John’s Horror Corner: Alligator II: The Mutation (1991), a failure in the realm of huge animatronic alligator horror and the natural horror subgenre.
MY CALL: It’s just not worth it. Part 1 was great, this is awful—and not the good kind of bad. Just bad. MORE MOVIES LIKE Alligator II: Go watch Alligator (1980) and then Lake Placid (1999) instead. They’re very different kinds of pleasures! But both are a pleasure.
NATURAL HORROR SIDEBAR: Looking for more natural horror? Check out Night of the Lepus (1972), Frogs (1972), Bug (1975), Jaws (1975), Food of the Gods (1976), Grizzly (1976), Squirm (1976), Empire of the Ants (1977), Day of the Animals (1977), Orca (1977), Piranha (1978), Piranha II (1981), Of Unknown Origin (1983), Cujo (1983), Razorback (1984), Monkey Shines (1988), Slugs (1988), Gnaw: Food of the Gods II (1989), 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), Piranha 3D (2010), The Grey (2011), The Bay (2012), The Shallows (2016), 47 Meters Down (2017), Boar (2017), Crawl (2019) and The Swarm (2020).
Although purely in unflattering laughable terms, it is on the verge of infuriating that this tactlessly PG-13 movie is attached to Alligator (1980) in any way. In the world of giant alligator horror movies of the 70s-80s, Alligator (1980) is the Oscar winner and Alligator II is hardly amusing enough for a Razzy. This is no more a sequel than a line of dialogue blabbing “something like this happened before in New York.”
The alligator attack from the opening scene features a man dropping below the waist-deep water surface and thrashing as we see nothing at all. The camera alternates between guy thrashing in the water, and an underwater alligator mouth (with nothing in its mouth) chomping away at bloody water. I feel like if an episode of Miami Vice from the 80s had an alligator attack it would be just as weakly executed and just as softly presented for its TV audience. Lame. I may enjoy writing about how bad this is, but I’m already regretting my movie choice for today—and if you’ve been a John Horror Corner reader for a while, you know that’s saying a lot!
The gory highlight from the first attack scene was a one-second shot of a severed (clothed and booted) leg floating to the surface. I love me some bad movies. But let’s be clear, this sequel is far from “so bad it’s good.”
Detective David Hodges (Joseph Bologna; Transylvania 6-5000) is on the case and his wife Christine (Dee Wallace; Popcorn, The Howling, The Lords of Salem, Critters, Critters Attack!, The Hills Have Eyes) is the pathologist who informs him that the remains appear to be the product of an alligator attack in a southern California lake. Worried about the possibility of a giant sewer alligator threatening the safety of the public during a festival arranged by the mayor—yeah, this is nothing like Jaws (1975) at all—Hodges races to find this animal. The mayor enlists the help of alligator hunters from Louisiana led by Hawk (Richard Lynch; Scanner Cop, Necronomicon: Book of the Dead, Puppet Master III, Trancers II) and including a familiar face (Kane Hodder; Friday the 13th parts VII-X, Hatchet I-IV) among his goons.
Although any individual actor may be fairly holding their own under the circumstances, the pacing is sluggish and the dialogue is painful. Oh, and the alligator shots are weak—mostly full body shots in the dark at great distance of a guy in a rubber gator suit or an actual alligator, or close up shots of an animatronic tail, flank, or head. Eventually we start actually seeing more of the alligator, but it’s never satisfying. And when it starts attacking people, the attacks are slow and sort of boring. Imagine if you will a pool float slowing moving towards a victim, and once the pool float slowly touches the victim, they scream and flail in the water as if being mauled and ravaged. Yeah, it’s often like that. Even the finale when the alligator ravages a carnival… yeah, even that sucked. The violence sucks, the gore is almost entirely absent, and the alligator attacks are neutered.
One of the better death scenes in this movie can be reduced to a man yelling while treading red water until he just dips below the surface. The lead alligator hunter Hawk gets the most honorable alligator attack scene, complete with death roll while stabbing the crap out of it with a bent rubber knife. That may have been the one horror scene I truly enjoyed for its efforts.
The way they kill the alligator is pretty fun to watch—a rocket launcher blows it into chunks on screen. So sad that the build-up for the scene was a slog. But we need to celebrate the little victories as we find them, like the lower jar of an alligator spiraling through the air with other chunky bodily debris.
Director Jon Hess (Watchers) didn’t hit this one outta’ the park for us, did he? I loved Alligator (1980), yet loathed this sequel. I recommend a hard pass.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 459: Godzilla vs. Kong (2021), Monster Fights and Atomic Breath
You can download or stream 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.
Mark and Norbert (@eddiecaine on Twitter) discuss the 2021 blockbuster Godzilla vs. Kong. Directed by Adam Wingard (watch You’re Next and The Guest now!), and starring Rebecca Hall, Alexander Skarsgård, Demián Bichir, and several large monsters, the movie focuses on what happens when two titans are annoyed at each other. In this episode, they also talk about boat fights, hidden worlds, and monsters punching each other.
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). 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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Fall (2022) – Review
Quick Thoughts – Grade – B- – the $3 million budgeted Fall features a lot to be admired, however, too many twists and unnecessary drama weigh it down. It’s still worth watching because of Grace Caroline Currey and Virginia Gardner, and the clever production design by Scott Daniel.
Fall tells the story of two friends Becky (Grace Caroline Currey), and Hunter (Virginia Gardner) climbing to the top of a remote 2,000 foot-tall TV tower so they can spread the ashes of Becky’s late-husband Dan (Mason Gooding), who died during a rock climbing accident. Since it’s a survival thriller, things go horribly awry when after spreading the ashes, the ladder at the top of the tower breaks off and leaves the two stranded 2,000 feet in the air without food, water or cell service. Aside from the initial melodrama, it’s a good idea that director Scott Mann can’t quite make work. Unlike The Shallows (86 minutes), or this year’s Beast (which runs a refreshing 93 minutes), which are both lean-and-mean, Fall leans into melodrama and cringey-twists that aren’t necessary. Yes, it’s hard to stretch out a movie about two people trapped on a tower, but between the initial climb, retrieving a fallen backpack which is dangling out of reach below them, and hungry vultures, there’s enough there to sustain a movie. Watching the film made me appreciate The Shallows more because the 2016 movie starring Blake Lively builds drama by simply stranding lively’s character on a rock during low tide, and forcing her to figure out her next steps before she’s eaten by a jerky great white shark. There’s no cheating subplot (like in this year’s Shark Bait, which muddied it’s plot with too much drama), horrifying sibling death (The Reef: Stalked), or added drama (Blackwater: Abyss) that has been plaguing recent survival thrillers.
Despite there being too much drama, Fall is technically sound and a lot of that is because it was mostly shot on location in the Mojave Desert. The on location shoot adds a lot to the credibility of the film, and it genuinely does induce some queasiness when the characters get 2,000 feet in the air. The cinematography by MacGregor (Vivarium) is effective as it captures the expanse of the mojave desert while constantly letting viewers know these two characters are in a lot of trouble. It’s also cool that the same people who built the actual towers that inspired this story were the ones who built the tower for the production. There’s a lot to like here, and it would’ve been cool to see Fall in a theater because it actually tries to make audiences say “wow.” I also wanted to give props to actors Grace Caroline Currey and Virginia Gardner, who are totally believable and pull off the very physical roles with ease. It would be cool to see them in another film where they’re forced to battle the crawlers from The Descent (a classic survival horror film that I love).
Final thoughts – Fall is worth a watch because of the performances and VFX, but I just wish it ditched the drama and was confident enough to know that people being stuck 2,000 feet in the air is enough drama.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 458: Trick ‘r Treat, Werewolves, and Horror Anthologies
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Mark and John Leavengood (@MFFhorrorcorner on Twitter) discuss the 2007 horror anthology Trick ‘r Treat. Directed by Michael Dougherty, and starring Brian Cox, Anna Paquin, Dylan Baker, and some zombie children, the movie focuses on what happens when a little maniac named Sam visits a small town on Halloween. In this episode, they also talk about werewolves, chocolate puke, and cult classics. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). 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: Popcorn (1991), a surprisingly original and enjoyable wacky slasher despite its very strong Nightmare on Elm Street influences.
MY CALL: Despite all the obvious Elm Streety influences, this is a largely original and a very fun watch. More of the budget went into the masks and related gags than the death scenes, this movie’s strength seems to be the movie marathon setting itself, the silly scenes of movies within the movie, and this unique slasher’s story. Strongly recommended to fans of all walks of horror. MORE MOVIE LIKE Popcorn: If you like Elm Street sequel-esque horror, I’d definitely direct you to Prom Night II: Hello Mary Lou (1987), Prison (1987) and The Horror Show (1989).
A group of film students—including Maggie (Jill Schoelen; The Phantom of the Opera, Curse II, The Stepfather) and Cheryl (Kelly Jo Minter; A Nightmare on Elm Street 5, The Lost Boys, The People Under the Stairs)—arrange an all-night horror movie marathon to raise money for their program. Local horror memorabilia store owner Dr. Mnesyne (Ray Walston; Galaxy of Terror) volunteers his collection of props to spruce up the atmosphere. But as soon as they start decorating an old abandoned theater for the event, they discover a disturbing film allegedly made by the murderer Lanyard Gates.
Likely enjoying the Elm Street sequel mania (1985-1990), this movie features a long-forgotten killer who haunts a high schooler’s (i.e., Maggie) dreams, is all too familiar to her mother (Dee Wallace; The Howling, The Lords of Salem, Critters, Critters Attack!, The Hills Have Eyes) who of course denies any knowledge of Lanyard Gates, and a few dream-like surreal sequences that glimmer of Freddy Krueger’s feisty influence. There’s even a little musical signature that plays when Maggie senses the killer, quite similar to that of NOES 1-5.
Again, like Freddy, our horribly burnt-faced killer was the victim of a fire fifteen years ago and now wishes to take vengeance on those who caused it, and pretty much every else around, too. This killer’s thing is making masks, really good masks. Once someone has fallen prey to him, he may appear as them nearly perfectly.
Beyond the mask scenes, the most memorable scenes for me include draining the juices from a man’s head which likely inspired the movie Mosquito (1994), maybe even Starship Troopers (1997); a gross kissing gag reminded me of Society (1989); an electrocution gag that smacks hard of Shocker (1989); and a “more fun than impressive” prop impalement.
Despite all the Elm Streety Freddy-ness of this movie, this is far beyond some cheap copy. For all its obvious influences, this story is very much its own entity and seems more to homage the NOES sequel-stylings with quality execution. Much to my surprise (and a little disappointment), this movie does not thrive on death scenes and murderous gore. There are some cool gory scenes, sure. But overall, this movie’s strength seems to be its movie marathon setting (with great scenes of movies within the movie, which included special effects and death scenes), and the interesting killer, his story and his macabre masks. A lot of budget clearly went to those components, and it certainly gave Popcorn a very different vibe than most slasher movies. Very unique indeed. And more fun for it!
I’m not sure if he found his passion elsewhere or just never got another break. But I find it criminal that this is director Mark Herrier’s only feature film ever.
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MY CALL: Want to watch an awesome bad movie? This is a solid choice. This flick is fun to watch, scratches your 80s itch in just the right silly spots, and keeps good pacing with gory death scenes and butchered body parts presented scary booby traps. MORE MOVIE LIKE Intruder: There are many 80s slashers of high quality. I’d recommend the earlier half of the decade with the likes of Maniac (1980), The Prowler (1981), Madman (1981), Pieces (1982) and maaaaaybe even The Slumber Party Massacre (1982).
It’s closing time at the local supermarket and the staff—including Jennifer (Elizabeth Cox; Night of the Creeps, The Wraith), Linda (Renée Estevez; Heathers, Sleepaway Camp II), Bill (Dan Hicks; Evil Dead 2, Darkman), Randy (Sam Raimi) and the produce guy (Ted Raimi; Evil Dead 2, Shocker, Darkman, Candyman, Wishmaster, The Grudge) among others—is preparing for their night stock and inventory duties when ultra-creepy ex-boyfriend and ex-con Craig (David Byrnes; Witchcraft VII, Witchcraft IX) wanders into the grocery store and harasses Jennifer. He’s dangerous and angry and he wants her back. After a big, clunky full-staff fistfight feeling like the stuff of “the best worst movies,” Craig becomes our primary suspect for the slasher flick to come.
Despite kicking him out of the store and calling the cops, Craig continues to skulk around outside and grocery staff begin to die off one by one. As the body count rises, so does the playful occurrence of randomly displayed severed body parts throughout the store. And while I’d not call this a horror comedy, the body part presentation is amusingly zany. Cheeky even. We also enjoy a good chuckle when the killer uses a severed head as a weapon to repeatedly bludgeon another man unconscious.
The death scenes are decent for a low budget entry of the era. Happening largely onscreen with a lot of blood and latex, there’s much for a classic 80s gorehound to enjoy here. The hydraulic head smash was my second favorite death, behind the obvious show stealer when a guy’s head is buzzed in half with a table saw in gloriously gory form. The aftermath of that kill is an iconic screen grab among 80s slashers.
Directed by Scott Spiegel (Hostel Part III, From Dusk Till Dawn 2) and produced by a young Charles Band (Prison, Dolls, Parasite, Meridian, From Beyond, Doctor Mordrid, Head of the Family, Castle Freak), this slasher classic is also a who’s who of before-they-were-huge actors and filmmakers. In addition to the Raimi brothers, we enjoy brief cameos by Bruce Campbell (Moontrap, The Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2, Escape from LA) and Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead).
This flick is fun to watch, scratches your 80s itch in just the right silly spots, and keeps good pacing about itself between gory death scenes and impish macabre displays of butchered body parts set up essentially as scary booby traps. A nostalgic romp for sure… but also sort of bad. But like, the good kind of bad.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 457 (The Devil All the Time, Chicken Livers, and Robert Pattinson
You can download or stream 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.
Mark and Jonny Numb (@JonnyNumb on Twitter) discuss the 2020 drama The Devil All the Time. Directed by Antonio Campos, and starring Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Riley Keough, Bill Skarsgård, Sebastian Stan, Mia Wasikowska, Jason Clarke, Eliza Scanlen (seriously, this cast is stacked), and some delicious chicken livers, the movie focuses on multiple intertwined storylines that involves horrible people doing horrible things. In this episode, they also talk about Robert Pattinson’s accent, spider bites, and southern gothic cinema. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). 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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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 456: The Tomorrow War, Time Travel, and Chris Pratt
You can download or stream 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.
Mark and Norbert (@eddiecaine on Twitter) discuss the 2021 science fiction film The Tomorrow War. Directed by Chris McKay, and starring Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, Sam Richardson, and a jacked J.K. Simmons, the movie focuses on what happens when soldiers travel to the future to battle deadly monsters. In this episode, they also talk about snowmobiles, Miami, and creature features. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). 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: Goodnight Mommy (2022), a remake of the 2014 Austrian story of a mother scorned by her children’s distrust.
MY CALL: A solid atmospheric horror. This review may not read as positively as my experience watching it. But that is because I find the not-so-old original to be the better of the two, and see little merit to having remade it at all. Still, this is a good film that specializes in distrust and tension. MORE MOVIES LIKE Goodnight Mommy: Well, I’d recommend (and also prefer) the original Goodnight Mommy (2014). For more family therapy horror, consider Hatching (2022; aka Pahanhautoja), The Twin (2022), Relic (2020), The Dark and the Wicked (2020), The Lodge (2019), Hereditary (2018), Pyewacket (2017), The Witch (2016), Goodnight Mommy (2014), The Babadook (2014), The Uninvited (2009), The Good Son (1993), Pet Sematary (1989) and The Stepfather (1987).
Twin preteens Lukas (Nicholas Crovetti; Big Little Lies) and Elias (Cameron Crovetti; The Boys, The Grey Man) arrive to stay with their mother (Naomi Watts; The Ring 1-2, Dream House, Funny Games), who is recovering from what rather seems to be some elaborate cosmetic and/or reconstructive surgery. Unaware of this upon their arrival, young Lukas and Elias are taken aback by her full-head gauzy appearance.
For her recovery, mother has demanded some rules to keep things peaceful and restful. But among her rules were some curious limitations, like not being allowed in mother’s room or the barn. Mother is quick to scold the boys for violating her rules, and later Elias hears mother on the phone discussing something disturbing that involves him. The boys sense something suspicious is going on, and as the audience we feel that tension. Worse still, they become terrified of her, and their relationship spirals out of control.
The unnerving anxiety stems from the boys’ strengthening assumption that the woman behind the masking gauze is, in fact, not their mother at all. And they test their would-be imposter in more ways than one, some ways more subtle than others. You may find yourself rooting for the boys to prove their dark hypothesis true, while reeling at the undeniably uncomfortable sympathy one must feel for the woman who very well may be their scorned and so readily discarded mother.
An issue I have with this remake is the same as that of the original. I fear that a keen viewer (even without seeing the original) will swiftly predict what’s wrong (i.e., the big twist, the mystery, etc.) in less than 10 minutes of screen time. I could spiral into an essay on ways this movie’s twist can be accomplished more effectively, but any vague explanation or even the movies to which I’d compare it would surely give away the thinly veiled mystery. And make no mistake, I’m not saying everyone will see through it as I did. In fact, if you don’t, you’d likely enjoy the movie even more. And I did enjoy watching this. Yet another issue I have is that, while not bad, I find the ending of this remake inferior—whereas the original finale cut me deeply, this remake’s ending falls flat. It’s as if they decided the original was too intense, so they watered it down… a lot.
Despite all my criticism, overall this was an enjoyable watch and a well-made film. It somewhat pains me that this was only remade to appease those who don’t care for the subtitles of the superior original film. Yet I must admit that reading subtitles during a more plotty horror-drama can take the viewer out of the experience significantly, and dubbing can likewise seem jarringly off-kilter. But still, it was generally well-produced and well-acted.
Moreover the atmosphere was steadily tense. And a film like this is all about that uneasy atmosphere. I’d consider this a strong success for director Matt Sobel (Brand New Cherry Flavor).
REMAKE/REIMAGINING/REBOOT SIDEBAR: Oddly enough, this is Naomi Watts’ third horror remake—after The Ring (2002) and Funny Games (2007).
For more horror remakes, I strongly favor the following: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), An American Werewolf in London (1981), The Thing (1982), The Fly (1986), The Blob (1988), The Mummy (1999), The Ring (2002), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), Dawn of the Dead (2004), The Hills Have Eyes (2006), Mirrors (2008), Friday the 13th (2009), Piranha 3D (2010), Let Me In (2010), Evil Dead (2013), Carrie (2013), The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014), It (2017), Suspiria (2018) and Child’s Play (2019).
Those to avoid include Body Snatchers (1993; the second remake), Japanese Hell (1999), War of the Worlds (2005), The Invasion (2007; the third remake), Prom Night (2008), Night of the Demons (2009), Sorority Row (2009), Patrick: Evil Awakens (2013), Poltergeist (2015), Martyrs (2015), Cabin Fever (2016), Unhinged (2017), The Mummy (2017) and Wrong Turn (2021).
I’m on the fence about An American Werewolf in Paris (1997), The Grudge (2004), Pulse (2006), Halloween (2007), The Uninvited (2009), It’s Alive (2009), My Bloody Valentine (2009), A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010), Fright Night (2011), The Thing (2011; a prequel/requel/remake), Maniac (2012), Rabid (2019), Pet Sematary (2019), Castle Freak (2020) and Slumber Party Massacre (2021), which range from bad to so-so (when judged as remakes) but still are entertaining movies on their own.
For what it’s worth, I also enjoyed the recent “requels” of Scream (2022) and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022).
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 455: Empire Records, Rex Manning, and Movie Soundtracks
You can download or stream 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.
Mark and Erik and discuss the 1995 cult classic Empire Records. Directed by Allan Moyle, and starring Liv Tyler, Ethan Embry and Renée Zellweger, the movie focuses on the shenanigans that occur at a bustling record store. In this episode, they also talk about Rex Manning, excellent store managers, and why this film has become such a beloved cult classic. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
You can download the pod on Apple Podcasts, Tune In, Podbean, or Spreaker.
Movies, Films & Flix 