Horror in January

January 2010 saw the releases of quite a few horror movies, but almost none of them was really worth it. To me, it seems that 2010 has gotten off to a stutter of a start.

January, like September, has always been a dumping ground for movies, not just horror movies. The movies that the studios don't have any faith in get dumped into these months. Horror movies actually benefit from this, as there is almost no competition. Sometimes this works, as in the cases of Daybreakers and Legion, but sometimes it backfires, as in the case of Sorority Row.

This also has something to do with marketing. Daybreakers and Legion had great marketing, offering the viewer something different. Sorority Row's marketing couldn't get past the fact that the movie was a slasher movie. If they had done some thinking then maybe Sorority Row would have had a chance at the box office.

But it really isn't all about the box office. For every horror fan it is all about how good the movie is. So let's take a look at January and see what we were given.

The Final Destination (DVD/blu-ray)
I am still trying to wrap my head around why a lot of people actually thought that this was a good movie. I know that the 3-D is really well done, but the movie is crap. I guess people just like the 3-D and don't care about the movie.

Halloween II (DVD/blu-ray)
The theatrical version of this movie was total mess, but thanks to DVD and blu-ray we can finally see what Rob Zombie was really trying to do.

Daybreakers (Theatrical)
From the directors of Undead comes this movie where vampires make up most of the earth population. Very moody and well shot, this movie is just ok. Could have been better.

Blood Creek (DVD)
This movie was dumped into one theater in Kentucky, where no one went to see it. The movie is a tad weird, but who am I to complain when there are killer horses.

Pandorum (DVD/blu-ray)
Think Event Horizon mixed with an action movie and you get picture. If you don't know Event Horizon then you need to go rent it right now.

Legion (Theatrical)
This movie has really good special effects, but the overall movie is not very good.

Saw VI (DVD/blu-ray)
This movie is so much better than Saw V, but it still doesn't come close to being a good movie.

This is just a sampling of what January had to offer us. Check back next month when I give you an overview
 of what we got.

In defence of Rob Zombie's Halloween Movies

I am sure many of you have already chosen your side on the debate concerning Rob Zombie's Halloween movies. And I'm sure that if you have picked a side it is probably the anti-Zombie side. Well, I'm here to play a little defense for the Zombie Halloween movies.

Rob Zombie started his feature film career with House of 1,000 Corpses, a movie that was a rip-off of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but contained a lot of strange imagery and memorable performances that the movie has been given a pass by most fans.

Zombie's next movie was The Devil's Rejects. It continues the story of the Firefly gang, but does so in a way that is the exact opposite of what the first movie was. Gone are the neons and strange imagery and what we are given are harsh earth tones and a grind house feel. For me, this movie showed that Rob Zombie was maturing as a director.

So now we are talking about Halloween, Zombies remake of the John Carpenter classic. When the movie was announced fans got up in arms. They didn't think that Zombie could do the original justice and they even questioned the remake in the first place. But this is what I tell anyone who complains about the remake and it's sequel. How many times have we seen Dracula In movies? A lot.

What people don't understand is that the classic will always be there, untouched. Zombie didn't go back and mess with the original movie. That will always be there. What Zombie has done is take the story and many classic elements and given it his own spin. He stays true to the story, which there wasn't much to in the first place, and adds things that he feels is nessicary to telling his version of this story.

It has been a little over two years since Zombie's version of Halloween came out and, for the most part, the dust has settled. People have accepted the movie for what it is. It is done and over with. Now we get a sequel.

Zombie has said that he would not make a sequel, but changed his mind. When the movie came out in August 2009 it was universally panned and voted by many people as the worst movie of the year. I saw it when it was first released and, while I thought it was bad, I had a hard time shaking the movie. Somewhere deep down I knew that there was something else, something that I missed.

Well it turns out that there was something, but I didn't miss it. It wasn't there to begin with. In the theatrical version is a mess compared to the director's cut that was released on DVD and blu-ray in January of 2010. Many scenes play out in the theater like they weren't complete, like something was left out. In the director's cut these scenes play out in their entirety and we can finally understand what is going on.

We understand Laurie's descent into the madness that consumed her brother a lot more clearly now. We see that she has not been able to come to grips with the events from the first Halloween. She feels responsible for everything that happened and it eats away at her.

We also get a better understanding of the relationship been Laurie and Annie. Annie, too, has survived the events that haunt Laurie, but Annie has dealt with them in her own way. In the theatrical version we are led to believe that Laurie is just full of rage, but in the director's cut we see that Laurie is using that as a self-defense mechanisim. She doesn't know what is going on with herself and that is the only way she knows how to deal with it.

Played back to back, both of Rob Zombie's Halloween movies play like one movie. Zombie has crafted a complete story that can't be sequelized. He started with the first movie as a broad outline and went from there, crafting a story of loss, loneliness, and ultimately, madness. Fans of the Halloween movies should take note, Zombie has made a slasher movie with an incredible amount of depth.

Halloween II: Director's Cut ***

When a director's cut is released on DVD or blu-ray I am always cautious. I have been burnt by more than one director's, promising a whole new experience, but giving us no more than a few new scenes. The recent release of Friday the 13th (2009) is a prime example. The makers of that movie promise a totally different, but the "killer cut" offered nothing more than a padded runtime.

The director's cut of Halloween II is a different beast. We are given more, but it adds to what director Rob Zombie was trying to say. It makes the movie more tolerable and a better viewing experience.

The plot of the movie is the same. It is two years after the events from the first movie. Laurie Strode is having a hard time dealing with what happened on that fateful halloween night. She is now living with her friend Annie and Annie's father. Laurie feels guilty about has happened.

After starting the movie with the standard kill scenes, the movie moves into these characters with ease. In the director's cut you get more of a feel fo these characters, something that was missing in the theatrical cut. Here you get more of Laurie's eventually descent into madness.

 

The visions that Michael Myers has in the movie didn't make much sense in the theatrical version, but here we understand that this is how Myers sees the world. This comes to light when Michael sees the billboard for Loomis's book. This scene was removed from the theatrical version because audiences could not grasp the concept of having Myers not wearing his mask in the daytime.

We also get a totally different ending. Here Michael is killed then Laurie, but in the theatrical version there is some added stuff about Laurie loving her brother. It just didn't work and I am happy that it was taken out.

In my review for Halloween II, I said that it was an interesting failure. I stick by that for the thearical version, but here I would say that the movie still fails on some levels, but overall we get to see a descent into madness that slasher movies don't have. This is not your typical slasher movie.