Film Review : Alien -Romulus

 The first two films of this series are classics, one of the few cases where the sequel rivals the original. From there the results have been spotty. This film is supposed to take place just before the first film in the canon. It does not have the benefit of the quality of actors the previous films had as most of the budget went into special effects. Aside from "Prometheus" it might have the most CGI of any of the films but that is just where the industry is heading. With some slow-motion sequences looking like cut scenes from a video game. This leaves the writing and tone of the film as some of it stronger points, though one of these aspects does fall apart in the rushed ending. 

Is the commentary of the movie more about the dangers of AI or how big corporations spit people out with little regard for their lives with the sub-text being the military-industrial complex, which Hollywood takes stabs at without realizing their side of the fence are the main enablers of this. While the face-huggers are the main monsters of the movie, things move fast enough for the audience to see a wider range of varied evolutions of creatures that want to pay homage to all of the movies. It stays true to HR Giger's designs and the almost Lovecraftian mythos behind the aliens. 

It is entertaining when they first explore the abandoned space station it feels like wandering in a haunted house in space. It works off tension more than jump scares. The aliens are always lurking in the periphery. It was entertaining until the pace sped up into a rush cramming special effects and morphing of monsters that did not make sense. The suspension of disbelief was already taxed and they rushed things past the point of what works in the world they created. It was fun until it sped past you. 

Film Review : "Longlegs"

 If the clever trailer had you looking forward to this movie you should not be disappointed as it deviates from the standard Hollywood horror formulas. The premise of a young female FBI agent is tracking a serial killer whose involvement in a series of murders spanning decades might seem like a riff off of "Silence of the Lambs' but aside from the investigative nature rather than being a slasher the similarities end there, and the movies has some twists and turn to keep it in it's own corner of the genre. It looks great, the acting is solid with Nicholas Cage being as bat-shit as the role calls for, and it's smart they kept him out of the trailer, as there is a mild similarity to Buffalo Bill. Though the makeup department has him almost unrecognizable makes him look more like a blond Marilyn Manson. 

One of the film's strengths is the atmosphere it creates, right from the jump. There is a lingering eerie feeling of unease that shows the protagonist's awkwardness with her job. She is almost depicted as being autistic. The creepiness is stronger as this is not a movie that tries to use jump scares, chase scenes, or gore to put you in the uneasy emotional spot that horror movies should. There is a bleakness to this film that is tangible, rather than shocking you into submission, or keeping you at the edge of your seat, though you do become invested in the labyrinth they lead you into. Director Osgood Perkins is the son of Anthony Perkins of "Psycho" fame, so horror is in his blood. I really like 'Gretel and Hansel" and while this film is not devoid of supernatural elements, it's more grounded in reality than his take on the folk story. 

I would not say Nic Cage steals the show, but he adds the perfect color of crazy this film needed, as well as immerses himself in the role in a way where you do not see him as Nic Cage, but as the character he portrays which might make this the best role of his career. But all of the acting his strong. Is this movie perfect, no but it is better than anything else that has come out this year so far, with "In a Violent Nature" being the next closest film in the running for the top spot. The more realistic manner of violence in this movie is what elevates it from 'In a Violent Nature" which was also visually interesting. If you are tired of Blumhouse dumbing things down to the younger audience they are aiming for, then this movie is refreshing, as it is a grim affair with an ending that leaves no one unscathed by darkness the ambiance casts around it. 

Film Review - "In a Violent Nature"

 If it has not been a reboot or remake of an already established legacy character, not much new blood has really been shed in the slasher genre of horror. There have been note-worthy serial killer films, but not slashers in the vein of Friday the 13th or Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  The puritanical tone of Western Culture plays a part in this, as toxic masculinity is railed against in the court of public opinion, it makes the sensitive people pleasing souls of Hollywood capitulate. Canadian Film Maker Chris Nash, boldly leaves his thumbprint on the genre, with a different take that manages to be savage, yet introspective enough not to ruffle feathers. 

Nash went about making the movie as if he was shooting a nature documentary. This film's title reflects how nature has nurtured the waking machine of violence that rises from the earth to go on the kind of rampage that is more familiar to horror fans. The pace at which this revenge is pursued is where it brings something new to the table. The scenery is often the focal point, and things come full circle to point to how the vast forest is scary in its own right with its isolating breadth. There is a hyper-realistic quality about the pacing and how everything is shot, the lack of tension built by a creepy score, yet when it gets time for violence, it's like they brought in the FX crew from "Terrifier". Some it I wish they had just read an anatomy book, rather than some of the absurd manner they try to contort a human body. This is not a deal breaker, but it keeps this from being a flawless master class in taking chance in horror to a very tasteful cult classic

At the halfway point of the year, this is likely the best horror movie so far, though there is not much competition with 'Late Night With the Devil" the only movie that comes close, and it is done in such a different manner the only thing the two films have in common is the fact they both fall within the horror genre. The movies with the biggest buzz like 'I Saw the TV Glow' just outright sucked, so much so I could not even bring myself to waste any more time thinking about it by reviewing it..  What this movie does right is doing something different that you can take seriously, and the willingness to indludge in sadism. 

Film Review - "Late Night With the Devil'

This homage to the 1970s and the tone of horror back then is appreciated even when the execution might be questionable. The camp factor and suspension of disbelief compensate for a great deal in terms of what the budget might have restricted them to. This is aided by the found footage nature of the movie.  I think a big strength of the film is that it does not try to be another A24 or Millenial Teen Horror movie. It does not care about your feelings. Sure some of the concepts including the possessed girl might be well-worn horror tropes but they are approached from a fresh perspective. 

The movie ie might not take itself seriously but never crosses over into comedy, which it's unsure if that is, in fact, its intention. The humor comes across as an awkward diversion to avoid feeling the tension. This might be the most realistic part of the film. You never really care about the characters that much to become invested in their impending demise. You also can not say this movie has a happy ending, which is another plus in my book, as I prefer horror to be as bleak as possible, with no hope, which is horrifying in the emotional sense.  The movie plays with darker concepts, but never plunges you firmly into them, but still works for what they are going for. 

The best thing about this movie is so far this year Hollywood, as leaned in on remakes and rehasing movies rather than offering the audience a choice of picking fresh new content. This feels like when it comes to horror this has been worse, as "Immaculate" and the Omen prequel were almost the same movie, I did not review both because it would have been redundant, at least this is not a remake, and feels like some creative chances were taken, I think the very fact they did so made this work perhaps even more than the reality of what was committed to film as I was relieved to at least have the option of something new even if it was winking in the direction of a particular era, making that easily forgivable.  

Film Review : "Immaculate"

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 The terrors of motherhood. Antichrist babies. Church conspiracies. All themes started showing up on both big and small screens. This may have bubbled up from the collective unconsciousness. This is not director Micheal Mohan's first time working with lead Sydney Sweeney as she was also in his recent thriller for Amazon 'the Voyuers".  Sweeny earns her top billing as her acting pretty much carries the movie. Thematically nothing is new here, except for the fact it is set in a convent. 

Visually this movie is heavily influenced by both Hammer Horror and Mario Bava. The movie is a slow burn that works off a building creepiness and sense of paranoid unease that fuels movies like "Rosemary's Baby".  The script is not airtight, but the slow burn allows you to get to know Sweeny's character. This is not unlikable, a great deal of newer horror movies have terrible Millenial protagonists who are not only brats but so annoying you are hoping they did slow deaths. Speaking of which, this movie is not super violent, but enough blood is spilled for it to be worthwhile. There is a torture scene I did not expect but there is a very 70s Spanish Horror movie feel to it , as it makes no attempt to look realistic. 

The Church as the antagonist and some nefarious priests, who are secretly worshipping the devil, are pretty realistic. In fact the Church has the largest collection of occult books in the world, so much so that there was a widespread underground book market that thrived in New York in the 60's. Some little details like that might have worked well, as there is little occult mythology built into the motives so that this plot would have made more sense rather than being a knock off of other horror movies, but for what it is things work well enough to have kept me entertained and Sweeny makes a great scream queen. 

the Top 10 Horror Movies of 2023

Horror had a decent year in 2023. However contrary to popular belief it is not all A24 of Blumhouse, Shudder brought some strong indie fare. Social Media certainly shapes the way horror is marketed to us now. Most of the movies that got all the buzz were either hyped around concepts like the bear themes of a  bear on cocaine or Winnie the Pooh as the killer, While in other cases they got word of mouth from younger audiences who ignored the finer points of things like character development.  The key to horror is it has to somehow make me feel uneasy. Just gore is not enough, in fact, the new "Saw" movie bored the hell out of me. This year the things that went bump in the night included witches, cults, demons, Aliens, goblins, massive monsters, and the twisted minds of just fucked up people. 

These might not be the movies that got the best Rotten Tomatoes score, though they all did pretty decent, nor are they the most popular as the most mass-marketed movies tend to be for the lower common denominator. If your favorite movie is not on the list, it is not because I did not see it as I saw most horror movies that graced small screens and the inner webs this year, it is because in some cases your favorite movie was unimpressive or trying too hard, in other's well it was not that scary. So, these are movies that proved to engage me in some way more than the other horror movies not on this list. Here are the top ten horror movies of 2023

10 -"Unwelcome" 

This folk horror yarn set in Ireland lives up to the studio pitch of being "Straw Dogs" meets "Gremlins" , though the creatures look like they are from Labyrinth, and the home invasion elements could have been more invasive. 

9-No One Will Save You 

Aliens are an underused theme in horror, this movie is better than the more obtuse '"Nope", despite not having a killer chimp. It also lacks the bouncy house ship but is better for it. Well made though nothing to take all that seriously. 

7-Suitable Flesh 

This movie has a great deal going for it. Heather Graham, who is now popping up in a bunch of horror movies, steals the show. It's more of an homage to Stuart Gordan than HP Lovecraft., despite being an adaptation of "The Thing at the Doorstep". All of which adds up to being great, not the biggest budget, but that helps capture the Stuart Gordon feel, we have Barbra Crampton in it, who does not look 65, to add to the Gordon legacy. It would have ranked higher if everyone's acting lived up to Heather's. 

6-Skinamarink 

This bizarre film feels like a found footage film. I think where I found it particularly disturbing is the presence that drove the children to hurt themselves. Not fond of that idea, but for them to make me uncomfortable le with it means they were effective at what they were doing. Not sure that this is a movie worth multiple viewings as it loses the effect, but works well for the lack of budget, and the creative vision that brought this to life.

https://nastiferateau.blogspot.com/2023/01/film-review-skinamarink.html

6-Malum

This remake of 2014's "Last Shift", benefits from great costuming, and design work that gives it the edge over the original despite falling into a few plot holes here and there the bleak mood of the movie keeps the story fresh.

5-Hellhouse llc Origins : the Carmicheal Manor

I do not have the aversion to found footage movies like some people do. In fact, if they are well done I like them a great deal and enjoyed the bulk of the "Paranormal Activity" films. This takes that formula and makes a mockumentary of it. I binged all of the Hellhouse franchise during Halloween and while this installment feels like a more distant sequel to those films I appreciate how they kept the mythology going and reframed things.

4-Huesra- the Bone Woman This "Rosemary's Baby" like take on pregnancy has been done several times already this year, including the most recent session of American Horror Story.. This is less about a devil baby, but the struggles of being pregnant from a psychological perspective and the witchcraft here is the cure. One of the best takes on witches and one of the most realistic even with some of the movies more nightmarish surrealism.

3-Godzilla  Minus  One 

Where most Godzilla movies are monster movies that present the title character as more of a superhero, this Toho film made him the clear-cut antagonist. Sure it is a cautionary tale against weapons of war, but he presents a real menace against the most fully formed supporting cast of humans we have seen in a Godzilla film yet, it was not just a great horror movie this movie stood shoulder to shoulder with any action or science fiction film taking you back to the classic age of cinema in many ways, it is however not as disturbing or dark as the top two films putting here at number 3.

https://nastiferateau.blogspot.com/2023/12/file-review-godzilla-minus-one.html

2-When Evil Lurks 

This timely film captured an apocalyptic feel, and if you were not paying attention you might assume this to be a zombie flick, but it is actually about demons, and the depiction of the possessed parties is one of the more unique perspectives. Along with characters you care about, even when horror movie decision-making comes into play. The feeling of unease it captures is impressive, making it one of the top horror movies of the year.

1-"Infinity Pool" 

This movie is horror but not in the ways you think of horror. The concept is equal parts sci-fi in the concept of cloning. The body horror twisting the sense of identity was something also explored in director/ writer Brandon Cronenberg's last film "Possessor" Here it is taken a step further. It is bleak and disturbing enough to be horror, in the way it asks questions about the human condition. Each answer to this question is grimmer than the next. 

https://nastiferateau.blogspot.com/2023/01/film-review-infinity-pool.html

File Review : "Godzilla Minus One"

It would have been hard for Toho Films to have messed this up. But they were committed to making more than just a monster movie, they wanted to make a movie that stood up against other genres. You do not have to be into Godzilla to enjoy this movie. Granted this is coming from someone who has been a fan of Godzilla for over 45 years. This has not made me like American films like the recent mess that is "King Kong vs Godzilla".  This movie stomps that film like Godzilla stomps through Tokyo. By taking it back to post-World War 2 they were wisely able to craft something with the feel of the period while making the most of the special effects of today, but not abandoning practical effects together. 

I feel like I need to watch a making-of-documentary to fully wrap my head around the movie. But that would be overthinking it. It is the best Godzilla design yet as it takes the massive scale of the creature and makes it make sense, even when it comes to his nuclear breath. Sure there are bursts of emotional exclamation that feel like they are from an anime, and there is also the lack of other big monsters for Godzilla to fight, which leaves him as the antagonist. The ex-kamikaze pilot who fills the role of the protagonist, feels like he could have stepped out of "Attack on Titan". But their humanity keeps you invested enough, though I might have asked for fewer humans and more Godzilla, but get why the story is told in the manner it is. 

I have not seen "Oppenheimer" but imagine this is a similar cautionary tale. It shows the costs of war, and Godzilla serves as the force of nature that is man's reckoning. No matter how cute the little kids whose lives hang in balance are, it is hard for me to root against Godzilla, the best I could do is similar to the destruction you see in Gaza, is a" you better get the fuck out of there and run to survive or your ass is about to get stepped on". I think the parallels drawn here are not intentional in that regard, but Godzilla represents the horrors that man brings on himself, this movie just personalized it. One of the best kaiju movies in recent memory even if it is just man vs the force of nature that is Godzilla.