Ooh, people. I have had it with aphids. I thought I eradicated them two weeks ago. Not only did they spring back, but the cure did as much damage as the bugs. You’d cry if you saw the way the leaves are chewed through. The second treatment went on Sunday. Until that takes hold I’ll be smooshing the little buggers one by one. I am become Death, destroyer of aphids.
Let’s have some horror mini-reviews.
Poltergeist (1982) – 3 – Painfully slow first half and an intense and interesting second half. I’m fascinated by how pacing has changed in the past half-century. I couldn’t even watch Becket, and I love the screenplay so much I must have read it six times. This may be the last movie on my checklist of must-see, genre-defining early works. (“Early”, heh.) I don’t feel compelled to watch any sequels.
Dagon (2001) – 2 – Both elevated and damaged by a yapping nerd of a protagonist. Missable.
Lost Tribe (2010) – 3 – Engaging but frustrating. There’s nothing here you couldn’t find done better in another movie, although the exact permutation of elements is unique. Did you like The Descent but wish it starred yuppies with a side of Evil Catholics? Okay then.
Necrosis (2010) – 3 – I’ve seen worse entries in this category (young adults go to remote cabin to vacation/be slaughtered). Don’t be put off (or encouraged) by the historical opener; the rest of the movie doesn’t touch it. Worth it for James Kyson Lee.
Daybreakers (2009) – 4 – This might be the widest-released movie I’ve seen lately, and to be unfair to the others, the budget difference shows. This has a sleek, stylish look, decent acting across the board, and is stuffed with neat ideas. The final piece of the world-building puzzle is a weird one, but it didn’t ruin the picture for me. More action than horror.
Beneath the Dark (2010) – 3 – Category: young couple checks into creepy motel. This has much to commend it and many flaws. It doesn’t work, but it doesn’t suck. It makes me want to pat the movie on the head and bless it for trying.
Amanda C. Davis 
April 24, 2011 at 3:35 pm
Hello,
I swung by your page because I enjoyed your story in Arcane magazine, and I just had to say howdy to someone who has links to both comics curmudgeon and cake wrecks. Anyway, congrats on a ripping good yarn. (I tried to send a message on the contact page, but it didn’t like my email address)
April 24, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Hey, thanks! I just got my contrib copy today, so I’m looking forward to reading yours. Cheers!
April 28, 2011 at 11:18 am
And I liked it! Is the Blue Candle Society a mythos element?
April 28, 2011 at 2:58 pm
Thanks! I wouldn’t call the society much of a mythos element, really. The stories that use the society only really hang out at the ragged edges of being Lovecraftian. I’ve written something of a series, and if I hewed to closely to Cthulu-esque, all my continuing characters would be dead or insane by now. having already bought bluecandlesociety.net for my blog, though, I was tempted to also get bluecandlesociety.org and set up a page for the organization – career opportunities, maps to local offices, that sort of thing 🙂
April 29, 2011 at 11:51 am
Oh, okay! I just wondered if it was an original Lovecraft element or one of yours. I’ll have to keep an eye out for any other BCS stories that get picked up.
April 25, 2011 at 7:43 pm
By the way, ironically enough, last summer I suffered an infestation of ladybugs. They were all over the place, ambling around, getting underfoot, and dozing on window sills. If that happens again, I can try shooing them in your direction, but I doubt it will work. They failed to respond to the traditional chant telling them that their house was on fire last Summer – Lord knows what it would take to motivate the lazy bastards.
April 26, 2011 at 7:57 am
Ladybugs! We used to vacuum them up and then flush them down the toilet. But what I wouldn’t give for three or four of them right now.