Charles W Jones

In The Final Scream (2019), Kia Anderson is desperate to make her debut in the film world. While she can’t land a role, she doesn’t give up, turning to an online service her agent warned her not to use, getting a part she’s been dying for. This film has a prolonged start, well, almost to the end. However, the creators did throw in some fun scenes to break up the boredom. When the action finally started, I was impressed with the depravity that Scott Jeffrey filmed. From that point, I was glad that it wasn’t a run-of-the-mill survival film. The way the story was woven from the start was genius, making the final scenes more hard-hitting. The gore level was good, as was the creepiness. The Final Scream is a film that shouldn’t be overlooked, and I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. The Final Scream (2019) #LastGirl #Horror Click To Tweet

Day 13 (2020) reminded me of Rear Window (1954) and Disturbia (2007), with the guy watching the creepy house across the street and seeing things in the windows. I almost turned it off, but I didn’t. While it does resemble the films above, it’s not a direct duplicate. Colton, the voyeur, does see things happening in the house across the street; he thinks the girl’s father is abusing her. He falls for her when he meets Heather and promises to help her. Well, as typical cat and mouse films go, this one was at least creepy and kept me guessing what was going to happen next. Then the ending sequences show that what Colton thought was happening wasn’t. The man who adopted Heather wasn’t exactly abusing her. Day 13 had a great twist ending that I didn’t see coming, and I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. Day 13 (2020) #Unexpected #Thriller Click To Tweet

X (2022) is a typical slasher. However, it took too long to get to the action and focused more on porn. I get it. Slashers have a tendency to be tied to sex, and that’s what this film was about, but they at least could’ve done some stabby-stabby during those scenes. I found it a little weird for Brittany Snow to be in the role she was in, but I adjusted. The other actor I recognized was Martin Henderson; he was on Grey’s Anatomy for a minute. The rest of the cast was unknown to me, and I enjoyed their performances. The house reminded me of the one from Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and at any moment, I expected a child of the elderly couple to jump out and do the killing; that didn’t happen. When the kills did start, I was happy with the gore quantity.  I just wish they hadn’t waited until the last 30 minutes to get to it. Even with X taking so long to launch, I had a good time and gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. X (2022) #slasher #horror Click To Tweet

Studio 666 (2022) started strong; too bad it didn’t keep me entranced. As I watched, I kept thinking, Are the Foo Fighters still a thing? I’m sure I’ve heard their music on the radio, but for the life of me, I couldn’t tell you the title of one. And when they appeared on the screen, I had no idea who they were, except that they were not actors. Supposedly it’s a horror comedy, but it felt like a bad plug for the band, and no, they are not actors. Maybe, that’s where the comedy part came from. At one point, about halfway through this super-long movie (106 minutes felt like a decade), I stopped watching it because Dave Grohl was too annoying. I did come back to it a day later to finish it. The gore was the best part of the film. I haven’t seen so much fake blood in a movie in quite a while; everything is too thinky (I know it’s not a word) lately, which I have come to realize is probably because of the same generation who is trying to cancel the thumbs-up emoji. Get over yourselves. Hor...

Raven’s Hollow (2022) is about events that happened to Edgar Allan Poe while he was a cadet in West Point and the alleged inspiration for The Raven. I’m a Poe fan to the point of his written works. I do not go past that. I know little about his life except that he was haunted and had a drug problem. (I think that’s right.) There wasn’t a blurb I remember seeing at the beginning that said this was based on a true story, so I am taking it as 100% fiction. The darkness in this film was extraordinary and wonderful. Everything from what the cadets find and going to Raven’s Hallow is creepy. When we meet the townsfolk, there’s a sinister edge that I’ve been craving. What confused me was that Poe became Sherlock Holmes investigating a man’s murder. It just seemed strange for him, but I’ll let it slide since this is fiction. The set is beautiful and dark. The creature is frightening. I also tip my hat to the story references throughout the film. Then there’s the ending. I had a hard time ...

The Initiation (1984) is about Kelly going through hell week to join a sorority. Meanwhile, she’s had reoccurring nightmares since childhood and is working with Peter to do dream analysis. To get into the sorority, she and the remaining pledges must get into her father’s department store (it looked like a Mall to me)  and steal the guard’s uniform. Well, the prank goes amock when Kelly gets locked inside by the head sorority sister, Megan.  I complain about modern movies dragging on, and I must mention this one does too, but not for long. There are several scenes where nothing happens besides revealing a layer of information needed to understand what is happening. (Yes, that’s my excuse for it in this movie.) The kills are good, with a good amount of 80s blood flowing. The jump scares are fun and made me giggle because I fell for them. Then when everything ties together, it’s fantastic to know that Kelly isn’t crazy as I thought, and the killer wasn’t who I thought either. The...

Beyond the Door (1974) also has the names Who are you? and Devil Within Her . There’s also a movie called The Devil Within Her (1976), aka I Don’t Want to Be Born, starring Joan Collins that is very similar. As the film began, the first thing that came to mind was who fucked up Dimitri’s beard? Seriously. Who did that? Hair and makeup did a number on it, and in every scene he was present, I was drawn to it. That aside, Beyond the Door is said to be a cheap knock-off of The Exorcist (1973), and I can see the resemblance. The children are exceptional. I love the totally unfiltered approach to parenting. I wished I could say what they did when I was their age. Another thing of note is the product placement. It’s not uncommon to see Coke or Pringles in a movie, but this movie took putting products in scenes to the extreme. Where would E.T. be without Reese’s Pieces? I paused the movie for a minute to Google one called Salad Cream. The possession effects are very similar to ...

The Prowler (1981) starts with a flashback to the World War II era with a couple getting impaled by a pitchfork by an unknown killer while on lover’s lane. Due to this event, the Graduation Dance has been canceled for forty years.  The best part of this film is that I didn’t have to wait for the stabby-stabby to begin. The downside, but since it’s a slasher, it’s expected, is that nothing was out of the ordinary. The gore and the chases and the suspense had all been done in Friday the Thirteenth I (1980) & II (1981) and My Bloody Valentine (1981), making me wonder if this was a knock-off. The unmasking of the killer was fun, at least. The scene was intense and exciting. Then it ended with a hallucination.  No matter what I said above, The Prowler is an excellent slasher with tons of great jump scares and gore. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. The Prowler (1981) #OneFromTheVaults #Horror #Slasher Click To Tweet

Witchery (1988) aka La Casa 4 – Witchcraft in Italy) has an interesting cast, including David Hasselhoff and Linda Blair. That’s not where the strangeness ends for this film. It’s set at a hotel on a remote island where Gary and his girlfriend Leslie are researching the lore around it. It has moments where I thought it was going to be like The Shining (1980); the next thing I know, it’s like The Watcher In The Woods (1980). Now that I think about it, it’s a combination of both but not as good. The Lady in Black looks a lot like Mrs. Aylwood. I hope you understand what I’m getting at; it’s not original. There are very bizarre aspects that I always love in a film, but this one didn’t hit the mark for me. The kills, voodoo, and gore were good, so that’s saying something for this film. Too bad it’s not enough to make me love it. Oh, yeah, one more thing, Linda Blair is possessed. Witchery isn’t that great, but I gave it 3 out of 5 Stars. Witchery (1988) #Haunted #Horror Click To Tweet...

They/Them (2022) brings LGBTQ+ horror to the front in this strangely delightful slasher. While it has some great stabby-stabby scenes, it’s not very frightening. That’s because Blumhouse seems to make so much horror-lite content anymore that I can’t remember being scared. It takes place in an LGBTQ+ conversion camp run by Owen Whistler (Kevin Bacon); I’m so glad he plays an asshole well. And while the psychological aspect of being in a place like that freaks me the fuck out, there really wasn’t much to be afraid of. The most sadistic conversion technique was leaving them in the woods overnight, which wasn’t really that bad since I’ve been camping many times. The suspenseful moments were constant, with little follow-through. At least the few slasher scenes were good. The reveal was good, but I wish they would’ve waited just a little longer to show the killer and their reasons. They/Them isn’t the worst Blumhouse film I’ve seen, and I was actually satisfied with what I saw. I gave it 3.5...

Mountaintop Motel Massacre (1983) is about Evelyn, who sneaks through tunnels under cabins to kill people after she killed her daughter for doing witchcraft. I have so many questions about this film that didn’t get answered. The biggest one is why Evelyn was triggered when she caught Lorie practicing witchcraft? Mixed with the blandness that lingers for a bit too long from time to time are some great kill scenes. The effects in this low-budget gem are excellent, which surprised me a bit, as did the acting prowess. Anna Chappell (Evelyn) is fantastic in the role, and I can’t imagine anyone better. Each kill is different, making me cheer for Evelyn’s creativity. Too bad the reason for her mental instability was never clear, so I couldn’t wrap my head around the why. Then again, does there have to be a why? Mountaintop Motel Massacre is a clever slasher that shouldn’t be ignored. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. Mountaintop Motel Massacre (1983) #Lost80s #Slasher #Horror Click To Tweet

All About Evil (2010) has been on my watch list for a while, and I’ve never gotten around to watching it, and now that I have, I wish I could remember why I wanted to see it. Oddly, the cast is impressive. Too bad the acting is beyond any B-Movie Elvira hosted and not in a good way. Speaking of Elvira, I got a kick from how Linda, Steven’s mom, eyeballed Elvira’s poster when he told her he was into older women because Linda is Cassandra Peterson. The other good parts of the film were Vera and Veda. I wish they had the same dresses as the twins from The Shining (1980). The tongue-in-cheek use of horror greats was entertaining, though it did get a little old as the movie progressed. At least the free-flowing blood kept it from getting over-the-top (maybe, sarcasm, maybe not). All About Evil is so bad it’s good, and I don’t regret seeing it. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. All About Evil (2010) #RealHorror Click To Tweet

After seeing the Netflix series, I decided it was time to binge the films. Films based on video games can be hit or miss, but this franchise made it work, kinda. Having never played the game and never will, I wonder a little what it’s like. A friend told me it’s phenomenal.  The Netflix series felt like fan fiction, but that’s OK. I really enjoyed it, unlike the redundant films. Resident Evil (2002) is the beginning of it all. I’ve seen it several times, and I’m unsure why I’ve never talked about it before. Honestly, I still don’t know what’s going on. It’s all bizarre but awesome at the same time. The effects are good for 2002, and the action is higher than the horror. Alice has flashbacks that fill in the blanks to how the film started.  Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) kind of picks up where the last left off, but it shows the T-virus has spread outside. It’s a lot of chaos with the infected everywhere. And the introduction to tons of new cast members. It’s a little confusi...

The Crawlers (1990) is an environmental horror cheese-fest also known as Troll 3, Creepers, or Contamination.7. There’s some discrepancy about the release date, some databases say 1990 while others say 1993, so I gave it the benefit of the doubt and went with 1990. It revolves around a small town that has mysterious deaths that no one can figure out until the EPA comes to save the day. The acting is what you’d expect from a 1980s direct-to-video film, even though this was filmed in 1990 and at times was quite comical. The screaming, though, was amazing. The effects, well, aren’t the best, but hey, The Crawlers is low-budget so my expectations shouldn’t have been set so high. The anticipation of the tree roots attacking people kept me on the edge of my seat as I waited for the next person to fall victim to their nefarious plan; I guess the toxic waste made them sentient too. The Crawlers could’ve been much worse and I actually enjoyed it, giving it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. The Crawlers (1990...

Uninvited (1988) starts in a laboratory with scientists doing experiments on a cat. Mr. Kitty isn’t happy and attacks. It maneuvers its way out of the lab and into the world outside. The story after is a bit of reach. It does come together better when a group of teenagers joins a multi-millionaire, Walter, on his yacht, and, of course, the cat that Suzanne adopts and insists it come along. The hysterics in this film are outstanding, as is the cat, though the soundtrack makes it meow way too much (like at home for me). The effects of the mutant cat that comes out of Mr. Kitty aren’t the worst I’ve seen from this decade. I just wish they would’ve shown it more. There’s blood that flows but not enough for this type of film. At least, the acting is exactly what I expect from an 80s horror. And back to the storyline. So much of it was disjointed and didn’t make sense even when they were on the yacht, but that didn’t stop me from loving it; it was just stupid. Uninvited didn’t always make se...

Doom Asylum (1988) stars Kristin Davis of Sex and the City fame, and oddly it’s the same character. Oh what to say about this one. Well, it starts with a man and a woman in a car wreck, and she dies. For whatever reason, they think he’s dead too, and he wakes in autopsy. This is where I should’ve turned it off and not invested the time to see what happens next because my expectations weren’t low enough. The girl punk band could’ve been grittier, but at least the confrontation between them and the group of friends was hysterical. The killings were fun, making me happy that I didn’t stop after the first five minutes. I just don’t understand the why behind Mitch doing it. And what was with his makeup? My favorite kill was Jane’s (Kristin Davis); she was super annoying. Besides the cheese and gore, there isn’t much to Doom Asylum. Wait, isn’t that all it needs? I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. Doom Asylum (1988) #80sCheese #Horror Click To Tweet

Death Valley (2021) had a flow problem that confused me. It started with two men and a woman running through a tunnel to escape something chasing them. Only one man escaped, locking the other two inside to face the monster. Then suddenly we’re in a forest with a group of rescuers fighting for their life against a militia.  So much time was spent in the woods that I was really confused about what was happening until two survivors find the hatch to the underground research facility. Still, I didn’t understand the militia until much later in the film. There is a definite Alien (1979) influence in this film, which isn’t a bad thing. The monsters are nicely done and frightening. What they are is fascinating and amazing and how they came to be is even better. The twist surprised me, I wasn’t expecting it and that is when the militia made sense. Death Valley is a good SciFi Horror that should be watched at least once. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. Death Valley (2021) #SciFi #Horror Click ...

Sweet Sixteen (1983) has a feel similar to Sleepaway Camp (1983). It stars Dana Kimmel of Friday the Thirteenth fame and a cast of other familiar faces who seemed out of place for me in their roles here, the biggest being Bo Hopkins. This film revolves around Melissa Morgan, who’s moved to town with her parents. Her father is an archaeologist, and her mother was from there. Every time she shows interest in a boy, he ends up stabbed to death. Of course, the redneck bigots of the town think it’s the Native Americans, but law enforcement doesn’t. The gore and suspense in this film are at a reasonable level and not overdone. And the revelation of the killer adds a great twist as I thought it was someone else. Sweet Sixteen is a fun relic that should be dusted off. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 Stars. Sweet Sixteen (1983) #80s #Flashback #Horror Click To Tweet

Morturary (1983) is one of those 1980s Horror Movies that isn’t exactly original but does have some unexpectedness that it was hard to turn away. It stars a very young Bill Paxton who portrays a sweet young man named Paul Andrews. He works as an embalmer in his father’s mortuary and has a crush on Christie Parson, though she only has eyes for Greg Stevens. There’s a lot of strangeness in this film, too, though it’s not very campy. I liked the amount of gore, and the ominous stalker is great. Another thing of interest about his film is that Howard Avedis wrote and directed it. He’s responsible for several other films during the mid-1970s and late 1980s. But what is truly weird about it is that Edward L. Montoro produced it; yeah, he’s the guy who produced The Exorcist and Jaws. Based on the content of this movie, I’m surprised by Montoro’s involvement. Not that it’s terrible or anything like that, just unexpected. Then again, he produced Grizzly (1976). As you probably noticed, I said v...

Choose ( 2010 ) has an interesting premise that they could’ve done so much more with than they did. It begins with a family being abducted in their home (something that baffled me was how the intruder got inside), and the daughter must decide to either kill Mom or Dad. If she refuses to kill either, then the intruder will kill the entire family. As the movie progresses, Fionna, who’s dad is a cop, starts to piece things together. Unfortunately, it’s on the bland side at times, then there’s a pivot in the library where she’s trying to find some books, and Choose gets much better. Even the disfigurements are tame for the most part. For a change, the acting is on a higher level than I’ve seen in a while, but that’s not to say it’s perfect. Choose’s back story is suitable and added to the film’s strangeness that was more thriller than horror. At least all my questions were answered when the credits began to roll. I should mention that there is a fair amount of gore that is SAW-ish. I enjoy...