MY CALL: Exactly what an 80s sequel to a 70s classic should be: much more gory and zany. Good gore, not scary at all but very fun horror, and with cool visuals of giant rats. Why… what were you expecting? MORE MOVIES LIKE Food of the Gods II: Looking for more natural horror? Food of the Gods (1976), of course! But also check out Night of the Lepus (1972), Frogs (1972), Bug (1975), Jaws (1975), Grizzly (1976), Squirm (1976), Empire of the Ants (1977), Day of the Animals (1977), Orca (1977), Piranha (1978), Alligator (1980), Of Unknown Origin (1983), Cujo (1983), Razorback (1984), Monkey Shines (1988), Slugs (1988), Shakma (1990), Arachnophobia (1990), Ticks (1993), Mosquito (1994), The Ghost in the Darkness (1996), Anaconda (1997), Lake Placid (1999), Rogue (2007), Pig Hunt (2008), Chaw (2009), The Grey (2011), The Bay (2012), The Shallows (2016), 47 Meters Down (2017), Boar (2017) and Crawl (2019).
A scientist with an adorable pet white rat, Neil (Paul Coufos; Chopping Mall) specializes in experimental growth hormones. When a child receives an experimental treatment and becomes a highly aggressive giant kid, Neil is summoned for help.
Whereas part 1 (1976) honed its more thoughtfully-delivered allegory on our mistreatment of the planet, this sequel has a lot to say about the mistreatment of animals at testing facilities but gets lost in its own message as the “messengers” are inadmirably behaving more carelessly themselves than those they accuse. In this case, it’s the criminal behavior of the animal rights activists that create the problem when they vandalize the laboratory and release the growth hormone-exposed rats. Because what could go wrong, right?
The gore is solid and the giant rat attacks have improved their bite a bit since part 1. When we see the first victim’s half-eaten face, you know you’re in for something good. These rats are biting off faces and ripping off arms, leaving numerous chunky fleshy corpses in their wake. This movie offers way more gore shots than its predecessor, including a melty gooey pulsating “super cancer” death (a lot like Stripe’s death in Gremlins).
There are some quirky characters, too. We enjoy a Dirty Harry-wannabe rat exterminator and a college dean who follows the playbook of the worst mayor in movie history. The dean wants to keep everything quiet because of the upcoming grand opening of the pool—which, of course, reminds us of Jaws (1975) and Piranha (1978). But why is it that the police are literally taking orders from the dean!?!?!
The pool massacre is the grand finale. We see giant swimming rats, severed limbs sinking in the deep end, and all manner of panic. There’s also a particularly deep-cut scene involving the white rat and Neil’s girlfriend Alex (Lisa Schrage; Prom Night II).
Pretty fun movie and a solid example of fun, gory 80s horror. I think I like it a bit more than part 1, but both are good in their own ways; one the more classic and delivering a stronger message, the other the more gory-campy and sort of carrying a good message.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast #279: Galaxy Quest, Pig Lizards and Never Surrendering
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Never give up, never surrender! Galaxy Quest is an underappreciated science fiction film that plays like an episode of Star Trek met Three Amigos!, and spawned a totally unique experience. Directed by Dean Parisot, and starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Sam Rockwell and a plethora of excellent actors, Galaxy Quest has aged beautifully and it was a blast discussing it. In this episode, we discuss pig lizards, rock monsters and the fun documentary Never Surrender: A Galaxy Quest Documentary.
If you are a fan of the podcast make sure to send in some random listener questions so we can do our best to not answer them correctly. We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean,or Spreaker.
If you get a chance please make sure to review, rate and share. You are awesome!
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John’s Horror Corner: Food of the Gods (1976), the classic, allegory-rich natural horror about man-eating giant rats.
MY CALL: An allegory and action-rich H. G. Wells adaptation done right. This movie marks a positive turn for natural and giant animal horror. MORE MOVIES LIKE Food of the Gods: Looking for more natural horror? Well, there’s Food of the Gods II (1989). But also check out Night of the Lepus (1972), Frogs (1972), Bug (1975), Jaws (1975), Grizzly (1976), Squirm (1976), Empire of the Ants (1977), Day of the Animals (1977), Orca (1977), Piranha (1978), Alligator (1980), Of Unknown Origin (1983), Cujo (1983), Razorback (1984), Monkey Shines (1988), Slugs (1988), Shakma (1990), Arachnophobia (1990), Ticks (1993), Mosquito (1994), The Ghost in the Darkness (1996), Anaconda (1997), Lake Placid (1999), Rogue (2007), Pig Hunt (2008), Chaw (2009), The Grey (2011), The Bay (2012), The Shallows (2016), 47 Meters Down (2017), Boar (2017) and Crawl (2019).
From its opening narration, this film’s allegory is abundantly clear—the day will come when nature will find revenge against man for all the pollution he has inflicted upon the Earth. Seeking a quiet retreat to the wilderness, Morgan (Marjoe Gortner; Starcrash, Mausoleum) ventures to a remote Canadian island to discover such natural revenge firsthand.
We are introduced to giant animals almost immediately when Morgan’s friend is attacked by a giant tarantula hawk (or spider-wasp) which gives him some intensely fatal anaphylactic shock. The flying wasps are easily the worst visual effect of the movie—hazy rotoscoped wasp silhouettes awkwardly pivoting in the air—but I got a nice chuckle out of it. Not seeing the cause of the injuries, Morgan approaches a cabin for help only to be ambushed by a 7’ tall chicken!
After the comical event, a local (Ida Lupino; The Devil’s Rain) explains to Morgan that Mr. Skinner (John McLiam) is behind a special nutrient that creates these giant animals, and that it’s all deliberate in an effort to “solve world hunger” with giant livestock. I guess no one realized that creating giant animals would actually require giant amounts of food… since whatever molecular matter that forms giant animals doesn’t form via magic!
From here we get more high-quality (for the 70s) rubber monster shenanigans. A woman is “attacked” by flesh-eating giant caterpillars. Really, she just sees them on her bloody arm and shakes around a bit. It’s hokey and I certainly giggled at the effort. But when it comes to the rats the effects vary wildly.
Approaching shots depict actual mice in natural settings perhaps climbing on a model car or split-screened beside actors to make it seem giant. But the attack shots will show giant rat heads biting at screaming, blood-covered actors as they tear them apart. I may not have been impressed but… it’s fun to watch. If only this was made ten years later the gore would’ve been off the charts. Here, it’s rather tame.
The attacks are pretty bloody but boast little latex wound work. But watching those big hokey rat heads attacking the actors from off-screen (where you don’t see their bodies) is entertaining enough. Oddly, amid all the action, there is an actual on-screen birth scene.
Based on the H. G. Wells story, director and writer (of this adaptation) Bert I. Gordon (Empire of the Ants, Necromancy) did alright! The pacing is quick enough, there are a lot of action scenes, and the concept is cool. Those giant rat attack scenes were surprisingly satisfying. Even today I find this movie pretty entertaining. So if you enjoy the classics, I’d recommend this.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast #278: Elle, Paul Verhoeven Movies, and Genre-Defying Cinema
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The MFF podcast is back, and this week we’re talking about the fantastic 2016 film Elle. Directed by Paul Verhoeven (Robocop, Starship Troopers, Hollow Man), and based on a novel by Philippe Dijan, Elle doesn’t go where you’d expect (it’s a Verhoeven film) and it takes you on an occasionally brutal and frank journey. The highlight of Elle, is the excellent performance from Isabelle Huppert, who won a Golden Globe, and was nominated for an Academy Award for her excellent lead performance. In this episode, we discuss genre-defying cinema, cats, and attempt to market this film in weird ways.
If you are a fan of the podcast make sure to send in some random listener questions so we can do our best to not answer them correctly. We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean,or Spreaker.
If you get a chance please make sure to review, rate and share. You are awesome!
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MY CALL: Cold, harrowing and smartly written. Strongly recommended for those who have the stomach for emotionally challenging horror. MORE MOVIES LIKE The Lodge: Looking for more horrifying family therapy sessions, try Frailty (2001), The Babadook (2014), Goodnight Mommy (2014), The Visit (2015), Get Out (2017), Us (2019), Hereditary (2918) or Midsommar (2019).
From the most casual introduction, soon-to-be stepmother Grace’s relationship with Mia and Aidan is strained and awkward, even if not in an unkind way. The kids are conflicted in seeing their mother being replaced and see Grace as the reason for this. So Grace (Riley Keough; It Comes at Night, The House Jack Built, Hold the Dark) treads lightly and does her best to get involved, and their father plays a guiding hand in their integration. Even when Grace is alone with the kids, she feels alone, alienated, dejected. But when an act of kindness finally shines through, it’s warm and welcomed and even feels like a relief from all the tension. That won’t last long…
The winter scenes are gorgeous and crisply shot, but also as bleak at the atmosphere in the house. Alone with Richard’s (Richard Armitage; Castlevania, Hannibal) kids, they lose power and find themselves stranded at the family cabin amid a snowy winter. As you’d expect, tension mounts.
Though not to such emotionally brutal degree as Hereditary (2918) or Midsommar (2019), this film presents its survivors with a challenging loss in the family (Alicia Silverstone; The Crush). Wow, that suicide scene was shocking!
Austrian co-writers and directors Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz (The Field Guide to Evil, Goodnight Mommy) approach their third horrific endeavor together. And much as in their past films, they sow distrust and weaponize domestic dread.
This whole thing goes places I did not expect. I’m not sure how much I like its direction, but the character writing along the way makes it all worthwhile. Self-abuse, grief, paranoia and guilt are the operative themes toying with the audience as we weigh supernatural, religious or psychological explanations for what transpires.
Really, you’ll feel your heart and soul sink to the depths of your bowels as the final act unfolds. It’s a fearsome gut punch, and it is harrowing. You feel… hopeless. It’s just… sick. Not gory, not physically brutal, but sick. Yet, in reflecting on some of the harsh hands life deals out to those unprepared to cope with them, you almost understand the dreadful web that’s spun and its horrific result, even if only by understanding our own desperate frailty.
Strongly recommended for those who have the stomach for emotionally challenging horror. For a second (and also positive) appraisal, please check out Mark’s review as well.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast #277: From Toy Story to Onward – Ranking All the Pixar Movies
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean, or Spreaker (or wherever you listen to podcasts…..we’re almost everywhere).
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The MFF podcast is back, and this week we’re ranking all the Pixar movies. We asked over thirty movie critics/lovers to rank the 22 films released since 1995, and we’re pretty sure the results are perfect. In this episode, we discuss the excellence of Wall-E, the unfairly maligned Cars franchise, and the greatness of Laika movies (it’s off-topic, but they’re great). Enjoy! Let us know your favorite Pixar movies in the comments.
If you are a fan of the podcast make sure to send in some random listener questions so we can do our best to not answer them correctly. We thank you for listening and hope you enjoy the episode!
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean,or Spreaker.
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John’s Horror Corner: The Last Winter (2006), a dark mystical arctic horror practicing style over substance.
MY CALL: This film relies on mystique far above revelations, and operates at a rather slow but intriguing pace. If you are one to often complain about pacing and/or lack of explanations in horror movies, this is probably not for you. MORE MOVIES LIKE The Last Winter: Looking for more slowburn, creepy, Lovecraft-adjacent horror? Then go for Black Mountain Side (2014). If you want more arctic horror, check out The Thing (1982), Blood Glacier (2013), Devil’s Pass (2013), Frozen (2010) and maybe even The Grey (2011).
Arriving to join his corporate drilling team at a National Wildlife Refuge during an oddly warm Alaskan winter, Ed (Ron Perlman; Skin Trade, Pacific Rim, Hellboy, Cronos) joins Abby (Connie Britton; A Nightmare on Elm Street), Motor (Kevin Corrigan; Winter’s Tale, Hit and Run), Maxwell (Zach Gilford; The Purge: Anarchy, Devil’s Due), Elliot (Jamie Harrold), and environmentalist watchdog James Hoffman (James Le Gros; Phantasm II, Near Dark).
The rookie team member is especially curious about “the box” marking an old drilling site from a previous operation. What’s under it? It’s not long until a team member begins to mentally crack, raving about “a force” resisting them like nature might fight a disease, and soon someone is found dead… naked and frozen in the tundra… near the box. Of course, the situation continues to worsen.
People go crazy (like really crazy) and their numbers dwindle. Friends are lost and enemies become friends when survival is at stake. One hypothesis of the erratic psychological degeneration is the possible exposure to natural gases (unearthed during drilling) inducing psychoses and hallucinations.
This film was very well-made and generally well-written and acted. The design and shots of the work compound smacks of The Thing (1982). An intriguing mystery along with gorgeous photography of the Alaskan arctiscape and excellent sweeping camera work kept my attention away from the slower pacing.
With this isolated arctic horror, director Larry Fessenden (Habit, Wendigo) illustrates the perils of the remote icy wilderness with a bit of commentary on global warming. For much of the movie, we wonder if this is a Wendigo movie, a psychological thriller, or something else entirely. Only in the very end does it reveal its nature, and with very little explanation.
The general paucity of exposition will turn off many viewers. Not that everything need be explained, but here practically nothing is. This is one of those movies where not much happens (i.e., on-screen), but I like it anyway. For this reason, it pairs well with Black Mountain Side (2014) and is told in similar style.
This film relies on mystique far above revelations, and operates at a rather slow but intriguing pace. If you are one to often complain about pacing and/or lack of explanations in horror movies, this is probably not for you.
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MY CALL: This just wasn’t for me—not enough “effective” gore, not funny enough, not slapstick enough, not smart enough… just not enough of anything really. But it’s tone and style are easily something to be desired by many who enjoy highly quirky horror comedy. MORE MOVIES LIKE Patchwork: Looking for more movies about mad scientists surgically grafting patients together without their consent, consider The Human Centipede (2009), Frankenhooker (1990) and The Thing with Two Heads (1972). For a newer movie capturing the same desired tone, I’d suggest Bad Blood (2016).
Upon awakening after their abduction and surgery, Jennifer (Tory Stolper), Ellie (Tracey Fairaway) and Madeleine (Maria Blasucci) discover all three of their minds (and only some of their individual body parts) have been combined into a single stitchwork horror of a body; a Frankensteinian monster. And with each mind controlling her respective limbs, some cooperation must be mustered as she (or they) stumbles down corridors like a freshly animated Pinocchio; only more macabre, twitchy and zombie-like. These early locomotory scenes liken much to the stumblings of Frankenhooker (1990).
In trying to solve their shared problem (i.e., how to be reassembled and made normal and whole again), the three women’s minds have conversations “in person” like a group theatrical aside. Although it adds little to the greater story, we get to see how each of the three women spent their evening the night of their abduction. Over the course of the movie, each girl takes revenge on some of those who wronged them on their abduction night, but not against the actual abductors. As they take their revenge, it seems like this is supposed to feel brutal or intense or at the very least wildly slapstick… but if so, I’d say it failed in this measure. But I’ll give it this, this movie has a feisty personality. That impish style (and its execution) just wasn’t enough for me on its own to make this movie worthwhile for me.
The fraternity massacre was meant to be stylish, but for me it just didn’t amuse at all—I need more/better gore. But speaking of feisty, the romantic flirty scene and subsequent sex scene were probably the highlight of the movie. I feel this part best embraced the tone this movie was hoping to achieve. On the other hand, the eating scenes were disappointingly just too childishly executed for me to care.
Still other aspects brought appreciated favor to my attention. Sounds of sticky, air-coagulated blood and visuals of crudely sutured patches of skin are always a pleasure when done well. There was a charming little Muppet of an “owl-cat.” And the idiosyncratic mad scientists and green glowing liquids in laboratory glassware remind me of Re-Animator (1985), and even Bad Blood (2016).
Director Tyler MacIntyre (Tragedy Girls) tries to do a lot with this quirky little movie, but little of it really worked for me—at least, not enough for me to recommend it. The violence was too soft (with little to nothing actually transpiring directly on screen), the character writing was decent but uncompelling, the comedy never really did it for me beyond a few choice moments, and overall I think this struggled to grasp its own desired tone successfully. But, to be fair, a much more favorable review can be enjoyed in the Movies, Films & Flix podcast #267: Patchwork, Cult Classics and Unhelpful Owls. So to make a completely informed decision as to whether or not this is for you (with some spoilers), you should check out the podcast.
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You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean, or Spreaker (or wherever you listen to podcasts…..we’re almost everywhere).
If you get a chance please make sure to review, rate and share. You are awesome!
The MFF podcast is back, and this week we’re joined by Zanandi Botes (Read her work at Cracked and Bunny Ears – It’s excellent) to discuss the excellent 2019 film Doctor Sleep. Directed by Mike Flanagan (Gerald’s Game, Hush, Oculus), and starring Ewan McGregor and Rebecca Ferguson, this adaptation of Stephen King’s 2013 sequel to The Shining, was critically adored, but it annoyingly underperformed at the box office (not cool, it’s so good). In this episode, we’re giving it the love it deserves, and discussing magic hats, eating fear, and consuming souls. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast make sure to send in some random listener questions so we can do our best to not answer them correctly. We thank you for listening and hope you enjoy the episode!
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean,or Spreaker.
If you get a chance please make sure to review, rate and share. You are awesome!
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John’s Horror Corner: Piranha (1978), Joe Dante’s feisty and gory little creature feature is a blast from the 70s!
MY CALL: Pretty gory and fast-paced for the 70s! This movie goes to great effort to provide a lot of effects scenes. A strong recommendation to fans of creature features and perhaps shark movies. MORE MOVIES LIKE Piranha: Looking for more piranha creature features? Then don’t miss Piranha II: The Spawning (1981), Piranha 3D (2010) or Piranha 3DD (2012). Additional fun diminutive-turned-mutant creature features include Ticks (1993) and Mosquito (1994).
The opening scenes and shots reveal a lot to the audience. Firstly, the atmospheric, misty, full moon hike sets the kind of mood that earned director Joe Dante (Burying the Ex) the right to helm The Howling (1981). Secondly, when our hikers decide to take a midnight swim in a reservoir, the revelation of the danger in the water takes quite a feisty yet still deadly menacing tone, perhaps dawning Dante’s more playful style that would be mastered for Gremlins (1984). These traits convince me I’m in for something good…
Woodsy local Paul (Bradford Dillman; Escape from the Planet of the Apes, The Swarm) reluctantly teams up with missing persons investigator Maggie (Heather Menzies-Urich; Sssssss, Endangered Species) to find our recently disappeared fish-food victims from the opening scene.
Early in their investigation, the laboratory scene offers some great set design—I love a good laboratory set (e.g., The Vineyard, Bad Blood, Victor Frankenstein). Watch out for a completely unexplained, awesome Claymation fishman-homunculus skulking about behind the specimen jars of fish and mutant fish, illustrative of a history of strange genetic experiments in that fish hatchery reservoir. Maggie’s snooping reveals the control lever to drain the reservoir. Arriving and immediately in a panic, Dr. Hoak (Kevin McCarthy; Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Ghoulies go to College, Dark Tower) tries to stop them, but it’s too late. They drained it all into the nearby river… along with his piranhas!
The first signs of gore include the flesh-stripped feet (with some chunky fleshy remains) of someone who dipped his feet in the river off his dock. Most gore is presented post-attack, with the attacks themselves being chaotic and too difficult to tell exactly what’s happening beyond the bloody wake of their thrashing. But the visuals of the attacks remain appealing as we see rapid cuts of fish flailing and darting at their fleshy targets squirming in the water and, in one case, swarming a sinking victim as she is eaten alive. That was a particularly cool shot given the effects limitations of the 70s.
Now with this aquatic menace released in the river, they make their way to the nearby summer resort’s lake (ran by Dick Miller; Gremlins, The Terminator, Chopping Mall) brimming with kids at summer camp and vacationers. We get a large-scale attack on the resort, but it’s nothing particularly gory at first (although, maybe gory for the 70s). If you want a full-tilt gorefest, then you want the remake/reimagining Piranha 3D (2010) or Piranha 3DD (2012). Here we have a lot of chummy water, heavily nibbled-up cadavers, and lots of screaming vacationers coming ashore (and some of them) with covered in wounds and blood.
The movie ends with some commentary on our world’s cover-up nature, distrust of the military, and hints that the ocean is the next step for our voracious piranhas.
No surprise here, but director Joe Dante’s 1978 classic remains solidly entertaining for me even today. This stands strong in its 70s gore along with Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) and Dawn of the Dead (1978). This movie is faster paced than most 70s horror and goes to great effort to provide a lot of effects scenes. A strong recommendation to fans of creature features and perhaps shark movies.
Movies, Films & Flix 