One amazing sequence in Succubus (2024).

I'm talking about the Ron Perlman film, not the Russian film. I did watch both and I was hoping for a lot more but one particular part was so awesome I think I love this movie. If you watch it, you'll know what I mean and then probably hate me for watching it but damn that's what I wanted to see. I wish they didn't go the modern tech route and I wish there was female nudity (it is a succubus movie after all) but that one sequence kinda makes up for everything. I wish the main guy was likeable or there wasn't so many shots of screens but when you finally get the real succubus, it delivers. I love the makeup and FX. I just wish there was a lot more of that in the movie. And they could've done so much more with Ron Perlman. He would have been a better main character or at least more interesting. A "trial separation" husband taking care of a baby at home is an odd choice to go hunting for tail online and find a succubus on a dating site... but again that one sequence blew me away. And hey, it's hard to make a good movie especially writing. I would be curious to see behind the scenes to understand why they chose that direction but that set piece made up for nearly everything in my mind. Yes, I'm an idiot and I've seen far too many succubus movies but none had anything remotely as awesome as that. You can see what I mean below. This scene definitely inspired me. The makeup is like Tim Curry in Legend.

Review: Cronos (1993)

This is my favorite Guillermo del Toro film. I really like Hellboy and its sequel, but The Devil's Backbone didn't do much for me. Mimic isn't even really his movie since it got screwed with so much, which explains why it was disappointing, and I have yet to see his director's cut. I enjoyed Blade II though and Pan's Labyrinth had some amazing moments (like the scene with the Pale Man that preys on kids), but nothing comes close to Cronos for me. Maybe Pacific Rim will change that (I can't fuckin wait), but Guillermo's first feature is a masterpiece, turning the vampire movie on its head, and it also has my favorite Ron Perlman performance. He's so much fun in this movie. I was afraid Cronos might be a bit boring, but it wasn't at all. At 94 min, the time flies by, but besides the excellent pacing, what makes it work so well is you care about the characters. Essentially, it's the story of a grandfather and granddaughter finding a device that grants immortality but at a cost. Of course, they're not the only ones who want it. Soon two men come looking for it: an obsessed, rich madman who is dying and his psycho nephew. The real heart of the story is the relationship of the grandfather and granddaughter, but I'm sure I should emphasize again: it's NOT boring. It's just a damn good film with beautiful cinematography, an excellent score, outstanding performances, etc. Sure, it's not really scary, but that obviously wasn't the intention. Just watch it. This is the kind of movie Hollywood would never make now. You got to have young attractive stars especially in your horror films. An old man as the lead? Not happening. It's a shame too, because this is what we're missing out on. What's really ridiculous is the other poster for the film. Guess what it has on it? A hot semi-naked girl who isn't even remotely in the movie. That's marketing for you. I'm partly to blame too since I did think it might be boring, but in my defense, that is because The Devil's Backbone almost put me to sleep (I wasn't tired, and I was actually looking forward to it... the characters and the story just didn't hook me). Cronos is amazing though so if you haven't seen it, hunt it down. It might still be on Netflix although they screwed up the framerate when I saw it on there, but I'm definitely buying it the next chance I get.