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I think the best visual representation of this film is the last time we see Lt. John Harper. He looks exactly like he does from the original-goofy trench coat, silly fedora, waves his gun around like an idiot. Sadly he only lasts less than a minute as he is quickly devoured by a very modern zombie probably getting all of his insides ripped out in excessive gore.

This Plan 9 has a very different plot to the point where if it weren't for the name I wouldn't connect them at all. The small town of Nilbog (GET IT!!) gets hit by a meteor and all of a sudden, the dead start rising from the grave. Because of this, the quirky citizens of this town have to band together in order to survive as well as find out what is causing this epidemic.

While many of the same characters are here, they have added tons more and the story resembles Night of the Living Dead or most other zombies movies than the original Plan 9. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing but it is an odd choice. In fact remaking Plan 9 from Outer Space is an odd idea altogether. The point of a remake is to take a film that has promise but was held back by it's problems or the technology of the time and make it better. But everybody loves Plan 9 BECAUSE of it's problems and mistakes so why remake it?

The characters are just boring stock characters like the original. The editing and cinematography is good say for a few spots here and there. The acting and direction though is pretty lackluster. Most everyone seems to have a straight face during the whole ordeal and taking this whole zombie thing really well-too well! Others though act pretty realistic. Its a mixed bag for sure. The writing feels about the same. It has some good moments and good pieces of dialogue in there-both funny and dramatic-but for the most part, it just feels flat and boring. The worst part is also when something really tragic and dark has just happened so of course moments later, they make a stupid joke or a sarcastic statement. They spend most of the film just running around but because we don't really know all that much about these people, I couldn't care less what happens to them.

The thing that annoys me the most is all of the references. Seriously, they mention Predator, Monster Squad, The Fog, Psycho, Troll 2, The Shining, etc. The fourth wall jokes are pretty annoying too. Normally I like that kind of stuff but it's all about context. The movie isn't a comedy, you are supposed to take it seriously or at least semi-seriously, so those type of jokes feel out of place. It seems like a desperate plea for you to like their movie. The only really new thing it brings to the table is the zombie lore. Apparently the alien menace is sending out these waves of energy that keep bringing the dead back to life. If you get bitten by a zombie, you don't become one but the next wave of energy will turn you into one. The other interesting idea is that each new batch of zombies gets smarter than the last one. It's pretty cool but everything else is pretty standard.

And that's exactly the problem with remaking Plan 9. They actually do make major improvements to the film but because of that, it's no longer that likable. The original Plan 9 from Outer Space could have been much better if put into more skilled hands but in the end, it would have been standard 1950's sci-fi fare. But because a man with little talent, experience or money handled the project, it turned into a gloriously fun mess of a movie. This Plan 9 suffers from not being handled by a modern Ed Wood and instead winds up being on about the same level as those awful Syfy channel movies. Not the worst I have ever seen (heck the original Plan 9 is a thousand times worse) but it doesn't do anything really that fun or interesting with itself. If you want to see a modern version of a 50's sci-fi flick go see The Lost Skeleton of Cadavera. That one is actually funny and isn't afraid to embrace it's roots.

Stephen King is often hailed as the master of modern horror with his suspenseful scenarios and unforgettable characters. He himself though will claim that he is just an entertainer and his works won't become classics. That sums up my thoughts about this film adaption: scary and engaging but nothing that great. Our movie follows the Creed Family as they move into a small house across from a kind yet mysterious stranger named Jed. They also live near a busy road where tons of trucks go by and often kill many local pets. So of course, the Creed's cat gets run over. Jed decides to show Louis Creed-the father-a secret burial ground behind the titular pet cemetery. If you bury anything in this special ground, it will come back to life though they won't be the same. So of course, things start going downhill when Louis buries other things there. As a whole this film is quite frightening but has many flaws. Though the main focus is on this cursed cemetery, we also focus on a ghost that is trying to help the family and the psychological trauma Louis' wife Rachel is still experiencing from a childhood incident. They are kind of out of place but they connect better if you think about it in a thematic sense. The whole film is centered around death and how people deal with it. The trauma the wife goes through could be about how death can scar people while the helpful ghost could be trying to represent the fact that those who passed away before us help us from beyond the grave-though in reality it's more through what they left behind. However, this kind of logic doesn't help the fact that there are some Stephen King clichés sprinkled throughout this flick. Personally, I think these little tropes drag me out of the story and just remind me that I am watching a Stephen King movie. However that might not be the case for everyone. The disjointed nature of the story is what really hurts the movie as some things just seem to happen that don't really relate to the movie as a whole. It's like little story pockets here and there that don't add up to much. The acting though manages to make up for this. Jed-played by Herman Munster himself!-does a pretty good job actually being both creepy, friendly and dramatic. The family though are more of a mixed bag. Louis has some pretty good moments when the character is dealing with serious pain but in a normal situation, he comes off as distant and uninterested in what's going on around him. The actress who played his wife also seems to have the same situation. The children surprisingly are pretty good despite being so young. The special effects are also very convincing and look incredibly realistic. They are complimented by the use of dutch angles which makes everything look off and weird. These two elements combined make the movie pretty creepy. But the thing that really cements this horror story is the ending. All I can say is that is it is possibly one of the most gruesome ends in film history. Period. Overall, Pet Sematary is a bit of a jumbled mess but what it does right, it does very well. If you want to see a depressingly dark horror movie about death, then give Pet Sematary a look because you won't forget it! Trust me O_O

It's been a while since a good old fashion war movie came out but if it was all building up to Hacksaw then it was totally worth it. Let's be honest: almost every "based on a true story" film has some made up parts. If it were completely true then the movie would be pretty boring. But for Hacksaw Ridge, most of it did actually happen and I am a bit shocked it wasn't made into a film earlier. Desmond Dos is a naive southerner who decides to join World War 2 despite the fact that he despises violence. He simply wants to help a unit as a medic but he finds opposition along the way as many believe he is simply a coward. By the end of the film though, he proves himself worthy of the title "hero". Andrew Garfield does a wonderful job of playing Desmond as he brings a simple charm to the character. He is very likable and I experienced some of the same emotions he was going through in the film. When he was frustrated, I was frustrated. When he was happy, I was happy for him. It felt like I was actually watching this man's life and not just a movie based on it. The other actors do a great job as well especially Vincent Vaughn who manages to be both funny and dramatic at the same time. The one thing about this film that might hurt it is the violence. The first third of the film is shot very beautifully and looks like an ideal vision of that time period. But the last third is all on top of Hacksaw Ridge which is piled with dead bodies, intestines, rats, blood, decapitated heads, you name it they got it. It works in a story sense because they never portray war as a pretty or fun thing but the film is also filled with Christian themes. Box office wise those Christian messages might have helped the film but because of it's R rating I doubt any youth groups are going to be piling into vans to see it. Which is a shame since the film is honestly a great representation of holding onto your beliefs no matter how others maybe feel about them. Over all, Hacksaw Ridge is a great film with a well structured story, likable characters, beautiful direction and tons of events to keep you entertained.