Ju-on (2002)

Rika Nashina, a volunteer social assistant, arrives at a home where she is assigned to visit an elderly woman. But she soon discovers that this is no ordinary house call. The home is haunted by the ghost of a woman called Kayako, and her young son Toshio, who were brutally murdered by Kayako's husband. Now it seems that nobody who comes in contact with the house is safe.

Ju-on is better known to North American audiences as The Grudge, which is the title of the 2004 American remake of the film. It serves up a good number of jumps and a seriously creepy over-all atmosphere. It is not a surprise that this film was amongst the many from Asia that have been snatched up and remade over the past ten years.

Despite being subtitled you can tell that not all of the acting is particularly stellar. Nor is there anything necessarily amazing about any of the make up or effects. It's the story itself, and the way it is played out, that makes the film successful. If you've seen The Grudge and liked it, it's well worth checking out the original likewise if you are a fan of ghost movies in general.

3.5 black cats out of 5
Contains frightening scenes, violence.

The Woman in Black (1989)

A spine-chilling ghost story

A young solicitor is sent to a creepy old mansion in a seaside town to settle the estate of a recluse old widow who has recently passed away. The local people are clearly reluctant to have anything to do with the menacing old home which lies on a plot of land accessible only when the tide is out because otherwise the road is submerged.

But the solicitor ignores their words of warning and proceeds to the house, driven by fear for his job. Once there he is haunted by mysterious sounds and events and by a ghostly woman in black.

Of course this title will be recognized by many due to the movie by the same name which was recently released by Hammer Films. In fact this adaptation was originally a TV film and both films are adaptations of the book by the same name which was written by Susan Hill in 1983. Horror fans who recently saw the new release might be interested to check out this earlier effort.

While short on special effects in comparison to the more recent adaptation, this version of The Woman in Black does manage to pull off creating a creepy atmosphere and enough suspense to keep the viewer interested. Acting, costume, and setting also help to make this an OK little film, especially as a made for TV production.

3.5 toy soldiers out of 5
Contains frightening scenes.

Stake Land (2010)

The Most Dangerous Thing Is To Be Alive.

A vampire epidemic has swept the United States, and much of the planet. A young man by the name of Martin loses his family in a vampire attack, but soon runs in to a vampire slayer and self taught survivalist known only as "Mister".

Mister and Martin head north to a land known as "New Eden". It's really just Canada, the only big surprise being that it took a vampire apocalypse for more American's to figure that one out.

There's only one problem, other than the blood thirsty vampires. A neo-nazi cult calling itself the "Brotherhood" is determined to restart human society on their own maniacal terms, and to "cleanse" all those who oppose them or don't fit into their ideal. It doesn't help much that Mister quite righteously killed two members of the Brotherhood who were attempting to rape a nun.

In the process they make some friends and allies including a former soldier, a pregnant woman, and a young woman who is handy with a crossbow. But can they make it to New Eden alive and in one piece?

This film is dark and gritty, but it is also a story of hope and overcoming adversity. It also has a strong anti-racist undercurrent. It could be seen as a commentary on the state of political life in the United States today.

Stakeland is a refreshing film which, like 30 Days of Night before it, puts vampires back where they should be; in the role of blood thirsty and vicious monsters. This isn't Twilight, but I'd pay good money to see Mister deal definitively with the douche bags from those films so that they could stop making a mockery of the horror genre. An excellent and well made film all around.

4.5 stakes out of 5
Contains violence, gore, language, frightening scenes.

The Fly (1958)

Once it was human... even as you and I!

Dr. Andre Delambre is a scientist who is working on a revolutionary new technology; the ability to transport physical objects from one space to another by atomising and reassembling them.

The experiments seem to be going exceptionally, until he tries it on the family cat, who disappears mysteriously during the attempted transportation. But after a few tweaks, everything seems to be in order and working correctly.

Volunteering himself as the first human test subject, Dr. Delambre hits the switch and climbs in to the transportation chamber. But what he hasn't noticed is that a fly has also entered the chamber, and soon the experiment goes horribly wrong.

The Fly is of course a classic of horror and sci-fi cinema. One has to wonder to what extent Gene Roddenberry, creator of Star Trek, drew inspiration for his transporters from this film. Regardless, The Fly has lived in infamy and has become one of the most famous movie monsters.

This cautionary tale takes the viewer through the development of a technological wonder, a mysterious accident, and finally the moment of horror when The Fly is revealed to his terrified wife, forcing her to take drastic measure.

The film was well received, and led to the release of two sequels The Return of the Fly (1959) and Curse of the Fly (1965). It was remade by director David Cronenberg in 1986.

4 white headed flies out of 5
Contains mild violence and frightening scenes.

To the Devil a Daughter (1976)

...and suddenly the screams of a baby born in Hell!

"Father Michael" (Christopher Lee) is an excommunicated priest who has established a devil worship cult under the guise of a Christian church. His goal is to provide the devil with a daughter who will be his representative on Earth. A young nun named Catherine (Nastassja Kinski) is to become this "daughter" (more specifically the avatar of Astaroth) as of her 18th birthday.

But as her birthday approaches, her biological father has second thoughts about selling his daughters soul, and he seeks the help of a occult novelist in an effort to save her.

To the Devil a Daughter has probably two main claims to fame. For one thing, it is the second to last film to have been released by Hammer prior to its 2008 revival. Christopher Lee, a Hammer Film stalwart, again plays a starring role in this film. His line "It is not heresy... and I will not recant!" was sampled by White Zombie in the song "Super-Charger Heaven" from their well known Astro Creep 2000 album.

Like many other late Hammer films, it clearly made an effort to keep up with the increasingly graphic horror films of the day. In this case this meant more in the way of gratuitous nudity and sexual content rather than violence. This generated some controversy at the time although nothing particularly explicit is actually shown.

The film was actually an adaptation of the 1953 Dennis Wheatley novel by the same name. It was the second such adaptation by Hammer, the first being The Devil Rides Out, which was released in 1968.

To the Devil a Daughter is well acted and well casted, and as with other Hammer films it does well in terms of sets, locations, and (in this case quite weird) imagery given what they were working with. While campy and, sadly, one of Hammer's last dying breaths in the 1970's, this is ultimately an enjoyable if somewhat melodramatic film.

3 devil cults out of 5
Contains nudity, sexual content, violence.

Puppetmaster (1989)

Evil comes in all sizes!

A generally unpleasant gentleman by the name of Neil Gallagher finds the secret of Andre Toulon, a man who had the ability to bring puppets to life and use them to do his bidding.

Now Gallagher has been reported dead as the result of suicide. But when his friends, a group of psychics, are summoned to his house by his grieving widow, they soon grow to suspect that something is not as it seems.

Soon, one by one, they face horrible deaths at the hands of Gallagher's puppets, which include such features as a knife for a hand, a drill for a head, and the ability to vomit leeches.

Puppetmaster is not a rare or little-known film. In fact, it is quite well known within the horror genre and as I prepared to watch it I reflected on this fact and felt somewhat surprised that I had not done so previously. That was before I watched it.

As it turns out, I wasn't missing much. Puppetmaster is campy in the extreme. The musical score is goofy and sounds misplaced, as though it was written for a Disney film set in some mystical land of wonderment. The special effects are cheesy; at least as cheesy as the acting and the haircuts of those performing it.

A few thoughts on the puppets themselves; why and how do they breath, if they are inanimate objects controlled by a master who can bring them to life then how is it that they can react based on emotion, where on earth do all those leeches come from?

Puppetmaster is a mediocre film. It's slow moving and is full of meaningless and repetitive scenes which do nothing to further what little plot there is. On top of this the action, which is sparse to start with, doesn't really begin till towards the end of the film. Even then it is relatively brief and tame. Despite it all, Puppetmaster is part of a ten film franchise and may possibly be converted to 3D. My advice; if you're looking for a film about killed puppets or toys, you're better off to stick to Childs Play, and leave this one on the shelf.

1 drill head out of 5
Contains violence, language.

Se7en (1995)

Seven deadly sins. Seven ways to die.

Detective David Mills (Brad Pitt) and Detective Lt. William Somerset (Morgan Freeman) are two unlikely partners on a mission to find and stop a disturbed serial killer whose crimes are inspired by the seven deadly sins.

One sin after another is punished through the killers' series of grisly and twisted murders. Meanwhile the detectives are strung along by a series of clues that lead them to each of the next attacks. Finally the killer is captured, but his delusional mission is not yet complete. There is still one final, chilling act remaining which he hopes will strike at the heart of a world he believes to be rotten to the core with sin.

Kevin Spacey plays the maniacal "John Doe" in this cult classic. His character is convincingly troubled and troubling all at once. But Spacey isn't the only highlight of the film. The movie is excellently acted all around and Freeman and Pitt are at the top of their games.

The films horrible crimes are described in graphic detail and you are left wondering after each one which sin will be next and in what creatively insane manner the killer will strike. But there is no way to predict the shocking twist ending which undoubtedly played a large role in catapulting the film in to cult status.

4 boxes out of 5
Contains violence, gore, language, disturbing scenes.

Humanoids from the Deep (1980)

From The Caverns Of The Deep... It Strikes!

A small fishing community is split over the development of a cannery which opponents say will lead to the decimation of fish stocks and environmental degradation. Local First Nations are preparing a struggle against the cannery through the courts. Meanwhile, a militant and bigoted pro-cannery gang plan to make sure that the development goes ahead as planned regardless of the cost or the opposition.

What nobody knows is that the company behind the cannery has been engaging in dangerous experiments with genetic modification under an apparently feeble set of safety guidelines. As a result, a new species of amphibious humanoids has developed and rapidly evolved into a dangerous force. Now they are bent on destroying their human neighbours in order to claim the surrounding territory for themselves. Worse yet, they seek to impregnate human females in an alleged effort to speed up their evolutionary process.

Johnny Eagle (Anthony Penya), Dr. Susan Drake (Ann Turkel), Jim Hill (Doug McClure), and Tommy Hill (Breck Constin), to save the village from the mutants, and show the human villains the error of their ways.

Humanoids from the Deep (aka Monster) is actually a decently made and entertaining sci-fi horror film. The monsters are really cool looking and a lot of the make up is well done as well. The acting is reasonable and no, Tommy is not played by Mark Hamill even if it looks and sounds like he is.

Politically this one is interesting. The film obviously comments upon issues surrounding the over-exploitation of natural resources, environmental degradation, racism, Aboriginal rights, and sexism.

That last point might be the one point of contention on account of the unnecessary monster rape scenes which were obviously added for sensationalism alone since they are not necessary to the plot, and the notion that the monsters are consciously breeding with humans in order to further their evolutionary development is both a little unbelievable and probably very scientifically unsound. Meanwhile the film satirizes sexist treatment of women throughout making a mockery of backwards notions. Of course the final scene may very much have been an end in itself for the monster sex attack scenes. Without spoiling it, the final scene was more or less redone just a few years later in a much more famous film and with an even more terrifying effect.

The film was remade as a toned down TV movie in 1996.

4 humanoids out of 5
Contains violence, nudity, sexuality, language.

This Film Is Not Yet Rated (2006)

censorship, uncensored.

Director Kirby Dick explores the mysterious world of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), a secretive organization tasked with rating films in the United States. This Film Is Not Yet Rated takes a look at the history of the MPAA as a self censoring body established by the US film industry, which is predominately controlled by a small handful of massive corporations.

What is the MPAA? Where did it come from? How does it act as a tool for controlling and manipulating American culture and the information that citizens take in? For that matter, who are they?

Watch the film to find out, but for starters they are unelected, appointed by a conservative republican, and include two representative of religious denominations.

Decide for yourself, but it appears clear that the MPAA is an anti-democratic organization bent on imposing their reactionary views on society as a whole. The organization should be disbanded entirely and replaced with either a transparent and elected body, or nothing at all. At any rate, this is an eye opening film which is well worth a watch.

4 bigoted censors out of 5
Contains some nudity, sexuality, language.

American Psycho (2000)

Killer looks.

Patrick Bateman is a young, wealthy investment banking executive working at his fathers firm on Wall Street. But Bateman's role as a Wall Street banker is not the most evil quality about him. That would be the fact that he is a serial killer whose lust for blood is rapidly spiralling out of control. Behind his self absorbed air of bourgeois respectability is a twisted mind and a growing body count which includes homeless people, co-workers, sex trade workers, and others.

Hot on his heals is Detective Donald Kimball, a PI who has been hired to investigate the disappearance of one of Bateman's victims. But Bateman's own mask of sanity is quickly evaporating. He is being overtaken increasingly by intense and violent misanthropic hatred of human kind, and time is running out for anyone who may find themselves in his path.

American Psycho is based on the novel by the same name written in 1991 by Bret Easton Ellis. The books graphic depiction of violence against women attracted the protest of women's organizations and generated substantial protest

Thought I am not in a position to comment on the book as I have not read it, the films main character, Bateman, is undoubtedly a misogynist character. While his hatred is seemingly aimed at all of humanity, his violence is targeted primarily at women, and secondarily at males who he sees as being competition to his masculinity. Additionally, he is an elitist who clearly feels that he is special and entitled, while others around him are lesser, incompetent, even disgusting.

But while the films overall tone is cynical and even tongue in cheek, the murders themselves are certainly not glorified or beautified and Bateman is not depicted as a hero, but rather as the depraved lunatic that he clearly is. He and his vapid work associates muse about their detest for women who they consider to be mere sex objects, a belief that Bateman lives out in having sex with, and then murdering, several women. But what message is the film trying to purvey on these topics? It's never made clear.

Bateman's life is a monotonous and dull one driven by base materialism, greed, and self gratification at the expense of others. In an age when protesters in the thousands are occupying parks, streets, buildings, and squares to protest that very greed and materialism on the part of the 1% as personified by Bateman, one can find a social commentary of another type in the film as well; one about greed and its ability to drive people to unspeakable acts in pursuit of their personal fulfilment. Wall Street executives might not be running around chopping up innocent victims in their apartments, but the human cost of their actions is realistically much higher even than that of Bateman's evil deeds. But I digress.

Is American Psycho scary? Not especially? Suspenseful? At times. Disturbing? Controversial? Sure. One thing is for sure, American Psycho has established itself as a cult film and won't be disappearing in to obscurity any time soon. It was also followed by a sequel, American Psycho 2, although those involved in the first film have distanced themselves from it and have rejected its legitimacy as a sequel.

2.5 chainsaws out of 5
Contains violence/gore, language, nudity/sexuality.