Ghost Adventures – Cripple Creek – S07E07
For this investigation, the guys head out to another state I’m quite familiar with, Colorado, specifically, Cripple Creek. I spent 10 years out in the Rockies and remember Cripple Creek quite well. As you might expect in Colorado, this is an old mining town and we all know what that means, gambling, gold and murder. The investigation starts off with two locations, the Colorado Grand Casino and the old County Jail.
As with so many mining towns, the Grand Casino has an apparition of woman who is said to be seen walking around the ballroom. She makes her presence known repeatedly and may in fact be sharing a room with the living. There is even a claim that she was captured on film and her ghostly form can be seen in mirror.
Within the old jail there are reports of an inmate with hepatitis who spit at the guards to try and infect them. There are also claims of an inmate who was a child molester that attacked two investigators during the night. Strange voices and noises are also heard.
But as the investigation gets started, both of these sites are pushed to the side as Jeff Belanger brings in another location the guys need to check out. They meet up with Dan who says that all of his tenants end up leaving and become hostile after living in his rented house for 6 months to a year. They start off pleasant, but turn "evil" and then run away from the house. Dan really doesn’t have any history of the place, but gives a story of a young boy dying on Christmas Eve and talks about battles with and between the Indians.
They look around the house and decide to give it their attention. Before you know it, they’ve launched a full investigation. Oddly, they’re tearing up some concrete down in the basement because of some old items Dan has found down there. When they come back with their full barrage of equipment, things seem to heat up. They start off the with PX device and get the word, "Madison", the name of Dan’s daughter. Madison also claims she saw some figure touching her dad. The PX then has boughts of interference, but manages to come up with the words, "spirits" when asked who is in the house, the words, "under" and "ground" when asked where it was, and "ghosts" when asked what’s in the basement. There is also the phrase, "drain the well", which causes Dan to relay a quick story about losing hundreds of thousands of gallons of water. The PX device also gives, "Hell" in response to what is holding the entity there and "earth-line". In conjunction with all these voices, multiple flying anomalies are seen behind Dan.
Back at the Colorado Grand Casino, Bill Tolley is working with Bill Chappell on a 3D camera to record paranormal activity. It’s the same technology used to film athletes for games and record human movement for "blue screens". They blanket the wall and then if something breaks the plane it will show up as a stick figure. Sounds like a cool idea.
As they begin, they hear banging, several knocks and a woman’s voice. Are these just coming up from the casino below? They’re trying to find Maggie, the apparition that many claim to see. While they don’t get any of the traditional evidence, they do get something showing up on their imager. A small stick figure is seen walking around and may even be waving to Bill. When Bill stands in the same spot, his figure is much larger than what they just recorded. As Billy Tolley comments, is it the figure of a child? It certainly appears far too small to be Maggie.
The investigation does continue at the county jail, but Zak admits he wasn’t able to capture any evidence during his time there. He forewarns that he’s not discounting that it may be haunted, just that he didn’t capture anything.
I had to say, this was indeed a strange episode. They start off talking about two locations they plan to visit, then spend almost all of their time at a completely different place. And what about Dan Piotrowski’s house? They don’t capture much evidence, but the PX device was very talkative. Is there something to his renters leaving? Does he have an unusual presence in his house? Is there something buried in the basement to account for the activity? Or is he just a bad landlord and people keep leaving because they don’t want to deal with him? He seems like a decent guy, but I don’t think there is enough to support his claims that the house is full of a bad or dark energy. Maybe there are other problems. It would have been interesting to interview some people who used to live there and get their side of the story.
They need to do more research on the place and see what kinds of events have taken place in the past. Dan also need to provide more information about this water issue and perhaps they need to excavate that area in the basement properly. Guys from a TV shows bashing at concrete with rudimentary tools isn’t the right way to handle the job. There might be more to the story, but they need to find out what the story actually is first.
As for the Grand Casino, I don’t think there is much to these stories either. It’s an active casino, so it strikes me it will make tons of noise all the time. Bang, voices, cries, sobs and all of that would be a regular occurence. Voices will travel through the duct work. Trucks roll by all the time, even Bill makes mention of one. Are people just hearing the wrong thing? Are the sights and sound of the casino getting to them?
However, they do get something on their piece of equipment. Is it picking up a shadow? Does it just need some fine tuning? Or was there really a small child from the other side stopping by to say hello and give a wave?
Other Articles of Interest:
- Paranormal Lockdown – Old Chatham County Jail – S02E12
- Ghost Adventures – Snug Harbor Sailors – S07E19
- Ghost Adventures – Maysville Slave House – S04E25
- Ghost Adventures – Winchester Mystery House – S12E11
- Paranormal Lockdown – White Hill Mansion – S02E08
- Ghost Adventures – Titanic Museum – S15E12
- Ghost Adventures – Old Gila County Jail – S16E04
- Ghost Adventures – The Exorcist House – S08E07
- Ghost Asylum – Pauly Jail – S03E06
- Ghost Adventures – Chinese Town of Locke – S12E05
Ghost Adventures – Sedamsville Rectory – S07E06
Zak and the team head out to Ohio after being called in to investigate a rectory in Sedamsville. Interestingly, there was another TV episode about this very place and this very couple just a short time ago. John Zaffis visited the same location for this Haunted Collector episode. Some of the stories are the same, but it appears things may have gotten worse since his visit. When John was at the site it was all but confirmed that there was illegal dog fighting going on in the rectory. Violence and bloodshed certainly took place when the rectory was abandoned. However, there was a secondary story of priest who was murdered. No such evidence was ever found to confirm that. But when Zak gives a narrative of the rectory, there is a story of a priest who was indecent. Supposedly a priest wrote a confession at the time of his death. Is this just another part of the legend and trying to involve a priest in less than savory acts? Just because a church has been left alone doesn’t mean there are dark events involving a priest. But anyway, the couple have asked for more help and this time Zak is bringing in some help.
Before they even investigate they bring in Father Ashcraft to exorcise the rectory. Based on the scratches done to both Tim and Terrie’s father, it is believed something is in the rectory to cause harm. As the cleansing takes place, Tim turns into a different guy. He becomes agitated, angry and even hostile towards Father Ashcraft. He goes so far as to tell him to get the hell out of the rectory and to leave him alone. He looks to be on the verge of lashing out. Is this cleansing pushing an evil entity out of the house and it’s looking for something to latch onto? Is Tim becoming the victim of spiritual oppression? Terrie looks scared as hell and almost jumps out of the way every time he comes around the corner. It’s not looking too good.
Father Ashcraft works to bring things back under control, but it’s hard to say if he’s successful. Tim still seems very much out of sorts. He’s even advised to stay away from the rectory.
The next night the guys actually enter the building for the real investigation. They have cameras in the usual spots and real time digital recorders running. They want to capture all the audio evidence they can. They each take turns trying to provoke whatever evil energy is in there, but strangely nothing makes itself known. No voices or noises are captured the entire night. Even with the spirit box, no voices are heard. If there is something evil in this it’s not making itself known.
But then, right before things come to an end, they get a couple of bangs outside one of the rooms on the top floor. Billy feels the room is charged with electricity so Zak comes to investigate. They both feel an extreme cold spot, but there is very little supporting evidence. Does this room still have a dark energy? Was a manifestation trying to take place?
When all is said and done, there isn’t much evidence to support any new activity. Has this entity gone quiet so it won’t get pushed out of the house? Is there even an entity at all? Are the scratches from something clawing at the flesh or did they get there from regular construction related means? When John Zaffis visited the site, he didn’t capture much physical evidence either, but he did bring a dog that was extremely agitated by the basement. It barked ferociously and wouldn’t go down the stairs.
Is there really something lurking in the shadows of this building that only shows itself to the owners when everyone else is gone? Is it playing tricks and keeping itself hidden? Does evil exist in this old rectory or do the unfounded stories of abusive or murdered priests play tricks and let the mind wander? Not to be rude, but are the owners simply attention seekers? Since this is the second team to come out to the place, do they ulterior motives? Or, is there a dark presence that likes to toy with people? The evidence doesn’t offer much, but what about Tim’s physical reactions?
Interestingly, the rectory is now available for weekend paranormal investigations.
It should also be noted that Zak and team went to pay their respects to Carl Lawson, the former caretaker of Bobby Mackey’s who passed away recently. He was supposedly the victim of demonic possession during his time at the club. If indeed he was, perhaps now he will find peace.
Ghost Adventures at the Sedamsville Rectory
Other Articles of Interest:
- Haunted Collector – Haunted Rectory and Grand Midway Ghosts – S02E05
- Haunted Collector – Haunted Island and Ghosts Of Maui – S02E12
- Ghost Asylum – St Vincent’s Mental Asylum – S01E04
- Haunted Collector – Slaughterhouse Ghosts & Supernatural Sword – S01E06
- Paranormal State – Do Bad Things – S05E10
- Paranormal State – Season 2
- Ghost Adventures – Reseda House of Evil – S13E04
- Paranormal Cops – Dead Man Walking – S01E04
- Ghost Adventures – Hauntings of Vicksburg – McRaven Mansion – Part 1
- Ghost Stalkers – Farrar School – S01E06
Cabin in the Woods
This will go down as one of the dumbest horror movies I’ve had the misfortune of seeing. I’m not quite sure which is worse, The Dead Matter or Cabin in the Woods. I went into this movie with no preconceived notions. In fact, a couple friends said it was good and worth seeing. I was looking forward to a “different take”, to the unusual twist this movie supposedly offered. What I saw was a steamy pile that failed at every turn. I found it lacking in suspense, drama, tension or even a plot for that matter. Cabin in the Woods failed to produce anything except a lot of head shaking and sympathy for the poor schmucks who got roped into acting in this piece of crap.
Trying to give the horror genre a twist turns this movie into a confusing and laughable mess. It’s really not giving anything away, since you’ll learn the plot within the first 5 minutes, that a group of college kids have been lead out into the woods to a remote location so they can be sacrificed to the gods. They choose their own demise and then the results are broadcast for all to see. It’s all controlled and manipulated by some corporate or government entity. I guess there is supposed to be some deep meaning in choosing your own fate or destiny here?
Ok, so we have a twist on sacrificing virgins to the gods. The problem is, who the hell cares? There is nothing likeable or suspenseful about this movie. It’s pointless and boring carnage. There is no reason to care about any of the characters, so who gives a damn if they live or die? It’s pretty obvious they’re nothing but cattle, and if they don’t get sacrificed a terrible fate waits for all humanity. So where’s the suspense? What’s the point? It’s completely ludicrous and quite frankly boring. There is nothing original in this plot, nothing unique about how it achieves it’s goal and by the end I was shaking my head and how stupid it all was.
The repeated cut scenes between the action in the woods and the action at command central are just jarring and annoying. They’re betting on who dies first and what death they choose. They throw parties while the virgin gets the crap beat out of her on the dock by the lake. They stand around waiting to see boobs on the big screen as the “whore” participates in the typical sex scene in woods routine. They don’t give a damn about these people, it’s just business as usual. Why the hell should I care? It’s another day at the office, ho hum.
All of this is reminiscent of the ridiculous games we see in the beginning of “The Running Man”. The only thing missing is Richard Dawson to commentate all the action. Where is Jessie “The Body” Ventura to spice things up?
And because the movie is such as a damn mess, we have Sigourney Weaver come out at the end to give us a recap. “This is important work”, “This is meaningful work”. Who in the hell are these gods? What control do they have over humanity? Why should we be scared?
Even with this end, where Dana is on the verge of shooting Marty to save herself and humanity because she’s been confronted by the horror of it all, there is a great big, “whatever”. The whole movie is a sad joke. It fails as a horror movie and fails even worse as a spoof.
This movie was supposed to have some grand vision because Joss Whedon was at the helm. Still haven’t seen anything of his that I like. I can’t believe when all was said and done, the creators of this steamy pile stood back and said, “YES!! That’s the movie we want to make!”
I’m not sure under what circumstances this movie would be exciting or scary. Maybe if we were all as high as Marty, this movie wouldn’t suck so bad.
Other Articles of Interest:
- Bram Stoker’s Dracula – Rating 2 out of 5
- Dead Silence – Rating 3 out of 5
- The Grudge 2 – Rating 1 out of 5
- Saw III
- Reincarnation – After Dark Horror Fest – 8 Films To Die For
- The Number 23 – Rating 2.3 out of 5
- Flatliners – Rating 4 out of 5
- Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XIX
- Thr3e – Rating 3 out of 5
- Saw
Paranormal Incident
In order to get a decent grade in their glass, a group of friends head out to film paranormal events at the abandoned Odenbrook Sanitarium. With both skeptics and believers in the group, they encounter more than they can handle in this "lost footage" tale. But what could have been an interesting tale of the lone survivor of the incident trying to clear his name for the murder of his friends as he goes through the recovered footage, goes a bit South and gives us an ending that doesn’t even make sense.
It’s a plausible scenario; friends go out to investigate an asylum and to give them some thrills and chills, one of them breaks away from the group. He locks them in with the intent of returning later to scare the crap out of them. But as the group does their investigation things go sideways and they realize something is out there and it’s in no way friendly.
In the style of Grave Encounters, Blair Witch and Paranormal Activity, we follow along with the jerky camera movements and things moving in the shadows. As the night moves on, the group realizes they can’t leave and panic ensues. They fight, argue, spew vulgarities and lost trust in each other. Soon, it’s every man for himself. Unfortunately, amidst all the screaming and hysterics there’s no plot. There’s nothing to hold this together. There is the lose idea of patients being abused and a mass suicide from 60 years earlier. The footage is intermixed with "visions" of the past, but how it all ties together is the big mystery. It’s an interesting premise and there is a lot to work with, but they can’t pull it together. What we end up with is haphazard investigation that leads us nowhere.
The acting within the "lost footage" is tolerable, barely, but the hospital scenes are just tragic. You begin to groan as soon as they cut back to hideous green and white walls of the hospital room.
While there was nothing compelling about this movie, I kept watching so I see the big reveal and find out what’s behind the events. But the big reveal doesn’t come and I don’t know what the hell kind of ending we’re given. We’re dropped in the middle of some craptacular X-Files ripoff and I don’t know what the hell just happened. What is this mess? How this ending fits with the rest of the movie I don’t know, but I’m terribly confused.
The ending completely ruins what could have been a decent, and I use that word loosely, low budget scare. There are some moments of fun in this movie, but by the time you get to the end, you’ll want to throw something.
Other Articles of Interest:
- Saw III
- I Am Zozo – A Review
- Paranormal Activity 2 – Do we really have to do this?
- The Abandoned – After Dark Horror Fest – 8 Films To Die For
- The Conjuring – First Impression
- Ouija – The Movie – Keep Telling Yourself It’s Just a Game
- Paranormal Activity – Movie Review
- Dreams in the Witch House – Masters of Horror – Rating 3 out of 5
- The Conjuring – A Film About Ed and Lorraine Warren
- The Number 23 – Rating 2.3 out of 5
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