Honey, I Shrunk the Kids

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids will always hold a special place in my heart. Growing up in Canada and being obsessed with Ghostbusters meant that I was predisposed to love any movie featuring Rick Moranis. Couple that with the fact that the movie was accompanied by an original Roger Rabbit cartoon, it was like Disney was marketing the movie directly to me. And, as if that weren't enough, not long after the movie came out, my family and I went to Disney World. There, in what was then known as MGM Studios, my Sister and I were picked out of the crowd and given the opportunity to ride the giant bee prop used in the film. They filmed us riding the bee to demonstrate how the actors were incorporated into the flying sequence. We were supposed to act scared but the two of us were smiling ear to ear in the footage. It remains one of my most cherished memories of that trip. Watching the movie again as an adult brought back a lot of those warm nostalgic feelings, but I would hesitate to say that the movie is a classic. The effects hold up pretty well and the performances are all good, but the characters are very boilerplate. I was amused to discover that, much like Monster Squad, the movie contains a troubled marriage subplot that did not, in any way, register with me when I watched it as a child.

Rating: 65%

(Image from Wikipedia)

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker

There was an uproar when the original Silent Night, Deadly Night movie came out. People got upset. Mickey Rooney called the filmmakers "scum" who should be "run out of town." There was no uproar when Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker came out. No one noticed. And Mickey Rooney quietly cashed the check he got for playing Joe Petto in the movie. The Toy Maker doesn't have anything to do with any of the other Silent Night, Deadly Night movies. The story focuses on a young boy terrorized by killer toys. It's an odd movie. It's definitely more on brand than the last sequel. Mickey Rooney does a good job with the material. He's clearly slumming it, but he doesn't phone in his performance. Best sequel in the series?

Rating: 45%

(Image from Wikipedia)

Fun Fact: In one scene, an episode of Rambo: The Force of Freedom is playing on the TV in Derek's house.

Visions of Deadly Nights Past:

Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four

Dagon

A boating accident leaves a young couple stranded in a remote Spanish fishing village. Right away, the couple notices that the locals all look and sound rather strange. Something fishy seems to be going on, literally. If you're familiar with Stuart Gordon's adaptations of H.P. Lovecraft's stories, it should come as no surprise that this movie quickly gets weird, gross and sexual. The practical special effects still look pretty good but the CGI in this movie has not aged well.

Rating: 62%

(Image from IMDB)

Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation

Silent Night, Deadly Night 4 isn't a "killer Santa" movie. In the UK, it was released as Bugs. Which makes sense because there are a lot of bugs in the movie. There are also witches and spontaneous human combustion and gender discrimination. Oh, and terrible acting, but I probably didn't need to tell you that. The movie does have a few ringers in it, though: Bond Girl Maud Adams plays a bookstore owner/witch, Clint Howard plays her homeless assistant and Phantasm's Reggie Banister plays the lead character's sexist boss. One character gets strangled to death with a string of Christmas lights, which is probably the only part of the movie that is on brand.

Rating: 30%

(Image from Wikipedia)

Visions of Deadly Nights Past:
Part One - Part Two - Part Three