Horror Movie Month - Paranormal Activity 3 + more

Paranormal Activity 3
The plot: Well, the second one took place before the first one and now the third one takes place before the second one. It's the late 80s and Katie and Kristy are just little girls. Seems Kristy has an imaginary friend named Tobey, who just might be the spirit that has been following these girls around for most of their lives.
The scares: Maybe it's because I don't believe in ghosts, but I never found these movies particularly scary. That being said, there is an overpowering feeling of tension that is in pretty much every frame of this film. And that, at least, is a big step forward.
The body count: Only two.
The grade: C-

Red State
The stars: Michael Angarano, Kyle Gallner, Michael Parks, Melissa Leo, my dad John Goodman
The plot: Three high schoolers go to a trailer park to meet an older woman for some hot sex. Turns out, the woman (who advertised on the internet, of course) is a member of the cult like Five Points church and they have lured these young sinners to make an example of them in front of their parish. Lots of blood ensues.
The scares: It's not scary in the sense that you're thinking. However, the idea that there are close minded bigots out there who could quite possibly do something out there is terrifying.
The body count: I honestly lost count. The death toll is high and unexpected at every turn.
Grade: B+. I'm understanding this movie received a lot of backlash. I think you either love it or hate it. This is the first Kevin Smith movie that I've ever loved.

The Last Exorcism
The plot: A priest sets out to expose exorcisms for the fraud that they are. He picks a letter at random (he receives hundreds) and gets a camera crew to follow him to prove the fraud. However, when he meets the young girl who is supposedly possessed, he has second thoughts.
The scares: Again, no so much scary, but that's not to say I didn't like it more than I thought I would.
The body count: Four, maybe.
The grade: C+

Horror Movie Month + The Ides of March

Horror Movie Month - Masters of Horror: Cigarette Burns
The stars: The ridiculously sexy Norman Reedus
The plot: A theater owner in debt searches for a super rare film in order to make some cash. Said film is a foreign movie that was only shown once in public. Seems everyone who sees it becomes a homicidal maniac.
The scares: It's not scary at all, but interesting. The premise is pretty great although I'm not sure it's executed well. Shame on you, John Carpenter.
The body count: It's hard to tell if things are happening for real or all in his head. Maybe 5.
The grade: C+

Horror Movie Month - I Spit On Your Grave
The stars: Sarah Butler
The plot: In the remake to the BEST REVENGE MOVIE OF ALL TIME, a young writer goes to a secluded cabin alone to work on her next novel. She is brutally beaten and rapes by a group of local men who leave her for dead. A month later she seeks revenge.
The scares: Not scary at all, but disturbing and gory as hell. (Although the part where a certain person gets their eyes pecked out by birds scared me to death, but maybe only because I'm terrified of birds).
The body count: Five. And they all deserved exactly what they got.
The Grade: Not nearly as good as the original... C-

Horror Movie Month - Seconds Apart
The stars: Orlando Jones
The plot: Two creepy twins use their powers for evil instead of good and wreck havoc on the mean kids at their school.
The scares: Not so much. It's actually pretty stupid and pointless, to be honest. The twins are creepy though. Too bad they aren't in a better movie.
The body count: Seven.
The Grade: D

The Ides of March - Ryan Gosling continues to knock it out of the park, giving his second amazing starring performance in the last two months. First up was his cool and collected performance in Drive. Now he is the star of the best ensemble cast of the year in the political drama The Ides of March. Gosling stars as Steven, a hot young campaign manager who is working for the next would be president (George Clooney). The governor seems perfect and it seems Steven and his colleagues (including Phillip Seymour Hoffman) can't lose. However, throw in a troublemaking journalist (Marisa Tomei), the opponent's sneaky manager (Paul Giamatti) and a sexy young intern (Evan Rachel Wood) and you've got yourself one hell of a movie. Like I said, this is the best ensemble of the year with everyone giving amazing performances. Clooney is also the director and he does a damn good job. The writing is sharp and crisp and the story is engaging. This one is a sleeper for the Oscars next year. It's definitely a great film!
Grade: B+

Horror Movie Month: Frozen / 30 Days of Night + 50/50

FROZEN
The stars: Shawn Ashmore, Kevin Zegers, Emma Bell
The gist: Two longtime friends and one of their girlfriends go away for a weekend ski trip. After bribing the lift operator to let them take one more trip up the mountain, they get stuck on the lift after it gets closed down for the night. Since this ski resort is only open on weekends and it happens to be Sunday night, the threesome are stuck dealing with freezing temperatures, frost bite and wolves!
The scares: It's not scary, per se, just very intense and kind of thrilling. But just because it's not scary doesn't mean it isn't good, because it is. In fact, it's a whole lot better than it needs to be.
The body count: Since there are only three characters, telling you that would be a huge spoiler. Plus, the end is sort of ambiguous.
The grade: B+

30 DAYS OF NIGHT
The stars: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Ben Foster, Danny Huston, Mark Boone Jr.
The gist: Every year Barrow, Alaska is plunged into darkness for 30 consequetive days. Many of the townspeople can't deal and flee but some stick it out. So, in the greatest vampire set up ever, a group of blood suckers show up to wreak havoc on the ones who stay.
The scares: These vampires don't glitter. These vamps are scary as hell. They are fast and their teeth look more like shark teeth than flimsy little vampire teeth. I've seen this movie before but forgot how good and scary it truly is. Definitely one of the best vampire films of the 2000s.
The body count: Somewhere over 100!
The grade: B

50/50
This one has nothing to do with Halloween or horror movies but I saw it recently and must say I was very pleased with it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as a super heathly twenty something who suddenly discovers he has a rare form of spinal cancer and only a 50% chance of surviving. So, he tries to deal with the fact that he may die. Along for the ride in this charming, heartwarming, funny, semi-raunchy film are Seth Rogen as his loveable best friend, Anjelica Huston as his over bearing mom, Bryce Dallas Howard (who between this and The Help, may be the most hateable woman in Hollywood this year) as his cheating girlfriend and scene stealer Anna Kendrick as his therapist struggling to get things right with her third patient ever. Those who thought Kendrick's performance in Up in the Air was a fluke (I admit, I was one of them) will be delighted to see just how damn good she is in this movie. While everyone else is damn good in this charmer, she steals the show and just might find herself nominated for another Oscar!
Grade: B+