White Noise (2022)

I took a break from my tablet yesterday as I suffered through one of my low energy days that comes with my recovery,  especially as they reduce my steroid impact.  Of course during this time,  I try to watch some stuff.  My first selection yesterday was not horror or Sci-Fi, it was the comedic drama White Noise (2022)

Plot: A contemporary American family's attempts to deal with the mundane conflicts of everyday life while grappling with the universal mysteries of love, death, and the possibility of happiness in an uncertain world.

First off, I selected this for a few reasons not related to the movie in general, especially in light of the strange coincidences that place between today realities and the movie.  In fact,  those similarities (since I really don't believe in coincidence) intrigue me more than the movie itself. The fact that the movie centered in a fictional town in Ohio, was filmed in East Palestine, and that town suffered the effects from a major airborne toxic cloud makes it eerie; almost in a way that one could cry predictive programming with the recent events of train derailment in the same Ohio town. Having a creative writing degree, I know that takes place. However, since this was based on a book written many years ago,  it would almost be impossible for the timelines to actually sync up. But, who knows.  The movie itself is far from perfect and seems to jump all over the place with some bumpy transitions throughout in the story. There are some good performances (especially Adam Driver), but this seem to get lost in the over abundance of dialog.  In the end,  this is an interesting comedy, that seems to be rooted in our modern reality.  It won't be for everyone, but it is a nice break from the craziness of the past few days. 

Slugs (1988)

After spending the weekend camping at a softball tournament, it was nice to finally kick back and watch something mindless tonight. After some thought, I decided on the 1988 schlockfest Slugs.

Plot/ People are dying mysteriously and gruesomely, and nobody has a clue what the cause is. Only health worker Mike Brady has a possible solution, but the authorities laugh at his theory of killer slugs.

There is always a place in my movie library for mindless pieces of schlock that do not take themselves seriously, and that is exactly what type of movie we have here. Is a good movie? Technically no, but it is an easy watch and a great example of 1980s creature feature gold. On a positive, I have always loved the clichéd storyline, the excessive low budget gore, and the killer slugs. Unfortunately, the close-minded horror fan that is searching for a Oscar-worthy piece of cinema will probably not agree with me and point out the flat characters, the uneven performances, and the choppy editing. Yes, there are flaws, but this is the type of film that paved its way into the so bad its good garage. In the end, if you are looking for a fun, entertaining, and mindless example of 1980s schlock, give this one a chance. Especially, if like me, you have Shudder and could watch it on a push of a button. Check it out.

C.H.U.D. (1984)

With the Steelers game now in the books and this being the last evening I have before starting back to college tomorrow in a creative writing program, I decided to jump back in time for some retro horror. After some thought, I decided upon the 1984 creature feature C.H.U.D.

Plot/ A bizarre series of murders in New York City seems to point toward the existence of a race of mutant cannibals living under the streets.

C.H.U.D or Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers, is one of those movies from the 1980s that has always seemed a bit under the RADAR. Yes, the sequel may have destroyed the franchise, but the original is entertaining, and incredibly, has stood the test of time. The storyline is awesome, the acting is solid and the effect (while low budget) still have some bite. Honestly, I would rather watch the low budget effects of the 1980s instead of much of the CGI crap out there today. Yes, some of it makes little sense and the creatures do look cheesy at times, but that still does not stop it from being an entertaining B-Grade creature feature. In the end, this is one of those movies that while far from perfect, is a must see if you are a fan of the 1980s. If you have not watched it, give it a shot, you could do much worse.