Sting Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Kiah Roache-Turner
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ryan Corr, Alyla Browne, Jermaine Fowler, Penelope Mitchell
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ Australia
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, DVD, NTSC
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 32 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ July 30, 2024

        Creature features have always been among my favorite horror sub-genres, because of the potential for fun thrills and a variety of unique monsters. While the use of large spiders from space is not a unique concept, the larger problem with Sting is the lack of fun. Too much of the narrative is bogged down by unpleasant family drama, altering the tone of film that could have been much more enjoyable with a different approach. As far as horror movies with spiders, I would choose Arachnophobia (1990) over this. And as for alien invasion films set in an apartment building, Attack the Block (2011) understood how to make the most out of the concept. Sting falls short, though it does contain impressive creature effects from Weta Workshop.

 

Alienoid: Return to the Future Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Choi Dong-hoon
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ryu Jun-yeol, Kim Tae-ri, Kim Woo-bin
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ English
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, French Canadian
• Language ‏ : ‎ Korean (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ Korea, Republic of
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 2 hours and 2 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ July 30, 2024

        Cliffhanger endings to movies have become all-too common these days, from books being split up like Dune (or any final installment of a successful franchise like Twilight or Harry Potter) to superhero narratives only revealing the villain in the final scene to force audiences to buy another ticket to get any resolution (yeah, I’m looking at you Spidey). Personally, I’m quite sick of it, which is why I found the lack of resolution in Alienoid (2022) so frustrating. Thankfully, Alienoid: Return to the Future has an ending instead of leading to a third film, but it retains many of the other issues found in the Korean blockbuster.

 

Tarot Blu-ray Review

 

• Directors: Spencer Cohen, Anna Halberg
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Harriet Slater, Adain Bradley, Avantika Vandanapu, Jacob Batalon, Wolfgang Novogratz
• Studio ‏ : ‎ SONY
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray, Subtitled, Digital_copy
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 32 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ July 9, 2024

 

        Fans of the genre know that a film being bad isn’t the worst thing when it comes to horror, especially when compared to being boring or forgettable. I wouldn’t say Tarot is necessarily boring, but it isn’t good or bad enough to be memorable in any way. Even having seen the film, I have to force myself to even remember why it was as unimpressive as it was. Beyond the bland cast and generic premise, Tarot is never even remotely scary. While some horror films get audiences invested by convincing them to care about the characters in peril, Tarot just had me longing for a quicker demise.