The Raven (2012)

 

 

As any reader of the blog will know, I am a huge Edgar Allan Poe fan. I have collected his writings, movies based on his material and even dressed like him. Honestly, his works have inspired much of who I am. With that in mind, I could not wait to sit down and watch The Raven in the comforts of my living room. Yes, I understand these movies are often a sketchy proposition, but as a fan, you have to watch.

 

 

Plot/ When a madman begins committing horrific murders inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's works, a young Baltimore detective joins forces with Poe to stop him from making his stories a reality.

 

 

When I saw that this movie was being filmed, I was really not looking forward to it. Do not get me wrong, I love everything Poe, but I feared that this one would fall into the category of Poe inspired films that fell short. Fortunately, my fears were wrong. This movie is much better than I could have imagined and was an interesting take of the last days of the literary genius. What I really liked was the dark and graphic way they combined different parts of Poe classics. These ideas within this layered story worked well with the solid acting, characterizations, and effects. More importantly, it portrayed Poe as a human and author, and did not try to create something more than he was. In the end, this was one of the better Poe themed movies that I have seen and one that should be seen. If you have not watched it, check it out.

Buried Alive (2007)

As I continue through October, counting down to retirement and my favorite holiday (26 days left), I was stuck searching for something late last night on Demand. Since I have not got the man cave finished, I am still stuck sharing a television (which sucks)! My selection for the evening was the 2007 entry Buried Alive.

Plot/ A college prank at an abandoned house accidentally awakens a frightening spirit.

I really had no idea what to expect when I put this on last night, while the idea seemed simple enough, I was not sure that simple is always better. After watching it, I saw the potential, but nothing truly jumped out to make this more than just average. In fact, the only thing that was not just average was the amount of nudity (a ton, and that may be the only selling point). As the movie progressed, the plot and storyline just seemed all over the place (like the acting) and even the back story did little to bring the point to light. Sure, there were some decent gory moments, but that was not even close enough to save this one. If you are a fan of boobs in horror movies, check this one out, if not, Stay Away!

Buried Alive (1990)

While watching Edgar Allan Poe, Christopher Lee and Vincent Price in 1969s The Oblong Box may not have been the greatest experience ever, I will admit that I am sure there are much worse. Hopefully the Poe inspired Buried Alive from 1990 does not fall into that category.

Plot/ A young woman goes to teach at the Ravenscroft Institute, a spooky old girls' school overrun by ants and staffed by various ex-mental patients. Spurred on by a series of horrific hallucinations, she begins to investigate the mysterious disappearances of several students.

This was another film that was very loosely on the writings of Poe (and when I say loosely, I mean it). The plot is obvious and very cliché, yet they do nothing with the plot to help build atmosphere. To me, it felt like the director and script were just jumping from scene to scene trying got the bizarre vice the entertaining. The acting was so-so, with some (Robert Vaughn) improving throughout and one notable actor (Donald Pleasence) just being annoying to the max. However, to me the worst part of this flick has nothing to do with the movie itself (OK, it does), this film was horror icon John Carradine’s last movie and to me that it a travesty. This movie had some potential, but was totally wasted. Watch at your own risk.