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Reviews
Horror in the High Desert 2: Minerva (2023)
Gets you from the start! Also, THE SEQUEL HAPPENED
In my review of the first one, I said a sequel was definitely set up. No one believed me. Another review even called me out, saying a sequel would never happen.
Well: TOLD YA SO!
If you liked or loved the first movie, you'll probably enjoy this one too. But if you didn't care for the first one, or didn't like the slow burn nature of it, don't write this off.
The 'action' starts a lot more quickly, and the footage becomes very unsettling very quickly. Like the first film, the acting is hit or miss. Thankfully there are more hits than misses. I found myself caring about Minerva and wanting to find out about what happened to her a lot more than the protagonist of the first film, but there are still some great connections to the first film (for example the same reporter character comes back)!
Most importantly: there are more scary moments and unsettling moments than the first movie. It seems the filmmakers definitely listened to the complaints regarding lack of action and pacing.
Do yourself a favor and check it out--before the third one comes out!
Yellow Dragon's Village (2021)
Expecting creepy cannibal horror?...SURPRISE
Marketed as a Japanese cannibal horror movie, this most certainly is NOT that. Well, it is MOST CERTAINLY Japanese. Exceedingly Japanese.
This movie isn't scary. At all. It's fun, though. And that's not a bad thing. The subverting of expectations is the strongest trait of Yellow Dragon's Village. There's questionable acting and even more questionable special effects.
The movie speeds along very, very quickly. The first 5-10 minutes comes off as one genre. It then transitions to the aforementioned creepy backwoods cannibal horror genre. As things happen, you may think to yourself 'really? That's where this going? Well, don't fret, my friend, because where you think it is going, I assure you, it is NOT.
The rest of the movie becomes an entirely genre entirely. I will leave it at that. It's stupid at times, really stupid at other times, but always fun. And the stupidity is clearly intentional, at least at some parts.
Very happy I didn't know anything other than the barebones description going into this. Best experienced that way.
A Wounded Fawn (2022)
Creative dark horror comedy
I'm going to make a bold statement here: most reviewers here are wrong. This is neither a 'modern' horror movie, nor is it just arthouse weirdness.
It is a dark horror comedy comprised of separate 'acts'. The first two 'acts' are set-up. The remainder of the movie is the pay-off, featuring psychedelic gobblydegook that is purposefully weird and pretentious.
The classical art/art snob/art dealer scene is what is being mocked/sent up here, and very well. Josh Ruben brilliantly portrays a maniac who has wholly immersed himself in art snob culture, and it is that lifestyle, and his attempts to evade blame for his evil actions, that lead to the hallucinations he experiences throughout the film.
One hallucination involving the owl figure towards the end crossed the line from amusing to outright ridiculous for me, but overall I was really into it.
Also, the entire film is tied together very neatly with an excellent end scene that continues into the end credits.
If you view this movie with the above perspective--this is what a pretentious art snob foodie who happens to be a serial killer sees--then I think you'll like it more than either just trying to enjoy a horror film or trying to find some deeper meaning.
Dashcam (2021)
World's most annoying protagonist but shockingly good found footage
Get past the first 20 to 30 minutes. That it was you need to do with this movie. If you can't do it, I don't blame you. Annie Hardy does a great job of being an incredibly aggravating and abrasive person. Too great of a job. I can see why a lot of people hate this movie. Either it's a terrible performance, or an incredible performance, since I think we're not supposed to really like her. Either way, she's annoying.
Survive the first part of the movie where it is just her being annoying and tormenting poor Stretch and his girlfriend, and you will be rewarded. Solid found footage horror. It reminded me a lot of some of the v/h/s shorts, like the halloween one from the first one, the cult one and zombie one from the second, and the news reporter one from the v/h/s 94. Just crazy, nonstop shocks and scares that keep getting more insane. And I hate to say it, but through it all, I actually ended up rooting for Annie. Just a little bit.
If you like found footage or enjoyed the director's previous movie, Host (watch it, it's great), you should check this out. Maybe turn the volume down the first 20 minutes before it gets good!
Also, there are some fun cameos from a few people from Host.
Curse of Aurore (2020)
nothing happens until the end
A good found footage movie builds up suspense throughout the film, maybe a few good scares here and there, then culminates in a crazy/shocking climax that "shows" why the footage is found.
What this movie gets wrong is literally NOTHING happens until the end, and what does happen doesn't make the previous movie worth it. The whole flick is three stoners talking about making their movie. Walk 5 miles in any direction in Los Angeles and you can encounter that, probably with more interesting folks.
The one thing this has going for it is the acting. Like, its shockingly good. The three leads do a very good job, the woman specifically (who I guess injured her leg prior to filming lol??? That's dedication), and I could totally buy that they were three friends with a pipedream of making the next great movie, but they're sadly not given a lot to work with.
Midnight Mass (2021)
great acting, questionable originality
GF and I binged this last weekend. We thoroughly enjoyed it overall. The acting makes the show. The older son returning home and the priest are portrayed incredibly by their actors. The overly religious chick makes for a great villain.
Other characters are hit and miss. Some don't get as much attention as they should. Others get too much.
Questionable makeup, especially one character.
By the end of the third episode everything becomes clear, and up until then the story was already a tad predictable. There was one pretty cool twist/event. Some scares especially early one, less scary as the plot becomes clear.
8/10, so year, pretty darn good, here's the thing: I was disappointed in how basic and predictable the story ended up being. Mike Flanagan, the creator, is pretty good, and has worked on a couple Stephen King projects before. King's influence is more than clear here. This has been touted as Flanagan's "original story." It really isn't. I can think of three or four distinct King stories that clearly had more than a little influence on the plot here. One of those King stories, in particular. Just to name it would ruin the plot of this show. If you had told me this was an adaptation of that book, I wouldn't have been surprised. I might have even been impressed.
Complaint about lack of originality and more than a little borrowing from Stephen King aside--well worth the watch.
Found Footage 3D (2016)
Complete waste of time
The 3D gimmick is the only selling point for this movie, and it isn't even good. The acting is better than you'd expect for a low-budget horror movie--that's the only reason I gave it a 3. The problem is the SFX are terrible and the bigger issue is that the main characters are completely unlikable. I'm all for a decent found footage film so long as i care about what's happening. I didn't give a hoot about the three main characters. The other three I found more likable, but there wasn't enough there to make them more interesting.
There's also no build-up or suspense, just 90 minutes of people yelling at each other and making bad decisions until the last 20 minutes.
SKIP.
Red Woods (2021)
Nearly unwatchable due to bad acting
Barely got through this thing. Should be a cool concept: group of "urban explorers" who know each other through social media team up to explore some creepy woods to find out what happened to the protagonist's brother. The only reason this isn't a one is because parts of the opening sequence are cool. All downhill from there. Main guy CANNOT act and the supporting cast isn't better. Why is there a ghost psychic in this? Why don't these idiots just call the cops based on the opening video? I am from this area and there are legit creepy spots like this, but it could have been so much better.
Horror in the High Desert (2021)
DON'T SKIP THIS MOVIE (found footage fans especially)
DUDE. I saw this movie mentioned on a horror fan site and decided to give it a shot--you can only watch it (for free) on Tubi. I was FLOORED by how good this movie is!
It is a documentary format that builds up to a very effective climax. The acting is very hit or miss--the lead guy, his sister, and another character are all very good, the rest not so much. It is a slow burn, but an enjoyable one. Plus the end hints at a sequel! The lead character has a disability, and the way the film handles it and doesn't dwell on it is honestly really awesome.
If you even remotely enjoy this genre (found footage/fake documentary horror), you NEED to watch it. Don't sleep on this! The last 10 minutes alone makes it worth it, I promise!
Malevolent (2018)
Strong start, horrific (and not in the good way) finish
Saw this on Netflix, knew nothing about it beforehand, Florence Pugh is always a plus. What can go wrong, I thought.
Uh, everything.
Starts out great with a cool concept--con artist ghost hunters--and a legitimately good jump scare.
Annnnnnnd its all downhill from there. No good scares, cheap effects, an obvious twist that also has some glaring plotholes, and an absolutely terrible character in the form of the brother who is so utterly unlikable that he brings down the whole movie. The film also includes apparently the most invincible character ever in a way that is utterly laughable.
Reallllly bad. I'm glad Florence Pugh (the only good part of the movie) was able to go on to have success because this could have doomed a less talented performer.