A new thing that I am starting is to watch as many movies as possible in a week. I've been focusing my attention on de-stressing and taking time for myself throughout the week. Part of this is breaking up routine with things that I enjoy. The best break for me is watching movies.

In the coming weeks, I will re-watch old classics, see new horror and experience recent releases. The goal is to not watch only new movies but to also watch films I haven't seen in a while.

I will post brief impressions and reviews here... if you hate spoilers, better to not read (although I will keep them to a minimum)

This week:

What We Become
A Danish zombie movie. Slowly everyone in a smalltown becomes quarantined and it is unclear who is infected and who is clean.
This sticks to every zombie method: bleak apocalypse.
Spoiler alert: this doesn't end as happy as most zombie movies. That's the calling card, in my opinion.
The effects (makeup, practical, digital) were all solid -- but I do wish there were more of them.
2.5 stars. Although I really enjoyed the plot and the visuals, this lacked anything special.

A Dark Song
A grieving mother consults an occultist in an attempt for vengeance. The occultist takes this woman through rituals in order to see her son.
This is cinematically... pretty. The sound is fantastically eerie and the dialogue is solid. The part where this one lost me is with some of the visuals of the alternate realms and explanation of the rites. At points, it was unclear which part of the ritual the two were partaking in and it left me questioning that instead of paying attention to the plot unfolding on the screen. This was both distracting and made the pacing feel to loose.
2 stars. The plot was original and although visually stunning, the ending felt rushed and lackluster.

The Babysitter
Comedic gore gold.
Parents go away for the weekend quite a bit and leave their preteen son with a hot, feisty, yet super sweet babysitter. She's seemingly attentive except...The Babysitter has a dark secret: she's the leader of a pack of satanists.

I love this Babysitter: she's relatably nerdy and a babe, yet makes deals with the devill. Lots of references to cult classics: red bikini-clad babe in the family pool à la Fast Times at Ridgemont High. A sequence of the babysitter and preteen acting out western shoot-out scenes from Billy Jack. Arguments about Star Trek. A preteen boy watching his babysitter play a round of spin the bottle. Human sacrifice...

I adore this one. 4 stars. It's original, smart, and fun. Highly recommend if you're into comedic horror.

The Imitation Game
I am behind the "game" with this one, but here we are.

This movie is pretty... standard. It's somewhat predictable and simple except for Benedict Cumberbatch's Alan who is exceptionally played. Alan's story is more important and compelling to me than the main plot thread.