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Jeepers Creepers (2001)
Properly Creepy: One of the best stand alone horror movies
I rather liked this movie from its first scene. Instead of focusing on a group of romantically involved teenagers, it centers on two siblings, Trish and Darry.
The naming is important on more than one levels you will get the pleasure of discovering towards the middle of the movie as well as the very end. I personally kept hearing "Barry" instead of Darry throughout the film but the unusual male name Darry actually derives from Darius, which you probably got but I did not realize at first.
To make matters even more interesting, the character of the villain was very unique in its characteristics and also based on a UK folklore character from Victorian times, which I knew of and could not get enough tales about, but the movie villain definitely has its own background history too, so is not a direct imitation for those who are too turned off by an obvious borrowing from the past.
I liked how the scenes would change from morning to the evening, from being so familiar and dreary at first, with green pastures and cows, to an almost Gothic like nature when the night approached.
I also enjoyed how small town life could be portrayed with such a quality reminiscent of dream life, without having anything to do directly with dreams.
I consider this first movie to be an unequivocal proof to the director's (Victor Salva) genius.I don't believe he took part in the second Jeepers Creepers but heard he would be involved in the third and am looking forward to seeing it.
I also found the two young characters engaging. Justin Long did a very striking performance despite his age. You probably remember him from his later comedic career, but I found his first horror movie and his next one to be some of the highest points in his acting career.
The movie Jeepers Creepers 2001 has a good plot and consistent characters(even at their dumbest, their logic is still understandable even if us, the viewers, would be smart enough from watching all the horror not to follow it. LOL)
But equally interesting is the choice of the sound track. The movie features some music from 1938 which was pleasantly quaint and spooky since it was introduced at the most appropriate points of the plot.
I think it is a fairly good movie, slightly above the average stock because it shows originality on so many fronts and gives your imagination as much, if not more to work with, than trivial visual effects.
Fear Itself (2008)
Fear Itself: Above Average Satisfying Horror Series
Now available on Netflix, this TV series features various supernatural as well as suspense thriller motives. Almost every disk comes with four episodes, containing a little bit of different genres, with metaphysical/mystical themes or murders with a twist.
The theme song of the series is very charming and evocative, reminiscent of the Creature Feature kind of style for those readers familiar with it.
The arrangement of the episodes, two on each side, is a little peculiar by modern standards and the menu navigation is a little cumbersome, but the plots themselves are often worth the trouble and managed to surprise me with their twist unlike most detective stories which I can solve within minutes of reading or watching. In contrast, the occasional subtlety of Fear Itself allows the answers to remain hidden for a while longer.
In my opinion, such unpredictable twists of the murder mysteries along with the variety of the truly supernatural kinds of horror make for a delightful pastime.
Although structurally the episodes are not connected, each following an entirely independent cast of characters and plot lines, I can appreciate why some episodes were placed together based on their thematic similarity or, conversely, opposition.
Overall, I really like this series but I don't think I could like it as much if I expected another Twilight Zone(which it is certainly not, lacking a host) or R.L Stine's Haunting Hour(because each episode of Fear Itself is longer). Every story is either interesting or has potential and definitely takes its time to develop the escalation of terror, very similarly to a full feature film.
I hope after reading my review you guys would at least consider the very first disk, because it had, what I consider to be, the most brilliant episode of the entire series and if you don't like even it, you would know with relative surety that Fear Itself is not for you(I don't even have to spoil your fun by naming it or numbering it because when you see it, you'll know exactly which one I meant!).
Teen Wolf (2011)
Three seasons worth of watching
The show Teen Wolf(2011) had many captivating characters and plot twists for the duration of three seasons. Although involving mostly teenagers, the characters are not tedious to watch, are smart, decisive and don't engage in too much teenage angst drama, except as is appropriate for a supernatural series.
All the three early seasons flow but the final two appear to place too much pressure on the surprise factor and seek to surprise the viewer so hard that the new characters are introduced in a random fashion, their mythological roles may be clear enough to lovers of mythology and folklore, but their personality and background are somewhat hard to follow.
It is a pity that the series could not continue coherently for all of its run but the first three seasons are worth your time, presenting beautiful story arcs, great characters and supernatural elements to suit most tastes.