Film Review: The Crazies (2010)

I’ve never been a big fan of George A. Romero’s 1973 film The Crazies. I’ve probably only seen it a few times and remember being very underwhelmed by the horror flick. I understand its message and significance, and while I appreciate a good socially conscious film, the original Romero film just didn’t grab me and was largely forgettable.

So, I wasn’t too excited for the 2010 remake, helmed by Breck Eisner (same dude who is in discussions to direct remakes of The Brood and Creature from the Black Lagoon…ugh, it never ends! He also directed an episode for Fear Itself).

Continue reading my review on Fatally Yours!

Book Review: Dead Set - A Zombie Anthology

Zombies…what more can really be said about them? Our culture is inundated with zombie imagery in films, video games, magazines and books, familiar to pretty much anyone. In the horror genre there are dozens of new zombie films and books every year, so it’s amazing that fans aren’t fed up with the whole zombacalypse theme. However, it seems that despite the genre being flooded zombie stories, fans can’t get enough of them and the subgenre seems stronger than ever.

Continue reading my review on Fatally Yours!

Fiendish Find: Trader Joe's Roasted Plantain Chips

What's the hottest snack this summer? That's right, it's plantain chips! After reading about the savory snacks in VegNews, I knew I had to pick some up! So when I spied this cute package at Trader Joe's, I know I HAD to try them:

Icky picture...delicious product!

Besides the cute little monkeys that were just howling my name, another reason to pick these up is that I've been meaning to try them for the longest time! I have no experience with plantains, so I didn't really know what to expect outta these. They look like dried bananas, but the taste is entirely different! Gone is the sweetness and the taste is much more savory. At first the flavor threw me off, but pretty soon I couldn't get enough of them!

The Trader Joe's brand had the plantains perfectly roasted so they offered a nice crunch, making them a swell replacement for potato chips. Trader Joe's Roasted Plantain Chips are under $2 (I forget the precise dollar amount, but I think they were even under $1.50...I could be wrong, though!) and make a delicious snack.

If you are lucky enough to live on the West Coast where Trader Joe's stores are plentiful, check out this product. I'm sure other brands make plantain chips as well, or you can make your own!

Film Review: Silver Bullet (2010)

Ah, the nostalgia that a Stephen King work brings to me…his stories remind me of being in elementary school and devouring his novels. Of course, it also helped that I could identify with many of his characters, who were usually around my age in the books. I remember reading IT and then enjoying the movie on VHS (remember how it came with two VHS tapes since its 3 hour length couldn’t all fit on one?). Even though I didn’t really dig the ending of the film I loved the story and at the time was obsessed with actor Jonathan Brandis, so I pretty much wore out those VHS tapes. I enjoyed many of King’s other books and subsequent adaptations, but one (short) story I never read was Cycle of the Werewolf, which Silver Bullet is based on.

Continue reading my review on Fatally Yours!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Every year around July I start getting really excited for Halloween. When summer hits, I know that autumn is right around the corner and I can't contain my excitement! So, of course I want to start celebrating Halloween NOW!

For a little taste of autumn, I decided I must make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, from a slightly tweaked recipe from a like-minded blog that has captured my heart, The Creepy Vegan (seriously, we are like long-lost twins!).

And these were the perfect cookies to tide me over (at least until they are gone, which wasn't long since they were so tasty!) and they really invoke the spirit of Halloween with their pumpkin flavor and orange tint! Check out these delectable goodies:

Perfect Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies!

These cookies are really fluffy and have a soft, cake-like texture. I've tweaked the original recipe with the addition of a bit of pumpkin spice and a bit more detail on the directions. Check out the recipe below!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

Ingredients for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup Non-Hydrogenated Vegetable Shortening
1 cup Sugar
1 can Pumpkin Puree
1/4 cup Applesauce
2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Pumpkin Spice
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 cup Non-Dairy Chocolate Chips

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease two cookie sheets.

With an electric mixer, mix shortening, sugar, pumpkin, and applesauce until well combined. Fold in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin spice and salt with a spoon and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips.

Mmmmm...pumpkin and chocolate batter!

Drop heaping spoonfuls onto lightly oiled baking sheet. leaving about 2 inches between cookies. Bake approx. 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

Once done, the bottom of the cookies should be lightly browned and the tops should be slightly fluffy and soft.

I had some extra cookie dough left over from the batch, so I just stuck it in the fridge to eat as chilled cookie dough later! YUM!

Thanks again to my twisted twin, The Creepy Vegan, for this autumnal-inspired recipe!

July 5th: Recovery Day

Had a ton of fun yesterday with friends, food, drinks and loud, sparkly thing that go BOOM!

Today's overcast day calls for snuggling on the couch watching movies and just chillaxing, but not before I share some fun firework photography I did last night. Enjoy the show!

Starting things off with a BANG!

Burst and bloom

Halloween colors - green, purple, orange

Fires of Hades (my personal favorite photo)

Apocalypse

Sweet & Tender Hooligan

Firestarter

Lost Souls

Mwahahahaa...mini monster!

All of the fireworks above were the dinky ones you can buy at any fireworks stand, but I love how the photographs make them look so much bigger than that! Definitely loving my "fireworks" setting on my point-and-shoot camera! 

I'm off to do some more lounging, but I'll see you spooks later this week when I have more to post about! 

Hope you all had a safe and fun 4th of July!

Red, White and GRUE: Happy 4th of July!

"Uncle Sam wants you....DEAD!"

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Tonight's Viewing: Jaws 2 (1978)

It just doesn't feel like 4th of July weekend without a viewing of a Jaws film! Here are some posters of tonight's selection:

Film Review: Blades (1989)

How did this little Troma movie pass under my radar for so many years? I mean, killer lawnmowers tend to attract attention but I don’t recall ever hearing about Blades, which, while it sounds like an ice skating movie is actually about a killer machine mowing down golfers at the Tall Grass Country Club.

When I stumbled upon this movie in my Netflix “watch instantly” queue, I just couldn’t pass it up! How could I resist a movie whose tagline is: “Golf – A Game of Hooks, Slices and … Slaughter”? Well, I couldn’t resist and settled in to watch this wacky and entertaining B-movie.

Read the rest of my review on Fatally Yours!

Film Review: Peacock (2010)

Read my review on Fatally Yours!