Movie Review: SOUTHBOUND

southbound

If Southbound feels like part of the V/H/S franchise, the reason for that is not just the obvious anthology format, but the fact that some of the same talent is involved.  Roxanne Benjamin who wrote/directed the Siren segment of this movie was a producer on the first two V/H/S movies, and David Bruckner, who wrote/directed The Accident here also directed Amateur Night in the original V/H/S.  In terms of production quality, freed from the stifling “found footage” format, Southbound is a step up, allowing a much broader storytelling scope.  Side by side, the V/H/S franchise is the ugly sister.  It’s a neat coincidence that I watched this back to back with Carnage Park last night – while vastly different, the American southwest setting tied them together.

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Movie Review: CARNAGE PARK – Indie auteur Mickey Keating is back with a tense 70s-styled thriller

carnage park

I think I had at least heard the title of Carnage Park when it was recommended to me over the past week, but I knew almost nothing about it.  A quick trip to the web told me it was purportedly based on a true story (which I now doubt), and while the description didn’t set me alight, it seemed worth a watch.   Set in the late 70s, this is less of a horror movie (though it’s not a stretch to say it’s vaguely similar to The Hills Have Eyes) than it is a old-school thriller – other than the more adult content (The Walking Dead’s Greg Nicotero is thanked in the closing credits), it’s something that could have been a Quinn Martin production (if anyone can remember those!) back in the day.

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Movie Review: THE BOY

boy

The Boy, starring Lauren Cohan (The Walking Dead’s Maggie) is a rickety movie built upon a tottering premise that completely self destructs in Act 3 … but I won’t lie, for the most part, I enjoyed it.  Cohan plays a young American woman who applies for the job of nanny to the child of an elderly couple – trouble is, they live alone in a Gothic castle that looks straight out of The Woman in Black … and their child is … a doll with a porcelain head.  Continue reading “Movie Review: THE BOY”