We’ve got a new home – www.the-filmreel.com!

Yup, anyone looking for The Film Reel needs to head over to the-filmreel.com now!

I know it’s been quiet around here for the last few days but that’s because it was time for The Film Reel to finally get a new home. This one was getting a little small. I’ve been planning on doing this for at least the last year now but with the excitement of 2011 and all of the big changes that have been going on I finally sucked it up and got to work.

It wound up being a little bit easier than I imagined and then it was suddenly a lot harder. For now everything is going to look very familiar. The Film Reel will continue to offer what it always had and once the big change settles in I’ll start messing around with the look and feel. For now I’m just happy to be moving into our own space!

I hope that everyone continues to enjoy The Film Reel and all it offers!

Under the marquee – Will

Shivers (1975) – Film Reel Reviews

Cronenberg knows how to make a creepy, disgusting and terrifying film. – Will

Residents in an apartment complex start getting infected by a parasite that turns them into sexually crazed maniacs.

Written and Directed by – David Cronenberg

Starring – Paul Hampton, Joe Silver, Lynn Lowry, Allan Kolman, Susan Petrie, Barbara Steele, Ronald Mlodzik, Barry Baldaro, Camil Ducharme, Hanka Posnanska, Wally Martin, Vlasta Vrana, Silvie Debois, Charles Perley, Al Rochman, Julie Wildman, Arthur Grosser, Edith Johnson, Dorothy Davis, Joy Coghill, Joan Blackman, Kirsten Bishop, Fred Doederlein, Sonny Forbes, Nora Johnson, Cathy Graham, Robert Brennen, Felicia Shulman, Roy Wittan

I have to admit that I wasn’t always much of a fan of Cronenberg. What little I had seen of his work made almost no sense to me and it probably wasn’t something I should have bothered trying to watch when I was so young. In the last year I’ve seen more of his work and have really started to appreciate it. Shivers isn’t quite as put together as his later films but it’s not hard to see that he’d already built a style all his own. Even with some crude effects, Shivers disgusted and terrified me. It didn’t scare me or frighten me, it terrified me. I was dreading every moment of the film, my stomach flopping around as I squirmed in discomfort. This one really got to me and it was incredible.

Thanks TIPS – Totally Inappropriate and Pointless Suggestions

In an effort to spread my useless knowledge around the world, and because the best advice is unsolicited advice, I’ve decided that it’s time to bring TIPS (Totally Inappropriate and Pointless Suggestions) to The Film Reel.

I thought about this one a lot over the last few weeks. Can’t just have reviews every day I thought to myself. Then I remembered our trip to see Yogi Bear in the theater. It was full of children who obviously hadn’t been beaten in their lives because they were noisy and rude. I soon realized that it wasn’t just the children who were rude. Parents answered their cell phones during the film and the biggest problem was that they never corrected their own kids when they were being disruptive. How could I used The Film Reel to help?

Cats And Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore (2010) – Film Reel Reviews

Even I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this one. – Will

Cats and dogs must team up to stop the diabolical plot of a rogue cat spy.

Directed by – Brad Peyton

Written by – Ron J. Friedman, Steve Bencich, John Requa, Glenn Ficarra

Starring – James Marsden, Nick Nolte, Christina Applegate, Katt Williams, Bette Midler, Neil Patrich Harris, Sean Hayes, Wallace Shawn, Roger Moore, Joe Pantoliano, Michael Clarke Duncan, Chris O’Donnell, Jack McBrayer, Fred Armisen, Kiernan Shipka, Paul Rodriguez, Elizabeth Daily, Phil LaMarr, Michael Beattie, Jeff Bennett, Malcolm Stewart

As I pointed out earlier in the week with my Dad at the Movies post, having kids will affect what films you watch. When Cats and Dogs was in theaters the kids wanted to see it. I actually wanted to see this one but we never got a chance to. It finally arrived off my Zip list so I popped it in to check it out. For some reason the kids were only interested in eating popcorn and wanted nothing to do with the movie. Of course, it wasn’t costing me $10 a person at home! Kids films are usually hit or miss. They’ve certainly gone up in quality since Pixar came around but there can still be some groaning involved in having to sit through some of them. Cats and Dogs 2 actually had me laughing out loud a few times and I really enjoyed it, more than I thought I would.

The Many Faces of Vincent Price – A Tribute to a True Horror Icon!

The Many Faces of Vincent Price – A Tribute to a True Horror Icon!.

What would have been the 100th birthday of a great horror icon is almost upon us. While I don’t exactly have the biggest knowledge of the film career of Vincent Price I did realize that he was an important part of my terrifying childhood! You can head over to Horrorbid right now and check out my article on the kind of influence Price had on my life!

Under the marquee – Will

The Daisy Chain (2008) – Film Reel Reviews

Instead of the evil kid flick I was hoping for, I got more of a grumpy kid flick. – Will

A couple moves to a remote Irish village after the death of their baby daughter. They take in an autistic orphan girl when strange things begin happening around them.

Directed by – Aisling Walsh

Written by – Lauren Mackenzie

Starring – Samantha Morton, Steven Mackintosh, Mhairi Anderson, David Bradley, Eva Birthistle, Brendan McCormack, Zoe Sheridan, Flora Montgomery, Orlaith Macqueen, Ron Donachie, Valerie O’Connor, Patrick Moy, Barry Barnes, Maire Hastings, Gary Murphy, Siobhan O’Kelly, Karen Ardiff, Fionnuala Murphy, Elunid Jones, Joanne Thomas, Hilary Reynolds, Yvonne Scanlon, Fiona Condon, David Keating, Matthew McDonagh

I’m a huge fan of bad kid movies. Something about an evil child always manages to creep me out but I can only think of a handful that I really enjoyed. The Daisy Chain falls somewhere in the middle. I feel like I’ve walked the same ground that this movie covers although I can’t pinpoint where and it never really reaches the level of disturbing that other films manage. That’s not saying that Daisy (Mhairi Anderson) isn’t an evil kid. She puts an end to a few people in the film but it’s usually very suspect and there isn’t any real proof that she did anything at all. Daisy also happens to be autistic so it’s hard to tell if her odd behaviour is because she’s bad or her disability is misunderstood by the superstitious locals.

The Green Hornet (2011) – Film Reel Reviews

A superhero movie without a superhero. Yeah, that’s a great idea. – Will

After his father’s death, Britt Reid decides to become a crime fighter with his father’s former mechanic Kato.

Directed by – Michel Gondry

Written by – Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg

Starring – Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz, Tom Wilkinson, Christoph Waltz, David Harbour, Edward James Olmos, Jamie Harris, Chad Coleman, Edward Furlong

I knew the moment that I heard Seth Rogen would be the Green Hornet that I was going to hate this movie. I don’t necessarily dislike Rogen but I’ve never been overly impressed by him either. I couldn’t possibly see how he would fill the role of a superhero and after watching The Green Hornet I figured out how he pulled it off. He wasn’t a superhero in the movie after all! He can’t fight, he’s as dumb as a brick, he’s clumsy, sexist, obnoxious, selfish and treats everyone around him like a piece of crap. Wow, I can’t wait to see if he can save the day now!