I guess it was only a matter of time for “Blood: The Last Vampire” to be turned in to an honest to goodness big budget movie. I mean the original short film by Hiroyuki Kitakubo has become somewhat of a cult classic in spite of its short running time and brings to the table some of the best animation I’ve ever seen in a horror oriented anime I’ve ever seen. The original take focused on a vampire hunter who had to infiltrate a girls school to stop vampires hiding among the ranks of students and teachers. You’ll find that the 2009 live action version by Chris Nahon isn’t much of a departure. In fact there are times where the movie duplicates scenes from the anime shot for shot which ends up becoming a mixed bag in the end.
Tag Archives: Horror
Gothkill (2009) (DVD)
So far I’ve enjoyed the output Wild Eye Releasing has dropped on movie lovers laps. “Blitzkrieg” was a fun and salivating homage to Naziploitation from the grindhouse era and now we have “Gothkill,” another neo-grindhouse bonanza that recalls the satanic thrillers of the seventies with its tongue firmly planted in cheek. At a merciful hour and nine minutes long, Connelly’s satanic horror comedy seems to be here only to present us with the finest and most unique satanic and gothic performance artists of all time from fire breathers, to magicians and fortune tellers, all of whom are included in the film for lip service in a story that is not only much too convoluted to understand at times, but seems too long even at the length of an average television special.
Pontypool (2008)
Okay, I’m just going to throw it out there and admit that I didn’t get “Pontypool.” Maybe I’m losing my touch or maybe this is one of the most incomprehensible messes I’ve seen in years, but “Pontypool” makes no sense. It’s abrupt, awkwardly paced, and often times doesn’t even know what to do with the formula it’s set up. We’re supposed to be watching a movie about what I can assume are zombies that have turned in to the walking dead (?) due to a sudden infection that’s carried through the English language. Did you understand that? Because I sure as hell didn’t!
Friday the 13th: The Killer Cut (2009) (DVD)
Let’s face it, Platinum Dunes is a remake factory that’s managed to take some of the best horror films of all time and completely butcher them. Take “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” for one example, a bastardized MTV version of a damn good dose of indie filmmaking. But surprisingly, “Friday the 13th” isn’t a bad film and Marcus Nispel completely redeems himself. In fact it’s pretty damn good. I know I’ve become the small minority of movie viewers who see the film as a great reboot, but I just clicked with “Friday the 13th” and everything it pushed on audiences including the mean vicious SOB that is Jason Voorhees.
Breaking Out of the Asylum: Interview with Director Leigh Scott
Whether or not you actually agree with Leigh Scott’s methods of filmmaking and business, whether or not you like Asylum, whether or not you’ve ever bothered to see a film from Asylum, you can’t argue that Leigh Scott is definitely ambitious and has an eye for detail. Though films like “Transmorphers” and “Pirates of Treasure Island” were considered busts and universally mocked, there’s a definite knack for detail and cinematography there that you can’t deny.
Leigh Scott went to work for Asylum pictures a long time ago becoming their most prominent director, a man who guaranteed to get their movies out there in time with a solid cast, and since then he’s branched out to make films on his terms and try to emulate the directors he’s come to admire as a film buff. The Milwaukee born filmmaker is still at it, and now has the chance to hit the scene in a big way with a revisiting of the L. Frank Baum tale “The Wizard of Oz” which is a modern take with a twist called “The Witches of Oz” about an adult Dorothy now being called on to save her own reality when the Wicked Witch of the West decides to conquer Earth.
Often a controversial filmmaker spawning many articles and questions of his practices, Scott has shown no signs of slowing down any time soon and continues to power on with this much talked about production expected to have a limited release soon. Though Leigh and I have a rather interesting, volatile, infamous (any other adjectives you can think of) history together, I thought it would be a good chance to interview Scott and see what he’s been up to and why he decided to twist the tale of “Wizard of Oz” for the modern age.
Friday the 13th (2009)
I think the only people who hold grudges more than Jason are the religious and it’s a known fact that Jason is one angry bitter man whose mom is taken down at the first five minutes of the 2009 reboot called simply: “Friday the 13th.” A combination of the first, second and third films in the series, “Friday the 13th” seek to completely redo Jason and start over with a clean slate. This is a great idea especially after desperation from studios forced the masked killer in to deep space and the future of mankind. This is a stripped down reboot that director Marcus Nispel handles with care, because it’s a task liable to be screwed up once he and the writers decide on fitting an origin, a motivation, and the discovery of the hockey mask in only ninety minutes. But he rises to the occasion and actively keeps the story moving with a body count of almost ten people and an admittedly uneven pace. Despite the caveat and probably because of it, Nispel’s treatment of Voorhes makes for the first enjoyable experience at the movies in a long while.
Cinema Crazed's Top 10 of 2008
It’s been a long time coming but we finally singled out the best and worst of 2008 as chosen by Cinema Crazed. Please to enjoy.