Truth or Die

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 9 Oct 2012
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Staring:  Tom Kane, Liam Boyle, Jack Gordon
Rating? UNRATED?
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 5.6 of 10
Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 22% Audience: 29%
MY RATING: 1

MY REVIEW:
Let me just say that this is a HORROR movie and it's UNRATED!!

Nightmare Factory

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 5 Oct 2012
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Staring:  Documentary
Rating? Unrated TV Movie
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 7.3 of 10
MY RATING: 9

STORYLINE
In 1989, Greg Nicotero quit medical school and headed fro Hollywood to pursue a dream of making monsters. Together with gore masters Howard Berger and Robert Kurtzman, Nicotero went on to create KNB EFX Group, one of the most prolific makeup effects studios in the world.

MY REVIEW:
Love love love loved this movie! It was a look inside the special effects life that has intrigued me since the first time I saw Salem's Lot. This movie is a definite recommendation to any of my fellow horror/gore lovers out there! The non-digital magic that is made under the KNB umbrella is amazing. Loads of "making of" type stuff and a ton of special appearances and Walking Dead. Great movie!

Pitch Perfect

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 5 Oct 2012
Running Time: 112 Minutes
Staring:  Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Rebel Wilson
Rating? R
SPOILERS? NO

REVIEWS
IMDB: 7.3 of 10
Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 81% Audience: 83%
MY RATING: 8

STORYLINE
Beca, a freshman at Barden University, is cajoled into joining the Bellas, her school's all-girl a cappella group. Injecting some much needed energy into their repertoire, the Bellas take on their male rivals in a competition.

MY REVIEW:
You know, I watched this movie because someone else wanted to see it, not Terry. If you fall into one of the following criteria, you will love this movie. I loved it and plan on watching this multiple more times when it is on Netflix.

1. A Girl between the ages of 10 and 60.
2. An a cappella nerd from high school or college
3. Watched and enjoyed Glee.

An American Ghost Story

 Original Title: Revenant

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 1 October 2012
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Staring:  No one you'll know
Rating? UNRATED
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 4.3 of 10
MY RATING: 2 of 10

STORYLINE
When Paul, an unemployed writer, decided to rent and live in a house that's rumored to be haunted, he puts his life and his relationships in grave danger as he obsessively attempts to get the story that will finally make his career.

MY REVIEW:
Again, why did I decide to watch an UNRATED horror movie? I should know better, but since I am on this self-imposed quest to locate the best horror movies available.. I keep watching... in vain it seems..

There is some sort of story that seems to have been tied together with a shoe string. Lets take the main character Paul {Stephen Twardokus}, he wants to write the perfect ghost story and has moved into a house where murders occurred because he thinks that there might be a ghost. Then there;'s his live in girlfriend Stella {Liesel Kopp} has absolutely no problem with this even when he decorates the house EXACTLY like it was when the murders occurred. Sure, lets just assume she's a crazy person as well.

My issues arise about halfway through the movie when the intentions for "finding the truth" are apparently gone. The owner has disappeared and there is no explanation of what did happen to the family. All we see is furniture moving in the dark and a person (or ghost) whatever under a bed sheet.  The movie doesn't even discuss or discover who the supposed ghost was supposed to be.

I gave this movie a 2 because the music and simplicity, as well as a good couple of moments that kept me holding my breath. 

Looper

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 28 Sept 2012
Running Time: 119 Minutes
Staring:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis and Emily Blunt
Rating? R
SPOILERS? NO

REVIEWS
IMDB: 7.5 of 10
MY RATING: 8

STORYLINE
In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past where a hired gun awaits - someone like Joe - who one day learns that the mod wants to 'close the loop' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.

MY REVIEW:
Two words. Excellent and Innovative.

I love Sci-Fi movies and this was definitely packed with all of the things that I love about that genre. The best part to be was Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I love this character and every bit that he put into Joe. This just solidifies it for me that he has come so far and has the chops to pull of any role!

This movie will keep you going with twists and turns and questions which you get to solve by the end with an astounding revelation that was very fresh!

House at the End of the Street

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 21 Sept 2012
Running Time: 101 Minutes
Staring:  Jennifer Lawrence, Elisabeth Shue, Max Thierot
Rating? PG-13
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 5.6 of 10
Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 10% Audience: 42%
MY RATING: 3 of 10

STORYLINE
Newly divorced Sarah and her daughter Elissa find a house of their dreams in a small, upscale, rural town. But when startling and unexplainable events begin to happen, Sarah and Elissa learn the town is in the shadows of a hilling secret.

MY REVIEW:
So the idea of the crazy person who you're not 100% sure if they are a crazy person is thee thing that I did actually enjoy about this movie. The rest was so cliche that I was literally 10 steps ahead of the movie at all times.

The movie stars Jennifer Lawrence as Elissa, daughter of Sarah, played by Elisabeth Shue and creepy obvious-bad guy next door Ryan, who was played by Max Thieriot. When we meet Ryan, we discover that he is the only survivor of his sister Carrie Anne's rampage that killed their family.

Here's my take. Horrid name with a terrible plot and a lacking in suspense and drama that would make this a horror thriller. I was so far ahead of the plot that nothing was really that scary or even thrilling. I sat there watching and just wanted to yell at all of the characters. They were less than developed and definitely less than interesting.

To me, it seemed like a classic Psycho but on a PG-13 nearly PG rating. It just didn't work for me. First and second acts were tolerable, but the third act went downhill pretty quick. Although there were some decent parts the majority of the movie was a letdown for me. 

The Tall Man

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 5 Sept 2012
Running Time: 106 Minutes
Staring:  Jessica Biel
Rating? R
SPOILERS? NO

REVIEWS
IMDB: 6.0 of 10
Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 48% Audience: 38%
MY RATING: 5

THE STORYLINE:
This is about the town of Cold Rock and the legend about the children who are going missing. It's said that an entity known as "The Tall Man" has been taking them. Julia Denning is a local nurse whose husband died years earlier is soon taking care of the local women. Then her child is taken and she discovers theres more to the legend that whet she knows. The townsfolk start to turn on her and then the truth comes out. There's more to the story that just "Who is the Tall Man?"

MY REVIEW:
The idea of this movie was interesting to me. Jessica Biel was the only person that I recognized in the cast. I found it interesting story about an isolated slowly dying mining town where the children are vanishing.  There are the whispers about the "Tall Man" are heard everywhere. That's when Julia played by Jessica Biel finds that her son David has been kidnapped. We do get some interesting twists at this point with some twists that I really didn't see. The first two acts of the movie were pretty decent and that's where it lost me. It became less of a thriller and more social commentary. It falls flat with me that the biggest cover-up in town is less than it could have been. Still a 5 out of 10.

V/H/S

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 31 Aug 2012 (Straight to Video)
Running Time: 116 Minutes
Staring:  Calvin Reeder, Lane Hughes, Adam Wingard
Rating? R
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 5.8 of 10
MY RATING: 7 of 10

STORYLINE
When a group of misfits is hired by an unknown third party to burglarize a desolate house and acquire a rare VHS Tape, they discover more found footage than they bargained for.

MY REVIEW:
There is no in-between for this movie. You will either find it interesting and delightful or a sack of crap.

I was reluctant to watch but decided to go ahead. First of all, it was not the typical movie that you come across. It was new and interesting. Odd maybe. But it works.  It definitely feels that it doesn't have a storyline or a plot, but it seems to work in this case. A bit too much shaky cam for me, but I have never been a big fan.

It was different and enjoyable and unique.

The Awakening

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: USA- 17 Aug 2012
Running Time: 107 Minutes
Staring:  Rebecca Hall, Dominic West, Imelda Staunton..
Rating? R
SPOILERS? YES

REVIEWS
IMDB: 6.5 of 10
MY RATING: 7 of 10

STORYLINE
In 1921, England is overwhelmed bu the loss and grief of World War I. Hoax exposer Florence Cathcart visits a boarding school to explain sightings of a child ghost. Everything she believes unravels as the 'missing' begin to show themselves.

MY REVIEW:
A horror story this is not. Thriller, yes. Creepy and flawed ghost story, yes.

It's fairly original for an old ghost story. I like the settings and the traditional feel. It's effective in its use of creaking doors and mysterious sounds as well as the use of light and darkness to set the scene in this gloomy English countryside mansion. Most of the plot twists were a little obvious to me, the fanatic horror movie watcher.

What sold me on this movie was the use of traditional scares and very little reliance on special effects. This is a good old English film with a good old English cast that gives insight to the frailty of fear and makes up for the few flaws with character development and understated tension.

What I did not find effective was the underdevelopment of  the finale. Could have used some good old-fashioned thriller magic.
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Total Recall

GENERAL INFORMATION
Release Info: 3 Aug 2012
Running Time: 118 Minutes
Staring:  Colin Farrell, Bokeem Woodbine, Bryan Cranston, Kate Bekinsale, Jessica Biel
Rating? PG-13
SPOILERS? NO

REVIEWS
IMDB: 6.3 of 10
Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 30% Audience: 47%
MY RATING: 5 of 10

MY REVIEW:
I am not a huge fan of remakes and in general feel that if the original wasn't broken, there is no need to mess with it! I think this was a pretty decent case of exactly that!

We get some of the same ideas from the original Total Recall from 1990, but the pieces that were the integral portions were missing for me. Mars? Where is the idea of Mars? No Doug Quaid played by Collin Farrell saying "Get your ass to Mars." No three booked aliens in the mutant sector? No mutants in general.

So, the earth is decimated and Douglas Quaid can't get the idea of his adventurous dreams out of his head. He gets his ass to Recall where they implant vacations. Same plat as before. Lori Quaid was Sharon Stone and is now Kate Beckinsale. I was saddened to have Melina not the leader of the mutant rebellion, but not to see Jessica Biel.

The missing pieces of the original plot to free Mars creates some very unwatchable edits. I was missing a big reason for me to care about the rest of the people. I miss the original. This was good. Not great, but good.