Meeting Evil

Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Luke Wilson, & Leslie Bibb

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Meeting Evil surprised the hell out of me! When I read the description, I wasn't all that interested, but because Samuel L. Jackson was in it, I figured I'd give it twenty minutes or so, and I'm glad I did! This dark, independent, thriller was one of the most edgy, exciting films I've seen all year. Luke Wilson plays John, a man down on his luck. Suddenly, a stranger comes knocking at his door, and that leads to an unbelievable chain of events that ends with a twist that you will never see coming. Jackson is terrific as always, whether he's the good guy or the bad guy, he's always so entertaining and always manages to call someone racist, I love that! As for his co-star, Luke Wilson, I kept waiting for his character to open up, to have some kind of reaction to what was happening, but he doesn't, still his performance was a strong one. What I really liked about this film was how you really didn't know what was going to happen next. It seems like a small thing, but very few films like this go to such extremes and turn out to be so unpredictable. I can honestly say, when that twist was revealed at the end, I almost fell out of my chair. Yes, Meeting Evil is an independent film, but its better than any thriller that's come out this year. The acting is terrific, the story will have you on the edge of your seat, and just when you think you've got it all figured out, you find out that you don't know a thing. This was a tremendous movie that fell way under the radar, but I found it, and you should most definitely check it out for yourself.

Fingerprints

Starring: Leah Pipes, Kristin Cavallari, & Lou Diamond Phillips

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This movie would have been so much better if they had just focused on the paranormal aspect and turned it into a Sci-Fi thriller, instead of a slasher film. The mystery surround the towns past is truly fascinating, but the accompanying slasher part completely takes away from what is otherwise a very good story. Melanie and her family move from the big city to a small town after a recent tragedy. Once there, Melanie becomes obsessed with a local urban legend and decides to discover the truth behind it with the helps of some ghost children. Leah Pipes gives an absolutely amazing performance as Melanie. I hate it when such a great performance goes to waste because it's in some limit release horror film. I'd never even heard of her before this film, but she was so engaging and really got me into this film. Her sister in the movie is played by Kristin Cavallari, who is possibly the best looking girl I've ever seen. She didn't have as big a role in the movie, but she was so supportive and sweet when everyone thought her sister was crazy. Fingerprints seems like a cheesy b-horror movie, with it's poor cinematography and inexperienced supporting cast, but in reality, it's a fantasy story intermingled with a completely unnecessary secondary plot. I really had a love-hate relationship with this movie, because it could have been so much more than it was.

Adventureland

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, & Bill Hader

Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5 stars

From the Director who brought us Paul and Superbad, comes Adventureland, which unfortunately is just another predictable, run of the mill comedy. Jesse Eisenberg stars as a kid whose forced to get a summer job at a local amusement park with a wacky cast of characters. Of course the only other normal one working there, just happens to be the girl that he falls for. Bill Hader plays the boss and he should be writing and starring in films like this instead of playing secondary characters. Hader is one of the funniest and most underrated comedians in Hollywood and I can honestly say that he is the only reason to watch this movie, because the rest of the cast is just dull and uninspired. Eisenberg gives another flat and emotionless performance, while co-star Kristen Stewart plays along as if she were still one of the undead. I generally like most of the cast and I thought the story was decent, but overall Adventureland is just another predictable lame duck comedy. It will give you a few laughs, but don't expect too much more.

Fragile

Starring: Calista Flockhart, Richard Roxburgh, & Yasmin Murphy

Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5 stars

After sitting on the shelve for seven years, Fragile, has finally been released, as part of the Fangoria Frightfest. It's a strange movie that takes place in a decrepit children's hospital off the coast of England. The hospital is about to go out of business, when weird occurrences start taking place, leaving them short staffed. To fill the void, they hire an American nurse who quickly realizes that something at this hospital is very wrong. This film was very creepy, especially at the end, but it wasn't particularly exciting. It's extremely slow moving and tries to make a relevant point, but it's contrary to the whole premise of the film. The tagline states that the dead stay near the things they love, but in this film the dead are terrorizing what they supposedly love. As for the acting, it was pretty good despite the fact that half the cast were just kids. I admit that I did like parts of this movie, but others are extremely weird and disturbing, not to mention I almost fell asleep a couple times. It's not a great film, but it's not the worst I've ever seen.

American Horror Story: Season 1

Starring: Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton, Evan Peters, Taissa Farmiga, Jessica Lange, Frances Conroy, & Denis O'Hare

Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

American Horror Story is one of the hottest shows on television, but it's origins may surprise you. This innovate, unique drama, has similarities to several different shows, but most closely resembles Tales From The Crypt. Unlike Tales, the American horror stories each last one season instead of one episode. From season to season the story changes as does much of the cast, but one thing remains constant, it has some of the smartest and most daring people behind it. You may know the creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, as the guys who brought you Glee, but American Horror Story couldn't be more different. In this series they show a dark twisted side that they could never get away with on network television. As I said the story changes from season to season, so I can't really do a review of the series, but I can tell you about season one. The first season of American Horror Story introduces us to Los Angeles's famous murder house, which since it's creation, ninety years ago, has known nothing but death and heartache. The house is purchased by Dr. Ben Harmon, who knows nothing of the houses history. Dr. Harmon is moving his family across the country to give them a second chance after mistakes and personal tragedies. The story is gripping and easy to follow, but what I liked more were the flashbacks that told the history of the house and explain all the weird stuff that's happening. While the cast features some very experienced, award winning actors, it's a combination of Jessica Lange and Evan Peters who makes this show what it is. Lange is a veteran actress known more for her roles on the big screen, while Peters only just made an impression on me a couple of years ago in the film Clipping Adam. Their unique yet different styles and personalities are the reason this weird show works. In the same way they are able to connect with every character in the show, they are also able to connect with every member of the audience, and that's why they are two of the three cast members who are back for the new story, Asylum. American Horror Story is not like any other show you've seen on television, in fact, I'm pretty surprised they are able to get away with some of the stuff they are doing. It's hard to find a good TV show based on the Horror genre and when you do it's usually a lame comedy. Shows like the Munsters and the Addams Family are legendary, while shows like Harsh Realm and Freaky Links just fizzled out. American Horror Story is different though, as it's innovative and pushes the limits of what you can do on television. It's a show that is most definitely not for everyone, but if you're a fan of the unusual and tired of things like Twilight and The Walking Dead, that go absolutely nowhere, check out American Horror Story, you should be pleasantly surprised.

Twelve

Starring: Chance Crawford, Emma Roberts, Esti Ginzburg, & Kiefer Sutherland

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Gossip Girl meets Limitless in this clever, fast-paced, independent drama by Joel Shumacher. The story follows Manhattan's elite teenage population and illustrates how even the wealthy aren't immune to the problems of the big city. The film has a ton of characters and is cleverly narrated by Kiefer Sutherland, who helps us keep everything straight. Twelve refers to a new designer drug on the street and the film centers around High School drop out, White Mike (Chance Crawford), who is connected to just about every one. Forced by unforeseen circumstance, White Mike has become their dealer and has all the dirt on these elite people. As for the story, it's a complicated, winding tale, that I honestly found to be intriguing. Crawford is phenomenal as the center piece to everything and finally proves that's he's not just a pretty face. A former model, Crawford has gained popularity as one of the leads in Gossip Girl and it has been said, on more than one occasion, that his looks are the reason, but he proves them all wrong with a gutsy and amazing performance in Twelve. As for the rest of the cast, it's such an amazing random mix of people that you can't help but fall in love with it. In Twelve, there are appearances from everyone from 50 cent to Macaulay Culkin's little brother, Dewey from Malcolm In The Middle, and even Lenny Kravitz's daughter. You never know whose going to show up and what their story might be. Twelve is one of the smartest and most innovative dramas I've seen in years and has earned the rare honor of being called a can't miss film!

Road Kill (2010)

Starring: Xavier Samuel, Sophie Lowe, Bob Morley, & Georgina Haig

Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5 stars

Ever since landing a role in the Twilight movies, Australian soap hunk, Xavier Samuel has been every where! Recently, many films he made back in Australia have been turning up on DVD in the U.S. and Road Kill is one of those films. Picked up as part of the Fangoria Frightfest, Road Kill isn't your typical horror flick. It has it's fair share of gore and beautiful people, but the story is defiantly unique. Four backpackers in the outback get run off the road by a large truck. Unable to go anywhere, they start walking and find the truck abandoned up the road. Since they're stuck in the middle of nowhere, they decide to take it and that's when they start to change. It's not the most original story, but it's not predictable either. Xavier Samuel does a terrific job as the groups leader, trying to make sense of the whole things. Both female leads, Sophie Lowe and Georgina Haig, are also really good. I tend to find in films like this that the girls are super hot, but very rarely can they act, but that's not the case here. Road Kill impressed me, but it's not all good, as parts of it were extremely slow and some of the dialogue was kind of ridiculous. Road Kill's a pretty entertaining film, it's nothing special, but it's not bad either.

Kidulthood

Starring: Aml Ameen, Red Mandrel, Noel Clarke, & Nick Hoult

Rating: 1 1/2 out of 5 stars

Kidulthood is another film that makes people want to see it, by advertising a star that's in it for all of five minutes, Nick Hoult of Skins, About A Boy, and X-Men fame. He's the reason I gave this film a chance, because honestly, the plot isn't really something that interests me. This film is so far out there and so strange, that I can't even tell you what it's about! A bullied girl in a London high school kills herself and the kids get time off from school. After that the story splinters into a million different pieces of kids running wild in the streets of London and most of it makes absolutely no sense. Kidulthood tries to become the British version of Boyz In The Hood, but completely fails. The British gangstas, aren't exactly gangsta, and things move so unbelievably fast that it's impossible to keep track of who is who and who is doing what. To sum it all up, there's no real plot, meaning there isn't much of a point to this movie. There are also far too many characters, many of whom look a like, and very few that can actually act worth a damn. Kidulthood is one big blur of violence and F-bombs without a theme, a plot, or a point. This is just another example of a movie that tries to attract people with foul language, unnecessary violence, and a marquis name that barely makes a cameo. It's a complete waste of two hours!

Knockaround Guys

Starring: Barry Pepper, Seth Green, Vin Diesel, Dennis Hopper, & John Malkovich

Rating: 1 1/2 out of 5 stars

Why would anyone watch a movie that features Seth Green as a gangster or any movie with Vin Diesel for that matter? Personally, I had very little interest in this film, but I wanted to see it because of John Malkovich. He is so funny and no one plays the bad guy, better than he does. As always, Malkovich was brilliant, in an otherwise awful movie. Knockaround Guys is the story of four gangster's kids, who are tired of being nobodies, and decide it's time to make a score of their own. A score that they manage to royally screw up. It's a good premise for a movie and it was written pretty well. They did a great job casting veteran actors like Malkovich and Dennis Hopper to play the crime bosses, but they really blew it when it came to casting their kids. Seth Green isn't believable at all, seriously, I think the little kid in the beginning of the movie could kick his ass. They try to cover up the fact that he doesn't fit the role by making him a drug addict, but it doesn't work out. Vin Diesel is another one, he may be terrific in crazy action films that hardly have any lines, but when the role is something of substance, and requires a personality, Diesel is the last person who should be cast. He is one of the worst actors I've ever seen, but there is a bright side. When Arnold Schwarzenegger first started acting, he was pretty terrible too, but after gaining some experience, he blossomed into a superstar, who gave us some great films. I hope the same can be said about Diesel in a few years, until then, unless you're a die hard John Malkovich fan, you can avoid seeing this giant mess of a film.

Dreamscape

Starring: Dennis Quaid, Max Von Sydow, & Kate Capshaw

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

I really wish that I had seen this film, before I saw Inception. Of course you can't compare the graphics or special effects, in fact, the effects in Dreamscape are laughable by today's standards, but this was really the first movie to explore entering someones dreams. The story is wonderfully creative with unlimited possibilities, but at the time it was made, you couldn't rely on the special effects to make the movie, the way some films today do. What Dreamscape really needed was a young charismatic star to put the film over the top, and they found him in Dennis Quaid. The difference in his personality and the types of roles he chooses to take have done a complete turnaround over the last thirty years. The Dennis Quaid of today is a strong, emotionless character, who is determined to do whatever he sets his mind to. In Dreamscape he's funny, ambitious, and absolutely adds character to a story that could have gone either way. What the film loses in predictability and the sometimes slow pace, is more than made up for with Quaid's standout performance. I'd always heard good things about Dreamscape and how it was the inspiration for Inception, but it's a thirty year old film with outdated effects and some really cheesy stuff, I really didn't expect it to be as good it as it was.

Equilibrium

Starring: Christian Bale, Taye Diggs, & Emily Watson

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Equilibrium is an underground Sci-Fi film with a huge cult following. If you ask any other Sci-Fi geek, they'll probably have Equilibrium in their top ten list, but I couldn't tell you why. The film is vintage Sci-Fi, with a semi-original idea, unfortunately, the cast just didn't pull it off. I've never been a huge Christian Bale fan and this movie is a prime example of why. He's given a role that suites him perfectly and he mumbles and relies on the rest of the cast to carry him. In the future, emotions and things that evoke emotions are outlawed, and Bale is one of the men responsible for enforcing these laws, but he soon turns to the other side, when he accidentally feels an emotion for the first time. Bale is a cold guy to begin with. He never shows much emotion even when his role calls for it, so aside from Keanu Reeves, he was the best choice for this role. The story was a little out there and the effects were over the top, but it's Bale himself who puts the icing on the turd cake. He's completely dependent on his fellow cast members and the ridiculous special effects his character is given. Maybe I'm just not that bright, but I really don't understand why so many people are so obsessed with this movie. The cast wasn't anything special and the story was okay at best.

Tin Man

Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Alan Cummings, Neal McDonough, Kathleen Robertson, Raoul Trujillo, Callum Keith Rennie, Richard Dreyfuss, Ian Wallace, Gwynyth Walsh, Anna Galvin, & Ted Whittall

Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Several years ago, the SyFy channel decided to take a crack at re-inventing the classic Wizard of Oz, a noble task, that many have tried and failed. I didn't know what to expect, but I assumed it would be some variation of the classic tale, hoping it would be more the like books and less like the films. Tin Man is defiantly not for kids and takes a unique approach to the classic story. In this version, OZ is not the friendly loveable place with strange characters and happy times for all. It's a dark story, about a dark place, where presently there is a lot of pain and misery. The big twist in the story is that this OZ is centuries past the one visited by Dorothy Gale. In the Outer Zone (O.Z.), Dorothy Gale is a revered as the start of the royal families bloodline, but she has been dead for centuries! That being said, quite ingeniously, the future residents of the O.Z. parallel the old story, but not because they have to, they are in a sense mocking the original story in subtle ways. There's D.G. (Zooey Deschanel), the girl from the other side, who was forced into the O.Z., with no memory of ever having been there before. She soon meets Glitch, (Alan Cummings) a man who had part of his brain removed for disobeying the Queen. As they try to figure out what is happening around them, they run into a man (Neal McDonough) being punished in a Tin Man suit. This man was a Cop or Tin Man in the O.Z. who was deemed a threat, and put into this horrible form of torture. Finally, they come to the rescue of a native healer, named Raw (Raoul Trujillo), who has become trapped by carnivores and is about to become dinner. Together they go to see the wise man, to find out how to proceed in helping D.G. The Wise Man (Richard Dreyfuss) turns out to be a drugged out magician doing parlor tricks! There are a million other parallels to the original story that make the journey through the O.Z. that much more enjoyable. Zooey Deschanel is the star and even though people often mistake her unique style of acting for inexperience, she was the perfect choice to play D.G. The other standout is veteran character actor, Neal McDonough, who gives a gut wrenching and strong performance as the tortured former cop, in search of his family. The rest of the supporting cast was equally as impressive, taking you through the full range of emotions. As I said before, this is certainly not the OZ you grew up with and it's certainly not what I expected. Everything from the special effects, to the story, and even the modernization, was extremely impressive. It really is a shame that this was only a three part mini-series, but this would have made for one hell of a regular series. Some of the parallels are obvious, but there were plenty of times where I legitimately forgot that I was watching The Wizard of Oz. Leave the musical for the kid, this is what Frank Baum had in mind when he started this series, and it's most defiantly meant for mature audiences only.

Wild Things (1998)

Starring: Neve Campbell, Matt Dillon, Denise Richards, & Kevin Bacon

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

For years, people have been talking to me about this smart, sexy thriller, that spawned three sequels. There is also something to be said for mysteries, with twists and turns, that make you think, but a half hour into this thing, it was easy to figure out why none of the stars came back for the sequels. This movie certainly plays up the eye candy angle, with two of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, and at first glance, it seems like it's going to be a pretty good film, but then the twists and turns kick in. Throwing in a twist can make an ordinary film spectacular, but when you do it every five minutes, it just confuses the hell out of the audience, and that's what happened here. By the end of Wild Things, I didn't know what the hell was going on anymore. As for the performances, they range from the brilliant Neve Campbell to the horrid Matt Dillon, and feature a ton of cameos in-between. I wanted to like this movie, there are some very good looking people, who like to take their cloths off, and that does tend to help you focus more, but the question is what are we focusing on? I concluded that there really isn't a reason to watch two hours of pure shit, when you can find all the naked celebrity pictures you could ever want, in five minutes online.

Freaky Faron

Starring: Courtney Halverson, Lydia Milner, & Carly Hayes

Rating: 1 1/2 out of 5 stars

This is not a movie you should see, but I gave it one and a half stars because of it's star, Courtney Halverson. Halverson is a newcomer, who hasn't done much, but she was terrific and gave a little credibility to an otherwise horrible movie. Freaky Faron was listed as Sci-Fi/Fantasy, but in reality, it's a movie that could have aired on the Disney Channel. The plot is ridiculously stupid and is played out by actors who have hardly done anything before! Halverson was funny and entertaining as the freaky girl, who seems to be psychic and smarter than every one around her. Aside from that, this movie is not worth the reel it was recorded on. I find myself having a hard time explaining to you just how bad this thing was, I mean it was so bad, that I can't even begin to describe the story for you and that in and of itself should tell you to avoid it!