Abominable - Entsetzlich

Kudos to writer / director Ryan Schifrin for doing his part in keeping monster movies alive: this is actually a pretty good horror film in general, and one of the better efforts in the "Bigfoot / Sasquatch / Yeti" sub genre. It benefits from some good shocks *and* suspense, solid atmosphere, a real sense of isolation, and a formidable monster.

Schifrin is able to put a spin on his film by crossing it with "Rear Window", in which the protagonist is a paraplegic (ever-likeable Matt McCoy as Preston Rogers), who's able to tell early on that something scary is going on. He's returned home to his mountain cabin, in the company of a jerk caregiver named Otis (Christien Tinsley, also the films' creature and makeup effects designer), and notices that some attractive young women have taken up temporary residence in the cabin across from him. However, he realizes that a monster is in the area, and has to rely on his own wits since any attempt to contact authorities is met with disdain.

Veteran monster actor Mike Deak plays the creature, who's given an appropriately ugly visage by Tinsley. This particular Bigfoot is VERY nasty, and very stealthy. One of the best moments occurs when Preston looks out his window, and the creature is looking in at him. Another unqualified highlight is a characters' demise around the 77/78 minute mark. Gore hounds will laugh in appreciation.

The film isn't free from flaws, or the usual quota of truly dumb characters, but overall it's definitely enjoyable. One of its main assets is a spooky score by veteran composer Lalo Schifrin (the directors' father), and it DOES have a sense of humor to go with the chills. (Lance Henriksen, playing a hunter, tells a story of a Darwin Award winner, and then proceeds to make the classic dumb horror film mistake of wandering off on his own.)

McCoy gives a creditable, low-key performance in the lead role, and Schifrin populates his story with guest appearances by a variety of familiar faces: Jeffrey Combs, Paul Gleason, Rex Linn, Phil Morris, Tiffany Shepis, Dee Wallace. Schifrin himself can be glimpsed as a gas station attendant. For a guy who's usually not an actor, Tinsley is quite amusing in his portrayal.

Good fun from start to finish, with a priceless final shot.

Seven out of 10.

Many people are saying how bad and horrible this movie is. I would have to disagree. This may not be an academy award winner, but compared to other SciFi channel movies (such as King Kobra Vs Komodo, released the week after), it is much better. It is probably the bets SciFi original I've ever seen, with the exception of Dog Soldiers. This movie was also not filled to the top with hundreds of C.G.I monsters and effects. Anyone you ask will say, a guy in a monster suit, looks better than some C.G.I monster. The story is about 5 young girls, who go to a cabin, for a relaxing vacation. In the cabin next to them is Preston Rogers, a crippled man, and his assistant Otis. During the movie, many people are killed by this enormous Yeti, as Preston basically watches from his window, the whole movie. Of course the police won't believe that the monster is real. The acting isn't great, but it isn't horrible. Some notable people are in this movie such as Lance Henriksen, Dee Wallace-Stone, and Ashley Hartman or "The O.C". Overall this movie is a good and entertaining watch, with a lot of gore. Abominable is rated R, and stars Haley Joel, Karin Anna Cheung, Lance Henrikson, Paul Gleason, Matt McCoy, and Ashely Hartman

Abominable is about a group of people who are attacked by a snowman minus the snow. Big Foot , sasquatch, whatever. A group of young girls trying to have some fun away from home, a group of hunters that turn into the hunted, a paraplegic and his psychopathic attendant, all get in on the act. Nothing really new as far as plot or dialog here, but nothing really bad either. Some reasonably good special effects with the monster, some anthropological realism, and some nice scenery are all part of the show. The seasoned cast has something to contribute to this and they strengthen the delivery. Pretty good entertainment if you don't have much else to do.

I have a category of movie I call a "Good, bad movie". You'll either get that statement or you won't. If you are a real movie buff, you'll appreciate the value of a good, bad movie. This is a really cool twist on the Big Foot mythology. I saw this on the Sci-Fi channel and I expected some of their usual crapola. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Certainly this isn't a masterpiece or anything. But for the obviously small budget, it was very well done. The FX were cheesy, but adequate. The script was average. But the basic plot and the cinematography set a mood that really sucks you in. It's gripping, suspenseful, and doesn't drag or bore you. Matt McCoy (Preston Rogers) was quite good, exceeding his B list status. And Haley Joel (Amanda) didn't settle for being the dumb bimbo that this part was probably written to be. She actually had a touch of depth to the character.

If you want to huddle under a blanket with your significant other and have an entertaining, suspenseful evening, I recommend Abominable.

Also, make sure you don't miss the final scene. No spoiler here, but I have to say that the final shot of the movie was B movie brilliance.

Tachyon

I saw the end of this on the Sci-Fi channel when it first came out and figured it was crap. And while it is pretty much crap, when I watched it yesterday, I realized it's crap with style and some sweet effects. I usually hate everything that the Sci-Fi channel sponsors but this one got my attention for some reason.

The acting isn't great but it isn't terrible either. I thought Jeffrey Combs was awesome and Matt McCoy was pretty good. Everyone else was average or worse. The story is pretty good and it was very interesting watching the special and seeing that influence came from Rear Window which is an all time favorite of mine. The gore was pretty sweet and I thought the creature looked pretty cool. I also enjoyed the ending. CHeck this one out for some B-movie fun!