'JOYRIDE 3: ROADKILL' is relentlessly brutal

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

In the third installment in the Joy Ride series, we get a bloody (no pun intended) good sequel. This time around, a group of street racers who take a short cut to a race rally antagonize the vicious truck driver, Rusty Nail, and he won't stop hunting them until they all die gruesome deaths. Directed by Declan O' Brien (Shartopus) and starring Ken Kirzinger (Freddy Vs. Jason), Jesse Hutch (Smallville), and Ben Hollingsworth (Coming Home for Christmas).

Picked up 'CASSADAGA' on DVD for real cheap!

PLOT: Devastated by the death of her youngster sister, Lily Morel seeks solace at the spiritualist community of Cassadaga. But instead of finding closure, she contacts something else- the vengeful ghost of a murdered young woman. With her life crumbling all-around her, Lily races to unravel the mysterious circumstances surrounding the woman's death- a task that will bring her face-to-face with a sadistic serial killer known only as "Geppetto."

'THE MONKEY'S PAW'

MILD SPOILERS THROUGHOUT

RATED- Unrated

RUN TIME-  100 Mins

WRITER(S)- Macon Blair 

STARRING- C.J. Thomason, Stephen Lang, and Michelle Pierce

DIRECTOR- Brett Simmons

Synopsis taken from IMDb

Jake is given a monkey's paw that grants three wishes. After the first two wishes leave his friend Cobb undead, Cobb pushes Jake to make a final wish.

I grew up loving the story of The Monkey's Paw, I even remember the first time I read it in school. Being a fan of horror since I was a child, story's about supernatural things never bothered me. Tales From the Crypt even did an episode about The Monkey's Paw that I remember watching on my parent's couch in their living room. So, having been a fan of the story for many years, there's no way I was going to miss the new feature-length film based on it. Especially since Chiller Films are behind it. While Chiller's movies tend to be on the low-budget side of things, they also hit some of their projects out of the part. Other times, it's hit and miss with them.

'DEVIL'S MILE' (Screener Review)

MILD SPOILERS THROUGHOUT 

RATED- Unrated

RUN TIME- 88 Mins

WRITER(S)- Joseph O'Brien

STARRING- David Hayter, Maria Del Mar, and Casey Hudecki

DIRECTOR(S)- Joseph O'Brien

Synopsis taken from IMDb

A relentlessly-paced hybrid of a gritty crime thriller and Lovecraftian supernatural horror, The Devil's Mile follows a trio of kidnappers who take an ill-advised detour en route to deliver their hostages - two teenage girls - to their mysterious and powerful employer. When they accidentally kill one of the girls during a botched escape attempt, their simmering mistrust explodes into shocking violence. But what they thought was their worst case scenario is only the beginning, as they are engulfed by the hellish forces that haunt the road - a road they realize they may never escape. Now captors and captive must fight together to escape the monstrous forces pursuing them and somehow survive...THE DEVIL'S MILE.  

Quite literally, this film starts off with a bang. We see Jacinta (Casey Hudecki), Cally (Maria Del Mar), and Toby (David Hayter) who apparently don't get along very well, traveling by car. After taking a wrong turn, and tempers flare, we come to realize that they're kidnappers who have two helpless Asian girls in the trunk, who will be held for ransom. However, things go terribly wrong when we find out that one of the girls isn't the right one, and her parents aren't rich. The proper girl, who was meant to be kidnapped, tries to escape but is ran over and killed instead by Cally on "accident". So the trio of criminals' situation goes from bad to absolutely terrible.

BLUE RUIN is as violent as it is tragic

MILD SPOILERS THROUGHOUT 

RATED- R
RUN TIME- 90 Mins
WRITER(S)- Jeremy Saulnier
STARRING- Macon Blair, Devin Ratray, and Amy Hargreaves
DIRECTOR- Jeremy Saulnier



Synopsis taken from IMDb
A mysterious outsider's quiet life is turned upside down when he returns to his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance. Proving himself an amateur assassin, he winds up in a brutal fight to protect is estranged family. 




Seeing as the trailer basically gives nothing away, I didn't know much going into this one except for it's somewhat notorious critical appraise. I knew that it was a revenge thriller, but that's about it. And I refused to read about it online for the sake of running into spoilers. But it seemed like my kind of flick, and with all the good words said about it, I figured there had to be something to it.

Dwight (Macon Blair) is a beach vagrant who breaks into vacant homes during the day to take baths. He also sleeps in his car and eats out of dumpsters. He's a quiet, socially awkward guy, who's beaten up from the past. 20 years ago, his mother and father were murdered, and he's never been the same since. But when he hears that his parent's killer, Wade Cleland, Jr. is getting released from prison, he decides to go back home to exact a terrible vengeance.

One of the things that let me know that I was going to like this piece of cinema is that it's kind of a slow-burner type of thriller. It takes it's time, and when the payoffs come, they aren't what I was expecting. It's not very predictable, and it really takes you on an emotional journey. They don't delve too much into how much Dwight's parents' deaths affected him, but it still gets across to the viewer because of the emotionally gripping performance by Macon Blair. His acting in "Blue Ruin" is genuinely convincing, and I can't help but feel terrible for the guy. Although he's quiet and a loner, with his reasons and purpose, he's easy to get behind and invest some emotion into.
 He's a real character, and that's what resonates the most about the story.

After Dwight changes his appearance by shaving and cutting his hair, his new look doesn't protect him from the Cleland family, who are now seeking him out as well as his closest family member, his sister Sam (Amy Hargreaves). When Dwight realizes that the hunt for his life won't end, he's forced into making final drastic decisions. Again, Dwight being the heartfelt character that he is, isn't a pro at killing or booby trapping, so he fumbles and often shows how vulnerable he is. He's just a man with a plan, and he's trying to execute it. And he doesn't expect it to end well. While I was watching, I think it's safe to say that I assumed the same type of outcome.

Honestly, there's a few scenes that are heart-stopping. I was frozen in my seat, heart pounding several times. Everything is done in a very realistic way, so you know that if something serious goes down, that it's going to stick and have an effect. The characters aren't untouchable, and they aren't safe, and that's what keeps the suspense element ever-present. This film also isn't afraid to show bloodshed, and graphic violence. But it keeps a grounded approach that fits, and doesn't just throw buckets of blood around to overcompensate. This is a combination of "A History of Violence" and "Death Sentence". It's not for the faint of heart, but doesn't go far enough to make any of the vehemence unnecessary.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed watching "Blue Ruin", there's one nitpick that I can't help but be annoyed with, and that's that Wade goes unnoticed far too much. He pulls up and pumps gas with a guy screaming and thumping inside his trunk. Scattered moments like this lessen the realism the movie sets, and reminds me of the latter seasons of "Dexter".

There's an unpleasant plot twist towards the end, and it's a game changer. There's some unexpected deaths, and the film as a whole is incredibly intense. Dwight has a death wish, and only lives for revenge. Even though he's in over his head, he knows the only way out of his situation is to end it himself, and take it into his own hands. Powerfully compelling storytelling. I actually liked this more than I expected, and I can't wait to own it on Blu-ray.

3.5 stars out of 5