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CollectionsJudging from my other reviews, you would not think that horror films would be my thing, especially very gory ones. Actually aim to have a diverse taste in film, so seeing films from all decades and genres with no bias intended. Plus have seen my fair share of horror franchises where at least one film has been good.
Personally quite enjoyed the first two 'Wrong Turn' films, they weren't perfect or great but had a lot to recommend. The same cannot be said for 'Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead', it contributed towards the 'Wrong Turn' series' decline and is one of the worst of the worst 'Wrong Turn' films. Its least bad assets are Tom Frederic, who at least tries, and moments of creepiness in the music when it wasn't being intrusive or discordant.
The rest of the cast are poor, they accentuate that their very sketchily developed characters are either bland, obnoxious or both and impossible to care for. Plus there are some extremely variable accents going on. Tamer Hassan is the biggest dishonourable mention here. While the script may not have been strong suits as such in the previous two films, they at least had moments. The writing here was just pure stilted clichéd cheese, nothing witty here.
While the stories were not perfect in the previous two films, being derivative and simplistic and the second film did have some dodgy moments in the first half too, they at least had atmosphere. Especially the first, where there was a lot of fun, tension-building, suspenseful claustrophobia and mystery that weren't quite as strongly delivered in the second (which still had atmosphere).
Story here also makes the mistake of being formulaic and over-simplified, and further suffers from having none of what made the previous two films work. Everything is just too cheap, too safe, too predictable and too clean. It had a decent premise to work from, but starts dull, un-scary and dumb and stays like that all the way instead of doing the thankful 180 that the second film did.
Visually, there is nothing slick, professional, inventive or atmospheric here. Particularly bad in this regard is the visual effects, the only thing that scary about them is how risible they are. The direction has no personality or professionalism of any kind, there isn't a sense of understanding the genre or how to overcome a less than lavish budget.
Overall, a series that started off promisingly takes a deadly downturn for the worst. 2/10 Bethany Cox
A deadly downturn
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 12:03
(A review of Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead)
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The series is not yet dead
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:59
(A review of Wrong Turn 2: Dead End)Judging from my other reviews, you would not think that horror films would be my thing, especially very gory ones. Actually aim to have a diverse taste in film, so seeing films from all decades and genres with no bias intended. Plus have seen my fair share of horror franchises where at least one film has been good.
Found myself surprisingly enjoying 'Wrong Turn' when slowly working my way through the films. The second film, and first sequel, 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' is not quite as good but is easily one of the better sequels and films in the series and perhaps the only one of the sequels to be nearly equal to the first. 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' is bloodier and gorier than 'Wrong Turn', with the in-jokes, one-liners and put-downs the dialogue is wittier and less cheesy than that in 'Wrong Turn' and it is just as fun. The ending also works better here, it is contrived somewhat but at least there is much more of a sense of a film-knowing-how-to-end-it ending.
At the same time, 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' does lack the tension-building, suspenseful claustrophobia and mystery of the first film and it is let down by some of the first half being dull and dumb with some of the dialogue being too self-conscious. The story is as simplistic and derivative and the characters as thinly sketched as before.
Things pick up significantly in the second half, where things become more thrilling, inventive, fun and skin-crawling. Visually, it is imaginatively and slickly shot if not quite as atmospheric as the first film due to times of being too clean. The setting is wonderfully mysterious and creepy and the effects and make-up are as appropriately horrifying as one would expect. The music has some genuine eeriness and Joe Lynch directs very competently with little time wasted after a slightly too overlong beginning.
Despite the lack of development for the characters, the acting is not bad at all. Henry Rollins and Erica Leerhsen are especially well-cast and are just as ballsy as the three leads in the first film.
Overall, decently solid and shows that the 'Wrong Turn' series is not yet dead. A dead end this is not. 6/10 Bethany Cox
Found myself surprisingly enjoying 'Wrong Turn' when slowly working my way through the films. The second film, and first sequel, 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' is not quite as good but is easily one of the better sequels and films in the series and perhaps the only one of the sequels to be nearly equal to the first. 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' is bloodier and gorier than 'Wrong Turn', with the in-jokes, one-liners and put-downs the dialogue is wittier and less cheesy than that in 'Wrong Turn' and it is just as fun. The ending also works better here, it is contrived somewhat but at least there is much more of a sense of a film-knowing-how-to-end-it ending.
At the same time, 'Wrong Turn 2: Dead End' does lack the tension-building, suspenseful claustrophobia and mystery of the first film and it is let down by some of the first half being dull and dumb with some of the dialogue being too self-conscious. The story is as simplistic and derivative and the characters as thinly sketched as before.
Things pick up significantly in the second half, where things become more thrilling, inventive, fun and skin-crawling. Visually, it is imaginatively and slickly shot if not quite as atmospheric as the first film due to times of being too clean. The setting is wonderfully mysterious and creepy and the effects and make-up are as appropriately horrifying as one would expect. The music has some genuine eeriness and Joe Lynch directs very competently with little time wasted after a slightly too overlong beginning.
Despite the lack of development for the characters, the acting is not bad at all. Henry Rollins and Erica Leerhsen are especially well-cast and are just as ballsy as the three leads in the first film.
Overall, decently solid and shows that the 'Wrong Turn' series is not yet dead. A dead end this is not. 6/10 Bethany Cox
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A worthwhile turn
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:53
(A review of Wrong Turn)Judging from my other reviews, you would not think that horror films would be my thing, especially very gory ones. Actually aim to have a diverse taste in film, so seeing films from all decades and genres with no bias intended. Plus have seen my fair share of horror franchises where at least one film has been good.
Found myself surprisingly enjoying 'Wrong Turn' when slowly working my way through the films. Despite the mixed to negative critical reception, to me flaws and all it is the best of the 'Wrong Turn' films by quite some way, was less impressed with the sequels. It doesn't get everything completely right, but it is a long way from a wrong turn and is instead a worthwhile one.
'Wrong Turn' is in terms of story simplistic and derivative admittedly. It also has thinly sketched characters, cheesy dialogue and a run-out-of-ideas ending. A longer length would definitely have helped, there were times where the film's duration felt too brief. So those are reasons enough to dislike the film and consider it bad.
However, quite a lot is done right in 'Wrong Turn' as well. It has a slick and atmospheric visual look and has a wonderfully mysterious and creepy setting. The make-up is also well done. One of 'Wrong Turn's' biggest stars is the special effects, which send a chill down the spine in how realistically horrifying they are.
The music score is suitably eerie and Rob Schmidt adeptly pays tribute to 1970s exploitation cinema. While the story may not be perfect in how it's executed, it really does deliver on the creepy mood, the gruesome shocks and also the fun. There is a lot of gore here but mostly it is not used in a cheap way, there are times where it is not needed but generally the mood isn't compromised.
Despite the lack of development for the characters, the acting is not bad at all. Desmond Harrington, Eliza Dushku and Emmanuelle Chriqui in fact give pretty ballsy performances.
In conclusion, worthwhile. 6/10 Bethany Cox
Found myself surprisingly enjoying 'Wrong Turn' when slowly working my way through the films. Despite the mixed to negative critical reception, to me flaws and all it is the best of the 'Wrong Turn' films by quite some way, was less impressed with the sequels. It doesn't get everything completely right, but it is a long way from a wrong turn and is instead a worthwhile one.
'Wrong Turn' is in terms of story simplistic and derivative admittedly. It also has thinly sketched characters, cheesy dialogue and a run-out-of-ideas ending. A longer length would definitely have helped, there were times where the film's duration felt too brief. So those are reasons enough to dislike the film and consider it bad.
However, quite a lot is done right in 'Wrong Turn' as well. It has a slick and atmospheric visual look and has a wonderfully mysterious and creepy setting. The make-up is also well done. One of 'Wrong Turn's' biggest stars is the special effects, which send a chill down the spine in how realistically horrifying they are.
The music score is suitably eerie and Rob Schmidt adeptly pays tribute to 1970s exploitation cinema. While the story may not be perfect in how it's executed, it really does deliver on the creepy mood, the gruesome shocks and also the fun. There is a lot of gore here but mostly it is not used in a cheap way, there are times where it is not needed but generally the mood isn't compromised.
Despite the lack of development for the characters, the acting is not bad at all. Desmond Harrington, Eliza Dushku and Emmanuelle Chriqui in fact give pretty ballsy performances.
In conclusion, worthwhile. 6/10 Bethany Cox
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Guardians of the Galaxy review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:42
(A review of Guardians of the Galaxy)The soundtrack that makes the movie! All of these songs on this vinyl copy are gold. A great mix of classic pop/rock and soul.
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Bad review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:25
(A review of Bad)Sounds absolutely stunning! I picked this up because I’ve heard great things about the first issue. The bass on this it absolutely thrilling! I honestly couldn’t believe it! I know there were a lot of copies of those pressed but at some point in the future this will be a very sought after album. Years from now all the master tables will be rotten and disintegrated. And people will realize that digital music is throwaway crap. And for CDs… well nobody cares about a CD right lol
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Blade Runner review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:22
(A review of Blade Runner )Amazing soundtrack, definitely one of the best productions by Vangelis, it's powerful, emotional , relaxing, touching, uplifting, melancholic, and musically very surprising, beautiful melodies , Excellent work!!!
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Thriller: 25th Anniversary Edition review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:18
(A review of Thriller: 25th Anniversary Edition)I came across this album without 1 recording, was only the entry with the mixes. Although it was completely sealed! :-)
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Invincible review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:11
(A review of Invincible)This album proved that MJ was NOT Invincible! The 2001 production aesthetic did not suit MJ's voice nor style. Would have been nice if MJ made a "retro" album at this point in his career, instead of trying to appeal to such a young audience.
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Dangerous review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:08
(A review of Dangerous)Can anyone say is it worth it to sell my Europe original 2xLP and buy this one, the original US 2xLP ? Is there a difference in sound at all worth the upgrade? any comments welcome!
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HIStory: Past, Present and Future - Book I review
Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago on 3 March 2022 11:05
(A review of HIStory: Past, Present and Future - Book I)That second disc, man... probably one of my all time favorite MJ albums. It's incredibly dark overall and really reflects the deep turmoil he was being put through at the time. Songs like "Scream", "This Time Around" and "D.S." were some of the rawest, angriest material he's ever put out (on this album at least, "Morphine" from Blood on the Dance Floor was a great example of this too) and I respect him for that. I feel like these kinds of songs expressed a very emotional side of Michael that had never been seen before. Of course, there's also some other great tracks on here like his incredible cover of the Beatles "Come Together" which he performed at the end of the Moonwalker short film. The title track is a masterpiece and I love the mellow, somber atmosphere that "Stranger in Moscow" provokes. Michael Jackson was and always will be an array of genius, talent, and authenticity, both in his music and personality.
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