Woe is the loneliest Number
The second episode of Tim Burton’s Wednesday is, sadly, not better than the first. Honestly, I’d say it’s worse. Honestly, I’m struggling to understand why this show was as popular as it was. It’s got an 8.1 average rating on IMD, so maybe I’m missing the charm. But we’re two episodes in, and I am less than charmed.
Wednesday is shocked when Rowan appears back at the school, after being sure that he was dead. But he’s quickly expelled and sent packing. Or, is he? We soon learn that there’s a doppelganger about, who might or might not be Principal Weems.
Wednesday’s investigations are waylaid by Enid, who needs her to participate in a school-wide boat race. When Wednesday sees it as an opportunity to one-up Bianca, she throws all of her creativity behind it.
Even so, she manages to find a book that she hopes might explain why Rowan thought she was going to kill everyone. This hope is confirmed when she has a vision in the woods of a girl that looks just like her with blond hair, telling her that she is the key.
Let’s start with the good that came from this episode. I will admit that I wasn’t expecting a doppelganger. I appreciate the involvement of the Principal. Or, is the Principal involved? It’s clear that someone who looked like her came out of the train station. But after all, if this mystery person could look like Rowan, they could just as easily look like Weems. Honestly, the only reason I think it’s her at this point was her reaction to Wednesday’s team winning that boating contest.
I also do enjoy the mystery of Wednesday’s visions. I want to know why people think she’s going to kill everyone. I want to know more about the mysterious girl in the woods. I want to know why she keeps getting these visions all over the place, and if someone is intentionally leading her to them. Or, trying and spectacularly failing to do the opposite. I’m having a lot of fun with that.
Now, for the bad. Let’s start with the antagonism between Wednesday and Bianca. They seem to hate each other. Does anyone know why? Is it because Bianca’s ex kind of likes Wednesday? Is it because Bianca beat Wednesday at fencing, then Wednesday knew more than her about botany? Those are rather dull and superficial reasons for even a school-age grudge.
Let’s compare this to a better example. Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter for example. When they first meet, Draco tips his hand right away. He’s a pompous, racist rich kid. Harry’s irritated by him right away, and so are the readers.
There’s none of this with Bianca. She seems like a fine person, who just doesn’t like Wednesday for some reason. She’s not selfish, or cruel. She seems to be worried about Rowan. So, why are we supposed to cheer when Wednesday beats her?
Maybe because she’s the only person in the school who seems to have a problem with Wednesday? This was another thing that bothered me. Through the first two episodes, a lot of noise has been made about Wednesday being an outcast. She’s an outcast, I swear! Even though her fellow students are accepting of her. Even though her roommate is almost peeing on the floor at the thought of spending time with her. Even though boys seem to be throwing themselves at her. Look, if I had been that kind of outcast in high school, I might not have developed my sense of humor if you know what I mean.
Here’s my biggest complaint about Wednesday so far. There are many shows, like Stranger Things, Series of Unfortunate Events, and Avatar The Last Airbender that can be enjoyed by kids and adults. These shows can deal with some heavier topics and darker moments because they’re meant for both grown-ups and kids to watch. The original Addams Family comic strip was the same, as were the movies from my childhood.
Wednesday is not meant for adults. It’s a show meant for kids. And that’s fine. It’s not only acceptable but good for there to be things intended for children and teenagers to enjoy that their parents don’t like. And yes, these shows can deal with darker topics as well. Lord knows, in this dark world parents need all the help they can get explaining dark topics to their children. So I’m not complaining that Wednesday is a show for children that is going to deal with some dark topics.
My problem is that it wasn’t marketed that way. It was marketed as one of those shows that all ages would enjoy. It was marketed as something deeper than the source material. And it’s not. It’s superficial. It doesn’t have characters, it has caricatures. The dialog and problems are less complex than what would be found in an episode of Power Rangers. It is, frankly, just not that good. And Wednesday deserved better than that. Young people deserve better than that. The Addams Family fans deserve better than that.
Now, we’re only two episodes in. So maybe the show is going to pull off something special now that the characters are established. Maybe, just maybe, we’ll get something better than the poor reflection of much better content. But right now, I don’t see how that’s possible.
(2 / 5)
Oh, the 90s, the renaissance of the slasher genre after it crashed and burned in the mid-80s. Halloween H20 is the seventh installment in the Halloween franchise. It hits a reset button on the canon, which utilizes the strong points of the decade. Without any further ado, let’s dive in!
Plot
We start with seemingly random characters as they die at the hands of Michael Myers, who is back for vengeance. He wants to find Laurie and is not willing to let anyone else stand in his way. Here is where the franchise diverges into a different canon that ignores all the movies after the second one.
After a wonderful tribute to the late Donald Pleasance we see Laurie. She is now a headmistress at a boarding school in California, with a new name and a son. Laurie appears functioning on the outside, but she is still traumatized by the past events, medicating both with prescription meds and alcohol. Not even her love interest (a fellow teacher) knows anything about her past.
Her son John doesn’t understand the severity of what his mother has been through. He repeatedly tells her to get over it (not the brightest moment despite him being a teenage boy). More teenage characters are introduced in the form of his girlfriend played by Michelle Williams in her Dawson’s Creek prime, and two friends.
John and the group want to stay at the empty boarding school while everyone else goes on a camping trip. What they think will be a romantic couples’ weekend turns into anything but. Michael catches up to Laurie and finds his way into the premises. What ensues is a blood-shed with some creative kills and full-on suspense.
Laurie takes a stand against Michael as she chases him down axe in hand, ready to finish this once and for all. This leads to a showdown with a glorious finale as Laurie decapitates Michael, seemingly ending his reign for good (or so we think).
Overall thoughts
Halloween H20 is a great overhaul of a franchise that was running out of steam. It encapsulates everything about the 90s, from the camera work to the soundtrack to the cheesy one-liners. It has a star-studded cast of the sweethearts of the decade and who could be mad at Jamie Lee Curtis’s comeback?
This movie takes an interesting approach to Laurie’s character. She spends the second movie kind of helpless waiting for someone to save her, however this time she takes the lead and faces her trauma head-on. Other characters have just enough development to make you care for their survival. The atmosphere is very reminiscent of the first one as well, with a bit of a slow burn before the big finish.
Ultimately, this is the most entertaining instalment of the franchise and has a lot of rewatchability for those movie nights. Slasher 2.0 at its best.
- Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Hartnett, Adam Arkin (Actors)
- Steve Miner (Director) – Debra Hill (Writer) – Bob Weinstein (Producer)
- English (Subtitle)
Last update on 2025-01-30 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Movies n TV
Luiso Berdejo’s Feature-Length Debut, or The New Daughter
The New Daughter (2009) is a PG-13 horror film & Luiso Berdejo’s feature-length debut based on John Connolly’s short story of the same name.
The New Daughter (2009) is a PG-13 horror film and Luiso Berdejo’s feature-length debut. The film is based on John Connolly’s short story of the same name. The New Daughter stars Kevin Costner, Ivana Baquero, Samantha Mathis, and Gattlin Griffith. As of this review, the film is available on VUDU Free, The CW, Hoopla, Tubi TV, Freevee, and Plex, with additional purchase options.
John James (Kevin Costner) moves his children to a rural South Carolina town to start anew after his wife leaves him. Louisa James (Ivana Baquero) can’t stand this change, and Sam James (Gattlin Griffith) doesn’t understand why his mother isn’t with them. But after finding a burial mound, their attitudes suddenly switch. As John uncovers more of their new home’s history, he realizes there’s much to fear.
What I Like About Luiso Berdejo’s Feature-Length Debut
Despite its 2009 release date, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films nominated it for the Saturn Awards’ Best DVD Release in 2011. As Luiso Berdejo’s feature-length debut, the film manages to hold an audience with a tight script and direction.
The acting sells this ominous mystery, which might otherwise become obscure amongst others in the genre. In particular, Kevin Costner’s John James and Ivana Baquero’s Louisa James center The New Daughter around their characters’ strained father-daughter relationship.
Ultimately, The New Daughter thrives in its atmosphere and execution. If we take the film plot point by plot point, The New Daughter doesn’t break the mold. Between Luiso Berdejo’s direction and the writing of John Travis and John Connolly, however, the film executes this uncomfortable tension that invests viewers.
Last update on 2025-01-28 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
It’s in The New Daughter‘s execution where it haunts its audience. There’s this uncomfortable powerlessness as John attempts to protect his family against the horrors in the mound and its corrupting influence.
The ending might seem uncommitted, but I would disagree. The film executes a balance between hope and horror that leads to ambiguity but doesn’t leave the audience dissatisfied. A bolder film might conclude with an unhappy ending, but The New Daughter gives a sliver of hope in its dark ending.
Tired Tropes and Triggers
A cat dies in the film. The act isn’t shown, but I understand this can be a dealbreaker. In loose connection, there are also animal carcasses.
There’s a loose and underdeveloped connection to Native American mythology, following along the idea of “Indian (Native Americans) burial grounds.” While this initial thought proves inaccurate, it still holds familiar plot points that might irk some.
There are some strange decisions revolving around Louisa. Needless to say, a part of the plot revolves around her beginning puberty. While nothing is explicit, the creatures require a mate, which suggests sexual assault.
What I Dislike about Luiso Berdejo’s Feature-Length Debut
The aesthetic of the burial mound doesn’t seem particularly noteworthy. This becomes a problem when it looks like any hill in a forest. I don’t particularly see how the James family recognizes this as something strange and worth fixating on. As the film progresses, there are obvious reasons, but the aesthetic doesn’t execute this strangeness.
As addressed above, the premise remains familiar and safe, perhaps too safe. A family moves into a rural home, escaping a past withheld from the audience. The mother is out of the picture, and the father struggles to connect with his young daughter. I don’t subscribe to the idea that these are lazy points, but it might seem formulaic with how thick it dominates the film’s beginning.
Final Thoughts
The New Daughter is an impressive feature-length debut but one with notable flaws. There’s a familiarity and safety in the plot that hinders what could have been. However, the ominous mystery and acting provide the needed execution to create a haunting experience. If you’re looking for a horror following a terrified family against supernatural creatures, The New Daughter delivers.
(3.5 / 5)
After taking a week off, Dexter Original Sin is back. And while no piece of art can ever be entirely perfect, this was as close to perfect as I think we can expect.
The story
We start this episode right where the last one left off. Dexter, with a body in his trunk, finds his dumping grounds swarming with cops. So, keeping his head as cool as ever, he pulls out his forensic badge and pretends he’s supposed to be there. Then, he feeds the remaining arm from his second kill to the alligators before anyone can print it. But, not before Angel recognizes a distinct ring on the hand’s finger.
Jewelry really will be the death of Dexter.
While he might have gotten himself out of that mess, he still has a body to deal with. He decides to take it to a dump in broad daylight. Sometimes he acts like he wants to get caught. But then, maybe he does.
Meanwhile, the police are still looking for whoever kidnapped Nicky. There’s a horrific scene in this episode in which the poor kid has his finger chopped off. But this finger might well be the evidence that Miami Metro needs to catch the kidnapper because Dexter notices a sense of hesitation before the cut on Nicky that wasn’t present on the first little boy.
He also finds a drop of blood that doesn’t belong to Nicky.
Once again, it all comes back to blood.
What worked
As I’ve watched this series, and after consuming all of the rest of the work this franchise has offered us, one thing has become more and more clear.
Harry Morgan is a terrible human being.
Let’s just take this episode as an example. We see him strongarming a CI that he had an affair with, threatening to stick her in jail and drop her kids into foster care if she doesn’t keep risking her life for him. We then see him go home and lecture his wife, who he cheated on, for not forgiving him fast enough. And we know how this all ends for the Mosers. We know that Laura ends up dead and Harry takes the baby he liked, leaving Brian to the horrors of the foster care system.
- Michael C. Hall (Actor)
- Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Last update on 2025-01-23 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
The thing is, we were never supposed to like Harry. More and more I realize that Harry is the bad guy. He’s the antagonist of Dexter. And as I’m rewatching the original series, I see clearly that he’s been the bad guy from the start. And I think that’s such a brilliant idea.
Not quite as cool, but still impressive was the serial killer advice scene in this episode. Dexter, struggling with where to hide his dead bodies, researches how other serial killers have done so. We see him talk to Ed Gein, David Berkowitz and John Wayne Gacy. This scene brought the absurdity of the series to the forefront. Our main character admires these men. These monsters did horrific things. And we still, somehow, against all decency, like him.
Let me also just say that Scott Reynolds who played Gacy did a fantastic job. The body language and line delivery were just so creepy. For someone who wasn’t on screen for more than a few minutes, he knew how to make a killer impression.
Finally, I want to applaud the twist in this episode. But, as always, I want to do so without giving it away! I will only say that there is a large reveal regarding the person who killed the judge’s son and abducted Nicky. And, I have to say, I didn’t see it coming. It was amazing and raised so many questions. Questions I cannot wait to have answers for.
Honestly, everything in this episode worked. It was well-written, well-acted, and well worth my time. My only complaint right now is that there are only three episodes left.
Of course, it’s usually the last episode of a Dexter show that ruins the whole thing. Let’s see if they can avoid that this time.
(4 / 5)
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