MOVIE REVIEW: THE BLACK PHONE

 

Finney Shaw is a shy but clever 13-year-old boy who's being held in a soundproof basement by a sadistic, masked killer. When a disconnected phone on the wall starts to ring, he soon discovers that he can hear the voices of the murderer's previous victims -- and they are dead set on making sure that what happened to them doesn't happen to Finney.

Director: Scott Derrickson

Cast: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies, James Ransone, Ethan Hawke

Release Date: June 24, 2022

Genre: Horror 

Rated R for violence, bloody images, language and some drug use

Runtime: 1h 43m

Review:

Scott Derrickson's The Black Phone is a solid throwback of a thriller which makes efficient use of it's setting and cast.  Derrickson's film uses it's 70's setting to great effect while avoiding the usual nostalgia overload may productions like to wallow end.  There is a certain authenticity to the way he shoots his film resulting in some striking and memorable visuals.  The story, based on Joe Hill's short story, is simple and fairly straightforward making for lean storytelling which keeps all the action laser focused.  This all wouldn't matter if the younger cast members weren't up for the task.  Thankfully, Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw are more than up for the task.  Thames has the kind of authenticity and naturalism that's hard to find in most younger actors.  He's able to carry the film ably with relative ease which does wonders for the film.  Madeleine McGraw steals every scene she in and is ultimately the beating heart of the entire film.  Ethan Hawke makes for an intriguing villain by giving him a tangible sense of unpredictability and ferocity.  His character's appearances are unnerving but the film doesn't provide much depth to him making him a cypher.  A more fleshed out character would have made him a more memorable film villain.  As is, The Black Phone is the kind of easily enjoyable thriller that sets out to provide some classic scares in a tight bit of filmmaking.  

B

Cindy Prascik's Review of It Chapter 2

Yesterday it was (finally) back to the cinema for It Chapter 2.

Spoiler level here will be moderate, nothing plot-related, but I'll offer one general thought that may be considered spoilerey. Forewarned is forearmed.

Nearly three decades after the events of Chapter 1, the Losers Club is called back to Derry to face off with their old nemesis.

It Chapter 2 is easily the weaker half of this iconic Stephen King tale, and stretching it to a bloated three-hour runtime did it no favors, though steady pacing keeps the movie from bogging down too much. Creature and gore effects are solid, and the de-aging process used on the youngsters from Chapter 1 didn't bother me, though it's been much maligned elsewhere. There isn't much scary about the film--even the cheap jump scares are too obvious to have much effect--but it is blessed with a talented, likable cast, fronted by Oscar nominee Jessica Chastain and Golden Globe nominee James McAvoy. McAvoy and the less-decorated Bill Hader are especially strong throughout. The kids from Chapter 1 are still solid, though with far less to do than in round one. Frankly, the adults are never quite as interesting.

On the strength of its cast and well-formed characters, It Chapter 2 works best when focused on people and relationships. The story of friendship, reconnecting, and redemption is a timeless one that never fails to engage; unfortunately, the horror/fantasy aspects just don't measure up, and even come off a bit laughable. Thanks to a few tweaks, this version of IT feels less melancholy than the original, and I fear it will fade from memory much more quickly.

It Chapter 2 clocks in at 169 minutes and is rated R for "disturbing violent content and bloody images throughout, pervasive language, and some sexual material."

Despite its many flaws, you'll still want to see the Losers Club through to the end with It Chapter 2.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, It Chapter 2 gets six. Until next time...

MOVIE REVIEW: IT CHAPTER TWO

Defeated by members of the Losers' Club, the evil clown Pennywise returns 27 years later to terrorize the town of Derry, Maine, once again. Now adults, the childhood friends have long since gone their separate ways. But when people start disappearing, Mike Hanlon calls the others home for one final stand. Damaged by scars from the past, the united Losers must conquer their deepest fears to destroy the shape-shifting Pennywise -- now more powerful than ever.

Director: Andrés Muschietti

Cast: Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Hader, Isaiah Mustafa, Jay Ryan, James Ransone, Andy Bean

Release Date: September 6, 2019

Genre: Horror

Rated R for disturbing violent content and bloody images throughout, pervasive language, and some crude sexual material.

Runtime: 2 h 50 min

Review:

It Chapter Two has the unenviable task of trying to tie up the story started in the original film.  Much like the original novel and mini series adaptation the latter half of the story doesn’t quite have the pop or elegance of the first half of the story.  This sequel is bigger and has a more expansive mythology.  It has an impressive collection of big name actors as the grown versions of the Losers Club who all play their roles fairly well.  Still, as you sit through Andrés Muschietti’s nearly 3 hour opus you keep waiting for something amazing or truly terrifying to happen.  It never does as we go through a variety of side stories and back stories.  That’s not to say there aren’t any thrilling or mildly scary sequences because there are but the problem is that it all feels sort of routine leaving the film like a hodgepodge collection of horror tropes blended into a single film.  It’s never a bad film per say but it’s not a great film either.  The main issue is that the central villain is put on display much too often which makes each subsequent appearance less and less scary.  By the conclusion some of the moments come off as funnier as opposed to spine tingling, making it feel closer to a late era Nightmare on Elm Street which is fitting since there’s a visual nod to the 5^th film in that series.


B-

MOVIE REVIEW: SINISTER

A struggling true-crime novelist stumbles into a grim supernatural mystery that threatens the lives of his entire family in this nightmarish horror yarn from director Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Day the Earth Stood Still). Ellison (Ethan Hawke) is seeking inspiration for his latest book when he moves his wife and children into a home where an entire family perished under gruesome circumstances. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Scott Derrickson

Cast: Ethan Hawke, Fred Dalton Thompson, James Ransone, Michael Hall D'Addario, Rob Riley

Release Date: Oct 12, 2012

Rated R For some Terror and Disturbing Violent Images

Runtime: 1 hr. 49 min.

Genres: Horror, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

Sinister is the type of horror movie that’s heavy on atmosphere and tension with a sporadic sprinkling of gore and violence. Scott Derrickson returns the horror genre after his failed attempt at remaking a sci-fi classic. Derrickson understands mood and how to shoot a film in order to give it an overreacting sense of dread. It’s visually dark but beautiful as well capturing something a lot of horror films miss. Ethan Hawke is solid in the lead even if sweater loving character is written as an outright jerk. The script limits our empathy for him since he seems to have very little regard for his family and their wellbeing. The aforementioned family is terribly under developed which is a shame since it would have made the film stronger overall. Strangely, a police officer is given more meat than the writers wife. James Ransone plays the character about as hockey as possible killing the mood anytime he shows up on screen. The payoff is solid if a tab bit obvious due to the overuse of certain ghosts.

C+