STILL SCREAMING: THE ULTIMATE SCARY MOVIE RETROSPECTIVE [2011]

Celebrated horror journalist Ryan Turek's documentary, Still Screaming, pays tribute to the first three films in Wes Craven's popular Scream franchise.
It opens with a pointless and sloppily "first kill" scene that makes Scream 3's opening kill look inventive and then, gets into the juicy stuff that's filled with trivia and behind-the-scenes looks with interviews from cast & crew members and other popular folks in the genre.  As a dedicated fan to the series there was plenty I was already aware of but it gave just enough new tasty tidbits to keep me interested till the end.  Unlike most film documentaries of this type, it wisely doesn't just praise it's subjects but also is quite honest about a lot of the franchise's mistakes it made.  It's not going to win over any fans with this execution but will certainly make the nostalgic fan eager for a revisit to Woodsboro.

3 Scary Movies out of 5

SCOOBY-DOO 2: MONSTERS UNLEASHED [2004]

Raja Gosnell returns to direct Monsters Unleasehd, the sequel to the disastrous 2002 Scooby-Doo film.
It's the usual Scooby-Doo story with those meddling kids yet again, only this time around the film wisely brings back a whole slew of ghoulies fans will remember from the cartoon series.  
James Gunn returns as scriptwriter only now he's aware of what the studio wanted and delivers something that doesn't need to be..ahem...meddled with.  It's silly but humorous, dumb but fun and brainless but caring. Once again it's Matt Lillard's Shaggy that steals the whole show (I'd prefer a movie with just him, Scooby and Velma) but thankfully we're blessed with something a little better than the original.  Still, it's strictly kiddie fare that'll pummel an adult's brain into a pulp for 90 minutes.

2½ Chickensteins out of 5

SCOOBY-DOO [2002]

Director Raja Gosnell directs a live-action big screen adaptation of the popular 1960's animated Hanna Barbara series Scooby-Doo.
Sticking true to the series' plots, the Scooby Gang investigate bizarre occurrences and do a lot of running around.  Scripted by James Gunn the film originally winked at the audience with plenty of adult-oriented jokes poking fun at the original series, Velma's questionable sexuality and marijuana jokes galore.  However Warner Bros. quickly turned it into a family-oriented film in the laziest of fashion.  While it does stick fairly true to the series in conventions, it simply isn't very good at all...but let's face it, kids, the series wasn't all that great to begin with.  Matthew Lillard is left to carry the weight of the entire film as Shaggy and he does an absolutely wonderful job channelling the character's lovableness, expressions and heart.

1½  meddling kids out of 5

TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE [2012]

Clint Eastwood comes out of acting retirement for the 2012 baseball film Trouble With The Curve.  It follows the predictable story of a crotchety old baseball scout who ends up on his final recruitment job with a daughter, played by Amy Adams, whom he hardly knows.  It's pretty much dramatic schmaltz that doesn't quite have the emotional impact it should.  The pacing hits a wall everytime Justin Timberlake comes in as a pointless side story.  If not for Eastwood & Adams' chemistry and performances, it'd be a complete waste of time.

2 beer 'n pizza breakfast for one out of 5

The Descendants (2011)

Alexander Payne (Sideways, About Schmidt) directs George Clooney (looking more and more like Cary Grant as he grows older) in this dramedy about a man coming to terms with his wife's imminent death. Faced with the prospect of being taken off life support (as per her will), it sends him on a journey across Hawaii, dealing with the emotions of friends and family and digging up buried secrets along the way. Even though the subject matter can be heavy at times, there are enough moments of well-placed levity to take you away from it all.

4.5 cold-cocked black eyes out of 5

SCREAM [1996]

The 60's had Psycho, the 70's had Halloween, the 80's had A Nightmare on Elm Street and the '90's had Scream.
It single-handlely revived the teen slasher flick genre to a whole new generation of blood thirsty teens. While dissecting and poking fun at the rules and faults of all the horror films we've grown up with, it also pays tribute and breaks & follows all those elements as well.
Scriptwriter Kevin Williamson mastered the art of writing teen dialogue and actually makes it sound like real teens and not what Hollywood had portrayed them as before. A highly entertaining & talented cast elevates Scream above the usual slasher flick fare and establishes it's spot as one of the best horror films made.

4 excellent Norman Bates quotes out of 5

In the Name of the King (2008)

A Uwe Boll film. It's Boll-esque. It's Boll-ox.

0½ FFW button out of 5