SummarySarah Bennett (Sarah Bennett) returns to her small hometown to discover a series of killings that are identical to the murders of her parents in Chiller's first original scripted series.
SummarySarah Bennett (Sarah Bennett) returns to her small hometown to discover a series of killings that are identical to the murders of her parents in Chiller's first original scripted series.
Martin’s experience working on teenage soaps is on full display in scenes involving some of the Waterbury residents, and the writer’s attempts to bring texture and complexity to each of them comes up a little short given how performances generally fall across the sudsy spectrum of horror movie clichés.
The two installments made available for review are a mishmash overall, swinging frequently between the inspired and the inept, especially in terms of writing and performance.
If you come in thinking, this is another slasher movie rip off you are wrong. It has some great scenes that are horror but they are pretty PG. This is good as the gore gives way to some good acting and a well crafted plot having you try to work out "Who is the masked killer?".
Pretty much a different murder each episode, so enjoy the deaths :)
I approached the series with some anxiety but luckily I did not disappoint. The first season is what we love in this type of horror. Very brutal, interestingly filmed and mysterious. The disadvantage is poor acting and monotonous set design.
Surely not the best effort in this genre, but overall it was a nice try. It had many good moments, the plot was interesting with many twists but unfortunately, the well-written plot was not supported by good acting. However, since there are not many similar shows, I give the first season a 7 and I am looking forward to see what the 2nd season will be about, since it's an anthology series.
This is a whodunit mystery mixed with slasher film elements about a woman who returns to the home where her parents were murdered when she was a child. I felt it started out strong, but got progressively worse as it went along.
What let it down for me was that is was severely hurt by the lack of curse words and nudity. Personally I find it very strange when an 'adult thriller' has gore in abundance but doesn't allow a single "f#ck" or "s#it" from the characters even when they are being chased or brutally murdered. Also, for a series that has home-made pornography as part of the plot, it's pretty silly when it only shows people's faces in the videos. Maybe I've been spoiled by network's like HBO and STARZ (and NETFLIX) but I just expect more realism now from an 'adult thriller', otherwise a show feels old fashioned.
The other thing letting this down is the so-so lead actress. She's okay, but not really able to emote beyond looking 'slightly concerned', even when she is witnessing people she loves being horrifically murdered. I really feel like a better actress could have made me care a hell of a lot more about what was happening to her.
On the positive side the slasher character itself is quite scary most of the time, aside from when the scenes are over lit.
I'm interested to see what they do with series 2, given that it will hopefully be totally unrelated to season 1 (it's supposed to be an anthology series).
Canadian Horror Story, with Se7en and Dexter sprinkled in. At least the show's writers remembered to include horrific elements in the production, unlike its source material which also features an industrial analog-to-digital theme song, LGBT characters being over-represented 5-to-10-fold, an anthological intent with different stories every season, a single-camera setup with long hallway shots, and producers who are accustomed to the teen soap genre.
The show mainly survives because it is not merely a platform for B-celebrities to make glib cameos in, and has a consistent and layered plot line.
The first 10 minutes of the first episode are creepy and intriquing and then it just becomes a mostly **** soap opera in a town where nobody has an IQ above 75. There's gore, but it's not really scary. Most of the scenes are painful to watch and awkwardly written. Characters show up, give a few clues to the past, and either leave town or die. Some of the deaths are well done, which is the best thing this show has going for it. You're better off skipping this one.