shannon-bill Reviews

Escape from the Iron Curtain (1956)

Quite entertaining

[7/10 · 5 May 2024]

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this relatively short movie. Several reviews here had me skeptical by suggesting that the acting and/or direction were subpar. I found this to be completely untrue. The budget was small, yes, but they made the most of it and I thought they made good use of the scenery and locals. The plot was easy to follow and there was enough tension to keep it interesting. The main players were Theodore Bikel and John Bentley who were excellent. Bentley exudes confidence and Bikel was perfect as the Hungarian defector. It was also interesting to see Donald Gray in a role other than Mark Saber. He did fine and here had a prosthetic arm unlike his Saber character who went without. All in all a pleasant, if short, diversion.

The Bad Shepherd (2024)

Is this a joke?

[3/10 · 7 April 2024]

The 5.8 rating that this had after 72 votes is a joke. Luckily that number will come down as more regular folk vote and dilute the inflated ratings of families and friends of this enterprise. I suspect it'll settle at around a 3 which is appropriate.

I knew we were in trouble almost instantly, when the woman's car broke down. Even that simple scene - a woman driving her car as it suddenly gives up the ghost - looked so cheap and felt so off that I knew right there that this was a trash production. Soon enough we meet the main characters and their acting was so bad my heart sank. Their lines too were atrocious. Badly written.

Then to learn that the director is also an actor. Ugh. That's almost never a good sign. The fact that he couldn't act his way out of a paper bag didn't stop him from giving himself a hefty role as a bad guy!

This is bad stuff, gang. Save yourself 90 minutes and watch something, anything else. This crew needs a LOT of seasoning. Better yet they don't belong in this business. Go back to your "We Buy Gold" shop and consider this a swing and a miss. A big hack but no contact.

The Modern Way (2022)

Shiny not grimy.

[6/10 · 27 January 2023]

While I definitely am more a rocker than a mod and certainly no skinhead this pro-mod piece was somewhat entertaining. I love movies that take place in 80s Britain so it had that going for it right from the start. The acting was fine and the feel of the 80s was present. Admittedly I lived the 80s in America with the exception of two wonderful weeks in England in March of 1983. But I know the 80s when I see it. I was 13 in 1980 and 22 in 1989 so I grew up in them. The one drawback to this movie was that the grittiness that it promised had an almost made-for-TV shine to it. The grit was more a sheen and the nifty little happy ending was the clincher. All in all it was a diversion that could've been better but wasn't terrible.

On the Trail of Bigfoot: Last Frontier (2022)

Not again!

[4/10 · 25 January 2023]

Well it happened again. I got snookered by not only another Bigfoot documentary but another in this very same series!

There isn't anything here but stories. A few interviews. There's no video of the creature, no tension and nothing to recommend it. I mean it's well produced and shot and everyone seems earnest but so what? This would flop on the Discovery Channel because nothing happens. I don't know why I was expecting never before seen footage of Bigfoot or an exciting night-vision nighttime hunt. But nothing like that occurs. No, all we get are yabber jabber by people who claim to have met Mr. Bigfoot. We viewers are still waiting.

Lyle (2014)

Confused priorities.

[5/10 · 12 January 2023]

There's nothing wrong with another take on the classic Rosemary's Baby story. I know some folks get all precious about these things but it's a brilliant concept for a movie and if you get the characters right, if the building becomes a character in its own right and if you have a decent writer it could be a no-brainer. Here however the writing let us down. Too little happened and the creepy happenings were too trite and too few. The sense of dread was not sustained and the tension was lacking.

Add to this the trendy and becoming hackneyed decision to make the main couple a pair of lesbians of the non-lipstick variety and patience begins to wane. They weren't fun to look at and I'd dare call them Wal-Mart lesbians. The lead character went so far as to eschew makeup and leave her armpits au natural. This is unappealing, unappreciated and wholly unnecessary.

This was a lackluster attempt at horror. It could've and should've been better but production was more concerned with virtue signaling and getting the racial quotas correct that they neglected the end product.

Miracle (2021)

Great Romanian Film!

[8/10 · 11 October 2022]

I can't understand the negative reviews here. This is an excellent movie! The only quibble I might have is that the pacing is a little slow. Some scenes linger too long on nothing or pan the landscape at an excruciatingly slow clip. But acting was solid, direction strong and cinematography beautiful. It's always interesting to see the world in movies and this was a nice way to see a country I'll probably never get a chance to visit.

The miracle of the title was initially cathartic but was somewhat muted by a following revelation that took the mood down a few notches.

Special props to the acting by the guy who played the main detective - he did a great job!

Home with a View of the Monster (2019)

Not lousy, not great but fair to middlin'. But the music does stink.

[6/10 · 29 September 2022]

With reviews literally spanning the range from 1 to 10 I'm here to tell you the truth.

It isn't terrible. The music definitely is but the movie is engaging and well acted.

We do have the now mandatory interracial couple to keep the snowflakes and liberal trend enforcers happy but we also have a pretty interesting story. It's not a simple story but one with some well plotted twists and turns. There's depth to the writing and the direction and acting was able to pull it off. I really feel it was mostly let down by some poor musical choices. A little more backstory as to the genesis of the haunting would've also been nice.

All in all it wasn't a bad way to spend 90 minutes. Don't believe the haters...nor the ballyhoo.

American Werewolves (2022)

Evidence Please

[5/10 · 22 July 2022]

Lots of stories, most of them very convincing but where's the video evidence?

Nowadays when everyone has a camera in their pocket and ghost and cryptid videos are a dime a dozen this documentary presents exactly NO video evidence! I paid for this on streaming and fully expected some sort of photographic evidence. It was a no-brainer to me - a full length doc on dogmen or "American Werewolves" has GOT to have some new, heretofore never seen video evidence! Wrong! Color me disappointed.

The Ice Demon (2021)

Just say NO to dubbing!

[4/10 · 12 May 2022]

Ok so this isn't any hidden classic and in the end it was no great shakes. It probably would've earned another star from me were it just subtitled.

The English dubbing is just atrocious! It takes the mood right out of the movie. I'm sure it at least had a creepy vibe in its original language with subtitles...but the dubbing removes this completely. It sounds very unnatural. One would think voice actors who are being paid to dub English voices would have some skills in this department but nope, not here. They may as well have been reading the owner's manual for a toaster. Subtitles are preferable folks, at least give us the option!

Cusp (2021)

Shower required after viewing.

[3/10 · 19 April 2022]

With an average IQ hovering right around room temperature everyone featured in this documentary make tree stumps seem erudite. Luckily these folks don't represent average America. Among the rural lower class the filmmakers have found a pocket of people from a Jerry Springer-like "Bizarro World."

Like rabbits these people are destined to reproduce early and often and thus guarantee there will be plenty of fodder for future trash TV shows, documentaries like this and to keep welfare rolls stocked. These are the kind of people who keep the American meth industry afloat.

This documentary offers nothing in the way of solutions nor does it explore the causes. Thinking people will instantly recognize that education is the way out of living hells such as this. Our "stars" in this movie bask in ignorance and apathy.

All that said it can be diverting to watch our nation's underbelly writhe and struggle for 90 minutes a slice.

Hillwalkers (2022)

Nicely done.

[7/10 · 16 March 2022]

Yeah yeah girl power (or is it grrrrrl power?) and all that ~rah rah.

Political correctness and all pushed to one side (preferably off a tall cliff) this was a well-made, well-acted and beautifully lensed flick!

The direction was perfect and so was the pacing. The characters were well-drawn and a couple of them were very 3 dimensional.

The ending was cathartic and the lead-up was somewhat emotional.

It's a well-trod path this type of movie but like the giallo or other formulaic genres of movie, if you get the tropes right and you pay attention to detail and direct and act with care you can create a movie that will last.

Well done.

The Believer (II) (2021)

6/10

[6/10 · 14 April 2021]

Nowhere near as bad as the current rating of 3.6.

It's weird enough and creepy enough to pull it into the 6 range. The acting was acceptable and the direction was reasonably taut. While it wasn't the second coming of Rosemary's Baby it was better than Exorcist II - The Heretic!

The Widow (2020)

Oh the dubbing!!

[6/10 · 10 April 2021]

This is a good movie that is deeply wounded by terrible dubbing. It would've been much better off subtitled. The dubbing alters the mood and turns what, no doubt, is a creepy movie oozing atmosphere into a much lighter adventure. For example a minor role of a young boy sounds like a cartoon mouse and there are instances of laughing or other non-word utterances like oohs and ahs that sound on!y cartoony. But it's not just these instances but the entire dialogue that is ruined. It comes off sounding more like an episode of Scooby Doo and less like the tense and atmospheric folk horror that is is.

A subtitled version of this movie would gain at least a star and possibly two but as it stands now its a real stretch to give it the six I did. I do think it's potentially a great little movie and I tried hard to ignore the laughable dubbing when rating it.

Jusqu'à l'Enfer (2009 TV Movie)

Hell Bound

[6/10 · 7 April 2021]

I watched this on Google streaming where it was called Hell Bound and purported to be from 2021.

All told it was an effective little thriller which was very competently acted, directed and shot.

While it wasn't anything earth-shattering it did hold my attention and there's nothing negative to say about it.

I did also recently watch another movie from the same director (Denis Malleval) from 2013 called The Iron Stairs which was also a solid movie in a similar vein.

Howard's Mill (2021)

Faux Documentary

[6/10 · 3 April 2021]

Reasonably entertaining pseudo documentary. It tries hard to hide the fact that it's all fictitious but its clear that these are actors playing roles. The 2nd half is a bit better than the first but be prepared to suspend disbelief for some supernatural shenanigans.

Concrete Plans (2020)

Superb!

[9/10 · 30 March 2021]

Very tense and very excellent movie! Great acting all around and rock solid direction. Hail Britannia!

The Winter Lake (2020)

7/10

[7/10 · 28 March 2021]

Beautifully filmed, well acted and directed. It's slow and it's a little bleak or somber but there is beauty in rainy days, in winter, and in this type of movie.

Blind (III) (2019)

Ugh

[3/10 · 14 February 2021]

This really is poorly made garbage. I'll grant that the masked stalker is somewhat creepy but that's all that can be said in a positive light for this movie. It exudes an air of cheapness and the interminable scenes set to music are by far the worst scenes I've seen in years. The songs are absolutely insipid, cookie-cutter pop music tripe like something you'd get on a cd sampler with your newly purchased knockoff brand stereo system...as performed by knockoff musicians who whine rather than sing.

Red Woods (2021)

Not that bad

[7/10 · 9 February 2021]

This was nowhere near as bad as some reviewers here would have you believe. Not at all. The sylvan scenery was gorgeous and the story was well-written and directed. The acting was acceptable and frankly, I was entertained for the duration. Not sure what some people want but if you aren't a fan of horror than perhaps this isn't the movie for you. This wasn't Sheitan or Calvaire but it is a diverting way to spend a little time. Again, it's a solid effort on a budget.

The Lost (III) (2020)

Substandard fare

[4/10 · 1 February 2021]

Here's a 2nd review by someone not associated with this film. The movie is pretty bad. The acting is spotty with several of the actors being no better than rank amateurs. Direction is questionable. The whole vibe of the thing is cheap and junky. I should've known as certain aspects of the trailer gave me pause but I foolishly plowed ahead anyway only to be thoroughly let down.

Marla (2018)

Terrible

[2/10 · 24 November 2019]

This no budget flick is marred by a lead actress whose character is so unlikeable it's impossible to get past. She's mopey, she's mumbly and nobody ever taught her manners. "Thank you" are two words she was never taught. To add insult to injury she's the worst actor in a cast of bad actors. A very disappointing movie all told.