What I've been watching...

It hasn't been a bad week for reading, still haven't managed to finish 'The God Is Not Willing' (one day...) but I can't complain at what I've read instead. I need to read a few more books off the TBR piles, there's some good stuff in there waiting to be read... ;o)

There were also a few days where work got the better of me and I couldn't really get into anything after I got home, that's where I gave my brain a bit of a break and some watched some movies instead. They're all horror this week, let me tell you about them... (I'm copying and pasting blurbs, by the way, so beware of spoilers...)

'For the Sake of Vicious' (2021)

An overworked nurse returns home to find a maniac hiding out with a bruised and beaten hostage. When an unexpected wave of violent intruders descend upon her home, it becomes a fight for survival.

I'd seen a couple of people on Facebook really praise 'For the Sake of Vicious' so when it finally appeared on Shudder (it's like my subscription runs slower than everyone else's...), I had to give it a go. And... Bloody hell...

The plot is fairly basic although there is a neat twist that's worth sticking around for. Where 'For the Sake of Vicious' really comes into it's own though is what it is prepared to show the viewer; presumably for the same of being vicious? I don't know but anyway... Here is a film that doesn't pull any punches, not one. What it does instead is fucks people up with a hammer and when it has your attention, proceeds to step things up a notch or two. I couldn't take my eyes off it, it's as vicious as hell but is a real lesson in what you can do when your life is on the line. Or what you can do to others when their lives are on the line. Either way... I'm not sure I'd watch it again but I'm glad I gave 'For the Sake of Vicious' a go.

'Ten Minutes to Midnight' (2020)

Bitten by a rabid bat, a late-night radio host terrorizes her co-workers as she slowly transforms into a vampire.

Now here's a movie that didn't really do anything wrong but still somehow failed to engage me. From where I was sat, it just wasn't as unsettling as it wanted to be; I was pretty tired though and did that thing where you watch it but you're not really paying that much attention. And it still failed to do anything to grab me, like a cool jump scare or something.

'Ten Minutes to Midnight' might very well grab you in the way that it completely failed to grab me (weird is cool but you need other things, happening at the same time, to keep it interesting). For me though... If I hadn't just posted about it, I wouldn't be able to tell you a thing about it tomorrow.

'Fanged Up' (2017)

A young rogue is thrown into prison for the weekend, unaware that the guards are blood-sucking vampires and the inmates are their victims.

After 'Ten Minutes to Midnight', I needed something that would hold my attention and something that would make me crack a smile at least. It had been a while since I last watched 'Fanged Up' but I knew it would hit the target on both counts. And that's the weird thing, it's not a particularly good or funny film but the cast throw themselves into it (and look like they're having fun) and there are bucket loads of blood going all over the place. The jokes are a bit obvious but Danny Reilly has this way about him where you can't help but smile while he's doing his thing. And sometimes, that's all I need from a movie. 'Fanged Up' is nowhere near the best vampire film, that you'll see, but it's just the ticket when you just want to put your brain in neutral after a tough week at work. That's what I wanted and that's what it delivered.