It seems every other decade or so, there has to be a big screen adaptation of Jack Finney’s seminal science fiction novel about aliens that transform in to you when you’re sleeping. 1956 saw the Kevin McCarthy masterpiece that basically explored the fear of McCarthyism, 1978 had the pretty damn good Donald Sutherland creep fest journeying in to the fear of conformity in an age where the free love movement had died, and even in 2007 there was the reworked flop “The Invasion” which attempted to prey on our delirium about biological warfare and terrorism (and failed). 1994’s version is a horror film that’s meant to pretty much just be a horror film.
Tag Archives: Horror
Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye (1985)
In spite of many other genre fans and movie critics objections, I’ve always found “Cat’s Eye” to be something of a near flawless horror fantasy thriller. It’s one of the finest anthology films I’ve ever seen. And sadly enough it’s the anthology film I wish “Twilight Zone: The Movie” could have been. Hell, “Tales from the Darkside: The Movie” is the anthology movie I wish “Twilight Zone: The Movie” could have been, and I’m not even that much of a fan. But I digress. “Cat’s Eye” is a near perfect horror anthology film that adapts various Stephen King short stories with the wrap around of a seemingly sentient stray Tabby cat who incidentally always seems to find himself playing an important role in every one of the segments of the film. Whenever a segment begins he’s just there, but oddly enough he’s also a character on a mission of his own and we want to know what he’s up to.
Creepshow 2 (1987)
What with the resurgence of the anthology sub-genre in the eighties, and the release of the hit horror film “Creepshow” that managed to be a near flawless masterpiece, a sequel was not only inevitable, but a no brainer. Director Michael Gornick’s follow-up to “Creepshow” is admittedly a much more low tech and less enthusiastic outing for the series, but damn it, it sure is a lot of fun. Granted the film falls short of being excellent, but as a follow-up to the riveting and entertaining original, it’s a very strong and occasionally creepy sequel. It’s been one of my favorites since I was a kid, and though it’s shown its wear since 1987, it’s still a fun horror film. Lacking the star power and novelty of the first film, “Creepshow 2” slims down the story count and relies more on a bleak atmosphere.
Creepshow (1982)
George A. Romero’s “Creepshow” is almost a spit in the face of everyone who decried comic books a sheer stain on humanity and the youth, blaming the colored pages for the evaporation of morality in the fifties and sixties. “Creepshow” is an absolute celebration of horror comics and a love letter to the EC generation who had their stories robbed by hack psychologists who blamed comic books for homosexuality, crime, murder, and drug use. “Creepshow” is a joint effort from many people just filled with talent that simply can not hold this entire film at times. An absolute orgy of laughs, scares, and thrills, “Creepshow” is one of the finest, if not the finest anthology horror film second only to “Black Sabbath.”
The Walking Dead: Cold Storage [Web Series]
“Cold Storage” doesn’t have much in the way of a narrative, but then the whole purpose of “The Walking Dead” webisodes is to whet the appetites of fans craving more of Robert Kirkman’s world, and to give producer Gregory Nicotero something to do. Show producer and special effects master Gregory Nicotero is slowly making his way in to the directing business, lensing some of the episodes for the hit series, and directing both web series for the hit horror drama. “Torn Apart” was a much more meaningful and concentrated effort in the Walking Dead mythology as we got to know the origin of bicycle girl. “Cold Storage” has a link to the show, but only in a mere lip service sense. It’s an “oh look!” moment and then it passes.
The Walking Dead: Season Three, Episode One – Seed
When we saw Rick Grimes and his group at the beginning of “What Lies Ahead,” they were trying to prove to Doctor Jenner that there was something worth living for out in the zombie apocalypse. Maybe if they kept going, they could show that there was salvation. And then basically they took salvation and destroyed it. Jenner was right. In the opening of “The Walking Dead” season three entitled “Seed,” there really hasn’t been any progress.
The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor [Hardcover]
It’s very likely that I had too high expectations, or that Max Brooks just spoiled me. But in the end when I was finished with “Rise of the Governor” I was somewhat underwhelmed. Rather than considering re-reading the book, I merely just closed it and moved on with my life. “Rise of the Governor” proves that even with good writing and a wonderful premise, a prequel isn’t always a good idea. The Governor aka Phillip Blake is surely one of the most notorious and memorable characters from the Walking Dead series, and he’s yet to be topped. And while I think he was a fascinating character with a lot of depth and complexity, I really don’t know if I care who he was before the dead destroyed the world.
Phillip Blake’s story is so unimportant in the grand scheme of things because we know how he will end up, unfortunately. The characters in “Rise of the Governor” lack any impact or real individuality. I had a very hard time discerning which characters were talking most times, and I really wasn’t on the edge of my seat. Granted, there are some truly excellent moments to be mined here. I loved the search for the missing zombie kid in the house, and Blake’s intensity toward protecting his family, but “Rise of the Governor” really has nothing to add to the universe beyond “Here is what happened before he met Rick Grimes and massacred a bunch of people in the prison.” While it is a good idea in theory, I really didn’t feel the need to follow him on his path to evil.