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leiram45
Thrillers and animated movies are also nice
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Kuwaresma (2019)
What were they thinking? Or, were they thinking?
A college student goes back home to attend his twin's funeral. There he uncovers secrets his family have been harboring. I saw this film on lists of best Pinoy horror films a few years ago, and after watching this film, I don't know how they thought this one was good. It had positive qualities, sure, but all those
positives got piled on, stomped on by an unbelievable twist no amount of suspension of disbelief can overcome.
This movie has positives. The 80s setting was a nice touch and most of all, the acting was great. John Arcilla and Sharon Cuneta were amazing here. It's such a shame that this movie failed them. The filmmakers seemed hell-bent on squeezing twists/elements from other horror films into this one-no matter the cost. No actor can save a film from a thinking like that.
I could take the slow pacing, I could take the ending feeling rushed and not focusing enough on the "solution", I could take some questionable information, and I could take the film not being scary overall. I could have even given the film a passing 5 rating. But, I couldn't take that twist. It was brains thrown out the window. It was one of the worst, if not the worst, WHAT-THE-HECK moment I've encountered in any form of fiction so far. It was so unbelievable and, more so, impossible. I wanted to shut the film off. If I didn't know it was about to end, I would have. Every good thing after that reveal turned to dust.
If you don't want to be frustrated, stay away from this film and go watch something else. There are Filipino horror films that are at least solid fives, but not this. The actors in this film deserve much better. I cannot comprehend what the filmmakers were thinking on this one.
La mesita del comedor (2022)
Should have been a short
An older couple who recently had their first child buys a coffee table but not without much argument. The husband pushes through with buying the table he likes, a decision which will change their lives in ways they couldn't have imagined. This film had its moments, disturbing in fact, but the film didn't come through as being well-thought-of. Another big issue was the story being dragged to reach 1 hour and 31 minutes of runtime. It would have been effective as a short.
The positives. The acting was, overall, good. The plot was easy to follow. The filmmakers clearly wanted the viewers to feel uneasy and they were successful in that.
The negatives. Aside from the plot being dragged to a full-length film, there were some questionable behavior here. A character had so much patience in spite of something happening. Another character was unbelievable to be that way and I don't see an objective reason story-wise to have a character like that. I felt like the filmmakers just had a brainstorming session about all the things they find to be disturbing and put it all in a single movie, and I don't think that's the right way to go.
Also, the characters are not likable. The wife, though she makes more sense, wants to have her way all the time. The husband, I'm sorry, was stupid in a lot of things. Another character, I felt was made just for shock value. There's another two characters who were more likable than the leads in my opinion.
Another thing is the genre. Why does it have comedy as one? There's nothing funny in this film. It's not a black comedy either. That's perplexing.
This film could have been a punch if it was a short movie instead and if there were no subplots that didn't add value to the main story. This is not the first film that has "to disturb" as it's first priority, but this one felt like it was made just for that. It was also draggy and I wanted to fast forward to the end. Watch if you want but there are better, more thought-out, disturbing movies than this one.
Hunter Hunter (2020)
Pride kills
A family living in the wild believes a wolf has come back, endangering them and competing with them for food. They might be right, but they're clearly missing something. If this movie's purpose is to show the dangers of having so much pride, and the impracticality of living in isolation in the wild, then it hit the mark. There are positives in here, but it's a very frustrating watch.
First, the good. The acting was fine. The plot was quite simple and easy to follow. It had a somewhat satisfying end.
Now, the bad. For a film about hunting, it was boring. I expected a thrilling film, but it was not. I expected smart lead characters, but there were none.
The mystery was predictable. And even though the antagonist's end was satisfying, I hope they made that scene longer. It was short compared to what that character has done.
The most important thing to take away from this film is the danger of pride. And the pride the family has in this film is so frustrating to watch.
This is gonna be a rant. The husband was full of himself. They're running out of food, he says stay. There's a wolf again, he says stay. He sees people clearly murdered by another person, he says stay. He doesn't say anything. He believes he can handle everything. I know the murderer is the antagonist in this film, but the husband is, too.
None of this would have happened if he thought about the danger and impracticality of their living situation. And he doesn't know any limits because seeing the bodies should have been his wake-up call. Who in their right mind would not alert the police after seeing dead bodies? Even Superman would have called the police. And much more concerning, who would leave his family unprepared and unaware that there's a murderer lurking in their vicinity? He is responsible for what happened to him and his family. No pity to him.
The wife, although not as prideful as her husband, also made big mistakes. She was right in wanting to leave the wild. She was right in thinking about their daughter. But she wasn't as assertive as she should have been considering their situation. She also did not go to the authorities for the right reasons. She goes to the police because she sees a wolf in the wild(in its habitat), her husband hasn't returned yet for 36 from hunting, and she found a ring anyone could have dropped. But when she sees a wounded man she doesn't know if harmless or not, and as she said, needs more medical attention, she doesn't notify the authorities. People might be looking for this guy and she stays silent. Also, she should have just told her daughter that their dog had died. She already mistook a different sound for the howl of their dog, she should know.
Usually, police in horror films are of no use and wrongfully dismissive, but not here. They were right. The family has no business living in the wild. The land they're in isn't even legally theirs. Wild animals live in the wild, so they can't complain when they see a wolf or a bear. It's humans who should not be living there. Hunting can go for days so that time, it was premature to search for the husband. When things happened that they should have been made aware of, they were not. The authorities in this film worked with what they knew and they did their job well, that's why they eventually located the bodies and the murderer. No thanks to the husband and even the wife.
The victim here is the daughter. She was raised by prideful parents who did not have her well-being as their priority. However, with the training his father raised her with and with this movie being a thriller, I expected a fight from her. But of course, she's still a child and she was unprepared for evil people. For what the murderer did to her and to his earlier victims, I wanted that end scene to be longer.
This film has its positives and negatives. Where it was successful is reminding people that pride, like wild animals and murderers, can lead to death. And humans, no matter how trained, have no business living in the habitat of wild animals. Good lessons, but the filmmakers got us there in a very frustrating, boring, and uninspired fashion.
Girl in the Picture (2022)
A sad, tragic story; and it's good that it's being told
A woman believed to be a victim of hit-and-run dies in a hospital, leaving behind her husband and son. A simple call to her mother triggers a domino of suspicions, tragedies, and revelations that almost always only happen in fiction.
As a documentary, this was well done. All the interviews offered something new to the whole story and none felt like a filler. This story has a lot of details and "chapters"; it could have been confusing, but, fortunately, it was not, and the creators of this documentary deserve commendation for presenting the different information in a very organized way.
The story covered in this documentary touches on a lot of things-parenting, friendship, job dedication, family, community. There are lessons and reminders to take here. There are lives, that although short, should be told and remembered.
Who is she? What's her story? What are the secrets behind that picture? Different people from different careers got together to answer those questions. A well done documentary of a moving story.
Worst Roommate Ever: Marathon Man (2022)
His face should be in the no-entry list of all countries
Yes, this episode could have been shorter and the unintelligent decisions of the victims presented here were frustrating to watch, but this episode was necessary to warn people about Youssef Khater.
He had fooled a lot people in different countries and on top of that, was convicted of attempted murder. There should be an international law about detaining people like him. People should be aware of him.
Aside from that, there should be a change in Chile's police practice and legal system. A woman with a head injury is in the hospital and the policemen they went to don't take her seriously because her injuries weren't serious enough for them. Like, what? Their kind is a dishonor to the police force. I was thinking that she should have went straight to the police when she got conscious but it turns out, she would have been shunned told to just go home anyway. And what about that mere 600 days for attempted murder? I hope survivors and witnesses of this kind of crime are rich enough to leave the country because the perpetrator/s can just finish the job when they get released.
This episode has some flaws, yes. But, one of the most important reason for doing a documentary is the need to warn people from becoming victims of criminals and illegal activities, and this episode was spot-on in that regard.
Death of a Vlogger (2019)
A ticket into the show called social media, horror style
A vlogger captures what appears to be hauntings while in livestream, and this subsequently catapults him into the virality stratosphere. With the aid of his girlfriend and an overambitious paranormal expert-slash-vlogger, they try to uncover the truth. It was a typical found-footage horror film up to that point, but what happens after that was unexpected, and I think, brilliant.
The acting overall was good. Not the best, but I think the actors played their parts pretty well. It doesn't have too many characters and the plot was easy to follow, which are good qualities for found-footage. There were some jump-scares but not too much to be annoying. These things were well and good, but the film's idea was a stand-out for me. I found it refreshing, intelligent, and cool.
This movie is not for every horror fan, but if you don't mind horror being used as a medium to maybe tell something else, then you may find this film pleasantly surprising.
So, was it real, was it fake, who to believe, does it matter? Look at their arguments and arrive to your own conclusions, and maybe get something more.
Deleter (2022)
Solid start but became stale and very predictable
A content moderator experiences bizarre visions and nightmares after her co-worker dies. The aftermath of this death criss-crosses with the stress of her job and her own past. The first 30 minutes was good: dark subject matter, eerie atmosphere, appealing questions to answer. It was a fine setup. Sadly, the film went down from there but not so much as to call this film a failure.
The best part about this film is the rarely explored world of content moderation. We see here the trauma that workers in this field experience, how even though they try to disengage from the terrible videos they watch regularly, they can't. Watching just the snippets of these videos in the movie made me look away, and I can't imagine what these people go through. They tackled this well and that is the biggest reason why I gave this film 6 stars and not 5 or 4. I wish they explored and used this theme more than they did.
The acting, overall, was nice. There were scenes where I wanted more from the actors, but the positives outweigh the negatives. Also, I wish they used their characters more or gave viewers more information about them.
The atmosphere was creepy in the first half but downgraded from there. It would have been better if they went all-out and removed some background music. Also, the dark lighting of the film became tiring to the eyes as the film went on.
The biggest downside of this film is the mystery/reveal. That was a letdown considering the good setup from the beginning. They have something great and yet they chose a weak, uninventive answer to the mystery.
The ending was another letdown. It's open to interpretation but it was bad.
This film had an interesting subject, decent acting, and nice first-half atmosphere. But, the second half didn't hold up to the first one, especially with the weak mystery and bad ending. Still, I think it had some positives that Filipino horror filmmakers should build on.
Tee yod (2023)
Has creepy moments but, in all, a wasted opportunity
A family living in a farm is struck with supernatural occurrences which coincide with one member getting sick. The story's structure, like the other commenters said, is typical, even the personalities of some of the characters. That's not necessarily bad, but the film has to have strong details to make it unique from the others in the genre, not to mention cohesive storytelling--and that's where the film missed the mark.
Folk horror films rely heavily on the legend, and this legend has to be explained, especially if the film makers intend to screen it internationally. The legend of the antagonist on this film was just scratched on the surface, and the "rules" were sketchy. Too much exposition is bad but it should be enough for the viewers to understand how things really work. We didn't get that here. Maybe on the sequel?
From the first third of the film, there were already disconnects. There were reactions from characters that were out-of-place; sometimes they reacted too much considering what they only knew, sometimes they said things too early. It's like there were deleted scenes or maybe misplaced ones.
The acting in this film was mixed. One actor was great but there were some who I don't know if they just chose to act that way or the film makers told them to. One character looks overly concerned at times while one character was often nonchalant. I'm not sure if it was meant to be comedic but it made me laugh, I thought it was a horror-comedy film. That's a minus for the atmosphere.
There were also too many characters. That two-hour run time should have been used to flesh out the legend, give more time to the antagonist rather than give dialogue to characters that were hardly used.
The positive on this film is it had creepy moments scattered across those two hours. It had a nice opening scene, the antagonist was scary, the characters are likable, and early on I thought it had the potential to be like 2021's The Medium; however, the insufficient legend information, and the confusing storytelling and atmosphere made this film a wasted opportunity.
I should be giving this film a 6 if not for the big contradictory information it had. There were two contradicting statements made about a character. It's an important detail in the mystery so it's surprising it went unchecked. I'm hoping the sequel is better.
Marrowbone (2017)
A drama film with just a pinch of horror
I watched this because it was classified as horror, and with horror, I was anticipating suspense. This film is not like that, but it is still a worthwhile watch.
The film is about 4 siblings who vow to be together, and a kind girl who becomes their friend. They had a series of traumatic experiences, and more still to come. You'll care for the characters and root for their happiness. They were written well and portrayed finely by the actors.
I came into this film knowing it was a horror film-plenty of suspense and mystery, faster pacing-and though there are elements of that, overall I was unsatisfied as a horror fan. Halfway through the film, I admit I felt bored, but I cared for the characters that I wanted to know what happened to them next. They are one of the most traumatized characters I've watched in a fictional film. And what's alarming is there's probably people like them in the real world.
This film is not for a horror fan looking for suspense(as I was when I watched it). I won't recommend it to a horror fan unless they want a drama film with just bits of horror. But as a film, in its entirety, it's good.
Jacob's Ladder (1990)
Thought-provoking, compelling. A film where every thing has meaning.
Films are a form of entertainment, and when done right, can be channels of compelling messages. They affect us differently, one factor being where we are in our lives. This film, it hit me deep.
Whoever's reading this, go ahead and watch. It's better knowing less. I didn't know a lot about this film other than it had horror elements and it was real good. Then after watching, you can read about it. I admit that I did, and that made me understand the film. I was blown away.
The acting was great, the structure of the film was brilliant, and the mystery was thrilling. All these are topnotch, but it was the story and the message behind it that made this film platinum.
I am very happy that this film was made when it was made and that the story was presented in a well-thought-out and delicate manner. There were no insignificant scenes just for the sake of it, each one has meaning. I liked that a lot about this film.
This movie served as a powerful instrument for me, a gracious reminder for self-reflection. Films can be amazing, and in rare occasions, life-changing. This film will not do that for everybody, but watch it, it's really excellent.
Evil Dead Rise (2023)
Okay on it's own but disappointing compared to earlier Evil Deads
I really liked Evil Dead 1 and the 2013 version. The acts/sections were good, overall they were solid, and had scary moments especially the 2013 one. I was expecting this to be the same level or near it, but it was not. It's okay on its own, but just break-even compared to the films in the franchise I watched.
Maybe I just expected much. Some of the kills/gore were good but it isn't really a big criteria to films that aren't slashers, and to me personally. Some of the acting were wanting, too, and the main characters weren't presented in a way where you'll really root for them. The kid was cute and I wanted the lead to survive because of her baby but there was just something missing with these characters. I think I cared for the neighbors more, actually.
The setting also was kinda weird. Cabins and the woods just match seamlessly with these types of stories. How and where they discovered the book and recordings were questionable, too, but that was something a viewer can let slide. Like the other reviewers here, there was just something missing for me, or maybe it was just insufficient in a lot of areas.
It's not bad. It may even be good for someone whose first film in the franchise is this. It was just pulled down by high expectations.
Summer of 84 (2018)
This could have been good
The kid/teenage characters were cute. They were acted well. I also liked that some of their family dynamics were shown or hinted at. Of course, there's that mystery of are they right or wrong, which I thought was nicely done.
But, oh man, just when it should have wrapped up and be a good movie, something happened. This something was inconsistent from the rest of the film. The last 15 minutes or so were tainted by events that were unrealistic(not something you can just shake off), decisions/behaviors that were out-of-character, and a shift in tone that was rough and too late in the film. These things were done in a level that was unbelievable. If they wanted this ending, they should have steered to it, not suddenly hopped to it.
I wish it just ended before that shift, just a few in-line-with-the-tone wrapping of things. It had some thrills but... oh, well.
Unfriended: Dark Web (2018)
Intelligent and scary, at the top-tier of its kind
I watched other horror films involving people in their webcams and films involving the dark web, and this is definitely in the top-tier for me.
The first minutes were slow as the story was being built up. This set-up needed, though, to inform the audience about the the characters. Having watched portions of the first Unfriended, I did not know if something supernatural suddenly comes up, even though it seemed unlikely from the film's description. About 30 minutes in, the film really got going and did not let up.
The acting was good, and the plot was not confusing. I also liked that the technical terms were defined, not too much, but just right for the entire audience. Dropping a not well-known term in a film and not defining them is just irritating. There's also a twist in the end that explains how and why some things happened. This was an enjoying and thrilling watch, and gave a different kind of scare.
Before I watched this, I just read the short description and one review that said just watch it and not read more, like a judge-for-yourself review, and I'm glad I heeded to it. I can see why this film may not appeal to everyone, but go ahead and see if it does for you.
The Tunnel (2011)
Successful in telling the story it wanted to tell, at least for me
The movie was presented as a documentary with interviews and film footage, and it is about a four-person news crew who investigated an underground tunnel in Australia. The story structure of the movie was quite simple and straightforward. It gave just enough context about the characters' dynamics and about the mystery of the tunnel to tease what is to come. Then, it told and showed the crew's experiences inside the tunnel.
The information given in the crew's interviews added to the story, none seemed out-of-place, although the repeated close-up portrait shots were annoying. The acting was okay and the characters weren't bad. The most important thing was it had a good thrilling part that the horror audience waits for. It wasn't all-over-the-place, it's not confusing who holds the camera, what happened made sense with it being a horror film. Finally, the mystery was given an answer.
This movie is not special, the story is not extraordinary, but it was done well and it was thrilling. The questions were answered and there were no unnecessary complications. With that, I give this a 7.