Tag Archives: Crime

The Tall Man (2012)

Posted on by

the-tall-man

Pascal Laugier’s “The Tall Man” is one dry heave of a drama that paints itself as a horror movie. Worse more it pretends to be a take on “The Slender Man” when really it’s just one heaping helping of melodrama about kidnapped kids and altruistic nurses taking their love for them one step too far. It’s a shame, too, since the opening montage isn’t only creepy, but seems to be setting us up for one hell of an eerie and haunting horror film built on a scary premise. I wanted to invest time in the film once the initial hook runs its course. It’s just sad that the film itself never lives up to any of its promise.

Continue reading →

Batman: Bad Blood (2016) [Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital]

Posted on by

batmanbb

Bat people! Bat people! So many Bat people! Back when I was a young lad, there were only two or three Batman oriented characters. Now there is practically a whole legion of masked vigilantes by the time “Bad Blood” comes to a close. Who even needs the Gotham Police Force, anymore? It’s admittedly kind of ridiculous, but also kind of fun to see how many people have been influenced by The Dark Knight to keep going forward and fighting crime. Gotham needs as much as help as it can get, obviously, so why not have a Batgirl, a Batwoman, a Nightwing, and a Batwing, amiright?

Continue reading →

A Sister’s Nightmare (2013)

Posted on by

sisters-nightmare

What almost ruins the experience of “A Sister’s Nightmare” is its pacing. The pacing and tension are glacial to the point where I wondered if writer Shelley Gillen had any idea where it was going. Thankfully sticking with it leads in to a very interesting pay off in the finale where events unfold in to a welcome twist climax. I pretty much anticipated what would occur, but in the end I appreciated that the writers opted for a twist rather than simply turning “A Sister’s Nightmare” in to a typical protective parent thriller we’ve seen a thousand times. I’m not saying “A Sister’s Nightmare” is top notch thrills and chills, but it definitely builds up to a neat bang that compensates for the general mediocrity of its storytelling.

Continue reading →

Avenged (2015)

Posted on by

avenged-2013

I wish “The Crow” sequels took as much of an advantage with a creative premise as director Michael S. Ojeda does with “Avenged.” While his film isn’t exactly a revenge masterpiece, it’s a strong contender for one of the finer revenge films of the past five years, working as a tragic love story, and a vicious horror themed tale of vengeance. Amanda Adrienne Smith is rather compelling as the victimized Zoe, a deaf mute who ends up at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Continue reading →

Jack’s Back (1988) [Blu-Ray/DVD]

Posted on by

Jack the Ripper is one of the most fascinating serial killers of all time mainly because of the way they (I always assumed it was more than one killer) murdered, and their targets. Sadly, the entity has managed to inspire so many horror films, some very good, and some known as “Jack’s Back.” A cheapy little vehicle, “Jack’s Back” has vague connections to Jack the Ripper, but it overplays its hand by sidestepping the slasher motif, trying to be a cerebral character study. It fails on most fronts. Instead watching like a goofy, often muddled mess that I had a tough time keeping up with.

Continue reading →

Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengeance (2015)

Posted on by

SamuraiCop2

The only ways to watch “Samurai Cop 2” is with a stern tongue in cheek, or on the basis that you’re a hardcore fan of the original schlock classic. Though a few of the original cast members have come and gone, director Gregory Hatanaka does his best to channel the nineties vibe that the original film was oozing with. Despite taking place in modern times, “Samurai Cop 2” is still very much a nineties action film with the tough sergeant, obligatory sex scenes, Joe Marshall’s long hair, and ninjas galore. There are even ninjas dressed in business suits for some reason.

Continue reading →

The Runaround Club (2015)

Posted on by

runaroundclub

Matt Rindini’s short drama suffers mainly because of its short format. And I mean that as a compliment because I really like the concept for “The Runaround Club,” but feel it’s a good short film that could transform in to a great dramatic thriller. It could work as a film about a crisis of conscience with two criminals, both of whom see a family committed to a more dead end life than their own. It could almost be like “The Desperate Hours” meets “The Ref” sans the comedy.

Continue reading →