John’s Horror Corner: Fried Barry (2020), a highly quirky, South African indie Sci-Horror about a weird alien abduction.
MY CALL: This film is a very weird take on an alien abduction movie. It’s zany, but not as zany as the trailer suggested to me. Still an interesting watch. MORE MOVIES LIKE Fried Barry: For more bizarre movies about aliens in human suits, try Xtro (1983), The Hidden (1987), The Borrower (1989) or Under the Skin (2013).
When I started this film, after reading its provocative description, I was hoping for the next Greasy Strangler (2016) meets The Hidden (1987); something slapstick over-the-top yet thoughtfully crafted in the gory, hilarious musings of brilliant insanity. As it turns out, if what I was expecting would be dialed up at an “11”, this was probably at about a “7.” Still zany, but not off-the-wall nuttiness.
A drug addict and abusive family man, Barry (Gary Green) is abducted by aliens—or, more accurately, his body becomes occupied and controlled by an alien. Now driving Barry’s body, this alien curiously and awkwardly observes late night in Cape Town. He stares inquisitively at shady transactions and dude-bros talking crap about women, partakes in recreational drug use and the club scene, and then this alien impregnates a prostitute who instantly expands and gives birth. There’s also a wild chainsaw scene.
For such a moderate budget, this film does everything it can to get a little wild. Director and co-writer Ryan Kruger (music videos and short films) fares well with his first feature film. Coming from a background of short films and music videos, his wide-angle street and city shots feel very indie. However, his close-quarters and montage-edited drug imagery are finely crafted, lit and colored. The music video DNA is strong, but it serves the film well stylistically despite an apparently humble budget.
This film tries to embrace both zaniness and learned humanity. By my viewing experience, I’d say this film needed to go full-tilt bonkers and leave most of the humanity behind, or focus more on the discovery of humanity altogether. Instead, it tried to do both, and it really didn’t feel that this movie captured a single identity as a result. Truth be told, this was an interesting watch, but far from the bonkers entertainment value for which I had hoped.
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MY CALL: This horror comedy definitely has some fun with its source material, gender-centric horror tropes, and the very premise of the franchise. No, it’s nothing special. But it’s entertaining enough for at least one viewing if you enjoyed any of the franchise predecessors. MORE MOVIES LIKE Slumber Party Massacre: In terms of the goals of the writer and director, this reminds me of The Final Girls (2015)—a good film. If you want to go see where this franchise got started, visit The Slumber Party Massacre (1982) and Slumber Party Massacre II (1987).
In 1993, Trish’s friends were slaughtered by the driller killer at their cabin by the lake. Now a mother, Trish (Schelaine Bennett; Monster Hunter) sees her daughter off for a girls’ weekend in a remote cabin by the lake. Trish was the name of the main character hosting the slumber party in The Slumber Party Massacre (1982).
Almost 30 years later, young Dana (Hannah Gonera; Spell), Maeve (Frances Sholto-Douglas; Black Mirror), Alix (Mila Rayne), Ashley (Reze-Tiana Wessels) and Breanie (Alex McGregor; Blood Drive) plan a slumber party. But there’s a fun spin on this remake: they’re setting a trap for the driller killer to put an end to him for good!
REMAKE/REIMAGINING/REBOOT SIDEBAR: 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), 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), Halloween (2007), 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) and Castle Freak (2020), which range from bad to so-so (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).
In the spirit of the franchise, this was written (Suzanne Keilly; Ash vs Evil Dead, Leprechaun Returns) and directed (Danishka Esterhazy; The Banana Splits) by women. Not that anything about this franchise would lead us to expect more, but the writing for this remake… isn’t the best. I’d put the original above it. However, in terms of visual effects, gore, and on-screen death scene quality, this is a welcomed improvement to its very low budget source material.
The real success of this remake is that, unlike parts 1-2, this actually seems to have captured the slasher parody atmosphere. For a little history, it was the intention of 1982’s script to be a parody, but this idea was squashed by the producers who insisted it be “serious.” The girls are here to kill the killer, the guys in the cabin across the lake literally have a topless slow-motion pillow fight, the killer always has a comically exaggerated side-faced glare, a guy trips over a rock and helplessly crawls from the killer, a man is literally named “Guy Two” and referred as such in the dialogue, toxic masculinity is practically a character in this movie, and there is a shower scene… of a dude. I enjoyed the silliness and commentary of the slasher subgenre.
The gore is decent enough. Drilled eye sockets spew blood, all that fun stuff. As honoraria to the franchise, the killer’s drill itself is a good replica of 1982’s killer, a guitar in the cabin seems just like 1987’s, and the killer is acted with more convincing weirdo demeanor.
The movie comes to a rather unexpected turn in the third act, followed by a pretty fun and satisfying finale… even if I wasn’t wowed by the movie, that should be acknowledged. Still, a fun watch for me having recently revisited the franchise.
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John’s Horror Corner: Pieces (1982; aka Mil gritos tiene la noche), a campy, bloody slasher classic from Spain.
MY CALL: A campy 80s slasher classic that douses the screen in boobs and blood as well as a feisty who-done-it mystery to fill in the gaps between the guts. Strong recommendation for fans of early era slashers. MORE MOVIES LIKE Pieces: For more lower budget early 80s slashers, consider Maniac (1980), The Prowler (1981), Madman (1981), or maybe The Slumber Party Massacre (1982).
Director Juan Piquer Simón (Slugs, The Rift, Cthulhu Mansion) has made some pretty fun, campy, gory movies—and this is likely his most favored work. From scene one, this mean slasher classic is pulling no punches as a blood-covered boy with a love for puzzles and the female form brings an ax to his mother’s head for some bloody on-screen impact. Cut to 40 years later on a college campus and the killer is still up to some decapitating shenanigans as he chainsaws a co-ed’s head off in broad daylight. All this in the first 10 minutes of the film cultivates much promise for gorehounds.
After some gruesome incidents, anatomy professor Brown (Jack Taylor; The Ninth Gate, Conan the Barbarian) is consulted at crime scenes and undercover cop Mary Riggs (Lynda Day George; Beyond Evil, Mortuary) scours the campus on the case with a maniac on the loose with a taste for naked girls. The over-sized gardener Willard (Paul L. Smith; Dune, Red Sonja, Gor) is highly suspicious and always seems to be near the crime scenes right after the murders. Equally suspicious is Kendall (Ian Sera; Extra Terrestrial Visitors), a college student who seems to be systematically sleeping with all the women on campus. The accusations are frequent, frivolous, and even a bit feisty.
Our masked killer’s Leatherface influence is worn on his sleeve as he murders a college skinny dipper and leaves her in a bloody chopped-up poolside pile, but less one body part. The killer claims different parts of each victim. We see head and limb bloodily separated from their bodies via chainsaw, an on-screen rarity for a low budget early 80s movie. And for those who care, there is a lot of nudity, which is actually somewhat linked to our killer’s piecemeal motive. The macabre highlight is the discovery of the severed torso of a girl, doused in blood and entrails dumped out on the floor. There is even a decomposing stitched-up Frankenstein girl formed from all the stolen body parts and an utterly ridiculous crotch-ripping closing shot just for funsies.
This movie is very basic and its budget is humble. But it’s pacing, on-screen action and gore make it more than engaging enough. As a fan of the era, I rather enjoyed it. I hadn’t seen it in at least 20 years, yet it held up well for me. For context, it’s not as good (of a ‘film’) or intense as the likes of Maniac (1980) or Madman (1981), but far better than The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)… in my opinion, at least.
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John’s Horror Corner: Fresh (2022), a charming relationship movie turning into medical horror-LITE.
MY CALL: An excellent choice for people who don’t like horror, yet still very enjoyable for this horror fan—probably because I also enjoy RomComs.
Delightful! The first scene of this film is outstandingly written as we meet Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones; War of the Worlds) on a nightmare of a one-and-done first date. It’s simultaneously hilarious in being too real and mildly farcical of modern dating. I don’t claim to understand what it’s like in the Dating App world as a woman today. But this feels like a pretty on-point representation. Dear lord, I don’t miss dating! Thankfully, Noa’s post-date meet-cute with Steve (Sebastian Stan; Pam and Tommy, I, Tonya, The Covenant, The Apparition) in the grocery store is awkwardly sweet and kindly grounded. This more readily feels like the opening for a smartly written, quick-witted HBO RomCom series than a horror movie right now. Nothing about their first date is smooth. Its charm is steeped in refreshingly humanized clunkiness; the sincerest of flawed moments that draw us closer to one another.
But fret not, horror fans, this takes a cold hard turn right quick, and we wander into some kind of kidnapping, medical horror, polite-and-charming Hannibal Lector situation. I say medical horror and you might think of American Mary (2012). Relationship horror? Honeymoon (2014), Let Me In (2010) or Thirst (2009) likely spring to mind. But this film is nothing of the sort.
The scoring and soundtrack are energized and really keep this film light despite its darker nature. Complementing the film’s oddly positive energy is the cast (incl. Jojo T. Gibbs)—everyone does a great job! Edgar-Jones plays the frustrated, angsty dater and likewise handles horror situations excellently, and Stan is a pleasure as her idiosyncratic counterpart.
This film is very linear and far from confusing, yet… I found myself often shocked by the next logical step. I guess I kept expecting to have the rug pulled out from under me, and it just never happened. Not a bad thing. Just… I was very shocked by how unshocking it was. Practically goreless, not mean… it’s actually a rather compassionate tone for the genre. Tender even. And the dance scenes—yes, scenes, plural—transcend into this weird sweetness that makes you want to grab your love and slow dance in the living room.
I don’t want to spoil what this is about, and it’s hard. But the reveal is just a pleasure. What’s important to note is that I’m a hardcore brutal gore fan, yet I managed to truly enjoy this very ungory, horror-LITE, relationship horror. It’s great for those who generally don’t like horror for its meanness or gore or inane premises. And like I said, there’s dancing scenes! Not just dancing. But, rather unexpectedly, there are some lovely food and dining scenes—like Chef’s Table lovely. Watching this movie truly made me hungry.
Director Mimi Cave approaches her first feature film and spins the horror genre in a fresh new direction. The closing 30 minutes were very satisfying. Again, good energy to this film. Overall a highly entertaining light thriller that should be great for people who don’t like horror.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 419: Grosse Pointe Blank, Hallway Fights and Assassin Unions
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Mark and Niall discuss the 1997 cult classic comedy Grosse Pointe Blank. Directed by George Armitage, and starring John Cusack, Minnie Driver, and Dan Akroyd, the movie focuses on what happens when a hitman returns home for his high school reunion. In this episode, they talk about John Cusack, movie soundtracks, and potential assassin unions. 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!
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Jackass Forever (2022) – Review: A Worthy Sequel That Features a Healthy Dose of Laughs, Camaraderie, and Concussions
Quick Thoughts – Grade – B – Jackass Forever doesn’t match the comedic heights of Jackass: The Movie, Jackass Number Two, or Jackass 3D, but, after 20+ years, hundreds of stunts, and a new cast, it’s still surprisingly fresh and fun. The reunion of maniacs never feels like a nostalgic cash grab, and it’s admirable the lengths the cast and crew go to make people smile.
A couple months ago, I was tasked with rewatching the Jackass movie franchise so I could pull fun stats and research for a Jackass quiz with Johnny Knoxville (It’s a beautiful interview, Fandom crushed it). The rewatch reminded me why I love the franchise so much. What makes the movies work so well are the camaraderie and chemistry between the jackasses who step in front of rampaging bulls to get a laugh. It’s also nice that they don’t seem to love the pain and punishment that come from bungee wedgies, or skateboarding into walls. They hurt themselves against their better judgment, and the laughs come from the reactions of their peers who can’t believe they just saw a snapping turtle latch onto someone’s butt cheek. A great example of a skit getting laughs is the High Five prank in Jackass 3D. Knoxville helped set up a gigantic hand that levels his unsuspecting friends when they’re walking through the production office. The best part of the prank is the laughter (86 total seconds) that comes from the prank perpetrators and people who got pranked. There’s something refreshing about watching Bam Margera laugh hysterically while almost every inch of his body is covered with flour.
Jackass Forever lacks the surprise and chemistry of the past films, but it still features welcome comradery and laughs. I did find myself missing Ryan Dunn, who died in 2011, and Bam Margera who reportedly couldn’t get sober for the shoot. The two best friends were experts at getting hurt, and I missed the chemistry they had with the rest of the group. The new additions Rachel Wolfson (my favorite new addition), Zach Holmes, Eric Manaka, Jasper Dolphin and Sean “Poopies” McInerny (who got bit by a shark during a Shark Week Jackass gag), blend in well, and despite some hero worship, they step up and get knocked down with the best of them. The best stunts featuring the new crew are The Quiet Game, which features Wolfson and Poopies being totally silent while licking stun guns or getting bit by snakes, and The Dum Dum Game that features Poopies getting hit in the balls multiple time with a devilish device that pulverizes him when he gets a trivia answer wrong.
Many of the original stars have their moments to shine as well. Knoxville gets DESTROYED once again by a bull, Steve-O gets covered in poop, Dave England poops, and Chris Pontius attacks a city for the Cockzilla sketch. The most pleasant surprise of Jackass Forever is that Ehren McGhehey gets several moments to shine, Whether he’s getting punched in the balls by MMA champ Frances Ngannou, or having a spider bite his nipple, it’s nice seeing Ehren not be the butt of every joke or prank. It is really interesting watching men who once seemed immortal becoming mortal, and sometimes it backfires. For instance, Preston Lacy craps himself before a stunt begins (it’s sad watching a man become despondent because he pooped before a stunt), or when Johnny essentially sacrifices himself to a bull that turns his bones into jelly. The painful stunts aren’t as fun as they used to be because these men don’t just bounce back up anymore. Nowadays, they thud harder, yell louder, get hurt harder, and it’s not as fun. If there are future installments I’d love to see the new blood getting obliterated while the old crew laugh riotously and occasionally show the young kids how to do it. I’m by no means saying they should step aside because that would be a very sad day, I just don’t want to see Knoxville get hit by any more rampaging animals. That said, the grandpa gag involving him being shot through the ceiling of a furniture store is beautiful, and I hope he never stops flying through various objects.
*Quick Note – My least favorite Jackass sketch happens in Jackass: The Movie. It’s when Knoxville boxes famed puncher Butterbean. It’s an absolute squash match and there’s zero joy in it. It’s just Johnny being punched in the head by a world class head puncher. I’ve never enjoyed stunts like this. They only exist to give someone a concussion, and I’ve always thought they were pointless. This might give you a point of view into my enjoyment of the franchise.
Final thoughts – Jackass Forever is a solid entry to the franchise, and I want more.
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Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021) – Review: A Refreshingly Straightforward Horror Movie
Quick Thoughts – Grade – B – Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is welcomely straightforward and features solid performances from Kaya Scodelario and Hannah John-Kamen. It doesn’t feature any truly standout scenes, and it doesn’t have the personality of Paul W.S. Anderson’s Resident Evil movies (listen to our podcast series about it), but if you’re looking for a breezy zombie film it’s worth a watch.
The best thing about director Johannes Roberts (Strangers: Prey at Night, 47 Meters Down) take on the Resident Evil franchise is that it’s welcomely straightforward and totally comfortable with not reinventing the wheel. I don’t mean this as a slight, I love movies that embrace straightforward storytelling and feel no need to add bells and whistles to something that doesn’t need bells or whistles. At its core, the original Resident Evil video game was about spooky mansions, surprise attacks and enough dread to make gamers keep the lights on at night. The lore did expand greatly with further installments, but everyone remembers the first time they were ambushed in the mansion, and how the simple “boo” techniques made the game an all-timer. That’s the vibe this film wants to recreate and it’s not always successful, but it’s still fun. The biggest issue I have with it is how it wants everyone to know that it isn’t the Milla Jovovich RE franchise, and in the process leans heavily into fan service and recreating moments when it should’ve tried to forge something new, but still familiar. I smiled every time a character was introduced because the movie put a lot of emphasis on the names to make sure you know it’s sticking close to the game.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City focuses on what happens when the wildly dangerous T-Virus is let loose inside a dying town named Raccoon City. The town used to thrive when the Umbrella Company, a massive pharmaceutical conglomerate ran its operations in the city, but when it decided to move to another location the city became a ghost town filled with people too poor to relocate. Staying behind is a small police force made up of Chief Brian Irons (Donal Logue), rookie Leon S. Kennedy (Avan Jogia), and the STARS alpha team composed of Albert Wesker (Tom Hopper), Jill Valentine (Hannah John-Kamen) and Chris Redfield (Robbie Amell). They are joined by Claire Redfield (Kaya Scodelario – watch Crawl now), a leather jacket-wearing badass who rides motorcycles, picks locks, and seems totally comfortable blowing away zombies with any type of weapon. Together they have to battle zombie dogs, zombie birds, zombie humans, and a scientist named William Birkin (Neal McDonough).
I really enjoy the eerie tone, which sticks closely to the popular video game, and I think Maxime Alexandre’s (Crawl, Shazam!, The Crazies) cinematography is expectly solid as he makes Raccoon City seem like a place of nightmares. The lack of townsfolk combined with oppressive rain and lots of dark alleys make Raccoon City seem like the worst place on earth, and Alexandre does a fine job of making parking garages, police stations and mansions seem scarier than the caves in The Descent. The actors don’t have much room to create three-dimensional characters, but that’s not the point of the movie. The point is to feature likable actors shooting undead monsters in the head, and the movie succeeds at that. I don’t think there are any standout action set pieces, but the movie has lingered in my memory and I keep thinking about certain shots that I really like. For instance, I loved watching the zombies outside the police station wailing in anger as they tried to push their way through a locked gate, and I enjoyed watching Claire ride a motorcycle through the abandoned city as rain pelts down on her (There’s decent fake rain in this movie, it isn’t on par with It, but it’s not bad).
In the end, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is a lean-and-mean film that excellently stretches its $25 million budget. If you are looking for a straightforward horror film, I recommend you watch it.
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Mark, Megan and David Cross (of the Award Wieners Movie Review Podcast) celebrate the second anniversary of Bloodshot. In this episode, they discuss deleted scenes, athleisure wear, and the alternate ending. They also pit Dominic Toretto, Richard B. Riddick, Xander Cage and Bloodshot against each other. 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!
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John’s Horror Corner: Dead Heat (1988), an 80s hidden gem of a zombedy “buddy cop” movie.
MY CALL: This is more of a hard-R cop movie with healthy doses of humor than a horror movie… but there are zombies… and it does get gory and gross. This gets a pretty strong recommendation from me. It’s a lot of fun. MORE MOVIES LIKE Dead Heat: For more scientifically reanimated zombie movies, I’d recommend Re-Animator (1985) and sequels. This delightful 80s zombie oddity also makes me appreciate others of its kind like The Boneyard (1991), The Rejuvenator (1988) and The Vineyard (1989). Also, for more “modified” cop fare, consider The Hidden (1987).
Director Mark Goldblatt (The Punisher) opens this film in the classic trappings of a lower budget Lethal Weapon (1987) as we meet stylish cop Roger Mortis (Treat Williams; Deep Rising, Night of the Sharks) and his loose cannon partner Doug (Joe Piscopo). Despite their differences, they get along and share a propensity for mean street violence.
What’s nice about this movie is that it feels like a gritty, buddy cop movie first and a horror movie second, such that the writing and characters are richer and better written. When our cops look into a recent diamond heist in which the robbers seem immune to bullets, it is discovered that they had received autopsies at the local morgue prior to committing crime! Following a lead on some chemical traces, Roger and Doug look into a pharmaceutical company with a few undead secrets. Daughter to a recently deceased pharmaceutical business mogul (Vincent Price; From a Whisper to a Scream), Randi (Lindsay Frost; The Ring) handles PR for this zombie company.
Our first zombie encounter is with a monstrous, split-faced mongoloid which makes for an entertaining (even if clunky) fight scene in the pharmaceutical lab. Subsequent encounters with gun-toting zombie criminals bring more gunplay than brain-eating. I quite enjoyed the re-animated butcher shop creatures, with some action smacking hard of Re-Animator (1985). We also see a rapid decomposition before our eyes, and it is delightfully gross and full of flesh melty goodness! The best effect of the movie!
After dying and being resurrected himself, Roger degenerates more and more, and by the end of the movie he looks worse than Bill Paxton from Near Dark (1987). And with this look, we find some good humor as well.
Not sure how this movie evaded my attention for so many decades. I always knew it existed, but just never got around to it. And now that I have, I find it to be a pleasantly surprising forgotten gem of the 80s. So to fans of the 80s, this is strongly recommended.
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Mark and Norbert continue their 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe discussion by talking about Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, and Spider-Man: No Way Home. In this episode they also discuss bus fights, bread throwing, and the excellence of Florence Pugh
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 