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Crimson Peak, a review by Danae Cassandra

Crimson Peak
Year of Release: 2015
Directed By: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Hunnam, Jim Beaver
Genre: Romance, Horror

Overview:My Thoughts:
This is a wonderful gothic romance in a very old-school Hammer Films kind of way, with its horror flavored in Poe and Lovecraft.  It's a visually gorgeous film, with fabulous production design, Victorian styling, and a luscious use of color.  The reds are very rich, the blacks deep, the whites bright, the contrast high.  One might call the color almost oversaturated, as rich as it is.  If they recognize nothing else, the Academy ought to nominate for costume design.  I know they have a history of disdain for genre films, but at least the costumes ought to get a nod.

I enjoyed the story, but it is pretty typical tragic gothic romance, so if you know the tropes you won't be surprised.  I still liked the story, and I thought the creepy atmosphere the film developed was great.  Aside from the beautiful quality of the entire film, the other thing saving it is the superb performances.  Del Toro really brought forth great characters for these actors to work with, and they don't disappoint.  Especially Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain, who really carry the film.  Mia Wasikowska does well with her part, but she doesn't have the meat the other two do, and therefore doesn't stand out like they do. 

I'd recommend this if you like Del Toro's oeuvre, or you enjoy Poe, Lovecraft, Anne Rice, or Hammer Films.  Don't go into this thinking it's a straight horror film, or traditional haunted house film - it's definitely not and if that's what you're looking for, you're going to be disappointed.  I loved this film.  I think it might be my favorite of everything I've watched this month. 

Bechdel Test: Pass

Overall: 4/5

2015 Horror Movie Count: 14

(From Horror/Halloween Marathon 2015 on October 30th, 2015)

Repo Man, a review by KinkyCyborg

Repo Man



Title:Repo Man
Year: 1984
Director: Alex Cox
Rating: R
Length: 92 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
Harry Dean Stanton
Emilio Estevez
Tracey Walter
Olivia Barash
Sy Richardson

Plot:
The explosive, action-packed cult classic returns in this all-new special edition. Emilio Estevez and Harry Dean Stanton star as "repo men" who get caught up in a series of bizarre adventures involving G-men, a nuclear scientist, UFO cultists and revolutionaries. Put your seat belt on and enjoy the wild ride in this groundbreaking, punk-rock, sci-fi black comedy with all-new bonus materials!

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes


First time watching this movie which has achieved cult status but count me out as a faithful follower as I thought it was cheesy (not in a good way), ridiculous and unsure of what it wanted to be. I did like how everything was so generic in this seemingly alternate world. I got a good laugh when Estevez started to eat out of the tin can labeled FOOD. 

Emilio was so young in this movie. Where the hell has he disappeared to? 

KC

Rating:

(From KinkyCyborg's Random Reviews 2011 on July 23rd, 2011)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: The Defiant follows a distress signal of a woman whose ship was destroyed. Her escape pod made it to a planet but it can barely sustain life. The Defiant has six days to reach her before she dies. While they try to reach her the crew of the Defiant talks to her because she's alone out there and scared. Meanwhile Quark tries to pursuade Odo to celebrate his and Kira's first month anniversary in order to sell some illegal goods when Odo is distracted.

My Opinion: This was a well-told episode. I really liked the idea that everyone got the chance to talk about the things that were laying heavily on their mind. And I also really liked how Odo let Quark get away with his scheme because Quark has helped him with Kira.

Synopsis: Starfleet has decided to abandon their defensive strategy and strike back against the Dominion. Sisko develops a plan in which a combined fleet of Starfleet, the Klingons and the Romulans attack the Chin'toka system on cardassian soil. But Sisko also gets a warning from the Prophets that he shouldn't leave DS9 in this critical time. And right they were: Dukat is back and he has found a way to attack the wormhole beings directly.

My Opinion: They killed Jadzia! I find it often hard to see someone leaving a show. I can accept it when it's due to dramaturgical reasons, because it was necessary. But I hate it when it's due to financial issues. And while the battle scenes were great again I also hated the author's decision that it was an error on Sisko's side to be a Starfleet officer instead of the Emissary.

The Season - My Opinion: All in all this was a great season. The number of episodes I didn't care for is on an all-time low. Unfortunately it won't go on this way. The death of Jadzia marked a turning point for me and from now on it will go downhill. There are just too many developments in the seventh season I don't like.

(From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon on February 28th, 2009)