Critters Attack! (2019)

Director: Bobby Miller

Notable Cast: Tashiana Washington, Ava Preston, Jack Fulton, Jaeden Noel, Dee Wallace

For years, one of the things I clamored for was a revival of the Critters franchise. Growing up with the original two films and being there for the releases of the generally dismissed third and fourth entries, there has been a soft spot in my heart for the series and their strange blend of humor, horror, and science fiction. Imagine my surprise when it was announced that not only were we getting a new limited series called Critters: A New Binge that was going direct to Shudder, but there was also going to be a new film. I was ecstatic. Was this going to be the revival that I had wanted for so long?

I suppose you can call it a revival. There was both a new series and a new film, but, alas, neither are particularly good. For this review though, the focus will be on the new film, Critters Attack!, but make no mistake – both A New Binge and Attack are worse than anything the previous four had to offer. What are the chances that would happen? Pretty fuckin’ good now that both are released.

Abominable (2005)

Director: Ryan Schifrin

Notable Cast: Matt McCoy, Haley Joel, Christien Tinsley, Karin Anna Cheung, Jeffrey Combs, Natalie Compagno, Paul Gleason, Ashley Hartman, Lance Henriksen, Rex Linn, Phil Morris, Tiffany Shepis, Chad Smith, Dee Wallace, Paul Spadone, Josh Wolfe

Generally speaking, I’m a sucker for creature features. Wholeheartedly so. Good, bad, ugly, funny...I just love a silly monster movie. That being said, the amount of good Sasquatch horror movies to bad Sasquatch movies heavily leans in the realms of the latter. As easy as it would seem to make a fun monster movie with one of the world’s most popular kinds of monsters, very rarely have I found myself impressed with them beyond unintentional humor or a passable way to burn time. Abominable, on the other hand, is both. It’s a great, bad killer Sasquatch film. There’s not an ounce of me that believes Abominable is meant to be a classically regarded horror classic. This is a film that starts with very little, in terms of non-basic horror concepts, and builds such a fun piece of cinema on top of it with its self-aware elements and outlandish execution that it was very hard for me to wipe the smile off of my face when watching it. If that’s not an endorsement for cult cinema fans, I’m not sure what else would be.

Red Christmas (2017)

Director: Craig Anderson

Notable Cast: Dee Wallace, Geoff Morrell, Sarah Bishop, David Collins, Janis McGavin, Gerard O’Dwyer, Bjorn Stewart, Deelia Meriel, Sam Campbell

Holiday themed slashers are all the craze right now and in indie, low budget horror it’s thriving. After watching films like All Through the House, A Christmas Horror Story, and having films like Good Tidings and Better Watch Out on my upcoming queue for the season, it felt proper to watch at least one during the Halloween binge I had in October. That film was the Australian film Red Christmas. Oozing with style, this controversial topic emblazoned slasher is pure exploitation (Ozploitation) and yet executed with absolute intent on being taken seriously as a horror film meant to stir a debate and it’s here that perhaps the film will either win its audience or lose them, as any truly effective cult film will accomplish. In that sense, it’s hard not to praise Red Christmas even if it has its problematic moments and pieces. Its intent is executed with style.

Hills Have Eyes, The (1977)

Director: Wes Craven
Notable Cast: Martin Speer, Robert Houston, Susan Lanier, Russ Grieve, Virginia Vincent, Dee Wallace, John Steadman, James Whitworth, Michael Berryman, Lance Gordon, Janus Blythe, Cordy Clark, Arthur King

Wes Craven’s quality of film might have taken a turn for the worse in the latter part of his career, but it’s easy to see why the man was an iconic master of horror film making through most of it. His earliest films, low budget horror flicks like this seminal classic The Hills Have Eyes, show a certain spark for abrasive creativity and insightful use of their low budgets. While the film is not perfect, at least not to the extent that some horror fans love to rave about it in the grander scheme of things, The Hills Have Eyes is definitely the cult horror classic it deserves to be too. It uses its obstacles to give itself a raw and desperate tone that works wonders to cover its occasionally flawed performances or narrative speed bumps. To top it off, this latest Blu Ray release of the film from Arrow Video is the home release that fans have been dying to get their hands on with a stellar new restoration and a slew of special features worthy of the purchase. Fans of the film or Wes Craven are definitely going to want to nab this one as both the film and release are worthy of note.