I was sort of tricked by Amazon Instant into watching this one. It was listed under Horror, but it is more of a Movie of the Week type Thriller. It stars Mary Steenburgen, who you might recognize from her many roles in other movies, such as Back to the Future 3 and Step Brothers.
She stars as a struggling actress who takes a gig where she must audition in a reclusive house where a snow storm hits.
They say she is perfect for the part because she looks so much like the lead actress in the film who stormed off the set. Long story short, it turns out the two men who got her there are using her as a pawn in a blackmail scheme. There is some legit tension in the movie, but overall it is mostly a bust.
I suggest skipping this one.
The Sacrement
Ti West's newest film is a take on religious cults. A crew from Vice magazine/website go to visit one of the crew member's sister, a drug addict who has found clean living with a secretive religious group. It is filmed entirely in documentary style, which works for the most part. I am usually not a huge fan of this "found footage" type of movie, but there isn't much shaky cam as most of the shots are set up by the crew.
They have to go into the 3rd world somewhere to get to the camp, where initially everything seems peachy keen. The whole thing is lead by this guy:
A charismatic SOB, as most cult leaders are. Well, the back stories of the characters are pretty tenuous, as the whole film seems more focused on creating a long tension then anything else. It does this very well, and when things finally go south, the craziness ensues. The one other funny thing about this movie is that even though it is found footage, it has a soundtrack. Now again, I like the soundtrack, and it really adds to the atmosphere, but where the heck did it come from? This one is on Netflix, and I recommend checking it out if the found footage angle doesn't bug you.
Shivers
A recent addition to Netflix, this is David Cronenberg's first feature film. So, Cronenberg loves making movies about sexual and body issues. Both are present here in a big way.
This takes place in a living community which is isolated form the surrounding community. A mysterious murder/suicide kicks things off, as a nefarious plot is uncovered. Turns out the Scientist who committed suicide had developed a parasite that infects humans and causes them to be sex crazed, murderous fiends. The girl he killed was infected, but had also been spreading the parasite around unbeknownst to anyone.
There are good effects that are really gross and creepy. Another trademark that Cronenberg is known for. The parasites are basically like large worms. We get to seem them slithering around outside of the body some, but also crawling within the bellies of the victims. They tend to get in through your mouth, but they also find other ways as well...
Yeah, gross. The local Doctor becomes the hero, along with his nurse/girlfriend. As most of the complex becomes infected, they have to defend themselves from the oncoming hordes. I really enjoyed this one, even though it is a little rough around the edges, being Cronenberg's first. Recommended!
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