The Conjuring (DVD + UltraViolet)

Rated R for being scary! How rare is that?
James Wan is a horror director that might have finally peaked with this one. His first SAW film was the best of the bunch and while Insidious had flaws, it also had some great scare moments and visuals. The Conjuring is a near perfect ghost/demonic possession movie. The scares are not cheap and they are 90% effective. A couple felt a little forced, but overall this is one the creepiest movies I have seen in theaters.

Based on a "true story" that takes place in 1971, a family becomes the victim of some evil forces in their new house. Two paranormal investigators are brought in to gather evidence. They are based on the famous couple that also investigated The Amityville Horror years later.

The acting is great all around from the kids and adults. I like how they didn't use any big name actors. Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson and Ron Livingston are relatively well known, but thankfully no huge star power here to completely take you out of the film.

Very...
The Most Effective Cinematic Haunt of this Generation
Gut wrenching, beautifully filmed and perfectly paced, THE CONJURING isn't just one of the best supernatural chillers of recent years - it truly deserves a place next to "The Exorcist," "The Innocents" and "Poltergeist" as one of the more memorable cinematic excursions into the paranormal ever produced. That may sound like high praise, but walking out of director James Wan's stunning thriller, I was hard pressed to think of other horror movies that have captivated me from start to end as much as this one did.

Chad and Carey Hayes' screenplay takes the true story of a Rhode Island family's haunting in the early `70s and embellishes it into a film that grips you from its earliest frames, while Wan - the director who single-handedly launched a decades worth of gory "torture porn" pictures with the original "Saw" - here demonstrates a far greater command of the screen with what many have already called a directorial tour de force. In fact, Wan utilizes a documentary-styled...
A nice, suitably spooky movie
Before I get started on this review, I want everyone to ignore that infamous little phrase that gets attached to films like this. You know which one I'm talking about: "Based on a true story." I could go on about the trustworthyness of the Warrens or the lack thereof, but the best thing to do with this film is to ignore all of that. If you go into this with the idea that the Warrens are shameless hucksters, then you'll miss out on enjoying all that this film has to offer. If you go into this thinking that every frame is true or trying to explain to someone how all of this could've happened, you'll suffer the same fate. Just enjoy this for what it is: one of the first mainstream horror films released to the theaters in the summer in a long while.

Now on to the proper review.

I was thoroughly impressed by this movie. Supposedly this did insanely well when they ran this through test screenings and I can see why. The Conjuring had a lot to offer and didn't try to...
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Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Beginning [Blu-ray]

Surprisingly good.
Well, it's a generic horror film, of course. However, I was pleasantly surprised at how unpredictable the plot is. It doesn't follow that sort of formula where it's obvious what's going to happen and who's going to die. The flow of events is actually quite dynamic and interesting. This makes the movie much better than one might expect.
THIS FILM IS JUST SOMETHING ELSE...
I was a bit sceptical going to a theater to watch "TCM: the Beginning". What can they possibly do to surprise me or to shock me whatsoever? - I thought. - What haven't I seen already to be touched by this? Furthermore it's the good old Texas Massacre, it's been remade once - what can there be in the prequel that was not in the three year-old remake? This "wrong time, wrong place" kind of movies which once produced a very nice example with a perfect title "Wrong Turn" seemed to tumble down into a dull routine like a genre of teen-slasher movies did a couple of years back. But... not yet. This one haven't tumbled.

Two brothers with their girfriends hit a cow making a total mess on a rural road in Texas. Sheriff arrives and soon we get to know he's not an ordinary sheriff. When he takes them to his isolated house you know already a REAL mess is about to happen. Yes, many wanted to know how Leatherface became what he's infamous for. And that's not the main interest of the film...
A true "Chainsaw" epic
First of all, anything that came after the 1974 classic should not fall into immediate comparison. I hate it when these Internet critics take the remake, the sequels or this recent endeavor of the 'Chainsaw' franchise and line it up toe-to-toe with Tobe Hooper's masterpiece. It can't be done.

Having gotten that out of the way, I'll admit that I loved 'The Beginning' a lot more than the remake it is preceding. Afterall, everything they wanted to do in the remake is on full display here, and I can only point out one useless homage to the original that was probably intended for the remake itself (the heroine launching herself through a glass window to evade her maniacal captors). Aside from that, there is nothing about this film that I didn't like. In an hour and twenty minutes' time, I was put through the wringer and actually had to wipe my sweaty palms on the seat a few times because I was so caught up in the mayhem that unfolded, however unapologetically, in front of my...
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In the Mouth of Madness [Blu-ray]

Great work by Carpenter and Cast
Before I get into my review of the film itself, let me say that one of the other reviewers is quite correct. The commentary on this DVD is hands-down the most mind-numbing exercise in boredom ever. "So, you used a soft focus back lighting here to deepen the shadows, right?" "yep". Not a real quote from the commentary, but it gives you a taste of the tedious nature of their conversation.

The movie, on the otherhand is anything but boring. I had been a Carpenter fan for quite some time when I went to see this in the theater. Most of Carpenter's films seemed to be centered around a certain atmosphere. IN THE MOUTH OF MADNESS is wrapped around a concept. If enough people believe something, does it become reality?

Sam Neill plays John Trent, an insurance investigator who specializes in smoking out con artists. He is hired to find Sutter Cane (played with relish by Jurgen Prochnow), the world's leading author. The search leads to a town that shouldn't...
Carpenter's Tour de Force
Much more than a simple horror movie, In the Mouth of Madness takes the viewer on the twisted tale of insurance fraud investigator John Trent (Sam Neill) sent to find world famous pulp horror writer Sutter Cane (Jurgen Prochnow of Das Boot, Dune). Carpenter's cinematic style reaches its pinnacle in this wild ride and his self-composed score completes the masterpiece. Full of outstanding introspective scenes juxtaposed with Carpenter's trademark wit, ITMOM delves into the core of reality and, more importantly, the perception of reality. What is reality but what the mass populus believes it to be? Sutter Cane's twisted books have become more believable than the Bible in the world of ITMOM and John Trent finds himself an unwitting pawn of Cane's warped apocalypse. A visually astounding, thought provoking movie that is not to be missed.
My favorite horror movie bar-none
If you're a horror fan this is the movie for you. If you're like me and you love supernatural horror more than slasher horror, than this is THE movie for you. Scares and a deep, strong story, through and through. A superb ending. Can't be beat. This should be in any horror fans library to watch whenever you they can.
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