Connect with us

News

Netflix I Trusted You, Then You Did This

Published

on

EDITORIAL

Netflix made so-called history on Super Bowl Sunday, they released a big budget, big studio movie on the streaming service that was supposed to play in theaters.

Oh wait, they did the same thing with James Franco and Seth Rogan’s awful comedy The Interview almost to the date back in 2015.

That film was supposed to be a blockbuster dropping in theaters in 2015, but due to an international hack and subsequently flawed software, it was available online for free. Netflix came to the rescue almost a month later.

In this latest Netflix surprise, the media is touting this as a “game changer” for the bandwidth cannibal, but it also may mean we get to see sub-par movies in our home sooner than having to discover how much we hate them in the theater.

Details are still unclear why The Cloverfield Paradox, nee The God Particle, was dropped into your streaming queue for viewing just after the big game on Sunday night.

Money probably. But wouldn’t it have made more coins as a theatrical release? After all it is a sequel to a film with a huge fan base. 10 Cloverfield Lane seemed to be setting us up for something big, we would have made like Movie Pass lemmings to the box office jump off.

Even though half the trailer that played during the Super Bowl suggested that there would be monsters because it literally contained the best footage from the first film for half of it, Paradox is not a horror movie, so remove that fan base. It just doesn’t have monsters.

It also doesn’t have a really big-name star other than its producer J.J. Abrams. And then there’s Chris O’Dowd in a supporting role who is always enjoyable in romantic comedies.

It also compounds the franchise’s narrative as much as 10 Cloverfield Lane did, this time by setting it in space away from the monsters wreaking havoc on earth: You know where all the real action is taking place.

But it’s gotta to be good, right, you ask?

Actually it’s only so-so. I think something fans of the first movie want to see is the return of the Sarlacc-looking behemoth that decapitates national monuments. They don’t want to see yet another corridor lit with a strobe and dappled with a downpour of sparks.

Also, enough is enough of the crew member on a medical bay table gag. We’ve seen enough things burst forth from expendable character’s stomachs that it’s no longer homage, it’s kind of insulting to everyone at this point.

The Cloverfield Paradox is a psychological action thriller set in space, but the action is tepid and all the flavor has been chewed out of the thriller part because nearly every CliffsNote from the textbook “Stranded on a Space Station” has been used. Spoiler alert there are blinking lights, escape pods, women in peril, aforementioned exploding section of a crewman’s torso, and the promise of a final girl.

Even the “original” alternate dimension aspect of it was done much better in Event Horizon. It’s a rehash of a re-hash of a re-hash. That’s too much hash for a main course.

You may believe Netflix has done a game-changing move, but in my opinion I fear they may only have classed up the stigma associated with the direct-to-video label. Paramount, Fox, I don’t care, slap a “direct to video” label on a film and it immediately gets the eye of scrutiny.

This reminds me of the up-coming straight to video release of  Deep Blue Sea 2. That title  is trying to help out the SyFy channel by premiering the movie exclusively on their network after its direct-to-video release.

Although Cloverfield Paradox and Deep Blue Sea 2 are by far superior in both budget and scope as anything SyFy’s go-to Asylum Pictures can dream up, that studio at least gets an A for originality.

I don’t think Netflix has really done anything but save face for Paramount by playing the younger brother who takes the blame for something his sibling has done. But even parents catch on they’ve been duped after a while and put punishment where it belongs.

Netflix, you don’t need to do these types of tricks to win us over. You nearly had us convinced you were the real deal with things like “Gerald’s Game,” “Black Mirror,” “Bright” and other originals green lit by your savvy producers.

Continue putting your own stuff out there and leave the others to fend for themselves.

A surprise “Stranger Things 3” season would have sealed in your coolness factor on Super Bowl Sunday, not this publicity stunt which does nothing but make both your hardcore fans and fans of the Cloverfield universe feel sucked out into space.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

Published

on

Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

Published

on

The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

on

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading