Last Seen Contemporary Movie

[FryeDwight]

LET'S KILL WARD'S WIFE (2014). Out of a group of long time friends, one of them has an extremely hateful and abusive wife. The rest of the group conspire to do something about it .

This black comedy is kind of out there, but isn't bad at all with some outlandish moments. I found it kind of cool that the vast majority of the cast are related, either through blood or marriage. ***

[DeadbeatAtDawn]

Mister Creep, 2022. 7/10

Directed by Isaac Rodriguez

[FryeDwight]

THE DARK HALF (1993). George Romero adaptation of Stephen King's novel is way too long and extremely dull- I like much of Romero's work, but TDH could really have been made by anyone; it certainly lacks the oomph of earlier films. Some nasty moments and a pretty neat ending, but it's an awful long wait and not worth the wait. **

[Amaltheaunicorn2023]

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[Tommy Jarvis]

[REC] 2007 ★★★★

[rec] stands tall as one of the classics of the found footage subgenre. Easily makes the all time top-five as far as I am concerned.

We follow a local tv crew – that's your excuse to keep filming out the way – on a routine assignment following the Barcelona fire department. At first, they seem shit out of luck as nothing much happens, the firefighters do not particularly have much to say and the few women in the firehouse run away at the mere sight of a camera. Needless to say, the report is not going very well.

Angela (enthusiasticly) So guys, you must have a lot of spectacular nights?
Firefighter (dryly): Nope. It's mostly pretty boring. And we hope it stays that way.

Which brings us to the first quality of this movie: the characters. Pablo and Angela come across as genuine reporters, trying to make the best of the situation. Making them instantly relatable. Angela is adorable in her attempts to put up a brave face. As is actress Manuela Velasco. This Angela is not a boy, that's for sure.

Relief comes when they get a call about a disturbance in an appartment complex. Something about an old lady screaming. They go over and get into their first (of many) “stop filming” quarrels with the police. With Angela urging Pablo to keep filming everthing... no matter what. After all, the public has a right to know.

It quickly turns out to be far from routine when the old lady does not really seem capable of conversation and then proceeds to bite one of the police officers on site. But it's only when a dead firefighter falls down the stairs that things really go south. From then on, you as a viewer are permanently on the edge of your seat. Completely immersed in the action. Meanwhile, Paco Plaza shows why is a genius of the Spanish horror by slowly putting the pieces of the puzzle together, showing the origin of the infestation.

He also shows how he masterfully builds up suspense. On a rewatch, you know what's coming (like the little girl biting her mother or the final shot of Angela), but when it actually happens, it still gets you. Scary stuff and a must watch for every horror fan.

[Tommy Jarvis]

Red Eye 2005 ★★★

In Red Eye, the dearly missed Wes Craven ventures into a thriller with the interesting twist that it mostly plays inside an airplane.

The opening minutes introduce us to Lisa, a hotel manager of the never panic type who has everything under control at all times. After the funeral of her grandmother, she is on her way and at the airport, she meets Jack, a charming, galant man. You, the viewer, are thus dooped into thinking that maybe there is a bit of romance in the air and that the danger will come from elsewhere.

And then in the plane, they sit next to each other. What are the odds?
Michael Scott: That's what *the screenwriter* said!

That, however, could not be less true. In only a few minutes time, the mask sinks and in no unclear terms, Jack tells Lisa what his plans are and what he wants her to do. These are the moments when Cillian Murphy shines and shows how thrillers and horror can be an actor's medium. Granted, he was pretty self confident that nobody would be eavesdropping, and towards the end, it gets a bit silly when the way he sounds reminded of a Denis Leary bit about a family of cancer patients who all have voice boxes. Then again, he can headbutt someone (bah gawd!) without anyone noticing, soo... that evens it out, I guess?

This might not be his best work, but I can tell you that Uncle Wes delivers a very entertaining thriller. The tension and the games between Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy keep you invested. Wonder why she did not venture into thrillers more often. Oh, well. The direction puts a nice spin on the “no reach” cliché and, yes, Uncle Wes can make a goofy looking pen look scary. So it's understandable that this movie made Bravo's list of 30 Even Scarier Movie Moments, even though The People Under The Stairs of The Hills Have Eyes are in my opinion scarier Craven-films.

Recommended for fans of a solid thriller and people who discovered one of Craven's classics and want to explore his work.

Baby Driver 2017 ★★★

From what I understand, Baby Driver is Edgar Wright's biggest commercial success. And the opening with Jon Spencer is pretty damn impressive.

That said, this did not make the same impression on me as his other gems. To be honest, it did not do all that much for me.

There were good things. Jamie Fox was good as the curmudgeon nutter in the group and I liked Spacey as Lord Boss Crime. And the bits between Baby and the deaf character were sometimes touching.

But the actor playing Baby was not all that charismatic and – at least for me – the chemistry between Baby and Deborah was not all that convincing. The visual stylings were there, but by Edgar Wright's standards, I was expecting more. The action just felt too slick and generic action like.

Yummy 2019 ★★½

Yummy mostly falls into the category “it's cool that we can do this in this country rather than always yadda yadda yadda”. A Belgian zombie film? A Belgian zombie comedy? I'm in.

The opening scene immediately has you covered. A shady doctor burning a body and... holy shit, it's Goldberg!

And he gets killed by a burning zombie?! Bah gawd, that man had a family!! (Yes, my JR still sucks)

We follow a couple on their way to a plastic surgeon in order for the woman to get breast reduction. The first thing that strikes me: the actor playing the boyfriend... I have seen him in only one role so far and there he played a softie. Here, his character is... a bit of a softie. Oh, and he ticks off the trope of the med school student who can not stand the sight of blood. How many of those have we had since Dead Snow?

Maaike Cafmeyer – as far as I know – had her first venture into the horror genre and she seems to be having fun with the girlfriend part. And there's the mother in law who – in the words of her daughter – spends her whole life trying to look like a teenage whore. She's (dyed) blonde and kind of douchy. What a surprise.

They end up in the kind of hospital that fits better in the universe of Hostel than that of ER or Scrubs, with sleazy staff and Clara Cleymans doing the type of charicature like Russian accent that could strike a chord with Ukranians.

Then a zombie escapes and all goes to hell. Resulting in a mix of gore, splatter and adolescent screwball humor that does not really rise above the crop. Been there, done that. Even what's supposed to be the big tearful goodbye did not really do all that much for me.

So it's not that original, but it does not have to be. It's definetily not as funny as Shaun of the dead, but it will get a few (ironic) chuckles out of you.

Recommended for people looking for some silly popcorn fun.

Trip 2022 ★★★

For the people with tldr-syndrome: Worst. Smoothie. Ever.

All jokes aside, Trip is a surprisingly solid ghost story that deals with topics like mental health and suicide. A lot more than one would expect from a movie that is available for free on Youtube.

I am not going to spoil anything, but suffice it to say that it goes into how difficult it is for the patients to express the state they are in and what they are going through, not to mention how difficult it is for their loved ones to know how to approach them. Or the faith that we put in doctors, psychiatrists and such and such.

Here is the link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk06Gb9Z0Kk

Check it out.

Be My Cat: A Film for Anne 2015 ★★★★

It's hard for me to say that I “liked” it since I have rarely been this uncomfortable watching a movie. That said, that is in essence the goal of this film. So that's a rather large feather in mister Tofei's cap.

From the first minute, Movie Adrian's presence puts you off balance with his incoherent rambling and his forced laughter. Over the course of the film, the kills become more gruesome and Movie Adrian becomes more and more unhinged. Especially in the moments when he lets his guard down. It's at these moments that we gets a glimpse of how warped his psyche really is.

Yes, this is a hurt soul. But this is also the type of warped mind who takes the stories about Stanley Kubrick and Shelly Duvall and then thinks that's how all directors should treat their cast.

Is there cinematographic merit to it? Yes.

First of all, props to the actors for making it look and sound convincing. Not easy in a genre known for small budgets.

Tofei also does a good job using the what you don't see is more scary than what you do see-trope. Especially in the torture scene with Flori.

He even manages to sneak in a few cinema nods. Some of the moments with Flori were reminiscent of the scene with Robert De Niro and Illeana Douglas in the Cape Fear remake. And it seemed like Tofei was sometimes purposely licking his lips in an attempt to channel Ledger in The Dark Knight.

A must see for every horror fan. Just don't expect anything cosy.

[Amaltheaunicorn2023]

[IMG]https://dMG]

[Tommy Jarvis]

His Name Was Jason: A Friday the 13th Fan Film 2021 ★★½

This fan film was dedicated to the memory of Steve Dash. I guess that explains why they decided to go with the Burlap Sack-look from part 2 for Jason.

The story, however, seems to be set in the universe of part 3, since that's where most of the callbacks are going: the barn from Higgins Haven, a character that looks like eyeball guy, the crime scene markers of Chucks kill, echoes from the 3D score (without the disco theme though),... Also, the waittress in the dinner kind of looked like an older version of Maddie from The New Blood. Need a little touch up work, my ass.

We follow three guys in a decaying town where all the good jobs are going away. So you get three over the hill with no prospects. Not sure if the movie wants to be social/political, but hearing these three talk, I could not help but see a picture of the type of small town folk that are likely to be convinced/suckered in (delete as appropriate) by someone like Donald Trump. Which kind of makes sense in my opinion.

They head into Camp Crystal Lake and stumble across Jason. Which brings me to my first point of criticism. I understand that other fan films have set a high bar, but this Jason just is not scary. Together with the images of him holding his head in anguish. Or the struggle with Mick. When you grew up watching Jason steamroll the competition, that just feels off.

The general idea is okay, but the dialogues are a bit too much of the same. Cutting a few minutes does not harm this film. Also, after the climax, we get a long final scene with no real pay off. The main good thing about it is that it promises a sequel with a higher death toll.

That said, the kills are okay and get more gruesome as the story progresses. I especially like the barb wire kill and the moment with the gun to Jason's head. You know what will happen, but it's still enjoyable. I also liked the use of the score, giving a nice vibe.

Decent overall. Not perfect, but not terrible either.

[Tommy Jarvis]

Hostel: Part III 2011 ★★★

So the opening sets you up with an innocent looking American boy and a hot, Ukranian couple. So predictable, right? And then... swerve! For full disclosure, there is also a swerve at the very end, but you can that one coming a mile away. The delivery is much better on the first one.

In this one, the action moves to Vegas with a bachelor party.
Bride to be: Should I worry?
Groom: No, of course not.
Womp womp.

In their race for adventure and their hunger for sex and infidelity, they of course end up with a US branch of the elite torture club. In spite of the main character heeding the words of Chris Rock: Can't wait for GI... I'm sorry, I meant No sex in the champagne room.

This time, they have set up shop somewhere near Fremont. Even for experienced movie viewers, doing that on the strip would require too much suspension of disbelief. The actual torture scenes are as gruesome as you would expect. Especially the first one stands out with the audience betting on what the torturer will do next.

The acting is no great shakes, though Chris Coy delivers a solid villain/main henchman. Lord boss crime is a lot more forgettable this time around.

Oh, and... *Sean William Scott-voice* Carter, you dick!

Red Eye 2017 ★

A pretty forgettable slasher with no link to the Wes Craven helmed namesake.

The Headless-tee was pretty sweet, though.

The Final Destination 2009 ★★½

Final Destination, the franchise that's like a trusty knife. Always ready to deliver when you are in the mood for some gore.

In this fourth installment, we follow Nick and his friends Lori and Janet. And there's a guy called Hunt, though, throughout the movie, I get the impression that they spelled the c wrong.

They are attending a Nascar-race where they come across a mechanic, a cowboy and a racist called Carter. Thus keeping in tune with the Carter, you dick!-theme. Also... a racist at a Nascar-race? Who woulda thunk it?

Of course, Nick gets a premonition and they escape impending doom. After that, they go through the same song and dance as in the previous installments: the elaborate kills, figuring out the scheme, trying to “cheat death”,... yadda yadda yadda. No Tony Todd this time. Sadly.

The kills are good, though. Spectacular, bloody, gory with the characteristic build-up. And that's what I came here for.

Triangle of Sadness 2022 ★★★

Funny thing: even when you watch a comedy in an arthouse-ish theatre with a supposedly edumacated crowd, it's still the shit- and the barf-jokes that get the biggest laughs.

It's certainly relevant for these times as it pokes fun at current themes like influencers (though a movie like The Joneses in my opinion perhaps did it better) and income inequality. And granted, it got a few laughs from me as well. So it's definetily worth seeing. Is it the masterpiece the blurb promises? Not... really. The back and forths between Woody Harrelson and the Russian are kind of funny, but other than that, it does not get much further than a lot of “boy, rich people sure are weird”-jokes. And models and influencers are shallow and self centered. What else is new?

The story was well told and the running time rolled by swiftly. A sign of a well told story. Woody Harrelson is good as the reluctant captain. Zlatko Buric reprises a more tongue in cheek version of his character in 2012. The other characters are well placed, though none of them really stood out all that much.

[classic_horror_fan]

The Ghastlies is a B comedy horror that is meant to be stupid and campy looking but funny, and it is funny and entertaining in that sort of over the top way. It parodies the classic Ghoulies, Critters, Munchies, and Hobgoblins films from the 1980s. It begins with a silly satanic ritual gone wrong due to an unexpected disruption from a flying saucer from outer space with little space aliens who are, of course, the ghastlies. The story continues five years later, with a group of girls spending the weekend together on a camping trip out in that same area, who then have one of their boyfriends and a friend of his suddenly pop up to join them. They then, of course, get unexpected visits from the ghastlies. The plot and storyline are predictable, like they are meant to be, but there is plenty of good humorous drama and dialogue to keep it funny and entertaining, along with keeping interest. The actions and kill scenes are funny and entertaining when remembering it is parodying the other movies mentioned above from the 1980s. It is definitely not great, but fun and worth a look for those into parodies and movies like the ones mentioned above.