Poltergeist

Steven Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the most revolutionary filmmakers of all time, so when he decided to dip his toes in the supernatural horror genre by providing the screenplay for Poltergeist, chances are nobody was expecting something quite so chilling from the man who introduced the world to a rubbery chicken wire alien with a glowing finger. The best way to watch Poltergeist, like a number of films, is to go in blind and not know what's coming.

In a time when many cookie cutter horror films have exhausted the jump scares and shrieking violin chords to frighten people, it's refreshing to see something older that, despite it's dated effects and now-overdone story, can still manage to provide a fair number of scares for both young and old. For one thing, the movie takes adult fear to a whole new level. Little Carol Anne is drawn in by seemingly friendly voices of strangers from the T.V. and is then taken into their realm once their sacred ground has been disturbed. And then suddenly the whole house starts to experience disturbances, from chairs stacking themselves to an unholy abomination of a clown doll.

In addition to the aforementioned parental concerns, what makes Poltergeist scarier than most films is that the antagonistic force seems to have no weakness. It cannot be defeated and it forces the family to flee at the last minute, taking everything they hold near and dear into oblivion. While most serial killers in slasher films are taken out via gunshots, stabbings, and decapitations (y'know, before they're brought back for the sequel), the poltergeist here is all powerful and could have taken Carol Anne into their realm permanently.

Poltergeist lives up to its reputation as a landmark horror film, benefiting from it's eerie aura and build-up to its spot-on execution.

Carrie (2013)

By now, it doesn't need to be said what the general moviegoing public thinks of remakes. Some will moan about the constant retreads while others embrace the notion of a new vision to a familiar work. The latest version of Stephen King's Carrie may find a mix of both groups. It probably won't persuade cynics to give it a shot, but for those who go in wanting to see how someone else handles high school revenge, they may walk out feeling not too offended.

The funny thing about Kimberly Peirce's updated version, and something that may be problematic to audiences, is that for a movie called Carrie, an awful lot of time is spent away from Carrie and we see more of the people that torment the titular character. Sure, there is focus on Carrie putting her powers to good use, but only after the film seems to forget that she's supposed to be the main character. Of course, that's not to say these supporting characters are wasted. Sue, the one atoner among the mean girls, is portrayed more sympathetically, while Chris, the chief antagonist, is more present here and even has moments where it looks like she's not a complete monster, and most of the blame falls on her scumbag boyfriend Tommy. While they are interesting characters, it's a bit distracting when we ought to follow Carrie and we don't learn much about her past the fundamentalist upbringing that is already quickly established.

Peirce also steers into some of the tired horror film and high school film cliches that almost seem pretty forced. It gets to a point where you might go "Okay, we get it" after all the times Carrie's peers automatically laugh at her when she breathes, or every time an eerie rumbling happens whenever Carrie makes something crazy happen. But what everybody wants to see is the climax at the prom, the moment when Carrie puts her foot down (literally at one point) and unleashes her fury upon everyone who has ever mocked her. It doesn't have the spooky build-up that Brian De Palma's film had, but considering how many liberties can be taken these days, Peirce doesn't fail in this department, allowing for some rather awesomely brutal revenge kills. It is certainly the highlight of the film, and even for those who know what's going to happen, it is pretty satisfying.

The film may often hammer down the "bullying is bad" theme down to a T, but it mostly emphasizes that you never know what anybody is capable of. Maybe nobody is going to hurl their tormentors against a wall with their minds, but the harsh truth is that certain people can snap at any given moment when pushed far enough. And that's what has happened to Carrie every time the story's been told.

While Carrie doesn't bring anything new to the table, it proves to be fairly entertaining with an intense climax and a far better look at the characters, even if it would have been nicer to actually see more of Carrie herself.

Gravity

There are films that can take you to a place you may have seen before, and yet, it feels like you're seeing it for the first time. Director Alfonso Cuaron achieves this with Gravity. Time and time again, we've been launched into space with characters like Ellen Ripley, WALL-E, and the crew of U.S.S. Enterprise, but this time, we're treated to the Cuaron style of space travel.

With the proper use of the 3D effect, Cuaron takes you into space and then unleashes the horrors of helplessness, loneliness, and dread as you're floating thousands of miles above the earth with Sandra Bullock's Ryan Stone. Few films these days can capture those feelings and make it almost genuine, but it scores big here. Bullock herself manages to carry the film from beginning to end. It starts off as just a job until her life is in jeopardy, and even if she has nothing else to live for, it doesn't mean she cannot keep living. George Clooney, in his smaller role, also serves to give Bullock the push she needs to keep her will to live going. The lack of other characters allows us to keep our eyes and ears on Stone and root for her to make it home.

Now, for all it's visual grandeur and emotional weight, Gravity isn't perfect. The setting may look fresh and neat, but the story may seem a bit too familiar. It's a survival story in space, and the chances of making it out alive look slim, but the main character must find the drive and will to succeed. Seems pretty straightforward, but Cuaron's style of storytelling compensates for something pretty basic. Additionally, Cuaron does take some artistic license with the whole space setting, and science geeks may find themselves picking out a few inaccuracies (yes, why is Sandra Bullock not wearing an adult diaper under her space suit?), but even that would just be nitpicking.

Gravity certainly ought to be checked out at least once in the proper format. It may be too soon to call it a masterpiece, but there is no doubt that Cuaron's vision is achieved, making it an enticing cinematic experience.

Upstream Color

"Pretentious" is a word that seems to be thrown around here and there in regards to anything that appears to act bigger and better than it really is. Here is one of the more recent offenders, Shane Carruth's Upstream Color.

Carruth seems as though he's trying to make a science-fiction drama with shades of David Lynch. In reality, it comes off as a cheesy student film desperately tries to be Lynchian, complete with bad acting, choppy editing, somber music, and a dreary color palette. It follows what seems to be an elaborate experiment involving two people brought together through circumstances that neither person can comprehend, and as a whole, that's what the film appears to be - just a long experiment put together by someone who thinks they're smarter than you.

The film's structure is intentionally uneven, and while it's succeeded in many films, it only looks deliberately confusing here. And the film's plot isn't even a very complex one, even if it wants to seem that way. Carruth tries too hard to appear clever and he comes off as the snobby smart kid in the classroom who'll mock you if you don't understand where he's coming from while his band of cronies blindly clap for him and agree with what he says. Unconventional styles of filmmaking certainly ought to be welcomed in this generation, but not when it's so painfully obvious how smug the creator is when presenting his work.

Like Carruth's first film, Upstream Color, in spite of all the undeserved acclaim, breaks no new ground, presents no interesting commentary or ideas, and is an unbelievable bore.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil

Horror comedies can be a tricky sell, because they must usually find a balance between the scares and the laughs. While Tucker & Dale vs. Evil doesn't quite fit that description, it succeeds in putting on a clever twist on the average horror movie plot by turning the hicks into heroes and the horny and idiotic college students into the antagonists.

The title characters, upon first impression, would fit the bill for your typical horror movie villains. They're unkempt, messy, and they carry tools that can be used as murder weapons. Dale, in particular, seems to nail this look down to a T, making a bad first impression upon his later love interest, Ali. Through a series of confusions and "not-what-it-looks-like" situations, the duo becomes the target of revenge by the deranged leader of the teens, leading to quite literally bloody hilarious outcomes.

Tucker & Dale's spin on the genre is it's main selling point and it puts all the elements of satire to good use without being too forced or in-your-face. The guys are actually likeable, if not somewhat dim-witted fellows, just trying to fix up their summer home. Ali even overcomes the horror lead female stigma. She is as smart as she is lovely, making it obvious why Dale goes for her. Even Chad, the bloodthirsty villain of the film, manages to be hilariously over-the-top in his unstoppable vendetta against hillbillies, leading to a pretty funny "twist" at the end.

In addition to being a horror satire, one can see this as a shot toward today's typical preppy and moronic college students who know nothing but drinking and riding anything that moves. Chad, the archetypical tough guy, is seen trying to put the moves on Ali, a beautiful blonde who proves to be smarter than she looks. They are also quick to judge Tucker and Dale based on their redneck appearance before only Ali sees them for who they really are.

For all it's gory mayhem and sometimes juvenile gags, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil  is funny, charming, and entertaining.