Horror Movies

A recent email from my dad got me thinking about horror movies and how disappointing many of them turn out to be. So many of them seem to sacrifice plot and characterization for horrific deaths and cheap scares that I am automatically skeptical when approaching horror movies. I thought I'd list a few modern horror movies that I liked.

House of Wax: Not bad for what it is. The characters are nothing but collateral damage, but their fates are pretty horrifying and entertaining. Worth a watch.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Pretty damn good for what it is. The characters have some depth, and the tension is thick. Truly horrifying.

Saw: The Saw franchise has become pretty stagnant, but the one that started it all is still good in my opinion. It's far from perfect, but the premise is fascinating and the twist at the end is great.

The Ring: This is a good movie all around. Good acting, good cinematography, good direction, good story. It's also not afraid to leave some questions unanswered, which I like. It's what you don't know that scares you the most.

The Collector: This one is just fun and bizarre. The writers make no effort to make the story make more sense than it does, which actually serves it well. Just sit back and watch the people get butchered.

Silent Hill: Impressive effort. The dark world the protagonist slips into has the right mixture of realism and surrealism to keep the audience guessing. The bad dialogue bugs me, but I can suffer through it to enjoy the picture.

Hostel: This one only exists to horrify audiences. The story is as thin as the paper the script was printed on, but the violence fills in the gaps. It's worth watching just to say you saw it, whether you hate it or love it.

The Devil's Rejects: The main characters are completely unredeemable and downright unlikable, but the film is fairly well-made and the story is as interesting as it is disturbing.

Trick r' Treat: This one is different. It's broken up into several stories that all connect at one point or another. It also successfully walks a very fine line between being humorous and horrifying. It doesn't take itself too seriously, but it still sets out to scare you.

Seven Pounds

For better or worse, I tend to sort actors according to how much they rely on character acting skills versus just being themselves. At one end of this spectrum are actors like Gary Oldman, who are so good at morphing into someone else that I sometimes don't even recognize them.

At the other end are actors who just sort of fall back on attitude and charisma, and I would have to put Will Smith as a prime example. Now I like Will Smith, but in every movie I've seen him in he's just doing his cool/jokey thing, so I had written him off as not having much range. Until now...

I found Seven Pounds to be just a so-so movie overall -- story, acting, directing, etc. have some good points, but sort of get tedious and sentimental by the end. But what I noticed right from the start was that Will Smith has finally evolved some new acting range. In particular I saw in his face some depth, especially when he was showing pain.

I like it when actors (and most other artists, e.g. musicians) step outside their comfort zone and push into new territory, and grow. Welcome to a new level, Will.

Carriers

Virus-related apocalypse movies are a dime a dozen nowadays, so I was skeptical going into this one. My only real interest in it was Chris Pine, who I am a dedicated fan of thanks to Star Trek. I was pleasantly surprised, though. In addition to its fairly talented cast, Carriers managed to stand out amongst other films of its ilk by focusing on the characters instead of the virus. And although the movie is about how the survival instinct separates us from our humanity, it avoids becoming a morality tale by maintaining a delicate balance between tugging at the audience's heartstrings and shocking them. The concluding voice over monologue felt a bit forced and there's some 28 Days Later crossover here and there, but otherwise I'm pretty satisfied.

three flicks with Kevin Spacey

One of my favorite actors is Kevin Spacey. I especially like him in American Beauty, K-PAX, The Big Kahuna, and The Usual Suspects. Lately I've been on a mini-run of movies with Spacey that I hadn't seen before...

The Negotiator - The story has an interesting premise: a police hostage negotiator himself takes hostages and has to deal with another negotiator. But much of the rest of the story is filled with stereotypical elements. Fortunately most of the focus is on the two main characters, excellently played by Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey. The non-police supporting actors did a good job, too.

Moon - I generally agree with Brian's review, but I found the story sort of weak and predictable -- after the initial revelation, I saw where it was going from miles away. But the excellent main character(s) focus sort of makes up for this -- Sam Rockwell really pulls off a tricky set of roles. I also like how "Gerty" (computer/robot) mostly avoids several computer stereotypes; Spacey's voice gives it just the right balance of logic and "heart"...

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - Eh. This certainly had some interesting elements, but ultimately it didn't quite gel and pull me into caring much about any of its characters (especially the main John Cusack one), and it slid into a stereotypical courtroom drama in the last third. Kevin Spacey does well enough, although his character doesn't have a lot of depth, so he doesn't have a lot to work with.

Predators

I was excited but skeptical about this one. I love the character of the alien hunter as much as the next guy, but the twelve-plus years since the original have only offered one lackluster sequel and two poorly executed crossovers with the Alien movies. There was a lot riding on this new movie for science fiction fans.

Luckily, the film delivers...and then some! Predators is, in my mind, the only proper sequel to the original. The tension from the first film is back, which is impressive, seeing as how the audience is almost fully aware of what's happening by this time. What's especially nice, though, is how fresh this movie feels. It's obvious the filmmakers went to great lengths to avoid stepping in the footsteps of the original. They assume the audience knows about the predator's various tricks and trades, so the characters don't spend more than one or two lines on them. And though they tie this one in with the original, it has more than enough clout to stand on its own with.

Part of what makes this movie so enjoyable is the characters. We don't get much in the way of characterization, but each of them are intense enough to stand out on their own. Even the ones that die off early are memorable.

The action is great, too! It's evocative of the original movie, but more intense and suspenseful. All of the great, old Predator tricks are here, along with some new ones.

Predators is a great, new addition to the franchise! It's respectful to the source material without being a long, drawn-out homage. Definitely a must-see!

How To Train Your Dragon

I'm always skeptical of animated movies geared toward both children and adults. I don't know why, though. Nine times out of ten I enjoy them when I actually watch them. How To Train Your Dragon is no exception.

What a delightful film! While it makes no effort to surprise audiences with a complex story and plot twists, it's still very solid. The pacing is just right, and even though predicting the inevitable outcome is fairly simple, you can't help but wonder how it will come to fruition.

The mood of the picture is another perfect balancing act, in my opinion. It would have been easy to get too dark with big, fire-breathing reptiles, but it's all pretty lighthearted.

The only potential problem I foresee with this movie is its scope. Vikings and dragons... There aren't too many young girls I know that are as interested in those things as boys. That being said, I saw it with three girls between the ages of 18 to 24, and they all enjoyed it.

five flicks

Sherlock Holmes -- Excellent! If someone had told me a few years ago that I'd be excited about yet another version of Sherlock, I'd have laughed in their face. But this is fresh, energetic, smart and witty, and just fun and well done. Robert Downey Jr's Holmes is great, and Jude Law is just right as his Watson... I also like Guy Ritchie's use of slow motion and flashbacks...

Terminator Salvation -- I liked it. Not as good as T2, and a bit off in places, but overall a decent installment that kept me interested and entertained. Christian Bale's John Conner is decent, but I thought Sam Worthington had the more interesting role. Great machine graphics and sound effects!

Gran Torino -- Meh. I had heard good things about this, but I was disappointed. It had some interesting, funny, and cool passing moments, but overall it seemed weak and sad. Lately I've been rewatching some Dirty Harry flicks, and Clint was really much sharper back then... Oh well...

The Men Who Stare At Goats -- This was certainly different; even though I realized it wasn't to be taken very seriously, I still almost bailed at a few points early in the movie. But eventually it hooked me and reeled me in. Nice ensemble acting.

Across The Universe -- I haven't even finished this one yet (waiting for my daughter, we're watching it together), but I already like it. I was somewhat skeptical at first, but the fresh and interesting takes on Beatles songs have really won me over, and the creativity and heart is more than enough to make up for a few dubious moments. I'm with Brian on this one!