Et tu, Coronavirus?

March 10, 2020 in General Topics

Sometimes history comes calling, and sometimes it arrives with a truck full of body-bags when it does. As a history buff, recent events have filled me with a kind of morbid curiosity–at our shores, it seems, is a generational crisis one typically only reads about in the past tense. But what’s most alarming about the silent killer approaching as steadily as the entity in It Follows is just how hard it is to pin down its degree of deadliness.
Read the rest of this entry →

What Settling Into Your Forties Really Means

February 23, 2020 in General Topics

So having settled into 40, here’s how I’d summarize it so far:

In your twenties, you’re rushing around learning who you are, caring way more about things you can’t change than you should, and generally pushing yourself hard. Often too hard. Every goal is attainable, every bit of grandeur within your grasp, every slogan and point of pontification. by the perfect is yours to take. In short, even the best of us in these years are kind of obliquely obnoxious. Read the rest of this entry →

Ten Horror Movies Worth Seeing, #10: The Exorcism of Emily Rose

October 30, 2018 in General Topics, Other Stuff

As scary as some horror films are, there’s often a comfortable gulf the viewer can cross after the credits roll. They toss the popcorn bin in the trash or put on some music; perhaps say goodbye to friends, maybe head on to a shower and bed. And this process comes easier when the director or screenwriter have given us implausible or outright ridiculous scenarios and antagonists. I mentioned in my review for Black Water that one of the reasons that film succeeded is because it is based on real saltwater crocodile behavior. But you’d still have to travel to the southern hemisphere for a chance to face down such a beast. The Exorcism of Emily Rose gives us an enemy that could be lurking around every corner, and in this author’s opinion is.

That made the film terrifying for me, but Director Scott Derrickson seems to posit that the alternative is worse–facing this evil without the safety provided by having the Big “G” God on your side. There are scenes in Emily Rose that stand as some of the most harrowing I’ve seen in cinema. And it’s all inserted into a smart, compelling courtroom drama that sees Laura Linney and Tom Wilkinson playing an ambitious lawyer and a Catholic Priest on trial for an exorcism that seemingly went wrong. Read the rest of this entry →

Ten Horror Movies Worth Seeing, #9: He Never Died

October 26, 2018 in General Topics, Other Stuff

Credit: Amazon.com

When I began this review series, I promised I’d also be raising zombies from way out in the back of the graveyard, highlighting some of the more independent and lesser-known horror films out there. Well, based on what I’ve seen, He Never Died escaped notice from quite a few people, and it’s the perfect time of the year to rectify that as best I can.

The film stars Henry Rollins, who most of you reading recognize instantly, because Rollins is one of those people so distinctive that if you see or hear them once, you’ll remember them the rest of your life. Rollins hails from a background in punk and hardcore music and these days runs a number of acerbic columns and shows. He’s a brooder; the kind of man who seems physically uncomfortable when he smiles. His character, Jack, is compelling from the moment he appears on the screen, and some of the troubling and downright grisly things we see him doing somehow don’t make the character any less interesting.

That’s good, because the plot is all over the place. I can roll with it, but for viewers looking for a cogent series of events this film might come across as a bit baffling, at least for long lengths of its run time. The writing is almost gleeful at withholding information. Consider the following threads we’re asked to keep track of: Illegal blood sales. Mobsters. Cannibalism. Former relationships. New love (dis)interests. Bingo. An enigmatic figure. Prophecy. Read the rest of this entry →

Ten Horror Movies Worth Seeing, #8: Dog Soldiers

October 23, 2018 in General Topics, Other Stuff

Credit: Amazon.com

Neil Marshall made a name for himself, justifiably, with 2005’s The Descent, but prior to crafting that film’s claustrophobic horror, he’d given us Dog Soldiers. Here we find good writing, acting, and Marshall’s characteristically excellent execution of practical effects.

I love how Dog Soldiers doesn’t pick on soft targets. Many horror films inflict their monsters on hapless and unprepared victims. A Nightmare on Elm Street hacks away at teens. The Shining subjects an innocent family to its machinations. The Birds overwhelms a Dick and Jane duo with sheer numbers. Horror typically posits a lopsided confrontation, where the stakes heavily favor the evil force(s) present. Dog Soldiers upends this and places in harm’s way a troop of hardened, trained and fully armed British infantry. It doesn’t rush into doing this, either, taking its time to establish the men’s credibility and likability. It’s only then that things take a sharp turn for the worse. Favorable comparisons with Predator abound. Read the rest of this entry →