The Predator series has always been willing to play with its formula, tweaking its setup with each new installment to varying degrees of success. The gimmick this time around is setting the movie in 1719, depicting the alien’s “first hunt on Earth” – this tidbit comes from the trailer, and feels somewhat lazy since it’s never mentioned in the movie.
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Though it enjoys a positive reputation as such, The Descent can only be called a monster movie with a major caveat. Like The Blair Witch before it, it wrings at least half – if not more – of its horror from its ominous setting. In this case, it’s the labyrinthine caves of North Carolina, an alien, impossibly dark environment that’s one of the movie’s most indelible characters. Continue reading
Among his other virtues, Lars Von Trier has always been something of a troll. His movies often act as playful middle fingers to his harshest critics, gleefully confirming their accusations with a devil-may-care attitude. The approach has a rebellious appeal, but it’s also overshadowed some of Von Trier’s lesser works, which have made the mistake of putting shock value above quality. The House That Jack Built sees Von Trier’s devilish style at its best; it shamelessly aims to offend, but backs up its intentions with original, exciting filmmaking. Continue reading
Unlike its counterpart and occasional crossover property the Alien series, each of the Predator movies has been essentially standalone, their only common thread the titular extraterrestrial. While the Alien series’ best entries undoubtedly surpass those of the Predator franchise, it’s also stagnated thanks to uninspired diminishing returns after Aliens. Meanwhile, Predator’s sequels have proven to be a more eclectic and interesting bunch, never content to self-plagiarize their celebrated predecessor. After the jungle-bound antics of the first movie, Predator 2 moved the action to the city and expounded on the aliens’ lore, while Predators had a similar structure to the first film but flipped the script by dropping its band of warriors on predator turf. Continue reading
Subgenre: Torture Porn
Summary: Years after John Kramer’s death, a copycat stages another one of his brutal death games. Continue reading
With the recent news of an upcoming remaster for the 2011 shooter Bulletstorm, I thought I’d post my previously unpublished review for the original game. Enjoy:
Bulletstorm isn’t for everyone. Some will call it juvenile, offensive, even vulgar. But such accusations completely miss the point. Continue reading