Be Kind, Please Rewind

He’s a Daredevil Worshipper. He’s the…

Vidiot

Week of January 26, 2018

  

Demonic deities don't accept 40-year-old male virgins as sacrifices. First up…

Jigsaw

  

The worst thing about taking hostages is that Stockholm syndrome obligates you to send them all Christmas cards.

Even the killer in this horror movie has empathized with his victims over the years.

The deceased Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is back in action, welcoming new captors (Laura Vandervoort, Brittany Allen, Mandela Van Peebles) to his complex torture tests designed to draw confessions of past sins from each.

  

As the hostages struggle for survival in captivity, dead bodies begin appearing around the city leading detective Halloran (Callum Keith Rennie) to suspect that a copycat killer is responsible.

Borrowing heavily from previous installments for its two major plot twists, this eighth chapter of the floundering franchise is predictable to anyone with a passing familiarity with the series. While Jigsaw’s traps are inventive, the largely Canadian cast is hammy.   

And remember the ransom for a Canadian hostage is half due to the exchange rate.  Red Light

 

​ 

Happy Death Day 

The best thing about reliving the same day over is never having to do laundry again.

  

However, the student in this horror movie has more on her mind than her wardrobe.

Hung-over, college coed Tree (Jessica Rothe) wakes on her birthday in the bed of a loser, Carter (Israel Broussard). Disgusted, she hurries about her day, which involves making out with her professor and hanging with her roomie (Ruby Modinebefore) before heading to another rager. On the way, however, a knife-wielding stranger murders her.

Instead of dying, Tree wakes on her birthday in Carter’s dorm room.

By applying the time-loop dilemma to the slasher genre, this low-budget thriller manages to create something new with the repeating day narrative. While the scares are tame, the twist is surprising, while the script as a whole is playful.  

Incidentally, if you die on your birthday they bury you in a pointy party hat.  Green Light

  

***Hard Copier***

Copycat

If you are going to imitate a serial killer mimic one who has never been caught.

  

Sadly, none of the murderers in this psychological thriller copy the Zodiac Killer.

When dead bodies start appearing around San Francisco, Inspector Monahan (Holly Hunter) and her partner (Dermot Mulroney) seek the expertise of a renowned criminal psychology, Dr. Hudson (Sigourney Weaver), who became a shut-in after she was attacked by a serial killer, Cullum (Harry Connick Jr.).

But when the new maniac’s MO matches Cullum’s, Hudson must face her jailed assailant in order to prevent the copycat from concluding Cullum’s work before they get to her.

With solid acting - save for Connick Jr. – and a twist filled script that keeps you guessing, this 1995 cat and mouse caper also offers up much insight into the methodical mind of a serial killer.  

Nevertheless, plagiarizing other murderers will not win you a Stabby Award.

He’s Copycat Litter. He’s the…

Vidiot