Movie Review: Antichrist (2009)

Alright, after being sick for weeks with bronchitis I’m sort of ready to do a new review. Having enjoyed several of Lars von Trier’s movies, such as “Dancer in the Dark” and “Breaking the Waves” I was intrigued when I saw “Antichrist” sitting there on sale. I immediately grabbed it, and took it home expecting the best. I sat down with my boyfriend, who not knowing much of Trier’s work was interested mainly in the movie based on the title. Here we were expecting what had been promised “a disturbing movie”, and as anyone will tell you I am always up for the “disturbing.”

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First things first, the cinematography was beautiful. I obtained the Criterion Collection DVD which was just outstanding with it’s’ use of color and imagery. But, in the first scene Trier’s implores and overuses the aspect of slow motion to an extreme extent. Now, I have no problem with sex scenes but having to see Williem Defoe’s penis up close and personal in slow motion thrusting in and out was something I could have lived my whole life without seeing. Nevertheless, the black and white scene and its use of water was very beautiful. I could have done without the slow mo though.

Movie Review: Halloween (1978)

During this season of holidays and haunting, I was pleasantly reminded of one of the reasons that I began to become a horror movie fanatic and what prompted my own dive into the world of horror. In 1978, I was five years old. I was living with my father, and my stepmother at the time in Frankfurt Germany. As a child, I was very interested in both comic books, and reading in general. I remember crawling into bed with the latest version of Batman, or lingering in the Army Navy surplus store and wandering around the comic book racks trying to decide who to take home until my head spun.

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My family traveled a great deal to sometimes out of the way places, so the aspect of sitting around the television set and watching my favorite show usually never happened mainly because there wasn’t any television where we were. But, on this occasion I was being treated to something new and wonderful. I crawled out of bed in hands of fall with the smell of leaves percolating throughout the air in heavy rustic doles.

“We’re going to the movies tonight.”
“Really? Which one?”
“You can pick any movie you like.”

Movie Review: Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)

As I sat in the theater alone, I think that I enjoyed the movie experience more than the actual movie itself.  It was great to go to the movies early in the afternoon on a Friday, and not have to deal with cell phones or crying children and their parents.  Having said this, Paranormal Activity 2 wasn’t that bad but it wasn’t that good either.  One of the complaints that I had about both movies is that the family relationship is too perfect to begin with-I mean there isn’t any arguing or fighting or even any bad days before the demon arrives.  This lack of “normal behavior” of everything going too perfect is even more noticeable in the second edition.  The mixed family in Paranormal Activity 2 gets along perfectly.  There are no issues between the stepmother, and the daughter nor are there any issues in general.  You won’t hear any money concerns, or any normal everyday problems in paranormal world.   Perhaps everything is just too perfect.  Then, when the demon arrives everything goes haywire.  The family just falls apart so easily, and the tension is made to feel even more overwhelming due to the perfectly perfect family relationship before.

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Movie Review: Inception (2010)

Review by Hollis Jay

I only heard my father play sax once. The notes draped over me and transformed my environment into a spectacular wilderness of sound. But, in that one playing I could tell that he was a master at music. Déjà vu. It only took me one minute to figure out that the movie Inception was a masterpiece. As the first dream sequence began to turn to rubble, my heart caught into my chest and I could feel something that I rarely feel while viewing a film: anticipation.

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First of all, the casting was amazing. John Papsidera performed a fabulous job of balancing out actors in regards to their strengths and weaknesses. He chose actors from all forms of cinema. He chose experienced actors and those who have only performed in a few films. He also chose actors who would give depth to the story, and be able to allow their characters to evolve in a smooth manner. If Marion Cotillard doesn’t get an Oscar nomination for her performance, I would be surprised. Also, all of the actors allowed the story to be the star and didn’t appear to fight over their position in the film regardless of their character. They allowed the story to speak for itself.

Music Review: She and Him: Volume 1 & 2 (2008, 2010)

by Hollis Jay

As I listened to Volume One and Volume Two of She & Him, I am left with only one nagging question: Why does Zooey Deschanel continue to act? Yes, I am left perplexed by her astoundingly big eyes and her clean almost slate like face which seems to be pondering-just like we are-why am I here…but, she doesn’t need to try to act anymore when she can just sing. For it is in her singing and songwriting in which she shines. The she (Zooey) and the him (M. Ward) create a wonderful construction of music. For a minute, if I closed my eyes I thought that I was listening to a young Dolly Parton or The Carpenters all over again except without that picky eating disorder.

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As Zooey tunes in with folk sounding songs like “In the Sun” and “Thieves”, she also plays a bit with the original girl groups of the late 1950’s with “Don’t Look Back.” I can tell you that I was still listening to this cd in my head, even after the music stopped. Charming is the word that I kept writing down, as I listened to every song play in my car. The two cds should definitely be listened to together, as they seemingly tell the story of a young woman’s search for life and love.

Movie Review: Crazy Eights (2006)

by Hollis Jay

At three in the morning, I found myself alone and left unattended. I had nothing to do the next day, so I went channel surfing which can be a very dangerous thing to do….at three in the morning….when no one else is around….especially when you find Crazy Eights on your television. I honestly don’t know why I started watching it. It has the two actresses and/or actors that I usually avoid upon contingency of death: Dina Meyer (except for Starship Troopers) and Traci Lords due to my effective and energetic imaginative process which can only see her with her mouth hanging half open in a seemingly misplaced orgasmic moment. I don’t know why I didn’t listen to my instincts. Maybe I wasn’t thinking or the fact that this movie was part of the eight films to die for series messed with my senses and had me ignore my own free will due to the production of some great horror movies, like The Hamilton’s and Penny Dreadful. But, I did ignore my baser instincts and merged head first into bad horror.

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Altered Views: Session 9 / The Eye of Danvers: A history of Danvers State Hospital

by Hollis Jay

I happen to love all movies in which an inanimate object becomes the central character of a story. Having written and/or been in the process of re-writing such a story, I know that this is not an easy feat. But, one of my favorite movies, Session Nine pulls this effect off seamlessly and without strain. The asylum becomes the central character, and one listens for its’ dialogue in every scene and one watches it’s movements as they circle and entwine its’ victims.

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To begin with, Session Nine was filmed on location at Danvers State Hospital. Not only did this hospital perform the first pre-frontal lobotomy, but it is also rumored to be haunted. In fact, if you own Session Nine there are not only a few scenes where one has to question the shadows that appear on the walls but there is also a section on the DVD where the cast talks about their strange experiences at the hospital while filming. This is one of the things that makes the location all too creepy and actually scary as your watching the film.

Movie Review: The Descent: Part 2 (2009)

by Hollis Jay

To me, there has to be a good reason to have a sequel. Maybe there was a character that was particularly unexplored or good and we-as an audience-want to know more. Or maybe, a great story or a great script comes about to not only enhance the power of the first story but to make it an epic experience. But, I can guarantee that neither one of these things happened when The Descent Two movie was discussed and then made. Who knows what was talked about during those five minutes when script, story, and character were talked about-but I can be sure that smart horror was neither involved nor thought of in those fragile minutes.

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Movie Review: The Last Exorcism

by Hollis Jay

When I go to see a movie, I try not to enter the theater with preconceived notions of what I am about to view. With The Last Exorcism, it was easy for me to leave those thoughts and ideas at the door. The movie begins with the life and times of revered Reverend Cotton Marcus. To the outside world, he is a man of solid and unquestionable faith. He, supposedly, saves the lives of not only his own parish but of those around him every day. Not only that, but he has performed hundreds of exorcisms and is asked on a regular basis to save souls. But, when Cotton goes to save a soul, one must ask what he is truly saving. For Cotton is a man of a different agenda, to use religion as a placebo for what ails those in need. His practices reminded me of a technologically advanced Father Damien Karras, without his mother, searching for his own faith and purpose. I would have liked to have a Father Lankester Merrin to offset the balance, but instead I was left with the members of the documentary film crew.

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Movie Review: The Uninvited (2009)

by Hollis Jay

As I sat watching The Uninvited, one question kept crawling through my mind: Why do we, as Americas, have to remake every good movie we find and turn it into such crap? We consistently do it, especially with horror movies. Are we that hard up for new ideas? And even if we can't stop ourselves from remaking these movies-why do we have to mutilate them beyond recognition?

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The Uninvited starts off with an uneven pace. We are not sure if Anna is officially crazy or just a girl that needs to be saved. Frankly, I found myself not caring. Her pouty lips, profoundly pasty skin, and wide eyes do nothing to help her acting. Therefore, we do not become engaged in her character and as an outcome we are not scared with her or for her.

Book Review: The Uninvited: The True Story of the Union Screaming House by Steven A. LaChance

by Hollis Jay


Throughout The Uninvited: The True Story of the Union Screaming House, I kept wondering when the book that was thinking about burning in my backyard was going to become scary. Yes, Steven A. LaChance is a new author to the field and yes, he is writing a novel based on supposedly real life events. But, his work is dull and dry. It does not speak of true life or of the experiences brought on a haunted house. All in all, it lacks in the element of entertainment and realism. It's almost as if LaChance doesn't know where to begin and where to end. I wonder if he ever sat down and wrote out an outline for his novel.

Movie Review: Office Outbreak (2008)

by Hollis Jay

After I watched Office Outbreak, I was overwhelmed by a series of emotional responses. My first being laughter. I felt myself regaled by the sarcastic and underlining remarks towards reality television, but I also felt as if I was being attacked by some of the worst actors in history. There is no smooth line in plot, and no real sense of relationship created between the characters. In essence, we-as an audience-neither care about the outcome nor do we care who survives. There is no fear and no element of surprise. The injuries that our characters endure are neither imaginative nor do they even attempt at looking realistic. I mean I understand that this is at best a "B" movie, but within the realms of "B" movies this one only works downward toward an "F".

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Movie Review: Twilight (2008)

by Hollis Jay

Here we go folks; I have finally decided to vent my feelings about the abominable Twilight movies, and all other Twilight related material. First, to use the word vampire to relate to any of these movies would be unnecessary and irrational. For these are not the vampires of legend, ones who make children shiver under the covers in their beds or make their victims scream in fear. Give me a good vampire -one who pulls the gore and guts out of their victims without hesitation and thought. Vampires like those portrayed in 30 Days of Night and the novels of Brian Lumley. These vampires have no mercy, and they do not shine and shimmer in the light. They certainly do not sit longingly staring at their human girlfriends in fields of flowers. They rip and roar through their cities and towns and let nothing stand in their way.

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Movie Reviews: Halloween (2007) and Halloween II (2009)

by Hollis Jay

A wise man (namely David Hayes) once stated that a back story is irrelevant when it comes to developing evil. I agree wholeheartedly with this approach, which brings me to my review of the new Halloween movies. The original Halloween movie was the first movie that I ever saw, and at the age of five I remember being not only interested in the characters but also scared by the idea of Michael Myers. I didn't need to know where he came from or how he developed as a human being in order to understand that he was bad and/or evil. I knew that he was evil by the actions that he committed on screen. When, the new movies came out I found myself excited. How was Rob Zombie going to approach this iconoclastic and legendary story?

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Movie Review: The Strangers (2008)

by Hollis Jay

After watching The Strangers a few times, I became truly aware of the misogynistic views throughout the film. The women are separated into two categories: vulnerable and violent, but all three women are instigated only by their male figures. Kristen McKay’s character (Liv Tyler) cannot even seem to tie her shoe laces without her boyfriend. If James (Scott Speedman) isn’t carrying her from one destination to another or unzipping her dress and removing her jewelry piece by piece, then he is being beckoned for by Kristen throughout the entire movie.

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Hollis Jay

Hello. My name is Hollis Jay. I have been a starving writer all of my life. I adore smart horror movies, and am obsessed with reading. I have a degree in English and American Literature and Translation and I am currently working on obtaining my masters degree in Creative Writing. What can I say….I love long walks on the beach fighting zombies with Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees on my side for a change. I am afraid of all things clown, and am hoping one day to be the next Stephen King or at least a non-starving writer and professor. A thank you to all those that read my reviews and I hope that I have been of both humor and help.

Sincerely, Ms. Jay

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