Like so many horror movies, Reeker starts with a bunch of kids in a car going someplace to party. But the first striking thing about this movie is that none of these kids is annoying. How is this possible? The premise of many bad horror movies is that you secretly want these snotty grating kids to get killed. But I actually liked every single one of the characters in Reeker, without exception. Even the funny guy, who would usually be the most annoying of all, was likable. Much of the credit goes to the actors, but you can’t underestimate writer/director Dave Payne’s convincing dialogue and humor that’s actually humorous. Any of these characters in, say, Shark Night or Wrong Turn wouldn’t fare nearly so well.
What’s more, the monster isn’t obvious for a while, so you can’t very well root for it. This is one of those “what the hell is going on?” movies in which characters are literally lost in the desert and the audience is metaphorically lost in the desert. Is it a slasher film? A creature feature? A metaphysical mind-bender? When it all comes together, it’s not the least bit surprising to anyone who’s seen more than a handful of horror movies. But it’s a good example of how a horror movie doesn’t have to be unique or even airtight. It just has to work.
The movie frequently shows us things the characters can’t see, which is usually a cheap shot. But Reeker has a good reason for doing this. In a couple of clever ways, it plays on the senses. The title refers to a bad smell, which is rendered with a silly visual effect you’d normally use to show the gas stove is turned on and it’s going to blow up the house when someone lights a match. I personally would have preferred something along the lines of how Charles Schulz drew Pigpen.
You can get Reeker on Netflix here.
MOBA is a term that’s becoming more popular in gaming, but how many know what it means and where it comes from? Quite a few I’m sure, but for those that might not know this article is for you. However, I guess we should take a minute to talk about what the hell a MOBA is and what does it have to do with gaming.
After the jump, the Arcane History of MOBA
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The real wallet threat this week is Kirby’s Return to Dreamland. I wasn’t aware he’d left, but I’m glad he’s back. This is Nintendo platforming at its finest. Mario who?
I’m mostly curious this week about The Haunted: Hell’s Reach (pictured), a mod-gone-pro supposedly published by THQ. I say supposedly, because when I searched for the game’s name on THQ’s site, the only result was a zombie unlife sim for tween girls called Monster High Ghoul Spirit for the Nintendo Wii. “This semester, there’s a new ghoul hitting the haunted halls of Monster High — you!” So, like, Bully, but you’re a zombie? I would totally play that. Err, uh, I mean, that sounds stupid. Pfft. Anyway, that’s out this week as well. But The Haunted: Hell’s Reach, not for tween girls, is a horror-themed PC shooter with co-op multiplayer. I watch the trailer and think about how great Painkiller would have been with co-op multiplayer or how good Bulletstorm should have been.
I’m also curious about a downloadable War of the Worlds side-scrolling adventure for Xbox Live Arcade and PSN called, fittingly enough, War of the Worlds. It’s published by Paramount, but it’s based on the 1953 movie instead of the Spielberg movie. I would like to think this was a creative choice made by the developer, but I’ll bet you dollars to donuts it was an easy way to sidestep the rights to Tom Cruise’s likeness.
Stronghold 3 is out this week for any castle building needs not being met in Minecraft. Folks with Kinects might care about Dance Central 2. Cursed Crusade looks like Atlus’ attempt at a slice of the Assassins Creed and Dark Souls pies. Pokemon Rumble Blast is probably the worst game name this year. Also, Electronic Arts’ Modern Warfare 3 is out this week.
