jmbovan-47-160173 Reviews

Infested (2023)

Miserable situation and people. Plus, Spiders!

[3/10 · 5 May 2024]

So, some guys caoture spiders foe the black market selling. But not before we realize these are highly poisonous spiders. And then a guy buys one for his home "vivarium." And of course, it gets out of his cage. And it infests the building, having more spiders that mutate to larger and larger sizes.

First, the building and people in it are in a downtrodden state. And they are just miserable with each other. Second, the building is rather dark making much of what happens difficult to see. Third, the people are generally upset with each other most of the time.

The spiders almost seem secondary to the film. They are added to make the situation more difficult for the characters in their misery. Fun!

Of course there's attempts at character development so we can feel something for the people as spiders start attacking the residents. But, there isn't much to develop given the misery of these lives.

Oh! And don't forget oppression by the state in terms the police being hindered by "protocol."

Just kind of a bummer of a film with blah feelings. Not that scary, and not that engaging.

Mean Spirited (2022)

Weak YouTuber failing

[3/10 · 5 May 2024]

Mean Spirited is housed with Man Childs who try to be successful doing pranks on YouTube. And the main guy holds a grudge for his best friend that left and because Hollywood famous. So, first guy wants to do an expose video about why his friend left him and show everyone what's wrong with said famous friend.

Just on that, this film packs a high annoyance factor. Now add in something supernatural is happen. To annoying Bros with grudges. Wow! Torturous.

So something happened in the past on to the friend who left when the two were making a video prank. And that was the start of all the trouble. Huh. Inspiring.

Nothing new here. Nothing very interesting. It looks decent on camera. Beyond that, I was bored, and I didn't care for any of the characters. So the non-ending doesn't hold much in terms of giving much meaning to this derivative lackluster of a movie.

The Jester (II) (2023)

Flat Terrifier that tries for morality

[3/10 · 4 May 2024]

The Jester sets it's self with a supernatural element of a masked silent man. So Terrifier but spooky, except there isn't enough gore to equal Terrifier. And the overall tone and acting in the film maintains a slow, flat, two dimensional quality. Ho Hum. (And I'm not a huge fan of the Terrifier films either, but they pack a punch.)

The other element they added to The Jester is that there is a morality element to it. They try to humanize the characters. But, this just polarizes characters into one main quality without given much possibility for growth. Not that I'm looking for growth in a horror film, but when the makers add morality to the plot motivations, I would hope for something a bit more than this saccharine attempt of adding depth to this film.

So in summary, less bloody than Terrifier. Less tense than Terrifier. Trying to copy Terrifier and upgrade with characters and morality aspects. More flat of a film. Ho Hum.

The Hanged Girl (2023)

Low rent drivel

[2/10 · 2 May 2024]

This film tries hard to say something inside if a haunted setting. Unfortunately, the message isn't very subtle, and the messaging is heavy handed. The characters are one dimensional, and the plotting suffers with similar one note points.

I'm confused on the haunted part of the story as this isn't really present other than as a setting element. Otherwise, the plot is just people who aren't willing to be honest with each other. Oh, and one character is Muslim, for whatever that is worth. And that seems to be a point of prejudice.

The plotting has many slow and dull moments. They seemed to just fill time with anything they could find to point the camera. Or have random emoting from the movie actors. Or over the top stereotypical behaviors.

And, don't expect much clarification about what is happening or what happened. They don't offer much except a cliched twist, leaving the story pointless from the supernatural elements that they don't explore. Amazing that mildly deranged hatred is a major point in a movie.

You can skip this one without any worries.

Haunting Fear (1990 Video)

Hokey low rent production.

[4/10 · 29 April 2024]

Woman is haunted by nightmares. Her husband doesn't care much as he's having an affair wirh his secretary. Dumb husband needs money. They plot to kill his wife. She has something Freaky buried deep inside her. Don't wake it though.

Production values are low and match a home video quality. Dialogue is basic, acting subadequate. Storyline is basic ABC with a few moments that drew illogical questions to me. (We see two dreams, but neither are of the fear the character describes. Motivation is low for characters. Outcome feels forced with a twist just because why not?

Overall, slow moving, simple plotting, amateur acting, middle storyline, and an ending that lacks clarity make this movie boring.

Prey for the Devil (2022)

Love not Hate.

[7/10 · 21 April 2024]

Prey for thr Devil looks at a young nun who is self compelled to study for the exorcism rites. She can only participate on the nursing and caretaking side, given that only males are able to lead the rites. And the church is being more progressive in their approach, employing more extensive medical and psychological evaluations before a person is ever considered to be possessed, and thus there are more strict rules for the rites of exorcism to be used.

That's the storyline for this movie. But that's not the movie. The young nun has a personal connection to possession as she believes her abusive mother was possessed. (This is revealed early in the movie, and thus not a spoiler for the plot.)

While there is some modern feminism fight displayed in the patriarchal structure of the Catholic church, that isn't the heavy issue at play. What is more prominent is how the Church goes about exorcism. And in that process, the movie is able to show the terror and humanity at stake with possession.

Good film worth a watch.

The Eternal Daughter (2022)

Enmeshed Daughter?

[3/10 · 16 April 2024]

Eternal Daughter is a contemplative film, seeped in the British traditions. Somehow, this film made a slow contemplative process even slower. Nothing much happens other than polite apologetic conversation and avoidance between a mother and a daughter (both played well by Tilda Swinton).

And then they continue with their conversations, and remembrance, and avoidance. And Tilda takes her dog for a walk. Oh wait! It's Christmas time! And her mother's birthday!

I won't spoil the plot of the film. Nor will I spoil the slow, ponderous, unsurprising turn of events that ends the film. Polite, reserved, British folks don't make for an exciting film.

Enys Men (2022)

Slow contemplative film aiming for something

[4/10 · 16 April 2024]

Enys Men is a slow contemplative film. Little dialogue is present as it is largely a one woman show. We see her actions and existence as she monitors a rare flower on an isolated island off the Cornish coast.

Ans this is where reality stops. The production and quality of the film give it a decidedly 70s grainy feeling, and this fits the time period I believe the film is set. So, it makes sense that there are some experimental elements to the production in terms of camera angels, how the story unfolds, and some of the random images that they present. As the movie progresses, the main character appears to struggle even more with what is real and not real.

That all being said, this movie makes no real effort to have clarity of the story. The woman is on the island. She appears to go a bit mad. There are other suggestions as to what could have happened to her, why she would choose this assignment, as it is rather isolated. Other than that, nothing is meant to make sense.

So I guess enjoy it for it's uniqueness. There isn't going to be much more to get from this film.

Lisa Frankenstein (2024)

Dull, Adolescent 80s inspired Frankenstein (?) Movie

[3/10 · 15 April 2024]

I had some expectations for this film. Juno had excellent writing, and Diablo Cody showed us how to do a teenage horror film with bite, wit, and sarcasm with Jennifer's Boday. Somehow, she wrote this tired retred of stereotypical 80s film infused with her still there biting sarcasm and feminism. That I will give her.

But the film unfortunately takes a candy coated approach that leaves us in this world being shown fluffy toys and saying there is meaning and feeling inside of it.

What I saw was selfishness, and cruelty. There was no one that presented as deserving of any empathy or sympathy. Everyone had a trademarked flaw right from a John Hughes film. Ho Hum. The resolution seemed trite and meaningless after all the events of the film. Oh well.

Maybe something can be done to improve these crossover films, but I guess that would take the specialness of Jennifer's Body, and Freaky to combine feminism, social commentary, and horror. This was the film to do it.

Baghead (2023)

Not bad if imperfect and slightly dull

[6/10 · 13 April 2024]

Baghead starts with an act of desperation and quickly moves to a character at her ends and needing help. Viola! Here comes something to help! Except there is a catch. And desperation makes for desperate behaviors.

Baghead has an interesting concept, and it keeps attention to this element. It is a slow burn anxiety that is there to feel, but unfortunately, the choices that lead to chaos are too obvious in the story.

And that's too bad. The movie as a whole is decent. But the path to get to the end left me annoyed with all the motivations of the characters involved. Bad choices, and poor communication make the needed events to reach the climax happen, and this infuses the movie with tired tropes of these types of films. Otherwise, it could have been better.

A 6 for the overall production and quality of acting as it elevates the film.

Talk to Me (I) (2022)

Interesting but repetitive of themes

[6/10 · 10 April 2024]

The film is well produced, looks good, and offers an interesting start to what is ultimately a retread of previous stories. The concept of how things happen is interesting, although it isn't fleshed out well. Then, the story circles familiar ground as the plot plays out in similar patterns with much surprise.

And that is the problem with this film. The general steps of the plot are tropes for these films. 1. Rowdy teens are thrill seeking. 2. Awkward teen is problematic due to her grief over the death of her mother. 3. Adolescent ignorance and excess creates further complications with supernatural elements. 4. The inevitable occurs as the teens can't organize a realistic plan and act impulsively. Fie!

There's nothing wrong either this film. It was an enjoyable watch. It has creepy factors and the supernatural touch. The annoying teenage characters don't help the film as they aren't likeable, appear almost bullying, and make the worst decisions. All of that just creates a disconnect between caring and the scares. Ultimately, the new idea for how the supernatural plays out can't overcome the mild lackluster story that repeats major concepts from the genre.

Heat (2023– )

Overwrote melodrama that's nonsensical

[4/10 · 10 April 2024]

Heat details two families vacationing at one's new home in rural and somewhat isolated Australian outback. Plus, there's a brush fire that builds to to a more rampant forest fire.

Sounds good and intriguing? It begins that way in the first episode. A secret is revealed that is kept silent and potentially is dangerous. Then, more and more, and more secrets are unveiled. Everyone seems to have a secret or knows of a secret. And they keep escalating in terms of the intensity, culminating to a level of absurdity.

And that's what makes this miniseries ultimately fail. Each of the secrets ups the level of betrayal. And the last couple of secrets push the boundaries of that reality, keeping track with implausible elements one after the other. And that just makes this a muddled mess that wants to be dramatic, but barely leaves the real of a soap opera.

Dream Scenario (2023)

Not certain what this supposed to be

[6/10 · 10 April 2024]

Can awkward and uncomfortable be a horror film? Any type of horror?

Nicolas Cage (with yet again a bizarre haircut) plays a college professor that suddenly starts appearing in random people's dreams. He's an awkward nerdy person that appears to be desperate for attention and accolades. But, he's all thought and no action.

The movie progresses through stages of what this unknown experience is, the famousness from people knowing him, etc. But this turns to notoriety as things turn negative and the people turn against the old Nic.

I found this film mildly intriguing as it started, with the unknown element of the character just appearing in others' dreams. But, the social commentary they are trying to achieve turns to esoteric meta commentary. Huh? They were working toward something, but the ending clashed with the abstract outcomes and overall ambiguous ending, it didn't leave me with much of anything.

Mr. Cage is excellent in the uncomfortable character. And the production is excellent. But I just didn't have much feeling about it in the end.

Mute Witness (1995)

Decent concept, execution falters

[5/10 · 7 April 2024]

Mute Witness is a 1995 film of a slasher film production in Russia. (Who knows.) The special effects person is mute, while her sister is dating the director and on the production team and acts as her intrepter.

The mute woman witnesses a snuff film in the studio after hours and becomes embroiled in a serious Russian conspiracy with two men hunting her. All of this is quite gripping and tense. There is an attempt for black humor that is nice but also put of place given how goofy it is.

But the larger element that brought the film down for me is the choppy nature of the plot and presentation. The production looks poorly done, but this could simply be an attempt to look like downtrodden Russia. Then, there is some stylized acting that puts the star in an almost pantomime performance; I guess this is to counter her inability to speak and show her emotions.

Overall, an interesting idea with so-so production values mired by a cut and paste quality to the narrative. One bonus point for the mute woman lead being the smartest characters in the film.

Summoning Sylvia (2023)

Trying for camp, and they overshot it

[4/10 · 7 April 2024]

Summoning Sylvia is a perfectly fine campy film of a gay supernatural story. It has all the elements that are needed: haunted house, spooky backstory, believers, and enough confusion that no one really understands what is happening.

Then, the mistakes start. The shrill stereotypes that are indicative of "gay culture" dominate the film. And they are so strong that even the "straight" character has to become the epitome of a ignorant homophobe with all the inkling of being a violent repressed soul. Ho Hum.

I want representation and love the ideas of what this film is trying to do. I'm frustrated that representation of gay has to be a certain way: shrill, effeminate, queeny, and all leading to a drag performance.

Do they know that there is a full range of gay men out there? Is Adam Pauley on Happy Endings one of the few images of a gay man I can somewhat relate to because he's just a guy who likes men?

Night Swim (2024)

Moments of good, but overall dull

[4/10 · 7 April 2024]

Night Swim starts off with an intriguing opening concept. There's something with the pool! And the establishment of the main story is good. Family is moving to a new local, and buys the home with the pool. The husband has a medical issue and the pool is a plus for his therapy. Next, esblishing moments of creepiness are well done, and present that there is real danger here!

Moving into the second act, we get some suburban conflict. And slight ideas of "Oh yeah, this is happening." This is a decided shift away from the strong start.

The third act becomes water logged with trying to piece together the storyline. And this feels bare bones, as if they tacked a few points to flesh out the idea. But, they only hint at what this is. And it's rather uneventful. Sigh.

I can see how a short film would be intriguing and creepy. The opening and first act are well crafted. But, the rest of the movie just seems to be tacked on ideas so the storyline can fill a 90 minute run. Could have been much better, but they lost track of the chills and scares, leaving us with little for the rest of the film.

The Bone Garden (II) (2016)

Adult Community Film Making?

[2/10 · 3 April 2024]

I could handle the low budget at first. I could handle the so-so acting at first. Then, things just kept getting worse. And worse. And worse.

I don't understand the plot much. Men are cheaters, abusers, and occasionally nice. Women need support so they can be independent. Unless they are psychopathic. Oooooh my.

As the paper thin plot unfolds, things make less and less sense. And as people are supposed to lose themselves, acting turned to "What is the most common way we can convey that I'm a homicidal manic? Yeah, do it that way! Really over the top!" Sadly, the acting over the top is still a mediocre display of trite 1 note behaviors. Ho and a Hum.

Not worth anything really.

Lift (I) (2024)

Tries to be a heist film

[3/10 · 10 March 2024]

Kevin Hart tries to lead a heist. But, he doesn't appear to have the smarts to head an operation that requires intelligence, skill, and cunning. Maybe because he has others to do the main tasks, he can get by?

Why am I focusing on Kevin Hart for a review? He sets the tone for the film. The film can only be as smart, sly, or sexy as he can be. "Cool Dork" is about the most Kevin can muster in most of his films. He's too much of a jokester to be sauve and savy. The film never escapes Kevin's orbit of his comedy shtick. Surprisingly, Kevin does manage to emit some idea of charm and basic competence. But, George Clooney he is not.

And that's the problem with this film. It's trying for Ocean's 11, but it doesn't stock the plot with any elements to create tension, excitement, or guile. There's enough hint of Kevin's humor that the film can't escape a sense of parody. The elements of the plot occur as excepted and the firework of excitement has a bit of smoke and then nothing. Dud!

By the numbers, almost dull in execution, and stifled by its star, Lift only gets you up half a story. (Even the name "Lift" comes from their name they use to mean "steal": We lifted it! Neat.)

Hell's Caretaker (2013)

Gross, disgusting, and lame. Run Away!

[1/10 · 29 February 2024]

I stopped the film when the poorly acted Caretaker appeared to have sex with the female he just "accidentally" killed?

Not certain what to say about the production other than its poor. Acting is generally bad. Characters are two dimensional. Plotting seems to be "Old school mates meet for a reunion, go to one's recently inherited rather larger cabin in the woods, to give a dying dog's last weekend in the woods, and a cognitively impacted caretaker is weird."

The caretaker goes from being overly helpful to anti-social without any demeanor change. You can tell the shift because he says different things, contrary, but he doesn't change any other facet of his presentation.

Again, I stopped when it appeared the caretaker was humping his freshly killed female. What?!

Dark Harvest (2023)

50s nightmare horror

[6/10 · 18 February 2024]

Dark Harvest sets the stage from the first scene of a small farming town that is plagued by a dark force. And we see the yearly ritual to keep at bay the supernatural presence.

Jump to next year just prior to Halloween and preparation for the next ritual. But this time, the feeling of what is happening starts to crack at the sunshine happy 50s setting and feeling. (And just to make certain we don't miss it, there is a new person in town, a Black girl, who may or may not be hard to handle.) This establishes that there is something more at hand than the simple ritual that brings peace and prosperity to the town.

The production establishes the 50s setting and vibe well. Acting is good in the main characters, but given the rote stock characters written for the rest of the cast, the acting is limited to two dimensional tropes. The plotting is decent to maintain some secrecy and tension throughout the runtime of the film.

Dark Harvest doesn't break through to great levels. It generates a well-crafted homage to 50s B Sci fi and horror films. We definitely see how it has been updated to the sensibility of our time.

The Nest (I) (2020)

Reaganomics and Trickle Down Theory Don't Work

[3/10 · 18 February 2024]

So, I'm assuming this a psychological study of 80s excesses and emotional trauma based personality disorders. There is no thriller element. This is the decline of a family that strives to be more than it is.

It displays the downfall of a relationship that is based upon unknowing enabling behaviors that fuels maladaptive functioning in codependency. And it displays how children fall into certain roles as means to compensate in a dysfunctional family. This movie also shows how if these patterns aren't addressed and the dysfunction is healed, they will be repeated. And when repeated, how these impact the family an how it affects people emotionally.

Given how well the acting and production are, I wanted to appreciate this film. But watching it, I was left with only sourness at the end. This film is only about how awful situations are when people continue to make the worst decisions solely to feed their ego and seek external validation to find merit in their own lives.

This is a bummer of a film. It is an expertly done and achieved film. Unfortunately, it is just another sorry display of the 80s excess and personal pathology.

Sanctuary: A Witch's Tale (2024– )

Is it a 7 or Is it a 3?

[5/10 · 11 February 2024]

Sanctuary depicts an alternate reality where witchcraft is real, and is marginally accepted by society albeit with heavy legal regulations.

This series has several positives. Production depicts a village well, and frames the storyline for that feeling of closeness. Acting is solid across the cast. Direction holds the tension well, leading me to watch as many episodes in a row that I could. (I started watching after 3 episodes were already available.)

The series has some negatives that do deter from the viewing experience. After the first couple episodes, the series falls into stereotypes of prejudice, propoganda, and fear. The characters become shells of people propelled only by the motivations that matter for the plotting. The second half showcases how bigotry and selfishness fuel hatred. And here comes the drudgery that inches the last 3 episodes to the finish.

What started as an interesting perspective on outsiders turned into a cliched depiction of all the tropes of said outsider parables that the original trilogy of the X-Men films did lamely but adequately. This series just starts beating us over the head with differences and hatred are "bad."

Suitable Flesh (2023)

A bit too campy

[4/10 · 29 January 2024]

Suitable Flesh is a bit too campy for my tastes. I understand the retro take, paying homage to the over the top camp horror of the 80s and 90s. But this movie seems to slap that take onto some David Lynch or Brian DiPalma sexy thriller. The two don't mix well if not managed well. Director Joe Lynch makes a decent film technically, but the overall story and plotting fail to provide something more than the cheesy qualities clashing with the attempts for sexy supernatural thriller. And the Lovecraftian aspect of the creature seem a bit stale in this presentation. The endless nature of the creature just felt depressing. It seemed as if they were trying for a fresh presentation of an old and often used idea borrowing from some stylistic elements of other directors.

The Resort (2022– )

Almost there, but not quite really

[6/10 · 27 January 2024]

So, I wanted to like this show much more than I did. It has some great moments and decent twists and turns. The first half moved faster and drew me into the story. The plotting has a wonderful dual track of the present and the search, while the past plot line sets the stage well for what the search is.

Then the second half starts. And they try to keep the twists and turns, but the plot needed movement forward not more mystery. And it moved into the final episode, this journey turned into a narrative story that seems to want to explain the thematic meaning of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Or it was trying to get at some questioning about the meaning of life, death, and purpose. Sigh.

I can't complain about the acting or the production. The show is "good" on the technical side, and acting. But, somehow it doesn't quite come together for enough meaning for me. And so 8 episodes was a lot to get to the end point of the story. I wish the writing of the storyline had streamlined to a degree and had more of a personal resolution than attempts at mystical infused personal growth.

The Mind's Eye (2015)

Low rent Scanners

[6/10 · 21 January 2024]

The Mind's Eye is basically Scanners but lower budget, and less detailed plot. It's a decent watch, but don't expect too much from it. Leading actors are good. Others tend toward a bit of hammy acting, but given the suspension of reality we have to give for psychic powers, hammy isn't too bad.

And in some ways, the shaved plotting may actually humanize the characters well. That made this a bit more watchable and compelling to watch to the end.

Overall, the plotting is simplistic especially as you watch the bad guys and hear their motivations. Oh, wait, the main bad guy as the henchmen all function as typical henchmen, in it for the money.

Still, for a small production, not bad.