It’s been precisely five years since the UK tossed “Shaun of the Dead” in to the American shores and so successful was it with fans that most of America’s directors (both independent and mainstream) have tried anxiously to deliver what the “Spaced” clan have. Along the way the after effect of the movie brought us some good clones (Fido) and some just purely awful (The Mad) and the quest to create our own version of what Edgar Wright gave us hasn’t ended, not by a long shot. So here we are again five years later and we finally have a movie that works along “Shaun of the Dead’s” tone while paving its own signature in the horror comedy subgenre.
“The Wizard of Oz” remained a favorite of mine all through my childhood and after so much advancement in special effects, it’s still a marvel to watch. Fleming and Warner’s partnering was a match made in heaven as Fleming took the L. Frank Baum beloved novel and gave us a fantasy epic that’s been mimicked and beloved since its initial release. Years after wearing down my old VHS copy I’ve managed to view the Victor Fleming masterpiece as one of the weirdest films ever made. Watching it from the view of a child differs from when you see it as an adult and watching it on the restored 70th Anniversary edition has brought to mind some images that seemed normal then that are surprisingly surreal today.
I think the more the series goes on the more it begins to feel like a clever sitcom from the BBC because when you see season two you can see all the pieces finally coming together. All the awkwardness and flaws from season one are practically gone and more intelligent humor is implemented to make this one of the smarter comedy series on television.
Yes, make no denial about it, this is yet another sequel to the franchise that’s been nothing but mediocre and has covered that fact by splashing the screen with blood. Of course it’s pretty clear by now that “The Final Destination” (the fourth in the series) is not even meant to be considered a serious horror movie but instead a carnival ride that allows for gruesome death after gruesome death on screen all for kids who once again have out witted death accidentally and are now paying the price in spades. Yes Death is an evil motherfucker and yet again teenagers fall by excruciating death after excruciating death. In 3D!