Horror Movies DVD Review 2008

In 2008 there was a lot of horror movies DVD release. After watching all the DVD release in 2008, here are my Horror movies DVD reviews.

Horror Movies Dvd Review 2008 Indiana Jones The Adventure pack

In the history of modern film, there are only a handful of true icons. I don’t think any of you would argue that INDIANA JONES is towards the top of that list.

As the new film has hit theaters and quickly rocketed to the top of the box office we are once again engulfed in INDYMANIA and it is the perfect time to rediscover the films that have brought us to that point.

A new box set of the original trilogy all in their Special Edition forms in now out and it is quite simply a must-have addition to any true film fans collection. Granted these films are not horror films in the technical sense but if you are a fan of the genre then there is no way in hell that you are not a fan of these films.

As expected the set includes RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM and INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE. I really don’t think that there is any need to go into any detail as to what these films are about but needless to say they are all 3 classics and if you don’t yet have them in your collection then this the perfect time to add them.

The price is right as well, you can own all three of the films for less than $40 and it all comes packaged in that nifty little packaging that you see on the right-hand margin.

And extras out the old whazoo, check out this list:

1. New Introductions to the films by Steven Speilberg & George Lucas. STORYBOARDS, unless something differs greatly from the film, I have trouble sitting through these:
2. Snakes Alive! The Well Of Souls. – From Lost Ark
3. Hold On To Your Hat! The Coal Mine Chase. – From Temple of Doom.
4. The Birth Of the Action Hero! The Last Crusade Opening Scene. MEMORIES, modern interviews with those who worked on the films back then. These are always a little jaded for me.
5. The Indy Trilogy, A Crystal Clear Appreciation. – The cast & crew of the new movie talk about how well they like the original three.
6. Indy’s Women Reminisce. – a reunion of Indy’s main women.
7. Indy’s Friends & Enemies. – Steve, George, & the writers discuss character creation, including a look at the new movie.
8. Creepy Crawlies. – Steve George & Frank Marshall reminisce about snakes, bugs & rats.

BEHIND THE SCENES, new documentaries about the making of the originals:

1. The Mystery Of The Melting Face. – a re-creation of the original special effect in “Ark”.
2. Discover Adventure On Location with Indy. – A slightly misleading title as this also modern-day travel around the world, showing where the films were originally shot.
3. Photo Galleries from each film.

And then there is:

1. LEGO Indiana Jones.- promotional demo games.
2. A lot of really, really good stuff and when put together with the three films it is an exhaustive journey into the Indiana Jones world.
3. Must have, must have, must have. What else do you need to know?
4. INDIANA JONES: THE ADVENTURE COLLECTION is available now everywhere.

Horror Movies DVD Review OTIS

I don’t know, maybe it’s just me but it sure seems like a lot of these DVD’s coming out lately with the little “blurbs” that make the film sound like a “must see” event has pretty much sucked. Needless to say when I got the DVD of OTIS and seen blurbs praising it as a horror gem and calling it the horror equivalent to JUNO I immediately became suspicious.

Once again I am proven right.

OTIS is, unfortunately, a boring mediocre at best attempt at a serial killer/psycho tale that fails on just about every level a film can. The only notable reasons to watch this film are the great performances turned in by Kevin Pollack and also Jere Burns who is great as the wack job FBI agent.

The tale is well worn and unoriginal but let’s dive into it anyway.

SPOILERS, SPOILERS, SPOILERS…

Otis our resident nut case. He lives with his brother (portrayed by Kevin Pollack) and delivers pizza at night and oh yeah he also has a hidden room under his house where he keeps hotties that he has abducted and lives out his high school prom fantasies with.

Otis keeps them in this room, dresses them up, dances with them and then ultimately ends up violently killing them when they inevitably piss him off. We meet up with OTIS as he is finishing off his latest victim and begins looking for a new “date”.

Since he is a pizza delivery guy he stalks his prey while delivering the tasty hot pizza goodness. We meet up with the new victim and her family (portrayed by Daniel Stern, Illena Douglas, and Ashley Johnson) as Otis dropping off their pizza and Riley (Johnson) answers the door when he rings the bell. The next day he shows up and stuffs her into the hatchback of his car and we are off to the races.

Riley awakens in OTIS’s little love room to find herself shackled to the floor and the apple of OTIS’s eye.

This and that happens and Riley ends up escaping and returns home to her parents who decide rather than giving the wealth of info that Riley has on her abductor to the FBI dude (Burns) they will take the matter into their own hands and avenge the brutality committed to their daughter.

They sneak into OTIS’s house, not knowing what he looks like and promptly end up beat the shit out of and eventually killing his brother (Pollack) by mistake. They quickly realize that they have just committed murder and develop a plan that complicates things even further.

I’ll leave the ending for you to watch for yourself.

On a bright note, there is some very good acting done in this film. I enjoyed several of the performances. I guess the bulk of my problems with the film stem from the tedious writing and the lack of any new or interesting plot lines or character development.

I strongly urge all of you to check this film out for yourself. It is not horrible it just isn’t as good as some other reviewers would lead you to believe.

JUNO it is not Groundbreaking it is not. Hilarious it is not.

Well acted it is and that may be just enough for some of you to enjoy this one.

OTIS is available now pretty much everywhere.

Horror Movies DVD – The Happening Film Review

The Happening is a mild return to form for M. Night Shyamalan, that filmmaker infamous now for his steady decline in film quality, rather than for his twist endings. The man who was once compared to Rod Serling and Alfred Hitchcock is now compared more often to Uwe Boll. The Happening, however, simplifies things by offering Shyamalan a premise free of plot complication, focused almost exclusively on the delivery of mood. Its a quick exercise in style, and it’s mostly a success.

What plot there is (again, this pretty simple) concerns a strange sickness that overcomes populations quickly. People lose higher brain function (lucid thought), then lower brain function (motor control), and then the will to live altogether. Example? A keeper at a lion cage offers his arms to the beasts in lieu of T-bone steaks.

The first twenty minutes work the best, as Shyamalan leaps at the chance to showcase violence for the first real time in his career. People willingly leap to their deaths, stab themselves, and, in one darkly hilarious sequence, a gun passes hands from person to person. Thereee’s a sadistic streak to Shyamalan’s delight in finding bizarre ways for people to commit suicide, but that comes with the territory. I was reminded a bit of Stephen King, who, commenting on his own The Stand, said, I got a chance to scrub out the whole human race, and it was fun!

That the rest of the picture doesn’t match the opening for dread and interest is probably inevitable. Shyamalan has to give us some main characters whose problems will seem infinitesimally small compared to the world ending, and he will send them on a trek for survival. Mark Wahlberg fits the Shymalan archetype of a confused-if-well-meaning middle-aged white guy, although it was tough for this viewer to accept the former Funky Bunch member as a suburban school teacher.

Smaller characters are allowed moments to shine (Frank Collison as a neurotic gardener is a highlight), but this film is about its mood. I haven’t seen such a strong atmosphere of apocalyptic dread since Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse. James Newton Howards score and the camerawork combine to paint a eulogy for the human race, and the subject of eco-horror feeds off contemporary unease (as do The Ruins and The Last Winter), even if the film doesn’t have any real message of conservation or humility before nature.

Currently, the film stands at 20% on Rotten Tomatoes, with most critics eager to pounce on the corpse of M. Night Shyamalan (although Roger Ebert and Manohla Dargis were also receptive to its quiet spell). I haven’t really liked Shyamalan since he ended Signs with one of the great all-time movie copouts, but the man knows how to make movies. Here, he takes a simple premise, races through it, and leaves us with ninety minutes of creepy mood, creative violence, and the suggestion that natures a bitch, and she’s back in heat.

Horror Movies DVD – Book review Ghost Walk

Keene has yet to release a book that I have not thoroughly and completely loved and this streak remains alive with the soon to be available GHOST WALK.

GHOST WALK returns us to the backwoods of Pennsylvania as once again the folks living around York County are about to experience a little slice of Keene genius. Lehorn’s Hollow is once again the setting and if you’re a fan of Keene’s work then you are no stranger to what happens in this little neck of the woods. His previous novel DARK HOLLOW introduced us to the place and left us breathless as budding author Adam Senft and his family and neighbors battled an evil beyond comprehension.

Adam returns for this tale but not until about halfway through the story. The main thrust of the tale comes from the opening of a haunted attraction that is being constructed dangerously close to the hollow and as Halloween approaches and the veil between the worlds thins something evil is pressing through and all those attending the GHOST WALK are in danger.

Our main hero this time around is an ex Amish man named LEVI. He senses the impending evil and works to snuff the situation before the darkness overtakes all but he needs the help of Senft to make it happen and he is locked away in a mental hospital after killing his wife because she was carrying the child of the goat thing from DARK HOLLOW. Levi knows that everything Adam went through in the first tale is true and he also knows that Adam is the only person who can help him save mankind.

The action is fast and furious and gut-wrenching. This one, as are all of his works, is a real page-turner and literally a book that once you begin it you will not be able to stop. Grab a 12 pack, insert the catheter, make sure you’ve got a spare light bulb within reaching distance (just in case the one in the lamp blows) and inform your loved one or close personal friend to drop off pizza once every 12 hours and settle in. You will not be able to work or function until you have completely consumed this one.

Keene remains at the top of his game and further solidifies his importance in the world of horror literature.

If you haven’t yet grabbed yourself up some Keene then now is the time. GHOST WALK is available for pre-order now at Amazon.com or you can click here and head on over to Keene’s official site where he has several other ordering options available. KEENE ROCKS!!!

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