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Meadowoods Review

June 24, 2012 By Horror Palace Leave a Comment

Movie: Meadowoods
Year: 2010
Studio: Monterey Media
Director: Scott Phillips
Stars: Michael Downey, Kay Ethen, Kerry Goodwin
Language: English
Length: 88 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Thriller, Found Footage

Plot: When three very warped college kids plot to torture and murder a randomly chosen fellow student, they craft an elaborate, ghoulish killing chamber and keep a video diary to chronicle their bloody exploit. But as the pals proceed with their ghastly plan, the violence they unleash threatens to consume them as well.

Review: In the long and tiresome list of horror movies that have adopted the handheld scenario, Meadowoods, is just another one in the ever growing line of failed movies that have tried to capture the fame that The Blair Witch Project received, and more recently Paranormal Activity.

The storyline is kind of ridiculous. You have 3 college buddies who want to be “known” for something. They live in a small, uneventful city and want to make their mark on society and be famous, or infamous, depending on your outlook. They decide they will document a murder on film, then shelve the video and release it in their old age.

I am not a backer of these style films. With Meadowoods, you get the shaky cam constantly with cut off heads, dizzying fast movement camera clutter, out of frame video, in-and-out focus, and many sky and ground shots with weak dialog in the background. On top of that, the Director felt the need to go back-and-forth between interviews and footage of the 3 friends concocting this plan of murder. Albeit with pretty lame acting and unexciting characters.

There is a positive to this movie, once the plan starts to unfold and unravel, it does get quite freaky, and there is a twist that most viewers wont expect. Still though, that is over an hour into the movie, and by then you are completely out of the flick. Put simply, Meadowoods should be avoided. Chalk it up as another crappy handheld horror film.

Reviewer: BillChete
Date: 06/24/2012
Rating: 2/10
Recommendation: Avoid

Trailer: Watch
DVD: Overstock
BluRay: N/A
Social Media: Facebook

Quarantine 2: Terminal Review

June 23, 2012 By Horror Palace Leave a Comment

Movie: Quarantine 2: Terminal
Year: 2011
Studio: RCR Media Group
Director: John Pogue
Stars: Mercedes Masohn, Josh Cooke, Bre Blair
Language: English
Length: 86 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Zombies

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Plot: When a virus that turns its victims into crazed killers infects travelers on an airplane, authorities seal off the jet to let the virus run its course. Realizing they’ve been left to die, a flight attendant and a passenger plan a daring escape.

Review: What a whirlwind of a surprise Quarantine 2: Terminal is. If you seen the original movie, or the Spanish films, Rec or Rec 2, which this movie is based upon, you would think you are getting a sloppy handheld smorgasbord of chopped of heads and spiraling camerawork. Quite the opposite with Quarantine 2, this is a professionally shot film with a 180 degree turnabout from the Rec films. High praise goes out to the filmmakers for not following the norm and changing up the story dramatically.

This thrilling sequel even features some notable horror stars including the beautiful Mercedes Masohn from Red Sands and the new TV series 666 Park Avenue, Phillip DeVona from Premonition, Julie Gribble from ChromeSkull: Laid To Rest 2 and Lynn Cole from 2005’s Dark Remains.

A little more on the story; airline passengers are stuck in flight when the virus outbreak unfolds this time around. With small quarters and nowhere to run, the stewardesses, crew and travelers must defend against these ravaging, zombie-esque infected, that want nothing more than to eat flesh. The plane is able to land, but only to succumb to an isolated airport hangar, where the remaining survivors get trapped by local authorities, so the virus doesn’t spread to the mass population.

I am still shocked, even while writing this review, that Quarantine 2 turned out so extremely scary, terrifying and brilliantly crafted. There are many neck and face chomping scenes, startling and loud music, zombie charging effects, and tons of gory parts. The story flowed nicely with very little downtime, which keeps you engaged in its entirety. The makeup effects were another huge positive, along with the acting, which was way above par.

Quarantine 2: Terminal is available in retail stores and many online outlets too. Sad to say there is no BluRay for this smart little zombie film, but it has been reported that one is to come down the road. With approximately a $4 million dollar budget, and a straight to DVD campaign, I have a feeling this movie might get overlooked by the mainstream. I am here to tell you, do not hesitate, grab Quarantine 2 today, you will not be disappointed.

On a side note; Quarantine 2: Terminal was my personal favorite zombie film of 2011. I even gave it a nod on Grisly Zone 013: Top 10 Horror Movies Of 2011 And Predictions For 2012. That is a must-watch episode of Grisly Zone that countdowns the best horror films of the previous year.

Reviewer: BillChete
Date: 06/23/2012
Rating: 7½/10
Recommendation: Buy Movie

Trailer: Watch
DVD: Walmart
BluRay: N/A
Social Media: Facebook

Enter Nowhere Review

June 15, 2012 By Horror Palace Leave a Comment

Movie: Enter Nowhere
Year: 2011
Studio: Caliber Media Company
Director: Jack Heller
Stars: Sara Paxton, Scott Eastwood, Katherine Waterston
Language: English
Length: 89 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Thrillers

Plot: After each facing hardships that changed their lives, three strangers find themselves mysteriously gathered at a remote cabin — and as they discover the connection that links them, they must join forces to survive and make it out of the woods.

Review: Enter Nowhere begins with a run-of-the-mill convenience store robbery when one of the assailants wants the clerk to open the safe before escaping the crime. The cashier says something bizarre, and right when you are ready for some action, the story shifts to a woman in the woods with only a broken down cabin around.

From there a few characters appear out of nowhere, and basically, there are 3 people stranded in the woods trying to cope with getting back to their lives. One of the three characters is Sara Paxton from Shark Night 3D and the new, lethargic ghost movie, The Innkeepers.

The story starts to drag at an unprecedented level with the only mystery being how are all these people are connected. Even when it is revealed, 90% of viewers would have probably of guessed what the twist is. There are very few scares and while this does hit the horror genre, it is one that doesn’t particularly deserve it.

There are a few good things to mention with Enter Nowhere, namely the acting, the characters were all vastly different and it made for some interesting conversations. Another positive point is there are a few flashback style scenes that were pulled off well, with crazy coloring, bright hues and spiraling camerawork.

Enter Nowhere was just released on DVD at the end of April, and for the horror fan, their just isn’t anything here to grab your attention or maintain any level of fright whatsoever. The movie is a bore and one I could see many fans stopping the film before it is over and going to something else. Enter Nowhere is a drag and should be avoided. If you want a Sara Paxton film to watch I recommend the remake of The Last House On The Left, a much better horror movie for sure.

Reviewer: BillChete
Date: 06/15/2012
Rating: 3/10
Recommendation: Avoid

Trailer: Watch
DVD: J&R
VOD: Amazon
Social Media: Twitter

Panic Button Review

December 1, 2011 By Horror Palace Leave a Comment

Movie: Panic Button
Year: 2011
Studio: Movie Mogul Films
Director: Chris Crow
Language: English
Length: 92 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Thriller

Plot: Four young people win a competition of a lifetime; Jo (Scarlett Alice Johnson), Max (Jack Gordon), Dave (Michael Jibson) and Gwen (Elen Rhys from Season Of The Witch) are heading off on an all expenses paid trip to New York courtesy of the social network site “all2gethr.com.” As they board the private jet, they must relinquish their personal items and take part in the in-flight entertainment – a new online gaming experience. Once airborne the games begin, and it soon becomes evident through a series of twisted tasks, that the passengers are in for more than they dared imagine.

Review: With the increasing number of users year after year using social media websites like Facebook and Twitter, I found the concept of this movie to be a fresh idea, and wondered how they could turn a relatively friendly atmosphere into a horror movie. For the most part, I think they pulled it off.

You have 4 friends on this all2gethr.com social site, really strangers, board a plane heading from the UK to the USA, with a chance to win expensive prizes while airborne by playing these sickening games. You soon realize after Stage 2 of these mind games that the trip has a more grandiose purpose that leaves you on the edge of the seat wondering what this demented person behind this flight has in store for the passengers, and their families and friends.

Panic Button actually shies away from showing the kill scenes. You do get the picture, but the movie flashes the images by so quickly it loses its effectiveness. While this “higher purpose” story does come into play about 60 minutes in, the ending was completely predictable especially when you have seen as many horror movies as I have.

On a whole it was an intelligent story, and very relatable to the younger internet savvy teenagers. Panic Button lets you know just how public everything you do online is, both searchable and traceable. The dark tones with social networks really hits hard and is very true to real life. For me, I would of liked more of a chilling track and more violent scenes shown on camera. The acting was very good, but these characters were generally shady, and I just didn’t “feel” for them. With all that said, Panic Button is definitely worth a watch, get your hands on it, you will be entertained for the most part.

Reviewer: BillChete
Date: 12/01/2011
Rating: 6/10
Recommendation: Rental

Trailer: Watch
DVD: Amazon.co.uk
BluRay: Amazon.co.uk
Social Media: Facebook

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