It’s finally here! After months combing through leaks and being fairly underwhelmed by the mini trailers Disney released, we have our first taste at Doomsday. First, gotta say, I love RDJ’s voice as Doom. One of my biggest issues with every live iteration of Doom was that he never had the right voice- Dr. Doom isn’t a damn American. As for the look, I love it too. As a lifelong super nerd, I did get all fuzzy seeing the X men (rocking the actual comic accurate suits) fighting the Avengers.
Unfortunately, I’m also scared as hell for this movie. Doom had no build up and the sheer scope of the cast and characters alone could easily crush this movie. I love a lot of what I saw and I’m glad Dr. Doom is getting the gravity and nuisance he deserves but I feel like Disney’s desperation might’ve bit them in the ass. Either way, Savior and I will be there to watch it burn. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
So I haven’t done one of these in awhile. Today I’m doing a double review much like i did with other King adaptations such as Pet Sematary , Misery , Cujo , Carrie and The Shining in the past. The Long Walk, is of course by Stephen King during his famous/ infamous Bachman era. It was the first book he ever wrote, but didn’t publish until much later in his career.
The premise is simple but intense: 100 young men (in the book) compete in the Long Walk each year for a huge cash prize as well as a special wish granted by the Major, a tyrannical figure who oversees the walk and possibly America’s dystopian regime. Walking is the name of the game. Walk. No stops, no sleep, no exceptions until the last man stands. Death awaits those that buckle under exhaustion and strain via the military’s cruel hand.
So let me talk about the book first. Honestly, I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. King masterfully builds tension and dread throughout while rarely falling into the monotonous pitfalls you’d expect. I was invested with most of the characters, especially Pete McVries who becames a friend to Ray Garatty, the story’s overall main character. I’m no stranger to King’s writing, and I can say it was kinda cool getting a glimpse of him in his earliest years before hitting legendary status and mastering the craft. Thankfully, it’s a quick read at 310 pages roughly, just starting to wear out its welcome once it finally ends. I do have to say I never got invested in Ray much as a main character and even started finding him annoying after a bit when I should’ve found sympathy for him. His whole motivation for competing in the walk is flimsy compared to many of the other walkers. My other biggest complaint is the end: it feels abrupt as hell. There’s no satisfying conclusion to some characters I really cared about. No real climax. No catharsis really. Just ends. I get the choice, the futility and hopelessness of it all but I was left feeling let down instead of chilled. In the end, The Long Walk is a solid book. Not great but a good read, especially if you’re new to King and are weary of the sheer size of many of his popular books. I’d recommend checking it out.
The movie has the same basic premise so I won’t recap but I will say their are A lot of small changes I loved as well as fixing 2 of the biggest problems I had with the book. Ray has a new, more relatable motivation and a character arc that hit me like a brick at the end. The ending, by the way, is much different and so much more fulfilling. The actors do an incredible job of carrying the movie. David Jonsson and Mark Hamil especially steal the show but Jonsson comes out on top and is becoming one of my favorite modern day actors. The movie cuts the number of walkers in half which was wise, giving characters more time to flush out. The movie, like the book, is brutal and palpable- as someone who spent nearly a decade pushing carts for the real life Umbrella Corp, this movie and book had me relive some scary shit. In the end, I actually enjoyed the movie more the the book. The book was good, the movie is great and I’m willing to say it’s the best adaptation of King I have seen since IT (2017). May the gaming gods bring you glory, and keep walking.
Every family has its demons. After Will dies in a freak car accident, his wealthy family gathers to mourn him. Alice, his ex wife, dreads the isolation, multiplied by the grief, guilt, and secrets haunting her. Or at least she wishes that’s all that was haunting her. The patriarch of the family was obsessed with the fabled Necronomicon, driving himself to insanity to put an end to it’s horrors. Could the unholy text have anything to do with Alice’s father in law’s violent mood swings and the grisly mayhem about to ensue?
I love the versatility and creativity of this series. So first, if you wanted something closer to Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn , you are pretty shit out of luck. There is some comedic moments but long gone are the slapstick bits, lovable clay effects and one liners. Burn maybe the grimmest of the series, leaning into some pretty heavy subject matter involving spousal abuse and generational abuse. It handles these topics pretty well. The chaos of the Deadites is relentless and once this movie starts going, it doesn’t stop- for better or worse. I think a little pause here and there would’ve helped build tension and made the movie feel smoother. It doesn’t help I wasn’t really invested in any of the characters except Alice but that took a long time. Don’t get me wrong, the actors were great, I just hated their characters for the most part. The highlight of the movie is the gore and cinematography. There are some insanely cool, creative shots in this movie we haven’t since the likes of the original 2.
So before my final thoughts, I got to put my two cents on something I’ve picked up on in a lot of reviews that trashed this movie for being “too mean” and cruel and how the Evil Dead series has lost itself. I respectfully disagree with all the above. I adore Evil Dead for reinventing itself while keeping the underlying themes of a average hero facing against an impossible threat. As for the mean spiritedness- they are called the Evil Dead for a reason, man. Who wants to watch the Friendly Dead?
So in the end, Evil Dead Burn maybe my least favorite of the series but its still a pretty good movie. The themes are dark, the Deadites are always awesome with plenty of gore, and the 2 after credits scenes are pretty fulfilling. Stay groovy everyone.
So much has crossed into public domain in the few years. Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, Popeye the sailor…and Betty Boop. Yep, we got a Betty Boop horror movie on our hands. How? Why? Well, let’s find out (you might need a beer or hard drink of choice for this one.)
Three history majors have come to a mansion in the middle of nowhere for a project. The house was formerly a cabaret in the 1920’s called Dizzy Dishes that burned down under mysterious circumstances. Living in this house is a bizzarre young woman dressed in all black with a high pitched voice that rarely talks. This unnamed lady (though we damn well know who she is) is giving off some really menacing vibes. Trapped because of a storm, the three are left with this crazy lady in a giant house in the middle of nowhere. What could go wrong?
I shouldn’t need to state the obvious but Betty’s Revenge was not a good movie. But was it a fun bad movie? Honestly, no. The movie is barely 80 minutes and you can tell it’s stretching to hit that mark. The first victim takes about 4 minutes just to die, which was one of the only funny parts of the movie. The actress playing Betty (never referred to as Betty by name but damnit we know) tries unlike everyone else is flat month old soda. Their isn’t any outlandish death scenes and you really don’t see any of the killing but the laughable aftermath. The movie keeps showing clips of old Betty Boop cartoons but refuses to mention her by name. I was sorta confused what Betty actually was in this movie- ghost, some kind of immortal being, maybe a possessed victim. The movie never explains. It gives a vague but weirdly well written diary of a girl who sounds like a 20’s Joaquin Phoenix Joker in the making. In the end, I can’t recommend this movie, even with booze. There’s better slop than this. May th gaming gods bring you glory.
The latest Spiderman movie has me more than curious. The character list is pretty eclectic and we have a wide variety of story arcs going on. I’m glad me get to see Spidey beat down Scorpion. I’m extremely confident Sadie Sink is playing Jean Grey after this trailer. I’m super pumped classic Hulk is returning but I’m a little disappointed we haven’t gotten any glimpse of Tombstone yet. In the end, this trailer actually got me pretty hyped and I can’t wait to catch it this summer. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
So likely due to the backlash over the first trailer for the latest DC show, it was pulled off much of the internet. So now we have round 2 and I think it looks much more promising. There’s a few scenes of Hal Jordan looking pretty badass. The sci fi elements came through a lot more and it’s at least starting to look like a Green Lantern property. I’m not super sold on the suit still, I think it’s still too brown and unappealing for my liking. I can’t say I’m super hyped for this show, but I’m starting to see some promise which is a big step forward. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
We love us some Evil Dead here at Saviorgaming. Whether its the classic, the absurd goofball epic of Army of Darkness, or even the incredible piece of theater: Evil Dead: The Musical . Burn is the 6th movie in this confusing and purely insane saga, with Evil Dead: Wrath also in the works.
Burn appears to be a dark family drama at its rotted deadite heart. Their are two trailers, both with different footage; Youtube kept censoring the first, more gruesome trailer, so we’re off to a good start. I miss the uncanny sight of the claymation deadites of old, but the modern ones are slowly growing on me. As always, I’ll always miss the legend that is Bruce Campbell as Ash but Burn looks promising. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
So Savior and I are a bit befuddled with Zach Cregger’s work. I admire the man’s style and creativity- you’re never getting a straight slasher, possession, or monster romp with him. I appreciate that. He’s also, for better or worse, a director that likes making WTF movies. That’s all well and good but I was skeptical finding out out he was doing a Resident Evil movie.
On it’s own, the movie looks solid. It has a nice atmosphere and intrigue I’d come to expect from Cregger’s work. However, looks nothing like Resident Evil. At all. It’s been widely known this movie is outside the game’s canon, and vaguely happens around the Raccoon City outbreak. I know a lot of the fanbase is pretty pissed how distant it is from the games- even I’m not too happy about it myself- but considering what Netflix gave us, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City , and the Milla Jojovich movies, least this looks competent. I’ curious to know more and I do want to see it, regardless. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
Holy crap, talk about surprised. I didn’t have much hope for the Clayface solo movie. This teaser admittedly looks incredible. I love that it’s heavily inspired by Feats of Clay, an incredible 2 part episode from Batman: the animated series . The body horror looks fantastic. My hype went through the roof instantly just from this tiny peak. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
For years I was a pretty fan of Youtuber Chris Stuckmann and his movie reviews. As his style changed, I fell out of touch with his stuff but I was pretty happy when I learned the guy got to fulfill his dream of making a major studio film. So how did his debut horror movie turn out?
Riley Brennan, host of a famous, early, paranormal Youtube channel disappeared in 2008 with her friends. Her friends were all discovered brutally killed, but there’s no sign of Riley, her last video recorded in the abandoned town of Shelby Oaks. Riley’ sister, Mia, refuses to give up home. Twelve years later, a man commits suicide on Mia’s doorstep, and in his hand is a tape named after the town where Riley disappeared. Setting off, Mia must answer what happened in Shelby Oaks.
This was a weird bag for me. The movie looks really damn good and the acting is solid all around. However the story kills the potential this movie has. The opening is solid, almost strong, but breaks apart as it goes on. I feel like the characters and backstories weren’t really developed and the story needed more connective tissue between events so the movie wouldn’t feel like a series of random events strung together. The finale could’ve been good if I understood what was really going on. Admittedly, I’m sorry to say I laughed at the very end. What saves the movie is some tense atmosphere and really good camera work. I feel like I’ve been overly negative in this review but honestly, Stuckmann’s debut isn’t bad, just not great either. It’s worth checking out if you got Hulu and I do think the guy has talent and I’d gladly check out his next project. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
Savior Gaming 