The One Detail That Might Have Saved Borderlands from Being a Dud Is…

For the Sake of the Curious, Not Even Jack Black Can Save Borderlands from Mediocrity. What’s explored here is why I think it failed.

Borderlands Movie PosterLionsgate Films

Eli Roth should stick to making splatterpunk films than dabble with properties that he’s not likely to include his trademark scares with. The reason I like the Borderlands game is because of the archaeology. Those legends to explain why the tech exists are a lot more fascinating than the characters, and in this film, it’s lightly touched upon instead of gone nose deep!

Here, the idea concerns Vault Hunters in the search for artefacts from a forgotten civilization strewn around the world of Pandora. Any weapon they find can help “enrich” them in later missions. I liked the world building but didn’t feel I had to play through them all. The characters who populate this world are misfits. Some cry foul language, and there’s a bubblegum pop culture aesthetic which made the game come alive.

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When DreamWorks Fright Krewe Evokes that Feeling From Rockwell’s Somebody’s Watching Me

Everything you want to know about Vodon’s best heroes but were afraid to ask is answered in Eli Roth’s take on Seint Seiya with Fright Krewe!

Fright Krewe Promotional PosterComing Soon to YTV (Canada) and available to stream on Hulu

In addition to that music video, I can’t help but be reminded of Richard A. Hamilton’s graphic novel Fearbook Club after rewatching DreamWorks Fright Krewe for the umteenth time. That’s mostly because the image of kids tackling nasty urban legends around New Orleans is a concept I really dig. And when the lore is done right, I’m returning to it often just to see what else I can pick up on when considering the Vodun religion is quite rich in its imagery and number of loas said to exist!

Creators Eli Roth and James Frey pitched a solid idea which includes explaining the legends and lore which exist around this city. But what’s more important is in how the teens, this series main protagonists, should learn to get along. When there’s loup garous, vampires, ghosts, and other sordid creatures prowling about, these kids better get their act together! While we don’t see much about their supernatural war with humanity, and that’s because peace was established long ago. But as for their pact with certain individuals from this mortal world, it’s tumultuous at best.

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TIck Tock, The House With A Clock In Its Walls Chimes in Tues, Dec 18th!

Not every trope needs to be explored in The House With A Clock in Its Walls. It’s essentially a movie about a haunted house.

House with a Clock in its Walls
Click here to pre-orderHouse with a Clock in its Walls

Horror maestro Eli Roth proves he can make a family-friendly film and still remain loyal to his humble beginnings. When considering certain production elements gave the cast the creeps, I had to chuckle. This admission can be found in the bevy of extras (5 to 7-minute clips) included in The House With A Clock in Its Walls home video release. It’s already available on digital and can be bought online or purchased at media outlets come December 18th. 

Fans of the 1973 novel by John Bellair and newcomers to his works can hear about how his book was adapted. Included are alternate opening and ending sequences which would have entirely changed the tone of the film. Though I have not read the book in years, I do know filmmakers record a collection of ideas, and work with editors to fashion the best narrative possible. Full details of deleted scenes and the creation of can be found listed at the end of this article.

Roth imbues this work with a lingering sense of dread. Screenwriter Eric Kripke is best known for creating Supernatural and to see him writing screenplays with that jovial camaraderie as the series makes this tale shine. The film even slimes it up Nickelodeon style! The terror is soft enough to give goosebumps and when I share the same sentiment as Uncle Jonathan (Jack Black) for rustic looking porcelain dolls, I had to bite my lip. His goal is to find where that clock is and he gives this work the comic relief to make it just as fun as Robin Williams Jumanji. He is aided by Blanchett as Florence Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett). Isaac Izard (Kyle MacLachlan) is the villain, and he makes no bones about it; he wants to turn back time.

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