Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

A Monster Calls

Twelve-year-old Conor (Lewis MacDougall) i8s having a rough life.  His mother (Felicity Jones) is dying, and the thought of living with his strict grandmother (Sigourney Weaver) is more than he can bear. On top of that, he is being bullied at school, and no one will come to his assistance. His dad (Toby Kebbell) lives in America now, and he has a new family, and he has no room for Conor. What’s a boy to do?

But then he encounter a monster in the form of a giant tree (Liam Neeson). While frightening at first, he helps Conor to cope with the reality of his existence. He tells Conor that he shall tell him three stories and then Conor will tell him his own story. Conor protests that he has no story to tell, but the Monster proceeds anyway with his tales.

I honestly did not know what to expect from this movie, but I was most pleasantly surprised. Twelve is

very young to have to deal with the impending death of one parent and the seeming indifference of the other, along with a grandmother he barely knows and doesn’t like. It’s a tale of bravery and imagination that will warm the coldest of hearts. It’s well written, acted, and directed. I really enjoyed it. I’ll give this film 4.5 Stars.

Silent Night, Deadly Night 2

Ricky Caldwell (Eric Freeman) was just a baby and his brother Billy only 7 when their family was attacked by a man in a Santa suit by the side of the road. Dad was shot and killed, and Mom was assaulted and murdered in front of her children. The two boys were sent to live in an orphanage run by Mother Superior (Jean Miller). Billy grew up haunted by what he had seen, and the nun was brutal in her punishments. He became a serial killer in a Santa suit himself.

Fast forward a number of years. Ricky is in a mental institution, being interviewed by the new psychiatrist.  He tells of his past family trauma, but he has plans of his own. Will history repeat itself?

Silent Night Deadly Night 2 picks up where the last one left off. But if you haven’t seen the first one,  no worries – this one recaps all of the highlights of that film, and that takes up about two-thirds of this movie. So you might as well skip the first one completely.

Let there be no doubt this movie is all about shock and gore and senseless violence. And women with bare breasts. The writing is horrible, the acting atrocious. It’s like watching a train wreck. And yet you find you can’t look away. If you don’t take it seriously, and just accept it for it is, you might not be sorry you watched it. I didn’t realize I’d already seen one of the scenes  in another video. Now I’ll never forget Garbage Day. All things considered, I’ll give this movie 2.5 Stars. I hear there are sequels. Might have to check them out.