Monday Movie Review - PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3

You would think after 3 movies this series would grow old, but it hasn't for me. The creators keep finding new ways to grab us by the nightmare and tear us a new one.

This movie is the "prequel" to the other two films. It basically shows us how the women from the affected families in #1 and 2 became targeted when they were children. As promised before, I won't give away any spoilers, but I will say that what you see in the previews IS NOT in the actual film, and to me that's truly regrettable. (Ditto for this poster/DVD cover). There are a couple of scares featured there that should have been exploited.

Yes, this movie has a few flaws, (like the "grandmother factor"), but overall the creepy factor is there. (The scene in the kitchen with the babysitter blew me away.)  The fear is tangible. Knowing that something is coming, but you don't know when and where...or what...and there's no music build-up to warn you -- this is what makes this film and its predecessors work.

This is why I wholeheartedly suggest you

Monday Movie Review - THE THING (2011)

My first thought when I heard there was going to be a THING prequel was "Is it going to be subtitled?" If you know anything about the original Carpenter movie starring Kurt Russell, then you know the creature was originally found by a Norwiegan company. Fortunately, the writers of this flick saved us the trouble by introducing some American scientists into the mix, which meant we only had to read subtitles a third of the time.

For a prequel, I think it was a pretty good flick. But there were too many times I think the writers were trying too hard. I have to give kudos to the actors, all of whom I wasn't already familiar with, and as such it was easy to accept them into their roles. Unfortunately, it seemed that too many scenes from the original film were recreated for this one (without spoilers, included are the "testing to see if you're human" and the "lock him away in the cold by himself because he may be infected".) In addition, the creature effects were too slick. Too much CGI. If you watch these two flicks back to back, you'll notice the huge difference immediately.

However, on the plus side, the story gives enough scares to keep you wondering what will happen next. There are bits and pieces left behind to remind you of the original film (especially the ending. Watch through the credits to see how this movie ties into Carpenter's.)

Although I don't believe this film is good enough to buy to go with your DVD of the original, it is worth going out to