Jason and Shawn review: Carver and Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

Carver

Shawn: Never before has a movie EVER made me cover my eyes! Carver did, thanks to my fear of poo! The film was slow moving to start but was still entertaining from the get go. A nice and suspenseful build up to a satisfying gore-filled crescendo. This, ladies and gentlemen, is how you make a good, low-budget slasher film. Cliched story yes, but a perfect delivery. A Good for me!

Jason: A well made, no-budget slasher film with great gobs of gore and brutal violence. In fact, it's the underlying sense of nastiness that hurt the film for me. I didn't mind all over-the-top slasher goodness, but I don't need to see the killer pee on his victims or dump a full toilet on them. That said, Carver is well acted and directed and the special effects are great, especially for such a low budget. A Bad from this Basement Dweller.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

Shawn: I don't know. I. Don't. Know. This is an interesting Christmas story that needed to make up its mind. Is it for kids? Adults? Some of it is pretty dark, but the film holds back. It doesn't go far enough for me. I was expecting a horror movie, but this isn't one. Not really anyway. If the makers had wanted to go for a kid's movie, I would have been fine with that. If they wanted to make a horror movie that would have been fine. But this is someplace in between, so it's a Bad.

Jason: It's nice to see filmmakers who want to go for something a little different and succeed. But the one big problem I had with Rare Exports is the tone. They go three-quarters of the way toward making a scary Christmas horror story and then hold back. I say if you've gone that far, go all the way. Instead, we've got a movie that's too tame for horror fans and too inappropriate for children. Who is the audience? Still, I liked Rare Exports enough to give it a Bad for effort.

Episode XXV: Carver and Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

What offends you more: the thought of being attacked by a family of homicidal backwoods hicks or a homicidal Santa Claus?

This is the question Shawn and I faced heading into tonight's films. One is an indie horror flick called Carver, the other a Finnish killer Santa Claus fantasy titled Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale. One is a based on an alleged true story the other . . . is about a killer Santa Claus.

Some might think we in The Basement are scraping the bottom of the barrel with this week's offerings. We disagree. Carver is supposed to a gorehound's wet dream while Rare Exports has received rave reviews from around the globe for being a fun, alternative holiday tale. Us Basement Dwellers are up for both.

When we're not rocking the reviews and knocking back brews, Shawn I take our shots at the dumbest movie villains of all time. Sure, everyone remembers Darth Vader and Hans Gruber. But what about the bad guys who suck? Tonight, the losers get their due!

As always, we've got four new songs for your listening pleasure, the latest movie news and the lively banter you've come to expect from Film Reviews From the Basement. So tune in tonight at 10 p.m. PST on 92.5 FM CFBX Kamloops, Shaw Cable 106.1 and www.thex.ca and get your geek on.

Some previews of tonight's attractions:

Carver


Vezi mai multe din Cinema, movie trailers pe 220.ro

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

Jason and Shawn review: Chain Letter and The Wild Hunt

Chain Letter

Shawn: Fine. Don't show us the kills. We don't care. Never mind that, in the end, that's all this movie had going for it. I don't think the makers knew which direction they wanted to take this. Are they trying to teach us stuff? Or is this a slasher movie? The only thing that kept me interested was the kills, and they even held back there until the end, when the movie comes gay poetic full circle. An Ugly from me!

Jason: What the hell is this? Seriously!?! What was the point of this movie other than a few mediocre kills. I get it. Technology is bad. Our privacy is in jeopardy. But do we need a slasher movie to preach that to us? Director Deon Taylor has no idea how to stage suspense or kills. Nor does he craft an interesting or scary killer. Chain Letter looks good, but is otherwise very shoddy. An Ugly for this one.

The Wild Hunt

Shawn: Only once before have I cared so little about the outcome of a movie. What a terrible, terrible movie. The acting wasn't bad, but the concept, the ridiculousness of what this is all about . . . man. I was bored as fuck! And boring is the worst thing a movie can be. The Wild Hunt is the king of thumb-twiddling snorefests. Even worse than The Girl With The Terrible Titties. At least that one had boobies. Another Ugly for me.

Jason: This movie made me mad, and a big part of my anger comes from the fact that some people are really into this Live Action Role-Playing thing. To watch a whole movie about it was painful. Having the story go all Lord of the Flies could, I'm afraid, one day become a case of life imitating art. The film is well enough made and acted, but it's slow, boring and about a subject matter that irritates me. An Ugly for me.

Episode XXIV: Chain Letter and The Wild Hunt

A chain letter may seem like an outdated -- and let's be serious here, SILLY -- concept for a slasher/horror picture, but dammit that didn't stop someone from making a movie about it.

Tonight Jason and Shawn take a look at the aptly titled Chain Letter and let you know if the film is something to passed from movie fan to movie fan or cooked in the microwave on High.

But that's not enough for our dynamic duo as The Basement Dwellers stop making fun of people who enjoy LARPing (Live Action Role Play) and watch a movie about them. But The Wild Hunt isn't an ode to the nerd black hole. It's about a game of LARP gone wrong. And if there's one thing better than something going right, it's watching something go wrong. How does the Canadian production stack up? Stick with us!

And stick around as the boys give their lists for the top three movie characters they'd like to fight. Not actors, characters! Are Indiana Jones, John McClane, Capt. James T. Kirk and Godzilla worthy of a back alley brawl? Tune in tonight and find out!

There's also the latest movie news, some cool tracks for your ear hole and a bunch of other stuff that's too cool for words. Just trust us when we say you need to tune in tonight at 10 p.m. PST on 92.5FM CFBX Kamloops, Shaw Cable 106.1 and www.thex.ca.

Some previews of coming attractions:

Chain Letter



The Wild Hunt

Check out this intense TV spot for Bereavement

We first told you about Steve Mena's horror prequel Bereavement back in January. The film was originally going to hit theatres with a limited engagement this Friday, but the release was pushed back due to some problems with the MPAA ratings board. It now lands in cinemas March 4.

The delay not only provided some time to change the poster -- apparently the MPAA didn't like the image of a child holding a knife -- but also kick in a little advertising. We've kindly included one of the TV spots below for your viewing pleasure plus the new poster, which plays up leading lady Alexandra Daddario and her hotness. Hotness and horror go hand in hand you know.

Bereavement is Mena's follow up to his 2004 low-budget slasher movie Malevolence. That film is one of those hidden gems a la Babysitter Wanted and Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon that we love here in The Basement. It deserves far more exposure than it got, but did become kind of a cult hit, hence the prequel.

The plot for the prequel is as follows: "In 1989, six year old Martin Bristoll was kidnapped from his backyard swing in Minersville Pennsylvania. Graham Sutter, a psychotic recluse, kept Martin imprisoned on his derelict pig farm, forcing him to witness and participate in unspeakable horrors. Chosen at random, his victim's screams were drowned out by the rural countryside. For five years, Martin's whereabouts have remained a mystery, until 17 year old Allison Miller (Alexandra Daddario) comes to live with her Uncle, Jonathan (Michael Biehn). While exploring her new surroundings, Allison discovers things aren't quite right at the farmhouse down the road. Her curiosity disturbs a hornet's nest of evil and despair that once torn open, can never be closed."

And now the TV spot:

BEREAVEMENT TV SPOT from Crimson Films on Vimeo.

Micro Review: My Soul To Take

A total misfire from beginning to end. A colossal disappointment from writer/director Wes Craven, who tries hard to create another Nightmare On Elm Street, but misses the mark by a long shot. The film does offer some okay gore, but the story makes no sense and large chunks of the plot are delivered by dialogue that is pure exposition. And don't even get me started on the kills. You see one person stabbed with a knife, you've seen them all. An Ugly from me on this one. Here's hoping Craven bounces back with Scream 4.

Jason and Shawn review: 100 Feet and Babysitter Wanted

100 Feet

Shawn: Here is a cheaply made horror film with some great scares balanced out by sequences that are a total fail. The film goes from creepy to cheesy and back again far too often. This had a tonne of potential and delivered about 60 per cent of it in some scenes and 100 per cent in others. The bit where the ghost kills the kid by headbutting him repeatedly was awesome. The big special effects ending was not. This rates a Bad for me.

Jason: Famke Janssen and the house are the real stars of this movie. There's good performances and some nice scares, but other moments -- especially the ending -- fall flat. How can the ghost materialize to hit her but she can't hit back? There's some nice quiet sequences here as well, but too many of them. It throws the pacing off. I wanted to like this movie more than I did. It's worth watching once. A Bad from me as well.

Babysitter Wanted

Shawn: This is how you make a low budget horror movie! And what a great musical score. It took everything, the dark shadows and moody lighting, and made it scarier. Loved the scene where the husband hacks up one victim while chatting with another. Actually, the whole family unit, including the evil child, was really good. And I liked the babysitter too. She does almost everything right when under assault from her stalker. Tell the truth, there wasn't anything here I didn't like. I went in not expecting much and was pleasantly surprised. A Good for me.

Jason: Babysitter Wanted is the real deal; a lean, mean horror machine that has twists and turns and still comes up with a surprise or three. The film is one part Halloween, one part House of the Devil and one part Hostel. Yet it isn't derivative at all. I liked our damsel in distress and even dug our villains. And the filmmakers nicely balanced the jump scares with slow-burn terror. This has something for every horror fan, and I'm giving it a Good.

Next on the chopping block: 100 Feet and Babysitter Wanted

When a filmmaker named John Carpenter screened his first horror movie, Halloween, for a young studio executive at 20th. Century Fox he did so without the music. She bluntly told Carpenter his film wasn't scary, that it didn't work. So the director and composer set out to "save it" with music. The score he composed, and the chilling film he made, have become fixtures in popular culture.

Tonight, on a special episode of Film Reviews From the Basement, The X's own Rev. Steve of Do Not Touch This Amp joins us for a discussion on movie soundtracks and their transition from being accompanying music to a big moneymaking business. It's a segment no film or music fan will want to miss. And yes, there will songs.

But we are review show, and that means Shawn and I have a couple of reviews for your listening pleasure. First up is the haunted house spookfest 100 Feet starring former Bond babe Famke Janseen and John Fallon of Arrow In the Head. Then we turn the executioner's axe on the little-seen slasher film Babysitter Wanted. How do these two under-the-radar genre films stack up? Stick with us!

So set your radio dial to 92.5FM CFBX Kamloops at 10 p.m. PST or log on to www.thex.ca and get ready for an hour of radio that will blow your ear hole! Trust me, it's a lot more fun than I just made it sound!!

And now some previews of coming attractions:

100 Feet

Babysitter Wanted

Jason and Shawn review: Red Hill and Hatchet 2

Red Hill

Jason: There's a lot to like in this lean post-modern western from the land Down Under. The villain, Jimmy, is one of the best, baddest and toughest hombres to grace the screen in some time. And the character's back story actually makes him a compelling part of this movie. So much so that he overshadows the film's hero, Shane. It's the lack of a strong main character that hurts Red Hill the most. I loved the film's action and violence and it looks great, but the weak protagonist has me giving it a Bad.

Shawn: This movie starts off pretty slow but has a nice build, culminating in the worst first day on the job our hero could ever have. The build up certainly didn't let me down. The action scenes and kills are really good and brutal. The bad guy, Jimmy, is awesome. I was definitely entertained by this well-made movie and will see it again. I give it a Good.

Hatchet 2

Jason: Writer/director Adam Green comes dangerously close to dropping the ball with Hatchet 2. The film has a slow start and spends too much time setting the stage for what is ultimately just a slasher movie. But when the hacking and slashing kicks in, hold on to your pieces! The Victor Crowley sequences more than deliver the goods, with some of the best kills put on screen this side of Laid To Rest. In fact the carnage, Green's sense of humour, and some nice horror Easter eggs make Hatchet 2 a Good horror experience.

Shawn: This movie probably has some of the greatest kills ever put on screen! Some are original, some are not. Are they awesome? Yes they are! Are they CGI? No they aren't! All in all, as far as good slasher movies go, this is a fun one. It wasn't really original and the story wasn't riveting, but I did enjoy the hell out of it. Will I watch it again? Maybe not the whole thing, but I will watch the kills. So I am giving this a Good. Nice reference to Leslie Vernon from Behind the Mask too!

New Scream goes retro

Talk about a boring ass day for film news. So boring we're jumping on the poster bandwagon to satisfy fans who crave new news from The Basement on a daily basis.

Below is the new poster for Wes Craven's Scream 4, due in theatres April 15. It's fairly similar to the poster for Scream 3 and keeps the motif started with the first two entries. Why I type all this when you can look at the poster is beyond me.

The film stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Hayden Panettiere, Britt Robertson and Emma Roberts. We've included the trailer for your viewing pleasure.

International teaser for Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2 is here

Just a quick update on this Thursday eve as the international teaser for Robert Hall's Laid to Rest follow up Chromeskull arrives on the net.

We've talked about the slasher sequel here and are excited to get a peek at the gory goings on in this trailer. Laid to Rest had some of the best kills ever staged in a horror film and, judging from the images presented below, Hall intends to up his game.

The film stars Thomas Dekker, Brian Austin Green, Christopher Nelson, and Danielle Harris. No word yet on when this bad boy hits theatres.

The world's first killer tire movie rolls into theatres

Yup, you read that right. A killer tire movie.Called Rubber. We shit you not.

The tire's name is Robert by the way. Again, we shit you not.

The film, by way of French music producer Quentin Dupieux, screened at last year's Cannes Film Festival and generated some good buzz before being picked up Magnet Releasing.

According to the official website, Rubber is about "Robert, an inanimate tire that has been abandoned in the desert, and suddenly and inexplicably comes to life. As Robert roams the bleak landscape, he discovers that he possesses terrifying telepathic powers that give him the ability to destroy anything he wishes without having to move. At first content to prey on small desert creatures and various discarded objects, his attention soon turns to humans, especially a beautiful and mysterious woman who crosses his path. Leaving a swath of destruction across the desert landscape, Robert becomes a chaotic force to be reckoned with, and truly a movie villain for the ages.”

Fucking sold! Rubber premiers on VOD Feb. 25 and hits theatres April 1. No, the film is not an April Fool's Day joke. It's real, and the trailer below looks absolutely amazing. Funny, suspenseful, you name it.

And you know we'll review Rubber and share our thoughts with you on the show. We're good that way.

Malevolent bereavement

The 2004 low-budget slasher movie Malevolence was one of those hidden gems we enjoy here in The Basement, in case you haven't noticed. Now it's time for the prequel and we've got the trailer for yah below.

The first film, written and directed by Steve Mena, dealt with a trio of bank robbers who take a mom and daughter hostage and hide out at an abandoned farm house. The only problem is a soulless killers happens to live nearby.

Malevolence actually took some time to set up a back story for the killer, which is where Bereavement comes in. The film is a horrific account of the kidnapping of six-year-old Martin Bristol, the first film's villain, and his slow and steady descent into the killer he eventually became.

Mena is back on board for this one, and it features the great Michael Biehn as Bristol's dad. Prequels rarely work, but I will give Bereavement a watch strictly on the strength of the first film.

Bereavement hits theatres in a limited release next month.

Killer scarecrows get new life After Dark

There's something about a killer scarecrow that's just cool. And, for whatever reason, few movies are made about them.

After Dark Films, the producers of the annual Eight Movies To Die For festival, have started making original material including Husk, which hits select theatres Jan. 28. We'll give you three guess as to what it's about and the first two don't count.

Written and directed by Brett Simmons, the film follows a group of friends left stranded on the side of the road when their SUV breaks down. A light in a distant farmhouse window attracts their attention .  .  . but to get to it they have to cross a cornfield. We'll give you three guesses as to what's in that field and the first two don't count.

The films in Eight Movies To Die For are generally hit and miss. The same will likely be true of After Dark's original offerings. The trailer below looks interesting, but we'll reserve our final decision for when Shawn and I screen Husk in The Basement . . . and you know we will!

Micro Review: Black Christmas (1974)

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

A holiday classic of a different sort, this Canadian made horror flick set the trend for slasher films to follow. Granted, Carpenter perfected the genre with Halloween four years later, but this set the stage for his success. The film is cold, classy, and straightforward; relying on suspense and psychological shocks for its scares. Black Christmas also has the advantage of good acting by the female leads played by Margot Kidder and Olivia Hussey and a witty sense of humour. The film still manages a good slice of old-fashioned terror more than 30 years after it was made.A must watch every year, and light years better than the remake. A Good for sure!

Leslie Vernon to kill again in Behind the Mask sequel

One of the best, most under-rated horror films of all time is Scott Glosserman's Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. 

The 2006 flick put a fun spin on the slasher film as a documentary crew follows the next generation of unstoppable killer when they given exclusive access to his life. It great stuff, that totally deconstructs the conventions and archetypes of the genre.

Word has it courtesy of Dread Central that Glosserman and co-writer David Stieve are close to finishing a script for the much-deserved follow up, and Glosserman is looking to start shooting in the spring. Hopefully we'll here some more news soon!

Here's a preview for the first film. If you haven't seen it, Shawn and I suggest you head out and do so!

Guest Review: "A Nightmare on Elm Street"

Since Wes Craven's "My Soul to Take" premiered last night, Mike S thought we would watch and review the Samuel Bayer directed "re-imagining" of the classic Wes Craven's "A Nightmare on Elm Street":

"This is a slicker looking version of Wes Craven's Nightmare... and not much more.

If you've seen the original, you'll be able to easily predict much of the events that happen, and the roles that the various characters fulfill. For a "reimagining", there really isn't that much imagination in this film.

Jackie Earle Haley does a decent job of portraying Freddy Krueger, but lacked that magic that Robert Eglund had. He just seems to be going through the paces of getting revenge- rather than enjoying the torment he was inflicting.

The characters are pretty flat, and rather bland. Even Nancy, the heroine, was simplistic and interchangable with pretty much any other character in the movie.

The one really nice touch I appreciated was the fleshing out of how the characters fit into Krueger's need for revenge.

For looks, this movie is pretty good, but for everything else, I'll take Wes Craven's original, and rate this one as Bad."

"My Soul to Take"- Wes Craven in 3D

Wes Craven returns to the horror genre with "My Soul to Take", and follows other big name directors by going 3D.  Will it take your breath away, or will it wind up be souless eye candy?  You'll be able to find out for yourself since this movie opens tonight in theatres.

Seven people born on the same day as a serial killer was killed.  A sleepy little town sixteen years after the killers death.  People vanishing.  Is it the killer... or someone else?

The trailer looks like this movie has potential- and Wes Craven has always had a solid understanding of the horror genre, having done "Nightmare on Elm Street", and "Scream".  All we can hope is that he's not simply trying to cash in on the 3D technology that's out there.

Check out this trailer and let us know what you think.

Is Santa the next Freddy or Jason? Looks that way.

It looks like someone finally cracked the combo of  Santa Claus and horror (sorry, Silent Night, Deadly Night). Building a crazy amount of buzz at the Toronto Film Festival is Jalmari Helander's horror tale from Finland, Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale.

From what I can gather, Rare Exports tells the taleof a not-so-magically Christmas discovery: buried 486 metres deep under the Korvatunturi mountains is the real Santa Claus. A feral, bad ass one. Maybe more? 

No word yet on when the film gets a release, but we in The Basement are intrigued. Check out the trailer below for a look at this slick, potentially amusing production.

Next On the Chopping Block: Midnight Movie!