Tag: Thriller

REVIEW: Gothically gorgeous ‘Nosferatu’ is good, not quite great

The last month of 2024 brought us a new tale with the classic vampire Dracu… oh, excuse me. A new tale with the classic vampire Count Orlok.

More than 100 years after the release of the legendary German horror film, a new “Nosferatu” is in cinemas. Like the original from 1922, this remake centers on the married couple Thomas (Nicholas Hoult) and Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) Hutter. The movie picks up with Thomas, a real estate agent, being sent to Transylvania for a sale.

There, Thomas meets Count Orlock (Bill Skarsgard), a nobleman (and secret vampire) who’s seeking a relocation to the German city where the Hutters reside. His reason for wanting to do so is a sort of mental connection the vampire has with Ellen.

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REVIEW: ‘Heretic’ has moderate suspense, though Grant shines

Hugh Grant has entered a villain phase with this and “Dungeons and Dragons,” and I’m all here for it.

In this film, Grant portrays Mr. Reed, a man who appears like a fine fellow at the movie’s outset. Early on, he’s visited by Mormon missionaries Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), and welcomes them into his home to discuss their religion.

To make them feel at ease, he expresses interest in their religion and claims his wife is in the back baking a pie for them to enjoy. However, it soon becomes clear that everything is a ruse, as Mr. Reed traps the two women in his home and is prepared to test their faith in dark ways.

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REVIEW: ‘Smile 2’ shows this concept can only go so far

Sequels to good horror movies can sometimes be tricky to pull off, depending on the concept behind the scares. Unfortunately, despite a solid effort, “Smile 2” doesn’t stick the landing.

The film picks up just six days after the end of the 2022 film, with the smile spirit being passed on from the police officer from the original to a drug dealer. That individual just so happens to be the supplier to a major pop music star named Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), who’s taking pain meds for a lingering injury.

The bad news for Skye is she meets up with her dealer just as he is killed by the smile entity, passing it on to her. As a result, her preparation for a new musical tour turns into a nightmare.

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Adventures in B-Movie Horror 2024: Coast to Coast

This year’s Adventure in B-Movies was a tale of two cities.

The three movies watched for the 2024 edition took place in the nation’s largest metros on both coasts, New York City and Los Angeles. Yes, terror and mayhem take the Big Apple and the City of Angels by storm this year, to varying degrees.

The first two films have an Empire State of mind, while the third shows some California love. So, let’s dive in.

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REVIEW: ‘Alien Romulus’ successfully returns series to its roots

As much as I like Michael Fassbender, I’m glad he was nowhere near this “Alien” entry after the last two.

Set between 1979’s “Alien” and 1986’s “Aliens,” “Romulus begins on a space colony called Jackson’s Star where the protagonist Rain (Cailee Spaeny) resides with her surrogate android brother Andy (David Jonsson). Life for the two is difficult, as they do grueling work on a harsh mining colony to pay a debt.

They get a chance to leave, though, when they join with a group of friends on a sort of escape mission that involves getting some equipment from a defunct space station. It’s necessary to go there as it will allow them to make a long space voyage, but unfortunately, a certain life-form is waiting for them.

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REVIEW: As a thriller, ‘Longlegs’ is laudable, but not quite legendary

Sometimes Nicolas Cage plays a character who’s just a little off. That’s not the case here, because the character he portrays in “Longlegs” is completely off.

In this film, Cage plays a serial killer known as Longlegs who’s been on the loose for decades. To help catch him after a recent family massacre, the head of Oregon’s FBI office brings in Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe). 

Awkward in social situations but completely dedicated to her profession, Harker begins the case with vigor, going over every clue, including letters left by Longlegs. Eventually, she’s able to decode them, but they only lead to more mysteries and memories from her own past.

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REVIEW: After strong start, ‘Maxxxine’ loses moxie in third act

After a trip to the past in “Pearl,” the “X” series has gone back to the present, which for the franchise’s characters, is the 1980s.

“MaXXXine” is set in 1985, with its titular character trying to make it in Hollywood after the events of the film “X,” which took place in 1979. With the stage name Maxine Minx, the protagonist (Mia Goth) is an adult film star who gets a chance at the studio system via a role in a horror flick.

It’s a dangerous time for women in Los Angeles, though, as the Night Stalker murders have recently been taking place. It only gets more dangerous for Maxine, when a mysterious person with knowledge of 79 begins stalking her, leaving dead bodies in their wake.

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REVIEW: ‘Day One’ shows diminishing returns for ‘Quiet Place’ series

“A Quiet Place: Day One” turns out to be quite the bargain, since the movie shows day two and day three as well.

What the title really implies, though, is that this is a spin-off prequel showing how the conflict at play in the previous “Quiet Place” films from 2018 and 2020 started. Set in New York, the film centers on Sam (Lupita Nyong’o), a terminal cancer patient and poet who, emotionally, is barely getting by.

On a day where she decides to go out in the city with others from a hospice center, the sight-by-sound aliens from previous installments begin dropping from the sky. The sudden alien attack pushes her into an effort for survival, and she’s joined along the way by another individual trying to stay alive.

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REVIEW: ‘The First Omen’ is fine, but not phenomenal

There are a few directions a classic horror film can go to build a franchise. One is a series of sequels, another is a remake, and a third option is a prequel. “The Omen” has already done the first two, so a prequel it is.

“The First Omen” is set in 1971, five years before the events of the original 1976 film. The movie centers on Margaret Daino (Nell Tiger Free), an American woman who arrives in Italy to take her vows and become a nun. While she’s initially eager about the opportunity, she slowly becomes wary.

She starts to see suspicious and disturbing things taking place at the religious orphanage and church she lives at, and it becomes more frequent. Her fears are only heightened when she receives a dire warning from the priest Father Brennan (Ralph Ineson).

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REVIEW: ‘Late Night With Devil’ is a solid spin on found footage horror

If this movie was real, I feel like the host would definitely be invited on Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell in the 90s to talk about his experience.

The film centers on Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian), the host of a late-night talk show. His series has its fans and is mostly well received, but always comes in second to the classic king of late-night, Johnny Carson. Stuck with declining ratings and a personal tragedy, Delroy is looking for a turnaround.

He decides he needs to do something big for the Halloween special of his show. The solution is inviting a teenage girl on his show who could possibly be possessed by a demon, among other guests. From there, what begins as a fun night of evening television turns into something terrifying.

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