One of the big sensations of the youtube age are Mukbangs: where people or a person sits on in front of a camera to eat food for the audience. Sometimes they’re usually discussing an issue or completing a challenge, but most times the attraction is watching someone eating food. “Mukbang,” from ACM Official, is a great twist on this formula that takes this trend and turns it in to a bonafide tale of horror.
Tag Archives: Mystery
BAD MOVIE MONDAY: COMMUNION (1989)
Today’s review is for one of my favorite movies of all time. (I know, I know… I’ve said this before, but in my defense I’m old and I love a LOT of movies.) COMMUNION stars Christopher Walken as Whitley Strieber, Lindsay Crouse as Anne Strieber, Frances Sternhagen as Dr. Janet Duffy, Andreas Katsulas as Alex, and Joel Carlson as Andrew Strieber. It was directed by Phillipe Mora based on Whitley Strieber’s best-selling nonfiction book of the same name. Now, perhaps I’m completely in the wrong here, but I am legitimately baffled as to why this movie isn’t more popular. It is FAR superior and FAR scarier than the similar FIRE IN THE SKY, which is usually what people bring up when they’re talking about terrifying alien abduction films. Now, I know what you’re thinking. If I like it so much then why am I reviewing it on BAD MOVIE MONDAY? Well, because for some insane reason it’s considered a bad movie. Most critics at the time dismissed it and audiences have been ignoring it for over thirty years. So I suppose this review is my attempt to remedy that.
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Screaming (2023)
If you love “Scream” and you loved “Scream VI” then you have to see “Screaming.” I mean you have to see it. I mean yes it is a fan film, but it’s such a wonderfully developed short slice of the “Scream” universe that is as meta as all get out and celebrates the inherent dissection of the horror genre from beginning to end.
Fear (1996): Retro VHS Collection [Blu-Ray]
In a decade filled to the brim with thrillers, James Foley’s “Fear” is one of my absolute favorites. It’s schlocky in certain instances, but it’s a satisfying twist on the “obsession thriller” by injecting it in to something of a young adult novel framework. “Fear” is one of the debut performances by Mark Wahlberg, who was previously known mainly for being a hip hop star. His take on sociopathic maniac David is much more in keeping with Wahlberg’s sensibilities and he’s able to bring to life a pretty terrifying villain.
On The Line (2023) [CINEJOY 2023]
I have a great respect for what Director-Writer Oliver Pearn pulls off with “On the Line.” It’s a competently directed and well constructed thriller that takes its low budget and implements it to create genuine atmosphere. Sadly, I wish I liked it more than I did, mainly because I wasn’t invested in the core mystery that fuels his drama thriller. Fans of audio dramas will especially be fond of how the movie enhances the narrative by depending more on the delivery of its voice cast, encouraging us to envision what’s unfolding rather than showing.
Scream VI (2023)
Wes Craven’s “Scream” series has always been first a slasher series, and second a movie series that comments on the horror fandom. Thankfully while Craven’s loss is still sorely felt in the overall franchise, “Scream VI” has kept much of the spirit alive. The next logical step in the franchise is pulling it out of Woodsboro and giving it a wider scope, and it does this by changing the backdrop to the big city of New York. While this would otherwise hinder the series’ development, the massive scale of New York gives “Scream” something of an automatic reset that I welcome.
Depart (2021) [CINEJOY 2023]
COVID-19 has affected a lot about how we live our lives, and how we’ve responded to trauma. Director-Writer Mathilde Suissa’s “Depart” is very effective and carries with it an immense weight, as it ends on a note about the conditions upon which “Depart” was filmed. A subtitle reads in the end that the movie was filmed remotely during COVID-19, allowing pretty much everything we see in “Depart” to have a larger resonance for us.