Charles W Jones

Sixteen years after Howling VII (1995) was released comes The Howling: Reborn (2011); I think they waited that long because of the dreadfulness of the previous film. This one has some good tongue-in-cheek times, like when one of the characters makes fun of all the other films in the franchise because they were all “old” people. I don’t know if making it a teen horror was the best idea, but they did it anyway. I’m a fan of teen horror, don’t get me wrong, it’s just it changes the feel of the franchise. The elements are what you’d expect, and it takes a while for them to get there, but at least it kept me interested and entertained. It just could’ve been better. In these times of technology, I thought there’d be more gore, effects, etc., but alas, it was minimal and mainly at the end. I liked The Howling: Reborn even though it’s nothing special, so I gave it 3 out of 5 Stars. The Howling: Reborn (2011) #AnotherTeenHorror Click To Tweet

Why are they so wet? Besides that question, there are others I have for Howling III: The Marsupials (1987). Starting out, it felt like any other 80s horror film, introducing characters and building the tension. I wish it would’ve stayed like that. There are some great scenes, like when Donny takes Jerboa to see a werewolf movie; I enjoyed it because of the absurdity and her commentary as they watched it. This leads me to my opening question. Why are they so wet? It appears that a tidal wave soaked them several times and soaked them, but nothing else around them. While there are one or two good scare scenes, the remainder of the movie is a total romance and a strange one at that. Even the were-marsupials are underwhelming. Compared to werewolf movies in the same period, this was not the best display of the genre; I chuckle thinking this, but Howling II was better, and I’m not a fan of it either. So why do I keep watching them? Because I can’t stop myself when I find one out in the digit...

S.A. Felix created a strange world where “Undead” come to life with the assistance of a Riser. Then there are Witnesses who find them and help them pass on. Sorry folks, no traditional zombies in this one; there’s not even horror. What is there is the charming tale of Atsushi (a Witness), who falls in love with an “Undead,” Yoshiki. That part is a little creepy if you look at it from the necrophilia side of things. But the story isn’t even about that. It’s more like a man falling in love with a ghost, who then gets the chance to change events in the past. The biggest problem with this book is the editing. It felt like S.A. Felix wrote it in Japanese, then used Google Translate for English. If that is the case, it needs a thorough edit from a Native English speaker to work out the kinks, because the story is amazing. I did enjoy the accent though, helping me feel as though I were in Japan. I admit, at times, I giggled at the strange wordings and ...

I assumed that Behind the Walls ( 2018 ) was another run-of-the-mill haunted house film with ghosts that go bump in the night and strange happenings. Obviously, it was that, but it was more than that. This was unexpected, though a little hard to follow. Kathy Harper, who is on the run from her husband (or so we think), moves into a weird-looking house with her three children. Yup, so far, nothing unusual from the familiar script. But what begins to happen is a tease of how it ends. And let’s not forget, being haunted by the past, which plays a role too. There are several lighting/filter features that show different points of view, I think was the intention, but it was disjointed and weird without giving much to the film besides a visual effect. There were some that made sense, but for the most part, it was a waste of the budget. The creature effects aren’t the worst I’ve seen, though it wasn’t really clear what it was besides a huge red mass undulating in the shadows of the basement. W...

And if you’re really, really good, well, you might just get a brand new dolly. American Gothic ( 1988 ) isn’t a bad film, but there’s not much to say about it. At times, I watch a movie, and when it’s done, I just don’t know what to say about it. There are so many aspects of that of it that I’ve seen in so many other horror movies from the 1980s. The bizarreness of it overpowers the cheese that is present. Usually, that wouldn’t bother me, but American Gothic just wasn’t original. OK, that’s not true. Not everything is a hodgepodge of previous films made in the decade, though those pieces do dominate it. Even the gore effects are like what I’ve seen before. It’s not like there is much to them as they show little of the random acts of violence. The “children” are grown-ass adults, and somehow they’ve been brainwashed by Ma and Pa to believe that they are kids. Cynthia, the only survivor from the group of friends, seems to be changed to think the same thing, but I’m not convinced that sh...

Along Came the Devil ( 2018 ), aka Tell Me Your Name, isn’t much different from any possession movie made in the last twenty years; of course, it’s based on actual events. The beginning shows two girls in a closet while their father has sex with a random woman. The woman freaks out when she finds them and the father presumably punishes the youngest. From there, it goes to the present. This is where I became confused; maybe, I should’ve paid more attention to the children’s names at the beginning of Along Came the Devil because I didn’t know who the characters were in relation to the opening. Ashley returns to her childhood town to live with her aunt because there’s no parental figure to care for her. I thought that she was the younger of the two girls, but I began to question that assumption as things progressed. My confusion aside, I liked what was happening and the effects. I got a super creepster vibe from Pastor John as he took Ashley’s picture and then approached her in the candy ...

A boy’s best friend is his mother. Norman Bates Psycho IV: The Beginning ( 1990 ) is made for television movie (Showtime) that attempts to give the history of Norman and doesn’t do the worst job. Having read Robert Bloch’s books in the Psycho series, I was surprised by the elements that were close. With the different version of this in my head, it’s hard to say which I like more, the books were interesting, but Bates Motel TV series 2013-17 is my favorite interpretation of the events, this isn’t horrible, it’s just strange the way it’s told. Nothing New There wasn’t much new in Psycho IV: The Beginning, I was hoping for more kills and craziness from Norman. I was happy that they kept close to the original with the way the kills were shot, not seeing the violence, but knowing what is happening. Henry Thomas (E.T.) plays teenage Norman and does the role justice. Anthony Perkins continues the role of adult Norman, and he feels off his game, almost like he really didn’t care anymore. I don...

So this is weird, somehow I recorded The Eye ( 2008 ) remake and The Eye 2 (2004). I decided rather than talking about them separately that I’d do a strange mash-up of sorts and put them together in one post. Jessica Alba stars in The Eye remake, and it bugs me how much product placement there is. I know other films do it, this one just seems heavy. Moving away from that, I love the opening sequence with the Demonoid attacking a woman in a strange room. There are so many details that are wrong in this film. One is that when the doctor removes the bandages from her eyes, the room is way too bright. Seriously, she’s lived in darkness since she was 12 (I think is what they said). I know from experience from having Lasik that the light hurts after, so I can only imagine what it’d be like in this situation. Another detail that bugged me is the fact that she can also hear the spirits/visions. Then I was like, well maybe she heard them when she was blind but didn’t know it. The one thing I mu...

The Funhouse ( 1981 ) is a movie that I’d never heard of until recently, and I thought I’d seen most of the 80s horror. It is like many slasher films of the time with a lot of suspense building. In fact, this one takes quite a long time to get going, like many made in recent years. The creepy factor begins from the first scene with comical parody to Psycho. The score is cheesy but at the same time nerve tingling. The effects are focused on the “beast boy.” The story follows a group of teenagers going to a travelling carnival, which made me think of all the times we went to the County Fair’s carnival with creaking, probably unsafe rides. When the group decides to stay the night in the Funhouse with Amy’s younger brother lurking out of sight of them, I had a good idea of what was going to happen, and I was right. The thing that was the most pleasing for me in this film was the great screaming, comparable to the amazing shrieks of the 50s and 60s. The Funhouse isn’t the best or most origi...

Don’t Listen (2020), originally titled Voces, is the “it” horror movie that is all the rage on Netflix right now. It revolves around a family that buys, remodels, then sells houses in Spain. Young Eric doesn’t like the house, and they call in a therapist to try to figure out why he isn’t sleeping. Eric draws a lot, but his pictures really aren’t shown all that much until the end, which is a good thing; it keeps the mystery of things alive and adds a whoah moment. This poor kid hears the voices in this creepy house. After he drowns in the nasty swimming pool, I lost focus on Don’t Listen because it got super blah, and before this event, there was only one exciting scene. I almost gave it up but figured I’d give it some more of my time when the father went to see a paranormalist, who agrees to come to the house to investigate. It took a little longer than I liked to get it back on pace, but when it did, Don’t Listen became an absolute thrill ride; they should’ve edited a bit more out, in...

Sci-Fi Horror is always a great combination for me, and when Roger Corman directs it for American International Pictures, I’m pleased as punch. The Beast With 1,000,000 Eyes ( 1955 ) is one of those films that by the end of it I was wondering what the fuck I just watched. It has Dick Sargent (the second Darrin) in a supporting role as Larry, and he’s not much different here than in the Bewitched TV Series. I’m not saying it’s bad, he’s OK. Carol Kelley (Lorna Thayer) is a complete and utter bitch, I was shocked with the things she said about her daughter. At least, she was a good screamer. I was disappointed with the title, I kept waiting to see this magnificent creature with a million eyes, but it never showed itself. At least, everything is explained at the end. The cheese level is through the roof with melodramatic acting. The editing screwed this movie, like Carol jumping before the dog attacks, same with the old man in the barn. The music made me feel like I was watching a Merrie ...

I’m not sure what I expected when turned on Books of Blood ( 2020 ), maybe something miraculous that included The Madonna for a change, but that’s not what I got. When I hear Books of Blood, I desire to be frightened at least or wince once or twice. Again, that’s not what I got. At least Book of Blood (2009) gave me more of that. At least they put the stories together in a cohesive way. The unfortunate part of being a fan of a book or anthology series is when an adaptation is made, and it is nothing like the written work; well, except for Simon. So I had to force myself to step back and see the movie as an inspiration and not word for word translation of any one story; we’d need Peter Jackson for that. Books of Blood starts with a bookstore owner trying to hide from a ‘debt collector’ in his shop, he ends up telling the ‘debt collector’ (no, I didn’t bother learning the character names) about the Book of Blood. That satisfying encounter moves to Jenna, and after a drawn-out period, bri...

I like men who look urgent. Woman At Party X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes ( 1963 ) is a movie I’ve wanted to see again for the longest time. Roger Corman Directed and Produced this American International Pictures masterpiece with Les Baxter, adding his musical genius to the score. While the horror/terror level of this film isn’t very high, it’s almost non-existent, but that is made up for with the trippy special effects and bizarre storyline. It seems like a good idea, to see into a patient to make a diagnosis, saving the expenses of other tests and procedures. But what do you do with the rest of your gazes after you’ve used the eye drops? I have an idea, and they do touch on it with the party scene, but how far would it go? Would you be able to see through clothes when you want, but through the skin when needed? A few scenes stuck in my brain. The first is after Xavier shows Diane what happens to a monkey that he gave the eye drops to; he gives her a cigarette, and she says thanks and...

Dead Wave (The Naysayer’s Trilogy #1) is one of the most intricate stories I’ve read in many years. There are so many characters and character flashbacks that at times I wasn’t sure what was happening or did I know who was who. At times, I thought to put Dead Wave down and walk away a few times, but I couldn’t, I needed to know what the next bizarre twist was going to be. The reason I pondered stopping reading it is that it is difficult to read in the way it is presented. The story itself is well developed and thought through. In the end, I liked Dead Wave and give it 3 out of 5 Stars. Dead Wave by Bryan Tranka #DarkFantasy #Review Click To Tweet About Dead Wave “This is a dark tale of the after-life with tragically flawed characters and the human condition. It’s a rare view of the middle ground between heaven and hell.”……Bryan Tranka, Author About Bryan Tranka Retired from the US Army after 20 yrs. Indie Author, Horror/Sci-Fi/Fantasy. Veteran, Father, Husband, Advoca...

The Droving ( 2020 ) was on my 2020 Horror Movie watchlist ; at least I can get some of them watched thanks to Amazon and Netflix. For those who don’t know, droving is the practice of walking livestock over long distances. For being an 80-minute movie, I was concerned with my boredom at 13 minutes into the film. At that point, I told myself to give it ten more minutes before switching it off. I’m glad I did because I would’ve missed some creepy and strange happenings. Daniel Oldroyd plays Martin, a man who returns from the armed services to find out what happened to his sister; he was in Hex (2017) , another cool indie horror film from the UK. Throughout The Droving, he checks his heart rate, old school style with a finger on his throat while he counts, and watches his wristwatch. I don’t understand why he needed to do this, but he did. The thrills aren’t hard-hitting, but that didn’t matter, the content made up for it. The lore that they introduced to me was interesting as I’d never h...

Oh, the cheese, the glorious cheese, how I yearn for your touch. Parasite ( 1982 ), if anything else, is a cheese-fest. The setting is a post-apocalyptic USA, where using Styrofoam burger boxes is apparently the rage in decorating. I wasn’t sure if they were Big Mac or Whopper containers, it’s been so long since they used them. Even the 3-D usage is cheesy with random things coming toward the viewer. The SciFi elements are good enough, I suppose, they do have laser guns and wands. I wish they would’ve turned up the horror. The gore and creature effects are cool when present; however, most of the movie is a lot of wandering around. When the parasite comes out of his head, that’s the shit I love, just dumb gross effects. In other scenes, it looks like a giant turd with teeth, almost like a Ghoulie or Alien. The sinister strings was a common choice for 80s horror soundtracks, and looking at Richard Band’s resume, he did several of them. The acting is beside the point with this movie, I’ve...

Chiller Films made/distributed a few movies, not sure if they’ll continue now that ChillerTV is no longer a thing, I guess we’ll see what SYFY does. Beneath ( 2013 ) is one of those enormous animal films, you know like Lake Placid (1999) and the hundreds of others. For this one, it’s a giant catfish, yeah, you read that right, a catfish. This thing is dumb, I wish they would’ve not shown it so soon or often, and kept with the dorsal, it ruined the anticipation. The story, aside from the catfish, isn’t awful and I wish Johnny wouldn’t have gotten killed, but he did, so, whatever. While it is a stereotypical teenage horror flick, there were some interesting aspects of their interactions; don’t confuse that with me saying the acting was good. I’m still not sure if Johnny brought these kids to the lake with the intention of them getting eaten so he could have Kitty, though she was a slut. While the majority of the film is regurgitated for so many before, I liked it; still think they shoul...

I loved the HBO series, Tales From The Crypt, back in the day, and when I came across Tales from the Crypt Presents: The Ritual ( 2001 ), I couldn’t resist the urge to emerge into the cheese. The movie has an interesting beginning where a doctor melts, there’s a girl who has a deal with him for something and leaves a handkerchief. Then we move to a hospital in the states with Dr. Alice Dodgson trying to save a child patient, who ends up dying, and due to that she’s suspended and can’t find work except in Jamaica to be a doctor to a man who thinks he’s a zombie. Craig Sheffer I was delighted with the cast; Craig Sheffer, the one and only Boone from Clive Barker’s Nightbreed, Jennifer Grey, who was only good in Dirty Dancing, and Tim Curry, who I’ll always want to do the Time Warp with. Some of the effects I found strange, like the spiders (I’ve had that same nightmare several times); one second they were CGI, then real, then CGI. It would’ve been nice for consistency if they would’...

Black Noon ( 1971 ) is a low-budget, made for TV Western Horror film that has some very rocky acting and sets that look like were made for a high school presentation of Oklahoma. That being said, it’s still a great movie and I’m quite surprised the content was allowed on TV. The ultra-dramatic musical score adds the cheese that this movie probably would miss if it weren’t present. The story is about Reverend John Keyes and his wife Lorna who are traveling through the desert and almost die from the heat. Townsfolk rescue them, and take them in to revive them. Deliverance (Yvette Mimieux) is mute, and does strange sign language to communicate. It doesn’t take long to figure out what she’s up to, and not because she has an orange cat; when you see this you’ll understand. There’s a touch of voodoo injected with the other magical happenings. The good Reverend even has some tempting sex dreams to fill the time in this dusty town. What would a western be without a bad boy gunslinger, donning ...

I find it surprising that Diary of a Madman ( 1963 ) isn’t an American International Pictures film, the style is very similar, but it does star Vincent Price. This film is based on Guy de Maupassant’s short stories Le Horla and Un fou. It was also advertised as “The most terrifying motion picture ever created!” I’ve not read either story, so I couldn’t tell you if it got lost in translation or not. It’s one of those movies that starts with the ending, at a funeral, and then we get to learn what happened to Magistrate Simon Cordier through the reading of his diary. As the events unwind, I wonder when the terrifying is going to start. The brief, but effective “stabby-stabbby” scene is super dramatic and intense. I love Odette’s reaction to being stabbed, it’s quite amazing. The effects are minimal, too. When the “horla” possesses Cordier, a strange cyan stripe of light covers his eyes. The camp/cheese level is barely existent; I expect it to be high when Vincent Price is involved. I...