Lost Signal

The cameraman probably had limp arms which caused him to shake... I felt I was on some cheap roller coaster from a traveling fair. The image sometimes blurred and wavering only at the top, to indicate that Kevin had a bad case of intermittent squint caused by some orange liquor shot, laced with LSD (a very nasty prank, I'll admit)... Had me sorry for not having some Gravol underhand...

Repetitive sounds supposed to increase the suspense were only annoying. Music that is just noise. Stephanie calling Kevin Kevin Kevin non stop and dialogues having us wondering where this is going...

And the worst, as far as I am concerned, is the officer postponing providing help in an obvious emergency situation to attend to something that should not take precedence.

While the badly endandered character suddenly stands up like nothing happened, to act with much vigor! Highly unbelievable, while this is not a science-fiction movie, although relating an horrific adventure that is supposed to have really happened.

Which gives a bad horror movie. And an equally unefficient thriller. Killing both occasions to make a good movie.

To be watched when you intend to lull yourself to sleep.

Dead of winter, also known as Lost Signal, follows Santos and McCoy, a young couple who are unknowingly slipped a high dosage of LSD at a New Years Eve party. As the drugs start to take effect, and the couple leaves the party, they start to become paranoid that someone is out to get them. After a car accident leaves them stranded in the woods, their trip continues gaining momentum as does their fear.

I found this movie by total accident in the wee hours of the mourning. I was bored and needed some background noise while I was studying for finals. Before I knew it I was drawn in and hooked, not able to take my attention away from the movie. I've seen quite a few movies with the "Bad Trip" scenario, and hated most of them, but what makes this movie stand out from the rest is there is no madman, no monster, you are simply viewing two people who have no clue that they are having an extremely strong LSD trip. The actors who play the two mains do an excellent job of portraying this terrifying situation as well, both are very believable during the entire movie. I really had a good time watching this film. It turned out to be one of those random "it came from Netflix" gems I find now and then when sleep isn't an option. I highly recommend giving this movie a chance, it is very much atmosphere driven so don't expect ton's of story or over the top special effects. If it wasn't for the super cheesy special effects, that caused me many times to be reminded that what I was watching was only a movie due to how silly they were most of the time I would of given this film a bit higher of a score. But none the less I feel its worth your time.

6/10 - Ritualistic The Liberal Dead http://liberaldead.blogspot.com

This movie is not a slasher-horror which is what I like about it. Instead of just hacking up a bunch of teens, the filmmakers actually made a story about how bad drugs are and how scary it can be to be messed up on them.

I thought the movie looked way bigger than 2MM and the acting was great. I would recommend watching this movie if you see it on TV or on DVD. It is better and more original than most movies I have seen lately.

I also thought Brian McNamara from the show Army Wives was great as the sheriff and as a director. I look forward to seeing his next directorial project.

Every once in a while, well these days more often than not, there comes along a flick so bad that after struggling through it, I feel compelled to sit down here and warn people against it. Dead of Winter aka Lost Signal is such a flick. It is so bad on so many levels that it seems a crime to invest in its 104 minutes. Wretchedly ridiculous, I found myself watching the clock with my finger hovering over the fast forward button like it was the trigger and the remote was some gun to end my suffering, my eyes glazed over frostbitten by boredom.

Kevin (Al Santos) and Tiffany (Sandra McCoy) are a young couple making the foolish plunge to move in together. On a New Year's Eve, as if to christen the event, Kevin talks Tiffany into snorting some meth followed by a shot of liqueur. When Kevin catches his pusher making moves on Tiff, he and Tiff leave the party abruptly. Before long, it becomes evident that the liqueur was laced with a hallucinogen of some sort and Kevin and Tiff begin to trip out in the woods suspecting someone is after them to do some harm.

Sounds intriguing enough, doesn't it? Well, don't be seduced to the lousy side with this one. Right from the start, you cannot help but despise Kevin. He's rude to Tiff's father. He's a piece of garbage for pushing meth, of all drugs, on his girlfriend, and he is the most pathetic Jack Nicholson wanna-be to ever violate celluloid. He even takes off running from perceived danger leaving his lady far behind in the freezing snow.

Dead of Winter, like so many B-horror releases in recent years, feels like some failed film school project. It's just a dumb movie that insults the viewer's intelligence by taking itself seriously. It was just so stupid!

I believe this movie is based on the Nebraska couple, Mike Wamsley and Janelle Hornickel. I first saw their story on Dateline or 48 Hourse, one of those shows. Then I rented this movie, titled as Dead of Winter, and started to realize it was following the same storyline of that real life Nebraska couple. I can't guarantee this is the story that McNamara based his film on but it sure seems to be. Anyway, really unfortunate situation those two kids got themselves into.

Overall I think the movie pretty good. Some of the interior shots, especially the scene where Kevin talks to Tiffany's father, were pretty hot and washed out. The night stuff was done well and the snow backdrop at night was effective. I think the pacing is good and with so many bad horror or thriller indies out there, this one is above those no question. If nothing else, it's worth watching for the story and what happened to these kids.