Last winter, I posited that we might be seeing the genre lurch into some weird early-90s funk this year. I wouldnt go so far as to say things have been that dire, however, the diversity of films weve been exposed to across the board theater, VOD, DVD has been eclectic. Granted, there are still plenty of Paranormal Activity-like supernatural leftovers to be had, but weve seen some companies taking risks on gems like Beyond the Black Rainbow, Detention, The Innkeepers, the horror-comedy Deadheads and the not entirely successful, but interesting, The Corridor.
Horror appears to be taking an “anything goes” attitude – bucking trends and throwing concepts at the wall to see what sticks. That’s certainly something we saw occuring during the mid-’90s in which there were more interesting films to be found going direct-to-VHS and laserdisc than there were in theaters. Except, today, horror fans are turning to VOD instead.
Diversity, however, does not make up for the glut of medicority we’ve seen in 2012 so far.
My day-to-day duties don’t allow me to review every film I get to see (we have a great review team to tackle all of the releases), so this is my chance to toss out a few thoughts on what I’ve devoured over the last six months. As there are so many select titles, I’ll keep things parred down unless I find myself on a real rant.
Chronicle: Clever, cool, “found footage done right” except for when things went real wild at the end and you were getting the action from various, plausibly suspect, camera perspectives. Okay, okay…not really horror, but we covered the shit out of this. Grade: A-
The Woman in Black: One title I did review and, I thought, yet another disappointing modern genre outing from the new Hammer Films. They’ve had, what…one arguably good film? That being Let Me In. This Daniel Radcliffe-starring period piece logistically crumbles and is all too reliant on tired, loud scare gags we’ve seen time and again. Grade: D
Underworld: Awakening: I can honestly say, I don’t remember much from this fourth film in the series. I remember shit got crazy and humans started killing everyone. And there was a faux Scott Speedman and the whole story was about Selene trying to find him. And the movie ended right back where her journey began – still looking for faux Scott Speedman thus rendering this installment pointless. Ah, but there was a kid this time…and a giant Lycan and some dude that looked like Chris Martin from Coldplay. The end. Grade: D
The Innkeepers: Amusing, creepy and one of the most accessible Ti West films out there. Perhaps moreso than House of the Devil – which remains his crowning achievement so far. What Innkeepers has going for it – that I appreciated – is the humor and two amiable characters I liked to hang out with. It also allows Sara Paxton to show off her comedic chops. She’s so damn cute. Grade: B+
Deadheads: An ’80s-style roadtrip buddy comedy about two zombies who are off to visit a cute gal. Yes, it’s ridiculous when you put it that way but it delivers. Sweet, weird and funny. Grade: B
The Corridor: Caught this one at Fantastic Fest last year; it was released this year. I commend it for what it tries to do and I was completely engaged throughout. The movie is just too full of emotional mama’s boys for my taste and the story sort of falls apart by the end. Oh…and that bald cap. Ooooh, the bald cap. Grade: C
The Cabin in the Woods: Loved it. Read my review. Grade: A+
Detention: You know I love this one, too, and I’ve said it countless time in our podcast and here on the site. Shuddup. Grade: A-
The Moth Diaries: A tremendous chore to watch. Too bad, because I liked director Mary Harron’s American Psycho quite a bit. Here, she tackles vampires and the result is a plodding, predictable, tonally off-kilter mess that loses its viewer 20 minutes in. Grade: D
The Raven: Great to look at, I suppose, but a terrible experience…especially when you guess who the killer is from the beginning. John Cusack breaks into some Nicholas Cage-like over-acting, but even his antics can’t break the ennui you feel watching this. Grade: C-
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance: What the f**k did I watch again? No, seriously, what is this? I’m glad the Ghost Rider FX have improved, but dear God, that script. That awful villain. Neveldine…Taylor… Just give me Crank 3. Grade: D
