The Last Exorcism
From the trailers it kind of looks like the camera work of Paranormal Activity and The Blair Witch Project. The story seems to emulate some of the Exorcism of Emily Rose. But the actual summaries I’m reading come across as a little contradictory. On IMDB it says that Cotton Marcus has just run out of faith. In another synopsis it says he’s a fake and is doing the exorcisms just for the money and is conning people into thinking they’ve been cured.
Perhaps it’s a little of both.
This sounds quirky and amusing, and from the trailer it does look like it has some pretty cool elements. But with a PG-13 rating will it actually be spine tingling?
Who’s heading out to see it this weekend? I’d really like to hear what you think. I won’t be able to make it this weekend, but unless it’s absolutely horrid I think I’ll have to go see it.
http://www.churchofstmarks.com/blog/
Other Articles of Interest:
- The Conjuring – A Film About Ed and Lorraine Warren
- Deer Woman – Masters of Horror – Rating 4 out of 5
- Secret Window – Rating 3 out of 5
- Best Halloween Movies?
- Poe on the Go?
- Halloween Haunted House
- Sounds Like – Masters of Horror – Rating 3 out of 5
- Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XIX
- Halloween Desktops by Stardock
- Count Dracula – BBC Mini-Series – Rating 3.5 out of 5
So That Leaves …
After scraping away all the barnacles, I’m left with two paranormal shows. (At least for now).
Not only is Destination Truth my favorite paranormal show, but it’s one of my favorite TV shows period. The locations Josh goes to are simply fascinating (the main reason I liked GHI as well) and the people he encounters are quite "unique". With places like Egypt, Chernobyl, and Transylvania and the constant warnings that he’ll be eaten and never come back alive it’s all pretty exciting stuff. Not to mention the slew of unreliable vehicles he seems to get saddled with. And ill-tempered camels. The question of "did you hear that?" has been replaced with, "Is Josh’s boat going to sink?", "Is Josh going to run out of gas in the middle of that lake?", "Is the roof of that airplane going to come off… again?" and "Do you think Josh will jump on that parade float?"
Half the fun is seeing if Josh and team actually make it to the location, and by what mode of travel.
And when it comes to the paranormal, it really doesn’t matter since we already know that most of the stories are urban legends anyway. Are we really expecting "Skunk Ape" to make an appearance? Do you think "El Chupacabra" is going to come out and play? However, these myths have taken on a life of their own and are just as much a part of the culture as anything else. But why do people believe these stories? What keeps them alive in their minds?
In most cases Josh comes away with unexplained noises, plenty of wild animals and lots of treacherous terrain. It’s very exciting and he’s a fantastic host. He rarely gets rattled, keeps his sense of humor and when faced with less than ideal circumstances he simply soldiers on. Plus, his enthusiasm for people and their culture just pulls you right in. He really has no problem going up in that rickety plane or drinking until he sees leprechauns. And if you recall, he was actually told to drink that much…
This show could be about the quest for the perfect ball of yarn and I’d still be tuning in!
And finally, there’s Ghost Adventures. Admittedly, everything in their world is paranormal and dark energy. And yes, they have a tendency to curse like sailors and scare themselves senseless, until they crash into walls. But they’re so damned entertaining to watch. Zak has a contagious enthusiasm and his narrative style is very compelling. Plus, they deal with old and mysterious buildings, sort of like the Ghost Hunters did in the beginning. They normally don’t show up at someone’s home (and even when they did it was still basically a castle) so the location is steeped in history, tragedy and violence. Even the Execution Rock Lighthouse gave you the chills when you heard about what happened there. And Poveglia Island? If the stories are true, that place makes you cringe.
Ghost Adventures is still like watching and listening to someone tell you a good ghost story. The idea of being locked up in an abandoned jail or asylum is still really compelling. Most of the noises you hear are just the building creaking, cars driving down the road, animals in the distance and other perfectly normal sounds for an old building. And those shadows are probably coming from the car headlights or a streetlight. But you combine that with the somewhat sinister tales of the past and you have something pretty interesting. Something worth watching. And maybe that noise isn’t the building settling. And that shows isn’t from a car headlight. And maybe that whisper will make sense…
But if everything is haunted in the Ghost Adventures world and haunted in the Ghost Hunters world, why did I turn my back to the GH team? It does seem like a contradiction so let me explain. First off, the GA team has already declared the place haunted before they ever step foot in there, that’s why they’re there in the first place. They’re not trying to prove or disprove anything. They’re being locked down for the experience.
Second, it’s about the experience. Just like with Josh, Zak, Nick and Aaron are more fun to watch. They aren’t sitting on a couch all the time. They’re constantly talking and doing something. And we don’t see them playing stupid games in the middle of the show or daring each other to do something moronic for a couple of bucks.
To me it’s a completely different show with a vastly different style. Now, before we go too far, I don’t really think Zak and team have come up with compelling paranormal evidence either. Far too much is based on personal experiences and I don’t put any stock in those EVP recordings. But I like the places they go and the backstory that goes with it.
It’s not a perfect show but it’s infinitely better than Ghost Hunters. Ghost Adventures doesn’t seem to be as concerned with getting the right "look" for people sitting on the couch.
Other Articles of Interest:
- Destination Truth
- American Paranormal – Eastern State Penitentiary – Part II
- Ghost Hunters at Alcatraz 100th Episode
- Looks like ghost hunting is becoming big business
- What’s with all the secrecy?
- Paranormal TV – Which shows are coming back?
- When will the paranormal bubble burst?
- Oh hell, so now everyone has a book
- Ghost Hunters Halloween Special 2009 – It’s On!
- Chasing Spirits: The Building of the "Ghost Adventures" Crew
What a difference a year makes … It’s time to say goodbye
As the start of several new shows approaches, I’m actually more amazed by how many shows I WON’T be watching this time around. Some are because they’ve been taken off the air, such as Ghost Lab and Paranormal Cops, but some are because I’ve become sick of the show and the people involved.
I’m not sorry to see Ghost Lab go, but I think Paranormal Cops could have been quite interesting. Since they weren’t running around screaming like they soiled themselves or yelling "What the @#$% was that?!" every 10 seconds, it just wasn’t cut out for TV.
I’m also ditching the entire Ghost Hunter franchise. I’ve recorded all the new episodes of GHI so far, but I just can’t bring myself to watch them. I didn’t watch Ghost Hunters Academy because of the flunkies they had on that show, so I don’t want to see them on GHI. Apparently you graduate to GHI? It’s soured me off the show so it’s time to part ways.
I had a blast watching the first three seasons of the Ghost Hunters but the thrill is gone and it’s time to say goodbye to them as well. In the beginning, Jason and Grant just seemed like a couple of guys who got to explore some really neat places around the country. It was a little silly and Hollywood in those early episodes, but they settled in and it was like exploring along with them.
Everything was great until they hit the home of the Manson Murders (Season 3, Episode 12). This is when the show turned to crap. This was the start of the K2 meter (which I think it total junk) and this is where they brought in Chris Fleming (who I think is very suspect and dodgy at best). From this point forward the show changed for the worse to where the investigation where shoddy, the evidence shaky and far too many locations were labeled as haunted. And by many accounts this is where the GH team started faking evidence like the K2 meter and the temperature readings.
And the accusations are still going on, such as the jacket pulling Halloween incident. Which also coincides with the last actual Live broadcast. Plus, having arrogant and rather annoying wrestlers as guests on your show really isn’t that endearing.
I’m not saying that Jason and Grant doctored footage or evidence, but it wouldn’t surprise me and that’s part of the problem. I just can’t believe these guys any more. Good for them that their little side project turned into a multi-million dollar TV venture, which not only spawned a whole series of clones, it lined their pockets with enough cash to buy a supposedly haunted Inn of their own. But now they have to put on a good show- in more ways than one. Everything is haunted. Everything is overly dramatic. Everything is blown out of proportion. They can make or break a business by saying the place is haunted or not. A business struggling with sales can get new life if Jason and Grant say it’s haunted. And even towns are trying to revive their economies by catering to ghost hunting. It’s pure business now.
I didn’t watch any of Season 6 and barely any of Season 5. I just don’t care what they have to say any more because I can’t believe what they say.
It was a fun ride guys, but this is the end of the line for me. Good luck and don’t get caught.
While I’m at it, it’s time to wave goodbye to Ryan and the rest of the PRS crew. Paranormal State has just gone off the rails. Ryan and his interest in the paranormal has turned into a Satan hunting, exorcism performing, Holier Than Thou crusade. Demons are everywhere and Ryan has taken it upon himself to root them out.
The last episode of Season 2 (I am Six) should have been an indicator of where the show was headed. And by the time we hit the midway point of Season 3 (Return of Six) the show was just ridiculous. Absolutely nothing about the show made sense anymore. The experiments they were trying were plain stupid. Really, ping pong balls on the eyes and EMFs to the head? And of course the fight over just how dangerous it is. Lord have mercy that was moronic!
I really lost interest at this point, but held on to see if it would get better. It didn’t. By the time we hit Season 4, Episode 8, "Darkness Falls", at the West Virginia State Penitentiary I was done. Satanic symbol this. Devil worship that. Occult here. Conspiracy there. Blah Blah Blah. This is also where Ryan lost it and started fighting with his team and turned into a spoiled brat declaring he wasn’t going to share his paranormal secret with them because they were laughing. The only thing missing was the stomping feet.
Ryan’s grasp of symbolism is non-existent, and I can’t say he has come up with a single piece of evidence that actually supports a claim of the paranormal in any place he’s investigated. He’s even gone so far as to say if you keep claiming a place is haunted, it can actually become haunted.
Beyond all that, he’s just becoming an ass. Ryan, you started off interesting, but that’s no longer the case. Maybe one day you’ll grow up, and graduate.
Other Articles of Interest:
- What’s with all the secrecy?
- Independent investigation of the Spalding Inn
- When will the paranormal bubble burst?
- Ghost Hunters – Season 1 – Rating – Too Damn Funny!
- Ghost Hunters Season 3 Part 1
- Ghost Hunters – Live From The Stanley Hotel
- Ghost Hunters Halloween Special 2009
- Ghost Hunters and GH International
- Ghost Adventures Season 2 Available Today
- When will the Ghost Hunters be exposed?
Zombie Pumpkins – Pumpkin Carving Patterns
When it comes to Halloween patterns this is the place to go. This will be my 3rd year with Zombie Pumpkins. The Patch Master has hundreds of patterns in all sorts of categories. The templates are amazing and the cost is incredibly low! Trust me, you will be envied!
Other Articles of Interest:
- The Halloween Pumpkin Tally for 2010
- We’re getting close! It’s almost time!
- Happy Halloween!!
- Pumpkin Templates – Zombie Hello Kitty, Bloody Mary, Dexter
- Pumpkin Patch – Halloween theme for WordPress
- So here is the tally
- Tallahassee – A tribute to Zombieland
- My Favorite Pumpkin
- Kidface – A fun Halloween theme for WordPress
- Flaming Pumpkin Trio – A Halloween WordPress theme
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