The Greatest Year For Movies Part 1: April 2012

American Reunion
April 6, 2012
Click here for the trailer

The last entry in this series to go theatrical was American Wedding back in 2003. Since then, Universal has released four direct to DVD sequels, each dealing with Stifler's extended family. I've seen the direct to DVD sequels, and while Band Camp is passable, the rest are absolutely terrible. They forgot what made the original trilogy so great, which was that first and foremost it loved its characters. You'd think that direct to DVD is where a once popular franchise would go to die, yet these movies kept making crazy amounts of money. They were top sellers for Universal year after year, so it was inevitable that a true sequel would happen one day.

Over the course of the original trilogy, I grew quite fond of the characters in the American Pie series. The films themselves were crude, but had a sweetness to them. I attribute a lot of this to where I was in life with each new entry. High school, college, friends getting married, etc. Now comes American Reunion during a time in which I just attended my own 10 year reunion. The film catches up with all of the characters from the first two films (as a number of them were missing during Wedding) as they attend their high school reunion. The film is written and directed by the duo that has brought us the Harold & Kumar movies, so the signature gross out moments are sure to remain intact. As this is one of my favorite film franchises, I'm hoping the new script stays true to the characters and the nature of the original movies.

Cabin in the Woods
April 13, 2012
Click here for the trailer

Well, this should be interesting. Cabin in the Woods was made back in 2009, but due to MGM's increasing financial trouble, it was shelved until now. The film sounds promising enough, and why shouldn't it? The film is written by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard, who have a pretty good track record. It even stars Chris Hemsworth, but back when this was made he was still an unknown. In fact, this is Hemsworth's second feature to get a delay due to MGM's financial crisis (the remake of Red Dawn is finally going to see a release). Due to the nerd love for Whedon, I've heard about this movie for years. The script was circulating the internet for awhile, and I was able to check it out. By watching the trailer above, one would assume it is going The Evil Dead route, which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. Then the trailer gives away the twist, and leaves you wondering what in the hell you just watched. I believe that this film would have crashed and burned back in 2009, but with Hemsworth being a star and Whedon directing The Avengers it could turn a profit. Just don't expect it to be any good.

Bullet to the Head
April 13, 2012
No trailer as of this time

This marks the first time since his career revival that Sylvester Stallone has starred in a film that he has neither written nor directed. His track record seems to indicate that he does better when he's in complete control of the project, so this could go either way. The film, based on the graphic novel of the same name, centers on a hitman (Stallone) and an NYPD detective (played by Sung Kang of Fast & Furious fame) who are brought together by the murder of their respective partners to take on a common enemy (Jason Momoa). The original director of the film was Wayne Kramer, who made the fantastic Running Scared, dropped out late in the game which was extremely disappointing. The saving grace is Walter Hill was brought aboard to make the film. Hill is no stranger to this type of action movie as he is responsible for genre classics like Last Man Standing, Red Heat, 48 Hours and The Warriors. Stallone himself has stated that his success now depends on whether or not he can transport audiences back to when action films were at their peak. With a production team like this, I don't think that will be a problem. I expect Bullet to the Head to bury Cabin in the Woods on opening weekend.

Honorable Mentions: Reportedly, the Weinsteins have been working hard at getting Scary Movie 5 ready for this summer. No word on cast or writers, but a release date has been eyed for April. Despite calling post-conversion 3D absolute crap, James Cameron has gone ahead and post-converted Titanic and will release it in theaters this April as well.

Movie Review: The Silent House

I had heard about The Silent House back in 2010 and was impressed by what it promised: "Real fear in real time." The film was shot in one continuous take. No cuts. No edits. Just a camera running for 72 minutes, which means if anyone missed their cue at the 70 minute mark they get to start all over again. After seeing this on a list of movies to look out for in 2012, I decided to seek it out and see if it lived up to its potential.

As far as I know this is the first movie of its kind, which is probably why it comes from Uruguay. God forbid Hollywood does anything this inventive. The film is based on real events that took place in the 40s. A father and his daughter Laura (played by Florencia Colucci) are hired by their friend Nestor to renovate a small cottage. They arrive late and spend the night in order to get an early start the next morning. Laura begins to hear noises outside and attempts to wake her father, but he shrugs it off. After Laura hears footsteps coming from the second floor, her father agrees to go upstairs and look. Like 100% of horror films, he doesn't come back and Laura is left to not only find her father, but also discover the secrets of the house.

With a mere budget of around $6,000 the film manages to look great. The only lighting comes from a pair of lanterns that Laura and her father use to get around the house. The crew appears to be minimal as only one camera is used to follow Laura at all times. Don't expect anything fancy here as it's low budget, and any steady cam work is out the window. The film also does a great job at keeping you guessing. When all is said and done, it was mostly unexpected. If you do manage to catch the film, be sure to stay after the credits for a creepy little epilogue.

The Silent House was a pleasant surprise, especially since Atrocious had ruined my expectations of similar types of movies. They manage to hide to small budget, the performances are on par, and it manages to tell a creepy little story. You'll hardly notice the way the film was shot, but once it is over it is quite impressive to see what the filmmakers have pulled off here. The format works extremely well for low budget horror, and I think it can be used as a platform to improve upon in the future. For now though, The Silent House is the one and only movie that can claim it has "fear in real time."

UPDATED: Apparently this is movie has a remake coming out in March, starring the forgotten Olsen sister, Elizabeth. No word on if the same gimmick is being employed or not, but either way get ready for an inferior remake, America.