Herb Arnold

"Tarot" (2024) It's about a group of friends who rent a house, have a party, run out of alcohol beverages, start searching the house for potential libations, and discover a doorway to the locked basement with a Keep Out sign on it. They break in to the basement and discover a collection of occult and astrology artifacts, including a very unusual box of tarot cards. The tarot cards become a party favor as they are used to give each of the friends a reading. But it's not all fun and games since a curse is released. What happens next is pretty eerie with some good effects. The actors and concept were good, but there was still that missing suspense and uneasiness found in most modern fright flicks. With a 90 minute run, it was fun to watch. New on Netflix, but was a theatrical film.

I'm been enjoying these horror/scifi imports that have May Kelly as one of the stars. She is truly the latest modern scream queen. "Alien Invasion" does tote only one Alien who emerges from egg, that was acquired by some scientists from Earth. So it's not exactly an Invasion, but it is a fun rampaging Alien movie. I enjoyed all of it except for the abrupt ending that left us with a poorly edited cliff hanger.

Cam Gigandet and his hot self was the only redeeming feature of this film. His character's sauve, sociopath attitude was amusing. The trailer made this film look great, but in reality it's slow, with ridiculous plot holes and misplaced dialogue. I've seen worse, but this made little sense.

"Unwelcome" (2023) is a Irish fright film that was quite enjoyable. It starts when a young couple finds they are pregnant and the violent home invasion that follows. Surviving this event, the couple inherits a home in the Irish countryside, with the hope of a calmer life out of the city. There is one bizarre catch. The townspeople speak of a legend of little people that live behind a wall adjoining the couple's property. To placate those behind the wall, an offering must be presented each night. And there are consequences when the offering is neglected, plus some unsavory townsfolk to deal with. Without revealing more, the intensity builds slowly and ends up with full mayhem. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"The Matrix Resurrections" (2021) marked the return of Keneau Reeves as Neo, and Carrie Ann Moss as Trinity. Several of my friends were hating on this very belated sequel to The Matrix trilogy, but I found it very entertaining. Those who are familiar will already know that the a blue pill keeps you in a familiar reality, and a red one takes you to the virtual world of the matrix. Is there a 3rd world, the true reality? Maybe. I thought the 2 1/2 hour run time may have been a bit long, but the stunning sci-fi visuals and upbeat action kept me engaged. No spoilers, but loved the sweet ending.

I love Australian horror and sci-fi, and this film was a fun time. A lot of those who gave this a bad review, did not seem to understand the ending, which was an ingenious twist. The acting was good, particularly the lead, a gutsy outback policewoman. The effects were also on point, and the small desert town made for a creepy location. It's no Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but it did peak my interest in a good way.

This movie featured terrible acting, marginal effects and an unbelievable plot. It was so over the top that I had a great time watching it. Good silly fun.

"What Lies Below" - A daughter returns home from summer camp and finds that her Mom has a gorgeous new boyfriend who is perfect in almost too many ways. His entrance out of the lake was quite memorable. Of course, something odd starts gradually revealing itself, but that would be a spoiler, so you'll have to watch and find out for yourself. (2020) Don't take any of this too seriously and you will enjoy it. It reminded me of the entertaining tone of the Monster movies of the 1950s that my Mom and I would enjoy together. I'm not sure why the plot was hard to understand for some reviewers. It was a simple, cool monster movie.

"Becky" was not the most realistic story but young actress Lulu Wilson certainly delivers a tour de force performance of revenge. Kevin James is also something else as the neo Nazi villain. It was also great to see Joel McHale as Becky's father. It was entertaining with good actors filling all of the roles. It does get quite violent, but is filled with adrenaline.

"Hungerford" was a fun, found footage British alien invasion flick. The main characters were in engaging and it was a quick, tight, enjoyable piece of entertainment.