The greatest movie ever made..!

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

It was hard to expect a lot from Strangeland. Its star and writer is Dee Snider, formerly the frontman for the metal band Twisted Sister and not known for his acting. It's also a bloody horror movie, which can be hit or miss for even the most fervent of fans. Oddly enough, though, the result is a passable representative of the genre, with Snider's Captain Howdy a memorable, if underexplored, villain.Two teenage girls, in the early years of the Internet, encounter someone calling themselves Captain Howdy in an online chat room. He invites them to a party, and naturally they accept. Seems legit! I mean, his profile information makes him look like a cool dude! What could possibly go wrong? A lot, turns out. The girls go missing, and soon teen Tiana (Amal Roe) is found in the trunk of her own submerged car, hands and feet bound and mouth sewn shut. Her friend Genevieve (Linda Cardellini) is nowhere to be found.Genevieve's dad happens to be a cop named Mike Gage (Kevin Gage), and he and his rambunctious young partner try desperately to find Genevieve. It doesn't take them long, because all they have to do is visit the same chat room, and using the leet hacker skillz of cousin Angela (Amy Smart), find the name of the last person to whom Genevieve chatted, strike up a conversation, and away they go. Very little cat and mouse follows, and it isn't long before Mike finds the good Captain, who's as wacked as you'd expect him to be, what with the sadistic attitude (setting aside the facial tattoos and multiple piercings). Turns out the guy's really into S&M, such as putting pins through people's skin and suspending them from a ceiling or in a really small stand-up cage.From there on out, it's a cat-but-mostly-mouse game. Captain Howdy is much more interesting than anyone else in the movie, even redneck Jackson Roth, played by Robert Englund. Mike Gage makes for a boring lead. Snider appears to be having a lot of fun, pontificating like a megalomaniacal Batman villain, and is a good fit for the movie. Kind of a shame that more Strangeland movies weren't made. They weren't made, by the way, partly because of the film's sluggish second half, in which Howdy appears to be running a race in which everyone else is crawling on their backs. Yes, their backs. And it's kind of a shame, because the character is so strikingly charismatic. Was Captain Howdy always insane? We'll never know

Considering that horror movies coming out this year are ALL involving exorcism and possession stuff-- which are extremely saturated--, I thought that watching a nineties horror would be a nice idea. In fact, it would, if it wasn't around 11 p.m. in my serene neighborhood. "Strangeland" is in fact a very STRANGE movie, which can be noticed, from the get go, with the weird directing that sometimes focuses on the characters' feet. Also, I had no idea that in the nineties people had personal computers that supported instantaneous video and audio; I mean, in Brazil that was an utopia back then. The film as a whole is very dark, with scenes of mutilation, torture and every freak stuff that you can imagine. Many of those aspects look a lot like Jigsaw's plans-- even if "Saw" came out years later. The bad thing in this plot is the over-the-top character of Smallwood; if he was depressed and pessimist as he said he was, why didn't he ever commit suicide? Besides, how did Mike find the horror house, given that the only noticeable thing in the audio was a dog's barking? How on earth was he standing right in front of the house? And also, HOW ON EARTH a cop can get beaten up by a crazy guy who's been confined in a mental institution for about 4 years? It feels VERY hard to believe. The ending also is a relative let down, but I can't deny that "Strangeland" is an entertaining film for those who like the genre, like me.

This movie really surprised me. I expected it to be a violent porno from what I've heard. But it surprised me, it actually was very interesting. Dee Snider did a very good job. He definitely created a new horror icon. He was like Buffalo Bill, Freddy Kruger, And others mixed. He put on a very creepy Performance. He did a great job. The ending was pretty cool too. It was a fight scene between Dee Snider and Gage. In the end, Dee dies. The movie has a great soundtrack. With music by bands such as Sevendust, Marilyn Manson, Kid Rock, Twisted Sister, and many more. I purchased the DVD, as well as the amazing soundtrack. I suggest buying both. Overall, this was a great film, and i highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Silence of the lambs, Seven, Nightmare on elm street, and others similar films. The reason i gave the film a 7 is because there were some mistakes, Some of the acting was kinda cheesy. But beside that, this was a great film, and i highly recommend it to all.

Why You Might Like It: This is a decent abduction/kidnapping/"serial killer" film that you might enjoy if you are into that genre. It also brings the idea of technology into fold as the abductor uses the Internet chat rooms to lure teens to his home. The acting is very spotty, but I felt there were some solid performances by some including Dee Snider who plays the villain. Overall it is very mediocre and average, but okay and should keep you entertained if these type of films interest you.Why You Might Not Like It: Although I anticipate it is meant to be, the movie is a bit sensationalized and over the top. Dee Snider seems to deviate a bit from the content and get into some fairly sadistic themes and situations that don't add much to the final product. There is some really bad acting to go with some solid performances. Brett Harrelson is terrible and painful to watch as even his cast mates seem appalled by his acting in spots. Again, the story and product are fairly average and there are better films in this genre.Acting/Casting: 5* Directing/Cinematography/Technical: 5.5*Plot/Characters: 5* Entertainment Value: 5* Total - 5+5.5+5+5 = 20.5/4 = 5.125*