Steven Helmer Publications

 Some photos I took while visiting Boerner Botanical Gardens yesterday afternoon.

Synopsis: On Halloween night, Natalie agrees to go to a traveling horror theme park with her best friend, Brooke and some of Brooke's other friends, partly so she can spend some time with Gavin, a guy she has a romantic interest in. The festival's extreme atmosphere hides the fact the group is being stalked by a mask-wearing serial killer. Who's in it? The movie stars Amy Forsyth , Reign Edwards , Roby Attal , Matt Mecurio and Stephen Conroy. Review: I wasn't completely convinced I hadn't already seen this film, mostly because it sounded a lot like many others my wife and I have watched. However, she was sure we hadn't seen it yet and, since I didn't see any better choices, I put it on. As it turns out, even though I was skeptical at first, this film turned out to be halfway decent. There were a couple things I liked about this movie. The first was the setting. I didn't think the theme park itself added a whole lot in terms of movie scares but it di...

It was a fairly productive walk today, and that's not just because of the weather. I even was able to get a photo of a baby turtle, complete with some keys to give it scale.

Synopsis: Five famous private detectives and their sidekicks are invited to dine with an eccentric millionaire who challenges them to solve a yet-to-be-committed murder by daylight. When their host turns out to be the victim, the detectives suspect each other and, before they can solve the crime, must survive the night. Who's in it? The movie stars Peter Falk , Truman Capote , Eileen Brennan , Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. Review: I have known about this movie for some time and have had it on my "must watch" list. I finally had an opportunity to do so this week and, after finally finishing it this morning, I have to say I feel a bit let down. I didn't hate it. It just wasn't as good as I was expecting. I think the big attraction, to me, was the number of recognizable stars that were in this film. I figured, with so many comedy geniuses, there was no way for this movie to be a disappointment. Unfortunately, that didn't turn out to be the case. A lot of t...

It kept clouding up while I was out for my walk and I wasn't sure if I would need to cut it short due to rain. However, the sun eventually came back out and I was able to complete it. Below are some of the photos I took.

 Just some photos I took at Edgewater Park in Beaver Dam and Wehr Nature Center in Milwaukee the past couple of days.

It took me about 10 minutes to sneak up on this turkey yesterday afternoon but I managed to get close enough to get some photos before it realized I was there.

Synopsis: Two friends, Roy Collins and Gilbert Bowen, are traveling in Mexico for a planned fishing trip when they spot a motorist out of gas on the side of the road. They offer the stranger a ride, not knowing he is a serial killer on the run from the authorities. Holding them at gunpoint, the man, Emmett Myers, forces the friends to drive him, making it clear he likely won't let them live. Who's in it? The movie stars Edmond O'Brien , Frank Lovejoy , William Talman , Wendell Niles and Clark Howat . Review: I came across this movie a couple days ago and, since I had heard about it but hadn't actually watched it, decided to add it to my library. I finally had a chance to finish it last night and, overall, thought it was a good choice. At first, I wasn't really sure what to expect from this film, but it turned out to be a fairly decent psychology thriller. Emmett (Talman) didn't seem like he would be that formidable but he managed to stay one step ahead of Roy...

Synopsis: In 1942, with World War II raging in Europe and segregation still prominent in the military, the United States Army formed the all-black 761st Tank Battalion. Even though the recruits excelled in training exercises, many believed they would never be tested in combat until a shortage of tank crews resulted in the 761st serving under General George S. Patton. Once in Europe, they had to fight both the Germans and the racism stemming from the all-white units they served with. Review: To tell you the truth, when I came across this book in our local library, I was less intrigued by the subject material than I was about the fact it was written by a former professional basketball star. In fact, the only reason I checked the book out was I was a bit curious why Kareem Abdul-Jabbar decided to write a history book. As it turns out, the book wound up being a good choice. There were a lot of things I liked about this book when I was reading it. One of the main ones was the way the 761s...

Note to Self: Camera batteries charge better if you don't put them in the charger backwards. Fortunately, even though the battery in my camera was almost dead, I was able to get a few photos before the rain clouds started rolling in. Here are some of them:

Synopsis: American Stephen Reinhart travels to Britain to meet his fiancee's family. When he asks for directions to the estate, the villagers turn hostile toward him and his fiancee's father insists he leaves immediately. He soon learns the less-than-warm welcome is the result of a family "curse" relating to a meteorite. Who's in it? The movie stars Boris Karloff , Nick Adams , Freda Jackson , Suzan Farmer and T erence de Marney. Review: I came across this movie a couple weeks ago and, thinking it sounded interesting, decided to record it. I finally had an opportunity to watch it this week and, while the premise was OK, it wasn't as good as I was hoping. I think the main issue with tihs movie is it is kind of predictable. It's not too difficult to figure out what is happening in the house and, once that happens, even the estate's "monsters," which are admittedly a bit creepy (albeit not shown enough), aren't enough to make the film in...

Considering it was so nice out today, I was a bit surprised to have the park to myself. However, I took advantage of it and managed to get some photos. I am sharing some of them below.

Synopsis: Living alone with her widowed mother, 16-year-old Enola Holmes barely knows her famous brother, Sherlock, but could easily match his intelligence. When Enola wakes one morning to find her mother missing, she is determined to figure out what happened. However, her oldest brother, Mycroft, unhappy with the way she has been raised, wants to send her to a finishing school instead. She runs away to London dressed as a boy and, along the way, she meets a young viscount and ultimately has to help prevent his murder. Who's in it? The movie stars Millie Bobby Brown , Henry Cavill , Sam Claflin , Louis Patridge and Helen Bonham Carter . Review: When I first saw previews for this movie on Netflix, I was both intrigued and a bit cautious. I have enjoyed Sherlock Holmes' books and some movies but not all films are the same, especially those that don't necessarily plan to stick to the original canon. In other words, this movie looked interesting in the previews but also had...

It was an absolutely gorgeous day out today so I grabbed my camera and got a walk in. Here are some of the photos I took.

 Just some random shots I've taken the past couple days.

Synopsis: Still piecing her life back together after the accidental death of her son, Kara, a private nurse and single mother, moves to the country with her two kids to take care of an elderly man who has spent his life collecting artifacts from around the world. When one of her client's artifacts is smashed by an intruder, it releases a large killer spider that puts her and her children at risk. Who's in it? The movie stars Bruce Davison , Elizabeth Roberts , Denise Crosby , Arman Darbo and Chloe Perrin . Review: I was looking for some horror movies to watch for my wife and, figuring you can't go wrong with giant spiders, added this one to our library. We had an opportunity to finally watch it last night and my opinion of it was a bit mixed. I think one of my biggest complaints about this film is the same one I have with a lot of horror films, it takes way too long to get going. Roughly three-quarters of this film seemed to focus on Kara (Roberts), her depression, her ...

My wife and some of her friends modeled for a photoshoot yesterday afternoon and, while she was doing her thing in front of the camera, I grabbed my camera and visited this park. Here are some of the photos I took.

Synopsis: D'Artagnan, the hot-headed son of a former Musketeer, travels to Paris to follow in his father's footsteps. When he arrives, he learns the Musketeers no longer exist and, eventually, he and three former Musketeers, Athos, Aramis and Porthos, must stop a plot to start a war with England. Who's in it? The movie stars Logan Lerman , Matthew MacFayden , Milla Jovovich , Orlando Bloom , Gabriella Wilde and Christoph Waltz. Review: When this movie came out in 2011, I decided not to watch it because, in my opinion, if you've seen one Three Musketeers movie, you've seen them all. However, after seeing a YouTube video of one of the fight scenes, I figured I would give the film a try and watched it last night and early this morning. As it turns out, I was right, if you've seen one, you've seen all of them. I'm not saying there weren't some memorable scenes from this film. Some of the fight scenes, for example, were pretty fun to watch and, to be ...

  I just got my second dose of the Moderna vaccine a little while ago. So far, so good. This was honestly a tough decision for me. I'm not really an anti-vaxxer but, since I don't get sick too often, I've always been skeptical of things like the flu vaccine, etc. And, there was a big part of me that was tempted to just ride out this current storm as well because I figured, even if I did catch COVID, there was a good chance it wouldn't affect me that much. There were a couple things that ultimately influenced my decision. The first was the half dozen or so nurses I know that have spent the last year on the front lines. Frankly, their horror stories scared me, not so much because I thought I would end up on a ventilator as much as the thought of my wife or one of my kids ending up on a ventilator because they caught it from me. The other thing was I really would like things to start getting back to normal. My oldest daughter graduates next year. I would like to see her wa...