Reviews

Taking place before the events of the first film, The First Omen follows a young nun who moves to Italy and uncovers terrifying conspiracies in the church as they try to birth the anti-Christ.

Nell Tiger Free gives an astounding performance as the young nun caught in a web of religious terror and there are several images that are unforgettable. The Omen franchise doesn't need another sequel or prequel, but The First Omen makes a good case for having one out there in the world. Fantastic cinematography and sound mixing help an awful lot and help to create an unforgettable movie experience. It makes me eager to see where they could possibly go next with this franchise.

Another murderer in a Ghostface costume has been killing people in Woodsboro and it's up to Sam, a young woman who escaped from the town, to figure out who's behind the killings this time with the help of Dewey, Gale, and Sidney.

This new Scream feels like a welcome breath of fresh air. It has all the humor, scares, and surprises of the best entries in the series and the new young cast are a mostly enjoyable group of actors and they're given a lot of support by the dream trio of Arquette, Campbell, and Cox. The final killer reveal isn't the most surprising one of the series , but the mayhem that surrounds it makes it work.

Young influencers buy a run down Texas town and run into the legendary Leatherface who's been in hiding for close to 50 years.

Although the gore quotient is high and the visuals are frequently beautiful, the story makes little sense and the characters are vapid and disposable, making it hard to root for them. If Leatherface is the most likable person in your film, you might want to reevaluate some things.

A serial killer is going after virgins in a small town and the sheriff believes it could be related to an event from the town's past.

There's a lot of classic slasher tropes and cliches in Cherry Falls, but the screenplay is clever enough to deliver them in a tongue in cheek way and the strong performances make up for the lack of any visceral violence or gore.

Years after murdering his father for forcing him into playing baseball, a psychotic man goes after the players on a baseball team on the last day of their season.

Even though this isn't a very expensive production, there's enough creativity to help you power through the reasonable hour and fifteen minute runtime. Some of the murders include death by pitching machine and a nasty baseball bat up the butt. Some of the editing, acting, and cinematography are on the amateur side, but it's entertaining enough for at least one viewing.

A killer returns after years in hiding and resumes their killing spree as the detective on the case tries to stop them.

This is one of Argento's more interesting later films. It has enough style and some really grisly murder sequences to remind you of his past work and the Goblin score is really fantastic. What does work is the chemistry between the two leads. Every time they have a scene, the film deflates and starts to drag.

An American writer witnesses an attempted murder and gets on the wrong side of the attacker as they try to finish him off to keep him from investigating any further.

While not as explicit as future gialli, The Bird With the Crystal Plumage ushered in a new kind of suspense film. It's violent, gory, and overtly sexual at times. The major twist is a real shocker.

An evil witch is accidentally brought back to life and takes revenge on all who wronged her.

Barbara Steele is stunning and it's nearly impossible to take your eyes off of her in her dual role. She doesn't make as much of an impression as the heroine, but she's really memorable as the evil witch. It's not her fault. The heroine is written as your usual damsel in distress. Mario Bava's direction is flawless and has everything look like a dark, black and white fairy tale.

Rivals Madeline and Helen both end up taking an anti-aging potion, but forget to read the fine print and they end up walking zombies after they're killed.

The dark humor is thick with this one and it's got some great, snappy dialogue and spirited performances by Streep, Hawn, and Willis. It balances seriousness and goofiness perfectly and showcases some truly dazzling special effects.

6 years after covering up the accidental murder of a classmate, the guilty students are harassed, stalked, and murdered by a mysterious killer on prom night.

If you're into disco music and high school drama with a tasteful side of slashing, Prom Night will wet your whistle. For those who are more into horror for gore and non-stop action, you'll probably be asleep by the first 30 minutes. To the filmmaker's credit, it does seem to be attempting to make a film a little deeper than your average Friday the 13th sequel but it might be a little overkill.

If you asked me to describe the plot of Lisa and the Devil, I wouldn't know where to begin. It involves a tourist who gets lost from her tour group and gets picked up by strange people and then their car breaks down and they all end up spending the night at a creepy villa in the middle of the woods. The butler may or may not be Satan. I'm very confused, but I'm more than along for the ride.

The trick to enjoying this movie is to treat it like a trippy dream or nightmare where things just happen without rhyme or reason.

Michael Myers escapes the fire set by Laurie Strode and begins a massacre of the entire town of Haddonfield as the residents band together to take him down.

Very little works in this movie. There's not a single scare or moment of suspense to be found in the entire thing, but it is nice seeing some returning characters from previous films. Jamie Lee Curtis has next to nothing to do here and spends most of the film in a hospital bed as Michael kills more and more people in somewhat creative and gory ways.

A rich man invites several people to a supposedly haunted house for his scheming wife's birthday with the promise of money for all who can survive the night.

Vincent Price has a ball playing Frederick and his chemistry with Carol Ohmart as his wicked wife, Annabelle, is delicious and really fun to watch. It's not as silly as one would expect and there's a lot of great spooky atmosphere and even a jolt or two.

A shy church organist survives a car accident that kills her friends and she becomes increasingly more disconnected with the world around her and starts to see strange ghoul-like figures leading her to an abandoned carnival.

Made for next to money with no stars or big special effects, Carnival of Souls is as simplistic and stark as a horror film can get. The black and white photography adds a lot of mood. The images of the people stalking the heroine are sometimes quite alarming and take you by surprise.

A college student takes a job babysitting at a secluded family home and things go from bad to worse and she gets the impression that she's been lured here for nefarious purposes.

The House of the Devil captures the 70's and 80's horror film spirit beautifully and with lots of eye catching detail. Not only are hair and fashions on point, but even film stock and filming styles feel authentic. If the film has any weakness, it's that it seems like it's over right as it's about to get good.

A constable arrives in the small town of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a series of gruesome decapitations that are said to be the work of the supernatural Headless Horseman. As he continues to investigate, he discovers the townspeople might be right.

Loaded with Hammer movie mood, lots of gooey decapitations, and a game cast of talented veteran actors who appear to be having a great time hamming it up in period costumes and wigs.

A brother and sister try to figure out the secrets in a New York apartment building that's said to house one of three dangerous and ancient witches hellbent on world domination.

The thing you must know about a lot of Dario Argento's work is that you need to put yourself in a different head space to enjoy it at times. Inferno is one of his least plot driven and most surreal films and, if you go in with that expectation, you'll be fine. You'll be able to enjoy all the fun colors and gory murder sequences. Try to make sense of it and you'll be left scratching your head.

Sorority and fraternity pledges are forced to spend the night in the spooky Garth Manor where a man went crazy many years ago and killed his whole family. As the night goes on, strange things start to happen and they're more than just the usual college pranks.

Linda Blair returns to horror after the runaway success of The Exorcist, but doesn't have to spew pea soup or wear pounds of makeup this time around. She's charming as the leader of this rag tag group of coeds trying to survive the night as a monstrous killer terrorizes them from the many secret passageways in the house. Mood is strong and many of the film's jump scares are effective thanks to an emphasis on character and suspense rather than gooey splatter.

A brother and sister stab their mother's lover to death as children, but his spirit is preserved in an antique mirror and he returns once they're grown and terrorizes them and anyone in his way.

The Boogey Man is nothing more than a collection of inspirations from Halloween, The Amityville Horror, and The Exorcist but it works in its own odd way. None of the actors (even John Carradine who appears to be reading through his lines) are anything special, but everyone seems ready and willing to play in the strange sandbox this movie puts together. There's more than enough gore for the slasher fans and a few moments of genuine creativity.

After her deaf and mute sister is raped by a gang of thugs, a teenage girl sets out to get justice in her own way.

Linda Blair gets to distance herself a bit from her Exorcist role and play something different. Her scenes with scream queen Linnea Quigley as Blair's sister are moving and the most compelling part of what is, otherwise, a normal revenge film. The characters and dialogue are colorful and things move quickly enough to keep you entertained.

A thriller novelist is terrorized by an obsessive fan during his Italian press tour as bodies begin to pile up with pages of his novel stuck in their mouths.

A return to form for Dario Argento after his experimentation with full-blown supernatural horror with 1977's Suspiria and 1980's Inferno. He's back and better than ever, supplying all sort of awe-inspiring murder sequences and enough twists and turns for 5 mystery movies and all done with an uneasy eroticism.

An English musician witnesses the murder of a psychic in Rome and works with a newspaper reporter to solve the case before he becomes the killer's next victim.

Though Dario Argento had been making a series of similar gory murder mysteries in Italy, Deep Red was his first bonafide horror masterpiece that set him off on becoming one of the most well respected horror filmmakers of all time. The film drips with style and Goblin's experimental rock score only adds to the strange atmosphere that only Argento can create. It's far from your grandmother's typical murder mystery.

A wax artist has his entire museum burnt down and his hands ruined in the process, so he starts up a new museum where the waxworks look alarmingly lifelike.

Bathed in glorious Technicolor, House of Wax is one of Vincent Price's best and most memorable horror films. While it was released theatrically in 3D, it's just as wonderful in regular 2D and features some of the most macabre and harrowing moments of horror in early horror cinema. Some of which still chill to this day.

An artist needs to complete her current project or else all hell will break loose, but she decides to get wasted on booze and drugs instead and ends up having a threeway with a strange couple. After that, her world falls apart as she starts feeling sick and the only thing that can make her feel better is human blood.

Bliss is gorgeously shot and made with a lot of care and the lead's final painting unveiling is stunning, but the lead protagonist is so unlikable that you wish she'd just shut up. Since we're stuck with her for every scene of the film, Bliss becomes a chore to sit through. We don't care if she finishes her painting, figures out why she's craving human blood, or pays her rent. Most of the time, we just wish she'd stop being such an annoying person and bad friend.

High school student, Virginia, is having the worst birthday ever! Not only are her friends disappearing and/or being murdered at an alarming rate, but she's starting to believe she could be responsible due to her frequent blackouts and brain trauma she suffered after a car accident that left her without a mother. Could Virginia really be killing her friends or is someone else responsible?

Direct J. Lee Thompson gives Happy Birthday To Me some much needed class and a little dash of Hitchcockian flair that's missing from most slasher films from this time. It supplies all the gory goods (even in MPAA truncated form) but dares to have a plot even if it is insanely convoluted. It suffers from over length at times, but it's still very entertaining and the final twist is so off the wall that you'll never guess it.