This was my first official week back and I didn’t do too shabby… though, the same can’t be said for the movies I watched:

• The Den (2013)
• Preservation (2014)
• Some Kind of Hate (2015)
• Visions (2014)

All though these movies were about as different as can be, they all shared one weird similarity: they all had a message. Some of the movies (like Preservation) did a better job at getting this message across than others (like Visions). What I mean by “a better job” is that those that didn’t work felt preachy and weighed down by what they were trying to say. That being said, even those movies that worked didn’t hit it out of the park:

• Worth Seeking Out (i.e. Worth Paying For): Nothing in this category… hopefully my luck will change next week.
• Worth Watching via Free Streaming: Preservation (2014)
• Worth Watching on an International Flight or While Doing Work: Some Kind of Hate (2015)
• Worth Avoiding and Doing Something Better with Your Time: The Den (2013) Visions (2014)

To be honest, I struggled a bit about where to put The Den. It hovered between the last two categories. In the end, I decided to bump it down because I really hated (and that’s almost too weak of a word) the last half of the movie… and the inventive nature of the presentation of the narrative was not enough to save it.

One other quick note. I went back and created a spreadsheet of the movies I’ve watched (for anyone who knows me, this is the least shocking thing they’ve ever heard). It turns out that the next movie I write up with be number 50! So, I haven’t decided what to do for it… it won’t be anything spectacular, but I thinking about revisiting it Follows, which is one of the best horror movies (in my opinion) that came out in the last decade.

I’ve included my top ten list from before… no updates this week… and to by honest some of these movies I barely remember (so, that can’t be a good sign about their greatness):

• Housebound
• Pontypool
• The House at the End of Time
• Here Comes the Devil
• The Nightmare
• Grabbers
• Honeymoon
• Starry Eyes
• Stake Land
• The Taking of Deborah Logan

I have some work commitments next week, so it may be a rather light week. I should get at least two write-ups posted (shooting for three).

me