He then types “K-O-I” (again in close-up), which not only doesn’t match anything on screen, but doesn’t match any common word at all, unless he was discussing Koi fish for some reason. We will clearly see Gage typing out his name (“G-A-G-E”), but on-screen it will just say “I am a detective” or something. And the entire movie is like that, resulting in a narrative that’s not only weak, but artificially depicted to boot.Įditing/direction is also a major problem, particularly on the computer scenes. Gage is also written as the least effective cop in movie history when he is knocked to the floor, rather than sweep Howdy’s feet from under him or kick him in the balls, which he is in a perfect position to do, he instead rolls over and begins to crawl for his gun. Or it simply makes no goddamn sense - a tech explains that because Howdy used a stolen credit card, they cannot find him, only his screen name (how would they get THAT without an IP trace of some sort?). When Amy Smart shows the cops how to use a chat room, she stops the scene cold to explain what a “Locator Member Online Search Engine” is, despite the fact that its very name is, if anything, overly self-explanatory. Awkward attempts at hard-edged cop talk never work, and people either speak in single word phrases or lengthy exposition. It makes it seem like no one is ever really in any danger whatsoever. Englund says this is what makes the movie scary, but I wholly disagree. Hell, Howdy doesn’t even kill the guy who tried to kill him (Robert Englund, in a clever reversal of his original Nightmare on Elm St role)! It’s a Serial Non-Killer movie. Hell, even Gage’s partner, a character who should be any movie logic be killed during the 2nd act, never even gets involved in an action scene. The hero (Kevin Gage playing a guy named Mike Gage), his wife, his niece who is the only one in town who knows how to use the internet, etc - all escape the movie without as much as a scratch. The daughter gets her lips sewn together, but is otherwise unharmed in any way. In any traditional sense, it would be impossible to write a synopsis about this movie without spoiling things, because it just keeps leading to disappointing climaxes, followed by new plot threads that are resolved just as quickly.Īlso, for a movie that is built around mutilation and such, it sure is tame. ![]() ![]() Instead the hero’s daughter is kidnapped (again) and he has to go rescue her (again). Nightmare on Elm St now? Nope - after attacking one (not killing him), this subplot is forgotten. “OK, now it’s a Clockwork Orange type deal!” Wrong again, they kill him and then he comes back to life (somehow) and goes after the parents. But the parents of those he abused/killed catch up to him. But no, he is just as quickly set free, and seemingly normal (this is the only part of the film I liked, partly due to the creepy sight of Snider made to look meek). He then goes to an institution, so I thought we’d get a hospital set movie a serial killer version of Cuckoo’s Nest. But no, he arrests him and Captain Howdy is put on trial. ![]() I thought we would then get a movie where the killer traps the hero and the hero has to find a way out and save his daughter and the other folks who are chained up around him. Seemingly made up as it went along, it is constantly switching gears that will often do little more than remind you of better horror movies.įor example, our hero, seeking his kidnapped daughter, finds the killer (Snider) about 40 minutes into the movie. ![]() And he inspired Adam Green to make Hatchet(cool story, look it up), so props to him for that. Not that I was ever the biggest Twisted Sister fan, but I enjoy what I’ve heard and enjoy Dee’s theatrics whenever I see him at a Fangoria show or whatever. It’s no worse than at least half of the nonsense I have watched, but most movies this bad aren’t the creation of a guy I like. And now that I have seen it, I wish I had kept my self-imposed moratorium going. I’ve managed to go over a decade without watching Dee Snider’s Strangeland, a film I have never once heard anything positive about.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |