Argento's Dracula (2012)

        “For the dead travel fast.”  Good evening fiends, are you ready to sink your teeth into Thirsty Thursday’s review?  Tonight’s fangy feature was brought to us in 2012 by master of horror Dario Argento. An adaptation of Stoker’s Dracula, I was supremely curious to see how one of my all-time favorite horror directors captures this classic and iconic frightmare – and I have to say I was not disappointed!

        Let me begin our review by warning everyone that this is NOT – I repeat for dramatic effect – not – the exact replica of our beloved tale of blood, passion, fangs, and fire.  Please don’t go into this film thinking it can in any way be compared to Coppola’s film from the 90s.  It just isn’t the same film, nor does it want to be. Which makes it all the better, if you ask me.  No, I’m not saying it’s better than Coppola’s film – there isn’t a point in saying that as Gary Oldman is not one to be contested.  But Argento knew this I am sure when he decided to direct this adaptation, which is perhaps why he made the conscious decision to veer off corpse…I mean…course…in the making of this film.  What I am trying to get across, dear readers, is that you simply cannot compare this film to the other because it is entirely different in many various respects.  The reason I feel this needs to be stressed is that when I read other reviews online of this film, they all call this movie ‘abysmal’ and terrible (Sometimes solely based off of the trailer…exqueeze me but since when can you really review a film based off it’s trailer? That’s simply absurd!)…and it was infuriating me because people were continually comparing this to Coppola’s film. It’s not the film, Gary Oldman’s not in it, so lay off already!  

        Anyway, I digress. What we do have that rings true to the original tale are the main characters. We have Count Dracula, obviously, portrayed excellently by Thomas Kretschmann. He was a gorgeous Count and his blue eyes glitter and glint amidst the brilliantly (as per usual) lit setting. We don’t see the Count age and turn young again, then age again as in Coppola’s film. Instead Dracula stays young throughout the film. We have Mina, portrayed by Marta Gastini – and let me just say that I was totally taken in by her performance. She had much more expression, vulnerability, and likeability over Winona Ryder (sorry Winona…I still loved you in Beetlejuice).  We have Jonathan, and Lucy, and Van Helsing, and Renfield. But we are also introduced to an entirely new cast of characters.  People like Zoran, Janek, Tanja, Jarmila, Prete, Delbruck, and more…they are new and delightful additions to the cast of characters, and help make this film entirely different from its predecessors.  To be truthful, the weakest link in the entire cast was Rutger Hauer as Van Helsing. He spoke…in pauses…even worse than…William Shatner.  My god man! Make a sentence or two flow – like blood – because the blood is the life! 

        As far as the setting, we have creepy castles, gorgeous fashions, plenty of horses and the like. The lighting, in true Argento fashion, was perfection. And the score (even though it ALSO was ripped apart by online critics) was simply marvelous.  I adored the sounds, quite truthfully, and thought them reminiscent of Christopher Lee style Dracula films.  But since I wasn’t going into the film expecting a fully orchestrated soundtrack by Wojciech Kilar, I was not let down in the least. In case I needed to mention that again.

        And let me talk for a second about how incredibly bad ass this Dracula was.  Wow.  Oldman was perfection, don’t get me wrong, but I really wanted Dracula to do more mind control and shape shifting in Coppola’s film – and we get that in this Argento adaptation.  Drac not only turns into a wolf – he also turns into a swarm of flies, a praying mantis, and a screech owl!  He uses mind control more than once, there’s even this amazing scene where he makes a man that betrayed him kill himself. We see him point the gun at his chin, and then we see the bullet travel through his mouth in slow motion, and then motion speeds up again as his head explodes from the bullet. That was, my fiends, simply awesome.  When Kretschmann has death scenes he takes people out with ruthless abandon and even grace. It is great to watch.  Further, he is the first Dracula I’ve heard seem to detest what he is. He states that blood is: “The only way I can still nourish this foul cadaver.”  I enjoy a somewhat broody and self-loathing Count in comparison to the dead-and-loving-it Counts of the past.  

       Now I’ll hook you all up with the stats:  Body count?  I was so thrilled, this movie came in with a whopping 21 deaths.  Some of them are people dying then getting staked, but I counted it because death scenes are death scenes.  Killers?  FIVE!  That’s also a really decent number compared to most horror I’ve reviewed lately.  Cheap thrills? None. Actual chills? Two.  Raven’s Scream Meter Says?  4 out of 5 Screams!  I’d of given it the five but Van Helsing is supposed to be a strong character and he really fell short in this in my opinion.  Definitely worth a watch if you love Dracula or Argento (or both!).  I’ll be watching again I’m sure.  Bravo Argento, it’s safe to say you still are quite the master of horror.  I hope you all found this review a bloody good time!  Thank you for reading, and as per usual feel free to comment below! 

The Eternal (1998)

“In the beginning of the world, the earth and the sky were one creature, and it was the hardest thing to tear them apart. They loved each other so much. And that's why it rains. Because the earth and the sky are always trying to get back together.”  Hey there fiends and welcome to Wicked Wednesday!  Tonight’s witchy flick was brought to the silver screen in 1998 by Michael Almereyda and is entitled The Eternal.  I actually didn’t expect too much from this flick when I flipped it on, and I was very pleasantly surprised by it.  I had no idea Christopher Walken would be in it, so you can imagine my surprise when his name flashed by in the opening credits. Score! As a rule of thumb, if he’s in a movie…I pretty much am guaranteed to enjoy it.  If you hate Walken (do people that hate Walken even exist? Inconceivable!) it’s ok…he doesn’t last long. *cackles*

So the movie begins with a very happy couple getting totally smashed on a roller coaster. When they head home, the woman (who we come to find out is Nora, portrayed by Alison Elliot) falls down a flight of stairs. We then cut to her doctor checking her out, and advising her not only to not travel, but to quit drinking. Nora, of corpse, ignores both of these warnings and immediately takes her family (husband and son, respectively) to Ireland to visit her aging grandmother.  They arrive after a few antics like a bar fight and a car crash at an huge crumbling mansion where Nora’s Uncle Bill (Walken) and her grandmother Mrs. Ferriter (portrayed by the loverly Lois Smith – aka Adele Stackhouse of True Blood).  Uncle Bill is acting strangely, and brings Nora to the basement to observe a 2,000 year old corpse of a Druid witch.  Nora and her family go to bed, and Uncle Bill succeeds in awakening the witch who immediately proceeds to slit his throat. From there, the movie seems to take a strange twist – the witch has taken on the persona of Nora (has literally become her twin) and apparently is attempting to take over Nora’s soul.  Some of the antics that ensue are downright campy, I would have liked to see the Druid witch use more elemental magic…they talk about it in the film but we really don’t get to see it at all.We find out that grammy is also a witch, but is losing her spellcraft ability in her old age and is unable to completely fight off this ‘powerful’ Druid (I use powerful in sarcastic quote marks because she really doesn’t do much to display her power besides being seemingly completely impervious to bullets, fire, electrocution, and a variety of other attempts to kill her).  The battle for Nora’s soul wages until Nora makes the ultimate sacrifice – slitting her own throat to protect her only son.

So lets talk about the acting. Obviously the two seasoned actors (Walken and Smith) were just wonderful in this. The rest of the acting was, I hate to say, mediocre at best – but there was something so endearing about listening to the Irish accents that I pretty much didn’t care. The cinematography was pretty fantastic, no complaints there. There was some pretty great lighting and the rambling mansion and Irish coast seemed to have the perfect ambiance for this story’s setting.  The soundtrack was also well done, and though I didn’t immediately recognize most of the artists that were compiled within it, it still sounded fresh.  The gore, though, I must say was a let down. Walken’s death was decently done, but aside from that there really wasn’t any gore at all. The final slit throat scene was so badly done I winced…but the meaning behind it actually brought me to tears, so something definitely worked there. The idea behind sacrificing yourself for another, and getting your life back as a reward…that to me is a pretty amazing concept, regardless of any camp.  I will say that if you’re looking for a frightening flick filled with gore, this is definitely not the movie for you.

And here come the statistics!  Body count?  Four. For a movie that doesn’t boast very many characters, that’s kind of a large number. Number of killers? Two. Boob count? Zero. Cheap thrills? Zero. Actual chills? Zero.  This film actually turned out to be more moving than scary, but I can’t say I hated it because of that!  Raven’s Scream Meter says: 3.5 out of 5 Screams!  Definitely worth a watch if you are into a little less blood and a little more emotion.  Thank you for reading my review, and as per usual feel free to comment below!

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Good evening, and welcome to Teen Scream Tuesday!  It’s been a sad week in the horror world, and I write this review with a mixture of both a heavy heart and overwhelming gratitude in dedication to our fallen soldier Wes Craven.  A true master of horror, Wes has hands-down directed some of the absolute best teen screams.  From Swamp Thing to Scream, Wes has revolutionized horror again and again. But this week, for our Teen Scream Tuesday, I’m reviewing probably his most well-known and well-loved film: A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984).  A truly horrific concept – perhaps one of the most horrific concepts of all – brought to life by Craven and our much loved and much appreciated Robert Englund as Freddy.

And that’s where we will start this review – the concept. Craven alludes to some of his inspiration for this concept throughout the film.  He references a real rash of deaths that seemingly all were caused by nightmares (well, the doctor performing Nancy’s dream therapy references them), that you can actually read about here:  http://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/10/us/nightmares-suspected-in-bed-deaths-of-18-laotians.html.  He also references that certain peoples are known to be dream warriors/weavers: they have the innate ability to lucid dream enough to turn their nightmares into something far better – for example if they are falling, they fall into something amazing that grants them wondrous opportunities. The concept of a killer that can control your dreams and kill you in your sleep is downright terrifying – even more so than any other slasher film concept, if you ask me. A concept that is simply brilliant and intriguingly haunting.

Let’s talk about the gore for a second. For a film that graced the silver screen one year after your reviewer was born, this film has some wicked gore.  There are some campy spots (when Kruger’s arms stretch like Stretch Armstrong, for example), overall I would have to say that the effects were top-notch. Freddy’s burned/scarred face, Tina getting slashed as she is mysteriously dragged up the wall of her parent’s room, and the gallons of blood required to create Glen’s death scene are all so well-done and serve up enough of the red stuff to make any horror fiend satiated. But the gore isn’t even responsible for all of the goosebumps one gets watching this film. When we see that first shot of Nancy in bed and her ceiling begins to bow and shows Kruger’s face and hands coming through the suddenly pliable plaster – now that is just brilliant filmmaking right there, fiends. Further, the nursery rhyme…”One, two, Freddy’s coming for you…” We all know it. We all love it. And this movie would totally be missing some of its sinister feel without that rhyme. To take a child’s nursery rhyme and turn it into a warning speaks directly to our subconscious, and makes us wonder if we shouldn’t stay awake a little longer…

Last but not least, concerning what gives me the shivers in this flick, is my absolute favorite scene next to Tina’s death scene – the bathtub montage. When Nancy falls asleep in the tub, and her legs are apart and you see the infamous glove come up from between her legs, you can’t not get a little spooked out!  If you haven’t given this film a chance, you should, if only for this awesome sequence.

The cinematography is top-notch, obviously. No shaky camera, great shots of fog and smoke and fire and fiends. The acting is also first rate, we all obviously love Robert Englund but Johnny Depp couldn’t have landed a better role for his first feature film.  Heather Langenkamp is both memorable and inspiring as Nancy, and everyone else plays their roles convincingly and admirably. There wasn’t a weak link here.  As far as the music, it was perfect as well. The original Nightmare score was written by Charles Bernstein and still holds up as one of the more recognizable and well-written horror scores out there.  I’d have to say that this cast and crew outdid themselves in bringing Craven’s nightmares to life for us. Bravo!

You know a horror film is good when people recognize it simply by the first name of the antagonist. People can say “Freddy” in almost any household in America (and in many other parts of the world, even) and others know exactly to whom and what movie they are referencing.  He is an iconic boogeyman, standing shoulder to shoulder with fiends like Dracula and Frankenstein (though to be fair, Frankenstein was the doctor, not the monster even though when we say that name most people call up the imagery of the monster).  Needless to say, Freddy is legit as fuck.

So here comes what you all want to know – how does your reviewer rate this film?  Where are the beloved stats already?? Here we go:  Body count?  Four. Not many deaths here (and we aren’t even sure if they were real by the end) but they were well done so that counts for something. How many killers? One. Boob count? Two. Cheap thrills? One. Actual chills? Three. Raven’s Scream Meter Says? Five out of Five Screams. Anyone into horror should be able to appreciate this 80s masterpiece by Craven, as it isn’t nearly as campy as most of the 80s horror I’ve seen and actually has some wicked acting involved as well as decent gore. A must-have for your collection, and a classic that will always grace my thoughts as one of the more memorable concepts in the horror genre. RIP Mr. Craven. Thank you for the Nightmares.

As a bonus for reading tonight, I’ve included a link to the actual script for your viewing pleasure, which can be found here: http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/nightmare-on-elm-street.html

As usual, please feel free to comment below, and thanks for reading!   

Hold Your Breath (2012)

“You call that a friend? He was ready to rip you a new asshole with a pitchfork!”  Happy Maniac Monday ghosts and ghouls!  Tonight’s murderous feature was brought to the silver screen in 2012 by director Jared Cohen and is entitled Hold Your Breath.

The overall gist of the flick is that if you don’t hold your breath when passing a cemetery, evil spirits (that are ‘so bad even hell won’t take them) can possess your body. As a group of college kids rolls past a cemetery on their way to go camping, one of them takes a large toke on a pipe while the rest hold their breath. He gets possessed – and wackiness ensues.

Obviously after the possession, the viewer is completely aware that these murders are coming. The opening of the movie shows a mass murderer being electrocuted, and we see that the prison he was sentenced to death in is now abandoned, so we can only assume it is his wicked soul doing the possessing (which is later confirmed).

The death toll begins immediately in the flick, and doesn’t stop throughout its entirety. Most of the deaths are done with ingenuity – we have a girl being ripped in half with chicken wire, a cop that gets his jiblets fried when jumper cables are attached to his pants and the engine – he tries to get away from the guy pouring gas on him, starts the car, and gets immediately fried.  It also becomes clear by the third death that this director clearly is enamored with eyeball gouging. Almost every character gets something shoved into their eyeball at one point or another.  Though I’ll be honest the death by cake mixer could have been a bit more intriguing. I mean…really? After those two awesomely gruesome deaths?  But here I go getting off track.

Anywho, perhaps the best character in the film is the old man McBride, who knows a little too much about the insanity happening at the graveyard. He has the most excellently hilarious lines: “Are you paying somebody to help you misunderstand me?” – L O L. Portrayed decently by Steve Hanks, he is hands down the most memorable character in this film. Aside from him, the acting was decent, though none of the actors were people I recognized from other features.  Aside from McBride, the best actor in my humble opinion was the second to get possessed - Tony (But with a real name like Brad Slaughter, should anyone be surprised by this revelation? haha! You just can't make this stuff up!).  

The cinematography was also done well, there wasn’t too much use of ‘shaky camera’ technique, and some of the shots of fog in the dark cemetery were shot very well. The soundtrack wasn’t super memorable, but it was decent and went along with the action of the flick.  The gore…well…CGI is definitely NOT my preferred style of gore.  It has its place, but personally I think this movie could have used a lot less of it. The girl getting cut in half, for example, could have been much more realistic with handmade gore. The specter battle, however, pretty much required CGI to pull off. It was decent, if not a hair campy.  I will say that what WAS done by hand in this film looked great - the girl's scars on her face in the beginning and most of the eye gouging were what appeared to be handmade gory goodness. So I was at the very least somewhat satiated. 

But I know what you’ve been waiting for - so here comes the ratings fiends!  Body Count: 7 or 9, depending on if you think that McBride dies at the end (doesn’t exactly show this), as well as the last female left (whom we also have to draw our own conclusions about). Number of killers? Well…you could I suppose technically say one (the spirit of the murderer) but I totaled up each person who killed while possessed as well – so my total came out to seven.  Boob count? Two. Cheap thrills? Two. Actual creeps endured? One. Raven’s Scream Meter says: 3 out of 5 Screams. I’d say this is worth a watch, but try not to take it too seriously or expect too much of it or you may wind up disappointed. Feel free to leave comments and opinions below, and stay spooky my fiends!  

Satanic (2006)

Hello fiends and welcome to Satanic Sunday!  Today’s devilish feature is called Satanic, and was brought to us in 2006 by director Dan Golden. The feature film opens in a great way – a car wreck.  Generally speaking, if someone dies within the first ten minutes of a flick, I’m hooked and want to know more. That, my friends, is suspense.  Though I will say that there was a lot less gore than there could have been for such a bad wreck.  But I digress.

So the gist of this production is that a young girl, Michelle (Annie Sorell), has gotten into a terrible car crash. Her father died, and her face was completely destroyed.  When we first meet her, her face is totally bandaged.  On the bright side, the doctor (portrayed by Angus Scrimm) believes that he can re-create her face like new, so even though she is facing a few grueling surgeries she should come out of this OK (though lets be honest, most doctors would totally not assure a patient prior to surgery that she would look exactly as she did before her face was wrecked…that part kind of threw me, truthfully). The bad news…she has completely lost her memories and has no recollection of anything that happened to her before or during the accident. 

Anywho, once her face is back and she is free to leave the hospital, Michelle is put in a halfway house for ‘bad’ kids.  The hospital gives to her what is left of her ‘belongings’ which consisted solely of a satanic talking board and pentagram planchette. Before taking her to the halfway house, Mr. Bisson (amid lewd jokes and stories) takes her to her own home to collect some of her things.  She grabs a diary (also with a pentagram on it) from her room which appears to Bisson as if it were decorated by Charles Manson. But after fondling a few garments from her panty drawer and letting her get her things together, they head to the halfway house where all the real fun begins.

The family that fosters has quite an odd dynamic. The wife appears to be super religious, calling the girls “Whores of Babylon,” and expecting prayer before bed, and so on. But she smokes, drinks, and we find out confiscates things from the boarders to sell on ebay – and also requests prescriptions for the boarders but keeps them under lock and key ALSO selling them out the back door. Mr. Bisson is clearly a nasty character, usually quite raunchy.  When left to their own devices, however, Michelle and her roommate Dalia (Eliza Swenson) decide to mess around with the talking board to see if they can contact Michelle’s father.  Things heat up, and before you know it Dalia is dead with her wrists slashed.  What appeared to be a suicide to everyone in the house did not convince the detective on the case, but unfortunately he lacked the skills to save…well…any of them.

I won’t give away the ending of the film in the case anyone should wish to indulge, of corpse.

But lets talk about the film itself. The acting was mediocre at best, but the cinematography was actually decent. The plot had a few great points to it but mostly was a bit drawn-out for my taste. Get to the gore already!  The gore itself was actually dissed online, loads of people saying that it was cheap or cheesy gore. To me, it was just clear that the people who made the film were less into CGI and more into handmade gore – and I myself prefer the handmade stuff anyway so the gore didn’t actually bother me at all, I thought it was decently done. The soundtrack was lame, as was the actual sound itself…there were many spots where I had to turn the film up…and up…and up…because I couldn’t hear the characters, but then the music over them was so loud it was vibrating my sub woofer.  They could have done that better. Further, there was one scene in which what was supposed to be a satanic pentagram was painted on the wall with ‘blood,’ though it was pointing the wrong way. Two points up for Satanists, one point up for Pagans. The girl fight at the end was totally lamesauce, and unrealistic...as was the ending.  The ending was actually a total disappointment for me, and I had actually gotten super involved in the story by the last 20 minutes of the film, so I was pretty sad about that.

One awesome thing though was that the doctor brought up a famous psychological case in which a man (they don’t say his name but it was Phineus Gage) got a steel rod to the dome. It went right through his frontal lobe and caused him to go from a nice, normal guy to a completely angry and violent individual. I always thought that case was fascinating so I was pleased it was referenced in this story.  Good show, writers!

So lets get down to it fiends!  Body Count?  This film came in with a nice round eight. Number of killers? Two. Boob count? Three. Cheap Thrills? One. Actual Spooks Endured? One. Raven’s Scream Meter says?  One out of Five Screams – if the ending didn’t totally suck, it would have scored better, but the ending was such a fail I detracted overall points from it. Sorry not sorry. Anyway, it wasn’t the worst film I’ve seen but unless you are super into horror or Satanic stories, you probably won’t dig this film much.  Thanks for tuning in ghosts and ghouls, and feel free to comment below!  Happy Sunday and stay spooky! 

Scream 2 (1997)

       "Nothin like a funeral to bring a family together!"  Hey there spooks, and welcome to Teen Scream Tuesday.  I love the Scream collection, and since I've only reviewed the original Scream, I figured I'd go ahead and get my Scream 2 review on. 
       The sequel to one of the best 90s slasher films begins with a couple (Maureen and Phil, portrayed by Jada Pinkett Smith and Omar Epps, respectively) settling in to enjoy the feature film "Stab," a Hollywood version of the frightening events that occurred in Woodsboro 'a couple years ago,' according to the teens in the theater.  When Phil is stabbed in the bathroom, and the killer comes out and sits with Maureen, the movie begins living up to the original in an unexpectedly awesome way. 
       We then are transported right back into Sidney Prescotts life, only now she is in college and has to change numbers somewhat regularly due to people calling her and asking if she likes scary movies.  When Sid sees that two people were murdered during the opening night of "Stab," she immediately seeks out Randy for assistance.  Suddenly all of the survivors from Scream have congregated to this college, worried about what appears to be a new serial killer on the loose.  First we see Sid and Randy, then Gail, then Dewey.  I'm thinking that whenever these four get near each other, random acts of violence and gore are about to take place.  Not by them, but they seem to attract horror like poop attracts flies. 
       The death of sorority girl "Cici" (Sarah Michelle Gellar) isn't incredibly surprising OR innovative.  I was slightly disappointed by this death, but felt that perhaps it was necessary so the characters become aware that the movie deaths are not 'random.'  Viewers probably all think the cameraman is going to get it, but when Randy (Jamie Kennedy) gets killed its a pretty big surprise (even though his killing is pretty much exactly the same death as the cameraman in Scream).  The best part of this sequel, in my humble opinion, is when Sidney and her dorm mate Hallie (Elise Neal) are trapped inside the car with the killer.  Sid has to crawl over the killer to get out of the car, and the scene feels very tense while watching.  Well done!

       I don't know if anyone recalls Sidney's snarky comment about Tori Spelling playing her in 'the movie version' of Woodsboro, but Scream 2 ensures that Ms. Spelling is indeed the lead role for the "Stab" movies. So hilarious and fitting with the original, I'm glad they tossed that detail into the plot.  As far as the acting, it was not sub par from the original Scream, but then again it entailed most of the original cast (well, any who were still alive that is).  Cinematography was great quality, as typical of the Scream films, and they still included "Red Right Hand" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in the soundtrack.  Though I will say that aside from the Nick Cave song, the soundtrack kinda sucked.  I mean, there were WAY better songs in the 90s that could have been utilized for this soundtrack.  I don't know who exactly was in charge of that, but they didn't impress me.

       Body Count?  This flick boasts a strong body count of TEN!  That was pretty impressive for a sequel!  Number of killers?  Technically, there were five killers total, but only two don the Ghostface costume.  Boob count? Zero! Scream continues to not be gratuitous with nudity in this sequel.  Cheap thrills?  A couple, but its Scream so you kinda expect people to die throughout it.  Actual spooks endured?  Just one, in my opinion.  Raven's Scream Meter Says: 3 out of 5 Screams!  Though I tend to agree with the notion that sequels are detrimental to the horror genre, the simple fact that this movie actually makes that statement within itself shows that this is different from many and doesn't take itself too seriously.  Good spooky teen fun! 

The Quiet Ones (2014)

"What if you could prove that the supernatural was merely a manifestation of what already exists in the mind, the subconscious?"
            Hello again fiends!  It's been entirely too long since I reviewed anything, and I've decided it's time to start regularly updating this and my other blog.  Sorry that I've been away for so long, I was invested in two jobs for awhile and now I'm back to just one, so I have the time I need to sit and watch a film for review.  So without further adieu, I bring you my newest review of Hammer films' The Quiet Ones, for our Spooky Saturday feature.
            Any movie that starts out declaring that it's 'inspired by actual events,' generally gains more credibility in the creep factor area for me, however loosely inspired.  The Quiet Ones begins by asking the question "What is the supernatural?"  Quickly viewers come to understand that there is a professor (Coupland, portrayed by Jared Harris) working with a group of students to try to prove that the supernatural exists in what they each are calling "The Experiment." The professor leading this experiment keeps referring to a previous patient he had, 12 year old David Q (Aldo Maland), who had made up a supernatural entity named Mr. Gregor to explain away his telekinetic capabilities.
           We meet young Brian (portrayed by Sam Claflin), who likes cameras and is apparently going to be the filmographer of the "experiment." He is a nerdy and very quiet fellow and he enters the compound eager to meet and film the subject of the experiment, Jane.  Jane is fresh out of the asylum after being abandoned and going from family to family.  Each time she would get taken in, 'things' would happen that couldn't be explained, and she would get moved again.  They run Twisted Sister's "Come On Feel the Noise" to keep Jane awake, and the professor apparently wants her to manifest telekinetic abilities so that they can extract it from her mind. Only after a while some of the 'experiments' done on Jane are not exactly moral concerning human rights.  For example, he asks if her 'supernatural entity' (Evey) is afraid of fire, and then proceeds to hold the girls arm over an open flame to observe if she flinches or not. 

           The lighting was done decently, but I wasn't hugely into the sound.  Anytime the EMF activity was happening the sound was so loud it was obnoxious to listen to.  It could have been sufficiently creepy without the volume. The cinematography was well done, not a whole lot of what I like to call 'shaky' camera, all the motions seem very fluid in this film from one scene to the next.  I can't say the acting was the best I've ever seen, though I'm not sure if that is because of the way they were written or due to the actors choices.  Maybe it was a combination of both...because with lines like "Even God rested on the seventh day," this movie doesn't have anything very deep to say, even though it seemed promisingly profound at first (for a supernatural story, that is).
          Needless to say, I can't totally cast it aside as a decent spooky story, as it has plenty of cheap thrills coupled with charming English accents and if anything the way that the character Jane is treated is horrific all on its own. Body Count? Four.  Number of killers? One. This film actually brought forth quite a few cheap thrills (6 total, in my opinion), some interesting and some just plain cheesy.  As far as actual spooks endured, unfortunately it didn't really give me the hebie jebies... but since it was based on a true story it does get two points for this category.  The other point being when the tub begins to boil!  Boob count? Two. Raven's Scream Meter says: 2.5 of 5 screams.  It's worth a watch, especially if you really dig supernatural stories, but don't expect a miracle.


**I just now realized I missed a day, and posted my Spooky Saturday on Freaky Friday.  My bad!  I'll do a Freaky Friday review next week! lol**

Devil (2010)

            The final film for this Satanic Sunday is Devil, filmed in 2010 by John Erick Dowdle (produced by M. Night Shyamalan).  I hadn’t heard of this film prior to this review, but apparently a lot of people have – it grossed 33 million at the box office (that’s roughly a 20 million dollar profit!).  The gist is that sometimes the Devil makes people pay for their karma while they are still alive…and it appears to be a repeat pattern known as “The Devil’s Meeting.”  It generally begins with a suicide.  In this story someone plummets off a skyscraper with a rosary clutched in their hands, thus beginning the pattern.  Next, a group of five people are trapped in an elevator and…you guessed it…one of them is the Devil.

            I have to admit that my first thought was that the man in the suit was the Devil, but that thought was quickly dispelled when he was the first to die.  After several suspected Devils bit the dust, though, I began wondering if that really mattered or if they could still be the Devil (in a death disguise).  Detective Bowden is assigned to the case (portrayed by Chris Messina), and he joins up with the security team for the building as well as with the fire department to try to get the survivors out of the elevator.  There are some intense moments as the people in the elevator try to figure out for themselves who is doing the killing, and the Detective continues to struggle to get them free. 

            The music isn’t the best thing about the movie, but I can’t say I hated it.  I just wasn’t super into it, either.  The cinematography was decent but it’s also fair to say it wasn’t the best filmed movie I’ve ever seen.  The concept was interesting, though, and the suspense of trying to guess who the Devil was kept my interest throughout.  Though I wish Geoffrey Arend had a larger role than he inevitably did.  He was the only actor/tress I recognized and he was gone so quickly.  He would have made a fantastic Devil.  This film sort of reminded me of Jean Paul Sartre’s “No Exit,” with the elevator and the concept of hell being other people (the people in the elevator sort of drive each other insane; they may have just killed each other without the Devil lending a hand).  The killings are all basically kept within the elevator itself, so they really aren’t all that creative or gory.  Sorry, blood brothers, this one’s fairly tame. 

            What do you get when you place a few people with the Devil in an elevator?  A fairly low Body Count, clocking in at only five deaths, one of them being a suicide.  Number of killers?  Three.  Boob Count?  Zero, again this movie lacks even kissing.   Cheap Thrills?  One.  Actual spooks endured? None.  Raven’s Scream Meter says:  3 out of 5 screams.  A decent concept and stimulating plot sequence, but the acting could have potentially been a bit better.  Thanks fiends as always for reading, and feel free to leave comments in the space below!  Xx ~ Raven

The Ninth Gate (1999)

            Next up for your Satanic Sunday, we have The Ninth Gate, directed in 1999 by Roman Polanski.  I can’t lie, watching a Christopher Walken movie then a Johnny Depp movie is never a big issue with this ghoul.  This movie is and has already been a favorite of mine, considering the way the movie focuses on and reveals the Devil (mostly through a focus on books, which I love).  The fact that Mr. Depp is the protagonist doesn’t hurt one iota.  But I digress.

            The premise of this flick is that JD’s character (Mr. Corseau) is a book buyer/seller.  He is hired by one Boris Balkan to authenticate a rare book about the Devil.  There are three known copies on earth, and Mr. Balkan believes his to be a fake and wants Mr. Corseau to travel to find the other books and check each against his copy to discover any dissimilar marks or text.  Corseau likes money, and this client is offering a sum he cannot refuse, regardless of his seeming distaste for the subject matter.  He takes on the job and begins researching the book.  He attempts to seek information about the book in various ways, and notices immediately that he is being followed by a smoking man (hired by Mrs. Tolfer to retrieve the book).  He also finds himself running into the same woman over and over…both in the States as well as in other countries.  She seems to lead/protect Corseau throughout his journey. 

            As Corseau is able to examine the other copies of the books, he notices that the engravings in the books are different, some of them signed by a ‘mysterious’ LCF.  It didn’t take him long to discover what those initials stand for.  The soundtrack to the movie is just as glorious as the cinematography, though I’d have to say most of the death scenes were pretty lame sauce (with the exception of Balkan burning himself alive…that was just brilliant).  Emmanuelle Sergner was probably the weakest link, as “The Girl,” her acting was somewhat atrocious.  This isn’t a gore fest, it definitely has more plot to it than those typically do, and much of the storyline is not just about moving the plot forward but its also about character development.  Corseau goes from a complete non believer to a full-fledged Hell seeker/aficionado. 

            The Body Count was actually decent in this film, with a total of seven (though I’m mildly surprised the number was not nine).  Number of killers?  Three.  Boob Count? One.  Cheap Thrills?  None.  Actual Thrills?  One-ish.  Raven’s Scream Meter says: 4 out of 5 Screams!  Definitely worth a watch if you are into movies about the Devil and the occult, but not if you are looking for a blood bath.  I hope you enjoyed the review, feel free to leave comments if you so desire – and thanks as always for reading!  Xx ~ Raven 

The Prophecy (1995)

            Hello my gore-geous fiends and welcome to Satanic Sunday!  On this most holy days of the week, I feel it is my duty (and right horrorshow) for me to present to you reviews of movies and such about Satan or demonic entities/possession.  I know you all didn’t ask for this, but that’s just the kind of ghoul I am.  First up for today’s reviews, we have Gregory Widen’s 1995 film The Prophecy.  I picked this flick because I generally always find movies with Christopher Walken in them to be particularly entertaining, and I wasn’t let down with his performance here as Gabriel, the Angel of Death. 

            The premise of the flick is that there is a second war in heaven that is not foretold in the current editions of the Bible, where some of the angels are angry because God gave humans souls.  The angels felt that God loved humans more because of this, Gabriel at the top of the ranks of these.  He comes to earth to find an evil soul to use against God in this war, only Samuel gets to the soul before both Gabriel AND Lucifer (Viggo Mortensen) and gives it to a child to hide.  Gabriel wrecks havoc until he finds the soul he seeks, picking up souls that haven’t left this world yet (but are about to) on the way to do his bidding before they die.

 

            This movie isn’t particularly gory and there aren’t a lot of death scenes in it at all, though it does have a few burning bodies, and some torture, so it’s not completely devoid of visuals.  This is more classic good-versus-evil than slasher-style horror, but that is an appropriate theme for a tale that is focused on the belief that God and the Devil are real entities.  There are also some beautiful Native American ritual scenes, which seem fairly authentic and punctuate the film with other cultural and theological points of view.  The score isn’t particularly memorable, though there were a few decent pieces sprinkled in there somewhere.  That being said, the cinematography was solid throughout – no messing about with shaky cameras or out-of-focus shots. 

            I personally really enjoyed watching this movie, though I can’t really call it ‘horror’ per se…perhaps more a theological thriller?  Anywho, it’s at least worth a run through.  A low body count of four deaths, with a rarity here…there were also technically four killers in this movie as well.  I actually don’t think I’ve yet reviewed a film with the same number of deaths as killers, so that’s pretty wicked.  Boob Count? Zero, there wasn’t even any kissing in this movie.  Cheap Thrills?  None.  It took itself a bit more seriously than that.  Real Chills? One or two, mostly from Walken’s performance.  Raven’s Scream Meter Says:  4 out of 5 Screams, but this is definitely less ‘horror’ and more ‘dark heavenly war’ style.  I hope you enjoyed the review!  Feel free to comment below, and of corpse thank you for reading! Xx ~ Raven

Children of the Corn (1984)

           Hello again fiends!  Since I missed Monday and Tuesday (time was spent watching, instead of writing), I figured I’d put a couple out in one night for you all.  Doesn’t that sound like a spectacular spooky surprise?!  I thought so!  This review is going to focus on Fritz Kiersch’s rendition of Stephen King’s Children of the Corn (1984).  Originally a short story published in Penthouse (hmm…maybe some people do actually buy them for the articles, eh?), Children of the Corn is a somewhat fantastical tale of an entire town of children that wind up killing off all of the adults and forming a sort of cult amongst the rows of corn surrounding their town. 

            And that begins my first critique on the film – the plot.  I really don’t find children to be scary, more creepy than scary.  In my humble opinion, it is really far-fetched for a group of kids to literally kill off all the adults in any given town and have no retaliation whatsoever from either more adults or the elder kids.  In the story, they even have children willingly allowing the others to kill them at age 19.  I don’t know anyone that would willingly die like that, and even if one or two did it would be very difficult to get an entire group to fall into step with dying young.  I honestly didn’t think there was a Stephen King out there I couldn’t get behind, but I’d have to say this one is too far-fetched for me to get the creeps from.  That being said, if you as a viewer can get past the inconceivability of this plot, then you may find you enjoy this film.  The cinematography is decent though one can tell that it is an older film.  Still not bad, not bad.  I can’t honestly say I can remember the soundtrack so I am going to say that it wasn’t memorable and leave it at that. 

         The casting, unfortunately, is another downfall of this particular flick.  Courtney Gains as Malachai…I mean I’m all for giving child actors a bit of a break because they are ‘green,’ so to speak, but this kid was not only terrible, he was also obnoxious to look at.  Every time he yelled “Outlander!” I wanted to reach through the screen and shake him…hard. John Franklin as Issac was pretty awful also, but at least he was somewhat intriguing.  Having not read the short story for this prior to watching, I was hoping Isaac WAS the demon, or possessed and immortal, or something cool.  But alas, I was let down on that as well.  The creepiest thing about this movie was “The Blue Man,” a cop that had been crucified by the kids, his rotting skeleton serving as a point in the cornfield as their meeting place.  Otherwise…it’s pretty out there.  The kids all grab sickles and knives to kill the adults…and the adults grab pipes and duller instruments to try to fight back.  The kids all seem to go along with all of this, and yet don’t appear as brainwashed as one might originally think when we first meet them.  All in all, this is one of my least favorite conceptions that King has produced for us.  Anyways, here come the stats:  Number of deaths?  11.  Killers?  This was a tough call…probably thirty or so?  Boobs? 0. Not even anything remotely racy in this one.  Cheap thrills?  0.  Actual spooks endured?  0.  Ravens Scream Meter says: 2 out of 5 Screams.  Has some carnage so I couldn’t give it a one, even if it isn’t my favorite movie to date.  Thanks again for reading and I’ll be posting another review shortly!  xx

The Stand (1994)

       Welcome fiends, to yet another Wednesday.  I haven’t, I promise, been slacking this week – it just happened to take me a few days to actually get through this movie and I really wanted this to be the first film I review this week.  In honor of Ash Wednesday (which, your humble reviewer does not celebrate, but I do respect the observation), today I am bringing you a detailed review of The Stand (1994).  A classic good vs. evil struggle set smack in the heart of North America, based on the novel by the infamous master of horror, Stephen King.  It is an epic tale, and one of my absolute favorite stories King has ever conceived, but the film is exceptionally long and most likely (unless you have a completely free afternoon sometime) you will have to watch this one in more than one sitting.

The synopsis of this flick, in the case you haven’t yet read or watched it, begins with a plague that destroys mankind.  And while one might think that if a ‘superflu’ (as they call it in this film…or “Captain Tripps”)  were to leak in an area at this point in time, that our government would be able to quickly quarantine the area and prevent it from spreading worldwide, we have to admit that this could indeed be the case.  Humans are flawed, and the guard that was supposed to be the last defense for this quarantine became scared and fled the scene with his family, only to travel halfway across the country before slamming his car into a gas station and then dying in the arms of Stu Redman (Gary Sinise).  Stu is a hero from the beginning, as he cuts the lines to the gas just before the car takes them all out – saving everyone in the gas station…and sparing them.  For the time being, that is.  The government quickly follows the trail of this escapee, and travels to Arnette, TX, ready to shut down the town and quarantine anyone who came into contact with him.  Stu and friends get taken to a government facility and are put under close watch.  But just before they are taken, a cop comes into town to tell them what is going on…and lies to the dispatcher over the waves as to his whereabouts, further spreading this already infectious disease and once again showing the weakness of man.  We meet other important characters along the way, including a deaf-mute named Nick Andros, a girl named Franny Goldsmith and her good friend Harold Lauder, a mentally disabled man called Tom Cullen, a slick city-kid crooner named Larry Underwood and many…many more.  This is quite the epic tale, and most characters that we come to know as surviving this major plague have integral parts in the outcome of the final battle.  The survivors begin having very vivid dreams, one is of an elderly African American woman named Abigail Freemantle, “But people around these parts call me Mother Abigail.”  Mother Abigail tells them all to come see her as soon as they can, and to bring along their friends.  The other side of these dreams, however, are guided by Randal Flag.  An instrument of supreme evil, Flag attempts to grab anyone he can with promises of everything they could ever want as long as they follow him without question.  When I first became familiar with the story, I couldn’t decide fully if Flag was actually the Devil or if he was simply a demon – but all evidence that I can see points to him being the actual Devil.  He’s even called “His Infernal Majesty” by a character at one point, which was one of the things that solidified my opinion on this matter. 

Anyway, the characters begin to split between Boulder and Las Vegas, and prepare to face off.  Mother Abigail is self-proclaimed to be in touch with God, and it does appear that she is as she is well aware that the survivors are heading toward Hemingford Home to meet her and continue on to Boulder.  Throughout the movie, God guides the ‘good’ side through Mother Abigail, and Flag guides the side of the wicked.  The good guys do absolutely everything they can do to stop the evil that is leashed upon them, ending in the final Stand between a few of the Boulder friends who have traveled into Nevada unarmed and without anything but the clothes on their backs.  After they are captured, there is a particularly wonderful conversation between Flag and Glen Bateman (an elderly painter, one of the good guys) where the old man shows his loyalty to mankind and laughs in the devils face – this old dude sure had some stones!  There’s several references to both pop culture (Rolling Stones, anyone?) and more than one reference to the Bible (pride cometh before the fall, Stuart!!!), and both are weaved throughout this tale to punctuate the story and give it some reality where there is much mysticism.  I won’t tell you how the story ends, but I will say again that this is one absolutely epic tale that should definitely not be missed by anyone who is a fan of horror.  Even if you don’t believe in the Christianity theology, this story is one that can be appreciated and admired – and the conception of a plague being the catalyst to the end of the world as we know it is simply genius.

 

And the review.  I’ll start with the cast – what an absolutely brilliant lineup!  Gary Sinise, Molly Ringwald, Jamey Sheridan, Ruby Dee, Miguel Ferrer, Corin Nemec, Matt Frewer, Adam Storke, Ray Walston, Rob Lowe, and more…it may not be an ‘all star’ cast, but every single part was played beautifully by the actors and it is clear to me that they were all invested in the story and wanted to make Mr. King proud.  The cinematography is smooth, and though it is definitely not blu-ray quality, the shots are clean and there isn’t inappropriate camera-shaking or anything that makes the viewer feel as though they are spinning around on a carnival ride.  Obviously everyone is already aware of my feelings on this epic plot, so no need to go there.  I will say that I thought the ending scene was particularly cheesy, as I don’t know anyone (especially anyone with world-saving capabilities) is going to wave and make gestures at a baby that clearly has her eyes closed.  C’mon now.  That could’ve been done better, especially after the build up and climax of this story.  But I guess if that is my only complaint concerning the film, then I’ll live.  The soundtrack is alright, but sometimes not particularly memorable.  The story is what matters here.  What are the stats on this, you ask?  Here we go:  How many deaths?  Well…the world, for the most part, so that is pretty intense!  But as for the core group?  A whopping seven (possibly eight, I might have missed one in there) of them bite it during the course of the film.  Killers?  About eight, if you count the men who spread the disease in the first place.  So this was pretty even with the amount of core deaths in this one.  Boobs?  None, but there are some pretty racy scenes so you probably want to screen this yourself before the kiddos watch.  Cheap Thrills?  None.  Actual thrills?  Around four.  But honestly it’s chilling to see all the dead bodies in stores, churches, and lined up on the highway throughout the films entirety.  Buckle up, fiends.  Raven’s Scream Meter says?  Five out of five Screams.  While it isn’t a movie the whole family can get down with (or maybe it is, depending on your family!), this is absolutely one of the better horror films made. Thanks again for reading my fiends, and please keep on the lookout for more movies based on King's work on the mad scientists review table this week!  xx  ~ Raven

Raven's Top Ten Teen Screams

     Things that go bump in the night. Creepies, crawlies, and all the nasty things you dream about but never thought you’d see in the light of day.  That’s what this list is all about, my fiends.  People always love top ten lists, and whether or not you have the same sensibilities as I do is definitely going to factor in to whether or not you feel these movies are appropriate for your teen (or any child).  I would also think the maturity level of your children would come into play at this point.  I find that if you have to question if they should watch something, they probably shouldn’t.  But I digress.  This is my list of the top ten best horror flicks to watch with your teen (or to let you teen rent/watch).      

10.  An American Werewolf in London (1981) – This film is pretty innocent when it comes to horror, and is also on the lighter side.  Most families would find the majority of the film funny I would imagine, and there is very little in the way of gore (and no sex, and almost no swearing even).  It also happens to be a classic, and I’ve even already reviewed it here in Ravens Reviews.  The film is still wonderful and definitely part of my personal collection. 

9.  The Craft (1996) – Though it isn’t an absolutely accurate homage to the wiccan/pagan community, The Craft was the Bewitched of my generation.  The movie did try to portray a more modern view of witchcraft, even including games I’ve actually played myself such as “Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board.”  Pretty tame for a horror film, however, The Craft is more of a fun witchy romp than a bloodbath.  Still, with the newer effects and soundtrack, your teen should have a wicked good time watching this one.

8.  The Ring (2002) – I found this film upon initial view to be incredibly effective, but that could have been due to the fact that I had no idea that what my friends put on was a horror film.  In either case, The Ring is still pretty fun to watch, with its creepy blue filtered lighting and its modern plot about a cursed/evil videotape, this is definitely a creeptastic film that you can pop on with your teens in the room – and most likely everyone will enjoy!

7.  Candyman (1992) – Candyman, candyman, candyman!  This is one of the first horror movies I was allowed to watch, and I have to say it definitely gave me the spooks.  Barely if any nudity again, but there is much violence and possible severe language in this particular flick.  Even if there isn’t too much, and you feel your teen is mature enough for this one, you have to admit that Tony Todd’s performance is chilling and perfect for the role – and that this is perhaps one of the more horrific films on this particular list.

6.  Carrie (2013) – I know this movie has been redone for practically every generation – and the reason for that of corpse is because special effects just keep getting better, and this story is one that should always be fresh to resonate with the current teens that will be watching it. In FX we trust. This is one that actually has a moral to it, and that is not to judge a book by its cover.  The tale itself is definitely geared toward the teenage generation, and is set in high school.  Both parents and their teens will enjoy this new Carrie, as the acting is superb and the cinematography is beautiful. 

5.  Halloween (1978) –  This is the first of all the movies listed to have any nudity (I don’t believe it is terribly often at all, however, which is why I think this one is ok for teens).  But again there’s little to no strong language in the film – though this one is also quite brutal in nature (but hey, it’s horror and that’s kind of the point!).  I do think most teenagers are capable of handling this film but by all means feel free to pre-watch before allowing your children to view.  It’s a classic, and is on television almost every year during the fall with most of anything ‘unfriendly’ cut from it, so you can also go that route if you wish. 

4.  Ginger Snaps (2000) – “I can’t have a hairy chest, B, that’s fucked!”  Ok so this one might have some strong language and graphic content – there isn’t much in the way of horror that doesn’t – but Ginger Snaps is one of my favorite werewolf films and I just had to include it on my list of the top teen horror films.  Based on a pair of sisters going through some ‘changes,’ this frightful fest boasts some great cinematography and truly horrific scenes that the whole family can enjoy (teens and up of corpse). 

3.  Night of the Living Dead (1968) – This is a classic horror film that can definitely be viewed by most of the family, but I will say that the black and white version may be a bit too ‘old’ for your kids so you might want to check with them and see if it piques their interest before popping it in (there’s a color version done by Savini that I’m particularly fond of, if the black and white turns them off).  If your child is already into horror, chances are you already let them check this film out LONG before teenager-time anyway…but if you haven’t and they are this is a perfect movie to share, especially with the current zombie craze.  Romero has been known as one of the masters of the horror genre, zombies being his specialty.  Even if your teen thinks its old they should, especially if they are into this genre, give it a watch at the very least out of respect.  At the very most, they’ll know what most of the jokes in other zombie movies are referencing (Shaun of the Dead, anyone?).

2.  Scream (1996) – “What do you want?” “To see what your insides look like.”  My number two on the top ten list of teen screams is Wes Craven’s Scream.  A (now) classic slasher flick, Scream was one of the better horror movies that came out in the 90s.  Plenty of ingenuity and brass, Scream is definitely horror geared toward teens and even adults can watch and enjoy.  You can see a more detailed review of this film in Ravens Reviews. 

1.  The Shining (1980) – I’ll say this, I could literally put just about any Stephen King based film on this list – I think most of his books (made into films), if not all, are appropriate for teens to watch as well as adults.  That being said, if you need a place to start and have absolutely no clue which film based on his books your teen might be into – this particular creep show focuses our attention on a haunted hotel.  Plenty of spooks, madness, and blood for everyone.

Honorable Mentions Include:

House at the End of the Road

Fright Night

Phantasm

So that is my current top ten list of teen horror films.  It was actually much more difficult than I thought it would be to fashion this list, so I hope that you all can concur with it or at least can grab a couple of the choices off this list for your family to enjoy.  Thank you as always for reading, and stay tuned for more from Raven’s Reviews! 

House at the End of the Street (2012)

        I chose House at the End of the Street because, and I’ll admit this isn’t the most wonderful reason to choose a movie but I won’t lie to my fiends, Netflix suggested I might like it.  But then again Netflix usually does have a good idea of what I like to watch. Anywho, I tuned in and was immediately sucked in by the casting of Elizabeth Shue and Jennifer Lawrence as mother-daughter.  I love both of them as actresses and it was great to see them on screen together.  As the film begins, we see that the two of them have just moved into a new home in the sticks (right near a state park) from Chicago.  Mrs. Cassidy makes mention that the only reason they can even afford to rent the home is because of the murders that occurred in the house at the end of the street, where a 13 year old girl with brain damage murdered both of her parents one night. 

            The neighbors concur with the story and wish that the last family member (a young boy named Ryan, portrayed by Max Thieriot) would move and that the house would be torn down.  Alyssa gets to know the kids in the neighborhood and finds that they aren’t really her crowd, but when she meets Ryan the two of them hit it off really well – and she even finds a band and a few kids from school to be friends with.  No one is very comfortable with Alyssa’s relationship with Ryan, her mother and friends all seem to react very negatively about him.  The only person that seems to give Ryan a break besides Alyssa is the sheriff of their town, who thinks Ryan is a good kid that fell on hard times.  The question of whether or not his sister Carrie-Anne still lives in the woods haunts the teens in the area, and probably a few of the adults - yet no one knows the haunting truth that she is alive and well in Ryan’s care. 

            Even with Mrs. Cassidy’s strict warning that her daughter and Ryan shouldn’t be alone together, Alyssa continues developing her relationship with Ryan behind her mothers back.  Their relationship grows more and more intimate, and culminates in Alyssa almost getting herself killed.  Ryan is pretty much a heart-throb and it’s really easy to not only like but also feel sorry for his character.  I’ll let you decide if that’s wise or not.  The cinematography and plot are both wonderful, I’d say my least favorite thing about the film was the music.  Jennifer Lawrence sings through a lot of the film and to be honest she sounds very Fiona/Joss Stone and it’s sort of boring.  But aside from that, which really has a small part in the film, I thoroughly enjoyed myself watching this one.  How many bite the dust?  Five or so during the course of the film, but how many the killer has actually killed is probably much more.  Number of killers?  One.  Boobs?  None.  Cheap Thrills?  None.  Actual creeps given?  A couple, actually.  Raven’s Scream Meter Says:  4 out of 5 screams.  Definitely worth a watch, if you don’t mind thrillers that are not particularly gory.  Can definitely be watched with or by teens.