of searching for part two with my friend. We tried to hold out on watching it till we had seen the second movie but the longest we could go for was about two days before we hunkered down with a bowl of popcorn and tossed the tape into the VCR.

I preferred this version as a "sequel" much more than The Heretic. It was well written, the story was fun to follow and you even get a small, very small appearance by one Samuel L. Jackson, which is always nice. I have also always been keen on the character of Lt. William Kinderman which may also be a reason why I enjoyed this film so thoroughly.

The ending was the biggest thing that got me loving this movie. It worked out so perfectly that you can't think of this movie as anything but the direct sequel to the exorcist in my opinion.

A great watch, amazing murder scenes and a killer ending makes me give this a 7 out of 10.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on twitter!

Have a great day!





The Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)

The Exorcist II: The Heretic is the sequel to the ever popular William Friedkin film, The Exorcist.

It once again follows Regan Macneil 4 years after the traumatic events of the first film and focuses it's attention on the effects the exorcism have left on her subconsciously.

Directed by John Boorman and stars Linda Blair, Louise Fletcher, Max von Sydow, Kitty Winn and James Earl Jones.

This entry in the Exorcist film trilogy is the only one which is not based from one of William Peter Blatty's novel and was deemed, hands down, the worse film in the franchise by fans and critics alike.

For years, after seeing the first film all my focus and attention was on finding a copy of this no matter the cost. I had searched my home town high and low without any results, not even a thing available by order from my local video store which made things even harder for me.

But one faithful night, I had been awakened around 3 am and could no longer return to sleep. I took this opportunity to turn the television on and see what nonsense was playing in the wee hours of the morning and to my surprise, there it was! The Exorcist II: The Heretic.

And once it was done. I realized I had just wasted years of my life searching for something that turned out to be a completely useless and pointless pile of trash!

A portion of the story line is a very, very cheap rip off of the first film and the rest of it made no sense at all! I understand it's a horror movie and that some things won't make a lick of sense at times but this was just ridiculous. At least try to stay in the realm of reality to a certain degree!

The biggest thing that upset me about the film was the "Regan Vs." scene at the end of the film. The graphics were questionable and the idea behind it was just crazy.

What I did like about this film however was the concept of the synchronizer. Take out the religious aspect and the idea of demonic possession and an obvious title change. Then throw in a few new ideas that will coincide with the device being used and you have got yourself a a decent science fiction flick.

With all this combined, I would have to give this Exorcist sequel a 3 out of 10. It's bearable to watch if you really want to do so, but it will leave you shaking your head by the time you hit the final scene.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on twitter!

Have a great day!


Monday, January 5, 2015

The Exorcist (1973)

The Exorcist is a 1973 film directed by William Friedkin and was adapted for film from the 1971 book of the same name written by William Peter Blatty.

Starring Ellen Burstyn, Jason Miller, Lee J. Cobb, Linda Blair and Max von Sydow as Father Merrin.

It follows the story of Regan Macneil, a 12 year old girl who has been possessed by a demon and the struggles of her mother and a local Priest to help rid of him in order to save the girl from certain death.

Upon it's release, the film was said to be the scariest movie of all time, a statement that I believe still stands true to this day. It was also subject to mixed reviews from several movie goers as well as critics due to it's graphic nature which lead to several paying customers running out of the theatre in fear as well as several cases of viewers vomiting while in their seats as a reaction to what they were made witness too.

Although reports of these events were making their way around to potential customers, it did nothing to slow down the hype of the film and eventually made over $66 million dollars and taking the second spot for most popular film of the year in 1974.

Over the years there have been several reissues of the film with "never before seen" scene's and C.G.I. add-on's which only made them the film studio richer with each and every new release grossing well over $440 Million Dollars world wide.

I have been obsessed with this film since I had first seen it when I was 12 years old at my friend's birthday party and would be scared shit less for years to come. I could not stop looking for more and more information about the back story behind it, the location of the stairs, the effects on certain cast members and of course all the behind the scene's deaths and accidents.

Nowhere on this planet have I been able to find anything that could even compare to the scare I had experienced that day. And if anybody knows of anything that would match up or at least come close, please do not hesitate and let me know what it is so I may enjoy it for myself.

Without even needing to say it this is the best the genre has to offer as far as I am concerned and most people who are horror fans would have to agree with me This is a guaranteed 10 out of 10 and will not disappoint.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on twitter!

Have a great day!


Sunday, January 4, 2015

Book Review: The Gunslinger 1982

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger is a 1982 novel written by Stephen King and is the first in the Dark Tower series of which there are currently 8 books.

The novel follows Roland, the last gunslinger as he is on the hunt for the "Man in Black" who has been evading him for years. Through his journey, we are introduced to various unique characters who help Roland progress towards his goal of finding the "Man in Black" as well as flashbacks explaining how Roland has gotten to where he is today.

Dark Tower series displays a different side of King's work as it includes a variety of genres and could be looked at as more of a fantasy novel along the lines of The Lord of the Rings.

Since I have started reading the series I have been unable to put it down. I have loved the use of all the characters introduced and how King has incorporated the flashbacks in order to give Roland a solid background which has shown the reader how he has gained the heart and toughness he displays throughout his travels.

Some parts of the book are a little bit confusing as the time hops sometimes happen randomly jumping from the present, Roland's childhood and a few weeks prior of the present and back but if you keep reading till the end you can easily reconstruct the story in your mind to piece it all together in the proper timeline order.

I would easily suggest this series to anybody. From what I have seen in some of the future books thus far has been a few slower than average chapters. These are typically used to build up newly introduced characters but do not let it derail you from following through with the book as when the action scenes come in you will not want to put it down at all,

With that being said I loved this novel and give it a 9 out of 10.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, e-mail or follow us on twitter!  

Have a great day!



To all those with Negative Comments toward people with a dream!

I do not understand why people are bitching about Kevin Smith and his work. More notably, his work in the film Tusk.

I'm not talking about the people who just plainly decided they didn't like the film in general, that's a valid opinion and everyone is entitled to like what they want. What I speak of are the people who decided to criticize some of the decisions he made in the film such as the casting his daughter and her friend (who just so happens to be the daughter of Johnny Depp) in the film as a set of female convenience store Clerks in a salute to his first film, not so ironically entitled "Clerks".

Now don't get me wrong, there were a couple things in the film I would have changed myself but I am not gonna go out into the world and bitch about the choices this man made. I personally found his idea to be excellent, especially considering where it ended up coming from to begin with.

The man took a simple idea that him and his friend were cracking jokes about and turned it into an actual film. And you want to know how he decided to follow through with this crazy non sense? He asked the people of the world if it would be something that they would want to see. That's all! He never asked if it would be something they would want to pay to see or if it was something they would throw money at. They were asked simply, if you want to see this film be made tweet #walrusyes.. Otherwise, #walrusno.

And didn't he get a massively overwhelming yes, only receiving one tweet stating #walrusno in which the person who tweeted it claimed he only did it in order to make it a fair vote and that he in fact wanted to see such a film. 

The point I'm trying to make here is that Kevin Smith saw an opportunity to do something that he thought would be awesome to see on the big screen and he went for it, not unlike most of his other films. Sure, they aren't going to be huge blockbusters but they will appeal to people that like his style of movie making.

He is always telling people to basically grab life by the horns and follow through with what you want to do no matter what people say. In reality most people are gonna be assholes about what you want to do if it's out of the realm of ordinary but we all have to say FUCK IT and go for it. 

Think about this for a moment. Are you gonna just settle for that minimum wage job or for letting someone surpass you at work, leaving the new guy to now be your new boss? If your boss at work is not seeing the sacrifices you are making in your personal life for them and doing things such as refusing to give you a well deserved and well overdue raise or bonus.

Now imagine yourself just saying fuck this. If I take a shot at this and I fail, the worse thing that could happen to me is being thrown back into the same position I'm currently in working for another jack ass. So what's the difference? There is only one and that would be either trying to do something or not trying to do something.

And this is exactly what Kevin Smith has done his whole life. He's tried and it has paid off for him in spades. Some things more than others but he has still become successful throughout his life. So before you decide to bitch and complain about somebody's idea or a dream they may possibly have or something they have already done remember, they actually poured their heart and soul into something and have come out of it stronger than they did going in,

So in place of judging somebody's art, how about supporting them instead. One positive comment honestly makes a huge difference to someone who is trying to express themselves. I know this from experience and suggest to everybody that they look for the positives in things as opposed to bitching about them, because you never know what you can accomplish one day by just staying positive about it.