Movie Night! ‘What the…?’ Edition
You know that feeling you get between Christmas and New Year? Where it feels like what’s left of the year doesn’t really know what it’s meant to be? Well, that’s been me this week :o) Since my job ended, I keep finding myself still stuck in a routine of ‘I really need to get ready for that meeting…’ and then having to remind myself that the input and output of said meeting is no longer up to me to sort out. First world problems and all that… It just takes me a little longer, than most, to adjust to changes like this.
Luckily, I’ve had plenty to do to keep me occupied (and hopefully find a new routine) but the downside of that is that it has left me with little time, or inclination, to get stuck into a book. And that’s why I’ve had a few movies on instead, either as background noise or for a little down time. I’ll be honest, the quality hasn’t been great but sometimes, that’s not what I’m after ;o) I need to have a word with myself about that...
‘Penny Lane is Dead’ (2025)
A quiet beach house party turns deadly when an uninvited cousin and three violent intruders take over the secluded property…
Because every so often, I remember that Shudder shows films that aren’t the ‘V/H/S’ franchise and I check them out. What? I like the ‘V/H/S’ films :o)
‘Penny Lane is Dead’ made it onto the list as a way to forget that a regular meeting (that I used to chair) was happening at that moment. And… It wasn’t great but ‘Penny Lane is Dead’ did take my mind off it so I was appropriately grateful :o)
There are absolutely no surprises here at all, not even the one at the end that I saw coming from a mile off. ‘Penny Lane is Dead’ has a real vicious energy to it though and along with some decent performances from the cast, that was more than enough to keep me interested.
If you watch it though, don’t play a drinking game based on how many times Kat calls someone a ‘moll’; you will lose and it won’t be pretty the following morning. You’re welcome ;o)
‘Anacondas: Trail of Blood’ (2009)
In which the hunt is on for a genetically engineered anaconda that is able to regenerate and multiply if cut in half.
So, you have a giant anaconda that can regenerate and multiply if cut in half, blown up etc. Here’s what you do… Don’t cut it in half, don’t blow it up, don’t… you get the idea. You can probably guess how I felt about this movie…
Bloody hell, it was dreadful but in a way that I had to keep watching (probably because I’ve watched the other ‘Anaconda’ movies and had to ‘complete the set’). Lets just say that the well has run dry for this franchise and if that wasn’t bad enough, it’s also reflected in the state of the CGI snake that they used. I don’t want to talk about it, I won’t be taking any further questions.
‘Night Train to Terror’ (1985)
God and the Devil are on a train, debating the fates of the three mortals whose tales make up this horror anthology. They also debate the fate of a New Wave band, playing music and dancing in the other carriage.
I will never turn down the chance of watching a horror anthology movie, it just won’t happen. Having watched ‘Night Train to Terror’… I’m kind of at a loss for words on how I felt about this one. ‘Strangely non-plussed’ is probably the best way to describe it.
The first tale (car crash victim hypnotised into kidnapping women for body harvesting) had no rhyme or reason to it at all, not one bit. The second tale (innocent man tricked into joining a death cult) fared it a little better but some dodgy editing left me wondering if I was watching events play out in the right order. Pro-Tip for directors… If your lead actress is after a hair cut, tell her to get it done before filming starts, not during. If you’ve seen ‘Night Train to Terror’, you’ll know what I mean.
And the third tale…? That’s actually the most coherent of the lot but unfortunately for the plot, it was completely overshadowed by the strange decision to not only have the monster animated by ‘claymation’, but also its victims… It’s a bold approach but one that doesn’t quite gel with the rest of the tale, where the cast are regular human actors with no hint of clay about them at all.
I read up a little, on ‘Night Train to Terror’, and found out that the three tales were unfinished films that were polished up a bit and ended up as an anthology feature. That would explain a lot ;o)
‘Night Train to Terror’ had its moments but I can’t see myself going back for a rewatch.
And now, I really need to read something. Anything… ;o)
Luckily, I’ve had plenty to do to keep me occupied (and hopefully find a new routine) but the downside of that is that it has left me with little time, or inclination, to get stuck into a book. And that’s why I’ve had a few movies on instead, either as background noise or for a little down time. I’ll be honest, the quality hasn’t been great but sometimes, that’s not what I’m after ;o) I need to have a word with myself about that...
‘Penny Lane is Dead’ (2025)
A quiet beach house party turns deadly when an uninvited cousin and three violent intruders take over the secluded property…
Because every so often, I remember that Shudder shows films that aren’t the ‘V/H/S’ franchise and I check them out. What? I like the ‘V/H/S’ films :o)
‘Penny Lane is Dead’ made it onto the list as a way to forget that a regular meeting (that I used to chair) was happening at that moment. And… It wasn’t great but ‘Penny Lane is Dead’ did take my mind off it so I was appropriately grateful :o)
There are absolutely no surprises here at all, not even the one at the end that I saw coming from a mile off. ‘Penny Lane is Dead’ has a real vicious energy to it though and along with some decent performances from the cast, that was more than enough to keep me interested.
If you watch it though, don’t play a drinking game based on how many times Kat calls someone a ‘moll’; you will lose and it won’t be pretty the following morning. You’re welcome ;o)
‘Anacondas: Trail of Blood’ (2009)
In which the hunt is on for a genetically engineered anaconda that is able to regenerate and multiply if cut in half.
So, you have a giant anaconda that can regenerate and multiply if cut in half, blown up etc. Here’s what you do… Don’t cut it in half, don’t blow it up, don’t… you get the idea. You can probably guess how I felt about this movie…
Bloody hell, it was dreadful but in a way that I had to keep watching (probably because I’ve watched the other ‘Anaconda’ movies and had to ‘complete the set’). Lets just say that the well has run dry for this franchise and if that wasn’t bad enough, it’s also reflected in the state of the CGI snake that they used. I don’t want to talk about it, I won’t be taking any further questions.
‘Night Train to Terror’ (1985)
God and the Devil are on a train, debating the fates of the three mortals whose tales make up this horror anthology. They also debate the fate of a New Wave band, playing music and dancing in the other carriage.
I will never turn down the chance of watching a horror anthology movie, it just won’t happen. Having watched ‘Night Train to Terror’… I’m kind of at a loss for words on how I felt about this one. ‘Strangely non-plussed’ is probably the best way to describe it.
The first tale (car crash victim hypnotised into kidnapping women for body harvesting) had no rhyme or reason to it at all, not one bit. The second tale (innocent man tricked into joining a death cult) fared it a little better but some dodgy editing left me wondering if I was watching events play out in the right order. Pro-Tip for directors… If your lead actress is after a hair cut, tell her to get it done before filming starts, not during. If you’ve seen ‘Night Train to Terror’, you’ll know what I mean.
And the third tale…? That’s actually the most coherent of the lot but unfortunately for the plot, it was completely overshadowed by the strange decision to not only have the monster animated by ‘claymation’, but also its victims… It’s a bold approach but one that doesn’t quite gel with the rest of the tale, where the cast are regular human actors with no hint of clay about them at all.
I read up a little, on ‘Night Train to Terror’, and found out that the three tales were unfinished films that were polished up a bit and ended up as an anthology feature. That would explain a lot ;o)
‘Night Train to Terror’ had its moments but I can’t see myself going back for a rewatch.
And now, I really need to read something. Anything… ;o)
I don't know how you feel about the Necrons, but Rathbone just wrote a new one about them called The Wicked and the Warped, a kind of sequel to The Infinite and the Divine. I haven't read it yet, but I will :-D
ReplyDeleteI wasn't too fussed about the Necrons, not until I saw how Trazyn was portrayed in Rath's 'Fall of Cadia'. I still need to read 'The Infinite and Divine' but can see myself reading 'The Wicked and the Warped' at some point ;o)
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