Change Your Image
foggy-9
Reviews
Feeding the Masses (2004)
Sloppy and Poorly Shot
Set in Providence, Rhode Island, Feeding the Masses tries to be a satiric look at the role of the media in government. At best, it could be applied to how the US try to control media during the Iraq War, but it ends up feeling hollow. There's never any really tension in the story and the acting never very good. Worst, the direction of the movie is atrocious, focus more on odd camera angles that fail to convey anything beyond "Isn't this an odd way to hold the camera." Special effects are pretty bad...at one point video of an explosion is green screened over the city, and it's laughable at best.
The film does have a couple bright spots...namely the advertisements for post-zombie services (including a reclamation service and a party bus). But it's far too little to make the film worthwhile.
For a better zombie film, try Hide and Creep. It has the same weak production value, but there's much more wit, humor and talent behind it.
Club Dread (2004)
Not That Super
Much like Super Troopers, Club Dread aims to be a general
comedy as opposed to a parody (so if you're expecting Scary
Movie, you'll be disappointed). As far as a general comedy goes,
there a few bits here and there that are genuinely funny, but overall,
the film just drags on too long without any sort of laugh, relying
instead on naked women to carry the day. The writers do an
admirable job in terms of acting, and Jay Chandrekashar is fine
directing, but he needs to recognize when a slow pace is a
hindrance. In Super Troopers, the slow pace worked fine, allowing
for the comedy to unfurl. But here, it interferes with the rhythm of
the movie.
House of the Dead (2003)
House of the Dud, more like it
There isn't a single appealing characteristic present in House of the Dead. From the dull, suspense-dispensing opening to the ripped-off ending, this movie failed to entertain in any way whatsoever.
Jonathan Cherry apparently is shaping up to be the poor man's version of Bruce Campbell, only without the acting talent. His character Rudy spends much of the movie in a mopy fit, failing to do anything heroic, and even watching other characters die while he stands off to the side.
Emoional moments fail to work, mostly due to the actors, but also due to the script. Mark Altman and Dave Parker have xeroxed pages from other movies, threw in a few zombie references, and went clubbing for the rest of the day. Much of the dialogue is grating ("Matt? Matt? Matt? Is that you Matt? Matt? Is that you Matt? Matt?"...continue that for several more hours.)
In the commercials, the special effects are the most appealing element...great 360-degree shots while fighting. But in the actually movie, the editing around the shots is incoherent...Karma e.g., is holding one gun in a regular shot, then two guns in a static 360. Clips from the actual video game first are used as an entertaining breakaway between scenes, but are used distractingly during fight scenes. The lousy game over sequences used for certain characters is atrocious.
Don't waste your money...
Jane White Is Sick & Twisted (2002)
Clever Concept, Poor Execution
Not a bad idea...take a character so wrapped up in TV that she sees her life as just one big TV show...but aside from the cutaways, and the opening credits, the execution never seemed realized. There was a really great Terry Gilliam riff, SNL cut image, Simpsons riff, etc., but it ends up just coming across as a gimmick compared to the actual story. Combine that with poor production values (LOTS of one-take scenes), and you get an unenjoyable movie. The DVD, however, provides a commentary worth listening to for aspiring filmmakers. Colin Mochrie and Debra Wilson have enjoyable cameos, but Wil Wheaton is an anchor on the whole movie.
People from Space (1999)
Not the Worst Movie Ever, But Pretty Close
An abysmal movie filmed near Newport, RI and with a budget of $7,000. It's a blatant rip off of Blair Witch but with less cohesiveness. Shot on video, there's nothing enjoyable about this movie, nor nothing imaginative. Not as bad as some low-budget movies, but not worth watching.
Freaked (1993)
The Airplane of the Mutant Genre
Freaked is an odd movie that won't appeal to most, but much like Airplane and Scary Movie, it offers a lot of jokes hoping that some will hit. Alex Winter, better known from Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, gets a lot of laughs as Ricky Coogan, the former child actor who's mutated in the beginning of the film. Randy Quaid is his usually slimy self, but also manages to squeeze out some guffaws early on in the film.