Strange Nature (2018) Reviews

• My Review Of "Strange Nature"

  ASouthernHorrorFan2018-10-09

  "Strange Nature" sets up an eco-horror with classic tropes, exaggerated outcomes, and a sense environmental awareness that culminate in a nicely passed creature feature. The film is reminiscent of the classic 70's nature nightmare "The Prophecy" and a heavy dose of 80's terror "The Curse". The story is as poignant today as similar films in years past. Probably more so since it seems everyone in charge is either asleep at the wheel and lacking oversite. Anyway James Ojala does well with his first feature. He creates a community filled with characters that you like, or you hate. Either way you become invested. At times the story does seem to lag a little but not in the "I'm bored" sense. Just that there is a lot of story and drama unwrapped in "Strange Nature". I almost forgot it was a true horror movie until the horror happened. You get bits of the creature feature nightmare as the story builds, but the climax to the real nightmare is stellar. The special effects and horror elements are quality. The mutations , the atmosphere and the actual creature design all are done nicely, kudos to Ojala. Those scenes where we see the effects, are realistic, graphic moment of awesomeness. The settings and music score are somewhat basic but work well with everything else happening. Overall "Strange Nature" is a great creature feature drama. For full throttle action horror fans, this film will fall short. But it is worth watching. The story is full bodied, with classicly cool characters. The message is timeless and plays a bit as an homage to eco-horrors from the 70's. Plus the overall watch is entertaining.

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• Could have been so much better but for the very last scene

  jenneration2018-10-17

  This only had a rating of about 5 when I watched it. I was bemused at the extremely low score because the movie had some strong acting performances with the main female lead and her father. Decent script and cinematography. Also a quite heartwarming and engaging sub plots involving deformed residents and eventually a red neck showdown. I didn't actually realise this was meant to be a full blown horror movie until the end. It was a decent environmental conspiracy film that I thought was based on real events. I would have scored the movie as an 8 but for one appallingly bad final scene that was just completely out of place with the rest of the film and ruined its credibility for me. I wont spoil it but it was a cheap shock tactic right at the end. I can't believe none of the writing or production crew said "No" to that because it was so ridiculous. Anyway, definitely worth a watch.

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• Strange movie

  gilleslagae2018-10-04

  This is one of those movies that's on the left side of the parabolic curve of the rating of movies. So bad that it becomes good again. Watch this with a few friends and beers and you'll have a great night. Ridiculous conversations, really bad special effects, and awkward acting are this movie's core elements. The story line is simple and apprehensible, the events happening around it are not. But this is not a movie to reason or think about. If logic is a problem, it means you're just not drunk enough yet.

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• Movie Review: "Strange Nature" Is a Wonderful Mix of Morals and Mutations

  treespaz2018-10-21

  While watching "Strange Nature", a horror/thriller with a description that mentions mutated frogs, I was pleasantly surprised to notice that this movie was more than just cheap visual thrills you'd find in a B grade horror film. There was an actual message here, and a pretty good one, that involved a few plot twists and some solid acting performances. The story revolves around Kim Sweet (Lisa Sheridan) and her son Brody (Jonah Beres) as they return home to a small town in Minnesota to live/care for Kim's father Chuck (Bruce Bohne) who has cancer. Kim experienced fleeting fame as a pop start back in the day and that part of her past, along with her less than stellar relationship with her father, makes coming home a bitter pill to swallow. However, it doesn't take long for Kim to stumble upon some bizarre things going on with the local wildlife and as she investigates, she finds it's more serious and widespread than anyone realizes. She has difficulty getting the local townspeople to believe her, her past pop reputation makes people believe she is just looking for attention, and even Mayor Paulson (played by the always wonderful Stephen Tobolowsky) pushes her concerns aside. So she begins digging deeper and really, this is where the movie gets interesting. The story takes the over used plot device of little guy versus the big, bad corporation and twists it a few times, leaving the viewers scratching their collective heads in terms of what exactly is going on. Writer and director James Ojala does a good job in mixing up the story and keeping it moving at a good pace, especially in the first half where there is a lot more talking than there is bloodshed. There is a nice build up in the gore as well, first introducing the mutations, then the killings until we have the big showdown at the end. There are some nasty visual bits, not just with animals but newborn babies as well, so people with weak stomachs in that regards have now been officially warned. They manage to pull off the effects pretty well, with quick camera shots and even quicker acts of violence, to cover up anything that might look too fake. The actors are solid, especially Lisa Sheridan as Kim, who does the haunted kid returning to small-town America routine very well. She sells her character with ease, making her investigation into what's going on seem more plausible. Also, Stephen Tobolowsky is great as the mayor, giving him many different shades for the audience to ponder as we try and figure out if he's going to be helpful or if he's been in on what's going on the whole time. There are a few times during the movie where things don't work so well. The first forty minutes or so is heavy on story, which is asking a lot for an audience who is most likely made up of fans from the mutant frog side of the genre pool. Also, some interactions between certain characters don't work and the bad boys in town part of the story could probably have been cut back or cut out completely. That being said, there was a lot to like in "Strange Nature", which surprised me on more than one occasion with the twists in the story. Mutations and morals have never looked better together, leaving me satisfied and eager to encourage others to check out this solid film.

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• An Instant Genre Classic

  z_valois2019-01-07

  Echos of previous reviews will enlighten, but all aside...one simply cannot deny the epic absolute mastery of creature horror achieved in this heart-warming little film (heartwarming for us 80's enthusiasts, that is). My hope and respect for modern horror/creature work was truly restored with this single film. This is sitting top shelf in my book now, and I'm confident STRANGE NATURE will capture some very special love in the future classic collections of genre buffs. A true sense of an instant classic!

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