Chat! culturecrossfire.slack.com

General Horror Films & TV Discussion Thread

Re-watched The Mothman Prophecies (2002) for like the 4th or 5th time. I'm not a big fan of Richard Gere's work to be honest but I find him pretty okay as John Klein. The plot is pretty... bare bones and doesn't really make a lot of sense when put under a microscope, the movie itself is more psychological thriller when it could've been a decent little monster movie, but Will Patton as Gordon Smallwood is a standout and I really like the chemistry between Gere/Laura Linney (the small town Sheriff).

I always feel like parts work and are great (the opening, the Will Patton stuff, the bridge scene towards the end) but especially having read the John Keel book, I keep thinking there are missed opportunities especially with such an iconic monster as The Mothman.

5.5/10 Could push for a 6/10 as there's multiple scenes I always vividly recall but it's the opposite of something like The Woman In Black which I adore and think is one of the better horror movies of the 2010s. Here it tries to be all atmosphere and doesn't lean enough into the actual horror behind the atmosphere because it tries to incorporate the Mothman mythos into a story without... revealing it at all almost as if it's scared to "be" a horror movie when it wants to be like Se7en.
 
Primate was pretty damn good. Some really stupid character decisions, but the monkey was creepy, and there was some genuinely tense moments. The dad character was kind of pointless, although it was hilarious that he knew that his daughters were trapped in with a deranged chimp and he goes to make a sandwich as soon as he comes home. The two bros coming in towards the end was also unnecessary, although the blonde guy had the best death of the movie. One of my least favorite recent trends in horror is to shoehorn in goofy comedy or memeable moments into every damn horror movie. It's like they are overcompensating for the previous grief horror boom with unnecessary comedy.

Anyways, I did enjoy the movie. It was nice to see a 90 minute horror movie that gets to the point. Some of the most gruesome gore in a mainstream horror movie in a few years as well. Ben the Chimpanzee does not fuck around here.

7/10
 
HarleyQuinn said:
Re-watched The Mothman Prophecies (2002) for like the 4th or 5th time. I'm not a big fan of Richard Gere's work to be honest but I find him pretty okay as John Klein. The plot is pretty... bare bones and doesn't really make a lot of sense when put under a microscope, the movie itself is more psychological thriller when it could've been a decent little monster movie, but Will Patton as Gordon Smallwood is a standout and I really like the chemistry between Gere/Laura Linney (the small town Sheriff).

I always feel like parts work and are great (the opening, the Will Patton stuff, the bridge scene towards the end) but especially having read the John Keel book, I keep thinking there are missed opportunities especially with such an iconic monster as The Mothman.

5.5/10 Could push for a 6/10 as there's multiple scenes I always vividly recall but it's the opposite of something like The Woman In Black which I adore and think is one of the better horror movies of the 2010s. Here it tries to be all atmosphere and doesn't lean enough into the actual horror behind the atmosphere because it tries to incorporate the Mothman mythos into a story without... revealing it at all almost as if it's scared to "be" a horror movie when it wants to be like Se7en.
Click to expand...

Have you seen the 1989 TV movie version of The Woman In Black? I do like the Radcliffe movie, but I think the original blows it away with some scenes that have stuck with me forever. The atmosphere and dread is top notch too. I also heard that the book is pretty bone chilling as well, but I haven't read it.
 
Brocklock said:
Have you seen the 1989 TV movie version of The Woman In Black? I do like the Radcliffe movie, but I think the original blows it away with some scenes that have stuck with me forever. The atmosphere and dread is top notch too. I also heard that the book is pretty bone chilling as well, but I haven't read it.
Click to expand...
I'll definitely have to check that out as I didn't even know there was a TV Movie version!
 
BTW, this isn't an "official" Faces of Death movie as much as it is something based around it. Also, I've never seen a FOD movie or any of the official and unofficial spinoffs (though I do know some of the "Traces of Death" movies had killer Death Metal soundtracks)
 
Brocklock said:
I will say both Shawn and Marlon are my least favorite part of the first two Scary Movie films. Marlon's voice he does and laugh as Shorty just grates on me. And, the barrage of gay jokes from Ray just gets exhausting. I only found two of them funny and every line from Ray is a gay joke.

Marlon has that Requiem For A Dream performance, while Shawn was uh the DJ on In Living Color that barely was in the skits.

I honestly don't think I've seen anything with Damon Wayans Jr in it. Never watched Happy Endings or New Girl or the comedy classic Let's Be Cops.
Click to expand...
Well, here's a new Scary Movie 6 Trailer for ya!

 
Gary said:
I feel like everyone who enjoys "Friday the 13th" movies has that one entry that isn't exactly the best one, but they enjoy it anyway. Part 7 is that one for me.
Click to expand...
Same. Kane just adds to much damn menace to Jason, more than anyone before or after, and he nails it out of the park right away in part 7. It also has the best makeup for Jason unmasked.
 
5 or honestly Goes To Hell is that one for me. Goes To Hell is stupid and horrible, but i love Creighton Duke and the movie has an entertaining pace. Opening scene where the FBI pull a sting operation on Jason is also hilarious. I feel the same way about Hell, that many do about Jason X. Its a campy stupid fun time.
 
Same for me with Jason Goes to Hell, it's so tonally different from the rest of the series and Creighton Duke is probably the best one-off character in the series. Plus they stocked the cast with experienced actors for the first time so there's a lot of "hey, there's that guy" appeal (Leslie Jordan, the daughter from Kate and Allie, the promoter from Rocky V, Bree's husband from Desperate Housewives). But John D. Lemay sucks as the lead.
 
Wikipedia says Tony Todd auditioned for Creighton Duke, citing the Crystal Lake Memories book which I've read but I guess I forgot about that factoid.* Probably for the best tbh. Todd might have taken the character in a darker direction but I don't know if he would have played it with as much swag as Williams.

*Crystal Lake Memories is the worst-proofread book I've ever seen. Literally hundreds of errors, spelling and grammar mistakes on every page without fail. The final paragraph of the book gets cut off at the end of the page.
 
Yeah, the lead with his letterman jacket is the weak link. Can't believe he holds his own in a fight with Jason. The gay overtones that the directors intentionally added in made it even better though. Like the weird scene where the coroner strips that dumpy middle aged cop and ties him up and starts shaving his mustache.

I love Tony Todd, but I can't imagine anyone but Stephen Williams playing the Duke. He has the coolness about him.

Also, I love Rusty Schwimmer, Leslie Jordan, and the son as that stupid hillbilly diner family.
 
Think I've mentioned this before but Part 4 was always my favorite but 2 has taken over the lead. Conversely the more I see of Part 3 the more I dislike it. The main teen characters are quite annoying. Intentionally so I would guess so it would make the kills more satisfying for the audience. The actor who plays the boyfriend of the final girl is the worst actor in the whole franchise
 
Brocklock said:
5 or honestly Goes To Hell is that one for me. Goes To Hell is stupid and horrible, but i love Creighton Duke and the movie has an entertaining pace. Opening scene where the FBI pull a sting operation on Jason is also hilarious. I feel the same way about Hell, that many do about Jason X. Its a campy stupid fun time.
Click to expand...
"Goes to Hell" is interesting to me in that I'm not exactly a fan, but I've seen it several times and would recommend it as a curio because it's undeniably the weirdest entry in the series. Compared to it, Part 7 and "Jason X" aren't all that crazy.

Part 5 is interesting in that Parts 3 and 4 have an at times playful nature to them-they're still full of sex and violence, but they are clearly made by people who want you to have fun. "Part 5" is a really mean-spirited film (the murder of the guy with the candy bar who is clearly on the spectrum) where most of the characters are assholes and/or complete exaggerations (the two rednecks). It's also one of the sleaziest entries, which makes sense once you realize the director previously directed porn and also gave the world the rape/revenge film "Savage Streets".

Big Papa Paegan said:
Same. Kane just adds to much damn menace to Jason, more than anyone before or after, and he nails it out of the park right away in part 7. It also has the best makeup for Jason unmasked.
Click to expand...
I feel like this one and Part 4 are the movies that get Jason the most-that he isn't human as much as he is a living act of ultraviolence. He's a slasher villain on steroids who is at his most menacing when he's really pissed off. Plus, the sleeping bag death is an all timer, and I love the mean girl character in it. I will say one of the biggest similarities this one, Part 5 and "Jason Goes to Hell" have in common is that they are the entries that feel like cocaine might as well have gotten a writing credit.
 
7 is middle of the pack for me, but I do like it. Tina is one of the better protagonists, her mom has a fantastic mullet, and Terry Kiser plays a great scumbag.

Speaking of Friday scumbags, the highlight of Takes Manhattan for me is the grade A asshole performance from the guy playing Charles McCullough. Shame he gets a really stupid and lame death.
 
They also make fun of the guy with the stutter in part 5 which is real shitty in retrospect. He’s laughed at when he pours his heart out to one of the girls at the retreat place.
 
strummer said:
They also make fun of the guy with the stutter in part 5 which is real shitty in retrospect. He’s laughed at when he pours his heart out to one of the girls at the retreat place.
Click to expand...
The girl who laughs at him is Juliette Cummings, who also got it in Slumber Party Massacre II.

buzzzz, buzzzz, buzzzzz
 
The kid who plays Reggie in Part V also played Dudley in the infamous "Dudley Gets Molested" episode of "Different Strokes". To think, being in the "Friday the 13th" movie from a guy who previously made porn is a more dignified role.
 
Gary said:
The kid who plays Reggie in Part V also played Dudley in the infamous "Dudley Gets Molested" episode of "Different Strokes". To think, being in the "Friday the 13th" movie from a guy who previously made porn is a more dignified role.
Click to expand...
Being a sexual molestation victim lacks dignity? Bro.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top