ObscureCinema101

It seems like everywhere you turn there's some horror movie that's trying to be a throwback to the golden age of eighties slashers. However, none that I've come across have perfectly captured the magic that can be found within a VHS of something like BLOOD RAGE or ROCKTOBER BLOOD. Some have come close (CLUB DREAD), and others have failed miserably. So which category does THE GREENSKEEPER fall under?

Allen is the assistant greens keeper at a lush country club, which his mother and stepfather/ex-uncle own. Some snobby young adults convince him to let them in after the place is closed for a little party. However, someone wearing a greens keeper's outfit begins picking them off in various creative and gruesome ways. Is it Allen, who's had enough with the snobs that tease him? Is it Otis, the head greens keeper who's a little loopy? Or is it Allen's father, back from the dead?

The only thing that saved THE SLEEPER from being complete bottom of the barrel trash was the kills, which really brought be back to the methods of murder in classic late twentieth-century slashers. The same almost applies for THE GREENSKEEPER. Most of the kills are reserved for the last half-hour or so, and they are SUPERB. They're gory, funny, and creative, with each utilizing the golf-theme to a tee (pun not intended). Nails are put in one of those automatic tennis ball shooters, tees are forced through someone's forehead, some gets beaten to death with a nine-iron (I think), and you know those golf ball washers? A DIFFERENT kind of balls is put in it. Ouch.

However, some of the characters in THE GREENSKEEPER are likable, including Allen, Otis, and even Allen's stoner friend. You get a sense that these are real people and they come across as very likable. The snobs that get in, however, you want to see die immediately. This is where it fails as an eighties throwback. Typically in eighties movies, we follow the group for most of the time. Here, most of the time is spent on Allen, and him getting most of the attention causes the movie to drag a tad.

However, I loved the killer's disguise, the ridiculous reveal of the killer (as well as his death), the motive, etc. There are some intentionally funny moments during the first hour or so, but as a whole, it felt very blah before the kills began. It was a bit of a chore to sit through, but the brilliant deaths made up for it.

Overall, I liked it. It's nothing special, but it's a decently fun watch if you want to get your slasher kicks. It's far from a perfect slasher, but it's really not that bad as far as entertainment goes.

Don't go in expecting a new classic, but you could certainly do worse.

I have seen many a horror movie in my day, and few have actually succeeded in scaring me. I will go to the grave with my opinion that PARANORMAL ACTIVITY was terrifying, as well as parts of both versions of THE WOMAN IN BLACK. THE CHANGELING was recommended to me one day by a bearded man with an eye patch (who was a complete stranger) at a book store. Needless to say, I watched it ASAP.

John Russell is a composer who has recently lost his wife and daughter in a truck accident and decides to move into a huge, old mansion. Soon, strange things begin going on and John begins to dig into the history of the house, discovering its shocking history.

I went into THE CHANGELING expecting just your standard, things-go-bump haunted house story. I knew it could be scary, but I didn't know anything about it. I also saw it was 115-minutes long. "That's way too long!" I proclaimed. "How are they going to keep this running?" Well, as it turns out, there's a whole lot more to the story than I expected, and I loved it. I can't say much about what separates this from other haunted house movies because half the enjoyment I got out of it was being surprised at where it went.

There aren't any jump scares in THE CHANGELING (from what I remember it). It's all creepy things like doors opening by themselves, strange noises coming from the attic, and a child whispering. However, it's not limited to just these things, which are creepy enough. There's one scene where a woman just stops and stares up a flight of stairs, and then we get to see what she's staring at and it scared me to death!

THE CHANGELING is certainly very professionally made as well, with likable characters, great acting, very spooky atmosphere, fantastic camera shots, and a solid pace. It may seem slow by most standards, but the time really flew by when I watched it. It's one of the few films that have actually made me afraid to go near my closet for fear of what might be inside after watching this.

This is essential viewing for all horror fans, even if it's not a film you'll find yourself revisiting every week. It's a good nostalgia trip back to the days when films didn't rely on blood, gore, or even cheap jump scares to frighten audiences.

Quintessential viewing for all ages.

Sometimes, I come across a movie that feels like it shouldn't exist, but it's just THERE. It serves no purpose, no one notable is involved, the film doesn't DO anything notable; it's just filling up space. BLOOD SISTERS is one of those movies.

For its initiation, the leader of a sorority takes seven pledges to an abandoned and supposedly haunted brothel in the middle of nowhere. Soon, someone dressed as a whore begins killing them off one by one.

It's really hard to talk about BLOOD SISTERS just because it doesn't really do anything worth talking about. It does have one or two original thoughts in its otherwise brainless head, but it fails miserably. However, it does manage to entertain despite itself.

As far as originality goes, the only somewhat inventive idea is that the whorehouse really is haunted, and maybe we're supposed to assume the killer is possessed by the spirits (maybe). I might say the lack of answers is intended and meant to get the audience thinking any other day of the week, but here, it just feels like lazy writing.

The film takes a really long time to get to the kills, and the hour that isn't spent on deaths is spent on a scavenger hunt the pledges must take part in. When we get to them, he kills aren't too original or even gory for that matter, which aids in BLOOD SISTER's "What's the point?" feel.

It also has some really laughable moments as well, including one shot where we see what looks like an action figure wrapped in black paper fly past a character while on a clearly visible string! It's never explained what this is, but I think we're supposed to assume this is supposed to be one of the ghosts. Then there's the stupid characters that always split up, the obvious dummy falling down the stairs, the classic line "Eat my shorts, tampon breath! I really saw something!" and the very stupid killer reveal.

The film fails on nearly all levels, from fleshed out characters, to suspense, to likable characters, and even to deaths. Director Roberta Findlay even admitted that this was done solely by the studio's request to make money. The final product certainly shows it. It's not as bad as other reviews would have you think, but it's far, FAR from top-quality material.

Don't take this as a warning to stay away; just don't expect much. I went in with low expectations and I enjoyed myself. Hopefully, you will too.