Gross Movie Reviews #664

0

Werewolves (On Demand) – Frank Grillo as Wesley, Katrina Law, and Lou Diamond Phillips are scientists who are working on a cure for humans as a year ago during a super moon anyone exposed to it turned into a werewolf causing chaos. After his brother’s death last year as he was part of the first responders dying trying to control the population the year before, Wesley has taken up taking care of his brother’s family. The experiment to control the wolfing out problem with their “moon screen” starts out promising but after 60 minutes people begin to change as the werewolves are hard to control. With the experiment gone to shit in the lab Wesley must return home to help his dead brother’s family as he gets a distress call. The film is solid but has its flaws (not quite understanding the throw away characters) but think it is a 80s B-movie post-apocalyptic plot meets ‘The Purge’ with werewolves. Sounds interesting, Frank Grillo is great, some cool werewolf shit, but also I feel like this movie is a much bigger mess than we all know as I give the flick 2 ½ stars.

Mouse of Horrors (Tubi) – Indeed there is another terrible film loosely based on that Disney mouse character. By the way be warned I have already seen another film slated to be released soon? Anyway a killer mouse mutation stalks its victims at an amusement park to use their body parts for something even more sinister. The killer mouse takes the body parts back to an old crusty dude who supposedly has plans! By the way Winnie the Pooh shows up to pal around a bit for no reason as this movie from the UK just drags ass as the plot seems to be to set up the next kill for the killer mouse. Which isn’t that god damn interesting kids? All in all this entire movie felt like a fan-made feature with no real direction as I give it a fat zero stars.

Rats: Night of Terror (4K Ultra HD) – For the love of Rutger Hauer horror fans if there was ever a movie that deserved me saying, “You can only shine up a turd so much” it is this project as I cannot believe my eyes what Severin Films did with this package! Now don’t get me wrong I absolutely love this cheesy turd of a post-apocalyptic greatness as the quote on the slipcover has proved me correct: “A movie you can tell people about and they’ll say, ‘That’s not a real movie’ but it is. It totally is.” (From Drive-in Asylum) I have talked about this movie for years after I first seen a bootleg in the late 90s that led me buying that early DVD release in the 2000s as that was something that was said to me constantly. Anyway, for those who never had the pleasure the story takes place in 225 A.B. (After the Bomb) where people have lived underground for so long and now a group of unruly individuals want to live above ground where they find an abandoned city. The group enters a building where it looks like humans were sustaining themselves but left suddenly. The group investigates quickly and believes they are saved by this wonderful find. But it doesn’t take long for them to find horribly disfigured bodies and killer rats that seem to have the taste for fresh humans. Within one night the rats attack like a zombie horde forcing the group to survive the oncoming slaughter. It fun, its gory, its Eye-talian of course I love it but this 4K restoration is just beautiful because I never thought in a million years this gritty old looking film could ever be cleaned up? But that is only the tip of the iceberg here horror fans as this 3-disc set has commentaries, a wonderful documentary with the cast talking about Bruno Mattei, several other interesting interviews with cast members talking about their experience on the film, the film’s soundtrack among so much more fun stuff for post-apocalyptic nerds as myself. This package gets 4 stars as I never thought I would be saying “I needed Rats: Night of Terror on 4K”.

Texas Chainsaw Mascara (Blu-ray) – Just another film project from the legendary or infamous Indy filmmaker Bill Zebub. A few out of state horror enthusiasts have traveled to the great state of Texas for some sightseeing. Car breaks down; they argue among them until a lovely local named Heather comes along to offer help. She leads them to her home of the weird to meet her family where quickly the opposing groups don’t get along. After a few words the family gets pissed then proceeds to tie the outsiders up for torture, maybe some bad sex choices and eventually cannibalism of course. By some chance you have never watched a Bill Zebub film his projects are not something you will be comfortable watching as I believe that is always his end goal? Now saying that and have reviewed some of his work in the past I have to say this project just lacks from beginning to end as the cast looked disinterested in their roles as I can only give this film 1 out of 4 stars.

Slaughter Day (Blu-ray) – This is a wonderful Indy SOV gem that got unearthed recently from 1991and was given the special treatment. A couple of young dudes head to a cabin on a Saturday that they are in the process of fixing up only to be met by a violent young man. This is where the film just goes and never stops as you can easily see this was inspired by the ‘Evil Dead’ films with fight scenes, chase scenes (including a homemade car stunt), over the top gags, gore, fun time all around. In the end the duo must faceoff with the Necronomicon at the construction site to end the gory evil chaos. SOV fans are going to enjoy this delightful treat as I give it 3 ½ out of 4 stars as maybe its only flaw is the music to the film?

The Downfall of Mr. Difford (DVD) – A 2015 feature written, directed, and stars Matt Jefferson along with a great Indy cast. Thomas Difford or as he likes to be called Mr. Difford, is accused of being a murderer that has been dragged into the police station to be questioned by detectives. But Mr. Difford has the detectives where he wants them as he wants to tell them his stories or conquests of his experiments of seeing blood flow. Mr. Difford doesn’t claim to be insane just misunderstood as Difford has work to do in collecting samples for his work. His stories drive the detectives to the verge of committing a criminal act as if it was part of Mr. Difford’s all along?  Enjoyed the no budget serial killer feel of storytelling but the ending wasn’t what I was exactly thirsting for as if Mr. Jefferson was unsure in how to end his 2015 feature. Indy folks start tracking this delicious gem down as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.

Wolfman (On Demand) – Universal Studios heads back to reimaging their classics as my fear was they would just tell another origin story of “The Wolf Man” and I was happily wrong to say. The backstory of the film is set in rural mountains of Oregon, 1995, where a hiker has disappeared in the woods. The few people that live there believe he maybe “the face of the wolf” that has been an urban legend in those parts. Blake remembering this as a kid remembers his father being very fierce about this being real. Now thirty years later Blake and his family are heading back to the old farm to collect his father’s things as Blake’s father has been declared dead. After an accident has the moving truck stuck in a tree Blake is attacked by a creature while getting his family to safety. The family makes it the old farm house hoping to stay put for the night so at daybreak they can find help but this unknown creature stalks the farm house looking for a way in. Meanwhile, inside Blake begins to slowly transform into something animal-like scaring his family as they may have to fight Blake and the animal thing outside to escape. I liked the movie but didn’t love it but the one thing I wanted them to do they did as they gave me a different story to digest than the usual remake garbage. I enjoyed this for more of its non-traditional take on famous character as the film directs most of its attention on family not the creature oddly enough for that I give it a respectful 3 stars.    

Trick or Treat (4K Ultra HD) – This special treatment of such a cultish 80s horror film has been something horror movie fans have waited a long time for. Red Shirt Pictures and Synapse Films teamed up to bring their masterpiece of an extras filled special edition version of Trick or Treat movie to 4K.  It is all wonderful but before we get into that lets go over the film itself for some horror fans that haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying. The plot involves a teenager played by Marc Price named Eddie who is an outcast at high school for being a metalhead. If not fighting with the school bully and his friends isn’t enough his favorite metal singer Sammi Curr has just died in a fire that just angers Eddie to no end. In pops a DJ played by none other Gene Simmons, who gives Eddie a record of Sammi Curr’s which has never been heard. Eddie takes it home and of course plays it backwards as Sammi begins to talk to Eddie. Sammi Curr has found a way to come back to life thanks to Eddie to get back at Eddie’s bullies. But has it gone too far and can Eddie stop the undead rocker from killing everyone in town? Great music, great story, and yes an appearance by Ozzy Osborne as an evangelist on TV against metal music doesn’t hurt either made this one those “perfect horror movies” for the time it was released. Now this 4K release has everything fans could imagine that includes: three commentaries, an absolutely informative 81 minute documentary about the making of the film that includes an interview with Gene Simmons and how Hollywood came to Wilmington, North Carolina, (Michael Felsher’s thoughts as a 13 year old when this film was released were spot on) all the old trailers, an episode of Hallowed Horror Grounds of visiting the set locations, After Midnight music video starring Tony Fields as Sammi Curr, and a segment called ‘Tribute to Tony Fields’ which may bring a tear to your eye as they interview Tony’s family after all these years and discuss his death. Also what really pops about this transfer is the restoration of the film is just perfect: not too bright, but colorful if that makes sense. Folks, Synapse and Michael Felsher have done a superb job of finally bringing this piece of entertaining horror history to physical media as I give it 4 out of 4 stars all the way. The 4k version is up for sale at www.synapsefilms.com .

Night Wolf (YouTube) – This 2010 UK film had its title changed from ‘13 hrs.’ to ‘Night Wolf’ most likely to be an easier sell to horror movie fans? But anyway Sarah was working in the U.S. for several months but has come back home to her small village to hang with family and friends for a small vacation. The group once together heads inside their old house only to find a bloody surprise of their father torn to shreds in bed and an animal that will stop at nothing to slaughter the group. The group finds a hiding spot in the attic and behind the walls of the old house so they can try to survive the animal’s terror during the stormy night. The subplot of the film is all about family and there is an excellent scene involving a character and a self-inflicted shotgun blast! A solid creature feature that I give 2 ½ stars too.

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

Gross Movie Reviews #644

0

Quadrant (Full Moon) – Charles Band is back in the director’s chair again with a movie that deals with AI and if yinz seen ‘Aimee: The Visitor’ then fans will quite enjoy this computerized treat. The film revolves around two professors who have come up with a revolutionary process called “Quadrant”. A process that no one has funded yet but they believe using their experimental helmet and computers hooked to a person’s brain and connected to an AI world that allows said person to get past their mental issues or get past the fears that haunt them. They mean well with their Quadrant universe firmly believing this will help patients embrace and defeat their fears but it needs volunteers? In comes Erin, a beautiful young woman who is extremely obsessed with Jack the Ripper! She hears of the experiment and wants to be a part of it. Erin is different from the other patients as she does not fear being a part of the universe as she wants to live it, feel it, and live in it. With each treatment Erin embraces Quadrant that much more blurring the lines of reality and the Jack the Ripper AI world she wants to be in. It quickly becomes too late when you cannot decide who is more demented: Erin wanting to murder to feel like the famous serial killer she obsesses over or the professors knowing what Erin is capable of as they have experienced this side effect before? Quadrant is absolutely another entertaining project under the direction of Charles Band. Band has embraced filming in and around Cleveland, Ohio with a small casts, interesting concepts, and the cool vibe of Full Moon finding their second or third wind in bringing fans fun Full Moon projects they want to see as I give this 3 out of 4 stars.

Cemetery Man (Blu-ray) – For most horror movie fans this 1994 Italian classic from Michele Soavi is known as Dellamorte Dellamore but for American fans the name was changed to Cemetery Man when it landed in the U.S. Well Severin Films you went and did it!!! They put together one hell of Blu-ray package of the classic as for some horror fans they declare it to be the last great Italian horror film? It has been a good many of years since I last watched it as I still had my grainy bootleg unrated version. By some chance you were living under a rock and have never heard of this perfectly hilarious zombie film let’s dig into it. Dellamorte and his assistant are employed at the cemetery to take care of “the returners”. Dellamorte believes it could be end of the world but the select few in the village know this is an important job that could only be done by Dellamorte. Simply he is in charge of putting the dead back in their graves after rising from the dead. Blow to the head every time! Things get real interesting when Dellamorte meets an absolutely beautiful woman only known as “She” after burying her older husband and falling in love as she dies suddenly also. Dellamorte begins killing more of the living than the dead without repercussions and keeps running into different versions of his former love. This zombie film is super bizarre and beautiful at the same time as it balances between love story and hardcore zombie film that feels like a weird fever dream at times. The music, the colors, the music were all made for this to get the special treatment for horror fans to enjoy. But also it is loaded with extras: commentary with Michele Soavi and Gianni Romoli, interviews with Rupert Everett, Michele Soavi, and Anna Falchi along with a cool archival makin of segment. This is Severin Films crown jewel of their catalog is a must own for horror fans as I give it 4 stars.

Once Upon a Time in Amityville (On Demand) – Welcome kids to entry #62 of the Amityville series as Mark Polonia this time around sets it in 1846 when all the horror began and Amityville just became a town. Mr. Polonia calls on the usual suspects to come in and help (Jeff Kirkendall and Tim Hatch who are two of the many Polonia suspects) as two bounty hunters come upon a new town of Amityville looking for a wanted man they believe tried to hide in town? Immediately the bounty hunters are a little unsettled as the town seems a little strange but unsure why. Once they learn the criminal they had been tracking was strung up for a crime (or evil sacrifice) in town they must deal with a town that believes in evil. Compared to a lot of the entries this was actually kind of refreshing but will say the old west was never this clean but gotta give Polonia and crew credit for finding a great location to use for the film. Surprisingly entry #62 is a solid watch and believe Indy horror fans more than mainstream horror fans will quite enjoy the fresh take as I give it 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

I Puke on Your Grave (VHS) – An hour long movie that has random scenes of murder from horror films that you may or may not have seen? Not totally sure what this project was going for as there was no horror host or ‘Faces of Death’ aspect to it as I can only give it a ½ star.

Lowlifes (Tubi) – A simple story of an average family on their annual corny road trip in the old RV who runs into two backwoods types. Before you say “I have seen this before” they try to make it very uncomfortable like this average family is gonna get raped or murdered or both in the first 15 minutes? But hold on a second there is car trouble and we the viewer quickly learn the tables are turned in this project as the average family from L.A. are vicious cannibal bastards! I quite enjoyed this take on a genre or cliché that has maybe seen its better days so thank you for this as I gotta give this project 3 stars.

Cookies for Christmas (DVD) – This short film is a wonderful take on mixing horror and the Hallmark movie formula as Lacey a young woman returns from the big city to little town Christmas time. Unbeknownst to Lacey and the small fictional holiday town are about to get a horrific visit from Santa Claus! Filmmaker Adam Raynes who is behind the project may have something here in this Hallmark inspired horror as he understood all the ugly cute holiday plot points. Kudos hitting on all these main plot points of a Hallmark holiday film as I believe you may wanna take a second crack at expanding this short film into something bigger but just as fun as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.

The Only Ones (DVD) – First off I gotta give credit for the misdirection of this film as a character tells the story of Boneface trying to scare friends as they travel to a secluded cabin in the woods. Six friends just trying to scare the shit out of each other, drink beer, and enjoy quiet time in nature. But once shrooms are introduced that is where it all goes downhill for the group as someone is shot by accident. The friends try to discuss and clean up the mess but fight over if authorities should be involved as it just snowballs from one thing to another. There is solid structure to this film as it plays out more like a thriller than a straight up horror film. This feels like something that may get a small cult following on a streaming platform sooner than later as I give it 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

Guerrilla Dogs (DVD) – Another BPO Films project from Blake O’Donnell that just had me laughing a lot because it stars the present day Indy version of the “Three Stooges” with a little more thoughtfulness in storytelling from Blake O’Donnell, Ben Dietels, and Ryan Lintner. Their unique style is once again on display as they are “The Keepers of the Cause” and holding a man captive for ransom as he could be important for “The Effect”. These weekend warrior types believe they are doing right by hiding out in the woods and keeping Mr. Money captive. The films runs a little long but the boys go from one hilarious scenario to the next as they try to live off the land and keep this man until they get their ransom. Literally this is one of those movies you never heard of but would be happy when you did as you witness the hilarity as I give the film 3 out of 4 stars.

BPO Films Mixtape Volume 2 (DVD) – The three ultra talented dudes (Ben Dietels, Ryan Lintner, and Blake O’Donnell) made a series of short films over the years that deal with garbage, thumb wars, sex, realtors, a pizza guy, drinking on St. Patrick’s Day, etc. The fun never stops with these guys as it seems they are constantly filming something so get ready to laugh your ass off as I give this project 3 out of 4 stars.

Attack of the Corn Zombies (DVD) – It is the 1960s in a small Midwest town where they are having their annual corn festival. This past year some folks used an experimental fertilizer on the crops to help them grow faster but really didn’t do as advertised. But unbeknownst to the townsfolk all the corn was contaminated by this new stuff. Quickly after ingesting the corn people become zombies who attack those who haven’t. Now a small group of folks are just trying to survive the corn zombies so they can get out of town. I enjoyed this Indy zombie film as the first key was they understood “you are not reinventing the zombie genre”. Second key of this film being entertaining was I enjoyed the corn growing out of the infected… that was really a nice touch that some may never would have given a second look. Third key was having a solid Indy cast that felt like everyone was casted correctly. The film had a vibe of the 70s cult film ‘Toxic Zombies’ meeting Jim Roberts’ ‘Welcome to Deer Creek’ as I gotta give this Indy zombie project 3 out of 4 stars.

Air Fryer Slaughter (DVD) – The Matthew Mark Hunter and Matt Skinner project about a killer air fryer is finally out there for horror fans to enjoy. It is the simple story of an air fryer going rogue for not much reason other than it is hungry for human flesh and … apparently sex? The film is full of Indy names and hilarious infomercials as the air fryer hops around town after it murders someone. As the bodies pile up the cops refuse to believe its prime suspect would be an air fryer as it slaughters its way through most of the cast. When the appliance isn’t killing someone or giving a blowjob, the air fryer is trying to help sell merch ‘Evil Bong’ style! Even though the film gives off that ‘Attack of the Killer Tomatoes’ vibe it does run 20 to 25 minutes way to long like the film ‘Rubber’ (movie about a killer car tire) and felt like it gets away from what the film was supposed to be about halfway through. Just my opinion but I gotta give it 2 out of 4 stars.

Bed Bugs (DVD) – A Matthew Mark Hunter project from 2021 where a group of children head out for some trick or treating. At each house they get a scary story as Matthew and crew check all the boxes as the kids get to hear about the boogeyman, zombies, a kid seeking revenge, the devil, and vampires. This is a nice project to introduce some of the younger crowd to Indy horror as I give this film 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

Gross Movie Reviews #571

0

Gross Movie Reviews #571

The Hunger (DVD) – This 1983 vampire flick that stars David Bowie, Susan Sarandon, and Cliff DeYoung has always intrigue me…Mainly because I had seen it on cable TV way back in the early days of cable and completely forgot about it because I was a kid. This movie never impacted me like “The Monster Squad” or a “Halloween” even but I finally felt it was time to revisit this film and it is either ahead of its time or quite misunderstood since I don’t hear many horror movie fans bring this one up? Anyway, Miriam and John (David Bowie) are lovers and Miriam has lived many centuries and when she has had enough of her lover they tend to age and die quickly. John becomes very concerned feeling their love is over and finds a doctor (Susan Sarandon) who has made some interesting breakthroughs? Soon the good doctor Sarah is wrapped up in some erotic weirdness and cannot decide if she is love or there believing this will further her research? The film has an erotic charm to it deserves a second look as it doesn’t play by the vampire rules we all grew up with as I give this vampire feature 3 stars. Also too if you wanna do some prep work to help get more interested into this film there is a lot of great facts about the behind the scenes stuff that made me just happy to give this a second watch.

The Sadness (Shudder) – Honestly I don’t know if more can be said about this wonderful virus infection flick from Taiwan other than it will be on my “Best of 2022 list”. The pandemic is the backdrop and the virus has yet mutated again according to background news reports that like most of us we are not paying attention. But this mutation is different as those who are sick soon go into a fit of rage, rape, murder, and even a little cannibalism. As most of the population has lost its mind two young lovers try to navigate the city to find each other again! But what separates this “The Crazies” type of film from a lot of horror films is the violence, gore, the madness ramps up as the film goes along. When one crazy thing happens, give it ten minutes and you get to see something even more nutzoid! The film was wonderful, beautiful and played just right but funny thing and this is just me nit picking at shit but I can honestly say I wanted let’s just say a little happier ending without spoiling the fun? Anyway I still give this horror flick 4 stars and must see for horror fans this year. 

Super Dark Times (DVD) – A couple teenage best friends are screwing around with each other as usual until an accident with a sword happens. Instead of reporting the accident they bury it. As the days pass the friends fall down a deep hole of darkness trying to cope and move past the accident. But there is a problem the sword is missing and now a couple more people have gone missing at school. I really like the tone of this screwed up flick because I think it hits on a very believable string of events as I give this film 3 ½ stars.

The Chain Reaction (DVD) – Another crazy Australian film from 1980 that is an environmental action/drama that stars Toecutter and Goose from “Mad Max” and watch close because Mel Gibson shows up for a quick one line. But we have an earthquake that hits an area where a toxic waste dumping plant (WALDO) has a spill where an employee is involved and taken to their infirmary. Heinrich the employee is upset because he knows the spill is horrendous and believes the public should be warned. But the corporation feels much differently about this. What the corporation doesn’t know Heinrich had been approached by an outside source explaining the dangers of a spill if it ever happens? Heinrich escapes, warns his source, and along the way finds a young vacationing couple, the Stilsons, who help take care of him. But soon WALDO’s boss Gray tracks them all down and plans silencing everyone so any info about the spill will go away. Think dramatic dangers of nuclear waste in the early 80s with some bad ass car chases as I give the film 3 stars.

Castle Falls (DVD) – Dolph Lundgren stars, directs, and produces this feature that also stars another action film favorite Scott Adkins. Castle Heights Hospital is about to be demolished in 90 minutes to make way for new condominiums but three parties in Mike, Ericson, and a gang member claiming they are owed money are about to risk their lives for a couple million dollars hidden in the structure. All three are desperate for different reasons but just like “Trespass” with Ice-T, Bill Paxton this type of film is still mindless fun for 90 minutes as I give it 3 stars.

Virus: 32 (Shudder) – A Spanish film where a mother who isn’t exactly excited to have her young daughter today has to take her along to work at an empty club she guards. After a fun quick tour the two quickly realize the world outside is changing. Virus infected people are trying to make their way into the club to kill them both. Red marks on the hands of people can help identify the infected as Iris and Tata are separated in the club and try desperately to find each other as the infected are only satisfied by violence. Enjoyed the premise of the film and liked the rules of the infected as like “The Sadness” the twist makes for good memorable horror stuff as I give this 3 ½ stars.

House on the Edge of the Park (Blu-ray) – Severin Films recently released this sleazy revenge flick with a crazy amount of extra goodies for the horror kids to filter through. The movie from 1980 begins in the city where a rich couple stops in a garage that happens to have two lunatics Alex and Ricky getting ready for a night of dancing and partying. But after fixing the couple’s car they head off with the couple to the “get together”. Once there Alex immediately sees or believes the rich douchebags are taking advantage of his buddy. So Alex allows his demented brain to take over and turn the tables on these rich folk believing they need to be taught real respect? Alex always has a plan as he slowly beats and tortures the group that even includes controlling his friend Ricky. Thus making for a great set up ending as David Hess just seems to relish the role of the sadistic Alex. I enjoyed the film for what it is and just like “Last House on the Left” I needed to take a shower after watching it. This is just another example of why we all need more David Hess in our lives as I give the film 3 stars.

Amityville Outhouse (DVD) – Just when I thought I was done I get pulled back in as entry #37 finds me through the talented filmmaker Maddie Deering and her love for independent films. This 60 minute adventure is literally a hodgepodge of an anthology where a hobo in the woods stops a man from taking a shit in a haunted outhouse! Reminder even the filmmaker of the film doesn’t want the viewer to take this dumb outhouse thing seriously. With that the crazy hobo explains the outhouse is built from lumber from Amityville or left over demolished houses, honestly does it actually matter? Then the hobo tells three stories concerning a killer panda at a party, a priest pooping out a puppet, and a mobster fighting The Meatman. The first 15 minutes were funny but by the 30 minute mark I wanted to be watching something else and should have been limited to a short film? I actually hoped for something else but 37 entries in I got this so I give it 1 star.

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

Gross Movie Reviews #533

0

Gross Movie Reviews #533

Creepies (DVD) – At an undisclosed secret military base two army privates are busy playing grab ass and just happened to unleash mutant spiders! It doesn’t take long for these mutant arachnids to spread out and cause death and mayhem. From there the film goes into insane mode with its miniature effects whether its spiders, cars blowing up, buildings catching fire, etc. If that isn’t enough the mutant spiders have had enough of listening to bad cover bands in a crappy studio that is the second of two sets that the film uses for 90% of the film. This of course sets up the filler for the film of a bad girl band struggling to survive the mutant spiders in a studio while the military tries to contain it to the city. If it matters in the end everything gets nuked anyway so for that I give it 1 star.

Slaxx (Shudder) – Libby is a young lady who is lucky enough to be starting a new job at a super popular clothing store “CCC”. The store is all about a better tomorrow using experimental cotton for their new killer jeans “Super Shapers”! These pants are amazing as they will fit male or female, overweight or underweight and make you look wonderful. Unaware the employees who try to see how the jeans fit before anyone else get murdered by the experimental pants as they want revenge. To compound the problem once Libby and employees figure this out the store is on lockdown and makes it impossible to call authorities in. On the other hand Libby’s manager is all about saving the store so he can be promoted and sell the shit out of these jeans when morning hits no matter how many people die. The film has some inventive kills, touches upon a lot of millennial themes, and at about the 40 minute mark the film goes completely bonkers which just excited me! Where films like the overrated ‘Rubber’ and lackluster ‘Killer Sofa’ fail, ‘Slaxx’ puts on a show as I give one of the best films of 2021 4 stars.

The Jungle (DVD) – Another average found footage film that was made in 2012 about a character Larry Black who is a wild animal expert and film’s his expeditions. This latest one was a little different as he is heading to Indonesia to hopefully track and tag a leopard that was believed to be extinct? As Larry and his team get drawn into the rainforest deeper and deeper they come to the conclusion they might be tracking a much bigger unknown creature. What could have been interesting… fails as like a good bit of found footage films the movie feels long, dumb, and boring even with it not being that long of a film in reality. Pass over this found footage film as I give it 1 star if you come across it.

Tales of the Uncanny (Blu-ray) – A documentary from Severin Films that covers the history of anthologies… Interesting stuff. Over 60 producers, critics, filmmakers discuss the beginning of anthologies and raise the question about their impact on the industry over the years. This wonderful documentary covers all of them and for young and old horror fans alike. Yes they talk ‘Creepshow’ but also goes through some unknown gems and discuss how some came about. They did this during the pandemic last year which adds a different quality to this documentary and separates it from your average documentary as I give it 4 stars of course.

Witchcraft (DVD) – So I wanted to start watching this series so of course you got to start with the first film which was released all the way back in 1988. Oh by the way in case you are unaware there 16 of these… for now. This low budget horror about witches and warlocks centers in on Grace who just had a baby and her husband pushes her to stay with his mother until she gets her strength back. Never a good idea in general as anyway it doesn’t take long for things to get strange but what drives it home that Grace isn’t just thinking weird things is when Father James shows up. Father James has a horrible reaction to what he sees in the family and begs Grace to come to church the next day as you know will solve everything in life? With soon a dead priest and Grace no longer trusting her husband who is a warlock by the way Grace must fight her way out of this satanic web of crazy and save her baby. I give the first entry 2 stars.

Godzilla vs. Kong (On Demand) – Forces have been trying to protect Kong from Godzilla as they believe Godzilla could kill him. But things have changed recently in Godzilla’s behavior and cause them to move Kong to a new home. A scientist believes he has found the entrance to “Hollow Earth” and knows how to survive entry if they can get Kong to pinpoint its exact location? Meanwhile the Apex Corporation is working on a Mechagodzilla to put a stop to Godzilla and possibly Kong to be on the safe side. “Hollow Earth” has a power source only like one other and that is Godzilla and they want to use it to fuel their Mechagodzilla. It was good but not great but hey, don’t let that stop you from enjoying the year’s first big popcorn flick as I give it 3 stars.     

Witchcraft 2: The Temptress (DVD) – The second entry into this series from 1989 has a witch from the previous film back to stalk and haunt a young stud. She would to have him for her evil ways and hang with Satan, but the young William isn’t having it. The witch even lowers herself to wearing a stripper outfit while cleaning leaves out of the gutters to get William’s attention. But when that doesn’t work of course you get lower with ghost rape but that doesn’t matter in the end cause love conquers all as I give this sequel 1 ½ stars.

Witchcraft 3: The Kiss of Death (DVD) – I could just summarize this film as: no budget, no script, but a dozen ideas and nothing works but that isn’t fun. So we have a pro-bono lawyer named William who has a past with witches (still connecting it to the past two films) who is a good man trying to do the right thing. But William unknowingly befriends a warlock who sucks the life from women to keep his girlfriend Roxy alive. Lewis the warlock interrupts everything in William’s life including the relationship with his hot girlfriend who is ready to settle down. As people begin to die or disappear it really comes down to the warlock just wanting to bang William’s hot girlfriend on a regular basis and who can blame him as I give the third entry 1 star.

Yeti: Giant of the 20th Century (YouTube/DVD) – Hey you… need a WTF Bigfoot film in your life? Well this 1977 Italian/Canadian production will your void and more. A retired professor Henry Wasserman is led out of retirement by a good friend with a document claiming they found “Yeti” in an iceberg. Once the professor sees it for his own eyes he takes control in melting the ice off of it in order to preserve this magnificent find. They revive the Yeti and it rampages but settles once it makes friends with Mr. Hunnicutt’s grandkids. But hey there are plans for this big ass Yeti so let’s take it to Toronto so it can rampage there too. Point of the film is a Yeti can be nice unless taken out of it natural habitat… I think as I give this weird mess 2 stars.

Witchfinder General (DVD) – It is 1645 and England is in the middle of a civil war as Vincent Price as Matthew Hopkins is in charge of traveling the English countryside and deciding who is a witch. If he finds supposed witches he has his companion convict and kills them. With each witch they collect a bag of silver so of course the Witchfinder always finds a witch in each village he visits. But after Matthew and his companion rape a young woman Sara and destroy her uncle because of witchcraft her fiancée Richard Marshall a young soldier seeks revenge. The soldier swears he will ravage the Witchfinder Hopkins when found. Usually with Mr. Price you are guaranteed a fun time but this seems to lack the spark most of his films have and why this Vincent Price film is not talked about much? Either way if you are a fan you need to check it out once as I give it 2 stars.

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews . Remember folks always support your local independent movie theater, independent video store, and independent filmmakers! It will keep horror alive………

You can find all of my books at www.lulu.com just search for Gross Movie Reviews or Tim Gross there!

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

You can now purchase copies of Jagoff Massacre and our new feature Blood Freak DVDs online that I co-directed with Dan Boyd at https://drunkenyinzersproductions.company.site/ !