jdring2007

Were it not for the incredible practical effects, regardless of how over the top and sometimes nauseating they were, this would be a 4 or 5 for me. The characters, apart from Art and Victoria, were all as compelling as the cast of a medication commercial. Sienna felt like a flimsy carbon copy of her previous version, but at least Art's mute performance remained captivating, for lack of a better word. Additional qualities include the sporadic and silly humor, and the sadistically clever, grimly creative manners in which kills are executed. Unfortunately the ending was rife with cliches, among them my least favorite: 1) not killing the bad guy after wounding him, and 2) not making the villains suffer at all. The supernatural elements felt forced and just a convenient loophole to keep Art invincible. Supposedly the next movie will end the franchise and, hopefully, give the creator a chance to do something else.

For starters, people seem disillusioned by what a remake is. It's a movie that replicates the original, often with small creative differences. This is not a remake. It rewrites significant elements of the plot, and is by and large its own movie, with only small aspects similar.

So, stop comparing characters. That would be like making a parallel between Harry Potter and Gandalf just because they're wizards.

Maika and Mary are equally great in this. They convey their emotions effectively and paired with the music create a very tense and distressful atmosphere, especially in the second half. It's a very bloody flick so I have to give credit for going so ham with that.

There are moments of "okay well this is just dumb" as there are in most movies, so I only knock a star or two off for those. It's about 20min longer than it should've been but at 100min it isn't torturous.

Although I do think the original is the superior film, it's a much more elaborate movie with more moving parts. This was a simpler thriller and I was in a way relieved it wasn't a proper remake, or else we'd all know every twist and turn of the plot and there's zero thrill in that.

The only good things about this movie were the makeup effects and a bit of tension in the first half. Unfortunately, creating palpable tension 10min at a time gets boringly dull after it's repeated to death. Pun intended. When the first death occurs, one of the characters asks "are they just acting?" I won't spoil anything but dear Lord - the characters in this movie take "horror stupid" to a whole new level.

I get it, people in horror movies are stereotypically stupid and unrealistically naïve. But to this degree? I just couldn't. It's bad enough that they signed NDAs in the dark and surrendered their phones (ha, yeah right) to a masked, mute stranger in the middle of nowhere before venturing into a warehouse with 1 Yelp review, but everything that followed was a stretch at best.

We knew going in that one character would have plot armor the whole way through, at least to the very end. But I guess that's a given. The expendability of everyone else and how that was handled, I'll admit, was a pleasant surprise. Speaking of which - the unmasked reveals of the villains was a great touch, I'd not been expecting. Especially "Mitch."

But then we have to tarnish the good with awful. Such as the dreadful pacing, the unnecessary backstory and flashbacks for the main character, more plot armor, and filler "meandering" shots.

I hate that movies "have to be" 90min these days. Sometimes, especially with low-budget single-location horror flicks, 70 is all they can competently provide.

That this thing is getting 7+ ratings from critics and viewers alike is depressing. But I guess there's no accounting for taste.