Antisocial (2013)

Rating: NR
Directed By: Cody Calahan
Written By: Chad Archibald, Cody Calahan
Runtime: 1 hr. 29 min.

Five university students gather together for a house party on New Years Eve when a virus breaks out across the world.  They find themselves trapped inside their house with no where to go while infected citizens outside kill each other and fight to break in.  Lock your doors and keep everyone outside out… and everyone inside in.  But the danger is outside, right?

Apparently not… if you keep yourself plugged in to your favorite social media site.  That’s right, folks… a virus has broken out in the world and its origins are none other than social media.

The film isn’t much more than a re-hash of horror genre cliche, but it embraces it well enough to make the plot flow rather than subject you to choppy devices.  I was most surprised by the quality of film… far better than a film of this caliber expects to employ.  The viewer is subjected to artistic angle shots and beautiful architecture throughout the film… keeping in contrast with the darkness of the story line itself.  The social media device could have been better implemented, making for a much more interesting film… ah well.  We have what we have.

Perhaps the most outlandish aspect of the movie is when we are introduced to the “cure” for the rampant homicidal actions of the infected populace.  Drill a hole in your head with – yes, a character says it best in the movie itself! “a common household drill”. and pull out a black vein growing inside that’s feeding on you and will eventually consume your brain.  Simple, home do-it-yourself tech, folks!  Yes… of course it is…  And while I am sure the writers were trying to impart a sense of “bad ass-ness” to our main heroine, Sam, unfortunately it comes off as stupendously highly improbable.  Afterall, Sam doesn’t even pass out after drilling a hole in her own head.  Um… sure…

The grandeur of the film is really towards the end when Sam marches out of the house a la Alice from Resident Evil, fully equipped to deal with psychotic zombified persons who are re-animating now only at the ending.  Honestly, I have to admit I wanted to know more of where the writers were going with this and was more interested in the last two minutes of the film, than the entire film itself.  Too much to hope for a sequel?  I fear it would be far more rife with the blase attempt at story that the first two-thirds of the movie employs.  Still, Antisocial feels more like an “origin” movie than a standalone.

My biggest complaint, though, has to go to the title marketing.  They should have capitalized more on the “social” wording in the title, separating it visually more so we understood they were hinting at social media rather than antisocial behavior.  Sure, infected people are killing non-infected people, but they do happen to be, ah, telepathically linked together… right?

Right.

Want More?:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/antisocial/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2772092/
http://www.best-horror-movies.com/review?name=antisocial-2013-review
http://opinion-as-a-moviefreak.blogspot.be/2014/08/antisocial-2013.html

The Eternal (Trance) 1998

Rating: R
Directed By: Michael Almereyda
Written By: Michael Almereyda
Runtime: 1 hr. 35 min.

A “slow to perform” movie, but shockingly insightful as it progresses… The Eternal is a good background movie for the most part, but be sure to pay attention for the ending.  The premise is simple: an American couple travel to Ireland to the ancient home of the young wife’s to visit her Grandmother (Lois Smith).  Allison Elliot plays Nora, wife and mother to Jim (played by Jared Harris) and Jimmy (Jeffrey Goldschrafe), respectively of course.  She also just happens to be the direct descendant to a 2,000 year old Druidess named Niamh.

As the story progresses, we learn Niamh took a young lover, gave birth to a child, and when her lover left her, she killed him and took her own life.  We see this paralleled in Nora when it is revealed that she once had a lover named Joe who left her.  When she discovered she was pregnant, she left for America to get an abortion.  However, she meets Jim and, while he is mostly rather irresponsible in actions, he loves her dearly as she does him.

Niamh, the witch, is dug up in the nearby bog by Nora’s uncle, Bill – played by the illustrious Christopher Walken.  Christopher lends his uniqueness to Bill’s character, and let’s add that Bill loves vinyl records and happens to be legally blind.  That doesn’t stop him from uncovering the truth behind the mummified corpse he has uncovered.  As Niamh is slowly brought back to life by Nora’s presence, she begins to take on Nora’s likeness… inevitably leading to some mistaken hijinx and an attempt to kill her – which proves fruitless since she is, after all, a corpse.

After the normal horror fare… THIS is where the story truly takes it’s delightful edge.  Nora is troubled and depressed by the events in her life… so is Niamh… but as Niamh tries to take over Nora’s soul to bring herself back to life, Nora decides to fight back, for herself, her husband, and her son.  Her Grandmother lends a hand in explaining that she must, if she really chooses to save her son, sacrifice herself.  Nora is willing to do this.  Her Grandmother also encourages her by telling her that she is strong; that she believes in her.

Finally, Nora confronts the copy-cat Niamh who has her son in tow.  And, with a handy ceremonial knife, slits her own throat even as her and Niamh’s souls have come closer to joining, with the understanding that Niamh will be taking over.  However, with Nora’s sacrifice and strengthened mind… it is Nora that survives the swap… transferring her own soul into the new body of Niamh’s while Niamh fades with Nora’s now dead body.  The way Almereyda handles this exchange is worth the wait of the whole movie.

I wish there had been a bit more character development overall, but for a low-budget movie of the caliber it’s to be expected.  Still, and enjoyable watch by the end.  And oh, do not let me forget to mention young Alice (Rachel O’Rourke)!  Our narrator and the adopted daughter of Uncle Bill.  Aside from Christopher Walken himself, she lends a lovely and enjoyable bent to this movie with her stoic personality and simplistic acceptance of the unexpected events that only a child can accept so calmly.  If for no other reason, she alone makes this movie a pleasant watch!

Want More?:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/eternal_kiss_of_the_mummy/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0382019/
http://www.braineater.com/eternal.html
http://www.fright.com/edge/the_eternal.htm

About Time, Eh?

So, decided it was about time I started typing up and uploading some of my horror and in general B-movie reviews.  Nothing like the present to get things started, yes?  So while my older reviews are still waiting in the wings – I’ll begin with the few movies I’ve been watching the last several days! 

This is Confessions of a B Movie Addict!  I love B movies… can never really seem to get enough of them!  That film was cheesy, you might say?  A good comedy flick for me, I say!  The worse the film the more hilarious to me.  I’ll wade through dozens of poorly scripted, deplorably acted, hideously filmed low-budget and over-budget flops for the few rare gems that might prevail.  The goal of these reviews are to be written within a 10 minute time frame of my immediate take upon completion of the film.  These reviews will be highly opinionated.  You have been warned!  But please, do feel free to comment, love on, add to, pick apart, or even contemptibly trash my reviews.  I invite praise and dissent alike.  Honestly, I don’t mind~

Thanks for stopping by and get prepared for my 10 minute (unless I get carried away) B movie reviews!~