Night Swim(2024)(Minor Spoilers Review)

 **This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Suffering from Multiple Sclerosis, retired baseball star Ray Waller (Wyatt Russell) and his wife, Eve (Kerry Condon) are looking for a fresh start. Wyatt and Eve move into a new home with their children, Elliot (Gavin Warren) and Izzy (Amelie Hoeferle), with hopes of firmly settling into a new life.

Ray’s illness severely limits his day to day activities, but the swimming pool in the backyard miraculously heals him. Ray enjoys his rejuvenated health, but any chances of a bright future are cut short, when Eve learns the truth about the pool’s dark past.

My Thoughts- Ray is a broken man, who’s trying to find his confidence again. Wyatt Russell captures Ray’s roller coaster of emotions with a solid performance. There’s a big shift from the sadness in Ray’s weakened state to the spark and new found sense of energetic joy, when the effects of the pool kick in. Wyatt has this genuine sinister attitude. He’s more aggressive and  kind of cocky. It’s done in a way, where you’re not completely sure if there’s something wrong with him or not. Although, when the evil forces fully consume Ray, Wyatt’s performance gets a bit too hokey and over the top, following the same pattern for the ghosts that haunt the pool.

Gavin Warren is another standout in the cast. Good facial expressions, body language, and it’s easy to buy into him as this shy and socially awkward kid. The scene where Ray smashes a home run during Elliot’s little league practice was so good. The team is celebrating with Ray, because after everything he’s been through, he finally gets to enjoy a moment of happiness. But Elliot is standing off to the side alone, and that sad look on Warren’s face is impossible to ignore. Elliot was struggling to get a hit, but his dad stepped up, and Ray unintentionally stole his moment.

I was hoping for more screen time for Ben Cinclair. He’s hilarious as the kooky and eccentric pool tech. But I guess you could say his presence would’ve added too much comedy to what’s supposed to be a serious horror movie.

Night Swim features a poignant ending, and all the loose ends are tied up, but it’s almost impossible to ignore the bad stuff. Too many cheap and predictable jump scares. When the lights in the pool start flickering, you know it’s only a matter of time before ghosts or ghostly visions pop up out of nowhere. And there’s no other way to say this, but the ghosts are not scary or intimidating. The ghosts in Night Swim just look too goofy to take seriously, and that’s a big problem.

I also wasn’t a fan of certain scenes with the black water seeping through the eyes and mouths of a few characters. It looks silly, so I couldn’t buy into the creepy and gross out reactions they were obviously going for.

They tried to put a spin on the haunted house sub genre by limiting the haunting to the pool, but Night Swim still follows the haunting playbook step by step. Almost everyone in the family knows something is wrong with the pool, and they’re not safe. They wait until it’s too late to get out, and evil forces spoil the family’s plans for escape, because the spirits won’t let Ray leave the house.

Night Swim brings some realism and emotion to the story with Ray trying to find some normalcy in his life, and Eve urging Ray to buy the house. She’s tired of uprooting the family, and you can understand why she wants everyone to have a more permanent home. Izzy and Elliot are young children. They need friends, and Elliot already has trouble fitting in.

Giving credit where credit is due, Night Swim delivers, if we’re talking about fears of what can go wrong in a swimming pool. The fear of drowning and how quickly it can happen was more than enough to deliver a few squeamish moments. It might sound ridiculous, but Night Swim convincingly pushes the idea that water is just as terrifying and menacing as any ghosts or evil spirits.

Presenting the pool as this dark and evil wishing well was a nice touch, but overall Night Swim has more misses than hits for the spooky side of the film. It’s just the usual haunting horror film, with the only difference being the swimming pool is the center of attention.

Rating- 4/10

Night Swim (2024)(Spoiler Review)

 **This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Suffering from Multiple Sclerosis, retired baseball star Ray Waller (Wyatt Russell) and his wife, Eve (Kerry Condon) are looking for a fresh start. Wyatt and Eve move into a new home with their children, Elliot (Gavin Warren) and Izzy (Amelie Hoeferle), with hopes of firmly settling into a new life.

Ray’s illness severely limits his day to day activities, but the swimming pool in the backyard miraculously heals him. Ray enjoys his rejuvenated health, but any chances of a bright future are cut short, when Eve learns the truth about the pool’s dark past.

My Thoughts- Ray is a broken man, who’s trying to find his confidence again. Wyatt Russell captures Ray’s roller coaster of emotions with a solid performance. There’s a big shift from the sadness in Ray’s weakened state to the spark and new found sense of energetic joy, when the effects of the pool kick in. Wyatt has this genuine sinister attitude. He’s more aggressive and  kind of cocky. It’s done in a way, where you’re not completely sure if there’s something wrong with him or not. Although, when the evil forces fully consume Ray, Wyatt’s performance gets a bit too hokey and over the top, following the same pattern for the ghosts that haunt the pool.

Gavin Warren is another standout in the cast. Good facial expressions, body language, and it’s easy to buy into him as this shy and socially awkward kid. The scene where Ray smashes a home run during Elliot’s little league practice was so good. The team is celebrating with Ray, because after everything he’s been through, he finally gets to enjoy a moment of happiness. But Elliot is standing off to the side alone, and that sad look on Warren’s face is impossible to ignore. Elliot was struggling to get a hit, but his dad stepped up, and Ray unintentionally stole his moment.

I was hoping for more screen time for Ben Cinclair. He’s hilarious as the kooky and eccentric pool tech. But I guess you could say his presence would’ve added too much comedy to what’s supposed to be a serious horror movie.

Ray has to sacrifice himself to save Elliot in the end. The dark forces in the pool wouldn’t allow Ray to leave the house. Ray was able to will himself to force the evil out of his body by remembering how much he loved his family, but that wasn’t enough. 

In the summer of  ‘92, a girl named Rebecca (Ayazhan Dalabayeva) was a victim of the pool’s evil, when her mother, Lucy (Jodi Long) orchestrated a plot to sacrifice her to the pool to save her terminally ill son, Tommy (Joziah Lagonoy). It’s revealed that’s how things work with the haunted pool. A human sacrifice is required, so someone else can receive prosperity and a new beginning.

The difference between Ray and Lucy’s sacrifice is, Ray willingly allowed the pool to take him, because he wanted to save his son and his family. That was a true example of love and a selfless sacrifice. Lucy? She basically killed her own daughter to save her son and get a fancy house. Still, Lucy didn’t get away without any problems, because she’s still infected with the pool’s evil, needing an oxygen tank to breathe. 

It’s a good emotional ending, with Ray looking at his family one last time and telling them “don’t look back” in a somber but confident tone. I’m also glad they didn’t go with a cheap cliffhanger. Eve, Elliot, and Izzy decide to stay in the house to honor Ray and to keep anyone else away from the pool. And to put the definitive final nail in the coffin, Eve makes the decision to drain the pool and fill it with dirt.

Night Swim features a poignant ending, and all the loose ends are tied up, but it’s almost impossible to ignore the bad stuff. Too many cheap and predictable jump scares. When the lights in the pool start flickering, you know it’s only a matter of time before ghosts or ghostly visions pop up out of nowhere. And there’s no other way to say this, but the ghosts are not scary or intimidating. The ghosts in Night Swim just look too goofy to take seriously, and that’s a big problem.

I also wasn’t a fan of certain scenes with the black water seeping through the eyes and mouths of a few characters. It looks silly, so I couldn’t buy into the creepy and gross out reactions they were obviously going for.

They tried to put a spin on the haunted house sub genre by limiting the haunting to the pool, but Night Swim still follows the haunting playbook step by step. Almost everyone in the family knows something is wrong with the pool, and they’re not safe. They wait until it’s too late to get out, and evil forces spoil the family’s plans for escape, because the spirits won’t let Ray leave the house.

Night Swim brings some realism and emotion to the story with Ray trying to find some normalcy in his life, and Eve urging Ray to buy the house. She’s tired of uprooting the family, and you can understand why she wants everyone to have a more permanent home. Izzy and Elliot are young children. They need friends, and Elliot already has trouble fitting in.

Giving credit where credit is due, Night Swim delivers, if we’re talking about fears of what can go wrong in a swimming pool. The fear of drowning and how quickly it can happen was more than enough to deliver a few squeamish moments. It might sound ridiculous, but Night Swim convincingly pushes the idea that water is just as terrifying and menacing as any ghosts or evil spirits.

Presenting the pool as this dark and evil wishing well was a nice touch, but overall Night Swim has more misses than hits for the spooky side of the film. It’s just the usual haunting horror film, with the only difference being the swimming pool is the center of attention.

Rating- 4/10

I.S.S. (2024)(Minor Spoilers Review)

 **This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Dr. Kira Foster (Ariana DeBose) arrives at the International Space Station, joining Commander Gordon Barrett (Chris Messina) and Christian Campbell (John Gallagher Jr.) to complete the team of NASA astronauts. Kira, Gordon, and Christian share the ISS with cosmonauts Alexey Pulov (Pilou Asbaek), Nicholai Pulov (Costa Ronin), and Weronika Vetrov (Masha Mashkova), while conducting experiments and trying to maintain a peaceful relationship.

But the harmony between both crews is disrupted, when a series of big explosions spreads throughout the United States. Russia uses nuclear weapons to attack the US, and Gordon receives an order to take control of the ISS by any means necessary. Assuming the cosmonauts received identical orders, Gordon, Christian, and Kira have tough decisions to make about how to handle their unprecedented dilemma.

My Thoughts- All of the performances in I.S.S. follow a similar pattern. Everyone is on edge, extremely stressed, and paranoid about trusting each other. It’s understandable, because there’s a strong possibility the crew just witnessed the beginning of WW III, and the decisions they’re forced to make could have a direct impact on the future of the world.

The performances are solid all around, with Ariana DeBose and Pilou Asbaek emerging as the two stars in the cast. Everything seems fine at first. Sure, there’s some tension between Gordon and Alexey, when Gordon makes a bad joke. But you get the feeling the cosmonauts and the astronauts are a happy family that learned to accept each other and their differences over time.

The entire cast did a fantastic job with intense and emotional performances and great facial expressions. It’s also worth pointing out that the astronauts and cosmonauts are not too thrilled about the possibility of having to murder each other. Alexey and Nicholai’s reactions to setting a trap for Gordon is a good example of the conflict they’re facing. No one on the ISS is a gleeful bloodthirsty killer. On both sides, their actions are motivated by loyalty to their respective countries, the bonds they have with each other, and of course the fear of certain death.

I.S.S. works as a claustrophobic and tense sci-fi thriller, fueled by the paranoia of being stranded in outer space, and not being able to fully trust the people around you. The only big problem for me is the ending. It’s flat, disappointing, and the ending just sucks the life right out of the movie. It’s the kind of ending, where I genuinely don’t understand why they would choose to go that route, if they didn’t firmly plan on making a sequel.

Rating-5/10

I.S.S. (2024)(Spoiler Review)

 **This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Dr. Kira Foster (Ariana DeBose) arrives at the International Space Station, joining Commander Gordon Barrett (Chris Messina) and Christian Campbell (John Gallagher Jr.) to complete the team of NASA astronauts. Kira, Gordon, and Christian share the ISS with cosmonauts Alexey Pulov (Pilou Asbaek), Nicholai Pulov (Costa Ronin), and Weronika Vetrov (Masha Mashkova), while conducting experiments and trying to maintain a peaceful relationship.

But the harmony between both crews is disrupted, when a series of big explosions spreads throughout the United States. Russia uses nuclear weapons to attack the US, and Gordon receives an order to take control of the ISS by any means necessary. Assuming the cosmonauts received identical orders, Gordon, Christian, and Kira have tough decisions to make about how to handle their unprecedented dilemma.

My Thoughts- All of the performances in I.S.S. follow a similar pattern. Everyone is on edge, extremely stressed, and paranoid about trusting each other. It’s understandable, because there’s a strong possibility the crew just witnessed the beginning of WW III, and the decisions they’re forced to make could have a direct impact on the future of the world.

The performances are solid all around, with Ariana DeBose and Pilou Asbaek emerging as the two stars in the cast. Everything seems fine at first. Sure, there’s some tension between Gordon and Alexey, when Gordon makes a bad joke. But you get the feeling the cosmonauts and the astronauts are a happy family that learned to accept each other and their differences over time.

The entire cast did a fantastic job with intense and emotional performances and great facial expressions. It’s also worth pointing out that the astronauts and cosmonauts are not too thrilled about the possibility of having to murder each other. Alexey and Nicholai’s reactions to setting a trap for Gordon is a good example of the conflict they’re facing. No one on the ISS is a gleeful bloodthirsty killer. On both sides, their actions are motivated by loyalty to their respective countries, the bonds they have with each other, and of course the fear of certain death.

Kira making it out alive as one of the survivors wasn’t a big shock. You can see it coming, because she’s the newbie with a good moral compass. Alexey joining her as a survivor was a bit of a surprise, but it’s not a complete shock. Alexey’s mindset changed after the attempt to get rid of Gordon, and his reaction to Nicholai making the decision to hunt down and kill Kira and Christian. Christian secretly planning to return to earth alone, while leaving Kira and Alexey stranded on the ISS? If you pay close attention, you can see Christian unraveling as the story develops. So the strong possibility for Christian taking the opportunity to look out for himself at some point was always there.

The ending? Oh, it’s something else. Weronika is dead after Christian killed her. Nicholai and Gordon killed each other in a fight, because Gordon miraculously returned and snapped after he learned about Weronika’s (Weronika and Gordon were in a relationship) death. Kira and Alexey teamed up to kill Christian, and they managed to escape the falling ISS together. The important tidbit for the finale is, Alexey and Kira are taking Alexey’s research for radiation poisoning back to earth, the same research Christian tried to steal. On top of that, it’s possible Alexey might’ve found the cure to radiation poisoning.

Alexey wants to know what’s next and where will they go after everything they’ve been through. Kira’s response? “I don’t know,” and the credits start to roll. Huh? A nuclear attack happened, and both sides failed to take control of the ISS. Alexey’s research is a golden ticket that could also be used as leverage against their governments, if  the US or Russia wants to respond with harsh punishments for the two survivors. And who knows what kind of planet they’re returning to? The nuclear devastation could’ve destroyed most of what they remember, turning earth into a post apocalyptic wasteland.

But this ending just didn’t work for me. Alexey or Kira could’ve dropped a hint or two about what they were planning, when they got back to earth. I can understand both characters just survived a traumatic ordeal. They need time to process everything, but they could’ve at least went with something more concrete over “I don’t know.” 

I.S.S. works as a claustrophobic and tense sci-fi thriller, fueled by the paranoia of being stranded in outer space, and not being able to fully trust the people around you. The only big problem for me is the ending. It’s flat, disappointing, and the ending just sucks the life right out of the movie. It’s the kind of ending, where I genuinely don’t understand why they would choose to go that route, if they didn’t firmly plan on making a sequel.

Rating-5/10

 

The Beekeeper (2024)(Minor Spoilers Review)

 **This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Adam Clay (Jason Statham), a member of the elite and top secret special operations force known as the Beekeepers, comes out of retirement to seek justice for his neighbor and friend, Eloise (Phylicia Rashad).

Eloise’s daughter, FBI Agent Verona (Emmy Raver-Lampman) and her partner, Matt (Bobby Naderi) follow Clay’s path of destruction, leading to Derek Danforth (Josh Hutcherson) and his lucrative phishing operation. Former CIA director, Wallace Westwyld (Jeremy Irons) tries to use his influence to protect Derek. Clay is determined, but a startling discovery might derail his plans for vengeance.

My Thoughts- Jason Statham brings his usual brand of focused intensity and relentless determination to Adam Clay. Clay is a lethal and unstoppable killing machine, but Statham also shows a humane layer for the character. You can tell Clay deeply cares about Eloise, because she’s kind to him and treats him like a human being. Clay is deadly serious about his mission to destroy the scamming call centers. There’s compassion in him, because he knows only the lowest form of scum would steal from the elderly.

Josh Hutcherson is a perfect fit for Derek, and Hutcherson plays the spoiled and narcissistic brat role with ease. Derek is a lazy idiot, a fool who wouldn’t last one day in the real world without his family’s wealth. Hutcherson does a good job of portraying Derek as someone who’s easy to hate. The way he dresses, he has to be told to sit down like a small child, and he skateboards into his workplace? Yep. Adam Clay truly is the hero in this story.

Garnett (David Witts) and Rico (Enzo Cilenti) are Derek’s stooges. They’re both sleazy snake oil salesmen. Witts and Cilenti nailed their characters, and the flashy and tacky suits were a nice touch. They try to act like big shots, but they ironically turn into blubbering cowards, when Clay confronts them. 

Raver-Lampman and Naderi had good chemistry as partners. Verona doesn’t fit the profile for the common FBI agent, but she’s smart and gets the job done. Matt is a little more strait-laced, and he’s a family man. Verona and Matt provide some decent laughs, and Raver-Lampman and Naderi did a good job of playing off of each other’s characteristics.

Jeremy Irons provides the robust screen presence of a veteran actor. Wallace’s main purpose is to deliver the warnings as the harbinger of doom throughout the movie. Irons’ seriousness, as he explains the grim nature of Derek’s situation lets you know drawing the attention of a Beekeeper is a catastrophic mistake, and it’s the last mistake you’ll ever make.

I had an indifferent reaction to seeing The Beekeeper trailer a while back. Is this going to be a comedy? Are they really going to try and do a more serious film with beekeeping tied into the story? I was actually surprised how well things worked out here. You can see how seriously Adam Clay approaches beekeeping. The scenes with Clay performing his beekeeping duties are treated with respect, and you can see he has a genuine passion for it. I expected a lot of silly quips and jokes about bees, but beekeeping and everything that goes into it plays a big part in Clay’s character traits. Clay is presented as a wrecking ball that smashes anything in his path. Sure, they had a gold mine of bee and honey jokes at their disposal. I’m sure Statham could’ve pulled it off, if they decided to go that route. The path they chose works better playing to Statham’s strengths and it’s a more impressive feat, because they didn’t take the easy way out.

The clever weaving for the inner workings of beekeeping tying into the story with Clay’s mission was fantastic. Clay’s determination to protect the hive, while filling the role of a queen slayer plays into the big reveal towards the end. It makes perfect sense, because it’s easy to see why Derek is a defective offspring.

Clay easily tears through most of the opposition, including Wallace’s team of big bad special ops guys. The fight at the gas station with the current Beekeeper, Anisette (Megan Le) worked as a showcase of the old guard vs the new school. Anisette was more unhinged, but Clay’s discipline trumped her recklessness in the end. Remember, Anisette was supposed to be the surefire solution to stop Clay. It’s a crucial turning point, because Wallace knows he’s running out of options to guarantee Derek’s safety.

The Beekeeper is a hard hitting action thriller, featuring a solid cast, with Jason Statham’s strong presence leading the way. It’s a brutal story of vengeance that has a good old school action movie feel to it. The Beekeeper moves fast with a good calculated pace, and Statham delivers the goods during the home stretch, as he fiercely pushes through each obstacle to complete his mission.

Rating-7/10

The Beekeeper (2024)(Spoiler Review)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Adam Clay (Jason Statham), a member of the elite and top secret special operations force known as the Beekeepers, comes out of retirement to seek justice for his neighbor and friend, Eloise (Phylicia Rashad).

Eloise’s daughter, FBI Agent Verona (Emmy Raver-Lampman) and her partner, Matt (Bobby Naderi) follow Clay’s path of destruction, leading to Derek Danforth (Josh Hutcherson) and his lucrative phishing operation. Former CIA director, Wallace Westwyld (Jeremy Irons) tries to use his influence to protect Derek. Clay is determined, but a startling discovery might derail his plans for vengeance.

My Thoughts- Jason Statham brings his usual brand of focused intensity and relentless determination to Adam Clay. Clay is a lethal and unstoppable killing machine, but Statham also shows a humane layer for the character. You can tell Clay deeply cares about Eloise, because she’s kind to him and treats him like a human being. Clay is deadly serious about his mission to destroy the scamming call centers. There’s compassion in him, because he knows only the lowest form of scum would steal from the elderly.

Josh Hutcherson is a perfect fit for Derek, and Hutcherson plays the spoiled and narcissistic brat role with ease. Derek is a lazy idiot, a fool who wouldn’t last one day in the real world without his family’s wealth. Hutcherson does a good job of portraying Derek as someone who’s easy to hate. The way he dresses, he has to be told to sit down like a small child, and he skateboards into his workplace? Yep. Adam Clay truly is the hero in this story.

Garnett (David Witts) and Rico (Enzo Cilenti) are Derek’s stooges. They’re both sleazy snake oil salesmen. Witts and Cilenti nailed their characters, and the flashy and tacky suits were a nice touch. They try to act like big shots, but they ironically turn into blubbering cowards, when Clay confronts them. 

Raver-Lampman and Naderi had good chemistry as partners. Verona doesn’t fit the profile for the common FBI agent, but she’s smart and gets the job done. Matt is a little more strait-laced, and he’s a family man. Verona and Matt provide some decent laughs, and Raver-Lampman and Naderi did a good job of playing off of each other’s characteristics.

Jeremy Irons provides the robust screen presence of a veteran actor. Wallace’s main purpose is to deliver the warnings as the harbinger of doom throughout the movie. Irons’ seriousness, as he explains the grim nature of Derek’s situation lets you know drawing the attention of a Beekeeper is a catastrophic mistake, and it’s the last mistake you’ll ever make.

I had an indifferent reaction to seeing The Beekeeper trailer a while back. Is this going to be a comedy? Are they really going to try and do a more serious film with beekeeping tied into the story? I was actually surprised how well things worked out here. You can see how seriously Adam Clay approaches beekeeping. The scenes with Clay performing his beekeeping duties are treated with respect, and you can see he has a genuine passion for it. I expected a lot of silly quips and jokes about bees, but beekeeping and everything that goes into it plays a big part in Clay’s character traits. Clay is presented as a wrecking ball that smashes anything in his path. Sure, they had a gold mine of bee and honey jokes at their disposal. I’m sure Statham could’ve pulled it off, if they decided to go that route. The path they chose works better playing to Statham’s strengths and it’s a more impressive feat, because they didn’t take the easy way out.

The clever weaving for the inner workings of beekeeping tying into the story with Clay’s mission was fantastic. Clay’s determination to protect the hive, while filling the role of a queen slayer plays into the big reveal towards the end. It makes perfect sense, because it’s easy to see why Derek is a defective offspring.

Clay easily tears through most of the opposition, including Wallace’s team of big bad special ops guys. The fight at the gas station with the current Beekeeper, Anisette (Megan Le) worked as a showcase of the old guard vs the new school. Anisette was more unhinged, but Clay’s discipline trumped her recklessness in the end. Remember, Anisette was supposed to be the surefire solution to stop Clay. It’s a crucial turning point, because Wallace knows he’s running out of options to guarantee Derek’s safety.

Clay faces a real challenge during the final fight with Lazarus (Taylor James). They needed someone to truly match Clay’s tenacity and toughness, so saving Lazarus until the end was the right move. Lazarus is the only known person in the cast to actually kill a Beekeeper, a lucky and bittersweet victory that cost him one of his legs. It’s a brutal brawl, and I’m glad Clay decisively defeated Lazarus. After everything Clay accomplished, you had to keep his invincible aura intact. Clay barely surviving Lazarus would’ve destroyed the tight consistent streak and all the effort they put into the mystique behind Clay’s character. 

So Derek truly is the defective offspring of a queen, because he’s President Danforth’s (Jemma Redgrave) son. That’s the big reveal towards the end for why there’s a strong effort to protect a nincompoop who doesn’t deserve a second chance. To make matters worse for the President, her campaign was funded by Derek’s dirty money from the phishing scams. The tense standoff at the end was executed to perfection. Derek is threatening to kill his mother, guns are pointed on Clay, and Clay shoots Derek dead before he has a chance to pull the trigger.

There’s a lot to unpack here. Derek was willing to kill his own mother, who happens to be the President, presumably because he wasn’t going down alone. It’s just more proof Derek was a despicable and selfish weasel. Verona had a chance to kill Clay, but she didn’t pull the trigger. Why? Because you have to believe deep down inside, Verona knows Clay is right. Verona has to play by the rules. She has to operate within the confines of the law, but Clay told her he’s the guy you call on to take care of people like Derek. As a Beekeeper, he can be the vigilante, who’s not restricted by roadblocks and red tape. 

You have to give a lot of credit to Phylicia Rashad for laying the foundation for the emotional side of the story. Her screen time is short, but she makes a strong impact. Rashad’s shocked and heartbroken reaction, when Eloise realizes she’s been scammed by one of Derek’s cronies (Garnett) is believable. The realism is there, because elderly people are prime targets for phishing scams. Eloise admitted she’s not a tech savvy person, and when the guilt was too much for her to handle, she committed suicide. 

Eloise’s death is the driving force behind Clay deciding to come out of retirement. Verona understood Clay’s disgust for Derek’s scam taking advantage of a sweet old lady, who was giving and kind hearted. She had another chance to kill Clay after he jumped out of the window, but she let him go. That final knowing look from Verona and Clay’s head nod signified an understanding between the two. Derek got what he deserved, and Clay shouldn’t be punished for that. 

The Beekeeper is a hard hitting action thriller, featuring a solid cast, with Jason Statham’s strong presence leading the way. It’s a brutal story of vengeance that has a good old school action movie feel to it. The Beekeeper moves fast with a good calculated pace, and Statham delivers the goods during the home stretch, as he fiercely pushes through each obstacle to complete his mission.

Rating-7/10

My Bloody Valentine (2009)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- A tragic mining accident disrupts the quiet town of Harmony, when Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles) forgets to bleed the lines, causing a deadly cave-in. Tom escapes, but Harry Warden (Richard John Walters) murders the other miners.

A year passes, and Warden suddenly awakes from a coma to continue his killing spree. Tom, his girlfriend, Sarah (Jaime King), and Axel (Kerr Smith), and his girlfriend, Irene ( Betsy Rue) have plans to enjoy Harmony’s mining party. But Harry shows up to butcher anyone who crosses his path. Axel, Irene, and Sarah escape. Tom survives Harry’s attack, with help from Sheriff Burke (Tom Atkins), who wounds Harry with a series of gunshots. An injured Harry disappears, and Tom decides to leave Harmony.

Ten years later, Tom returns to Harmony to sell the Hanniger Mining Company. Tom is prepared to cash out. His decision upsets Sarah and the mine’s supervisor, Ben Foley (Kevin Tighe), because the Hanniger Mining Company is Harmony’s lifeline. Axel is Harmony’s new sheriff. To make matters worse for Tom, Axel is now married to Sarah, and they have a son named Noah. 

Tom struggles to navigate his emotional roller coaster, because he still has feelings for Sarah, but a bigger problem causes more trouble. Harmony’s dark past resurfaces, as Tom, Sarah, Axel, Deputy Martin (Edi Gathegi), Ben, and a retired Sheriff Burke are forced to deal with the possibility of Harry Warden returning to finish what he started.

My Thoughts- There’s a good amount of noticeable differences between the remake and the original. In the original, T.J. was a young man who left home. He went out into the world to try and find himself and make it on his own, but things didn’t work out, so he returned home to work in the mines. T.J. put a lot of effort into humbling himself. Tom? Well, early on you get the impression he really is the selfish and whiny spoiled brat that everyone else makes him out to be. He’s the pariah of Harmony, and unlike T.J., Tom actually has a direct connection to Harry Warden.

As the story progresses, Tom changes his mind. He doesn’t want to sell the mine, but are his intentions truly genuine? It’s blatantly obvious Tom hoping he still has a chance to steal Sarah away from Axel is one of the main reasons why he wants to stay in Harmony. The love triangle is far more tense and serious in the remake. Ackles and Smith did a great job of making the rivalry between Tom and Axel feel real. You can tell both men hate each other, while Sarah is stuck in the middle.

Kerr Smith is the true spark in the cast. Smith absolutely nails the different faces of Axel. Axel is hot-headed, a jerk, and a cocky tough guy, with a smart mouth. He’s also having an affair with Sarah’s employee, Megan (Megan Boone), and to throw in another disastrous twist, Megan is pregnant with Axel’s child. Axel is a mess, but you can also see he doesn’t want to lose his family. And he cares about protecting the peace in Harmony.

If you’re a fan of 80’s horror, there’s a good chance you know about Tom Atkins. Atkins’ presence in a horror slasher provides some good nostalgia. The grizzled old sheriff is a perfect fit for him. Atkins shows he’s still got some fire left in him during the bar fight scene, when shouts out “EVERYBODY STAND DOWN GOD D****!!” to diffuse the tension. Truly a classic Tom Atkins moment.

Harry Warden/The Miner is still a dangerous and menacing villain in the remake. The remake features a handful of creative and brutal death scenes. Selene’s (Selene Luna) death is a good example of just how callous The Miner is, when he jams the pickaxe through her head and slams her body into the ceiling lights. There’s also a callback to Mabel’s death scene in the original with Axel and Sarah’s maid. The Miner stuffs Rosa (Joy de la Paz) in the dryer, and the shot is set up to mirror what happened in the original, when you see Rosa’s charred corpse. That’s exactly what happened to Mabel.

Revealing Tom as The Miner wasn’t a big shocker. In the 1981 film, they hold off revealing the fact that Harry is dead until the final moments. In the remake, Axel reveals Burke and Ben killed Harry in act of “vigilante justice” ten years ago, and they buried his body in the woods. The possibility of Harry returning for revenge is squashed a lot sooner this time around. Honestly, it’s for the best, because unless they planned on going the supernatural route, there’s no point in teasing Harry still being alive. A coma? A cave-in? Gunshot wounds? A mortal man can only survive so much.

They tried to throw a curveball with the possibility of Axel as the killer. Megan’s death could’ve easily raised a red flag. He wanted to kill Megan, because he didn’t want Sarah to know about the affair and his illegitimate child. Tom was hoping that would be enough to pin the murders on Axel.

Tom? If you pay close attention, too many sensible clues killed any chances for his innocence. It’s revealed Tom hallucinated Harry’s appearances throughout the movie. IF Harry was actually alive, then the scene where Tom is “trapped” inside the cage in the mines doesn’t make any sense. Harry locks Tom in a cage, while he murders another miner named Red. Harry kills him, runs off, and he leaves Tom in a safe place unharmed? Harry Warden is a cold blooded killer. During, the opening of the movie, you can tell Harry clearly hated Tom, so why would he spare his life?

I’ve always had mixed feelings for the explanation and the reasons behind Tom’s transformation into The Miner, because it could go both ways. So we learn Tom was in a mental institution for seven years, and they show him taking medication at the motel. We’re lead to believe Tom has a personality disorder, but the flashbacks tell a different story. When they show the flashbacks with Tom carrying out the murders, it’s possible to believe he was possessed by Harry Warden. 

To take it a step further, Tom starts talking in Harry’s voice during the big standoff with Axel and Sarah towards the end. When Axel is revealed as the killer in the 1981 film, it’s undeniably clear he completely lost his mind. The idea of Harry’s evil spirit controlling Tom works, but there’s also the possibility that Tom just finally snapped. His mental health deteriorated, his father is dead, the whole town hates him, and Sarah, the one person he truly loves, moved on with her life. Tom had a lot of heavy burdens to carry, and holding on to all that rage finally got the best of him. 

My Bloody Valentine 2009 is a 3D film, but it wasn’t necessary. The 3D side is just way too gimmicky. The lingering scenes with The Miner pointing the pickaxe at the screen loses the wow factor quickly. The remake could’ve stood on its own without 3D. The 3D disrupts the flow of the movie, because if you’re not wearing a pair of 3D glasses, there’s almost no point in watching certain scenes. 

The remake tries to be a raunchier film at times. No nudity or sex scenes in the original. The 1981 film is more modest, but the 2009 version has one over the top sex scene. Irene is completely naked, when she confronts Frank (Todd Farmer), and well, she’s still nude when she’s trying to hide from and fight off The Miner. There’s a sleazy motel in Harmony, and let’s not forget Axel is supposed to set the standard for morals, but he’s having an affair.

My Bloody Valentine 2009 is a solid remake, that manages to pay homage to the original, while maintaining its own identity. The remake works as a more modernized version of the original, and as a throwback to 80’s slashers. There’s more comedy and tongue in cheek scenes, including the kills, but the original had a more consistent serious tone.They don’t hold back on all the brutal violence and bloody gore. Keeping the bloody hearts in heart shaped candy boxes and the dark humor Valentine’s Day cards helps push the idea of a sinister side to the holiday.

There’s a cliffhanger with Tom secretly escaping, and a planned sequel was cancelled, but I’m glad it never happened. Sure, you can go the route of Tom returning to go after Axel and Sarah, but there’s no point. They exhausted almost every avenue for Tom, Axel, and Sarah here. Anything else would’ve been overkill, so the remake was better off as a one and done deal.

Rating- 6/10

Valentine (2001)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- During the school dance, Jeremy Melton is rejected by Paige, Lily, and Shelley, when he asks for a dance. Kate tells Jeremy there’s a chance she might dance with him later, but Jeremy finds himself in trouble, while he kisses Dorothy under the bleachers. Dorothy lies and tells the school bullies Jeremy forced himself on her. Jeremy is humiliated and beaten by the group of bullies. After the sexual assault allegations from Dorothy, Jeremy is sent to a reform school and he spends time in juvenile hall.

Thirteen years later during Valentine’s Day season, Paige (Denise Richards), Lily (Jessica Cauffiel), Shelley (Katherine Heigl), Dorothy (Jessica Capshaw), and Kate (Marley Shelton) are all taunted and stalked by a mysterious masked killer. Kate looks for comfort in her ex boyfriend, Adam (David Boreanaz), but almost every male surrounding the group is a suspect. Has Jeremy Melton returned for revenge?

My Thoughts- Looking at the entire cast, Denise Richards and Marley Shelton easily deliver the top two noteworthy performances. Paige is a narcissistic and shallow mean girl with an ego. Richards brings a good amount of enthusiasm and energy to the character, and she definitely has a presence as Paige. Kate is presented as the only humble and earnest person in the group. You could’ve put a halo over Kate’s head throughout the movie, because Shelton is truly convincing as Kate. Everyone else does a job of playing their roles, but that’s about it.

The killer hits all the right notes for a slasher movie villain. Dressed in all black, he’s cold, ruthless, and relentless during the pursuit of his victims. I have mixed feelings on the Cupid mask. I kind of think it looks ridiculous, but once you know the story, you could say it makes perfect sense. The mask fits with the Valentine’s Day theme. It’s ironic that a cold blooded murderer would wear that kind of mask, and if you pay close attention to the opening flashback, there’s a kid wearing the same mask at the school dance.

Valentine features some creative and brutal kills. The killer using a hot iron to burn and beat Kate’s perverted neighbor, Gary (Claude Duhamel) is a savage scene to witness. There’s also the scene where the killer uses broken glass to kill Ruthie (Hedy Burress), and Lily’s death scene has a comedic ending. The killer uses arrows, and as Lilly falls off the balcony, she lands inside a garbage bin and the lid closes shut. 

Paige’s death scene easily takes the top spot. The killer uses the cover on a hot tub to trap her inside, but it doesn’t end there. He brings out a power drill to further torment and injure Paige. Paige is electrocuted to death, when the killer drops the power drill into the hot tub, and it’s a grisly image to see Paige’s body floating in a pool of her own blood. 

Revealing Adam/Jeremy as the killer was a good swerve that was executed to perfection. They did a good job of playing a believable guessing game throughout the movie. Valentine is packed with sordid male characters, including Detective Vaughn and Lily’s pretentious boyfriend, Max (Johnny Whitworth). Adam was portrayed as a messy alcoholic, especially towards the end. The only consistent clue they’ll give you is the killer’s nose bleeds, because Jeremy had a problem with nose bleeds as a kid. Using the nose bleeds as a hint, you at least know or have a good idea that an adult Jeremy is the killer. Paige and the others didn’t believe the pitiful geek Jeremy was capable of changing his name, his appearance, and launching an airtight murder plot to pick them all off one by one.

The final curveball with Dorothy? I genuinely believed she was the killer. Before Adam shoots her to death, Dorothy revealed she was bitter about always being the outcast in the group, or in her own words “the fat one.” The jealousy and anger she was holding on to for all those years finally got to her, and she snapped. Another important tidbit is Ruthie’s death. You could believe Dorothy wanted to kill Ruthie, because she exposed her new boyfriend, Campbell (Daniel Cosgrove), a man who’s a pathological liar and a con artist. Ruthie was Campbell’s ex girlfriend, so Dorothy viewed her as another person who wanted to ruin her last bit of hope for happiness.

Dorothy would’ve been a logical choice for the killer, but Adam still works. The ironic trickery during Adam’s explanation to Kate for why Dorothy allegedly did it was unreal. Adam is consoling Kate, and going on about how Dorothy had a deadly mix of anger and loneliness. Adam was basically telling Kate why he killed her friends, without actually confessing to the murders himself. The blood from the nosebleed running down Kate’s cheek, confirming Adam was the killer, definitely provided a good shocking moment to end the movie.

I’m always a big fan of fine details, and something to pay close attention to is the order in which Adam kills everyone. Adam kills everyone in the exact chronological order for the rejections he received at the dance, saving Dorothy for last and pinning all the murders on her. Remember how Paige told Adam she would rather die by being boiled alive, when he asked her to dance with him? That’s basically how she dies, electrocuted to death in a hot tub. 

Gary’s death is a big clue that points to Adam as the suspect. Looking at the big picture, Gary didn’t fit with the rest of the killings. But he was harassing Kate and stealing her underwear, so whoever killed Gary obviously did it to protect Kate. Adam always made it clear he never stopped loving Kate. She was the only one in the group who was nice to him, and going by his own twisted logic, he would do anything to protect her. 

Valentine is a solid holiday horror film, that also works as a fantastic homage to 80’s slashers. They cleverly put a horror spin on familiar Valentine’s Day traditions. A box of candies with maggots, and the cheesy dark humor with Adam’s Valentine’s Day cards (“roses are red, violets are blue- they’ll need dental records to identify you”) worked as good sinister tie-ins for the movie. 

There’s also a few good comedic bits for some breathing room from all blood shed. Shelley has a disastrous date with a guy named Jason (Adam J. Harrington). Jason is a self absorbed tool, who makes a habit of constantly reminding Shelley of his first name. There’s a hilarious moment, where Shelley scribbles the words “help me” on her plate, as Jason keeps rambling on about his requirements, because she couldn’t wait to get away from him.

Going forward, I’ll be adding Valentine to my list for holiday horror films. I didn’t expect much from Valentine. I was pleasantly surprised, and the double twist at the end was superb. Valentine has a familiar horror slasher story, but it still manages to have its own identity, with a sharp screenplay and good twists and turns.

Rating- 6/10

My Bloody Valentine (1981)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- In the 1960s, miner Harry Warden (Peter Cowper) starts a brutal killing spree one year after a cave-in. As the sole survivor, an insane Warden murders the residents of Valentine Bluffs on Valentine’s Day during the town’s annual dance, leaving a permanent scar on the quiet town.

Years later, T.J. Hanniger (Paul Kelman) returns to Valentine Bluffs to work at the Hanniger Mining Company. T.J. still has feelings for his ex girlfriend, Sarah Mercer (Lori Hallier), but Sarah’s relationship with T.J.’s fellow miner, Axel Palmer (Neil Affleck) complicates things.

T.J. and the others have a bigger problem, when dead bodies start popping up. The possibility of Harry Warden returning to Valentines Bluff concerns T.J.’s father, Mayor Hanniger (Larry Reynolds) and Chief Newby (Don Francks).

The Valentine’s Day dance is cancelled, but T.J., Axel, Sarah, Patty (Cynthia Dale), Hollis (Keith Night), and others decide to secretly have a Valentine’s Day celebration for fun. But things take a dark turn, when a miner kills them off one by one. Has Harry Warden returned to Valentines Bluff to pursue his revenge on the town?

My Thoughts- Harry Warden/The Miner ranks high up on my list of memorable slasher movie villains. The Miner is undeniably vicious and genuinely intimidating. He’s a madman wielding a pickaxe, with a relentless thirst for violence. There’s just something genuinely disturbing about The Miner and Warden. The flashback showing Warden eating body parts to survive after the cave-in really shows how Harry completely lost it.

The miner suit and mask adds to his strong presence, and I can’t forget about the fine details for his character. The quick movements, and when you hear the heavy breathing, you know serious trouble is coming. Warden/The Miner only appears in two films, if we’re counting the remake, but the character does more than enough to leave a lasting impression.

You almost can’t have an 80’s slasher without a grizzly old kook warning the youngsters about a dangerous killer, and Happy (Jack Van Evera) fills that spot. Van Evera does his job as the harbinger of doom. He’s there to let you know that Harry Warden is a serious threat, it’s not a joke, and anyone in town could be his next victim. Using the old timer telling a ghost story approach, Happy narrates the flashback for Harry’s story to play up his dark legend. It’s a good spooky flashback. Happy hooks you into believing Harry might actually return one day, if the town holds another Valentine’s Day dance. 

It’s a Valentine’s Day horror film, so of course you’ll get the expected grisly tie-ins for the usual traditions. Bloody hearts in the candy boxes, grim Valentine’s Day cards with ominous warnings, and The Miner turning the heart decorations upside down at the laundromat was a nice touch. My Bloody Valentine does a wonderful job of setting a dark and eerie mood throughout the movie, by taking a festive day that’s supposed to be about love and happiness and completely turning it upside down. 

The gore and kills in My Bloody Valentine are truly brutal. Poor Mabel (Patricia Hamilton) suffering the fate of being cooked alive in a dryer at the laundromat showed how cruel The Miner could be, and the sight of her dried out and burnt corpse is horrifying to look at. Sylvia’s (Helene Udy) death is a nasty moment to remember. The Miner takes her head and shoves it through a faucet. To make things more wicked, he turns on the faucet after she’s dead.

The tense love triangle between Axel, T.J., and Sarah fits perfectly within the story. T.J. left, and Axel was there to be with Sarah. You can tell T.J. is bitter, and although T.J. gets too pushy and persistent, you can see Sarah still has feelings for him.

Revealing Axel as The Miner was a good surprise. Throughout the movie, they played a good guessing game for the possibility of Harry Warden returning for his revenge. But it turns out Warden’s been dead for five years, and Axel actually does have a direct connection to him. Axel’s father was one of the supervisors who was responsible for the cave-in. Innocent men died because of his carelessness, and Harry turned into a monster. As a child, Axel witnessed Harry murder his father.

Axel clearly never got over the trauma, but I’ve always wondered what made him finally snap so many years later. Was it the fear of losing Sarah to T.J.? Or was it the return of the Valentine’s Day dance after twenty years, an event that’s connected to the worst night of his life? A combination of both? It’s clear Axel is not well, and you really see it during the ending. 

After he cuts off part of his own arm to escape, Axel starts rambling on about how he’s going to return with Harry. The maniacal laughter, and Axel professing his love for Sarah, as he runs off into the darkness is a perfect ending. It’s a chilling final series of events. Axel is either going to bleed out, or he’s going to pick up the pickaxe again. He’s clearly crazy enough to try another killing spree.

My Bloody Valentine is a gruesome and brutal slasher film, that definitely deserves its cult classic status. The opening scene featuring a masked miner (presumably Harry) killing the blonde woman immediately lets you know you’re about to see a movie that’s not going to hold anything back. Horror films featuring a premise about a small and quiet town with a dark past are some of my absolute favorites. Mayor Hanniger and Chief Newby are struggling to keep everything secret about Harry’s possible return, because his shadow disrupts the peace in Valentine Bluffs.

My Bloody Valentine is truly a memorable holiday horror film, and it’s a must-see pick, if you’re a fan of 80’s slashers. The uncut version is far more graphic, and it’s worth checking out, if My Bloody Valentine is one of your favorites.

Rating- 8/10

Escape Room: Tournament Of Champions (2021)

 

**This post contains spoilers, including thoughts on the alternate opening and ending **

The Story- Continuing their pursuit to expose Minos, Zoey (Taylor Russell) and Ben (Logan Miller) travel to New York to find more evidence. But things take an unexpected turn, when a homeless man lures Zoey and Ben into another one of Minos’ games by stealing Zoey’s necklace.

Zoey and Ben are forced to survive another series of escape rooms with former winners including, Theo (Carlito Olivero), Brianna (Indya Moore), Rachel (Holland Rode), and Nathan (Thomas Cocquerel). The players are put to the test and pushed to their limits, and a surprising return forces Zoey to make a difficult decision.

My Thoughts- Tournament Of Champions knocks it out of the park again with a different set of more grandiose escape rooms. Each escape room is uniquely different and has its own brand of chaotic life or death danger, especially the bank and vault escape room. The subway train, the bank and vault, the beach, and the outdoor New York City escape rooms all had genuine awe-inspiring atmospheres, but the smaller and more modest escape rooms also worked here. The water cage and the sauna escape rooms fit within the story to play up the claustrophobia and anxiety more, so you still get that strong sense of panic and dread, just on a smaller scale.

Escape Room 2019 took the clever approach to use the participant’s personal tragedies and traumas as tie-ins for the escape rooms and the clues within the rooms to add an emotional layer, but that’s not the case in the sequel. They were clearly going with a bigger razzle-dazzle style for the escape rooms here and more complex problem solving. It’s a noticeably different approach that still works. The strong sense of urgency is intact, and there’s a few believable tense moments, with a lot of good close calls in the NYC acid rain and the bank escape rooms. Including two exits during the beach escape room delivered more hysteria, because when you consider everything she’s been through, it’s easy to buy into Zoey’s desperation to finally escape the game.

The teamwork in Tournament Of Champions is more cohesive and fluid, and you won’t see any selfish characters resembling Jason from the original. Everyone in the sequel is a former champion. They know how dangerous the games are, and they know Minos means business. You can say the stunt he pulled in the bank escape room was stupid, but Nathan solely risked his life twice to help the group.

We already know about Zoey and Ben’s stories and their motivations, and I was hoping for more character depth for the rest of the contestants. Brianna is a social media influencer and a travel blogger, and that’s it? Rachel has a high tolerance for pain, but they never go into any details about her being a “pain freak.” Nathan is traumatized. He’s an alcoholic, and something about his life as a priest is clearly bothering him.

The original did a good job of exploring the traumas behind each contestant, and working their traumatic experiences into the escape rooms. With the exception of Nathan and to a lesser extent, Theo (he loves his wife and doesn’t want to be late to her birthday party), there’s no real attempts to explore the backstories behind the contestants. So if we’re talking about performances, the cast is basically limited to frantic shouting and panicky reactions.

Amanda is alive! That’s the big surprise towards the end. But it’s not a happy reunion with Zoey and Ben, because it’s revealed Amanda has been working with Minos to design escape rooms. We know for sure the beach escape room was Amanda’s brainchild, and she’s only working as an escape room builder, because Minos kidnapped her daughter. Of course, Amanda comes to her senses and helps Zoey and Ben escape, after Zoey refuses Minos offer to work for them.

So they’re in the clear and Minos is done for, right? Well, Zoey and Ben are stuck in another escape room on a plane to end the movie. Zoey realizes something is wrong, when she sees her therapist (Lucy Newman-Williams) on the flight, who’s revealed to be a plant from Minos. It’s the plane crash escape room that was teased at the end of the first movie, and it plays into Zoey’s fears of flying.

But wait there’s more! In the alternate opening and ending, we learn more about the Puzzle Maker, Henry (James Frain) his daughter, Claire (Isabelle Fuhrman), and his wife, Sonya (Tanya Van Graan). There’s a twist, where it’s revealed Claire is the true Puzzle Maker and architect behind the escape rooms, and Henry’s been stealing her ideas and passing them off his own for years. All the escape rooms were inspired by events during Claire’s childhood, and as a child, Claire is the one who killed her mother with the sauna escape room.

So which ending is better? I have to go with the ending in the alternate version. It’s a definitive ending with more closure. Claire helps Ben and Zoey escape. There’s no cliffhanger for their ending, and Amanda and her storyline are completely cut out of this version. There’s also a slight crack in the door to continue the story. Claire presumably kills Henry, and she promises to fulfill her true potential after she escapes from her prison. 

Fuhrman and Frain delivered a pair of solid performances, and their characters added a good emotional layer to the movie, with the unusual and dysfunctional family dynamic. The extended cut also shows more footage, with Zoey struggling to get on a plane again. The scene where Zoey envisions her mother warmly encouraging her to join her on the flight did a good job of  showing why Zoey is still paranoid, and you can understand why it’s not so easy for her to move on.

I don’t hate the theatrical ending, but it’s too wide open. All of the struggles Zoey and Ben went through are meaningless. On the plane, Zoey mentioned the escape rooms were “too easy” this time around, and Amanda revealed the reason for that earlier. It was all one big recruitment scheme to get Zoey to work for Minos. Going back to the NYC acid rain room, it’s easy to see how things were set up for Zoey to be the winner. Rachel and Brianna never had a chance to get inside the taxi. 

So if we’re going by the theatrical ending, everything was a ruse to get Zoey to lower her guard and finally get on a plane. Zoey and Ben didn’t really accomplish anything, and Amanda’s shocking return is wasted.

I never believed Zoey and Ben were in any real danger, but Tournament Of Champions is still a satisfying sequel. Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, Tournament Of Champions delivers consistent thrills and suspense with a speedy pace. The sequel is also loaded with amazing set pieces and good eye candy. Logan Miller and Taylor Russell share believable chemistry as best friends, and there’s slight teases for a possible romance. Zoey and Ben developed a tight bond, and they’re genuinely willing to risk their lives to keep each other safe. 

The theatrical ending and the extended ending are completely different with two separate paths. The big difference is, and I’ve said this before, but the extended version’s ending gives you the impression a sequel could happen. The theatrical version’s ending will leave you with the impression that a sequel NEEDS to happen. The theatrical ending shows the start of an escape room game, and Henry’s identity is never revealed. 

 I know it’ll probably never happen, but personally, I was holding out hope for an Escape Room 3. There’s untapped potential with mainstream game horror movies. Escape Room could’ve been a nice alternative to Saw, if you’re not into the more extreme gory stuff. Zoey and Ben worked as a duo, and it’s easy to fit them into future films, as two players who managed to survive Minos.

Rating- 7/10

Escape Room (2019)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- The Minos Corporation chooses Zoey (Taylor Russell), Ben (Logan Miller), Amanda (Deborah Ann Woll), Danny (Nik Dodani), Mike (Tyler Labine), and Jason (Jay Ellis) to participate in an escape room game. Playing the game seems like a fun challenge at first, but as the rooms become more dangerous, it’s clear Minos has sinister motivations.

My Thoughts- Escape Room features the usual cast of characters you’ll see in a survival game horror movie. Zoey is the wholesome protagonist, who wants to help and hopefully save everyone from certain death. Jason? Well, he’s a jerk. Jason represents the kind of relentless participant, who will do anything to win the game and stay alive. He’s selfish and heartless, and Jason only wants to be a team player, if it’ll help his chances of survival. But his mindset is also understandable, because if we’re being honest, not too many people are going to risk their lives to save and protect complete strangers.

Personal tragedies play a big part in the games for Escape Room. Amanda is a combat veteran with PTSD, so you can easily see why she’s the first member of the group to panic. There’s also the red jacket from Jason’s story in the outdoor winter room. Jason used that jacket to keep himself from freezing to death after he murdered his friend. In the winter room, the red jacket is shared amongst the group to fight off hypothermia, something Jason selfishly refused to do with his friend.

The clever interweaving for using personal hardships as tie-ins for the games adds an emotional layer to Escape Room. The main cast of characters are forced to face their demons. The majority of the escape rooms have their own brands of uniqueness and deadly creativity. Starting things off with the oven room was a good choice to set the tone for the rest of the movie. The upside down room with the bar and the pool table was truly unreal. It’s easily the only room, where I could buy into the possibility of anyone dying, because of how extremely dangerous everything was, a true nail biter.

Something to pay close attention to is how the mood changes, as the game progresses. At first, the banter and jokes throughout the group are playful, but that changes as things get more serious. The insults are more personal and nasty, because the group realizes death is a realistic possibility. Jason gets more belligerent with his finger wagging, while constantly trying to expose the weak links, and everyone’s moral compass is put to the test.

The second to last escape room was a big letdown for me. It’s down to Jason and Ben for the final two survivors, and Zoey is presumably dead. The whole sequence inside this boring and plain room didn’t do anything for me. I get the whole idea behind the distorted POV, because Jason and Ben were heavily drugged, but it’s just too whacky overall. And to make matters worse, the placement they chose for this room didn’t fit. It’s toward the end of the movie, so I was expecting something more complex to reflect the high stakes to make it to the finish line.

The Gamemaster’s (Yorick van Wageningen) explanation to Ben for Minos’ motivations might be a tad bit cliched, but it still works. Minos’ clients are rich and powerful, and they’re willing to pay top dollar for more extreme content. The Gamemaster believes most of the world has gone soft, and that’s where Minos steps in. You can believe the rich and powerful see ordinary people as disposable toys for their amusement, and The Gamemaster also uses gladiator games and public executions for examples. That specific group of spectators never vanished, they were just pushed further into the shadows as the world changed.

Ben making it to the end as the “dark horse” survivor was a decent enough surprise, because you knew Jason’s selfishness and his arrogance would come back to bite him sooner or later. I didn’t buy Zoey’s death in the carbon monoxide poisoning room for one second. They tried a swerve, but they invested too much in Zoey, as the shy and scrappy protagonist with a fighting spirit. She’s too smart, and Zoey was going to find a way to make it. 

Escape Room has an alternate ending, where Zoey is lured back into one of her college classrooms. She gets the $10k grand prize check (she defiantly tears it up) and her mother’s compass, and the Puzzle Maker traps her inside for another game. This ending just feels flat, when you compare it to the theatrical ending. Zoe and Ben continuing their pursuit to expose Minos, while the Puzzle Maker prepares another game for both of them with the crashing flight simulator is a far more intriguing cliffhanger and ending.

Escape Room is a fun and entertaining game horror movie, with a lot of energy and brisk pacing. The thrills are consistent, and the entire cast delivers solid performances. I almost wish Yorick van Wageningen had more screen time. I understand the idea behind saving his only appearance until the end for the big reveal, but Wageningen is genuinely evil, cold, and cruel as The Gamemaster, truly a perfect fit to represent Minos. He does a lot with a little amount of time, and Wageningen would’ve made a great villain to showcase throughout the movie.

Rating- 7/10

Night Teeth (2021)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Benny (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) eagerly fills in for his brother, Jay (Raul Castillo) as a chauffeur for an all night job. Benny is tasked with taking Blaire (Debby Ryan) and Zoe (Lucy Fry) to various parties throughout Los Angeles. But a seemingly simple job turns into a fight for survival, when it’s revealed Zoe and Blaire are vampires.

Following orders from their leader, Victor (Alfie Allen), Zoe and Blaire kill Victor’s marked targets, while Benny is forced to be the driver. Secrets about Jay’s double life are exposed, while Benny is caught in the middle of the disastrous fallout from a long-standing truce between humans and vampires.

My Thoughts- There’s not enough I can say about Lucy Fry. She’s simply superb in Night Teeth. Zoe has a delightfully evil persona. She’s an unhinged rebel, and Zoe genuinely loves her lifestyle as a villain. She embodies the power, the superiority, and the untouchable status that comes with being a vampire. Lucy Fry’s vibrant presence and charisma are undeniable, a true show stealing performance without any dull moments.

Jorge Lendeborg Jr. plays his role well as Benny. He’s the nerdy and shy guy, who looks up to and wants to prove himself to Jay, the big brother he clearly admires and has a ton of respect for.

I kind of wish Alexander Ludwig’s Rocko had more screen time. Rocko is one of the more eccentric and nutty vampire leaders, and there’s no denying Ludwig’s character had a lot of potential. Alfie Allen is a suitable main villain. Victor is pompous and power hungry. He’s a true narcissist, so it’s easy to see why he has a strong bond with Zoe.

The friendship dynamic between Zoe and Blaire adds a good emotional layer to Night Teeth. Zoe is hot-headed and a loose cannon, but Blaire is easily the more level headed person in the duo. Remember, it was Blaire’s idea to keep Benny alive after they found out he wasn’t Jay. Zoe wanted to kill him immediately, but Blaire came up with the plan to use him as a bargaining chip. Debby Ryan and Lucy Fry shared good chemistry together, and their friendship is one the bigger highlights here.

I’m a sucker for fine details and lore. Night Teeth’s story for the history behind the truce and the war between humans and vampires is simple, airtight, and effective. Strict rules are set in place, hotels are used as feeding grounds for vampires, but the participants must give their consent. Ruby jewels are used as a sort of access card to gain entry into vampire activities, and a cop is clearly on Victor’s payroll as an enforcer. Night Teeth really makes you believe in the tense relationship between humans and vampires. There’s a violent underworld that’s one stupid mistake away from falling apart, and causing irreversible chaos in everyone’s day to day lives.

Vampires are forbidden from entering Boyle Heights. It’s one of the big rules, and of course Victor breaks one of the big three to start all the trouble. Jay’s character is the perfect representative for Boyle Heights. He’s the stoic tough guy, with a fighting spirit, and you know he’ll walk through fire to put a stop to Victor’s madness.

Victor is clearly a strong adversary, surviving a point blank gunshot to the head from Jay. Once you get to know Victor, his reasons for killing off his fellow vampires shouldn’t surprise you. Eva (Sydney Sweeney) and Grace (Megan Fox) are his superiors in the vampire world. They want answers for his actions. Victor’s response? He’s tired of playing things safe with the humans, when vampires should be their absolute masters. And you might’ve already guessed this, but of course Victor wants more power, and to put himself in a position, where he won’t have to answer to anyone. The scene where Victor explains everything to Zoe and Grace shows how arrogant and foolish Victor truly is. He was willing to throw away a harmonious truce to feed his own ego.

Blaire eventually turning on Victor and Zoe wasn’t a big surprise. Benny had googly eyes for Blaire during their first interaction. The seeds were planted early on, and you could see it coming, as Blaire forms a stronger bond with Benny throughout the movie. They tried, but I couldn’t buy into the shock of the swerve, because it was clear Blaire was going to choose Benny over Zoe and Victor at some point.

It’s obvious what’s going to happen and how things are going to play out during the finale. Still, it’s a satisfying final act with no real wrinkles and everything makes sense. Fry did a wonderful job of selling Zoe’s heartbroken reaction, when she finally realizes Blaire is firmly on Benny’s side. Benny comes up with a clever plan that kills Zoe, and Jay gets revenge for Victor killing his girlfriend, Maria (Ash Santos) by tackling Jay into the sunlight. The true villains got what they deserved, Jay gets his revenge, and Blaire and Benny move on to the next chapter of their lives.

Night Teeth is a spirited and sleek vampire horror film. The blood and gore throughout the movie is not over the top or too intense. Sometimes the blood bath approach can be used to build up the severity of a vampiric threat, but it’s not always necessary. 

The door is wide open for a sequel, with Benny and Blaire together as vampires (Victor bit and turned Benny during the final fight). There’s a lot to build on with Benny and Blaire, and Benny fighting with Jay in the upcoming war, but I wouldn’t be upset if a sequel never happens. They tied up enough loose ends here. The cliffhanger at the end is the kind of cliffhanger that’ll give you the impression that a sequel COULD happen, but at the same time, the story doesn’t necessarily need to continue.

Rating- 6/10

The Invitation (2022)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- After her mother’s death, Evie (Nathalie Emmanuel) accepts an invitation from her long-lost cousin, Oliver Alexander (Hugh Skinner) to go to England for a big wedding. Evie will finally get a chance to meet her family, so she accepts Oliver’s offer.

In England, Evie is charmed by the lord of the manner, Walter De Ville (Thomas Doherty). Evie receives a warm welcome from De Ville, Lucy (Alana Boden), and her personal maid, Mrs. Swift (Carol Ann Crawford). But on the flip side of that, Evie is met with an icy reception from Viktoria (Stephanie Corneliussen) and Renfield (Sean Pertwee). 

Evie slowly adjusts to the possibility of living a new life, but things change, when De Ville reveals his true intentions.

My Thoughts- Evie’s character has a good amount of noticeable cliches. She’s single, living in the big city (New York), and she’s a struggling artist? Evie’s character is a bit of a conundrum, because the cliches are there, but her character also feels real and relatable. Evie shares a good bond with her best friend, Grace (Courtney Taylor), and you can you buy into Grace as the only person who’s truly a family member in her life. Emmanuel brings a genuine authenticity to Evie. She comes off as a person with real problems, who’s just trying to make it in this world, and Evie’s presentation helps a lot. 

Evie is confident in who she is and how she carries herself, and she doesn’t conform to the snobbish lifestyle, when she’s in England. There’s a handful of scenes where Evie helps the staff at De Ville’s mansion to clean up after her accidents. She never wants to feel like she’s better than or above anyone. The scene where Evie stands up for the maids, after Renfield tries to scold them perfectly encapsulates the approach they took with Evie’s character. She’s grounded, and Emmanuel did a wonderful job as Evie.

Thomas Doherty brings a genuine charismatic presence to De Ville’s character. You get the feeling that there’s something too good to be true about De Ville, but he has this smooth and welcoming personality, so you could see how Evie easily fell in love with him. Doherty and Emmanuel share some solid chemistry together. You can believe they’re in love, so when De Ville reveals his true identity, you can clearly understand why Evie is heartbroken.

Viktoria and Renfield are both bullies in their own way. Stephanie Corneliussen plays the role of a smarmy mean girl, and the interactions between Viktoria and Evie are either tense or hilarious, because you can tell Evie wants to punch her, but she has enough restraint not to do so. Renfield is basically that callous boss that treats you like dog crap on the bottom of his shoes, and Pertwee is a believable jerk. 

Carol Ann Crawford did a fantastic job of showing emotions through facial expressions and body language. If you pay close attention to Mrs. Swift, you’ll quickly notice something bad is going to happen at some point, and Swift’s bond with Evie adds another solid emotional layer to the movie.

Vampires! That’s the big secret. De Ville is actually Dracula, and Viktoria and Lucy are vampires. The invitation from Oliver was a ruse to lure Evie to England. Why? Because Evie is an important piece of the puzzle for a pact between three families. De Ville gets one bride from each of the three families, and in exchange, De Ville awards them with wealth and power. Emmaline (Virag Barany), Evie’s great grandmother and De Ville’s former wife, committed suicide because the guilt of living a murderous lifestyle was too much for her to handle.

The setup for revealing De Ville as Dracula was perfect. Evie had reached a point, where she finally lowered her guard to accept De Ville as the man of her dreams and she trusted him. She’s finally happy, and Evie is ready to start her new life. Out of nowhere, De Ville blindsides her with the big announcement of their marriage, reveals himself to be Dracula, and now she’s stuck in a deadly situation. Everything happens at a break-neck pace during the big dinner scene. Emmanuel did a good job of selling Evie’s panicky and desperate reaction. There’s a gruesome moment, where Renfield slits one of the maid’s throats, so the vampires can drink her blood. The maid’s sudden death really adds another jaw dropping moment to the shocking series of events in this scene.

The big finale delivered a good amount of thrills and suspense. Evie’s gutsy plan to take out De Ville, and his entire crew added a bold layer to her character. The way she aggressively bit into De Ville’s wrist to drink his blood caught me off guard. Before the wedding ceremony, Evie was scared. She had basically given up, but then she remembered words of encouragement from her mother. Evie drinking De Ville’s blood to get the vampire powers to have a fighting chance really worked as a last resort desperation play.

De Ville’s death scene had a strong ironic ending. He’s got Evie by the throat, and he’s mocking her for being an ordinary woman with a pathetic life. De Ville arrogantly calls himself a “god” right before Evie uses a clay wire cutter to slice off a part of his arm. Evie kicks him into the fire, and that undeniable proud look on her face, as she watches him burn to death? It’s just perfect. Imagine that, the all mighty vampire was destroyed by the simple woman with an ordinary tool she uses for something she’s passionate about.

The Invitation is a solid enough vampire horror movie, but it’s a film that has a lot of mainstream Hollywood horror polish on it. Predictable jump scares, and some stretches of step by step storytelling. I never bought into Evie’s escape from De Ville at the end. They just had to throw in the usual bad horror movie decision. Mrs. Swift explicitly told Evie “don’t stop running until you’re on a plane out of England,” when she helped her escape. What does Evie do? She stops at the small town after she escapes the mansion. 

The old couple, who obviously benefits from De Ville’s influence, subdued Evie and temporarily spoiled her chances at freedom. As soon as Evie walked into that couple’s house, you could tell something was off, and I just didn’t see the need to put that scene in the movie.

The Invitation ends with a cliffhanger, or I guess you could say it’s almost a cliffhanger? Evie and Grace plan to ambush Oliver, and well, Grace has a baseball bat, so it’s easy to see they mean business. They don’t actually show an attack or a confrontation happening, but I can’t imagine a sequel happening, because it’s not necessary. Evie took out De Ville and literally burned his entire empire to the ground. Still, the thought of a weasel like Oliver getting his comeuppance is worth a good laugh, especially when Oliver foolishly believed Evie was no longer a threat.

Rating- 6/10

Project Almanac (2015)

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- David Raskin (Jonny Weston) finds plans for an unfinished time machine developed by his deceased father, Ben (Gary Weeks) in the basement of his house. David forms a team with his best friends Adam (Allen Evangelista) and Quinn (Sam Lerner) to help him finish building the time machine, while his sister Christina (Virginia Gardner) records everything. And in a strange twist of fate, David’s dream girl, Jessie (Sofia Black- D’Elia) joins the group.

Eventually, the completion of the time machine is a success, but one careless mistake sets off a series of catastrophic events.

My Thoughts- David using the Terminator movies as an example to explain time travel? Brief footage from Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure? Yep. It’s definitely a time travel film, but the found-footage POV brings a refreshing perspective to Project Almanac.

There’s a strong attempt at a good sense of realism for how they approached time travel. David warns everyone about the serious physical risks of using the machine, and I’m glad they didn’t go too over the top with trying to make the time machine itself some fancy looking high tech machine. David and Ben’s time machine looks homemade. They needed to use Jessie’s Prius battery for more power, and the group shopping for parts at an Ace Hardware was a nice touch.

Project Almanac feels more unique because of the found-footage POV, but it’s also a double-edged sword here. There’s way too much of the voyeurism stuff throughout the movie. Too many scenes with the camera sitting still recording conversations, using the camcorder for hidden camera moments that different characters aren’t supposed to see, and everything during the Lollapalooza stage of the movie feels like a big vlog from  a social media influencer. Voyeurism routinely kills any kind of momentum they’re trying to build, and you’ll have to wait until the tail end of the movie for a consistent pace.

It’s only a matter of time before the usual time travel movie tropes kick in. The group uses the time machine to win the lottery, Christina wants revenge on a bully, and Quinn enjoys having the chance to finally be one of the cool kids in school. But David sparks a series of chaotic events, when he secretly uses the time machine to go back in time for a shot at a second chance with Jessie at Lollapalooza. David finally gets Jessie to be his girlfriend, but his decision results in a domino effect with natural disasters, brutal accidents, and deaths.

There’s a part in the movie, where David introduces the strict rules for time travel to the group. The first rule? No one for any reason is allowed to time travel or “jump” alone. As soon as David introduced this rule, you had to know someone would break it, and David was a top candidate to do it because of his feelings for Jessie. 

After David’s failed attempts to cherry pick certain events from the past to fix his mess, he finally realizes he has to destroy the time machine to reset everything back to normal. David had to make the tough choice, knowing he would sacrifice his relationship with Jessie if he did it. The butterfly effect is always a crucial foundation for any time travel film, but Project Almanac’s approach to it kills a lot of the suspense here, with a predictable step by step process.

Project Almanac hits every time travel movie checkpoint you would expect, but there’s also a solid story with a good amount of emotion. When David goes back in time to destroy the time machine, he finally gets a chance to say goodbye to his father before he dies in a car crash. Quinn pleaded with David to find another way to fix things without destroying the time machine, because he didn’t want to lose his status as the big man on campus at school. That might sound ridiculous, but I do get Quinn’s point of view. Quinn, David, and Adam are geeky kids. At that stage of your life, depending on your mindset, being one of the cool kids in high school is a big deal.

David made a lot of mistakes, but he’s a good hard working guy. He wanted to find a way to pay for his tuition at MIT without his mother, Kathy (Amy Landecker) selling the house, or having to overwork herself to pay for it. And he wanted to finish building the time machine to honor his dad, a man who died when David was still a small child.

There’s a solid heartfelt story here, with a cast of likable characters. Jonny Weston, Sofia Black-D’Elia, and Sam Lerner delivered solid performances, especially Weston. There’s a strong sense of urgency during the finale, when David finally realizes he’s made a huge mistake, and Weston’s believable panicky and distraught hysterics are fantastic. 

Project Almanac is a decent enough time travel movie, and it also works as a coming of age story with the high school life side of things. The problem is, the found-footage POV gimmick is the only unique aspect for Project Almanac, and there’s noticeable problems for how they use it. I pointed this out earlier, but once David decides to go back to Lollapalooza alone to fix things with Jessie, it’s just too easy to see where the story is going and how the ending will play out.

Rating- 5/10