Cold in July (2014)

Directed by Jim Mickle
Written by Nick Damici and Jim Mickle, based on the novel by Joe R. Lansdale
Starring Michael C. Hall, Sam Shepard, Don Johnson and Vinessa Shaw

After a man is forced to kill an intruder in his home, a man finds that he and his family are being stalked by the father of the man he killed. But he soon uncovers secrets that the Sheriff's department are hiding and teams up with the man who has been stalking him to find the truth.

An intense and dark psychological thriller where every discovery twists and turns the plot down a completely different path than it was on. Backed by great performances by the unlikely trio of Michael C. Hall, Sam Sheppard and Don Johnson, this film kept me on the edge of my seat.

The most frustrating thing with films nowadays is predictability. Yes, sometimes you can overlook it and still enjoy a movie. But to me, the best ones keep you questioning exactly what's going on. Throughout this movie, I was unsure of what would happen. Every time I thought it was going to go one way, it went in a completely other direction.

Nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance film festival in 2014, it has been named with the several other greats from that year, including "Whiplash" and "The Skeleton Twins". It is just another example of the great films independent filmmakers can make.

My Rating: 7/10

The Hunter (2011)

Directed by Daniel Nettheim
Written by Alice Addison, Wain Fimeri and Daniel Nettheim, based on the novel by Julia Liegh
Starring Willem Dafoe, Sam Neill, Frances O'Connor and Morgana Davies

Martin, a mercenary, is sent from Europe by a mysterious bio tech company to the Tasmanian wilderness on a hunt for the last Tasmanian tiger. A creature thought to have been extinct for nearly 80 years.

On it's surface, this film seems like your typical hunt or be hunted, mercenary thriller. A guy is hired for a job and finds out he is being followed. But at it's core, this is so much more than that. It is also about man and their unjustified desire to control nature and the world, even at the risk of killing off an entire species.

Willem Dafoe is captivating in his performance as a hunter hired to kill the last Tasmanian tiger in existence, if legends are truthful. The entire movie keeps you on the edge of your seat as question after question enters your mind. Will he find the tiger? If so, will he kill it? If not, what will happen to him?

Will Willem Dafoe kick some ass and take some names?

Through archive black and white footage and photographs, the story of the Tasmanian tiger is revealed. Through hunting, the species came to an end. This movie provides you with an intense sadness that these magnificent creatures were killed off for pointless reasons. This was a great movie that surprised me with having more meaning behind it than previously thought. And the cinematography for it was gorgeous. 

My Rating: 7/10

The Lazarus Effect (2015)

Directed by David Gelb
Written by Luke Dawson and Jeremy Slater
Starring Olivia Wilde, Mark Duplass, Sarah Bolger, Evan Peters and Donald Glover

A group of medical students discover a way to bring back living things from the dead. But when one of their own dies in an accident, they decide to use the barely tested method on her. She comes back to life, but with unexpected side effects.

Stealing cliches from several sub-genres of horror films, "The Lazarus Effect" has little originality to make itself stand out from the rest. Filled with jump scares, inexplicably dark rooms and predictable plot "twists", you feel as though you've seen this movie hundreds of times as it plays out.

The trailer itself is filled with spoilers, including the deaths of main characters and with a running time of 70 minutes, excluding the credits, the idea seems as though it were rushed. This movie could have been so much more, but the studio involved is the studio responsible for "The Purge" and "Paranormal Activity", two franchises that have more interest in making a quick buck than they do creating quality entertainment.

Of course Olivia Wilde would have demon eyes and

still be gorgeous. What else did you think would happen?

The only positive I can say about this movie is the cast. Olivia Wilde, Donald Glover, Evan Peters and Mark Duplass are some of my favorite actors. And while horror is not a new genre for Wilde and Peters, it's nice to see Duplass and Glover trying something new.

If you're like me and not a huge fan of horror movies, you could probably skip this one. It's nothing special. If you are a horror fanatic, who knows? You might love it.

My Rating: 5.3/10