Creep 2 (2017) 1h 18m

I've covered the original Creep way back in my second cut.  I wasn't overly impressed with it and found its story to be lacking a strong punch.  So when Creep 2 was released and people were suddenly saying how good it was I wasn't buying it.  I couldn't conceive how Mark Duplass would build off of the original film and come up with something that was suddenly so adored.  Then I watched this sequel...

Creep 2 picks back up with Aaron (Duplass) in the midst of one of his spying/lying schemes to kill his latest victim.  This time though, it's different.  In his set-up to the murder he begins to confess about the stalker being him and that he has been feeling off in some way.  The murder still happens but his speech continues as his victim bleeds out.  He is having a personal crisis on if he still finds enjoyment in his "work."  Enter Sara.  She's her own brand of odd as she is attempting to create a YouTube show where she replies to random online dating ads and then tapes the strange encounters.  After two failed episodes she has her own breakdown but in the morning finds an ad placed by Aaron.  The two meet for Sara to actually tape Aaron's confession about being a serial killer, although she doesn't believe him.

I liked the plot of this movie so much better than the first.  Starting with this bizarre depressive crisis from a sociopath that doesn't get a thrill from the hunt anymore is such an odd but engaging concept.  I found myself actually wanting to know where Aaron was going to go mentally.  Sara also brings her own manipulations which just ups the ante and made me try even harder to figure out where this was going.

I assumed three possibilities:

1) They're going to get together and become a murderous power couple
2) He's going to groom her to take his place
3) He's going to kill her and get that spark back

I'm not going to say if any of those were right or wrong because that gives away too much.  I will say this though:  The ending of and the perceived endings of this movie left me fulfilled each time as a horror fan.  Good job with the rally cap, Mark!

I give Creep 2 4 singles of TLC's "Creep" out of 5:

The Lazarus Effect (2015) 1h 23m

Why does this movie poster have two taglines?  Why aren't Mark Duplass, Evan Peters, and Donald Glover listed on this poster as well?  Is she really possessed because I'm not sure if we ever get confirmation of that?  Why does this image remind me so much of the Resident Evil movies? So many questions, so few answers.  Just a red faced woman staring at my nightstand as I type this.  I think she's wondering if I'm ever going to finish all the books there with bookmarks in them (spoilers: probably not).

The Lazarus Effect introduces us to an odd mix of individuals working on an experiment to reanimate dead animals.  Finally the process works with a dog but shortly after their grant is cancelled and the lab and experiment are confiscated by big pharma.  In order to get their data back they break into the lab to recreate the experiment but Oliva Wilde is killed in the process.  Mark Duplass brings her back to life but upon her return things aren't entirely okay with Ms. Wilde.  Crazy brain functions, penchants for violence, psychic powers, and her soul possibly still residing in Hell lead to some crazy highjinks as this movie made me wish I was watching Flatliners.

I think that my big issue with The Lazarus Effect is that I can't really shit on it, but at the same time I wasn't impressed by it.  There are tons of these movies that come out each year backed by a huge budget and a good cast but they don't bring anything interesting to the table.  They're safe, and when it comes to horror I don't want safe.  I want a horror movie that keeps me up at night, that I can't watch alone in the dark.  I want new and terrifying things that I'm awed and frightened of.  Films like this are the equivalent of someone trying to scare you with a ghost costume made out of a bed sheet.

I give The Lazarus Effect 1 Lazarus Pit out of 5:

Day 3: Mercy (2014) 1h 19m

Finally, 30 Days of Plight has come back to the United States for 2014's Mercy.  I feel like at this point in my life I should know that when I see either A) a star-studded cast, or B) "based on a work by Stephen King," then great fuckery is afoot.  Also, why is Mark Duplass seemingly cast as a creep and/or jerk so much?  Is it typecasting for how he is in real life?  I want to think Mark Duplass is a cool guy in real life. #Iwanttobelieve

Mercy is based off the Stephen King short story "Gramma" which I have never read.  Although, it's now added to my list of things that I say I kind of want to read but probably never will if I'm being honest with myself.  This movie starts out pretty strong with a man walking into a room with an axe, spinning it around in his hand, and promptly splitting his own skull with it, all in front of his wife.  This movie could have ended here and I would sing it's accolades from the highest of mountain tops.  Too bad there was still another hour and 17 minutes to go.

Our main character is George (Chandler Riggs of The Walking Dead fame and "hey Carl" memes).  His grandmother has a seizure and is put in a home.  Then, a year later, she has a stroke and George and his brother and mother return to fake West Virginia to take care of their ailing family member.  We meet George's creepy asshole uncle (Mark Duplass) and this married friend of George's mom that both George and his brother state they have no problem if this dude (Dylan McDermott) and their mom banged.  I feel like Dylan McDermott hasn't changed his look since the first season of American Horror Story and everyone is afraid to tell him to with each passing film.  To pull this back to the film, the long and short of it is that the in her youth the grandmother found this made-up witchcraft item known as a "weeping book" where if you cry on the pages while thinking of your wish it will make the ink appear.  She made some agreement with a demon named Hastur and had triplets.  The beginning scene with the axe was her and her husband.  Now Hastur has come to apparently try to use her body to possess George.  I'm kind of confused on the whole Hastur thing here, especially since I know that name from the Cthulhu mythos, and when they show him he looks nothing like the rad drawing of him they showed earlier.  He looks more like a dark variant of Moss-Man from the He-Man toys.  George defeats Hatsur by being brave and crying on the book while stating that he loved his grandma.  For real, the big "saves the day" thing is that weak.

Mercy was very good visually and talent wise, but I feel that the storytelling of it could have been done much better.  What it lacked in substance it tried to make up for with suspense-by-omission.  In this case it came off as poor writing, at least to me.  I can't really damn this film just because I didn't really like it all that much, but technically I can as this is a horror film review blog... so, suck it, Mercy!

I give Mercy 1 Dylan McDermott ass shot out of 5:

Day 19: Creep (2014) 1h 17m

I think that if you ever go to a cabin, way deep in the woods, no matter how nice it is, if there's a brand new axe sitting in a stump outside then that's your sign that your shit is gonna get wrecked.  Also if Mark Duplass keeps jumping out at you all day, you're gonna get wrecked.

So Netflix felt that I didn't have enough shaky-cam faux real life films and gifted me with 2014's Creep.  Creep is not only written by Mark Duplass and Patrick Brice, but they are the only two actors in it.  Also, this is supposedly the first of a trilogy.  Nothing against Mark and Patrick, but this film didn't really make me want to watch two more.

The premise is simple enough: Mark hires Patrick to come and film him during the day.  Mark says he has a tumor and wants to have a video of himself for his unborn child in case he doesn't survive.  Mark seems a bit off from the start but you kind of chalk it up to one of those "I'm gonna die so every second is precious" type mentalities.

Over time Mark gets weirder and weirder to Patrick, who stays way longer than he ever should have.  After a confrontation between the two we loose the camera shot and the film seems done.  Instead we shift the focus of the camera over to Patrick who explains what happened and continues a video diary of all the crazy shit Mark keeps sending him such as a DVD of Mark digging a fake grave, or a locket with their pictures and initials.

The rest of the film continues with this until the "whatever" ending.  I'm kind of done doing this review, and I'm kind of done with this film.  I'm not saying it was badly done, it was just boring and not super original.

I give Creep 2 copies of The League out of 5: