Jordan’s Review: Why you shouldn’t ‘Pay the Ghost’.

For those of you who are excited for this October’s spooky festivities, you may be better off turning your attention away from Nicolas Cage’s new horror flick, Pay the Ghost. Alongside the lackluster Academy Award Winner is The Walking Dead actress, Sarah Wayne Callies, who out of the two of them, gave a more believable performance. The film was brought to us by critically acclaimed German director, Uli Edel, who’s 2008 film, The Baadere Meinhof Complex, was nominated for a Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Yet despite all the award winners and nominees, the film lacked immensely in its scare factor.

After a weak and not-so-scary opener, the story moves into modern-day New York City, where we see the lives of Mike (Cage) and Kristen Cole (Callies) with their son Charlie (Jack Fulton). The plot quickly shows signs of a supernatural presence outside Charlie’s bedroom window, which of course is immediately disregarded by his mother and father. It wasn’t until Halloween night that Charlie started seeing the ghost more closely. While he and his father were attending a Halloween Festival on their block, Charlie turned to his father and told him to “pay the ghost,” which as most parents would, Mike assume he was talking about all the costumes and decorations. Then only a few moments later, Charlie disappeared.

Pay the Ghost, never brought anything new to the realm of horror. If anything it felt as though it copied from other films, such as James Wan’s Insidious. The film felt lazy considering the amount of plot holes, which occasionally made the film funny rather than frightening. Overall, Pay the Ghost might appeal to some, however for the real horror film connoisseurs, this film might not be the scare you are looking for this Halloween season.

2 out of 5 stars

Michael’s Review: ‘Black November’- No Price is Too High For Justice

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What price would you pay to stand up for what you believe is right? That’s the question posed by director Jeta Amata in this politically charged drama set in Nigeria. The film, which is a fiction based on actual events, explores the rise of a movement for change after an oil spill tragedy leaves hundreds dead and the living left to pick up the pieces. The voices of the few willing to stand up for their rights echoed loud and act as a rallying cry for a region. This is their story. Read More →