Movie Review – Savior Gaming

Primetime

Why don’tcha take a seat? Perhaps one of the most infamous phrases of the 2000’s came from one of the most controversial shows ever put on TV: To Catch A Predator with Chris Hansen. Week after week thousands tuned in to watch the stoic journalist confront child molesters and pedophiles on national tv, culminating in some heavy ethical debates as well as an insane confrontation that ended with the suicide of a public official. Not only does this story follow the rise and fall of Hansen but the journey of Daniel Plum, a struggling actor hired to act as one of the child decoys tasked with luring out the worst of the worst. What’s the cost of fame and how far is too far?

Ok, let’s get this out of the way: I’m not going into the accuracy of this movie. The real Chris Hansen is pretty pissed at how this movie portrays him-a conflicted, imperfect family man with big dreams whose willing to do some ugly shit to achieve them. Much like Oppenheimer, I’d argue it’s a realistic portrayal of a human being. Pattinson is great as Hansen, and I gotta give him credit for nailing Hansen’s memorable cadence and inflections. Skyler Gisondo was also incredible as Decoy Dan Plum, disappearing into the role as well as Pattinson did his; I totally forgot he was Jimmy Olsen in Superman (2025). The movie on the whole is entertaining as hell on the whole. Visually it’s a knock out with a score that compliments the psychedelic vibes and the eerily faithful 2000’s TV look to everything. The movie is pretty quick, staying focused on strictly the span of To Catch A Predator. The only real complaint I have is that the ending feels abrupt. I feel like Dan Plum got a reasonable end, the producer got a reasonable end, but not Hansen.

In the end, I really enjoyed Primetime. It’s funnier and trippier than I expected with some great performances I’d highly recommend. May the gaming god’s bring you glory.

The Fog

Every town has its share of ghost stories. Antonio Bay is no different. The quiet sea side town is gearing up to celebrate it’s founding when a mysterious fog rolls in from the sea. Mysteriously power goes out, windows shatter and knocks can be heard with seemingly no one there. Coincidence or is the the town’s bloody secrets coming back for revenge as the long lost crew of the Elizabeth Dane have come ashore once again…

So John Carpenter had to do something in the couple years between Halloween and The Thing . I remember me and my dad trying to watch the godawful remake on video and my dad, legend he was, snoring halfway through it. The original legitimately feels like a old fashioned campfire tale in the best way. The opening perfectly sets up the movie’s atmosphere as well as some great cinematography accompanied some great music from Carpenter himself. I really liked Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Atkins’s chemistry. I loved Antonio Bay as a setting, it felt like a cozy little vacation town I wouldn’t mind taking a trip to-if not for the ghost pirates. While I can’t say I was scared, I did appreciate the less is more approach to the ghosts and they’re are some badass shots of them towards the end. My only real complaint is the movie is a bit too much of a slow burn, feeling longer than it actually is. It drags a little in the second act mostly though the climax was a nice payoff.

In the end, the fog is definitely worth checking out, especially with spooky season around the corner. It’s definitely a cozy, turn the lights off and curl up on the couch kind of horror movie that looks great 45 years later. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Scary Movie (2026)

Remember Scary Movie folks? In the age of legacy sequels, reboots, se-boots, and remakes galore, of course Scary Movie came back. I was so glad to Have Cindy, Brenda, Shorty, Ray, and a lot of the original cast back. But doe it pay off? Sadly, not really.

Scary Movie 6 loosely follows Scream 2022 (Scream 5) and Scream 6 with a little bit of Halloween (2018) for good measure. Ghostface is back and again is killing the old survivors of the original movies as well as their insufferable offspring.

So for the positive, the original cast is still great. You can tell they were still into it and the meta commentary moments were the best parts to me. Besides that I barely laughed. The movie is basically lazy skits woven together that are very similar to the format of the dreaded 5th film. There’s a lot of throw away gags from the from the first 2 movies that are painfully forced. Gone is the original magic. Savior asked a valid question whilst I ranted about this movie: were the originals funny to begin with? Did we just grow up? For some, honestly, yes. For me, I watched the first 2 movies pretty recently and still laughed my ass off for the most part Sure, not every joke stood the test of time but a damn good majority did.

In the end, I can’t recommend this movie at all. I remember thinking that Sinners was genuinely funnier than the parodies in this movie. Highly recommend watching the first few original Scary Movies but after Scary Movie 3 just stop. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Lee Cronin’s The Mummy

The Cannon’s are a happy family on a business trip in Egypt. Things go horribly wrong when their daughter Katie gets snatched out of their yard by a mysterious woman. For eight years, there’s no word, no updates. Katie is gone and the family moves on with their other daughter. Until miraculously Katie is found alive inside of a sealed sarcophagus. She’s virtually catatonic, malformed, malnourished and…ok, there’s no feasible way this kid is alive. But they take her home…

I’ll be honest, I’m having a hard time just getting through the recap of this damn movie. This isn’t The Mummy (2017) which wanted to to desperately wanted to be a MCU movie and kick off its own. Cronin instead wanted to make another Evil Dead movie; so much so I’ve seen this film included in way too many Evil Dead series countdowns. Katie is basically a Deadite. There’s a evil book that sounds awfully similar to the Necronomicon and she’s possessing people, there’s gross scenes of bodily harm and general possession movie tropes. I can’t say I was invested in any of the characters and for pretty good reason. The parents are pretty crappy. Not bad people, just dammit they are stupid from how Katie gets kidnapped to the level of ignorance on display when the full on horror movie shit starts kicking up. The kids are fine actors but I never found them scary. The effects are fine, mostly, but the gore is clearly trying to gross you out. I think the best way I can describe this movie in a nutshell is it’s trying to be modern Evil Dead without anything that makes Evil Dead special. Lastly, I’m going to say this movie is over 2 hours and it absolutely feels longer; Oppenheimer felt quicker by comparison.

In the end, watch the classic Mummy movies. Karloff, the Hammer movies with Christopher Lee, the classic 90’s Mummy movies with Brendan Fraser- you can’t got wrong. Friends don’t let friends watch Mummy 2026. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Mortal Kombat 2

The Tournament has begun! Picking up shortly after Mortal Kombat 2021 left off, the champions of Earthrealm gather under Raiden to face the tyrannical Shao Khan’s forces. The earth champions are short 1 contestant however. Enter Johnny Cage, washed up actor and martial artist struggling with the times. Can Johnny rise up the occasion and defend the Earth from a seemingly unbeatable foe, or is the world doomed?

So I can’t lie, the trailers got my hopes up a bit. Fan service, Karl Urban, fights out the ass- what more can you ask for? Well, that’s what we got for better or worse. Urban was a damn fine addition as Johnny Cage. I liked the actors all around, though admittedly no one really has shit to work with. The plot and story of this movie is paper thin. It’s fight scenes and clunky dialog held togther with quips and movie tropes. The fights are good and there’s some nice fan service, including he end credits which sadly was my favorite part (seriously the end credits got me more hyped than the actual movie). It may seem like I don’t have much to say and that’s basically true- Cage and Kano are entertaining, there’s a lot of fights with characters you know but aren’t treated with much weight except maybe Cage and Kitana. In the end, it’s a average movie, the epitome of 5/10 but might entertain you on a rainy day if you’re bored and don’t have anything else to do. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Spiderman: Brand New Day

Its been 4 years since Peter Parker made the ultimate sacrifice for not only the people he loves but essentially existence itself at the end of Spider-man: No Way Home. Peter has fully given himself to being a full time Friendly Neighborhood superhero, watching his friends thrive from afar. When his body begins erratic changes and a deadly new foe emerges that can seemingly hop body to body, Peter may have to final learn he’s not alone and accept the brand new day ahead.

Arragas the Druid and I went through a lot to see this opening weekend for the love of our favorite wall crawler and honestly…this could be my favorite Spidey film, if not tied with classic spider man 2. This movie raises the emotional stakes and it was really refreshing to see an adult Peter. As someone who deals with isolation and depression, the movie hit me pretty hard. The superhero stuff was beautifully done with possibly my favorite climax to a Spidey movie. The actors did an amazing job; I love Sadie Sink as the villain of this movie and I can’t wait to see more of her in the MCU. Punisher was a great contrast to Peter and I loved their interactions throughout the movie. The pacing was good, never feeling too slow or crammed. In the end, I’m happy to say Brand New Day breaks the curse of MCU 4s started with Thor: Love and Thunder and Captain America: Brave New World . I absolutely recommend it, especially in theaters. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Long Walk

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.

Evil Dead Burn

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.

Betty’s Revenge

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.

Greenland (2020) Movie Review

Greenland (2020), starring Gerard Butler and Morena Baccarin, is one of those movies I meant to see years ago and never got around to. It starts out with John Garrity (Butler) leaving work to move back in with his estranged wife, Allison. (Baccarin)

While planning a party for the following day, their son, Nathan ( Roger Dale Floyd), told them about the comet Clarke he learned about in school. This was a big deal because it is supposed to be the closest one has ever come in history. Of course, most people aren’t bothered by it because if this were dangerous, someone would mention it, right?

Nah, this is the government we are talking about. Because John is a structural engineer, his family is chosen to be placed in Greenlan in a secret bunker to hide because this thing is going to hit and cause an extinction-level event. They unfortunately get this information at the worst possible moment, mid-party. This causes some issues with the neighbors, who want them to save their kids as well.

I won’t go into details and spoil the entire movie, but what should have been a quick trip and a flight turns into an adventure of a lifetime that is anything but easy. From start to finish, I enjoyed this movie, with the world feeling like they put real thought into how things would unfold rather than just what would be entertaining. So if you haven’t already, check this one out. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.