Morning Reel

"Hereditary" is a great horror film that I tried my best to stay away from but a lot of people wanted me to talk about it. I'm glad that my mind was changed about seeing this film that deals with loss and the disfunction of family. It's not your typical horror film, all these characters have motives and brains that push the story forward and there's a lot of mystery as how these characters themselves operate. Everyone in this film is dealing with a lot and it's great to see a story where all this ache plays out and it's quite a thing to witness. I love Toni Collette and she makes this film her bitch. I love how the filmmaker impliments cannabis into the psyche of Peter, the character that did the most damage in the family that pretty much sets the whole mood of the film and we don't let go of him. They're all here to stay and Charlie makes sure her presence is known. I dig the film's cinematography, it's something that M. Night Shyamalan could have made but he couldn't pull it off. There are no twists, things just happen and it all makes sense even down to the last shot of the film. The third act alone is a masterclass in filmmaking. Human sacrifices are different in this film and you can feel the evil step by step which makes us, the viewer, to be on our toes and to also never let our guard down when it comes to coven-like spirituality.

Four out of four tokes.

"Five Nights at Freddy's" is a film I never thought would ever be made especially at the fact it's from a famous video game and even more so that Blumhouse made it. All right, well, you did it. It's a success in the box office coming out during the week of Halloween 2023. Great job on that too. However, this film suffers from a screenplay we are expected to believe everything we see. A lot of logic goes out the window in the film especially how certain aspects of character action somewhow connect to the third. No explanation, it just happens. I do like the production design of the film as well as the cinematography. It feels eerie seeing the closed down interiors of the pizzeria. I dig how the colors pop even in dark lit scenes in the film. It's a bit too much where the kids disappear into the darkness only to come out as the animatronic.Laaaaame. Josh Hutcherson deserved more for this film. The man can act his ass off, I wish he was given more range so i can actually get behind this character. Oddly enough, they carry this film. The things happen but the character is what pushes it. I felt like things needed to randomly happen for the story to move forward. I can't behind that except for some of comedy said by certain characters. Overall, if you love the game, watch this film. If you want to see how robots kill people even though they are operated by their souls - watch this film.

What more freaky do you need? It's there. But it's not for me. It's too easy.

"Before Midnight" is the third and final installment of the "Before" Trilogy directed by Richard Linklater. We all know his work of "Dazed and Confused", "A Scanner Darkly", "School of Rock" and "Boyhood". His film tackles existentialism between relationships and their own with the characters of Jesse and Céline as they are older and they are parents. I dig the film for it's realism, how deep it goes with the charaters that are tackling the issues that comes with relationships, familes and blended families. This is a film that is important to watch, showing the slice of life that we are not alone with our issues and insecurities. I really appreciate it too because we are able to relate to the film, it crosses all kinds of boundaries.

Four out of four tokes.

"A Nightmare on Elm Street 03: Dream Warriors" is a solid slasher film that actually has depth compared to other films of the genre and for its time the special effects are very good. The film has a balanced screenplay with great characters that carry their own weight but I wish there was a bit something different for this film plot. They really generalized the plot where people can dream together and be united in said dream which would remind people of Christopher Nolan's "Inception". Which is impressive to have! It really is but can there be more? I guess not but what we receive is good enough.

Three out of four tokes.

"The Shining" is a great horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick that's adapted by Stephen King's "The Shining". I never read the book and don't care too much of it so I couldn't compare and I wouldn't, to be honest. I'm reviewing films and this film puts you on the edge of your seat. Not a complex plot but how the events play make somehting so simple very exciting and scary at the same time. You have to give it to Kubrick for shooting a take of fake blood coming out of an elevator and flooding the entire space and I love the fact that the darkness of the pool of "blood" blackens out the camera. Other directors wouldn't know what to do and wouldn't have the same set of balls to even try something like that. I give praise the characters and how the actors just bleed profuosly into them, you really believe what's going on. I praise the music for adding the right edge of the film's overeall tone of evil and dismemberment. I recommend this film to you all due to the fact that it's one of those films that although it's a slow-burn, it's creeps up until it hits the fan and there's no stopping after that an it all makes sense. The scenes compliment each other very well without showing too much love.

"House" is one of the wackiest but complex horror films of all time. It's not your typical psychological horror film, you really need to look past what is presented to you. It has symbolism deals with innocence and the loss of a loved one be it a mother or a lover. Both hurt just as hard and we are shown the permanent shards of it. The film, as experimental as it is, it makes sense. It does actually make sense. The characters show little development but it's granted with a film like this. It would have been a pretty impactful film if the characters overall have depth than just Gorgeous and Auntie. But Gorgeous and Auntie show enough depth to move the story forward through the destruction that the house does. It's merciless and it's meant to be that way. Life is merciless, it can take loved ones away and make you bitter against the world.

Three out of four tokes.

The iconic slasher film didn't have Jason Voorhees as the major character but the major catalyst in "Friday the 13th". Stupid teens were warned by locals to stay away from Camp Crystal lake. Shit happens and all of a sudden nobody knows what to do. A lot cool killings and a few were shown on camera. It looked very convincing. I wish the plot was a bit more convincing. It's a one-by-one cat and mouse game. But it's very entertaining overall. You get cool kills and witty conversations.

Two out of four tokes.

Diablo Cody teamed up with Karyn Kusama and they came up with a Twilight that was catered to emo/goth teens and alike, and lets face it, those who graduated from high school. It's called "Jennifer's Body" and it's about hot chick who becomes possessed after hanging with a band she was obsessed to see. She starts killing dudes from her high school and her best friend is trying to figure out what to do and she can't trust no one becomes no one takes her seriously which is pretty weird. I had problems with this film, such as character development especially with Needy's characters. Like, man, smarten up! These characters overall are dumb! I felt the film would have been better if that subplot of sexual tensions between the two major characters. I really like the cinematography of the film, they set up pretty good killing scenes, the visuals are not merciless. That's about it. I wished these characters weren't so much like "Juno" characters, but hey, it's Diablo Cody. She has great work overall.

Two and a half out of four tokes.

David Gordon Green co-wrote "The Exorcist: Believer" with Danny McBride but ultimately directed this attempt of horror that deals with spiritual/demonic possession. It's a subgenre that he hasn't been too. This film has a simple plot where overall kids skip school, go to the woods and decide to do a ritual and BOOM- possession. This film is a bit more more than what I just described. It lightly explores the whodonit scenario especially when you put parents in the mix. It all becomes about parents trying to save their kids. We see family dynamics and how it ties into their beliefs, or lack of. It's interesting that Green decided to put that out there because the whole film just becomes about locking themselves down, uniting all religions together practically, which the film goes into how all religions all have one goal, and try to get the demons out of their children themselves. It gets that real which to me is the highest mark of the film. The screenplay has so much room to play with but decided to stay a bit safe and relatable for our general audience. Even though it's quite different from the first film of this iconic franchise, it likes to reminds us from the music to the most iconic characters. Throughout, it gets melodramatic, almost too much to take serious but it's horror show, what more do I expect?

two out of four tokes.

John Singleton showed us 1991 America in less than two hours and he was relentless. The f-ed up part of it all is that even though it's a fictional film, what you see in the film happens everyday. What sucks even more is that it still happens to this day. This is my favorite film from this director who took a chance and he dragged us along with it and we can't look away. I talk about how impactful this film is through its subject matter of parenthood, growing up in tough & unpredictable neighborhoods, trying to survive in order to make out to have a better life. Not only that, it shows us that we have power especially if we stick together instead of killing each other. Why? It's a big and heavy slice of life that shape the characters. Such a simple plot that went all over LA but still kept it in the "hood". This is more than just a film of kids growing up, it's about being forced to grow up quicker just to stay alive for the next day and it's not guarranteed. Every person should see this film because it crosses barriers and it's realistic. You can laugh for one moment while eating a cheeseburger with your friends only to find out that you might be gone without finishing your meal. That's rough. But Singleton made it to be because that's how it can be. It's a dangerous film with dangerous writing and the incredible cast acted their asses off. You can run, but you can't hide. Know what you want, set course for it, and stick to it.

Four out of four tokes.