31 Days of Horror – ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (2003)

Remaking a classic horror movie is a fool’s errand.

Just ask Gus Van Sant, who faced a critical firestorm for his shot-for-shot remake of “Psycho.” Rob Zombie’s “Halloween” do-over deserved every negative adjective hurled at it.

For every successful makeover – 1988’s “The Blob” – we get duds like “The Omen” and “Child’s Play.”

The 2003 update on “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” didn’t make anyone forget the original shocker. Critics weren’t too kind to the remake, either, giving it a horrific 37 percent “rotten” score at Rotten Tomatoes.

The film may have been unnecessary on paper, but it still delivers what horror fans crave. Terror. Fear. Chainsaws. And a scrappy, relentless “final girl.”

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That honor fell to Jessica Biel, a then-rising star eager to scream in the grand horror movie tradition. She plays Erin, one of a small group of friends who pick up the wrong hitchhiker en route to a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert.

Didn’t they watch the original film?

The friends find themselves at a creepy home off the main road, a dwelling where unspeakable horrors await them.

You know what happens next, but director Marcus Nispel frames it for maximum impact. Nispel can’t outdo the original or recreate the sense of unease it delivered to the movie-going public. So he created a thrill ride with Biel guiding the way.

It’s hardly an actor’s showcase, but the future star knows exactly what the genre demands.

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The 2003 version also offers R. Lee Ermey doing what he does best as a dastardly law man – chewing all the scenery he can. The supporting players include a solid Eric Balfour and the typically intense Jonathan Tucker.

Biel was kind enough to share her audition reel for the film with her Instagram followers.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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31 Days of Horror:

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‘The Holdovers’ Captures Grown-Up Movie Making at its Best

We missed Alexander Payne movies.

Remember “About Schmidt?” “Sideways?” “The Descendants?” “Nebraska?”

Smart. Provocative. Adult. Comical. Wise.

He swung and missed so hard his helmet came flying off with 2017’s “Downsizing,” but he’s back in fine form with “The Holdovers.” It’s not his best work, and the story threatens to obsess over class envy in ways that evoke “Downsizing’s” lectures.

It’s still a sturdy tale brimming with love, loss and redemption.

Yes, please.

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Paul Giamatti plays Paul Hunham, a teacher at a prestigious boarding school circa 1970. He’s a by-the-book type who instills fear and loathing in his pupils, and he knows it.

Paul gets the unenviable task of watching after the “holdovers,” the students who have nowhere to go over the Christmas holiday stretch. That includes Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), a boy with a knack for getting himself kicked out of boarding schools.

The two make a strained couple, at best, but the presence of school cook Mary Lamb (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) offers some relief. She’s a kindly soul mourning the loss of a son who gave his life in the Vietnam War.

The unlikely trio stares down a somber holiday without loved ones to nurse their emotional wounds.

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Paul’s entire life is wrapped up in the New England school, and even the presence of a comely colleague (Carrie Preston) can’t shake that bond.

Angus seethes over his mother spending Christmas with her new beau, not him.

Mary’s wounds will never heal, but she’s proud enough to keep her values even in the worst of times.

“The Holdovers” is quietly hilarious, with tender moments blossoming into slow and steady smiles. David Hemingson’s script is smart and unwilling to devolve into cheap life lessons or impractical laughs.

The story uncorks some “eat the rich” broadsides, including how young men avoided the draft through family ties. The moments aren’t as elegant as the rest of the material, but Payne and Hemingson don’t dwell on the observations, either.

FAST FACT: Paul Giamatti pursued animation briefly before the acting bug took over, according to an interview with NJ.com. “After graduation, I moved to Seattle thinking I would — oh, I don’t know what in hell I was thinking,” he says. “Get into animation, I guess — although, wow, just put a bullet in your head, there’s a really hard way to make a living.”

Giamatti is sensational, of course. Paul may feel like someone we’ve seen before, but the “Sideways” alum grants him a humanity that’s appealing yet sour. His character emits a steady odor that, combined with his crusty mien, keeps the world at arm’s length.

Stand back. Far back. It’s one more element that isolates him from the world, a place where he’s told himself he’s content to stay.

Sessa, making his big-screen debut, avoids the troublesome lad cliches inherent in the part. Angus is both self-loathing and likable, and by the third act you’re fully invested in his plight.

Randolph, the third member of the awkward trio, brings a quiet dignity to the performance that’s heartbreaking at select moments.

Films like “The Holdovers” often end without a resolution, their narratives unwilling to provide a pat finale. Here, we’ve treated to a conflict that not only puts a bow on the story but offers a semblance of hope and renewal.

Welcome back, Alexander Payne.

HiT or Miss: “The Holdovers” delivers an adult drama brimming with wisdom, smiles and the occasional sour note. Just like life.

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Quiz Lady Review | Game Show Comedy Gets Moderate Laughs

A frumpy accountant and her rambunctious older sister compete on a popular game show to cover their mother's massive gambling debt. Quiz Lady works as a congenial fusion of disparate characters, wacky encounters, sight gags, and clever jabs at Asian racial stereotypes. Stars Awkwafina and Sandra Oh tickle funny bones and warm hearts as stalwart opposites who find common ground. The film does suffer from pacing issues when the humor runs thin to accommodate a predictable narrative. There's obviously a sprinkle of filler material to cross the finish line. Solid cast chemistry overcomes this flaw to a certain degree.


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31 Days of Horror – ‘Eight-Legged Freaks’

Scarlett Johansson won’t name check this genre film should she ever win an Academy Award.

The “Avengers” star snagged an early paycheck via “Eight-Legged Freaks,” a horror comedy that cast the future star in a supporting role.

The film’s lead is “Ready to Rumble’s” David Arquette, an ordinary Joe pressed into saving his town from an arachnid invasion.

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Arquette plays a man whose return home is interrupted by those super-sized spiders. The critters nibbled on crickets dipped in toxic waste, and before you can say, “’50s movie homage” the townsfolk are running for their lives.

The film’s spiders come courtesy of slick CGI effects, lending the film an unexpected sheen. That, plus the crisp direction of first-time helmer Ellory Elkayem, fires up “Freaks” without resorting to R-rated theatrics.

Even better?

Arquette, hardly Hollywood’s idea of a heroic lead, acquits himself nicely in that unexpected role. He’s given stable support from co-stars Johansson, Kari Wuhrer and Doug E. Doug as the local conspiracy monger.

“Eight-Legged Freaks” earned a not-terrible $17 million at the U.S. box office, but it’s been bouncing across various streaming platforms ever since.

Seen today, it’s the perfect movie for a mindless Saturday afternoon or a Halloween night without gore, nudity or too much cussin’.

Arquette made the film under difficult circumstances. His father had recently died, forcing him to bury his grief and commit to playing the hero alongside Wuhrer of “Remote Control” fame.

The actor shared a snippet about the film’s extensive effects work, along with one inexpensive part of the production, with the media. The oversized spiders came courtesy of CGI trickery, but the critters’ gooey innerds were made of apple sauce spiked with green dye.

31 Days of Horror:

 

 

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‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Is Nothing Like We Expect

Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” is unlike any film the director has ever made before, though you could pull “The Age of Innocence” (1993) as a possible reference.

Both are historical dramas that recreate a world that no longer exists or is even remotely recognizable.

Then again, you also have another Leonardo DiCaprio collaboration in which the actor, one of the greatest of my generation, is once again playing a lead character who is fascinating and layered but in no way likable.

Combine this with Robert De Niro in a supporting role, collaborating with DiCaprio for the first time since their electric “This Boy’s Life” (1993) 30 years earlier. The overall result isn’t always easy to watch or seamless but still emerges an engrossing, essential work from a master filmmaker.

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Set in Oklahoma of the 1920s, where the Osage people lived in wealth and powerful oil barons were everywhere, DiCaprio plays Ernest Burkhart, a former WWI soldier who is working for his uncle, a powerful, charismatic figure who is referred to as “King” (played by De Niro).

Ernest works as a chauffeur, meets, and instantly falls in love, with Mollie (played by Lily Gladstone), who is aware that Ernest’s affections are likely due to how rich she is; Ernest insists that he is in love with her and the two quickly marry.

As the Burkhart’s family extends, a large number of murders pile up, all involving members of the Osage tribe (and Mollie’s immediate family) dying of mysterious circumstances. A spot-on comparison to the Tulsa City Massacre is made.

DiCaprio has been cast as a vulnerable and stupid man, sporting a gravely vocal cadence, similar to Billy Bob Thornton in “Sling Blade” (1996). It’s a bold decision, unless you consider that, “Gangs of New York” (2002) into present day, Scorsese has never cast the former “Titanic” star as a character that was easy to like or even understand.

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I can’t remember the last time De Niro truly frightened me in a movie (maybe it was “The Fan” in ’96) but he pulls it off here. The actor, who has appeared in far too many throwaway vehicles and subpar comedies post-Fockers, still has the fire, dedication, and commitment to acting excellence you’d expect and hope from him. I really hated “King” but his unflinching ability to lie and slither towards a single-minded purpose made me fearful of him, too.

Gladstone’s Mollie is the heart and center of the film, as it should be. Her performance is extraordinary but seems so effortless, the sign of a tremendous performer. The supporting casts is full of unknowns giving vivid character turns and old pros like John Lithgow and Brendan Fraser giving knockout cameos.

The wonderful, percussive score by the late Robbie Robertson, the sharp edits from the eternally gifted Thelma Schoonmaker and the vast landscapes captured by cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto are all Oscar worthy.

“Killers of the Flower Moon” is famously a film that has been gestating for years, as the original filming schedule was delayed due to the covid outbreak. Once the film completed shooting, years went by while Scorsese shaped his work.

RELATED: ‘COLOR OF MONEY’ LET SCORSESE GO HOLLYWOOD

Perhaps the most noteworthy creative decision was to alter the original narrative plan, which would have made Ernest and Mollie supporting characters, while a heroic federal agent (originally to be played by DiCaprio, eventually portrayed by Jesse Plemons) investigated the murders.

That’s fine, except we already have “Thunderheart” (1992) and don’t need the period piece equivalent.

What Scorsese and his crew have accomplished here was much tougher – instead of making this a police procedural, you have a character-driven story of how lying and hypocritical outsiders shared the same environment with indigenous people and succumbed to their greed and murderous tendencies.

Outside of the Osage people, it’s hard to deem any of the characters the protagonist, which is what makes this a Scorsese film.

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This is the deepest, angriest, richest and most risk-taking American movie I’ve seen about the suffering of Native Americans since Chris Eyre’s “Skins” (2002). Watching “Killers of the Flower Moon” and “Skins” back-to-back would make for an enlightening and tremendously affecting double feature.

Is “Killers of the Flower Moon” long? Of course, it is, as three and a half hours is a lot of movie. Is it too long? Nope.

The current ongoing discussion over whether an Intermission should have been a part of the film’s design (and not a well-intentioned act of contractual rebellion on the part of movie theater owners) is valid. However, the idea of an Intermission is such a 20th century concept that could presumably confuse some (wait, we can go to the bathroom, or do we just sit here?).

I still remember the “Planet Terror” portion of the wonderful “Grindhouse” (2007) concluding and audiences getting up to leave, as the double feature angle was lost on many. Perhaps encouraging audiences to “binge watch” is the only real option?

In full disclosure, this is the first Scorsese film with so many supporting characters and side villains, I did have some difficulty keeping track of who everyone is. There is a repetition to the second act, particularly in the obviously ominous presence of a drug that needs to be administered by needle. Some of “Killers of the Flower Moon” moseys along, but by the third act, the film is at a full gallop.

RELATED: SCORSESE’S ‘CAPE FEAR TRUMPS ORIGINAL

Much has been made of a “spanking” scene but the media attention to the moment is overstated. Far better is what is, outside of “Labyrinth” (1986), my favorite repeated use of an owl as a storytelling device. There’s also a scene in which a character mourns alone in a prison cell, while another character prays for him in the cell across from him – I can’t get into the specifics of the scene without spoilers but will say that it’s as painful to witness as anything I’ve seen from Scorsese and another nuanced character moment.

What to make of the final scene, in which the setting, period and even the storytelling device has radically changed? I liked it and it remined me of the ending of Spike Lee’s “Malcolm X” (1992), in the way its overstuffed but welcome and enormously heartfelt.

If this winds up being Scorsese’s final film, then that closer is going to hit even harder over time.

There is guilt in the film’s conscious and, clearly, Scorsese did his research. He also shapes another Wages of Sin drama, in which the good are punished and the evil are ultimately doomed. While deemed a Western, “Killers of the Flower Moon” is more a meditation on systemic corruption than a cowboy shoot ‘em up.

The material is so harrowing and drenched in historical sadness, and the running time is so demanding, this is a hard one to casually recommend. However, a handful of Scorsese’s films, ranging from “Silence,” his masterpiece, to “The Last Temptation of Christ” (1988) to “Kundun” (1997) and “The King of Comedy” (1983) are as out-of-character as they are unmissable.

Scorsese has never made the same film twice, which is why his gangster films are disconnected but distinct and personable. His latest is like a gangster film, really, in that it shows how the wrong people had a firm hand in shaping a rotten part of human history.

Like most of his incomparable body of work, I will be seeing this again, many times.

Three and a Half Stars

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Invincible Season 2 Review | There Is No Such Thing as Superhero Fatigue

With The Boys, and now Gen V, Prime Video have nailed the R-rated superhero formula. But another Prime Video show of the same variety that was initially overlooked by casual audiences is the equally brilliant superhero series, Invincible. It's easy to see why people may have ignored the show at first, considering many casual audiences label animation as a child's medium. But that's just nonsensical and unfair. Casual audiences truly don't know what they are missing out on with Invincible, and fortunately, the fervor over season two has shown that its fanbase is growing. It's a fascinating and high-stakes superhero story that offers many jaw-dropping twists and turns, leaving audiences who haven't read the comics utterly stunned. It lacks the crudity of The Boys, but it more than makes up for in its visceral action and incredibly high stakes.


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‘Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers’ Revived Sleeping Saga

Dwight H. Little’s “Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers” gives us the title card of “October 30th, 1988” before the opening credits even begin and quickly announces that the film’s star isn’t simply Donald Pleasance but The Shape himself.

Myers was absent from the once despised, now more appreciated “Halloween III: Season of the Witch” (1983), which has become the reappraised cult favorite of this franchise.

In the late ’80s, however, “Season of the Witch” was perceived as a middle finger to the fanbase (as opposed to a radical shift of format). The fans wanted Myers back, as well as Pleasance’s Dr. Loomis, the shudder-inducing theme music from John Carpenter and (eventually) Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode.

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The fourth “Halloween” was announced as a return to form and, for the most part, delivers on that promise. Little’s film arrived deep into the slasher movie cycle – Freddy was four movies in, Jason was on installment number seven, Norman Bates had three movies and Chucky was debuting the same year.

In “Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers,” The Shape has survived and is ascending on Haddonfield, Illinois, and so has Dr, Loomis, both scarred from the explosion at the end of “Halloween II” (1981).

Now, Myers is drawn to his niece, Jamie (Danielle Harris, in her film debut), whose mother is the late Laurie Strode (Curtis, seen only in a photograph). Jamie lives under the protection of her foster family, particularly Rachel (an appealing Ellie Cornell) who acts as an older sister.

Once Myers shows up, it seems that no one can protect Jamie, or even stay alive long enough to try.

FAST FACT: “Halloween 4” hardly rocked the box office back in 1988. The film earned $17 million in U.S. theaters, but that figure tripled its $5 million budget. The previous sequel, which deviated from the Michael Myers storyline, earned $14 million in 1982. 

Little’s 1988 film was the best of this era of the series, where Strode was absent (due to Curtis’ newfound career as an in-demand comedic actress) and Jamie and Loomis provided the human center. Some of this can feel mechanical and needlessly gory (clearly the lessons of “Season of the Witch” weren’t entirely taken into consideration).

Helping things a great deal is how strong Harris is – this is an exceptional performance for someone so young. Pleasance still gives his role his all, but Harris’ work cuts the deepest.

Logic comes and goes on a scene-to-scene basis, such as how Myers can survive just about anything and, despite being under wraps for a decade, can drive like a Hollywood stuntman.

The level of gore leans into the genre’s expectations and goes further than Carpenter would have a decade earlier. Nevertheless, Little’s film is mean, scary and suspenseful.

This is the strongest of the three Loomis/Jamie episodes, as the following “Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers” (1989) and “Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers” (1995) ended up, at best, interesting failures.

This is the best film from Little, who later directed the ambitious Robert Englund-led “Phantom of the Opera” (1989), the Steven Seagal vs. killer Jamaicans bonce cruncher “Marked For Death” (1990) and Brandon Lee’s first starring vehicle, the middle of the road “Rapid Fire” (1992).

Little’s approach to a Halloween movie results in a different look from Carpenter (Walter Hill collaborator Ric Waite is skillful but misses the color schemes of original cinematographer Dean Cundey).

Yet, even though it screws up by not opening with a pumpkin carving montage (!) and includes a mob of rednecks taking on Myers (!!), Little’s film is atmospheric and tells its pulpy tale well.

A third act stalk n’ slash leads to a gripping rooftop chase, then a mechanical car chase and into a mine shaft tumble that never felt like much of a climax. Just when you think “Halloween 4” is wrapping up, we get its true legacy – a final scene that is so punishing, jolting and truly shattering, it rejuvenates the entire film.

In fact, the powerful closing moment is so good, the lesser subsequent sequels avoided addressing it altogether. No matter, as this unforgettable closing shot is not only the ace up the film’s sleeve but a perfect full-circle moment for the franchise.

Little didn’t just reverse the reception of “Halloween III” but concluded a better-than expected sequel with the kind of shock that matches the terror of Carpenter’s original.

Bravo.

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31 Days of Horror – ‘Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead’

The list of sequels that lapped the originals teems with prime examples.

  • “The Godfather: Part II”
  • “The Empire Strikes Back”
  • “The Dark Knight”
  • “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan”

“Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead” deserves a place on that list, even though it’s not as beloved as those screen classics. But it has far more exposed intestines, no doubt.

The 2014 sequel to “Dead Snow” finds a better balance between horror and comedy. Plus, a bigger budget let the creative team run wild.

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This time, a team of idealistic Americans join the fun as amateur zombie hunters. They have their hands full as the Nazi goons from the first film aren’t done yet. The “Red” in the title refers to Russian zombies who join the splatter-filled mayhem, a bizarre rematch from World War II.

Plus, the survivor of the original “Dead Snow” (Vegar Hoel) is back, but the arm he severed to save himself from zombie poison has been replaced with a Nazi’s limb.

And it’s as evil as you imagine.

Director Tommy Wirkola returns for a sequel which ladles on the comical gore, and the addition of the hapless Americans makes for a giddy treat. 

Wirkola leaned on MMA fighters to portray the various zombies in the film, and their unique backgrounds aligned with the film’s comic spirit to perfection.

One thing we found on the first one with the extras is that it can be hard to get them to do cool stuff at times. But these guys—these guys were just insane. They’re so buff and crazy! They had a great mentality for fighting. You could get them to do crazy stuff as zombies.

31 Days of Horror:

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Pain Hustlers Review | A Placebo of a Movie

Pain Hustlers has all the makings of a "big deal movie." It is director David Yates' second non-Wizarding World feature since he entered the franchise in 2007 with Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (the other was 2016's The Legend of Tarzan). It features big stars like Emily Blunt, Chris Evans, Catherine O'Hara, and Andy Garcia, and it tackles a very important topic like the opioid crisis in a big splashy film that looks like a lot of your favorites... and that might be the biggest problem. It constantly reminds you of better movies you've seen before and does not feel like the best use of anyone's involved time.


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Sister Death Review | Netflix's Spanish Film Has Far Superior Nun Horror Than America

Back in 2017, a small Spanish horror movie titled Veronica dropped on Netflix to great praise. It was a haunting film with engaging characters and incredibly creepy imagery. While it's not the scariest movie of all time, it was certainly among the most unforgettable international horror movies of the past decade. With no prior evidence of a sequel or a spin-off of any kind, Netflix's upcoming Sister Death, set in the Veronica universe, was a big, yet welcome surprise.


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Freelance Review | Action-Comedy Falls Flat Despite John Cena's Starpower

With both a hard R-rating and wrestler-turned-Hollywood star John Cena and bombshell comedic genius Alison Brie involved in the new film Freelance, it's fair to expect gritty violence laced with dark and sexy humor, like if Rush Hour had a less kid-friendly MPAA rating. The Deadpool franchise comes to mind as an example, or even The Nice Guys. And the new action-comedy from Taken director Pierre Morel is rated R for "violence and language," though it probably could even have been rated PG, if the occasional blood spatter or F-words were omitted. The movie feels very harmless to a fault, especially since the sincere laughs are few and far between. It seems that fellow critics can agree that Freelance is a misfire for a number of reasons, and here's our take.


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Five Nights at Freddy’s Review: A Solid Mystery Worthy of the Blumhouse Brand

Mike Schmidt (Josh Hutcherson) lands a cushy security gig at a local pizzeria, and now all he has to do is survive Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNaF). The Hunger Games’ Hutcherson portrays the role of the newest employee at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, and director Emma Tammi’s horror film is based on the video game franchise of the same name. As it turns out, Hutcherson’s performance is one of the high points in Five Nights at Freddy’s, which does include all four of the game’s original characters: Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. Oh, and one of the Cupcakes is thrown in for good measure.


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‘Five Nights at Freddys’ Suffers Extreme Identity Crisis

Hollywood finally cracked the code on video game adaptations.

Gone are the days when John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins embarrassed themselves, and us, as those wacky plumbers circa 1993.

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Films like “Free Guy,” “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Uncharted” delivered at the box office by using the source material as a guide, not a crutch.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s” is a big step backwards.

The movie based on the enduring video game smash tries to be a standard-issue horror while also genuflecting to the fans.

The result? Neither camp will be satisfied.

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Josh Hutcherson gets the thankless role of Mike, the security guard assigned to the creepy Chuck E. Cheese-like shop at the heart of the game/story.

He’s responsible for his young sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), but he’s struggling to find a good-paying job.

A sleazy counselor (Matthew Lillard of “Scream” fame) steers Mike to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, an abandoned playhouse where animatronic beasts once entertained the public. The place is deserted, so it’s Mike’s job to ensure no one breaks in and trashes the joint.

Easy money, right?

What if those critters came to life and had an appetite for destruction?

“Freddy’s” sets Scott Cawthon’s video game elements in motion, but we’re given an extensive backstory of Mike’s grief over losing his brother at an early age. We also meet his Aunt Jane (Mary Stuart Masterson), eager to snatch custody of his sister from him.

Heady stuff, no? Why, it’s like the folks behind the film missed a chance to lean into the film’s wacky premise. 

Except that’s not completely true.

The second and third acts reveal some of the game’s campier elements, none of which can be accused of being, you know, scary.

That matters, right?

 

 
 
 
 
 
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The animatronic beasts are rendered with the appropriate F/X nuance, but director Emma Tammi (“The Wind”) can’t make their presence creepy or satisfying. Plus, a mid-movie twist makes them even less threatening, if that’s possible.

We get one visual shock worth our while, a shadowy kill that doesn’t betray the film’s PG:13 rating.

The story introduces a local police officer named Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) who bonds with Mike during his stay at Freddy’s. Is this a possible romance or just a way to add to the potential body count?

This cop has a secret, but the Mike / Vanessa pairing produces few sparks.

It all leaves “Five Nights as Freddy’s” irredeemably dull, something few would say about the source material. And the robots exhibit little in the way of personality, meaning we’re stuck with multiple beasts that move and act the same.

The one wrinkle? A pumpkin-like creature which looks cute enough until it pounces.

Yawn.

The screenplay, credited to Tammi along with Scott Cawthon and Seth Cuddeback, delivers some warm chuckles. Young Rubio’s sweet performance is another plus, raising the stakes at critical times.

Those moments get smothered by Mike’s dream-like visions that may or may not offer clues to the horrors awaiting him.

The film appears to be set in the 1990s, a distinction which offers little texture to the proceedings. We also get a few ’80s song staples, but that retro blast hardly makes it a “Wedding Singer”-style affair.

“Freddy’s” is a Halloween-themed release that’s more trick than treat.

HiT or Miss: “Five Nights at Freddy’s” can’t capture the frantic glee of the video game source material.

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Fellow Travelers Review: Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey Ignite the Screen

Between Matt Bomer, Jonathan Bailey, steamy romance scenes, and a story of forbidden love in McCarthy-era Washington, Fellow Travelers is bound to generate plenty of buzz. The absorbing new limited series, which hits Paramount+ and Showtime this weekend, blends an epic love story with a Washington DC political thriller to present a compelling drama about a secret romance between two very different men. You’ll quickly forgive some of the soapy melodrama that accompanies this outing because Bomer and Bailey electrify the screen, turning exceptional performances in a drama that is worthy of our attention. And the eyes of Emmy voters, perhaps.


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31 Days of Horror – ‘Trilogy of Terror’

Horror anthologies are all the rage, from the “V/H/S” series to the classic “Creepshow” template.

In 1975, actress Karen Black headlined a “Trilogy of Terror” that predated the trend. The TV movie did more than that.

It introduced us to a Zuni fetish doll which became a horror institution.

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Few folks discuss the first two segments of Black’s “Trilogy,” all of which sprang from the mind of author Richard Matheson. The first follows Black’s character, a lonely college professor, as she navigates a tumultuous date with one of her students.

The second gives Black two roles. She plays squabbling sisters with murder on their minds.

The third and final segment, “Amelia,” is the corker. The screenplay, actually penned by Matheson, follows a woman spending a quiet evening in her big-city apartment. She’s frustrated by a heated call with her controlling mother, and she opts to cancel a date with her beau for some solitude.

That means she can’t had her boyfriend his birthday gift, a Zuni fetish doll armed with a spear and necklace. The latter item, she’s told, is meant to keep the creature’s spirit in check.

So guess what falls off mid-segment?

The ensuing battle may be limited by the era’s special effects, but the effective edits and glorious sound design more than make up for those issues.

The power of that segment has made “Trilogy of Terror” a Halloween cult classic. And for very good reasons.

Black, who died in 2013, once told an interviewer how she helped shaped the now-iconic segment. Not only did she create dialogue on the fly she also shaped the look of the film’s final moments.

I also thought in order to look more like the doll at the end, I should have these little sharp teeth. The director, Dan, said that would look really silly and over done. But he said we’ll make them and see how they look. So the teeth were my idea. And then, when we shot it I put on the make-up that darkened my eyes to show there was a change in her.

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31 Days of Horror – ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ (1973)

TV-based horror evokes images from “Dark Shadows” and its cartoonishly bad effects.

The medium struggled to scare us for generations, with only a few notable exceptions. “The Night Stalker,” for example, had its moments. TV’s “It” miniseries featuring Tim Curry also outkicked the coverage, in genre terms.

Add “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark” to that microscopically small list.

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Kim Darby stars as Sally, a married woman who inherits an old home as the movie opens. The house’s basement-level fireplace has been aggressively sealed with bricks, per her late grandmother’s instructions.

Sally tries to pry the bricks free without much luck. Instead, she unbolts a metal door near the closed-off opening where she can access the fireplace’s ashes.

She inadvertently frees a group of nasty little demons who apparently have been trapped within the home for some time. The buggers quickly set their sights on attacking Sally, a game of cat and mouse with chilling consequences.

Yes, that’s Uncle Charley (AKA William Demarest) as the handyman who warns Sally about unsealing the fireplace.

The special effects are as clunky as anything from the early 1970s, but the creatures’ faces prove haunting all the same. Their whispery voices – ‘Sally, we waaaaaant you” – suggest she’s in for the fight of her life.

The made-for-TV production is only 80 or so minutes long, but it packs plenty of unsettling moments in that tight time span. Darby is effective as a woman who slowly realizes the evil forces pursuing her, and the film’s ending isn’t easily forgotten.

Guillermo del Toro co-wrote the 2010 remake, a film with flashier effects and few reasons to recommend it.

The original “Dark?” It’s a Halloween treat suitable for pre-teens eager for their first horror movie experience.

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Krishnas: Gurus, Karma, Murder | Review

Fans of true crime documentaries may get hooked on Krishnas: Gurus. Karma. Murder. The new three-part unscripted series, which just dropped on Peacock, offers a fascinating and often compelling in-depth look at the Hare Krishnas — from its earnest beginnings to its head-turning corruption and its curious rebirth. Executive produced by Joseph Freed, Allison Berkley, Tara Long, David Holthouse, and Tim Clancy, the time, money, and attention to detail that went into this outing is evident. And even though the docuseries follows similar, if not emotionally manipulative beats of similar docs — nothing like a dramatic music crescendo to grab you before fading to black — Krishnas: Gurus. Karma. Murder is a welcome surprise.


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31 Days of Horror – ‘Willow Creek’

“The Blair Witch Project” left an indelible mark on the horror genre.

That’s not a compliment.

The 1999 film introduced Hollywood to the “found-footage” gimmick, a way to tell horror stories at a dramatically reduced price point.

The technique proved a boon to indie filmmakers, years before tech advances made moviemaking less expensive. It still inspired a crush of lo-fi shockers that made us pine for tripods and dolly shots.

The genre is more or less dead today, and that’s good news. Still, the 2013 film “Willow Creek” proved how effective it could be in the right circumstances. And it took a “Police Academy” alum to prove that point.

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Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait’s film follows a couple seeking out the mysterious Bigfoot. He’s a filmmaker hoping to snag the ultimate coup — the big fella himself.

Or herself, perhaps?

She’s along for the ride, not knowing just how close they might get to the main attraction.

The dialogue, for once in a found-footage feature, doesn’t make you grind your teeth. Plus, we get to know the key players (Bryce Johnson and Alexie Gilmore make for a very believable couple). Goldthwait packs plenty of mischief along the way, examining Bigfoot culture as well as the couple in question.

The story holds together, in part, because we have a rooting interest in the main characters. That was no accident, according to the director.

That was one of the things that interested me in the movie. That you make these real people. That you empathize with them. In genre movies you usually not only hate the characters, you sometimes hate them so much that you hate the actors playing them.

Goldthwait, an uneven but interesting filmmaker, shot footage of Bigfoot believers and included them in his story. The comic-turned-filmmaker says he found inspiration from “Grizzly Man,” the acclaimed Werner Herzog documentary about a man with a profound love for bears.

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Provocative ‘Fair Play’ Doesn’t Play Fair

Chloe Domont’s “Fair Play” made a sensational debut at the January 2023 Sundance Film Festival, then made a belated premiere on Netflix this month.

Like any film festival favorite that premieres on a high-profile streaming site, there’s the danger of it being overshadowed by flashier fare.

Whether you’re fully on board with writer/director Domont’s take-no-prisoners thriller or (like myself) find the third act lacking plausibility, this is an admirable, risk-taking work that is worth seeing alone for the courageous performances of its stars, Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich.

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Luke (Ehrenreich) and Emily (Dynevor) work at a Manhattan hedge fund and manage to keep their passionate relationship a secret from their co-workers. While Luke works as Emily’s analyst and can’t seem to get the promotion he feels is within reach, Emily ascends to the upper ranks at the beckoning call of Campbell, her powerful, repulsive boss (a vividly despicable Eddie Marsan).

While Emily and Luke are business-only colleagues during the day, their romance and plans to further their relationship power their time alone together, hidden away in their apartment. The real trouble for them begins when the power dynamic between them shifts.

Imagine the setting of “Margin Call” combined with the uncomfortable frankness of “Marriage Story” and you have this movie. “Fair Play” is easy to admire and the two lead performances are stunning – Dynevor, a “Bridgerton” favorite, conveys the tortured path her character takes and Ehrenreich (“Solo: a Star Wars Story”) matches her scene for scene.

While the film may cause some to declare it feminist, Domont is actually exploring how a terrible work environment inwardly destroys both of its protagonists in different ways. Yes, by the film’s end, Luke has sunk to a new low but so has Emily, who mirrors her vile boss in the film’s painful final moment.

Picking sides isn’t the point here – this isn’t the “Barbie” movie.

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The opening scene, both outrageous and tender, had me hooked. The film manages to sustain enough suspense over whether Emily and Luke’s relationship will become an HR cautionary tale or remain hidden from their cruel co-workers.

The early intrigue falls prey to contrivance and showy actor set pieces don’t ring true. How is it that the company car picks up Emily in the morning and never notices Luke walking out of the same building just seconds after her?

Who on Earth would actually go to the climactic wedding party that acts as a last stand for the protagonists?

FAST FACT: Netflix gobbled up the rights to “Fair Play” for a reported $20 million after the film wowed a Sundance Film Festival crowd.

Also, my biggest complaint: that in-the-office freakout that causes a main character to be fired. I didn’t buy it for a second and only admired the actors for going through with it. If anything, a scene that occurs earlier, where a character literally gets down on his knees and lays everything on the line for his boss, is far more plausible and painful.

When Domont is connecting her characters to unearthed emotional honesty, it’s as harrowing as it intends to be. However, when she stacks the melodrama and public embarrassments to the breaking point, “Fair Play” doesn’t play fair.

I understand why the lead couple wouldn’t be discovered in the laboratory of the opening scene but that drawn out shocker in the third act? There’s no way someone wouldn’t have interrupted them.

Domont doesn’t need to spell out all her points, but some issues get lost, like a massive check that is neglected in favor of nighttime debauchery and how, from what we see here, anyone who succeeds at this company will eventually become a monster.

Oliver Stone’s “Wall Street” (1987) is better is making this setting a moralistic cautionary tale, and Meera Menon’s “Equity” is better at depicting how differently and unfairly women are treated in an environment of toxic males in suits.

Dynevor and Aldenreich made me care about Emily and Luke, even when they disappoint one other and us, but “Fair Play” eventually lost me by nudging me in the ribs with its over-the-top dramatics.

As a conversation piece, Domont and her stars have really come up with something, but this is also the kind of unpleasant, mean and cold boardroom drama that you watch once, tops.

Two and a Half Stars

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31 Days of Horror – ‘Crawl’

Crocodiles don’t get the genre love that sharks do, but Hollywood still finds something scary about the critters.

Modern croc romps like “Rogue,” “Lake Placid” and “Black Water” stoked our fears of these scaly beasts. We’re still waiting for the crocodile equivalent of “Jaws,” the movie that sets the bar impossibly high for the sub-genre.

“Crawl” didn’t do the trick, but it’s still a creature feature worth your while.

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Kaya Scodelario stars as Haley, a collegiate swimmer who returns home to check on her estranged father (Barry Pepper). A major tropical storm is threatening his neighborhood, and she wants to make sure he’s prepared.

Good call.

Not only is Dad incapacitated, but the waters flooding his neighborhood bring some unwanted visitors into his home.

Crocs. And boy, are they famished.

The father-daughter dynamic keeps the croc-free sequences fresh, and setting much of the movie in the flooded home’s crawl space proved a stroke of genius.

Director Alexandre Aja (“High Tension,” the “Hills Have Eyes” remake) shared his secret to films like “Crawl” and how he tried to upend genre cliches in the process.

I think it’s a key of survival movies is when you expect something, something else happens and everything goes wrong every time. And so you really, really feel that they have no chance to make it to the end of the day.

“Crawl” sounds like something the Syfy network might crank out on the tiniest budget possible, but the horror flick had two powerful friends. The first is “Evil Dead” legend Sam Raimi, who instantly warmed to the script and served as a producer on the project.

The other?

 Quentin Tarantino said “Crawl” just might be his favorite film of 2019, the same year “Jojo Rabbit,” “Joker” and “Uncut Gems” hit theaters.

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Life on Our Planet Creators Preview New Netflix Nature Series at Amblin

With Steven Spielberg's name stamped on your project, you're already off to a solid start. Life on Our Planet is fortunate enough to have the blessing of the Oscar-winning filmmaker as an executive producer. Not to be confused with the biographical 2020 film about nature presenter David Attenborough (A Life on Our Planet), this is an exciting new nature docuseries about to drop on Netflix, a sort of follow-up installment to the acclaimed Our Planet that debuted on the popular streamer back in 2019. Clips from this new series were just showcased to a press crowd — MovieWeb included — during the lead-up to its premiere this week.


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Butcher's Crossing Review | Nicolas Cage's Merciless Buffalo Hunt

A naive Harvard dropout gets a life lesson in brutality on a dangerous quest to hunt buffalo in the 1870s. Butcher's Crossing, adapted from the classic Western novel by John Edward Williams, is a parable of greed, arrogance, and humanity's unquenchable thirst for blood. Stunning landscapes are stained by the slaughter of the majestic animals' skinned carcasses. The price of their thick hides are worth any risk to the foolhardy willing to follow them. Good performances overcome a somewhat rote narrative with uneven pacing. A solid second act emphasizes character development and lifts the film from several stumbling blocks.


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The Killer Review | David Fincher and Michael Fassbender's Existential Assassin Thriller

David Fincher brings his thrilling auteur vision to a procedural actioner bursting at the seams with existential philosophy. The Killer, adapted from the French graphic novels by Alexis Nolent and illustrator Luc Jacamon, follows an assassin on a globetrotting mission of bloody vengeance. The plot is a genre standard, but the execution takes a simple narrative to bolder heights. The Killer has constant voiceover narration, which is usually the sign of a weak script. That's not the case here as a deeply introspective protagonist explains the nuances of his murderous methodology. Fascinating character dynamics, along with brutal violence and a truly unique score, will have you glued to the screen.


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‘Halloween H20: 20 Years Later’ Should Have Ended Franchise for Good

Steve Miner’s “Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later” (1998) opens with “Mr. Sandman” by The Chordettes (as did “Halloween II”) and a pumpkin being stabbed with a large kitchen knife.

The filmmakers are telling us, after the murky world-building of “Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers” (1995), we’re back to John Carpenter’s stripped-down, original vision.

Set on October 29th, 1998, we’re introduced to a charismatic young Joseph Gordon-Levitt (during his “3rd Rock from the Sun” years). An investigation inside a foreboding house leads to the discovery that Michael Myers is alive and still searching for his sister.

It’s a scary, fittingly disturbing start, as we witness how cops are just seconds away from an intervention that could have saved someone’s life.

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The effective opening credits (which cleanly lay out the story for newcomers and exhibit John Ottman’s hefty orchestral take on Carpenter’s classic keyboard score) connect us to the legacy of the 1978 original. Yet, Miner’s film was made so long ago, it has a credit that reads, “Introducing Josh Hartnett.”

Jamie Lee Curtis returns as Laurie Strode for the first time since “Halloween II” (1981), in which Michael Myers, her masked serial killer brother, blew up in a hospital hallway and subsequently burned to death after that (he’s famously hard to kill).

Now, Strode is living in Summer Glen, California, under the identity of “Keri Tate,” the headmaster of Hillcrest Academy High School. Her relationship with a colleague, played by Adam Arkin, is certainly passionate but cloaked in deception, as Strode has instructed her son (Hartnett) to keep her real name a secret.

This is the best “Halloween” sequel to date, as it’s as atmospheric and suspenseful as the superior entries, but also really exciting.

Curtis is excellent here. Between this and David Gordon Green’s dramatically strong 2018 “Halloween,” the Oscar winner gave performances worthy of comparison to Sigourney Weaver’s decades-long return to Ellen Ripley in the “Alien” quadrilogy.

The lingering controversy this generated comes from fans unhappy with the mask, which varies in appearance and has disheveled hair (apparently, Myers doesn’t take good care of his William Shatner mask).

The best thing about “Halloween: H20” is that it’s Curtis’ gift to longtime fans seeking closure, narratively and commercially. The worst thing? The film arrived after 1996’s “Scream” and feels slick and safe, with the teen peril as overly familiar as it was a decade earlier.

Scream” author Kevin Williamson made an uncredited contribution to the screenplay, but his fingerprints are all over this. From the shot of Leavitt cheekily wearing a hockey mask to “Scream 2” playing in a dorm room, the scenes that try the hardest to appeal to the demographic are the ones that are the most dated and predictable.

The grownups are far more fleshed out and interesting than the hickey and flannel-obsessed teens. Aside from the aforementioned scenes that don’t take place at the school, the stalk n’ slash sequences here are generic, until we get to Strode deciding to face her brother.

Like the exhilarating moment in “Aliens” (1986) where Weaver’s Ripley has hit her limit in fear and transforms into a fierce warrior, the Strode vs. Myers portion of this is thrilling and worth waiting for the cliches (dropped keys, a car that won’t start, etc.) to cease.

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The teen characters are only interesting because of who is playing them, as budding Hartnett and the eventually brilliant Michelle Williams are joined by “Little Man Tate” star Adam Hann-Byrd and onetime teen star Jodi Lynn O’Keefe.

There’s also LL Cool J, awkwardly included but sticking out in a comic relief role that never really takes (he would be much better utilized the following year in Renny Harlin’s “Deep Blue Sea”).

Arkin works well to bring grounded reality to Curtis’s character – the sad, quiet scene where Strode admits who she really is beautifully written and acted. Gordon Green’s 2018 sequel/reboot dug into Strode’s psychology far deeper, but this wisely portrays her as an alcoholic with PTSD and a focus on work to distract from the boogeyman who may still be out there.

There’s also a small role for Janet Leigh, who is adorable and forceful in the two scenes she shares and steals from Curtis – considering that this was her final film and that she exits to the faint strains of Bernard Hermann’s “Psycho” score on the soundtrack, this is a fine tribute.

In addition to the chilling opener, there’s a terrifying scene in the first act, set in a rest stop. Between this, “Friday the 13th Part 2” (1981) and “House” (1986), Miner (despite not being a showy or nuanced filmmaker) is good at straightforward horror.

RELATED: ‘HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION’ MARKED FRANCHISE’S LOW POINT

Unfortunately, Miner’s double whammy of a climax (both the violent cat and mouse game and the wild closing moment) would be undermined and retconned by the unwelcome and needless sequel, “Halloween: Resurrection” (2002).

If you pretend that movie doesn’t exist (and for that matter, that only this and Carpenter’s ’78 classic are it for the series), the ending plays even better.

The jaw-dropping final moment of “Halloween: H20” is a perfect, abrupt and entirely satisfying conclusion to both the film and everything that came before it. Greed kept this franchise going but true inspiration and a literal bold swing allowed this series to end on a strong note in ’98 but…evil never dies, so we will be seeing Michael Myers again.

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31 Days of Horror – ‘X’

Slasher films once obsessed over sex.

The genre’s young, attractive victims had plenty of it, or they shed their clothes before getting impaled by the nearest sharp object.

Director Ti West understands that not-so-rich history and tweaks it via his sturdy horror film “X.”

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A group of pretty, ambitious teens seek a place to shoot an adult movie in the late 1970s. The VHS revolution is about to upend the American marketplace, and these horny friends hope to take advantage of it.

A star or two may be born, they hope. Too bad they shoot the project in an abandoned home owned by an elderly couple with anger control issues.

Mia Goth gets two juicy roles – the adult film ingenue and one half of the elderly couple. Yes, her makeup is both extensive and effective, one of many creepy factors working in the film’s favor.

West’s horror efforts rely on a slow-burn principle — viewers must be patient while the horrific details slowly assemble before them. “X” is different, if only due to the on-screen nudity and colorful banter between the leads.

We’re plenty distracted before the body count starts to rise.

The film honors classic horror movies like “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” while acknowledging the ties between sex and death in the genre. Plus, West set the story during a specific time in U.S. cultural history.

With Texas, I wanted this sense of the entrepreneurial Americana of the late ’70s and being an outsider filmmaker trying to break into an industry — whether it’s horror or porn. I just wanted to get that sort of entrepreneurial go-getter spirit of it. It just felt like the place to do that. I knew it would be about a bunch of people going to a place to do something.

The director envisioned “X” as part of a horror trilogy. We’ve already seen “Pearl,” a modest shocker featuring Goth as the youthful version of the character she plays in “X.” “MaXXXine” has no release date as of yet, but it follows Goth’s “X” character as she attempts to become a star in ’80s era America.

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