Movie Spotlight: The Bye Bye Man

The Bye Bye Man is a 2017 movie starring Douglas Smith, Lucien Laviscount, Cressida Bonas, Doug Jones, Carrie-Anne Moss, Faye Dunaway, and Jenna Kanell. When three friends (Douglas Smith, Lucien Laviscount, and Cressida Bonas) learn about the legend of the Bye Bye Man, they find out that the only way to make sure they don't fall victim to his curse is to avoid thinking it or saying it. Unfortunately for them, the Bye Bye Man is already in their heads and has the power to control their thoughts and force them to do horrific things.

The Bye Bye Man started out with a bang (literally) that got me interested immediately, but the rest of the movie didn''t live up to the beginning. Reviews of the movie were pretty negative, but I thought it was okay; The Bye Bye Man probably isn't a movie I'll remember for a long time, but I enjoyed it for what it was and didn't feel like watching it was a waste of time.

My rating: 6/10

Horror Movie Month: Stage Fright

Stage Fright is a 2014 movie directed by Jerome Sable and starring Allie MacDonald, Minnie Driver, Meat Loaf, Douglas Smith, Brandon Uranowitz, and Melanie Leishman. Ten years after her actress mother (Minnie Driver) was murdered backstage after a production of The Haunting of the Opera, Camilla Swanson (Allie MacDonald) wins the lead role in a kabuki version of the same musical at theatre camp. However, someone is trying to put a stop to the production...by killing everyone.

I love horror movies and musical theatre, so of course I had to watch Stage Fright...and after seeing it, I just have to say, "Stage Fright, where have you been all my life?" I loved Stage Fright, and I really wish there were more musical horror movies. I laughed out loud quite a few times during the movie and thought the deaths were pretty creative (and I loved that the killer made a pun or two whenever he murdered someone). The music and performances were great, and that theatre camp looks super-fun when there are no murders happening. ; )

My rating: 8.5/10

Movie Spotlight: Ouija

Ouija is a 2014 movie starring Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto, Daren Kagasoff, Douglas Smith, Bianca A. Santos, Matthew Settle, Lin Shaye, and Shelley Hennig.  The movie begins with two young girls (Debbie and Laine) playing with a Ouija board; Debbie tells Laine the three rules of using a Ouija board:

1. Never play alone.
2. Never play in a graveyard.
3. Always say goodbye.

(I'll add a fourth rule: Don't use a Ouija board.)  Ouija then moves to present day, where teenage Debbie (Shelley Hennig) is playing with a Ouija board...alone. (It's the first rule, Debbie!) She says goodbye and throws the board in the fireplace. Her friend Laine (Olivia Cooke) stops by, and Debbie tells her that weird things have been happening since she started playing with the Ouija board again.  Debbie sits down to eat dinner, and a door opens behind her, followed by the stove turning on by itself.  She goes upstairs and finds the Ouija board on her bed and is shocked to see that it's in pristine condition.  When she looks through the planchette, a change comes over her eyes, then she hangs herself with a string of Christmas lights.  (That's why you never play with Ouija boards.) Laine later finds the Ouija board in Debbie's closet and decides to try to contact her...which, of course, is a bad idea.

Ouija wasn't very scary, but I liked it anyway, and it was definitely much better than The Ouija Experiment (which I reviewed for the blog a few weeks ago).  The acting was better than what you usually see in horror movies about high school students, and Olivia Cooke (who is wonderful on Bates Motel) was great as the movie's lead. The moral of this story: Don't use a Ouija board...ever!

My rating: 7/10




To find out more about Ouija boards, check out this blog post I wrote about creepy real-life experiences people have had with Ouija boards:

http://paranormalcrystal.blogspot.com/2013/12/beware-of-ouija-boards.html