Tag Archives: Peacock

Killer High (2018)

Pick from Peacock

One of the flicks popping up on Peacock for Halloween is Killer High (2018). Originally this was a made for SyFy Channel creature feature, which generally are just plain awful crud that The Asylum churns out.

This movie is no classic, but it isn’t complete garbage either. I know that is not a rave, but I think it is appropriate.

Sabrina is one of those young ladies who “peaked” in high school and planned the “perfect” high school reunion. The problem is the the high school (and the city!) are falling apart and, oh yeah, a killer WARTHOG is on the loose.

I know I pigged out at my High School reunion, but this is ridiculous!

It is pretty much a comedy about what a joke Sabrina’s life has become and her rivalry with the leader of the cheerleaders even all these years later. It also takes jabs at their deteriorating city of their youth, which works great for explaining why they can’t call the cops (not only is their no cell coverage, but the police have shut down and left town too!)

Peer pressure to die in an entertaining way is huge in Killer High!

The monster is a ridiculous costume, but at least it isn’t a ridiculous CGI cartoon. The Australian version of this could have had Taz drawn in there to good effect I think. But then this would be on what platform WB is streaming on.

Geez! That monster is so horny!

Certainly the movie won’t win any Oscars, but it was a mildly enjoyable little watch with only 5 commercial breaks put in by the bird.

Grade: C

Killer High (2018)

Peacock’s Halloween picks are FANTASTIC!

One of the things that always attracted me to Universal is their ability to embrace “Joe Six Pack” type entertainment, particularly horror. No other major studio celebrates their relationship with horror. Even Disney has a horror movie or two in their past (though they’ve sucked. Remember “Watcher in the Woods”? Yeah, no one else does either.)

Peacock proves their relationship with horror with a great front page tab “Halloween” that opens to a splashy page with prominent films on display. In particular, they give great placement to their Alfred Hitchcock and Classic Monster work. So, what should you check out? WHERE TO START!

Just when you thought it was safe to get back in the shower.

Alfred Hitchcock is a good opening salvo. A brand new The Making of Psycho documentary is full of great information. I recently “audiobooked” (I can’t bring myself to call that “reading” yet) the original Psycho and I forgot just how wonderfully Joseph Stefano adapted Robert Bloch’s wonderful novel. Then follow that view with a re-watch of Psycho (if you haven’t seen it yet, by jiminy, watch Psycho first!), The Birds, Vertigo and Rear Window! Here’s a hot take: I actually prefer Rear Window. Take me on in the comments below.

Hail! Hail! The Gang’s All Here!

In the classic monsters, I think people forget how good some of those films are due to their “creaky” nature and not always having aged very well. I suggest the greatest horror comedy of all time, Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein. Yes, “the boys” made a few of these meet the monster films, but this one features one of only four times Bela Lugosi played Dracula on film (go ahead and check me on that) and a fantastic performance by Lon Cheney Jr. as the Wolf Man, Lyle Talbot. What makes this work is the monsters play their bits completely straight, making Lou’s over-the-top fear reactions all the more entertaining. If you haven’t watched it recently, take it in. You forgot just how good this one is!

It Follows is a solid pick of their newer fare. While I’m not willing to call it a new classic as many reviewers did when it came out, it’s a solid little suspense filled flick about an entity that infuriatingly defies simple definition. The suspense is well crafted and it certainly has earned its reputation for being creepy. Worth a look.

Hoodies are still creepy.

Let Me In is a remake of the Swedish Let the Right One In, which has a superior ending, but as for the rest of the film, I think this version is actually more fun to watch. In general, this film’s workmanship is superior to the original and the acting is far better. This is the film that made vampires scary again, and took some of that sparkle away.

This was the original class action park.

The Funhouse is an oft overlooked scary movie. Tobe Hooper of Texas Chainsaw Massacre fame made this criminally underseen carnival creepfest that features the most disturbing Frankenstein monster mask ever committed to the silver screen. I’m not sure what to call it. Is it a creature feature? A slasher? A ghost story? This flick will having you guessing and hopefully screaming.

Give these movies a look while they are up on the Peacock.

Peacock’s Halloween picks are FANTASTIC!

Comcast and Roku accede to including Peacock on their platform

Streaming is where it is at these days, and Peacock made a big move getting past their difficulties with Roku and landing on the platform.

Peacock
Peacock

News came this week with articles such as this: https://www.theverge.com/2020/9/18/21445982/peacock-roku-streaming-comcast-nbcuniversal-negotiations-apps

This is a huge step for the streaming service, but is it worth it? To see our take, refer to this past article:

Peacock open for business

Still no word on Amazon Fire. Those talks, no doubt, are still ablaze.

Like all streamers, this is a work in motion and slowly finding its feet. I plan to continue watching some classic monster movies here as the big P continues to find out who it is. At least, they didn’t just name themselves Universal+….I’ll just leave that as it is.

Comcast and Roku accede to including Peacock on their platform

Peacock open for business

I have a column about Universal and I actually debated if I should cover this. Well, I think I have to. NBC/Universal’s streaming service, Peacock, is now open for business.

Did you know? I think they made it pretty evident on YouTube with ads displacing the political ads for a week, but otherwise, I think this has been kind of quiet. The service has been open to some cable company customers for a while now, but upon launch, Peacock is not yet available on Roku or Amazon Fire streaming platforms.

Peacock
Peacock

But, on the positive side, it is free. Mostly.

Universal decided to go the ad route. They have paid options, to be sure, but for the most part, it is a free service best I can see with ads. The ads aren’t too bad yet, but YouTube wasn’t bad at first, either. So hold on with that judgment.

Peacock Home Page Screen Grab
Peacock Home Page Screen Grab

Actually, hold on is the best advice in general. We don’t know what they are going to do with the Olympics yet. I’m sure that will be at least partially behind the paywall options. Will they show the Olympics live as well as the tape delayed packages we are used to?

How about movies? Will something like Trolls World Tour premiere on here from time to time? Or am I right at looking this over and seeing it primarily as a TV service?

I mean, their big event promotion hasn’t even happened yet, when they get The Office to return to their shores. They paid a pretty penny to wrestle it back from Netflix, so the impact of that one show could turn a big tide.

They are pushing Brave, New World as their big Sci Fi offering, which hits me as an odd choice. I mean, this is the home of Universal monsters. I am surprised a Horror Hosted Universal Monsters “channel” or choice is available to match their impressive deep dive on the classic horror movies.

We will need to wait and see, but if you are interested NOW, check it out at Peacock. Heck, it can’t be worse than that HBO thingy they flopped around in the boat the last couple of weeks.

Peacock open for business

Universally Loved: New Column

Today, we are launching a new column: Universally Loved. This will be a banner for discussions regarding Hollywood’s most entertaining and hard working studio.

Disney, of course, has about 500 podcasts based entirely on their theme parks. People discuss the award-heavy Columbia and Paramount. Disney+ is in the news frequently as they purchase franchise after franchise to grow their headlock on the entertainment industry.

Often overlooked is Universal.

All. The. Time.

Universal has been home of some of the greatest and most popular films of all time. Their theme parks are the only ones that can legitimately compete with the house of mouse. They have great franchises, legitimately possibly developing the entire concept with their sequel heavy Universal monster movies in the 50’s and 60’s.

Universal has been the working man’s studio. Founded by Carl Laemmle, a turn of the century German immigrant, his studio quickly became a leader in horror films and science fiction when people were still “embarrassed” about such B films.

They were a leader in movie serials. People talk about the old days of movie serials and always bring up Republic, but what movie serial is the one most people know? Flash Gordon. That was a Universal serial…and it innovated the upwards crawl that George Lucas would adapt to open each of the Star Wars films in the “Skywalker Saga.”

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Universal thrived with films other studios turned their nose up at. They “invented” the summer blockbuster with a little movie I like to mention from time to time (Jaws). Universal brought Back to the Future to the movieplexes in the mid-80’s and let everyone ride along with Michael J. Fox in that wonderful DeLorean.

Instead of chasing awards, Universal seemed to always embrace the audience directly. While a lot of their product could be called junk food compared to the art house gourmet dishes by the indies, they have been the studio willing to take chances, particularly in the realm of horror, that have led to remarkable success. The Blumhouse model seems to fit beautifully with Universal’s strategy over the years, so it is not a surprise that they have often found themselves partners including the release of the recent Halloween sequel with Jamie Lee Curtis and the new, smash hit Invisible Man film this year.

Universal’s Harry Potter additions to their theme parks are possibly the most immersive theme park experiences ever derived and caused a raising of expectations for all in the industry after it’s premiere. Simply put, without Harry Potter attractions, Avatar and Star Wars would not be as incredible as they are…the competition here has benefited every theme park in the world.

This column will be celebrating their successes. There will be film reviews. There will be news commentary. There will be theme park observations.

Heck, we might even discuss NBC from time to time. Peacock is coming this summer for all to enjoy.

Hope you will join me here with all the films that I know are UNIVERSALLY LOVED.

Universally Loved: New Column