El Espíritu

After witnessing a kill in action, a teen and his friends are insistent on proving the actions took place when no one believes them and are soon set upon by the killer himself as he tries to play out the work of his late actress mother who was burned alive as a witch years ago and is intent on making the town pay.

This was a somewhat underwhelming if still likable enough effort. Among the likable aspects of this one is the inclusion of the serial killer storyline into a film involving the spirit of a witch coming back for revenge. The means through which the kids are introduced as they're skipping school and stumble upon the location where he's involved with the torment of the victim and then sets his sights on them while they try to make everyone aware of what's going on. As this goes along nicely with the secondary setup of the life of the killer sitting around watching various horror scenes of his mother's actress days like they're home movies that manage to include some solid shocks, it sets off a generally enjoyable time. The only other aspect of this one that comes off rather well is the finale where it manages to get some action going again. With the killer finally given a reason to strike as the clues to what's going on finally come together, the incidents surrounding everything from the attack at the haunted house they visit and the subsequent abduction at their house all feature some intriguing action to set this going rather nicely. The big confrontation in the killer's house that ends this is a bit on the brief side but still manages to get enough twists, surprise reveals, and a nice bit of brutal action that results in a fun finish that has a lot of nice gore as well thrown in which give this one enough to like to make it entertaining enough. However, there are some big issues with this one. One of its biggest drawbacks is that the setup to this one is just not that well-developed and really loses interest quite easily. The small-town folklore of the witch living there, and the game associated with it, the involvement of the family, and how they draw the attention of the killer is all good enough on its own but is just so dreary that it's quite easy to be bored with the lack of action on display. The back-and-forth interactions that take place as a main part of the film's setup manage to bring more of a lackluster overall pace that isn't all that interesting nor make the group all that interesting to follow along with as none of this setup makes anyone likable or worthwhile in wanting to follow along with them. The other issue here is the fact that there's not a whole lot of sense that runs through this one. With the initial setup here supposedly being the killer stalking the babysitter for what they know about his crimes but then also mixing together a witch that moves into the town where they live but not being a vengeful spirit witch and some interpersonal drama taking place around this central storyline, it doesn't really feel connected to anything and more as several random storylines chucked together to make the movie. These end up being the main factors that hold this back.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence, and a brief clothed sex scene.

I went into this expecting to see a movie reuniting director Dwight Little and Danielle Harris of HALLOWEEN 4 and did not get that at all.

I know people worked on this project so I don't want to sound too harsh in my review. But it might sound harsh, so read at your own discretion if you were part of the making of this movie.

The story is all over the place, so much so that it's hard to even explain. It's alot more complex than the synopsis tells.

A killer obsessed with a b horror actress of the 70s who was killed because she was a witch? Teenagers caught in the middle of the mayhem and all taking place on Halloween.

The focus of the fall season and the holiday itself is barely represented in the movie. And any parts that are halloween and fall focused are more forced than genuine.

The acting is hard to judge because the dialogue is so atrocious. It's not like the actors had much to work with.

Danielle Harris has about 10 minutes or less of screen time. Robert Englund the same.

The movie is promoted as starring the 2 aforementioned stars but is seriously misleading.

I'm surprised that Dwight Little touched this. He's done some truly great work.

There are some nice vibrant color pallets used but that's really the only positive I have. That and danielle looks great as usual.

But the movie has a runtime that feels longer than it is.

It felt like a student project.

Anyway, I paid $17 to watch and support this on YouTube. It wasn't worth it but at least fulfilled my curiosity.

I'm so disappointed. Seeing the names Danielle Harris and Dwight Little together again was exciting as HALLOWEEN 4 is my favorite slasher movie of all time.

What is it going to take to get Danielle back into a decent movie released in theatres in a role with a good amount of meat on its bone?

Her talent continues to be wasted on abysmal material that she is so far above. Her last remarkable performance was Rob Zombies HALLOWEEN II.

She deserves better.

Thumbs down from this guy.

I came across this whole looking for a movie to stream. While I am a big fan of Richer Englund bill Moseley and Danielle Harris. I was not a big fan of this movie. But not due to the lack of bad acting or actors or even the cinematography. But they the storyline of the movie itself. The beginning of the movie had nothing to do with the rest of the entire film. The second act of the movie had nothing to do with the end of the film either. And the third act of the movie spouted out a whole bunch of nonsense that made the movie make even less sense than the rest of it. But overall I've seen far worse movies.

I had not heard about this 2023 horror movie titled "Natty Knocks", prior to sitting down to watch it. But seeing that the movie had Bill Moseley and Robert Englund on the cast list, and it being a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I had to sit down and watch it.

Well, the storyline in "Natty Knocks", as written by Benjamin Olson, turned out to be a rather mediocre and generic one. Sure, "Natty Knocks" was watchable for what it was, but Benjamin Olson brought nothing to the horror genre that hasn't been seen or done before in other movies, and more often done better and more successfully. So yeah, the overall impression of "Natty Knocks" was a bland and mediocre one. It is a movie that came and went without leaving any lasting impression, and come next week, I will most likely have forgotten about it.

The acting performances in "Natty Knocks" were actually fair enough. And yeah, it certainly was good to see the likes of Bill Moseley and Robert Englund, two horror icons, together on the screen, though they had nothing much to work with in terms of script, characters and storyline.

Visually then "Natty Knocks" was a very mundane movie. There were special effects, sure, but they were hardly memorable or outstanding.

"Natty Knocks" is the type of movie you watch once, then shelf it and never look at it again.

My rating of director Dwight H. Little's 2023 horror movie "Natty Knocks" lands on a four out of ten stars.

No pun intended - I really did not want to think too much about my summary line. Casting wise this really made some great choices (even in smaller roles like Englund). But even with Moseley in a bigger role (and he is giving it his all, no holding back punches then). The story is quite simple and I think quite predictable to say the least.

The movie also looks good and it has nice effects, but I am quite certain it will leave you cold - shame because there was something there, with a "new" story to tell. We have seen the revenge angle before - but you can twist and tweak things. Try to find something unique maybe .. or at least focus on one thing or another.

Add to that quite the convoluted and bad ending too ... well I may have been too nice again .. but it is Bill Moseley ... and he is really good, no matter what.