Paranormal & Supernatural in Review: House on Haunted Hill (1999)
[House on Haunted Hill, release 1999; 93 minutes. R. Director: William Malone; Review by: Jon Weidler]
Remember the early days of the Internet, when most websites were primitive displays of text punctuated by the occasional jpeg? And then, how someone had the ingenious idea of message boards, which took the conversation out of the privacy of IM windows and into a virtual town square, where the opinions of others could be lauded or flogged by the majority? (Hey, all trolls emerge from some birth canal.)
Anyway: I was an active participant in the anonymous hate-fests that swirled around Amazon and IMDb. The only equivalent to commiserating with some virtual person on something you loved, was dragging something you hated for all online eyes to see. Continue Reading
Paranormal & Supernatural in Review: The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Directors: Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez (as Eduardo Sanchez)
Writers: Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez (as Eduardo Sanchez)
Review by: Carissa Ann Lynch
In order to fully appreciate The Blair Witch Project, you have to rewind the tape twenty years. Go on—I’ll wait.
It’s 1999—I’m fifteen years old, piled in the back of some goober’s pickup, watching the film on a grungy, old drive-in movie screen. I’m pretty sure it was after midnight.
Here’s the thing—back then, there was a lot of secrecy surrounding this film. Whoever did the marketing—or lack of marketing, I should say—really set the tone for viewers like me. The actors were unknown; their names in the credits were the same as their characters’ names. And in the very beginning of the film, the viewer learns that this film is “recovered footage” of three film students who went into the hills of Burkittsville, Maryland to film a documentary about a local legend—the Blair Witch—and never returned. So, right from the start, we know they’re doomed. The people in the film aren’t actors—they’re dead people. And now we’re going to watch this footage of what happened leading up to the moment of their deaths… Continue Reading
Paranormal & Supernatural in Review: Sleepy Hollow (1999)
As I look out my window, the view is an obstruction of what looks like a white sandstorm in the trees. Barren forest, ominous setting, and a perfect time to write a horror film review of the gothic, supernatural variety. Warm, indoors writing of it, I mean! Pull up a chair by the fireplace and join me.
As most people know by now, my sense of humor often carries over into my writing and reviews, so fair warning since I’m reviewing the 1999 horror film, “Sleepy Hollow.” And really, what can one expect with a movie like this starring the king of dramatic over-emphasis, Johnny Depp? However, I will try to be humorous as well as critical, so let’s start over.
“Sleepy Hollow” is a film directed by Tim Burton and I am a huge fan of this director. Consider he’s using the source material of one of my favorite classic horror authors Washington Irving, and one of my favorite short stories “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” what’s not to like? I really enjoyed the show that was on television a few years back as well, but in 1999, just having my first baby, I wasn’t really getting out to the theaters. Somehow, though I always wanted to watch it, I just never did. Now, almost twenty years later, the movie didn’t feel old at all, due to the cinematography, decent special effects, and cast of stellar supporting actors (not to mention how young Depp looks). I’m sure the time period the movie is set in (the 1800s) also helps with that. At any rate, I mean I didn’t feel I was watching a cheesy ‘80s or ‘90s movie of my youth. Continue Reading
Machine Mean 