Abominable (2006) Reviews

• A great way to spend an evening...

  tachyon_12006-05-20

  I have a category of movie I call a "Good, bad movie". You'll either get that statement or you won't. If you are a real movie buff, you'll appreciate the value of a good, bad movie. This is a really cool twist on the Big Foot mythology. I saw this on the Sci-Fi channel and I expected some of their usual crapola. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Certainly this isn't a masterpiece or anything. But for the obviously small budget, it was very well done. The FX were cheesy, but adequate. The script was average. But the basic plot and the cinematography set a mood that really sucks you in. It's gripping, suspenseful, and doesn't drag or bore you. Matt McCoy (Preston Rogers) was quite good, exceeding his B list status. And Haley Joel (Amanda) didn't settle for being the dumb bimbo that this part was probably written to be. She actually had a touch of depth to the character. If you want to huddle under a blanket with your significant other and have an entertaining, suspenseful evening, I recommend Abominable. Also, make sure you don't miss the final scene. No spoiler here, but I have to say that the final shot of the movie was B movie brilliance. Tachyon

• Lo and behold, a good Sci Fi Channel premiere

  bruceleroy2006-05-21

  The movies that the Sci Fi Channel premieres on Saturday nights are a decidedly mixed bag -- "mixed" meaning "bad, but watchable enough because it's free on TV". That said, Abominable is probably the best one yet and one of the few that I wouldn't have minded paying for as a rental or even in a theater (well, matinée price). Basically, it's a monster movie spliced with Rear Window, with an "abominable" man-beast as the menacing killer -- a simple story wonderfully executed with quick pacing, a strong cast of character actors, and gloriously gruesome effects. You'll appreciate it all the more next week when Boa vs. Python vs. Komodo vs. Gerbil comes on.

• There Is Something out There…

  claudio_carvalho2008-10-14

  Six months after a climbing accident in Suicide Rock in which his cable snapped and his wife died, the crippled Rogers (Matt McCoy) returns to Flatwoods on a wheel chair nursed by Otis Wilhelm (Christien Tinsley) as part of the treatment prescribed by Dr. Rainer. They lodge in Preston's cottage and sooner Preston sees a pair of huge red eyes in the woods. He tells Otis, but he believes Preston is paranoid. Later he sees his blonde next door neighbor Karen Herdberger (Ashley Hartman) vanishing in the woods and he tries to tell her friends, but the girls believe he is a pervert peeping them. Without phone lines, Preston uses his Internet through satellite to communicate with the police, but they do not give credit to his words. In despair, Preston tries to communicate with his neighbors. Meanwhile Ziegler Dane (Lance Henriksen), Billy Hoss (Rex Linn) and their friend (Jeffrey Comb) are hunting the animal that is killing the cattle in Hoss's farm. When Ziegler finds the wounded Karen in a cave, he realizes that his friends and he are in danger. The B-movie "Abominable" is a funny entertainment that uses the idea of "Rear Window", i.e., a man confined to his home that witnesses that there is something out there but he is not able to move or to communicate with other people, associated to the legend of the Bigfoot a.k.a. Sasquatch. This is the type of a good "bad movie", with many flaws, silly situations, naked woman etc. that is enjoyable in the end. My vote is five. Title (Brazil): "Abominável" ("Abominable")

• Abominable

  Scarecrow-882008-03-01

  "I'm gonna need a bigger knife." The Flatwoods Sasquatch terrorizes victims within the vicinity of his cavernous dwelling. Wheel-chair bound cripple, Preston Rogers(Matt McCoy), still recovering psychologically from a tragic fall from nearby Suicide Rock which took the life of his wife, finds himself in quite the dilemma. Despite his wishes against returning to the cabin he shared with his wife, both rock-climbing experts who scaled Suicide Rock often, Preston is forced, thanks to his doctor who has assigned a smart-ass orderly Otis(Christien Tinsley, who imbues his character with a smarmy attitude)over his care, to confront what ails him. Instead, Preston helplessly watches as the rotund furry beast attacks a female group gathering together, across the way in another cabin, for a bachelorette party. Attempts at getting the police(..and Otis) to help fails because no one believes such a wild story as a Sasquatch on a violent rampage. Somehow, Preston will have to take matters into his own hands..but, how can he? And, what if the Sasquatch comes after him? How will he defend himself when he's limited by his disability? And, how can a wheel-chair bound cripple ever help others in need? REAR WINDOW is mined yet again for inspiration, but I felt the story-line was effective..I thought there were some suspenseful moments thanks to the benefits of having a crippled hero, limited in ways he can help those in trouble due to his lack of mobility. Through Preston, we're helpless on-lookers towards those who are assaulted by the Sasquatch. The unrealistic Sasquatch, which looks like a costumed beast, can either be a liability or a gas depending on your mood. There's a sense of fun at work here if you can look past the limited resources director Ryan Schifrin has..he delivers an entertaining little creature feature with plenty of gory carnage to satisfy gore-hounds. One victim's body is pulled through a small window, from the waste snapping her frame in two. One female victim is crushed under-foot by the Sasquatch. Another's face is completely eaten off. You get to see Tiffany Shepis completely nude, taking a shower. Recognizable faces, in small roles, populate the film such as the late Paul Gleason(THE BREAKFAST CLUB)as an ornery sheriff, Jeffrey Combs as a chain-smoking gas station employee with tubes feeding him oxygen from a can(..quite scraggly under frizzled hair, dirty cap and grubby beard), Dee Wallace Stone as a terrified wife who accompanies her husband outside finding their horses ripped apart, and Lance Henriksen as a cynical hunter who "just wants to kill something"(..he supplies a very funny "Darwin's awards" monologue).

• The Much Needed, Return of the Creature Feature

  Alienator2006-05-22

  The whole mythos surrounding "Bigfoot", "The Abominable Snowman", or "Sasquatch" is an enthralling one, captivating the general public since the first alleged Bigfoot sightings in the early 1950s. A number of Bigfoot films have been made, capitalizing on the general population's interest in these anomalies. Needless to say, many of these films have gone relatively unnoticed or dismissed as the campiest of B-Movies (excluding Hammer Studios' 1957 classic 'The Abominable Snowman'). This brings us to Ryan Schifrin's feature-length directorial debut 'Abominable'. Not since 1957 has such an enthralling, riveting, yet original picture hit the screens pertaining to this subject matter - a true creature feature with a Hitchcockian twist. 'Abominable' begins with the paraplegic Preston Rogers (Matt McCoy) traveling up to his mountain-home for the first time in six months after recovering from a mountain-climbing accident. Preston is accompanied by Otis (Christien Tinsley), an impatient and condescending physical therapist (The viewer soon learns from a local newspaper that the town has received an alleged "Bigfoot" report from a local resident). Preston soon reaches his cabin. As the evening progresses, he resides on his deck (overlooking the forest and a neighboring house) gazing off into the woods through a pair of binoculars. When Otis steps out to get a carton of soy milk for Preston at the nearest store, a group of girls arrive at the neighboring house. At the same time Preston soon begins to notice strange happenings in the woods surrounding the neighboring house and watches helplessly as the tragic events of the night unfold. Standing drastically alone from the pseudo-horror produced by major (and minor) studios of this day and age, 'Abominable' is an excellent, extremely original, and extremely unrelenting film. The film accomplishes an atmosphere and storyline unachieved and untouched since the heydays of drive-in horror that were the 1950s through the 1980s. 'Abominable' possesses a certain quality which has been vacant within the horror genre (especially the monster-movie sub-genre) for years and years: it is devoid of CGI. The Monster (Michael Deak) is, in fact, a man in a suit! To some, this conjures up a question; does the suit look excessively "cheesy" and unrealistic? Fortunately it does not; the effects used are executed quite well and The Monster doesn't generate a phony-vibe in the least. Many of the facial movements of The Monster seem to be achieved through robotics (ala 'An American Werewolf in London') and the result looks extremely realistic and life-like. The film's plot is the result of a winning combination; it features the classic creature-feature storyline, coupled with a very Hitchcock-styled, 'Rear Window'-esquire, premise. The screenplay is excellent; practically all of the events within the film are experienced from Preston's helpless perspective. Whether it is at his window or on his balcony, Preston overlooks almost the entire series of events, giving the film an extremely claustrophobic and helpless atmosphere. The cinematography and lighting are also ingenious; the shadowy woods seen from the balcony add depth and an eerie uneasiness to the film. Matt McCoy proves himself to be an excellent actor, as does Christien Tinsley, but the character interactions between McCoy and Haley Joel prove to be the true acting highpoint within the film. A broad range of emotions are showcased between the two, all of which are executed with precision. 'Abominable' achieves a certain charm lacking in practically all horror films of this day and age. It showcases a style of film-making that has been lost, a style of film-making that is the horror genre: the classic monster movie. No, it doesn't have "breathtaking CGI", no the plot is not Steven King-worthy, but it manages to entertain and it manages to illustrate that which is the embodiment of American horror. Schifrin's film stands firmly as an instant cult-classic, on par with great titles and counterparts (dare I say) of the 1980s such as 'Pumpkinhead', 'An American Werewolf in London', and 'Prophecy'. 'Abominable' stands alone in a time when horror has gone to the dogs; it breaks the trend of spineless PG-13 horror films and shatters the standards of pointless special effects showcases such as 'Cursed'. The creature feature is back ladies and gentlemen, and in full force. The way horror should be – "Abominable".