Movies That Rock Pt. 1

Since this will be a recurring theme in my blog posts, I figured I'd give my movie reviews a title of sorts. I'm not sold on "Movies That Rock" so if you have suggestions, email me! Three movies to get through this time so let's jump in.

First up is Scream 4. I am a big fan of the Scream series but, like any avid movie watcher, I'll admit 2 and 3 were nowhere near as good as the original. 4, on the other hand, takes the franchise back to glory. In true Scream fashion, it starts out by making fun of how cheesy movie intros are lately BY DOING THE SAME THINGS! The premise of Scream 4 is that Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is trying to put her bloody history behind her with the help of her first book about surviving the Ghostface Killer and the celebrity status that she gained from it. All the favorites are back (SHERIFF Dewey Riley (David Arquette), Gail Weathers (Courtney Cox)) plus plenty of new faces like Alison Brie as Sidney's younger cousin, Rebecca, and Hayden Panettiere, as her friend Kirby. It's all the campy horror you expect from a Scream movie with a solid story and more twists than the first 3 combined!

Next on the list is The Collector. The movie centers around Arkin. They don't go into much detail but at some point he served time and is a master safe cracker. At the beginning of the movie he is working as a locksmith working on the new home of a rich family. In need of money, he decides to steal a large diamond from the house while the family is on vacation only to discover something sinister. The family is being held hostage by a masked psychopath. Arkin has to decide whether to take the money and run or save the family from certain doom. Excellent camera work, building suspense, and plenty of SAW-esque gore make this a must see for any horror fan.

And last on this edition, THOR! Finally got around to seeing this one last night and it was great! Thor is the Norse god of thunder. On the day he was to be named king, enemies invade the castle and due to Thor's overreaction his father is forced to strip him of his power and banish him from Asgard to Midgard (the realm of man, or Earth). We then find the attack was no coincidence and Thor must find his human side before he can regain his power and save both his world and our own. Not a ton of fighting but plenty of awesome visuals and a very solid story. I saw the movie in 3D but I feel like 2D would have been fine. (Geek Info: This is another piece of the Avengers saga that began with Hulk and Iron Man and will continue with Captain America).

So there you go, a slasher, a psycho thriller, and a Marvel hero flick. All three great in their own ways.