M3GAN (2022) - Horror Film Review

If the screener link received for a review doesn't work, then as a rule of thumb I will instead watch a film of my own choosing. Such was the case last Sunday, so I picked out M3GAN, a film I had been interested in seeing and which had recently been added to Netflix. The Child's Play series is a classic, killer dolls really can be creepy, that was the reason I found the Annabelle series of killer dolls so disappointing due to the possessed doll causing evil to occur around it, rather than it physically moving around and causing mischief. With this Gerard Johnstone (Housebound) directed and James Wan co-written horror, I had heard it wasn't as bad a film as had been expected.

When she is involved in a tragic traffic accident that results in the death of her parents, young Cady (Violet McGraw - Doctor Sleep, The Haunting of Hill House TV series) goes to live with her aunt Gemma (Allison Williams - Get Out). Gemma is a workaholic who is obsessed with her job at a toy company, and sees having to look after her niece as a burden she didn't want. Her interactions with the girl end up inspiring her to go ahead with her pet project - to make a life-like robotic childlike doll that is able to bond with its owner and use A.I learning to grow. Naming it M3GAN (played by Amie Donald, voiced by Jenna Davis), she gifts it to Cady and is impressed with how the girl takes to it. Unfortunately for all involved, she didn't programme in all the necessary protocols, and soon M3GAN starts to resort to extreme violence, to punish anyone who causes Cady to be upset.

I enjoyed this horror and thought the doll design was very creepy. It helps that I have a very mild fear of puppets anyway. The design purposely heads out into uncanny valley territory, leading to lots of fun moments where people initially mistake the doll for a real child. As much as I did love the design, the story did noticeably play it safe, going through the motions of escalation that were predictable to chart. Starting off with the neighbour's aggressive dog, M3GAN's path of mayhem ramps up on a traditional route, earlier victims being people who in a horror film sense could be seen to deserve the punishment they are given, before later victims are punished excessively. There were no real surprises to be found, from the expected ending shot allowing the possibility of a sequel, to information presented to the viewer early on, and that just so happens to be integral to stopping the killer doll in the climax.
The scenes with the doll being evil were fun to watch, but it was a shame that a lot of the kills were either toned down in violence or cut out completely to allow M3GAN to have a lower age rating. I thought it's ability to mimic voices was a decent idea however, it was effectively used as it set itself apart and made for some scenes that didn't feel as familiar as the general movement path of the story.

The film carries with it a bit of a quasi-dystopian vibe, especially with the toy companies ridiculous adverts. There is more than the feel of a Black Mirror episode with this one, but this does set itself apart from the original Child's Play movies, as technology is the root evil here. Gemma is a flawed protagonist, and could easily be seen as the inadvertent antagonist of the movie also, not only creating the doll and not programming it properly, but also relieved that it is acting as a surrogate mother to Cady, allowing her to pretty much ignore the child and allow it to be shaped by the doll. The message is about how the increasing reliance on technology might not be such a good thing for humans, especially in a world where a killer doll with access to all the information of the internet is able to have free reign. Special effects were great, especially with that doll, I liked the design, and its later 'battle damaged' look also appealed, even if it didn't go as far down that path as I had hoped. Characters were mostly fine, no one really stood out to me, I thought Ronny Chieng (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) was probably the highlight, bringing comedy to his role as the toy company boss.

I did like M3GAN, I thought it was effective as a new movie monster, and it had some nice ideas. The story in general did play out a little too safely, an obvious ramping up of threat, and an unsurprising ending occasionally caused me to realise that as much as I enjoyed this, it wasn't entirely something I hadn't seen before. M3GAN is currently streaming on Netflix.

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The Rotting Zombie's Round-Up of Horror News for January 2025

It is a new year and full of possibilities, a time to get out of the groove and expand your comfort zone. At least it is for a die-hard introvert like me. I usually fail to get my blog finished within two days, meaning I tend to work most the weekend on it. This is my last post of the weekend, and am hoping that this month my news round-up returns to a more full look.

Fright Teck Pictures have released a special anniversary edition version of Hellweek on Amazon. The film is about a group of mask wearing psychos who decide to target a group of college kids who enter the warehouse where the crazies live, as part of a hazing ritual. Directed by Eddie Lengyel, this stars Robyn Griggs, Brenna Lee Roth, Karen Fox, Rob Jaeger and Michael Reddy.

Areas of High Strangeness: Pennsylvania is out now on digital platforms from BayView Entertainment. This documentary sees members of the Demon Hunter Society heading out to Pennsylvania to investigate reports of Big Foot, Dog Man, and other cryptids thought to either be long extinct or not real.

Streaming service NYX UK has announced that they will be having a 'zombie week' on their service that is due to run from February 3rd to February 9th. It begins on the 3rd with Lucio Fulci's classic 1979 horror Zombie. Subsequent days see The Crazies, Night of the Living Dead, Tombs of the Blind Dead, Return of the Evil Dead, Night of the Seagulls, Nightmare City, and The House by the Cemetary being added to the service. A lot of classics to be found there.

The Stone: No Soul Unturned is out now on digital platforms including on Xumo Play, via VIPCO & BayView Entertainment. This horror was the winner Best Foreign Film at the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival. The film's story concerns a team of soul searchers who unleash psychological and supernatural terror after discovering an ancient stone. Written and directed by Philip Gardiner, this stars Andrew Gough, Sarah Dunn and Layla Randle-Conde.

The official trailer and poster for Heart Eyes is available now. Coming to cinemas on February 14th, this is about a killer named the 'Heart Eyes Killer' who operates on Valentine's Day by going after romantic couples.

Finally for today, with my inbox once again empty, a teaser trailer has been released for Linnea Quigley's Trash's Revenge, part of the Return of the Living Dead universe. The set-up suggests that the original film was indeed based on true events, and that the character of Trash (played by Quigley) is now washed up, but does happen to have a canister of the zombie making toxin kept in her basement.

Lizzie Lazarus (2024) - Horror Film Review

It seems this week's theme for films I watched for review is one of unexpected outcomes, with Grace Point and now the Aviv Rubinstien written and directed Lizzie Lazarus fitting that criteria. I make it a point to not read the synopsis before sitting down to watch a film and I think that really benefitted me with this one.

After an odd opening that sees the corpse of Lizzie (Megan Oesterreich) lying in a creek singing a song about dying, the film starts properly with two people deep in woodland carrying a corpse between them. It is soon revealed that the body is that of Lizzie, and that the two people carting it around are Lizzie's sister Bethany (Lianne O'Shea - A Taste of Phobia segment 'Somniphobia'), as well as her boyfriend Eli (Omar Maskati). In the past, after an argument with Eli, Lizzie crashed her car on route to her sisters, resulting in her death. Bethany being a believer in wild conspiracies and myths, had discovered a book in the local library that spoke of an area deep out in woodland that Native American's believed had the ability to bring the dead back to life after a specific ritual was performed. With her and Eli deep in mourning, she convinces him to help her dig up her sisters body and take it to this area, on the off chance that the legend about resurrecting the recently deceased is actually real.

Expecting a movie about a woman who can't truly die, I was surprised to find one in which the titular character is already dead. It was light on action, and if not for the fact the duel protagonists are carrying a corpse between them, this would appear as a straight drama. It was unique that the whole movie was the journey to this Pet Sematary style location, rather than that part just being the first act. As they slowly travel they converse on the nature of life and not only get to know each other, but get a good idea of how each of them perceived the type of person Lizzie had been. With so much dialogue and so little really happening, this conjured up the feel of a stage play, the amount of serious po-faced talking giving off a vibe of a darker Garden State.

There was a rich vein of black humour running through this, the set-up of two bickering characters awkwardly carrying a corpse was funny in itself, then there is the gallows humour that comes from them dealing with issues such as accidentally dropping the body, and running out of duct tape to keep the body bag they had created intact. It felt like the journey to the burial site was intended to be the core story, rather than what happens when they eventually get there. After twenty minutes had passed and it was still just two characters walking through woods, I hoped that it would turn continue this trend. Forty five minutes in, still walking through woodland, over an hour in, still the same, amusing in itself that the characters were doing exactly the same thing they had been doing when they were introduced. I would have been fine with it being simply conversations, but there are concessions to make things more exciting at times. These include having to sneak past a couple having sex in an abandoned car, or avoiding a passing hunter and his curious dog. Adding to the plot are a couple of short flashback sequences that show how Bethany first suggested her wild plan, as well as silent images of Lizzie back when she was living, that play out over certain comments the characters make about her. The two main characters were expertly cast, but I also thought Oesterreich was great as Lizzie, despite barely featuring in the conventional sense. Her most memorable part was the weird opening song she sings, but I guess the lyrics of that song were meaningful to the themes of the film.

I loved Lizzie Lazarus, the surreal story and setting had me engaged despite it mainly just being an hour and a half of two characters talking amongst themselves. It ends up going in a somewhat unexpected direction, finishing on an entertaining note that seemed to be a neat and satisfying full stop to end the story with. Lizzie Lazarus came exclusively to streaming platform SCREAMBOX on 14th January.

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Grace Point (2023) - Thriller Film Review

Unexpected is a word I would use to describe the Rory Karpf directed and co-written thriller Grace Point - a minimalist thriller that sets out to provide a wholesome message. Despite the movie being surprisingly tame, I was enraptured from start to surprising finish.

As a last resort for his son - Brandon's (John Owen Lowe) drug addiction, a desperate father (Winston played by Andrew McCarthy) has arranged for him to stay at a remote rehab centre deep out in the American countryside. Stopping off for petrol enroute, Winston manages to inadvertently anger a local redneck and so leaves the station in a hurry. Not much further down the road, the car they are travelling in breaks down and the angry redneck appears with friends in tow. During an altercation with the men (that Brandon records on his phone), Winston ends up getting shot in the stomach and with maybe his last breath implores his son to flee. This begins a nightmare journey through Hell for the boy, unsure if his father even still lives, he sets out on a crazed trek through the remote and hostile countryside, his goal to make it the twelve miles to the rehab centre so that he can seek assistance. Hot on his heels are the rednecks, led by Luther (Sean Carrigan) - the psychopathic leader of an isolated survivalist community who is none too pleased that Brandon has evidence of his crime against Winston. Out of his depth, Brandon's only help comes in the form of a former marine named Cutter (Jim Parrack - Lost Child, Suicide Squad) he encounters, who sees something in the boy worth saving.

There was a feeling of The Warriors to this thriller, with Brandon's road trip though an alien landscape where danger lurks at every corner echoing the gang's flight through New York. The somewhat generic opening turned into something more interesting, having a protagonist who was certainly more 'flight' than 'fight', his young age meaning he wasn't a match for anyone he encounters. Having a film start mid-story always appeals to me, but as the boy spends most the film running, to have a scene of him running through woodland before a 'four days earlier' message pops up, didn't make for the most exciting teaser of things to come. Forced to pull on reserves he didn't even know he had, and not able to trust anyone he meets, the film became a real thrill ride that carried a feeling of prolonged tension. As the lead character, Brandon was a bit annoying, this was purposeful with the story developing his character in a way that he starts to recognise his own flaws and begin to change. He may have been a bit pathetic, but I really enjoyed the learning journey he goes on, and the many varied characters he meets. Favourite character was Cutter, this PTSD afflicted former soldier was really likeable and had some great lines. I think my favourite line in the whole film was when he says "There's no getting away from pain Brandon. Sometimes it's best to face it head on." Luther appeared to be an intimidating antagonist, carrying with him an aura of quiet menace that made him feel like a genuine threat. It's good he had this aura about him as his actions didn't live up to his threatening words, more intent on trying to convince Brandon to join his community than to hurt him. A high threat level didn't translate into much on-screen horror or violence shown with those elements being mostly absent. Instead, the pacing is mainly made up of a wild cat and mouse game between the boy and Luther's men that included a whole bunch of thrilling chase sequences, including on foot, on bicycle, and on quad bike sequences.

With how focussed this was on Brandon's flight, the film had a minimalist feel to it, from the simple story being told, to the barren run-down locations. The protagonist is given depth via frequent childhood flashbacks that hint at what made him turn to drugs, and these scenes are used to empower him on his seemingly hopeless quest. There came a huge plot twist at the end that took me totally by surprise. I had a feeling that there would be a twist of some kind as there were some odd moments, but I assumed it would be a done to death twist, such as all the events taking place in the main characters mind. This though, was one of those moments that would make a second viewing show events in a completely different light.
For those who like their UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), the cast includes ESPN broadcaster Din Thomas, as well as former champions Aljamain Sterling and Chris Weidman.

As much as I enjoyed the story once it had been completed, Grace Point was high on thrills but low on on-screen peril. Luther looked the part of the all powerful antagonist, but really seemed to be more bark than bite when it came down to his actions. Usually that would be a deal breaker for me, but I did enjoy the direction the story went in, even if it perhaps wrapped things up a little too neatly. A clever film that explores the nature of addiction in a vaguely preachy yet still intriguing way. Grace Point is due to release on January 28th and his it's L.A premiere on 30th January.

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Rufus (2025) - Horror Anthology Film Review

It is completely coincidental, but Rufus is the second horror anthology film I have watched for review this week after Rampo Noir. Directed and mainly written by Mars Roberge, this indie horror brings together five stories of madness that each have a B-movie feel that gave them an endearing feel, and featured a variety of famous names.

Rufus ('Freeway' Ricky Ross) is a man in the hood known for his wild and frequently disturbing stories. The anthology features five of these that he is telling to various people such as neighbourhood kids and his wife (Rah Digga - Thir13en Ghosts). It begins with a fifteen minute short about a mortician named Stanley (Angelo Moore from the band Fishbone) whose hands accidentally get infected with the blood of a recently deceased criminal. He soon finds to his horror that he is no longer able to control what his hands do, leading him on a path of increasingly serious crime that he is powerless to prevent. I imagine it can be quite hard to make it look like your hands are possessed, while Moore doesn't reach the lofty heights of Bruce Campbell in Evil Dead II, he still brings an angle to it that was amusing. I loved how the character was just out for a peaceful and friendly visit to town before events spiral into increasing chaos. None of this was done as a serious horror, there is a real B-movie feel to the action going on, from generic sound effects to obviously CG blood. That just added to the charm. As simple as the story was, it was a fun entry point for Rufus.
Next up was a a very twisted tale that was really enjoyable to watch. Emily (Debra Haden) has recently arrived in New York and despite limited acting experience has landed the lead role in a play. To say anymore would ruin the surprise, but needless to say, her fellow cast members may not be exactly who they appear to be. Again there are obvious CG effects used, and it is assumed you will be able to piece together what has happened as certain transitions play out off screen. Roughly ten minutes long, this was very memorable and the highlight of Rufus for me.

The third short has Rufus telling someone on their way to a doctor's appointment about a story set at a hospital. At eighteen minutes long this one felt very stretched out, it did drag in places. Due to unusual brain patterns when two comatose patients (played by David Scott Greene and Princess Frank) are left together, their doctor, Dr. Saul (played to amazingly entertaining effect by Spookey Ruben, a Canadian musician) has isolated them in their own room. He may not know what is going on with their brains, but it turns out that the two men are able to communicate with each other via thoughts alone. The problem for these men is that they don't really like each other that much. The unexpected happens when a new nurse from Mexico - Luciana (Annalisa Guidone) arrives, she just happens to be the ex-girlfriend of one of the men, and more importantly, is able to read his thoughts and carry on conversations with the man. This short finishes on a 'to be continued' message which made me hope the later part would be have more variation in what was happening.

Next was a surreal one about a couple who are talking about the child they have adopted, hoping he fitted in with new friends. Around three minutes long, this had a fun pay-off that really demonstrates the silly stories that the character Rufus is able to come up with, seemingly off the top of his head. This is followed by one of the more bright and surface level cheery. It had a miserable veteran - Roger (Jim Sclavunos) discovering a series of exploding dolls in the area where he lived, though there was more to it than was expected. This was silly, had a great soundtrack and at five minutes did not outstay its welcome.
Finally was a return to the long hospital drama that picks up where the first one ended, bringing an additional half hour of surreal. Again, I thought Ruben was great here, but it just went on too long without there seeming to be much of an aim.

Rufus was quite entertaining, despite my personal least enjoyable of the shorts taking the space of half of the overall anthology. That one did have some fun ideas, and the general set-up was decent, it just felt a bit overlong. I thought the second short set in New York with the stage actors was excellent, and the rest all had their good parts. The wraparound segment was also decent, sure, not much might happen in it, but the characters featured in that part all came across as likeable. With anthologies there is usually always something worth watching, and with this one there are a good few. Rufus has not yet had its world premiere, but is planned to be shown at a film festival by the time March comes around.

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The Rotting Zombie's News Anthology for Thursday 23rd January 2025

A second news post for this week, for both the news and screeners keep on coming. I currently have a bloated list of twelve films awaiting review, soon I will have to stop accepting screeners for a time. Onwards to the news.

Renner is an A.I themed thriller that stars Frankie Muniz. He stars as a computer genius who creates an A.I named Salenus to help him find love. Somehow, the man accidentally programmed the traits of his controlling mother into the code, with dark secrets emerging when he forms a relationship with next door neighbour Jamie. Directed and produced by Robert Rippberger, Renner heads to U.S theatres from February 7th.

American Psychopath is a new film from writer, director, actor, and rock star Frank Palangi. The film is about an out of town girl who becomes the target of a mysterious serial killer, and must discover the truth of what is happening in order to try and regain her missing memories. The film stars Erica James (Souls of the Damned) and will be coming soon to Tubi from Cinema Epoch/Palangi Films.

Finally for today, The Marketing Macabre Show hosted by Michael Joy has released its first episode. The show brings together various trailers from independent horror films, with the first episode featuring trailers for Pancake Man, A Hard Place and The Alien Report. There are also teasers for Space Goblins and Blackout as well as an exclusive clip from Black Daruma.

Rampo Noir (2005) - Horror Anthology Film Review

Rampo Noir is a Japanese horror anthology that pays homage to the works of writer Edogawa Rampo, someone who is famous for his horror and mystery fiction. It contains within it four short films, each a different take on Rampo's stories, with this produced by the same team behind the cult film Ichi the Killer. At two hours fifteen in length, this is the longest horror film I have seen for a while, but as always, I do love anthologies.

It begins weirdly with 'Mars's Canal'. This six minute long short was done by music video director and visual artist Suguru Takeuchi. I can't say I was that taken with it. The first half of the short plays out in complete silence, this led me to thinking I had an issue with my speakers and so spent that time trying to fix them! It was actually meant to be silent however. What little story there is has a naked man (Tadanobu Asano who features in each of the stories) walking towards a pool of water in a barren desolate location (assuming it is meant to be the surface of Mars?). In the water he sees a version of himself reflected that has him naked while beating up a naked woman. I didn't really get what this was meant to be about, very arthouse in style, but thankfully it was very short.
I felt like things really began with the second short, 'Mirror Hell', which at around forty five minutes in length was able to tell a decent story. In this one, directed by new wave auteur and long time Ultraman director Akio Jissoji, a detective (Asano) is investigating the strange deaths of a series of women, each victim found with their face melted and a similar looking mirror near their body. The evidence seems to point to local mirror maker, a beautiful young man who fears his mirror making skills are hampered by his sordid desires. This one mixed a blend of the procedural police drama type genre of people investigating the crime scenes and the victim's bodies, mixed with the supernatural. It had a surreal tone to it, reflections playing a key part, with mirrors seeming to be in every single scene, so characters are constantly being reflected multiple times. I liked the H.P Lovecraft style feel to elements of this, and the face melting scenes played out in an artistic way, suggesting, rather than showing things. It got a bit too weird before the end, but I did like the interesting way this one finishes.

The third story is the thirty eight minute long 'Caterpillar' by cult director Hisayasu Sato (The Bedroom, Naked Blood) which was certainly one of the more disturbing ones! Here, a war hero returned home severely injured, facial burns, all his limbs missing, and the inability to speak. His wife looks after him, but maybe disgusted at what he has become, she also abuses him, frequently torturing the man. Her pet name for him is 'caterpillar', the two sharing a seemingly unhealthy co-dependent relationship. This mainly takes place in a dank dusty cellar type area, the effects for the man were effective, and the story twisted. It eventually heads in a somehow even stranger direction, finishing before its story had really ended. This continues the theme of both nudity and what has been termed 'erotic grotesque'. This was seen with 'Mars's Canal' with the man beating the naked woman, again in 'Mirror Hell' with the mirror maker dripping hot wax onto a love interests body, and here with a prolonged scene of possible sexual assault against the invalid character. It was very arthouse in style, such as the scenes shown from the man's perspective, a fish eye lens type of effect used and his thoughts appearing as text on the screen.
This leads into the final film, 'Crawling Bugs' which was the directorial debut of manga artist Atsushi Kaneko (Bambi and Her Pink Gun). It stood out due to how bright and colourful it was in comparison to the others. It told somewhat of a more simple story, though this one was shown from the perspective of an unreliable narrator in that what is shown isn't actually the reality. Here, an obsessive fan kills his love interest - Fuyo, a famous star of the stage. Determined to preserve her body, he tries various different ways to stop her from rotting. There were plenty of darkly humorous moments here, the protagonist villain convinced that there are bugs crawling around his body, so wants to prevent the same thing happening to his victim. The biggest comedic darkness comes when it is revealed what the actual state of the corpse is, as opposed to the man's fairy-tale viewpoint. Thankfully there were not many actual bugs shown in this one, but plenty of sound effects used to simulate what the man believes he is feeling.

The four shorts that made up Rampo Noir were all artsy and surreal, I'm sure this is a reflection on the original stories of the author. At over two hours long this did feel quite slow. None of the films with the exception of the forty five minute or so 'Crawling Bugs' seemed to move at a quick pace. I wasn't keen on the brief first, the others, while I wouldn't say I loved them, at least had plenty of variation to their strange and surreal stories. This was unique and I feel some of the more twisted and demented scenes won't fade quickly from my mind! Rampo Noir is out now on ARROW, the streaming subscription platform as well as on limited edition Blu-ray.

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The Rotting Zombie's News Anthology for Tuesday 21st January 2025

Another day, another news round-up of three stories plucked from my news bag. Onwards to the news!

I couldn't not mention Zombie Grindhouse Marathon on a site with 'zombie' in the name. This has released via BayView Entertainment on Digital platforms including to rent/buy on Amazon Prime Video. It is made up of three separate low budget zombie films from director Robert Elkins. It seems to include the traditional walking dead, and even features a zombie crocodile! The good thing about ghoul films is that low budget is not an issue, zombies don't need to look the part to be the part.

A sequel to holiday slasher Silent Bite has been announced, with a similarly amusing name. Saturday Bite Fever has moved into production with Taylor Martin returning as director. The press release states fans should expect more of an anthology in the vein of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End, with actors returning to the cast as different characters. The synopsis for this one has a group of young women trying to survive against both mobsters and vampires who have targetted a nightclub on New Years Eve.

Finally for today, DRagon Studios have announced plans for a remake of 1974 horror film, Beyond The Door. The press release states: '...in 2025 We are returning to that world And unleashing the Devil once again. This is the film that picks up...where The Exorcist left off.'

Werewolf Game (2025) - Horror Film Review

It was sad learning that iconic cult horror actor Tony Todd had died last November. I have liked him in pretty much everything I had ever seen him in, plus a very mild claim to fame of mine had been that his Twitter (X if you Musk...I mean, must) account had followed me. Horror film Werewolf Game is one of the final films to be released featuring this horror legend. Co-directed by Cara Brennan (in their directorial debut) and Jackie Payne (who also wrote this), I had wrongly assumed by the title that this would be a horror film featuring that lamest of movie monsters - the werewolf. Instead it is a reference to the social deduction game 'Werewolf'.

Twelve strangers awaken to find themselves in a dark room surrounded by mask wearing gunmen, with no idea how they got there. The leader, The Judge (Todd - Candyman series) tells the abductees that they have been brought to an island to play a life or death game of 'Werewolf'. Hidden within the twelve members are two 'Werewolves' who have a secret task of killing the other members (named 'Villagers') without being found out, they are allocated a one hour slot in the middle of the night each night with which to do so. At the end of each day everyone has to vote on someone to be executed. Should the Werewolves be the last survivors left alive then they will win and be set free, should the Werewolves be identified and killed then the remaining Villagers will be set free. This creates an atmosphere of paranoia and mistrust, as the group try and come up with ways to escape their predicament while unsure of who the traitors within their midst are.

I liked the set-up for this, with it giving a really neat whodunnit type atmosphere of who the traitors were. The characters are a varied bunch made up of some interesting types. Most interesting to me was the suspicious Raymond (Tim Realbuto) who claims he used to work for the shady company who were responsible for the kidnappings, giving Cube Zero vibes.. Characters mostly all have suspicious sides to them which are then used against them during the voting scenes. Some of the characters had done bad things, others don't appear to have done anything wrong, making it easier to root for then the more traditional trope of bad people having been abducted such as with the Saw series. As harsh the situation is that the characters find themselves in, there are actually worse murder island fates to be had than with this one. During the day the characters are free to roam the island unimpeded, only captured by the armed guards should they try to escape. They are able to have private meetings as a group, and are provided with some food and drink. People who are killed via the voting system are also dealt with relatively peacefully, with a single gun shot to the head ending their suffering, rather than any type of prolonged torture. The story felt a little underdeveloped at the sides, some parts didn't seem to make much sense due to a lack of context. This even includes the surreal The Prisoner/Battle Royale style ending that gave the survivors a chance to face their jailor.

Some of the protagonists were really annoying, chief for me was Seth (André Tempfer), the most vocal of the group, though amusingly, his fellow abductees also find him quite annoying. Favourite minor role went to the very prolific Robert Picardo who played a hard boiled detective type character. The stand out was thankfully Todd himself. Wearing a smiling mask for much of the film, his over the top performance was delightful, Todd seemed to be enjoying this role a lot from the effort he puts into it. Many of the actors gave performances that seemed a bit too overly dramatic, if the film hadn't been so fun this might have become a problem, but with most characters being over the top it seemed to just add to the charm. I liked the parts featuring the werewolves attacking victims at night, always preceded by a first person viewpoint of them racing through woodland with Predator style heat vision, and the design of their wolf costumes were genuinely really cool looking. With this part, it was a little too obvious who one of the werewolves would turn out to be as they had a distinct look to them that couldn't be hidden by a mask.

I found Werewolf Game impossible not to be charmed by. Elements of the story were not that well explained, and the po-faced delivery of some really cheesy lines threatened to break the immersion at times, but this was just a fun action horror that really worked as a bit of escapism, and it was always a delight to see the late great Tony Todd in a joyously evil role. Werewolf Game releases January 21st from The Horror Collective on-demand and across digital platforms.

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Good Neighbours (2024) - Sci-fi Horror Film Review

The idea behind the Richard Anthony Dunford (P.O.V) written and directed British sci-fi horror Good Neighbours felt so familiar that at first I thought that it was something I had seen before. I later realised it wasn't, instead this follows a very similar plot to 2023 sci-fi horror The Hive. That one was set in America and had a better budget, but if someone were to say this was set in the same film universe I wouldn't bat an eyelid. Both films have obviously be inspired by the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Tamesha (L.A Rodgers) and her husband Luke (Karl Kennedy-Williams - P.O.V) live in a small village with their young son Dominic (Param Patel). Noticing that new neighbours have moved into the next door property, Tamesha pays them a visit to say hello. Joseph (Judson Vaughan - The Cellar, The Spiritualist, P.O.V) and Mary (Dani Thompson - Devil in the Woods, Harvest of the Night: Halloween Night) are the new neighbours and show themselves to be very odd, with strange mannerisms and a tendency to take everything literally. Despite the weirdness, Tamesha decides to invite them for dinner the following day. It is here the odd couple show their real intentions, plunging the family into an evening of horror.

So, this was very similar in feel to The Hive, the closest contrast being the weird behaviour of the two new neighbours. They speak with a clipped tone, and their reactions are often unexpected. One example has Tamesha telling them to 'take a seat', with them promptly complying by grabbing a cushion each. I really enjoyed Vaughan's role in particular, I liked how the character is both shown as comedic and deadly serious, able to switch on a dime. Rodgers and Kennedy-Williams also stood out as good protagonists, I liked the banter they had between themselves. Elsewhere, it was fun to spot in the end credits that Jamie Langlands (The Cellar, C.A.M) had a minor role here as a man wearing a hoodie, who due to having the hood up was unrecognisable to me.
The first forty five minutes were the lead up to the realisation from Tamesha and Luke as to who the neighbours really were. The tone of the film flips on a dime, going from an awkward comedic dinner party to a sci-fi horror that takes itself very seriously within moments, making for an intense scene. There are lots of comedy moments, especially early on, but these are contrasted against scenes set elsewhere that never really felt like they fitted in with the larger story well. This includes a suspenseful prologue that sees a young woman being followed back to her apartment by hooded men, and a later bit more silly scene of a woman and her friend out in woodland. There were attempts to tie these scenes to the main plot, but I don't think it was that successful, as they felt a bit random.

Special effects are minimal and are one area where the low budget of this indie horror is displayed. This includes a knife slash that results in no blood or apparent injury despite the victim reacting as if they had been hurt, and some people in 'pods' of a type who seemed to be covered in green and slimy looking silly string. Sometimes the effects were decent enough, such as a wound Joseph gets on his cheek around the halfway mark. I would probably say that the most consistently good part of Good Neighbours was the soundtrack, I really enjoyed its sound, particularly during later more horror-like scenes. The story was simple but I found it effective, and appreciated the little ending twist, that while not surprising, was executed well.

Good Neighbours was an enjoyable sci-fi horror that had some good casting choices. The effects may have been at times not amazing, and it may have struggled to neatly combine its various little subplots, but overall I liked the film, and found myself getting into it. Good Neighbours can be viewed on Amazon Prime, both in the U.S (here) and the U.K (here), thanks to Hypericum Films.

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The Rotting Zombie's News Anthology for Thursday 16th January 2025

 Another week, another trilogy of horror news to curdle your blood and potentially clear out your wallet. In my personal life I am coming to realisations of self-worth, so shall see if that leads to good or bad outcomes. Onwards to the news...

On February 11th, cult classic Alice, Sweet Alice gets a global premiere on 4K UHD. Directed by Alfred Sole, this stars an at the time unknown Brooke Shields as Karen, the younger sister of Alice (Paula Sheppard), with that sister scaring her younger sister by wearing the get-up of a killer, as a way to deal with her trauma of their parents splitting up. Special features includes three versions of the film; Communion (the original), Alice, Sweet Alice (theatrical), and Holy Terror (re-release). Extras also include a new audio commentary as well as a vintage one, among other delights.

Horror thriller Pesadilla is out now on Blu-ray and Digital Platforms from BayView Entertainment. This comes from writer and director Dylan Anglin, and stars Anthony Garcia, Mike Davis and Gavin Cade Hulberg. The synopsis states that after a house robbery fails, a group of thieves decide to target the home of a grieving family, unaware that something sinister resides there.

Finally for today, Slaugh Awakens is a new St Patrick's Day horror that comes from Fright Tech Pictures. After a tragic event that tears a married couple apart, an evil force appears and begins to spread its influence across a forest town. It is left to the survivors to fight back. Directed by Eddie Lengyel (Hellweek), and starring Morgan Paige, Roger Conners, and Don Kilrain, the trailer for this is below.

The Ghost That Wouldn't Die (2024) - Short Horror Film Review

I watch many films for review on this site, and many of those swiftly fade from memory. Morbid Colors was an alternative take on the traditional vampire story, blending punk ethics and a road-trip story. It was one of the rare films that did stick around in my mind. I was surprised when in 2023 a sequel emerged in the form of short horror Real Cool Time, which took the story in an interesting direction. That mini-sequel blew me away, and so hearing there was a new third film in the series, the twenty four minute long The Ghost That Wouldn't Die, I was expecting great things.

This third film again features Devin Crane (Lanae Hyneman) in a leading role. The woman, afflicted with an insatiable thirst for blood is on tour with her band to promote their new album. Devin has discovered recently that the aids she has put in place to control her violent urges are no longer working as they once did, and struggles to maintain a sense of normality as her life begins to fall apart as a result.

I didn't think this was quite as good as Real Cool Time, but this was still a darn good short that was a welcome return to the hellish existence of Devin Crane. I thought it was a neat idea to have much of the film shown in black and white, and her being on tour surrounded by people was a large change from the isolated setting of the first short. Like The Addiction, there is a good contrast drawn between the need for blood and...well, addiction. Devin at her worst, with anti-social behaviour and going through the motions, was able to blend in with her appearing to be a stereotypical rockstar, rather than someone struggling to keep things together for more supernatural reasons. There are some good scenes featuring tour manager Leigh (Kevin Roach - Compression), and I also enjoyed the facial expressions of her band and support band, with much of this presented on screen dialogue free, aside from the morose narration of Devin, and a discordant atmospheric soundtrack.

Once again written and directed by Matthew Packman, with Jakob Bilinski (director of Compression) as director of photography/colourist, this was an effective and moody short that translated the struggles of Devin well onto the screen. I like that the lack of audio from the scenes playing give Devin a disjointed and far away feel. That even in a room packed with adoring fans she is separated living in her own head. It was wonderful to see Kara Gray once again reprising her role as Devin's sister Myca, with this very creepy looking figure seeming to be the personification of Devin's addiction. From start to finish the editing and style of shots here combined to make something that felt just that little bit special.

Having enjoyed Real Cool Time, I expected I would also like The Ghost That Wouldn't Die, and thankfully this was another great entry. As much as I liked Morbid Colors, it wasn't perfect, but it has been a nice surprise to see how much better these shorter sequels have been, with the quality of the filmmaking seemingly ever increasing.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (2024) - Thoughts on the Zombies Mode

After several years of an either terrible or non-existent Zombies mode in Call of Duty, it has returned with the classic round-based gameplay that was so missed by fans in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Do these new maps perhaps play it a little too safe and formulaic though?

The game launched with two maps, and since then one more map has so far been added as part of the season one content. I had low hopes for this, I had heard the maps were basically areas from Warzone cut off and dirtied up a bit. Thankfully, these maps do actually feel like they were created with zombies in mind. The first of these maps was 'Liberty Falls', which takes place in a town in West Virginia. This map includes various shops, and key places like a bowling alley and comic book shop. The core point of all this is the local church, existing in an alternate realm and the way to pack-a-punch your weapons. Second of the launch maps was 'Terminus' which is a more dark map, taking place on a prison island that has secretly been experimenting on the undead in a secret underground bio-research station. This map includes boats that can be driven around.
The third map released was 'Citadelle Des Morts', and as the title suggests, this takes place in and around a zombie infested castle, principally, its dungeon area and the town surrounding the castle.

All three maps are huge, and due to this they do have a bit of a samey feel. The large space means the zombie surviving experience lasts longer, with even me and my best friends first game lasting over forty five minutes. It is fun to play, and of course it is a pleasure to return to proper Zombies maps, but the large areas give it less of an intense feel of the older Zombies maps that would contain you in much smaller locations. Also, there is no boarding up of windows, something that is needed for that old school feel. Nowadays Call of Duty multiplayer remains the much bigger draw, this mode is fun to play, but the long match times means I often put off playing it.
In general though I have been impressed with the zombie content in the latest game, something that has spilled out into multiplayer, even the single player story fitted in horror elements. As well as pre-order and Vault edition versions including zombie 'Operators' for multi-player, there has also been unlockable items such as loading screens and stickers. This included the first prestige level being made up of homages to Zombies, and the Christmas event that included a zombie Santa. Sticking with the horror theme, there is currently a Squid Game 2 crossover taking place which has been a lot of fun.

I might not play as much Zombies as I once did, but it was still good to see it return. At heart I may still be wishing for a Zombie Chronicles 2 (the older maps are much better), but this is a decent way to waste an hour, and killing the undead is as fun as ever. I did like the Christmas crossover that made the enemies into festive versions, especially the spider monsters wearing Christmas hats! I also like that there is a dedicated 'directed' mode that actually guides you through the steps needed to complete the ever complicated story missions within the maps. Even on this mode I struggle to get things done, but hope one day to succeed!

Wellwood (2024) - Sci-fi Horror Film Review

Wellwood is a sci-fi horror film that was directed by Eliza Hooper, written by Reid Collums and that successfully gets by with a minimal cast. There are moments of horror, definite moments of sci-fi, but with a low-key localised story that is more about the acceptance of death than anything else.

Nick (Collums) has gone away with his terminally ill wife Laura (Camille Balsamo) to stay at a secluded woodland property near a remote American town. With Laura weak, the couple have decided to take their honeymoon in the country, rather than travelling abroad. While Laura has come to terms with the fact that she is dying, Nick remains ever optimistic, still researching possible new treatments for her tumour. When a U.F.O unexpectedly crash lands near their cabin, Nick discovers a badly injured alien creature (performed by Adam Dougherty). Initially he tries to care for the alien, but once he discovers it has the ability to self heal from seemingly any wound, Nick becomes obsessed with finding a way to harvest its blood in order to use it to try and save his wife.

With a small cast of characters you would need to have some protagonists that would be worth rooting for. With Nick however, you have a bit of a bumbling idiot. Kudos to him for trying to at first heal the creature he finds, but then that is ruined  by his constant torturing of it, to selfishly try and use its healing ability on Laura. This short-sightedness makes him into a very flawed character, and Laura unfortunately joins Team Torture when she too begins to hope it will be able to heal her. The creature is more deadly than initially expected, but I have to say, I was kind of on its side when the only experience it has with humans is them trying to hurt it! There are a small number of supporting cast members, favourite of which was Sheriff Bradley (Lance E. Nichols - Before I Wake), the only half decent person to be found in the whole film, certainly better than his irritating busy-body Deputy Gracie Marsh (Keisha Castle-Hughes - Game of Thrones TV series).

The special effects were not bad, I especially liked the bioluminescent look of the bright blue alien blood. The creature was mostly wonderfully designed, the only complaint I had were the alien's overly large eyes, which gave it a bit of a cartoon look. Over the course of the movie it has a bit of a transformation, I did like its later form more, seemed to feel a tiny bit more realistic than the small and gangly initial look. There isn't much horror until the third act, with that having a gradual ramp up of threat. Through it all though are the annoying protagonists, and Laura having arthouse style dream sequences where she is underwater surrounded by decaying jellyfish creatures. I can't say I ever really got what those scenes were going for. What could have been a bitter sweet story about dealing with loss is lost a bit with characters who seem all too eager to treat an alien creature as if it is a tool, rather than a living being.

This indie movie worked well, the small cast didn't feel too small, and the general outline of the story wasn't bad. Letting it down were the unlikeable leads, who do make some baffling decisions over the course of the hour and a half runtime. For those interested, there is a mid-credit sequence that gives a tiny bit more detailing of the sort of abrupt ending. Wellwood wasn't a bad sci-fi horror, I did enjoy the creature effects, but it didn't do enough to really make me care about anything that was going on.

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The Lady of the Lake (2023) - Paranormal Documentary Review

Due to tardiness on my part, I am watching the Ryan Grulich written and directed paranormal/true crime documentary The Lady of the Lake on the day that I plan to put up the review, rather than the preceding weekend so it is very much in memory as I edit this. This documentary visually had a lot to it, including actors recreating moments, and a primary investigator who also does her own share of acting. While interesting, I did feel it was a little bit style over substance, with not that much information really filling up the hour and a half runtime.

Lake Crescent, located in Port Angeles, WA is reputed to be haunted by spirits of various people who have drowned in the area over the years. In particular, as the title suggests, this documentary is concerned with one woman - Hallie Lilingworth, a local waitress who was murdered in 1937, but whose body wasn't discovered until it mysteriously rose to the surface of the lake from where it had been dumped several years later.

The first third of the documentary is more of a true crime piece than a paranormal investigation. It charts the life of Hallie, and the circumstances that may have led to her murder by abusive husband Monty. The middle segment then looks at the lake in general, with experts talking about various sightings of both the lady of the lake and other ghosts in the area over the years (the experts here including someone with the fantastic name of Dr. Harlan McNutt). The final third then follows paranormal investigator Amanda D. Paulson as she uses a spirit box and the 'Estes Method' to try and get in contact with the lady of the lake.
I think partly what put me off this was how old it made me feel. Paulson is a constant throughout the documentary, she appears to be in her twenties and looked so young. Other experts also appeared much younger than my forty two years, to my knowledge this is the first time I have been forced to confront my own mortality due to a documentary. I also felt it was a bit over produced, there doesn't seem to be more than a few moments before the next ghostly image or recreation is being superimposed over the screen. Many of the recreations came across as a bit pretentious, with the decision to display Hallie and Monty's relationship via interpretive dance really odd. I actually thought Nick Perry as Monty was great, it was just the method of the actors dancing out their scenes that I admit left me feeling a bit awkward. This also applies to Paulson. I thought she was great as the key investigator for the documentary, I loved how unimpressed she seemed about everything, but also liked how serious she always looked, leading to some artsy shots of her looking deep in thought that reminded me of the excellent Garth Marenghi's Darkplace.

I didn't really feel that there was too much information provided to the viewer, with the middle part in particular feeling a little disjointed from the rest (though it had some interesting moments, such as a serial killer saying they had dumped a body there). The third part with the spirit box was the most moody of the lot, I liked how spooky the locations looked, such as the Lake Crescent Lodge that looked like it was straight out of the video game Silent Hill 2.

One thing you cannot complain about The Lady of the Lake is how visually interesting it is, there is always something going on to make it not just people talking to the camera. As weird a choice as the dance-based recreations were, they made for a memorable style, that while not really appealing to me, did stand out. The Lady of the Lake is out now on Digital and VOD via Uncork'd Entertainment.

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