HORROR YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED: THE MIND’S EYE (2015)

THE MIND’S EYE (2015)

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In Almost Human writer/director Joe Begos gave us a horror/sci-fi with some nice homages to flicks like Fire In The Sky and John Carpenter’s The Thing in a gore wrapped story of alien abduction and a creature within stalking a small rural town. Here Begos returns to pay tribute to David Cronenberg’s Scanners with a story of individuals with powerful psychic abilities, even setting his flick in the early 90s. The story tells of Zack (Graham Skipper) and Rachel (Jug Face and Darling’s Lauren Ashley Carter) who are two people with incredible psychokinetic abilities and are being held by Dr. Michael Slovak (John Speredakos) for his own nefarious purposes. The two escape and thus begins a tale of pursuit and revenge that leaves a trail of bodies in it’s wake.

Joe Begos certainly knows his influences and his affection for that which he pays homage is certainly apparent through his past two films. That being said, the same applies here even more so than Almost Human in that, while it is entertaining, the film is a little too close to it’s source material to really have it’s own identity. Almost Human was, at least, a bit of a mash-up within it’s own story. Here the flick is basically just a stripped down version of Cronenberg’s classic, right down to exploding heads…a tribute, we get that…to the climactic duel between good and evil psychokinetic powered individuals. Again, it is a fun tribute, that while it spares us the more complicated conspiracy aspects of Scanners, ups the gore and violence quotient in it’s place. As with Begos’ last flick, the film is moderately paced, which to be fair, is much like the films it purposely evokes. Also like Almost Human, the acting is again a bit wooden especially from the overacting Speredakos, who might have been a bit more threatening bad guy with some moderation and less eye-rolling. The gore FX are quite good, Begos has a good visual eye and style and there is a wonderfully nostalgic electronic score by Steve Moore to give it that 80s/early 90s feel.

Overall, this was an enjoyable tribute to a classic flick from a filmmaker who has an eye for what made those flicks work. As with Almost Human, Begos shows potential as a good low budget filmmaker who certainly has some classic influences and his heart in the right place. Now it’s time for him to take what he has learned from the films he grew up with and do his own thing…and looking forward to it when he does. A fun Cronenberg love letter that while isn’t overly original, successfully evokes what it is giving homage to. Also stars indie horror flick icon Larry Fessenden as Zack’s dad and Noah Segan who is racking up quite the horror resume.

-MonsterZero NJ

3 beers lifted cinematically to David Cronenberg.

 

 

BARE BONES: THE DEVIL’S WOODS and DON’T GO TO THE REUNION

THE DEVIL’S WOODS (2015)

Low budget horror has two couples (Stephen Cromwell, Danielle Keaney, Daniel Mahony and Caoimhe Cassidy) heading to a music festival and deciding to camp out in the Irish backwoods, in an area said to be haunted and a site where there have been many disappearances. Makes sense! Obviously there is someone…or something…awaiting them in the woods and their numbers begin to dwindle as one by one they meet a gruesome fate.

Written and directed by Anthony White, this is a very familiar story that features all the clichés. We get the stoner idiot who neglects to tell the others that they are going to an area known for disappearances, creepy redneck locals who stare at strangers and masked individuals stalking our youths in the spooky woods with pointy objects. There is little or no suspense and the acting is strictly amateur, though Danielle Keaney shows some spunk and fire as our final girl, Jennifer. Characters do stupid things, obviously, by the initial story set-up, including the villains who don’t understand the concept that your victim won’t kick you in the nuts and escape if your tie her up properly. Duh, even most inbred rednecks know that! A strictly low budget effort that shows White may have a love of horror flicks, but needs to learn a bit more about what makes them actually work.

-MonsterZero NJ

DON’T GO TO THE REUNION (2013)

Ultra low budget flick looks like a home movie, even if it has it’s heart in the right place. Flick has a very simiar plot to the recent Most Likely To Die with a group of in-crowders gathering for a ten year high school reunion at a remote house that has been arranged for them by an unknown individual…already not a good sign. Back in high school, the group orchestrated a terrible prank on the introverted, horror movie loving, high school nerd to insure their friend made school valedictorian instead. Their prank got the kid expelled and put him in a mental institution where he later committed suicide. Now the group are being slaughtered one by one and in ways the echo classic horror movies!

Directed by Steve Goltz and written by Kevin Sommerfield this horror homage wants to have it both ways. It wants to be like an 80s horror with it’s plot of a prank gone wrong being avenged years later and also wants to be a post-Scream slasher complete with all the meta horror movie references and deaths derived from horror classics. And if you didn’t get the point, the villain will explain it to you step by step like the killers in Wes Craven’s 1996 classic did. I appreciate the effort and that our filmmakers obviously have a love for these type of movies, but even as a homage it’s not very original and the dialog, acting and kills are all strictly amateur. It’s also might be a bit insulting that after all the obvious horror movie references, the filmmakers felt a need to have a character explain it to us in case we missed the blatantly obvious.

-MonsterZero NJ