duntrune Reviews

Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated (2010–2013)

The classic is BACK!

[9/10 · 3 September 2010]

The gang is back, and in fine form, I might add. Fred is still Fred, if a bit more bumbling than he used to be, but hey, it's a reboot and he's back in high school! Daphne's got more spunk and she pines for the oblivious Fred, but over the course of 8 episodes, there's actual character development!! Velma's much girlier than she used to be, and way more sarcastic (ie, funny) and Shag and Scooby are their usual selves. How's it working so far? Excellently. While they solve a different mystery each week, they also get tantalizing clues from the mysterious Mr. E, who tell them "this has all happened before", and each week the larger mystery unfolds a little more. Great! The animation's top notch, with all kinds of fun stuff tossed in the backgrounds, like a grown up Pebbles and Bam Bam showing up at the beach, and longtime Scooby fan Matthew Sweet provides a creepy, haunting theme music. It's much funnier than the classics, better animated, and a worthy part of the legacy of Scooby Doo. Why 9 out o 10? I loved the few feature films that actually featured supernatural stuff, not just guys in masks.

Monk: Mr. Monk and the End: Part 2 (2009) Season 8, Episode 16

Freaking superb!

[10/10 · 22 December 2009]

As a long time Monk fan (in fact, the show helped me to ID my own OCD), I anxiously awaited the finale knowing that somehow, Monk had to find out who killed Trudy, and why. He does, and her "last secret" Christmas gift is the key. Why wouldn't he have opened it earlier? Because he would have had to finally accept her death and move on, but his own mortality staring him the face inspires him and it rips it wide open. I, too thought he would die so he could be with Trudy for eternity, but those of us who suffered with him for eight years were going to get a happy ending. His hatred keeping him alive was awesome, as we saw in season six, he's much tougher physically when there's reason to be, and despite being horribly sick, he kicks some ass when he needs to, and I was cheering him on! But there's more, the incredibly poignant scene where he asks his oldest friend to kill, and the agony that Natalie suffers seeing her beloved boss so close to death is incredibly touching. The scene where she just lays her head on his shoulder brought the tears flowing freely. Then, the killer is finished, things go...sort of back to normal and then Monk finds Trudy's real gift, even though she never knew about it. Just amazing. All the loose ends are wrapped up, and you know, that even though the case is solved, Monk will be needed again, and Dr. Bell will be there to help him because he's still got a host of other problems. Natalie will be at his side even though you know she's happy as well, and Captain Stottlemeyer will be gruff and short tempered, but he'll still be happy for having TK in his life. Even Randy gets the happy ending he's deserved for so long, and you know he and Sharona will be perfect for each other.

The future? TV movies seem to be a worthy continuation, as one can imagine the less phobic Monk will travel to New Jersey to help Randy with a baffling case, and the Captain will come along as he's taking a vacation, and a happy reunion will take place, but for now, I am happy that our hero is finally at peace, and that he has indeed, moved on. You know, that somehow, Trudy is also finally at peace, but still very proud of Adrian.

Up (2009)

Brilliant, moving, sad, funny and amazing!

[10/10 · 9 June 2009]

Up is a smash hit out of the park by Pixar! The animation is.....stunning. The story is simple enough for kids, but involved enough that the parents won't get bored, and well, there's some moments where anyone with a heart will be bawling their eyes out. It is balanced out with lots of adventure, lots of laughs, and it's just a great movie you can take your kids to see, and even if you don't have any kids, go see it anyways! This is the kind of film that Hollywood is SUPPOSED to make, instead we get rehashes, garbage and trash. Pay attention Hollywood, make more like this and your "money problems" will vanish!

Marple: Murder Is Easy (2008) Season 4, Episode 2

Good heavens, it's wretched!

[2/10 · 30 November 2008]

People, is there ANY reason you have to butcher the original story? Luke does NOT live in the village, he's only recently returned home, and Bridget Conway is NOT an American trying to find her parents! What was so bad about Bridget being Lord Easterfield's intended, and Luke stealing her away? And Honoria Waynflete is supposed to be the same age as Easterfield, not 20 years younger! I understand the initial meeting between Luke and Lavinia had to be changed to add Miss Marple to the story, but they totally missed on the rest of it, and yet, they took the care to make sure the extremely minor subplot about the doctor's daughter and the younger doctor was left intact??? And why the changes in the Lord Easterfield character? He was a poor boy who worked his way up in the world and became rich, no need for him to be politician WITH a wife already! I know Dame Agatha had some books she liked better than others, and I don't know how she felt about this one, but I'd bet she'd be mighty disappointed with it. At least they didn't make half the characters gay in this one....:-) (nothing wrong with gays, but pointless changes of sexual preference just to make the story more tititlating are LAME!) This gets a 2 though because as always, it's beautifully shot, and costumes, cars, etc are all extremely well done. HOWEVER, I'd prefer a little less technical perfection and a BETTER interpretation of the story!!!!

Dana Carvey: Squatting Monkeys Tell No Lies (2008 TV Special)

Well, now that Carlin's gone...Dana might be a worthy successor

[8/10 · 9 August 2008]

Although his delivery isn't as polished as it could be (his recent health issues and lack of time on the road might be all it is), Carvey showed he could be a possible successor to George Carlin's Angry Everyman. His description of getting older and getting injuries doing nothing was pretty damn funny. "I'll just answer the phone and aaauuuuggghhhhh!!! I just tore my deltoid!" He also rips on just about every politician equally (Yay!) and shows a sharp wit for catching the stuff in life a lot of us might miss, like the uh, bathroom habits of bears as interpreted by Andy Rooney. I don't think this guy ever got the credit he deserved in the creation of Wayne and Garth, because Mike Myers without Carvey just isn't funny. Carvey's sketch show was hilarious, but sadly short lived. Hopefully this will see him back as a top standup and maybe he'll catch the big break he really deserves. Genius. Do not miss.

Get Smart's Bruce and Lloyd Out of Control (2008 Video)

Pretty darn funny!

[6/10 · 29 June 2008]

Not sure exactly how this came about, but my guess is that they had too much of Lloyd and Bruce to use in the movie, and instead of merely relegating these scenes to extras on the DVD, they wrote a story around the bits, filmed some new scenes and made a movie out of it. Yes, look closely, there's 9 zillion establishing shots of various buildings to fill it out, but hey, it was damn funny, these two hilarious guys got to be stars for a bit (and showed they could pull it off, which leads me to hope they get more to do in the Get Smart sequel), and we even got an uncredited Anne Hathaway cameo! Fun, silly, and I hope that they do another mini-movie to go with the Get Smart sequel!

Marple: By the Pricking of My Thumbs (2006) Season 2, Episode 3

Nothing like the novel, but not too bad, actually

[6/10 · 29 May 2008]

The good: It was still suspenseful, MacEwan was pretty solid & seeing Tommy bust some chops was pretty cool. The bad: Tuppence is a lush? WTF? And if we're going to have a Tommy & Tuppence story, where the hell is Albert???? OK, the changes to the storyline I've come to accept in these new ones, and the main changes (other than putting Marple in) weren't too bad. They CAN make some changes and still keep the tone of the novel, as they showed in Towards Zero and The Moving Finger. I thought the intro of Miss Marple was well done here, she fit into the story nicely, and yeah, it became a "buddy" flick, but it was entertaining. I don't know why everyone slams MacEwan so badly for her portrayal, she plays it a bit lighthearted, but that's another dimension of the character that Hickson simply didn't go for. In MANY of the novels Jane Marple is willing to appear to be a batty old biddy, and then she comes right out with a razor sharp observation or question that blows you away. So MacEwan plays that aspect of the character up with a bit of a twinkle in her eye. BFD. There CAN be some middle ground between Rutherford's over the top goofiness and Hickson's rather deadpan appearances. And she doesn't always play it goofy, as she shut Tommy up and had him vouch for her quite effectively! Now....heck, age-wise, Tommy and Tuppence are still more than capable, and I'd love to see JUST them in N or M, their second best adventure after their first.

Ghost Lake (2004 Video)

Wretched, perfectly wretched darling!

[1/10 · 25 January 2005]

OK, let me start by saying I love bad movies. But let me also say that low budget doesn't always equal garbage. If you don't believe me, see Arachnia, the FX are cheesy as all get out, and they spent 50-75.00 on it total, but it's still pretty good. But this, this, horrid waste of celluloid or hard drive space, is beyond bad. The plot is purely incomprehensible, after 17 beers and half a fifth I can come up with a better storyline than that. It's something about some curse or some such, and dead people come back to collect fresh victims. Why a curse? Who knows? The writer certainly didn't! The acting, or lack thereof, ranges from pathetic, to nerve grating. The child in the movie you are actively rooting for her to get it, just to shut her up. The "hero" is a complete dorkwad, and looks like an extra from Buffy, and the heroine, well, let's just say her best talents are on display right at the beginning of the film. The casting couch is still a time-tested way of getting work, but I must fault the producer for his mediocre at best taste. The rest of the cast should be marked for immediate death for their horrendous performances, especially the cretinous couple that portray the parents. Their best work is drooling and foaming at the mouth while "dead". One can only hope. You know you're in trouble when even the production company's logo is static and boring. To the producers, director and writer: I beg of you, please stop. You have no talent, nor do you have a washed up movie star like Ed Wood had to help out. You have no future in this industry. PLEASE look into the wonderful opportunities afforded to you by Amway, Herbalife and other such sterling companies. This makes the previous bottom of the barrel film Tail Sting, look like Halloween.

Team America: World Police (2004)

Weak, wasted, foul mouthed effort by Trey and Matt

[17 January 2005]

OK, let's get this straight, I LOVE SOUTH PARK. Yes, it's crude, vulgar, sophomoric, etc. However, that's what it's supposed to be, and it succeeds nicely. This was a MESS. Every joke was based on calling someone a c**ksucker, and that was mildly amusing for the first one, boring and repetitive for the second, and annoying from then on. Oh, the Film Actors Guild, F.A.G. for short, not amusing Trey, not at all. Perhaps to fifth graders, but not me. Is gay humor all you know guys? And f**k this, f**k that, repeated beyond endurance is not funny either. This HAD some amusing stuff; the oblivious Team America telling the French that they've got it under control while Paris is ruined, making fun of Ben Affleck in Pearl Harbor, and funniest of all, the "Panthers" attacking. THAT was hilarious, watching ordinary housecats as "Vicious, bloodthirsty killers". And not a curse word in the scene. "America: F**k Yeah" wasn't funny, nor was the rest of it. They totally missed the mark, and showed how mean spirited they are. South Park will continue to get my viewing, but their next film, I'll skip. That's if they get another one, this bombed pretty bad at the multiplex.

The Terminal (2004)

Like any airport, it has it's ups and downs

[20 November 2004]

Among the ups: Hanks. Someone pointed out that you can't look away from him, and they're right, the guy just radiates charisma and star power, plus he had the somewhat confused- slightly lost look down perfectly, he's a from a small country, and this is all new to him, of course he's gonna have that "deer in the headlights" look at times. His circle of pals are amazing, Chi McBride who NEVER fails to impress is simply brilliant again, and while Diego Luna does nice work, both of them get blasted off the screen by Kumar Pallana in a small, yet scene stealing role. The guy is very funny, yet quite touching. Stanley Tucci plays the jackass by-the-book type, but somehow never generates any sympathy for his character, even though he's caught between a rock and a hard place. The set is amazing, and they captured the whole airport look and feel perfectly. The downs: Who the hell ever told Catherine Zeta Jones she could act? Marrying Micheal Douglas does not mean you should be working. She's sooooo...........shallow, in what could have been a hell of a role for her, Spielberg blew it on putting her in this because she really brings it down whenever she's on screen. Gwynneth Paltrow or Renee Zellweger would have been better, hell, Drew Barrymore could have been more convincing! Bad, talentless actress ruins what could have been a great movie, despite great rest of cast, great director, cinematography, offbeat storyline, had Hanks had someone of skill to work off of, he'd be an Oscar favorite right now, unfortunately, the costar of no discernible skills sinks this one. Better luck next time Tom.

Dead Above Ground (2002)

Deserves to be buried forever

[31 October 2004]

Good god, didn't Stephen J Cannell SAVE any of his money? This is a guy with dozens upon dozens of hit TV shows, and he's producing THIS crapfest? Nobody can act, the plot is lame, the FX are pretty bad (the world's PHONIEST bird attack), about the only thing this turkey has is several fairly attractive girls in skimpy outfits, and not enough of that to make me feel like the hour and half was well spent. Where do we begin? The "football" player, who's all of 5'9", 135 pounds (waterboy, maybe?) who's "gotta get his scholarship", the token black couple with some horribly bad "urban" slang, the "rich-bitch", the Goth chick, oh yeah, every stereotypical character is here, the principal of the school wears bow ties (lives in a mansion, but drives an AMC Pacer?), the coach is a macho type, and the incredibly hot school counselor who is referred to as "Dr.", but looks to be 24 or so....yeah, lotsa shrinks that young. To make matters worse, Corbin Bernsen shows up, as does Robert Conrad (Cannell must still have the negatives) and the cop is played by Antonio Sabato Jr, with a hairdo that could withstand Hurrican Ivan and looks dorky beyond belief. HIs character is also incredibly stupid. Good god, people, if you're an actor who has made a few good films or been in a hit show, please, save your money, find some solid investments, just put it into a savings account if you have to, but please don't let your career fall to this level. Do infomercials if you have to, but please, please, don't do crap like this if you're desperate for money. You'll feel better working at Burger King than making this kind of garbage. This is the kind of flick Ed Wood would pass on making it's so bad.

Murder by Death (1976)

Flippin' brilliant!!!

[2 May 2004]

They don't make movies this funny any more....now a guy getting it on with a pie is considered high comedy, but THIS is what truly funny is all about, then again, with so few of the actors in this being alive still, maybe it's not too surprising that current films mostly suck. Who else can be as funny as Peter Sellers? (certainly Steve Martin won't be) Who else can deliver a line as smoothly as David Niven? ("Saved only by the fact that I am INCREDIBLY well bred") Who could be as twisted as Capote? (THE COW, THE COW! Use your god damn personal pronouns and prepositions!) And of course, Alec Guiness being gone makes such a role unplayable by anyone acting these days!!! Great actors, at the height of their skills, a great script, great direction, and Maggie Smith at her hottest ("I want my Dickie! My husband.") Too bad they can't make movies this good anymore....

I Am Sam (2001)

Absolutely brilliant, no contest

[9 April 2004]

Where do you start? Sean Penn is brilliant here, and the chemistry he shares with the charming Dakota Fanning is so very heartwarming. Sean imbues Sam with so much heart, and so much love for his daughter, that's its VERY easy to beleive she really is his child, and that's a hard trick to pull off in a movie! I'll make a bold prediction, if Ms. Fanning stays away from dreck like the Cat in the Hat, and sticks to work this good, she'll have an Oscar by 12 years old or so!!! And Sean deserved one for this, sorry Denzel, but this is one of the best acting jobs I've ever seen!! The ever lovely Michelle Pfeiffer gives a fab performance as well, and her slow awakening to just how good she has it is something to see. She's got it all, but never took the time to appreciate it, Sam had nothing at all, but knew the value of the love he and his daughter had for each other. I HAVE to mention Sam's pals, and the fact that several of them ARE mentally challenged, but it makes the film so very real, and nowhere in Penn's interactions do you see who the real actors are, and who the really handicapped ones were, which is just one more point in Penn's favor for the Oscar. Me? I'm 38, your typical guy, but I bawled like a baby at several points here, it's THAT good of a film, trust me, usually a flick like this tries too hard to pull the heartstrings, and fails as a consequence (ever see Radio?) but this works, sure, the somewhat documentary look to the filming helps, but they got the heart just right, so very right. Sometimes love IS all you need. Maybe the whole world could learn from this one........then again, if every had listened to John Lennon, maybe we wouldn't be in such a mess....

The Haunted Mansion (2003)

Not so bad as all that!!!!

[6/10 · 30 March 2004]

Um, yeah, more for the kiddy set than grownups, but we get Eddie Murphy actually using dialogue you'd let your kids listen to, we get Wallace Shawn and Dina waters as a pair of nitwit ghosts, Terence Stamp as a truly creepy butler, and the seriously drop- dead gorgeous Marsha Thomason, and a bunch of truly impressive special effects, what's NOT TO LIKE? Something told me that a movie based on a ride wouldn't be the deepest plot in the world, and I really didn't expect character development of a major order, I expected some gee-whiz FX, a few laughs (the son is pretty funny,"I see dead people") and a happy ending. I got all that, and a bit more. VERY impressive FX (anyone else notice one of the Barbershop Quartet guys looked an awful lot like Vincent Price?), moody, creepy sets, great visuals, and a nice bit of nostalgia for the ride I've loved for years at Disneyland (second fave, right after Pirates). Not at all a bad deal! I give it 6 out of 10!

Sorority House Massacre (1986)

The only massacre is the genre

[10 March 2004]

For a slice n' dice flick set in a sorority, we get very little naked co-ed, pretty tame FX, and for being made in 87, we get clothes from 84-85, no attempt to lighten it up with a few laughs, the false thrills of the obvious boyfriends coming over to see the girls, etc are laughably predictable, and as another astute reader noted, they watch TV when the power is out? 90-odd minutes of my life, wasted. Where's Jamie Lee when we need her?

Eko Eko Azarak: Wizard of Darkness (1995)

Bloody Good Ripping Yarn!

[7 March 2004]

Outstanding!!!! Smart, well crafted flick with a couple of twists I MOST CERTAINLY didn't see coming! Usually horror flicks are pretty damn predictable, but this was not! Instead of a bad dub job, we get subtitles, which I much prefer, except when it distracts me from the mondo Japanese cuties on the screen! Our star is some kind of gorgeous, and the other girls aren't too difficult to look at, either. The plot is nothing overly original or spectacular, but it's done well, you're in suspense all the way, there's red herrings aplenty, and the aforementioned twists hit hard, and you're saying "I'd have NEVER thought that would happen". The FX are so-so, but they don't distract at all, you're too into what's going on to worry about it. I know there's two sequels, and I'm going to be looking for them!!!!! 8/10 Excellent!!!!!

The Hot Chick (2002)

Another Happy Madison triumph!

[28 February 2004]

Other than Joe Dirt, I haven't seen a Happy madison flick that I haven't laughed out loud at throughout, this is no exception. Yes, silly physical slapstick, the mom falling, people getting hit, yes, yes, it's been done a million times, as has the tired plotline, but Schneider plays it so well, you can't help but love it. His teenage girl is hilarious, and everyone turns in a pretty good job, especially the much mentioned Anna Faris, who can, despite Scary Movie's evidence to the contrary, act, and very well, too. Adam Sandler's cameo is pretty good "If you have any more questions, I'll be in the back sleeping. Wait. This is the back." "I didn't think you could hear me!" and of course, the tie in lines "That's a HUGE B**CH!" (Where was "We can do it!") and Rachel McAdams is a mondo hotty, along with Anna Faris, so really, I can't see what anyone COULDN'T like about this movie, people need to lighten up, loosen the ties, mellow out, and just laugh once in awhile.

My Boss's Daughter (2003)

Aw, come on, it was actually okay...not great, but not that bad!

[10 February 2004]

Contrived? yep. Thinly plotted? yep. Painfully obvious? yep. However, it isn't all that bad, sure, it's predictable and what have you, but it is a comedy, the title tells us what the end result will be, so I wasn't expecting Hitchcockian plot twists here!!! The really great stuff: Hans the Boyfriend. Hilarious. Went to the right schools, had the right job, and Dad was okay with that, ignoring the, um, other obvious problems. Andy Richter as Red, great, just great, does a pretty good job as the buffoon brother The Secretary and her weird friends, what a collection of nutjobs!!! The guy coming out of the pool was pretty damn funny. The not so great: Ashton Kutcher can't act. Face it, Kelso is not exactly the trickiest guy in the world to play. This does not mean this guy's an actor!!!!!! Everything I've seen him in makes me wonder how it would have been handled by Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler or Owen Wilson, who ARE funny, and CAN act. Tara Reid, eat girl, you looked dynamite in Urban Legend and Josie and the Pussycats, but not so good here. She plays it well, but not exactly the most challenging role ever thought up, ya know? Complete waste of Dave Foley. C'mon, this guy's hilarious, somebody put him in the right movie!!! The just okay: Terence Stamp plays the psycho father pretty good, but the change of heart is really phoney. Overall, 6 out of 10, Zucker gets what he can out of his less than perfect crew.

BASEketball (1998)

Effing brilliant!!!!

[10 February 2004]

Just sickly and twistedly funny as hell. Parker and Stone are OBVIOUSLY demented, and hooking up with Zucker was a brilliant move. I laughed until I cried. I had to stop the tape several times because I was incoherent from laughing so hard. The Robert Stack bit was just sooooooooooo funny, as were pretty much all of the jokes. Now the DVD version on the other hand has some serioous problems, like missing scenes, no extras to speak of and horrible picture quality. Pick it up on VHS instead, no extras, but you get the entire movie.

Shredder (2001)

Shred this film and all masters of it, quickly!!!

[1 February 2004]

Now I'm a huge fan of low-buck cheesy slashfests, but really, can we have some sort of oh, I dunno, a PLOT????? Wow. Teens decide to go "shredding" at an abandoned ski lodge (conveniently located miles from any help and decidedly spooky looking) where there was.........A MURDER years ago! And someone's looking for revenge on our young, goodlooking, rich and horny teenagers....can you FEEL the suspense? We have the requisite "party girl", the "snobby girl", the "good girl", the "handsome stranger guy", the "nice hero guy", the "dorky crazy guy" and the "quiet loner type", but that's not all! We have the "angry locals" and the "doofy sheriff", and of course our "masked killer" who uses a variety of instruments to do the deeds. I swear they had a copy of "The Idiot's Guide to making a Slasher Flick" on set at all times because this thing is sooooooo predictable. It's wretched in every way possible. It deserves the shredder. I intend to write the producers and ask for a refund of my rental fee, 'cause that's three bucks and I'll NEVER get the 90 minutes of my life I wasted by watching this back.

House of the Dead (2003)

The House of the Really Bad Film Makers!!!!

[31 January 2004]

You will be absolutely horrified by this movie. Oh, not in fear, just horrified that anyone was willing to admit they were in this thing or had anything to do with it. Where to start, where to start? Okay, basing a flick on a video game need not be truly rotten, Resident Evil worked pretty good, this, on the other hand stunk to high heaven. The actual videogame shots spliced in were a really stupid idea, the lame-o makeup for our zombies was a lame idea, the wasting of Jurgen Prochnow was a really bad idea, (Speilberg, give this guy a job in a GOOD movie, willya?), the incredible level of firepower these dorky people were using was pretty bad (a .50 caliber Desert Eagle would tear Ona Grauer's arm off), the plot in general was really stupid, (some schmuck pays a THOUSAND DOLLARS to get to a rave?) the acting atrocious, but we DO get a Clint Howard appearance, thank heaven for small favors, eh? The Matrix effects are pretty over by now, no? But we get them in full effect, all over the screen and why? because they fill up the running time of this turkey!!!! They pad an extra 45 minutes on to this wretched flick!! The plot (such as it is) fills a good 13 minutes, so they had to add something to it to sell it. Dave Parker was responsible for this, and he also did The Dead Hate The Living which also stunk, my guess is former Major League Baseball star Dave Parker could write and produce a better movie than this one. In fact, an hour and a half of Parker's highlights would have more drama than this turkey.

Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)

Darn tootin' good fun!

[28 January 2004]

Lemme hear ya say Yeah! The Big G is back and badder than ever in one of the best Godzilla flicks in ages!! We've got all the elements of a great G-Flick, a plucky heroine, some cool high tech toys, a dedicated scientist, the cocky young guy, a really cool monster villain, some pretty spiffy FX, and of course the Big G, rompin' and stompin' his way thru Japan! How much more can you ask for??? AND they top it all off with some sly humour in a few spots, with G trashing the BanDai Toy factory, and if you listen VERY closely, the scene with all the bugs flying away from the building? yeah, the music is quite obviously a take-off of the flying moneky theme from the Wizard of Oz!!!! Good fight scenes are handled more in a cartoon-ish way, with Big G shaking his head to clear the cobwebs after a big wallop by the bad guy and it all ends with G kicking some kaiju butt!!!! Oh yeah, Mitsako Tanaka as the heroine is the cutest G-gal since Megumi Odaka, whom I hope will be in the new 2004 scheduled flick that Toho is supposedly working on with a who's who of G actors in it...8 out of 10, it's brilliant!

Descendant (2003)

Quite good thriller

[1 December 2003]

an imaginative tale of the modern day Poe's and Ushers, with some very good acting and a well done script all add up to a flick that was far better than it's straight to video fate. Katherine Heigl is gorgeous as well as talented, and the superb Jeremy London (Party of Five's Griffin) puts in a great performance as the haunted writer who may or not be all there. Interesting that they wove in bits of pieces of Hitchcock's Suspicion as well, come to think of it, if they were going to do a remake of that classic flick, Heigl and London's chemistry would serve them well. Sadly, 99% of the folks renting flicks these days have no idea who Poe was, and will not get most of this flick's storyline....too bad for them. 7 out of 10 stars, good job all around, the major subtraction being that York Video used the same house where this takes place in their laugher/slasher/thriller Scream Bloody Murder, weirdly enough, I rented both of them on the same trip!!!

Scream Bloody Murder (2003 Video)

Bloody Good Show, I say!

[30 November 2003]

Our "starlets" are all cuties in the extreme (Shay, whatta doll!), our plot is rather weak and transparent, our effects are rather on the cheesy side, but hey, a buncha incredibly cliched schoolgirls are on their way to the "big dance", their van breaks down, and mayhem ensues. Lotsa exploitive laughs, no real skin, some cheesy girl on girl action, and we have a halfbaked, but darn tootin' funny flick. Highlights include the actress playing Parker, who is far and away the best thing talent wise here, our hick rescuer who exudes some rather goofy charm in his bumbling, and our innocent Shay, who looks like an escapee from the Facts of Life, but is charming nonetheless. Our lowlights include badgirl Star, sluttygirl Honey, and the driver who you were rooting for to be an early victim. If you watch with your tongue firmly in cheek, you'll enjoy it, if you have high hopes of a great thriller, you're gonna be sooooo disappointed.

Killer Rats (2003)

OY! Giant mutant rats!

[11 October 2003]

Or something to that effect, it's hard to tell, is this a movie about a reporter? a mad scientist? a criminal coverup? do we care? after some really bad CGI, most likely no. the star's a cutie, and she oughta smack her agent for getting her into this turkey. wasn't there a revival of Plan Nine from Outer Space she could have gotten a part in instead? avoid it like the plague and go rent Rats, starring Madchen Amick, a much better rat movie, or wait until Willard is out on DVD.