Death Whisperer

FANCYING itself as Thailand’s answer to The Exorcist or Evil Dead, Death Whisperer is just your bog standard awkward Asian horror.

Directed by Taweewat Wantha, this tiresome film is formulaic, cliched and overstays its welcome like an unexpected visit from the mother-in-law.

Adapted from the novel Tee Yod… A Distant Voice Wails Madly by Krittanont, this absolute shambles is poorly acted, lacks suspense or atmosphere, and for the most part is totally lifeless.

In the film’s more thrilling scenes, which are few and far between, Sam Raimi is a clear influence, but it lacks structure, depth and a sense of humour.

Wantha’s film, now streaming on Netflix, wouldn’t be so painful, if it didn’t take itself so seriously. The cast is wooden, and the whole things seems nothing more than a vessel on which to build hunky leading man Nadech Kugimiya’s career around.

When a remote village is plagued by a deadly curse, Yak (Kugimiya) must fight to save his family from a bloodthirsty spirit.

Based on true events, the story is set around a rural farming family who finds itself under supernatural threat when second eldest daughter Yam (Rattanawadee Wontong) begins to act strange.

Things are really slow to get off the ground, and when they do, they escalate quickly, but by that point I was already struggling to stick with it. There’s a couple of gory scenes, even one or two chilling encounters worthy of Mr Raimi himself, but there’s more wailing and squawking than anything else.

I thought Death Whisperer would never end. It is excruciating and rather banal. But what do I know?

The film was a blockbuster smash in Thailand. So much so that a sequel is due for release by the end of the year. I will certainly be giving that a miss.

Despite some half decent effects, this one drags like overtime on a Monday night.

(2/5)

History of Evil

HISTORY of Evil, now streaming on Shudder, is a dystopian thriller set in the not too distant future where a fascist, God-fearing government has taken over the United States.

The debut feature from Bo Mirhosseni mixes genres to give us a haunted house horror with a dark vision of the world that we could soon find ourselves living in — sooner rather than later, if we remain on our current trajectory!

And while it all sounds lively enough on paper, it is for the most part dull and meandering.

For a film that comes off like a mixed assortment of The Hunger Games crossed with The Shining and The Amityville Horror, it is sadly one big infuriating muddle.

With the US plagued with war and corruption, turning it into a theocratic police state, ordinary citizens have hit back against the oppression and formed a group very originally called The Resistance.

Alegre Dyer (Jackie Cruz), History of Evil’s answer to Katniss Everdeen, is one such member who breaks out of political prison and reunites with her husband Ron (Paul Wesley) and daughter Daria (Murphee Bloom).

On the run from the militia, the family takes shelter in a remote safe house, which they are told most people are too frightened to come near. But their journey is far from over, as the house’s dark past begins to eat away at Ron, and his earnest desire to keep his family safe is overtaken by something much more sinister.

The house, as it happens, is haunted by a white racist – a real good old boy who, in life, was a member of the KKK. He comes off like the country cousin of LIoyd, the bartender from The Shining, who manages to get under Ron’s skin and makes him believe that his family needs ‘correcting’.

Unfortunately, the best ideas here are borrowed from much stronger material, and what we are ultimately left with is a poorly executed shambles.

(1/5)

Brooklyn 45

WRITTEN and directed by Ted Geoghegan, Brooklyn 45 comes across as equal parts Poirot-style drawing-room mystery and ghostly horror, in the vein of The Old Dark House, with a sprinkling of Evil Dead carnage for good measure.

This beautifully lit chamber piece brings five military veterans together on Friday December 27, 1945, in the ornate parlour of a Brooklyn brownstone. Emotionally damaged and physically scarred from the horrors of World War Two, the five friends are each haunted in their own ways and all fighting a great internal battle.

Peacetime is a definite struggle for them, and the notion of life without conflict seems a bridge too far.

Best friends since childhood, they’ve reunited to support their troubled host Lt Col Clive Huckstatter (Larry Fessenden) – but when his invitation for cocktails turns into an impromptu séance, the metaphoric ghosts of their past become all too literal.

Trapped in their host’s lounge, the ‘greatest generation’ now finds themselves put to one final test, and the only route to freedom is more bloodshed.

Geoghegan goes for a classic Hollywood feel, which comes off at times as overly sedate, and the director struggles to build up any real sense of tension or to create a claustrophobic atmosphere to draw the viewer in.

Anne Ramsay is the star of the show as famed Nazi interrogator Maria Sheridan and keeps the film from falling flat on its face on numerous occasions.

Brooklyn 45’s biggest flaw is trying to be all things to all people. It might have made for a good-old fashioned murder mystery or ghostly caper, but the combination of both, together with all too stiff-necked performances, poorly pixlelated spectres, and the element of gory horror, takes the good out of it on every level.

New to Shudder, Geoghegan’s latest proves to be a disappointing hodgepodge that adds way too many ingredients to its ‘old skool’ broth.

(3/5)

Evil Dead Rise

WRITTEN and directed by Irish filmmaker Lee Cronin, Evil Dead Rise is the fifth instalment in the iconic horror franchise.

And despite the fact that Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell’s only involvement is as executive producers, it still proves a more than worthy addition to the cult favourite’s fiendish cannon of contorted delights.

The film stars Lily Sullivan (I Met a Girl), Alyssa Sutherland (Vikings), Morgan Davies (Storm Boy), Gabrielle Echols (Reminiscence), and Nell Fisher (Northspur), in one of the most gratifyingly grotesque cinematic experiences of the year.

This is a twisted and blood-filled tale of two estranged sisters, Beth (Sullivan) and Ellie (Sutherland), in which the action moves from a cabin in the woods to a poorly-lit and rundown city apartment block for a family reunion from hell.

The first sequel in a decade, Evil Dead Rise is definitely not one for the faint of heart or those with a squeamish disposition. But for fans of the series, well, you ‘deadite’-loving freaks, are in for one demented rollercoaster ride that should more than sate your devilish aberrations.

What Cronin’s film lacks in wacky humour and a melee of gonzo terror-stricken nightmare scenarios, he makes up for with an intensely heart-racing gore-fest, which leaves the big screen awash in gallons and gallons of blood for its 97-minute running-time.

The director tips his hat along the way to the original Evil Dead films, the master of the dark arts Stephen King and Spanish zombie franchise Rec. But this visceral and fast-paced horror extravaganza, which will leave you reeling in breathlessness, looks like it was shot through the chum bucket from Jaws.

Evil Dead Rise is a complete bloodbath — a nightmarish family reunion where flesh-possessing demons gatecrash the get-together and hurls everyone in their path into a primal battle for survival.

There will be blood, bucketloads of it, so buckle up and ready yourself for the not to be missed horror spectacle of the year.

(4/5)

Nightbooks

‘NIGHTBOOKS‘, a film that the kiddies should get a massive kick out of this Halloween, is now lurking in a dark corner over on Netflix.

Directed by David Yarovesky, it tells the story of a young boy obsessed with scary stories that gets trapped in a witch’s magical apartment. Of course, the major selling point with this murky children’s fantasy is the fact it was produced by the legendary Sam Raimi.

And Raimi’s influence hangs heavy in the latter stages of the film, especially during the forest scenes, where his cult horror ‘Evil Dead‘ series is venerated in every frame.

But don’t worry, Yarovesky’s film is sugar-coated to teeth-rotting levels for younger audiences and, if anything, seems to owe more to ‘Harry Potter‘ than ‘Ashy Slashy‘.

Alex (Winslow Fegley), is a creative kid with a gift for writing spine-tingling scary stories, but he lacks many of the social graces needed to make new friends. Nicknamed ‘Creepshow‘ by his classmates, Alex instead becomes lost in a world of goblins and ghouls, penning his own ghastly tales like a young Stephen King.

But after one rejection too many, things take a darker turn for young Alex and his nightmarish fantasies become his frightening reality when he is trapped by the wicked witch Natacha (Krysten Ritter), who is more pantomime enchantress than horror show sorceress.

Also trapped in her otherworldly pad is Yasmin (Lidya Jewett), a young prisoner who has learned to survive the witch’s wicked whims.

With Yasmin’s help, Alex must learn to embrace his weirdness, the thing that makes him unique, because if he doesn’t, they will have no chance to escape Natacha’s evil clutches.

‘Nightbooks‘ is full of cheap thrills and fairytale curiosity, which is sure to delight young audiences this Halloween.

Yarovesky, however, doesn’t break any moulds, and plays it safe for the most part. Still, the little homage to Sam Raimi towards the end is a nice touch, and the film’s message of embracing your weirdness and being yourself, has to be applauded.

(3/5)