Leigh Whannell, along with his partner in crime, James Wan, erupted onto the scene with Saw back into 2004. Together they wrote some of the sequels, plus Dead Silence, and Insidious 1 & 2 (and soon to be part 3) Now Whannell has brought us a non-horror flick, The Mule.
As a kid I grew up on a variety of different films. My mother loved horror, dad loved westerns and action flicks, my grandma was obsessed with dramas, and I loved everything. I’m thankful for the upbringing I had because it made me who I am today. Even though I was a cinephile by the time I was seven or so, I still missed a lot of films. Now I’m 30 and I’m still making epic discoveries on my own. Recently I discovered one of the best westerns I’ve ever seen, Compañeros.
What if I told you that you missed one of the best movies of 2014? What if I also told you that you never even heard of it? Luckily I didn’t make that mistake so I don’t want others to make it, either.
You might have missed these recent installments of The ScreamCast. Now’s your chance to catch up.
Episode 41 – Silent Night Deadly Night (1984)
Includes a critique of Scream Factory’s Blu-ray release and a rundown of other holiday-themed movies.
Episode 42 – Tales From The Crypt (1972), The Vault Of Horror (1973) & Trancers (1984)
Brad, Sean, and Brian discuss the Scream Factory releases of Tales From The Crypt and The Vault of Horror as well as Full Moon’s Trancers reissue.
Episode 43 – The Device (2014) & The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)
Director John Portanova joins the crew to talk about his latest film The Device as well as Kino Lorber’s Blu-ray release of The Quatermass Xperiment and a list of Top 10 Alien Abduction/Invasion flicks.
I love all genres but I’m more partial to horror and that’s what I’m better versed in when it comes to film. There are some other genres that I’m quite knowledgeable about but I really lack when it comes to film from the ‘50s and ‘60s. There is just so much out there that it’s a little overwhelming and I don’t know where to start. Luckily, there are companies like Olive Films that are picking the great ones and bringing them to the table, sparking renewed interest in the films, and giving them new fans such as myself.
Watching filmmakers and writers grow is a beautiful thing. Through the past couple of years I’ve kept my eye on a few filmmakers like Adam Wingard, Ti West, Adrián Garcia Bogliano, Eric England, and many more. As far as more recent filmmakers, I’ve been following Jeremy Berg and John Portanova. A little while ago I reviewed their directorial feature debut, The Invoking. I was highly impressed with the direction they took with The Invoking and it falls into my category of “story horror” which I’ve described in detail in the past. So when I got word of them doing another horror film, and one involving aliens, I was down.
Every once in a while I watch a film that I enjoy quite a bit but I wouldn’t consider great or essential to see. I call these films “rainy day” films: when something is just mediocre but you can’t stop thinking or talking about it. The film may not be that great but it’s one that won’t leave you. Films like Red Hill, Home Sweet Home, No One Lives, The Colony, and Citadel are a few that I feel fall into this category. Now, I legitimately like all those films but I know a lot of people consider them “forgettable.” People throw that word around to describe films but I honestly haven’t seen forgettable films nor do I think they exist.
Throughout the course of movie history we’ve seen films that should have been good but failed miserably. I’m not talking about films we thought were going to be good and they flopped. I’m talking about the ones where everything was set up with the right actors, script, director, producer, and any other suit in Hollywood. All these elements that can almost guarantee success are in place, but the movie turns out to be a disaster. Last night I watched Skidoo. I went in blind to this film other than knowing it had one hell of a cast and a legendary director. Otto Preminger was the man behind it so I thought this couldn’t go wrong, right?
Remember PC games in the ‘90s that were very story based with a ton of cinematics and limited gameplay? For the most part, the cut scenes were actual actors and not animation and they were poorly acted. I was always a big FPS fan and I disliked the type of games that included just a lot of walking around, pushing buttons, and someone who popped up in your HUD and told you what you were doing wrong or right. I’m guessing this is why I disliked Day Of The Mummy.
As a cinephile I’m often asked the question, “what is the scariest film you have ever seen”? I have a list of scary films but not too many actually scare me. I’ve been watching horror films since I was 4, so I’m a little desensitized at this point in my life. I get creeped out of course, but it takes a little bit more for me to look over my shoulder at the end of the film.