Owen Gonzales This movie was decent and like all movies that have a low budget they try to make up for that with blood. In this case it kinda worked. The story is basically about a guy named mark who gets abducted and comes back a couple years later as a alien.It's one of the movies that include many type of thing like a combination of the body snatchers and splinter. I admit that the story line wasn't that bad and even though I expected more gore ( even though it's pretty gory) it was an okay movie. Some people would rate it lower them only reason why I didn't rate it lower was because I expected a stupid movie. It's one of those movies that tries every way to be as gory as possible to entertain the viewer. The affects were okay the blood was good the alien tongue that mark has looks really fake but it's okay. And of course many people die and the movie ends like most movie ends with something else that might happen. All and all its an okay movie to watch if you like those type of things that I listed above but it one of those movies that you could laugh while you watch with your friends.

Peter Pluymers "Something weird is going on !" Are you a fan of the slasher genre and it shouldn't be too complicated, then you'll certainly appreciate ˝Almost Human˝. This extremely short movies of less than 80 minutes doesn't waste time and starts immediately after a successful beginning and then goes on in a terrifying pace. Where Joe Begos, writer,producer and director of this SF-slasher, got his inspiration is obvious. He made an appeal on quite some acquaintances to act in this low budget movie. And eventually that's the only downside. You can hardly call most of them acting talents. But I must admit that technically and script-wise it's put together nicely.Patten, Maine, 13 October 1987. Seth (Graham Skipper) arrives with top speed at his good friend Mark's (Josh Ethier) house and tells the unlikely story that their friend Rob disappeared into thin air after a blue gleam appeared and he got sucked into the sky. Mark doesn't believe him until the same symptoms manifest themselves at his place : blue light and a deafening shrill sound. Before the eyes of Seth and Jen (Vanessa Leigh), Mark's girlfriend, the latter disappears too. Two years pass and Seth is still suffering from this traumatic experience: nosebleeds, sleeplessness and endless visits to a therapist. He himself was arrested because the authorities thought he had something to do with the mysterious disappearance, but due to a lack of evidence, he was released. Jen went on with her life again and has an uncomplicated relation with someone else, until Seth shows up with the news that something is fishy, and he has a feeling Mark will return.The first thought that occurred to me when seeing the movie poster is that it's kind of similar to that of ˝The Thing˝ and ˝Scanners˝. ˝Almost Human˝ is an homage to the VHS era of the 80's. It is a mix of B-slasher movies from that period as ˝Friday the 13th˝ and ˝Sorority House Massacre˝, and SF movies about alien abductions like ˝Invasion of the Body Snatchers˝ (especially the primal scream of Mark reminds me of that one) from years ago and recently ˝Dark Skies˝. You can therefore expect the inventive use of butcher knives, axes and chainsaws. Sometimes it is rather simplistic. As Mark approaches someone carrying a shotgun while that person is working with a chainsaw, and you can also see a log with an ax in it, you don't need to be smart to figure out how this will end. The bloody gore parts are abundant and the real horror fans will definitely be delighted. The more critical film lovers however will stumble over the sometimes abominably bad acting. The way Mark attempts to fertilize Jen was an original idea though.The two protagonists Graham Skipper and Josh Ethier were the most convincing. Especially Ethier delivered a brilliant performance. Skipper started in a promising way but gradually evolved into a wistful and baffled person who just could not grasp it all and constantly repeated that he didn't really understood what was going on and that something wasn't right. His facial expression was purely infantile at a certain moment. The rest of the cast was acting as if it was a privilege to take part in this movie and it was a performance they could brag about during a game of bowling with some friends after wards. Especially the colleagues of Jen and Seth were quite amateurish. On the one hand they looked as if they were afraid to forget their next sentence. And on the other hand they looked like a toddler who has done a pee for the first time on the potty : satisfied and proud. The reaction of Jens new fiancé as Mark suddenly stands at his door is so stupid that it was justified to be slaughtered. The guy disappeared mysteriously and suddenly reappears after 2 years. I would react differently for sure.Besides the sometimes weak performances, there were also some flaws that I noticed. These are small details. But avoiding such errors benefits the credibility of a movie. There were two hunters who discover Mark in the woods. One of them wants to go and check it out, fearless because he holds a huge shotgun, and the other follows him while holding another rifle. But still he needed to load that riffle when they were attacked. Fairly stupid for an experienced hunter, I think. Then there was the moment that Mark drove off with the captured jeep at the gas station with a windshield smeared with gallons of blood. The next time we see him driving, you'll notice a clean windshield as if he has just visited car-wash.Yet ˝Almost Human˝ could charm me. A short, fast and furious SciFi horror with some gore excerpts. Although you can't really call it exciting. The performances are sometimes lousy, but the editing of this movie is excellent. Not a moment I had the feeling I was watching a low-budget movie filmed with an ordinary digital camcorder. Joe Begos is definitely a name to keep in mind.However. Afterwards I still had an unanswered question: What happened with Rob ? More reviews at http://opinion-as-a-moviefreak.blogspot.com

The_Dead_See I hate to rag on indies that are clearly made by genre fans with far more passion and good intentions than the soulless fare that the mainstream studios churn out, but Joe Begos needs to take a long hard look in a mirror and realize that he is not a good writer and whatever his next venture may be, he should stick to directing only. The direction here was adequate but the script was horrible. I'm not being highbrow when I say that either, in a movie about a returned alien abductee going on a killing spree, I'm not looking for subtext or nuance or theme. If I want that stuff I'll hit the dramas. But, and this is important, I am looking for a script that doesn't feel like a cobbled together bunch of scenes from far better movies. You want to rip off ideas from The Hidden, Invasion of the Bodysnatchers, Fire in The Sky etc.? That's cool, but for heaven's sake at least attempt to put your own fingerprints on it otherwise all you succeed in doing is making me wish I was watching any one of the other movies instead. On top of the derivative nature of the whole thing, the writing fails in many other aspects too. The dialogue is often cringe worthy and I honestly believe that the reviews that say this movie had bad acting are actually mistaking bad acting for reasonable actors doing the best they can with atrocious lines. The director may have been going for an 80s throwback vibe but he fails in that aspect too. Aside from the excellent retro poster, nothing about this felt old school. It lacks all the charm and cheese (and character development) of 80s horror and the direction style certainly isn't throwback either. If you want to see a contemporary movie that truly looks and feels like it came from a previous era, watch Ti West's 'House of the Devil' instead.Still, I made it through to the end without turning it off, which is something since I have adhd pretty bad. The story was entertaining enough to just hold my attention through the mercifully short 80 minutes or so and I'd recommend it to non-demanding indie horror fans looking for something to fill up an evening but not expecting a gem. Joe Begos, if you happen to read this review, focus on directing my friend - you've got some chops in that and they could blossom - but part of the job of any good director is to realize when he needs to put the pen aside and work with a talented writer instead.

perkin2000 Low budget horror film that tries to combine Invasion Of The Body Snatchers with Carpenter's The Thing and, surprisingly, does a very good job of it.A chap with a beard disappears in a flash of light then he wakes up naked in a forest two years later. He changes a bit in the time he's gone, and instead of throwing himself a welcome home party with a big cake, he starts killing people and inserting alien eggs into their bodies via a long, fleshy egg-pipe that comes out of his mouth. It all gets very bloody and then ends.It's absolutely straight-up, with nothing complex or contrived, just a decent, well made horror film with some excellent, splatty practical effects. The only flaw is some of the acting is a little weak, one character in particular is amusingly bad in some scenes, otherwise it's a real little cracker and worth seeking out.Originally at http://filmplop.blogspot.co.uk/