Reed Alexander
Founding member
Bio
I'm a horror author and foulmouthed critic of all things horror. New reviews posted every Monday.
@ReedsHorror on TikTok, Threads, Instagram, YouTube, and Mastodon.
Check out my books on Godless: https://godless.com/products/reed-alexander
Stories (309/0)
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of 'Prey' (2022)
So, this was an excellent extension of the Predator franchise. It really captured most of the feel of the original movie, Predator (1987). This is a pretty good break from the lackluster AvP movies, and the good but kinda silly movie Predators (2010). I haven't seen The Predator (2018), so I'm not sure how it compares, but needless to say, Prey (2022) was a good return to form.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of 'Bingo Hell' (
You know, for a shoe stringer, this was pretty good. Kinda reminds me of Bubba Hotep in many ways, and not just the feel of the horror as slightly ridiculous, but also the way it was shot, and the general presentation of the story.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of 'The Current Occupant' (2020)
So, this wasn't really horror, and it's not usually my bag to do movies like this, but I've strayed from my lane before and I think it's appropriate to do that now. So, what do I call this? Cerebral Suspense, Cerebral Thriller? Something in that vein. It's a kin to Cerebral Horror, and it's the best kind that walks the line between madness and reality. On its face, we're given a dilemma, a sort of moment where we're asked to suspend disbelief or reject it entirely. The movie frequently asks the question, "Is it more likely that the President of the United States is being held captive in a mental facility, or that a crazy person in a mental facility thinks they're the President of the United States."
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of Netflix's 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' (2022)
Yeah, anyone who complained about this extension of the TCM franchise clearly isn't a fan. It was everything it was supposed to fucking be. I mean, the second and third instalments of the franchise were fucking nuts. They were barely coherent. I could genuinely understand why people wouldn't like TCM 2 or TCM The Next Generation. They're simply not everyone's cup of horror tea. I fucking loved them, but that's the kind of bonkers nonsense I'm into. So sure, plenty of the TCM franchise isn't for everyone. But this had everything it should have. Violence, gore, and an undertone of social commentary. Like... what the fuck were people expecting? The damn franchise is about a guy who wears other people's faces and wields a chainsaw. When it's not going completely off the fucking rails like The Next Generation, it should just be about gore and violence.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of 'Crimes of the Future' (2022)
This was not a horror movie. This was a fucking Nine Inch Nails' music video. This was also everything Panos Cosmatos wishes he could create. Now, if we're doing Cronenberg, we know damn good and well shit is about to get weird. But like all artistic masturbation, are we really connecting, are we hitting the mark, or are we just jerking ourselves off? You know, this movie even made a point to ask that ironically, which I think is the brilliance of Cronenberg. Sure he has something to say, but he's also just as willing to admit he's jerking himself off.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed's Literary Horror Review of 'Unquiet Spirits' Edited by Murray and Smith (2022)
I'll be perfectly honest with you, ghost stories bore the shit out of me. I used to ghost hunt in my youth and after some pretty freaky stuff in real life, everything written seems quaint. I'm not even particularly excited about haunting movies. Ghosts really just don't do it for me. However, when I heard the premise of this collection, I jumped at the chance to get my hands on a copy.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of "We Need To Do Something" (2021)
I love when simple concepts are done right. This movie reminded me of The Phone Booth (2002) in that it uses one setting and a simple concept and just runs with it. It proves one of my favorite points in really good horror. "Horror is often about not knowing." There is something so terrifying about the unknown and quite a lot you can do with just that as a concept.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Horror Review of 'Men' (2022)
You know, there was a lot to like about this movie but I don't think it quite pulled off what it was going for. Honestly, I'm not sure why it tried to be so psychedelic. It had a solid premise, a solid antagonist, well-developed characters, and immersive atmosphere. But you know A24 can't just leave it at that. There needs to be symbolism and hidden meaning and... well fuck. I just don't think it was necessary. It's like my review of Beyond The Black Rainbow (2010), sure, even donkey shows are art in some way shape or form. But is there really any value to being this cryptic when what you have already works?
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed's Literary Horror Review of 'Resisting Madness' by Wesley Shouthard (2019)
This was a fantastic collection of just... fucking weird stuff. I'm not sure if I can consider the collection splatterpunk. Yeah, there was some of that, but it was actually second fiddle to stories that were just grimly weird. I'd call the collection "Weird Horror" personally, but believe me that does not diminish from the punch it delivers.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed Alexander's Literary Review of 'Blood and Mud' by John Baltisberger (2020)
Yeah, this was really good and I can definitely recommend it. I do have a huge gripe with horror that makes me want to root for the antagonist. One of the tropes I complain about the most is the tendency for horror to have victims that are all contemptible pricks. However, there are two important points to the first contemptible pricks of this story. First, they are white supremacists, a group called The Righteous, and I do love it when white nationalists, especially Incel white nationalists, get their comeuppance. I am a huge fan of comeuppance. As I've noted in the past, comeuppance can be cathartic.
By Reed Alexander2 years ago in Horror
Reed's Literary Horror Review of 'Tortured Willows' by Christina Sng, Angela Yuriko Smith, Lee Murray, Geneve Flynn
Lord, there is a lot of pain in the first few poems alone. I have to admit, I'm like... the worst guy to submit poetry to for review. But I felt that this collection really needed to be heard and I had to contribute what meager opinions I could on the matter.
By Reed Alexander3 years ago in Horror