A Poetry Journey

Tag: YouTube

  • Review and Haiku: Dolly

    Living human doll

    Terrorizes a couple

    Deep inside the woods

    One of the big highlights. I enjoyed the fact that it felt like it was a combination of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Wrong Turn, the good Wrong Turn, the first one or the remake. Dug that aspect of Dolly.

    Also dug the score. Added so much to this throwback vibe it was giving me and speaking of throwback vibe,16mm film made it look old school like something from the 70s or 80s. Another one of Dolly’s biggest highlights. 

    And a third big highlight – Direction by Rod Blackhurst. He has to be given some praise. No lag or drag. No time wasted. Once it started. It kept rolling until the end – just two people hiking in the woods – running into a force of nature trying to survive. That’s it and that’s all you needed.

    Minimal cast but they all did a great job in their roles. Fabianne Therese – good final girl – Sean William Scott – good in his role. Ethan Suplee – very terrifying in a very small role. 

    Gore, not abundant but both of the leads took a beating and so did Dolly so among them there was some blood shed. Stiffler’s mouth was unhinged and open for a long time – that made me squirm – but not as much as the dinner scene. The nasty pot pie was bad, so was the binky, so was the diaper changer, but that baby bottle, about put me over the edge. Vile milky rotten liquid in that thing that she had to drink. I couldn’t crawl back in my seat far enough during that scene. Disgusting. 

    And I don’t know if Dolly will be a household name like Art the Clown or Freddy or Jason those kinds of villains but she is a force and looks terrifying in that doll mask. Plus, she’s huge and tall and thick. Played by max the impaler – a pro wrestler. She was a great choice for this role. 

    I have heard there are sequels planned. I wouldn’t mind seeing Dolly again, this time with more carnage, more blood shed, more dismemberments. Sign me up for a bloodier sequel.  

    That’s it. Dolly is on Shudder as of 4/26/2026. Easy to find and watch. If you see it. Let me know your thoughts about it. 

    Also, if you need a couple more good, at times great, survivalist movies. Dusted these two off after Dolly.

    Bridge to Nowhere is a 1986 New Zealand horror/thriller film directed and co-written by Ian Mune,[1] and produced by Larry Parr.[2] It centres on a group of teenagers who must fight for survival after coming across a mysterious hermit while on a camping trip.[2]

    Better than expected and I was surprised by how into it I was. 

    And this one.

    Apex is a 2026 survival action thriller film directed by Baltasar Kormákur, written by Jeremy Robbins, and starring Charlize Theron, Taron Egerton, and Eric Bana. It tells the story of a rock climber in the wild who finds herself being hunted by a hunter as she works to survive. It was released on Netflix on April 24, 2026.

    It was another one much better than I thought it would be. Some by the numbers stuff but the rock climbing and rafting are edge of your seat thrills and the chase scenes are too. When I see Netflix attached, I am always cautious, they’ve put out some stinkers, but this one was good. Charlize Theron did a lot of her own rock climbing stunts – adds to the tension.  

    Video Review of Dolly.

    Dolly: Movie Review and Haiku
    https://youtu.be/EdI-uG6bMbA

  • Review and Haiku: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3

    The dream warriors 

    Using their skills and powers

    Fighting to survive 

    Freddy looks awesome in that sweater and that hat and the burned effects on Robert are top notch. Freddy’s also mean. Evil and dark with some of the all time best one liners in this franchise.

    “Welcome to prime time bitch!”

    Amazing line right after Freddy slams Jennifer face first into that TV. 

    And speaking of kills.

    The puppet Freddy looks awesome, the effects in that scene as Phillip is walked down the hall to his death still look great and hold up extremely well for a movie this old. Another kill that holds up, and still looks great, one of my favorite kills in this franchise, when Taryn gets the life “literally” sucked out of her with those Freddy fingers as needles. He jams those fingers right into her arms with wounds that are pulsing and sucking and just looking nasty. Good stuff. Freddy snake is another highlight and even more effects that hold up perfectly. 

    Heather Langemkamp is great in her role. One of the all time final girls. Might be my favorite final girl. Robert once again brings so much life to Freddy. He just knows how to make that character shine and John Saxon even in a limited role is still great. Craig Wasson is solid too. Patricia Arquette also shines bright in this movie – incredible scream – up there with Mark from Part 2 in this series. I wish she would have returned for Part 4 because she gave it her all in this movie and she is missed in Part 4. Very jarring not having her there.

    And if there weren’t enough great actors in this movie, you’ve also got the pill guy, Morpheus himself, Lawrence Fishburne. It’s a stacked cast through and through.  

    Direction. You just can’t beat a Wes Craven directed movie. You just can’t. He knows how to get all he can out of each actor and each scene. Story and script are strong. It’s also got some really great spooky moments. The stuff with the nun, Freddy’s mom, creepy. Very supernatural. Digging that.  

    You also get music by Dokken and you can’t go wrong when you are Rocking with Dokken. 

    What are your thoughts about A Nightmare on Elm Street 3? Favorite sequel. Not your favorite sequel. What is your favorite sequel if this one isn’t it? Let me know all that in the comments.

    See the video here:

    A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors: Movie Review and Haiku
    https://youtu.be/2Wv2Nx6_DiU

  • Review and Haiku: Freddy vs. Jason

    +++++++++ Haiku

    Two horror icons 

    Freddy and Jason battle 

    One will reign supreme 

    +++++++++ Mask History

    First up, the history of Jason’s Mask used in F vs. J, and this comes from horror.fandom.com, 

    It states:  

    In this film, Jason’s mask appears similar to the one in Part III down to the three red triangles, but it now appears to be cream-colored rather than white and it is notably missing it’s signature axe mark.. Throughout the movie the mask goes through some noticeable changes; primarily claw marks from Freddy’s glove and soaked blood.

    +++++++++ Review

    This movie is better than it has any right to be. Up there with some of the best sequels in either franchise.  

    Ronny Yu, who directed it, did a great job behind the lens. He kept the movie moving at a good pace and kept the fight scenes cohesive and easy to watch – you could see what was going on the whole time. Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, who wrote the script, also deserve a lot of credit, probably the most credit. They found a way to put these two titans together into one film, somehow combining locations, back stories, history, etc., and making it all work like all of that belongs in one film.

    Freddy looks amazing. He’s wise cracking and doing his best at being the nasty dream demon we’ve all come to know and love. A little pervier in this one but there’s always been a bit of that in this character. I do wish they would have used that demon thing he turns into when he jumps out of the water a little more. I hate it was only in that one scene. He looked nasty and maybe the most evil he’s ever looked.

    Jason, he’s big, he’s hulking, he’s monstrous, and looks great too. I wish Kane Hodder would have been in this role, yes, I am one of those people, but I like what Ken Kirzinger brought to this character.   

    Fights are top notch. A bit over the top at times but it’s Freddy battling Jason, that’s to be expected, especially when Freddy is involved. Effects are top notch too. Gore is nasty as well. When Freeburg got split in half in that one scene that was an all time kill in either series and so was the bed kill when Tray gets butchered badly and then folded up. Nasty stuff.

    Monica Keena, the final girl?. Solid in her role and so is the rest of the cast. No complaints with the acting in this movie.  

    All in all, this film should not have worked as well as it did but it did and I am glad for that. I always enjoy revisiting it.  

    What are your thoughts about Freddy vs Jason? Who truly won? Who were you rooting for? Let me know all that in the comments.

    See the review here: Freddy vs. Jason

  • Review and Haiku: I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025)

    Deadly accident 

    Time to bury the truth

    Someone always knows

    +++++Spoilers +++++

    I liked this movie, more than most it seems, but it does have a heap of problems, and let’s start with what I think is the biggest problem, the third act and the reveal of the killers. Ray being one of them doesn’t make a lick of sense. 

    I get the trauma aspect, the bad divorce aspect, being close to the other killer aspect, the woman he works with aspect, things like that, but this reveal is terrible for all the past movies. 

    In the first one he was kind of clueless but likeable, a good guy, and a decent guy, and in the second Freddy put a little more gusto in the role and became kind of a badass, which I liked a lot. So to see him turn into a killer was kind of heart breaking. It really ruined a great likeable character who seemed like a really nice guy.  

    Julie James wasn’t used enough but I liked seeing Jennifer back again. It sort of works and sort of doesn’t. The rest of the cast is solid too. No standouts but they read their lines very well and don’t distract you with bad acting. 

    The movie was also about 10 minutes too long. You could have shaved some time off some of these scenes and you wouldn’t have missed that time. 

    There were stupid character moments even for a Slasher movie, which I can look past most of the time but this one guy going to check the gate and while in the process of checking the gate he walks right past a full on person dressed in a fisherman outfit. Are we supposed to believe they have mannequins in this place dressed like fisherman – bit of a stretch – but the surprise stab in the back was nice and jarring. Stupidity led to a good kill. 

    The throw away scene at the end of the movie with the two girls on the beach – not sure about that or the lead up to it with that dialogue after the hospital. All of it seemed too casual for the subject matter they are discussing. 

    And I could go on with even more negatives, but let’s stop the hate train and put some positivity into the episode and dive into one of my favorite parts of the movie. 

    The dream sequence with Sarah Michelle Gellar. Might be the movie’s biggest highlight and it actually worked, probably shouldn’t have, but it did. Good use of CGI and the deaging was better than it is in most movies. It probably helps that Sarah still looks young and it didn’t take much to deage her unlike some of these older actors.  

    Gore was decent. Kills were nothing spectacular but I did like when they hung the father and son up like fish at the dock. That was a nice finish to that double kill but if you are looking for insane amounts of gore this movie isn’t for you. 

    I also liked how they incorporated old sets and things like that into the set pieces – like the parade float from the original I know what you did last summer. That was a nice touch. Good way to add in some nostalgia. 

    Fisherman/Fisherwoman looked great. I always liked the look of this killer and the weapon he or she uses. Lots of carnage to be had with that weapon. 

    Mid credit scene was good too with Brandy and Jennifer – and if there is a movie to be had with them chasing down this killer then sign me up. Don’t care if it doesn’t make a lick of sense I would still watch it and what would the title of it be. 

    Comment with your titles? 

    Mine would be this. I know what you did last summer and since you did this thing last summer we are going to kill you for that thing you did last summer – rolls of the tongue, right? 

    Overall, the first two acts were solid, but it is in the third act where this movie has the biggest problems and that’s where you don’t want to have them. Okay to start slow or slightly off and course correct as you move through the film. But you got to close strong. Leave the audience wanting more.

    That’s it. What are your thoughts about I know what you did last summer? Did you enjoy it? Does Ray as the killer work for you? Let me know all that in the comments. 

    Take care. Have a good one and be safe on those dark roads at night. 

    See the video for this script:


    https://youtu.be/YT4NoBqMdXY

  • Review and Haiku: I Still Know What You Did Last Summer

    A contest is won 

    Secluded island awaits

    Fisherman returns

     

    Solid. 

    That’s the word that kept coming to mind while watching this sequel to I know what you did last summer and I realized while watching it that I haven’t visited this sequel nearly enough throughout the years

    Gore is 90’s horror movie gore, Post Scream gore, just enough splatter to let you know somebody died but not enough to desensitize you, which may not be a bad thing. You get the point and you know that person is dead. Time to move on to the next victim. 

    Even with the minimal gore though, there are still some solid kills throughout. Jack Black, his character, had one of the toughest to watch because he seemed like a nice enough easy going guy, a bit annoying, but he just liked his weed and wanted others to enjoy that vibe too. Nothing wrong with that. His death was tough because Jack really sold it. 

    Fisherman looked great, again. I always liked the look of this serial killer with the slicker, the hat, the hook, the thing covering his or her face. A good costume to keep the villain disguised and to keep you guessing. 

    Story, script, directing is good too. I like what they did with this story and putting them up on the island during a storm. Works well for a slasher movie. No where to run. No where to hide. And I liked the twist at the end with father and son tag teaming the kills. Made a lot of sense. This series has lived in the shadow of Scream for many years so why not take a page from it and have two killers. Worked extremely well.

    The score was what you’d expect from a movie like this. Good enough. Plenty of late nineties sounding music sprinkled throughout 

    And finally, acting, honestly, better than a movie like this needs to be. Jennifer Love Hewitt. Solid in her role as the final girl, question mark. Great screaming once again. Up there with Mark Patton from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2 for best horror screamers. Brandy was good in her role and so was Freddy. Played the tough guy better than I thought he could and the rest of the cast is solid too. No complaints.  

    All in all, I am glad I dove back into this sequel, and it’s one I will revisit from time to time.

    That’s it. What are your thoughts about I still know what you did last summer? Did you enjoy it or not? Let me know all that in the comments below.

    See the video here: Disembodied Screams

  • Script and Haiku: Predator

    Spoilers, possibly, maybe, proceed with caution. You’ve been warned. Here we go with the haiku. 

    Elite rescue team

    Mission to save hostages

    Alien hunting

    What is there to say about this movie that hasn’t already been said a billion times? 

    Gore. Excellent. Head shots. Body shots. Skeletons ripped from human meat. And one nasty arm severing. Plenty of red is spilled. 

    Story and Script. Tight and lean. No wasted space. 

    Directing from John McTiernan is on point. He got the most out of every scene and actor and he shot the action scenes perfectly – you could see it all very clearly. 

    Acting, solid, it is what it is for a movie like this. Honestly, it’s much better than a movie like this actually needs to be because movies like this don’t need top notch acting. You got the action. You got the villain. You got the testosterone fueled pace. Acting is only a small part of that but there’s not a dud to be had among this cast. This was Arnold at his peak. Even if he couldn’t act, which he can, he’s proved that, I’d still cast him for star power alone. 

    Score. Fits each scene to a T. 

    And this movie gives us one of the all time cinema villain legends. The Predator and I am still surprised that they were able to make the Predator and all the stuff he used look this good in the Eighties, pre CGI. I can see why the Predator continues to haunt cinema to this very day.  

    I have loved this movie for a very long time. It’s Eighties action through and through, it’s a gory horror slasher movie, it’s scifi, it wears a lot of hats and looks good in all of them. Now, what say you? Do you love this one? When was your time seeing it? Things like that in the comments below. Take care. Have a good one and get to the choppa.

    YouTube Horror Channel: Disembodied Screams

    Podcast: Disembodied Screams

  • Script and Haiku: Clown in a Cornfield

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Gore and Effects: Top Notch. The kills were nothing original, nothing most of these Slasher movies haven’t done before but they looked realistic. Plenty of blood was shed. That chainsaw kill when that clown lifted that girl in the air, brutal, right after a texas chainsaw style chase through the corn with chainsaw blaring. Good one. The work out kill, with the blade on the bar, gruesome, and there was a nasty head smash too. No let down in the gore department. If you like blood you get it.  

    Story, Script, Directing: I can’t complain about any of those. It kept my attention both times I watched it. Eli Craig who did Tucker and Dale vs Evil did a solid job behind the lens and he managed to balance comedy and terror without overdoing the comedy. 

    Acting: No one took me out of the movie with lousy acting. Katie Douglas who played Quinn was a good solid final girl. Not one of iconic stature, but she had lots of spunk and tenacity and she held her own throughout the movie. 

    Kevin Durand, I like what he did with his character, Arthur Hill. He added some nice flare to that role and his joker makeup at the end was a nice touch. No complaints in the acting department even the clown fodder teens did a good job in their roles. 

    Score: Nothing that stands out to me but it fit the movie and set the tone it needed to set when it was used. I can’t say that I was wowed by it or noticed it all that much. But everyone did a great job.

    Killer: Frendo looks amazing. I like the look of this clown. You got the costume, the creepy mask, the big shoes that squeak. Nice touch. Frendo looks like a traditional fun clown with some menace added to him or her and when he or she is holding a weapon he or she really looks threatening. I wouldn’t mind more movies with Frendo. All in all, glad I watched it, twice, now, here’s the haiku. 

    Sharpen your weapons

    Bad crop of teens needs to die

    Frendo’s time to slay 

    One more thing: I liked the relationship between dad and daughter. Felt realistic to me. Helped me to root for them and hope they make it out alive. Have you seen Clown in a Cornfield? What are your thoughts about it? Worth the hype or not. Let me know. Take care and have a good one.

  • Script and Haiku: Humanoids from the Deep

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Roger Corman. That name should be well known to all horror fans. He was lurking somewhere behind the scenes on this movie. And if  you don’t know who Roger Corman is, and why he’s a big deal. Here’s what Wikipedia had to say about him.

    Corman was famous for handling the American distribution of many films by noted foreign directors, including Federico Fellini (Italy), Ingmar Bergman (Sweden), François Truffaut (France) and Akira Kurosawa (Japan). 

    He mentored and gave a start to many young film directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, Ron Howard, Martin Scorsese, Jonathan Demme, Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante, John Sayles, and James Cameron, and was highly influential in the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. 

    He also helped to launch the careers of actors including Peter Fonda, Jack Nicholson, Dennis Hopper, Bruce Dern, Diane Ladd, and William Shatner.

    Needless to say, he was a very big deal.

    Moving on,  like Monster Island this movie only has to get one thing truly right, the creatures, and this movie shines brightest in that department. Probably the best reason to tune in to it. I love the look of these creatures. Slimy and scaly with nasty mouths and big eyes and claws and long arms and tails and fins and on and on it goes. 

    These creatures look like nothing you’d want to mess with and when they get to killing they separate body parts nicely and when they don’t kill you they leave a lot of scars behind. That dude in the ocean with half his face ripped off – nasty stuff. Gore is no joke. Plenty of it to go around. 

    Score, amazing, another one of its biggest highlights. James Horner was the man making the music shine and if you don’t know who he is. Let’s let Wikipedia inform you of that. 

    James Roy Horner (August 14, 1953 – June 22, 2015) was an American film composer. He worked on more than 160 film and television productions between 1978 and 2015. He was known for the integration of choral and electronic elements alongside traditional orchestrations, and for his use of motifs associated with Celtic music.

    Horner won two Academy Awards for his musical composition to James Cameron’s Titanic (1997), which became the best-selling orchestral film soundtrack of all time. He also wrote the score for the highest-grossing film of all time, Cameron’s Avatar (2009).

    Horner’s other Oscar-nominated scores were for Aliens (1986), An American Tail (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Apollo 13 (1995), Braveheart (1995), A Beautiful Mind (2001), and House of Sand and Fog (2003). Horner’s other notable scores include Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982),[6] Willow (1988), The Land Before Time (1988), Glory (1989), The Rocketeer (1991), 

    Legends of the Fall (1994), Jumanji (1995), Casper (1995), Balto (1995), The Mask of Zorro (1998), Deep Impact (1998), The Perfect Storm (2000), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Troy (2004), The New World (2005), The Legend of Zorro (2005), Apocalypto (2006), The Karate Kid (2010), and The Amazing Spider-Man (2012).

    Mr. Big deal for sure and his talent certainly shines in the score of this movie.

    Moving on, direction was solid from Barbara Peeters and it was the last feature film directed by Peeters according to Wikipedia and also from Wikipedia, it says there was an uncredited Jimmy T. Murakami directing something behind the lense. Not sure how much he shot or what. But two directors, producer chaos. Sounds like the behind the scenes drama was a lot. 

    Location, perfect for a movie like this. The scenic little coastal town is a great backdrop for the horrors these creatures unleash. Acting, better than expected. Nothing good enough for Shakespeare but it gets the job done. 

    All in all, this was a nice revisit for me, and I do think this will get watched more often as time rolls on. I can’t believe I haven’t seen it more than twice throughout my years. 

    Now, the haiku. 

    Horny humanoids

    Rising from the oceans depths

    Coastal town attacked

    When did you see Humanoids from the deep for the first time? How old were you? Do you enjoy movies like this? Let me know all that. Take care and have a good one.

  • Script and Haiku: Monster Island

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Let’s start with this, maybe it’s biggest strength, the reason to tune in, the monster. I loved the creature design in this movie. Put name on Screen Orang Ikan Reminded me of the creature from the black lagoon mixed with the spawning creatures of Humanoids from the Deep. 

    This creature had big teeth. Nasty claws. Scaly body, strong and powerful, and when it digs in, if it doesn’t kill you, it will certainly wound you fiercely. If you go into this movie just for the creature feature part – you will not be disappointed. 

    And another big highlight, another big strength, is the gore. There isn’t major dismemberment, maximum carnage, tons of victims, but when this creature gets to killing, the few people it does, it gets bloody, quickly. Gore effects looked awesome. Plenty of blood is shed. 

    The movie also does a good job of setting up a solid story that keeps your attention and keeps you focused. It doesn’t lag or drag and it’s not too long of a movie either, which is nice. It knows what it is and it doesn’t waste screen time. 

    I liked the World War 2 backdrop, added some drama and tension to the two survivors who are supposed to be mortal enemies in this time and place. Of course, differences resolve, and they end up working together, but there is nice tension between the two leads as they try to figure out how to defeat the monster. 

    Setting is beautiful. Even with a monster on the loose you can still take time to notice the beautiful scenery. Name of the screen, Batam Indonesia.

    Now, the haiku. 

    2 lone survivors 

    Wash ashore on an island 

    Sea creature lurking

    Have you seen Monster Island? What are your thoughts about it? Do you enjoy creature features like this? Let me know. Take care and have a good one. 

  • Script and Haiku: Until Dawn

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Quick disclaimer: I have not played the game, not much of a gamer, so, I had no knowledge of the game going into this movie. I was wide open, an unbiased sponge ready to soak it all up, and I think for that reason and that reason alone, it helped me to enjoy it. More than I thought I would.

    And one of the reasons why was the gore. I had no idea this movie was going to be this bloody, this disgusting, this vile. That first set of kills. I couldn’t believe the amount of blood and dismemberment I was seeing. Awesome effects and then, you realize the characters are stuck in a death loop, and you get to see more creative kills again and again and again – big bonus points for that. 

    Best gore in the movie, for me, might have been the bathroom scene. All of these survivors, back from death, back from dismemberment, planning, scheming, quenching their thirst from the tap, and then one by one they start exploding. The amount of blood in that scene was ridiculous, in a good way. 

    It’s obvious that money went into this one to make the effects, gore and other things, look top notch. No complaints in the effects department,  

    Story, script, and directing – solid – the highlight of those three is the direction. David F. Sandberg, who gave us Lights Out and Shazam! He kept the pace moving forward and there wasn’t any lag or drag. The movie was constantly in motion and even as the gimmick of them dying over and over again worn on. It never got stale. 

    Acting, as good as it needed to be. This isn’t Shakespeare and we don’t tune in for the acting but it was good enough to not take you out of the movie and to help keep you interested in the characters. 

    Killer or killers, depending on what scene you were in, looked awesome. Liked the look of the main villain – the mask and build of him – very menacing. When he got to crushing bodies. It was very believable.  

    And I like the use of the sand in the hour glass to show you how long they had to survive. That led to a very intense ending to where I was on the edge of my seat as they cut between them trying to escape and the sand slowly slipping away.

    A vicious cycle

    Dying again and again 

    Survive until dawn

    Have you seen Until Dawn? Have you played the game? Let me know your thoughts about the movie or game in the comments below. Take care and have a good one.

  • Haiku: Hiking in the Rain

    Valuable lesson learned – download everything before you hike. I was shocked to find that cellular coverage was spotty in a park in the middle of Raleigh. The things you learn.

    Wandering the woods

    Rain drops falling through the trees

    Soaking wet and lost

    A Rainy Hike filled with Wrong Turns, Bad Directions, and Spotty Cellular Coverage
    https://youtu.be/xPhgLC8DRgI

  • Daily Prompt

    What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it?

    Heavy Metal Band Fulci. They do concept albums based around Lucio Fulci movies.

    I am working on scripts for my YouTube Channel Disembodied Screams. Researching the movie Zombie and Fulci’s album Tropical Sun for the two scripts I want to write.

  • Script and Haiku for the movie Presence

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Spoilers, possibly, maybe, proceed with caution. You’ve been warned. 

    I stumbled onto this movie on Hulu by accident and being a fan of the haunted house – ghost genre.  I thought why not give it a shot and I am glad I did. This movie is great from start to finish and very captivating. Keeps you watching. Hard to turn off. I thought it was going to be more of a gimmick style movie and that’s it but the POV of a ghost, mostly, throughout the film worked exceptionally well. I was surprised by how well it worked and I was surprised I got a few goose bumps too and a few good chills as well. 

    Directing is the true star of this one. Steven Soderbergh does an amazing job keeping your attention with minimal cuts and constant POV shots of a ghost watching the world move on without it. Story was good and so was the script, acting solid, the actors did a great job in their roles and that also helped to keep you interested because they got you invested in their characters and rooting for or against them.

    As you watch this movie you kind of feel like this dread lays heavy over everything and you know something bad is going to happen eventually and when it does, it’s bad, real bad. I like how they tie this bad event back into the overall theme of the movie. I also like that this movie had a short run time, which helped with the retention because there is no bloat at all – lean and tight throughout. 

    A lonely lost ghost

    Wandering through each crisis

    Silent observer 

    I enjoyed this movie and I would recommend it and it’s a highlight for me for the year 2025. Seen it? Thoughts about it in the comments below. Take care and have a good one.

  • Aliens at the Door Poem

    This one is probably my favorite of anything I have made for YouTube. Why? My kids helped me make it. Great memories.

    Aliens at the Door (Short Film)
    https://youtu.be/oHeCALYjlek

  • Script and Haiku for the Movie Alien vs. Predator

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    Spoilers, possibly, maybe, proceed with caution. You’ve been warned. Here we go. 

    I think the initial problem I had with this movie was the PG-13 rating. I don’t like cutaway kills, I want to see it all in its full gory goodness, and there would have been some good gory goodness in this movie without those cutaways, but putting the gore lover side of me aside there’s still lots to like here. The Aliens and the Predators look awesome, enjoyed seeing not one but 3 Predators and I enjoyed seeing the aliens. Always enjoy them and the fight scenes between aliens and predators was great. Paul W.S. Anderson, director, some love him, some don’t, I’m in the middle of that argument, did a great job behind the lens with the fight scenes. Easy to see, easy to watch, some great slow mo at times. 

    And the overall pacing of the movie is great too. Doesn’t lag or drag and we aren’t drawn in to a bunch of useless human drama. They’re mostly there for Alien Fodder. 

    Acting was solid the little bit that was needed. Location – awesome – love seeing movies in the snow and I enjoyed all of the pyramid stuff as well. One of the best parts of this movie was the setting. Great score too – and on and on it goes. 

    Two fierce enemies

    Battling for survival 

    Chance for dominance 

    One thing that is a positive about the PG-13 rating. This is a good gateway movie for kids who aren’t old enough for the other R rated movies in either series. I do like that aspect of it. Now, your thoughts on the movie? Comment below. Take care and have a good one.

  • Script and Haiku for the movie Trick or Treat (1986)

    Video for this Script on YouTube: Disembodied Screams

    The world lost Ozzy Osbourne recently and I was trying to think of something fun to pay tribute to him. And, lightbulb, this movie popped into my mind. I haven’t seen it in years and thought why not dust it off and give it a watch. It was on Screambox so easy to find and watch and spoilers, possibly, maybe, proceed with caution – here we go.

    I will go on the record and say that I wasn’t the biggest Ozzy fan, he was never one of my go to artists, but I have enjoyed his music throughout the years and I love the fact that he often dipped his toes in the horror genre in his music, as a solo artist – Mr Crowley, Bark at the Moon, immediately come to mind, and even in the Black Sabbath years, lots of horror to be found there too. Just listen to the song Black Sabbath and you will hear what spooky truly sounds like – it’s very ominous and creepy. And in case you care about this, this is my history with Ozzy – I don’t know of a time in my life when he wasn’t in the public eye or I wasn’t aware of who he was. I missed the Sabbath years because I was born in 1972 but I caught up with Ozzy in the Eighties, when my love of Metal blossomed, and to this day, Metal is a constant in my life. I love it. And not just the mainstream metal – I go deep – Cattle Decapatation – deep at times. I just love metal. Love the way it makes you feel. Makes you feel alive and present – in the moment – youthful – and imagine being a young kid, close to the teens, and seeing this album cover at a friend’s house. 

    That probably helped to jump start my love of horror too even though I didn’t know it at the time. Anyway, I didn’t mean to have a long intro into this video but I felt like putting all of that out there so you know where I stand with the man, the prince of darkness, Mr. Osbourne. Rest in peace Ozzy – your legend will never die. 

    Moving on, lets now get into the movie Trick or Treat, which I truly enjoyed from start to finish. It’s full of music that I grew up on, music that was popular when I ventured from a kid into a teenager. Needless to say I knew going into this revisit that I would dig the music featured in this movie and I did – big time. Score is pumping throughout. Filled with that great Eighties metal sound. Thumbs up for that and thumbs up for the effects – biggest highlight had to be the effects, from the green mist coming out of those headphones that enveloped a woman’s body and nearly brought her to orgasm and in that same scene that gooey ear as her boyfriend pulled up one of those ear pieces. Beautifully gross and disgusting. Loved the blue lightning effects and the bodies being blown up and turned to dust. Lightning effects were top notch. Surprisingly good creature effects too. Not enough gore for a gorehound. I was expecting a lot more, but there’s a little bit when needed.   

    Acting, Story, and Script, kind of one big fleshy lump, they worked as well as you’d expect a movie like this to work. Nothing groundbreaking but there was nothing so bad in any of those areas that tanked the movie for me. Enjoyed seeing Marc Price, Skippy on Family Ties, in a lead role, did a great job with that task, and Tony Fields was awesome as the villain Sammi Curr – liked his look, very Eighties hair metal vibe. He nailed this role and directing, solid, better than expected. Charles Martin, the director, did a great job keeping your interest held throughout the runtime. 

    A young man bullied

    Looks for answers from the dead

    Revenge from the grave

    Have you seen Trick or Treat? Do you enjoy movies like this or music like this from the Eighties? Were you a fan of Ozzy or Sabbath? Would love to hear about your concert experiences. Take care and have a good one. 

  • Haiku: Cold Hunger

    Put this together for my YouTube page Disembodied Screams last night.

    Plus there are two new episodes available on that channel – 5th edition of Skulls and Coffee and Horror Haiku 2
    https://youtu.be/6sO_cLjs5WA

  • The Honeysuckle Poem

    The Honeysuckle Poem

    Digging back in the archives for this one.

    The Honeysuckle Poem

    When I walk,

    I love to smell,

    Honeysuckle.

    I love to see,

    it hanging,

    from the vines.

    I love to see,

    it blooming white.

    I love to taste,

    its nectar,

    growing wild.

    Yes,

    I love the Spring,

    the warm weather,

    and

    Honeysuckle.

  • Haiku – Cicada Brood

    Cicadas Emerge 7 #cicadas #bugs #nature

    A verse of nature

    Watching cicadas emerge

    Digging from the Earth

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    I took a bunch of short videos for my Verse of Nature YouTube Channel highlighting the cicada emergence in North Carolina. They are everywhere down here.

  • Haiku – 4/17/2024

    YouTube videos

    Chasing an elusive star

    Hoping for success

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    I have run a Podcast for about 4 years, Song Lines and Tan Lines, and that’s tough to put together week in and week out, but YouTube, that’s a totally different animal. Not only do you have to nail the audio, but the thumbnails, and the video too. Crazy how much work goes into making a YouTube Video and a YouTube Channel. I do have two new shorts available if you want to check them out. Thanks for following and putting up with my many adventures in the fiction world.