Ghostland

Not exactly scary, but 'Ghostland' certainly does reach some dark levels to produce a creepy and uncomfortable horror film.

It starts off pretty cliché but it quickly finds its own footing. I enjoy the way the storyline is portrayed, it never gets predictable which is always a positive in this genre. Most of the scares are the cheap, cop-out type, which stops the film being frightening. However, it makes up for it by creating tense, uneasy scenarios for the characters.

Crystal Reed and Emilia Jones produce what's necessary in the lead role of Beth, those two do rather carry proceedings but the other members of the (small) cast aren't a hindrance in any way; the premise focuses on Beth, so you'd expect Reed and Jones to stand out most.

I was locked in for it all, despite the fact I would've liked improved scare elements as opposed to average jump scares. Still, definitely worth watching.

Martyrs blew me away. The Tall Man didn't. So what did I think of director Pascal Laugier's latest effort? I loved t! Very impressed. It starts off with a family, an ice cream van and an incredibly creepy house. Looked to me like it could be a Rob Zombie movie, and funnily enough within minutes one of the characters remarks that the house looks like it could belong to Mr Z! Now I am a fan of Rob Z but Incident was more polished than any of his movies. If found Incident to be visually superb, the creepy house in question, crammed with dolls, is amazing. The film is genuinely frightening with some good jump scares. It's brutal, twisted and dark. There are some great twists and the plot never slows down, it held my attention throughout. Camera work, musical score and acting are all excellent. The only two things that I didn't like was the use of some CGI and, without giving away spoilers, I felt that the end was a bit too easy and slightly unsatisfying. After such a thrilling ride I felt that it could have been better. Overall, another class effort from Monsieur Laugier. I shall look forward to watching this again, best film that I have seen so far this year.

Pascal Laugier is without a doubt a capable writer/director. After all, he is the man behind "Martyrs", a great horrror that leaves no one cold. Ghostland, however, has good direction, photography and fast pace right from the start but the dialogue could have been better and all the jump scares somehow fail to have the desirable effect. If you are used to horror like the aforementioned "Martyrs" or "A l'interieur", "Ils" and "Eden Lake", you will probably feel nothing despite all the violence and terror that the main characters go through. The twist in the story is not bad but could still be more developed in my opinion. The cast deliver nice performances and all the make-up effects are good too. As mentioned in the title, the film feels a bit underdeveloped; it is not terrible but it is not that good either.

It feels. It really does.

The movie is divided into two big sections, pre-twist and post-twist. If you are not new to the horror genre you will catch the "twist" pretty fast, but the movie doesn't emphasize on it a whole lot. Rather works with it and does its job well indeed. At first I felt like, come on, "I've seen this already, you can't surprise me with this". But then...

It is very atmospheric, it's brutal, it's hopeless, but what caught me is one emotional moment with the sisters, you will know it when you see it. It's unforgettable.

It has it's flaws but is well crafted overall. This movie was able to share it's emotion with me and I enjoyed it.

Oh, my god! Absolutely horrifying. We bond with the family right away, including hating Vera, but then...Spoilers should not be allowed for this movie. It is new. It is different. It is not a dime a dozen slasher. It IS a psychological roller coaster. If it were not for the male inside of me constantly yelling, "There are weapons all around you. Use them. Kill them. Help your mom!", I would give it a ten. Well worth your time, and if you can figure out how only 1:31 has passed, then you win.