Moral Ambiguity In The '80s Vol 2.

I had couple of friends tell me they liked my first edition of Moral Ambiguity so I thought about making another. Once I saw this film on cable last week I knew what my next target was. Even though it's not technically an 80s film (It was released in 1991) it still bears the '80s vibe.

The film opens up with Sue Ellen a.k.a Swell (Christina Applegate) telling her friends that her mother is going off to Australia for 2 months. She believes this will be the ultimate summer free of nagging and rules. Seriously what 17 year old is really gonna believe that her mother would up and leave her children with absolutely no one to watch them?

However her summer fun is ruined when she meets Mrs. Sturack, a seemingly kindly old woman who turns into an iron fisted nightmare the second the mother departs. She makes the tomboyish Melissa wear dresses, insists the Lothario brother, Zack stop dating, and forces the television addicted Walter to drop the remote and write book reports.

The siblings implore Sue Ellen to step in, but Sue Ellen instead finds Mrs Sturack dead of a heart attack. The shock of seeing oldest brother Kenny's disastrous room is implied to be the cause. The movie expects us to believe that elderly people are so fragile that drug and rock paraphernalia is too much for them to take.

Now this would be the perfect time to call Mom or 911 but then this movie couldn't have existed with that logic. The kids don't want their Mom to come back and decide to drop her off at a cemetary with a note identifying her as a "Nice old lady inside. Died of natural causes". Because even though Mrs Sturack was a human being, she was a mean old lady which makes it okay to dispose of her in such and undignified manner. But Mrs Sturack has the last laugh the money that the kids need is on her person leaving them broke.

So let's see broke, no food, no supervision=Time to call Mom, right. Nope Sue Ellen goes to work at a circus themed fast food place where she meets obligatory love interest Bryan. However cleaning out lard buckets is not for her and she quits. Hmm quitting a job because it's gross even though your starving siblings are reliant on that paycheck, smartest move ever.

Sue Ellen is down but not out and forges an impressive resume in an attempt to land a job as a receptionist at a local clothing manufacturer. She impresses the senior vice president, Rose with her "skills" and lands a job as her assistant. Thus taking the job away from obnoxious receptionist Caroline who wants to make her pay. Note at no time did Rose ever question why a young looking supposed 28 year old with such an impressive work history would be applying for such a lesser job in the first place. Nor does she check any of those references at all.

Though Sue Ellen is overwhelmed by her job she manages to stay afloat however she has to contend with Rose's boyfriend hitting on her and the knowledge that Caroline is in fact Brian's brother which threatens to expose Sue Ellen's lies. Dissatisfied with her low paycheck, Sue Ellen begins to liberally "borrow" from petty cash at one point buying new boots for herself. I understand buying food for a starving family but boots come on.

Her siblings quickly follow her good example by stealing the petty cash from her purse. Yes Sue Ellen apparently took thousands of dollars that weren't hers and just carried it around. Note during the time she worked she also allowed the kids to be looked after by irresponsible stoner Kenny, resulting in Walter breaking his leg. Injured sibling, owing a lot of money, is it call Mom time yet? Of course not.

Sue Ellen panics upon learning that the company is going under and there is no time to pay back all the petty cash. Using her super hip teen skills she stumbles upon an idea that might save the company. Agreeing to throw a fashion show at her home she manages to disguise the missing cash as business expenses while her siblings friends led by the now sober and responsible Kenny to fix up the house and cater the party.

Caroline stumbles across proof that Sue Ellen is only 17, but Rose sees it as a pathetic scheme. Rose also learns that her boyfriend has been coming on to Sue Ellen and promptly takes her side. The fashion show goes off without a hitch until Bryan (having broken up with Sue Ellen earlier) drives by her house publicly declaring his love via loudspeaker. Remember though in the '80s this was not stalkerish behavior it was considered romantic. I call it threatmantic.

Sue Ellen promptly introduces him as another model thus forcing poor young men to wear ridiculous fast food uniforms as a fashion statement. But not so fast, Mom's home. Sue Ellen confesses her lies and runs off. However nobody cares. Her ideas are considered innovative, Rose offers her a real job and her friendship despite being lied to throughout the entire film. The boyfriend also having been lied to throughout the entire film takes her back. Even angry Mom is placated by mature children and clean houses.

Everything's wonderful but where's the babysitter? Buried with a tombstone that reads Nice Old Lady while two grave diggers boast about finding the money. Ahh, child endangerment, fraud and covering up a death=good wholesome family fun.

The Mist

The Mist is probably one of the best Stephen King short stories I had ever read. And I admit when I saw the trailer it seemed like something I wanted to watch. And it was mostly.

The Mist explores the social dynamics of people trapped inside a supermarket by an unseen monster that's cloaked by a mysterious mist. As the people fight for survival not only from the monsters but from a growing faction of people following the words of a local religious nut.

The film was awesome, a great blend of suspense, horror, and even a little welcome humor. The special effects were perfect, a lot higher quality than I was expecting. The actors were just perfect for their roles.

Thomas Jane plays Billy Drayton, who is desperate to protect his 5 year old son and eventually escape the market in order to find his wife. Marcia Gay Harden is enigmatic as the local religious nut and really owns that role. Rounding out the cast are Andre Braugher, William Sadler, Frances Sternhagen, Alexa Davalos, and Chris Owen.

Sadly while the movie is mostly a fun and intense ride, it is hindered but one of the most upsetting and depressing endings I have ever witnesses. Consider your self warned.

Degrassi Of The Dead

I admit I was excited when I first heard about Degrassi's upcoming Halloween special. Being not only a fan of the show, but also a zombie movie enthusiast it was a dream come true. And for a little bit it was.

The plot consists of most of Degrassi turning into zombies after eating genetically modified foods (an inside joke to an older episode) The only survivors are Peter, Jay, Manny, Paige, and Ash who are barricaded inside the school with no one to rescue them. This non-canon episode is fun and a great escape from the usual Degrassi fare.

It would have been a great half hour of fun but instead we only got 15 minutes. And I had to sit through at least 2 of those god awful promos for that insipid About A Girl show. The remaining minutes were occupied by some bland as toast behind the scenes nonsense.

But it still was good fun if you are interested you can watch it in it's entirety on The N.com.

Return To The House On Haunted Hill

Simply awful and boring. This sequel takes place 8 years after the events in the first (and far more superior) film. Ariel Wolfe (Amanda Righetti) is stunned to learn of her estranged sister Sara (not played by the lovely Ali Larter) has taken her life. The murders of the previous film had been blamed on Steven Price and no believed Sara's insistence that it was the act of ghosts.

Ariel meets archaeologist Richard Hammer who insists that Sara was planning to go back to the house to find a priceless idol. Ariel doesn't believe him until she finds a journal that her sister mailed her prior to her death. However Ariel and her boyfriend are kidnapped by evil archaeologist Desmond (Erik Palladino)and taken to the house. Richard, his lover, and his assistant are also in the house looking for the idol. The house wakes up and wackiness ensues.

While the deaths were creative, the characters are too boring to root for. This film lacks the suspense of the first one as well as the creative casting. The idol storyline seems forced and really brings to movie down. The ending was predictable as hell complete with the tacked on ending threatening the viewers with another sequel.

A major annoyance is that they do not even hint at what had happened to Eddie Baker (Taye Diggs) who had also survived the film alongside Sarah. It's called continuity people.

The Reaping

As far as religious end of the world films go this one is pretty good. It stars the always fetching Hilary Swank as Katherine Winter. Katherine is a former minister who lost her faith after the slaughter of her family.

Now a debunker of miracles she and her assistant Ben are called to the small town of Haven, Louisiana after the river begins to run red with blood. The blame falls on a strange girl named Loren (AnnaSophia Robb) whose brother mysteriously died at the exact moment the rivers turned. Now Katherine has to deal with her faith or there lack of in order to find out the truth.

This is a fun, suspenseful film that has great character development and great use of atmosphere. Hilary Swank is wonderful and AnnaSophia Robb (best known for her role as Violet Beauregarde in Charlie and The Chocolate Factory) is haunting in her role as Loren.

While hampered with a slightly predictable ending it's a great film to watch if you are in a suspenseful mood.

Whisper

Whisper is hands down one of the better horror/suspense films I have seen in awhile. It stars Josh Holloway (Lost) and Sarah Wayne Callies (Prison Break) with a great performance from Blake Woodruff (Cheaper By The Dozen 1 & 2)

Holloway plays ex-convict Max Truemont who just wants to settle down and go legit. His dreams of owning his own diner go up in smoke after his felonious past interferes with his getting a loan. Max eventually agrees to kidnap a young boy and hold him for ransom. Along with his reluctant girlfriend Roxanne (Callies), Vince, and and ringleader Sydney they keep the boy David (Woodruff) in an isolated cabin.

However there is more to David than meets the eyes. And soon he begins to play on their emotions and slowly turns them against each other. This movie in a word awesome, it doesn't insult the viewer and actually is a great and original story. The actors really embody their roles making you actually care what happens to them what happens to them. Woodruff is wonderfully creepy while Holloway proves he can carry a movie.

Resident Evil: Extinction

I have to go right out and say it I hated Resident Evil: Apocalypse. I found it boring, over convoluted, and a seemingly tacked on ending. What made it all the more offensive was that I adored the first Resident Evil.

When I heard there was a three I faced it with mild trepidation. It could be a great movie that totally makes up for the Apocalypse or it could bomb royally making me regret shelling out the money to see it. Thankfully it was the latter.

The movie's plot borrows a lot from the video game Resident Evil: Code Veronica. It has been 8 years since the last film (though at one point it is stated as only 5). The T-Virus has spread all over the world turning the planet into a desert wasteland. Alice is now on her own trying to hide from The Umbrella Corporation who is tracking her every move. Meanwhile Dr Sam Isaacs is cloning Alice in the hopes of finding a cure for the T-Virus. The casting is top-notch Milla Jovovich is as awesome as always, Oded Fehr and Mike Epps return to their roles from the previous sequel. New characters include singer Ashanti as Nurse Betty, the always wonderful Ali Larter as Claire Redfield, and a great debut by unknown Spencer Locke who plats K-Mart.

The movie is action-packed, fun, and definitely a good movie to see. It has a cliffhanger ending that actually makes you yearn for a Resident Evil 4. My only quibble has to do with the whereabouts of Jill Valentine and Angela Ashford who not mentioned at all in the movie despite the returns of L.T. and Carlos.

But all in all it is a movie I heartedly recommend.