​Some people are given the gift of an additional sight that no one else will truly understand. Being able to see things that are beyond this realm might be a great gift, but it could also be a curse to those who really did not want this ability. For those who will embrace their gifts, no matter how powerful it may be, it is the hope of everyone that this is used for good, rather than causing pain for everyone else.

Odd Thomas is a short order cook in a small California diner. There is nothing unusual about Odd, other than he is able to see dead people, tell their stories and most of the time, find their killers and have them locked up. Working with local law enforcement, Odd has made a name for himself for bringing killers to justice, even when the evidence seems to be thin. Chief Porter knows that Odd is right all of the time but asks the young man with his many talents to let him into the loop sooner than later so more facts can be collected before the apprehensions.  

Odd is in love with Stormy Llewellyn, his soul mate after being told many years ago by a quarter gypsy that the two are destined to be together forever. Stormy and Odd are joined at the hip and even though Odd is known to get himself into trouble quite often, Stormy is the only one that keeps him centered. Odd is able to see when trouble is coming by the appearance of Bodachs, dead creatures the feed off of the pain of the living.  

​When the Bodachs start showing up in Odd’s town, he knows that there is something very massive on the horizon and needs to find a way to end it before innocent people get killed. Following a man Odd has given the name of Fungus Bob who is being followed by these dead creatures, Odd has to find out why death is following the man. Not being able to put all of the pieces together to figure out what event is coming to town, Odd calls in all of the help he possibly can to follow Fungus Bob before he does something horrific. But when Fungus Bob winds up dead in Odd’s apartment, he finds out that that there is something much more dangerous coming to town than he could have ever expected.

Odd Thomas follows Odd and the love of his life Stormy as they try to discover what terrible event will happen next. Even though Stormy does not have the gifts of seeing the dead as Odd does, she is able to give him guidance when needed. With help from the police chief, Odd gets all of the support that is needed to figure out what the next deathly event will be, but once his prime suspect ends up dead, Odd is left with trying to figure out the town’s fate on his own. Not knowing what to expect, the Bodachs are running rampant through the town and only Odd will be able to stop the event before it happens, if he can figure out what it is.

This is one of those lighthearted films that has enough horror and comedy to keep you glued to your seat. With some of the most entertaining interactions between the characters, this might be one of the stories that you will want to read the books before seeing the movie to make sure that nothing is being left out. This will be a series that I will have to pick up when the time becomes available, however until that time comes this is definitely one of those movies you will need to watch to the end to make sure you get the entire story. Stay Scared.

Sometimes, it is important for a television series to take the time to remind us precisely why we fell in love with said series in the first place. Because in doing so, is shows that the people behind the scenes fully understand why the fans are invested in this epic journey and also because, it serves as a fun trip down memory lane when all is said and done, since we are instantly reminded of the early days when this particular saga hit the airwaves and we would rush to our couches or our tablets to get our respective fix, and it just so happens that The Walking Dead felt the need to pull off this particular feat during last night’s episode, ‘Chokepoint’.
 
Because if there’s one particular element that we all fell in love with when it comes to this series, it would have to be the air of danger that was present in the first couple of seasons of the show. Wherein our characters were vulnerable to a zombie attack, or some other wild surprise at just about any given moment, and the show was able to resurrect that particular sense of dread by way of two key storylines. One of course, was set up during the finale of last week’s episode, since we all knew that Daryl’s rescue of Henry would lead to great trouble with the Whisperers, but this episode also had another dangerous storyline waiting in the wings for all of us this week, one that involved the Kingdom, since we finally learned what that mysterious symbol near the movie theater was all about.
 
As it turns out, I was wrong, it wasn’t a symbol related to the Whisperers marking their territory as I first conjectured. Instead, it belonged to a new rival group known as the Highwaymen, and they made their presence known to the good people of the Kingdom by roughing up and robbing Jerry and his scouting group before sending them back to the King with a well-written letter outlining their demands for food and supplies, and that letter also included a threat that others would be turned away from the fair if they didn’t receive their supplies, and in true TWD fashion, that immediately led to the prospect of conflict. Because the King couldn’t spare a morsel of food at this point in time, and was prepared to fight to keep the fair safe and to keep his people fed.
 
However, the sense of danger hanging over this particular part of the show ended up serving as quite the misdirection. For before a fight could break out, Carol pondered upon a different approach when it came to this new foe, simply due to the fact that the Highwaymen really didn’t really harm Jerry and his group, and they took the time to calmly outline their demands, leading her to believe that perhaps negotiation was a better tactic and she was right. For after a little back and forth, Carol was able to finally strike a deal with these men by offering them access to the fair, and a movie as well, because who doesn’t love a movie, and this was quite the lovely twist to say the least since it harkened back to the greater themes revolving around community and togetherness that have served as the connective tissue for season nine.

​But while the Kingdom’s storyline took the high road in the end, Daryl’s journey is where that classic sense of danger remained. Because shortly after the dead attacked Whisperer HQ, Beta led a team out into the wild to bring Lydia home and this entire sequence of events led to some phenomenal tension building to say the least. Because Daryl and his pals made the decision to fortify a building that Connie and her friends once used as a safe house to make a stand against Beta and the other Whisperers that would arrive with him, and since the ‘search party’ was traveling with the dead, it allowed for that sense of dread to steadily build since you knew they were on their way, moving at the unsettling pace of the dead and well, when Beta arrived, that’s when things got interesting.
 
In fact, his arrival was the grand payoff when it comes to the tension in question, since the Whisperers went right to work in trying to bring Lydia back ‘home’ and my goodness, this led to some intense fighting within the building, the kind that allowed for us to understand just how talented and badass Connie is since she dispatched her foes with ease and it also led to one hell of a showdown between Beta and Daryl. And it would seem that Beta met his match in Daryl since our plucky hero was able to hold his own against this beast of a human being, which is quite the feat to be honest since Beta was able to take a knife to the chest and stay in the fight. But what matters most here, is how the fight ended, because seeing Daryl knock Beta down an elevator shaft is about as awesome as it gets, and it was nice to see our favorite crossbow slinger kick a little Whisperer ass.
 
However, what was truly fascinating when it comes to this particular sequence of events, is that it allowed for us to learn a great deal about Beta and I’ll be damned if he isn’t one tough hombre. Because not only is he able to keep his cool when he’s under fire walking amongst the dead, he’s a cunning opponent through and through. After all, he was able to figure out exactly what Daryl was going to throw at him and holy cow, the man is simply unstoppable. I mean come on, not only did he brush off every blow that Daryl got in during the fight, he flippin’ survived falling down an elevator shaft, you simply cannot get any tougher than that and well, now that’s he hurt and angry and dealing with the failure of his mission, I wonder how long it will be before he heads back out into the world to exact a little revenge and/or attempt to complete his mission.
 
Either way, this episode really was a lot of fun. It brought back that sense of danger, it was filled to the brim with action and adventure and it even found a way to tie itself into the overall themes present this season and I loved every single minute of it. If anything, the addition of the Whisperers really seems to have injected new life into the series since they’re forcing some of the characters into some difficult moments and decisions, and you can never go wrong with challenging your characters in a story. The only question now, is what kind of retaliation and trouble is going to come about from Lydia’s escape, because this kind of problem won’t settle well with Alpha, and we know she’s willing to go the extra mile to get her hands on her daughter, and that means that sense of danger is only going to grow as all of the groups barrel toward conflict with the Whisperers. Until next time.   

​Since video games are becoming much more cinematic than they have ever been before, there may not be many big screen adaptations of your favorite game that you would want to see in theaters, and the box office results of video games turned into movies backs that up. I think that the Resident Evil franchise is the only one that's figured out how to resonate with audiences since it's been around forever, and it really is the only game/movie franchise that I've made a point to follow. That is until now because I have seen Dead Rising: Watchtower, and it has the only thing that matters in video games and movies, zombies, and they are fantastic.

Wanting to get a new story that will get him more hits on his website, Chase Carter is reporting inside of the town of East Mission which will soon be under an evacuation order due to a zombie attack that has previously taken place there. The rest of the states are not happy with this idea since everyone in the town has been exposed to the virus and nobody should allow this to be unleashed on the country. Talking to a couple different people around the medical tents, Chase turns his attention to the beautiful Crystal who is not happy with how anything has been going in her town. Wanting to leave the town would not be out of the question, but as time has shown, nothing that the government ever does is the right decision. 

While inside the medical tent, Chase gets some footage of the zombie drug, Zombrex being administered to the infected patients, but it does not seem to be taking effect as quickly as it should. Watching patients have violent seizures and turn into the flesh eating machines that the drug is supposed to subdue, Chase has the big time story he's been looking for and it will most certainly go viral. With the virus becoming resilient to the drug, the folks at F.E.Z.A. believe that it has mutated and could be transmitted by air. Shutting down the only exit out of the town, Jordan, Chase’s camera woman was able to escape the outbreak, but is stuck in quarantine until she gets a clean bill of health. While on the outskirts of town, she is able to hear more reports about what the government is up to and when she hears that they are ready to firebomb the town, she fears for her friend who is stuck on the inside.

Being there when the zombie outbreak took place is going to be great for Chase and he is looking to capitalize on it, but when word comes out that the virus might be airborne, he has cannot hold his tongue. Calling his old news station and reporting that he and two others are not infected, he has another job now, to keep an eye on the inside of the town. But Chase is in for a surprise when he finds out that Crystal is infected and when she takes the Zombrex, she does not turn into a flesh eater. Now knowing a little bit more about what is going on, Chase needs to get his story out to the masses before the entire town is destroyed for a bad batch of zombie drugs. But the streets are not only paved with zombies and looters, they also have troops that have been told to shoot everyone on sight, no matter the situation. 

I remember playing Dead Rising 2 and I might need to pick it up again because it is my favorite zombie killing game out there. The main overlap between the game and the movie, is the whole 'having to build your own weapons thing' and that is just beyond fantastic. I enjoyed watching Chase start to understand that he will not be able to get out of this situation on his own and since Crystal knows how to get out of tough situations, they paired up nicely as a team. You can always find power in numbers, but that is usually not the case in a zombie outbreak, it only takes one bite and then you are screwed. The addition of Frank West helping to add color commentary to the news reports is genius and with the best job in the world, telling people how to survive the outbreak, he is beyond hilarious and I really hope to see him in the field killing zombies for the right reasons someday. Stay Scared.

There is no sadder moment for a nerd or a geek, than when they are forced to watch a beloved franchise fall to pieces right before their very eyes. Because in that moment, one truly comes to realize, that there is no hope for the saga in question. It’s reached rock bottom, no one will want to see another entry in this franchise and that means, hardcore fans of the series have to come to terms with the fact that the movie they are currently watching, is the one that put the proverbial nail in the coffin and that just makes for an awkward experience.
 
But alas, it is unavoidable when you truly love a particular saga through and through and well, that moment arrived for me the instant I popped Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave into my DVD player all those fateful years ago. Because this is hands down, the worst movie in the franchise, and this is the one that killed the saga with its missteps and low-production values and poor acting and well, it was extremely hard to sit through this one after all these years, because I outright forgot about all the elements that straight up made this movie a cringe worthy experience. However, trying to talk about every single problem that plagues this film would be a ten-part series in its own right, so rather than go on a true tirade, let’s just keep it simple today and look at two key elements that fail this film and the franchise, the first one being, the fact that the movie doesn’t know what genre it wants to be a part of.
 
Because while other films in the saga were either focused on being scary, as was the case with ROTLD 3, or were proud to be a balanced horror/comedy such as the first two films, this one struggles to figure any of that out. For at times, it tries to become a straight-laced horror film, and the camera work and special effects scream that something terrifying should be coming your way. But an oddly placed joke, or a goofy sequence taking place during the scare leaves the audience in an odd place because they simply cannot tell if the movie is trying to be funny or terrify you and to make matters worse, the comedy elements simply are not funny in the slightest, even when they play out on their own and really, this awkward problem is due in large part to the ridiculous plot present in this film.
 
For in essence, the story revolves around a bunch of college kids, getting their hands on one of the Trioxin tubs and they discover that the gas can be used as a potent drug that they sell on campus and of course, disaster ensues and well, this is just a terrible idea through and through. For starters, this movie tries to live within the means of the canon that was established in the last movie, in that, zombie outbreaks have happened before and the tanks are the reason as to why, so to see the characters be totally fine with using a Trioxin canister and its contents to get high, is just next level ridiculous and it makes every single character in this story look like an idiot and it, along with the bad acting and boring gore and effects, completely remove the audience from the story, to the point where the big finale, is meaningless.
 
If anything, this is a movie that simply should not have been made, and the lack of effort that went into telling this story shows when all is said and done and this, this was it when it comes to the ROTLD franchise ladies and germs. For there have been no sequels following this one, nor has there been talk of a reboot or a remake of the original for that matter simply because, a movie this bad leaves a franchise radioactive for years on end. But, while the franchise ended with quite the embarrassing whisper, the only solace that comes out of this, is that Necropolis and Rave to the Grave can be outright ignored and the good films, the ones made before this dark era are available for us to enjoy, whenever we wish.

Melanie is returning home from a brief say in rehab. Having seen her boyfriend die right in front of her very eyes seems to have scarred the young girl, but now with the help of her sister Crystal and her parents she will become a functioning member of society once again. Reminding herself that it is okay to say no to anyone and everyone that comes along with their offers is the only way that Melanie will be able to get through her days and although it seems like things will be tough, she is ready for the challenge.

On their drive home from the airport, the sisters stop by the local depot train tracks and put an urban myth to the test. Some fifty years ago, a group of school children were killed on the train tracks and if you leave your car in neutral and believe in them, they will push your car across the tracks and save you from the same fate they suffered. Although Melanie does not believe, her sister Crystal wants to try it out and the two sit motionless along the tracks until they are interrupted by an impatient truck driver. The girls shake off their brief scares, but Melanie will not let the legend go as she has seen someone watching her at the tracks.

The children at school have all heard the same story about the bus accident from many years ago and some will vouch for the haunting, while others would rather just walk away from the situation altogether. Melanie is left with her own thoughts to see if this is real or not and gives the myth another try on her own. Having the car pushed across the tracks by the ghost children was freaky enough for her, but a little girl with a name tag calling herself Julie is watching the entire time. Melanie does not want to be a bad person and offers the little girl a ride home. Even though the little girl does not talk during the ride, Melanie has a feeling that Julie has something to say and what that is will leave Melanie questioning herself and the town elders as to what really happened to the children fifty years ago.

Fingerprints follows young Melanie as she has returned home from rehab. With her sister Crystal trying to look out for her little sister and trying to get Melanie to make some new friends, the back story of Melanie becomes public knowledge around the school, and everyone has something to say about her past. Having over dosed and come back to life has left Melanie a different person in her home town as she is now an outcast, along with a newfound ability to see something that nobody else can, the children from an accident several years earlier. Befriending one of the ghosts, a girl named Julie, Melanie discovers that there is much more to the story that is not being told by the town elders and has to find out the truth before her visions become more and more violent and begin to hurt her. Not being helped by the local law enforcement or her parents due to her shady path, Melanie can only depend on herself and the ghost of Julie to find out what the town is hiding.

A fun high school movie that embraces all of the basics, sex, drugs and rock-n-roll. But with your main character having to say no to all of the above, you think that it will leave you longing for something else, and you get a thriller/mystery thrown your way instead. While the back story of the kids being killed in a tragic accident should have been enough, the return of the conductor who was on duty who is taking out his frustrations on the new kids hanging around the tracks just adds its own brand of scares into the equation. A good movie if you are looking for something that will leave you with a couple of hairs sticking up on the back of your neck when it ends. Stay Scared.

​I’ve always found it fascinating, how a vast majority of film franchises simply go off of the proverbial deep end at some point during their existence and just begin to churn out one low quality movie after another. It could be related to franchise fatigue and the people that take up the reins simply believe no one is watching anymore, so why bother putting maximum effort into future stories. Plus, if people are no longer interested, financiers aren’t willing to put up big bucks to have sequels made, allowing for low quality to become the standard for a once proud saga, aiding to its transition into oblivion.
 
If anything, this particular process and problem is on my mind today because, you can usually pinpoint when that dark moment arrives for a franchise, and when it comes to the Return of the Living Dead saga, that particular moment of sorrow came about in 2005, when back to back sequels arrived on home video that were, for lack of a better phrase, just awful. Because Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, brought forth all kinds of changes for a saga that once stood for quality horror and fun and quirky ideas and I won’t lie to you, this was a tough one to sit through, for so many reasons.
 
First and foremost, let’s talk about some of the odd changes that came about in this film to make it so incredibly off-putting, like the fact that the zombies received a complete redesign, the kind that removes their power. Because if you recall, the original living dead that we came to know and love in this saga, were virtually indestructible, but here, these zombies go down easy, with either a head shot or even a good blast to the chest and well, that no longer makes them scary. Instead they’re just shambling pieces of meat that can be easily dealt with, making it quite amazing that anyone is bitten or harmed by these pathetic creatures in the slightest, and to make matters worse, this issue just scratches the surface when it comes to the problems in this movie.
 
In fact, it’s best to just say it now because there’s no nice way to put this; everything in this movie is just terrible. It’s cliché, it’s slow, the gore is ineffective and boring, and the acting is equally as abysmal. Which is surprising when one considers that Peter Coyote is in this film, but he phones in his performance here and that only helps to bore the audience and well, when all is said and done, these changes and this lack of quality are infuriating to say the least. Because this story actually attempted to do something interesting with the plot by giving us a mega corporation that worked to help rid the world of the zombie scourge and some cool stuff could have come out of that, if the movie bothered to explore that dynamic further, rather than supplying us with the old ‘they’re evil after all’ cliché.
 
But alas, lazy storytelling is the focus here, and the characters are so dry and one dimensional, that at no point can you become attached to them, or their plight and all of these missteps make this movie an unmitigated disaster. One that clearly shows that the ROTLD saga had in fact, run out of ideas, and while this entry in the series should have signaled its unfortunate end since this is a genuine fall from grace, this was merely the beginning of the end of the saga. For I made mention of another sequel, and that particular film is where the franchise truly bid farewell to the fans, thanks to its ludicrous storyline…  

Getting a separation from your significant other is never easy and is twice as hard when there is a child involved. Having to come to terms with a schedule of when each one of the parents are going to be looking over the kid causes all kinds of doubt whether you are a good parent or not. As long as the child comes first in your eyes determines if you are suitable to raise them, even if it is alone.  

Sophia has recently separated from her husband and is now on her own with her daughter Helena. The split is hard for both of the women in the broken family, but Sophia is willing to do anything to make ends meet. Moving to a new flat, Sophia is trying to erase all of the memories of her old home with her soon to be ex-husband Robert and start a new life with Helena.  Without having anyone to help fill the void of an absent father, Sophia has to find ways to keep her daughter’s imagination at bay between their weekly Skype chats.

Moving into the new apartment, Sophia is looking around in the basement to try to determine how much storage space she will have. Being intrigued by a large cabinet that has been covered by years’ worth of dust, her daughter says that she would like it in her room. Although Helena has never seen this piece of furniture before, she seems to have a bond with it like nothing Sophia has ever seen. Wanting to make their new home as comfortable as possible, Sophia gives into her daughter's request and has the cabinet brought up to her room.  

Being content in their new home, Helena tells her mother that she has a tooth loose. Sophia, being the loving mother that she is tells her daughter that when it falls out, the Tooth Fairy will bring her lots of money for the prize possession. Crashing her car off of a bridge in the middle of the conversation, Sophia and Helena are taken to the local hospital where Helena reveals that her loose tooth was lost in the wreck. Being extremely upset about the loss, Helena starts to buy teeth from her classmates around the school that raises the interest of the principal. Saying that she only wants to make the Tooth Fairy happy, Sophia finds out that there is much more to the history of the apartment and their new cabinet than she could have ever expected.

The Haunting of Helena follows Sophia and her daughter Helena as they are starting their life over without a husband/father being involved. Sophia has found an apartment with everything that she needs and within a price range she can afford, but there is a greater cost involved. Helena is haunted by the Tooth Fairy that inhabits this flat and she will not stay away from the young girl until she gets what she wants, teeth. Although Helena gives her every available tooth she can get her hands on, the Fairy wants the teeth that she lost many years ago and will not stop tormenting the young girl until this happens. With her daughter being locked up in an institute, Sophia will do anything to get her out. Finding out the history of the Tooth Fairy, she comes up with a plan to rid her daughter of the hateful specter.  

A good horror story as you follow mother and daughter when they are in their time of need. With Sophia not truly understanding what is happening to her daughter and a ghost haunting her every movie, it will keep you guessing as to whether or not the child is lying or actually telling the truth. Although seeing is believing, Sophia is challenged with trying to protect her daughter and with that a choice has to be made. If it is worth it...well, you will just have to sit back and watch as The Haunting of Helena will not leave you guessing as the final credits roll. Stay Scared. 

​I firmly believe that when a group of people set out to make a motion picture, they really do have the best possible interests in their hearts. They want to make a good movie, they want to wow an audience and enjoy success. But sadly, I think we can all agree that while good intentions are important, execution is a bigger deal with it comes to movies as a whole, and good intentions mean very little to the audience when filmmaking fundamentals go the wayside and deliver unto the audience a sub-par motion picture.
 
But sadly, this kind of problem happens often and to a certain extent it flat out breaks your heart because you can sometimes see where the director and the crew poured their soul into a story, only to have a massive flaw in the script or the execution backfire horribly and this strange twist in filmmaking is on my mind today, simply because it’s precisely what makes Return of the Living Dead 3 such a disappointing movie when all is said and done. Because this is a horror sequel, that quite frankly had all kinds of potential. After all, it paid homage to George Romero’s Day of the Dead by giving us a plot line involving the military working to control the living dead and as an added bonus, it started to explore something fresh and exciting when it comes to this genre.
 
For zombie stories rarely explore the process of zombification outside of someone being bitten and turning, but this one…made a solid attempt to explore what it is like for a person to slowly transition into a flesh-eating monster and the early parts of this plot thread are downright brilliant. For Julie is genuinely confused at the prospect of death and reanimation and it is fascinating to watch her try to figure out what comes to next for her now that she’s back from the clutches of the void. But sadly, the film’s greatest strength plot wise, is precisely where it goes off the rails, because once the opportunity arrives for Julie to eat brains, the story basically changes course completely.
 
For the brilliance that this movie was working toward, and all of the magnificent ideas and concepts presented here are abandoned so that the film can move into more familiar territory. Which means that Julie’s journey is wasted she slides into the old cliché of ‘one cannot escape their nature’, and the strange soldier zombies that show up in the third act are just…bizarre and feel out of place, and to top it all off, the gore and splatter here feels routine and boring and something as important as that becoming so pedestrian, completes this movie’s downward spiral into a mess when all is said and done and really, the end result when it comes to this story is just a crying shame.
 
Because this movie truly was diving into fresh and exciting territory, and while I do believe everyone behind the scenes genuinely wanted to make a great motion picture, I get the impression the weight of the new ideas coming forth in this tale, spooked the filmmakers in unexpected fashion. It’s possible they believed going down this road would alienate their base audience when in fact, they would have loved it. For the original film was a breath of fresh air for the zombie market, not the familiar mess this turned out to be. But alas, what is done is done, and if you’re a fan of this saga, or zombie flicks in general, this one is worth a look, if only to ponder upon what might have been, had director Brian Yuzna chosen to be bold over playing it safe…

​Revenge can be a very powerful device that some people are able to harness to its full extent. Although it is said that being that person who is seeking it, it can ruin your life once it is accomplished. Revenge may not be for everyone, but if the chance presents itself, you could be left asking yourself will it be worth it in the end?

On a stormy Christmas Eve night, the highway in front of Detective Alexander Black’s precinct is being shut down. Expecting a quiet night as it is that time of the year, a stranger enters the building and confesses to murder. Although the stranger does not have any blood on his hands, Black and his officers bring the man into the interrogation room and try to figure out what is going on with his claim.  

Nobody believes the stranger at first as he fails to cooperate with the people that are detaining him. Not allowing anyone to know his name, the stranger goes by Mr. Nobody and that seems fine for the officers as they are trying to focus on the night in front of them. When Mr. Nobody starts to talk, he says that he has killed six people on this night and will confess to each murder individually. When the confessions start, the officer's pasts are called into question and whether or not they are innocent themselves.

A year earlier, a drifter was found around the area where Detective Black’s daughter was last seen alive. With a very aggressive interrogation which left the drifter in a coma for a year to the day, no resolution was found as the man would never confess to the murder of the little girl. All of the officers in the station tonight were involved in this event and all of the officers will have to face their past once again as Mr. Nobody confesses to each one of their murders. Being killed off one by one in the same methods they used against the drifter one year earlier, the officers have to find a way to stop Mr. Nobody from his confessions as they all cling to a small chance they can make it through the night.

A very cold and disturbing look at how a group of people in a position of power take full advantage of it while trying to find out the truth. Thinking that it will not come back to haunt them in the long run seems foolish but since they were the only ones involved and knew what actually happened on that night, they simply felt as though they were in the clear. Watching as each officer is judged in the same manner with the role they played in the interrogation is just genius. Even if The Traveler is not one of the scariest movies ever made, it will leave you wondering about the choices you have made in the past and if they will ever come back to face you again. Stay Scared.

​I have said it before, and I will say it again, I really don’t admire anyone in Hollywood who is new to a franchise and is tasked with helping to bring a sequel to life. For that production crew, has to figure out how to create an entertaining story that not only satisfies the fans, but also breathes new life into the saga in order to keep things fresh and original, and the mixed results that come about from this fascinating process speak for themselves and if anything, it’s what has led to some unique, and uniquely awkward horror sequels throughout the years since profit over creativity tends to control the fates of terror themed sagas.
 
Yet horror fans always hold out hope that a true gem awaits them when they hear a sequel is coming to a scary movie that they loved through and through, and optimism is something that surged through my veins when I heard that The Return of the Living Dead was getting a sequel, since that movie left the door open for all kinds of fascinating possibilities storytelling wise. So when Return of the Living Dead Part II hit home video in late 1988, I was eager to see how the world survived the unexpected plague of the dead that tore through Louisville, Kentucky in the first movie, and well…imagine my surprise when I quickly learned that this particular sequel was going to go in a vastly different direction that more or less, ignored a majority of what came before it.
 
For this film features no mention of the Louisville incident, or the fact that a low-yield nuclear device destroyed most of the town. In fact, the only real ties to ROTLD here are the canisters filled with the dead, and the brain loving zombies themselves and this grand shift away from the original story made for some fascinating results when it comes to this particular sequel. Take for example the fact that it allows for a vastly different adventure to come to life, one that shifts away from the big city setting that many zombie films employ, thrusting us instead into the heart of suburbia, and that was a refreshing venture to say the least and the pleasant surprises when it comes to sequel don’t end there.
 
Becuase this story works hard to provide horror fans with a genuine sense of fun, and while the first movie in this saga had its black humor and gags, the scares always took the center stage first, but here…the comedy becomes the focus and that makes for a unique viewing experience. Because it allows for some twisted and fun gore to play out on the screen, and some quality chuckles to come forth as the characters deal with the silly surrounding them and oddly enough, this is refreshing in its own right too because up until this point, I personally hadn’t seen any horror films that made zombies funny in the slightest and the gags and the splatter work here, and create an entertaining ride. 
 
If anything, Return of the Living Dead Part II is that rare sequel that actually manages to captivate its audience by doing something new and risky, and heck, I love the fact that the movie even goes so far as to bring back some of the cast from the first one to play some new roles. And while this movie is no critical darling, I know I’m not alone in enjoying this one since it has quite the following in this day and age, and it pleases me to no end that this movie is truly the exception to the norm that fresh blood will sometimes ruin a franchise, because this flick is a lot of fun, the kind you easily get lost in and sadly, this is the last sequel in this saga that was able to catch anyone’s eye. Because after this film, this beloved series spiraled out of control, and squandered great opportunities storytelling wise, which oddly helps to cement this film’s status, as the finest sequel in the franchise.