Kill Katie Malone (2010)

Genre:  Supernatural, Ghosts
Director:  Carlos Ramos Jr.
Country:  USA
Availability:  Netflix Streaming

I knew going in that Kill Katie Malone was going to be a low budget movie with subpar acting and bad special effects.  I've certainly watched my fair share of low budget horror movies and am not opposed to them by any means, but I can think of many better ways in which to spent two hours of my time so the movie in question has got to be compelling enough for me to give it a shot, and my mood has to be just right. Usually I'm drawn more to low budget zombie movies. There's something charming about the amount of genre-love it takes to put on really bad zombie makeup and wander around moaning and feigning threat. Most of these movies come off more like a student film than anything resembling a real movie, but sometimes that just adds to the appeal. And sometimes you get lucky and find a real gem buried there - like Zombie Town.

Kill Katie Malone was no such gem, but it wasn't terrible either. I enjoyed the premise of the movie: buying a ghost on Ebay (called "Ubid" in the movie) and then  having that ghost "do your bidding" (pun probably intended) as it starts picking off your enemies one by one until it sets its sights on you. But aside from some cool imagery closer to the end, and a long scene shot mostly in the dark, the movie was neither gory nor scary. Aside from simply knowing that people were dying, and that dying is bad, there was no discernible tension or feeling of genuine menace. And the acting was just okay, there were times that it felt labored and fake,  and other times where it was convincing enough that I forgot they were Actors!, but the characters themselves  were generally lacking anything remotely compelling. Overall, I just kept getting bored.

2.5 out of 5 stars  

The Innkeepers (2011)

Genre:  Ghosts
Director:  Ti West
Country:  United States
Availability:  In Theaters

Ti West immediately won me over with his brilliant House of the Devil, a loving tribute to the 70s' and 80s' style of horror movie that we rarely see today. So, naturally my interest and expectation of Ti West's new film The Innkeepers, was extremely high. And while the characters are likable and fleshed out, and the script was sharp, in the end The Innkeepers failed to deliver a punch. First off the movie was much too slow. Many of the scenes are simply of the two characters hanging out and talking about ghosts. When we finally do get to witness their "investigation" of the supposed haunting at the inn it lacks in suspense and reward. The story of the haunting itself is pretty basic, but what's frustrating is that aside from rumor and heresy the major story elements - the reasons and whys to the haunting story - were never explored. Apparently the entire idea for The Innkeepers was born through Ti West and his film crew actually staying at the Yankee Pedlar Inn (the inn in The Innkeepers), while they filmed House of the Devil. They learned that the inn was supposedly haunted and thus it became Ti West's new movie. And while the critics seem to be applauding West's recent effort loud and clear, this horror movie fan was hoping for something a little more compelling.

3 out of 5 stars

The Woman in Black (2012)

Genre:  Ghosts
Director:  James Watkins
Country:  United Kingdom
Availability: Theaters

I'm a hard sell for ghost story horror movies, they tend to rely too heavily on jumpy scares and bombastic music, seeming to forget that less is more and quiet is creepy. The Woman in Black is no exception. While the atmosphere is dripping, perhaps overly so, with the ghostly and ghastly feel, and while all of the players seem to be so pale and scared they look like ghosts themselves, it doesn't stop this story from being formulaic and a little drab. Having been a huge fan of the book the film would have benefited to stick more closely with the elegance of keeping the story simple. Sometimes when you don't try to impress your audience, you end up knocking their socks off. Unfortunately this movie adaptation of an unforgettably scary book will end up being completely forgettable.

3 out of 5 stars