Random Horror

Being fairly new to the reviewing game, I was anxious to see what would be revealed from the first ever screener I had been sent. That screener came in the form of Christopher R. Witherspoon’s Rage. Written and Directed by Witherspoon, it appears to have an impressive level of pedigree. Judging by the numerous accolades attached to this film from various festivals, Rage has definitely impressed!  A bit of background info informed me that Witherspoon has been involved at various levels in some impressive titles including Re-Animator, a personal favourite of mine. Despite having never heard of Witherspoon or of his previous attempt in the Directors chair, 2004’s drama “Middle Man”. After reading a lot of glowing reviews for Rage, I was definitely looking forward to giving it a whirl. Rage tells the story of a seemingly average day in the life of Dennis Twist. He is happily married and appears to have his life sorted. A loving wife, a good job and a nice house in the suburbs of...

This film was released in its native Iceland way back in 2009 under the title The Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre, my copy came with the word Harpoon splashed across the cover! After a tiny bit of research, Wikipedia informed me that the original advertisements displayed the tagline, “should only be seen if you have a sense of humour”, this almost put me off wanting to watch it but; on I charged with the knowledge that Iceland must be capable of putting together a decent film, if their number one cultural export, the quirky and brilliant Björk is anything to go by, this should be very Random indeed! The name Gunnar Hansen is proudly displayed above the title. As a result of this I was expecting good things, despite what I had read on Wiki! What I saw, other than Hansen’s lack of overall screen time was quite possibly one of the best Random Horror Films I have ever seen! Let me begin by saying that anyone that is opposed to whaling or finds any kind of cruelty to animals offensiv...

The first thing I will say about The Task is that the DVD case is not so much misleading but it doesn’t really give you the jist of the film. I have to admit, when I picked it up to put it in the player, I was expecting a crazed killer with a clown mask. Not that I was disappointed with the actual film. In fact, I was quite impressed. For the most part, The Task plays with some very interesting concepts. So it can be more than forgiven for its vague and somewhat misleading cover. The Task is billed as an After Dark Original (Production Company) which boasts titles like An American Haunting and Penny Dreadful among others so it is from good stock, Penny Dreadful being an original and highly enjoyable little horror film (Watch this space for review). Well made and for the most part and well acted out. Extremely high production values and good use of effects and camera work. The script is fairly loose and doesn’t really build the level of characterisation it was aiming for but no...

What can we say about another group of college kids stupid enough to spend Halloween night in a haunted hospital? I’ll tell you, why on Earth did I watch it twice? Boo follows an unfortunate group of kids who decide to try and scare their girlfriends by rigging the local cliché, I mean abandoned haunted hospital with thrills and spills. What they don’t know is that the place really is haunted! Jessie, Kevin, Freddy and Marie make their way to the hospital which has been set up for the scares by Emmett. When they get there, Emmett and his dog have vanished. As they proceed through the house unaware of the ill-fated Emmetts misfortune, they discover more than they bargained for! Don't go to the Third floor! Right, Storyline basics out of the way, Boo delivers very little in any department. Unfortunately, it extends so far that I think it even confuses itself. Absolutely no storyline to get involved in, zero characterisation and a script that makes little to no sense! As a viewer...

It was a cold, dark night in North Yorkshire when I stumbled into my local none descript video rental shop to browse the latest releases. Back when it was cheaper to rent movies than it was to buy, DVD's were the latest (expensive) offering and as such, the VHS enjoyed a twilight period thanks to a massive reduction in prices. It was during this very period that I found myself handing over £3.99 in exchange for the rental of The Blair Witch Project for 2 nights. I made my way home, turned all the lights off and got myself comfortable. Having seen The Blair Witch Project previously at the cinema, I was fully prepared for the following 82 minutes but that didn't sway my initial opinion. It was as good the second time, if not better. I have found that this film seems to get better with each viewing. From the eerily simple opening to its breathtaking ending, it always delivers. The main things that get me though are the little sounds... The...

Another good looking Horror Short to sink our teeth into. This one is brought to us by the guys over at Fatal Pictures. Their previous offerings, Consumption (2008) and Worm (2010) fill us with confidence that this fledgling production company can keep the quality coming. Let's hope that a feature is on the cards in the not too distant future. FATAL PICTURES is proud to announce " FAMILIAR ", a new Horror short starring Robert Nolan, Astrida Auza and Cathryn Hostick as the seemingly idyllic yet ultimately doomed Dodd Family. Written/Directed by Richard Powell, Produced by Zach Green (FATAL PICTURES) Cinematography & Co Producer Michael Jari Davidson shot on RED Digital Cinema. Special FX for the film provided by Ryan Louagie, Carlos Henriques & Steven Dawley (The Butcher Shop)." Through a series of tragic events a middle aged man grows to suspect the negative impulses plaguing his mind may not be his own! For more on Fat...

Make of it what you will but there has to be something in the fact that this film received a second viewing! Having purchased it from my local bargain DVD shop some years ago for a huge £1.99, I found myself giving it further scrutiny. My belief is that you can never fully appreciate any film until you have seen it for a second or sometimes even a third time. However that logic can go out the window with some of the films I watch. However you look at it, Hell Asylum was in my eyes at least good enough to warrant this immense honour. I suppose it was the sight of Joe Estevez in the opening scene that triggers something in your mind that says “It can’t be that bad, that’s Martin Sheen’s little bro!” A quick visit to IMDB finds my staring at a long list of “random” horror films. It is his known for films that include Soultaker, Beach Babes from Beyond, San Franpsycho and Death Row which really puts pain to my statement! But... There is a silver lining. My Estevez is on screen for appro...

Let me start this review with a small question. Do scientists really have these fancy islands somewhere in the world where they can all get together and plan tomorrow’s world? To be honest, I have seen enough films with instances of this to know that it must be true (films say so). Anyway, Growth is another example of why I write this blog. Not to discover the best horror films but those which don’t cost an arm and leg to make, don’t boast the biggest Hollywood stars and above all else show real promise. It seems that the only thing Hollywood can put out in this genre is sub-standard remakes and rubbish exorcist rip-offs (for the record, the original was rubbish too) but within the world of low budget independent horror, we find a great deal of “promise” and every now and then we do find those little gems which makes it all worthwhile. To be perfectly honest, Growth is not without its charm but sadly it lacks a little sparkle. The story starts in 1989, the residents of Cuttyhu...

As much as I should really criticize this film, I find myself on the fence. Despite being full of tired clichés and possessing a storyline which essentially is a combination of two other films, The Ruins was still quite enjoyable. The two films I refer to are The Beach and The Descent, to anyone who has seen these two contrasting films, you will immediately connect the dots upon watching this film. The Ruins starts off on the slow side, picks up in the middle and sadly falls away towards its conclusion which starts to resemble a mediocre creature feature. A group of friends, Jeff, Amy, Eric and Stacy are vacationing in Mexico when they are joined by a mysterious stranger, Mathias. Jonathan Tucker, Shawn Ashmore, Jena Malone and Laura Ramsey play the group of friends and Joe Anderson plays the mysterious stranger. Mathias tells the group about an unearthed, previously lost Mayan pyramid which must be seen. They all set off in search of the rather poorly hidden “lost” pyramid but on a...

What happens when you can’t be bothered to walk upstairs and get another DVD from the office? You end up flicking through the movie channels. Fortunately for me, The Horror Channel is free with the full Sky package. If you like lesser known horror films then you can often find something enjoyable on there. Well anyway, by chance I tuned in just as The Killing Room was starting. A quick check on IMDB revealed the cast list and I was sold. Peter Stormare, Clea DuVall and Nick Cannon were enough to convince me to watch. The Killing Room follows a group of people who are participating in what they think is a Psychological study, it soon becomes apparent that they are involved in something far more sinister. Peter Stormare plays, as he invariably does, a shady foreigner (Not xenophobic, just an observation) Nick Cannon plays a quiet participant as does Clea DuVall. The remaining test subjects are played by Academy Award winner, Timothy Hutton and Shea Whigham. The whole thing is rounded of...