Watch Creeping Death on Screambox

Creeping Death comes from writer-director Matt Sampere who makes his feature debut with this Halloween horror movie. As mentioned earlier, it’s based on his short film of the same name.

The cast works well overall and the design and practical effects for the Celtic spirit Aos Si are all impressive. With the one big and unfortunate exception of the writer-director himself who plays Tim.

As good as he is at directing the rest of the cast, he does not work in front of the camera for me. Not at all. In fact, the movie only works briefly for me, when he isn’t on screen.

I love when a movie is made with passion, but it must be accompanied by talent. For this movie, there is passion and also talent, but someone needs to come in and “kill the darlings” because Matt Sampere isn’t quite able to do this himself.

This may sound harsh, but my intention is an honest and heartfelt recommendation. I think he could make solid horror movies as a writer and director, but not with himself in front of the camera.

Creeping Death is out on SCREAMBOX on September 10, 2024.

When one hears “Beetlejuice,” the 1988 Halloween classic often comes to mind, conjuring up memories of over-the-top campiness, oddball characters, zany horror and everything out-of-the-ordinary that is to be expected from a Tim Burton project. 

The 2024 sequel “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” despite having twice the title, possesses half of the spooky charm as its 36-year-old predecessor.

In “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” Winona Ryder reprises her role as Lydia Deetz; only this time around, Lydia isn’t the teenage daughter of a couple being haunted by the demon Beetlejuice. Instead, she’s the middle-aged star of a paranormal talk show — titled “Ghost House” — during which she provides families consultations on their haunted houses à la “Ghostbusters.”

Jenna Ortega steps into the cynical teenager role as Lydia’s daughter Astrid, who is skeptical of her mother’s profession and questionable new relationship with her business partner following the death of her father.

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is primarily preoccupied with resituating the classic Halloween story in a modern context, and perhaps that’s the main reason why the original’s charm feels beyond saving. It’s hard to feel cozy and spooky watching a Burton film when the characters drive luxury sports cars and whip out their iPhone-esque cellphones with possessed vigor. 

Beyond the natural growing pains of moving into the 21st century, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” lacks the first film’s eye-popping gothic chic. The campy, unrealistic practical effects and costumes are thrown out and substituted with air-brushed counterparts that strip the sequel of authenticity. 

Though to be fair, complaints about the corporate-washed soul of the film could be excused if the story didn’t feel like it was vomited out by a trick-or-treater who had too much Halloween candy. 

It’s undeniably true that the plot of the original “Beetlejuice” didn’t follow the most cohesive structure, but it never felt boring or convoluted. The same can’t be said for its sequel, which can’t seem to figure out if it wants to spend more time resurrecting characters from the first film or introducing half-baked new ones. 

This dilemma is seen in Lydia’s new partner Rory (Justin Theroux), who overstays his welcome both in the world of the film and in screen time. 

Additionally, Ortega is once again typecast as a grumpy, dark-humored teenager whose presence is made infinitely less interesting by a cringe-worthy romance subplot.

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” still recaptures some of the original’s wacky exuberance, particularly when Michael Keaton gets to shine as the titular character, enabling his morbid charisma to — once again — be the film’s standout factor. 

Unfortunately, Keaton is drastically underutilized, particularly in the film’s first two acts, during which it feels as though his character is given the bare minimum amount of screen time that still allows the film to be titled after him. 

If you’re craving the spooky whimsy of “Beetlejuice,” you’d be better off relishing the original’s tricks and treats than going to see “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” a ghost of its precursor that didn’t deserve to be resurrected.

Rating: 2/5

Selena Gomez says that she plans to become a mother by age 35 and that she likely will turn to surrogacy or adoption.

“I haven’t ever said this, but I unfortunately can’t carry my own children,” the 32-year-old actor, singer and beauty brand executive revealed in a Vanity Fair October cover story. “I have a lot of medical issues that would put my life and the baby’s in jeopardy. That was something I had to grieve for a while.”

In July, Gomez received her first Emmy nomination in an acting category for her portrayal of Mabel Mora in the Hulu comedy “Only Murders in the Building.” The Disney-raised multihyphenate also appears in “Emilia Perez,” a Spanish-language musical, with Zoe Saldana — slated for release in November in select theaters and on Netflix.

“It’s not necessarily the way I envisioned it,” she said, referring to starting a family. “I thought it would happen the way it happens for everyone. [But] I’m in a much better place with that. I find it a blessing that there are wonderful people willing to do surrogacy or adoption, which are both huge possibilities for me.”

Before her current relationship with collaborator and prolific producer Benny Blanco, Gomez was single for five years. This period, she says, helped her prioritize family and prompted her to evaluate how she could start one of her own.

The “Wizards of Waverly Place” actor spoke on the topic of pregnancy with Rolling Stone back in 2022, saying then that her bipolar medications made carrying a child unlikely and adding: “That’s a very big, big, present thing in my life. … However I’m meant to have them [children], I will.”

In her 20s, the performer had been to four treatment centers for her mental health. By 2019, she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder after experiencing an episode of psychosis.

“I think when I started hitting my early twenties is when it started to get really dark, when I started to feel like I was not in control of what I was feeling, whether that was really great or really bad,” Gomez told Rolling Stone. “There’s something over me that is maybe my bipolar that kind of just keeps me humble — in a dark way.”

In addition to her struggles with bipolar disorder, Gomez has battled lupus. In 2017, Gomez received a kidney transplant as a result of the chronic autoimmune disease. Despite a lifetime of health concerns, the recent 2024 Cannes Film Festival lead actress winner says she remains thankful and enthusiastic about the future.

“I’m excited for what that journey will look like, but it’ll look a little different. At the end of the day, I don’t care. It’ll be mine. It’ll be my baby,” Gomez said.