Showing posts with label Paranormal Movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paranormal Movies. Show all posts

Good & Evil: Criminals In Hell

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] This guy really wants to know what you did to his boy![/caption]

In movies, (and you see this a lot in heist films), but in most movies criminals are just that… criminals! Good, bad they are what they are what they are and they oft time do what they do very well!

What I mean by this, is that rather or not the guy in the movie who is robbing the bank, or robbing the house or are committing some other form of crime but are generally a good guy at heart, or is a total asshole at heart, these criminals in these movie generally speaking tend to at least initially like what they do, and are pretty good at it!

You might be saying to yourself at this point, ‘well duh, thanks for that Captain Obvious…’ Well the reason that I mentioned this, is that I got to thinking, ‘what is a great way that criminals in movies have been known to redeem themselves or to at the very least face up to their crimes? And well I thought about it… And a great way to do so, is when they are with a group and are facing a threat that threatens to destroy them all… Such as the undead!

A great example of this is the movie, From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)… Believe it or not this movie could be said to be a lot of things… A total gore fest (which it is), an awesome sort of supernatural heist movie (It is that to)… As a matter of fact it is that but so much more!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Seth Gecko (Played by: George Clooney) and Richard Gecko (Played by: Quentin Tarantino) as the fun is about to begin![/caption]

This movie tells the story of the Gecko Brothers who whiling being low life criminals are trying to get out of the country so that they can live off the money they stole in a country that has no extradition… And as a way they believe that they can do so is to kidnap this fallen Priest and his family while they make their way down to Mexico…

What no one expects is that the Bar that the Gecko’s wish to meet their contact at happens to be a bar that is populated with the undead! So in the end, Seth Gecko (Played by: George Clooney) and the fallen Priest by the name of Jacob Fuller (played by: Harvey Kietel) as well as Fuller’s family will have to band together to get out of this undead nightmare before they are served up like food on a hot plate!

Now besides the fact that this truly is an awesome gore fest and a fun super natural heist movie that was created by Robert Rodriguez (El Mariachi), I also thought that this was a great redemption movie, because (although he does in the end, end up keeping the money) Seth goes to war alongside the Fuller family against the undead (and seems like he is generally trying to do more than just save his own ass), and in the process of this epic struggle Jacob will ultimately end up finding hi faith again!

This next example may not be supernatural, and it may not even be a heist movie, (and unfortunately it may not really be a good movie), but this movie is called, Nine Dead (2010), about a group of people from all walks of life (including a Cop and a low level mob lieutenant), can come together in mutual protection of each other when they are kidnapped and forced to discover what crime they each committed together (without realizing it) and to answer for their crimes!

Now this next example is kind of a cool super natural story of a heist on a ship and the justice that the victims are looking for from beyond the grave! This movie being: Ghost Ship (2002)…

You see this movie tells the story of a Passenger liner from the 60s that is sitting lifeless in the early part of the new millennium and the salvage crew that finds the ship, and claims it and starts towing it back to shore… Of course as they do so they start experiencing strange phenomena occurring on board the ship… And the only way to survive this salvage trip is to find out what happened to the ship, it’s passengers and crew, and to ultimately get justice for one of the bloodiest heists in history!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="565"] The Ship of the damned...[/caption]

There are some other such truly awesome examples of criminals getting their justice in other films of the horror genre as well as other genres, but if you’re a horror fan like me you will enjoy the fact that criminals in hell means justice served!



http://youtu.be/-bBay_1dKK8

http://youtu.be/B0D9yqV3Aas

http://youtu.be/PGHW3hBP7Mk

The Changeling (1980) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"]Official Score = 3 Devils Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

Being a fan of Stephen King books as well as movies I have been pleased for the most part between the transition from book to movie I mean the special effects are oft times fun and in some cases quite chilling to watch, of course the stories are quite amazing (even despite the changes that are made between the book and the movie, and heck, even the talent that they often times get for Stephen King movies are usually quite fun as well, included:

1. Gary Sinise (The Stand)
2. Molly Ringwald (The Stand)
3. Linda Hamilton (Children Of The Corn)
4. Peter Horton (Children Of The Corn)
5. Drew Barrymore (Firestarter, Cat’s Eye)
6. George C. Scott (Firestarter)

And that is just to name a few of them! Now speaking of George C. Scott. A lot of people will most likely place him with such films like Patton (1970), as that is probably his most recognizable movie and probably the most famous movie that he ever did!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] George C. Scott with Drew Barrymore in a scene from, 'Firestarter'![/caption]

The truth is, is that movie probably was a truly fantastic movie, and the truth is, is that I have never actually seen that movie. Also I thought I should mention here, that I like George C. Scott for the work that he did in horror movies… As a matter of fact one of the first movies that I ever saw him in was the movie, Firestarter (1984), and I have been following his work ever since!

And I am proud to announce that there is another horror movie of his that I think may actually be one of his best horror films to date… That movie of course being, The Changling (1980)!

Now in all truth, this movie, which was written by William Gray (Prom Night) and which directed by Peter Medak (Species 2), which was based on the story by Russell Hunter, and also starred, Trish Van Devere (The Day Of The Dolphin), Melvyn Douglas (Hud), and Voldi Way (Boo), despite starting off with an interesting sequence in which John Russell’s (Scott) wife (played by Jean Marsh) and child, (played by Michelle Martin) are killed in the first few minutes of the film, the movie starts off rather dull and unassuming…

But as the movie unfolds and tells the story of how John Russell decides to start a new life in Washington State and is living in a historic home, John Russell comes to learn the secrets of the house and the family secret of Senator Joseph Campbell (Douglas), that both shock and amaze, and change the lives of not just John Russell or the Senator, but also the lives of everyone around them as well!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Joe Campbell has come home![/caption]

Now this movie came out around the time that the interest in paranormal movies was beginning to die out (trust me when I say, ‘what a way to go’!) But I believe that the style in which this movie was made and even to some extent the story for this movie was a direct ancestor to the modern paranormal (and in some cases possession) based horror movie out there today, including such films as:

1. The Paranormal Activity movies
2. Indirectly, The Exorcisim Of Emily Rose (2005)
3. As well some of the other found footage paranormal movies as well!

In the end, if you have a chance to take a look at this movie, then I highly recommend it, it is a fun one!

http://youtu.be/xTzgXVosQOU

Bubba Ho-Tep (2002) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_557" align="alignright" width="300"]Three And One Half Devil Grading System Official Score = 3 1/2 Devils[/caption]

Bruce Campbell... What can I say about this guy? I mean he is my favorite actor! Most of what I have seen him in is horror movies, but I have also seen him in such comedies such as, McHale's Navy (1997) as well and thought that movie was great as well!

Why is Bruce Campbell a great actor...

Well besides the fact that rather he is doing a comedy, a Science fiction movie, or even a horror movie, he makes the role his own, he can make and does frequently make it funny, but besides the humor of it all, he can also make the role very serious, to the point where in most of the more serious roles I have seen him in, I tend to root for him!

And in Bubba Ho-Tep (2002) you get both!

Now speaking of Bubba Ho-Tep, besides Mr. Campbell, there are two other people that I wanted to make specific mention of are Ossie Davis and Don Coscarelli!

The first of those two that I thought that I would mention is Ossie Davis...

Now this guy has been old for as long as I have seen him in movies! (Unfortunately I haven't had a chance to see him in to many movies, as a matter of fact, besides Bubba Ho-Tep, the only other movie that I have seen Ossie Davis in is, The Stand (1994)!)

In all of the movies that I have seen Ossie in, he has always played a man who at his core, is a brave man old man, that is not one of those old men to always let the younger go first when facing danger!

And as for Don Coscarelli... Believe it or not, I also haven't seen many movies that have the stamp of this epic movie director... But what I have seen, I do like! So far I like his work because he seems like he stretches out the suspense enough to really keep you on the edge of your seat!

Now speaking of, Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)...

Written and Directed by: Don Coscarelli (Phantasm), Starring: Bruce Campbell (The Evil Dead), Ossie Davis (The Stand), Ella Joyce (Stranger Inside), and Bob Ivy (Near Dark).

Something is rotten at a relatively obscure long term care retirement home in East Texas that seems to be housing some famous people in it!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Bruce Campbell as, 'Elvis Presley' in, 'Bubba Ho-Tep' (2002)[/caption]

Included in the roster is, 'Elvis Presley' (Campbell), who supposedly had changed identities with an Elvis impersonator before his old life destroyed him... (The only problem is that when Elvis wanted to switch back, his contract was blown up!).

The other one is, JFK... Who supposedly didn't die in the 60s, and is now an aging Black Man in the retirement home!

And now there is another famous person that is setting up residence in the retirement home as well.... That is an old mummy that has started speeding these old people's march toward death!

Now it will be up to Elvis and JFK to saddle up and go to war with this Ancient Egyptian evil, before the residents of this retirement facility has their slow march to the end of their lives become a quick run!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Elvis Presley and JFK are going to war in, 'Bubba Ho-Tep' (2002)![/caption]

What I like about this movie myself ultimately, is that besides the acting and directing. I just found this story (which was based on the short story by Joe R. Lansdale), to have been really well crafted... What with some great hilarious moments, fun character development, appropriate moments to root for Elvis and JFK, etc...

All in all, definitely a fun time at the movies!

http://youtu.be/X7Qo74_L3vo

Top 5 Films For Halloween 2012

With Halloween coming up real quick, and with the release of Hellinspace.com, A friend of mine and CEO of AwesomeBMovies.com, Matt Dowling helped give me this great idea for doing my top 5 choices for Halloween…

So please enjoy this list, and I hope you are able to find something to enjoy this Halloween from my top 5 list of films for Halloween 2012!

At Number 5: Slumber Party Massacre (1982):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="420"] A truly classic horror movie that is a fun way to kick off a Halloween extravaganza![/caption]

The name may not win some people over, but the truth is, is this is a great scary Corman/slasher that is really worth sinking your teeth in to!

Number 4: Friday The 13th (1980):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Alice as she is about to meet the woman that will change her life forever![/caption]

Come on, you know I had to put it in there… I mean it is a truly genuine classic horror fest that is definitely worth watching on Halloween!

Number 3: The Changling (1980):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="627"] Home Sweet Home....[/caption]

A truly great paranormal classic that I do think you guys might truly enjoy!

Number 2: The Pit And The Pendulum (1961):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Damn if that ain't the biggest butchers block ever![/caption]

A great Vincent Price classic that was based on an Edgar Allan Poe novel and has some great scares in it!

And finally, for number 1 we got: Halloween (1978):

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="800"] This guy is taking out trick 'r treaters left and right![/caption]

The truth is folks, is that this movie is my absolute all-time favorite movie in general… And let’s be honest here… The name says it all!

Anyway folks I hope that this series of movies helps you in your decision making on what to watch on Halloween night… and hey… Happy Halloween to all you fright fans out there!

http://youtu.be/Dqxl33EFIYA

http://youtu.be/2S8YFTcEDME

http://youtu.be/xTzgXVosQOU

http://youtu.be/4INAmCYjWZk

http://youtu.be/WLPbtz19rng

House (1986) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"]Official Score = 3 Devils Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

When I was kid there was a movie series that I thought looked great... (In The segments that I happen to see that is...)

That movie series being, the House series... You see the thing is, is that for some reason, while the first two movies were on TV often through out the 1990s, I would always catch Ten - Fifteen minutes of these movies... (Between 1990 - 1999) I probably saw both movies at least once each!

With that in mind though, I was finally able to see House (1986) for the first time all the way through, recently! And I gotta say that I really liked it! But we'll get in to that in a moment:

Written by: Ethan Wiley (Brutal) and Directed by: Steve Miner (Friday The 13th Part 2). Starring: William Katt (Carrie), George Wendt (Forever Young), Richard Moll (Galaxis) and Kay Lenz (Fear).

[caption id="attachment_469" align="aligncenter" width="640"]There are a lot of creepy things going on in this house! There are a lot of creepy things going on in this house![/caption]

This movie, which is based on the story by, Fred Dekker (The Monster Squad), is a fascinating tale of a traumatized Vietnam Veteran turned recently divorced writer by the name of, Roger Cobb (Katt) whom after the suicide of his aunt and the latest bad dream about his dead kid being terrorized by a Zombie, decides to head over to his Aunt's house while he works on his latest book in peace...

Now at first it actually looks like Roger might get his wish and to have some peace and quiet to write, what with extremely normal looking house. A nice enough, yet over-zealous neighbor by the name of Harold Gorton (Wendt)... That is until Roger really begins to get settled in to his Aunt's home that is...

As time goes on, and as the house begins to get more and more violent, Roger will come to discover a secret that is connected to his son and a mistake that he had made a long time ago!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="755"] Roger (William Katt) finds a nightmare world in his new house and if he survives it, he will get the ultimate gift![/caption]

In the case of this movie I have to say that the best part, is the cast and crew! Don't get me wrong, I mean the special effects in this movie were great and the story was a lot of fun! But with a teaming up of Steve Miner of, (Friday The 13th fame), and WIlliam Katt of, (Carrie fame), along with George Wendt of, (Cheers fame), and Richard Moll (Of Night Court fame), I found the cast and crew were well matched for both thrills and chills as well as a little bit of comedy thrown in for an extra added benefit!

I also thought that I would mention that besides, Steve Miner, there was another person that made the Friday The 13th franchise legendary... That is of course, Sean S. Cunningham (The Last House On The Left), who had directed Friday The 13th (1980)!

Ultimately this movie is a lot of fun, and for those first time horror fans, this one is worth it, and for you horror vets, it is definitely worth it also!

http://youtu.be/zyW7yuW2scg

The Ward (2010) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_385" align="alignright" width="353"]Official Score = 2 Devils Official Score = 2 Devils[/caption]

John Carpenter (They Live) is truly a legend in the horror movie/filmmaking community as a whole! I mean besides the fact that he created one of my favorite movies of all time, Halloween (1978)! His early career is truly iconic of a great director! What with having done such truly great films as, The Fog (1980), Escape From New York (1981), The Thing (1982), and Christine (1983)... To name a few!

Unfortunately though as the 80s turned in to the 90s and eventually in to the new millennium, Mr. Carpenter would end up doing less and less as a director... as a matter of fact besides, The Ward (2010), the last movie that he directed was, The Ghost Of Mars (2001).

And speaking of, The Ward, I have be honest and say that the trailer for this movie really doesn't do this movie justice! When I first saw the trailer, I thought this movie was going to be horrible (which would have been unfortunate considering the fact that Mr. Carpenter is my favorite director!)

Written by: Michael Rasmussen (Long Distance), Shawn Rasmussen (Dark Feed), and Directed by: John Carpenter. Starring: Amber Heard (Drive Angry 3D), Mamie Gummer (Twelve Thirty), Danielle Panabaker (Friday The 13th), Laura-Leigh (The Restaurant), Lyndsy Fonseca (Nikita), Mika Boorem (The 2 Bobs), Susanna Burney (Homeland), D.R. Anderson (Frank), Jared Harris (Resident Evil: Apocalypse), and Jillian Kramer (The Big Bang).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Kristen (Amber Heard) as she is being picked up by the Police so that she can be sent to, 'The Ward'...[/caption]

The Ward tells the story of a woman by the name of Kristen (Heard) who after burning a farm house down in a rural area of North Bend Oregon in 1966, is taken to the local Mental Health Hospital!

Now of course when she gets there she does seem pretty responsive, and ends up going to her new room to get some rest... When she wakes up though that evening is when some strange stuff starts to begin. What I mean by that is that she wakes up and discovers the former occupants broken charm bracelet, and is convinced that some girl was in her room that evening!

The next day Kristen was introduced to the rest of the girls in her ward, including: 'Emily' (Gummer), the girl who is the more insane of the bunch, 'Sarah' (Panabaker) the girl who is more interested in dating then anything, and then there is, 'Zoey' (Laura-Leigh) whose problems seem to be that she has regressed to being a child! The last one being, 'Iris' (Fonseca) who is the most sane of the women that Emily meets and has a strong interest in Art!

Now each and everyone of them in their own right despite the fact that they don't really seem to like each other, end up working out well together!

Now the problem is, is that the longer that Kristen stays at the mental hospital, the weirder things get, what with this strange girl that seems to keep showing up and then eventually disappearing at the weirdest moments, and the like...

But when the girls start disappearing, and the staff don't seem to be paying much heed to these disappearances, as Kristen in her attempts to get herself and the girls in her ward out of the hospital, she will come to discover the truth behind, 'The Ward'!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="470"] In this, 'Ward' things aren't always as they seem![/caption]

Now the truth is, is that this movie is a lot of fun, what with great acting from the cast, some awesome special effects, and as always John Carpenter did a great job of directing this movie!

The problem is though, is that the story is fun, but it is pretty unoriginal, and is not really breaking any new ground.

But if you're a Carpenter fan then this one is definitely worth checking out, but if not, then you might find this one to be a fun way to kill some time!

http://youtu.be/buF-keImNYk

Audrey Rose (1977) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_330" align="alignright" width="220"]Official Score = 2 1/2 Devils Official Score = 2 1/2 Devils[/caption]

The seventies saw a major change in horror movies… An interesting change… What’s that change you might ask, well that change saw the sudden rise in possession movies!

Now before you go asking what I mean by a possession movie… A possession movie (a term I guess you might say that I made up) is a movie having to do with an entity or a spirit possessing the body of living breathing person (In the case of the movies I am talking about, more specifically demons/the devil/or some other form of spirit inhabiting a humans body!)

Now of course we have all heard of, The Exorcist (1973), a story about a little girl that was possessed by an ancient evil demon, and the people that are trying to get rid of that demon and save the girl…

Well this movie I do believe helped popularize this particular type of movie, despite the fact that there have been other possession movies before and after The Exorcist… Such movies as, The Amityville Horror (1979), a movie about the possession of a house (and the man of the family being possessed by the demon as well, and another more modern/contemporary example would of course be the paranormal movies!

If you are wondering why I am mentioning this, the reason being is that there is another possession movie that I thought that I would mention here, and that movie is Audrey Rose (1977).

Written by: Frank De Fetta (The Entity), and Directed by: Robert Wise (The Day The Earth Stood Still). Starring: Susan Swift (Halloween: The Curse Of Michael Myers), Marsha Mason (Drop Dead Fred), Anthony Hopkins (Silence Of The Lambs), John Beck (Rollerball) and John Hillerman (Magnum P.I.)

I first heard about this movie, (which was based on the novel by Frank De Fetta), from … You guessed it, the original master of horror in my family, ‘my father’! Well since a lot of the horror movies that he had turned me on to in the horror genre had panned out real nicely over the years, I ended up sitting down to this movie about 15 years ago or so, and I gotta say that, ‘I FREAKIN LOVED IT’!

Now before I dive to deeply in to the awesomeness of this movie, I thought that I should tell you a little bit about the story:

You see, Audrey Rose tells the story of how in the 60s a little girl by the name of, ‘Audrey Rose’ and her mother are driving in a heavy storm in Pennsylvania, and during this time, the mother gets in to a car accident that ultimately kills both the mother and little Audrey Rose…

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="411"] The new, 'Audrey Rose' (Susan Swift) still want her old, 'Daddy'! (Anthony Hopkins)![/caption]

Well that seemed to be the end of little Audrey Rose’s story (or so you would think!) You see over the course of about 11 years, Audrey Rose’s father, (through various mystical, spiritual and more down to Earth means) comes to believe that Audrey Rose’s spirit has settled in to the body of an 11 year old girl by the name of, ‘Ivy Templeton’ (Swift), who happened to be born on the exact same day and only two minutes after the death of little Audrey Rose, and who every year around her birthday has particularly, (albeit unintentionally so), violent episodes!

Now of course Ivy’s parents are quite skeptical, and rather scared of this man, but as he becomes more and more a part of their lives, it begins to look like Audrey Rose really may have settled in to this body to early, and it will be up to this seemingly, ‘crazy’ intruder to try and put his daughter to rest before, the Templeton’s end up loosing their daughter as well!

All in all definitely one of the more interesting ones!

http://youtu.be/Gr-iri3B11E

The Gate (1987) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"]Official Score = 3 Devils Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

I first started following Stephen Dorff's career back in the 1990s when I first saw Blade (1998) and since then I gotta say that I have been quite pleased with this guy's film career!

But you want to hear something interesting? It turns out that although I have started following Mr. Dorff's career since Blade... It turns out that Blade was not actually the first movie that I had seen with Mr. Dorff in it!

It turns out that the first movie of his that I had actually seen was, The Gate (1987)!

Written by: Michael Nankin (Midnight Madness) and Directed by: Tibor Takács (I, Madman). Starring: Stephen Dorff (Brake), Christa Denton (8 Million Ways To Die), and Louis Tripp (Detroit Rock City).

Have you ever seen a movie that you really enjoyed, but hadn't seen in so long that you literally forgot about it?

Well unfortunately, The Gate is definitely one of these movies, you see I first saw this movie in the late 80s with my Dad (and it scared the hell out of me then), I watched it again on Cable in the early 90s and I gotta say that I really enjoyed this movie for the following reasons:

1. This story is awesome! You see this movie tells the story of, 'Glenn' (Dorff) and his best friend, 'Terry' (Tripp), now you see, after a tree that was set in Glen's backyard is taken down, Glen and Terry find a large hulking rock, and eventually while digging a hole in the back yard the two of them find an underground cave!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Terry (Louis Tripp) and Glen (Stephen Dorff) as they find something that will change everything![/caption]

Now this rock is basically impenetrable... Of course that is until one night when Terry and Glen are stuck in Glen's room while Glen's sister, 'Al' (Denton) is having a party because their parents are gone!

Once they finally crack open the rock, they find a beautiful geode inside... The only problem is that the opening of the Geode, leads Glenn, Al, and Terry in to a series of events that are meant to end the world, and give the Earth back to the Demons that controlled the Earth before mankind took over the planet!

And it will be up to these kids to stop the apocalypse!

2. The next thing that I wanted to mention is that I personally thought the acting in this movie was a lot of fun, and I thought that it was great seeing a young Stephen Dorff at the beginning of his film career, in a horror movie role!

I also wanted to mention the work of Christa Denton (The Burning Bed). Now unfortunately this actress seemingly has disappeared since the early 1990s, but I first saw this woman and the work that she did in the movie, The Burning Bed (1984), and I gotta say that I really enjoyed the depth that she brought to her roles in both movies, and I also wanted to say that if she came back to Hollywood bringing what she brought back then, then I would continue being a huge fan of her work!

3. The next thing that I wanted to mention that I really liked about this movie, is the special effects. The 80s saw a major upswing in special effects and how special effects can really compliment a movie, and I gotta say that the people who created and animated the Demons in this movie did such a great job, that it was very well reminiscent of the work that Ray Harryhausen did for such classics as, The Goden Voyage Of Sinbad (1973)!

[caption id="attachment_359" align="aligncenter" width="640"]Above left:work that Ray Harryhausen did for, The Golden Voyage Of Sinbad (1973). Abovie right is the work the effects crew did on,  The Gate (1987)!  Above left:work that Ray Harryhausen did for, The Golden Voyage Of Sinbad (1973). Abovie right is the work the effects crew did on,
The Gate (1987)![/caption]

4. I also have to say this, although this movie is a little dated, it is a little dated in a great way that could be a fond walk down memory lane for those of us that were around in the 80s!

In the end, definitely one worth watching!

http://youtu.be/hXVPisw8IHQ

Absentia (2011) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_322" align="alignright" width="258"]Official Score = 1 1/2 Devils Official Score = 1 1/2 Devils[/caption]

Written And Directed by: Mike Flanagan (Still Life). Starring: Katie Parker (Cut), Courtney Bell (Mad Men), Dave Levine (Asylum), Morgan Peter Brown (Piggies), and Justin Gordon (We Were Soldiers).

The truth is, is that movies in which someone disappears due to supernatural causes are usually quite enjoyable... In all of these types of movies.... Absentia (2011) is definitely one of them...

Absentia tells the story of a woman by the name of, Tricia (Bell). Now this woman is pregnant and is about to attempt to move on with her life after her husband disappears without a trace seven years previous!

For her to be able to do so, her sister, 'Callie' (Parker) shows up in town to help her sister get the papers in order for her sister to have her husband declared legally, 'Dead In Absentia', Callie is also there to help get Tricia moved out of her apartment and in to a newer and better location!

During the first evening though Tricia begins to see her missing husband as a demonic entity, and during the next morning, while Callie is out jogging, she comes upon a man who looks like he is probably beaten up pretty bad!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Tricia's husband has just come home to say hello![/caption]

Later on that evening, thinking that this guy was probably homeless, Callie comes back to the tunnel where she saw the guy she thought was homeless. When she gets there though, she decides to leave the food that she had prepared for him in the tupperware on the ground.

As time goes on and more and more strange things happen to both Callie and Tricia, and after the mysterious re-appearance of Tricia's husband, 'Daniel', these two sisters are going to discover something that is going to change both of their lives forever!

Now the truth is, is that the special effects are pretty descent, cinematography is definitely reminiscent of Traffic (2000), but done in a right way. Also I thought the dynamic between Courtney Bell and Katie Parker was really cool, also I thought that Katie Bell and Justin Gordon in the whole did a great job in this movie... That's the plus side!

The minus side of all this is that, the character development for and amongst everyone else was pretty sub par, to the point where outside of the connection between Courtney Bell and Katie Parker, and the screen time that Katie Parker and Justin Gordon shared, I really didn't think that anyone else related to each other very well. I also didn't think the acting was very good by almost anyone.

Also this story is so disjointed on rather or not there is a super natural force that is looking to terrorize the people in this neighborhood or, if it is bland and normal...

So in the end, this movie is alright, but not great...

http://youtu.be/xLAJyimGgPo