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The Hollow (2015)
Should Have Been Titled "EMMA!!!"
Let me start off by saying if, god forbid, I ever had another child and it was a girl, 'Emma' would be the last choice on my list of baby names and it's all thanks to this film.
Actually, not even the last choice. There's a negative one billion chance that 'Emma' would ever make the cut.
But I digress.
This shallow excuse for a horror plot revolves around three stunningly idiotic sisters who are going to visit their aunt on some remote island after their parents were killed in a car wreck. The youngest sister, Emma, was also there and barely survived herself according to the middle sister, Marley, though Emma shows no outward physical signs of trauma. Just a mopey teenage girl who is already hurling head-long into goffdom at the age of fourteen.
I give it another year before she's painting her eyes black and donning spiked dog collars while listening to The Cure on repeat.
Since the car wreck, EMMA! is understandably devastated, but she takes it just a teensy bit too far with her, "Everyone around me dies," schtick. But she is correct. Everyone around her does die, but it's only because she keeps running off on her own which prompts her sisters to constantly chase her around the island, shouting, "Emma! EMMA!!!! EMMA!!!!!!!!"
Obviously the townsfolk know a lot more about what's going on than the Three Stooges here, but despite their repeated advice to stfu, Sarah and Marley are steadfast in their pursuit, not to mention their complete inability to care about anyone else aside from EMMA!!
"Whoops, we just got another islander killed with our incessant shrieking. Oh well. EMMA!!!!!"
The two older sisters seem to be under the impression that they are just as expendable as the islanders. The audience nods in agreement.
On another note: Marley seems to be suffering from a terrible case of Middle Child Syndrome. Just an observation.
Honestly at this point, just let the stupid kid go where she wants and if she gets eaten by the big scary fiery twig monster, so be it.
Also, what was up with Seth? What's his story? Does he have one? Does anyone even care?
All in all, the premise was promising, the atmosphere was primed for some great spookiness, but the execution was a god awful failure. The only "horror" I experienced was the fact that this film made it to publication. There was little to no plot and if you even figured out what that was, congratulations. There was no character development, not even among the sisters.
The smart people died off quickly while the three insipid baffoons remained alive until the end. Only in a cliched horror flick is that ever possible, though I still can't figure out why.
You're Next (2011)
Talent Skips A Generation
Or so the saying goes. This film is a perfect example of that.
At first we're led to believe that the people attacking this family are masked strangers, but we soon learn that this is a money grab attempt.
We have Paul and Aubrey Davison, two successful people who have done well for themselves and their children. They are kind, generous, loving folks who welcome their now grown kids as well as their significant others into their home to celebrate their wedding anniversary.
Personally, the blood and gore are nowhere near as gut-wrenching (pun intended) as the premise. Children who grew up with privilege and with warm, supportive parents, yet lack their talent and charisma and are failing miserably at life. It's absolutely sickening to me that these now adult children went so far as to plan these murders ahead of time in the hopes that the police would believe the killers were random strangers so that they would inherit their parents' money.
These children lack so little humanity, it's difficult to believe they weren't adopted. After they murder their sister's boyfriend and then their sister, they brutally murder their own mother in her bed while she's devastated over her daughter's death.
After they take out their father, the inevitable happens: They turn on each other. Not surprising after the way these grown men behaved before the killings. Spoiled and whiny, generally unlikable people which leads me to wonder what Erin ever saw in Crispian.
So we have a group of wonderful people gathered together in what is supposed to be an enjoyable family event, but they are cut down in their prime by those they trusted most. For greed.
All in all, I really enjoyed this film and its deeply troubling theme that leaves you wondering who you can trust when those you love turn on you. Coupled with the extremely satisfying ending where Erin delivers some much overdue justice, I give this film an 8 out of 10.
The characters are very believable and the actors did a good job in their execution (pun intended). It had enough suspense and the element of surprise to keep me on the edge of my seat and I love the complexity of the villains, instead of the cookie cutter slashers of many films in its genre.
I think what gets me the most about this particular film is that there is no tragic backstory on the villains' part. No catastrophic events that brought them to this point. It's simply the deeply flawed nature of the human condition.
Dark Skies (2013)
Eerie
I love invasion films and I thought this movie was fantastic. Both Keri Russell and Josh Hamilton were great as the stressed out parents who go from worrying about financial problems to fighting for their kids' lives.
I think the film makers did a really good job balancing the emotional aspects of the Barret family's struggles with the creepy factor. They had just the right amount of both to create a well- rounded atmosphere of angst and fear. Enough emotion to allow the audience to be able to relate to the protagonists, but not so much that it becomes a drama with an alien invasion in the background.
I particularly loved the scene with J.K. Simmons as the resigned alien expert who's had more than his fair share of harassment from our galactic visitors. I thought that was an important turning point since films depicting an alien invasion usually tend to portray humans as somehow being their equal, when in reality, that probably wouldn't be the case. Simmons portrayed a man who was beyond tired and who knows the hopelessness of the situation.
The last half hour gets a little confusing, but after watching it a couple of times, I think I finally figured out what's actually happening. Unfortunately, there's no happy ending here which makes the concept of an invasion a little more realistic in this film and I found that refreshing, if not heartbreaking.
It's not a flash-boom-bang kind of invasion movie like Independence Day. In a way, that makes the concept a little more frightening. For these aliens, we are lab rats. Guinea pigs for their experiments, whether it's for their own scientific gain, or because they get some sort of sick pleasure from it. We never know why, just like the animals we experiment on will never know why. We find out the hard way that we are not at the top of the food chain, so to speak.
Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
Strong Women Kicking Butt!
I love all the Resident Evil films, but this was probably one of my favorites in the franchise.
For starters, it was great to see many familiar faces return to the screen for this installment. The return of Michelle Rodriguez, Sienna Guillory, Oded Fehr, and Colin Salmon was terrific.
Although the acting was a bit contrived, it didn't really dampen my enjoyment of this movie because the action scenes, fight sequences, special effects, and the music was simply top notch.
One of my favorite things about this film (as in all of these films) is the leading ladies. Jovovich, Rodriguez, Guillory, and Bingbing Li stole the spotlight as the primary fighters and they didn't disappoint. No damsels in distress here! Not only can the women keep up with the guys, but they excel at it.
A lot of times, the kids in these kinds of movies can be irritating, but that was not the case with Becky, at least for me. I thought she was adorable and sweet. See? Kids don't always have to be pouting brats. :)
The final fight scene was the best part of the whole movie and Jovovich and Guillory killed it. I also loved watching Rodriguez square off with Luther and Leon, despite the fact that they were easily twice her size, though the loss of Luther was heartbreaking. I was also relieved that Jill was freed from the influence of the Red Queen. Loved her in Apocalypse.
It was an interesting twist that Wesker turned against Umbrella to help save mankind and I'm curious to see how he turns out in the next film and whether or not Alice makes good on her promise to kill him. I also hope to see the return of Chris and Clair Redfield.
Very enjoyable film if you can look past the somewhat hokey acting and I look forward to the next installment.
2012 (2009)
Atrocious
I was very excited about this film when it came out. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to the hype.
Normally, I like John Cusack and I think he's done great work, but this was just...in a word, awful.
I can get behind "check your brain at the door" films for the most part and can even suspend my inner skeptic when it comes to lack of realism in fiction, as long as it's done in a way that doesn't make me feel patronized. But, that's exactly what this film did.
The effects were good, I'll give it that, but that's pretty much the only thing it had going for it.
***Possible Spoilers***
I found the characters to be nauseatingly insipid with the notable exceptions of Danny Glover and Woody Harrelson. Unfortunately, they had very tiny roles in the film and were killed off fairly early. In all honesty, I found myself empathizing with the lowly extras who met their untimely demises more than I could empathize with any of the main characters.
They essentially gave John Cusack superhuman powers what with his apparently previously unknown ability as the World's Best Driver. Seriously, what was this guy doing chauffeuring around rich Russian boxers when he could have been starring in the Indy 500? The amount of times he and his family defied death throughout this film was insulting to anyone with a few brain cells to rub together. A close call, or two, I can get behind that, but this was just ridiculous.
The little girl was cute, but the boy was just annoyingly petulant through the first half of the movie and only slightly less annoying through the second half. Amanda Peet did an okay job, but her character struck me as enormously self-absorbed, begging the old Chinese woman to save her kids when she seemed to have little regard for the lives that were lost all around her. She also barely batted an eye when her boyfriend/husband lost his life in a heroic attempt to save her and her kids. In fact, they were all like that. The only times anyone showed any interest in someone besides themselves was when Danny Glover sacrificed his life while helping injured people and one, or two lines delivered by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandi Newton and that was when they were already safely aboard the Arc.
And can we stop with the broken up relationship and killing off the new love interest just so the main couple can get back together trope? Good grief.
If all that wasn't bad enough, the ending was so unbelievably insulting, I practically retched on my popcorn. John Cusack and his family survive the massive flood despite the odds and when it's all said and done, the survivors aboard the Arc watch the sunrise. There are no tears. No shock, or devastation as one would expect when nearly 7 billion lives are wiped off the face of the earth. No, they're freaking SMILING. Just one happy family again and the little girl doesn't even need Pull-Ups anymore! Yay. *gag* I literally wanted to smack every single one of them and demand my money back.
Twister (1996)
Great Fun!
In my opinion, Twister is a timeless classic and I have the tradition of watching it at least once every spring. Yes, it is one of those "turn off your brain" films, but sometimes I like doing just that. The atmosphere was very thrilling for me as well as the suspense and the cinematography was very well done.
The music never fails to give me goosebumps and I love that Van Halen was featured throughout the movie and the guitar solo during the end credits was breathtaking.
The film has a very distinct "blue collar" feel to it which I love and it's not something you see very often in Hollywood. And it's not the mocking, in-your-face kind of representation either. It's very low- key and presented as a normal way of life, as it is for many Americans. Being a mid-westerner, I appreciated that aspect greatly.
***Mild Spoilers***
I loved the bickering interactions between Paxton and Hunt and their crew was a fun, lovable bunch. Jamie Gertz was absolutely adorable as the reproductive therapist who finds herself in over her head. Cary Elwez did a great job as the egocentric, sniveling weasel of a rival, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman was a lot of fun in his role as Dusty.
Yes, there are some flaws, mainly the segue between action and emotion, which I'd imagine is extremely tough to balance, especially in a 90 minute film. Some people thought there wasn't enough of the emotional aspect which can make it hard for the audience to sympathize with the characters. They tried to sprinkle it in here and there, but with much of the film focusing on the action, it's hard to give your characters any depth and it makes the audience wonder why they should care. And then you have those who would rather do without any of the drama. I can sympathize as I don't always feel the need to focus on it and would rather get right to the nitty gritty. Still, you can't please everyone.
Overall, it's a fun, action-packed film that I will continue to enjoy for years to come.
Deep Impact (1998)
Genuinely Enjoyed It
I am a sucker for sci-fi and disaster films. I'll take those over romcoms any day. Normally, I'm not a fan of too much drama in my sci-fi flicks, but in this case, I really enjoyed it. Much more than I enjoyed the touch-the-surface emotions of Armageddon. I found myself able to empathize with the characters in this film and felt their pain like it was my own.
Unlike other reviewers, I enjoyed Tea Leoni's performance as a woman who bottled up her emotions, whether it was because she felt she needed to remain professional, or because she had difficulty expressing them and she managed to pull that off quite well. I also really liked the segments of the astronauts aboard the Messiah. Those scenes I found to be very touching and...human. Morgan Freeman was also stellar in his performance as the President. I thought the acting was very well done, maybe not Oscar worthy, but very good nonetheless.
***Spoiler***
The only stipulation I had with this film was the scene where Leo and his family are getting ready to go into the caves, Leo decides he's going back for Sarah. His parents just basically give him a hug and wish him well. Lol wut??? The kid can't even drive yet and you're going to send him off into chaos, by himself, with an extinction-level comet about to strike the earth within the next few hours. I couldn't believe the parents would actually just let him go like that. Absolutely ludicrous! It just struck me as ridiculously selfish. At the very least, I would have either gone with my child, or dragged his butt into the cave with me, not given him a "nice knowing you" pat on the back and sent him on his way.
The girl's parents were much more realistic in how they sent both their children with Leo in a desperate attempt to get them to safety and stayed behind where they were inevitably killed in the tsunami. That's what real parents do.
All in all, it was a great film and definitely one of those I will go back to time and again.