Sam Ash

Normally I don't like to do a lot of irrelevant posts because they are, well, exactly that, irrelevant. Not that I mind them on other blogs, because they are usually funny and such, but I felt that I needed to address this to my non existent audience.

I watch Burn Notice, which to my content has Bruce Campbell in it. Normally I don't look at him and think Ash! He's a good actor and it's easy to separate him from his horror nobility to his ex navy seals persona on the show. However; last night's episode he put on these cerebral looking glasses and I got a wave of Evil Dead. 

I don't know why, as Sam's uneasy tow truck cover doesn't really have anything in common with Ash's unhinged zombie killing personality (especially in that picture), but it happened. I couldn't really shake it for the rest of the episode, maybe it's just time for me to re-watch the series again, or maybe it's because I found out this week that Evil Dead 4 is a maybe.

A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3: Dream Warriors (1987)

Before the Never Sleep Again mission the third film in the series, and coined as the fan favorite, is one I've previously seen before and as I recall, I very much enjoyed it. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3 is set in a hospital for anxious teenagers, who unknowingly have something in common, they are the last of the Elm Street kids. The main character is Kristen, a newly admitted patient to the facility, her arrival brings on Freddy's killing spree within the ward and soon following her is an expert in the field, Nancy. Nancy, now a psychologist, struggles to help the teens while still remaining logical to her peers. But soon Nancy and Kristen learn that the days of helpless dreaming are over, as they are introduced to the dream powers they each posses inside of them.

Re-watching this I did have a mutual experience as of last time, I really liked the film for bring back Nancy, setting up the series's reputation of creativity, and giving Freddy witty dialog. The deaths in this one are really unique and amp the dream concept up in that they tend to the characters personally. My favorite was the marionette, it looked painful and puppet Freddy was adorable yet creepy. And of course I must mention the notorious TV death with spawned the pop icon Freddy, with his line; "Welcome to prime time, bitch". This also, in my opinion, has the best lines and the worst lines. The best going to Freddy and the worst to Taryan for "In my dreams I'm beautiful *cue swtichblades* and bad". And of course others in between. 

The teens are all likable and were convincing as friends. This is Patricia Arquette's first film and she's actually good in it. John Saxon comes back for a brief cameo, nuff said. In the first Nightmare film I enjoyed the fiestiness to Nancy's character, this time around Heather Langenkemp plays a much more relaxed Nancy, having settled into being adult, but of course when it comes to Freddy that raw fight she displays in the first film comes out. And....Robert England. The script was written by a collection of writers, the more noted ones being Frank Darabont and Wes Craven, both who I think largely contributed to the success of the film. Not that the other two are bad by any means, it's just to their name they have less horror film credit. Directing wise Chuck Russel has an interesting take on how the dreams appear, unlike that typical misty facade he uses open sets and the synthetic pizza face Freddy look to contrast in lighting and set design.

The third film in the Nightmare franchise is not as scary as the first but does a lot better as a sequel than the actually sequel did. The dream gifts bring out an inalienable competency in the films which opt for a more action based dream sequence than the typical running-from-the-boogeyman-slasher-build-up. This one may be the deciding factor in your interest in this franchise, if you like this one you'll probably want to keep watching. If you didn't, however, than I'd stop now because this is the high point in the series. Still if you're going to see any of them, this is the one to view.  

A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985)

A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge, returns to the the famous Elm Street house in the first one. Five years later a new teeanger, Jesse Walsh, has moved in with his family. Jesse, as so many, is struggling a bit with growing up, and has more issues now that Freddy Krueger is haunting him. Freddy is still angry about being one uped by Nancy, so in his attempts to solve his anger he decides to seek revenge, through Jesse. But have no fear, Jesse and his girlfriend Lisa find Nancy's diary, guiding them through the nightmares. I must say part 2 has flaws, to put it kindly. Between plot, character, and directing issues.

Manipulating the dream/reality complex proves to be to disorienting in this one as Jesse is in neither one nor the other. Freddy no longer is able to solely control the dreams of teenagers but as well as the physical elements around them. That first off breaks the dream barrier that was well constructed in the first film. And secondly, as I said before, it's hard to distinguish what's going on. A lot of Freddy's actions this time are not so much Freddy. He doesn't really toy with Jesse but rather uses him, He preforms a lot of Poltergeist tricks, i.e. setting the toaster oven on fire, making the birds go crazy (in truth the Walsh family has a good case for paranormal investigators). The ending is dull, the boiler scene leaves little to nothing to remember.

A rumor with this one is that the films contains gay subtext. I've heard those who see it and those who don't, in my opinion...yeah it's a little bit leaning that way. Jesse seems to be teetering on his sexuality bounds throughout the film. There's subtle clues (board game Probe in the closet anyone?) and there's the not so subtle clues, like Coach Schneider's death. But its not bad in anyway, in fact it gives more depth to a script that lacks any real meaning or connection. The Never Sleep Again documentary had interviews with the director and he mentioned not liking the first film, however, a lot of people DID like the first film. It seems more that he set out to make a quick fix horror film than anything that stems off Craven's first piece.

The second took a steep fall from the level the first one was on. It, in short, missed the point. A Nightmare on Elm Street is known for being an imaginative series, though I don't think that title got earned until the third film, this is still however lacking. I did like though that they managed to clear some confusion to the ending of the first film in this. It's not great, if anything watch it for Jesse's infamous man scream.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

After seeing the Never Sleep Again documentary around Halloween, which is a great documentary, for fans especially but really for anyone curious of film making and the early techniques with special effects, I became possessed with the thought of watching all seven Nightmare films (I decided to skip Freddy Vs Jason because I've seen it, and I'm just not in the mood to watch it again). I've seen a few before, but never the entire series. So I set out with the, surprisingly tedious, task of watching all seven films in chronological order.

To start at the beginning A Nightmare on Elm Street typically falls under the slasher film genre, though I'd argue that it doesn't truly earn that title until later in the franchise, the reason being that the film is a lot more imaginative in concept than say the Friday the 13th series, which is more of a full bodied slasher. The story starts out with Tina, a teenage girl who's having strange nightmares about a man, burnt from the head down, wearing a dirty green and red stripped sweater, a ragged hat, and a glove with knives for fingers. Tina becomes rattled by the dream when she feels there is something more to it than a typical night terror, which proves to be true one night when she dies in her dream and then dies in real life. From there it goes to her best friend, Nancy, as she tries to figure out who the man with the knives for fingernails is and what he wants, while ultimately trying to stay awake.

The film has a horror aspect that Wes Craven has always done well with, he connects it to real life. True the film has a more fantasy base than a reality but it lies in the inevitable fear that we must all sleep at some point. A vulnerability issues plays in this as in most people's cases when you sleep you are helpless. To add more depth Craven gives a disturbing background to the killer, Freddy Krueger, a child murder who escaped trial later to be burned by the incensed parents of Elm Street. I actually found out from the documentary, something which has always been a debate, is that Freddy is a child molester, but they don't come out and say it in the film for news related issues at the time. This discreetly presents itself in the sexual prowl Freddy has in scenes with Tina and Nancy. The famous one being where Nancy falls asleep in the bathtub and his glove comes up from the water in between her legs. It's hard for some to imagine Freddy as anything scary since he became a pop culture icon but in truth he was built to be a perturbing character, and the first film reminds us of that.


As far as quality goes I'll argue that this one is the best out of the seven (though Dream Master gives Craven a run for his money in directing, as well as for the the look for the film). The directing and writing for this is fairly obvious, so I wont linger too long but it's apparent what he intended out of the film, a sleepless night fueled by more than just jumps and scares, but with creative thought. Acting is fairly good here too, it's one of those horror movies that has a now a absurdly huge film star in it, Johnny Depp. Of course Glen doesn't compare to his more eccentric characters in which he's famous for but for a first time actor whose never, and I mean never, acted before he's pretty good in it. Heather Langenkemp is alright, having done a few movies in her career at that point and not succumbing to dumb gazes into the camera lens. Then there's John Saxon and Robert Englund, neither which I'll go into because Saxon is been in everything and he's just great, and I've believe I've made my love of Englund's acting clear in previous reviews. The special effects for the film are pretty good, in truth I prefer old school techniques like these as opposed to CGI which I can always tell they've used.

I'm sure this, basically, two paged love letter isn't obvious us enough that I have to say it flat out but I love A Nightmare on Elm Street. It's not only my favorite out of the franchise but one of my favorite horror films. But at the same time I pose caution to new viewers who've never seen the movie. Though it's not as bad as some it does show it's age a bit, so some scenes or concepts will appear as cheesy, and there are some that might not be as generous about the acting. Plus the ending, (not the very ending with the little girls) still fails to make sense. Either way it's sort of an essential see, Freddy Krueger is a household name and at the end of the day it's better than most slasher films and remakes today.

Lo (2009)

Lo is a fairly humorous fairly enjoyable love story, with demons. Justin just lost his girlfriend, April, to a terrible accident, getting taken to hell by a demon that is, but as to demonstrate the limits of his love he summons Lo, a crippled smart mouth demon whose job it is to help Justin out. But as Justin spends more time in the close silhouette of hell he'll find out a few things out about April that'll tempt him to question his decision.

I'm not altogether sure how to start this, Lo is one of those films where it's hard to gather your thoughts. I presume I shall start with how I viewed the film. To say the least I liked it. It's not really an eventful movie, the entirety of the plot being based off conversations Justin has with the demons and flashbacks of him and April's love. There is one action scene but it's kind of corny, in fact there was an excessive amount of parts that are corny, but I'd argue that they were intended for comical effect. The film isn't all that much horror either, though the demon's look great and can be effectively scary if desired, its just that there's nothing all too horrifying about it. Also to note, it happens to be 1/16 musical, so if you keeping count we have a horror romantic musical comedy going on here, all tied into one small low budget film. But that's part of the charm of Lo.

Ward Roberts as Justin comes off a bit over the top in some comedic scenes but the final romantic moment, perhaps the only one in the film truth be told, is pulled off well between him and his opposite Sarah Lassez. And Jeremiah Birkett as the smart mouthed title character is adroit in his role. As other viewers have mentioned the film looks like a play, with an empty stage like effect. All you ever see is Justin, Lo, and the very stage-esq flashback scenes. Actually I can easily see this being a play and it may be more adequate as that, than as a film.

Like I said I enjoyed Lo, it's a droll little film that manages to hold your interest. Its clearly not for everyone, as its misconception of being a horror film will probably anger some, leaving it little chance to let it come into its own. I'd say watch the trailer, read a few more reviews, and decide for yourself whether or not to watch it.

Halloween II (2009)

I'm curious if it even matters since I have no followers but yes I haven't posted in two months now due to school and detached interest. Seeing as no one reads my reviews I'm more or less talking to myself but oh well. I'm in a current state of boredom so I've decided to post a review or two.

I'm a fan of the original Halloween II, though John Carpenter himself doesn't really care for it I find it to be in par with the first and fairly decent for a sequel, which is saying a lot considering the reputation horror movies have for their sequels and remakes. But I'm not reviewing John Carpenter's film, I reviewing Rob Zombie's. What's my verdict? I assure you, I'm surprised that I'm actually going to put this but...it really wasn't all that bad. Maybe its because I read the reviews for it before I watched it and had such low expectations that it turned out better than expected, or maybe I've seen too many horror movies and I no longer can decipher any more what is shit and what is good. Either way, yeah I liked it.

Don't let that suggest that the film is flawless, far from actually. There's...several issues with the film, first and foremost the biggest in hardcore fans eyes is Michael as a character. He grunts now, if you must know, making him feel not so much like the original Michael Myers. Following him is Dr. Loomis (who, by the way, I was for in casting Malcolm McDowell) who's become the world's biggest Diva; as he he's out promoting his new book which, in traditional Gail Weathers fashion, exploits the murder's in the first movie. Then there is Scout Taylor Compton and her...ugh...I don't know if I can call it a performance it's so bizzarely  (not a word) awful. Her alone probably put me over the edge in hating the second half of the first film, so in short I've never really like her as Laurie. If anything I'll give her that she was a bit more tolerable this time around. And finally there is is the Ghost Mom. That side story shouldn't have even seen the light of day it was so pointless. Not to mention the ending of the film just plain sucked.

If your not discouraged yet by that last paragraph, remember that I did say I enjoyed the film. In my opinion the good Zombie gives to the film out weighs the bad. Rob Zombie may not be the best writer out in Hollywood but this is the most original Halloween to date, which is refreshing since slasher films are as cliche as they come. There's a lot of moments in the film between Annie's and Laurie's characters that demonstrated the strain on their friendship, and unlike a lot of people I don't think the plot of Laurie becoming a more darker human being is that much of a stretch, considering she survived a horrifying incident (AKA I'm not going to throw a hissy fit because she has a poster of Marilyn Manson on her wall). What has been an appeal about this film and the first is Zombie's homage to horror films by casting icons (Dee Wallace, Malcolm McDowell, Danny Trejo) but I'm most enthusiastic at giving Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif) a larger role. Besides the plot the cinematography is flat out gorgeous. His use of darks in contrast with lights is stunning and several shots are alone memorable solely on the cinematography part.




More than anything it was better than his 2007 rendition of Halloween, which I enjoyed only in part. Hell, I'd probably watch it again if there was nothing else on TV, I honestly didn't find it as bad as some did. If you detach yourself from the original series and then view it as a film you could see that maybe if Zombie had made this with different characters and not in the Halloween franchise it'd be a fairly decent bloody horror movie. Not for die hard fans but maybe for those who are a bit more open minded.

The Master Of Horror

I hate Mondays. I'm still not a 100% better and the fact that after 9 posts and still no followers I'm discouraged to the point where I don't care enough to write for literary snobs. That being said.

I don't actually know if Stephen King is the master of horror. I've heard Wes Craven, John Carpenter, and Clive Baker with the same title. Maybe they are equally all the masters? When I looked up to see how many film adaptions of his books there are I was baffled, I've seen a good amount of them and a lot of that amount I really like, narrowing 20 down to 10 down to 5 was impossible so for this Monday, the last of the month, it's going to be doing a top ten list. Top Ten Stephen King Adaptions:

#10. Carrie (1976)

Stephen King said it himself, high school is hell. There's a fairly good chance that you were most likely not blessed with the gene of beauty or likability therefor you were probably awkward. Thus being the case with Carrie, the sheltered girl with telekinesis powers. The scariest part about the film is the relationship between Carrie and her mother. The best part about this film is the end because Carrie gets her revenge and since I wasn't at the top of the food change the revenge was sort of sweet for me as well. Of course I wouldn't want to burn my entire class to the ground but it's the brilliant thought by King that counts here.

#9. Children of the Corn (1984)

You'll notice a few related elements with Stephen King's work, sort of like a thumbprint to have proof of creation. Several of his novels and stories have a character who's a writer and a kid whose developed beyond his normal psyche, whether that being supernatural or just a greater understanding of the current reality around them. Children of the Corn does this with more than one kid but unlike previous novels this one has the children as the evil. Malachai and Isaac in particular, arguably ranking high on the list of creepiest kids ever. With Malachai killing adults off like its a basic every day thing and Isaac preaching a disturbing religion to impressionable kids Children of the Corn subtext is fairly scary, specifically to adults.

#8. It (1990)

Its not that I necessarily grew up on horror movies it's just that I watched them more than most because they fascinated me. Of course I watch a ton of Disney stuff as well but as odd as it may seem It was one of my childhood movies. This is what I was referring to in the previous paragraph, the kids conquering evil despite their size and limits. It's maybe not the most quality film out there but it's not a bad adaption and it's a pretty good made for TV movie. I personally prefer part 1 to part 2 as I find the kid's experiencing with the clown a lot more terrifying than the adults. Not to mention the cast isn't half bad (John Ritter, Annette O'Toole, Tim Reid, TIM CURRY) and a few of the child actors grew up to do good films (Emily Perkins in the Ginger Snap series, and of course Seth Green). Unfortunately this, Hellraiser, and Pet Sematary are among the few of my favorite horror films that are being remade.

#7. Cujo (1983)

King writes a lot of supernatural based horror novels but Cujo is one of the exceptions that is plausible. Yes, the chances of you ending up outside of a auto shop with a rabid dog are slim but I'd say its more likely than a raid of vampires attacking your small town. The main horror element here though is, IMO, the claustrophobia or the seclusion of the mom and her son.

#6. Rose Red (2002)

Rose Red technically isn't an adaption, but Stephen King did write the screenplay. The intended idea with this was to perceive that Rose Red was a real house and the Rimbauers were real people, none of it is factual, but the build up inside the movie revealing the history of the house, the comparison of those who died to those who disappeared is a great effect. It actually holds my attention more than it did in his novel The Shinning, which took a similar approach but not nearly as interesting. Basically though the build up made the actual ghosts more effective, and I also liked that they didn't overuse the ghost or the bumps and noises such as other haunted films tend to do.

#5. Misery (1990)

Misery is interesting because its not exactly a film I relate too it's just good and creepy. Kathy Bates won an Oscar for her role as Annie Wilkes, the mentally unstable fan of a famous author, and I believe it's well deserved. She's rather insane in this I must say, from shouting about cartoons to whacking Paul's ankle with a hammer, proving to be a disturbing character.

#4. The Shinning (1980)

I struggled with this list because it was so long and I had a hard time placing where each of these films should go, this one especially. As a Stephen King fan and a Stanley Kubrick fan I've been torn since I've read the novel and realized that, in all honesty, this is a pretty awful adaption. But it's not an awful horror movie, in fact it's probably one of the best horror movies. The film and the novel work on two different levels of horror, King's story is scary because you feel for this family that's having a hard time and watching the father descend into madness is slow and cautious but overtly effective. King has said in an interview that Kubrick's film is empty, and it's that emptiness that creates the horror. The isolation reaches to the viewers more since it's evidently present and the father initially being not all the way there proves to be as scary as the character in the book. Either way the film is scary, it makes the list, horrible adaption or not.

#3. The Stand (1994)

I believe I like Stephen King's miniseries more than I do the actual movies because they are in their raw Stephen King state, unfortunately though that means they are between 3 and 4 hours long, that being the case with The Stand. But if you do get a few hours to spare I'd recommend it. This and his other novel Desperation are heavily about religion, specifically good vs evil which fits nicely in the post apocalyptic world backdrop. There's great acting on several people's part (Gary Sinise, Ruby Dee, Rob Lowe). I suppose my only qualms with the film are Molly Ringwald (sorry but I stopped liking her after Breakfast Club) and Randy Flag's fashion sense (I know it was the 90's but denim-on-denim-on-denim?!)

#2. Pet Sematary (1989)

Pet Sematary is the only film that still haunts to the point where I can't walk to close to a bed without getting paranoid. I swear to God every time I stand by a bed that's frame doesn't go fully to the ground I think of the scene in this film where Gage cuts Mr. Munster's tendon with a scalpel. Its absurd that a scene could stick with me for that long and I have no hope that the fear will fade soon, I'll likely be afraid of walking by a bed for the rest of my life all because of that fucking scene. Moving on though I really like Pet Sematary because it's a supernatural horror that encounters the real life horror of losing a child, which is one of if not the worst thing that could happen to a person. Its hard subject matter because of course all parents would want to bring their child back but to return as something unnatural? It's hard choice by the father in this and tragic that it doesn't work out.

#1. Stand By Me (1986)


Unconventionally I pick a Stephen King adaption that is not a horror movie. It's ill fitting for the intended purpose of these lists (Halloween=horror) but it's honestly my favorite film from his novels. In the paper I had to write the other week I mentioned him in it, stating that the reason I believe he's so successful at horror and as writer in general is because he has pays equal attention to plot and character. Stand By Me (as basically all his novels do) demostrate that as its about four friends traveling to see a dead body. While the story and the bits of action are appeasing it's the characters that hold it above the rest of the films on the list. Mainly River Phoneix character Chris, as the bad boy with more depth than usually alloted to his type of character. Kiefer Sutherland is also in it playing a 1950's bad boy again. It's a sound capture for it's time frame and primarily a film I can watch more than once.

Honorable mentions: I'm sure if anyone ever reads this they'll think that I either have bad taste or am just ignorant of not including Shawshank Redemption on the list somewhere, I have a clearly logical explanation for it not being on this list, I've haven't seen it all. In fairness I've seen most of it but there are still parts I've managed to miss and because of those parts I considered it unseen. I'm sure that when I finally finish it I'd update this list and it'd land somewhere in the top five, if not the number one spot. Other: The Dark Half (1993) a fiction writers alter ego beings taking over his life. The Langoliers (1995) corny Sci-fi made for TV movie with horrible graphic effects, stupid decisions made by stupid characters, but ulitmately forces you to watch from start to finish. The Green Mile (1999) great prison movie about a inncocent inmate with an exceptional gift. The Mist (2007) film about a group of towns people trapped inside a grocery store with obscencly large bugs outside and a crazy religous preaching Marcia Gay Harden inside.

If you've made it this far post your own.