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Aaron_da_miller
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Night Visions (2001)
As with any anthology, some good and some bad episodes
1. The Passenger List 5/10- Has some cool ideas behind it, but nothing really new or shocking.
The Bokor 4/10- The dead body is legitimately worth watching for how ridiculously funny it looks. Bad acting and mediocre script.
2. Dead Air 7/10- Lou Philip Diomand really holds this episode together. Some creepy scenes and good acting make this one stand out.
Renovation 5/10- Very predictable from the beginning, which makes the rest of the episode a bit of a chore to sit through and not very scary.
3. A View through the window 6/10- Really cool sci-fi concept and a good story. I feel it could have been elaborated on a bit though. Great Ending.
Quiet Please 7/10- Cary Elwes was pretty good in this episode. Kind of a comedy up until the end.
4. Now He's Coming Up the Stairs- 5/10- Okay episode, nothing really scary or good about it though.
Used Car 8/10 - Great acting. A few mediocre jump scares and a decent story.
5. Rest Stop 2/10- Nothing but a load of dud false jump scares, where people sneak up on their friends or a friend is standing right behind them when they turn around. No tension and no scares.
After Life 6/10- First half was a little slow, but the second half makes up for it. Good ending too.
6. If a Tree Falls... 6/10- Gets some credit for being interesting and being an original take on a generic subject.
The Occupant 5/10- Okay episode. The main character was stupid and annoying throughout, but had some good tension towards the end and a nice climax.
7. Reunion 4/10- Had some good acting but everything was so predictable.
Neighborhood Watch- 6/10- I liked this one a bit. It had some good acting and I liked the scenario.
8 Bitter Harvest 6/10- Pretty decent episode. Good ending.
My So Called Life and Death- 7/10 - While predictable, I still really enjoyed this episode.
9 The Doghouse 7/10- Had some really good scenes in it.
Still Life 6/10- The beginning was slow, but the resolution made the entire segment worth it.
10 Hate Puppet 8/10- I really liked the concept and execution. The acting was pretty decent as well. My main problem was I felt the ending was a bit anti climatic.
Darkness 4/10- This one had such promise with the premise. Shadow people are one of my favorite (and most underused) horror elements. This one was a letdown from its premise. I feel a full length movie and a bigger budget would have been more suited.
11. The Maze 8/10- Thora Birch is always fun to watch. This episode had a great premise and an excellent execution. One of the best of the series.
Harmony 5/10- Some interesting questions were brought up as to what was going on, but the ultimate answers provided were not well implemented. The finale was really bad as well.
12. Cargo 3/10- This episode was kind of stupid. Jaime Kennedy was not the problem, and was pretty decent in this. It was just the fact that nothing happened until the end and the twist was stupid.
Switch 9/10- This is the best episode of the series. It was trippy and surreal, with some music video editing. I liked the story and the acting, while a little meh, was good enough.
13. Patterns 7/10- Really great acting from both the leads. I liked the
ideas behind the story. Towards the end, it gets a bit comical, but it was still really good.
Voices 5/10- Started out with some potential, but kind of turned for the worse towards the end.
Pyega (2010)
Glimpses of brilliance surrounding by boredom
The kind of movie that wanted to be a slowburn film up until the finale, could not help but show us the goods leading to a disappointing final 10 minutes. The thing about this movie, is that when it decides to be good, it is amazing. There are some genuinely creepy scenes that keep you on the edge of your seat. It even has a WTF! scene where you cannot believe what is happening on the screen. The only problem is, whenever something scary is not happening on screen, there is just boring scenes of people walking around and talking to each other. This destroys the pacing of the movie and makes it a chore to finish. The finale gets confusing for a bit, as you are not exactly sure what is happening. It all leads up to a meaningless jump scene that makes no sense in the context of the found-footage genre. There are even multiple scenes where there is obviously more than one camera being used.
The Good- some truly great horror scenes.
The Bad- rest of the movie is boring.
7eventy 5ive (2007)
Slasher lovers will get their fix
This film is an incredibly mixed bag of a horror movie. It is y scenes, but not enough of them to actual credit the movie with good writing. The opening is pretty stupid, and feels like something a 12 year old would think up as a scary opening.
A huge problem with this movie that goes against slasher formula, is that none of the women are good looking at all. Normally they are just cast to look nice on screen and less for their actual acting ability. However, the women in this movie are neither good looking, or able to act.
Rutger Hauer is in the movie for around 10 minutes worth, though he does not really move the plot forward at all. It felt more like he owed someone a favor and was written into the film to reach a larger viewing base. He does a decent enough job with having no good dialogue. He just intensely stares into the camera, which is scarier than any of the actual horror moments the film presents.
After the initial characterizations, when the killer finally shows up, the film really gets going. The special effects are not that good, but it still presents us with enough fun to make it memorable. I had a good time watching this movie and if you are a fan of slashers, this will definitely pass the time. Has a nice conclusion as well.
The Good- Fun slasher, decent enough gore, some funny moments, ending.
The Bad- ugly people, below average acting, bad opening scene.
--- Note: The original name of the movie is '7eventy 5ive'. If you look carefully, you will see that number in various places throughout the film.
The Theatre Bizarre (2011)
A mixed bag of the bizarre and creepy
Theatre Bizarre [8/10] - The wrap around story takes place in a strange theatre (thus the name). Each Segment is introduced using paper mache type people acting like puppets or something. It is somewhat unsettling and each time it gives a little hint as to what is going to happen in the upcoming story. Udo Kier is fantastic and creepy as his roll as our guide. I feel this wrap around story should have had more of a point to it, but in the end, it only serves as a conduit to get us to the actual segments of the film.
The Mother Of Toads [5/10] - This segment takes its influences from HP Lovecraft, and has some really cool and unsettling imagery in them. Because of the short nature of anthology movies, we were never really given enough time with the characters to really care about them and it also feels as though they had to just wrap it up before being able to do anything. Nice makeup though.
I Love You [6/10] - Relies more on the acting chops from its stars for the majority of this part. It does not go anywhere until the last 2 or so minutes, but it does deliver one heck of a finale.
Wet Dreams [5/10] - Being directed by Savini, you know it is going to have good effects, which it does. The real question is whether it has any substance. To its credit, it does make you question what is going on, but it still feels hallow and never really crosses the line into greatness. Not bad, but not good either.
The Accident [9/10] - It feels out of place next to all these segments of horror and gore. It has a great atmosphere and you sit there wondering just what exactly is going to happen that will make you disgusted. While this never comes, you find the director knows how to set an atmosphere, and you will get a feeling from this segment you will not find in any horror movie.
Vision Stains [9/10] - The best of the entire movie. I will not go into the story, as it is best to not know anything. All I will say is that the effects are fantastic, the music brilliant, and the story original and clever. I will be thinking about this for many weeks to come. Even if you don't like these kinds of movies, you owe it to yourself to check this segment out.
Sweets [8/10] - The most artsy out of all of them. It lacks a bit of substance and you are left wanting a bit more, however the ride it takes you on is fun. There are lots of colors and artsyness that make this short stand out from the rest of the pack. I really liked it, even if I wanted more.
In the end, this is a flawed, but ultimately worth it anthology, that I hope to see more of in the future.