Until Dawn, Final Destination Bloodlines, A Clown in a Cornfield

After several weeks of watching 80s and 90s martial art films, I decided this weekend to take some time to catch up on some of my most anticipated horror films of the year.

Until Dawn

Having enjoyed my playthrough of the video game, Until Dawn was a film I was really looking forward to. Helmed by director David F. Sandberg, known in the horror community for Lights Out and Annabelle Creation, he’s probably best known for his work on the Shazam movies. He seems like a really cool guy, but sadly, outside of the first Shazam, I’ve been very underwhelmed by his previous work.

After watching a preview video for Until Dawn, I was under the impression that the movies gimmick was a timer began and each time the characters died they woke up in a different horror genre. Maybe I didn’t pay close attention, but I was expecting this film to flip between 90s slasher, 70s slasher, exorcism picture, ghost story, etc., but that is not how it worked. For spoiler reasons, I won’t go into it, but I think my original idea of what this film was would have worked a bit better.

What I Liked About It:
-The vibe of this film is perfect. It has that comforting studio horror feel, with a non-annoying cast. In fact, when the movie began, I was so appreciative of the look and feel of the film I was afraid of the movie shifting too drastically following each deaths. Thankfully, it does not, and the film nails the tone.

-The practical effects are amazing, and the use of CGI is logical and done very well. There are some legit scary creations in this film, and some great moments of fear.

What I Didn’t Like About It:
-I appreciate the movie playing it straight, in fact, one of my biggest arguments about current day horror is an over-reliance on humor. I feel like creators who aren’t comfortable in their story, actors, and skills, end up infusing humor out of a lack of confidence, instead of it serving the actual story. So, I really appreciate this film playing it straight. With that being said, there is a scene about halfway through when the gore goes over the top and you begin to wonder why they didn’t make this a comedy. In a way, the script just went too far out there and pushes the realm of acceptance of what could happen, and in that moment some comedy would have helped the absurdity go down easier.

-The pacing and story are just not enough. They had an excellent blueprint from the video game, but they chose not to follow that. Instead, they created their own story, and about halfway through I found myself thinking, “Why should I care what happens to these people?” I do wonder if another editor could come in and tighten the film up a bit and make it a better experience.

Final Thoughts
When I think about Until Dawn the first thing that comes to mind is: that should have been better. It had all the elements for what I love in horror, but sadly the pieces just didn’t come together well. It’s still a fun watch and is not a terrible movie by any stretch of the imagination, but well… it just should have been better.

Final Destination Bloodlines

I’ve realized over the past decade that the Final Destination films are one of my favorite horror franchises. Each film sticks to the tried-and-true outline for the franchise and offers creative and fun kills to watch. I think what makes it so effective is the antagonist is death. It can’t be beaten and its something we will all have to face one day, so it makes for a fun and relatable experience. Sure, the films vary in quality, but overall, I’m not sure there is another horror franchise that tells such a coherent story, that respects each sequel and remains effective.

What I Like About It:
-I was worried the idea of using a family bloodline would be too much of a deviation from the proven method of storytelling, but the screenwriters expertly weaved this new concept and made it worth within the ethos. The film felt like a Final Destination film from beginning to end and it was a very worthy sequel, not a requel, which was also appreciated.

-The gore was fantastic, as this film seemed to take everything up a notch and made for some uncomfortable sights to see. I appreciated the filmmakers leaning into the absurdity, but not taking things so far they felt unreasonable.

What I Didn’t Like:
-The film relies a bit too much on CGI in big sequences. All of the Final Destination films have relied on CGI to show the various death scenes, and so that’s expected, but this film took it just a bit further and the opening sequences was particularly distracting.

-The film could have been a little tighter. I’m sure they could have trimmed a good ten minutes off and made for a more effective film.

Final Thoughts
I enjoyed this way more than I expected to. In all honesty, I was worried that revisiting the franchise in 2025 would not work out well, but I was glad to be proven wrong and I’m thankful for the movies success which should ensure we seen yet another installment in the near future.

A Clown in a Cornfield

I heard about the A Clown in a Cornfield novel several years ago, and it’s been on my “to read” list ever since. I mean, who doesn’t want to read a slasher book about a clown in a cornfield? Well, after watching this movie, I’m removing the book from my list.

What I Liked About It:
-The first twenty minutes are pretty solid. The clown costume is great, and although restrained at times, the kills are solid.

What I Didn’t Like About It:
-Tonally this film is all over the place. Once the story gets rolling, it’s so apparent where its going that you begin to wonder if this would have been better off with less gore and marketed towards the Goosebumps crowd.

-I don’t want to spoil the motif behind the killings, but its everything I hate about current horror right now. It’s a lame excuse, its annoying, and it worst of all, it wasn’t effective at all.

Final Thoughts
I should have trusted my gut and turned this off once I knew where the story was going. It wasn’t worth my time and was by far the worst of the three films I saw this weekend.