Patrick McKenna

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Firstly, this is a great book. If you are aware of the background/inspiration for this story, you'll have many 'light bulb' moments as you progress through the narrative, but regardless of that, this book should enthrall any horror fan. From this point on be warned as there are some spoilers ahead, and my advice is to stop now, read the book, and then return to this review. Still here? Ok then, here we go. The Taking has many bizarre moments. It begins with very 'unusual' rain falling, and then gets progressively stranger from then onward. Everything initially points to an alien invasion, but if you are familiar with the inspiration for this book, you'll soon realise what's actually happening - even though our two main protagonists only get the whole picture at the end. A transmission comes in from a satellite, and we hear something breaking in and the astronaut being attacked. What appears to be UFO's are appearing everywhere. Vast numbers of people are disappearing, and while some are laughing in delight, others are screaming in terror. The majority of people left untouched are children, and a few adults. We eventually meet some of the 'aliens', and they are truly terrifying. Death and destruction reigns, and 'they' are winning. Now bear in mind that I'm skimping on details here. Rest assured that all that info above is merely scratching the surface. So, what's actually happening? Because I'm familiar with the Bible (although I don't regard myself as a believer) I quickly saw the true story behind the alien invasion narrative. This is actually the End of Days, or the Day of the Lord, as predicted in many parts of the Bible - especially the Book of Revelation. The people disappearing are either going to heaven or hell; the aliens are demons, etc, etc. The children who are left are the new beginning, and adults left behind are good people who can be trusted to guide them. So it's a form of happy ending...unless of course you're one of the guys who get taken away in on of the 'Hell Ships'. You get a brief glimpse of their fate, and trust me, it isn't good!

The Taking

3 likes

With the exception of the wretched 'Final Chapter' I absolutely love this franchise, and I own all the other 8 movies on home video. I went into this movie with many reservations as I thought they should have continued with the Spiral timeline, but boy, was I wrong! This ranks up there with parts 1 and 2 as my favourite Saw movie, and it's surprisingly different. This is all about John Kramer and Amanda, and their motivations and relationship with each other. The traps do come eventually (and when they do they are as glorious as ever), but this much more of a character driven piece. Tobin Bell is fantastic, and this is his best performance yet. Also, the bad guys are so despicable, that when they finally end up in the traps you're with Jigsaw all the way. The film has a great twist/ reveal, and the post credit scene is really satisfying-don't leave early and miss it!. Fans of the original timeline will see it coming, but when it does it was so well done that my jaw hit the floor! 10 out of 10. Not just a great Saw movie, but a must-see for all horror fans.

Saw X

5 likes

There has been an upsurge in internet/analog horror recently, and although some of it is genuinely creepy, this is how you do it! I think how Skinamarink affects you will depend on your own childhood experiences. When I was about 5 years old, I lived with my parents in an old house and I had a genuine fear of the dark. I slept on my own, and at night the house was quiet, apart from occasional creaks (which sounded to my young ears as though "something" was creeping around). If I needed to go to the toilet through the night, I had to walk across the landing and down a flight of stairs. These instances were terrifying for me, and to this day I don't know how I managed it. I'm now in my sixties, so this was a very long time ago. Plus, I love horror movies. However, today I watched Skinamarink for the first time, and all those childhood fears came flooding back. This film really, really, got under my skin (excuse the pun), and I found it incredibly difficult to finish. I appreciate that this is a very subjective reviewed, but this is a very subjective movie. So be warned, if you were scared of the dark as a child then Skinamarink will revive all those old fears with a vengeance!

Skinamarink

2 likes

I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic slice of Lovecraftian horror. This shows what can be achieved on a miniscule budget as long as the filmmakers have a genuine love for what they're doing. The performances are all great, and the cast are a mixture of old and new actors. The stars of this movie however are the effects. We have Eldritch beings, tentacled monstrosities, portals into the Void, and alien landscapes. Bearing in mind the budget, what they achieved was incredible. So what is The Void about? Without going into a full plot synopsis, here's a brief summary. Some cult members who obviously worship Elder beings have surrounded a hospital. Within the hospital terrible things are going on. People are turning into monsters, a doctor is conducting experiments that involves accessing another dimension and trying to extend life (that doesn't go well!), and down in the basement is a temple where there is a gateway into The Void. Obviously the gateway works both ways, and thus all Hell breaks loose. Once the cult members manage to get in, there's nowhere left to run and the only option left is to face the horror of "The Void". The only reason I gave this 4 stars instead of 5 is that the filmmakers slightly over reached themselves when it comes to the effects. What they achieved was remarkable, but there are a couple of scenes where the lack of budget shows. I admire their ambition, but the effects would have been more effective if they'd restrained themselves slightly...only slightly. Apart from that this film was fantastic! Some people have complained about the lack of logic, but for me that was a plus. I enjoyed trying to figure about exactly what was going on, and why. If you can turn a blind eye to a couple of slightly hokey effects, you'll have a great time.

The Void

17 likes