Memory (2006) review

(7/10)

   Memory is probably one of the most underrated horror movies of its kind. Stellar acting, an enthralling mystery, and some truly creepy imagery kept this semi-confusing and somewhat slow movie afloat. It's a poor man's psychological thriller at best.

PLOT: After accidentally ingesting a hallucinogenic powder being tested on lab rats, Dr. Taylor Briggs (Billy Zane) starts to have strange daydreams, lining up with real murders and tragedies that happened before he was born. After some intense research, things start to get more and more peculiar as Taylor starts to think he's witnessing the past of one of his relatives. Everyone begins to think he's gone crazy, except his lover, artist Stephanie (Tricia Helfer), his mother, Carol (Ann-Margret), and his father-in-law, Max (Dennis Hopper). However, as Taylor and Stephanie start getting to the bottom of these weird visions, they start to notice it may be the missing link in Taylor's family timeline. The plot is essentially a combination of the premise of Altered States and the mechanics of Memento. The plot, at its bare bones, is preposterous and confusing, but by the end of the movie, you'll be impressed to see how they pulled it off. The moments of horror are filmed excellently and the writers, though they got carried away, succeeded in tying up all loose ends.

ACTING: The performances in this movie are very well done. Billy Zane does justice to the part of frantic Dr. Briggs, Tricia Hefler does a great job as the "sidekick", Stephanie. Dennis Hopper and Ann-Margret did an excellent job as the parents, especially Ann-Margret near the end. Everyone does a pretty great job with their parts.

SCORE: The score and soundtrack definitely has potential. The main theme is pretty haunting yet simple, and the alternative soundtrack almost enhances the movie.

OTHER CONTENT: Memory is basically an expected disaster turned good. The movie has its faults, like a preposterous mystery, unnecessary side-conversations, and several confusing turns of events. As evidence is tossed at us and pieced together, the mystery becomes more and more confusing, but just as much enthralling. The victory in this movie is that it succeeded in pulling off a mystery so unrealistic. If the unintentionally-good mystery isn't enough to save this movie, then the horror scenes will. The horror sequences, especially near the movie's finale, are expertly done and very well filmed. I would believe them to be the best sequences in the movie. They're memorable and very unsettling, both respectable factors for a true horror.

   Memory would probably be the biggest expected disaster that somehow saved itself. It may be preposterous, confusing, and unnecessary at times, but it saves itself by sucking you into the mystery and chilling you with the sequences of horror. Most horror fans may end up despising the movie, but I think it's an underrated gem of modern independent horror.

Lady In White (1988) review

(5/10)

This 80's horror flick was a pretty creepy little tale, but nothing to get too excited about. There were a few key moments that stood out from the rest. The movie wasn't bad, but just kind of bland.

PLOT:Frankie Scarlatti (Lukas Haas) is a strange student at his school. One Halloween night, a couple of boys lock him in the coat closet at school where he witnesses a ghost girl reenact the way she was murdered before Frankie himself is encountered by a violent being. After this night, strange things start happening to Frankie, including visits by the ghost girl and clues left by her to help him solve the mystery of her murder. Frankie, now interested by the mystery of the girl, starts to try and find her killer and the connection with her and the ghost of the mysterious lady in white. It's a pretty good plot executed decently.



ACTING:The performances in here weren't too good. They weren't completely terrible, but at times the acting seemed near laughable. Lukas Haas did a decent job of young Frankie Scarlatti, as did Angelo Bertolini and Renata Vanni as Papa Charlie and Mama Assunta. Not all the performances were too well done, like that of Len Cariou as Phil. His acting wasn't too convincing to me, for his facial expressions didn't seem to accurately match his emotions. There really weren't any really good performances, but the other shiners would have to be Joelle Jacob as Melissa and Frank LaLoggia as adult Frankie.

SCORE:The score in this movie was actually pretty generic horror score, but it got the job done and added a bit of a distinct theme to the movie itself.

EFFECTS:The effects were about as cheap and cheesy as any effects were in the eighties. However, the effects seemed to add more color and they made the ghosts look a bit more realistic than they do nowadays. I appreciate that much about ghost movies in the past; the effects look decently realistic.



OTHER CONTENT:This movie wasn't too well made, but it wasn't terrible either. Aside from the acting, this movie overall was just cheesy and predictable. I saw most of the twists coming. However, this movie did have a few key scenes that were either shot well or actually fairly unpredictable. There were only a few of these scenes that gave me a bit of admiration for this movie. There were a few scares that did manage to appear creepy or catch me off guard. This movie could have been so much better, but it was done well to at least a minimalist point.

OVERALL,a neutral horror movie with a decent plot, unconvincing acting, generic horror score, cheap but sort of realistic effects, cheesiness and predictability, and a few key scenes shot well with decent scares.

The Raven (2012) review

(7/10)

This movie would probably be a guilty pleasure of mine because I loved it so much when I saw it. I actually liked the script, acting, and story. However, I don't believe it actually could have happened.

PLOT:Edgar Allen Poe (John Cusack) is a famous poet down on his luck in the papers. He's lost his inspiration and a lot of people ridicule him for his arrogance and drinking problem. He's in love with Emily (Alice Eve), the daughter of a rich man who hates Poe's guts. One day, a series of killings start to occur strongly and mysteriously based on Poe's work. Clever detective, Emmett Fields (Luke Evans), recruits Poe to help them solve the mystery. Even worse, Emily is kidnapped by this killer, so now it's up to Poe and the detective to decipher the clues left by the copycat killer. It's a pretty good plot executed very well.



ACTING:The acting in here was pretty good. John Cusack played an excellent role as Edgar Allen Poe. I don't think I've seen him played quite this well. Luke Evans also played a pretty cool part as Detective Fields. Not all of the performances were that good though. Alice Eve played a bit of an uneven part as Emily, as well as Sam Hazeldine did as Ivan, Poe's sidekick. Aside from all of these, the other shiners were Brendan Gleeson as Colonel Hamilton and Kevin McNally as Maddux.

SCORE:The score was done fairly well by Lucas Vidal. It set the mood and got the song done, not to mention a cool ending song called "Burn My Shadow".

EFFECTS:The blood and gore effects for this movie were pretty cool and well done. The effects were CG for the most part, but they still looked pretty cool, especially in the "Pit and the Pendulum" scene. I really liked them.



OTHER CONTENT:Now, I couldn't help but love this movie. I liked the murder mystery and how it related to Poe's work, and I liked the script, but I do admit there were a few major problems I had with this movie. Firstly, how do they expect us to believe that all of this happened? In a way, it disgraces Poe's history, for it adds too much of a modern twist to an older time. Secondly, a few of the twists in the story seemed very impractical and unbelievable. I did get into this movie, but it just didn't seem believable to me at times. I don't really get if they're trying to convince us of this happening or if this is purely a work of fiction bent on focusing Poe into modern times. Either way, I did like the movie, and I would watch it again.

OVERALL,a good movie with a pretty good plot, pretty good acting overall, fitting score, cool CG blood effects, a nice murder mystery, and a good script, but there was a bit of uneven performances, it seemed too unrealistic for its time, and some of the twists seemed too unbelievable as well.