tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27586599811988200642024-03-13T13:20:08.341-07:00Free and Indie Cinema Movie ReviewsA place that will be reviewing the free films and shows at Hocus Focus Productions' free online cinema as well as indie movies you can watch on Streaming Services.
Please, use the comments to offer your own, well thought out and honest reviews.HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.comBlogger105125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-35059562680195576372021-06-07T07:59:00.001-07:002021-06-07T07:59:33.355-07:00Cowgirls vs. Pterodactyls = double genre fun<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwh-8Z-AAE1cSrJGMkEmb6GSHX5K1bqaWDm9KtmkshtINzVnUPYe1jwW_xtOco2m8Qkpxw1WeCDKF4PiLfQndAA1VYYNbwLYaxUhyhmgOgn8wzsuCE9Y6fJlMpAZl68gIfKYv_3cOGYHQ/s2048/cowgirlsptero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1346" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwh-8Z-AAE1cSrJGMkEmb6GSHX5K1bqaWDm9KtmkshtINzVnUPYe1jwW_xtOco2m8Qkpxw1WeCDKF4PiLfQndAA1VYYNbwLYaxUhyhmgOgn8wzsuCE9Y6fJlMpAZl68gIfKYv_3cOGYHQ/w421-h640/cowgirlsptero.jpg" width="421" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div> Not since "The Valley of Gwangi" have dinosaurs and the Old West met in such a cool way. Just from the title, you probably know not to expect a very serious movie from <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9571756/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0">"Cowgirls vs Pterodactyls"</a>, but what you should expect is a fun time.<br /><br /><br /><br />I love Westerns and I really love dinosaur movies, so when something offering the best of both worlds comes along, I want to see it. This movie was made even cooler, in my eyes, by director, Joshua Kennedy's decision to use practical F/X when, well, practical. Stop motion and puppet Pterodactyls abound!<br /><br />The cast is a bit of a mixed bag, but all of the leads do a great job of keeping the tone fun while not drifting so far into silly that it doesn't seem like a movie. (Netflix's recent "Thunder Force" was so much like a bunch of friends just wrote jokes to make each other laugh that it was obvious they had all known each other a long time, and while a comedy, some of it was so silly that it actually pulled me out of the movie and made me feel like a third wheel listening to someone else's inside jokes.) <p></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OA6sJQrqFoA" width="320" youtube-src-id="OA6sJQrqFoA"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>I've seen a of movies go for that retro feel and try to mix it with comedy by actually making fun of the genres they're meant to pay homage to, but this film manages to mix the comedy into what appears to be a true love letter to movies from the 50s and 60s. It's something I appreciate. <br /><br /><a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11076919/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cr13" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: black;">Ryan Lengyel</span></a>'s stop motion animation really brings the film together and gives it the flavor which makes it so enjoyable.<br /><br />If you're looking for serious science fiction or a hardcore, shoot-out at high noon, gritty Western, keep looking, but if you like your dinosaurs made outside of a computer and your gunslingers to actually be attractive women, then give this one a watch.<br /><br />Hungry for more retro style sci-fi?<br />Watch my latest space adventure.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JLQkjDrCy00" width="320" youtube-src-id="JLQkjDrCy00"></iframe></div><br />HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-42341358897946059392021-04-17T05:38:00.000-07:002021-04-17T05:38:13.196-07:00Decapitarium (2021) - Killer Cyborg Fun<p> The description for "<i>Decapitarium</i>" on Amazon Prime is that it's "<i>Reanimator </i>meets <i>Stranger Things".</i></p><p>That description is wrong. In fact, if writers, P.J. Hruschak and Jeff Dunn (also the director) didn't start off with the idea to an homage to <i>The Brain that Wouldn't Die, </i>I would be very surprised. So, really, the movie is <i>The Brain that Wouldn't Die</i> meets <i>West World </i>(1973) on a college campus.<br /><br />This description is not only more accurate story wise, but it also sets up expectations for the budget, f/x and campy acting style you can look forward to in the movie. If you're going in expecting blockbuster CGI and Oscar worthy performances, you will disappointed. If you want to see retro cyborg monstrosities tangle with local cops and a bunch of college students, you're going to have a good time. A really good time.<br /><br />Even the cover art has a comic book cover feel to set you up for the less serious tone throughout the movie.<br /><br /><i> <br /> </i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KHdiPMWsZ6KZbBPDxX4NddC9h7V1KCYlywUXCBZ3xBCCsUFzizoLdJ7ENHDzRwLUl4EBzumYhidWbjbZQz5Z3RmSgXINyTGiqSpZNq5ykONyMcV0sJW_MAeIUfsTn1eENJtkNU1Dotg/s1280/decapitariumcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="960" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KHdiPMWsZ6KZbBPDxX4NddC9h7V1KCYlywUXCBZ3xBCCsUFzizoLdJ7ENHDzRwLUl4EBzumYhidWbjbZQz5Z3RmSgXINyTGiqSpZNq5ykONyMcV0sJW_MAeIUfsTn1eENJtkNU1Dotg/w480-h640/decapitariumcover.jpg" width="480" /></a></p><p><br />The cyborg designs are mostly pretty simplistic, using coveralls and oversized orbs for heads. The reasoning for the simple designs becomes evident later in the movie. I don't want to spoil it, but hang on until the finale. It's epic.<br /><br />Overall the F/X are effective, clean and well used. Few if any are awe inspiring, but let's face it, that's tough when everyone has access to things like face-replacement and adding a background as a phone app now. It's kind of like the idea of people being perplexed by seeing a car without a driver in <i>Knight Rider </i>doesn't make much sense in 2021, when you can fetch your Tesla with the push of a button, but in 1982, it was hilarious, every week. <br /><br /><br />The acting is a bit more uneven. It ranges from painful to watch to elevated above what you would expect from a B-movie. Oddly, some of the worst moments come from actors who do pretty well the rest of the film. As a director, I can tell you, this is usually the fault of someone behind the camera or just plain tight scheduling. We get a take, all the lines are right, we're losing light or have to be at some other location that is only available for an hour so we shout, "Great! Got it! Let's move on!"<br />I apologize to every actor I've ever done that to, but sometimes the first take is all we get.<br /><br />So, if you're looking for deep, socio-political science fiction that pushes the limits of what the future may bring, this move sort of claims to be that in <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/edgar-allan-poes-decapitarium-3-131200740.html" target="_blank">this article.</a> It also mentions being loosely based on <i>The Pit and Pedulum</i>, which I can honestly see, but didn't pick up on while watching it. I am a Poe fan, but it was also after midnight.<br /><br />Anyway, ignore the 2.5 (as of this writing) rating on IMDB if you enjoy carnage, killer cyborgs and want to see <i>Flash Gordon's</i> Sam Jones in a movie with the fabulous <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1789278/?ref_=tt_cl_t2" target="_blank">Christine Nguyen</a>. They both deserve more screen time, but Jones does get some of the funnier lines and it's worth watching for Nguyen's scenes just to see the boots she's wearing with her camo overalls. I'm not sure if they chose them for style, which they certainly have, or to make her taller to make easier to shoot her scenes alongside her male co-stars.<br /><br />The trailer gives a pretty good idea of what to expect. Also, watch for a nice touch with the Cyborg-vision. As I did in Jack vs Lanterns with Pumpkin vision, you can tell which cyborg's eyes your seeing through based on the number (or JvL's case, shape) of the eyes.<br /><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><p></p><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q7X2sTgPNyU" width="320" youtube-src-id="Q7X2sTgPNyU"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Oh, and there's plenty of blood for you gore fans, especially if you like seeing it pop out of someone's neck hole, like I obviously did back when I made <i><a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com">Alien Vengeance II: Rogue Element</a></i></span></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://media.giphy.com/media/2cJ5owU6ieLAH1nL04/giphy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" src="https://media.giphy.com/media/2cJ5owU6ieLAH1nL04/giphy.gif" /></a></div><br />HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-273797719284053752021-03-16T10:37:00.003-07:002021-03-16T10:37:51.780-07:00Things 5 - Needs More Monsters<p> "Things 5" is free on Tubi TV and free is a really good price for it.<br />I saw it two nights ago and honestly, most of what I remember is the beginning. A Woman says: "Warning this movie contains gratuitous nudity." The camera then pans to a topless a woman who says, "And gratuitous monster!" and a hairy suited monster walks by grunting and then a blood covered guy exclaims that we'll also see "Gratuitous gore."</p><p>It's a good set up to not take the movie seriously at all. Why should you? The filmmakers didn't. There's either a lot going on in this movie, or nothing. I had trouble telling and honestly, I was working a bit while I watched it, so I may have missed some story.</p><p>The movie delivered on the amount of nudity. There was more than enough of it. Nearly every female cast member found time for a shower. If showers and simulated sex scenes are your thing and you want them to be occasionally interrupted by a plot so you can feel like you're watching it for the horror, this may be your movie.</p><p>If you're an old creature feature fan, like myself, you'll likely be disappointed. The monster suits are at times creative, but mostly Halloween costume quality. I do not hold this against a movie.</p><p style="text-align: left;">See my own flick, "Kramped" for how much I dig a good man in a suit with a zipper running down the back movie.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EoNO6PE0CVs" width="320" youtube-src-id="EoNO6PE0CVs"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">There was also a multi eyed puppet eyed kind of thing that was pretty cool, but you could barely see it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So, while some of the monsters had potential to be cool, they didn't get a lot of screen time and there was very little back story to them. We didn't know why each was what it was and none of them seemed particularly hard to kill. They did seem to be attracted by showers, however. Maybe taking baths would be safer in this town until the monsters are rounded up.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">There was a lot of talk about a party we never see because, I think, all of the guests are dead before it happens. So, no party slaughter scene. I think that was just an excuse to cross the characters on the phone without having to have them interact in real life. It's actually a pretty clever no budget trick. It's tough getting 15 unpaid people together around regular work schedules.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Did I miss some major plot device from one of the other "Things" movies? Maybe. I have only also found "Things 4" for free on Tubi so far, so I won't be going back too far.<br />Would I watch "Things 5" again? Only if I forgot I have already seen it. It happens when you watch this many oddball movies.<br /><br />Acting was about what you would expect for a film of this type with one or two stand outs.<br />Gore was present, but not as present as the nudity.<br />Obligatory shower scenes and "photo shoot" sequences a plenty.<br />Monster triple threat.<br /><br />Also, for some reason, my page changed format mid-blogging. I don't know how to fix that, so we've all got problems, right?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /> <p></p>HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-75209590352880555742021-01-05T20:55:00.003-08:002021-01-05T20:55:16.718-08:00The Last American Horror Show (2018) - Indie Anthology<p> Over the years I have really come to enjoy Anthology movies, especially from independents. They fill time like a feature, but don't usually come with the unnecessary filler. Without a strong budget, a lot of indie features, some of mine included, fill out space with dialogue in not very impressive locations and less than thrilling action. But Anthologies tell their stories quickly. Generally getting to the action fast and not bogging themselves down too much with deep character development or dialogue driven drama.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilKAbjhL9HfMuFdancyIYjQ1XlUEnl8INlCV6mKX6VXCt9C39x2q192PecbMimIUh7iqwdAFAWH0hrpAFLF10l9424Wyv6G2lAhISwQnMbLlOziimwB54RynZFxdt1Lq50oeAhSOD0Ar4/s2048/the+last+american+horror+show.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1453" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilKAbjhL9HfMuFdancyIYjQ1XlUEnl8INlCV6mKX6VXCt9C39x2q192PecbMimIUh7iqwdAFAWH0hrpAFLF10l9424Wyv6G2lAhISwQnMbLlOziimwB54RynZFxdt1Lq50oeAhSOD0Ar4/w284-h400/the+last+american+horror+show.jpg" width="284" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>This is true of some of the stories in "The Last American Horror Story", but actually not true for my favorite of the four stories that play out. <br /><br />"Night of the Seamonkey" was more like a featurette, which is fine, except it was one of those movies that builds up to the action and then, plays it out so quickly that if you bling, you may miss it. So, why was this my favorite story? For one, killer sea monkey? I mean, if you know me, you know the idea alone is something I'm going to enjoy. In fact, one or two sequences reminded me of our alien in the<a href="https://www.midnightpulp.com/video/006896v/aliens-vengeance" target="_blank"> Alien Vengeance</a> series of movies. "Alien Vengeance: Bad Morning" especially sprung to mind.<br /><br />Secondly, Lynn Lowry gives a stand out performance in this film. Most of the acting is strong enough throughout (not a lot of Oscar material here, but that's not what movies like this are for), but her performance as a grandmother who is a bit rude and a lot suffering from boughts of dementia is a step above most of the other performances across the entire movie. The creature, the glimpses we get of it, is a decent design and definitely holds to the throwback feel the movie's marketing promises. No CG fish creature here. Nice bits of gore round out the movie nicely. So, sit through the parts that seem slowly paced. It gets fun. A bit shorter and this would have been a great episode of the old TV show, "Monsters".<br /><br /><br /><br />The other stories are more serious, but not as much fun. At least, they weren't for me. Felissa Rose's wraparound movie, "Love Starved" is consistent with this type of movie. It has a quick set-up, not much middle and ends with a twist you see coming well before it arrives. That said, it does its job and stick around during the credits for a bit more of that tale.<br /><br />"Homewrecked" was my least favorite. Partly because home invasion movies aren't my thing and largely because those types of stories actually rely largely upon character development and deeply involved backstories to be interesting. As a short, this movie had none of these things, or if it did, I missed them. Two dimensional characters being violent towards one another. Lots of shouting and a few bloody good moments, but when it was over I didn't care who lived or died. <br /><br />"Lamb Feed" was another one that just isn't my subgenre. Not even sure how to describe it, but the title probably gives you an idea. Hill Billy cannibal? There is a bit of drama set up between "The Fiance" (Melanie Robel) and the leading man in "Lamb Feed" that sets him as the unlikeable character you want him to be in this type of movie. Some interesting make-up and gore in this one, so if it's type of movie, you'll probably really enjoy it.<br /><br />Overall, like most Anthologies, there is something here for multiple types of fans and many moods. I may not suggest buying it, but it's definitely worth a spin on Amazon Prime if you subscribe to the service.<br /><br /><br /><br /><b>Trailer</b><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JHQLqdt2G5Y" width="320" youtube-src-id="JHQLqdt2G5Y"></iframe></div><b><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div>Alien Vengeance: Bad Morning</b><div><b><br /></b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/egj6XbJdjYA" width="320" youtube-src-id="egj6XbJdjYA"></iframe></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /></div>HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-25635972963719588182020-03-23T15:11:00.002-07:002020-03-23T15:11:54.768-07:00The Uncanny - Peter Cushing Anthology<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
"The Uncanny" is an anthology from the 70s with a pretty unusual running theme. All of the stories involve cats. Three short horrors, all with household felines providing the scares. Even the wraparound story centers around a conspiracy of cats, which Cushing's character hope to reveal in a a book, with help of a publisher, portrayed by Ray Milan.<br />
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Milan and Cushing are fun as ever, but there scenes do seem to have been shot in a bit of a rush. I honestly wouldn't have been surprised to find that they were shot in a single night.<br />
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As in many of these anthologies, the experience is uneven, with the last story, starring Donald Pleasance ( a personal favorite of mine) in a rare, almost slapstick, comedic performance. <br />
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The very first story is probably the scariest with an entire army of kitties bent on revenge against a couple scheming to get money from a sick old woman. The pace is fairly slow at times, but it's necessary to convey the passage of time. The acting is solid enough and some of the shots of the cats make the little critters appear truly menacing. Add a little claustrophobia and you've got a spooky, if not fast paced, little segment.<br />
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The second film is a Cinderella kind of tale about an orphaned girl who is mistreated by her cousin turned step sister and not particularly kind aunt. Fortunately for her, the girl's mother has left her a book on witchcraft and a black cat as a familiar and guardian. The special F/X here make use of optical and practical methods of the time to varying effect. At some points it plays out very well and other times it isn't convincing at all. Not a lot of gore, but a very gruesome concept or two conveyed by suggestion.<br />
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As mentioned, the final story, with Donald Pleasance, is a kind of dark comedy. A love triangle and murder "mystery" with a cat playing "Columbo". There are very few surprises in this one except for how goofy it's played. The comedy is a necessity, because nobody could take the plot seriously. Some beautiful shots here and really fun moments, but no real scares.<br />
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The wrap around story is perhaps the most sinister and again has great some angles and shot compositions. This segment is also saved by the screen presences of Cushing and Milan.<br />
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When it comes down to is, how scary this movie is comes down to whether or not you find 15 pound tabbies to be convincingly dangerous. A significant amount of disbelief needs to be suspended here in varying amounts depending on the story.<br />
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The biggest distraction I had was constantly seeing cat behavior that made me think the poor things may have been mistreated on set.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-89937807044835475672020-03-22T14:57:00.002-07:002021-03-16T10:11:55.065-07:00"Things" - Wow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
"Things" is an 80's era, direct to video cassette horror movie that has a reputation for being the most inept film to ever come out of Canada. I'm self-isolating with my wife during the Covid-19 crisis and gave this thing a watch. <br />
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Growing up, I was taught that if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. By all measures, that should make this the end of my review of this movie.<br />
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It has all of the flaws that something shot with no budget and an inexperienced director is expected to have. Poor color, soft focus shots, harsh, nonsensical editing, acting that is all over the map, constantly out of sync audio, annoying music (even for the 80s) and a laundry list of other things. But, these are par for the course for a movie made in a time when even low end equipment was expensive and difficult to come by. I know that this concept has to be hard to understand for people with 4K cameras in their pocket as part of their everyday lives, but it was a fact of life for indie filmmakers at one time.<br />
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In most cases, the cast and crew would get credit for doing the best job they could, but this movie also, even with added segments of a newscaster to fill in the gaps (and include adult film starlet Amber Lynn) doesn't make a whole lot of sense, which is a shame. If you can eek out the basics of the story, there was something there and a clever moment or two that could have been pretty cool, but most of it was never translated to the screen.<br />
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Many reviews mention that a lot of time is spent by two guys just looking around a house. This is not an exaggeration. There seems to be a lot of pointless cabinet and freezer opening. <br />
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But the music was the hardest part of the movie to sit through. It wasn't just inappropriate, ineffective or boring. It actively annoyed me. I nearly didn't finish the movie because I could hardly stand to listen to parts of the soundtrack.<br />
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In the end, however, the movie commits the worst crime a movie can. It was just boring. For about 80% of it nothing is happening. This may have worked effectively as suspense building with better acting, lighting, music or dialogue, but alas, those were all missing.<br />
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About the only cool thing was the creature design. Neat little fanged bugs that reminded me a bit of the Zanti Misfits with less human features. There is also a pretty cool effect at the end, but it is surrounded by so much silly looped dialogue that it loses all of its possible edge and just becomes a joke at the end of the only true action sequence in the movie.<br />
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If you want to see an oddity that could have been so much more and has a few ideas that were probably more clever than the movie they fell into made them appear, seek this movie out, but be prepared for a challenging viewing.<br /><br />Trailer is NSFW. Topless scene in there and lots of screaming and gurgling.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-40247339779727250832020-01-31T14:39:00.002-08:002020-01-31T14:39:37.078-08:00The Killer Sandwich - A Light Snack of Horror Comedy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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"The Killer Sandwich" is a movie by Jake Perry and it opens with the statement: "Based on True Events". You have to watch the movie to see just how odd this claim is. This is what happens when you find a random sandwich on the roof of your garage and mix it with imagination of a horror movie fan.<br />
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This is much like one of my own micro shorts<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hey-Doll-Jason-Liquori/dp/B07K4XTSTR" target="_blank">, "Hey, Doll...!"</a> in that it seems to have been a quick shoot with minimal resources put towards it because the concept was simple and didn't need a feature film script and weeks of shooting to get the idea across.<br />
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Does that make it more funny or less funny? You decide.<br />
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It's just over five minutes. A great watch while you sip your morning coffee and contemplate the likelihood of a killer submarine sandwich with lettuce and tomato.<br />
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Remember, I am reviewing this as someone who brought you a <a href="https://www.amazon.com/X-24-Brewier-Welch/dp/B07BH5P19Q" target="_blank">movie about a self-aware mop</a>.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-41173071752265113752020-01-25T10:52:00.001-08:002020-01-25T10:52:06.520-08:00"Harker" (2005) - A Classic Horror Tale...with "Puppets"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
If you follow me on<a href="https://www.facebook.com/IndieStreams/" target="_blank"> Facebook</a>, you may have seen my call for short films, which are streaming, so I can review them. This desire for movies under 15 minutes is because in January, like the rest of the winter experiencing populace, exercise inside. I have gone through the holiday weight gain and annual "taking stock in myself". This inevitably leads me to blog more often for awhile and realize that my pants don't fit quite right. So, short films, under 20 minutes or so, are the perfect companion for my exercise. They distract me from the constant pedaling, keep me from trying to type emails on my phone while biking in place and give me something to write about here.<br />
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The thing about doing from my Facebook page is that a lot of the suggestions I got were from friends and acquaintances, such as this one. Let me explain how my "favoritism" works in these cases. I know Jason and Tony from back in Florida. They're good guys and I like their work, but I want to judge it fairly. If I didn't enjoy it at all, such as the first film I watched for these short film reviews, I would just skip the review. That may be why you only see reviews here that are at least somewhat positive. I am of the mind that if you don't have anything nice to say, you don't say anything at all. Unlike writers who do it for outside publications (here I am, gang), I currently don't have assignments given to me by other people. I choose what to watch and what to review on my own. So, if I don't enjoy a movie, I won't review it. Consider this blog more of a suggestive list of things I have enjoyed, at least a little bit, throughout my massive amount of movie viewing.<br />
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With the disclaimers out of the way, let us take a look at "Harker"!<br />
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At just about 14 minutes<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0488396" target="_blank"> "Harker" </a>was the perfect length for my "not too long" workout and it kept me entertained the whole time. In fact, after finding it on Amazon and getting it started, I wound up doing an extra 3 minutes of exercise. Always a good sign of entertainment value that I lose track of time.</div>
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The first thing adults will need to overcome with the film is that the entire cast is comprised of puppets (or marionettes if your stickler for the terminology). This does not mean it's a kid's film, however. The plot line and imagery are very reminiscent of Nosferatu (if you're going to emulate a vampire, what better place to start?) The puppet designs are appropriately stark with large shocking eyes and dark features. Billy Horne did an excellent job creating characters that look like silent film era actors in the make-up of the time. The somewhat expressionless faces (although there are some changes at key moments here and there) help add to the creepy stillness of the castle.</div>
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The other challenge some non-hardcore film fans may face is that this is a "silent movie". The musical score by Tom Hoehn, however, carries the mood wonderfully and keeps the viewer engaged despite the lack of recorded dialogue.</div>
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Jayme LaRosa's sets are wonderful. They are very reminiscent of the horror movies of old and complete the silent film era feel of the movie wonderfully.</div>
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There were one or two moments that made me giggle, but in a horror movie populated strictly by puppets you wouldn't expect to be able to take things seriously the entire time. The overall visual style is wonderfully spooky. It is reminiscent of Tim Burton's works, not because it is derivative of his movies, but because both show influences from the same dark roots of early silent horror films.</div>
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Finally, the creature, the beast, the main antagonist in this creepy short film is wonderfully designed. The filmmakers even manage to get a bit of gore in, which was an unexpected, pleasant surprise.</div>
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Younger viewers may find the movie a bit frightening, but the nice thing about a short is that you can watch it yourself before making a decision for youngsters in your life. It's a great initiation movie into the horror genre. </div>
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I highly recommend this one if you can find it streaming and hardcore horror fans might even want to add it to their collection. It's would great October viewing on a stormy night. </div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-19000409766153935822020-01-21T22:04:00.003-08:002020-01-21T22:04:24.617-08:00"Outpost Earth" - More Monsters from Brett Piper<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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"Outpost Earth" (2019) is an alien occupation movie with no shortage of monsters, laser blasts, giant robots or tremendous monstrosities. The F/X are mostly old school and I'll skip right to the important bit, I LOVED it!<br /><br />
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Cool poster, right? And, amazingly enough, all of these elements are actually in the movie. Not always the case with indie sci-fi.</div>
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At the opening of this film I was sure I wasn't going to like it. It set up the story of Earth's fall with lots of composite F/X that used still photos mixed with CG (or were they models?) ships destroying famous landmarks across the globe. It all looked very primitive, if not obviously done in a computer? Sort of had the same layering old Monty Python Flying Circus animations had. Stacked 2D imagery with a very slight 3D effect. I didn't realize at the time that this was setting the tone for F/X throughout the movie. No scene would be too ambitious and it WOULD be accomplished through whatever means necessary.<br /><br />Fortunately for me, this meant a lot of stop motion animation and practical F/X. No CG aliens running around during this invasion.<br /><br />And the animation was top notch. There was some digital trickery to add blood and blur to movements, which I love seeing, because we were cheated out of this technique when it was new way back in the mid-90s. While toying with the idea of stop motion dinosaurs for "Jurassic Park", the intent was to add blur to their movement using computer generated imagery. "Outpost Earth" uses this technique a couple of times to varying effect.<br /><br />The array of monsters is grand. Man-sized aliens, "bugs", some kind of lizard-like hunting dog and a shape and size changing mutant all make appearances.<br /><br />There's also no shortage of spaceships and even a couple of spaceship aerial battles.<br /><br />Through the use of some great locations and creative costuming, the movie achieves an early "Planet of the Apes" like feel. More the series than the movies, where the world is post-apocalyptic, but still recognizable as Earth. Maybe I just saw that likeness because the series recently showed up in syndication again.<br /><br />There are a few rough patches, such as the science. The lead scientist is a genius in physics, but has a lot of theories about the biology of the aliens, etc. I'm just not sure why his accomplishments in physics were constantly mentioned and an overall interest in science wasn't stressed more. Or why his compatriot, whom he speaks to over a video link, isn't mentioned as a biologist and given more scenes theorizing on the aliens bodily functions.<br /><br />There's also the comical quirk that alien technology is easier for humans to use when they're drunk. Or is it just one human and does he just have a drinking problem? Whatever, it's never really explained and the funny drunk guy routine wears out it's welcome well before it leaves.<br /><br />Overall, the acting is solid with <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3952613/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank">Erin Waterhouse</a> really standing out as "Kay". Her performance was believable and her character was strong. She had good presence right from the beginning of the movie. <br /><br />The second part of the opening, when we actually get to see human characters is another strong point. No dialogue for a good couple of minutes, yet a lot goes on and we see enough to start piecing things together , which become major plot points later on.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAx2B7qX-Tk3yJwfhEI_tIcrm8k_kprqDMQf9AWyu9Nb2LlPKACe3bIhKUKoYD9sD1VSP1p-aqe7ULNKWgfF9dWwN9Le9gnv-_fPioqHex1wfQvGY5S1MEKW2t2ErShqAl4JzEODmxVtI/s1600/outpostearth+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="398" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAx2B7qX-Tk3yJwfhEI_tIcrm8k_kprqDMQf9AWyu9Nb2LlPKACe3bIhKUKoYD9sD1VSP1p-aqe7ULNKWgfF9dWwN9Le9gnv-_fPioqHex1wfQvGY5S1MEKW2t2ErShqAl4JzEODmxVtI/s640/outpostearth+2.jpg" width="507" /></a></div>
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Did I mention giant, scorpion shaped robot tanks with laser cannon tails? No?<br />Seriously, fans of the movies made by fans of Ray Harryhausen need to give this one a watch. It's the type of movie that fueled our imaginations as kids.<br />Watch the end for a nod to Might Joe Young.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/w3PXk0AgRvs/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/w3PXk0AgRvs?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />And to witness my own stop motion "talents", dubious as they may, check out <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wrapped-Joel-Wynkoop-Debbie-Rochon/dp/B002BWOYZW" target="_blank">"All Wrapped Up"</a></div>
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wrapped-Joel-Wynkoop-Debbie-Rochon/dp/B002BWOYZW" target="_blank">All Wrapped Up</a><br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-77377176289283376042020-01-15T08:12:00.001-08:002020-01-15T08:12:03.410-08:00"Pigster" aka "Feast of Fear"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I added <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3509702/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2" target="_blank">"Pigster"</a> to my watch list because I feel like there aren't enough monster pig movies out there in the world. I'm still right, but during my <a href="https://hocfocprod.blogspot.com/2019/12/plans-for-2020.html" target="_blank">20 in 2020</a>, maybe I'll rectify that, at least with a short. But for now, "Pigster" adds nothing to the "monster pig" sub genre, although he is a monster and he looks like a pig. His "piggish" looks aside, he fits in more to the Demonic Monsters arena. And that's cool too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCbPaz6I49pVoN9J0j4p-CsYzTHo9qB51h_KURCTEcdgVNanDog3Jvzv004ApboP_-bPORIx-vHmWwo9qXVBr1MpktqbQWTOgExjbBfNJQchic7mBrjN-hO_iw6zOC_N7G0Eyv0AKsFNY/s1600/pigster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="681" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCbPaz6I49pVoN9J0j4p-CsYzTHo9qB51h_KURCTEcdgVNanDog3Jvzv004ApboP_-bPORIx-vHmWwo9qXVBr1MpktqbQWTOgExjbBfNJQchic7mBrjN-hO_iw6zOC_N7G0Eyv0AKsFNY/s640/pigster.jpg" width="433" /></a></div>
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In fact, I feel like the movie's original title, "Feast of Fear" more accurately prepares you for what you're in for when you sit down to watch this one. Fear and a "Wishmaster" like hook that nobody gets something for nothing, play the biggest roles in this movie, although there are monsters-a-plenty to be seen.</div>
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The Pigster's make-up, especially around the eyes, is amazing. His character is a bit of a throwback to the heavy metal, guitar playing movie demons I grew up with in the 80s. I'm wondering if teens still find this sort of thing cool. I'm hoping they do. I found it a bit hokey, but the nostalgia was enough to carry me through. And Pigster isn't the only demon monster in this movie. The Dealer (Robert Davi) and The Messenger ( Clint Howard ) are your basic human looking demons who sit at opposite ends of the spectrum. The Dealer recruits the sould to feed fear to Pigster's protagonist, The Beast. He is well dressed, charming and calm. Davi plays him perfectly, as expected. On the other side of the demons interacting with our world sits The Messenger. He wears rags and is seen as a homeless person with a quirky personality who speaks in riddles. Unfortunately, Howard is relegated pretty much to a cameo here, but he turns in his usual professional and off-center performance.<br /><br />A cast of lost souls living in the hellish dimension with Pigster give the f/x team a lot of room to exercise some creativity and they come through. For monster make-up fans and lovers of masks, this movie has a couple of set pieces that really deliver.</div>
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The Beast and Rat Girl round out the underworld cast and they're spectacular, although the Beast is underused. In true monster movie fashion we get suggestions of what he looks like for most of the movie and after some of the other make-up we're treated to in full view, his final reveal is a bit of a let down.</div>
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Unexpectedly good CG effects are utilized throughout most of the movie. Some of the keying stands out as greenscreen (or blue or whatever color they used), but it's usually within the "fantastic" realm of the demon dimension and so the unreal feeling works for it. Again, a bit of a 80s/early 90s vibe is elicited by these moments and made them work for me.<br /><br />Acting, directing and score are solid all around. A few moments aren't high-budget quality, but nothing that couldn't be overlooked with the overall quality film carrying you through to the next scene of gore, violence or beastly battle. </div>
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There is a character who enigmatically explains what's going on. I suspect this was for two reasons:<br />1. The exposition was needed to explain the demon's weaknesses.<br />2. The movie needed padding and adding a storyteller who interrupts every so often from a single lair set was an economic way to do it.<br /><br />The movie clocks in at just over an hour, but one of my favorite things about streaming films is that they don't need to hit unrealistic 90 or 120 minute marks in order to be made. Some stories are best told at a brisk pace and this is one of them.<br /><br />If you're in the mood for some demonic bacon, "Pigster" will give you an hour of entertainment you won't soon forget.<br /><br />Warning: The Trailer gets pretty bloody and I wouldn't call it SFW unless you work at Troma or someplace like that.<br /><br /> <iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vpINWfN3lQw/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vpINWfN3lQw?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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Usually this is where I post one of my videos along a similar line. I've got nothing like this in my toolbox. So, here's the newest "Jack vs Lanterns" trailer.<br /><br /><br /> <iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/rd5PZI_PbIQ/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rd5PZI_PbIQ?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-32176155786063747772020-01-13T18:20:00.001-08:002020-01-13T18:20:08.710-08:00The Rift (1990) Marine Monsters<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099701" target="_blank">"The Rift"</a> (1990) is an undersea action adventure movie chock full of mystery, espionage and monsters. Lots of weird, great monsters.<br />
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Jack Scalia stars as submarine designer, Wick Hayes, who is called to help a crew bring down a sub based on his design to find out what happened to another sub lost in, you guess it, a deep sea rift.<br />
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With a cast featuring, Ray Wise, Ely Pouget and R. Lee Ermey, there's plenty of acting talent to go around. Other characters are also played by people who clearly do not speak English as their first language. They hand in solid, if not totally convincing performances. Overall, the acting is far more than you'd expect from what is clearly a cash-in B-movie. Undersea monsters were pretty big in 1989 and "The Riftt" came in just as the popularity was dying down.<br />
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The sub model and sets were very basic, but never looked "cheap" or slipshod. The biggest complaint I'd have about the sub itself is that except for being yellow, it looked like any model submarine of the day. It didn't seem "experimental." Most of the underwater F/X were pretty standard for the late 80s, The monsters on the other hand, would have been right at home in a 1960s or 70s B-movie. I loved that about the film. Puppets and other practical F/X are my preferred method of monster creation.<br />
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There was an array of undersea monstrosities as well. Tentacles, fly looking things, various eels or serpents. You don't get a terribly close look at many of them, but the F/X crew of "The Outer Limits" black and white TV series and "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" clearly influenced the people who worked on these monsters.<br />
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Elements of the plot will be familiar to anyone who is a fan of these types of movies. Clumsy attempts at romantic triangles, the hero conflicting with authority, specialty guns that aren't all that special, things breaking on the experimental craft (or sea base, space base, etc), affectively trapping our characters and forcing them into ever more perilous situations are all here. There is even a handheld "radar scanner" that keeps track of the personnel who are off ship. All-in-all, there's not a lot new here story-wise. Again, however, I find formulaic movies somewhat comforting. Sure, surprises are nice, but it's good occasionally to go into a movie knowing what you'll get.<br />
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"The Rift" delivers on the monsters, the action, very little gore (but a good deal of slime) and a threat to "the entire world!"<br />
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If you're itching for a monster movie with a water element, it's certainly worth the time.<br />
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Oh, apparently at one time the title was "Endless Descent".<br /><br />And for my sea monster movie, watch what happens when a famous fisherman meets his nemesis.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-88183345873516483982020-01-10T14:34:00.001-08:002020-01-10T14:34:20.146-08:00Sneak Peak at "Biggy Wiggy", a short film from Hocus Focus Productions.<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Haa0-FNh3yE" width="480"></iframe><br /><br />
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So, while trying to cast my Christmas sequel to "Hey, Doll!" and then schedule that cast alongside when I have access to my rental cabin, I met some new local talent. They were free to shoot, but my other cast for that movie wasn't gelling. I had the cabin, had some willing people and had a big need to film.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I looked at my existing props list, asked for opinions of monsters on<a href="https://www.facebook.com/homeofthemonsters" target="_blank"> Herebemonsters</a> on Facebook and used those elements to write a new script. Then we scheduled a single evening shoot. My wife was pretty much the crew. She handled the puppets and the extra sound recorders. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leiarcrowder/" target="_blank">Leia Crowder</a>, one of the stars, help decorate the set while we waited for her co-star, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100028488909176" target="_blank">Richard Baxter</a> to get freed from another shoot and head to set. Everyone was present by the time it was dark and we began filming. Until midnight.<br /><br />No complaints from anyone but me. I had wanted to let people head home around 10 PM, but knew later was more likely. That was Jan 8th. I started editing on the 9th and finished this morning (the 10th) at 4 AM. <br /><br />During filming we flipped part of the script, giving our leading lady more action and our leading man more jokes. I did some on-set F/X in case the post production stuff I planned didn't work. I decided to save those tricks for another movie.<br /><br />
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And I'll be working with this cast again. "Chick in a Box", the "Hey, Doll...!" sequel is re-cast, again and about ready to go. We're striving for 20 video projects in 2020 and now we have 19 to go.<br /><br />Check in on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/homeofthemonsters" target="_blank">Herebemonsters</a> page, January 11, 2020 to see the premiere of "Biggy Wiggy" and join the watch party. We're hoping the whole cast can be there. (Both of them). And the whole cast (Both of us).<br /><br />If you miss it, watch it alone. In the dark.<br /><br />See you tomorrow, gang.HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-50454320055050123642019-12-26T03:13:00.000-08:002019-12-26T03:13:32.912-08:00Mercy Christmas - Scary Holiday Fun<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It's December 26th. Are you kind of depressed Christmas is over? Do you want to watch a few holiday themed movies before the year is out? Want to scare yourself a bit too? Maybe cheer for a character fighting for his or her life? Good news!<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4906164/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0" target="_blank"> "Mercy Christmas"</a> (2017) has you covered!<br />
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"Mercy Christmas" isn't the type of horror I usually go for and during the first few minutes I thought I might switch over to something else. I decided to give it a bit more of a chance, however, and I'm glad I did. </div>
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At first the acting by<a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3562782/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank"> Cole Gleason</a> and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3635429/?ref_=tt_cl_t12" target="_blank">Steven Hubbell</a> kind of put me off. Their characterizations were very two dimensional, but I perservered to the next scene and everything changed. Those two dimensional characters were intended. A set-up for a formulaic film that jumps the tracks just often enough to surprise you here and there. Just when you think you know what you're watching they do something unexpected.</div>
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As the movie progresses everyone's characters come into focus. Hubbell's performance becomes more nuanced and believable and we realize that part of his "off" acting was actually the characterization of a man who is rarely himself in front of other people.</div>
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The movie will leave some viewers cold because it shifts between comedy and horror quite frequently and occasionally abruptly. Some people insist that their horror be pure. Only scary, suspenseful and bloody with no humorous moments. Those people have never been in a terrifying situation with me. There is humor in most situations. Sometimes we don't see it for years, until the adrenaline dies down and we can stop being scared or sad. But the humor is there. When humor breaks horror, it's a relief. When horror breaks humor it's a shock. Really, these are two things that compliment each other well.</div>
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This movie also takes the viewer through some bizarre turns and down a few paths that lead nowhere. Some people hate that in a movie. I'm guilty of doing it myself, so I can't really comment against it. (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0034SNTMQ" target="_blank">"Savaged</a>" had a planned side story that takes place on a plane that our budget never allowed us to explore.) I think it works here and most of the plotlines come together or contribute in some way.<br /><br />The last act is truly, truly, absolutely beyond bizarre. There is far more humor here than the rest of the film, but it has its moments of suspense and plenty of violence. By the end of the film I was ready to cheer. A horror movie hasn't made me feel like that for a long time. After watching it I just wanted to tell everyone what a great little movie this was.<br /><br />I know that I USUALLY manage to find something positive to say about the indie films I watch and I'm not big on making fun of film's for their low budget shortcomings. I leave the needling and such to other reviewers, but it's not terribly often that I see something I so definitely feel is a good film.<br />"Mercy Christmas" is one such movie.<br />Its strengths far outweigh any weak spots. Highly recommended for anyone who can stomach it.</div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-58292457196335161692019-12-24T02:11:00.001-08:002019-12-24T02:11:35.731-08:00Slay Belles - Super Fun Christmas Monster Movie<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3526622/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"Slay Belles" (2018)</a> is the most fun I've had watching a movie that wasn't made by me in a long time. Seriously, I don't think I knew anybody involved with this one and yet I could see how much fun the cast was having as I watched the film. To me, for an independent movie, that's a big thing that has been lost.<br />
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This movie has everything. A trio of heroic women (Sounds like <a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com/jackvslanterns" target="_blank">"Jack vs Lanterns"</a> ), a monster (check box two for my kind of movie ) , a van, and Barry Bostwick as Santa Claus! <br /><br />Let me jump in and say that I have no idea what audience this movie was targeting demographically. Too many curses for kids. Too absurd for serious adults. It was basically made for me. I guess there are other people out there like me after all. An illusive group to be sure, but we exist.</div>
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The movie has gore, a very brief moment of nudity and enough F-bombs to embarrass a trucker. It also has tons of comedy, ridiculous situations and what appear to be tribbles with teeth. Then there's the Krampus that goes around murdering children. Not teenagers having orgies in the woods, but actual, little, still believe in Santa Claus kids. That was a bit disturbing and unexpected in what is otherwise a very lighthearted film.</div>
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Somehow I didn't realize that a Krampus was a main part of this movie. It was achieved through practical F/X (as many of the f/x shots in the movie appeared to be ) and the suit was pretty darn cool. He had all of his implements and characteristics. The basket, the switch and his overly long horns. In the daylight it played a lot like a man in a suit, but in the controlled lighting of the night scenes it was downright impressive and intimidating.</div>
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The movie takes place on Christmas eve, so about half of the screen time is dedicated to daytime action and that has trouble getting the creepy feel they likely wanted to create. Most of the night scenes however were beautiful, with the exception of a sequence or two that looked like they either had to shoot without power for lights or had a second unit doing the work and lacked the experience of the main crew. Either way, even I thought the scenes were bit dark, and I'm known for ignoring lighting in my early days. (Mostly out of a lack of power sources when we were "stealing shots".)<br /><br />Aside from those few scenes, the production values were high.</div>
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The acting was, as it often is in these types of films, uneven. <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000960/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank">Bostwick</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1640351/?ref_=tt_cl_t2" target="_blank">Kristina Klebe</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3668157/?ref_=tt_cl_t3" target="_blank">Susan Slaughter</a> and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5290702/?ref_=tt_cl_t4" target="_blank">Hannah Minx </a>made up the core crew and everyone of them was spot on with just enough camp and overacting at the right moments to keep things fun and remind you that you're watching to have a good time, not educate yourself on how the magic of Christmas works. The rest of the cast has its highs, but it also has a few characters who come across as day players who only learned their lines and really didn't think about what their role in the story was. It happens. ( Especially if you only send people pages for their respective scenes because you're still doing rewrites. Not that I know anyone who would do that. )<br /><br />The plot is a bit out there, even for a Christmas movie, but it serves its purpose of creating a monster, and making an action hero of Santa and the Belles.<br /><br />I look forward to their next adventure. Maybe something around Halloween?</div>
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And in case after you watch t his you have a desire to see another trio</div>
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of women fight holiday themed monsters...<br /><br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TVGipYpSZD8/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TVGipYpSZD8?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-59770116064899479222019-12-22T06:20:00.003-08:002019-12-22T06:20:30.262-08:00Poseiden Rex - King of the Sea<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
"Poseidon Rex" (2013) - is exactly what you'd expect from a SyFy Channel movie from the time. I'm not sure it was one, but I suspect it was. In any case, you'll recognize the formula.<br />
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It's current rating on IMDB is a pretty low 2.5, but that doesn't mean it's not worth watching. A lot of people who just don't appreciate these kinds of "mindless" monster movies still feel a need to watch them and rate them. A review I read a few years back put them into perspective for me. They're like the movies we watched as kids on a rainy Saturday. It wasn't really important if Gamera or 70s era Godzilla made sense. We wanted to watch them challenge mankind, or other monsters, and destroy buildings and tanks.<br />
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The modern offshoots of these movies tend to follow a core group of unlikely heroes and bring in the military late in the film. "Poseidon Rex" has these elements and adds a set of thugs as well. There's no lack of action.<br />
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Brian Krause leads a cast of people I didn't recognize. But most of the main characters were more than adequate. The one acting flaw almost everyone exhibited was an inability to fire a prop weapon convincingly. This was likely because the weapons they were firing didn't even fire blanks. The muzzle flashes were painfully obvious post production add ins. Like all of these films characters fire countless rounds at the monster with very minimal results.<br />
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Let's talk about the monster. He's the real attraction, right? Or maybe I should say "she" since she's got a bunch of eggs siting on the ocean floor. What would a good monster movie be without a world threat of more monsters as a side story? Poseidon Rex looks really good. She's got a fearsome design, moves well underwater and has a few nice touches setting her apart from T-Rex. What she doesn't look like is the monster in the cover art. The real problem with her, hwever, is she never looks like she's sharing the same space as the human characters. Something is off about her lighting in almost every scene. But, if she were living in a 3D cartoon world of her own, she would be spectacular.<br />
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The plot moves at a brisk pace, attempts to make sense and has lots of shooting, running, and monster destruction. It's not a great film, but it's a great film for people wanting to turn their brains off for awhile.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-71322191588711744752019-12-20T00:24:00.001-08:002019-12-20T00:24:53.779-08:00Holler Creek Canyon (2006)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
"Holler Creek Canyon" (2006), otherwise known as "Bigfoot at Holler Creek Canyon" isn't anything terribly unusual as Bigfoot movies go. A group of friends, a weird local store owner and a creature running around tearing people apart.<br />
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Being totally honest, I watched this one awhile ago (not 14 years ago, but a couple of weeks), so I have more of an impression of it than a full memory of the experience. I watched the trailer to refresh my memory. <br /><br />The characters and their intertwining stories were nothing new and they weren't handled in a particularly new manner. I'm not complaining about a lack of originality. A lot of my favorite monster movies follow a pretty familiar formula. This one is no different. The thing that sets great monster movies apart are the creature, the science, the set pieces or the interactions of the familiar characters. Nothing in "Holler Creek Canyon" was particularly stand out. Characters argue, lots of sexual innuendo, dialogue that isn't interesting in any particular way, etc. It's not the acting (for the most part) that let's the movie down. I doubt I would have cared about most of these characters had anyone been playing them. By mid-movie, when the action finally gets going in earnest, I did find myself hoping for a survivor or two.<br />
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The creature isn't particularly memorable either. It has its moments. At one point, when running, I was truly impressed by the size of the suit and the movement. But honestly, I don't remember much else. Bigfoot suits can only be so original though. The creature has a look to live up to. Large, hairy anthropoid. It accomplished this. <br />
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Ron Jeremy has more than a cameo here. So, if you're a fan of his acting, there's that. <br />
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A few of the action sequences surprised me in their scope as the rest of the movie seemed like a tiny crew, ultra-low budget, affair. It made good use the location too. I absolutely would have written a bigfoot story if I had access to such a location. Also, keep in mind that in 2006 the idea of everyone having a high end camera built into their phone was still on the horizon. Not a reality.<br />
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This isn't a horrible movie. It can be a chore to watch at times. Some of the dialogue isn't just interesting, but actively difficult to sit through. But, as bigfoot movies go, it's watchable. Definitely something to pass the time while you do something, like write online reviews or prep monster scripts of your own.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-40457133351402262282019-12-18T08:39:00.001-08:002019-12-18T08:39:10.185-08:00Gremlin (2017) - A Different Little Monster<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6191390/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2" target="_blank">"Gremlin" (2017)</a> is no relation to the 1984 classic we all know and love with the exception of the size of the titular creature. So, for little monster fans, it might have caught your interest already. I put off watching it for awhile, because generally I like my monsters big and destructive.<br />
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True to the cover art, the Gremlin in this movie is a relentless, unstoppable, killing machine. And the idea that the only way to get it off your back is to "give it to someone you love" is a cruel twist that makes the beastie that much more frightening. </div>
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The monster's design is sort of a love it or hate it kind of thing. It's like a backwards walking Alien Facehugger without a tail. It's head is very small. It's full of teeth, but the mouth is so tiny, it's hard to take it seriously as a threat until you see the aftermath of an attack.</div>
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There are some things involved with how the box and the Gremlin work that are never really explained. Or maybe I just missed the explanation. Like, there's a "timer", but it doesn't seem to have any regular time intervals for when it opens the box and it certainly doesn't wait until "the timer runs out" to unleash the creature. Seems more like a victim count leading to a more threatening end. We're not told if it resets when it's "given to someone you love". Also, the idea that you're passing on the curse to someone you love becomes more of a conflict as the creature works its way through the people around you during "the countdown". So, the ones you love may fall prey to it, whether you give it to them or not. </div>
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There's a fair amount of action in the movie once it gets going. One or two relentless chase scenes. A few "a-ha" moments and a finale that was really unexpected.<br /><br />Overall, most of the acting was pretty solid stuff, but there was a problem. I didn't like many of the characters and unlike most horror movies, the most likeable people (for me anyway) seemed to be among the earliest victims, leaving you with people you'd as just as soon see get munched on by a backwards walking, tailless facehugger. </div>
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The special F/X and other production values are fine for a movie of this type and budget. In fact, better than I would have expected. Think current British sci-fi TV quality.<br /><br />For monster fans, this is definitely an acceptable way to pass the time. It may not be a movie I'd rush to watch, but when you want something you haven't seen before, you can certainly do worse than "Gremlin" for horrific monster action.</div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-77193772457638272792019-12-15T23:29:00.000-08:002019-12-15T23:29:34.081-08:00Clownado - Insane Extreme Gorefest<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I caught<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Clownado-Linnea-Quigley/dp/B07W16VPVX" target="_blank"> "Clownado" (2019)</a> on Amazon Prime. I have personal and Facebook friends in this one. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Actor-Joel-D-Wynkoop-234024459590/" target="_blank">Joel D. Wynkoop</a> has been in some of my most prized movies (well, self prized, anyway), such as <a href="https://www.midnightpulp.com/video/015202v/stopped-dead/" target="_blank">"Stopped Dead"</a> and <a href="https://www.midnightpulp.com/video/015204v/shelter/" target="_blank">"Shelter"</a> and he helped create my work-a-day version of The Grim Reaper in "Reaps", a spoof of "Cops" and other reality T.V. shows.<br /><a href="https://www.facebook.com/linnea.quigley1" target="_blank">Linnea Quigley</a> was in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hoodoo-Voodoo-Linnea-Quigley/dp/B001GHSE54" target="_blank">"Hoodoo for Voodoo"</a> and I was basically her driver for the duration of her time on that movie. I doubt she'd remember me now, but this still seems to be worth mentioning in this "full disclosure" section. <br />
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/fawn.allen.3" target="_blank">Dilynn Fawn Harvey</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/eileen.dietz" target="_blank">Eileen Dietz</a> and others are on my Facebook friends list. Having worked in independent cinema and done interviews for <a href="http://cultgoddessmagazine.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Cult Goddess Magazine,</a> while still trying to keep a network of talent on tap makes it hard to review indie movies that don't have someone I occasionally speak to in them, but this one is a real whopper of indie talent.<br />
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Now, onto the movie. As you can see from the artwork, they aren't shy about using clever marketing and bringing to mind better known movies, like "It" and of course, the infamous "Sharknado" series, but the marketing is where the likenesses end, with the possible exception of the humor infused action from "Sharknado".</div>
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You won't see "Clownado" on SyFy. It's far too gory for that. And the F/X are a healthy mix of practical and cgi. The computer graphics are used when they need to be and practical F/X seem to be used whenever possible.</div>
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Bright colors, out of place lighting and interesting angles help give the movie an off kilter feel. And off kilter it is. I had trouble making sense of some of it, but I often do in killer clown movies. They seem to have unlimited powers at some points and go down all too easily at others. Among the clowns, Satchel (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/cayt.feinics" target="_blank">Cayt Feinics</a>) stood out the most for me. Her name makes sense and I found her the creepiest. She had a habit of collecting in the movie that makes for some pretty cool scenes.</div>
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If I had one complaint about the cinematography it's that there are often close-ups of the gore or monster F/X without an establishing shot or cutaway to show us what we're supposed to be seeing. Perhaps this was to cover flaws in the F/X, leave things to the imagination or just an oversight. It happens often enough to be noticeable, however, and it's a bit distracting at times.''</div>
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For retro fans of blood and guts movies like <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0234748" target="_blank">"Slime City"</a> or way out, no holds barred horror like <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095444" target="_blank">"Killer Klowns From Outer Space</a>", this movie is one you want to watch. Probably even one you <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Clownado-Linnea-Quigley/dp/B07RTG9PJ1" target="_blank">want to own</a>. It does a lot with a modest budget.</div>
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Solid performances from the main cast throughout (with the exception of some accents that sound forced). Wyknoop, Quigley, and Dietz have fun appearances, although only Wynkoop really gets a chance to stretch his legs with some significant screen time.</div>
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And be sure to stick around during the credits for some outtakes and such.</div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-53072606095888317362019-12-14T20:39:00.000-08:002019-12-14T20:42:06.987-08:00Critters Attack - 2019 A Long Awaited Sequel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I cheated a bit with <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10240612" target="_blank">"Critters Attack"</a> as I watched it on SyFy, not streaming, but to be honest, I just willing to pay extra to see it and it wasn't included with any of the streaming services I had access to when it was released. It did hit SyFy in October and I watched it as part of my Halloween viewing.<br />
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This is the fifth movie in the official feature franchise and it took nearly years to get here since the 4th. I like all four of the original Critters movies, so when this came out I was curious about it. A bit afraid it would be full of CG monsters. It wasn't, but maybe it should have been. The "new" Crites had an odd look to them. They were still fairly well put together puppets, with the exception of one, however, they didn't have the same onscreen impact as they did in the original movies. I think brighter lighting and 28 years of picture quality improvement makes bringing creatures to screen through puppetry a lot trickier and they often missed the mark here. The "cute one" in particular, looks like she auditioned for Sesame Street, but didn't get the gig and so wound up in this movie instead.<br />
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But, I still prefer puppets to CGI most of the time, so I was able to overlook that.<br />
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<a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0908914" target="_blank">Dee Wallace</a> returns to the franchise as a bounty hunter, but whether or not she's playing her original character is left rather ambiguous. I feel like she's not. Maybe she's a bounty hunter who adopted the persona of Helen Brown from a previous visit. Whoever her character is meant to be, she's a bright spot in the film and a nice nod to the past.<br />
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The rest of the core cast is made up of young adults and kids, which is pretty true to the Critters formula. Most of them play their parts and do okay with the script they were given.<br />
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Like in the 4th installment, there are some new concepts thrown around here. I'm not sure I cared for them, but it's really up to the viewer to decide upon that. <br />
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The "final stand" is a bit of a letdown, but there's enough action spread throughout to keep the movie watchable. Unfortunately, I don't think this is the movie to bring the franchise back, but I could be wrong. It didn't quite capture the fun of the originals like the recent Tremors sequels have done. (Another favorite franchise of mine.) <br />
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If you're a huge fan of the Crites or a completist, like me, it's worth a watch. I don't think many people will feel a need to watch it multiple times or tell their friends about how great it is.<br />
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I think the reason I was disappointed in it was partially due to this excellnt fan film, which set my expectations high.<br />
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And of course, if you like your aliens rubber, your action slimey and your acting a bit hit and miss, there's always the <a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com/about_us/alien_vengeance" target="_blank">"Alien Vengeance" </a> franchise, from yours truly.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-90681339915994561262019-12-11T23:27:00.001-08:002019-12-11T23:27:46.715-08:00The Golem - 2018<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8329290https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8329290" target="_blank">"The Golem" (2018)</a> plays very much like a sequel to <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0011237" target="_blank">"Der Golem" (1920)</a>. It goes so far as to open with an earlier incarnation of the Golem, which is very reminiscent of the clay giant from the original story. In fact, I would have loved to have seen more than the glimpse of we get of that fabulous monster, but alas, it was not meant to be.<br />
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<br /><br />We, instead, are taken to a village, years later, under siege by outsiders who blame the small Jewish community for a plague that has spread across the land. That is, it has spread everywhere except into that small, isolated community. In order to protect her people a woman, who should have no knowledge of such things according to the laws at the time, decides to conjure a protector. But, despite her efforts to form a massive protector, instead a child rises from the clay.<br /><br />The movie is slow to start. It may seem like nothing is going on, but like any good story, it is laying foundations for plots that will unfold later on in the film. And they unfold quickly and furiously once they start.<br /><br />Despite his small size, the tiny Golem proves to more than an adequate hero. And he is no less violent that his gigantic predecessor. All of that is fine. I'm not sure about the strange "force-like" powers they seem to have endowed him with, but that just may be me. I like to see my Golems physically destroy things, like the Hammer Bridge in <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt006182" target="_blank">"It!" (1967)</a><br /><br />Of course, like any good Golem movie (and they're all kind of cool), the creature has to somehow be less than heroic. It has to become frightening and threatening to those it was meant to save. The motivation for this Golem's changes are deep rooted and satisfying.<br /><br />Overall, I enjoyed this movie. My wife even kind of liked it. Solid acting. Fair F/X even if a bit too much of the gore was computer generated rather than practical, and solid, well rounded characters. Not many likeable characters, but perhaps that adds to the realism.<br /><br />The movie is a bit of "Frankenstein", a little "Forbidden Planet" and a dash of "Days of Our Lives".<br /><br />I actually saw this one on Netflix. If you get a chance, I'd suggest giving a watch. I nearly checked out after the first fifteen minutes. It does pick up. Slowly, but it does. <br /><br /> Trailer</div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-86862057915192726172019-12-09T01:24:00.001-08:002019-12-09T17:35:04.585-08:00The Weird World of Andrea Ricca<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Italian director, Andrea Ricca, makes the types of movies I like. Short, straight to the action and with an array of monsters. I watched recently watched four of them in a row. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/s?k=andrea+ricca&ref=nb_sb_noss" target="_blank"> "Alien Monster", "The Giant Scorpion" and "The Spirit Board"</a> were all viewed on Amazon and all three featured the acting talent of <span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #002001;"><a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7693735/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Ilaria Lamberti</a>. Most of Ricca's films seem to be dialogue free, so there is no language barrier to worry about. Lamberti has no problem expressing emotion through facial expression and her characters have plenty of action to play out. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #002001;">The fourth film I watched, "Aliens Night", is available in YouTube with ad support, so I'll share that with you here. As you'll see, it's light on story, much like my own <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Alien-Vengeance-Night-Skyler-Anderson/dp/B075H2WXDT" target="_blank">"A Night Alone"</a> and Ricca's other films. Once again a woman is suddenly besieged by monsters. This time from an alien invasion. And once again she must fight her way through on her own. Here is the movie below.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #002001;">So, if you've got an itch to skip the dialogue and go straight to the monster action, seek out the work of Andrea Ricca on YouTube or Amazon. The graphics are definitely low budget and there's no dialogue to create complex backstories, but Ricca does give us glimpses into the characters' lives through visual storytelling. If nothing else you'll have an action packed few minutes.</span></span></span></div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-17811667092352323812019-11-26T15:46:00.000-08:002019-11-26T15:46:07.088-08:00Monster Island - Lacking in Monster Fights and Eric Robers Screentime<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I was looking for Kaiju movies when I came across<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10238788/?ref_=rvi_tt" target="_blank"> "Monster Island" </a>on Prime.<br />
The title conjured up visions of the old Godzilla movies and a tropical island that was sort of a retirement resort for Kaiju. This is not one of those movies. Like many a SyFy movie, it makes use of a well known screen name for some star power. In this case, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000616/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank">Eric Roberts</a> gets the privilege of being the draw alongside the monsters. His character, General Horne, however, is criminally underused. Relegated, as the name stars in small productions often are, to a single set and phone call interaction with the main cast. I honestly did the same thing with Debbie Rochon in <a href="https://www.truindie.tv/search?term=alien%20vengeance&category_id=&author_id=&custom_fields=%7B%7D&y=0" target="_blank">"Alien Vengeance"</a> 1 & 2, so that I could get her into both movies with just one visit to Florida, where they were shot back in 2010.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdv8HUGhWDXY1KelsPINyd-mRPuCdD7Rl4CjGeh8_SbquwTFQ1G9iBeF3_3dD_bm9Lo2cq30gAv2XbQ5mLLIXfmW1J62enps5EMtSgY3w22n760SjtJheS9RxSKF9cDOc6vNHjWfDeegA/s1600/monsterisland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="677" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdv8HUGhWDXY1KelsPINyd-mRPuCdD7Rl4CjGeh8_SbquwTFQ1G9iBeF3_3dD_bm9Lo2cq30gAv2XbQ5mLLIXfmW1J62enps5EMtSgY3w22n760SjtJheS9RxSKF9cDOc6vNHjWfDeegA/s400/monsterisland.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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Aside from only letting Horne shout into the phone most of the time, I thought it was odd that he was a GENERAL in the Navy. (Or Coast Guard, but it looked like a naval uniform to me. Military experts feel free to clear this up in the comments.<br />
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Alright, enough about the wasted talents of Eric Roberts in the movie, Let's get to what the movieis really about. The monsters!<br />
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The word "Kaiju" is thrown around plenty and it applies in the broadest sense of "giant monsters", but fans of the traditional Kaiju movies will likely be disappointed. The creature designs are cool enough and they have some neat powers, even some backstory, but no personality. There is plenty of build up about the main monster before we even hear about the second, which she will fight. This kind of tension building is common in giant monster movies, but I would have preferred a parallel development of the two creatures. As it stands you feel like you're watching a serial more than a feature. Each segment playing out as a story and leading to the next rather than developing as one cohesive story.<br />
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The "Pacific Rim" movies have likely made the CG type creations seen here more acceptable as Kaiju and the first creature's design is simple, but effective as a sea monster. Her adversary, however, is a stiff looking lump of a hero. He barely seems to move during a particularly anticlimactic engagement with his nemesis. Considering this a fight for the fate of humanity, you'd think they would dedicate some time to it, but don't go to the bathroom or you'll miss it. And it's paced like a stop motion fight I did. I get it. Animating monster fights is hard work, but this a movie with "Monster" in the title. We need some monster action.<br />
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There is a great portion of the movie where the main cast is stranded on the gigantic monster in a small submersible, and honestly, with a low budget, I would have made the entire movie about them trying to stop it from there while an unsuspecting world was waiting for the thing to hit land. But, just as I was beginning to enjoy the suspense and possibilities of this concept, the story moves past it.<br />
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Really what "Monster Island" is in the end is a not bad adventure film with monsters in it. Somewhere between the fun of "Tremors" and the epic monster on monster action of the Godzilla series sits the not as good as either, "Monster Island".<br />
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Would I recommend it? Well, if you're like me, can't get enough of monster movies, have seen most of the classics and old not so classics and can catch this one for free, then sure, give it a look to pass the time. It's not bad. It's also not a "must see" monster flick.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-77209734881743978472019-11-24T19:37:00.002-08:002019-11-24T19:37:51.953-08:00Alpha Wolf is a Top Dog Among Monster Movies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
OK, before I even get started, full disclosure here. The starring couple in this film, real life husband and wife, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000680/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank">Casper </a>and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2628854/?ref_=tt_cl_t2" target="_blank">Jennifer Van Dien</a>, are people are I consider my friends. Jenn has worked on two movies with me and was the subject of one of my very early interviews for<a href="http://cultgoddessmagazine.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"> Cult Goddess Magazine</a>. That said, I'm rarely hard on independent productions as it is because I know what it takes to get a movie from concept to completion and that task alone deserves some respect, even if this golden age of everyone have a high quality camera just a cell phone away. Besides that, I have no editor (at the moment) telling me what to review, so if the movie had turned out to be a lemon, I just never would have published a review.<br />
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So, dear readers, there is your grain of salt. Now, read on.<br />
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I saw <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Alpha-Wolf-Casper-Van-Dien/dp/B07JHVX2ZZ" target="_blank">"Alpha Wolf"</a> as an included with Prime flick as part of my October monster movie viewing. It's no secret that I'm a werewolf fan and most of all an "old school" werewolf fan. I prefer my wolves to be either well trained animals, or if they're anthropomorphized, men in make-up and/or suits. This movie delivered on the use of practical F/X, if not with the most frightening of wolf designs. The image on the box cover is a pretty accurate representation of what to expect. CG is used mostly for non-wolf F/X, sparingly and with varying degrees of success.<br />
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The title gives you the main gist of the movie. A self proclaimed Alpha Male is bitten by a werewolf and has to come to terms with his newfound powers or curse, depending on your point of view. All of this happens amid a get away with his wife and her loyal dog.<br />
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All around solid performances as you would expect from an experienced cast such as this. <br />
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There's a bit of a slow build up, which serves to create some tension and suspense and then it's followed by a good bit of action and intrigue. There are some easy to spot plot elements and maybe a surprise or two. The werewolf legend gets some new additions as it often does in modern movies.<br />
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You can see the cannon fodder victims coming as soon as they hit the screen, but that just adds to the retro feel.<br />
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Overall, if you're a werewolf fan and hunger for something new, this is a movie you should see. <br />
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By the way, never let a Van Dien drive your Jeep through the woods in a monster movie.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-23717122640966873542019-10-14T10:29:00.001-07:002019-11-04T07:55:50.980-08:00"The Banana Splits" (2019) - Why all the Hate?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I'll admit that even growing up in the 70s, when "The Banana Splits" were on WPIX in NY and having "met" them in King's Dominion on one summer vacation, I was never really a huge fan of the show. I just didn't get the "boingo" sound F/X and characters talking without their mouths moving. So, when it was announced that there was going to be a horror movie made about the Splits, I was confused, but not offended. I guess if I had been a big fan as a kid I might have found the concept alone insulting to my childhood heroes, but since I was never into them, I just thought the idea was idiotic. Well, it turns out, it's strange, but not as far fetched as I had thought. There are many things silly about it and a few things that were handled very well.<br />
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If I had to pitch the movie in Hollywood I would say it's Willy Wonka's Westworld with a Tromaesque touch of gore and dark comedy.<br />
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Things the movie handles well:<br />
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1. Making the Banana Splits "entities" rather than just guys in suits who go nutzo. It's revealed very early on that they're "Puppets". Super high-tech animatronics, with a bit too much of the "show must go on" programming.<br />
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2. A bit of 2 dimensional character development. Most of the characters who are going to "buy it" through the movie are super predictable right from the start. You're immediately given a reason not to like them and so when they suffer an over the top kill you don't feel as bad laughing about it. There's even a character somewhat like<a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com/jackvslanterns" target="_blank"> "Jack vs Lanterns"</a> own Ralph, who I a cheating asshole and manages to pop up more times than you might expect. He doesn't get kicked in the nuts nearly as often as Ralph does though. Don't read this as a spoiler though, because there are some red herrings in there as well and just because a character is "likeable" doesn't make them safe.<br />
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3. There's a bit more plot than the description suggests. The puppet bots do indeed start slaughtering their way through the studio, but it's more subtle than a "rampage" as the SyFy Channel's info section on my cable suggested. The tension builds, the puppets have a plan and things develop throughout the movie.<br />
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4. The kills are creative, show inspired and gory. Most of the kills are set-up earlier in the film before the bots go bad. They mimic the show we see at the beginning in twisted, bloody ways. The gore is not subtle, but it's usually not so realistic as to be too disturbing. That's where the Troma influence comes in.<br />
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The Westworld influence ( 1973) is obviously the robots run amok angle.<br />
Willy Wonka's influence is from the idea that the group is mostly comprised of parents and kids and wandering off and breaking the rules is a BAD idea.<br />
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Overall, this was an enjoyable bit of horror fun for October viewing. I doubt I would buy it or seek it out again, but if it's on a channel I already have again I might even give it a second watch. If they make a sequel, I'd watch it.<br />
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All the technical stuff, lighting, F/X, audio and direction were solid. The acting was mostly good, with a few "off" moments for some of the characters, but those seemed to be more from unnatural dialogue than actual bad acting.<br />
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And, for more goofball good times check out one my movies:</div>
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2758659981198820064.post-79175680611423484442019-10-11T12:26:00.002-07:002019-10-11T12:49:02.677-07:00"Don't Kill It", but do watch it!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3113696/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"Don't Kill It"</a> is a 2016 indie feature from Director, Mike Mendez. Full disclosure, I have some Facebook friends in common with him and once photoshopped his face onto a Spiderman image at their request. I don't think this affected my opinion of the movie in any way. It might have affected my opinion of his friends, however. Also, I am acquainted with Tara Cardinal, who portrayed the "kitchen demon". While her acting was excellent in the role, she didn't have enough screen time to sway my opinion one or the other either.<br />
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Now, onto the movie. It's October, and I nearly didn't give this one a watch because I like my monster movies with at least a bit of horror this time of year and the fact that Dolph Lundgren was starring led me to think this would be a soft sided SyFy channel action monster flick with nothing buy CG blood and watered down violence. The opening sequence of the movie put those worries to rest, however. In fact, there was so much rampant, bizarre, sudden violence in the opening it very nearly disturbed me. The heavy soundtrack and insane screech of the "demon" was all that removed the brutality enough from reality to make it watchable without causing me permanent mental scarring. And this is ME. Some of you may want to avoid this movie. Especially if you have a soft spot for animals. <br />
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The title pretty much says it all. A body jumping demon (not uncommon), is released, and possesses anyone unlucky enough to manage to kill its host. The demon's unbridled violence towards humans and invulnerability make you wonder why the killing sprees ever stop long enough for the lead characters to have any dialogue about what's going on. I can not stress enough just how fast paced and violent some of the killing sprees are. Fortunately, by the middle of the movie they become so over the top and cartoonish at moments that you're wrenched out of the movie long enough to regain your sanity.<br />
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Trying not to give too many spoilers, but give viewers fair warning, this movie is not for everyone. There are no victims off limits here. If the 1980s "The Blob" sewer scene seemed to cross a line to you, there are scenes in this movie that race through iron fences.<br />
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The acting is mostly solid throughout. Lundgren, as expected, makes a good anti-hero. He's saddled with a task no sane man would want, but anyone with a sense of duty would know he has to perform. Krista Klebe does well playing a bit more than a sidekick (it takes awhile for her character to become an all out partner). <br />
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The gore F/X are a mix of CG and practical and some of the practical F/X are so off the wall that they're nearly comical, but again, that relief from the violent outbursts is needed to keep the viewer grounded.<br />
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With not a lot of "scares", but a difficult to stop monster and a body count any horror movie can be "proud" of, I think "Don't Kill It" makes for entertaining Halloween season viewing. I wish I had discovered it 3 years ago, but I think I was shooting a monster movie of my own back then. Maybe I had just come off of <a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com/lumbervsjack" target="_blank">"Lumber vs Jack"</a> or was starting<a href="http://www.hocfocprod.com/jackvslanterns" target="_blank"> "Jack vs Lanterns"</a>.<br />
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HocFocProdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13303009552634716785noreply@blogger.com0