Movie Review: Oculus

Title: Oculus
Rated: R
Genres: Horror, Suspense
Director: Mike Flanagan
Stars: Karen Gillan, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff
Rating: 5 Stars

After the violent deaths of Kaylie (Karen Gillan, Doctor Who and Guardians of the Galaxy) and Tim’s (Brenton Thwaites, The Giver and Maleficent) parents, young Tim is blamed and sent to a mental facility for treatment. Kaylie holds on to the truth though: The mirror caused those and many more deaths before them. With the intent to clear her brother’s name, she tracks down the mirror and sets up an experiment to capture its evil. But the mirror is ready to fight back.

The remarkable thing about Oculus is how it wonderfully executes concepts that could easily fall into the realm of B-movie. The mirror is inhabited by an evil, ghostly woman, but rather than relying only on typical and stale imagery, she has her own personality and extremely creepy vibe going on.

One of the main concepts is that the mirror can warp perception. The characters, and viewers, can never be certain what’s real. But we definitely know the motives which gives us direction and context: the mirror’s self-preservation and utterly destroying the living. This builds a lot of tension, as how they react to perceived dangers can have huge consequences in the hidden reality.

The filmmakers were also to expertly utilize flashbacks within Oculus. Kaylie and Tim are brought back to their childhood home where the original incident occurred. Emotions are high and the threat is clear. Is it a storytelling mechanic? Are the characters just remembering? Or are the flashbacks the mirror’s doing, putting them back into a scared and helpless state of mind? Or maybe it’s a mix of all three that feeds into the uncertainty of reality.

While the ending could have gone a couple different ways, I was okay with where it ended, though I can see it ruffling a few feathers. There is also sequel, and pre-sequel, potential here, especially with Jeff Blum (Paranormal Activity and Insidious franchises) as executive producer. I would definitely would be all for more Oculus films if they’re as good as this one!

Oculus has jumped straight to the top of the list of my favorite perception-based and horror films. I highly recommend it!

FIND OCULUS ONLINE:
Website | IMDB

Movie Review: My Soul to Take

Title: My Soul to Take
Rated: R
Genres: Horror, Suspense
Director & Writer: Wes Craven
Stars: Max Thierot, John Magaro, Denzel Whitaker
Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Riverton Ripper’s murder spree came to an end 16 years ago. He didn’t go without a fight. No, the Ripper is the type of villain who doesn’t stay down, no matter how many wounds he’s taken, and then makes an oath to kill the people left alive. Well, surprise surprise, after an impressive attempt by police officers and paramedics, the Ripper’s body vanishes.

Each year the teens who were born the day the Ripper died perform a little ritual to keep the murderer from fulfilling his murderous vow. But during the sixteenth year, they’re prevented from completing it and the murders begin anew, starting with them.

My Soul to Take has a lot of the classic horror tropes including the villain that just won’t die, a ritual, teen protagonist, a curse, and questionable sanity, as well as many of the ‘high school’ tropes. I loved this. While I enjoy many modern horror films, I find more often than not that they shy away from the psychological horror and jump straight to the gore.

The best part of the film for me was the main character, Bug (Max Thierot). He’s very timid, shy, and innocent, but with an underlying darkness. He’ll fall into moments where he acts very strangely and doesn’t even know he’s creeping out the other characters. He actually grows throughout the film too. He sheds those innocent and shy tendencies as the film progresses.

Even though I had fun watching My Soul to Take, it did have its flaws, mostly in the form of ‘could-have-beens.’ Craven sets up an interesting connection with the teens and the Ripper, but he doesn’t go very far with it. The Ripper seemed to have been collecting the souls of his victims and housing them in his body. The teens seemed to reflect some of those soul’s characteristics. It doesn’t go much further than that set up, nor do we really get an explanation of why. There could have definitely been some amazing plot if it was explored further.

Generally, it watches as a fairly mediocre horror flick, especially if you compare it to most of Craven’s other films. Despite that, and the less-than-stellar critic response, I enjoyed it and can see myself watching it again when I need a fix of teen horror.

FIND MY SOUL TO TAKE ONLINE:
Website | IMDB

Movie Review: Scream 4

Title: Scream 4
Rated: R
Genres: Horror, Mystery, Suspense, Campy Humor
Director: Wes Craven
Writer: Kevin Williamson
Stars: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courtney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Rory Culkin
Rating: 4 Stars

Description:
While promoting her new book, Ghostface survivor Sidney Prescott (Neve Campell) returns to Woodsboro. Soon after, the murders start again, targeting Sidney’s cousin Jill (Emma Roberts). It’s up to Sidney, Dewey (David Arquette), and Gale (Courtney Cox) to stop Ghostface’s most recent murder spree.

My Thoughts:
If you’re a fan of the original Scream film, then you will no doubt enjoy this installment. Scream 4 is one of, if not the, best reboots I’ve seen to date. Craven and Williamson bring back all the gore, humor, and postmodern awareness that started the franchise.

Rule 6: Don’t f**k with the original

Remember that famous opening with Drew Barrymore? I don’t know a horror buff that doesn’t, or will ever forget it. How does a franchise outdo that? Scream 4 definitely makes a go at it with a slew of cameos and meta references. It probably won’t go down in the books as terrifying, but it is definitely one of the more creative ways to poke fun at your own movie legacy, while planting yourself in your fan’s minds for a good, long time.

Overall, I loved the return to Woodsboro. Campell, Arquette, and Cox give the great performances you expect in the series. I loved seeing Emma Roberts in something not kid-oriented, and realizing that she could definitely make it in the horror genre. While some of the other newcomers fell a bit flat, it didn’t take much away from the overall.

While I was talking to other people about Scream 4, an interesting gap presented itself. Mostly, Scream fans liked it a lot. The only folks that didn’t like it were teenagers. They hadn’t been around for the earlier films. Many of them “didn’t get” the campy humor and were disappointed that it wasn’t super gory like the Saw or Hostel films. Even those that had seen at least one of the earlier films weren’t enthused. Clearly, the people I speak to do not constitute everyone, but how stark that line was makes me worry about the generational gap in horror fans. Cause really, like these teens don’t make me feel old enough already.

Find Scream 4 Online:
Website | IMDB | Netflix

Movie Review: Detention

Title:  Detention
Rated:  R
Genres:  Comedy, Horror, Sci-fi
Director:  Joseph Kahn
Writers:  Joseph Kahn, Mark Palermo
Stars:  Josh Hutcherson, Shanley Caswell, Spencer Locke, Dane Cook
Rating:  4 Stars

Synopsis from Redbox:

17-year-old Riley Jones must survive her final year of high school. The problem is that she has been sentenced to detention on the night of her prom, her friends are apparently being murdered by the fictional villain of a horror film series, and worst of all, the boy with whom she's in love is infatuated with her biggest rival. It becomes a race against time to save the world as she knows it.

My Thoughts:

Based on this description, I was expecting a B-horror movie. Detention turned out to be so much better than that expectation.

Detention is a meta-tribute to teen comedy and horror films, as well as the 90s. There are clear references to The Breakfast Club, Scream, The Fly, Freaky Friday and so many more. I love when films (or any media) lovingly, and jokingly, reference other things. It gives the film another layer, and a game I can play during a second (or third, or fourth) viewing.



Not only does Detention make tribute to previous films, it also captures the quick, ADHD nature of today’s youth. Characters spew rapid-fire references and quips as the story careens at texting speeds. While I enjoyed this for the most part, sometimes things moved a little too fast to catch everything.

Overall I found Detention to be hilarious and not scary at all. I will definitely be purchasing this film and watching it several more times. However, I find it difficult to recommend to a general audience. Detention is destined to become a cult film. I know many people will tire of the references. Others will despise the overall attitude and ridiculousness. And some people are looking for another Josh Hutcherson movie—which this is much different from his previous work. If you enjoy comedy-horror benders, or cult films, I give a tentative recommendation.

What were your thoughts on Detention? What do you think of cross-genre films? Let me know in the comments below.