Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009
Halloween DVD Reviews
This week we sort through some frightening flicks on DVD to help you get the most scare for your buck on Halloween.
"Trick 'r Treat"
This is a movie that went straight to video but really deserved a theatrical release. Four separate stories interwoven into one cohesive plot, it is like watching an awesome "Tales from the Crypt" episode without the annoying skeleton interrupting a good story with corny one-liners. If this movie doesn't get rented on any other day, it is a perfect title for All Hollows Eve.
"drag me to hell"
Before he directed the "Spiderman" trilogy, Sam Raimi helmed another trilogy. The "Evil Dead" is possibly the most groundbreaking horror franchise of all time. Raimi returns to his "Evil Dead" roots with this one and rightfully so, the script was written shortly after he finished "Army of Darkness." Extended fight scenes between two women - one being more than 80-years-old - dancing demons, cool plot twists. Raimi has always made horror fun and superheroes have not dulled his edge in any way.
"surveillance"
With a dad like David Lynch, you wouldn't expect Jennifer Chambers Lynch to make "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 3"would you? With a Lynch, you expect strange and disturbed and she doesn't disappoint. As a matter of fact, Jennifer Lynch does something in this film that her father, in recent years, has forgotten how to do. Make a strange, disturbing film without losing the plot. The scenes are a contrast of either darkly lit rooms or blinking, yellowing fluorescent lights. An eye for menacing suspense may not be an inherited trait but whether it is nature or nurture, Jennifer Lynch definitely got the good family genes.
"horsemen"
This movie is a poor man's "Seven." It looks good and the serial killer plot is intriguing, not deftly told, but intriguing. Dennis Quaid is a haggard cop, running from his past and trying to be a good father. There are some rather trite scenes, making Quaid come off as a kinder, gentler Popeye O'Doyle look-alike. The movie from opening title to ending credits is only 80 minutes, so it is no epic, but it is enough to satisfy the fans of the serial killer genre until something better comes along.
"coraline"
Henry Selick, director of "The Nightmare Before Christmas," is the king of stop-motion animation. He is able to balance creepy and kind and he makes fun movies that can be enjoyed by kids and adults. Neil Gaiman wrote the book that this film is based on and he is at the top of the totem pole when it comes to fantasy and horror. He has a writing style that can appeal to both young and older audiences. "Coraline" is dark but it is also creatively done and interesting to watch and there's a bonus: it is in 3-D.