Released: November 2018

Director: Julius Avery

Rated R

Run Time: 110 Minutes

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Genre: Action/War/Horror

Cast:
Jovan Adepo: Boyce
Wyatt Russell: Ford
Mathilde Ollivier: Chloe
Pilou Asbaek: Wafner
John Magaro: Tibbett
Iain De Caestecker: Chase
Jacob Anderson: Dawson

World War II, historically speaking, is one of the most devastating wars fought in history.  It’s one of the most fascinating periods in history, because there was a lot that went on during that war that most people probably wouldn’t understand or dream of.  It was brutal and cost the lives of hundreds of millions of people, both soldiers and civilians.  It is no mistake that when it comes to war movies, World War II is one of the most popular wars to use because there’s a lot of great stories that can be told.  Not just real-life stories, of which there are thousands upon thousands, but also when it comes to fictional stories and movies.  Some of my favorite movies take place during the 30s and 40s:  Raiders of the Lost Ark, Saving Private Ryan, and Hacksaw Ridge just to name a few.  You would think that setting a horror movie during World War II would be easy, considering the actual horrors that took place, but there really aren’t a whole lot of full-fledged horror movies set during this period.  So, J.J. Abrams and director Julius Avery bring us Overlord.

Set just prior to the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944, Overlord follows a small group of American paratroopers as they are forced out of a plane over France due to high amount of flak cannon fire.  Led by Corporal Ford, the soldiers regroup in a nearby village aided by a female French resistance fighter, Chloe.  Their mission: To destroy a communications tower in a nearby church so the invasion of Normandy can begin unhindered.  They begin to discover that the Nazis are doing a lot more than just jamming communications.  It seems the local commander, Wafner, is conducting experiments that have the potential to lead the Nazis to a “thousand-year Reich.”  That’s pretty much the gist of the story.  It’s actually not that bad, but it isn’t the first film where Nazis are tampering with forces they really shouldn’t be messing with.  It is no secret that Hitler and his Nazi thugs had been trying to find really strange ways to win the war, even go so far as to dabble in the occult, so it is no surprise to a lot of people that movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark would have the Nazis scouring the world for religious artifacts exist.  Not a lot of them have a lot of basis in reality, but they make for entertaining reading or watching nonetheless.  As far as Overlord goes, it’s not the most original film of its kind, but the way the story is handled is pretty interesting, but it takes a little too long before the film really embraces its B-movie roots.  It’s a war movie first, horror movie second, and that kind of works against it in a way.

This movie starts off with a bang, literally.  The moment the film opens with part of Eisenhower’s address to the troops, it goes directly to one of the planes carrying the 101st Airborne.  The plane gets wrecked with flak from enemy cannons and tears the plane and soldiers apart.  It’s really intense.  After Boyce lands, it slows a bit to where his platoon are trying to regroup so they can finish their mission.  But as soon as Boyce infiltrates the Nazi base, things really start picking up.  This is a very violent and gory movie.  The war violence is realistic enough, especially when people get shot in the face.  It’s when you get to the underground lab that the film really goes off the rails…in a good way.  The film definitely embraces its bat-shit insanity, but truthfully, I don’t think it goes far enough.  Are the soldiers dealing with zombies?  There’s really no direct answer given for how some of these corpses are reanimated.  We see some of a tar-like substance that seems to be running underneath the church that affects living things in a very….interesting way, but no further explanation is given.  On one hand, I love the mystery of that, but on the other hand, not having an explanation forces to take the film at its word.  The last act of the film is easily the best part of the movie.  It’s just nuts.  Nazi zombies and crazed Nazi commanders just wreck things.  It’s glorious.

Character-wise, these characters aren’t really unique, and are mostly cardboard cutouts.  Don’t get me wrong, the actors really do their damndest to try and make some of these characters relatable, but it’s mostly for naught, with the exception of Boyce, Chloe and Wafner.  Those three characters are the real standouts, and the actors are absolutely fantastic.  Jovan Adepo is really likable as Boyce and he’s kind of the straight-man to everything that’s going on.  Pilou Asbaek almost steals the show as Wafner.  Pilou is good at playing villains, as his turn Euron Greyjoy in Game of Thrones is something to behold.  He really goes all in, and the film is all the better for it.  You can’t really overestimate how evil Nazis are, but Pilou just pulls it off.  Mathilde Ollivier is really strong as Chloe, the only female character in the film, but she holds her own with the boys.  She’s a serious bad-ass a young woman trying to protect her little brother from Wafner’s cruelty.  Wyatt Russell is pretty good as Ford, but the character is kind of a one-note guy and doesn’t really do anything aside from being a hard-ass.  Wyatt, being the son of Kurt Russell, does the best he can with what he’s given, but it’s a role that really could’ve been played by anyone.

The special effects in the film are actually really good.  A lot of the practical effects are enhanced with some CGI to kind of exaggerate some of the wounds and violence, but considering the film’s B-movie nature, I’m not complaining at all.  I prefer practical effects, but having some CGI is not awful.  The practical and make-up effects are pretty top-notch.  The set designs are pretty good as well, with the underground lab looking a lot like what you might expect a hidden Nazi laboratory to look like: Grimy, dirty, and bleak.  Overall, the movie looks pretty good.  That being said, the film plays it a little too safe, as it doesn’t really take advantage of its B-movie nature.  It really needed to go all out in delivering Nazi zombie carnage, but it pulls some punches when it shouldn’t have.  The Nazi zombie carnage that we get is pretty good, as the last act of the film is utterly insane, but more could have been done with this.  It’s not a bad movie, by any means, it’s a solid action and horror flick that gets enough right to make it worth viewing at least once.

My Final Verdict: More Nazi zombie carnage, please! 8/10

In today’s world, digital entertainment has taken a large step towards online streaming.  We have various digital platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Vudu, and other platforms.  It only makes sense as broadband internet has become very widespread across the world.  Some movies and some shows are only available online.  While I can definitely understand that’s where the tech is going, it’s also important to remember where all this comes from.  40-50 years ago, the only way that most people could see a movie was to actually go to the movie theater, other-wise they would have to watch it on TV.  Not many people had access to equipment that could record shows and movies.  In fact, home video wouldn’t become a thing until the mid-70s when Betamax and VHS were introduced.  During the 80s and early 90s, nearly every household in the United States had a VCR in their living room.  In the late 90s, home video would take another huge leap in the digital realm with the advent of Digital Video Discs, or DVDs for short.  I was the first in my family to adopt the new technology with a huge-ass DVD player, but the difference in video and sound quality was night-and-day.  This is also when home theater set-ups would start emerging.  DVD ruled the market until companies Toshiba and Sony would create competing high-definition formats HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.  Ultimately Blu-Ray won out in the end and has since become the standard for high-definition media for movies.  While Blu-Rays are still on the market and probably will be for some time, people are moving away from digital media and going to streaming services.  It’s more convenient and often cheaper than going out and buying a hard-copy of a movie.  I’ll still do it because I’m a collector.  For this post, I’m going to go over some of the best DVD and Blu-Ray collector’s sets.  Be aware that these are the ones that I own.  Another thing is that it’s not necessarily how many movies are in the set, but the quality of the set itself.  Sometimes, it’s just a single film.  Let’s get started shall we?

Army of Darkness 3-Disc Set from Scream Factory

Army of Darkness, being the third entry in the Evil Dead film series, is probably the silliest film of the bunch, but it embraces that B-movie schlock with gusto and it was one of the most entertaining movies I’ve ever seen.  This set from Scream Factory gives us the film on Blu-Ray with not one, not two, not three, but FOUR different versions of the film.  The first version is the theatrical version released in 1992.  The second is the director’s cut which was released in 2001, while an international cut was released about the same time as the US theatrical version.  But the version that surprised me the most at its inclusion is the television cut.  It’s censored the big swear-words by switching them out with something more family-friendly.  It’s displayed in the 4:3 aspect ratio and the video quality is garbage, but it’s such a unique inclusion that I wish more DVD/Blu-Ray editions would include something like that.  There’s also a new feature-length documentary featuring many of the film’s principle cast including Bruce Campbell, Ted Raimi, Marcus Gilbert, Bill Mosely and more.  It’s a pretty extensive set for a movie that has since become a cult classic.  If you are a fan of Army of Darkness and an avid film collector, this is a must-own.

Alien Quadrilogy/Alien Anthology

The Alien films have been among my favorite science fiction films of all time.  The first two films in the series are genuine classics as far as I’m concerned.  Ridley Scott’s Alien is the real deal when it comes to science fiction/horror hybrids.  It’s incredibly well-made and terrifying.  James Cameron’s follow-up is no less amazing, even though the film goes in a different direction.  Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection are often disregarded as the worst in the franchise, but I don’t necessarily agree with that.  Yeah, they’ve definitely got problems, but they’re entertaining in their own right.  What can’t be disputed however, is the treatment that the first four films have gotten on DVD and Blu-Ray.  First with the Quadrilogy set in 2003 and the Blu-Ray Anthology released in 2011.  Each film comes with two different versions on their own disc.  Each film has an extensive documentary detailing the making of the film from pre to post-production as well as audience reception.  There’s a lot more to describe than I can say in a short paragraph, but suffice to say, the Alien Anthology is worth every single penny, regardless of how you may feel about the last two movies in the set.

The Lord of the Rings: Extended Editions

The Lord of the Rings trilogy is among the greatest trilogies ever made.  Peter Jackson did the impossible when he crafted such an incredibly epic and powerful fantasy film series.  6 months after each film was released, and extended version of the film was released on DVD.  Each film had anywhere from 30 minutes up to nearly an hour of additional footage put into the film, expanding on an already enormous universe.  While I personally prefer the theatrical versions of the films, there is no doubt in my mind that these special extended editions are incredibly well-made.  Over 26 hours of content spread across multiple discs was an achievement unlike any other.  While the extended versions of the films are available on Blu-Ray, I actually like the individual film sets a bit better, because each film has 4 discs encased in a book-like case.  Like the Alien Anthology, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy Extended Edition is easily one of the most comprehensive sets ever released.

Hellraiser: Scarlet Box Limited Edition

As a huge fan of horror, Hellraiser is among my favorite franchises in the genre.  While it has seen its ups and downs of the past 30 or so years, the impact that the original Clive Barker film had is inescapable.  Featuring one of the most iconic villains in cinema history, Pinhead has become an icon.  For most people, Hellraiser doesn’t extend beyond the first two or three movies.  I certainly understand why, the quality of the films after the third one have gone steadily gone downhill.  But for those of us still enjoy the first three films, this collector’s set is an absolute most. Released by Arrow Video, The Scarlet Box is easily the most definitive versions of the first three films.  Each film comes with its own mini case and has an additional disc detailing the effects that Clive Barker had on the genre, both in print and on film.  Not only that, the set also comes with a 200 page hardbook detailing writings by Clive Barker as well as a 20 page book featuring concept art that hasn’t been previously released.  Each film has some pretty extensive special features as well, with each film including interviews with principle cast members like Doug Bradley and Ashley Laurence.  This is a set that belongs on the shelf of EVERY fan of horror and Hellraiser.

The James Bond Collector’s Set

While the other sets that I mentioned are nothing short of amazing in their quality, when it comes to quantity, look no further than the James Bond 50th Anniversary Collection.  Holy shit.  This sucker is massive.  Released in 2012, the set included every single official 007 film, which came to a total of 22 at the time.  The set even included a special empty spot for Bond’s 23 outing, Skyfall.  Every Bond film from every era(again, at the time) is included here, with the exception of Never Say Never Again, which was an unofficial James Bond film, and the original Casino Royale from 1967.  In 2012, this was the most complete collection for James Bond fanatics around the world.  To be fair, some of the movies in the set aren’t that great.  I actually hate Moonraker with a passion, but it’s inclusion is still warranted.  If you have a favorite 007 film, it’s here, and each film has a bevy of special features.  This is an absolutely wonderful addition to any film buff’s collection.

James Cameron’s Avatar Collector’s Edition

When it comes to pushing technology in movies, nobody does it quite like James Cameron.  Whether it was The Terminator, The Abyss, or Titanic, Cameron always had a vision for each film that he made.  His 2009 release of Avatar was the culmination of 15 years of work that came to life in 2009.  It was a visually spectacular film with a message that was pretty heavy-handed, but it was such an experience that I couldn’t wait to see it again.  The initial Blu-Ray release was a massive disappointment.  It had no special features of any kind aside from the films themselves.  It was about November of 2010 that audiences would get a serious release of the film in a collector’s edition.  It was worth the wait.  The Collector’s set included not one but three different versions of the film, with the 3-hour extended cut being the most anticipated, because it came with a very different opening sequence.  As with a James Cameron extended film, most of the editions tended to be more character focused and helped flesh out the world of Pandora a little bit more.  With extensive behind-the-scenes footage as well as the entire marketing campaign for the film, it all came together in an attractive little package that opened up like a book.

These aren’t the only collector’s sets I have, but these are the ones that really stand out in terms of content and quality.  Some of them are upwards of a 100 bucks or your regional equivalent, but I assure you, they are worth the entry fee.  People these days are saying that digital media formats like Blu-Ray are on their way out.  Eventually, maybe.  But right now, not so much.  These sets that I mentioned are some of the main reasons why I collect movies.  There are advantages to streaming films and hard formats like DVD and Blu-Ray.  I think both complement each other very well.  I don’t formats like Blu-Ray are going away any time soon, but I could be wrong.  Regardless, these are some of the best collector’s sets available.

Released: October 2018

Director: George Tilllman, Jr.

Rated PG-13

Run Time: 133 Minutes

Distributor: 20th Century Fox

Genre: Drama

Cast:
Amandla Stenberg: Starr Carter
Regina Hall: Lisa Carter
Russell Hornsby: Maverick Carter
Anthony Mackie: King
Issa Rae: April Ofrah
Common: Carlos
Algee Smith: Khalil
K.J. Apa: Chris

Do you want to know why I love film as a medium?  It’s not just a method of delivering a story or a form of education.  It’s also a tool.  It’s a tool that can help shape the world in ways that we’ve never been able to before.  Film is a medium that isn’t reserved for the few.  It’s something that can reach millions of people across the world.  It can be used as a way to bring people together or to divide.  There is more power in film than most people will ever admit.  In some ways, it can be far more powerful than just reading a book.  There is a unique potential in film to change the world for the better, and if it can’t, it will lead to conversations and actions that will.  THAT is the power of film.  THAT is why I talk about movies, because every once in a while, you come across a film that is not only powerful, but extremely profound in ways that we have yet to imagine.  Movies that spark conversation about our society are the movies that can incite change.  Hopefully, for the better.  One such film is The Hate U Give.

The film opens on a small black family as Maverick, the father, tells his children about how to behave if and when they are confronted by police.  A few years later, Starr, the daughter of Maverick, is attending a predominantly white prep school.  A few days later, she’s at a party with her friends when she runs into an old crush, Khalil.  After a fight breaks out, Khalil takes Starr home when they’re pulled over by a cop.  Khalil is shot and killed by the cop because he pulled out a hairbrush.  Traumatized by the event, Starr’s life at home and at school begin to fall apart as news reaches her that the cop may not be prosecuted.  While this particular story is fiction, the fact of the matter is is that stuff like this happens every single day in real life, so there is an element of realism to what happens in the film.  There are a lot of thematic elements in the film that deal with racism, police brutality, and black-on-black crime.  All of these things feed into each other and make for a very tense situation.  While the film is centered around Starr and her experience with law enforcement and some of the situations that cops themselves find themselves in.  Starr also has to deal with the fact that her classmates have been using this tragedy for their own gain.  Again, this also happens in real life, so things like this are not entirely inaccurate.  I love this story because it doesn’t really hold the audience’s hand and actually forces them to confront these issues that are plaguing our society today.

The performances in this film are absolutely amazing.  Russell Hornsby’s performance as Maverick is incredible as an ex-con that’s trying to protect and provide for his family.  Regina Hall delivers that motherly warmth that makes you want to hug her.  She’s amazing.  The breakout performance of The Hate U Give is Amandla Stenberg as Starr.  She is the heart and soul of this picture.  Amandla gives such a powerful performance for someone so young, it’s incredible.  I can’t say that I relate to the character, because I’m not from that walk of life, so I have no idea what it’s like to be confronted with bigotry, but Amandla’s performance has you on the character’s side every step of the way and you begin to feel what she feels, especially if you have a strong sense of justice and see that ripped from you.  Amandla has an incredibly bright future ahead of her.  Rapper Common also delivers a pretty striking performance as Starr’s cop uncle Carlos.  There is a scene in Carlos’ house where he describes what happens when a cop confronts a black man, and then describes a situation when a cop confronts a white man.  Seeing his reaction when Starr confronts him about it says everything that needs to be said about the situation and how wrong it is.

All the protests that you see in the film are incredibly well-staged and shot, and it looks like something you would see on the news, because these protests have been on the news.  One of the most striking scenes in the film is the opening when Maverick is telling his kids how to behave in front of a cop.  Honestly, I had no idea that was even a thing until I watched one of the special features on the Blu-Ray.  That speaks more to my ignorance of how people in these smaller communities live and raise their kids.  It’s not a reality that I’m used to seeing, so it is an eye-opener.  Another aspect of the film is the difference between the way that Starr behaves at school, and how she behaves at home.  These details are extremely important in a film that deals with systemic issues like racism and police brutality.  There were moments in the film that really pissed me off not because they were poorly done, but rather in how accurate the situation in the film is to real life.  Cops getting off with barely a slap on the wrist for killing an unarmed black man?  Anybody who has a strong moral center and a strong sense of justice should get pissed off about that, which is why these protests happen.  The film does have an optimistic view of how things could eventually turn out, but it doesn’t shy away from the unfortunate truth that many of these injustices are swept under the rug.  The pacing of the film is perfect and it just hooks you from the beginning, and as you follow these characters on their journey, you begin to understand important a film like this really is.  I haven’t read the book that the film is based on, but even so, The Hate U Give is a powerful experience that should spark conversations about things happening in our communities.

One of the most enduring themes of the film is the right to speak out against injustice.  It’s an important message for everyone who cares to listen.  If you see something wrong, you should be able to be allowed to speak out against it.  It’s important to find your voice and use it.  That’s why you have it.  The Hate U Give, I think, is a film that deserves to be seen by everyone.  It’s also one that needs to spark conversations about how to deal with some of these real-life issues.  It’s an extraordinary film that has some of the greatest performances that I’ve seen in years, and it’s one of the most powerful films of the decade.  It’s extraordinarily relevant in today’s world.  When I said that film, as a medium, has the potential to spark change in a positive direction, I meant it, and The Hate U Give is a perfect example.  The title itself has a purpose and a message.  This is a film that needs to be seen.  It’s not always easy to sit through, but it is absolutely worth it.

My Final Recommendation: 10/10.

Released: September 2018

Director: Gregory Plotkin

Run Time: 89 Minutes

Rated R

Distributor: Lionsgate Studios

Genre: Horror

Cast:
Amy Forsyth: Natalie
Reign Edwards: Brooke
Bex Taylor-Klaus: Taylor
Stephen Conroy: The Other
Christian James: Quinn
Roby Attal: Gavin
Matt Mercurio: Asher

The slasher film is one of the biggest staples in the horror genre.  It usually involves a group of nubile teenagers/college kids being stalked and murdered by a single villain.  There are a large number of slasher films available today: A Nightmare On Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Scream, and Hatchet just to name a few.  Most of these are generally well done, but they tend to follow a very similar pattern.  Most slasher movies follow a certain order in which they kill their victims.  It usually starts with the boyfriend, then the promiscuous girl, stoner, and so on and so forth.  Most films in this sub-genre are pretty predictable.  Every once in a while you get a film like Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon that shakes up the genre a bit, but those films are few and far in between.  Having a predictable slasher film isn’t always a bad thing, and it make for a hell of a time at parties.  I personally don’t mind a predictable slasher as long as it is done well.  There were two slasher movies that hit theaters last year that garnered the most attention: Halloween and Hell Fest.

Here’s the setup:  A group of college friends get together and go to Hell Fest, a Halloween-themed attraction that goes from town to town.  They go to this thing to get the crap scared out of them, all the while not knowing that there is a serial killer among them that picks them off one by one.  That’s it.  That’s every slasher film in existence in a nutshell with some slight variations on locations and age group.  Let’s face facts, shall we?  Nobody goes to a film like this for the story.  It’s just a loose thread tying all the kills together.  Pretty simple, yes?  Doesn’t bother me at all as long as the tension is real and the kills are satisfactory.  Let’s talk about the setting first.  Having a horror film set in a horror-themed attraction with haunted houses is actually a really cool idea.  There’s a lot of fun in the unpredictability of a place like that, especially in a horror film.  In the hands of a better film-maker like Adam Green or Alex Aja, Hell Fest could have been something really wild.  Unfortunately, Hell Fest is another film in a long line of “run-of-the-mill” slasher movies.

To craft a solid slasher movie, you need tension.  To get that tension, you first need to be able to connect with the characters on the screen.  If you connect with them in some fashion, it could allow to want them to survive the night.  That is one of the biggest issues with Hell Fest:  Most of the characters are poorly written and conceived.  In fact, most of them are pretty annoying.  The only one that I managed to connect with the slightest was Natalie, mostly because the character is as much of a cynic as I am when it comes to the idea of a haunted house attraction.  So, if the characters aren’t worth rooting for, what else do you have?  The villain?  He’s faceless guy in a mask #76.  It’s one thing to have a faceless villain that is completely unstoppable.  Michael from Halloween is a perfect example of how to get that kind of a villain right.  The villain in Hell Fest is a cheap knock-off.  He’s not awful, but he’s not one that you’re going to be remembering in the same breath as Freddy, Jason, Michael, or Leatherface.  The acting in the film isn’t awful, actually.  Some of the scares that these characters encounter look like the real deal and it’s pretty convincing that they’re scared, it’s just that they aren’t written well enough for us to care about them.

One of the most important things in a slasher movie is the body count.  I know it sounds morbid, but when it comes to slashers, you would expect a decent number of folks getting offed left and right, and that’s another area in which Hell Fest falters.  For a film that’s set in a horror-based amusement park, there’s not a ton of carnage that you would expect from a film called Hell Fest.  Granted, some slasher movies don’t have very high killing streaks, but there’s usually a good amount.  In Hell Fest, I counted maybe 5 or 6 kills.  The other side of the body count issue is the quality of the kills.  I’m not expecting torture porn here, this isn’t Saw, but some of the kills here are not very spectacular.  There’s a couple that are pretty good, especially with one guy who gets stabbed in the eye with an over-sized medical needle.  Those ones get me every time, so that gets a pass.  A guy also gets his head crushed with a giant mallet which isn’t bad.  Everything else though is kind of lame.  The music by Bear McCreary is pretty damned good, though.

Is there anything that Hell Fest does particularly well?  It’s certainly atmospheric.  Setting the film in a horror-theme amusement park is actually pretty creative and the set designs are incredible.  I didn’t see a single CGI shot in this film, so most of it was pretty practical, and that’s always a good thing in a slasher movie.  The performances aren’t half-bad, even if the characters aren’t particularly memorable, and Tony Todd always adds a wonderful sense of macabre to any horror film.  It’s well-framed and the shots are pretty damn good.  Unfortunately, the film is yet another generic slasher film that you probably won’t remember after a week.  It’s not an awful film, and it’s far from the worst slasher film I’ve ever seen, but it doesn’t do enough to stand out from the rest of the pack.

My Final Verdict: This is one amusement park that should stay closed: 6/10.