Honeybeads Blog

Okay, let me just say that this movie was a complete surprise. I don't remember it hitting the theaters at all, but it is widely available on DVD. Unfortunately, I had read a review of this film that revealed it's ending. I watched this with my wife and brother and did not share my knowledge of the film's plot with them prior to viewing the flick. I think thier experience with this movie was much better having no prior knowledge as to the outcome. I love seeing a movie without having any idea what it's about. The ones that make a big impact always stay with you and you remember the first time you saw it. For me, movies like The Sixth Sense, The Usual Suspects, and The Matrix come to mind. May is in this category, too, and I wish I had NOT read the review prior to watching - you should have seen the shocked looks on Jason and Melissa's faces!

And so, I will reveal absolutely nothing about the plot and I recommend that you NOT read any synopsis on this film before you see it. Suffice it to say that will most certainly delight any horror movie fan. It is plot/character driven so it is slow paced, but the ending pays off big. Production quality is excellent and the unknown actress who plays May is amazing. Trust me - rent this movie, soon - it will haunt you!

Okay, fine - if you REALLY want to read more about this flick, I recommend the following link - click at your own risk!

http://www.upcominghorrormovies.com/reviews/may.html

I guess two stars may be a little harsh - once again I find myself wishing I had a gif for the "1/2" star increment. This movie is entertaining enough and keeps your attention throughout, I just don't think I'd sit through it again any time soon. The plot is nothing new - some excons/thugs who dislike/distrust eachother get together and commit large scale armed robbery. We then follow the struggle between the "bad" gangster and the "good" gangster to be the ultimate winner of the loot. The flair of this film, I guess, is that the crooks are all Elvis impersonators - pretty original, huh?

I had two main problems with this movie. First, it felt like the film makers couldn't decide what genre or even tone they wanted the movie to take. From the off-the-wall cgi battle between two metal/robot scorpions in the opening credits to the comically wild sex scenes, I wasn't sure what this movie was trying to be. Sometimes it felt like a serious action crime drama and others it was just goofy. My second issue, along the same lines, was the inconsistency with the characters. Take Kevin Costner's "bad guy" role. One minute he's killing his friends without remorse and the next he's a softy for a hooker and, later, a little kid. Kurt Russel's "good guy" character was even more troublesome for me. He's the excon who's really just a decent guy trying to make a living at high-stakes armed robbery, right? So why is he buddies with Costner in the first place? And, most disturbing? Could we for once have an honest portrayal where the main character does NOT reject the gorgeous hottie who says "take me with you!". I mean, come on.

Finally, and this is a spoiler, I suppose, what was the deal with the DNA test results? Two of them come back as being true decsendants of the King. Costner's character had always claimed to be Elvis' son, so the other match was Kurt Russel? This makes them half brothers and explains thier connection? Whatever...

Brian's Bottom line: Rent it...or not - "True Romance" is a much better choice in this genre (comedy/action/love/crime drama).

Brian and I had a great time at the Relay for life last Saturday. It was a steamy 93 degrees, but it was worth it. We were able to donate a nice amount to the american cancer society.
Thanks to everyone who bought jewelry from us to help us donate! Thanks to all of our family and friends who helped out too.
We also were able to remember our family members who have lost their battles with cancer. Nancy was able to light a luminarie in Roger's name. It was really cool to see the entire track lit up with all of the luminaries.

George A. Romero's 4th installment in the classic "Dead" series that started the entire zombie genre came out today, and of course I had to catch the first screening. Not really knowing anything about the movie, or even who was in it, my expectations were high because it's not only the first Dead film I was able to see in theatres, but also the first since Day in '86. And my expectations were pleasantly met!

The overall plot of course is kick as much zombie ass as possible in order to save your life. However, there was a nice story working that involved Dennis Hopper as a rich bigwig who owned a fancy high rise building allowing only the rich and priviledged to live there in nice apartments and wine and dine themselves free of the zombie threat, while everywhere else in the city was a slum for the poor. The city is heavily guarded and Hopper has different guards working for him in order to get certain supplies. It follows the life of one guard who has had enough of the evil doings of Hopper's character. There is also a guard, played by John Leguizamo, who decides he wants into the high rise to live the high life. He plays his normal off kilter psychotic self. Also in the mix is the beautiful Asia Argento, in which I was very pleased and surprised to see her name in the opening credits!

The zombies in this film become pretty inteligent and learn to use their resources to kill the living, and they band together to march toward the city. The zombies probably look better than in any other zombie film to date! Each has their own look and staying true to Romero form, are slow moving, true zombies. Just when you think there are no new ways for a zombie to kill or be killed, Romero throws in some pretty impressive, inventive deaths. It really is a visual treat to watch. The movie starts out right away on a fast pace and never slows down. It's action packed til the last minute. In fact, the ending is almost abrupt, but it's really a great ending to a great film.

This film should not be missed for any fan of Romero's, zombies or Horror films. It offers better acting and a much higher production value than any of Romero's past Dead films as well. Just don't expect to be too frightened by any of it. You will also be treated to a nice surprise for anyone familiar with Romero's past films!

Melissa and I will be at the Relay for Life this weekend in Franklin, Indiana. It takes place at the Johnson County Memorial hospital in front of the Cancer Care Center. It kicks off at 10 am.

We'll have a table set up selling Melissa's awesome crystal awareness bracelets. As usual, we will be donating a portion of the days proceeds to the event. It's a great opportunity for us and a great cause. Come by and see us - it's going to be HOT!!!

We saw this movie at the second run theater - $1.50 admission, oh yeah! I wasn't expecting much based upon most of the mediocre to poor reviews it had received. I will tell you up front that I was pleasantly surprised by this decently scary flick.

But first - the bad. Number one, we've seen the barely credible claim of "Based on a True story" used in a couple of horror movies (Texas Chainsaw Massacre has little to do with Ed Gien on whom the movie is "based"). I suspect that the real life premise(s) behind Amityville are likewise a stretch. I guess the producers get a cheap scare-boost up front by making the audience think that the terrors they are about to witness actually happened. Another issue is the fact that this movie joins a groing list of unnecessary remakes. But - as with the recent remake, Dawn of the Dead - you will quickly forget the horror purists' whinings if the movie kicks ass!

Well, I don't know if I'd put Amityvill 2005 up there with the "Dawn" remake, but it was pretty effective as a haunted house flick. The acting was well done. I was concerned early on whether Ryan Reynolds could pull off the Jack Torrence (you know, Jack Nicholson - The Shining?), but in the end, he was pretty convincing. The overall movie had a creepy feel and you shared the tension with the main characters throughout. My one change would have been to show less of the little girl's ghost. Other scares in this movie stick to the less is more rule of horror movies: show the audience only glimpses, blurs, or shadows and thier minds fill in the blanks with images more horrible than the director can conjur up. It would have been much creepier if she'd been shown in quick, flash-shots rather than nearly giving her a top billing.

Brian's Bottom line: Definitely worth $1.50 admission and as a rental. Well done and enjoyable - you will get some scares!

Tomorrow we are going to Connersville for the Day out with Thomas. The boys are so excited, especially Chase. I am excited too. Brian is taking the day off and we are going to have a great time.

We are going to the pool today. I just can't believe how hot it is in June!! l
Stay cool today............

I just finished the 3rd Myron Bolitar book, Fade Away, by Harlan Coben. I think this book is by far my favorite book by Coben so far. I really liked this one because it got involved with Myron's personal life, and his basketball injury that ended his career. The ending is awesome!!
I highly recommend these books for your summer reading enjoyment.

Could it be any hotter? We have been inside all day. It is just too darn hot to be outside, unless you are in a pool. That's exactly where we will be tomorrow. Brian's parents have a pool. It looks like we are going to be there a lot this summer.

I am reading the third Myron Bolitar novel, Fade Away, by Harlan Coben. I just started it and I am half way through already. This is the best Myron book yet. The first two were a little boring, but this one is more exciting and page turning. If anyone out there is looking for a good book, Any Harlan Coben book is really good.

This is a pretty simple movie with some decent scares. A young man returns to his childhood home to face his fears of the infamous boogeyman that had come out of his closet as a child. Plot-wise, that's about it. The film is pretty short and it moves along very quickly. There are definitely some good scares, especially if you have the sound turned up. This film's sound track is Dolby Digital and it is probably the best part about the production - so crank those surround systems if you got 'em!

Overall, the movie was just okay - I would have given it 2-1/2 stars if I had a graphic for it. The scares and the sound track were the pluses for me. I was mostly disappointed in the way the filmmakers resorted to all of the cgi in the end. The cgi is getting old and, as in this film, it's not always that seemlessly integrated into the pick. To me, it looked like something out of a cut scene from a PS2 game. Stick with the rental on this one...

Well, tomorrow is mine and Brian's ten year anniversary!! We are shipping the boys off to my mom's house for the night, and we are going out....
Brian has made reservations for us at St. Elmo's downtown. I am so excited!!

Today is Andy's 30th birthday. Happy Birthday Andy!!