Damien SN1 EP3 – ‘The Deliverer’

Here’s a quick recap from episode 2

Last week when we left Damien he was taken down to a room in Rutledge’s house where everything from his childhood was displayed and at front and center is Damien’s red trike that was used to kill his mother, Damien is starting to put all the pieces together.

Now it’s time for the latest episode!

Detective Shay is starting to piece the puzzle together and believes Damien is a crucial part of the puzzle, as he can be connected to the death of the professor and the taxi accident. Damien and Ann are talking about his mother and he doesn’t understand why he would kill want to kill her but Ann ensures him that he didn’t try to kill his mother. Damien’s starting to remember bits from his childhood that he previously couldn’t remember and he is learning just how well Ann knows him, she has watched and protected him from a far for a very long time.

Ann tells Damien that he will soon realize that he is the Anti-Christ and he is being groomed for a war of biblical proportions, and Ann has been in the background for every step, she is part of a larger collective who are there to protect him as he grows. Kelly’s sister Simone goes to see their prist and shows him Kelly’s notebook he tells Simone that it looks like she was doing a religious story and not to read into it, as she is walking out she see blood pouring from a religious statue, but when she grabs the prist to look there is no trace of the blood, Simone thinks there is a connection between Damien, Kelly and the Devil. Damien consults with his friend Amani about looking into Ann and finding out what she wants from him, Amani thinks it a bad idea and goes on to tell Damien that they were fired from their job and that he has a new job lined up in Kiev Damien tells Amani he is not going.
Damien has a meeting with John Lyons (Scott Wilson) who he knows from when he lived in the White House, he tells Damien that Ann terrifies him, but then we see John and Ann having a conversation, whoever this mysterious religious group is, Ann and John are most definitely in the center of it, making sure Damien stays alive and on the path of evil he is destined for. In the meeting John asks Ann how she could have let a would be assassin to nearly take Damien out, John goes on to tell Ann she to close and that another member of the group will take over guiding Damien and preparing him for the apocalyptic business. Ann is not happy with that idea but for John, Ann is done and no longer on the case, but for her nothing has changed. The man set to take over Ann in guiding Damien, thinks Ann is giving him directions to help keep Damien safe, when in actual she is manipulates him and then pretenders to be pushed by the man in front of the building.

Damien has been doing surveillance on Ann across the street, when he sees Ann fall to the ground and scream for help, he runs to her aid but doesn’t see what really happened. The man ordered to replace Ann runs away in hopes of getting as far away from Ann and Damien as he can, but that plan fails when he fall on the escalator and his tie gets stuck and literally loses his face. Damien how had been chasing the man, stops to save the life of a child that had been knock onto the tracks with a train fast approaching, this is an important moment as it makes us believe that there is in fact still a genuine decent side to our potential Anti-Christ. After the escalator incident John quickly learns that taking Ann off the case wasn’t and option and he now knows where he stands with Ann. Looks like he gets it now, you would be pretty stupid to mess with her again.
Detective Shay is obsessing over these cases when rather unexpectedly, evil forces come into play and the Detective is attacked by one of the watchdogs that we continue to see watching over Damien, the Detective survives the attack by putting a bullet in the dog, if he hadn’t of had his weapon he wouldn’t have survived the attack that’s for sure, you can see he’s concerned and that what he just experienced isn’t in the realm of normalcy. Damien’s head is spinning with information and unanswered questions, He answers a knock at the door and its Ann baring sushi. They continue to talk about the Anti-Christ and Damien is not convinced at what Ann has to say, before she leaves she re carves 666 on her arm before she leaves Damien tells her of his birth mark, and it would be an understatement to say Ann was excited about the birthmark.

What are your thoughts on this episode?

Be sure to check back next week for episode 4 “The Number of a Man”
This week’s episode I give: 🎬🎬🎬🎬

Interview & Review: Dark Libra Films; Bloody Mary: Possession

I am a massive horror film fan. I always have been and always will be. It’s where my passion for film lies. So, being given the opportunity to interview the members of an up and coming indie horror film production company was a big thing for me. I was also given the chance to view their latest release; Bloody Mary: Possession. This, as I’m sure you can imagine, is a big thing for me! Here is the interview….. review at the bottom of the article:

INTERVIEW: Dark Libra Films

Hi guys,

Firstly, thanks very much for agreeing to let us interview you. It’s always a privilege to be able to interview people who are passionate about film.

So, let’s jump straight in here….. I hope you don’t mind, but I like to cut to the chase!!

————————————————————————————————————————————–

1) How long have you been going as a production company?

We’ve had films in the works for nearly a year now.

2) How did it all get started?

I think we were inspired primarily by the constant improvement within Smartphone technology. It was once hard to imagine that a cell phone’s camera would be able to shoot 60 frames per second; now it’s the norm.

3) Where does the name Dark Libra come from?

Pretty simple, really. The name “Dark Libra” was drawn up because our founder’s zodiac sign is Libra… and he prefers darker films; we ran with it as it seemed to have a nice ring.

4) Who, or what, has been your biggest inspiration overall?

The biggest inspiration would have to be old, black & white horror films such as “Nosferatu”, “The Wolfman”, “Frankenstein”, etc. It dawned on us that nothing like those classic films has been developed for almost a century now. That was how the idea of our premiere film “Angelic Wolves” was born. We wanted to bring back that vintage, black & white look while also implementing some more modern attributes, such as sound, gore effects and so on. Some viewers appreciated the hybrid elements, some didn’t. We then wanted to try something different with “Bloody Mary Possession”, combining high resolution (color) cinematography with both horror and slapstick-comedy characteristics. So far the response has been mainly positive.

5) Why have you chosen to concentrate your efforts in the horror genre?

The horror genre was appealing in the sense that you could have a ton of fun creating an entertaining product without the added pressure that many other film genres can face. I think it’s apparent that we want to create films that an audience can have fun with, but by no means are we trying to win an Oscar!

6) Which movie of yours has been the most fun to film and why?

“Bloody Mary Possession” was more fun in the sense that it was a bit more planned out, which led to a more efficient shoot. Being that “Angelic Wolves” was our debut film, it served as more of an experimental project to see if we could actually complete a project solely with the use of an iPhone.

7) If there was one horror movie you wish you could have made, what would it be?

Truthfully, there is no existing film that I wish I could’ve created and taken credit for. I see A LOT of films, I like A LOT of films, but there are always many aspects of every film that I would tweak if it we’re in my hands.

8) Do you do all of your own special effects?

Yes, we do indeed do all of our own special effects. We prefer to have total control over our product, aside from the work of the actors of course.

9) What inspired you to write and film Bloody Mary: Possession?

I must say I’ve always found ghost based films to be the most terrifying out of the bunch. Therefore, I thought it would be interesting to group some of those frightening images with a sense of comedy. I’ve always found the urban legend of Bloody Mary to be fairly creepy and it became apparent that there aren’t many Bloody Mary titles out there.

10) There seems to be a lot of films made about possession recently. Does Bloody Mary offer anything new for viewers?

Again, it does have some similar characteristics to other films, but I believe the added humor here and there adds a pleasant aspect of unpredictability.

11) How far do you think possession movies have come since The Exorcist?

It’s clear that a vast amount of horror fans still claim “The Exorcist” to be #1; I certainly can’t argue that. Any film that is perceived as ‘revolutionary’ within its genre is going to be talked about for some time, maybe even eternity. One could say that certain visual effects have come a long way since then (although I prefer to use less CGI than what is currently expected) but as far as writing and overall production comes, I think it’s tricky to compete with some of those oldies.

12) Do you feel that horror has become more acceptable for mainstream audiences in the modern cinema era, or do you still consider it to be a niche taste?

I think the majority of audiences prefer a little horror now and then. Even though some viewers may be bored by the plot, writing, etc. it’s hard to claim that you never, ever appreciate an adrenaline rush.

13) If you could have any famous actor/actress in one of your films, who would it be?

We sort of prefer to use ‘unknown’ cast members in our films but if I had to choose a famous actor I’d probably have to go with Christopher Walken for a variety of reasons. 

————————————————————————————————————————————–

REVIEW: Bloody Mary: Possession

It’s not very often that you get asked to view a film that is trying to take films into a new era of technological advancement. Dark Libra film all of their movies on iPhones. Given the recent acceleration in smartphones, it seems like a logical step to take for independent production companies. There’s less equipment to carry around, which leads to reduced overheads and increases the ability to produce exciting films on a lower budget. 

Bloody Mary: Possession is one such film. Based on the urban legend of a figure that will tell you who you are going to marry if you complete a ritual, it’s a story that many people will recognise. However, it’s given a modern twist by the injection of humour that infiltrates the film throughout its 25min running time. The only downside of the film for me is that I feel it could have been a little longer, if only to explore the subject matter in greater depth. 

Centered around the a couple who are struggling with their day to day life together (the daily grind of the 9-5 job and a struggle to fully understand eachother), an argument ensues. A night apart leads to an interesting discovery in the basement and the ritual is performed. What follows is both amusing (the look on her face the following day was a proper laugh out loud moment for me…..) and suspenseful, which makes for an interesting combination. 

This film is not full spoof, but not full suspenseful horror. It’s an interesting blend of the two which keeps you interested for the whole length of the short. It’s also very groundbreaking, given that it was filmed entirely on an iPhone. Sure, independent filmmakers have been making movies using basic filming equipment for years, but Dark Libra are really seeking to exploit the technology of the Smartphone and really show it’s capabilities with this film. 

It will be interesting to see where Dark Libra films take their inspiration from next and what they do with this new blend of genres. It will also be interesting to see how much they can really do with the iPhone. I suspect that this will be the beginning of a new way of film-making that, eventually, the big players of the movie world can’t ignore. 

Rating: 8/10

————————————————————————————————————————————–

 Interested? You can rent the film here and be don’t be shy add go say hi and add them on twitter too they’re @darklibrafilms and tell them ‘Skatronixxx Sent Me’.

Damien SN1 EP1 – ‘ The Beast Rises ‘

I could hardly contain my excitement when I learnt that ‘The Omen’ (I own The Omen Pentology) was being re-imagined as a TV series and follows Damien in his adult life. For those of you that are not familiar with ‘The Omen’ here is a brief background.

The Omen movies are an American-British horror set in 1976 and is about a young boy Damien, who was adopted at birth by Mr Thorn the American Ambassador and his wife after their their own son was still born but things are not what the seem with Damien and surrounded by mystery and death, the Thorn’s are totally unaware their son is the Antichrist. You dont need to have seen the movies to understand whats going on in the TV series as it explains his past along the way.

The Beast Rises SN1 EP1

Damien (Bradley James) a war photographer on assignment in the Christian Quarter of the old city in Damascus, Syria has forgotten his Satanic past untill today his 30th birthday while he photographs an old woman the army comes screaming to the camp and starts violently ejecting the young and the old on as they are illegally staying in the camp, while all the comotion is going on the old woman Damien photographed is knocked to the ground and Damien rushes over to help her up as she stands up she grabs his face and he has a flash back from his childhood, she then seems  possessed and  says “Damiem I love you, this is all for you Damien” he then has another flash back of his Governess saying the same thing before she jumps out the two story window  with a rope tied around her neck,  Damien and the old woman get separated in the comotion and he is unable to find her in the crowd, with the comotion now over all journalists and photographers are deported immediately. Now back in New York Damien is trying to find out how this old woman is and find that she is in every single photo he has ever taken, so reunites with ex-girlfriend Kelly Baptiste (Tiffany Hines) to help find answers, while Damien has more disturbing visions of his past flash before his eyes. He learns from a biblical professor that he is the Antichrist and decovers the numbers of the Beast branded on his scalp.

Being a big fan of The Omen movies I had a high expectations for the TV series and I must say that my expectation has been met so far with episode 1 and I cannot wait to see what episode 2 will bring.

My rating for The Beast Rises is:  🎬🎬🎬🎬

The Presh Scale:

1 x 🎬 The Worst

2 x 🎬 Not Bad

3 x 🎬 Good

4 x 🎬 Very Good

5 x 🎬 Awesomeness