Mare of Easttown

 Mare of Easttown is the best series(limited or otherwise) since Mr. Robot. A show this masterfully crafted is rare. The directing, writing, the ACTING! Kate Winslet's best role since Eternal Sunshine, hands down. So many twists, turns, acts of deception, and shocks. I called the ending but i loved the ride to it. When it first started i knew it was great but feared there were too many characters, each character is fully developed. On episode 6 i was so wanting a second series but by time the finale ended i knew it was perfection and doesn't need a follow up(i'd accept a second but i don't need a second) 

Skull: The Mask

 Skull: The Mask is a unique slasher. It is psychedelic, it has fight scenes, sword fights, Stone Cold Stunners, possession, and party scenes you'd see more along with Gaspar Noe than Friday the 13th. It isn't great but it is an experience. Think of a slasher version of Fried Barry only not as surreal and dirty. This is a over the top and weird version of Chrome Skull crossed with Hobo with a Shotgun.  

Things Heard and Seen

 

Things Heard & Seen might be the dullest ghost story in recent memory and that is saying something. It also might be the dullest Netflix movie in recent memory and that is saying something. Unlikable characters, a cookie cutter horror device and a thin plot that feels like a Lifetime movie, it makes you realize why Shari Bergman and Robert Puicini are mainly known for American Splendor and that is 18 years ago. 

Oxygen

 Oxygen is probably Alexandre Aja's best film since Horns. It is also might be the best lost in space flick since Moon. Glad to see Melanie Laurent in a flick like this, she has always been an actress i wish did more genre film and she carries this picture as it is 95% a one actress show. The film has one of the better scores of the year, and is slow and methodical which balances well with the films fast pace. Gripping sci fi that keeps you guessing what is real.  I love that all of Aja's films feel different. 

The Simpsons Season 32

 The latest season of the Simpsons may have been the most consistently great season of the past decade. Started off great, had a fun Treehouse of Horror, solid episodes in between with vast characters. Wes Anderson,  JJ Abrams, New Wave, John Wick. All is great! 

Horror in the High Desert

 Horror in the High Desert was brought to my attention the other. It is free on Tubi and is a new release and after reading the reviews i knew i had to check it out. It is a mockumentary and out lead wanders off, his friends discuss his disappearance and we see footage of him roughing it on trails, and the woods. At first it is light but with a sense of eeriness but then it goes full horror at the end. Real or fake exploaration videos on Youtube videos are my jam and this reminds me of those. There is talent involved here and would love to see what happens with a budget.  It is a bit slow at times and the acting is rough around the edges but it is all admirable. 

Woman in the Window

 Woman in the Window looked super dull from the trailers but i was mistaken. This is far from dull, it's claustrophobic, and shot in a way that plays with reality, so much that things feel.....rushed.....ah yes, rushed. This entire film feels rushed, so what i mentioned were the things i liked but damn is this plot thin, is the film rushed and overall a mess. The acting is good but at times feels soap operatic. It is a Lifetime film with a budget for a great cast that just crumbles. Some lines of dialogue are laughable in a Room like way and the deaths and climax are jokes. Even if Covid didn't happen and i saw this in theatres with AMC Plus i still would have felt like i wasted gas money. 

Army of the Dead

 Zack Snyder's return to the horror genre has been a long time coming. He announced Army of the Dead years ago and i kept thinking it'd never come to fruition. 2021 is the year of Snyder, first we had Justice League now we have this and yes alot of people hated how long JL was, and this too is also long(only cut 90 minutes) but it is every bit as awesome. It has his signature touches, a great opening credit sequence, slow mo, sweet cover songs. I feared there were too many characters but each stood on their own. A little bit Resident Evil, a little Escape From NY, a bit of I Am Legend, merged together for a fast paced, action packed twist on the zombie subgenre. 

The Reckoning

 I'm sorry, Neil Marshal just does nothing for me. Dog Soldiers looked silly but was boring, The Descent looked great but was boring, Doomsday had alot of style but was boring, Centurion was just plain boring, Hellboy was forgettable, and with the exception of Dog Soldiers i actually saw all of these in theatres. Now he has a movie made for Shudder, The Reckoning, a film about witch trials but wouldn't you know it.....it is boring. Wooden acting, flimsy script, good gore atleast but hella fucking boring.  

Shadow in the Cloud

 Shadow in the Cloud started off great, it had drama, intrigue, and heart, plus the looming presence of gremlins trying to kill WW2 soldiers and a mystery of what was in the cargo. It would have played well with Overlord as a WW2/Horror double bill. Then after some reveals the second half basically becomes a Rocksploitation flick. Some moments are laughable and hard to suspend disbelief but it is all around entertaining. It feels like two flicks thrown together, it is from Max Landis so his scripts are generally messy, but this is probably my favorite script of his after Mr. Right. 

Big Sky

 Big Sky i first assumed would be a watered down version of a HBO crime series, then i saw it's quirks and figured it was more of a watered down Twin Peaks. While it is a watered down show that could be on HBO, it stands on it's own feet. For those that did get the Twin Peak vibes, forget em, this is it's own thing. Great characters, well developed villains, suspenseful scenes, an overall creepy atmosphere. The second half of the season feels a bit out of place with the first half but honestly it improves cause that is when it amps the macabre humor and the weirdness. The finale was the best of the season and sets up season 2 perfectly with a few cliffhangers. 

Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist Season 2

 The second season of Zoey is fun, fast and has a good twist but ultimately it lacks the chard and heart of the first season. There is character growth but while the secondary characters grow, the love interests grow, Zoey herself becomes SUPER annoying. The musical numbers are great but situations feel rushed. Season 3 atleast should be interesting. 

Those Who Wish Me Dead

 Taylor Sheridan's follow up to Wind River might be his best project(directorial or screenplay) since Sicario. Those Who Wish Me Dead is him taking stock 90s characters from crime thrillers and making his own 90s disaster flick only with that Sheridan touch. A great cast, with Angelina Jolie doing her best work in years, Jon Bernthal continues to choose great work, Finn Little has a bright future, and the duo of Nicholas Hoult and Aidan Gillen play cold blooded killers that seem to hate their job to perfection. The film will piss people off for not explaining why the villains are doing what they are doing but i loved that they gave no reason. 

Saint Maud

 Saint Maud is a hell of a psychological slow burn. It plays with reality but it is purely grounded. Minds unravel yet we still follow the narrative as if something sinister is afoot. It's relatively short, fast paced, has solid acting and the film looks gorgeous. The final act is the big pay off as the horror in unleashed but talking about the ending isn't just a spoiler but it takes away the trip you experience. 

Without Remorse

 I am not a big Tom Clancy fan, i enjoy some films based on his work but overall they do nothing for me, generally they bore me, case in point is Without Remorse. The main reason I watched it was Stefano Sollima since i loved his sequel to Sicario. In fact this is written by Tayler Sheridan, yet he finally has a miss in his script world. Michael B Jordan just feels beyond wooden here too sadly. Mess of a film with a plot that thinks it is smarter than it actually is with choppy action scenes. I have plenty of remorse. 

Fried Barry

 Fried Barry might be the most insane film of the year. It's like David Lynch had a neon orgy with Deadbeat at Dawn, Enter the Void, Too Many Cooks, and Natural Born Killers. Plenty of fluids, blood and otherwise are sprayed within this science fiction/horror hybrid that takes you on a drug induced, extraterrestrial journey through the underbelly of bars, one night stands, brothels, crack pipes, needle pushers and mental institutions. This film is niche as fuck and i knew it was divisive, but it is the batshit crazy experience i wanted it to be. 

Young Rock

 From a wrestling stand point, Young Rock is full of flaws and inaccuracies. Didn't matter which year they showed there was something to nitpick. The wrestling aspect is what kept me watching though, but if i wasn't a wrestling fan would i have enjoyed the series? I don't watch futball but i enjoyed Ted Lasso. The story, heart and humor isn't as strong here as that show, it feels very NBC but it works. I think the college years are my favorite time frame but in all episodes Rocky Johnson usually steals the show.  

The Power

 The Power is a slow build, your traditional supernatural film with touches of possession but unlike most films of that ilk this one is more effective, and i believe it to be cause of the sound. Both the soundtrack and the sound mixing are great here. It carries an eerie vibe which really goes into full effect in the last act. It is far from perfect and not one of Shudders best, but it is far from their worst, in fact this is one i would actually tell people to put on in the dark to get you in a horror mood. 

Match of April

Kyle O'Reilly vs Adam Cole: Takeover 

Roman Reigns vs Edge vs Daniel Bryan: WrestleMania, Universal Title  

Karrion Kross vs Finn Balor: Takeover, NXT Title 

Santos Escobar vs Jordan Devlin: Takeover, Ladder Match for Cruiserweight Title  

Bianca Belair vs Sasha Banks: WrestleMania, Womens Title 

Johnny Gargano vs Bronson Reed: Takeover, North American Title 

Bronson Reed vs LA KNIGHT vs Cameron Grimes vs Dexter Lumis vs Leon Ruff vs Swerve: Takeover 

Walter vs Tommaso Ciampa: Takeover, UK Title  

Raquel Gonzales vs Io Shirai: Takeover, Womens Title 

Legado Del Fantasma vs Kushida, MSK: NXT 

Moustache Mountain vs Noam Dar/Sha Samuels: NXT UK 

Flamita vs Bandido: ROH

Roman Reigns vs Daniel Bryan: SD, Universal Title  

Satomura vs Aofe Valkyrie: NXT UK  

Tony Deppen vs Tracy Williams: ROH, TV Title 

Invincible

 I had read the first issue of Invincible but was waiting to buy a trade, that day never came, but now the series has ended and that was badass. It looks like a 90s animated saturday morning superhero series like Spider Man but it is amped up with 90s animated HBO super series like Spawn. Many bloody fights.....nay many death scenes. Alot of what the fuckness in the finale, not sure how it will be topped in season 2.