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Articles by Jake Dee
7 Old-School Westerns That Are Now Unwatchable
For every classic Western movie that holds up for generations, countless others age poorly and feel outdated by today's standards. However, all-time greats like John Ford's The Searchers and Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch overcome their controversial nature and remain eminently watchable due to their masterful technical craft. On the flip side, a handful of throwback Westerns have aged like milk since their releases, including a few hits that were celebrated at the time of their release.
How Prom Night IV became the sequel that killed the franchise
By the time Prom Night IV: Deliver Us from Evil arrived in the early ’90s, the Prom Night franchise had already reinvented itself more than once. But this time, it may have finally gone too far. There’s no returning killer. Almost no connection to the previous movies. And somehow, a movie called Prom Night IV doesn’t even take place at a prom.
What Happened to Highlander: The Source? How the Fifth Movie Nearly Killed the Franchise
The star didn’t want to come back. The script was rewritten repeatedly, completely upending the series’ mythology. The original director eventually walked away. And when the finished movie finally emerged, it became the first Highlander film that couldn’t even make it into theaters. So how did a franchise that began with one of the most beloved cult movies of the ’80s end up here? What convinced Adrian Paul to return after initially refusing?
6 Perfect HBO Shows That Get More Intense With Every Episode Original
One of the most galling aspects of TV shows made in the streaming era is how often each season is drawn out with contemptible filler that stretches out the story to an unnecessary length. In the mission to provide viewers with binge-worthy content, countless shows squeeze roughly two or three hours of story into a 10-part affair that loses the plot and results in a boring chore to sit through.
5 Perfect Sci-Fi TV Shows That Get More Intense With Every Episode (#1 Is a Modern Classic)
It seems the world has fallen in love with mini PCs, from Apple's Mac Mini to units from one of the many tiny PCs available from companies like …
Why Hollywood Thought The Hunt for Red October Would Be a Total Box Office Flop
Firmly entrenched as one of the all-time best submarine Cold War spy thrillers, John McTiernan’s The Hunt for Red October was a minor miracle in old-fashioned, practical filmmaking, made well before the advent of CGI was a technological commonplace. But did you know that, despite the book being a runaway bestseller, nobody in Hollywood wanted to make the movie at first?
Why Jaws: The Revenge Is Better Than Its Reputation Suggests
Few sequels have been ridiculed as relentlessly as Jaws: The Revenge. The fourth installment in Universal’s blockbuster franchise has spent nearly four decades as the punchline to countless “worst sequel ever made” lists.
The 10 Best 'Chicago Fire' Episodes, Ranked
Out of all the Chicago One TV procedurals, I've always gravitated toward Chicago Fire the most. The sheer camaraderie among the various firefighters and emergency responders in Firehouse 51, Engine 51, Truck 81, and Ambulance 61 almost always leads to incredibly harrowing, high-stakes cooperation that proves how much they love each other and have one another's backs in the line of duty. Of course, with nearly 300 episodes produced since 2012, some remain far more memorable than others.
The Best 'John Wick' Replacement of the Decade Is a 2-Part Masterpiece Action Thriller You'll Never Forget
Restaurants 2 days ago How does The Bear end? mirror.co.uk - Lucas Hill-Paul • 2d It’s the end of an era for this award-winning streaming drama. **Warning - this article contains major spoilers for The Bear Season 5.** The Bear’s … Cheese 2 days ago Who Plays Cheese In ‘The Bear’? Why The Computer’s Niece Looks So Familiar Decider - Nicole Gallucci • 2d The Bear‘s fifth and final season just dropped in full on Hulu, which means fans are about to meet one final round of new characters.
What Happened to The Black Dahlia? How Brian De Palma’s Noir Dream Went Wrong
When considering Brian De Palma’s biggest cinematic misfires, most are quick to point out the tone-deaf and woefully miscast adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities in 1990. However, a close second has to be 2006’s The Black Dahlia, the handsome yet utterly vapid and convoluted adaptation of James Ellroy’s novel that traces the real-life murder of Elizabeth Short and the investigation that followed in 1947 Los Angeles.
What Happened to The Ring Two? The Studio Interference That Broke Hideo Nakata
Hideo Nakata’s The Ring Two bears several ignominious distinctions. Easily the most misguided sequel to an American remake on record, arguably the worst English-language debut from a well-respected J-horror master, and perhaps one of the biggest cases of studio interference in the last 20 years, it’s no surprise that Nakata has flat-out disowned the movie and expressed nothing but disdain for his experience making it.
The Biggest Differences Between the First Blood Novel and Its Movie Adaptation
Ever wonder about the biggest differences between the First Blood novel and its movie adaptation? Better yet, did you know that the original ending of the story was much darker and more disturbing than what’s seen on screen? Were you aware of how deranged and psychotically unhinged Rambo is in the book versus the film?
Top 10 Summer Camp Horror Movies Ranked (From Friday the 13th to Cult Classics)
Summer camp horror movies are a blood-soaked cornerstone of the slasher genre where horny counselors, isolated cabins, and dark woods guarantee a body count before sunrise. From the early ’80s boom that gave us masked maniacs and legendary final girls to later cult favorites that twisted the formula, the subgenre is a proving ground for creative kills and backwoods terror.
Stephen King Loved HBO's 7-Part Thriller Masterpiece Due to a Crucial Element That "Many Others Lack"
9 hours ago President Donald Trump called Monday for ABC to fire late-night host Jimmy Kimmel after he jokingly called first lady Melania Trump an “expectant widow” during a White House Correspondents’ Dinner skit on his show last week. Hours earlier, Melania Trump had implied Kimmel should lose his job over …
John Carpenter’s Scariest Scenes Ranked: From Halloween to The Thing
John Carpenter crafts moments that stick with you forever. Across films like Halloween and The Thing, Carpenter proves that true fear isn’t about constant chaos, it’s about timing, restraint, and knowing exactly when to strike. His scariest scenes don’t just shock, they linger. These are the moments that define his legacy and continue to haunt audiences decades later. The scariest John Carpenter moment is when Michael Myers sits up in the background in Halloween (1978).
The Most Terrifying Horror Movie Hotels Ever, Ranked
A hotel should be the safest kind of nowhere, and that’s exactly why the genre loves it. From the moment Psycho turned a quiet roadside motel into a terror hot spot, horror movies have been obsessed with turning places you’re supposed to trust into places where nothing can be trusted. Since then, films like The Shining have taken things even further, transforming entire hotels into living nightmares.
How Nakatomi Plaza Became an Unforgettable Character in Die Hard
Upon considering the most memorable single movie settings in cinematic history, which ones instantly spring to mind? Not just as locations, but as settings that function as integral movie characters that inform the plot as much as the human protagonists? The disorienting Overlook Hotel in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining? The sweaty submarine in Wolfgang Petersen’s Das Boot? The chaotic apartment courtyard in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window?
10 Best Alfred Hitchcock Scenes Ranked (Psycho, Rear Window, Vertigo & More)
Across a career spanning silent-era experiments to Technicolor masterpieces, Alfred Hitchcock refined the art of making audiences feel trapped, uneasy, and complicit in what they were watching. Whether it’s a shower curtain being pulled back or a bird circling overhead, Hitchcock turned simple moments into cinematic landmarks of tension.
The Best Shark Attacks in the Jaws Franchise, Ranked
When Jaws hit theaters in 1975, it didn’t just redefine the blockbuster, it also changed how audiences looked at the water forever. What made the film (and its sequels) so effective wasn’t just the shark itself, but how each attack was staged: slow, suspenseful, and often brutally sudden. Across the Jaws franchise, the body count may not be as high as your typical slasher, but the impact of these deaths lingers.
Best Horror Movie Twist Endings Ranked (Top 10)
In many ways a film is only as good as its ending. How many times have you, in the horror genre especially, been on board with a flick up until the final few moments, only to be thoroughly disappointed by a finale that makes you wanna hurl large objects at your screen? We’ve all experienced it all too often. Which is why we’re looking at the most awesomely unpredictable horror film endings.
Best Haunted House Movies Ranked
If there’s one subgenre of horror that never goes out of style, it’s the haunted house movie. From creaking floorboards to unseen presences lurking in the dark, these films thrive on atmosphere, dread, and the terrifying idea that your home may not be as safe as you think. Here are the best haunted house movies ranked.
10 Best Religious Horror Movies (Ranked and Explained)
Religious horror has always been one of the most powerful subgenres in film, as it taps into primal fears of faith, evil, and the unknown. From demonic possession and Satanic conspiracies to fallen angels and spiritual crises, these films explore what happens when belief systems collide with terror. Below is a curated ranking of the most essential religious horror films, blending classic masterpieces with modern entries.
Gleaming the Cube: Christian Slater’s skateboarding movie is a blast
Speaking for many who grew up skateboarding in the ‘80s and ‘90s, there are only two movies worth a lick that most of us idolized as kids. Thrashin’ in 1986 and Gleaming the Cube in 1989, both featuring Hall of Famer and champion ambassador Tony Hawk, among other lasting luminaries of the sport.
WTF Happened to Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear?
New York, New York, The King of Comedy, After Hours, Bringing out the Dead, you name it – the peerless Martin Scorsese has no shortage of minor key masterpieces that often go overshadowed by his all-time cinematic classics. But when it comes to his most successful unmined gems, it’s hard to escape the stylish Hitchcockian homage of Cape Fear, a studio venture that became the first Scorsese film to cross the $100 million threshold at the box office.
WTF Happened to American History X?
Powerful, polarizing, and undeniably provocative, few movies made in the 1990s have had as lasting an impact as Tony Kaye’s American History X. In a cinematic decade bookended by such masterworks as Scorsese’s Goodfellas and Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, American History X towers neck-and-neck with Spielberg’s Schindler’s List as an unforgettable experience rebuking the hateful ideology of the Third Reich and its neo-Nazi offspring.
WTF Happened to River’s Edge?
If Blue Velvet is considered the most luridly shocking, controversially polarizing psycho-drama released in 1986, then River’s Edge is a very close second. Indeed, Tim Hunter’s unjustly overlooked masterwork of stark criminal realism shares the same cinematographer as the David Lynch classic and also stars Dennis Hopper, this time as Feck, an ultra-perverted monster of a man who could be considered the spiritual cousin of Frank Booth.
4 Epic War Miniseries Better Than Any Classic Movie
Trump may survive Epstein — but this act of contempt will finally bring him down We at least know now that the fuse for the Trump administration's destruction is lit and burning fast. Yes, the Epstein Files loom larger almost by …
Highlander: Endgame: The Messy Film That Tried to Unite the Franchise
As we continue to chronicle the checkered production history of the cinematic Highlander saga, all eyes turn to Highlander: Endgame, the fourth theatrical entry in the film franchise that also functions as a continual mashup of the TV series starring Adrian Paul.
Chucky's Best Kills!
We’ve followed that tiny terror known as Chucky through seven feature films and three seasons of television – and it’s just not enough! Fans are eagerly waiting for more, and Jennifer Tilly promises there is another Chucky and Tiffany story in development. While we wait for that one to come along, we’ve decided to look back over the existing films and pick some of the standout moments of Chucky doing what he does best: murdering people. Ready for the Top Ten Best Chucky Kills?
Basic Instinct: Why the most luridly entertaining thriller of the 90s is still unmatched
You feel a sharp, cold icepick prod the back of your neck, and you’re forced to name the most luridly entertaining erotic thriller of the ‘80s and ‘90s. What would you go with? Dressed to Kill? Body Heat? Fatal Attraction? What about Wild Things or The Last Seduction? While all worthy affairs, it’s hard to beat Paul Verhoeven’s controversial and transgressive neo-noir crime film, Basic Instinct.
Top 10 Best Friday the 13th Kills Part 2!
Happy unofficial horror holiday friends…few things are more enjoyable than a Friday the 13th! A while back, we highlighted our Top 10 Favorite Friday the 13th deaths, which included the awesome iconography of everything from triple machete-decollation, harpoons through the eyes, sleeping bag bashing to one-punch decapitations, arrows through the throat, and liquid nitrogen face-shattering. And you know what? Ten just ain’t enough, is it? Now we present the encore.
Favorite Friday the 13th Kills!
It’s upon us again friends, the most ominous unofficial horror holiday, and I’m celebrating by feting the handy-work of my main man Jason Voorhees. As I’ve mentioned on more than one occasion, I grew up watching Jason evolve (or devolve) from a hideously deformed man-child into a hulking hero of homicide, even going as far as rocking full-fledged marathons with friends every time the calendar read Friday the 13th.
What Happened to Hide and Seek? Robert De Niro’s Forgotten Horror Hit with Five Endings
If you had a sharp knife to your melon and were forced to name legendary Robert De Niro’s most underrated horror movie on record, what would your honest answer be? While most are likely to avoid Godsend like a biblical plague, the laughable 2004 debacle co-starring Greg Kinnear, it’s harder to run away from Hide and Seek, the well-acted but absurdly predictable 2005 psycho-thriller featuring Dakota Fanning in a breakout performance.
Copycat: The Story Behind This Underrated Sigourney Weaver Serial Killer Thriller
It’s no exaggeration to say that some of the all-time best psychological crime thrillers were made in the 1990s. Jacob’s Ladder, Misery, The Silence of the Lambs, The Usual Suspects, The Game — you name it. Yet, despite its derivative title that suggests a lame imitation of much better products, the 1995 Sigourney Weaver movie Copycat is among the most easily overlooked original psycho-thrillers of the decade.
Why Life (2017) Still Works as One of the Best Alien Homages
Among the best-made and most resourceful studio attempts at paying homage to Alien by reinforcing the extraterrestrial threats of outer space, it’s hard to overlook Life, the 2017 sci-fi horror film starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Ryan Reynolds. In examining Life’s conception and production, it’s worth exploring how director Daniel Espinosa also channeled Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho and Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity.
What Happened to Dark City (1998)?
While The Matrix is rightly billed as the most successful and inventive science fiction film of the 1990s, Alex Proyas’ criminally overlooked Dark City deserves to be mentioned on the same level. After all, the Wachowski siblings were so impressed by the visual tableau and production design of Dark City that they purchased props and parts of the set and recycled them in the first Matrix movie.
Why The Invasion (2007) Failed: Inside the Troubled Remake of Body Snatchers
Beyond Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, one of the most enduring and unnerving horror stories ever adapted is Jack Finney’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The iconic 1956 Don Siegel original still lands its punches nearly 70 years later, the superb 1978 Philip Kaufman remake remains arguably the best version, and Abel Ferrara’s criminally overlooked 1993 adaptation deserves a real reappraisal.
Guest Post 2 By Jake Dee
From the General Debate. The case of the Salisbury Skirpals” Jake Dee December 8, 2025 at 4:54 pm Edit First up, I’m glad to see someone has taken the bait and is willing to discuss this story, I think there’s a real debate to be had here and thank you Tom and pdm1946 for hosting it. Secondly, I’m just not getting this difference between “cunning” and “intelligence”. Is one the ability for quick innate actions like a cat and the other long term abstract thinking like a human?
Guest Post 1 By Jake Dee
Transferred from todays General Debate. “The Kremlin Poison Files Part I, Jake Dee December 8, 2025 at 3:01 pm Edit The Dawn Sturgess inquiry closed in the UK on Friday which is likely intended to be the UK government’s final official word on the Skripal poisoning story which started in 2018. It’s conclusion? Vladimir Putin is morally responsible for her death.
Spartacus: House of Ashur
12 years after Spartacus ended with Season 4's War of the Damned, Starz is opening the doors to Spartacus: House of Ashur on December 5, 2025. The sword-and-sandal sequel presents an alternate history in which Ashur survived the Battle of Mount Vesuvius and lived long enough to inherit his master's training dojo, or Ludus.
Psycho II (1983) - What Happened to This Horror Movie?
Here’s a head-splitter if there ever was one. When thinking about the best cinematic horror sequel that had the impossible task of living up to its all-time great predecessor, which one tops the list? Dawn of the Dead? Aliens? Evil Dead II? A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors? How about The Exorcist III?
WTF Happened to Killing Zoe?
If Michael Mann’s Heat, Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon, and Arthur Penn’s Bonnie and Clyde are firmly etched in the inner sanctum of all-time great heist movies, which movies would you say are on par or perhaps rank one tier below? Baby Driver, The Thomas Crown Affair, Inside Man, Hell or High Water? What about lesser-known examples like The Lookout, The Brink’s Job, or The Friends of Eddie Coyle?
Hellboy (2004) - What Happened to This Horror Movie?
A fantasy dream project and labor of love for cinematic visionary Guillermo del Toro, Hellboy took six years to come to fruition. As many know, the movie adapts Mike Mignola’s popular comic book and takes most of its story cues from Hellboy’s debut issue, Seeds of Destruction. Did you know though that a couple future Avengers were almost cast, one actor had a heck of a time shooting on their 43rd birthday, and a famous television star wanted to go uncredited out of respect for his co-star?
Reservoir Dogs: WTF Happened to the Iconic Ear Slicing Scene?
Throughout his unparalleled 30-year Hollywood career, cinematic provocateur Quentin Tarantino has delivered a trove of indelible movie scenes that continue to defy the test of time.
Talamasca: The Secret Order
Released just in time for Halloween, John Lee Hancock's Gothic horror series Talamasca: The Secret Order is slated to premiere on AMC on October 26, 2025. The third installment of Anne Rice's "Immortal Universe" franchise, following Interview with the Vampire and Mayfair Witches, The Secret Order is the latest adaptation of Rice's bestselling Vampire Chronicles novel series.
Swimfan (2002) - What Happened to This Horror Thriller?
Underrated or underwater? That’s the most pressing question the tepid teen thriller Swimfan warrants 23 years after its successful release. Baldly billed as a teen Fatal Attraction knockoff, Swimfan is a derivative, dimwitted female stalker flick that, despite being drowned by critics, became a commercial success in the fall of 2002.
The Real Science Behind The Last of Us
Now that the smoke has cleared from the polarizing finale of The Last of Us Season 2, it’s time to put the fungal infection the series revolves around under the microscope. Remember, the hit HBO horror series is adapted from the 2013 video game, with Season 2 drawing inspiration from the 2020 gaming sequel, The Last of Us Part II.
What Happened to the Cancelled Spider-Man Movies?
When it comes to the most disappointing comic book movies that were planned but never produced, which one tops the list? Is it Tim Burton’s Batman Continues? Guillermo del Toro’s Doctor Strange? Perhaps JJ Abrams’ Superman: Flyby? Nah, there’s only one correct answer: the ungodly spate of cancelled Spider-Man movies.
Goodfellas: How Martin Scorsese created the greatest tracking shot in history
Throughout the rich annals of American cinema, there has been no shortage of sustained long takes and single, unbroken shots. Yet, whether extolling the excellent camerawork of Robert Altman’s The Player, Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men, or perhaps the granddaddy of all masterful continuous shots, the opening of Orson Welles’ Touch of Evil, we submit that none eclipse the dizzying euphoria of Martin Scorsese’s ethereal Copacabana entrance in Goodfellas.
Predator: Brains meant more than brawn in this 1987 classic
With Predator: Killer of Killers and Predator: Badlands stalking theaters and streaming in 2025, it’s worth reflecting on one vastly overlooked aspect that made the Arnold Schwarzenegger original so damn iconic.
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