Ed's Review Dot Com

Evergreen Media Group, New Line Cinema, The Safran Company,

Vera Farmiga, Joey King, Patrick Wilson, Lili Taylor, Ron Livingston, Mackenzie Foy, Shanley Caswell, Hayley McFarland, John Brotherton, Steve Coulter

Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) are real life paranormal investigators. The Perron Family, Roger (Ron Livingston) and Carolyn (Lili Taylor) and their five daughters have just moved into a new home that holds a lot of secrets. Roger is a long distance truck driver, and when he’s gone, the girls are home alone and they really suspect something weird is happening in the house. After contacting Ed and Lorraine Warren, they find out the house was previously owned by a witch who killed herself on the property, but many spirits may haunt the house creating very big problems for both the Perron Family and the Warrens.

This is a very creepy movie loosely based, once again, on a true story. The Warrens are very well known paranormal investigators, and this story is set in 1971, so the tools of the trade they use are flash cameras and reel to reel tape recorders, not to mention dial phones! This really adds to the creepiness. For more about the truthfulness of the story, skip to the end of this review, but as far as the film is concerned, it’s got a lot going for it. First of all, it’s really, really scary. I have not seen a film this well done for building the suspense and terror step by step. There are a great many real scares in this film. It’s really creepy. The scenery is very good, and the settings are fabulous. The house is perfect for a haunted house, and the grounds are creepy enough without the story. The soundtrack is excellent, especially due to the fact that you don’t even notice it because you’re so into the story. It’s a predictable story, as all these events pretty much end the same. But that’s not a big deal, as getting there is really horrific. Lili Taylor is perfect for playing the scary roles, and she does a good job once again in this film. She’s been stuck with many creepy monster type roles, but she’s so good at it, and she aces this one once again. The rest of the cast is also very good, especially the five daughters, plus the sixth one that belongs to the Warren’s. This is definitely the best horror film I’ve seen in a long time, and very good for horror film lovers. This is a good ghost story, and really pulls you into the terror. I believe word of mouth with do a lot for this film, and if you’re a horror fan, you’ll probably not want to miss this one. Watched this on Thursday night, and the theater was packed. Good scary movie, believe me!

For information about Ed and Lorraine Warren, read here.

For the Ed and Lorraine Warren Official Website, click here.

For information about the film and the making of the film, click here.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

New in theaters this weekend Friday July 19, 2013

• Red 2
• RIPD
• The Conjuring
• Turbo
• Girl Most Likely
• Only God Forgives
• Blackfish
• The Act of Killing
• D-Day

Last Weeks top Box Office:

1 – Despicable Me 2
2 – Grown Ups 2
3 – Pacific Rim
4 – The Heat
5 – The Lone Ranger

Freedom Films, Palo Verde, Hannibal Classics,

Brian Presley, Kurt Russell, Melanie Lynskey, Marc Blucas, Christine Lahti, Sarah Wright, Drew Powell, Steve Turner, Kevin Covais, James Duval, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Austin Ross, Jacquelyn Evola

Fifteen years ago, Scott Murphy (Brian Presley) was on top of the world. He had a full ride scholarship to college, and as the small town hero quarterback, he had one more game to play. This game was against a team much bigger and stronger than them, and they were outmatched, but on the last play of the game, Scott is injured and it put an end to his career. Fifteen years later, Scott is still stuck in the small town, trying to eke out a living on his farm, and facing serious financial trouble. He gets the chance to go back in time 15 years and relive the week of the big game and come to a conclusion of whether to sit out the game and take the scholarship, or to play and risk injuring himself all over again. He looks to Coach Hand (Kurt Russell) for advice in determining what’s the right thing to do.

This is a familiar film in a lot of ways. We’ve seen a lot of these kinds of movies. We’ve had the Mr Destiny film where Jim Belushi gets a chance to hit the home run on that pitch where he struck out the first time, and change his life. This has a different look at it though, and I kind of liked the way they addressed it. Of course there’s the flashback in time, and the confusion of being 15 years younger and going back to high school, naturally. But the focus isn’t on how his life will change if he does it differently. It’s more on what decision should I make? How will it affect me? How will it affect my coach and my teammates? What will it do to my character? What is the most important thing to me, really? It’s very introspective about the choice, and not so much on what happens after. Additionally, this was a really good football movie. I think they did a great job of showing the football games without overdoing it, but with enough technical detail that football fans who really understand the games will not feel like they’re watching a movie version dumbed down for the non-football crowd. I think it’s really well done for anybody to watch.

The serious questions are handled well, and it does make you think, but but it’s also highly entertaining. The film is very well put together, and I am really glad I rented this. It’s new on DVD even though this is a couple years old, and I’m glad they decided to release it on DVD. It was a pleasure to watch.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday July 16, 2013

• 42
• Bullet to the Head
• Erased
• Evil Dead
• The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure
• Solomon Kane

Atlantic Pictures (II), Laundry Films, Northern Lights Films,

Juno Temple, Michael Angarano, Alexis Bledel, Alia Shawkat, Bobby Moynihan, Billy Magnussen

John (Michael Angarano) and Alice (Juno Temple) are a couple in a bit of trouble. They work hard, but there just isn’t enough money to go around. Their marriage is nearly on the rocks, when Alice brings home an old brass teapot she picked up. Through a strange coincidence she finds out how it works. There is no genie who pops out to grant wishes, but rather the teapot will give you money anytime one of the owners gets hurt, either physically or emotionally. They start out small, with a slap in the face or a punch in the stomach, but in order to get the money they need they have to get more and more violent with each other to keep up. The set a goal, and begin hurting each other and themselves until they are able to reach the amount. But in the meantime a number of characters find out that they have the teapot and either want to get it from them, or to warn them of how dangerous this thing is. In the end, it’s John and Alice who have to figure out how far they ware willing to go, and how much is really enough.

This is a really strange film. But it’s based on a comic book series, and there was a short subject made in 2007 based on the same story. This is the feature version, and so a lot of stuff is added. There’s a lot of crossed stories going on, and this is a film with a funny concept, with lots of chuckles and pratfalls, but with many lessons and morals to show us. It’s not preachy, but it does show us the evils of greed in a big way. It’s a little movie that didn’t get any attention when it came out, but it’s an interesting study in human nature with a bunch of good laughs thrown in. It does get a bit like the Three Stooges of old with the poke in the eye type stuff, but there’s a lot of other levels and some really interesting odd characters to watch at well, so you probably won’t be bored. It’s not a movie at all, but if you like this kind of off the wall humor, it could be a nice rental. I kind of enjoyed it, actually.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog