Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: When they were kids, Doug McAllister and Ronald "Griff" Griffin, Jr. dreamed of making movies together. However, as adults, Griff is a struggling actor, and Doug makes wedding videos for a living while their two friends, Kenny and Claire are also facing their own mid-life rut. When Griff tells them he has obtained the rights to remake their favorite film, Anaconda , they decide to go to Brazil and do it. Things start out well, but they soon find themselves in a real-life version of the film as a giant snake stalks them and they find additional danger after stumbling upon an illegal goldmining operation. Who's in it? The movie stars Jack Black , Paul Rudd , Steve Zahn , Thandiwe Newton, Selton Mello and Daniela Melchior. Review: After watching the original Anaconda for the first time a few days ago, I decided to give 2025 reboot a shot tonight. I was, admittedly, a bit skeptical based both on the plot and it being more of a comedy. However, Jack Black usually...

Synopsis: On Valentine's Day in 1997, Tom Hanniger forgets to vent the methane lines at his father's coal mine and causes an explosion that traps six of the miners. One of the trapped miners, Harry Warden, kills the other five to conserve oxygen and, after waking up from a 1-year-long coma, goes on a killing spree before being buried alive in one of the mineshafts. Ten years later, the long-absent Tom returns to his hometown after his father's death to sell the mine only to become a suspect when a killer dressed in a gas mask and mining attire begins a new wave of murders. Who's in it? The movie stars Jensen Ackles , Jaime King , Betsy Rue, Kerr Smith and Tom Atkins . Review: I had planned on taking my wife out for Valentine's Day last night, but it was my mom's birthday and after celebrating that, along with my wife needing to run some errands, we decided to just stay in. After a few minutes of consideration, I decided to "celebrate" by re-watching...

Synopsis: When crazed killer Billy Lenz escapes the mental institution on Christmas Eve, he makes a path straight for his childhood home. Unfortunately for the sorority sisters of Delta Alpha Kappa, his former house is now their sorority house. With police assistance at least two hours away because of the heavily falling snow, they are forced to find a way to survive on their own. Who's in it?  The movie stars Katie Cassidy , Michelle Trachtenburg, Lacey Chabert , Robert Mann and Andrea Martin . Review: While there have been exceptions to the rule, I've found most horror movie remakes tend to fall flat when compared to the original. There are some, however, that are still better than others and I would put Black Christmas in that very specific category of not living up to the original but still being watchable. There were a couple things I found I liked about this movie. The main one was Mann's pretty convincing performance as the lunatic Billy Lenz. He had just the righ...

Synopsis:  A 10-year-old Michael Myers is sent to a sanitarium after murdering a school bully, his older sister and her boyfriend. After Michael murders a nurse, his mother commits suicide, and he remains alone in the sanitarium for 15 years. An adult Michael then escapes and begins tracking down his baby sister, Angel, who, unbeknownst to her, was secretly adopted and is living under a new name, Laurie Strode.  Who’s in it? The movie stars Malcolm McDowell , Scout Taylor-Compton , Danielle Harris , Bill Moseley , Danny Trejo and Tyler Mane . Review : My wife and I originally saw this movie when it came out in theaters in 2007. I have since seen it a few more times and, while my overall opinion of the movie has changed a bit, I do still think it is one of the better horror movie remakes. This film does exactly what a remake should. It kept the same concept as the original, modernized it so a younger generation could relate and added enough original content to the film to mak...

Synopsis:  Charley Brewster travels with his friends to Romania to study European artwork as part of a college class. Shortly after arriving, however, he discovers his professor is really infamous vampire Elizabeth Bathory. By the time he convinces his friends he isn’t crazy, it’s already too late and it is up to him to rescue his girlfriend with the help of a reality show vampire hunter. Who's in it?  The movie stars Will Payne, Jaime Murray, Sean Power, Sacha Parkinson and Chris Waller. Review: I had to wait even later than usual for my daughter to get done with theater rehearsal so, in an effort to stay awake, I decided to re-watch Fright Night 2 . The film, much like the first time I watched it, proved to be a surprisingly good choice. The title of the movie is deceptive. Instead of a sequel, as the number 2 would suggest, it is in fact a remake of the 1985 movie set in a different location. When I realized this the first time I watched it, I had some serious doubts. How...

Synopsis: As college students, Andy and Vicky McGee took part in a research project involving a special chemical designed to enhance their psychic abilities and the experiment had powerful results, both for them and their daughter, Charlie, who is able to set things on fire with her mind, often as a result of impulse because of her young age and her powers still have the potential to grow. Already hiding from DSI, the company that gave them their abilities, the family finds itself in danger when Charlie accidentally sets off an explosion at school and draws attention to their whereabouts. Who's in it? The movie stars Zac Efron , Ryan Kiera Armstrong ,  Sydney Lemmon ,  Michael Greyeyes and  Gloria Reuben . Review: As I have gotten older, I have grown less interested in watching remakes of popular movies from my childhood, especially movies that are basically the same plot with different actors. However, it has been a long time since I saw the 1984 version of this mov...

Synopsis: Louise murders her wealthy but abusive husband, John Haloran and disposes of his body in a lake as part of a plan to steal his family's fortune during an annual memorial for his deceased sister, Kathleen. However, her plan faces obstacles from both a masked axe-carrying killer and Kathleen's ghost. Who's in it? The movie stars Julia Campanelli , Channing Pickett , Marianne Noscheze , Ana Isabelle and Christian Ryan . Review: I watched the 1963 original roughly a year ago and ended up enjoying that Francis Ford Coppola film so much, I was interested in seeing the remake. I finally got around to doing that tonight and enjoyed it more than expected. While I would hesitate to say it was the better of the two films, I did think the modern special effects, especially when it came to Kathleen's ghost, added a little something extra to this version. There were some surprisingly creepy scenes in this movie, ranging from the shadow hand that quietly appears to tho...

Synopsis : After escaping an abusive relationship with wealthy optics engineer Adrian Griffin, Cecilia Kass hides out with a police detective and his daughter. When Adrian kills himself and leaves her a $5 million apology, Cecilia finally begins to feel free. However, a series of strange occurrences make her believe Adrian is still alive, invisible, and tormenting her. Who's in it? The movie stars Elisabeth Moss , Aldis Hodge , Storm Reid , Oliver Jackson-Cohen and Michael Dorman . Review: I had some serious doubts about this film when I first saw previews for it, but my wife was interested in seeing it, so I ended up adding it to our Netflix DVD queue. After watching it last night, I quickly realized my doubts were confirmed. I will start out by saying Elisabeth Moss put on an excellent performance in this movie. Her portrayal of Cecilia as a woman who was trying to regain her life after an abusive relationship was very believable. Unfortunately, the rest of the movie just doesn...