Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 75

Bounce House: Short Horror Film Review

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A young woman is happily jumping on a bounce house, but the state of the inflatable structure and its surroundings immediately establish a scary post-apocalyptic world. The bounce house is smeared with dried blood stains, leaving you unsure whether the seemingly cheerful protagonist is a psycho or a survivor who just doesn’t care about anything anymore.

Created by Callie Bloem and Christopher J. Ewing, the short horror film Bounce House stars Eilise Patton as Polly, a young woman living in the backyard of her house, having as much fun as one possibly can when the world around them has collapsed. She’s reminiscent of Akira from the Japanese zombie horror-comedy Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, who decides to enjoy all the things he couldn’t do before the zombie apocalypse. In fact, this film leans more towards a casual dystopian horror-comedy than your typical supernatural scream-fest.

At about 15 minutes long, Bounce House follows Polly, initially alone, until she meets Thea (Jade Kaiser), an armed stranger with a risky proposal. How long can Polly survive the end of the world, and can she really trust Thea, a bossy and imposing figure with her own issues?

Eilise Patton’s portrayal of Polly feels slightly dubious at first, especially with her bouncing on a blood-stained bounce house in the opening scene. However, she soon emerges as a likable survivor who chooses to spend her last days chilling—bouncing, drinking, reading, and blasting music (not the wisest choice when you don’t know what might be lurking in the neighborhood, even if you think everyone is dead).

This is a fun, quick short film with murderous coyotes, an intriguing end-of-the-world theme, and a laid-back protagonist. The climax delivers some spooky moments and an unexpected twist that fits well with the horror-comedy tone of Bounce House.

You can watch it on YouTube.

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Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii Episode 2 Review

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Yoshino Somei might not have made up her mind about whether she wants to marry into the Miyama family, one of the leading Yakuza clans in Tokyo, but she certainly isn’t running back to her grandfather in Osaka—that would mean admitting defeat to the bratty Kirishima Miyama.

For Plot overview, read the Yakuza Fiancé Episode 1 Review

If you remember, episode one of Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii ended comically, with Kirishima confessing he loves Yoshino after she hands him a bag of money, claiming she sold one of her kidneys for it. Whether she really sold her kidney or not is beside the point; what the scene truly establishes is that Yoshino is just as crazy as Kirishima, if not more. These two deranged heirs from feuding Yakuza families are probably meant for each other, lol.

Episode 2 of Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii begins with Yoshino trying to avoid Kirishima, who’s become clingy and is definitely madly in love with her for now. However, the episode’s focus shifts to the case of a missing young girl, heir to another Yakuza family in Tokyo. What happened to her remains unknown, so Yoshino is instructed to stay under Kirishima’s watchful eye by the head of the clan. “Spend all my time with him? I might just kill him from the stress that would cause,” Yoshino hilariously tells herself.

From avoiding Kirishima to eventually investigating the missing girl case with him, which leads to a violent altercation in the second half, this episode reveals that sheltered high-school student Yoshino might have a thirst for blood too—just not as strong as Kirishima’s. The background music perfectly complements the events as they unfold, and we also learn some new facts about Kirishima, including that he isn’t a direct descendant of the current mob boss.

Fast-paced and quite comical, this episode ends by introducing a mysterious new character, whom quick-eyed viewers might’ve noticed in the intro song of the anime. Manga readers would already know who he is, so a big turning point in the story is just around the corner!

You can watch the series on CrunchyRoll.

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Guardian Review: Protect Yourself from this dud horror comedy

Rating: 1.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

If you are looking for some 2024 Indian horror comedies, ‘Stree 2’ is now available to stream on Prime Video, ‘Munjya’ is on Disney Hotstar, and ‘Kakuda’ is on Zee5. Meanwhile, ‘Guardian,’ starring Hansika Motwani, delivers neither laughs nor scares. It’s fine if a horror-comedy movie isn’t spooky, but the least creators can do is give viewers a few fresh, funny jokes.

Directed by Sabari and Guru Saravanan, ‘Guardian’ stars Hansika Motwani as protagonist Aparna, a clumsy, unlucky girl who’s always getting into trouble until, suddenly, one day, as if by magic, everything she truly wishes for in the moment begins to come true—but in weird ways. Eventually, Aparna learns a ghostly entity is looking after her and has an agenda of its own.

About two hours long, the ghostly bits in ‘Guardian’ don’t begin in earnest until after the first hour. Until then, the movie focuses on Aparna’s journey from an unlucky college girl struggling to land a job to a successful new employee at a big construction company run by a sleazy, wealthy creep. New characters keep appearing randomly, there are too many jarring/coincidental occurrences, and a contrived romantic subplot. Aparna gets herself a boyfriend after meeting him through work, and he’s practically forgotten for most parts of the film until the makers realize, “Oh wait, she has a boyfriend too,” so they bring him back for a few scenes toward the end.

From a barely funny comedy in the first half about Aparna’s change in fortunes to a completely non-scary second half about a powerful spirit seeking revenge, ‘Guardian’ is a snooze-fest. At one point, it was hard to judge Hansika Motwani’s performance as Aparna because the script is so harebrained, there’s little she can do to elevate it. Hansika does embody the mannerisms of a possessed, vengeful young spirit with ominous energy; however, the special effects for the ghostly alter-ego are quite awful.

The biggest comedic gag in ‘Guardian’ has very little to do with the primary subplot and involves Azhagu (Tiger Thangadurai), a peon at Aparna’s office, who asks his goon brother-in-law (Motta Rajendran) to start a new contract-killing business. Azhagu plans on convincing Aparna to join them because he notices that whatever she says comes true, even bizarre things that wouldn’t have otherwise been possible. For instance, a supposedly funny scene takes place during an office football match, where Aparna passionately wishes out loud that the losing team would make four back-to-back goals, and they do.

Overall, ‘Guardian’ is an outdated revenge tale wrapped up in the horror-comedy genre, dealing with themes of corruption, harassment at work, and the usual conflict of a few drunk-on-power goons exploiting and oppressing women. Aparna and her guardian ghost teach the villains some deadly lessons, and a few climactic twists help wrap up this bland film.

Rating: 3 on 10. You can watch ‘Guardian’ on JioCinema.

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Khel Khel Mein Review: Tapsee Pannu Wins Game Night, Akshay Dominates Play

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Would you take part in a game where your phone is expected to be public property from dinner until morning at a party with close friends? Everybody is allowed to view any new texts or emails that participants get during the duration of the game, and all calls must be accepted on loudspeaker for others to listen in. The same goes for voice messages too. That’s the primary premise of the 2024 Bollywood comedy Khel Khel Mein, where a group of seven friends unlock their phones for a night of fun and learn unexpected things about each other.

Written and directed by Mudassar Aziz, Khel Khel Mein is a remake of the 2016 Italian movie Perfect Strangers. The film opens by introducing Akshay Kumar’s character Rishabh Malik, a smart, suave plastic surgeon attending his sister-in-law’s wedding with author wife Vartika (Vaani Kapoor) in Jaipur. The two gather at their hotel suite with two other married couples and a single friend to play the phone game. Ammy Virk and Taapsee Pannu portray a couple who share the same name—Harpreet—so they ridiculously have each other’s name saved as ‘Harpreet Male’ and ‘Harpreet Female’ on their phones. Aditya Seal and Pragya Jaiswal play the third couple, Naina and Samrat, while Fardeen Khan is the seventh participant, a divorced sports coach who was supposed to bring his new girlfriend along but turns up solo.

While not riotously funny, Khel Khel Mein has a fun first half, mixing humor with some moments of mystery, alluding to secrets some of the friends are clearly hiding from their spouses and even each other. All the men are extremely reluctant to participate in the game, but all the women instantly volunteer to unlock their phones for the night. “Men have a code, they never rat out each other’s affairs,” Vartika says before the game starts, hinting that she might not trust her own man. Infidelity, infertility, stalking, lying, and a whole bunch of other issues are explored, which leads to the case of ‘biting off more than one can chew’ for the script.

Akshay Kumar was in his comfort zone, his character Rishabh Malik is a rehashed version of his several other ‘confident charmer’ characters. And even though Khel Khel Mein should’ve ideally split its 2-hour 15-minute runtime more evenly among the friends, Akshay Kumar is served a lion’s share of the screen space, while others are scattered with what’s leftover. Vaani Kapoor is measured in her delivery as an author trying to balance her work with family life, but Rishabh makes it hard by constantly name-dropping his first wife’s name in their conversations. Despite a typical one-dimensional role, Taapsee Pannu stands out best in the ensemble cast by making Harpreet endearingly relatable. Last seen playing the scheming seductress in Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba, Taapsee is comedic-cute as a small-town Punjabi girl struggling to keep up with her husband’s ‘fancy’ English-speaking friends. Aditya Seal and Pragya Jaiswal were forgettable in their parts; they simply do their bits and evoke no emotions in the viewers whatsoever. Fardeen Khan’s performance as Kabir is quite lack-luster, and his subplot feels shoehorned in, as if to fulfill a token gesture towards modern themes the film tries to address.

The cinematography and screenplay are visually engaging, with most of the story unfolding at the lavish wedding venue. The wedding theme in Khel Khel Mein also allows the creators to seamlessly weave a few songs into the story. However, the opening song, Hauli Hauli, where all the couples shake a leg, sounded more like a house mix for clubs when it should’ve been more festive in spirit. Composed by Guru Randhawa, it’s a fun song, but it lacks the upbeat wedding tone of songs like Sadi Gali (Tanu Weds Manu) or Dilliwali Girlfriend (Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani).

Objectively, a lot of what happens in Khel Khel Mein doesn’t make sense, like the characters receiving emails from companies or hospitals post-10 pm. Besides, how is it that all seven of them manage to get troublesome messages on the same night they decide to open up their phones? That’s obviously a bit of a stretch, but sure, we need to let go of some logic to be able to enjoy a well-constructed comedy. So all right, I was open to that, which is why I found this movie a lot more entertaining than if I had been in a more demanding mood. The film concludes with Akshay Kumar’s Rishabh delivering a wedding speech about marriage being a partnership where communication is key, though it feels somewhat hollow. The overarching message seems to be: partners will mess up, and you either forgive them or move on from their deceit.

Rating: 6 out of 10. Watch Khel Khel Mein on Netflix.

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Betonrausch – Rising High Review: Flimsy Echo of ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Kartik Sudershan (Follow us on Twitter | Instagram)

Viktor Steiner (David Kross) grows up watching his father, a struggling painter, lose everything to the Tax office, while his mother abandons them for a wealthier man. Determined to escape his past, Viktor moves to Berlin with dreams of striking it rich. Armed with a natural sales talent and burning ambition, he dives headfirst into the con game.

In his first scam, Viktor fakes his identity to rent a luxury penthouse, subletting it to dozens of immigrant workers for a tidy profit. Along the way, he meets Gerry (Frederick Lau), who spots Viktor’s potential as a con artist and brings him into the fold. Together with Janina (Nicole Kleber), a bank insider, they form a scam trio, targeting auctions, banks, and gullible buyers by inflating real estate prices. Their schemes pay off, and soon, they’re living large—until cracks start to show.

While romance blooms between Viktor and Janina, the film’s thrilling con game starts to feel familiar. The trio’s downfall comes when Janina discovers Viktor’s infidelity. She turns him in, securing her own suspended sentence, and Viktor finds himself behind bars. In the end, Janina helps him reunite with his daughter, and start his life afresh.

While Rising High has the bones of a classic con film, it lacks the tension and detail that made The Wolf of Wall Street so riveting. There’s no real edge-of-your-seat excitement here. Nicole Kleber shines, but David Kross struggles to sell Viktor as a charming master manipulator. With a weak storyline and middling performances, the film stumbles to a 6/10.

You can stream the film on Netflix.

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Night of the Living Deadpool Review

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

I was saving an image for this review and ended up accidentally writing “Night of the Living Deadpoop” as its caption, and well, it got a laugh out of me, so I decided to open this write-up with that useless trivia. Hope you don’t mind! Deadpool can’t be the only one allowed to talk to their readers, right? There’s no copyright on that!

So, Night of the Living Deadpool by Cullen Bunn and Ramon Rosanas (illustrator) is a four-issue comic book series, and a combined volume was available for me to borrow on my Kindle Unlimited subscription. It follows Wade Wilson, AKA Deadpool, Marvel’s favorite black sheep, as he wakes up from a long nap only to realize half the world has perished in a zombie apocalypse. He’s probably the only superhero left, having slept through the chaos—plus, there’s his super regenerative abilities. Just like the dead don’t die, Deadpoop—sorry, Deadpool—doesn’t die either. As a horror fan with a soft spot for the zombie sub-genre, I immediately downloaded it. (If me talking about myself even in the second paragraph has started getting annoying, feel free to leave a negative comment. I will read it, make a mental note, and delete it.)

Anyway, Night of the Living Deadpool could’ve been freaking epic, but it isn’t as unhinged, wacky, or funny as one might expect. That said, it’s still got plenty of humor with a new twist to the zombie genre, making it an entertaining page-turner. Deadpool first tries to figure out what the hell is happening, makes a few human friends along the way, kills truckloads of zombies, a few evil uncles and aunties, and then tries to find the cure for the virus that caused the zombie outbreak.

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“In the movies, if a guy wakes up from a coma, a ’90s era Sandra Bullock professes love to him. But me… I wake up from a little nap… and the only thing waiting for me is a bunch of spaced-out brain-eaters from beyond the grave,” Deadpool hilariously says at the start of issue two of Night of the Living Deadpool. For younger readers who don’t get the joke, he’s referring to the romantic comedy While You Were Sleeping, where a guy wakes up after an accident to find out he’s engaged to a stranger.

Night of the Living Deadpool is a Deadpool show all the way. Cullen Bunn gives almost no space to other characters to make a mark, which may work perfectly for some fans, though a few, or even one, memorable sidekick wouldn’t have hurt. DC’s DCeased, which also pits superheroes against zombies, was more fun, largely due to the fantastic artwork. The artwork in this Marvel offering is good, but the color scheme is slightly dull—only Deadpool is in his iconic red-black suit while the backgrounds, zombies, and supporting characters are drawn in black-and-white. While it makes the mouthy superhero stand out, a fully colored version would’ve worked better.

The final issue focuses on Deadpool’s journey to find ground zero and maybe discover the cure. Cullen Bunn delivers an unexpected final twist, where Deadpool, in his typical self-absorbed way, finds something that makes him the center of the new zombie-infested universe. Sort of. It’s a wacky, wicked end, which feels abrupt but also gives a sense of satisfaction if you give it a second thought.

Rating: 4/5. Night of the Living Deadpool is also available on Kindle Unlimited.

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I Saw You In My Dream Series Review

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The trailer for the Thai series I Saw You in My Dreams teases a serious drama with a dash of comedy, where college student “Ai” (Arshira Akethananarakul) repeatedly dreams of future events, often involving a mishap with his next-door neighbor, Yu Silpakarnsakul, a photographer who loves teasing him. Although Ai isn’t particularly fond of Yu, he begins watching out for his safety as his dreams start coming true.

Directed by Tee Bundit Sintanaparadee (“I Feel You Linger In The Air”/“Step by Step”), the series spans 12 episodes plus a bonus edition. It stars Ryu Ingkarat Damrongsakkul as Ai, the protagonist who foresees glimpses of the future, while Putter Phubase Pratumrat portrays the older Yu, the primary subject of Ai’s visions. The first episode begins during the Christmas holidays, when Ai dreams of a simple accident while decorating a tree—only for it to come true. His subsequent dreams show Yu getting hurt, prompting Ai to confide in his best friend, Ing (Game Orarig Tanoi), as they try to unravel the mystery. Meanwhile, as Ai spends more time with Yu, a mutual romantic attraction starts to develop between them.

While Ai’s dreams are often visualized as ominous, the series is, for the most part, a light-hearted affair. It feels like the creators couldn’t decide whether to make a romantic comedy or a serious drama, resulting in an awkward mix that’s neither funny enough nor convincingly dramatic. Both Ryu and Putter lack the on-screen presence or chemistry needed for the lead roles, which makes their dynamic feel flat. The secondary subplot, featuring Ing’s crush on Yu’s brother, Yospol (Surf Patchara Silapasoonthorn), is more engaging thanks to the sparks between actors Surf and Game Orarig Tanoi.

I Saw You in My Dreams essentially plays out as a typical ‘friends-to-lovers’ romance, with most of Ai’s dreams turning out to be harmless—until the last few episodes. However, by then, viewers may have lost interest, as it starts to feel like a “boy who cried wolf” scenario. Some forced drama is added, including Yu’s ex-girlfriend and a character who has feelings for Ai, but these don’t do much to salvage the story. Although the series starts off with a fun tone, it becomes progressively tiresome and would have been better wrapped up in eight episodes.

Rating: 5/10. I Saw You in My Dreams is available for streaming on WeTV.

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Posies Review: When Wounds Bloom and Secrets Fester

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A young woman sits in front of her dresser, worried about wounds appearing on her skin as she bizarrely tries to hide them with flowers. But these aren’t just ordinary lacerations—something far worse is happening to her.

Directed by Katherine Fisher and R.H. Stavis, the short horror film Posies is a dark, stylish, and suspenseful movie starring Anna Diop as Maddy, a protagonist with plenty to hide, apart from the strange scars sprouting on her body. She soon begins to wonder if she is “devolving” into a monster.

Anna Diop is hauntingly captivating as the troubled Maddy, and the opening scene makes you question whether she is a performance artist experiencing some dark, out-of-body ordeal. A creepy, unsettling moment where Maddy places a petal in a deep wound within the first minute of Posies immediately grabs viewers’ attention, leaving them wondering what’s really happening to Maddy. Are the wounds real? Or is she simply imagining things? Does she need a therapist, or a demonologist?

At just under 15 minutes, Posies is a metaphorical tale that imagines a world where humans pay a physical price for their transgressions, with their punishment manifesting in grotesque forms. Although the supernatural scenes are limited, the special effects are fantastic and successfully create the eerie, creepy atmosphere the filmmakers aim for. The background music also plays a strong role, with a wistful score on a gramophone adding to the tension as Maddy grapples with her bizarre transformation.

The climax feels rushed and abrupt, wrapping up Posies like a teaser for a larger horror film. It may leave viewers a bit disappointed, but it’s an intriguing short worth watching.

You can watch ‘Posies’ on YouTube.

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eVil Sublet Review: When Your New Flat Has More Ghosts Than Amenities

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

The first fifteen minutes of eVil Sublet are packed with horror-themed pop-culture references that should instantly thrill fans of the genre. It begins with an intense prologue scene that serves as an ode to the classic 1960 film Psycho and almost immediately gives viewers blood, deaths, and screams. The movie then switches to introduce the primary protagonists, quickly followed by the entry of an Ed-and-Lorraine Warren-inspired paranormal expert couple (you know, the Warrens from the Conjuring universe) who are wittily named Ned and Lorne.

Written and directed by Allan Piper, eVil Sublet is a horror-comedy indie movie that follows Alex (Jennifer Leigh Houston), a struggling voice-over artist, and her husband Ben (Charlie Tucker) as they move into a haunted Manhattan apartment because the rent is dreamily cheap for the spacious, furnished flat with an eat-in kitchen. Who cares if the last few tenants died gruesome deaths? Soon after they move to the new place, Alex starts to experience creepy supernatural occurrences. She struggles to convince Ben about the ghosts messing with her and must find a way to stop it before they become the next victims.

The apartment in question is hilariously apt for a horror-comedy, filled to the brim with creepy knick-knacks, including weird paintings, wacky posters, and grotesque dolls. Horror readers will love a room that’s got a bookshelf stocked exclusively with books by horror maestro Stephen King. eVil Sublet essentially taps into the old haunted-house trope, giving the NY flat a rich history of morbid deaths dating back to the late 19th century. It has a bit of a Hotel Cecil vibe, evoking the haunted property in Los Angeles infamous for several suicides, violence, and murders.

Charlie Tucker, as the practical, no-nonsense Ben, immediately reminded me of Ed O’Neill’s Jay Pritchett. Jennifer Leigh Houston wavered between entertaining and off-the-mark in her portrayal of Alex, the primary protagonist who bears the brunt of the evil spirits in the new apartment. I was hyped to see Pat Dwyer and Stephen Mosher’s performances as Ned and Lorne, the gay paranormal investigators who decide to help Alex out; however, Stephen Mosher was disappointingly wooden, despite a great theatrical appearance that was a cross between Uncle Fester from The Addams Family/Wednesday and an older Draco Malfoy.

eVil Sublet has plenty of fun elements for a horror-comedy, with often a lot happening on the screen—so much so that you might miss a ghost or two quietly moving behind Alex in some scenes. The spookiness is there—you have swinging doors, things moving on their own, and people dying; however, the second half is dragged out, and the tepid performances don’t help. One of the climactic twists is surprisingly good, where someone who probably deserved to die meets their end, so eVil Sublet ends on a high note.

Watch eVil Sublet if you’re up for a campy low-budget indie horror movie packed with easter eggs.

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The Prince and the Dressmaker: Graphic Novel Review

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

The King and Queen are busy looking for a bride for Prince Sebastian, while the Prince in question is looking for the right dressmaker to sew fabulous outfits for his secret cross-dressing hobby. At a ball thrown by the royal family to help the Prince pick a worthy young woman for himself, a woman in a daring dress catches his eye, and he decides to hire Frances, the seamstress who made the dress. Thus begins the tale of The Prince and the Dressmaker, a beautifully drawn graphic novel by Jen Wang about fashion, identity, and romance. A prince burdened with royal duties during the day, Sebastian turns into the trendsetting Lady Crystallia by night, wowing Paris with her fabulous outfits, all sewn by the talented dressmaker Frances. But for how long can the Prince live this dual life?

I quite loved the artwork in this graphic novel, although there’s just one thing that was weird—both Prince Sebastian and Frances looked like fraternal twins to me! Their facial features were drawn in a similar manner, except that Sebastian has a bigger, pointier nose, and the two of them have different hair colors. Now maybe (emphasis on ‘maybe’) because of this, I wasn’t expecting any romance between the Prince and the dressmaker, hoping it would be more about the Prince and Frances being fashion conspirators, confidantes, and friends while finding love someplace else. Besides, even if they didn’t look like twins, the budding romance between the Prince and Frances felt forced in the novel.

But anyway, The Prince and the Dressmaker exists in a unique bubble; it’s hard to pinpoint what year or era the story takes place, and a lot of character interactions are quite modern in tone. The beginning of the graphic novel will remind several readers of Cinderella, mostly because of the ball thrown by the royal family to find a bride for the Prince. In the 2021 Disney reboot of Cinderella, the dressmaker element is more prevalent, with Camilla Cabello’s Cinderella spending her time stitching exquisite dresses, dreaming of becoming a famous dressmaker who designs clothes for distinguished ladies.

The friendship between Frances and Sebastian is a lot more endearing, which, of course, faces challenges along the way, especially since they are essentially employer and employee first, friends second. Sebastian’s fabulous outfits as Lady Crystallia garner a lot of attention, but he cannot reveal Frances as the designer, since it’s already known in the royal circles that she is the Prince’s dressmaker. This causes a conflict of interest between the Prince and Frances, as the latter doesn’t want to be in the closet like Sebastian and wants to show the world her work.

The climactic chapters are dramatic, with Sebastian’s double life exposed in a surprising turn of events, leading to his fall from grace. However, the final chapter resolves the Prince’s problems in a fun manner and gives both him and the dressmaker a happy ending. Jen Wang’s artwork makes the graphic novel a total joy to read.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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