If “Ginger Snaps” was a hard flaming shot of vodka in a neighborhood bar, Nickelodeon’s counterpart “The Boy Who Cried Werewolf” is a Virgin Fruit Colada in an outdoor cafe. While this movie is meant as mere Halloween filler while simultaneously working as a vehicle for Nickelodeon’s key star Victoria Justice, “The Boy Who Cried Werewolf” ends up being a surprisingly solid family horror comedy that isn’t as soapy or girly as I originally assumed it would be. Within the pandering to preteens salivating after Justice, there is also a solid however flawed and derivative story and some wicked special effects. Sure the flick rips off of “Spider-Man,” and “Young Frankenstein,” but it’s still an entertaining time filler with potential to be a franchise or new series, which Nick seems to be going for in the goofy final scene.
Tag Archives: Romance
Feeding Frenzy (2010) (DVD Review)
“It’s very likely the tomato paste has AIDS in it.”
Red Letter Media, the production company behind all of the classic internet movie reviews of the “Star Wars” prequels that even garnered Simon Pegg’s unabashed endorsement releases their first feature film entitled “Feeding Frenzy” a trashy horror film very much in line with the company’s humor and even features their company mascot Mr. Plinkett as an ominous villain as a nod to fans who followed their brilliant video reviews so adamantly every year.
The Wolfman (2010)
Universal’s “The Wolfman” has always been another of the great horror movies that fans have secretly wanted to see remade for the modern era but only for morbid curiosity. We’re a fickle bunch, but the fact is that “The Wolfman” has been a long time coming mainly because we’ve seen countless adaptations of Universals banner monsters but never the Wolfman. We came close with the stellar “Wolf,” but that wasn’t an actual remake. Joe Johnston creates what I can define as a rather above par remake, one that really pays respect to the classic monster movies and horror movie tropes while also cutting its own path in to the mythos. While I’ll agree with many that the movie isn’t a masterpiece, it certainly is a cut above all the rest of the remakes in the market and dabbles in excellence more often than not.
The Loved Ones (2009)
If John Waters and John Hughes ever conceived the idea for a modern day “Misery,” we’d essentially get this Australian horror gem known as “The Loved Ones,” a movie that’s centered around an impending prom and two rather demented love stories that concern fractured love and new relationships. After accidentally crashing in to a tree Brent kills his father and six months later is a train wreck committed to smoking pot and putting himself in as much danger as possible. He also makes a hobby out of cutting himself and inflicting pain.
Halloweentown High (2004)
While “Halloweentown High” really isn’t the most subtle of films with monsters and knights acting as symbolism for civil rights, it does excel in fully realizing the character of Marnie who is no longer a student and now just a matriarch of other students looking to make their way in to the human world. Kimberly J. Brown is as good and charming as ever in the role of heroine Marnie who takes it upon herself to play civil rights leader by insisting some of the monsters from Halloweentown should be allowed to go to human school for the sake of diversity and equality. The catch is by Halloween if she hasn’t made progress, her powers will be stripped away. This allows for a more open forum for new characters, all of whom have their own likable traits and quirks. One if a goblin, another is a werewolf, another a wood nymph, and so on. Marnie plays more of a protector this time watching over the new exchange students, and falling for a new guy named Cody.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
Much like Tim Burton’s most recent films, “Sweeney Todd” looks brilliant, but beyond that you’d be hard pressed to find any material here worth taking home with you. Like Burton’s previous films, there’s not much beyond the gorgeous coating of colors and tones, it’s all hollow inside filled with one-dimensional characterization and actors so out of their element it’s astounding. While Depp is gritty as Sweeney Todd he can’t carry a single tune to save his life, so Burton and co. rely on him talking as he sings to mask the fact that he can’t truly vocalize. The same can be said for Helena Bonham Carter who is just average as a singer and nonetheless very forgettable as a character.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead (2010)
I was a little hesitant to actually sit down and watch Jordan Galland’s horror comedy since its box describes it as being akin to a Woody Allen film as well as an homage to Shakespeare, because let’s face it, horror fans just don’t care about Shakespeare much. But what I experienced was something of a mixed bag of a horror comedy that is both very intelligent and very entertaining. Not only does the film manage to subtly breakdown famous stage plays and literature of all kinds, but it’s a horror comedy very much in the vein of the eighties comedies in which our hero is an inept schlub who is oblivious to the horror around him until it’s much too late to do anything about it.