HORROR

Mom and Dad (2017)

Published

6 years ago

February 8, 2018

A teenage girl and her little brother must survive a wild 24 hours during which a mass hysteria of unknown origins causes parents to turn violently on their own kids.

Genre : Horror
Country : USA

Cast :
Nicolas Cage : Brent Ryan
Selma Blair : Kendall Ryan
Anne Winters : Carly
Zackary Arthur : Josh

Director :
Brian Taylor

My opinion on “Mom and Dad”

“I mean, I used to be Brent…
and you used to be Kendall…
and now we’re just…
Mom and Dad.”

I’m sure some parents will experience it in their life. The moment you get a bit tired of your offspring. That you would love to put them on a rocket and shoot them to the moon, so that you get a little bit of time and space. Even though your love for your children is unconditional and sincere. This moment will only last a few seconds with normal parents before they look back at their kids lovingly and realize they can’t live without them. Not here in “Mom and Dad“. Here you’ll see parents in a small American town, who suddenly turn into murderous psychopaths with only one goal. And that’s killing their lovely children.

Why did it happen? Beats me.

The cause of this parental hysteria is not entirely clear. Is it, like in “Cell“, an electronic pulse that triggers their behavior? Or is it a mutated virus? Don’t expect an explanation. In any case, it causes mothers to leave a little baby in the car which is parked on a railroad crossing. Or a big fat family man swinging around with a bloody baseball bat. And a bunch of fleeing students who are being tackled en masse by crazy parents. The movie isn’t exactly horifying or scary. Only the scene with the newborn baby gave me an uncomfortable feeling.

That’s what you get with frustrated parents.

It feels like a typical zombie movie with parents walking around with a glassy look. The only difference is that they only have an eye for their own children and don’t have the urge to chase every panicking teenager. “Mom and dad” is complete madness and highly entertaining. Nicolas Cage shines as the father who thinks he’s a complete failure. His dreams didn’t come true and his career isn’t that what he had imagined. The same applies to his wife played by Selma Blair. A bitter-toned, exhausted mother who can’t accept that her daughter doesn’t show any affection anymore for her. She has been exchanged for weed smoking girlfriends and the omnipresent social media. Their frustrations become obvious during the pool table scene, where they pour their guts out.

Crazy Cage again.

It’s been a long time ago since I’ve enjoyed total craziness which Cage can play as one of the best. In “Arsenal” he showed a crazy “Tony Clifton” type whose tirades were brilliantly played and at the same time felt exaggerated. However, the disturbing hysteria and raging frenzy he shows here, exceeds this effortlessly. In a convincing way he shows that frightening look and pure anger. It’s as if complete madness has taken over. I admit, It’s also overly exaggerated. But that makes it humorous sometimes. The grandparents’ moment was an ingenious idea and caused the story to take a different direction. Do you like a horror comedy with a slightly macabre atmosphere? Well, that means this movie is right up your alley.

My rating 7/10
Links : IMDB

FILM RATING

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HORROR

When Evil Lurks | Teaser Trailer — In Theaters October 6th, 2023

Published

2 weeks ago

September 18, 2023

Jacques van Zyl

When Evil Lurks Movie Poster (IFC Films)

The following piece was written during the 2023 Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie material being covered here wouldn’t exist.

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 6 October 2023 in theaters / 27 October 2023 on Shudder

Director: Demián Rugna

Writer: Demián Rugna

Distributed by: IFC Films & Shudder

Production Companies: Shudder, Aramos Cine & Machaco Films

Cast: Ezequiel Rodriguez, Demián Salomon, Luis Ziembrowski, Silvia Sabater & Marcelo Michinaux

Plot

The residents of a small rural town discover that a demon is about to be born among them. They desperately try to escape – but it may be too late…

When Evil Lurks Official Teaser Trailer (IFC Films)

FILM RATING

HORROR

Thanksgiving | Official Trailer — In Theaters November 17, 2023

After a Black Friday riot ends in tragedy, a mysterious Thanksgiving-inspired killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts – the birthplace of the infamous holiday.

Published

2 weeks ago

September 18, 2023

Staff

Genre:

Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Release Date:

November 17, 2023

Director:

Eli Roth

Cast:

Patrick dempsey, Rick Hoffman, Gina Gershon, Addison Rae

Plot Summary:

After a Black Friday riot ends in tragedy, a mysterious Thanksgiving-inspired killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts – the birthplace of the infamous holiday.

FILM RATING

HORROR

Talk To Me Delivers A Real Scare, Hands Down!

Published

2 weeks ago

September 16, 2023

Jacques van Zyl

Talk to Me Movie Poster (A24)

Plot

When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them goes too far and unleashes terrifying supernatural forces.

Movie Review

The movie starts off with quite a shocker, leaving you with a few questions. It doesn’t take too long to get into the action and soon you realize you are in for quite a scare. In a nutshell, the movie is about a group of friends playing a timed game where the communicate with the dead using an embalmed hand, and allow the dead to speak through them, with the emphasis on timed. However, as with all rules, some end up broken, and when the game goes on a little too long things go south, resulting in far reaching consequences. The main protagonist in the story Mia plays this game of talking with the dead, while at the same time working through the loss of a loved one as well. As a viewer I experienced her feelings of grief and it felt real because her performance was just next level.

Both Sophie Wilde and Joe Bird‘s performance as Mia and Riley really grips you, making the feelings of fear on-screen real for the audience. The make-up and effects throughout the movie was really done brilliantly. The ending delivers a unique twist making you hungry for more action and story. The cast really brought life in a horror story focusing around the dead.

There is no post-credits scene, so no need to wait to the end. Trailer is amazing and delivers an even greater scare and doesn’t spoil any important parts of the movie. My rating for Talk To Me is 5 out of 5. Talk To Me is a bone-chilling supernatural horror that delivers a real scare on-screen, hands down. I’m all for seeing a possible sequel of Talk To Me one day, or even a prequel where the origin of the embalmed hand is unpacked. But the movie is still brilliant as a stand-alone movie.

Make sure to catch it at a cinema near you or watch online.