Cashier’s Corner:
Pumpkinhead: The Demon of Revenge (1988)
Everything was fine until those city-folk showed up: one dead kid, five others killed, and a demon, vanquished for now! Pumpkinhead is a story of generational trauma and maybe also the anxieties of rural America?? (might be reading into it a bit toooo much here). Ed Harley witnessed Pumpkinhead kill a man as a child in 1957. But after his son, Billy, is killed by some reckless teens(?) in a dirt bike accident, he seeks revenge if he can’t get his boy back. There’s also a witch named Haggis(!) and a commune of like 100 kids straight out of the dustbowl; one of whom is wearing converse and thinks his slingshot will do any good against a xenomorph-Ridley-looking-mfer. Watch out for Pumpkinhead impaling that dude with the barrel of his rifle!!
Apex (2026)
Charlize Theron (Sacha) carries this movie, but she just couldn’t carry Eric Bana (yikes) while Taron Egerton (Ben) is channeling his inner Jai Courtney a la Dangerous Animals (2025), another Grocery News rec. The most dangerous game comes face to face with free solo with a good dash of Deliverance (1972) and doesn’t disappoint. Charlize time and again shows that she is capable of enduring extreme challenges and surviving. Ben, unhinged!, dancing to The Chemical Brothers’ Go (feat. Q-Tip) was a highlight. The symmetry of (not really a spoiler alert) Sacha dropping Ben to his death was maybe a bit on the nose, but she had to overcome her trauma to survive. The last few minutes of free climbing the rocks, while ultimately stakes-free because obviously she’s going to make it, were nonetheless a bit stressful. These small-scoped Netflix exclusives don’t entirely suck, and I’m on board.
Elevation (2024)
Anthony Mackie (Will) thinking he could outrun the Reapers(!) up the mountain?? I mean, come onnn. And you’re telling me that they were robots the whole time??? I didn’t see that coming, but like that was the big reveal?? Is this an allegory for big tech or what? And why does Morena Baccarin (Nina) look at the sky as though there is some sort of higher power controlling them? And they know that guns don’t work, but they keep using them anyway? Don’t worry tho, Nina figures out how to make a one-hit-kill-bullet and they raise the jolly roger, the agreed upon(?) signal that the Reapers can indeed be killed. But just when you think it’s all over, BAM! (spoiler alert) what’s that up in the sky oh just three asteroids burning through the upper atmosphere because hold onto your hats we’ve hopefully got a sequel coming and I’m going to watch it.
Recently Consumed:
x - The Great Wall (2018) - 45 minutes over several days and I just couldn’t get past Matt Damon’s accent
Dust Bunny (2025) - Baz Luhrman x Matilda x Leon The Professional?? I couldn’t finish it, maybe you can
? - All You Need Is Kill (2025) - Better name than Edge of Tomorrow Live. Die. Repeat.
Pumpkinhead: The Demon of Revenge (1988) - Kid gets hit by a dirt bike and his dad thinks a wet rag is going to fix things??
! - Apex (2026) - Never eating jerky again :/
Night Patrol (2025) - Dermot Mulroney’s head popped like a balloon!
? - Elevation (2025) - When they go low, we go high, until we have to go low again
[! - worth your time]
[? - maybe worth your time?]
[x - stay away it’s rotten]
In the Cart:
65 (2023) - Finally going to hopefully get through this one
Greenland 2: Migration (2025) - More green, more land
Videodrome (1983) - Cronenberg always delivers (something)
