Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar; here, it’s just one of many atrocities suffered by his rich-guy character when his girlfriend, Sadie (AnnaLynne McCord, TV’s rebooted 90210), discovers he has been cheating on her — and with her own BFF (Viva Bianca, TV’s Spartacus), no less! Over one rainy night and long off her […]
blu-ray
Posted inArts & Culture
The Conjuring / Insidious: Chapter 2
This summer, the smash of The Conjuring crowned him king. Based on a “true” case file of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (if you believe bunk to be true), the film begins with perhaps the most frightening doll in cinema history — or at least since Poltergeist — and things just grow creepier from […]
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Carrie / Dario Argento’s Dracula 3D
His split-screen treatment of the senior-prom carnage becomes her condensed Final Destination sequel; his shock ending becomes her anti-bullying message. Pay no mind that the entire story is already that, with outcast Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz, Kick-Ass 2) becoming even more of a social punching bag after she mistakes her first menstruation as bleeding […]
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Die, Monster, Die!
That would be a sinister, humming force that can turn people — Witley’s wife included — into hideous mutant freaks. The special effects are not so special until you get a glimpse of the giant octopus or, better yet, when Witley turns into some sort of glowing metal man. (Again, don’t ask why — this […]
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We Are What We Are
From Stake Land director Jim Mickle, this American do-over finds its fever in a religious fervor, with scripture-quoting sourpuss Frank Parker (Bill Sage, Precious) mourning the accidental death of his wife. That tragedy leaves their eldest daughter, Iris (Ambyr Childers, The Master), in the unenviable position of assuming the family duty of … let’s just […]
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A Single Shot
Shot‘s sights are set on John (Sam Rockwell), a dirt-poor hunter who mistakes a young woman for a deer — not necessarily a negative except that a trigger was involved and John’s aim is true. When he tends to her dead body, he finds a lot of cash next to her and assumes it won’t be missed. […]
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Cat People
Director Paul Schrader (The Canyons) bravely forged a new path in updating the 1942 RKO classic — evident from frame one with a gorgeous prologue, unfolding slowly with a dreamlike quality. Purposely abstract and erotic, it’s the kind of sequence the legendary Val Lewton never would have considered four decades earlier, even if the squeaky-clean […]
Posted inMusic
The Big Gundown
In fact, The Big Gundown has been floated in some circles as the genre’s best not coming from the genius of Sergio Leone, and Grindhouse Releasing’s superb, four-disc set is like a dare for you to argue otherwise. Clearly, as much love has gone into this package as it went into production of the movie […]
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The Horror Show
Aliens‘ Lance Henriksen stars as Lucas McCarthy, a police detective tormented by the memory of sneering evil killer Max Jenke (Brion James, Blade Runner), whom he helped put in prison. Jenke is sentenced to death and bursts into flames in the electric chair. Somehow he busts out of the straps and walks across the room […]
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All the Boys Love Mandy Lane / Mischief Night
Well, “new” may be inaccurate when we’re talking about All the Boys Love Mandy Lane. Despite being a festival-circuit hit in 2006, the debut film from director Jonathan Levine (Warm Bodies, 50/50) sat unreleased until now. The seven-year wait proves not to be worth it. It’s easy to see why all those boys love (read: […]