Candyman

 

I was never a mark for the Candyman franchise. I remember them being on as a kid but i never dove into it like Halloween or Phantasm. I sought them out myself as a teen and thought they were good but it was good a good franchise nothing i needed to hype up or show people. I revisited the films about a decade ago and honestly enjoyed them all alot more. In my prep for the new one i rewatched the first, which is all you really need. Much like Halloween 2018, this is a sequel to the original that happens to have the same title. It feels a bit like IT 2017 for me cause that is a film where i enjoyed the original but the newer one blew me away(legit top 10 for me), and this here is the best of the Candyman franchise. It is tense from the start. The studio logos set the mood and the flashbacks give us the real horror in social commentary. From there the score sets in and we are introduced to characters that we see develop. The camera captures the moments in  way that is artful, gripping and disturbing. The gore and kills are fantastic and in your face. This is a perfect example of how to do a horror sequel/remake. It is a quick watch yet tells a tight story. It has heavy subject matter yet it is not long in tooth. I also love horror films set in the art world as it is a world i know well.  Much like a piece of art that speaks of injustice, as does this film, and if you don't want to take in the commentary just sit back and enjoy a well crafted slice of horror. 

Reminiscence

 

Reminiscence is a contrived and convoluted film. It is a flick that layers up supposed depth with twists and turns thinking it is smarter than it is. Usually that recipe is a bad one, but here is lucks out with great cinematography and scenery, a solid cast and a film noir vibe. The trailer didn't do too much for me neither did the Tomato Meter but this is actually a enjoyable film once you get by the contrivedly of it all. 

Brand New Cherry Flavor

 Brand New Cherry Flavor is the most surreal and one of the most in your face Netflix series in a long time if not ever. This series is pure cinematic with a great acting, a fantastic score and soundtrack, beautiful cinematography and set pieces, and plenty of in your face what the fuckery with kittens, gore, puke and fingerbanging. It's part Neon Demon, part Videodrome, part Breaking Bad, and part Requiem For a Dream, with a dash of David Lynch, A fast ass watch that leaves you wanting more yet satisfied. Netflix has been getting a stigma lately for producing too much content, so i wish this had the seal of HBO, but fuck all of that and enjoy the theatre of absurd an grotesque. 

American Horror Stories

 AHS has always been a mixed bag, a show that is great yet oozes padding and exposition. Many seasons start great and end great but have a middle portion that drags. American Horror Stories takes the seasonal anthology approach but makes each episode it's own tale thus hopefully ending the speed bumps. The first two episodes are great for Murder House fans yet feels like alot of the kills happen just for the fuck of it. Drive In for me is the best of the season and the least Ryan Murphy esque of the bunch...until the end. Naughty List has a great last act once it goes full slasher yet features some of the most annoying characters(on purpose) on TV. Billie Lourde stars in a very Lifetime esque episode(in a good way). Last weeks was a bit of a bore, but this weeks finale is meta on top of meta on top of meta and is very cluttered yet satisfying. This was a great appetizer for the main entree hitting next week. 

Jakob's Wife

 Jakob's Wife is Travis Steven's follow up to the Girl on the Third Floor, and while that was a decent watch, this here is great. Fresh tale for a vampire flick, a little bit of the Revenant(the vampire flick not the Leo vehicle) but with more of a traditional horror stance. Fantastic score, solid acting, Barbara Crampton best work in years, Larry Fessenden's best since probably Body, an excessive amount of not just blood but various viscera and fluids, think human pez dispensers plus sprinkle dark humor in throughout and this is one of Shudder's best this year. 

The Bad Batch

 So it is no secret i love Star Wars. I love the films, the shows, the comics, the books, the games, the figures. I just recently got into the cartoons, the Clone Wars & Rebels, and i had a blast with them, so i was stoked for the Bad Batch. I was wishing for something a bit darker in tone, but i know it is a kids series so it is no big deal, just a bit too much "MCU humor" thrown in. I feel the show would have worked better with fewer episodes but this was a damn good show for a Star Wars fan and their kid to watch. 

No Sudden Move

 No Sudden Move is Steven Soderbergh at his best. He uses wider lenses, crafts his shots and disorients his viewers. It feels like a 1996 crime film, even alot of the cast feels like they would have fit in back then. Parts remind me of Fargo the TV series, even down to dark humor. The cast is excellent, damn near every role has a moment to shine. The plot unravels so we are learning the twists and turns as the characters do, even when it feels convoluted the next scene makes everything make sense and it makes that disoriented feeling that much stronger. This is an ensemble crime film set in Detroit so of course there will be shoot outs and violence, and they quick and impactful. Soderbergh's best since Unsane! 

Match of July

Roman Reigns vs Edge: Universal Title: Money in the Bank

Jonathan Gresham vs Mike Bennett: ROH Pure Title: Best in the World 

Chris Dickinson & Homicide vs Rhett Titus & Jonathan Gresham: ROH Tag Titles: Best in the World

 Kevin Owens vs Sami Zayn: Last Man Standing: Smackdown 

Charlotte vs Rhea Womens Title: Money In the Bank 

Bleed With Me

 Bleed With Me is a film where nothing happens. A quasi character study with no character development. Body horror with no shocks. It is dull and pretentious with wooden acting. Bleed With Me, more like Sleep With Me, cause this will put you to sleep. 

The Suicide Squad

 The Suicide Squad is one of the weirdest and most violent comic book films from the Big Two. It is also one of the funniest, most of the humor all works and only once did it sort of break the drama. This is also the most enjoyable comic book film in years, and just one of the most enjoyable films period. This was already my most anticipated comic flick of the year and now i just want more DCEU goodness, after Birds of Prey and this, i am all in, bring on the Peacemaker series. James Gunn works wonders here, he works great with rag tag groups of characters, but now the gloves are off, he can use Slither and Super esque gore and up the ante. He also once again gives us a fantastic soundtrack, and with Zack Snyder serving as a producer it is very fitting that People Who Died was used in this. Not only that but we get some Troma thrown in here too! The plot is the least contrived of all the DCEU, the cast has amazing chemistry and their characters actually have depth, the villains have a revolving door but it is worth it. The final act was James Gunn playing with his Harley Quinn figure and random other toys to battle monster figures but making it more intriguing than the A Listers. Much like Nobody this is a bloody good time and with all the violence and language it is a damn feel good flick(well to a degree).   Gunn essentially made a sequel by cutting ties with the original, we have returning characters and plots but if you hated the first, you can enjoy this just fine, if you never saw the first, no problem. 

Teddy

 Teddy on Shudder is an odd film, part surrealism, part coming of age story, with Coen Bro esque characters in a Coen Bro esque town. The horror elements are sprinkled in but when they are on it is super visceral. This is not one of Shudder's best but it is one of their most unique.

Blood Red Sky

 Blood Red Sky feels like a Syfy channel flick without the camp. It seems like it was pitched to be a trendy Netflix movie but i am sorry, Fear Street has that honor. The plot is jumbled, a hijacking turns into a vampire flick but everything feels out of place and forced. We meet characters but we don't know characters. It is fast paced yet dull, good action and horror it is all contrived. Shit finally picks up in the final act but at that point i was wishing this was just a Shudder flick. It has good social messages, and as one that isn't big on heavy handed shit, i wished this was the main plot. The ending is a bit rushed but ties together a few loose ends. 

False Positive

 The other day i mentioned how Green Knight felt like post modern A24, well now i have seen False Positive(starring and written by Illana Glazer) and while it is A24 it is released on Hulu....and this here feels more like a post modern Hulu flick. It has a snails pacing, and not in a slow burn sort of way. Wooden acting with cringe worth dialogue and eye rolling reactions. The plot is thin and contrived, easily the worst Rosemary's Baby esque film in some time if not ever. Is this the Room? Characters pop up, disappear then reappear with "plot twists", the ending came out of nowhere, then the tone shifts, then it forced us to continue to watch what could be a pretentious final moment but instead is just a cherry of fetus blood on a crappy Sunday Night Saundae.  

Nobody

 Well fuck, i really wish i saw Nobody in theatres, this is easily the most entertaining film of the year. Think of Falling Down but instead of following a sociopathic quasi villain as the lead, we follow a family man that is sick of the 9-5 mundane life. Mix that with John Wick in terms of a feared shooter pushed back into his former life. Bob Odenkirk is perfect as a stone cold "auditor" with a sense of humor. The film is fast paced, bloody and has a great soundtrack, it is serious yet has perfectly timed dark humor and sarcasm. Bullets start flying and knives start stabbing early and rarely let up. RZA usually picks and chooses awesome roles and this is no exception, Christopher Lloyd has possibly his best role since Doc Brown, and seeing him in a role like this has to make you smile. This is insanely entertaining and honestly the type of film everyone kinda needs the past year.