NicolasHunter500 Reviews

Macabre (II) (2009)

Great Indonesian horror film!

[1 July 2013]

Extremely similar to a French horror film that came out years ago, "frontiers" Macabre delivers visceral violence and thrilling suspense in great doses.

The storyline is simplistic yet very well done. A group of friends pick up this seemingly terrified and disoriented girl, and, this girl, claiming that she had been robbed, ask the group if whether they'd be kind enough to take her home. They decide to do so, and, once they reach the girl's house, they are invited inside and are eventually greeted by the girl's mother, who then offers them dinner. But, while they have dinner, they get drugged, and soon afterwards, they find themselves stuck in an unbelievably hellish nightmare.......

The film has quite a slow start, but as it progresses, it intensifies into an utterly savage bloodbath that will have you guessing as to who lives and who doesn't. The acting, cinematography, direction is all perfect and the film lives up to its name entirely. Don't miss it.

Dead Island Riptide (2013 Video Game)

A half baked sequel to a half baked original.

[29 June 2013]

After having seeing the score for this game on meta critic, I was skeptical about playing this one. I had played a little bit of the first one and it left a very sour taste in my mouth and I thought it could have been so much better, especially considering its innovative concept. This one, however, doesn't improve on the original in the slightest. It is almost as if the developer completely ignored all the criticisms aimed at the first. The combat here is dreadful, you can perform light attacks, but you can't block or even counter enemy attacks, which becomes incredibly frustrating, considering you'll face massive hordes of enemies occasionally. Killing the zombies feels very unsatisfying as well. The damage modelling is well done, you can remove limbs and heads depending on the weapon you use, but unfortunately the attack animations are appalling. The kick animation is so poorly textured it shouldn't have even been implemented. Fist fighting is useless and all of the guns are amazingly underpowered. The voice acting of the Australian characters is absolutely atrocious. I don't know, if the developers tried to make them sound as irritating, grating and moronic as possible then I guess in that respect they've succeeded, but seriously, it is utterly embarrassing and cringe worthy to listen to and during the cut scenes you'll be wanting to reach for the mute button. There is also this really stupid and unnecessary RPG element to the game. You receive "experience" for neutralizing zombies or accomplishing quests but it really didn't have to be included, in fact, this game would have worked better as a straight up survival horror game where it doesn't reward you for what you do. The island itself looks very pretty but that is the only positive thing about this game.

Sleep Tight (2011)

2 hours into the life of a despicable man.

[28 June 2013]

This is the best horror thriller I've seen in a while. It gripped me in a way that normal thrillers never do.

The film is about a miserable, lonely man who preys on a woman who lives on her own in an apartment, and the man, who is jealous that the woman is happy and carefree, performs a series of malicious pranks to try and make her life as awful as possible.

Normally I'd criticize a movie like this for being mean spirited or not enjoyable, but, the film is executed in a way where nearly no one wins in the end. The acting is exceptionally good, and, the film is exceedingly well shot and edited, which is a blast of fresh air in an era where the majority of films suffer from irritatingly shaky camera-work. Don't miss it.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Terrible

[24 June 2013]

Why has this been so well received by critics? I've never watched a film so amateurishly thrown together and incompetently made like this film. Seriously, labelling this a "horror masterpiece" is ridiculous, everything about this movie is just awful. The camera-work, the direction, the cinematography, the sets, almost everything about this is abysmal. The film looks as if it was made for $900. The make up on the zombies is really shoddy, they hardly even look like zombies. The characters lack logic and frequently do absurd things. The only positive aspect of this is the music, which is enjoyable but really doesn't go well with a film like this.

Zombie (1979)

Absolutely god awful.

[24 June 2013]

There are many words to describe this Lucio Fulci effort. Dreadful, bland, dull, monotonous, insipid, flat, inane, moronic, puerile, repellent, etc. Seriously, this was made to cash in on the more popular zombie effort, dawn of the dead, and it shows. This film is Z grade in every way. The characters are imbecilic( Who just stands there and waits to get bitten by a zombie?) the script is idiotic and the story is poorly written, the pacing is slower than a snail, and the music is irritating. The only positive aspect of this film is the gore, and, you have to hand it to Lucio Fulci, the guy knows how to shoot scenes of brutal violence, but then again, any hack can do that, and that is not necessarily a talent. Avoid this like you would your worst enemy at school.

Deep Red (1975)

Slower than a dead turtle.

[24 June 2013]

Like many Italian horror films, this is a well directed and shot film, but, unfortunately it suffers from abysmal pacing. The director of this could have honestly trimmed half an hour off the film and it would have been better for it. Near the climax, the lead character walks aimlessly and slowly around this house for what feel likes 10 minutes(at least that's what it felt like) and seriously, for a mystery thriller, This contains an annoying soundtrack that doesn't go well with the film at all. The acting is fine, but the film has some excessively brutal violence that made me wince. The script is decent and so is the storyline, but the pace could have been way faster.

Mortal Kombat (2011 Video Game)

Fatality!!!!!!! Flawless Victory!!!!!!!

[30 April 2013]

Sadly,I haven't ever been a fan of mortal kombat. But after playing this, I can now say with pleasure that I've changed my mind. This could be the most satisfying and enjoyable fighting game I've ever played.

The gameplay is exciting and deep, and flaws from the last few games have been fixed. The core gameplay is still there, but now, you can do much more then you ever could in previous installments. Among the new features are x ray moves, which are vicious and utterly grisly to watch. During an x ray move, you get to see your character break the bones of your opponent, and also, fatalities have made a return, and they are much more brutal and sadistic then they ever were. A good portion of them are downright sick and nasty( for example, Kung Lao bisects his enemies with his buzz saw hat) and some of the other ones are genuinely comical( When you play as rain, you can inflate your opponent with water, turning them into a giant water balloon before popping them) All in all, there is very little to criticize here. The game has fantastic level design, graphics, and the story is very strong and well written, while the dialogue is also funny and well written also. The characters are very realistic and gritty looking, and many of the characters that were popular in the original games have made a return. The good thing is, all the unpopular characters from previous entries have been ditched, which was a wise move on the developer's part, considering the franchise has always had bloated character rosters filled with too many characters to chose from. The only minor gripe I have with this game is that you can't play as goro, kintaro, or even Shao Kahn, which is a crying shame, given that they have some awesome looking fatalities and moves. Also, another small problem is that some of the fatalities are too hard to perform. The fatalities require you to press a series of buttons in order to execute them, but however, some of them are too tricky to master and from time to time, it becomes frustrating trying to do so. But anyway, None of that are serious flaws that affect the game, and overall, this game is pretty perfect. I heartily give this game a 9/10.

On a final note: watch out for that little imp thing that pops up on the screen while you search through some sections of the krypt. It nearly gave me a heart attack.

Suspiria (1977)

An interesting, yet rather overrated film.

[30 April 2013]

I didn't think this film was too bad. It did have have some merit. The sets, photography, cinematography, camera work, were all stunning and flawless in execution. The story is about a pretty young woman who goes to a ballet school, only to discover it is in fact a witch coven. I had no problem with the script or storyline, I thought the script was well done and the story was pretty involving. People who criticize this are kind of missing the point. It isn't really a horror film that relies on a conventional narrative, but instead, it relies on a visual narrative to tell its story. The effect were very well done, the murders were grisly and difficult to watch, and the music was very intense and chaotic, as it should be for a film of this type. My only real gripe with this is that occasionally it is a little slow. Overall, a solid effort. But, I don't think it is a "masterpiece" like most horror fans would tell you.

The Dictator (2012)

Awful.

[30 April 2013]

It is clear from the beginning that Sasha baron Cohen is simply a one trick pony. Like many other comedians, he simply relies too much on shock humor and not on humor that is actually funny. It is hard to make a comedy, because you don't know what makes people laugh, but making a rude, vulgar comedy is even harder. If you're not witty, you and your film just end up looking pathetic, which is unfortunately the case here. This Sasha guy simply cannot tell a joke. Have we become so dumb down as a civilization that it takes a thousand fart and male package jokes to make people laugh? I'm all for slapstick comedy. The more extreme and wild it is, the better. But directors and screenwriters need to realize the difference between what is funny and what isn't. If you want to hit someone's funny bone, it takes more then just sex jokes and people doing crude things to do it. At least bring intelligence to your jokes and don't rely on idiotic stereotypes.Seriously, isn't making fun of terrorists and evil leaders a little played out by now?

This Sasha guy needs to look up the word, "subtlety" before he goes and makes another one of these stupid films again.

The Evil Dead (1981)

Entertaining......if not a little dated.

[30 April 2013]

I can understand this movie's appeal. It's overloaded with gore, unintentional comedy( truth be told, Evil dead was originally intended to be a serious horror film, however, it often gets mistaken for a horror comedy merely because of the films laughable and primitive effects) and a very likable lead, Bruce Campbell. But, looking back, I don't know if you can honestly regard this as a ''masterpiece of horror'' like many claim. In my opinion, it hasn't stood the test of time very well. As a matter of fact, it is awful by today's standards, like many other old horror films out there. The camera work is amateurish, The make up effects look comical, and the gore is cheesy and overdone.

Ichi the Killer (2001)

Well done modern exploitation thriller.

[28 April 2013]

I think Takeshi Mike could teach a thing or two to all these wannabe grind house film makers about how to make a thriller that is not only ludicrously violent and gory, but also humorous, quirky and intelligent. The film is literally a comic book come to life, but, It doesn't dwell constantly on violence and sexual violence to make its impact, like many other horror films do today. Whereas Hostel and saw try their hardest to be offensive and shocking simply because kids and young adults like it, This film doesn't feel like its trying too hard. Yes, I know I've blasted torture porn films in my other reviews, and this could be considered torture porn as well,but this film has more to offer then just torture and violence. The acting and script are pretty much fantastic, and the special effects are well done even though occasionally they look kind of artificial. Takeshi Mike has had a long career of making films that are not mainstream in any sense of the word,apart 13 assassins, but, I'm always eager to see his new films because they are always something new. Thumbs up to him for not being a one trick pony like Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino or even Paul WS Anderson.

Ill Manors (2012)

This film is great, Innit bruv.

[27 April 2013]

This has to be one of the most genuine and brutally honest depictions of thug culture. Never mind that everyone in this film speaks another language(well, they are in fact speaking English, however, their slang and accents are so difficult to understand they might as well be speaking a foreign language)but still, if you can brush past that, be prepared to be amazed by the enormous amount of talent on display here. The film combines multiple story lines together into the one film, and, the whole film is narrated by rap artist, Plan B, who also created the soundtrack for this.The film is very different and innovative, especially in a sub genre like the gangster one, which, in my opinion, has become tired and worn out. The acting is very naturalistic and believable, and the film has a very raw and cheap look about it, which makes the film more powerful. Be aware, though: The C word and F word are used in nearly every scene. It may seem excessive, however, I have met people that speak exactly like the characters in this film. no joke.

Django Unchained (2012)

Tired, uninspired and boring.

[25 April 2013]

I honestly don't see the appeal behind Tarantino's films. I haven't ever really liked his films, but still, I gave this a chance. I probably won't watch anymore of his films if he comes out with any future. Pretty much all of his films, apart from pulp fiction, are simply the same thing over and over. All of them focus on the theme of revenge. They all follow the same pattern. Long, extended scenes of characters talking, followed by a scene of violence. Characters talking again, followed by yet another scene of violence. As a result, his films just feel formulaic and typical now. I noticed how online everyone is praising the acting. Jamie Foxx is passable as django, but surprisingly Christopher waltz has received the most amount of praise. I don't know why. He plays the exact same character like he did in inglorious basterds, only this time he is a good character. All the other actors were passable as well, I guess, but they weren't anything to write at home about. The shootouts in this film, yes, they are quite spectacular and well done, but they are the only parts of the film that are worth watching. I went to the theatre with my friend to see this, and generally he likes everything, and he always has something positive to say about the films he watches, but even he came out very underwhelmed and unimpressed by this. I liked how they used the original django theme song at the beginning though, it was a nice touch. Other than that, spend your money on a film that is actually worth watching.

The Collection (II) (2012)

Poop, crud and sludge.............. and JUST POOP!

[25 April 2013]

OK! Everybody! It is time for a new episode of how to make a horror movie! But today, we are covering a special sub genre. It may not be real horror, it may be a genre only idiotic 13 year old boys would like, and it maybe a sub genre absolutely everybody hates, but, hey! there has to be a sub genre for everyone out there, Doesn't there?! OK, how to make a torture porn film: First, get a handful of terrible actors, and add them first.

secondly, get a ludicrous, idiotic script full of sleaze, gore, torture, implausible plots twist and turns and even more torture and then throw that into the mix!

third, Get a hack director who doesn't know how to make a horror movie ( and shouldn't be making horror films anyway) and throw that into the cooking pan! fourth, get a stupid and invincible villain who could not only rival a Kung Fu master with his marvelous strength and fighting skills, but, he can also set up traps that would be beyond what any normal human being would be capable of creating and setting up. Also, make sure he owns a huge, abandoned building that is positively full of traps and other horrible nasties to spice things up! Then, Get your local torture porn distributor to pick it up.

Finally, sit back and let the money roll in!!!!! Now, that is all we have time for, folks, but be sure to tune in next time!

Inside (2007)

Poop of the highest order.

[25 April 2013]

Awful, lacking a plot and even a reason to exist, it is clear that the only reason that this was made was to show off as much graphic violence as possible, and it is even more apparent considering it is the only thing it has going for it. It has the thinnest and most nonsensical story you'll perhaps ever see in a slasher, and, it has some of the most idiotic and brain dead characters you'll ever see in a horror film. Are we supposed to think that this is realistic and hard core? and, do the filmmakers think that we are meant to praise them for making a film that is rough and depraved,even though it lacks sense and intelligence? Don't watch it, you'll have more fun flushing that money you spent on it down the toilet.

What a donkey of a film. Ha!

Aliens: Colonial Marines (2013 Video Game)

A letdown

[11 February 2013]

Since I'm currently based in Australia, I was fortunate enough to play this game before its official release date over in The U.S. This isn't the incompetently thrown together hack job Rebellion's alien vs predator was, but this is simply a toned down shell of a game that had the potential to be superior in comparison to other games based off the alien franchise. In this game, you are able to return to hadley's hope out of Aliens, and many of the locations from the film,surprisingly, you get to visit throughout the game, but, had Gearbox chosen to make a proper squad shooter like they intended to do so years ago, when they first announced this, and not some dumbed down, mindless call of duty style shooter that throws waves after waves of alien (and human) enemies at you constantly, at the expense of a deep, intelligent first person horror shooter it wouldn't be getting a 5 score.

My main objection to this game is not that it deliberately caters to the audience that year after year buys call of duty, or the fact that its a lazy, highly linear and scripted game that lacks nearly any replay value whatsoever, but the fact the Gearbox would blatantly make gamers wait for this for over 7 years, hyping it up,while at the same time fuelling that hype with a huge marketing campaign that makes it sound better then it does, and then, all of a sudden,they dump an enormously mediocre and underwhelming game onto store shelves that barely keeps any of its promises and under delivers in nearly every way. It fails at being a decent entry into the alien universe, it fails at being a horror game, it fails at being a decent action game because the action is bloodless and sterile while the level design is so corridor like and linear to the point you're almost simply going down a set of narrow paths. The graphics look fine admittedly and sound design is above average, but its hard to really compliment this game on anything else. Its inexcusable that this took so long to come out and this is the finished product. Even alien vs predator, which was a depressingly enormous disappointment didn't break my heart as much as this did. Gearbox had enough time and budget to at least develop a reasonably decent shooter that simply gives fans of the alien franchise a satisfying experience. Had they opted to go with their original vision, and not chosen to make a brainless, clichéd ridden game that was clearly pumped out for money and to capitalize on the 12 year old boy infested call of duty market this could have been worth the time. Perhaps they should have just cancelled this years ago, so they could of at least spared many alien fans and fans of decent shooters (like me) the disappointment.

A Current Affair (1971– )

What is exactly the purpose of this show? and what in the world is any intelligent person meant to take away from it?

[7 December 2012]

This is even more rubbish on Australian television. This is not really news, Just like today and tonight, almost every episode of this show seems to center on revolting, nasty white trash with no redeeming qualities or intelligence. On this show, each night you get to see them beat each other up, swear at each other, see reporters harass and stalk people and see hoons burn out their tyres. The show doesn't ever seem to deliver any real insight into whatever topic it reports on, and besides nearly never reporting on subjects that actually affect people's lives it seems to relish in exploiting legions of beer swilling, racist, drunken morons and their ridiculous affairs. The show is almost jerry springer without crowds of people laughing in the background. Oh wait, this show IS jerry springer without the background audiences clapping or cheering on. This show manages to just show off the worst of Australian society while being as subtle as a jackhammer, and being as tasteless and sensationalistic as journalism can get. For example, the one common story that appears usually every month in this show are neighborhood wars, where we get to witness an endless onslaught of profanity, stupidity and violence. What is anyone supposed to take away form this? This show is not only tasteless and irrelevant, but its boring. Its simply too shallow and narrow minded to be interesting or entertaining. A current affair is just simply a trash reality television show pretending to be journalistic or important.

The Project (2009– )

Mean spirited, disrespectful, vile, this is one show that should be cancelled.

[2 December 2012]

Just when you think or feel like Australian television couldn't get any worse ( Half of the programming is now eaten up by talent shows or cooking programs) suddenly, this vile,brainless, misguided and utterly irresponsible slop finally ends up on television and gets passed for 'entertainment'. Most of the show covers nonsensical and redundant topics like who's the latest celebrity airhead dating or breaking up with,the show fails to ever report on anything worthwhile that is actually affecting the world as it stands, and worst of all, all of the news is delivered by unfunny, ignorant and venomous reporters ( most of which are comedians who were thrown off of another bad television show, Rove Live) so anyone who is seen that show knows the level of humour and wit their in for when they watch this. The show insensitively pokes fun at subjects that aren't funny, like people who have been in disasters, accidents, you get the picture. The fact is that the reporters are condescending, boneheaded and spit out distasteful comments whenever they get the chance. You feel bad for literally everyone they make fun of, its OK for these morons to try and poke fun at, say, someone who has been in a tornado or have had their house destroyed by storms because they can go home to their mansions and their high salaries, but half of the people they maliciously laugh at are often left with nothing. Shows like this are a testament to the low standards audiences have and proof that they will watch any moronic and tasteless drivel that is thrown at them. Shows like these are the reason why Australia's society and culture is becoming more mean and intolerant, even more so when they have bigots like these people give them news and show them the rest of the world while they spout out their own misguided and repugnant views of it. Shameful.

Hitman: Absolution (2012 Video Game)

A disappointing, irritating game that is undeserving of the name hit-man title.

[23 November 2012]

Since Hit-man: blood money was such wonderful childhood favorite of mine while I was back in school, I was largely excited about the release of Hit-man: absolution. But unfortunately, upon playing a few hours of the game I feel not only underwhelmed by the experience but feel foolish for wasting money on it. If you took away the title, Hit-man, and replaced the game with any other name, this would honestly be a game that would be forgotten in 3 months down the track.

My first complaint is that many of the features that made the franchise so worthwhile seem to be missing here. While the graphics and art design are impressive, the level design is too linear and restrictive and it completely limits the amount of freedom of choice you can have during most missions. Its a disheartening far cry from the massive, open world the original Hit-man games had that used to allow you to play the game however you wanted, and let you assassinate your targets in whatever fashion you wanted.Not only that, you are now incapable of upgrading your weapons or choosing what weapons you'd like before the each mission commences. It automatically decides what weapons you can have and most of time you are without your silenced weapons, which makes the more challenging difficulty options too frustrating and taxing to play. The stealth game play isn't much better. The disguise system, which was all too effective in hit-man: blood money is practically useless here. The excruciatingly cheap and moronic AI can now not only detect you from a mile away, even with your back turned to them with your disguise on, but now you can not going anywhere without having your cover blown every 5 seconds. The game forces you to rely on instinct mode, which is not only useless on the harder options but it depletes really quickly, and the only way you can replenish it is from killing people. But guess what? you actually get penalized if you kill anyone else but your targets. The issue is here, the instinct mode is just simply too poorly implemented on the harder modes while it is simply too easy to use on the easier options. Not only that, for a hit-man game, you literally don't get to do any killing here at all. Most of the missions involve getting away from the police or trying to navigate yourself around henchmen, which gets tiresome and frustrating after a few minutes.The checkpoint system here too is horrible. While dishonored had a smart save system that allowed you to save anywhere in particular, no matter where you were, This has a checkpoint system that only saves during some points in the game. You can literally move through an entire area full of adversaries undetected, only to get caught and sent back to the very beginning, where you started. Not only is it hugely infuriating, but it takes away the satisfaction of playing the game and it punishes for even the smallest mistakes you make, which makes the game difficult to enjoy. A lot of the most basic features of the previous hit-man games seem to be missing too, like for instance you can't even look through keyholes or even poison food or drinks to incapacitate or kill enemies.You can't even enter first person mode anymore. There doesn't really seem to be much of a story here either, not one you care for and since jesper kyd didn't return for this sequel the music is very mundane and generic. I have only played a few hours of the game however its simply too tedious and agitating to play and I probably won't end up finishing it. For me, this could be the biggest disappointment of the year, even though this year hasn't been too good for gaming in general. IO interactive are normally a pretty reliable studio who frequently do a solid job when it comes to developing games. But it is obvious that the majority of talent behind this franchise is now gone, beside David Bateson. You have got to have honestly never played Hit-man blood money or any other hit-man game for that matter in order to believe this game has any redeeming qualities whatsoever. It is just another lazily made and toned down sequel, made to cater to today's call of duty generation, who are unsophisticated, undemanding and lack really any taste to discern from what is good and what isn't. This just simply feel like a hybrid between splinter cell and batman, rather than a legitimate hit-man game. Just get Deus Ex for a better stealth game instead, or any other game for that matter.

The Dead (2010)

A forgettable, largely uninspired zombie film that leaves a lot to be desired.

[20 November 2012]

Having seen my fair share of critically acclaimed zombie movies ranging from george romero's films to lucio fulci's, I was admittedly intrigued by the premise of it from first sight, but after watching, I felt rather underwhelmed and I received a huge sense of deja vu after seeing it.

The story is about a military engineer who crashes somewhere in Africa, where the countryside has been turned into a nightmarish and perilous place due to a zombie virus that has turned most of the people residing in their into morbid, rotting freaks who feast on the flesh of those who are still alive.

I know that the film had gotten a lot of favorable press when it first came out, but honestly, I found myself to be really bored by this and truthfully,I became sleepy halfway through the film's running time. Yes, there is some satisfying gore here and there but it is nothing we haven't seen before in (honestly) better zombie films that have come out this generation. The acting I noticed was reasonably good most of the time even though there is some hiccups in the acting especially from the lead character.

I really thought this was an unspectacular, mundane horror film that is flat in unfortunately every respect. Its just a generic piece of work, in a genre that is now saturated with similar efforts and, while I have to say the ford brothers do show off some talent when it comes to direction ( the film is shot in a gritty, authentic fashion which is pretty impressive) but if they wish to make a sequel, they'll really have step up their game when it comes down to narrative, script, and I daresay, maintaining a fresh and imaginative atmosphere.

Maniac (2012)

A staggeringly powerful horror film, one that stays with the viewer for quite some time.

[20 November 2012]

I must admit, I was rather quite anxious about the film before actually viewing it at a late night screening, but, truthfully, this is a memorable and emotional horror film that really punches the viewer in the face with its raw powerhouse of images, and it had my eyes glued to it literally throughout its running time.

The story is about a depressed and genuinely deranged serial killer who by day works at a mannequin shop, mostly reassembling old mannequins and by night, he prowls the streets of Los Angeles, searching for young females to slaughter so he can use their scalps in his private collection of mannequins back at his home, however, his life takes an unusual and positive turn when a young photographer, fascinated by his store, asks him to assist her with an upcoming photo shoot involving his mannequins. Yes, this isn't a very happy story, and the story closely resembles the original despite their being rather minor changes made to it. But still, this is a remake that is well worthing watching or giving time to watch.

One thing that stuck out with me, throughout the entire film, is that, having seen the original Maniac, which was a miserable and grim look into the life of a degenerate murderer who suffered from tremendous neglect as a child,is that, this seems to have more of a glossy and clean look compared to the original, which I thought was quite a relentlessly trashy and outdated film compared to today's standards. It still was entertaining but I honestly thought this was a much superior film by comparison. The majority of the cast acted very well,and Elijah was very convincing and suitably petrifying as mad man frank,even though occasionally I thought the script at times was a tad clunky, and could of had more effort put into it. It could have had much more depth and flesh to it, however, the direction and cinematography was superb and the music, of course, was masterfully done and and it really provides a lot more impact to a lot of the more gorier parts. The soundtrack is very reminiscent of drive, however, there is also a small dose of opera music thrown in that gives this a lot more class and edge over most slashers. Also, what's admirable about the film is that it respects fans of the original, and it desires to be more then just a simple exploitation movie. There are a lot of intelligent artistic touches to the film I don't want to give away, but, this is quite an inspired effort that rises above a lot of the tame and forgettable ghost horror films that seems to plague mainstream horror now. But, this is anything but a horror film for casual viewers, folks. While it succeeds primarily in being a psychological thriller with lashings of rather intense gore added to it, most of the murders are utterly horrific with almost too realistic special effects that make some parts of it quite unwatchable. The camera never flinches or moves away from all the bloodshed and we basically get to see almost everything Frank does just about. However, it doesn't prolong any of its violence and it cuts away halfway through in some of the more extreme parts. Overall, a few plot holes and script issues keep this film from being the definitive horror movie of the year, but, it still packs one heck of a wallop and proves to be a real horror film rather then a fake, cheaply made torture film that exists to make money, which is unfortunately typical of the horror industry these days. So, if your a fan of the genre, definitely watch it, and just think of it as a horror version of drive, without the stiff acting or the tedium.

Kingpin: Life of Crime (1999 Video Game)

an excellent game that not only ahead of its time, but manages to be superior to a lot of shooters today.

[18 November 2012]

After recently purchasing the game on steam, I must say that the game proved to be quite a refreshing and exciting game that delivers in terms of grit, fun and just pure enjoyment.

The game is about a luckless, poor thug who from the get go is thrown in at the deep end of an urban hell hole, infested with criminals, gangsters and just about every other type of degenerate you can imagine. The primary objective of the game is to become a successful crime lord through accomplishing certain tasks with fellow criminals and assisting gang lords with various missions.

The game play is a mix of soldier of fortune and grand theft auto,the game play during firefights is very raw and bloody while the levels are always interesting and can be explored. Normally you can interact with most characters, you can speak with them in a negative or positive way that at times can have major consequence or it can even allow you to learn more about missions or even about the levels themselves, which is a very innovative feature for a first person game, especially for its time. This isn't a very long game however the levels are fortunately quite open ended and the world around you offers a great deal of side missions that manage to be rewarding and worthwhile. You also receive an impressively large arsenal of weapons, ranging from standard tommy guns to the more lethal, inhumane weapons like flame throwers and crowbars. The graphics and level design are both also well done, the world looks dirty and unattractive like it should be, and the graphics are grungy but they are also decent.

The only issue I generally had with the game is the audio. While the voice acting I found was indeed passable even though the script throughout the game is overloaded with nearly incessant profanity and vulgar language (there is not a single character that doesn't use the F word repeatedly ad nauseum)the AI along with the weapons I thought were mostly badly recorded and there is an irritating scratchiness to the sound whenever someone speaks or whenever you fire a gun.The soundtrack too is also very repetitive and it becomes annoying at times. Not only that, the game is at times way too hard, even on the normal difficulty. I am a purist when it comes to games, so naturally I always have a game on the hardest difficulty option whenever I play, but even I had to turn it down because it felt impossible to play. Another issue is the AI, not only is the AI aggressively stupid but they are nearly impossible to kill since all of the guns are ludicrously underpowered. The pistol is almost useless, on the harder difficulties while the melee weapons, don't even get me started on them. Its a cool inclusion having the ability to let other friendly characters join you during the missions and have them fight for you because the game becomes more challenging and more taxing as it progresses. The enemies are also dead on accurate whenever they shoot, so naturally it is wise to always to use cover whenever possible and make sure you are stocked up on armor or bullets when ever tackling the harder missions. Overall, this is somewhat a flawed gem, a little relic from the 90's that is strong on atmosphere but has a lot of gameplay problems that hamper it from being a masterpiece. This is still well worth a look, and its certainly much better then a lot of the tripe that is coming out today saturating the video game market, but, this is only for those who have a strong tolerance when it comes to violence or language, and not for people who are sensitive or weak of heart.

Arthur Christmas (2011)

A disappointingly dull adventure.

[18 November 2012]

As much as enjoyed Wallace and Gromit and pretty much every other animated film this studio has put out, unfortunately, this is a lifeless, and utterly uninspired adventure that is perhaps suited more to little children, but not really for adults. First of all, the film looks very stunning, and the animation is fluid and eye catching however one of the sole reasons I had such a genuinely tough time liking this film or even watching it is that it that it has a flaw that seems to be incredibly typical now of much big budget animated films. It really suffers from an unremarkable, boring narrative that every once and a while has a humorous moment, but, it honestly is quite an unmemorable and tedious experience that lacks any of the quirkiness or any of the goof ball charm that made chicken run or wallace and gromit so delightful and pleasing to watch. It has some impressive voice work from a lot of renowned actors and actresses but really this is a film purely for little kids, and I can only recommend it to parents who have kids below age 10.

Dishonored (2012 Video Game)

a mediocre game that falls short of being something great.

[29 October 2012]

While this necessarily isn't a bad game, however, due to its trial and error game play, uninteresting narrative, and short length, I can only recommend this as a rental game, and not a buy.

The story is, you're an assassin, who is assigned to meet with the empress of a steam punk and gloomy city. However, upon your arrival, you are assaulted by an unknown adversary, and, during the attack, the empress is murdered and you are then vilified and accused of her murder by the authorities. Soon after, you are thrown in jail, an after you receive a mysterious package while in prison, you escape and you must uncover who framed you for the murder of the empress and set out for vengeance.

As admittedly and undeniably interesting as this generally sounds, unfortunately, this is as compelling as the narrative gets. The characters are honestly very bland and mundane, even though normally the voice acting is convincing and reasonably well done.

The game play also isn't really much better. While the combat is visceral and bloody(while its also quite simplistic and unchallenging, All that is required during combat is simply remaining blocked until an enemy attacks you and leaves you the opportunity to deliver a fatal counter attack) The stealth game play is marginally superior by comparison, even though it becomes tired and monotonous very quickly. You receive a lot of remarkably imaginative super natural abilities like the power to leap around areas( which, is at first, is effective for evading and avoiding present enemies) but, as the game goes on, the levels become more dreary and dull looking and it becomes increasingly taxing to move through.

Graphically the game is quite stunning, and initially the world looks across between Half life and bioshock, but this game has almost none of the immersion or the complexity of those two games. Its also very reminiscent of Deus Ex, but its without the staggering and extraordinary freedom that game had to offer, and that was an infinitely better game this.

My biggest gripe with the game is also its mission structure. For a game of this size, its practically criminal that that it doesn't have any extra side missions or quests to tend to, and there is the option to actually not harm anyone in the game or neutralize any of your targets( but seriously, what is the point of that when the sole reason you bought this game to begin with was to kill people?) but, the game at least doesn't penalize you or punish you as much as Deus ex did for doing so, but, it drastically affects the ending you receive if you do ever take down anyone.

I'm positive, deep down, Dishonored could have been a wonderful video game, it could have been so much better, if more effort went into its storytelling and its game play, but, as it stands, its merely a mediocre game with interesting concepts. Had it been executed in role playing game style, this could have possessed more appeal. I'd even go so far as to say it even feels rushed. And, its not nearly as grand or even as masterful as most critics would lead you to believe.

Prometheus (I) (2012)

An idiotic film that insults the audiences intelligence

[17 October 2012]

Before viewing Prometheus, I was hugely anticipating a well written film with great visuals and characters who are sympathetic and easy to root for.Alas,if you view this film expecting all of this, you're bound to be disappointed. After watching the film, the only worthy aspect of the film that's worth praise is the visuals.

While the set design and visuals are grand and quite breathtaking, The film sadly suffers due to a terrible script and characters so idiotic and unlikeable that literally the film leaves nothing to the imagination other then the question as to why you bothered watching it in the first place.

The script, the story, the characters, are all horrendously written and the execution of the narrative is in fact so boneheaded and half baked that it makes you question why this film was made to begin with.

The story is about a space crew who journey to a distant and mysterious planet to discover about man's existence, and about how life started, but of course, in alien fashion, everything goes awry and the crew find themselves in incredible peril. Sound's great, right? Exciting so far, well, on paper maybe, on the screen its anything but.

The story is rife with colossal plot holes, and the characters, all apparently intelligent,well educated scientists, act so moronic and they do absolutely ridiculous things no one would do, such, in one of the moments of the film, the crew venture inside a cave, and, one of the characters takes off his helmet, despite the fact the air surrounding the cave outside is dangerous and toxic, yet all of the scientists, proceed to take off their helmets, despite being on an alien planet they've NEVER been on before, and the air could harbor a virus or any type of bacteria in the air, or anything could just leap out while they have their helmets off yet no one ever considers that, and they all decide to remove their helmets based on what one of the characters say, despite the potential risk of getting infected is still there. Its hard to believe this script actually gets the green light, and one of the studios agreed to use such a dense and feeble script for such a hugely anticipated film.

Here is more eye rolling moments for you. During the first expedition, two of the scientists, who apparently know the layout and designed the map of the area, suddenly get lost in the caves, even though they said they were going back to the ship, however, being as thick and stupid as they are, they take a different route through another cave, and the ship, which is capable of seeing where the crew are, because of the cameras built into their space suits, don't ever bother to notify them that they're going the wrong way and they simply let them get lost. And then, days later, when the missing two geologists come across an alien, in a cringe worthy and frankly ludicrous scene, they begin to freak out like little children before then, all of a sudden, start to at like idiots in front of the creature, and one of them even get up close and try to touch it, even though the creature obviously looks dangerous and intimidating enough. All of the characters lack any common sense and to sum them up, they are the equivalent of dumb teenagers out of a slasher film, they blatantly do idiotic things that result in them getting killed. And most of the characters in the film, besides Elizabeth shaw, have no development or emotional depth, and the majority of them are just fodder that are in the film just to get killed. The whole film is a deeply flawed, effortlessly conceived mess and it makes the viewer feel more frustrated then thrilled. The only positives in the film, however, were some parts that due to the particular ineptness of some scenes, ended up being funny. Elizabeth Shaw, who learns there is in fact a creature living inside of her, has to have an operation before the creature emerges or potentially kills her. When she reaches the machine, it tells her it only operates on male patients, despite the fact its still able to operate on her, and, above all the machine doesn't even bother to sedate her before performing surgery on her, which is ridiculous, because she could possibly die of blood loss during the operation if she wasn't. And she is still able to walk PERFECTLY after having a life threatening surgery and having a massive octopus creature pulled out of her stomach. And no one even asks her why there is blood all over her stomach, and why there are stitch marks across her belly.

I'm not going to continue on here, you get the picture as to how idiotic and poorly thought out the movie is. The sad thing is about the film, despite being illogical and ridiculous, as that it actually manages to destroy the mystery some of the original alien had, and it tries to appear intelligent by asking all these questions about humanity's existence but it never answers them. Ridley scott's direction is incompetent and childish, and the lead acting is either mediocre or worse. Overall, the film really shouldn't have been made, its simply feels like another insult to the alien fan base, a fan base thats was already beaten up previously by two atrocious AVP films. I don't recommend Prometheus, unless you enjoy watching bad films.