My take: Skip the first half of the movie and get right to the good stuff: tension, gore and mysterious alien infection.

Rating: 1 out of 4 stars

The title “Honeymoon” gives away much of the plot. A couple, played by Rose Leslie (who plays Ygritte in Game of Thrones) and Harry Treadaway, are on their honeymoon at a cabin. One night, alien-like lights flash and the bride disappears

Poster for Honeymoon

mysteriously. She found somehow changed her memory starts to falter and her personality is not the same. Things progress rapidly at this point and these are not good things that are progressing. They are at a cabin after all; cabins are not good in the world of horror movies.

While the premise is solid for a basic horror film, it unfortunately takes quite a while before we get to the point of the story. The first half or even two-thirds of the film consist of a sickly-sweet couple of their honeymoon. It could almost be mistaken for a sappy rom-com, which is unfortunate because when creepy things start happening to the bride, the film gets thoroughly enjoyable.

Is it worth watching? Maybe. If you can hit the fast-forward or multi-task during the first half (like my husband did), then it may be worth it.

I would recommend the second half of this movie to people who like The Fourth Kind, the Evil Dead remake, Cabin Fever and other possession/infection films.

My take: An oddly hilarious film with enough cringe-worthy scenes to sate the palates of horror and Kevin Smith fans alike.

My rating: 3 out of 4 stars

Walrus horror alone would not have gotten me to the theater. Neither would a new Kevin Smith film. But put the two elements together and add in Justin Long (Drag Me to Hell and Accepted) as the lead, and you’ve got me there opening night.

Tusk follows Wallace Bryton, an American podcaster who travels around gathering stories from interesting people. When his interview in Canada falls through, he spots an intriguing flyer in a bar for a man with “stories to tell.” This takes him deep into Manitoba to a house where he meets Howard Howe, who drugs him and kidnaps him in a grand plan to make Wallace into a walrus.

Strange premise? Yes. Interesting? Definitely. Plausible? Not even remotely.

But regardless of how ridiculous the film’s plot may be, Kevin Smith pulls it off with good pacing, strong laughs, terrific characters, and enough gore to make my husband uncomfortable. All of this combined to leave me talking about it, even days later, which makes for a good movie in my opinion.

According to Canadian horror magazine Rue Morgue, Kevin Smith has announced that this is just the first in what he calls “The True North Trilogy.” The second film will be called Yoga Hosers and is about a pair battling “supernatural forces.” The third, and more intriguing film IMHO, is called Moose Jaws. Smith is reported as saying it is “Jaws but with a moose.” Just the concept has me snickering.

I recommend this movie to anyone who likes Kevin Smith horror, Justin Long, famous actors pretending not to be themselves (hint hint), monster movies, and/or those who think the Human Centipede is funny.

My take: The Possession of Michael King doesn’t add anything new to the possession/paranormal subgenre, but it is still a fun ride.

My rating: 3 out of 4 stars

Poster for The Possession of Michael King

The film follows Michael King (played by Shane Johnson), who is making a documentary about the occult. With snarky quips, he is determined to disprove any elements of the dark arts, which he believe indirectly led to the death of his wife.

As you can expect from the title, things do not go as planned for Mr. King, and he ends up possessed by a demon.

The plot is basic and expected and the found footage aspect is getting a bit overdone. However, the special effects and sound make the film interesting. The camera tricks alone made me jump a couple of times.

This is David Jung’s first major motion picture as a writer and as a director. Can we expect more scares from him in the future? I hope so.

Overall, I really enjoyed the film and would recommend it to anyone who likes films about possession, the occult, and/or demons.

Here is the trailer, which I don’t think does the movie justice: