Insidious
Netflix Streaming
DVD | Blu-Ray
Directed by James Wan
Written by Leigh Whannell
Starring Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins, Barbara Hershey, Lin Shaye, Andrew Astor, Leigh Whannell, Angus Sampson
FilmDistrict
Originally Released: April 1, 2011

The creative team behind Insidious, Leigh Whannell and James Wan (from my home country Australia), has done it again in the horror genre with a new take on some traditional ghost stories and horror plot devices. With a solid plot, some convincing performances from a great cast, and fantastic lighting and camera work, Insidious stands up as not only a decent firm horror movie, but as a nightmare personified.

Limitless
Netflix Streaming
DVD | Blu-Ray
Directed by Neil Burger
Screenplay written by Leslie Dixon
Based on The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn
Starring Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Abbie Cornish, Anna Friel, Johnny Whitworth
Rogue Pictures
Originally Released: March 18, 2011

Limitless is a science fiction wolf in a sheep’s clothing of a thriller. At first glance, its twists and turns evoke a deep thriller feel, but its basis lies in the realm of sci-fi. Bradley Cooper plays Eddie Morra, a struggling author dealing with a frustrating inability to focus on his new novel, competing with an overwhelming urge for procrastination. But a chance meeting with an old acquaintance will revolutionize everything.

Pearl Jam Twenty
Netflix Streaming
DVD | Blu-Ray
Written and Directed by Cameron Crowe
Starring Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, Matt Cameron, Chris Cornell, Kurt Cobain, Neil Young
Tremolo Productions
Originally Released: September 10, 2011

As a rock fan and metalhead, it’s hard for me to imagine in many ways that Pearl Jam is celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. The time, in my mind’s eye, has flown; but the more I think about it, the more I consider how much this band has been a part of my passion for music… something evidently experienced by other fans as portrayed in Pearl Jam Twenty.

When Pearl Jam was only just starting to achieve international recognition, I was entering my teens. Music was in a transitional period, as far as rock was concerned. In the background, you had your harder edged thrash bands (and up and coming death metal groups) there, consistent with their attack. In the forefront you had the glam and the rock of the 1980s – but not for long…

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night
Netflix Streaming
DVD | Blu-Ray
Directed by Kevin Munroe
Written by Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer
Based on the comic series by Tiziano Sclavi
Starring Brandon Routh, Sam Huntington, Anita Briem, Peter Stormare, Marco St. John, Kurt Angle, Taye Diggs
Freestyle Releasing
Originally Released: April 29, 2011

Kevin Monroe‘s take on the comic series Dylan Dog, first created by Italian talent Tiziano Slavi, only bears some resemblance to its origins, but is at moments a film based in fun with a wide variety of homages.

Added to Netflix’s streaming selection quite literally just before Thanksgiving, Dylan Dog: Dead Of Night is the category of flick to watch if you enjoy movies in the vein of Indiana Jones or detective mysteries. The feature is essentially a tip of the hat to old style film-noir detective/mystery movies, based within the world of monsters and the unnatural.

The Serpent And The Rainbow
Netflix Streaming
DVD
Directed by Wes Craven
Written by Richard Maxwell and Adam Rodman
Based on the novel by Wade Davis
Starring Bill Pullman, Cathy Tyson, Zakes Mokae
Universal Pictures
Originally Released: February 5, 1988

After taking a look at a couple of documentaries for our Netflix review series, I concluded it was time to jump back into something a little more familiar for me: Horror. Recently added to the Netflix streaming collection, The Serpent And The Rainbow is a classic horror movie in the true sense of the word “classic” – it hearkens in the past to an age where overrated frights and intense gore was not necessarily a part of the genre.