Synopsis This film follows Kakihara, a sadomasochistic yakuza whose boss goes missing. He sets out on a path of kidnapping and torture to find the man who did this, only to find out that the culprit, Ichi, is a complete sadistic psychopath. Chaos and gore ensue. Review This movie is a lot better than I remember, and I remember loving it. The opening sequence hooks you immediately, with sped up camera movements and manga like color grading at times. This reveals to the viewer that what you’re about to watch isn’t a typical action/horror film. This movie does have its problems, as it has laughably bad CGI at times, but if you can get past those three or four shots you can enjoy this movie. My other issue with the film is the treatment of the women on screen. It’s absolutely devastating, depraved, and nausea inducing. To be fair, mostly everyone dies in this movie and whether you’re a woman or not in this world, you’re gonna get tortured. So I guess it’s kinda fair in the … [Read more...] about Ichi the Killer Review
Horror
The Neon Demon Review
Synopsis This film follows the teenage Jessie, played by Elle Fanning, who moves to LA with dreams of becoming a model. She meets some veterans in the industry, Rubi, Gigi, and Sarah and forms a friendship turned rivalry with them as they all try to make it to the top. Jessie soon learns the ways of the cutthroat world of modeling, and how everyone around her would do heinous things for her youthful beauty. Review I absolutely love this film. This is my third watch, and I swear it has gotten better every time I’ve seen it. The cinematography, coming from the iconic Nicolas Winding Refn, is something to be revered. The way he uses color and light and blocking to symbolize changes in character’s personalities and ways of life is astounding. This film is gorgeous, and the message it conveys is something that women can all understand and relate to, regardless if you’re a model or not. It’s a deep dive on beauty standards and the predatory nature of society towards women, and … [Read more...] about The Neon Demon Review
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me Review
Bullying works! I finally made the guys watch a David Lynch Film! Synopsis Fire Walk With Me serves as a prequel to the hit 90s tv show Twin Peaks, following the seemingly inexplicable murder of a high school girl named Teresa Banks, investigated by FBI Agent Chet Desmond (Chris Isaak) and Agent Sam Stanley (Kiefer Sutherland). Flash forward to a year later and we get to go back to Twin Peaks to see the last few days of the tragic Laura Palmer’s (Sheryl Lee) life, and the events that led to her untimely demise. Review I originally watched Twin Peaks in high school due to seeing so much about it on Tumblr and it ended up being my intro to Lynch’s work. I love the show so I checked out the movie afterwards and it blew my mind. This is either the third or fourth time I’ve seen it, and it’s just as effective as the first. It’s eccentric and unsettling enough to keep you on your toes as you watch, but it also keeps so many secrets to the truth about Twin Peaks, about Bob, … [Read more...] about Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me Review
Heart Eyes Review
Synopsis Heart Eyes is about Ally, a boss girl who isn't interested in romance. When she meets a new boy at the coffee shop that could be the one, disaster strikes as a masked killer comes to her town with the goal of brutally murdering couples on Valentine's Day. Will Ally find love? Will she finally let her guard down enough to let someone into her life? Will she clean her disgusting apartment? I have no idea. Review of Heart Eyes Look, I'm not so prideful that I can't admit when I am wrong. I said very openly that this movie was going to suck, but honestly, it didn't. It's surprisingly self-aware in its dialogue and genuinely pretty funny throughout the film. The opening scene starts the movie off so strong and I was already having fun 5 minutes into the movie. However, this movie suffers from the same problems all slasher movies do, it's a slasher movie and slashers are dumb. The reveal at the end feels lazy and copy paste. It's a blatant rip-off of another … [Read more...] about Heart Eyes Review
Companion Review
If you could rent the perfect girlfriend, would you...? Synopsis Iris is the perfect girlfriend for Josh. She dotes on him, is nice to his friends, is honest, doesn’t argue, and has sex whenever he wants. It’s like she was made for him. When Josh and his Iris are visiting his friends in a remote lakeside getaway owned by a Russian billionaire, a sudden death throws the weekend into chaos. Iris finds out that not everything is as it seems in her and Josh’s relationship, and has to fight for her life to get away. Review of Companion I wish the second trailers didn’t spoil the premise of the movie, because I think the film would be even more impactful if you don’t know one of the main plot points. I thought the first trailer with the candle under her arm and the arm burning was enough to entice me to the theater. Companion isn’t entirely unique, there are other movies and recent HBO series that deal with similar concepts. The difference in Companion is the tone and … [Read more...] about Companion Review
Presence Review
Synopsis When a family of four moves into a new house, the teenage daughter Chloe (played by Callina Liang) suspects they are not alone, and with the recent passing of her best friend looming in her mind, she thinks the presence in the house is the ghost of her late friend. Her mother, Rebecca (played by Lucy Liu) and brother, Tyler (played by Eddy Maday) choose to not believe Chloe because of her state of grief, while her dad, Chris (played by Chris Sullivan) tries to help his daughter. When the whole family witnesses Tyler’s bedroom become destroyed with no logical explanation, they all start to believe Chloe’s grief filled fantasies might have more basis in fact than fiction. Review I had not heard one single thing about this film, I hadn’t even seen a trailer for it, but when Bryce said, “we gotta review the new Soderbergh horror movie that comes out this week,” I was very intrigued, and I was not disappointed. This movie hit home for me in ways that I did not expect, and … [Read more...] about Presence Review
Nosferatu (2024) Review
Synopsis Tell me, does evil come from within us, or beyond? This film follows Ellen (played by Lily-Rose Depp), and her husband, Thomas (played by Nicholas Hoult) as Thomas takes a new job that requires him to go to a strange land to broker a real estate deal with the mysterious Count Orlok. While Ellen begs him not to go, he does anyways, and she starts having nightmares and fits of madness while he’s away. Thomas quickly realizes he’s in for a lot more than a house sale once he arrives at the Count’s castle, and Ellen, Thomas, and a gang of professors and doctors have to work together to defeat the darkness. Review Excellent is not a good enough word to describe this movie. It is exceptional, phenomenal, show-stopping, incredible, stupendous. This is truly a spectacle to see in the theater. The costuming is gorgeous and intricate. Every single actor brought their A-game. The atmosphere and set dressing completely immerse you into the world of 1838 Germany and the … [Read more...] about Nosferatu (2024) Review
Re-Animator Review
This week we review Stuart Gordon’s 1985 schlock classic: Re-animator. Does it go too far for modern audiences? Listen to find out. … [Read more...] about Re-Animator Review
Stir of Echoes Review
Synopsis Review of Stir of Echoes Score 7/10 … [Read more...] about Stir of Echoes Review
The Blackcoat’s Daughter Review
Synopsis Oz Perkins’s debut feature film follows two girls, Kat and Rose, who attend a Catholic boarding school in upstate New York. When both of their parents fail to pick them up for February break, Rose is put in charge of taking care of Kat. We also follow an older girl named Joan, who seems as if she has escaped a psych ward and is on the run, when she meets a respectful couple who offer to take her to where she needs to go. Kat believes her parents have died and they are no longer going to pick her up, while Rose struggles with the possibility of being pregnant and does not look after Kat like she was supposed to. Suspicions about Kat’s late night unsupervised hijinx and Joan’s motivations for traveling rise as the mysteries unfold to the viewer’s unsuspecting but curious eyes. Review I love this film. This is either the third or fourth time I’ve watched it and I always forget how it ends. The mystery of all of the characters and their motivations is intriguing and … [Read more...] about The Blackcoat’s Daughter Review