Thursday, March 31, 2011

Trick R Treat 2?

No offical word that I have heard but the Trick R Treat Facebook posted a no so cryptic message " Sam will return." Trick R Treat was a smash with horror fans when it was finally released. There are oh so few good Halloween themed movies, and even fewer good anthologies of late that fans are eagerly waiting for the return of our favorite pumpkin faced horror icon. So if anyone in Hollywood is reading this "listens for crickets", BRING US TRICK R TREAT 2. It's only April Fools day on the East Coast so no fair if its a trick (R Treat)

Fingers crossed!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Gacy House

So what happens when you cross The Blair With with Paranormal Activity?  You get Gacy House. Well what you really get is a feeling you wasted the price of a rental.  I rekaize it's a low budget but, even for low budget it's hard to forgive Gacy House.  It commits that cardinal sin for a horror movie.  It's boring.  Boring is  not good for horror. Thowing in elements of so many different films doesn't alleviate the hum drum.  Gacy house borrows liberally from Blair Witch, Paranormal Activity, The Legend of Hell House, Ghost Hunters, Poltergeist and who cares how many others.  The "logic" is all over the place.  I can possibly accept that the ghsot of John Wayne Gacy, is haunting his house, maybe even that he haunts a house built on the same spot where his house used to be. Still I think asking the ghost if he killed in a specific room., that didn't even exist when he was around is kind of stupid.  Ok gacy House was kind of stupid, and very boring

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Horror Hunk: Alexander Skarsgard

As a thank you to those female and gay friends who actually follow my blog and read the articles, I am starting a new feature.  The Horror Hunks.  What better way to start but with a true hunk, and one I know my friends like, Mr. Alexander Skarsgard.  Here's just a small collection, I will try to dig up more later
Alexander Skarsgard
Alexander Skarsgard

Alexander Skarsgard in the tub from True Blood
Alexander Skarsgard as Eric Northman

shirtless Alexander Skarsgard
Party with Alexander Skarsgard

Alexander Skarsgard
Sexy Soapy Alexander Skarsgard

Alexander Skarsgard in the shower
Alexander Skarsgard in the shower

See Alexander Skarsgard in Straw Dogs

Friday, March 25, 2011

A Serbian Film (Srpski film)

A Serbian Film (Srpski film)


A Serbian Film DVD cover


Where do I begin with A Serbian Film. Usually I have a review pretty well mapped out in my head before hand, but with A Serbian Film, I’m pretty much winging it. I like to say if you haven’t heard of A Serbian Film, then you haven’t been listening. It is hands down the most controversial film in recent memory. It is also rapidly becoming one of the most notorious films of all time. All over the internet “which is worse” comparisons are cropping up with other notorious films,



A Serbian Film is a hot button film, bound to stir debate and tempers. Just taking a side on the controversy surrounding it is bound to garner hate mail. Actually saying you like it will get you labeled a deviant and garner you strange looks. I have been leery to even tell friends what it is about for fear of strange looks because I even know about a film like A Serbian Film.



I have wanted to see A Serbian Film since I first saw the trailer. At the same time I have feared seeing it and even hated that part of me that wanted to see it. All my instincts told me A Serbian Film is a dangerous film. Still I felt remiss as a movie fan and reviewer to not watch it. I also felt like a coward. So last night I bit the bullet, found a safe place inside my brain to retreat to if need be, and watched A Serbian Film.



Usually I don’t like giving spoilers. However in the case of this film I think not giving at least some spoilers is very negligent. It also makes it near impossible to give an honest review. Even though I will always wonder exactly the effect this film would have had on me if I had gone in blind, there are people who deserve a warning. The subject matter is that extreme. A Serbian Film contains, but is not necessarily limited to, rape, murder, gratuitous nudity, incest, necrophilia, pedophilia, torture, infanticide, and suicide. Almost all of the violence is sexually related. This is no Hostel, it is much more brutal. However it is not just torture porn.



Much of the discussion of A Serbian Film resolves around whether it has the right to exist as film. There is so much controversy over the legality that you can't get a debate about whether or not it is a good film. Honestly right now I don’t feel comfortable saying I like A Serbian Film. However it is a film with a story. It is not shock exclusively for shock value. I have heard many arguments about the meaning of A Serbian Film. Social comment on the genocide during the break up of Yugoslavia, slap in the face to Serbian film censors. At one point the “director” of the film inside A Serbian Film states that pornography is the only hope of the Serbian people. This was the clearest message I got from A Serbian Film. That the Serbians are a people who have been brainwashed and turned in to savages. All the while being taught that their neighbors are less than human and fit for slaughter.



The protagonist Milos only has one escape from his struggle though pornography. To debase and abuse those who are less than him. Vukmir, the director, tells him the women are drug abusers and whores. Are these echoes of what the Serbian people were told? The most infamous scene seems to be stating that everyone is born a victim. The final scene suggests that we cannot escape, even in death. This was at least what I took from the film. Maybe if I was more familiar with the war and genocide I would have gained more from the film. I would love to know what the reaction of the Serbian people would be to the film. All I can go with is what I saw and the few comments I have read from the director. This is, in my opinion the main failing of A Serbian Film.



I am accustomed to looking deep into a film for meaning. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I fail. In A Serbian Film, the director takes it and throws it right in the viewers face. Forcing us to take in all the ugly, all the hate and all the desperation, not allowing us to look away. However in doing so he blinds us, all we can see is the brutality. All we see are the images that are burned into our minds. Even with forewarning it was hard to watch the scenes. Not just the most infamous scene, or the other scene which was also horrible, but the whole movie. So many disturbing scenes don’t get mentioned due to the extreme notoriety of THAT scene.


For those who don’t know here is a quick synopsis. Milos is a retired porn star who is struggling to support his family. He is approached to star in a artistic pornographic film that will enable his family to live comfortably. There is no script but the camera will follow him as he has sex in various situations. Situations that grow more violent and deviant with each act. It spirals quickly out of control as Milos realizes he is helpless to escape. Actually before Milos realizes it is out of control, it is already tragically too late for him and his family. When he tries to escape he is drugged. He wakes up bloody with only faint and confusing flashes of what has happened. Retracing his steps, and discovering footage of the missing day, we discover with him just how tragic
.



I wont spoil the ending for those brave enough to watch it. However for those who still might be on the fence, I am about to release spoilers. Spoilers that are readily found in most discussions of the film. First off, if you have not heard Angel Sala the director of the Stiges film festival in Spain has been arrested for showing A Serbian Film. Under Spanish law, and under s strict interpretation of American law, A Serbian Film could be illegal. The laws in question could define A Serbian Film as child pornography. There is no actual sex involving children but the law provides for simulated sex with minors or persons portrayed as minors. While A Serbian Film does contain simulated sex with person, (or objects, more later) portrayed as children, it should be noted that many other mainstream films contained implied or simulated sex with minors. Movies such as Animal House, Hound Dog, Friday the 13th, Old School, Lolita, Pretty Baby and many others. Why single out A Serbian Film? Most likely due to that one scene being so notorious. That coupled with a prosecutor wanting to make name for himself.



So about the scene, here without further ado are the spoilers. The most notorious scene is a scene where a male has sex with a newborn baby. It seems really stupid to say the scene is not gratuitous but considering the possibilities, it could have been worse. No real baby is in the scene but a mechanical crying doll, and the “rape” is filmed from behind the man as the child screams. Still it is hard to watch, hard to stomach, and hard to cope with. That is the scene with the most press, there is another scene that was just as hard if not harder to watch which involves the anal rape of a five year old. Even though the child is not seen during the scene, the utter realism of it was disturbing beyond my ability to put in words. If these were the only two scenes A Serbian Film would still deserve to be the most talked about film today, but there are more. Scenes of children watching sex scenes, people forced to have sex while watching videos of children eating ice cream, and a character having sex while watching his nephews birthday party on video, presumably “getting off’ on the video.



I can honestly see people having a problem with this film. I have problems with A Serbian Film. It left me feeling physically ill and I doubt I will ever watch it again. It is far and away the most disgusting and disturbing film I have ever seen, and I hope it keeps that record. Still it is far from pornography. There are many more films that are just excuses for gore, sex and shock that I would label as closer to pornography. A Serbian Film has a message, even if the director failed to deliver it clearly. I think the excess that make it powerful overwhelm the message. Did I like it, damn that’s not something I can say right now. It did draw me in, it did make me feel for the characters. I had a hard time liking Milos, but had a hard time hating him too. Maybe that was the real message, that sometimes, despite our best intentions, life just fucks us over. If you decide to watch A Serbian Film, then don’t blame me.



Free Angel Sala!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Creative horror films

Here is an exceprt and link to  a list of great films, check it out
This site is for fans of creative, original, smart and well executed horror movies. As an avid horror movie fan, i've done my best to sort through and list some of the BEST gems i have come across over the years. This list includes lesser known, foreign, indie, and big production titles that i feel are all worth your time. I'll be updating this list whenever i find films that i think are noteworthy.


-HC
 
read the list here
http://horror-connoisseur.tumblr.com/

Into the maw of cinema madness

So right now I am feeling in a pretty good place. I'm even kind of updating my blog, picking around on my script and thinking about other projects.  Besides that I just feel pretty good.  So in that feeling good, I get around to what to write about next.  Lots of unwritten reviews are bouncing around in my head, should I try and put them to form in the physical world?  Most have been out a while so have no sense of urgency.  Should I watch something new or just expound on whatever bugs me?  Well right now nothing much bugs me.  Excpet I have become somewhat of a cinematic chicken.

I admit I have to be in a certian frame of mind to watch really disturbing films.  Still I have been shirking  and that's kind of  a disservice to those who actually might look to me for film advice.  I won't claim to be a real movie reviewer, I just report what I like, and why I like it.  Sometimes I lack the words to express why I like a film, sometimes I can't even conceptualize it in my head.  Am I rambling yet?  More likely dodging the issue.

So I have been avoiding watching a  couple films.  One the most notorious fim in recent times.  the other just some disturbing (in different ways) films.  Well I haven't felt like dipping into cinema insanity in a while.  Now, like I said I feel pretty good.  So I'm going to do it.

My first intent was to watch them this weekend, but it may take me a while to find some of them.  But I am going to start looking for them.  Then I will watch them.  Three films on my list to start, although if others come into my possession I will watch them.  I will add to the list as I find or remember ones.  These are three films that promise nightmares.  Not "boo" jump out nightmares of nightmares of insanity, perversion and real mental torture.  The three films, not necessarily in the order I will watch or even seek them out are:

What is it? by Crispin Glover, The Room by Tommy Wiseau, and the third, the most controversial film in the world right now.  I have seen bits of The Room, and some clips from What Is It?  Both have received critical assassianation and possibly deservedly so.  What little I have seen of The Room was absolutely horrible.  It may be the hardest one to watch.

What is it? is the controversial film by actor/director/writer Crispin Glover.  Glover cast his fillm with actors who actually have Downs Syndrome.  it is filled with visually disturbing images and scenarios.  As a friend told me "One you see it, you can't ever not see it again".

Another friend told me almost the exact same thing about the third movie.  The hands down most controversial, hotley debated movie today and possibly ever.  I think it's fair to say, the most contentious film since Cannibal Holocaust.  Like Ruggero Deodatos infamous film, criminal charges are being brought because of the film.

The film is A Serbian Film.  If you haven't heard of it, you haven't been listening very well.  The film has been investigated for charges of child pornography.  In fact it may be illegal to own, watch or show it to others.  Not that there is any actual child porn, but due to the wording of the law, over-zealous prosecuters who want to make a name for themselves, could bring charges.  In Spain they already have brought charges against a promoter for showing it at a film festival.

Legal or not the film is disturbing.  It is haunting.  Once seen it can never be unseen.  Even the idea of committing to watching this film disturbs me.  That's why it has taken me this many words to say, what could be said in one line.  I am going to watch A Serbian Film.

Three films all disturbing in different ways, for different reasons.  Any of the could scar someone for life.  I think my psyche is stable enough.  If possible I will watch all three this weekend, but I don't know if I can find What Is It and A Serbian Film by the weekend.  I think The Room should be easy to find, I do want to see it uncensored though.

Any way, I will watch these, and more.  I will try to review or at least give my opinion of them.  If nothing else I will post when I have watched them.  If the Ancient Ones take my sanity during the attempt to watch them, then I will be waiting for you on the Plains of Leng disciple.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Kerri Kasem-I'm on the radio and you're not

I’m going to go right ahead and admit that I’m not a big fan of the Sixx Sense radio show. I do listen to it most nights on the way to work because I like the music. However I often switch the channel because in all honestly the “Rock Star” egos get to me. Obviously Nikki Sixx has earned his Rock Star status. I didn’t know a lot about his co-host when I started listening but obviously being a music fan, I recognized the last name. Kerri Kasem is the daughter of one of the most famous voices on the radio, the legend Casey Kasem.




Kerri has a great radio voice and I don’t want to belittle her as a radio personality in her own right. However I do take extreme offense to what I heard on the show March 14th. Kerri mentioned she had been getting hate mail over something she had said on air. She read, or at least paraphrased some of the mail. It revolved around her attack of hunters, and their part in the extinction of the Eastern Cougar. That’s right the Eastern Cougar.



Now I have not heard her original rant, and rant was how it was described in several online reports. Apparently she had complained that the hunters drove the Cougar into extinction and just are killing off everything. From her comments on the air about her hate mail, I would think that is a fair assessment.



She attacked those who had wrote in saying that they had not done research and were just voicing their self serving opinions. “This is why I am on the radio and you are not.” she said angrily alluding to her in-depth research into Cougar populations, and the extinction of terrestrial fauna. She then went on to mention how the article she had read said that hunting was involved with the extinction.



It is true that the Eastern Cougar is now considered extinct. It has been on the endangered species list since 1973, and it truly is sad to see another species disappear. However apparently Kerri only read, or possibly only comprehended a part of the article. Wildlife biologists believe the Eastern Cougar has actually been extinct since the 1930’s. It was only on the endangered list because sightings were occasionally reported. Wildlife officials believed but could not prove that these were either Western Cougars who had wandered into the territory, or perhaps escaped captive cats. Scientists have long believed that no breeding population existed West of the Mississippi. Many believe they have been extinct for over 100 years.





The fact that the species has been long extinct does not lessen the sadness of losing another species. I for one, would love to see the cougar and the Wolf reintroduced. Nature needs balance, and cougars are a part of that balance. Like it or not so are humans, and hunters. Hunters did play a part in the extinction of the cougar, but so did habitat loss. A large part of the hunting was due to bounties offered for killing cougars. Bounties were not offered just to pay for hunters to get their kicks but because the cougar was looked at as a menace. It preyed on cattle and pets, and were considered a danger to children. All this is a part of habitat loss. We move into their territory, and they have to go. Would you be ranting the same way if a cougar stole your pet? Would you condemn all the condo builders and business owners  in California who are constantly pushing farther into the wilderness?





Which all brings to a point the fact that the cougar is not extinct. The cougar is extinct east of the Mississippi river. Cougar populations are thriving west of the Mississippi. Many wildlife experts believe the cougar will one day, on its own repopulate on the eastern side. Add to this the fact that almost all biologists consider the Eastern Cougar to be genetically identical to the Western Cougar. So maybe extinct is to strong a word to actually be using.



So with all this, how much research did you actually do on the subject Kerri? Your on air rant on the 14th was cut off from a quick remark from Nikki, then went straight to commercial so I have no clue what other facts you were about to present. Facts other than you are a radio personality and everyone else isn’t, therefore you are right. That radio comment is what pisses me off the most. Do you really think because you are on the radio, you are smarter and better informed than everyone else? Better than wildlife officials and yes even hunters? Is the fact that you do research really why you are on the radio?



I am sure you have paid your dues. I know you have studied acting and have worked in entertainment in some way most of your life. I am taking none of that away from you. However your comment begs us to ask, would you actually have your job in radio if your last name wasn’t Kasem?



Please realize being a celebrity does not make you an expert.

Kerri Kasem hates hunters

So Kerri Kasem pissed me off the other night.  I am writing a full blog post about it as my "reply" to her air headed, egotistical remarks made on air.  I also emailed Kerri, with no respinse yet, and the local radio station where the show is aired.  This is the reply I got from the station and my original E-Mail.  I am going to try and post the entire "conversaton" as this unfolds

Reply

Petersen, Paula to me

show details 8:40 AM (8 hours ago)





Thanks for your email. We appreciate your comments.



Paula Petersen

Traffic-Continuity

Clear Channel Mobile/Pensacola

WKSJ 95KSJ...WRKH 96.1 The Rocket...

WMXC Lite Mix 99.9...WTKX TK101...

The Groove 1073...WNTM-AM

6485 Pensacola Boulevard

Pensacola Fl 32505



(direct) 850.549.2002

(p) 850.473.0400 ext 102

(f) 850.473.0907











From: aalbrson@gmail.com [mailto:aalbrson@gmail.com]

Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 8:38 AM

To: Petersen, Paula

Subject: sixx sense





I have always found Nikki Sixx to be an overinflated ego maniac, and I really don’t enjoy hearing him on his show. I do love the music but find myself switching channels when Nikki starts to impart his wisdom, which I use very loosely. To here Nikki, a self proclaimed music expert, tell of how he has studied the assassination of John Lennon, yet had no clue that Mark David Chapman had just asked Lennon for an autograph is laughable (even Robot Chicken knows this just watch the Hannah Dakota episode). Still I had grown up listening to Casey Kasem, so I had some respect for Kerri until last night. She made probably the most egotistical comment I have ever heard on the show. She goes on a rant about a subject she knows nothing about other than an article she read, then insults everyone who takes offense.. her argument was wrong, she claimed she did research which is "Why I am on radio and you're not." I wont listen to the Sixth Sense anymore. She attacked every hunter in America and I believe a large part of your audience are hunters. Please remove this offensive show and force these two to get real jobs, so they can see how the real world functions



This is my reply just sent to TK101

First off I want to thank you for taking the time to open my email and copy and paste your "form" reply. I can onyl wonder if you even read it. Kerri's original comments have raised a furor in the hunting community. I do not hunt. It is a personal decision but her utter disdain for hunters and anyone beneath her is infuriating and unacceptable. I have been listenign to TK every since I discovered it after moving here in 2009. I enjoy Lex and Terry but I can listen to them online.


Once again thank you for taking the time to do the absolute minimum to address concerns of listeners

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Red Riding Hood aka Dude, Your Hair is Awesome





I really had high hopes for the Red Riding Hood, the newest incarnation of a Grimm Brothers fairy tale. Just seeing a darker, more malevolent version of the childhood classic was a draw for me. There have been several retellings of the story including In the Company of Wolves, and recently the excellent Halloween anthology Trick r Treat. When Gary Oldman was added to the cast that pretty much sealed the deal for me. The rest of the cast seemed solid, nothing that really got me whipped into a frenzy, but Oldman is one of my favorite living actors, and he always brings his A game.



There were things that concerned me. A PG-13 rating meant that the film wouldn’t be too dark. Plus PG-13 has in recent times become synonymous with horrible teeny bopper horror. Probably the biggest warning sign was that Red Riding Hood was being directed by Catherine Hardwicke. For those who don’t know Catherine was the director of the biggest insult to horror film this side of anything by Uwe Boll. That’s right she directed Twilight.



Still Gary Oldman and the promise of a dark version of Red Riding Hood pulled me. A version like we know had to be the original telling of the story. So I took a chance, and the film left me with mixed feelings.



The film was beautifully shot throughout. Excellent use of colors and the scenery kept the viewer riveted to the screen. The wolf attacks were less than bloody for the most part. In the scenes where we see the CGI wolf it isn’t that bad. I didn’t like the scenes where the wolf just blurs across the screen, killing so quickly we can’t focus on it. If the creature were that fast, the film should have ended within the first thirty minutes. Final score village- 0, Wolf-everyone.

Still the story was interesting and Gary soon made his appearance and his hair was wonderful. He lit up the screen as only Gary Oldman can. We watched as he changed from heroic savior to vicious witch hunter. All the time his hair was perfect.



There was a love story of course, actually a bit of a love triangle (oh noes TWILIGHT ALERT), between Red, Peter (Peter Rabbit or Peter Wolf), and Henri. Red of course loved perfect hair Peter, while ignoring brooding Henri(aha she kind of pulled a switch from Twilight, even though peter’s hair did look a lot like Edward’s). The Peter character really wasn’t very likeable, and I hoped Red would end up with Henri (does that make me Team Henri?) Even though he was brooding, his hair looked nice too. Maybe not as nice as Peter’s, and definitely not in the same league as Gary’s hair.



The movie turns into a whodunnit with more red herring’s flying than pies at a Three Stooges convention. Who is the werewolf? Is it Peter, Henri, grandma, or possible the sexy granddad from Geico? Well it couldn’t be Gary, the wolf’s hair just wasn’t good enough. The Wolf had short over conditioned hair with quite a lot of hair gel. Kind of like Peter, hmm. It was about two thirds of the way in when I realized.



Where the hell did Peter get hair gel in a Medieval village? Ok I know suspension of belief and all that but COME ON. Everyone’s hair was perfect, even the requisite crazy villager looked like he just came from Super Cuts. Still Peter was the worst offender. Oldman’s flowing hair can be explained since he was both a member of the clergy and a bit of a celebrity from the big city. Plus I freely admit I cannot say anything bad about Gary Oldman. If Gary Oldman chased me through Beverly Hills throwing feces at me and calling me a pedophile, I’d still be singing his praises.





Most of the villagers had hair that, while very nice, I could cope with, but Peter? Dippity doo and wolf shit too, his hair took me right out of the film. After I noticed it, well like a ugly mole on a hot chick, once you see it, you can’t un-see it.



Still if you can get away from the hair, don’t stare, it’s rude, just look away, it’s not a bad film in itself. Amanda Seyfrid makes a decent Red, err Valerie and Max Irons makes Henri a lot deeper and more likeable character than Peter. There are some great scenes like the village revelry. During the street party the soundtrack blends in perfectly with the music of the village.



The CGI is on the better end of the scale and doesn’t detract from the film. The ending really disappointed me though. At this point she really dipped into her bag of Twilight tricks. It felt as if she was almost trying to make this a prequel to the “kinder and gentler” Twilight werewolf’s, as well making it more of a fairy tale. Yes I know it is a fairy tale movie, but we were promised dark. Dark is not a girl and werewolf starring wistfully into each others eyes, or scenes of Red and Peter climbing snow covered hills. Where is the true pain and tragedy of the curse, not cheap emo sighs.


So the verdict? After all that I don’t feel like I wasted my cash, ok maybe I wasted half of the ticket price. I am a sucker for medieval settings, and Grimm’s tales. Plus getting to see Gary Oldman is always worth at least three bucks. Fans of Twilight will love it, although Team Jacob fans might get upset over a vicious werewolf. Fans of real horror will probably hit me with lemons for paying to see it. While it’s not a horrible movie, it is not really what I was hoping for. Twilight fans rush out now, fans of Gary Oldman and Grimm’s Fairy Tales, if there’s nothing else to do, why not? Everyone else, wait till it’s on HBO.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Devotion the movie

Wow first new post in a long time! Gonna keep it short and sweet

Ever wanted to be part of a real movie production?  Well now is a chance with the new film Devotion from BS films.  Go here to help support the film and also earn some nice goodies.  You can even be listed as a producer and get credit on IMDB.com.

For more information on Devotion go to its website where there is a short trailer up.  More later folks and thanks for your support