Tag Archives: Foreign

Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman (Criterion Collection) (1962)

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If you’re like me, you’re a fan of “Zatoichi” and know all too well how expensive the movie series can be to purchase. Zatoichi garners almost thirty films in his movie series, two of which are released separately. The first twenty five are, of course, often released in box set form and are sold at terribly expensive prices, and immediately go out of print. If you want to collect all of the movies individually online through a purchase, good luck finding an online seller that won’t charge an arm and a leg. Back in the early aughts I attempted to buy as many “Zatoichi” films as I could, and only ended up finding four. I never could bear to buy the rare box sets at almost five hundred bucks. Thankfully, Criterion comes to the rescue, offering a deluxe box set of one of my favorite action movie series of all time, “Zatoichi.”

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Aftershock (2013)

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Have we reached so low down the totem pole that we’re now ripping off Eli Roth movies? Is that the definition of desperation or what? “Aftershock” feels like one of those situations with “Poltergeist” where Eli Roth was ghost directing while Nicolas Lopez was credited as director. It’s a half hour of a lame tourist dramedy, followed by an hour of really silly gore and zero direction in its story, all leading in to a finale that shamelessly rips off the final scenes of “The Descent.” Thank goodness “Aftershock” is a merciful ninety minutes.

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Stalled (2013)

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Director Christian James’ “Stalled” is a very creative, and often clever horror comedy that takes the zombie movie to a new direction. It tries, at least. “Stalled” really seems to have a grasp on its premise for the first forty minutes, and then scrambles to keep monotony from setting in the rest of the way. In spite of that, “Stalled” is a creepy, interesting, and very unique zombie horror comedy that takes a few notes from “Shaun of the Dead.” It’s a horror movie about a perpetual loser who gets his life together in the wake of a bona fide zombie apocalypse. But it tries to add its own twists to the conventions, which make for a good experience.

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Juan of the Dead (2011)

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“Juan of the Dead” is a silly and occasionally creepy zombie movie, but one that also dares to have a brain and display some very volatile commentary about the state of Cuba, and the inherent poverty that runs rampant. Though Juan lives in poverty and is mostly considered a loser by most in his neighborhood, he’s managed to carve out a comfortable existence for himself, and is something of a saving grace for neighbors. After Juan and his friend Lazaro come across a rotted corpse while fishing that attempts to bite them, they kill it and then decide never to talk about it again. What’s funny is that most of the situations may seem like a warning sign to most, but director Brugués comments on the state of Cuba through it.

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Howling III – The Marsupials (1987)

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It’s really tough to make sense of “The Marsupials,” but much like the second film, it has a good idea but a terrible execution. It wants to be a psychological thriller, a horror romance, a satire of horror movies, and a werewolf picture all in one and fails to deliver on these aspects two fold. “The Marsupials” garners too much of a narrative for one picture, and should have been spread out in to another film, altogether. One thing is for certain: The connection to the Joe Dante film stops at the fact that it has werewolves in it.

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Axed (2012)

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For a film called “Axed,” I was expecting something really dark and gruesome, and yet in the end I didn’t realize how trying Ryan Lee Driscoll’s horror drama would be. It’s a practice in tedium and boredom, with a mean spirit that is often very forced. If that’s not enough the direction leaves much to be desired with a series of performances that are sub-par at best. It’s a despicable film about a despicable man, torturing despicable people for no real reason, when it all boils down to it.

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Horror Stories (2012) (DVD)

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One thing about “Horror Stories” that brings it down from the get go is its lack of ambiguity. Often times this anthology over explains the stories, and can never seem to have confidence in its own plot elements. That said, while “Horror Stories” surely won’t be confused with the brilliant “Three… Extremes,” it’s definitely a solid and often times very scary horror anthology with four really entertaining stories that will keep audiences watching, even when they falter and stumble.

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