Troll (On Demand) – A Norwegian flick of adventure and myth were a paleontologist named Nora is brought into a secret meeting by the government after a mysterious explosion in the mountains where there has been mining. Nora grew up on stories of trolls, monsters, and such that use to roam these famous old mountains but never expected to actually think they are real until she sees the footage of the explosion. Nora’s father was right and the government wants answers on how they can protect the people and rid the country of such problem. But the fairy tale is very real and Nora must convince all before Norwegian government tries to kill something that is unkillable and that is a giant ‘Troll’. This isn’t some SyFy Channel Asylum shit, this film has something backstory, gives the Troll some folklore, fun shit I say as I give this film 3 stars.

Zombie Cop (DVD) – A 1991 independent feature that does its best imitation of “Dead Heat” where voodoo priest “Death” curses a detective during a shootout. Both rise from the grave not too long after and the chase is on as a rotting, bandaged up detective and his partner try to track down “Death” again and bring him down for good! Hilarious plot, fun characters (including a young James L. Edwards), and some bad ass stunts for an early 90s Indy flick as I give 2 ½ stars.

Maximum Impact (DVD) – This flick was a part of a double feature DVD with “Zombie Cop” and equally fun. An average guy Jerry, who happens to be a good insurance salesman and has an okay life until, he heads into the big city for his company’s insurance conference. Once there Jerry meets up with an old friend Phil and they encounter a seedy looking fellow George who wants to introduce Jerry to a kinky underworld party that happens during this conference. George is lets say part of the “entertainment division” who ‘helps’ new members at the conference. Jerry not into at all but his friend Phil is gets a one of a kind experience??? Jerry just worried about his friend comes in late to the action only to find his friend being a part of a snuff film and a young lady/hooker who is an unwilling participate! Jerry swoops in when the girl is left alone and convinces her to come with him but the “entertainment division” isn’t too keen on this happening and head to Jerry’s little town to ruin everything. But Jerry doesn’t plan on going down quickly as he goes all “Commando” on people! This is a gritty, depressing Indy action film that has fun with what little they have but find a way to pull it off as I give it 2 ½ stars.

Pearl (DVD) – I enjoyed “X” but didn’t love it like a lot of horror fans and that is fine. Now this is a prequel to that film where we are introduced to Pearl as a thriving, beautiful, talented young woman who wants more than working on a farm, taking care of her father, and dealing with her P.O.S. mother. As she gets not so good reaction at an audition the movie devolves into madness for Pearl. I found the film a little over dramatic, dull, and most importantly unneeded. (Cue the hate because I disagree with a lot of horror fans) The movie isn’t bad at all, it is watchable but for me I felt this may have been the “most unneeded film of the year”. Examples: did we need an origin story/prequel for TCM? Did we need Rob Zombie to explain Michael Myers in the reboot? I am gonna guess most of you are going to say “yes”…? Or let me try to explain it this way: why do every Hollywood filmmaker believe we need a trilogy or “Avengers: Endgame” type of film every time out. We don’t need an origin story every time out and we don’t need nine hours of a film every time out. How about just an 80 minute fucked up horror film that isn’t catering to “The Walking Dead” crowd every time out (trying to grab the mainstream audience every time out is like hitting the lottery) and move on as I give this film 2 stars and just feel it was “unneeded”.

Christmas Bloody Christmas (Shudder) – Oh “VFW” dude (Joe Begos) is back! And this time horror fans get a horror holiday treat where Tori and her employee/longtime friend Robbie have had one hell of a day at the record store on Christmas Eve. Now it’s time to party and hang with their two friends down the street at the toy store to party a little but that is where the happy holiday celebration ends… The realistic robotic Santa Claus that greets you at the store doorway is being recalled for malfunctioning. See these robotic Santa’s were used as military weapons for the government and they are going back to their original missions which why the recall. When it comes to life it is complete chaos for Tori and the sleepy little town as it becomes a combo of “Terminator” and “Class of 1999” meets Santa Claus! It starts a little slow but I get it as Begos and crew like actually telling a story where you care about the characters but it eventually becomes a gory holiday mess of a film! I might not be as good as “VFW” for me at least but I still give this holiday horror 3 ½ stars.

The Warby Range Massacre (DVD/YouTube) –  An Australian short film (24 minutes) where three friends get a little lost on their way to Melbourne but are greeted by a random old dude. Old dude explains there is a cabin down the road for them to stay the night and then get on the road in the morning. The three take him up on his offer but get to the place and feel a shed that is about to fall down isn’t a cabin? So the three head out in the woods with tents but they have just stumbled into the territory of a family who likes to reenact their favorite film of all time “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”. Fun take on a fan made film from the other side of the globe as I give it 3 stars.

Bearry (DVD) – Young Chloe is having trouble with dating after a horrible divorce from her douchebag husband but she does have a great best friend who brings her a giant teddy bear for her to enjoy when alone. This gift ends up being a mistake as Chloe has tried giving it a go in the dating world believes there might not be a man out there for her? After Chloe says the magical words “I love you” to the bear, potential dates are being murdered with two detectives looking at Chloe as the main suspect. Once Chloe learns the truth she now has to convince others what is really happening before she ends up arrested for murder. A hilarious horror film with a great cast (Sarah French, Felissa Rose, Vernon Wells, and Sheri Davis) that has a couple clumsy scenes but it is a horror movie about a killer giant teddy bear and its wonderful as I give it 3 stars.

Revenge of Bigfoot (DVD/YouTube) – Rory Calhoun is a farmer that is greeted by an Indian named Okinagan who is just looking for work. They quickly get along and become friends but the local townsfolk are racist bastards and want rid of him! But then a Bigfoot comes roaming around fucking shit up and guess what people are not all about being racist when a hairy creature is fucking up their farms! A fun Bigfoot film if you are a fan of the 70s Bigfoot madness as I give it 2 stars.     

Skinamarink (Shudder/Festivals) – I believe as the film states it takes place in 1995 where a couple of kids cannot sleep one night and some odd supernatural shit begins to happen. Dad disappears, there are questions about mom, and there are weird voices in the background fucking with the two kids that are alone. Okay, this was a little artsy fartsy for me and falls under the category of “not my cup of tea” but I can easily understand why some younger horror fans will absolutely amazed by this piece of filmmaking. Without spoiling too much…? This wasn’t a film for me but totally get what they were trying to do and I believe they have accomplished it? It’s a rare thing to do something different in low budget filmmaking but they have accomplished their goal! But in my opinion the trailer is much better than the film and maybe would have been more effective as a short film (20-25 minutes) but also believe this could be a horror film people will talk about the next year or two or compare other projects too? I may not be a fan but respect what I watched even though I can only give it 2 stars.

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