Trick 'r Treat (2007)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no big reveals, plot twits, or character deaths**

Intro- Emma & Henry

Emma (Leslie Bibb) “hates” Halloween, but her husband, Henry (Tahmoh Penikett) is a devout believer in Halloween and the traditions attached to the holiday. After a stroll Warren Valley’s annual costume parade, Emma pushes Henry to remove all the decorations before her mother arrives for a visit. Henry warns Emma about breaking the sacred rules during Halloween night, and Emma learns her lesson the hard way, when a tiny enforcer/demon named Sam (Quinn Lord) decides to teach her a lesson she’ll never forget.

My Thoughts:  Shocking. That’s the one word I would use to describe this storyline. This was a GREAT opener for Trick ‘r Treat, because it sets the tone for the film. You know that Sam isn’t someone to mess with, and you know you’re about to see a sick and twisted horror anthology film, that won’t hesitate to pull any punches.

Principal Wilkins

Steven Wilkins (Dylan Baker) is the town principal for Warren Valley’s elementary school. Steven lives alone with his son, Billy (Connor Christopher Levins), but unbeknownst to other Warren Valley citizens, Steven lives a secret life as a cold-blooded serial killer……

My Thoughts: Dylan Baker is an ideal choice to portray the nerdy and quirky outcast, but there’s a dark side to his character here. Steven receives a dose of his own medicine later on, but there’s a genuinely surprising twist involving the father/son relationship between Steven and Billy.

Scavenger Hunt

Led by Macy (Britt McKillip), Chip (Alberto Ghisi), Schrader (Jean-Luc Bilodeau), Sara (Isabelle Deluce), and Rhonda (Samm Todd) take a trip to an abandoned rock quarry to test the limits of an old legend. Years ago, after receiving a collective payment from their parents, a school bus driver was ordered to murder eight mentally ill children by driving the bus into the quarry head first.

Although, before the bus driver hit the gas pedal, one of the eight chained children escaped, and drove the bus off the cliff. The bus sunk to the bottom of the quarry, killing the eight children, and the bus driver mysteriously disappeared after the incident. Throughout the years, this tragedy was dubbed the School Bus Massacre.

My Thoughts: As the leader, Macy is the “mean girl” in the group, so she feels the need to bully the geek (Rhonda), but Macy’s prank backfires in the worst way, when the REAL threat shows up.

Laurie’s First

At a young age of twenty-two, Laurie (Anna Paquin) is still waiting for her “first.” With some prodding from her older sister, Danielle (Lauren Lee Smith) and her two friends Maria (Rochelle Aytes) and Janet (Moneca Delain), Laurie agrees to attend a party deep in the woods with a wide variety of men for different tastes. But during the trip to her big night, Laurie is stalked by a masked man with fangs.

My Thoughts: With all the teasing and sexual innuendos, you’re lead to believe Laurie is about to lose her virginity, and she’s beyond terrified about the big night, but that’s not  the case. I won’t give away the big surprise here, because the twist is that good. If you’re jaw doesn’t hit the floor after Laurie's revelation, then you’re apart of a tough, tough crowd.

Mr. Kreeg VS  Sam

Living alone with his dog, Mr. Kreeg (Brian Cox) is a miserable codger, who loathes Halloween. Mr. Kreeg uses his dog and a glowing mask to scare trick-or-treaters into dropping their bags of candy at his doorstep, so Mr. Kreeg can have all the sweet goodies to himself. But Mr. Kreeg is stuck in a life-or-death fight, when Sam invades Mr. Kreeg’s home to punish the grumpy old grouch for his all his crimes during Halloween.

My Thoughts: Trick ‘r Treat set the bar high with the previous shorts, the film needed to end with a bang, and Mr. Kreeg VS Sam didn’t disappoint at all. After the big fight is over, Trick ‘r Treat fools you with a baffling conclusion, but everything changes, when some old friends from Kreeg’s past show up.

Summary: Director/writer Michael Dougherty packs a plethora of genuinely surprising twists into Trick ’r Treat, and he uses a smooth interweaving technique to connect the dots with each storyline. And more importantly, Dougherty never clusters everything together to the point where you get the feeling you’re watching a clumsy attempt to be too tricky failing before your very eyes. No, Dougherty carefully moves the pieces of the puzzle into place, and Doughtery’s is able to drop a layer of clever hindsight on each storyline.

It might take some time, but I can picture Sam gaining a loyal fanbase, as the next true horror icon. Sam doesn’t speak a word in Trick ’r Treat, but his menacing presence casts a dark shadow over each storyline throughout Trick ’r Treat. And those who disrespect Halloween in any way, shape, or form, will suffer the consequences after learning an unforgettable lesson from Sam.

If you love horror and Halloween, Trick ’r Treat is a MUST-SEE. Most horror anthology films suffer one big problem: Inconsistency. Well I can tell you, Trick ’r Treat doesn’t suffer from this problem. Trick ’r Treat is loaded with enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat, dark humor, bloody gruesomeness for the gore fiends, and enough spooky atmospheric tension to provide a handful of bone chilling moments. It’s a festive treat with everything any die hard horror fan could possibly ask for, and after one viewing, you’ll understand Trick ’r Treat’s strong cult following. I can’t wait for Trick ’r Treat 2!

Rating: 10/10


Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Trick 'r Treat (2007)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Trick ‘r Treat is a horror anthology film, and characters from different storylines interact with one another every now and then, so I’ll do another separate synopses and my thoughts after each one breakdown review. Trick ‘r Treat is set on Halloween night in the small town of Warren Valley, Ohio, and the story follows various residents in Warren Valley, who encounter a series of bizarre and supernatural disturbances throughout the night. And yeas, this step by step synopses/breakdown of Trick ‘r Treat is in chronological order.

Intro- Emma & Henry

Emma (Leslie Bibb) “hates” Halloween, but her husband, Henry (Tahmoh Penikett) is a devout believer in Halloween and the traditions attached to the holiday. After a stroll Warren Valley’s annual costume parade, Emma pushes Henry to remove all the decorations before her mother arrives for a visit. Henry warns Emma about breaking the sacred rules during Halloween night, and Emma learns her lesson the hard way, when a tiny enforcer/demon named Sam (Quinn Lord) decides to teach her a lesson she’ll never forget.

My Thoughts: Shocking. That’s the one word I would use to describe this storyline. This was a GREAT opener for Trick ‘r Treat, and the image of Emma’s demise is more than capable of pulling a reaction out of you. You knew something bad would happen to Emma after she blew out the candle in the jack-o-lantern, but it wasn’t so easy to predict the severity of her punishment. Sam’s plan? After Henry takes some time to watch a dirty movie inside, Sam waits for the right moment to attack Emma, while she’s alone. Henry awakes from his nap to find Emma crucified as a scarecrow. Limbs dangling, Halloween lights wrapped around her body, blood everywhere. It’s a real nasty sight. This opener sets the tone for Trick ’r Treat, because you know you’re about to see a movie with some sick and twisted stuff, and more importantly, this opener establishes Sam as a lethal threat.

Principal Wilkins

Steven Wilkins (Dylan Baker) is the town Principal for Warren Valley’s elementary school. Steven lives alone with his son, Billy (Connor Christopher Levins), but unbeknownst to other Warren Valley citizens, Steven lives a secret life as a cold-blooded serial killer. For his first victim on Halloween night, Steven poisons young Charlie’s (Brett Kelly) candy, but Steven runs into some problems during Charlie’s burial in the backyard.

My Thoughts: Dylan Baker is an ideal choice to portray the nerdy and quirky outcast, but there’s a dark side to his character here. Steven receives a dose of his own medicine later on, but there’s a genuinely surprising twist here. Throughout the early stages of Steven’s story, Bill constantly badgers Steven into carving a jack-o-lantern. When Steven is finished with Charlie, Steven accompanies Billy to the basement, so they can start on the jack-o-lantern together…but Steven and Billy aren’t carving a pumpkin. No, they’re carving Charlie’s severed head. And Billy puts an extra effort into carving out the perfect eye holes.

Another good swerve. Two thoughts ran through my mind after the first time. 1. Billy’s going to discover his dad’s secret, and freak out. Or 2. You know, Billy carves out a normal jack-o-lantern from a pumpkin. Steven teaching his own son how to kill, dismember, maim, and torture helpless victims? Yeah, I didn’t see that one coming.

Scavenger Hunt

Led by Macy (Britt McKillip), Chip (Alberto Ghisi), Schrader (Jean-Luc Bilodeau), Sara (Isabelle Deluce), and Rhonda (Samm Todd) take a trip to an abandoned rock quarry to test the limits of an old legend. Years ago, after receiving a collective payment from their parents, a school bus driver was ordered to murder eight mentally ill children by driving the bus into the quarry head first.

Although, before the bus driver hit the gas pedal, one of the eight chained children escaped, and drove the bus off the cliff. The bus sunk to the bottom of the quarry, killing the eight children, and the bus driver mysteriously disappeared after the incident. Throughout the years, this tragedy was dubbed the School Bus Massacre.

Macy has plans to summon the zombified versions of the eight children by collecting eight jack-o-lanterns, and using them as peace offerings for the children. But a harmless hoax takes a turn for the worst, when something unholy emerges from the depths of the quarry.

My Thoughts: As the leader, Macy is the “mean girl” in the group, so she decides to pull a prank on the geeky outsider, Rhonda. With Chip, Schrader, and Sara’s help, Macy tries to scare Rhonda with costumes resembling the eight children. Rhonda is frightened, but things go too far, when Rhonda bumps the back of her head on a rock after a fall, but it’s not over yet.

Schrader puts a stop to the prank, because Rhonda is freaking out, but during Rhonda’s hysterical meltdown, the REAL School Bus Massacre children emerge from the lake. The jack-o-lanterns can protect anyone against the eight children, but Macy defiled the ritual by kicking a jack-o-lantern in the water. Rhonda locks herself in the only elevator that’s capable of reaching the top of the quarry, clinging to her jack-o-lantern like a hunk of precious gold. For revenge, Rhonda rides the elevator back to the top alone, leaving the rest of the group to suffer horrible gruesome deaths at the hands of the eight children. As Rhonda ascends to the top, she gives a cold and unapologetic wave good-bye.

Jaw-dropping stuff. After a while, you knew it was only a matter of time before the real  School Bus Massacre children showed up. But Rhonda abandoning everyone else? Yeah, it’s another Trick ‘r Treat twist that hit me like a slap across the face. It’s easy to feel sympathy for Rhonda, but her willing decision to let everyone suffer a painful end really caught me off guard.

Laurie’s First

At a young age of twenty-two, Laurie (Anna Paquin) is still waiting for her “first.” With some prodding from her older sister, Danielle (Lauren Lee Smith) and her two friends Maria (Rochelle Aytes) and Janet (Moneca Delain), Laurie agrees to attend a party deep in the woods with a wide variety of men for different tastes. But during the trip to her big night, Laurie is stalked by a masked man with fangs.

My Thoughts: With all the teasing and sexual innuendos, you’re lead to believe Laurie is about to lose her virginity, and she’s beyond terrified about the big night, but that’s not  the case. At the party, Laurie attacks her mysterious stalker. Here, it’s revealed Laurie, Danielle, Maria, and Janet are werewolves, and Laurie isn’t looking to lose her virginity, she’s looking for her first kill as a werewolf. If you’re jaw doesn’t hit the floor after Lauire’s revelation, then you’re apart of a tough, tough crowd.

Mr. Kreeg VS Sam

Living alone with his dog, Mr. Kreeg (Brian Cox) is a miserable codger, who loathes Halloween. Mr. Kreeg uses his dog and a glowing mask to scare trick-or-treaters into dropping their bags of candy at his doorstep, so Mr. Kreeg can have all the sweet goodies to himself. But Mr. Kreeg is stuck in a life-or-death fight, when Sam invades Mr. Kreeg’s home to punish the grumpy old grouch for his crimes during Halloween.

My Thoughts: Trick ‘r Treat set the bar high with the previous shorts, the film needed to end with a bang, and Mr. Kreeg VS Sam didn’t disappoint at all. During the fight, I seriously had no idea, who would come out on top, as Mr. Kreeg struggled to defeat Sam. It’s funny, because Sam constantly toys with Mr. Kreeg at first, but when Sam prepares to deliver the final blow with his pumpkin lollipop, Sam decides to walk away? That’s right. Sam uses his lollipop to remove and eat a candy bar from Kreeg’s chest, and he causally strolls out of the house like nothing happened. It’s a baffling conclusion, but everything changes, when some old friends (more on that later) from Kreeg’s past show up.

Summary: Director/writer Michael Dougherty packs a plethora of genuinely surprising twists into Trick ’r Treat, and he uses a smooth interweaving technique to connect the dots with each storyline. And more importantly, Dougherty never clusters everything together to the point where you get the feeling you’re watching a clumsy attempt to be too tricky failing before your very eyes. No, Dougherty carefully moves the pieces of the puzzle into place, and Doughtery’s is able to drop a layer of clever hindsight on each storyline.

A prime example for clever hindsight is Mr. Kreeg’s storyline. During the beginning, Mr. Kreeg insults Steven in his backyard, as he’s burying Charlie. Moments later, you see Mr. Kreeg BEGGING for help from Steven’s POV. To return the favor word for word with a cold shoulder, Steven responds with “Screw you,” and Steven walks into his house without looking back. After Steven leaves, an anonymous attacker strikes Kreeg. Later on during Kreeg and Sam’s fight, it’s revealed Sam was the anonymous attacker.

And Laurie’s First is my favorite storyline in Trick ‘r Treat. Dougherty’s set up for this twist was perfect. Laurie is strolling through the woods by herself. The masked stranger reveals himself as a vampire, and he bites Laurie on the neck. Seconds later, a body falls into the campfire party with Danielle, Maria, and Janet. You think it’s Laurie……but you see a terrified Steven. Steven posed as a vampire with fake fangs (earlier in the film, Steven murdered a young woman during the parade using the fangs), but in a shock, Laurie turned the tables on him. Steven was such a despicable and cowardly lowlife weasel, and he FINALLY got a taste of his own medicine in the end. Oh, and Marilyn Manson’s “Sweet Dreams” was a nice fit as a background song for the nightmarish ambiance during this scene.

It might take some time, but I can picture Sam gaining a loyal fanbase, as the next true horror icon. Sam doesn’t speak a word in Trick ’r Treat, but his menacing presence casts a dark shadow over each storyline throughout Trick ’r Treat. And those who disrespect Halloween in any way, shape, or form, will suffer the consequences after learning an unforgettable lesson from Sam.

If you love horror and Halloween, Trick ’r Treat is a MUST-SEE. Most horror anthology films suffer one big problem: Inconsistency. Well I can tell you, Trick ’r Treat doesn’t suffer from this problem. Trick ’r Treat is loaded with enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat, dark humor, bloody gruesomeness for the gore fiends, and enough spooky atmospheric tension to provide a handful of bone chilling moments. It’s a festive treat with everything any die hard horror fan could possibly ask for, and after one viewing, you’ll understand Trick ’r Treat’s strong cult following. I can’t wait for Trick ’r Treat 2!

Rating: 10/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Wolf (1994)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no plot twists, major reveals, or character deaths**

Living in New York City, Will Randall (Jack Nicholson) struggles to control his transformation into a werewolf after a bite from a wolf in the woods. Working as the editor-in-chief at a publishing house, Will is dealing with pressure from his boss, Raymond Alden (Christopher Plummer), and his deceitful and hungry apprentice, Stewart Swinton (James Spader).

Will’s wife, Charlotte (Kate Nelligan) is concerned about Will losing his job, and Will’s problems only get worse, as Will fights to contain the monster. Meanwhile, Will develops an unlikely bond with Raymond’s daughter, Laura (Michelle Pfeiffer). But Will’s newfound vitality comes at a deadly price, as the werewolf wreaks havoc throughout the city.

Jack Nicholson’s charismatic and conflicted performance is so fun to watch. At first, you get the sense Will Randall is this broken and depressed man, who’s frustrated with everyone and everything in his life. After the wolf bite, Jack transforms himself into a confident and fearless man, who’s overjoyed about finding the fountain of youth.

But Jack is able to show a believable amount of regret, confusion, and distress, because Will is terrified of the violent and dark werewolf inside of him. Two scenes stick out as good examples for the torments within Will. The first scene involves Jack panicking after Will pulls a pair of human fingers out of his pocket in the bathroom at work after an attack the night before. The second scene is Will handcuffing himself to a radiator in his hotel room. The look of fear and shame on Jack’s face is priceless, because Jack gives you the impression Will is genuinely terrified of unleashing the werewolf. Throughout his career, Jack Nicholson has done a masterful job of setting a bar of excellence for his performances, and he doesn’t disappoint here.

James Spader’s Stewart is the ideal adversary for Jack’s Will. Spader is capable of bringing legit feelings of anger out of you, as this phony and slimy backstabbing weasel, who is determined to ruin Will’s life. Pfeiffer is enjoyable as the new spark in Will’s life, and Pfeiffer shares some great chemistry with Jack. Christopher Plummer is a nice fit for the powerful and wealthy businessman, and Plummer nails the disapproving and overbearing father side of the Raymond character.

The rivalry between Will and Stewart is one of the driving forces behind Wolf. It’s funny, because you get the feeling of a meaningless little squabble at first. After the wolf bite, the rivalry snowballs into an avalanche of infidelity, constant backstabbing, and murder. Will targets Stewart’s throat, but Will has enough self-control to not cross certain lines. Stewart, on the other hand, is willing to stoop to every low imaginable to extract revenge on Will., and you can really feel the seething hatred between Will and Stewart.

You’ll see the more emotional moments in Wolf during the ups and downs in Will and Laura’s relationship. It’s funny, because Will and Laura are an unlikely pairing. Will is this miserable old man, who’s going through a mid-life crisis, and Laura is a rebellious free spirit, who dances to the beat of her own drum. And I’m happy Wolf didn’t go with the happily ever after ending. Instead, you'll see a bittersweet and refreshing ending to this bizarre and unusual romance.

Wolf doesn’t rely on tons of blood and gore. Instead, the terror comes from the idea of a werewolf terrorizing New York City. A vicious beast is unleashed in an authentic setting to devour helpless prey, and Wolf doesn’t oversaturate the story with hysterical supernatural nonsense. Wolf is an elegant werewolf flick with a passionate love story, a thrilling finale, and the perfect mischievous ending. Plus, Wolf is able to provide some great humor without a reaching a too silly point.

Rating: 9/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Wolf (1994)(Spoiler Reivew)

**This review contains spoilers**

Will Randall (Jack Nicholson) accidentally hits a wolf during a drive through Vermont after a business trip. Will tries to move the wolf, but the wolf awakens to bite Will’s hand. Before Will has a chance to react, the wolf disappears, leaving Will alone in the middle of the road.

Will returns to his job as editor-in-chief at a publishing house and his wife, Charlotte (Kate Nelligan) in New York City. Will battles a series of odd changes including a stronger sense of smell, taste, and hearing, and Will is forced to deal with more problems. Will is about to loose his job to a deceitful and ambitious apprentice named Stewart Winton (James Spader). Raymond Alden (Christopher Plummer) is pulling all the strings, backing Will into a corner with two unsavory options: Will can accept the demotion, and take a dead end job in Eastern Europe, or Will can leave without a job.

As Will contemplates his options, bizarre symptoms (including random blackouts) caused by the wolf bite disrupts Will’s daily routine. After a while, Will is forced to confront his fears of slowly transforming into a werewolf. At Raymond’s estate, Will meets Laura (Michelle Pfeiffer), Raymond’s daughter, and eventually, Will and Laura form an unlikely bond. Will embraces his new found vitality, and after a series of bold moves, Will is able to turn the tables on Stewart. But Will is loosing control of his werewolf alter-ego, and Will’s secret is in serious jeopardy after a visit from Detective Carl Bridger (Richard Jenkins).

Jack Nicholson’s charismatic and conflicted performance is so fun to watch. At first, you get the sense Will Randall is this broken and depressed man, who’s frustrated with everyone and everything in his life. After the wolf bite, Jack transforms himself into a confident and fearless man, who’s overjoyed about finding the fountain of youth.

But Jack is able to show a believable amount of regret, confusion, and distress, because Will is terrified of the violent and dark werewolf inside of him. Two scenes stick out as good examples for the torments within Will. The first scene involves Jack panicking after Will pulls a pair of human fingers out of his pocket in the bathroom at work after an attack the night before. The second scene is Will handcuffing himself to a radiator in his hotel room. The look of fear and shame on Jack’s face is priceless, because Jack gives you the impression Will is genuinely terrified of unleashing the werewolf. Throughout his career, Jack Nicholson has done a masterful job of setting a bar of excellence for his performances, and he doesn’t disappoint here.

James Spader’s Stewart is the ideal adversary for Jack’s Will. Spader is capable of bringing legit feelings of anger out of you, as this phony and slimy backstabbing weasel, who is determined to ruin Will’s life. Pfeiffer is enjoyable as the new spark in Will’s life, and Pfeiffer shares some great chemistry with Jack. Christopher Plummer is a nice fit for the powerful and wealthy businessman, and Plummer nails the disapproving and overbearing father side of the Raymond character.

The rivalry between Will and Stewart is one of the driving forces behind Wolf. It’s funny, because you get the feeling of a meaningless little squabble at first. After the wolf bite, the rivalry snowballs into an avalanche of infidelity, constant backstabbing, and murder. Will gives you the feeling he might take the high road, but after he catches Charlotte with Stewart, Will bites Stewart on his hand (slowly transforming Stewart into a werewolf), and Will embarks on a mission to destroy Stewart. Will is the seasoned veteran, and Stewart is the hungry young lion, but Will isn’t ready to step down, because he’s got a little bit of fight left in him. Will targets Stewart’s throat, but Will has enough self-control to not cross certain lines. Stewart, on the other hand, is willing to stoop to every low imaginable to extract revenge on Will. You can really feel the seething hatred between Will and Stewart, and the bitter feud concludes in a nasty fight to the death, as Will fights to save Laura’s life.

You’ll see the more emotional moments in Wolf during the ups and downs in Will and Laura’s relationship. It’s funny, because Will and Laura are an unlikely pairing. Will is this miserable old man, who’s going through a mid-life crisis, and Laura is a rebellious free spirit, who dances to the beat of her own drum. And I’m happy Wolf didn’t go with the happily ever after ending. During the finale, as Will’s transformation comes full circle, together, Will and Laura realize they can’t be together, so Will runs off into the night, leaving Laura alone. At the end, it’s revealed Laura is also a werewolf, and to make sure Will has enough time to escape, Laura intentionally steers Bridger and the police in the wrong direction. Before the fight to the death with Stewart, Laura had plans to leave the country with Will to start a new life. It’s a bittersweet and refreshing ending to this bizarre and unusual romance.

Wolf doesn’t rely on tons of blood and gore. Instead, the terror comes from the idea of a werewolf terrorizing New York City. A vicious beast is unleashed in an authentic setting to devour helpless prey, and Wolf doesn’t oversaturate the story with hysterical supernatural nonsense. Wolf is an elegant werewolf flick with a passionate love story, a thrilling finale, and the perfect mischievous ending. Plus, Wolf is able to provide some great humor without a reaching a too silly point.

Rating: 9/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Night Of The Scarecrow (1995)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no character deaths, major reveals, or plot twists**


After a lengthy hiatus, Claire Goodman (Elizabeth Barondes) returns to her hometown of Hanford. Here, Claire has a tense reunion with her bitter father, Mayor William Goodman (Gary Lockwood). Claire befriends a local farmer named Dillon (John Mese) after Dillon's heated confrontation with Danny (John Hawkes), one of Dillon's more disgruntled workers.

At the Mayor’s house, Dillon is introduced to the entire Goodman family one by one. Dillon meets the town sheriff, Frank Goodman (Stephen Root), his wife, Lorraine (Cynthia Merrill), and their two children Toby and Martha; the town priest, Thaddeus (Bruce Glover), his wife, Barbara (Martine Beswick), and their daughter, Stephanie (Cristi Harris); and George (Dirk Blocker), who lives alone on a farm.

Claire tries to enjoy a happy and peaceful return to Hanford, but the harmless trip down memory lane is disrupted by a murderous scarecrow. After an unintentional resurrection, The Scarecrow (Howard Swain) embarks on a murderous rampage with one mission: Destroy the entire Goodman family one by one. Claire slowly uncovers secrets behind a troubled past for her ancestors, and the origins of The Scarecrow. With Dillon’s help, Claire fights to stop The Scarecrow’s killing spree, but a bigger problem emerges after a confession from Thaddeus. Using an ancient tool of evil, The Scarecrow plans to resurrect an invincible warlock.

I’m used to seeing a few generic and clichéd characters in a slasher film, but Night Of The Scarecrow has a bad case of overkill in this department. Claire is the innocent good girl, who transforms into the unlikely heroine as the movie progresses. Mayor Goodman is the typical greedy and corrupt politician. George is the angry booze guzzling drunk, who totes a shotgun. Thaddeus is the self-righteous priest. Dillon is the guy, who inexplicably falls for the leading lady (Claire), he’ll do anything to protect her, and Dillon forms a team with Claire to fight The Scarecrow. And I can’t forget about Danny, because he’s the one guy, who’s a jerk to everyone.

Although, Stephanie is a nice refreshing change for this cast of characters. At first glance, you’ll get the impression Stephanie is pure and harmless as a priest’s daughter, but behind her father’s back, Stephanie is a loose and promiscuous teenage girl, who’s in a secret relationship with her wild boyfriend.

And yeah, the characters are clichéd and generic, but you’ll see the familiar faces of a few veterans here. Root gives one of the better performances, but Root also had more breathing room to work with as Frank, because Frank is the conflicted sheriff, who’s torn between doing the right thing, and obeying strict orders from his overbearing brother (William). Overall, the cast isn’t bad, and Barondes is a decent leading lady.

Night Of The Scarecrow’s mundane through the motions predictability really annoyed me at times. The horror clichés? Oy vey. You name it, and you’ll see it in Night Of The Scarecrow. The car won't start, victims fall down while running, a few morons accidentally resurrect an ancient evil, and of course, you have the miraculous Hail Mary comeback at the end.

Still, if you’re the type of horror fan, who enjoys mindless fun, Night Of The Scarecrow is a passable guilty pleasure film. Night Of The Scarecrow is loaded with some really gruesome and creative kills, and you’ll see a some genuine cringeworthy moments. Night Of The Scarecrow is a corny B-movie slasher flick with some hilarious one-liners, including Claire’s “How bout some fire Scarecrow!” But I’ll warn you now, if you watch Night Of The Scarecrow with a serious mindset, you’ll have a miserable viewing experience, and I’m pretty sure you’ll hate yourself for taking the time to watch this one.

Rating: 5/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Night Of The Scarecrow (1995)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

After a lengthy hiatus, Claire Goodman (Elizabeth Barondes) returns to her hometown of Hanford. Here, Claire has a tense reunion with her bitter father, Mayor William Goodman (Gary Lockwood). Claire befriends a local farmer named Dillon (John Mese) after Dillon's heated confrontation with Danny (John Hawkes), one of Dillon's more disgruntled workers.

At the Mayor’s house, Dillion is introduced to the entire Goodman family one by one. Dillion meets the town sheriff, Frank Goodman (Stephen Root), his wife, Lorraine (Cynthia Merrill), and their two children Toby and Martha; the town priest, Thaddeus (Bruce Glover), his wife, Barbara (Martine Beswick), and their daughter, Stephanie (Cristi Harris); and George (Dirk Blocker), who lives alone on a farm after the death of his wife, Doris.

Claire tries to ignore the friction with her father, so she can enjoy a happy and peaceful reunion with her uncles, but The Goodmans are forced to deal with a bigger problem. One night, a drunk Danny and his buddy, Ben (Robert Harvey) accidentally disturb the tomb of an evil warlock. After Danny urinates on a post with The Scarecrow (Howard Swain) attached to it, The Scarecrow comes to life, determined to complete one mission: Murder all The Goodmans, and anyone, who tries to stop him.

After Thaddeus survives an attack from The Scarecrow, Thaddeus explains the dark history behind The Scarecrow’s past. Over one hundred years ago, Silas Goodman led The Goodmans to Hanford. Under Silas’ guidance, The Goodman’s settled in and founded Hanford. But infertile soil and harsh winters destroyed all the crops, and eventually the entire town was stuck in a period of famine with no help, until a warlock offered his help. Using his evil spell book, The Warlock (John Lazar) made a deal with Silas, promising to restore the soil and provide more than enough food to feed the town. In return, The Warlock was free to do anything in Hanford with no restrictions or questions asked.

As the desperate leader, Silas agreed to The Warlock’s terms to save his people. Eventually, The Warlock used his black magic to corrupt the townspeople, so Silas drugged The Warlock’s drink one day. With help from other Goodmans and the townspeople, Silas crucified The Warlock, and to leave no room for error, Silas and others burned The Warlock’s body. The Warlock’s spirit was confined to a scarecrow, and his bones were buried underground in a sealed tomb.

For protection Silas stole and hid the evil spell book, and as the oldest living Goodman, William received the spell book as a gift. Motivated by revenge as a scarecrow, The Warlock has returned to retrieve the hidden spell book, because The Scarecrow can use the spell book to reunite his bones with flesh for a return to the living world.

During the chaos, Mayor Goodman is more concerned with protecting a lucrative land deal for Hanford’s first shopping mall, and William sees an easy target for a scapegoat in a hot-headed Dillon. Claire struggles to locate the spell book, as The Scarecrow wreaks havoc in Hanford. Failure isn’t an option, because if The Scarecrow succeeds, The Warlock will return as a powerful and unstoppable force.

I’m used to seeing a few generic and clichéd characters in a slasher film, but Night Of The Scarecrow has a bad case of overkill in this department. Claire is the innocent good girl, who transforms into the unlikely heroine as the movie progresses. Mayor Goodman is the typical greedy and corrupt politician. George is the angry booze guzzling drunk, who totes a shotgun. Thaddeus is the self-righteous priest. Dillon is the guy, who inexplicably falls for the leading lady (Claire), he’ll do anything to protect her, and Dillon forms a team with Claire to fight The Scarecrow. And I can’t forget about Danny, because he’s the one guy, who’s a jerk to everyone, so when his character is killed off, you either don’t care or you’re happy he’s dead.

Although, Stephanie is a nice refreshing change for this cast of characters. At first glance, you’ll get the impression Stephanie is pure and harmless as a priest’s daughter, but behind her father’s back, Stephanie is a loose and promiscuous teenage girl, who’s in a secret relationship with her boyfriend, Danny.

And yeah, the characters are clichéd and generic, but you’ll see the familiar faces of a few veterans here. Root gives one of the better performances, but Root also had more breathing room to work with as Frank, because Frank is the conflicted sheriff, who’s torn between doing the right thing, and obeying strict orders from his overbearing brother (William). Overall, the cast isn’t bad, and Barondes is a decent leading lady.

Night Of The Scarecrow’s mundane through the motions predictability really annoyed me at times. The most obvious choice is Claire and Dillon surviving. You knew both of them would make it to the end after some big, epic battle with The Scarecrow, and they did. You knew Frank would find a way to return after a fight with The Scarecrow, and he did. And of course, two people (Stephanie and Danny) are murdered after an attempt at sexual intercourse. To make things worse, you have that one person (Stephanie), who unknowingly flirts with the killer, until they open their eyes to witness their own demise.

The horror clichés? Oy vey. You name it, and you’ll see it in Night Of The Scarecrow. Frank’s cop car won’t start TWICE, as Claire and Dillon are trying to make an escape. Victims fall down while running, Danny and Ben disturb The Scarecrow, when Ben clearly senses something is wrong, and during the finale, you have the miraculous Hail Mary comeback from Claire and Dillon.

Still, if you’re the type of horror fan, who enjoys mindless fun, Night Of The Scarecrow is a passable guilty pleasure film. Night Of The Scarecrow is loaded with some really gruesome and creative kills, and you’ll see some genuine cringeworthy moments (i.e. The Scarecrow sewing Thaddeus’ mouth shut…ouch). Night Of The Scarecrow is a corny B-movie slasher flick with some hilarious one-liners, including Claire’s “How bout some fire Scarecrow!” during the finale. But I’ll warn you now, if you watch Night Of The Scarecrow with a serious mindset, you’ll have a miserable viewing experience, and I’m pretty sure you’ll hate yourself for taking the time to watch this one.

Rating: 5/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Cry_Wolf (2005)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no character deaths, major reveals, or plot twists**

Troubled teen Owen Matthews (Julian Morris) receives one last shot at redemption, when his powerful father, Charles (Gary Cole) pulls some strings for Owen’s acceptance into Westlake Preparatory Academy, an excusive and upscale private school for teenagers.

Upon his arrival, Owen is invited into a new circle of friends by Dodger (Lindy Booth) and his new roommate Tom (Jared Padalecki). During a night in the campus’ chapel, Owen meets Mercedes (Sandra McCoy), her boyfriend, Lewis (Paul James), Randall (Jesse Janzen), Regina (Kristy Wu), and Graham (Ethan Cohn).  Owen is invited to play a lying game, where Dodger puts The Wolf against the sheeps. The object of the game? Lie your way into a cash prize, and the last one standing is declared the winner.

Bored and looking for a chance to spice things up, Dodger, with the help of everyone in the group, decides to bring The Wolf to life as a serial killer. But some harmless fun takes a turn for the worst, when a teacher on campus named Mr. Walker (Jon Bon Jovi) suspects something fishy about the game. Using the backstory of a real life local murder to build The Wolf‘s mystique as a killer, the game sends the entire campus into a frenzy, leading to one crucial question: Is The Wolf real?

You'll see the usual set of characters in a teen style slasher film here. Dodger is the seemingly innocent sweetheart, Tom is the cocky pretty boy/jerk, Randall is the “bad boy,” Mercedes is the attractive and clueless airhead, and Lewis is the dopey boyfriend. Owen? He’s the new kid, who tries too hard to fit in, and in the end, his never ending quest for acceptance costs him, big time.

I’ll give the nod to Lindy Booth for the best performance, and although it doesn’t last long, Booth is able to showcase a believable devious side to Dodger character. Morris is okay in the leading role, but his character has a few head shaking moments as this gullible doofus, and without Booth to prop him up, I can’t picture Morris maintaining serviceable status as the leading man. Padalecki and Wu are good for a few cheap laughs, and Janzen doesn’t receive a significant amount of screen time. Jon Bon Jovi is solid as Mr. Walker. Throughout the movie, Bon Jovi is convincing as a walking quandary, because you’re never sure of Mr. Walker’s true intentions and the motivations for his allegiances.

Cry Wolf constantly toys with the audience during the chaos to find The Wolf. Is The Wolf real or not? It’s the one question I had trouble answering during my first viewing of Cry Wolf. For me, Cry Wolf didn’t disappoint during the double swerve at the end.

Is Cry Wolf perfect? No. No it’s not. As I said before, you’ll see a set of generic slasher characters here, and Cry Wolf’s replay technique annoys me to no end.  Throughout the movie, Cry Wolf constantly replays footage for the murders involving certain participants in the game. You’ll see the footage for the first time after the group comes to a final decision on how everyone involved is supposed to die. As the murders happen, Cry Wolf replays the same footage in the brainstorming scene over and over again. Yeah, I get the point of splicing the “This is how it happens” footage with real time events, because this technique is supposed to pull a shocking reaction out of the audience. After all, you’re seeing the nightmare come to life before your very eyes. Problem is, the footage is not shocking anymore after the first time, and after a while, the replays feel unnecessary, lazy, random, and annoying.

Still, Cry Wolf keeps you guessing until the very end with a back and forth game of whodunit, and the constant teasing is more than capable of keeping you on edge, as Cry Wolf bounces between harmless hoax territory and the possibility of a real killer stalking everyone.

Rating: 7/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Cry_Wolf (2005)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Troubled teen Owen Matthews (Julian Morris) receives one last shot at redemption, when his powerful father, Charles (Gary Cole) pulls some strings for Owen’s acceptance into Westlake Preparatory Academy, an exclusive and upscale private school for teenagers.

Upon his arrival, Owen is invited into a circle of friends by Dodger (Lindy Booth) and his new roommate Tom (Jared Padalecki). During a night in the campus’ chapel, Owen meets Mercedes (Sandra McCoy), her boyfriend, Lewis (Paul James), Randall (Jesse Janzen), Regina (Kristy Wu), and Graham (Ethan Cohn). Owen is thrust into the group’s weekly lying game of sheeps VS The Wolf. The object of the game is to sniff out the liar, and each participant is required to put some money into the pot. The Wolf is the liar, and The Wolf receives a hidden marking for his identity. The sheeps have to pick out the liar, and a false accusation automatically eliminates said participant from the game. The first sheep to point out the liar (The Wolf) wins all the money. If The Wolf survives, The Wolf wins all the money.

After a while, Dodger decides to spice things up by bringing The Wolf to life, using a real life local tragedy as the inspiration for his backstory. Together, Dodger and Owen create The Wolf’s attire, his weapon (a knife), and The Wolf’s mission: After murdering a local girl named Becky, The Wolf stalks Westlake for his next victim. Tom, Mercedes, Lewis, Randall, Graham, and Regina agree to play along, and each member of the group creates a storyline for the deaths of their characters in The Wolf’s killing spree.

Owen sends out a batch of fake emails to the entire school about The Wolf’s plan, and the group has some fun trying to uncover the identity of the killer at first, but the game takes a turn for the worst after a series of bizarre incidents, including Randall‘s mysterious disappearance. Unable to dismiss his past and troubled track record, Owen is a prime suspect for a series of real close-calls involving the game, including bringing The Wolf’s knife into a classroom, and Owen being solely responsible for a police officer’s last second decision to aim a gun at Mercedes disguised as The Wolf.

Along the way, Owen butts heads with one of his teachers, Mr. Walker (Jon Bon Jovi), who targets Owen as a fall guy for The Wolf conspiracy. Owen is facing expulsion for his involvement in the game, but Mr. Walker’s connections to a deceased Becky leads Owen to one troubling question: Is Mr. Walker The Wolf?

Cry Wolf features your usual set of characters in a teen style slasher film. Dodger is the seemingly innocent sweetheart, Tom is the cocky pretty boy/jerk, Randall is the “bad boy,” Mercedes is the attractive and clueless airhead, and Lewis is the dopey boyfriend. Owen? He’s the new kid, who tries too hard to fit in, and in the end, his never ending quest for acceptance costs him, big time.

I’ll give the nod to Lindy Booth for the best performance, and although it doesn’t last long, Booth is able to showcase a believable devious side to Dodger character. Morris is okay in the leading role, but his character has a few head shaking moments as this gullible doofus, and without Booth to prop him up, I can’t picture Morris maintaining serviceable status as the leading man. Padalecki and Wu are good for a few cheap laughs, and Janzen doesn’t receive a significant amount of screen time. Jon Bon Jovi is solid as Mr. Walker. Throughout the movie, Bon Jovi is convincing as a walking quandary, because you’re never sure of Mr. Walker’s true intentions and the motivations for his allegiances.

Cry Wolf constantly toys with the audience during the chaos to find The Wolf. Is The Wolf real or not? It’s the one question I had trouble answering during my first viewing of Cry Wolf. For me, Cry Wolf didn’t disappoint during the double swerve at the end.

Okay, so we’re in the final moments of the movie, and after the parking lot incident with Mercedes disguised as The Wolf, Owen is sick and tired of playing games. With no doubts to hold him back, Owen believes the real Wolf will strike on Halloween night during a full moon. In an attempt to expose The Wolf, Owen invites everyone involved to the chapel on Halloween night to finish the game. Here, Owen points the finger at Dodger for being the culprit behind it all, but a heartbroken and disappointed Dodger dismisses Owen’s claim. Owen struggles to think of his next move…until the remaining members of the group discover Randall’s dead body in a confession booth. Meanwhile, Mercedes is attacked by The Wolf in the girl’s dormitory on campus.

Searching for help, Owen rushes to Mr. Walker’s office after following Dodger’s instructions. Owen goes to Mr. Walker’s desk drawer to find his car keys, because Tom left with Regina in his car, and the campus is basically deserted. Instead of car keys, Owen finds a gun. This is the same gun that was used to kill Becky, and Owen suspects Mr. Walker as the killer, because after Dodger’s confession, Owen knows Mr. Walker shared an inappropriate student/teacher relationship with Becky before her death. Believing in Mr. Walker’s “crime of passion” motives, Owen refuses to relinquish the gun during a struggle with Mr. Walker, and Owen accidentally shoots Mr. Walker in the chest, killing him.

During the finale, it’s revealed the VAST majority of the group pulled a secret prank behind Owen’s back. Covered in fake blood, Randall was playing dead in the confession booth long enough for Owen to see him. Disguised as The Wolf, Graham scared an oblivious Mercedes in the shower. And Dodger faked her death outside of Mr. Walker’s office after The Wolf (disguised as Tom) “murdered” her. Mercedes and Lewis were the only ones, who didn’t know about the hoax.

The twist? Dodger deceived Owen into murdering Mr. Walker, because Dodger also shared an inappropriate relationship with Mr. Walker. Out of jealously, Dodger is the one, who murdered Becky in the woods, and Dodger planted the gun in Mr. Walker’s desk, and she purposely revealed the location, because she knew Owen would use the gun against Mr. Walker in self defense.

Suspension of disbelief is crucial for buying into this twist. Some will say it’s too far fetched to believe in all the steps for Dodger’s master plan. And using hindsight, there’s one scene with some obvious foreshadowing. Others might go with a different choice, but for me, it’s the scene with Dodger wearing the Red Riding Hood costume. Big hint. Still, I LOVE this twist. During the flashback reel at the end, you can see how Dodger easily manipulated and tortured Owen. Dodger saw an easy target for a sucker in Owen, Dodger used Owen’s infatuations against him, and she toyed with Owen until the very end.

Cry Wolf opens with the scene featuring Becky’s death in the woods. Of course, they don’t show Dodger as the killer. But at the end, you can see how Dodger stalked Becky in the woods at night, and when the time was right, Dodger murdered Becky in cold blood with the gun. Again, I know others might have trouble buying into it, but Dodger was the ideal choice for a shocking reveal. Booth took control of the Dodger, as this innocent young girl, who’s conflicted about her inappropriate relationship with a teacher. Seriously, Dodger is the sweet hometown girl with a mother, who teaches sixth graders, and her father works as a janitor at Westlake. WHO would suspect her as a murderer? Dodger’s nonchalant and cold response to Owen openly accusing her of orchestrating the murder of Mr. Walker? “Who would believe you?”

Is Cry Wolf perfect? No. No it’s not. As I said before, you’ll see a set of generic slasher characters here, and Cry Wolf’s replay technique annoys me to no end.  Throughout the movie, Cry Wolf constantly replays footage for the murders involving certain participants in the game. You’ll see the footage for the first time after the group comes to a final decision on how everyone involved is supposed to die. As the murders happen, Cry Wolf replays the same footage in the brainstorming scene over and over again. Yeah, I get the point of splicing the “This is how it happens” footage with real time events, because this technique is supposed to pull a shocking reaction out of the audience. After all, you’re seeing the nightmare come to life before your very eyes. Problem is, the footage is not shocking anymore after the first time, and after a while, the replays feel unnecessary, lazy, random, and annoying.

Still, Cry Wolf keeps you guessing until the very end with a back and forth game of whodunit, and the constant teasing is more than capable of keeping you on edge, as Cry Wolf bounces between harmless hoax territory and the possibility of a real killer stalking everyone.

Rating: 7/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Ice Cream Man (1995)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no plot twists, major reveals, or character deaths**


After witnessing an unforgettable tragedy as a child, a young Gregory Tudor is sent to Wishing Well Sanatorium. As an adult, Gregory (Clint Howard) returns to his neighborhood as the local ice cream man to honor his childhood idol. But Gregory isn’t the same innocent child anymore. Too many years in the sanatorium transformed Gregory into a bloodthirsty maniac, and instead of adding chocolate chips, peanut butter cups, or hunks of brownies to his ice cream, Gregory stuffs his tasty treats with body parts from people, insects, and dogs.

Three children named Tuna (JoJo Adams), Johnny (Justin Isfeld), and Heather (Anndi McAfee) form a friendly trio, and together, they embark on a mission to stop Gregory with help from Detective Maldwyn (Lee Majors II) and Detective Gifford (Jan-Michael Vincent). Heather tries to outsmart her strict father, Reverend Langley (David Werner), and Johnny has to endure some bullying from his big brother, Jacob (Karl Makinen).

The group is forced to overcome the hurdle of Nurse Wharton (Olivia Hussey), Gregory’s nurse at the sanatorium, and Nurse Wharton protects Gregory as his legal guardian/landlord. And the hunt for Gregory takes an unexpected turn, when Small Paul (Mikey LeBeau), another child and a friend of the trio, suddenly disappears……….

Howard’s parody performance of an unhinged loon is good for a few cheap laughs, but the majority of the supporting cast is mediocre at best. LeBeau is spot on as the geeky outcast, but the rest? Nothing special at all. Majors is just going through the motions as the clueless member of the duo, Makinen is the generic douchey big brother, and Isfeld’s Johnny is supposed to the “cool kid” in the group. Warner is the other recognizable name from this cast, but he’s limited to a forgettable and dull character, as the self-righteous and delusional preacher.

Honestly, I don’t get the cult following for Ice Cream Man. The production values are noticeably poor, the writing is pedestrian at best, and overall, the performances are unbearable. Yeah, I know most horror fans won’t  hesitate to give this one the B-Movie pass, but I’m not one of them. Sorry, but Ice Cream Man has one too many legit problems to ignore for my taste.

My biggest pet peeve for Ice Cream Man? The tone of this film is too confusing. Anyone remember Goosebumps? For those who don’t know, Goosebumps was a popular horror anthology TV series for kids based on the books by R.L. Stine, and I LOVED this show as a kid (I was also a big fan of the books). Anyway, each Goosebumps episode was based on a book, and for those who know anything about the Goosebumps TV series and the books,  Goosebumps was horror for kids with a lighter and more comedic take. Very campy most of the time, and from what I remember, not too much or no blood at all.

Why am I using Goosebumps as an example? Because I got the feeling I was watching an episode of Goosebumps with adult themes, but Goosebumps never featured infidelity, and noticeable blood and gore. The mash-up of hokey ridiculousness and gruesome horror didn’t work for me, because Ice Cream Man tries too hard on both sides, and I was burnt on the goofy stuff after twenty-five minutes.

Ice Cream Man was chore to sit through, and the creepy box cover fooled me into believing I might enjoy this one. Well, I was wrong. I tried, but Ice Cream Man didn’t click with me. Clint Howard is good for a few cheap laughs, the black and white prologue is a nice nostalgic treat, and I appreciate the wink to One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975). There’s a scene, where Maldwyn refers to “That Cuckoo movie” during a scene at the sanatorium. Cool moment.

Still, Ice Cream Man is an awful film. Ice Cream Man is a mess of laughable production values, poor writing, inconsistent tones, an overall mediocre cast, pitiful campy humor, and lame jokes. It’s a shame, because Ice Cream Man features a fun premise for the horror comedy sub-genre, and with a better screenplay, director, and overall cast, Ice Cream Man could’ve been a much better film. Maybe I’ll have a change of heart on a second viewing, but for now, I’ll remember Ice Cream Man as an avoidable abomination.

Rating: 2/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

Ice Cream Man (1995)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

As a child, a young Gregory Tudor awaits the arrival of the Ice Cream Man one day. Gregory is seconds away from receiving his daily cold treat, but the Ice Cream Man is murdered after a drive by shooting in front of Gregory. Unable to handle the trauma of witnessing the death of his hero, Gregory is sent to the Wishing Well Sanatorium for treatment.

As an adult, Gregory (Clint Howard) returns to the same neighborhood he grew up in as a child to continue the legacy of his idol as the new Ice Cream Man. Nurse Wharton (Olivia Hussey) took care of Gregory as one of her favorites in the sanatorium, and as Gregory’s landlord/legal guardian, Nurse Wharton protects Gregory at all costs. But Gregory isn’t the same innocent child anymore. Too many years in the sanatorium transformed Gregory into a bloodthirsty maniac, and instead of adding chocolate chips, peanut butter cups, or hunks of brownies to his ice cream, Gregory stuffs his tasty treats with body parts from people, insects, and the mangled corpse of a dog.

Against their parents wishes, three children named Tuna (JoJo Adams), Heather (Anndi McAfee), and Johnny (Justin Isfeld) take it upon themselves to investigate Gregory’s peculiar lifestyle.  Heather tries to outsmart her strict father, Reverend Langley (David Warner), and Johnny has to endure some bullying from his big brother, Jacob (Karl Makinen), but the trio runs into a bigger problem, when Gregory kidnaps Small Paul (Mikey LeBeau), another friend in the group, one night. Detective Maldwyn (Lee Majors II) and Detective Gifford (Jan-Michael Vincent) suspect something fishy after a brief encounter with Gregory, and they’ll have to work with the kids to save Small Paul’s life before it’s too late.

Howard’s parody performance of an unhinged loon is good for a few cheap laughs, but the majority of the supporting cast is mediocre at best. LeBeau is spot on as the geeky outcast, but the rest? Nothing special at all. Majors is just going through the motions as the clueless member of the duo, Makinen is the generic douchey big brother, and Isfeld’s Johnny is supposed to the “cool kid” in the group. Warner is the other recognizable name from this cast, but he’s limited to a forgettable and dull character, as the self-righteous and delusional preacher.

Honestly, I don’t get the cult following for Ice Cream Man. Yeah, I know most horror fans won’t  hesitate to give this one the B-Movie pass, but I’m not one of them. Sorry, but Ice Cream Man has one too many legit problems to ignore for my taste.

My biggest pet peeve for Ice Cream Man? The tone of this film is too confusing. Anyone remember Goosebumps? For those who don’t know, Goosebumps was a popular horror anthology TV series for kids based on the books by R.L. Stine, and I LOVED this show as a kid (I was also a big fan of the books). Anyway, each Goosebumps episode was based on a book, and for those who know anything about the Goosebumps TV series and the books,  Goosebumps was horror for kids with a lighter and more comedic take. Very campy most of the time, and from what I remember, not too much or no blood at all.

Why am I using Goosebumps as an example? Because I got the feeling I was watching an episode of Goosebumps with adult themes. In Ice Cream Man, you’ll see a husband cheating on his wife with a scantily clad and promiscuous woman, sex photos, and lots of blood and gore. That doesn’t sound like an episode of Goosebumps, right? Well, there’s a cast of kids here, and they’re trying to solve the mystery of  a bogeyman-esque character as sleuths.

Yeah, that sounds like an episode of Goosebumps, but Goosebumps never featured infidelity, and noticeable blood and gore. The mash-up of hokey ridiculousness and gruesome horror didn’t work for me, because Ice Cream Man tries too hard on both sides, and I was burnt on the goofy stuff after twenty-five minutes. The worst example of mixing gruesome horror with stupid comedy? Somehow, Gregory manages to stick a victim’s severed head inside a BIG waffle cone. I tried, but I could not laugh at this scene no matter what.

Ice Cream Man is loaded with a number of eye rolling moments. One that sticks out is Detective Maldwyn eating one of Gregory’s “special” ice cream cones. The ice cream cone contains a few scoops of ice cream…. and an eyeball. There’s a close-up shot of Maldwyn’s mouth as he’s eating the cone,  and unknowingly, Maldwyn is playing around with the eyeball in front of his teeth. Seriously? Maldwyn and Gifford visit Wishing Well Sanatorium to dig up some dirt on Gregory, and EVERYONE in the sanatorium (including the staff) is hopped up on medication and completely nuts. Maldwyn and Gifford are running away from an angry horde. Maldwyn is running with a sense of urgency, and while Maldwyn is waiting at the car, Gifford is casually walking, while a large group of deranged patients follow him?

First, I’m pretty sure if I had a freakin’ eyeball in my mouth, I would be able to taste/feel it, and spit it out immediately. Second, I know I’m watching a movie, but you’re being chased by a group of deranged nutcases, and you casually stroll to the car? Sorry, but that doesn’t work for me. Again, I know I’m watching a movie, but Ice Cream Man pushes the suspension of disbelief  limits too far.

Ice Cream Man was chore to sit through, and the creepy box cover fooled me into believing I might enjoy this one. Well, I was wrong. I tried, but Ice Cream Man didn’t click with me. There’s a semi-creepy shot of Small Paul playing with a bucket of ice cream inside a sanatorium after he murders Gregory to close the film. It’s an attempt at foreshadowing for Small Paul as the next ice cream killer, because for a while, Gregory trusted Small Paul as his apprentice. But this cliffhanger didn’t do anything for me, because I don’t have the slightest urge for a sequel. Clint Howard is good for a few cheap laughs, the black and white prologue is a nice nostalgic treat, and I appreciate the wink to One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975). There’s a scene, where Maldwyn refers to “That Cuckoo movie” during a scene at the sanatorium. Cool moment.

Still, Ice Cream Man is an awful film. Ice Cream Man is a mess of laughable production values, poor writing, inconsistent tones, an overall mediocre cast, pitiful campy humor, and lame jokes. It’s a shame, because Ice Cream Man features a fun premise for the horror comedy sub-genre, and with a better screenplay, director, and overall cast, Ice Cream Man could’ve been a much better film. Maybe I’ll have a change of heart on a second viewing, but for now, I’ll remember Ice Cream Man as an avoidable abomination.

Rating: 2/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

A Haunted House (2013)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no character deaths, plot twists, or major reveals**

After a series of paranormal disturbances in their new home, Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) and Kisha (Essence Atkins) seek the help of Dan (David Koechner) and Bob (Dave Sheridan), a duo of brothers, who install security cameras for a living, while Dan tries to push a paranormal reality show at the same time, Chip (Nick Swardson), a psychic, Father Doug Williams (Cedric The Entertainer), and Malcolm‘s “gangster” cousin, Ray-Ray (Affion Crockett).

As a happy couple, Kisha and Malcolm are forced to deal with problems from the housekeeper, Rosa (Marlene Forte), and some awkward interruptions from Steve (Andrew Daly) and Jenny (Alanna Ubach), a swinging married couple. As time passes, it’s clear a malevolent entity is stalking Malcolm and Kisha, and moving into another house won’t solve the problem.

Whacky. That’s best word to describe the performances here. You’ll see a lot of whacky, and over the top silliness from the cast, but it’s a spoof horror comedy, so you have to expect that, I guess.

I know A Haunted House is supposed to be an over the top film, but overkill is a real problem here. A prime example is a lame running gag with Nick Swardson’s Chip and Malcolm. Every time the lights go out, there’s a panic in the dark. And when the lights pop on again, Chip is clinging to (or trying to) Malcolm in some random sexual position, because Chip is obviously attracted to Malcolm.

Although, A Haunted House deserves some credit for noticeable attention to detail spoofs. A Haunted House spoofs The Devil Inside, The Blair Witch Project, and Paranormal Activity. Paranormal Activity is the main story arc for the spoofs used in this film, and the noticeable effort to mimic the Paranormal films really surprised me. Trust me, A Haunted House isn’t a great film by any stretch of the imagination, but I’ll give credit where credit is due for the detailed step by step process of imitating other horror films. And kudos to A Haunted House for maintaining feelings of authenticity for the found-footage POV style throughout the movie.

Still, A Haunted House was too hit and miss for me. I won’t sit here and lie to you, because I DID laugh pretty hard a few times. But when the forty minute mark for A Haunted House rolled around, I was beyond burnt out on the goofy lunacy and constant barrage of slapstick gags. Although, if you’re looking for non-stop outrageousness, A Haunted House won’t disappoint you at all. There’s more than enough raunchy and vulgar humor, sex gags, and in-your-face buffoonery during the one hour and twenty-six minutes runtime.

Marlon Wayans returns to his Scary Movie roots with this horror spoof. And if you’re wondering, yes, A Haunted House is better than the neutered Scary Movie films (Scary Movie 3, 4, and 5), but in the grand scheme of things, that’s not a major accomplishment to brag about.

Rating: 4/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

A Haunted House (2013)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Prepairing to start their new life together, Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) invites his girlfriend, Kisha (Essence Atkins) to move in with him. But the happy couple encounter a series of unexplainable incidents in the new home. With limited options available, a frightened Kisha pushes Malcolm to seek help from the paranormal investigation field.

Kisha and Malcolm seek help from Dan (David Koechner) and Bob (Dave Sheridan), a duo of brothers, who install security cameras for a living, while Dan tries to push a paranormal reality show as ghost busters at the same time, Chip (Nick Swardson), a psychic, Father Doug Williams (Cedric The Entertainer), and Malcolm‘s “gangster” cousin, Ray-Ray (Affion Crockett). Kisha and Malcolm are forced to deal with problems from the housekeeper, Rosa (Marlene Forte), and some awkward interruptions from Steve (Andrew Daly) and Jenny (Alanna Ubach), a swinging married couple. As time passes, it’s clear a malevolent entity is stalking Malcolm and Kisha, and the situation becomes more complex, when Kisha reveals secrets in her dark past……..

Whacky. That’s best word to describe the performances here. You’ll see a lot of whacky, and over the top silliness from the cast, but it’s a spoof horror comedy, so you have to expect that, I guess.

I know A Haunted House is supposed to be an over the top film, but overkill is a real problem here. A prime example is a lame running gag with Nick Swardson’s Chip and Malcolm. Every time the lights go out, there’s a panic in the dark. And when the lights pop on again, Chip is clinging to (or trying to) Malcolm in some random sexual position, because Chip is obviously attracted to Malcolm.

Although, A Haunted House deserves some credit for noticeable attention to detail spoofs. A Haunted House spoofs The Devil Inside, The Blair Witch Project, and Paranormal Activity. Paranormal Activity is the main story arc for the spoofs used in this film, and the noticeable effort to mimic the Paranormal films really surprised me. A Haunted House mirrors everything from the camera angles, to the security camera footage, falling furniture, recreating entire scenes from the Paranormal films step by step, the final moments of the first film, and Katie and Kristi’s backstory as a child. As a child, Kisha had an imaginary friend/invisible demon named Tony as a friend, and of course Tony is the invisible demon, who’s tormenting Malcolm and Kisha in their new home. If you remember the Paranormal films, Toby is the name of the invisible demon, who befriended Katie and Kristi. Nice touch.

Remember the ending to The Blair Witch Project with an emotionless Mike standing still in a corner? Well they also spoof that scene here with Bob standing in a corner. Of course, the big difference is Bob is urinating. And kudos to A Haunted House for maintaining feelings of authenticity for the found-footage POV style throughout the movie.

Plus, I got a few good chuckles out of the scene where Malcolm and Kisha ignore the demon. The scene happens towards the end of the movie, and while Malcolm and Kisha are sitting around in the kitchen, the demon strikes by opening drawers, throwing pots and pans around, and destroying everything. Instead of freaking out, Malcolm and Kisha calmly ignore the demon in an attempt to get under his skin (i.e. Malcolm commenting on the new plastic drinking cups, preventing the demon from breaking more glass). Hilarious moment, because in every paranormal/haunting horror film, you see the exact opposite reaction for this scenario.  

Still, A Haunted House was too hit and miss for me. I won’t sit here and lie to you, because I DID laugh pretty hard a few times. But when the forty minute mark for A Haunted House rolled around, I was beyond burnt out on the goofy lunacy and constant barrage of slapstick gags. Although, if you’re looking for non-stop outrageousness, A Haunted House won’t disappoint you at all. There’s more than enough raunchy and vulgar humor, sex gags, and in-your-face buffoonery during the one hour and twenty-six minutes runtime. So yeah, you’ll get your fill on an orgy scene, Malcolm and Kisha sharing weed with a demon, and demon rape.

Marlon Wayans returns to his Scary Movie roots with this horror spoof. And if you’re wondering, yes, A Haunted House is better than the neutered Scary Movie films (Scary Movie 3, 4, and 5), but in the grand scheme of things, that’s not a major accomplishment to brag about.

Rating: 4/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets- https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready
   

Alien Raiders (2008)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no big reveals, twists, or character deaths**

Five days before Christmas, a group of raiders invade Hastings Market in Buck Lake, Arizona. Within the quiet little town holding a small population of 25, 012, the citizens of Buck Lake are used to living peaceful and harmless lives, but on this one night, the raiders will change everything forever.

Led by Aaron Ritter (Carlos Bernard), the group of raiders include Sterling (Courtney Ford), Kane (Rockmond Dunbar), Spooky (Philip Newby), Ulrich (Joseph Steven Yag), and Logan (Tom Kiesche). During the calamity, a local police officer named Chambers (Keith Hudson) quietly lurks inside, waiting for the right opportunity to take out the bad guys. With their motives unclear, the remaining hostages beg for answers. As Hastings’ employees, Benny (Jeffery Licon), Whitney (Samantha Streets), and Manny (Derek Basco) try to devise a plan for an escape together, while the store manager Mr. Tarkey (Joel McCrary) constantly whines about everything.

On the outside, Seth Steadman (Matthew St. Patrick), the lead detective and a former hostage negotiator, tries to work out a deal with Ritter, so he can secure the safety of the hostages. But the situation becomes more complex when Ritter reveals the details behind his mission: Ritter is the leader of a secret alien hunting group. Ritter and his team search the United States in a never ending mission to exterminate the alien threat with Logan recording everything. Ritter and his team believe the king of the alien species, who is capable of possessing any human, is hiding somewhere in Hastings Market.

Spooky possesses a unique ability as a clairvoyant, because he’s capable of sensing the alien’s presence, but time is running out, as the alien terrorizes the helpless victims within the supermarket.

Unfortunately,  Alien Raiders features a set of generic characters. Benny is the shy nerd, who’s chasing the dream girl (Whitney), who’s out of his league. Mr. Tarkey is the slimy boss. Ritter is the conflicted leader, who struggles with the dilemma of doing the right thing for his cause, and not crossing  moral boundaries. And Kane is your typical snarling tough guy. No real complaints about the consistent set of decent performances, but the generic characters drove me nuts most of the time.

Alien Raiders feels like a mix of The Thing and The Mist (2007). Survivors are trapped in a tight isolated death trap, while a sneaky alien wreaks havoc. Although, if you remember John Carpenter’s version of The Thing, MacReady and others used blood tests to sniff out the alien, but in Alien Raiders, they use a pinky test. Sterling uses a very big kitchen knife to chop off the test subject’s pinky. If the test subject simply bleeds out, then they’re a normal human, and the severed pinky is placed in a container of ice. BUT the aliens are capable of regeneration, so if the pinky grows back, then there’s another alien to worry about. Sounds like a primitive way of testing, huh?

I’ll admit, Alien Raiders took me by surprise, but this film is not without its problems. I mentioned the generic characters earlier, and this film featured one too many corny moments for my taste. A prime example would be the mushy “I’ll do anything for you!” stuff between Whitney and Benny. I’m not trying to sound like a macho tough guy, but the “moments” between Whitney and Benny are too contrived and fake.

Still, Alien Raiders is a nice little low budget sci-fi horror treat. You’ll see a few creepy moments here and there, and there’s enough blood and nasty carnage to satisfy the gore fiends. Plus, the jaw-dropping twist and the cliffhanger at the end pack a powerful punch. I was prepared to go with a lower score, but the twist and the cliffhanger changed my mind. Yeah, the double-whammy at the end is THAT good. Alien Raiders isn’t perfect by a long shot, but it’s worth a try, if you’re a fan of sci-fi horror.

Rating: 7/10

Looking for a change from Batman, Spider-Man, and Iron Man? Then get know the world's newest superheroine Freechelle Fantabulous for only $0.99 by following the link- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in my book of short stories, also only $0.99-  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets-

https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mitch-Macready-2/439846799459035?ref=hl

Alien Raiders (2008)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Five days before Christmas, a group of raiders invade Hastings Market in Buck Lake, Arizona. Within the quiet little town holding a small population of 25, 012, the citizens of Buck Lake are used to living peaceful and harmless lives, but on this one night, the raiders will change everything forever.

Led by Aaron Ritter (Carlos Bernard), the group of raiders include Sterling (Courtney Ford), Kane (Rockmond Dunbar), Spooky (Philip Newby), Ulrich (Joseph Steven Yag), and Logan (Tom Kiesche). During a firefight, Ulrich and Spooky are shot to death by a local police officer named Chambers (Keith Hudson). With their motives unclear, the remaining hostages beg for answers.

On the outside, Seth Steadman (Matthew St. Patrick), the lead detective and a former hostage negotiator, tries to work out a deal with Ritter, so he can secure the safety of his stepdaughter, Whitney (Samantha Streets), who also works at Hastings as a cashier. But the situation becomes more complex when Ritter reveals the details behind his mission: Ritter is the leader of a secret alien hunting group. Ritter and his team search the United States in a never ending mission to exterminate the alien threat with Logan recording everything. Ritter and his team believe the king of the alien species, who is capable of possessing any human, is hiding somewhere in Hastings Market.

Benny (Jeffrey Licon), a lower level employee at Hastings Market, is determined to protect Whitney at all costs, while ignoring his whiny store manager Mr. Tarkey (Joel McCrary), and trying to devise a plan with another co-worker named Manny (Derek Basco).

The group runs into some serious trouble, when a hostage is exposed as an alien after a routine pinky test. As the group’s clairvoyant, Spooky was the only one, who could use his telepathic powers to sniff out an alien without harming anyone. With no other options left, Ritter agrees to release one hostage, if Steadman releases Charlotte (Bonita Friedericy), another clairvoyant, from jail to help. But the alien parasite quickly infects members of the hostage group one by one, and time is running out for Charlotte to answer one crucial question: Who is the king?

Unfortunately,  Alien Raiders features a set of generic characters. Benny is the shy nerd, who’s chasing the dream girl (Whitney), who’s out of his league. Mr. Tarkey is the slimy boss. Ritter is the conflicted leader, who struggles with the dilemma of doing the right thing for his cause, and not crossing  moral boundaries. And Kane is your typical snarling tough guy. No real complaints about the consistent set of decent performances, but the generic characters drove me nuts most of the time.

So we’re in the final stages of the film, and we’re all lead to believe Chambers is the one, who’s carrying the alien parasite as the king. But there’s a twist! Ritter puts himself in the line of fire, while holding the alien in place, so the cops can have a clear shot to kill the alien once and for all. The alien is shot to death, and Chambers is dead. Ritter is bleeding to death from bullet wounds, so he begs Sterling for a mercy-killing. Sterling agrees, but it’s not over yet.

After a careful inspection, Charlotte realizes Chambers wasn’t carrying the king. Instead, it was Whitney all along. For the final scene of the movie, Benny and Whitney are sitting in a cop car by themselves, and after Seth’s pleas on a walkie-talkie, Benny FINALLY realizes Whitney is carrying the dominant alien. Benny tries to shoot Whitney, but Whitney transforms, and she murders Benny as the screen fades to black.

Amazing swerve. Throughout the movie, Whitney is this panicky mess, and Benny does everything he can possibly do to defend the girl of his dreams, including sacrificing his pinky (more on that later). There’s no way you could suspect Whtiney as “The One,” because Alien Raiders does a good job of throwing you off the trail. Using hindsight, I was able to pick up on a few obvious clues for Whitney being the dominant alien. For starters, Whitney avoided the pinky test, because Benny stood up and took her spot. And on top of that, Whitney went out of her way to play this innocent victim, who NEEDED protection. It’s a genuinely shocking twist with an ironic and tragic ending, because throughout the movie, Benny risked everything to save and protect Whitney, but in the end, Whitney turned on Benny to brutally murder him.

Alien Raiders feels like a mix of The Thing and The Mist (2007). Survivors are trapped in a tight isolated death trap, while a sneaky alien wreaks havoc. Although, if you remember John Carpenter’s version of The Thing, MacReady and others used blood tests to sniff out the alien, but in Alien Raiders, they use a pinky test. Sterling uses a very big kitchen knife to chop off the test subject’s pinky. If the test subject simply bleeds out, then they’re a normal human, and the severed pinky is placed in a container of ice. BUT the aliens are capable of regeneration, so if the pinky grows back, then there’s another alien to worry about. Sounds like a primitive way of testing, huh? Well, Sterling and the others had no choice after Spooky’s death, because Charlotte and Spooky are the only ones, who possess the ability to sense an alien presence without dismembering.

I’ll admit, Alien Raiders took me by surprise, but this film is not without its problems. I mentioned the generic characters earlier, and this film featured one too many corny moments for my taste. A prime example would be the mushy “I’ll do anything for you!” stuff between Whitney and Benny. I’m not trying to sound like a macho tough guy, but the “moments” between Whitney and Benny are too contrived and fake.

Still, Alien Raiders is a nice little low budget sci-fi horror treat. You’ll see a few creepy moments here and there, and there’s enough blood and nasty carnage to satisfy the gore fiends. Plus, the jaw-dropping twist and the cliffhanger at the end pack a powerful punch. I was prepared to go with a lower score, but the twist and the cliffhanger changed my mind. Yeah, the double-whammy at the end is THAT good. Alien Raiders isn’t perfect by a long shot, but it’s worth a try, if you’re a fan of sci-fi horror.

Rating: 7/10

Looking for a change from Batman, Spider-Man, and Iron Man? Then get know the world's newest superheroine Freechelle Fantabulous for only $0.99 by following the link- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in my book of short stories, also only $0.99-  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

And remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

Follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

And don't forget to like both of my Facebook pages, because the Mitch MacReady 2 Facebook page includes quotes from both ebooks that can't fit into Tweets-

https://www.facebook.com/mitch.macready

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mitch-Macready-2/439846799459035?ref=hl