Reviews

Maybe not the best analogy but basically something is missing from this movie and it's hard to put my finger on it. It was a horror film without enough horror which is the second time this year I felt that way. Overlord was another strange genre mash up. That film was presented as a horror film but was pretty much just action. This "possession" movie was presented as horror but came off as a wannabe drama. Our lead was a cop who froze on the job which resulted in her partner's death. Riddled with guilt she becomes an alcoholic and drug addict. We meet her in the midst of recovery and a break up and that's all well and good but how about a little more backstory on this weirdly powerful demon. She works in a morgue and Hannah's body comes in one night 3 months after she dies in an exorcism. That is briefly explained by her father who breaks into the morgue to try and kill her again. Apparently she keeps getting killed and heals herself by killing others? So...who are all the people she killed in the last 3 months? And the demon having all these powers could have been a lot cooler with a backstory. Perhaps if the writers watched an episode of Angel they could've gotten some ideas. All sorts of elaborate demons throughout that show most if not all with a backstory explaining their powers. Add to that the fact that our lead is a bland actress that makes a boring movie even more boring. The scares were predictable and after awhile the dead body crawling around was just laughable. The word possession in the title was used to attract an audience but there is very litlle reasoning to title this film so since its mostly about the lead's nightshift. To sum up I appreciate they tried to do something different but sometimes the classic stuff done well can suffice. Nothing wrong with cookies and milk.

A wannabe Gone Girl gone horribly wrong thanks to Paul. Stick to Melissa McCarthy crap, Paul drama is not your bag. A dark comedy can work well and I imagine that's what this film was trying for but all it achieved was a mystery that became both cheesy and corny. The tone was all over the place and at times it was just plain awkward to watch. This movie ended up being a drama trying to be funny and a comedy trying to be dramatic. Blake Lively was the most interesting part of the film with a good performance but an even better character that was reduced to nothing more than a bland villain when she could've been more. Anna Kendrick plays Anna Kendrick as usual with her awkward crappy acting. The twists were just okay and the ending with our villain being struck by a car was almost as stupid as who was driving the car. I don't know about the book but what a painfully dumb movie with such potential that fell flat on its ass.

This movie isn't what you expected after seeing the trailer however it is what you would expect from Tyler Perry. He can never seem to grasp the difference between a movie and a play. He seems to always cast overactors in his movies which works for plays but looks stupid in a film. His villains are also always over the top as if the audience is too stupid to figure who the villain is otherwise. I didn't like the fact that her husband and his new fiance get together so quickly with no attraction or chemistry shown between the two of them prior to that. In the end if his fiance really was pregnant I think begging for her baby's life would've made the scene more realistic. All and all another mediocre film from an overrated director. Having said that it wasn't terrible at all. It was entertaining the way a lifetime movie is but Taraji turned in an awesome performance and in no way is comparable to a mediocre lifetime movie actress. She definitely carried this film and should have had better supporting actors cast to match her talent.

This movie had the potential to be better but was really just okay. I didn't like the premise very much and the way the events unfolded was pretty lazy. I think there should have been a little more backstory on the family and the cult itself. Also why make one of the characters a marine and then not utilize it? You would think the Marine would be the bad ass but he was pretty much as easily expendable as the rest of the characters. Spoiler alert: the family was killed off so easily it was borderline boring. It reminded me of so many movies that were better from the obvious You're Next, The Strangers and even The Purge. Also the beginning of the movie was never explained and the ending was just weak. In other words if this movie were a soda it would be watered down and flat.

The main problem I had going in to see this movie was that I hadn't seen the original. I wonder if it was any better because this one wasn't very good. Ellen Page's character was the only one who had an experience similar to what people who have had near-death experiences described as far as floating out of your body. The "afterlife" experiences the other characters had were mostly just memories of their lives. One character was even riding around on a motorcycle in an empty city. If that's the afterlife there's not much to look forward to then. The movie was approached too much from a scientific point of view. It didn't seem as though they were experiencing the afterlife simply that they were dead and their brains remained active as they do after death. The side effects they experienced after they flat-lined just seemed like weak attempts to throw in some scares and had weak explanations as to why they were occurring. The end scenes where the girl flat lines herself was pointless and basically just used as an excuse to show more weird scenes for scare factor. In my opinion movies about the afterlife are more interesting when they're approached from a religious point of view. Movies like Hereafter and Ghost show you the kind of afterlife that you would want to experience. You're free, you see loved ones, and if you weren't a good person you see darkness. This movie also did remind me of the Lazarus Effect which I thought was actually more entertaining. It was clear this movie wasn't trying to be meaningful or interesting it was basically just trying to be a horror movie which was disappointing.

This is probably going to be one of the best horror films of 2017 however that's not saying much. I know this year there's the infamous Leatherface returning for what looks like one of the worst in the Texas Chainsaw franchise and in October the Saw franchise will release Jigsaw which most know will be a gorefest with very little story like most of them are. So I can appreciate that this film did try to do an original story unfortunately it's not that original. This was basically the Wishmaster meets Final Destination with elements of The Craft and The Possession all rolled into one. However since they are all good films I think imitating them wasn't a bad thing. I won't bore you with a summary as I'm sure you know what the movie is about I'll just say I think Joey King is growing into a fine leading lady. It was an all-around decent cast and storyline however I do think it would have been more interesting if the demon had actually made an appearance. The death sequences were a little too predictable and I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. While I liked that the ending made sense and I understand why it turned out that way I'm just not sure it was the best finale to the film. Still good job. Entertaining. Worth a watch.

This was a movie that added absolutely nothing to The Conjuring franchise. I think Annabelle was a pretty decent scare and I think the main reason why is because the majority of that movie was happening to one person whereas this film is happening to a house full of people thus making it not as effectively scary. Much like The Conjuring 2 I felt most of it was pretty predictable and what made it truly futile was the fact that they still never say exactly where the demon that possesses the doll comes from in the first place. It was basically as though their daughter died and ta da demon appears. Usually there's a Ouija board or some sort of seance that brings a demon forth but this movie thought they'd bypass that. Then you have to watch a child actor pretend to be possessed most of the movie which I think most will agree after The Exorcist every director wants Linda Blair but never gets one. Personally I was not a fan of The Conjuring 2 and I was not a fan of this film either. Annabelle was not as good as The Conjuring and what really makes The Conjuring worth watching in the first place is Ed and Lorraine Warren. Those characters based on the real- life people are about as realistic as these films can get. The film had its moments most of what you see in the preview but let's be honest this was simply pointless.

A lot of movies these days are based off of books because Hollywood cannot think of anything original on their own. It's unfortunate though when they base a movie off a book and don't stick to the book's storyline which ends up being why people say the book was better. This is the case with The Dinner where two families gather to discuss a crime their sons have committed and whether or not they should let them get away with it or turn their sons in. Throughout the dinner in the novel the leading character flashes back to times when he showed behavior that is typically that of a sociopath. In the book he doesn't show much emotion neither does his son which is why he believes his son is like him. The movie however paints the leading character as overly emotional and mental. Also you're going to end the movie with all the characters on their cell phones talking to god knows who and the main character laughing hysterically. Lame. In the book their son Michael kills his cousin Bo and gets rid of his body. He does this without remorse just as he committed the crime leading you to believe he is a sociopath like his father. Also at a restaurant across the street the main character's wife hits the politician brother over the head with a wine bottle to prevent him from throwing the press conference. He ends up in the hospital and she gets arrested. I don't mind that they decided to make the characters American but I do mind that they ruined the story and for one not as good. They took away a lot and added in nothing remarkable. As a book it was entertaining and memorable however as a movie it was weird, confusing and boring.

I guess if you're a Coppola they'll let you make any crap movie you want. Literally nothing happens in this movie but you were reeled in by a trailer that leads you to believe there will be vengeance of some sort from these women. Wonder why. Could it be because he literally shouts "what have you done to me you vengeful bitches!" This is the second movie this year I've seen with a misleading trailer. The first being It comes at night which was a very poor title because literally nothing came at night but nighttime. This movie too has an exceptional cast with a storyline that falls flat as a pancake. Here goes the summary: guy shows up wounded, women take him in until he heals, girls are all smitten, guy fools around with girl, girl he told he loves catches them and pushes him down stairs, guy breaks leg so they amputate it, guy wakes up and gets angry, women can't live with angry man, women poison him with bad mushrooms. The end. This was boring from start to finish so much so no music at all plays during the film so every scene feels dull and lifeless. I love how people say slow burn. That's like when you say big but you really mean fat. I went in for a hell hath no fury like a woman scorned movie and got Pride and prejudice. Hated it.

This was not an actual Lifetime film though I'm sure they will show it at some point. So I thought I'd love seeing Katherine Heigl play a villain since she hasn't stopped playing Izzy from Grey's Anatomy in years. She is literally the exact same character in all of her films. I thought her performance was pretty decent but sadly the part was poorly written like the rest of the movie. Nevermind that I predicted just by watching the trailer Katherine's character was going to die in the end most likely at the hands of Rosario but where is the mystery in between? There was no suspense, every move was predictable right down to the end and the end cat fight sucked. The leading male who is cast basically to play the clueless moron that these cats are fighting over had no chemistry with Rosario Dawson's character. At one point there's the most forced and awkward "sex" scene between the two. They both looked uncomfortable before, during, and after the "sex". Mostly the film was boring and the pace was ridiculously slow the whole time. My last complaint is casting Rosario Dawson to play the bambi eyed damsel. If you cast her as a tough gun toting bitch (Sin City) or a ball busting boss lady(Unstoppable) I believe that but she's too "hard" for this role not soft as needed. Same thing happened casting Kristen Stewart as Bella but I digress. If it's that they wanted a woman of color do Kerry Washington or better yet Hallie B. They both do the shaken damsel in distress beautifully. Not the worst film in the psycho obsessed "fatal attraction" genre but certainly not the best. Pretty forgettable though ironically enough.

Got this crap movie at Redbox because of IMDb good reviews. What the hell? Did I see a different movie? I hated this film from start to finish. Mediocre acting mixed with incredibly forgettable characters. The opening of this movie was so pointless and didn't have anything to do with the rest of the film. There's also some Grudge looking ghost girl that had no point in being there. Half of the movie is the mundane leading woman's dreams which is a typical supernatural horror movie cop out. The flashbacks of their therapy sessions were almost comical since the therapist in the scenes never said anything while the couple argued. Finally the "twist" ending was such a lame attempt at being The Others it was laughable and just left unanswered questions. When did the little girl actually drown? How did she murder everyone? And most importantly they never even say she died yet she's a ghost in the end. And of course since she's a murderer let's usher her into the bright light at the end. What a joke. This movie was forgettable at best but basically just terrible. As far as British horror goes they should leave horror for the Japanese since they're a million times better at it. Though Eden Lake is probably the best British horror film I've seen this film was crap.

This movie is literally about a stranger killing strangers. It begins with a group of Mexicans in a truck being smuggled into the United States. Their truck breaks down leaving them with no choice but to cross on foot. Meanwhile a hunter and his dog are out hunting rabbits. Soon he sees the immigrants crossing and begins picking them off one by one. This would have been sad if you knew anything at all about these people. There was absolutely no emotional connection to any of these characters. Watching them get killed was not emotionally gripping or even the entertainment you feel when watching shallow or cruel characters get killed off in horror films. Our villain has no backstory as to why he despises immigrants so much he decides out of the blue to murder several people. There's no flashbacks of his racist father and he doesn't have PTSD or something to let the audience in on his intentions. They don't even specify on whether or not he's done this before. It's just like well I was out walking my dog and decided to murder. Really makes you miss Negan cause he'll tell you in a heartbeat the motive behind his intentions cause he's an actual villain. Most of the movie is him chasing the ones that got away. There's a bit of character development between two of the characters but feels like too little too late at that point. In the end I felt sorriest for the dog but I won't spoil why. The whole movie I was not emotionally connected so there wasn't anybody to root for personally though I understand who I was supposed to be rooting for. I thought the end was mundane and the villain begging for his life felt so out of character for him seeing as how he hated them so much. Now on the political front too many people took this crap too seriously. It's a horror movie. You conservatives AND liberals have to see everything as just that; liberal or conservative. Let it go it's a movie.

What's hard for me to figure out is why the books don't translate well into films. Both of these films follow the books pretty closely with the exception of changing subtle things like settings and cutting certain things. For instance when you read the book their sex is very descriptive but the sex scenes in this film last all of thirty seconds or so. I still don't find their chemistry to be all that great but better than the first film. They remind me of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart in the sense that it's like well I got picked for the part and you got picked for the part too bad we're not that great together. Which while on that subject safe to say Fifty Shades is basically Twilight for adults. Anastasia or Anna is a virgin like Isabella or Bella. They both love literature and lose it to a man they marry (with one waiting til marriage). Our leading men both with formal names are dark and although appearing confident are insecure. Christian's sister Mia is basically Alice. Also in new moon a crazy chick was after them just like Darker. Edward's father is a doctor. Christian's mother is a doctor. Its almost as if E.L James read Twilight, took out vampires and werewolves, and put in lots of sex. I didn't like the fact that Jack was more evil in the movie than he was in the book. He's basically just used so there can be a third novel/film. Reading the books, however over the top they may be, has been a much better experience than seeing the films. I don't even think people who haven't read the books would like these movies that much because they don't go into as much detail. Also my biggest complaint was that they completely cut out Dr. Flynn Christian's therapist. They insinuate he'll just get better telling Anna his secrets when a big part of his recovery is therapy. Dr. Flynn is literally the one who tells Christian to try a relationship Anna's way. Lastly the soundtrack was terrible. It felt like listening to teeny bop music while watching adults have sex it was weird. Frigging Twilight had a more adult soundtrack! Anyway to sum up for the second time around the books just don't translate well into films. It's nice to stare at pretty actors with great bodies but that's pretty much all these films will ever be.

Don't you love my title? Don't you love how I make a statement? Just like this piece of crap film thinks it does. I don't think the writer realized it was a movie not an abstract painting. Movies have purposes, movies have a beginning, a middle, and an end; movies that build to something usually lead somewhere but this pile of junk leads nowhere! Frustratingly nowhere! Hence the title of my review. It builds and builds and has no release it just ends abruptly if you want to call it an ending. so our leading lady is a cliché. She's a career woman married to a career man whose having an affair which is not shocking at all. She was married once before and her ex-husband,a novelist, sends her his book. Most of the movie is about the guy in the story whose wife and daughter are kidnapped and raped. He works for over a year with a detective to catch the murderers. Now why the entire movie was not that story instead is beyond me. I could give a crap less about how she left her novelist husband after aborting his child just to end up with a cheating husband. Who cares about that storyline since it had no point! That storyline ends with her being stood up in a restaurant drinking scotch. The end. Really? I also found out Tom Ford designs clothes. He should probably stick with that. And the beginning of this movie with fat naked women dancing in slow motion was supposed to be some crap statement when really it was just uncomfortable to watch and stupid. About as pointless as the film itself. The film creator is the man and the audience the woman in my mind. Having said that the "man" is pleased. They made money, managed to get brilliant actors to do their crap film, and live happily ever after in their mansions. I the "woman" or audience if you will am left unsatisfied and $9 shorter but hey glad i could contribute to their yachts. And for those who like this junk and think I'm too dumb to grasp metaphors if thats what this movie thinks it is, one big metaphor for something, I urge you to see a film called Silent House. That is a film full of metaphors and statements that work with a storyline that builds to an actual finale. This is the worst film of the year and I'm saying that in a year when the remake of Ghostbusters came out with a frigging female cast (ohh guess that makes me sexist) as well as the release of the ever so pointless sequel to Independence day. But this film? Absolutely terrible. Rubbish as the Brits say. I wouldn't Netflix it. I wouldn't Redbox it. I'd wait for it to come on Lifetime if you really want to see it that way you can take shots during the commercial breaks just to make it tolerable.