Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: After one of his laid-off employees kills himself in front of him, Zach goes to a bar to settle his nerves and ends up buying a drink for a woman there, Julia. A couple days later, he goes on a belated honeymoon with his wife, Emmy, in Italy that includes a hot air balloon ride over the Dolomites. To his surprise, Julia, who has been texting him blackmail messages, shows up as a third passenger. When Zach doesn't cave to her threats, Julia snaps and causes havoc that results in damage to the balloon and the death of the pilot. Meanwhile, Emmy begins growing suspicious of Zach when he tells her Julia is lying. Who's in it? The movie stars Hera Hilmar, Jeremy Irvine, Olga Kurylenko, Kelsey Grammar and Alessandro De Cominato. Review: I added Turbulence to my library a few days ago because, as someone who doesn't like heights, I figured it would be a good thriller just based on that. My wife and I watched it last night and it turned out the way-above-the ground sett...

Synopsis: On parole and living in her car, Millie Calloway is surprised and thrilled when she lands a job as a live-in housemaid for Nina Winchester, her husband Andrew and their daughter Cece. It seems like the perfect opportunity until Millie learns Nina has mental health issues that make her verbally abusive and physically violent. Unable to quit because it would mean going back to prison, Millie sticks it out and soon finds herself growing closer to Andrew, leading to them sleeping together and Andrew finally standing up to his wife. However, soon after, Millie learns the truth about what is really going on in the Winchester house. Who's in it? The movie stars Sydney Sweeney , Amanda Seyfried , Brandon Sklenar , Indiana Elle and Elizabeth Perkins. Review: We went from tornado-producing weather to freezing temperatures again, giving my wife and I another excuse to just stay home on a Saturday night and watch a movie. The Housemaid has been on my watch list for a couple weeks...

Synopsis: Twenty years after being the lone survivor of child abductor Elizabeth Caulfield, Christina Bowden has made the most of her second chance, becoming an elementary school teacher and in the process of adopting a 13-year-old foster child. However, things begin to be flipped upside down when Caulfield escapes prison and committing murders while searching for Christina. Who's in it? The movie stars Lexi Johnson, Chukwudi Iwuji, Kaye Tuckerman, Timothy J. Alex and Willow McCarthy. Review: My wife and I decided to stay in for New Year's Eve and, with our daughters spending the night at their grandmother's found a movie to watch while waiting for midnight. We came across The Girl Who Got Away on Netflix a couple days earlier and decided to give it a try. It turned out to be an OK movie. However, it also wasn't much more than that. Overall, I have to say I liked the main story. Caulfield's (Tuckerman) escape couldn't have come at a worse time for Christina ...

Synopsis: When cocktail waitress Frida uses the rent money to buy a pair of dresses and crashes a fancy art gala with her friend and roommate Jess, the pair meet tech billionaire Slater King and spend the evening with him and his friends. Slater invites them to continue the party at his private island and the women are quick to accept. However, while Frida is having a good time, Jess suddenly wants to go home and then disappears. After realizing she has almost forgotten her friend even existed, Frida begins to wonder what other memories have been wiped out, how and why. Who's in it? The movie stars Naomi Ackie, Channing Tatum , Christian Slater , Alia Shawkat , Adria Arjona and Geena Davis . Review: My wife decided she just wanted to stay home last night rather than go out, so I looked for a movie for us to watch on the couch. I hadn't heard about Blink Twice , but the description seemed interesting and there were a number of recognizable actors, so I decided to give it a ...

Synopsis: Tom Merriam, fresh out of training, joins the crew of the merchant marine ship Altair as its third officer. At first, he both impressed and idolizes the ship's captain, Will Stone, even as Stone acts erratic. However, that changes when Merriam realizes Stone murdered an insubordinate crew member. When he attempts to reports Stone, however, the captain is acquitted, and Merriam unexpectedly finds himself back on board the Altair as an outcast and fearing for his life. Who's in it? The movie stars Richard Dix , Russell Wade , Edith Barrett , Ben Bard and Edmund Glover . Review: When I came across The Ghost Ship a couple days ago and added it to my library, I wasn't fully sure what to expect from it. The title made it sound a bit like a supernatural horror film while the description showed it as a psychological thriller. It turned out to be the latter and a good one. I think the thing I liked most about this film was Stone (Dix). He seemed cold and unemotional,...

Synopsis : A group of young friends travel to a remote cabin, hiking part of the trip after a near miss with a pedestrian causes them to damage their van. They explore an abandoned mine until some strange occurrences cause them to get scared. Soon after, they experience some strange occurrences, including finding their own bodies inside the mine, an indication something bad is about to happen.  Who's in it? The movie stars  Joseph Cross ,  Briana Evigan ,  Rafi Gavron ,  Julianna Guill and  Rebecca Da Costa. Review: I let my wife pick out Friday night's movie and, after scrolling through a few options on Amazon Prime, she picked this one out. Overall, it ended up being a better choice than expected. There honestly isn't anything overly special about the plot of the movie, it's very similar to other films we've seen before. A lot of the movie also tends to be somewhat predictable, including the main twist, which I figured out only a few minutes into the f...

Synopsis: After his colleague commits suicide, psychiatrist Dr. James Martin is assigned to perform a final psychological evaluation of convicted killer, Edward Wayne Brady to confirm he is of sound mind and can be executed at 11 p.m. that night. Brady claims to be possessed by a demon, Nefarious, leading Martin to believe the killer might have dissociative identity disorder with the demon being one of his personalities. However, as the interview progresses, the atheist psychiatrist isn't so sure the demon isn't real. Even more unnerving is Nefarious claims Martin will be responsible for three murders by the time he leaves the prison. Who's in it? The movie stars Sean Patrick Flanery , Jordan Belfi and Tom Ohmer . Review: I came across this and another film on Amazon Prime that looked interesting and wound up picking this one last night. I wasn't sure what to expect from the movie, so I started watching it with no expectations. By the time it was done, I could hones...

Synopsis: Therapist Rose Carter meets an intake patient in the hospital psychiatric wing who witnessed a suicide and now believes something is stalking her. The patient kills herself in front of Rose and she immediately starts experiencing similar occurrences that slowly drive her close to insanity. Who's in it? The movie stars Sosie Bacon , Jessie T. Usher , Kyle Gallner , Robin Weigert and Caitlin Stasey. Review: My daughter wanted to see this movie, so my wife and I agreed to watch it with her this evening. I wasn't really sure what to expect from it, but it ended up being a good choice. I think the thing I liked the most about this film was the mystery surrounding what was happening to Rose (Bacon). The occurrences looked supernatural at first, but her family also had a history of mental illness, and she experienced something traumatic, so it could have also been her having a mental break. Some scenes, including the one involving her cat, supported the latter while some...

Synopsis : A pair of up-and-coming country singers, Jordan and Leigh, hope to take their career to the next level by convincing their idol, Harper Dutch, one half of a popular sister dual from the 1990s, to perform a song with them. Harper seems interested but her erratic behavior concerns Jordan, especially when she finds evidence pointing toward Harper being a murderer. Who's in it? The movie stars Katey Sagal , Abby Quinn , Alexxis Lemire , Joshua Leonard and Shiloh Fernandez. Review: I added this movie to our streaming library a few days ago and, mostly because my wife and I love Katey Sagal, decided to watch it last night. I wasn't really sure if it would be worth our time but it ended up being a halfway decent thriller. I think the thing I liked most about this film was the way Sagal played Harper Dutch. While it was somewhat obvious she was emotionally disturbed, her outbursts were sporadic enough to make her somewhat scary, but not to the point where I couldn't u...

Synopsis: After one of her friends is murdered, a social media star, Mia, take a break by watching her sister's dog. However, she soon finds herself tormented by someone threatening to kill both her sister and her friends if she doesn't complete a series of challenges. Who's in it? The movie stars Daisye Tutor , Emily Goss , Nicole Posener , Stephanie Simbari and Octavius J. Johnson . Review: I decided to spend the extra $6/month to add Shudder to my YouTube TV lineup and, to break it in, looked for a movie to watch with my wife yesterday evening. This one looked interesting, so I decided to check it out. Overall, my opinion of it was a bit mixed. The movie premise itself actually wasn't terrible (though I wouldn't exactly call it original). The antagonist wanted to punish Mia (Tutor) for focusing her attention on her social media friends and ignoring her dying mother and ailing sister (Goss) by either attempting to complete impossible challenges or choosing who w...