Thursday, January 28, 2016

Movie Spotlight: Zombie Shark

Zombie Shark is a 2015 Syfy channel movie starring Cassie Steele, Ross Brity, Roger J. Timber, Sloane Coe, Becky Andrews, Ladson Deyne, Leslie Castay, Laura Cayouette, and Jason London. Four friends must spend their vacation fighting off "zombie" sharks after a virus-infected shark escapes from the island's research center.

Since I reviewed Ghost Shark for the blog (http://paranormalcrystal.blogspot.com/2013/10/movie-spotlight-ghost-shark.html), of course I had to review Zombie Shark too. As with Ghost Shark, the deaths in Zombie Shark were hilarious, but not quite as creative as the ones in Ghost Shark. The acting in Zombie Shark was generally better than the acting in most of the other Syfy original movies I've seen, and Roger J. Timber stole the show as Lester, the desk clerk who feels comfortable telling resort guests that a burrito gave him "the squirts." I would've liked to see more of him in the movie and would definitely watch a Zombie Shark spin-off all about Lester (Get on it, Syfy!). Though I wouldn't call Zombie Shark a great movie, I did enjoy it and really liked the ending. : )

My rating: 6/10


Sunday, January 24, 2016

The Wait is Over...

The X-Files returns tonight! Don't forget to watch it (or set your DVRs) on Fox at 10:00 (Eastern time), and catch episode 2 at 8:00 tomorrow. : )

http://www.fox.com/the-x-files

And just for fun, you can find out which X-Files character you are before you watch the new episodes. I'm Mulder, of course. ; )

http://www.buzzfeed.com/katieheaney/which-x-files-character

Friday, January 22, 2016

Movie Spotlight: Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse

Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse is a 2015 movie starring Tye Sheridan, David Koechner (yay!), Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, and Sarah Dumont. When zombies invade their town, scouts Ben (Tye Sheridan), Carter (Logan Miller), and Augie (Joey Morgan) join forces with cocktail waitress Denise (Sarah Dumont) to fight the zombies and save their town.

I really liked Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse...all of the actors did a great job, it was really entertaining, and it was funnier than I thought it would be. I generally don't enjoy zombie movies as much as other types of horror or paranormal movies (ghosts, demons, aliens, etc.), but this one was better than most of the zombie movies I've watched. : )

My rating: 7.5/10


Monday, January 18, 2016

Book Review: The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol Ostow

The Devil and Winnie Flynn is a 2015 young adult novel written by Micol Ostow and illustrated by David Ostow. I don't read young adult novels often, but I enjoyed Ostow's Amity, so I decided to give The Devil and Winnie Flynn a try (and I'm glad I did). When Winnie Flynn goes to New Jersey to work as a production assistant on her aunt's reality show, Fantastic, Fearsome, she begins experiencing strange things that make her think the Jersey Devil might not be a myth.

The Devil and Winnie Flynn is mostly told through Winnie's journal entries (which she addresses to her best friend), but also in Fantastic, Fearsome transcripts, which was a really cool way to tell a story. I loved the illustrations too...they really added something extra to the story. The Devil and Winnie Flynn is a great book, even if you're not the typical audience for a young adult novel (I'm 35, and I enjoyed it). I really cared about Winnie and wanted to find out the truth behind her mother's death. I liked the ending and would love to read another book about these characters...and if Fantastic, Fearsome were a real show, I would definitely watch it. : )

My rating: 8/10


Thursday, January 14, 2016

Movie Spotlight: Stitches

Stitches is a 2012 movie starring Tommy Knight, Ross Noble, Gemma-Leah Devereux, Shane Murray Corcoran, Thommas Kane Byrne, Eoghan McQuinn, Roisin Barron, and Tommy Cullen. Stitches the clown (Ross Noble) is trying to entertain some kids at a party, but they make fun of him instead. (Apparently none of these kids have seen Stephen King's It, so they don't know that they should be afraid of clowns.) When one of the kids ties the clown's shoelaces together, Stitches ends up with a knife in his eye and dies. Years later, he comes back to life to seek revenge on the brats (now teenagers) who were responsible for his death.

I was pretty sure that Stitches wouldn't be a great movie, but how am I not going to watch a movie about a clown coming back from the dead to get revenge on a bunch of kids? It was better than I expected, and the death scenes are pretty cool and creative. If you've ever wanted to see a clown make a balloon animal out of someone's intestines, Stitches is the movie for you. ; )

My rating: 6.5/10

Sunday, January 10, 2016

MarsCon 2016

If you live in or near Virginia, check out MarsCon in a few days! It runs January 15th-17th and will take place at the Doubletree by Hilton (50 Kingsmill Rd.) in Williamsburg, Virginia. MarsCon focuses on science fiction and fantasy, but it will also have gaming, music, an art show, and lots of interesting and informative panels and workshops. It sounds like fun...I wish I could go! : )

http://www.marscon.net

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Celebrity Ghosts

A website called Vintage Everyday recently published a list of the fifteen most famous American ghosts, and it's pretty interesting. I already knew about the ghosts of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, George Reeves, Abraham Lincoln, and Rudolph Valentino, but I hadn't heard about the other celebrity ghosts. : )

http://www.vintag.es/2015/12/most-famous-american-ghosts-15.html

Saturday, January 2, 2016

2016 Horror Movies

HorrorFreak News recently published a list of upcoming horror movies to look forward to, and a few of them sound pretty good.

http://horrorfreaknews.com/15-movies-we-cant-wait-to-see-in-2016/1505

I definitely want to see The Forest, The Boy, Backtrack, Rings, The Conjuring 2, and  Ghostbusters (though I'm not sure I'd classify it as a horror movie). : )