Bless the Child (2000)

"Bless the Child" is a bloated, slow moving horror film about a satanic cult and the religious war between good an evil, a popular theme around this time period that includes such films as "The End of Days", "Lost Souls", and "Stigmata". The movie stars Kim Basinger in her first horror film; her performance is the best part of this film and I wouldn't mind seeing her taking another role some day. Having 19 years worth of film experience which include several major blockbusters, she is by far the biggest star in the film. She appears along with Jimmy Smits, Rufus Sewell, and drama/action/horror regular Ian Holm; Jimmy Smits also gives a great performance and it's a shame that he has such little screen time.

What I don't like about this film is the pacing; it takes over an hour before the action really begins with the first sixty minutes spent building up the plot. A little less exposition, a more effective soundtrack, and less random coincidences might have made the film more enjoyable. And as always, I hate when movies use CGI poorly and this film is very guilty of this habit.

What I did enjoy is the performance of the young girl who plays Cody, the character that the movie is based around. She has some amazingly tender and touching moments. I also enjoyed the random appearances of guardian angels because they are used so sparingly and at the right moments.


Maggie is visited one night by her drug addicted sister Jenna, who has an infant her arms. Jenna tells Maggie that she doesn't know who the father is and that the infant is a little weird. Before Maggie can respond, Jenna is out the door and leaves Cody in Maggie's care. Six years later, Jenna comes back for Cody, just as unexpectedly. This time she is clean and healthy and a newlywed to Eric, a famous self-help guru. They want Cody because they believe that she is special "servant of god". They kidnap Cody, forcing Maggie to turn to the police for help. At the station, Maggie meets FBI agent John Travis, an expert occult and ritual killings. He believes that Eric and his cult are responsible for the recent series of killings of small children who were all born on the same day as Cody. Cody is gifted and Eric gives her the choice to join him and grant him her powers or to die as the servant of god that she is. It's a race against time as Maggie and John try to save Cody from Eric's plan.

From Hell (2001)

"From Hell" is a horror film that makes it's own guesses as to who Jack the Ripper might have been. Adapted from the graphic novel written by Alan Moore and directed by the Hughes Brothers, "From Hell" stars Johnny Depp as Inspector Abberline, a brilliant but moody man who uses his slight psychic visions to help him solve cases. The role was a perfect fit for Depp, an actor who started out in a horror film ("A Nightmare on Elm Street" and who has since revisited the genre from time to time. Ian Holm ("Alien") is another great fit, portraying Sir William Gull, a retired surgeon who worked directly for the Queen and her family. The odd choice in casting is Heather Graham as Mary Kelly. one of the five prostitutes who become the focus and victims of the famed Ripper; she is an odd choice only because she never really looks the part. She is able to keep an accent throughout the film and has her own sense of presence when sharing the screen with Depp, but the way that her face and her clothes never look as dirty or worn down as the others becomes annoying after you notice it.


Inspector Frederick Abberline is rudely awoken one day in an opium den by morning by his friend Sergeant Peter Goldy, who needs his help in solving a gruesome murder of a prostitute in the Whitechapel District. It appears that the body was stabbed, gutted, and had an organ removed. Abberline realizes that the murder has to be someone educated and trained in surgical techniques considering how the murder and removal of the organ was completed. Soon another prostitute is killed in a similar fashion as well as having a different organ carefully removed in the dead and dark of night. Abberline finds the remaining prostitutes that had been friends and worked together. With the help of Mary Kelly, Abberline eventually discovers that they may be involved with a plot conducted by the Royal family, or those loyal to it, to cover up a scandal and to take revenge upon those who have "wronged" them. When Abberline begins to fall in love with Mary Kelly, he begins to take the case very seriously, ignoring the direct requests of his superior to leave the case and forget all the he has already seen. But of course that's not going to happen....

Alien (1979)

“In space, no one can hear you scream”

The perfect tag line for one of the best movies of all time, “Alien” set a new standard in horror. There are so many reasons why I and millions of other people love this movie. From the frightening landscape and look of the alien that was brought to us by the talented Mr. H.R Giger, to the Lovecraftian sense of dread and foreboding atmosphere, to the honest reactions and terror of the actors themselves, this movie has it all. Some may say that it’s just a cleverly done slasher flick where crew members are killed off one by one; and this is partly true but it is so much more beyond that. The alien is a monster from our nightmares. It is lithe, it drools, it’s huge, it changes, it screams, and it bursts out of your chest after you think the worst has passed. Just admit it, the face-hugger itself was enough to give you nightmares once upon a time. When you add in a killer cyborg that you thought was just the prerequisite prick of the crew, you have no idea who or what to trust at that point!

The ship Nostromo is heading back to Earth with its crew and a payload of millions of tons of minerals when it picks up a faint distress transmission. Following programed protocol, it changes course and heads towards the beacon and awakes the crew from stasis. The crew is thrilled at first because they believe that they are a week or so away from home but quickly find out that they are still in the middle of nowhere. The crew follows protocol as well, landing on the small planetoid and searching for the source of the transmission. What the rescue crew find, which is made up of Capt. Dallas, Officer Kane, and Navigator Lambert, is a large derelict ship. Inside they find a large alien corpse that has a damaged chest area as well as a vast chamber under the main cockpit room. Kane goes down to investigate and finds hundreds of large leathery eggs. One has movement inside and as he bends over to look at it, a face-hugger lunges forth and attaches itself to his helmet. Dallas and Lambert drag Kane’s body back to the ship but Officer Ripley refuses to let them on, following protocol and in fear that they could be infected with whatever is on Kane. The science officer Ash breaks the protocol and opens the door so they can board. Once inside and in the medical lab, Ash and Dallas try to remove the alien from Kane’s head but are unable to do so without killing him, but several hours later the creature let’s go and crawls away to die. Eventually Kane wakes up without remember what had happened to him. The crew has one last meal before going back into stasis but their joy of returning home is interrupted when Kane begins to spasm violently and as they are holding him down, a terrifying little baby alien bursts out of his chest, looks around and quickly runs away. Kane has died but he is not the last to do so….

Favorite moment - too many to list! But I would have to say at this point my favorite is the scene where Ash break downs and tries to kill Ripley.