I have been wanting to see this movie for months now.  I even went so far as to sign an online petition to get the film a nation wide release.  The plan was that my ex-wife would bring the kids up to my place for the weekend and we along with my parents would go.  However, time did not allow that.  The following week, my mother and I went to go see it.  We got there early and I got my large coke and large popcorn with waaay too much salt on it.  It was great.  In fact we got there early enough that I got to get my free popcorn refill before the movie started, JACKPOT!  I never get the free refill because I never want to miss a part of the movie.

So hear I sit with my mom and I can’t wait.  I get back from getting my refill and the previews have just started.  Then the movie just starts.  No credits, just a comment about something I don’t recall and Bam!  Right in to the movie.

If you don’t know what the movie is about it’s simple.  A young couple living in a nice house in San Diego are being haunted.  The husband is skeptical, the wife is convinced.   The husband starts to video them sleeping at night and a little during the day as the talk about the haunting.  It doesn’t take long before things start to go bump in the night.

I have to say upfront I could watch Katie, the wife all day long.  I just found her so cute I just wanted to take her home and take care of her.  I already liked the movie because I liked her.  Micah, the husband was entertaining, I didn’t want to take him like I did Katie but he was funny at times though I did find his character to do stupid things at times.  However, he was believable.

I enjoyed the film from beginning to end.  I did find it slow in parts but I was sold from the first take.  It’s not the scariest movie I’ve ever seen, not even close.  But, it does have some good scares.  It was interesting and fun, just don’t expect it be non stop terror, some of the reviews I have seen are out of control with high praise for the movie.  It’s good, it’s somewhat original, scary at parts, creepy at others but that’s about it. It’s definitely the best horror type movie I have seen in a while and I see them all.  Just don’t get your hopes up, you’ll be disappointed.  My mom expected too much and was disappointed with the movie.

Heckler is an interesting look at hecklers from the performers point of view.  I very much enjoyed it though at times, it’s brutally honest comments of people about Jamie Kennedy was hard to hear.  I’ve liked Mr. Kennedy.  Though I haven’t seen all his films or stand up specials but I’ve seen a few I’ve always found his stuff to be entertaining.

Now, this doc was not something I rented or had even heard of.  I was just browsing through the ondemand option with my cable company and came across, it sounded interesting so I watched it.  But, to my surprise it was more than that.  It was actually thought provoking and it got me thinking a lot about this site and all my rants and bitching about anything from movies to stupid people.  In fact it’s one of the reasons I haven’t posted in a while.  I wanted to post about this movie and the thoughts I’ve had about it and how it very well may change the way I make my posts.

Heckler brought up a lot of issues from dozens of performers, directors and actors.  Now it seemed that a lot of them find the movie review to be completely worthless.  I agree to a point.  I can name hundreds of movies I liked and enjoyed that critics hated.  Anyone who takes the word of a single critic is an idiot to begin with.  But, critics, at least good critics give us a peak at a film.  They can maybe shed some insight or perhaps hint at whether we would like it or not.  As for me, I know that it doesn’t matter if a critic likes a film or not, I can tell most of the time whether I will like the movie or not based on what the critic says.  Even if they hated the film, they might mention things they hated about it that I happen to like.

Jamie Kennedy’s doc brought up the harshness of some critics though and it really got me thinking.  They gave example of actual reviews of some of Mr. Kennedy’s films and it seemed that these guys really hated his work.  At least that’s the way I took the review.  But, as Mr. Kennedy questioned the critic and re-read excerpts it seemed that it wasn’t even the movie they hated, it was Mr. Kennedy.  They were insulting to the person more than the film.  And, a lot of the reviews were very mean spirited.

All this as I mentioned made me think about the few reviews I have made.  Was I harsh on the people or the film?  My rant about Rob Zombies “H2″ The Halloween sequel coming out this August.  As I recall I was really harsh on Mr. Zombie.  I didn’t review the film because I haven’t seen it.  I did say what I didn’t like about the first one he made and why I didn’t like it.  And also, how I think the film could have been better.  But, was I too harsh on the person?  I don’t know?  When you’re dealing with someone who is taking a classic, remaking and marketing it as their “own vision” you can’t help but critique the person because the film is being sold as more than just a film, it’s being sold as this person’s opinion of what should be.  And, if their opinion sucks how can you not get personal.

When reviewing a normal movie though, I think that it’s important to not attack the actors too personally.  They may act bad, they may not have portrayed a character the way you would like to have seen it.  But, I do agree that critics should be a little more careful of what they critique and how they critique it.

So, in the future I am going to pay more attention to things I say, how I say them and I will try to not make my attacks of films get more personal than necessary.

So, Mr. Kennedy I applaud you and your Documentary “Heckler”.  It was thought provoking, entertaining and a pleasure to watch.

H2: Halloween 2

Ok, here’s the deal.  According to IMDB Rob Zombie is Directing what is being called at this time, H2.  Halloween 2.  Now before I go off on a rant about this movie, let me first go back and review his first attempt at remaking Halloween.

When I first heard that Rob Zombie was gonna direct a remake of the very classic modern day horror movie “Halloween” I was actually excited.  Being a true fan of the original film directed by the great John Carpenter one would think that I would be against such sacrilege.  No, actually I thought it would be fun to go back and take another look.  Unfortunately, Rob Zombie didn’t call for me my opinion before he began to butcher one of the greatest horror films of all time.

First off, he completely fucked up the whole scary concept by once again, going with the white trash theme that he seems so at home in.  Not that I think he is white trash, just that if you look at most of, if not all of his movies, there’s gonna be white trash in it, is all I’m saying.  There’s nothing really scary, shocking or revealing about the idea that a kid born from that level of white trash that his Michael came from, turning in to a psycho killer.  I mean really, that upbringing, who wouldn’t?  One of the things that made the first film shocking was that Michael came from a seemingly normal family.  Good people in a nice small town.

Second, RZ’s Michael was a cry baby.  Maybe it’s that I relate to JC’s Michael on some strange level?  But, I know that character so well.  I know this kid spent 15 years or more in a mental institution and never said a word.  He just sat looking out the window, as if waiting for something.  He didn’t lose it, he didn’t cry or have temper tantrums.  No, he sat in wait.  He wasn’t a man or a child, he was pure evil in human form.

Now had RZ put a little thought in to the remake of Halloween.  He would have realized that white trash Michael isn’t scary.  He’s predictable.  Go back to JC’s Michael and use that.  You want to dive in to his youth, cool.  Picture this.  Michael’s mom begins growing concerned because Michael, while still in the womb isn’t kicking or moving like babies should.  But, rather one time, she feels the most violent of pain as if he’s trying to stab his way out.  And, then she gives birth.  But, the baby isn’t crying.  he’s not making a sound.  The doctors are spanking his ass, clearing his air ways, no sound.  They finally realize he is breathing, he’s ok, he just didn’t cry.

Continue on.  Various birthday parties, no smiles, no sound, no emotion or very little.  Maybe young Michael loses a friend.  He’s now maybe 5 or 6 and he doesn’t cry.  All dressed up for the funeral and unable to show the emotion everyone else is.  He’s maybe beginning to see that he’s different.  He doesn’t understand why?  Maybe he talks from time to time.   Maybe he asks his loving mom why.  Then it happens, he kills his sister.  He feels nothing. But inside there is more than a rage.

His normal sister could laugh and play.  His mother and father could laugh and play with her.  They could joke together, they could “feel” together.  They could watch movies and cry together, Michael cannot.  He loves his sister but at the same time he hates what she has.  He hates her on a level he can’t understand, it isn’t rage, it isn’t jealousy, it’s a feeling or emotion he doesn’t understand.  It’s not human to feel that way.

He gets locked up.  Studied, and further draws in to his shell.  He realizes, he truly isn’t like everyone else.

Now, maybe it’s just me, but a baby that doesn’t cry is a lot more creepy and interesting than one that does.  A kid killing his sister is scary but when you throw in white trash and abuse, it’s understandable and not scary.  When a kid kills his sister and he comes from a good home.  That makes you wonder why.

On almost every level Rob Zombie missed the very essence of what made Michael so terrifying.  Instead he just made Michael another victim of circumstance.  Another predictability.  And, now he wants he wants to direct a sequel. I am sorry, but no, I can’t support this.

I have enjoyed RZ’s movies in the past.  I haven’t thought any of them are instant classics but they were fun and sometimes interesting.  But, enough of the white trash, ghetto bullshit.  It’s been done, it’s predictable and it’s not very interesting at all.

Now, I can’t offer a review of the new movie, H2 as I have not seen it.  And, I will never review a film I haven’t seen.  I can’t stand film critics for the most part.  I have seen them review films they haven’t seen, or walked out of.  I am not that kinda guy.  I love my movies, I will give every movie a fair chance.   I more than likely won’t go see H2 in theaters because I already know it’s gonna suck.  However, I will see it on DVD.  I will tell myself, this isn’t my vision of Michael, this is someone else’s.  Let’s give them a fair chance and just be thankful we get to see Michael back on the big screen again.

Learn more about this movie at IMDM:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1311067/