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Poltergeist, a review by Dragonfire

Poltergeist



"THEY'RE HERE," playful at first... but not for long. A storm erupts, a tree attacks and little Carol Anne Freeling is whisked into a spectral void. As her family confronts horrors galore, something else is 'here' too: a new benchmark in Hollywood ghost stories. Producers Steven Speilberg and Frank Marshall and director Tobe Hooper head the elite scream team of this classic. Welcome to Home Sweet 'Haunted' Home.

My Thoughts

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Poltergeist

(From Dragonfire's Halloween/Horror Marathon 2009 on October 28th, 2009)

Arsenic & Old Lace, a review by Dragonfire

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Arsenic and Old Lace

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I actually got this one for my mom for Christmas.  I watched it with her right after Christmas.  It was the first time I'd seen the movie.  I really didn't know much about the movie before watching it other than that Cary Grant was in it.  I did read the back of the case before we watched it.  I loved the movie and think it was a very well done comedy.  Some of what happens does get a bit crazy and silly, but it works for the movie.  It is based on a play, and some of the cast members are from the original run of the play on Broadway.  The movie does have a more limited setting, with most of it taking place in the large main room of a house in Brooklyn.

The plot is very entertaining and a lot happens even though it is confined to one Halloween when Mortimer and Elaine have just gotten married.  They return to Brooklyn to share the news with their families, and that is when the craziness starts.  Mortimer's brother Teddy still lives with their aunts - who raised them and their other brother Jonathan.  Teddy is..well...not all there you could say.  He thinks he is President Teddy Roosevelt and he talks to everyone like they are people Roosevelt would have worked with.  He doesn't just walk up the stairs to his room.  He yells charge and runs up the stairs, into his room, slamming the door behind him.  He plays a bugle at random times, night and day, which has many of the neighbors aggravated.  The family understands Teddy's issues and deals with them.  Mortimer discovers a dead body in the house, and he believes that Teddy finally completely flipped and killed the man, thinking he was fighting in battle or something.  The aunts - Abby and Martha - claim responsibility for the body and casually mention the other twelve buried in the basement.  The aunts have Teddy dig the graves, telling him it is the canal in Panama.  They are very calm about the situation while Mortimer freaks out, worrying how to deal with the situation in the best way for his family.  Then Jonathan returns home for the first time in years with his surgeon and accomplice Dr. Einstein.  Jonathan is a wanted criminal who, thanks to plastic surgery, looks like Boris Karloff.  The two men are trying to avoid the police and find a place to stash their own dead body.

A lot happens throughout the movie without making things too complicated.  Most of the movie takes place after Mortimer discovers the dead body and shows how he deals with an increasingly crazy situation.  The movie is a lot funnier than I expected it to be.  The way Teddy acts, yelling and racing up the stairs, is very funny.  Mortimer's reactions to what is going on is hilarious at times.  The entire situation is just a bit funny to begin with, and the humor continues throughout the movie.  The movies really isn't predictable and I was left wondering how a few things would work out.  The movie is very fun and entertaining overall, in a sort of twisted way.

The characters are wonderful and very entertaining.  Abby and Martha are such sweet, nice old ladies, yet they have killed thirteen men with poisoned wine.  They think they are doing something helpful for the men and don't understand why Mortimer is upset.  Teddy is harmless, though it is understandable why some neighbors are upset.  Jonathan has his own issues, but they have made him very violent and dangerous.  Even though they have killed all those men, the aunts just don't seem violent or threatening like Jonathan.  He's creepy and scary.  He gets very upset whenever anyone says that he looks like Boris Karloff.  Dr. Einstein is rather creepy as well.  Mortimer is a wonderful character who is struggling to deal with everything.  I love Cary Grant in the part.  For the most part, I've just seen him in more serious movies, though most of them have had a bit of humor in them as well.  This is the funniest I've seen him and I think he handles all the craziness, and the slapstick moments, very well.  Elaine isn't around as much, so she doesn't receive the same attention.

I loved this movie and am glad that I finally saw it.  I think it has held up well and is still well worth watching.



I did get a review posted at Epinions if anyone would like to take a look.

Arsenic and Old Lace

(From Marie's Random Movie Viewing on January 4th, 2012)

Angel Marathon, a review by addicted2dvd

4. I Fall to Pieces
Original Air Date: 10/26/1999
Angel aids a woman being stalked by a deranged surgeon who the unnatural ability to track the woman's every move with the aid of detachable body parts.

Guest Stars:
Elisabeth Rohm
Tushka Bergen
Andy Umberger
Carlos Carrasco

My Thoughts:
This is a good episode. Has an interesting storyline. And the effects were pretty cool as well. Seeing hands movie by themselves and an eyeball floating in the air. Of course Cordelia gets excited over the first money coming into the company. and Doyle still having the hots of Cordelia but can't bring himself to tell her.

My Rating:

(From Angel Marathon on February 24th, 2010)