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Evil Dead (2013)
Thoroughly good movie, but very disappointing ending. 7/10
This remake of the old classic "Evil Dead" is definitely one of the better horror movies I have seen. The setting is generally very fitting for this gory, dark and twisted horror movie.
Fede Alvarez definitely deserves credit for creating a so tense atmosphere in this movie that constantly reminds you of the isolation these people are trapped within. The movie goes to great length to show that there is no actual escape, and as the events escalate, the only option left is to fight.
Evil Dead is a somewhat short movie, running for about 80 minutes. This fits the movie just fine though, as it is a pretty fast-paced film that will not let you be bored for a second. However the ending gets dragged out way to far, as the movie had several opportunities to end in a very decent manner but instead chooses to drag out into some far too confusing and unimpressive scenes. I do not know whether they chose to add these extra scenes because the movie was simply to short without it, or if they really found the plot ending better in that matter. Either way the last 10 minutes of the movie is pretty much the worst, and are generally unnecessary for the movie to come to an end.
Evil Dead really scores its point in the "villain" of the film. This supernatural demonic creature, is incredibly well done. While not exactly being super scary, it just completely suits ones expectations of a demonic creature engulfing in a human body. It is very different from "The exorcist" style of possession, and honestly. I prefer it this way. The whole set definitely deserves props for this amazing hostile entity.
As for the characters of the movie, they are unfortunately pretty matching for what you would expect of a newer horror movie. They are overly skeptical, illogical egoistic, cowardly and sometimes just plain dumb. There are a few cases where the characters breaks these horrible bonds of indecency and show some actual courage/some sign of intelligence, but generally they are very disappointing and predictable
Why should you watch this movie? Evil Dead does not hold back on anything. It refuses to cut off anything and shows you the raw (fictional) reality of dealing with a greater evil. It is a very gory movie, but does for the most parts not exaggerate the bloodiness, so it really makes you wish you had not started watching this movie, but without making you feel like you should throw up. While Evil dead is definitely not the goriest horror out there, it is not for the weak-hearted. So if you have trouble with blood, needless or small isolated rooms, then this movie is not for you.
Helix' Horrible Reviews
The Conjuring (2013)
Another unimaginative plot. That aside, the movie was very impressive. 7/10
As with most movies directed by the famous man behind Saw, James Wan, The Conjuring is pretty horrifying. The general mood and lighting of the movie is perfectly thrilling, and the secrecy of what is haunting the house is so brilliantly executed that you will be kept on the edge of your seat during the entire movie.
As for the story of the movie, it was unoriginal, and felt like you were watching the tenth remake of some paranormal activity spoof. Especially since it is less than three years ago Insidious was released, which was another movie with a VERY similar plot, also directed by James Wan. I get how this haunted house/family plot really contains room for a terrifying and thrilling story, but it is hard to understand why it has gotten so overused recently as the horror genre is known for being imaginative, unpredictable and innovative.
Generally this movie was really impressive. It kept a suspenseful and horrifying theme, and right from the beginning it felt as if the movie would consume you and drag you right into the middle of the action. The acting in this movie is nothing less than great, and the way the characters are portrayed is probably the best in any recent horror film. While you may once or twice think "Why would you go in there alone?" as in most scary movies, the characters are actually somewhat intelligent, non-skeptical and generally pretty likable.
Jump scares and heavy gore are not really used in this movie, and as the story progresses the suspense of fearing the unknown is more than enough to keep the viewer paralyzed as the events unfold. Keeping the audience this scared in a paranormal activity-like movie without the use of jump scares is quite a feat, unaccomplished in most recent horror movies.
Why should you watch this movie? If you are looking to pee your pants you are in the right place. The Conjuring is probably one of the scariest movies that has been released in the last five years. It is also one of the only recent horror movies that actually has likable characters, which is incredibly important if you want to feel as if you are inside of the film, taking part in the horrible events. However, if you have seen all the late supernatural haunted house films, and have gotten bored of the plot long ago, there are quite a few movies out there, which you should rather watch.
Helix' Horrible Reviews
Saw (2004)
Saw places a great story with exciting twists in a world of gore. 8/10
Saw is now nine years old and six sequels have already been made. I still felt like this was a movie worth reviewing in spite of the fact that most horror fans will have watched it a long time ago, since the Saw series are arguably the most successful films within the horror genre.
Having barely finished film school, James Wan and Leigh Whannell created Saw, a gory budget horror movie that would turn into a massive success.
One of the things Saw truly succeeds in is telling its story, its starts as a big puzzle which is pieced together brick by brick as the movie progresses. The story is generally very unpredictable and though the acting is not exactly amazing, the characters are very believable.
Saw also made a new standard for how gore can be used in horrors. While in the first saw movies, the characters are not exposed to THAT much gore and bloodiness you will still be turning your head away or burying it deep into your covers. This is because you actually see most of what is happening. In your usual horror movies, you will see the actors split-seconds before they are about to get hurt, then get cut away to them lying in a pool of blood. In Saw you are showing everything. This includes watching a man cut off his own leg.
With an amazing story, very decent acting, great directing and a no-less than beautiful soundtrack Saw deserves all the credit it has gotten, and is much more than a piece of torture-porn as some critics has deemed it.
The Shrine (2010)
Great story, Terrible acting
The Shrine has a very intriguing story, with some great twists, but the acting in this movie was less than decent. 5/10
The story of The Shrine is not completely new, but it was different from most recent horror movies. The plot can be predictable here and there, but overall it is very refreshing and will keep you exciting for whats coming next.
Unfortunately this movie really proved that bad acting can ruin a good movie experience. I believe that with a few tweaks and a complete recasting this movie could have been amazing, but quite frankly it felt like Aaron Ashmore was the only actor in this movie who managed to deliver a half believable performance. Most of the dialog was stale and generally just felt like they were rehearsing their lines for the first time.
On another note, the pace of this movie was very satisfying throughout most of it. the beginning felt pretty slow, but honestly it would not have been a problem if the main characters had been more likable and properly portrayed. As we head further into the movie, the pace quickly speeds up, and with the unsubtitled polish dialog, it can be easy to miss something. This is not such a bad thing in my opinion, as it is a long story with several twist that requires a thoroughly fast pace to be shown in the time of a single film.
Why should you watch this movie? If you have had enough of the usual paranormal activity-like horror movies that has been released the last couple of years, i promise you this will be a refreshing experience. The story is imaginative, and somewhat unpredictable, you are kept unaware of who the actual hostile entity is until the very end. All in all the story of this movie really impressed me, this story will make you remember this movie far longer than you will remember most recent cheesy horror movies. However a warning is due. If good acting is important to you, this movie might be painful to watch.
Helix' Horrible Reviews
V/H/S (2012)
Horrifying, but could have been done better
V/H/S includes several short horror stories, bound together by a very cheap plot. Each of the stories are contains some awfully terrifying moments, but what was truly disappointing was the lack of a link between the stories.
This movie does show people that a horror movie does not need to long nor does it need a lot of build-up to drag you right in on the horrifying action.
V/H/S spends little to no time preparing the audience for what is coming, and instead the movie throws you into a series of fast-phased terrors. I consider this both a good and a bad attribute as it makes sure you never know what is ahead. Personally I would have preferred a more obvious link between the series of short movies, to create a higher purpose so to say.
V/H/S does not spend a long time building up its scary scenes. But when the scare jump at you, they will not let you go for quite a while. The movie does a good job at keeping the unknown entity of each of the short stories, well veiled and introduces you to the danger at a very satisfying phase.
Constantly having to fear new dangers, and never knowing whats coming next, is what makes this movie worth the while watching, and though it lacks some kind of a deeper meaning, V/H/S is a great addition to the genre of horror movies, and will scare you out of your skin at several times.
Why should you watch this movie?
V/H/S is scary and will give you some good thoughtless entertainment. If you are looking for a movie that you can spend hours reflecting upon after watching, this is not it. But if you are looking for some good scares without caring to much about the plot behind the scare, V/H/S is the movie to go to.
Helix Horrible Reviews
Quarantine (2008)
Exciting, suspenseful and terrifying
In terms of plot Quarantine is like most recent horror movies - very simple and not all that imaginative. However for a movie like Quarantine the plot does not need to be very complicated nor does it need saw-like plot twists. Instead the simple plot leaves the viewer thinking more about what horror could be on the other side of the door, rather than focusing on minor plot-holes.
Quarantine truly shines in its claustrophobic atmosphere, and watching the movie you will feel completely helpless. Small building, no help coming, lots of zombies. That is pretty much what the movie is made of.
The story of the movie progresses as the characters are forced into new and darker rooms of the building, trying to outrun the zombies. In this particular movie, the infection outbreak is not very well explained, but it does not need to be, for the viewer to know what is at stake.
If you are in doubt whether you should watch Quarantine or the Spanish original Rec, I would recommend Quarantine unless you are from Spain. I recommend Quarantine over Rec as a non-Spanish viewer, mostly because constantly reading the subtitles can easily mean you will miss some important details. Also i preferred the acting in Quarantine. I did however enjoy the more mutated zombies in Rec as they quite frankly just looked more out-of-the-ordinary than the ones in Quarantine.
Quarantine also bring a couple of funny moments on the scene here and there. Luckily it is done in a very subtle way, and does not break the tension that this movie so horrifyingly provides through great acting, very convincing zombies and the fear of the unknown.
I also wanted to mention that the main characters are very likable and not the stereotypical "brain of a bird" horror characters who goes alone into a sure death. However several of the secondary characters do occur as a bit annoying as some of them completely lack a sense of logic.
Why should you watch this movie?
You should definitely watch Quarantine if you are into Zombie flicks. Quarantine is somewhat different than the usual "Of The Dead" movies provided by George A. Romero, but it does not go to any far extends to alternate itself from the common zombie flick. If you are looking for a bloody and gory "torture porn" style of horror film, this is not it. This movie does not use jump-scares to frighten its audience either, so if you want a Paranormal Activity style of movie, you should rather be looking into something like Sinister or Grave Encounters.
Helix horrible reviews
The Collector (2009)
Refreshing and intelligent
The Collector was made a few years ago, and it got people attention by advertising it was made by some of the people behind Saw. Being a big fan of the first movies of the clever puzzle franchise Saw, I immediately felt the urge to watch this film. Unlike most of the recent horror movies, the collector has an intelligent and sneaky main character, who has to outwit the villain, who also appears to be very smart. Without spoiling the movie too much, i can tell that this turns into a clever game of cat and mouse, it is very tense and the movie builds up quite a bit of suspense that will keep you buried deep under your blanket, until you can hear the beloved main character is still okay.
The movie does not spend a lot of time on the less important characters, which does unfortunately result in the viewer being annoyed with those characters, who does nothing but to burden the "hero" of the movie.
The movie is fast-phased and you get thrown into the action rather quickly, after about 10-15 minutes of being presented to the surroundings, characters and conflicts. The Collector keeps the phase up as it drags you into a house of traps, with only a few seconds to figure out a safe route.
This movie does not provide a lot of shocks to keep the adrenaline going, but instead it mixes gore, action and suspense, to let you know what is at stake, how easily it can go wrong and that anything can be coming next.
Why should you watch this movie?
If you are looking for a movie that will keep your mind on the film and make you forget about everything else for the duration of the movie. Then this is it. The movie will keep you staring at the screen like a dog waiting for food, and it only gets more and more tense as the movie progresses. If you however are not a fan of blood, or -let me warn you on this one!- if you are afraid of insect, you should probably look for entertainment elsewhere, as this movie will use some creepy torturing methods as the villain truly fancies insects.
Helix Horrible Reviews
Grave Encounters (2011)
Nothing New
Grave encounters is a relatively new horror movie, by "The Vicious Brothers". It is impressive in the way that it is their first major project and it was quite a success. This way Grave Encounters join horror films such as Saw and Paranormal Activity in proving that a horror film does not need a high budget to be good. Grave Encounters have a well worked yet simple plot, and there is really potential for a horribly suspenseful movie. But like a newly born bird trying to fly from its nest, this movie does not quite get off as it should and ends in the dirt begging for someone to give it attention.
I feel like this movie could truly have been horrifying, and the movie does in fact make you feel very claustrophobic, as doors start missing, and the rules of time change, but instead of using this claustrophobic feeling to create suspense and slowly scare the audience out of their minds, this movie seems to be in a hurry, and uses cheap shocks to scare the audience.
The characters of this movie are neither likable or very believable, and if you don't really feel sympathy for characters it becomes hard to really get dragged into the movie. I do however like the movie's use of cameras, because even though it is not new, and is practically a mixture of Paranormal Activity and Cloverfield, it does provide some kind of authenticity, and gives the viewer a feeling of watching some kind of a livestream of an event that has gone horribly wrong.
Why should you watch this movie? Do not watch this if you are looking for a horror movie that stands out of the horror movies you are used to. This movie is not imaginative nor is it an original. But if you are looking for a movie that will scare your girlfriend or just regular friends for a bit of mindless fun and adrenaline, this is the movie to go to. This movie will jump at you when you don't expect it, but unfortunately it will also try to jump at you a hundred times when it is pretty obvious. So if you are looking for some cheap scares, you should definitely watch Grave Encounters, but if you are looking for a movie to add to your top 10 favorites, you should not waste time on this.
Helix - horrible reviews.
28 Days Later... (2002)
Not just another zombie flick
28 days later has cannibalistic people infected by a virus spreading through bites, who mindlessly chases the few uninfected people for their flesh. Seen this before? You are bound to have. With the increasing popularity of the zombie genre, it can often feel like you've watched a zombie flick before it has barely begun. However, for this very reason, a lot of the more recent zombie movies try to add something unique to their movie to make it stand out of the crowd. For this particular movie, the repeated use of hope as a factor that keeps the characters fighting on, has worked out really well. The movie also adds an additional danger, just as the characters starts to feel safe from the infected, to make sure the viewers stays at the edge of their seat.
Why should you watch this movie?
Well the characters are very all very well done, and in spite of the relatively low budget this movie had, the characters are very believable. Cillian Murphy does a great job as Jim, the main character, who goes through the process of being completely unaware of what has happened around him, to becoming a strong yet vengeful man. This also leads to one of the best action scenes I've ever seen in a horror movie, which only gets better as the amazing theme song starts playing.