brandonsmuxx Reviews

The Fear Footage 2: Curse of the Tape (2020)

Let's be honest..

[5/10 · 29 January 2021]

Is this a good movie? Not really. Is it as bad as the reviews suggest? Absolutely not. So what is it? It's about as average as average gets in found footage horror. The premise is great if you are one of the few who enjoyed the 1st, like myself. It has some pretty good moments, just too many BLAH moments. Will you revisit it or even remember it a month from now? Probably not. But 1 star? No.

Shattered (1991)

Great movie. Forgive the ridiculous ending?

[8/10 · 26 December 2020]

All the way up until about the last 10 minutes, you think you know what's going. Then, an unexpected twist comes. It's far-fetched but interesting, so I was fine with it.. In the final 5 minutes, you get twist #2 and this is where you really just have to roll your eyes. It's not just implausible, it's utterly impossible. Yet, the movie was just so thoroughly enjoyable that even the completely implausible ending wasn't a game changer. Side note: As other reviews have pointed out, the actor playing the P.I. did excellent.

Marauders (2016)

Why is this just now showing up on Netflix?

[8/10 · 8 December 2020]

If you have Netflix, you there are a bunch of Bruce Willis movies from the past 5 years or so. Same story each time. Bruce Willis makes a cameo in an awful film and gets to cash a check. This was far, far from the case. Very good cast. Very good plot, though maybe a tad overcomplicated. This was made in 2016 and Netflix offers a ton of his more recent movies..maybe I justmissed it? While Bruce still wasn't the star, he showed up plenty. The "supporting cast" carried the rest very well. Highly recommend.

Halloween: Resurrection (2002)

Could have been great as a Found Footage film

[5/10 · 26 November 2020]

Take out the stupid game show aspect. This takes out Tyra Banks and, more importantly, Busta Rhymes..the single worst character in Halloween history. Instead, have the group film (or even do a live webcast) of them exploring the house. Seeing Michael in the background and lurking in the shadows through a found footage view would have been pretty cool. It's almost like they had that idea then decided they needed some 'star power'. Enter the game show aspect. The idea of inserting humor is good. The idea of inserting horribly unfunny, cringe-worthy, humor is not so good. Also, the Busta Rhymes scene (we all know the one), genuinely made me feel like the franchise died at that moment. It got even worse when Rob Zombie did his best to white trash it up. Thankfully, I think we're on the right path now.

Prom Night (I) (2008)

Netflix brought you here.

[7/10 · 23 November 2020]

I saw this when it first came out. I thought it sucked back then and so did everyone else. Soon, it was gone and forgotten, never to cross our minds again. Or, so I thought. Yet, here it is, inexplicably, sitting in the Top 10 on Netflix over a decade later. I went ahead and flipped it on. It was nostalgic. I remembered seeing it in the theater with my gf from high school. I'm sure we were bored and texting friends on our flip phones. Good times. Today, I can now appreciate it for what it is. It's not going to scare you, and you'll probably forget about it by next week...but it's pretty entertaining. It's perfect for just relaxing and shutting your brain off. In 2020, I'll gladly take 90 minutes of that.

Survive the Hollow Shoals (2018)

Dude...go home

[5/10 · 23 November 2020]

I've watched about every found footage horror movie. Once crazy stuff starts happening, the characters will at least TRY to exit the situation (though rarely succeed). Night after night, he is basically terrorized and then just brushes it off the next day. After about 5 days of this, it just becomes ridiculous and you almost root for him to get knocked off just for being an idiot.

The Cleansing Hour (2019)

Good horror. Drags on a bit. OK twist

[6/10 · 19 November 2020]

Speaking directly to horror fans..its not scary..You've seen it before. You've seen it done better. I will say that the main character does a hell of a job and carries the film. There is a twist at the end but it was a bit too random.. nothing that'll make your jaw drop. Still, a pretty cool way to end it. Bottom line: It won't keep you up at night and you'll likely forget about it by next week. It is, however, a solid option if you're into possession movies. If not, skip it.

The St. Francisville Experiment (2000)

I've never felt so indifferent to a movie.

[1/10 · 12 November 2020]

I see this movie is 20 years old so its unlikely anyone will ever read this...but if you do..Don't even think about it. Nothing..NOTHING happens. Im certain my facial expression never changed once. Imagine you're folding laundry. Just complete indifference with no emotions. As a huge fan of Blair Witch, I thought hey, a ripoff from the year? I'll take it. Shame on me for even writing a review and allowing this movie to further waste my time. I'm done. Go watch The Last Broadcast if you're wanting an early found footage film..or literally anything else.

Ratter (2015)

You don't get an ending so don't bother.

[1/10 · 11 November 2020]

It's not cute or clever to leave the viewer hanging at the end..It's annoying. It's a lame choice that leaves the viewer feeling ripped off. For that reason alone, this is absolutely pointless to watch. Ending aside, how is the movie? It's decent. It's not scary and it's rarely creepy. But, it kept my interest and I enjoyed it for the most part. That's all irrelevant, though. There's no ending so there's no point. Plus, there are tons of similar movies that are way more creepy and actually provide an ending. Skip this.

Cheer Camp Killer (2020 TV Movie)

This movie was made for 3 dollars

[3/10 · 12 October 2020]

Low budget and terrible acting, even by Lifetime standards. First of all, "camp"? This is set on a school campus. Not even a big campus. A football field, an outside eating area, and 1 floor of a building. I dont ever expect a masterpiece from Lifetime, but they're usually fun, well acted, and interesting enough. This was just bizarre on all levels.

Finding Randy (2020)

Found footage fans only. Trust me.

[6/10 · 8 October 2020]

As someone who will watch just about any found footage horror, I've seen far worse and far better. Cons: *Only 2 good actors. Some were so bad I cringed. *Terrible ending. It left me completely confused as to how things panned out..and not the kind of confused where the Director is clever and leaves things open to interpretation. I was confused as in I'm pretty sure they just screwed up and assumed it made sense. It didn't. Pros: *The numbers and decoding. Awesome wrinkle. *It kept me suspicious of different characters and certain events. I never lost interest. Bottom Line: If you're a found footage fan, you know the drill. Tons of bad ones, lots of average ones, but just enough epic ones to keep us coming back. I did kinda like this movie..BUT..I think some of you might really enjoy it. Give it a shot if you're running low on options.

Villain (I) (2020)

Unrealistic ending. Great otherwise.

[7/10 · 9 September 2020]

Pretty straightforward movie. Read the plot. You get what you sign up for. No complaints there. The main character does great. The story isn't exactly complex, but it doesn't need to be. It's enjoyable throughout. Decent little twist towards the end. I predicted the ending scene, which I will not spoil, and it was pretty well done. BUT it was implausible based on what was going on at that particular time in the movie..What I mean is that there was no way person A could have known where person B was. Right place, right time? Expert stalker? Nah. They wanted to go out with a bang. The problem is that the story was at a point where the idea of this event occurring at that time..beyond unlikely. You'll understand what I mean when you see it..which I recommend you do, despite the ending.

Gags the Clown (2018)

Glad I didn't see the poor reviews beforehand

[8/10 · 2 September 2020]

I would have skipped this. 4.6/10? I get that found footage horror movies will always be given lower scores by people who aren't huge horror fans..but this is just weird. I'm not rating this vs. The Godfather or The Shawshank Redemption. I'm rating this in comparison to modern horror films. This is well above average on every level..and I'm someone who thinks clown horror movies are dumb and it was awful. Maybe it's my love for found footage horror, but this movie was sick.

Host (II) (2020)

2nd best Found Footage I've seen this year

[9/10 · 31 August 2020]

I have no idea how out they were able to pull this off in the middle of the Coronavirus. Also, the budget had to have been relatively decent because the special effects are on par with movies like Paranormal Activity. I actually wasn't going to watch this is. I thought it was bizarre that the running time is less than an hour. It makes sense now. Most movies need a fair amount of time to build-up the characters and where the movie is heading. This movie is straight to the point, so there is no need. Just a group of friends on Zoom in the middle of our pandemic. In terms of anything negative to say, I literally can't. Anyone who loves found footage horror knows how hit and (mostly) miss the genre is. This is a diamond. I loved this movie and scrutinizing something good for negatives is just not my vibe. 2nd best Found Footage movie I've seen this year behind "The Lost Footage of Leah Sullivan".

Classroom 6 (2015)

If you love found footage horror like me..

[3/10 · 30 August 2020]

You'll still think this is below average, at best. Positives: The acting was good, especially the actor playing the psychic. Decent premise. Negatives: Incredibly boring. Not remotely scary and not even a jump scare. The extent of the "scares" are the ghost/demon/whatever it's supposed to be (because we never see it) tossing back a tennis ball and yanking a couple desks around. I've seen hundreds of these movies, many of which I imagine had a similar budget to this. At least these other movies attempted (though likely failed) to scare you. This doesn't even bother. I found myself thinking, ok so here we have a crew member tossing a ball into the hallway and here we have some other crew members yanking desks that they tied a rope to. Neat.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

This movie kinda sucked.

[4/10 · 20 August 2020]

I'm going to binge watch the series and I just finished this one up. Maybe I'm comparing it to the epic first installment, but this was just dumb. Ford did great but the story just wasn't interesting and the other 2 characters, child sidekick included, were obnoxious. Don't get me wrong, though. This is a very well made a movie. It's just a very dumb movie. This is an example of 2 things being mutually exclusive. To add some degree of positivity to my review, the 5 minute countdown/standoff scene with Ford and Willie was great. So yeah, there's that.

We're the Millers (2013)

Rotten Tomatoes is drunk

[9/10 · 16 August 2020]

The site is usually pretty on the spot (except for horror movies, which dork "expert" reviewers rarely show any love). Anyway, only 47% of the "experts" gave it positive reviews meaning over half of critics found it below average (4.9 or lower). Yet, almost 400k reviews on here put it at a 7.0. Go home Rotten Tomatoes, you are clearly drunk and you've made a fool of yourself.

Witnesses (2019)

Could have been great.

[6/10 · 11 August 2020]

If you like Found Footage horror, you could do far worse..you could also do far better..This movie could have been great (seriously) because of the setting and overall plot idea. They just don't do much with it. Inexperienced director? A writer with a great idea but no creativity? Both? Whatever the case, the movie simply fails to live up to it's potential. Even then, it still managed to be pretty decent.

The Rental (2020)

A decent debut plagued by predictably.

[6/10 · 10 August 2020]

Have you seen 13 Cameras? Franco certainly has. It's pretty similar. This has better cinematography and better actors, but the story isn't nearly as interesting. Horror fans will easily predict where it's heading. Even the small twist can be seen from a mile away. I won't spoil whether there is a survivor, survivors, or are no survivors at all..but that's really the only part that mildly surprised me. All that said, this isn't a bad movie. It's also not a good movie. It's the epitome of an average slasher. That's fine though. I appreciate Franco choosing the horror genre. This may be a one time thing, but if he sticks with horror and has better material, he could carve himself a name in the genre. For his first attempt, it's hard to be overly critical. I do see promise and would gladly watch his next horror film to see the growth, should he choose to give it a go. I think a found footage film would be suit him well.

The Go-Go's (2020)

Terrible pacing by the director. So disappointed.

[7/10 · 2 August 2020]

The first 45 minutes focus on their formation, punk roots, and breaking through. It's excellent..but it also ruined the film. Let me explain.. 45 minutes in, the focus is on Beauty and the Beat. That's great. Loving it. But then you realize you're halfway through the film. The casual fan/viewer won't see a problem. As a hard-core fan, however, you'll be wondering how the director can possibly do justice to the rest of their history. She can't. The 2nd and 3rd albums, the turmoil, Jane leaving, and the breakup are all crammed into about 30 minutes. Worse, so much isn't even mentioned. Belinda's solo success? About 2 sentences and a picture of the Heaven album. The 1990 reunion? No mention. God Bless the Go Go's? Nope. I could go on and on. Instead, we immediately jump from 1985 to 2000. Next? About 3 minutes later, we jump from 2000 to 2020. No mention of literally anything during that 20 year gap. You then get some final thoughts, hear their new song, and the credits roll. Bottom line: To casual or new eyes, you'll probably love it. Maybe that is what the intention was. To dedicated fans, you will 100% be disappointed. The solution, because of the slow and detailed formula used for the first 45 minutes, would demand the film to be well over 2 hours. But, would the casual viewer want another hour? Unlikely. The length and how the director chose to allocate the time was a formula for disaster. HOWEVER..let me be clear..the first 45 minutes are incredible. The problem is that the film needed about 90 more minutes because of those slow-burn, thorough 45 minutes. This would have been an INCREDIBLE 2 or 3 part documentary. As it stands, you have an amazing 45 minutes followed by an incomplete, rushed, and frustrating 2nd half of the film. 10/10 for the band, though. Maybe a director's cut will be released..I don't see it fixing the problem, however.

The Titan (2018)

Too much filler. The clock expired

[6/10 · 26 July 2020]

Can't say I didn't enjoy it but also can't say I'll even remember watching it by next week. Cool premise? Sure. Well acted? Mostly but primarily the 2 main characters, notably the wife. Problem is, they overload the viewer with repetitive scenes and situations causing the ending to seem rushed. The right way to utilize the time would have been to make the point quicker and then explore the question or what the future holds. A great movie with this sort of ending will tease your brain and have you playing out and researching theories. This movie teases your brain but it is unlikely you'll have the slightest urge to dig deeper.