Tag Archives: Horror

Film reviews

The Draft! Review-Fantastic Fest 2024

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This is one of those rare experiences in which the creative mind is boggled. The audience feels all the shifts of someonestruggling with writer’s block. At the same time, they are faced with all the terror that arise. The Draft! is part of Fantastic Festand perfectly blends comedy and horror in a flick that is fantastic! Directed by Yusron Fuadi, the film is set in Indonesia, a primitive setting where the scares are abundant in the writer’s mind.

The story takes place in a forest on a weekend getaway. There are five characters taking part in the adventure. They are Iwan (played Adhin Abdul Hakim), Wati (played by Anastasia Herzigova), Ani (played by Putri Anggie), Budi (played by Haydar Salishz), and Amir (played by Winner Wijaya). They are all staying in one getaway cabin that has some historic value. However, the characterizations and personalities begin to shift. Some of the characters begin to start injuring themselves andtalking strangely. When this happens, the film transitions back to its screenwriter occasionally. The switching between scenes of the getaway and the screenwriter is a reference to the movie’s title and plot.

The forest where the cabin is located puts everyone out in the open with no signal for calls, no signs, and no one in sight. The characters even talk like the danger they face is in a horror film. Ironically, they are, but the interesting part is the fact that thewriter is trying to put the pieces together along with the characters he created. This movie is a two-sided adventure of comedy and horror where the elements shift repeatedly in a fascinating matter. It is a classy film due to the many assumptions it raises. How dangerous is the situation in the cabin’s setting? Who has the worse writer’s block? The writer or the characters? The Draft! is an imaginative thriller from themind of the imaginative writer.

The movie is sparky with misdirection and blind corners which create a recipe for a mesmerizing resolution. What makes theterror effective is how grotesque scenes are highlighted forshock and entertainment value. The film’s screenwriting causes its audience to think. The thoughts generated are in tune with the parts of the film that include many horrific moments in The Draft!

The Draft! is a bit like Shaun of the Dead (2004) meets Parasite (2019). It is a tale where horror explores its roots and turns out to be more comedic than disturbing due to a clever case of poetic writing. Creativity emerges slowly and densely in The Draft! Three out of four stars. 

Film reviews

LongLegs Review

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LongLegs will terrify its audience. LongLegs will make moments of horror flash simultaneously in the heads of its audience. Nicolas Cage is LongLegs. He plays a sadistic killer with a mental health disorder of many. His performance is stellar, surreal, and breathtaking. LongLegs is a cult of scary moving parts that made me ache in fear. I was mesmerized by what was making me scared with LongLegs.

As one who loves investigative movies and TV shows, LongLegs takes the direction of killings and clues to a level with context. With a secluded setting where roads have no destination to go for miles, there are murders to happen. Writer and director Oz Perkins uses imagery (in many moments) to heighten the scare factor of LongLegs. There are moments when it feels like a strobe light attack. The audience feeling an impact is the definition of monumental with LongLegs.

The time frame around this horror flick is the 1990s. Filming was around Canada, British Columbia, and the United States. Its main character (the one put up to face the evidence of LongLegs) is Agent Lee Harker (played by Maika Monroe). Lee absorbs her head into all the crime scenes assigned to her. Lee is persistent and mentally compelled to solve the murders that have been happening in unexplained patterns. Her assistant is Agent Carter (played by Blair Underwood). Carter is a tenure agent who is just working to get paid. Lee takes on the case much more than Carter.

Lee’s discoveries are the first portion of the sparkling world of a cult in LongLegs. With killings happening at different times, they leave the symbol with the name LongLegs listed. There is also the added layer of killings that have occurred with items from inside the victim’s homes. Many questions are for LongLegs. Why is he killing families in a pattern that is like a triangle? Why is he killing people with items that do not belong to him? What motivates him? Who is next on the list? Time is of the essence as events happen unpredictably. The events will chill its audience to the bone.

It is not only the tactic of Cage’s terror that makes LongLegs spellbinding. There is also the mental health of Monroe’s performance as the detective in the case. In her role as Lee, Lee has a mixed dynamic with her mother for various reasons. Her childhood troubles fuel her rage and persistence in solving the puzzle. Her mother is Ruth Harker (played by Alicia Witt). Ruth has moments that are uncomfortable in many sequences of LongLegs. It is along the lines of questioning based on her characteristics. Could her characteristics correlate to the troubles of the puzzle with the disturbances of LongLegs? There is a treat at every door, in every character, and in every aspect of this phenomenon from Perkins.

I was in fear with LongLegs. There is a moment when Lee is asked by her mother, “Do you still say your prayers?” With that question, I knew there was more than what I was getting into with LongLegs. I felt I was seeing ghosts. LongLegs is a knockout in its sequences to horrify. It is a trail of clues, events, and characteristics that keeps on its invigoration. It is one of the best horror flicks of 2024. My rating is four out of four stars for LongLegs.

Film reviews

Isleen Pines Review

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Written and directed by Matthew Festle and Alexys Paonessa, two filmmakers who do all they can to ensure their projects have meaning and are high quality. Their direction is exhilarating and spellbinding in Isleen Pines which is an adventure of creepiness that keeps delivering. Isleen Pines has a cinematic vibrance that lets audiences know that they are in for a true treat. From theopening credits, you feel like it is time to party thanks to joyful tunes and Halloween decorations that help set the stage for an unknown chain of events which are about to arise.

Isleen Pines is the name of the town on Halloween night where the holiday festivities abound. The first party guest is The Vampire (played by Jackson Turner) and the second is The Ghost (played by Matthew Festle). The host of the party is The Witch (played by Naiia Loije), and then there is The Zombie (played by Darren Deng). The character names are labeled to correspond to the characters they are dressed up as. This is awell-written way of keeping track of the Halloween-style scares. In the town, The Man (played by Glen Plummer) is not so sold on the Halloween holiday because he is clearly introverted. For those hoping for a relaxing Halloween celebration…they are in for an unexpected treat.

I love how the film begins with a boiling point conversation between The Vampire and The Witch. This discussion creates an odyssey of tension before the party gets more wickedly crazy. The horror of moving parts with creepy vibes gradually intensifies in Isleen Pines. There is also a table moment between The Witch, The Ghost, The Zombie, and The Vampire. There is a creature found by The Ghost that the other individuals do not take seriously.  Their thinking, however, has irreparable consequences. The Ghost then starts to feel repulsive and suffersside effects which are grotesque and uncomfortable. Still, the party goes on. Isleen Pines tests its limits by pushing the envelope during scary moments which are sparked by innovative creativity. Soon, the Halloween party starts to push anxiety to the highest peak.

With an ugly aftermath, the film finds itself in a place of shock and confusion. It is an immersive and psychological experience where time is of the essence. An alien-creature egg leads to the film’s evil doors waiting to be opened. The joy of Halloween is stolen due to the terror which impacts the party guests. With no signal to call for help, spirits are lurking, and the fate of Halloween is in jeopardy in Isleen Pines. The movie’s many moving parts create a dynamic of how it feels to be really scared.

This film is a revolutionary Halloween thriller. While many are enjoying Halloween activities, others are dealing with various scary situations. The statement, “We have to come up with a plan to leave or fight back,” speaks to how serious the terror is.  Isleen Pines is extremely creepy and fun. It stays on track and evolves in an attention-getting way. The presentation of the film makes it seem like the setting is a safe community…but beware! Four stars!