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Review: ‘Mom And Dad’ is A Darkly Hysterical Battle of The Generations

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Every generation has its gripes about the next. Be it rock ‘n roll, avocado toast, or disrespectful attitudes, parents tend to look down upon their progeny. Lately it’s resulted in thinkpieces, but what if things escalated? Mom And Dad shows us a grotesque and hysterical battle between youth and elders unlike anything before.

The story follows the Ryan family, a typical American suburban family. Determined father, Brent (Nicolas Cage). Compassionate mother, Kendall (Selma Blair). Rebellious older daughter, Carly (Anne Winters) and naive younger son Josh (Zackary Arthur). It seems to be another usual day for this usual family… until the parents show up to see their kids at school unexpectedly. Brent becomes more and more short tempered and bitter. Kendall becomes more vindictive. Suddenly, generational warfare becomes deadly and Carly and Josh must survive the day as their Mom and Dad return home with sinister intent.

While horror stories of a virus or phenomena causing people to go crazy is nothing new to the genre, the mechanics of this particular instance makes it unique and entertaining. For one, the affected parents are only violent toward their offspring or anyone preventing them from slaughtering their young. The second and most important symptom being that the infected parents keep their personalities despite being filicidal maniacs, they still act the same as they normally would. Brent and Carly retaining their quirks and dialogue being indistinguishable from before. A creative trait that makes the conflict all the more interesting to watch rather than them just being berserkers.

The performances are outstanding all around as the family goes from getting on each other’s nerves to trying to take each other’s lives. Nicolas Cage gives a stunner of a show as the family patriarch turned psychopath. While many have seen one of the highlights with the ‘hokey-pokey’ sledgehammer bit in the trailer, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The rest of the cast are just as impacting, with Selma Blair’s character showing the ups and downs of motherhood and her descent into the madness. While the kids are energetic and stand out on their own, working together to survive their killer parents in surprisingly creative an unexpected ways.

The pacing is rather interesting, and perhaps a bit more rooted in writer/director Brian Taylor’s action movie roots. Amidst the action we are shown flashbacks to times the kids annoyed their parents or screwed up, paralleled with times they showed genuine love and affection for each other. Creating a lot of empathy for the characters, even the homicidal parents who’re being pushed by an unknown force. That type of editing may seem a little off, but it really captured the tone and the personalities of the family cast. There are also a lot of interesting cameos that pop up. I won’t say who, but when you do see them, they’ll make your jaw drop.

Overall, Mom And Dad is a darkly comic survival horror film that captures the topical issue of generational conflict between parents and children, and amps it up with an entertaining amount of violence and a kick-ass soundtrack! This is one I would highly recommend, but see it with your parents or children at your own discretion…

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Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

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The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

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Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

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lizzie borden house

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

Inside the Lizzie Borden House

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

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’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

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28 years later

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.

28 Days Later

The original film followed Jim (Cillian Murphy) who wakes from a coma to find that London is currently dealing with a zombie outbreak.

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