Us (2019) and Triple Frontier (2019)

Triple Frontier poster

By Jason Pyles

*This column was originally printed in the April 2019 edition of The BP Times newspaper.

Us (2019) – Most people probably know writer-director Jordan Peele from his comedy duo TV series, “Key and Peele,” though he has many prior credits. In 2017, Peele wrote and directed a noteworthy Horror film titled “Get Out,” which was worthily praised for its razor-sharp social commentary about race and its exceptional performances.

Then on March 22, we got another Horror movie that Peele wrote and directed called “Us.” Here’s the premise (without spoilers): A family’s beach vacation becomes horrifying when they encounter doppelgängers — exact replicas of themselves — who try to harm and terrorize them.

Upon seeing the trailer, at first blush, the film appeared to be a Jordan Peele-worthy exploration of how sometimes we can be our own worst enemy. I wondered if the themes had something to do with self-sabotage, self-loathing or maybe even perfectionism. Continue reading

Creepy October Movie Recommendations

CTC - October 2018

By Jason Pyles

*This column was originally printed in the October 2018 edition of The BP Times newspaper.

Even movie lovers who aren’t horror fans want a creepy watchlist for October, so this first edition of Considering the Cinema has 17 easy-to-find recommendations.

Amazon: “Summer of 84” follows a youth who worries that his policeman neighbor might moonlight as a serial killer.

Netflix: As beautiful as it is scary, “The Wailing” is a haunting South Korean horror film about a mysterious sickness that overtakes a village. Also from South Korea, “Train to Busan” is a full-bore, action-zombie flick that’s a fun and violent crowd-pleaser. But if you prefer more low-key zombies, I’d recommend “Cargo.” Martin Freeman plays a virus-infected father who only has a couple of days to find a suitable caretaker for his baby before joining the ranks of the mindless undead. Continue reading