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 #22 Tragedy Girls 2017 Hulu The script for this movie lacks focus. It’s an amusing idea, this conceit of these two high school girls committing serial killings so that they can then cover them online and ride the true crime wave to celebrity, but there’s way too much going on. The tone is also inconsistent, sometimes dropping the irreverence to get sanctimonious about its antiheroes. Overall, the contemporaneous Creep 2 handled similar themes in a fresher and more engaging way. There’s just not much to like here. There’s a bunch of stuff going on in this movie, and its core concept is handled in a fairly shallow fashion. Even the cool masks from the movie poster only appear in one or two shots. 2/5
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Oct 21, 2019 22:12
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 SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #5: Tourist Trap11. Jeruzalem I lived for a little while in Israel, so I figured I would check and see if they had any locally produced horror movies. It turns out that the first full length Israeli horror movie was only released in 2010. Taking this into consideration, I thought that Jeruzalem did a pretty decent job for a found footage movie made only 5 years after the official creation of Israeli horror. The gimmick this time around is that one of the characters receives a pair of Google Glasses before they leave on a trip to Israel. If actual Google Glasses were this functional then I think we’d all be wearing them today. The characters make a detour to Jerusalem and then get trapped in the old city as supernatural events start to ramp up. The movie brought back some fun memories, having visited Jerusalem myself and getting to do a lot of the touristy stuff in the old city. The movie also had a subplot revolving around Jerusalem Syndrome, where supposedly otherwise normal people visit the city and then start to behave bizarrely and claim that God is speaking to them or they are a returned prophet. I hadn’t heard of this before, but I thought it was a cool touch. I think the film had some cool ideas that they didn’t really get to flesh out because of the limited budget. It teases at the beginning being a story about cooperation between the three major religions found in Israel but this isn’t really followed through as the movie progresses. The CG wasn’t that great, but they were also smart enough to keep it hidden, or only in the shot for seconds at a time. The ending was cool and maybe even a happy ending depending on how into metal you are. 
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Oct 21, 2019 22:17
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Sometimes I feel like I’m the only person who didn’t dig the Suspiria remake that much.
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Oct 21, 2019 22:19
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The movie tries to do a lot of things and very few of them are what Argento did. So its naturally polarizing.
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Oct 21, 2019 22:21
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I liked them both for different reasons. I mispoke in my review by implying the remake is an improvement on the original; it's a different beast entirely, but just as good imho
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Oct 21, 2019 22:28
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Yeah the Suspiria's aren't like an Apples to Oranges thing, it's more like Apples to Smoked Salmon. I loved the new one a lot but it's very very loosely tied to the first and if you go in expecting that you're going to be disappointed
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Oct 21, 2019 22:33
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I'm a bad horror man since I haven't seen either Susperia
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Oct 21, 2019 22:36
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 95) Friday the 13th Part 2 - 1981 - DVD Like the first one, saw this at the show. As far as first sequel goes, this one's pretty good. Picks up from the first film, had us all arguing over was the end really a dream sequence or not. The novelization does go into detail about Jason surviving which if it had been included would've thrown the pacing off. The original idea for this one was something like Halloween III, films based around the Friday the 13th superstition. But with how successful the first film was, they went the direct sequel route. It did almost receive an X rating for gore, but ended up getting trimmed for an R. The original ending had Mrs. Voorhees' head opening her eyes and smiling. It was filmed, but was cut and hasn't been released. There are some attempts to recreate it on Youtube, but it's just not the same as the actual footage would be. Still, it's definitely worth a watch. Franchescanado posted:SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #7: Monster Mash-up  96) The Monster Project - 2017 - Prime I think I spent near equal the runtime of this movie trying to find something that fit the challenge parameters. The premise does have some potential, even for a found footage style movie. A couple of wannabe Youtube stars, Devon and Jamal faked a monster video and claimed it was real get the idea of interviewing 'real' monsters for their latest upload. Naturally they take an ad out on Craigslist and get a few responses. They recruit Jamal's roommate Bryan and Devon's ex Murielle to fill out their crew. The interviewees are a Navajo rez cop who claims to be a skinwalker, a tattoo artist who claims to be a vampire, and a young woman who claims to be possessed by 'the bad man'. Devon ends up renting an old mansion that was the site of Satanic activity in the 60s for the interview location. Naturally things go downhill as they conduct the interviews to a pretty expected ending. This film was not scary by any stretch. If anything once poo poo starts hitting the fan, it reminded me of the old style haunted houses of enter a room, monster goes booga-booga, people scream and run to the next room, lather-rinse-repeat. There's also the subplot of the messy relationships between the Youtube crew. Murielle's Devon's ex and is also the love interest of Bryan who's a recovering drug addict struggling with sobriety, and Jamal's the unfortunate friend of the three having to deal with this mess. This film also suffers the big flaws of found footage. Shaky cam abounds along with plenty of moments that have you wondering 'why are you idiots still filming?'. It's a passable enough watch, though I wouldn't mind seeing it remade in the hands of more competent people.
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Oct 21, 2019 22:44
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19. Killer Klowns from Outer Space I am saying this only very partially tongue in cheek: This is a cinematic masterpiece. KKfOS along with Tobe Hooper's Invaders from Mars are probably the two movies most responsible for my early love of everything horror. Killer Klowns knows EXACTLY what it is, makes no apologies for it, and in fact revels in it and I love every second. The only complaint I would have is that the clown costumes could be better quality, but only because everything else is designed so well! 20. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) So this is embarrassing to admit, but I had never seen this before. It was easily the biggest gap in my viewing history, however I feel like I have a valid reason! I was loving terrified of Freddy as a kid. The local radio station would play the 1-2 Freddys coming for you song at night during late October and I would have to shut the radio off and hide under my blankets (as if thats gonna help against the dream monster). Having seen it now, I feel vindicated. I was absolutely right to be scared of this movie. Freddy is a terrifying monster and the fact he can hunt you in your dreams is harrowing especially for a kid. As for the movie itself, it has maybe the best use of sound to build tension that I've ever experienced. The practical effects are amazing, especially Glen and Amanda's deaths. The bathtub scene is an all timer not just for the glove out of the water, but also when he pulls Nancy into the Sunken Place. At first I thought the ending was going to be a huge let down, but then the convertible top closed. I can not wait to dive into parts 2 and 3. 21. The Exorcist III Super Samhain Challenge 6 This is obviously a horror thread favorite, and for very good reason. George C. Scott and Brad Dourif make this movie their bitch. The first half belongs to Scott, as he investigates strange murders. The second half though, is completely owned by Brad Dourif the monologue god. I could watch a full 2 hour film of Pazuzu possessed Brad Dourif ranting at a pissed off George C. Scott. One thing I loved about The Exorcist III, that I'm sure has been mentioned but I overlooked, is how drat FUNNY it is at first. Scott's story about his mother in law keeping a fresh carp in the bathtub for 3 days had me grinning ear to ear.
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Oct 21, 2019 22:47
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HOUSE, HOME and/or ROOM OF HORROR Welcome to DON'T WEEK!  24) Don't Open the Door (IDMB says 1974; the title card says 1979) - watched on Tubi Trailer 13 years after her mother was murdered, Amanda Post returns to her childhood home to help her ailing grandmother after she receives a mysterious anonymous phone call. When Amanda arrives, three of the local townsmen (a doctor, a local judge and the local historian) are apprehensive about Amanda's arrival and all seem to have an interest in her grandmother's house and its belongings. Amanda decides to stay at the house when she starts to recieve creepy phone calls from a mysterious stranger who somehow can see her... This movie was originally released under the title Don't Hang Up, which makes way more sense given what goes on in the film. And imagine my surprise to see in the opening credits that this was an S.F. Brownrigg film! I'd never heard of this director before this year's challenge and here's the second movie of his I'm watching this month (I previously reviewed The House Where Hell Froze Over a week or two ago). I did not think highly of that film, mainly because it was terribly shot and a chore to watch. So how is Don't Open the Door? Surprisingly watchable compared to that earlier effort. I mean, it's still a low-budget movie and the guy shoots EVERYTHING IN CLOSEUP when someone talks which is really distracting, but overall the film is lit way, way better and it actually looks impressive for a low-budget film in spots. The opening credits are really great, with a procession of ugly baby dolls shown on the screen. The movie is shot in a beautiful mansion that is apparently still around today as a B&B. So how's the acting? On par with THWHFO, I'd say - not great but not terrible. The lead actress is actually pretty good, and all of the men are suitably menacing or weird/creepy. There's a whole dark/threatening South feel going on here. The real problem with the film is there's no suspense - we are shown early on who the main villain is and they do the same scene with him and Amanda (lewd phone calls that get worse) several times. Some of these, particuarly near the end, have a high ick factor, as the caller threatens to kill her and her grandmother (who is essentially just a plot device) if she doesn't sexually perform for him. The writing isn't great either - there are a lot of dropped plot points and things that are played up but nothing ever pays off or is explained (why do the men know so much about Amanda's mother's murder? Why did they murder her? Why does the judge want the grandmother's house so badly? We never find out!). It's kind of frustrating. The ending is pretty abrupt too, although like THWHFO, it ends on what is essentially a punchline.
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Oct 21, 2019 23:27
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 SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #6: Sometimes They Come Back  22. Poltergeist II (1986) This challenge was tricky for me thanks to streaming availability. I didn’t want to pay to rent one of the recent remakes I haven’t seen, and I didn’t want to just jump into some random sequel from a long, garbage franchise. I was thinking of watching Happy Death Day 2 U sometime soon, but I keep trying to use the challenges to choose things that aren't on my current watchlist. Thankfully I spotted this one while browsing through Prime, and despite seeing the original Poltergeist eleventy billion times on cable, I’d never bothered with any of its sequels. Turns out that might have been for the best. Poltergeist II introduces a creepy ghost minister who wants Carol Anne, but it’s never clear if he’s been retconned in as a source of the first haunting or if he was just coincidentally buried under the bulldozed cemetery and got attached to Carol Anne back when the original ghosts kidnapped her. The movie also adds a psychic grandma and a Native American shaman character whose job is to protect and teach these poor white people. The family’s oldest daughter was absent without as much as a “she’s off at college” line, which was surprising until I learned that the actress who played her was murdered by an ex-boyfriend shortly after the first movie came out. After a slow setup that introduces everyone and shows the family’s slightly reduced circumstances after their dream house collapsed into hell, the movie wanders through less than frightening ghost attacks. Given a couple of the early scenes I was expecting Carol Anne's inherited psychic abilities to come into play, but the character focus is all on Craig T. Nelson overcoming the skepticism that he’s somehow maintained despite living through a movie and a half of being haunted. A couple of the ghost monster designs looked pretty good, but overall I was just never afraid for these people because the movie took it fairly easy on them. All they had to do was listen to Taylor and be willing to fight for one another. The first movie had that “love is stronger than poltergeists” stuff too, but it also had a competent director who understood how to keep the tension rolling. Poltergeist II seems to be director Brian Gibson’s only horror credit, but given that the scene where the parents tell the children grandma died had less raw emotion than that one where the kid whined about wanting a TV, I’m not sure how Gibson managed to do all those biopics and dramas, either. The Freelings somehow manage to gently caress up their easy-out ending but face no consequences for that, making the climax really only interesting for that rockin’ version of the creepy minister’s hymn that plays in the background. Watched: 1. Burn, Witch, Burn (1962); 2. TerrorVision (1986); 3. Evilspeak (1981) - Challenge #1; 4. Blood on Satan’s Claw (1971); 5. The City of the Dead (1960); 6. The Witches (1966); 7. The Crimson Cult (1968); 8. A Return to Salem’s Lot (1987) - Challenge #2; 9. Next of Kin (1982); 10. The Ritual (2017); 11. Def by Temptation (1990) - Challenge #3; 12. Halloween III (1982); 13. House by the Cemetery (1981); 14. The Dorm That Dripped Blood (1982); 15. Phenomena (1985); 16. Color Me Blood Red (1965) - Challenge #4; 17. Girls With Balls (2018); 18. Tarot (2009) - Challenge #5; 19. Jug Face (2013); 20. Wake Wood (2009); 21. Happy Death Day (2017); 22. Poltergeist II (1986) - Challenge #6
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Oct 21, 2019 23:36
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deety posted:Poltergeist II introduces a creepy ghost minister who wants Carol Anne, but it’s never clear if he’s been retconned in as a source of the first haunting or if he was just coincidentally buried under the bulldozed cemetery and got attached to Carol Anne back when the original ghosts kidnapped her. It's been a while since I've seen it but I'm pretty sure they retconned it to be Kane and his cult, and the second part they outright state at some point in the movie (ie the spirits of the cult were there at the home and they tasted Carol Anne's lifeforce or something like that when she was trapped in the other dimension). I mean yeah, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense but Kane is a great villain so w/e.
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Oct 21, 2019 23:46
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Alfred P. Pseudonym posted:Sometimes I feel like I’m the only person who didn’t dig the Suspiria remake that much. I posted a review in this thread about how I didn't like it. My basic summary would be "good ideas, bad execution".
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Oct 21, 2019 23:56
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Dr. Puppykicker posted:My hint for this challenge is to look to Hong Kong horror, as there's usually a ghost or wizard thrown in somewhere with the main physical threat. Or watch Spookies if you haven’t already. It has SO MANY monsters
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Oct 22, 2019 00:06
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17) Super Samhain Challenge 6: Demons 2 (1987) And just to make it complete, I'm watching a sequel to a movie that I haven't watched. It's called Demons, but it may as well be called Zombies because that's what they really are. 80% of the dialogue seemed to be "WAARGGHHH!", there were some truly terrible effects (check out the clearly visible wires on the demon baby puppet) and the acting is mostly notable only for Asia Argento being farmed out by her father to be terrorised. On the other hand, it was a serviceable siege flick with a fair amount of action and a pretty kicking soundtrack.
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Oct 22, 2019 00:34
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Gripweed posted:
loving lol
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Oct 22, 2019 00:35
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Bruteman posted:It's been a while since I've seen it but I'm pretty sure they retconned it to be Kane and his cult, and the second part they outright state at some point in the movie (ie the spirits of the cult were there at the home and they tasted Carol Anne's lifeforce or something like that when she was trapped in the other dimension). I remember the part about meeting her on the other side, but if they came out and said that the earlier ghosts were just the cult instead of all the other people whose graves were there, I must not have been paying close enough attention. I liked the actor who played the preacher, but since that guy died during filming and they recast for part three, I'm not sure I'm interested enough to watch another one of these.
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Oct 22, 2019 01:06
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N/A: Eastbound and Down Season 1 I watched the first season of Eastbound and Down today. It was good, but it's not a horror movie so it doesn't count.
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Oct 22, 2019 01:08
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 #131) Seedpeople (1992), a.k.a., Sway, a.k.a., Devil Seed Not a DeCoteau joint, despite the poster. This Full Moon picture is directed by Peter Manoogian, who also helmed Eliminators, the original Demonic Toys, and Arena. Take the standard body-snatching plot and turn up the stupid. Meteorites land, people start acting weird, plants get strange, normal people get suspicious, alien-looking creatures pop up, small-town Americans band together to repel the invader. This is a real snooze-fest. It felt almost geared toward kids, with a plucky teen side-protagonist. She carts around a camcorder,and there's several times where the perspective is looking through its viewfinder. Somehow, they made those shots look terrible. One of the creatures rolls around like a Critter, which draws unfavorable comparison to that series. The insides of the giant seed were nice and goopy, but that was just one scene. I don't have much to say about this one. Could have been worse, could have been much better. rating: 5/10"You think it looks like a meteorite?" This book kept coming to mind while I was watching this. It came out in '96, so Charles Band's story credit is safe. 
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Oct 22, 2019 02:26
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October 21 - Sometimes They Come Back... For More! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXtNNXpfEaE Woo! There's the thread title! Sure, making my way through a trilogy of movies isn't as impressive as watching a 10+ movie long series which ran out of ideas before they got to the end of the second one, but I'd like to think I'm happier for not having done that. On the other hand, this was a series that started out weak and went downhill from there. At a top secret antarctic research station, one of the scientists has gone mad and killed a bunch of people. A small team is sent in to assess the situation and they meet the survivors and encounter horrors. Okay, I'm going to openly spoil this one. I walk around these for the sake of the curious, but this movie was spoiled to begin with. There's a plot twist two-thirds of the way through that not only doesn't make any sense, it makes the rest of the movie make less sense. The leader of the people sent to investigate is a half-demon and he's gone there to hunt down his brother who is about to summon satan. Except, this guy bumbled around like he had no clue what was going on for the first half of the movie. Oh, and he somehow arranged to be at the government organization who sent them, get on this mission, and go there just for this day. And he's a thousand year old immortal who has been walking the earth and fighting his brother, but doesn't know what his brother can do. And to cap it all of, he falls in love with one of the survivors in a way that made me go, "Did I miss the romance subplot?" as they declare their undying love for each other in the last few minutes of the movie with no sign that they even gave gently caress about each other before that. For More does make a token attempt to tie in the first two movies as the locations are points on a pentacle over the United States which is itself one point of a pentacle that when placed on a Mercator projection map has the last point on the antarctic base. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense since that reference is the only thing the movies have in common, but there it is. This really feels like the cheap, low budget, direct-to-video horror that it is. There's no attempts to stretch things, to make it feel larger. This comes across like something that nobody was interested in being there to do but they wanted that paycheck. With the trilogy complete, I feel the need to rank the movies. I'd say it goes original, then For More, then Again. This is a weird, stupid movie that makes no sense, but it doesn't have the "wacky" "wisecracking" demon kid making everything worse.
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Oct 22, 2019 02:32
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24.) Creature from the Black Lagoon 1954, rewatch, Amazon rental Notorious aquatic menace (and Monster Squad second stringer) the Gill-man in his debut appearance. This plays like a stock '50s monster feature, though it is of course the archetype. A highfalutin' biblical opening, for instance, would become a staple. As with a lot of films from the era, Black Lagoon thinks technological apparati and scientific deduction is Just Cool, so we get a lot of time devoted to the (glamorized) legwork of scientific expeditions, some incremental improvements on process (the first lagoon-poisoning bit) and their kit. While decades of intervening films mean I break out in snores whenever anyone busts out diving footage, all of the underwater work in this is great. My partner noted that there was a fair amount of aquatic performance art in the mix at the time, and working in Florida for some scenes may very well mean there's a knowledge base on how to make an underwater shoot look good and stay punchy. We've just begun to learn about the water and its secrets, just as we've only touched on outer space. Franchescanado posted:SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #6: Sometimes They Come Back I've seen the original Grudge and the US remake, but I've never seen either of their immediate sequels. 25.) Ju-on: The Grudge 2  2003, first watch, Tubi This is a series of interconnected shorts, kind of an anthology of how the infamous Nerima haunted house dispatches everyone even peripherally connected to a daytime TV short that intruded on Kayako's miasmatic residence. You'd think people would learn to not go into the house at some point. Here, the haunting plays with time (most clearly in the Tomoka and Chiharu segments), with characters being terrified by images and sounds of things that have not yet come to pass. It's a nice touch, and adds some variety to the haunting. That turns out to be much-needed, because Toshio's ghost shows up waaay too much to maintain any heat. The creepy hair nad scalp effects are cool, as Tomie has thoroughly proven, and it's best that they're reserved for the climax of each segment. The Kyoko thread, which is the meat of the story, is just okay. It doesn't come across as particularly Grudge-like, more like a separate story to which a Ju-on frame narrative has been grafted. I expected this place to be more creepy. Watched: 1.) Cabinet of Dr. Caligari [Classics], 2.) Occult [J- and K-horror], 3.) Son of Frankenstein [Threequels, Samhain Challenge #1], 4.) Game Over [India] 5.) Candyman [Clive Barker], 6.) Knife + Heart [New Releases], 7.) Butterfly Murders, 8.) The Phantom of the Opera (1925) [Classics], 9.) One Cut of the Dead [J- and K-Horror], 10.) Hatchet III [Threequels, Samhain Challenge #2], 11.) Neighbours: They Are Vampires [India], 12.) Midnight Meat Train [Clive Barker], 13.) Us [New Releases, Samhain Challenge #3], 14.) The Taking of Deborah Logan, 15.) People Under the Stairs, 16.) L'Inferno [Classics], 17.) The Host [J- and K-horror], 18.) Hell House LLC 3 [Threequels], 19.) Stree [India, Samhain Challenge #4], 20.) P [Samhain Challenge #5: Thailand], 21.) Lord of Illusions [Clive Barker], 22.) Child's Play [New Releases], 23.) Tigers Are Not Afraid, 24.) Creature from the Black Lagoon [Classics], 25.) Ju-on: The Grudge 2 [J- and K-Horror, Samhain Challenge #6]
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Oct 22, 2019 02:47
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Franchescanado posted:SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #7: Monster Mash-up # 20 MONSTER FROM GREEN HELL (1957)  Using this for the challenge because there is a giant snake* in addition to giant radioactive wasps – not something I knew before seeing! Although the battle between both monsters is brief, the snake perishes by being stung to death, I can’t help but wonder why the snake wasn’t advertised on the posters – surely this would have made the movie seem more exciting, and the stop-motion animation of the snake – perhaps the costliest thing in the budget - would have been less of an afterthought. Exciting this movie is not. We get our typical exposition about man toying with nature, followed by our two scientist lead characters going on a 400 mile journey, by foot, into a remote region of Africa where super-sized wasps are wreaking havoc. That is to say, terrible wasp props are superimposed in front of stock footage - lots of stock footage - of African animals running. It’s accurate to say half of the movie is a safari adventure. Our leads deal with dehydration, are attacked by native tribes, and other non-monster related activities. They literally walk 400 miles to discover that their method of attack – explosives – do not work, only to luck into a volcanic eruption wiping out the nest. “Nature corrects its mistakes” is one of the final lines in the movie. The thing is, the wasps were created by science experiments, not nature, so the movie even screws up the most basic themes found in Atomic Age schlock. Interestingly enough, Monster from Green Hell was double-billed with Toho’s Half-Human (1955) directed by Ishiro Honda. *it isn’t even clear if the snake, like the wasps, is large due to radioactive exposure or is merely a fictitious jungle mega-species SCORE: 3.8 / 10
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Oct 22, 2019 02:50
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 #132) Evil Dead II (1987), a.k.a., Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn Rewatch, partner hadn't seen it. This may not be quite my favorite horror movie, but I'm pretty sure it's the one I have the most fun watching (sorry, RotLD). Also maximum Bruce, without being as self-assured as he is in Army of Darkness. Ash goes back to the cabin, brings another girlfriend named Linda, evil gets them again, poo poo gets nuts. Man, this movie hits that action ramp fast. What was Ash's plan with burying Linda up at the cabin, beyond 'Get her in the ground,'? Was he gonna head home and be like 'Nah, I don't know where Linda is, haven't heard from her,'? I think, because of watching this at such an early age, I'm subconsciously disappointed by every horror movie I watch that doesn't have a chainsaw. It seems like people hardly ever mention what a bad-rear end Final Girl Annie is. She makes plans, follows through on them, and doesn't stop swinging the axe just because the possessed person says they're okay. Weird that this is pretty much that actress' only film role, I hope she went on to do something she enjoyed. Had to take a break partway through this because my co-viewer was passing out, and I wanted her as awake as possible for the ED2 experience. Things I love: That sunset shot right behind Bruce. That Ram-O-Cam. How crafty Evil Ash is in comparison to regular Ash. The Halloween sound effects record style of the professor's howling. How strong Annie's stain-repelling laundry detergent is. Ash's desperate rolling with the laughter scene. My partner reacting with "Nice!" to the shot of the chainsaw pull-starter slotting into Ash's harness. Ventriloquist "Workshed." "Evil Dead (Only Movies mix)". "Bobby!" The Classic. "Jo!" The elimination of tree rape in the retelling. The library music of the time warp. Ted Raimi's sweat dribbling out his ears. The flubbed timing on the final fist-pump. The whole drat thing. rating: 9/10"Groovy."
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Oct 22, 2019 03:04
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 24. STAGEFRIGHT (AQUARIUS) - Amazon Prime A tyrannical director locks his cast in a theater to rehearse for opening night. Unfortunately, a psychotic killer got locked inside too. This is a rad as hell 80s italian slasher. It's got gory kills, stylish photography, and a totally dudical score. YMMV on the lead up to the chaos, but I think the climax sequence is super creepy and super thrilling. I'm sure I'm not the first to make this observation, but the killer wearing an owl mask makes this feel like a Hotline Miami film If you like sleazy italian slashers, this is a devil of a good time! 4 out of 5 power tool massacres
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Oct 22, 2019 03:05
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Five Eyes posted:25.) Ju-on: The Grudge 2 The Tokyo electric company went through so many meter readers before they finally gave up.
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Oct 22, 2019 03:09
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Super Samhain Challenge #6: Sometimes They Come Back 20. Son of Frankenstein (1939): This is not as good as Frankenstein or Bride of Frankenstein, but there’s a lot to like here. A very good Bela Lugosi performance, excellent set design and lighting, Basil Rathbone coming more and more unhinged as he keeps throwing darts at his dartboard. But the monster just isn’t as interesting as in the previous films. Definitely worth a watch.
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Oct 22, 2019 03:23
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I've been slacking in reviews, but I've still been watching poo poo #8. One Cut of the Dead (2016) dir. Shin'ichirô Ueda Viewed on Shudder (first viewing) Things go badly for a hack director and film crew shooting a low budget zombie film in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility when they are attacked by real zombies. I went into this knowing that I shouldn't know much about it, and that in itself was too much knowledge. Even still, expecting what would probably happen wasn't a huge detriment since this movie knows how to win you over. It's an endearing work. Even if it's humor and lessons are surface level schmaltz, it doesn't matter because of the execution and, most importantly, it's ability to make you like the characters. It's a fun time.  /5 #9. The Black Cat (1934) dir. Edgar G. Ulmer Viewed on bluray: Universal Horror Collection vol.1 from Shout Factory (first viewing) American honeymooners in Hungary become trapped in the home of a Satan-worshiping priest when the bride is taken there for medical help following a road accident. This one was slightly disappointing. I like Karloff and love Lugosi, but it never really came together for me. Lugosi's revenge plan against the villanous Karloff is busted as hell, and too many scenes were of people wandering into a room, wandering out, repeating information we already know, and so on. Also, the Black Cat connection is one of the more tenuous I've seen from these barely-there Poe inspired films. The performances are good, Lugosi and Karloff are both great. The ending was also incredibly dark and it made me weirdly uncomfortable, which is maybe a sign of it's effectiveness, I dunno. /5 10. The Raven (1935) dir. Lew Landers Viewed on bluray: Universal Horror Collection vol.1 from Shout Factory (first viewing) A brilliant surgeon obsessed with Edgar Allan Poe saves the life of a beautiful dancer and goes mad when he can't have her. This movie owns. Bela Lugosi is at his unhinged best, in an incredibly dark and simple story about a lunatic obsessed with a babe, who he thinks is the Lenore to his... uh Poe, I guess. It's also a cool role reversal from The Black Cat, where Lugosi is now the deranged rear end in a top hat and Karloff is made to suffer at his hands. It's bonkers in a way that probably wouldn't work today, because this threadbare plot used as an excuse for murder and torture is bascally what shitass movies like Terrifier try to capture without any of the fun. This might be my new fave Bela film after Dracula. /5 11. The Exorcist III (1990) dir. William Peter Blatty Viewed on bluray: Collectors Edition from Shout Factory (rewatch) A police Lieutenant uncovers more than he bargained for as his investigation of a series of murders, which have all the hallmarks of the deceased Gemini serial killer, leads him to question the patients of a psychiatric ward. Another good rear end movie that gets better every time I watch it (I think this is my fourth viewing). George C. Scott is great, and I love the little banter moments he has with his priest buddy. The editing and sound design is really effective in this, with these quick cuts and just the hint of slowed down voices and whispers on the soundtrack, it's genuinely creepy. But of course the best thing about this is Brad Dourif. Holy hell, what a performance. One thing I did this time was view the cobbled-together "directors cut" from old VHS dailies footage and man, what a difference a few cuts and alternate takes can make. I'm so glad I get to see the extended Dourif performances without any vocal tricks or Jason Miller intercuts (even though I like them, too), in these long takes, because it's like watching a stage play adaptation of the movie. I really, really wish the 35mm prints of this stuff still existed. The theatrical cut is marred by the ridiculous exorcism scene at the end, which brings back Pazuzu/Captain Howdy or whoever for a dumb showdown. Within this movie is a potential alternate 3rd cut of this movie that could really improve things if you just eliminated anything involving the priest that serves as a stand-in for Father Merrin but kept all the reshoot stuff with George C. Scott. /5 for the theatrical cut, and (hit the emoji limit I guess)/5 for what could have been. Watched: 1. The Black Room (2017), 2. Excision (2012), 3. Freaks (1932), 4.The Seventh Victim (1943), 5. Ju On: The Grudge (2002), 6. Ju On: The Grudge 2 (2003), 7. Hush (2016), 8. One Cut of the Dead (2017), 9. The Black Cat (1934), 10. The Raven (1935), 11. The Exorcist III (1990) Origami Dali fucked around with this message at 03:32 on Oct 22, 2019 |
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Oct 22, 2019 03:29
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Monster Mash: The Movie 1995, YouTube Samhain Challenge: Monster Mash As a genius, I decided to google monster mash movie to overcome this challenge, and it led me to this. When you watch a movie named after a song from boomer times it’s fun to make prop bets on whether the song will play during the opening credits or closing credits. In this case it’s the former. And the latter. Candace Cameron and some guy’s car breaks down near a gothic mansion owned by a doctor Frankenstein, who is played by Bobby Pickett himself. There’s all sorts of guests at the mansion and oh Christ it’s a musical. Anyways, Dracula, Frankenstein, Igor and a Wolfman all have ulterior motives for the young couple. Oh and there’s a mummified Elvis Presley. If anything I have written so far makes this seem fun I sincerely apologize. This movie is terrible. Apparently this was released theatrically but I find that claim really dubious. It looks like a made for TV movie but made specifically for YTV or Nickelodeon. Its based on a stage play and looks like it was shot as a three camera set up sitcom. It’s production values are just bottom of the barrel and the costuming is lazy as hell. The musical performances lack energy and when there’s no cinematography to complement it it just looks lazy as hell. There’s a reason why this movie is not part of the camp-horror pantheon. I did think Pickett was fine as Frankenstein but that’s about all that’s good about it. Avoid this movie like the plague! Watched (27): Brightburn, Tales from the Hood, Pet Semetary 2, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, One Cut of the Dead, Leatherface (1990), Summer of 84, Viy, Mandy, In the Tall Grass, Street Trash, See No Evil, Haunt, Idle Hands, Horror Noire, Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night 2, Doom Asylum, Eaten Alive, The Craft, The Wolfman (2010), 3 from hell, The Most Powerful Witch 1&2, Zombieland 2, Eli, Return of the Living Dead 3, Psycho (1998), Monster Mash: The Movie Samhain Challenges: 1. The Best Month - Viy 2. Dead and Buried - 3 from Hell 3. Horror Noire - Horror Noire 4. Inktober (legend) - The Wolfman (2010) 5. Tourist Trap - The Most Powerful Witch 1&2 6. Sometimes they come back - Psycho (1998) 7. Monster Mash - Monster Mash: The Movie [/quote]
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Oct 22, 2019 03:52
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SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #7: Monster Mash-up This is one that I never saw as a kid. I also never saw The Goonies when I was a kid, and didn't like it when I saw it for the first time in my 20's, so I avoided this one thinking it would be the same deal. This challenge seemed like a good enough reason to finally check it out...  28. The Monster Squad (1987) (Hulu) In the 19th century, Van Helsing tried and failed to defeat Dracula and the forces of evil. Exactly 100 years later, Dracula returns and gathers his allies to seek out an amulet that will allow him to take over the world, and the only thing standing in his way is a group of kids armed only with Van Helsing's diary and their deep knowledge of horror movies. This film has all the classic movie monsters - Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, casual homophobia, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, misogyny, and even the Mummy! Seriously though, like most '80s comedies, some of the humor here has aged extremely poorly. The homophobic stuff is limited to a couple of comments made by the kids in the first 10 minutes of the film, but the treatment of women is pretty gross throughout. The female characters are limited to an annoying kid sister, an overly emotional mother, and an older sister who the guys first perv on and then blackmail into helping them by threatening to put a naked photo of her up at school. Oh, and the film's single black character is also the only good guy that gets killed. If this were made today it would be vile - considering the film's age, it's more of an uncomfortable reminder that the '80s were so lovely that this stuff was considered fine to include in a movie for kids. In spite of all that, this is still a pretty good movie. The creature designs by Stan Winston all look fantastic, and with the exception of a couple of fake bats flopping around on strings, the effects look great too (and let's be real, the fake bats are some awesome camp). The whole movie looks pretty great actually, with some really cool sets and lighting. There are some genuinely good jokes too - even though I've heard "Wolfman's got nards!" quoted a billion times, it was still very funny in context. Director Fred Dekker's previous film was the classic Night of the Creeps, and while The Monster Squad is aimed at a younger audience, I'd say the tone isn't all that different. This is a fun movie that pays homage to the classic Universal Monster films without making them the butt of the jokes. If you like '80s horror/comedies and/or classic monster movies, you should check it out - just don't show it to your kids. 4/5 Total: 28 Watched: Dead of Night | Child's Play (2019) | Escape Room | Hell Night | The Wind | Evil Dead (2013) | Cure (Challenge #1) | Tigers Are Not Afraid | The Craft | Tower of London | In Fabric | Popcorn | Cube | Uninvited | Galaxy of Terror (Challenge #2) | Brightburn | Body Bags | The Tingler | The Wax Mask | Cube 2: Hypercube | Dark Water (2002) | The Ruins (Challenge #4) | Viy | The Haunting | Bones (Challenge #3) | A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) (Challenge #6) | November (Challenge #5) | The Monster Squad (1987) Samhain Challenges:
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Oct 22, 2019 03:59
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SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #4: Inktober- Watch a horror movie that heavily features art or the main character is an artist  12. Suspiria (1977) If I was in Suzie’s place and someone kept waking me up to spout exposition at me, I would have off’d her long before the coven. I thought this was good, but I don’t think I’m ready to jump on the “best of all time” bandwagon. That said, the lighting, sets, and mood were really well done and I can see where the movie's praise comes from. Suspiria featured a decent amount of gore and I completely didn’t see the concertina wire kill coming. I did think that some shots, like when the blind guy is killed seemed to linger a little too long. The music took center stage for me with its haunting earworm of a melody. There was a great buildup of suspense in the “bomb under the table” sense. I also particularly enjoyed how the head mistress would offer students a way out of their situation, but hand wave it away as an unreasonable thing to do. “Of course you can leave, but it’s late already and it’s only for one night.” Fashion Thoughts: If you are going to go sneaking about your wood floored school at night, maybe you shouldn’t wear high heels. Also, every gentleman should own a lime green sportscoat.
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Oct 22, 2019 04:07
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I got so many challenges but sometimes you just want to watch a film. I was gonna watch this for the “sequel/remake” one but I just have to keep making things harder for myself, don’t I? 34 (45). Happy Death Day 2U (2019) Available on HBO. Remember that douchey roommate from the first film who only existed to repeatedly awkwardly say ‘vagina”? Well it turns out he’s a genius and may have caused this whole mess with some quantum physics mechanics time dilation alternative universe… thingie. The bottom line is Tree knows the “why?” but is stuck back in the time loop and forced to deal with a whole new mess of problems and personal challenges that have more than her life on the line this time. That was a lot of fun. It retains all the same energy of the first film while taking it off in a whole new direction so its not just repeating the same stuff over again. To be honest, its not even really a horror film at this stage since the slasher aspect kind of gets pushed aside even further this time around. But that’s for the best to keep thing interesting. Once again the MVP of the show is Jessica Rothe who absolutely shines in a rollercoaster performance of wacky hijinks, hysterical outbursts, give no fucks decisions, and some genuinely heart wrenching emotional stuff. The choices Tree is forced to make in this are tough and its interesting that I basically followed the same path as her with them. First “Yeah, this is easy. Mom’s alive and everyone seems better off even if I don’t have the boyfriend I’ve known for 2 weeks. Its worth it and everyone’s happy.” But as things go on the movie does a great job showing us why its just not Tree’s world or her choice to make. I kind of wonder what happens to Earth 1 Lori. I kind of want a whole side thing to see if Tree figures out a way to deal with that. Also I'm willing to admit I don't really understand what happened or what the deal with other Ryan was or why any of this was happening. But I didn't care the first time and I don't care this time. Its fun. While Rothe is unquestionably the star of this and someone I think should be given huge opportunities this one becomes more of an ensemble film which is good and gives her less to carry. And “carry” is rough because I like the film, but there’s no question that with a weaker performance these films probably would be a lot less fun and could fall flat completely. And yeah, the huge breakdown when she gets stuck back in the loop was amazing and the death montage was the highlight, but the script calls for a lot of genuine angst and heartbreak and she delivers on that too. Still there’s a lot of good work done from Team Timeloop this time around which is just another element that keeps the movie from feeling like a rehash. If you liked the first one, you’ll like this one. If not it’s more of the same. But not really because it takes the same tone and goes very different places with it. So yeah, a fun time and I’m hopeful for a third movie. Not just for the amazing teaser premise but for the incredible “grandpa” joke name it should get. Happy Death Day Happy Death Day 2U Happy Death Day, Dear T3ree  35 (46). The Phantom Carriage (1921) Recorded off TCM, up there for a few days, available on Kanopy and Criterion. Victor Sjöström (aka Victor Seastrom) directs and stars in a tale of a man filled with hate and spite who dies at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve and thus is cursed to spend the next year driving the phantom carriage collecting the souls of the recently departed. But he knew the old driver and he takes him a journey of remorse and self realization as the first soul he has to collect is also a woman who died trying to help him. The film has a pretty Christmas Carrol tone of terror combined with shame and redemption. Its obvious to see this films’ influence and importance. It plays with non linear storytelling and story-within-story aspects. It utilizes that thing where you record two things and play them over each other to create an ethereal effect and it holds up 100 years later to a pretty creepy effect. There’s a key and tense scene as the main character takes an axe to a door his wife is hiding behind with his children which clearly inspired Stanley Kubrick for the classic The Shining scene. Ingmar Bergman listed it as one of his favorite films and pays tribute and reference to the portrayal of Death in The Seventh Seal. I’ll admit, the film felt a bit slow for me. Maybe it was the mistake of watching it right after a very UP film. For the most part of I’m been making a point to watch silent film first of my nightly marathons to avoid this kind of problem but I broke that rhythm tonight so maybe it contributed to my restlessness. Some of it was definitely the segmented, non linear narrative structure which is interesting and well done but also kind of methodical in its approach and not really keeping a flow to the story. That feels harsh. There was nothing I disliked about it, I just had a hard time sitting with it and kind of took a quick breath between each part. But maybe that was just me and this night. I really did enjoy it though, despite that problem. Its a very good story, very well acted and directed. The phantom effects really hold up and look good in that way a lot of old effects end up having more impact than modern stuff. The image of reapers with long cloaks and pitchforks is such an old and cliched one today but still really works when done well. Any problems I had are probably on me for deciding to watch 11 silent films this October and then leaving most of them for the end of the month. Or thinking “I’ll watch the crazy rear end film about exploding deaths, wacky comedy, and weird sci fi poo poo before the somber, slow morality tale.” Also sometimes language gaps are awkward.  September Pre-Game Tally - New (Total) 1. NOS4A2 (2019); - (2). Splice (2009); - (3). Drive Angry (2011); 2 (4). The Twilight Zone (2019); - (5). Event Horizon (1997); - (6). BrainDead (2016); 3 (7). The Dark Tower (2017); 4 (8). The Collector (2009); 5 (9). The Bad Batch (2016); - (10). Rose Red (2002); - (11). Salem’s Lot (1979) October Tally - New (Total) 1. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920); 2. Nightmare Cinema (2018); 3. Dead of Night (1945); The Queen of Spades (1949); 5. Tragedy Girls (2017); 6. House of Wax (1953); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #1: The Best Month: 7. The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016); 8. In the Tall Grass (2019); 9. The Night of the Hunter (1955); 10. The Thing (1951); - (11). The Thing (1982); 11 (12). The Thing (2011); - (13). Halloween (1978); 12 (14). Dracula (1931); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #2: Dead & Buried: 13 (15). Q (1982); 14 (16). The Black Cat (1934); 15 (17). The Unknown (1927); - (18). Halloween II (1981); 16 (19). The Seventh Victim (1943); 17 (20). The Beast With Five Fingers (1946); 18 (21). The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923); 19 (22). The Curse of the Cat People (1944); - (23). George A. Romero's Land of the Dead (2005); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #3: Horror Noire: 20 (24). Ganja & Hess (1973); 21 (25). Drácula (1931); 22 (26). Universal Horror (1998); - (27). Happy Death Day (2017); 23 (28). The Phantom of the Opera (1925); - (29). Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #4: Inktober: 24 (30). Velvet Buzzsaw (2018); - (31). Frankenstein (1931); 25 (32). The Mummy (1932); 26 (33). The Raven (1935); - (34). Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988); 27 (35). The Man Who Laughs (1928); 28 (36). The Invisible Man (1933); - (37). Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989); 29 (38). The Black Castle (1952); 30 (39). Faust (1926); - (40). Halloween: The Curse of Micheal Myers (1995); - (41). The Bride of Frankenstein (1935); 31 (42). Dracula’s Daughter (1936); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #5: Tourist Trap: 32 (43). The Golem (2019); SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #6: Sometimes They Come Back: 33 (44). Nightmare on Elm Street (2010); 34 (45). Happy Death Day 2U (2019); 35 (46). The Phantom Carriage (1921) STAC Goat fucked around with this message at 04:47 on Oct 22, 2019 |
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Oct 22, 2019 04:45
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 32. Rats: Night of Terror {1982) Dir: Bruno Mattei and Claudio Fargasso (Washington Psychotronic Film Society) Who would win: a bunch of lovely punks from the nuclear wasteland or millions of flesh-eating rats? A collaboration by the folks who brought you Shocking Dark (aka Terminator 2 (aka Aliens 2)) and goddamn Troll 2, which should give you some idea of the kind of thing we're dealing with here. Rock-solid Italian trash horror, complete with a dub seemingly written by a fifth-grader and a banger of a soundtrack that's way more atmospheric than this movie really deserves. Worth a watch if you're into that kind of thing. Contains one of the greatest final "what the gently caress" shots I've seen in a film, which is unfortunately somewhat spoiled in the gif. Watched: 1. Candyman 2. The Wailing 3. Spookies 4. One Cut of the Dead 5. Viy 6. The Driller Killer 7. Tammy and the T-Rex 8. Friday the 13th Pt VI: Jason Lives 9. Scary Movie 10. Ice Cream Man 11. Freaks 12.The Hills Have Eyes 13. Spider Baby 14. Lady Terminator 15. All The Colors of the Dark 16.Tales From The Hood 17. Man Bites Dog 18. Prime Evil 19. Bride of Re-Animator 20. The Phantom Carriage 21. Thinner 22. Robot Monster 23. Color Me Blood Red 24. A Bay of Blood 25. Errementari: The Devil and the Blacksmith 26. The Lighthouse 27. TerrorVision 28. Phantom of the Opera (1925) 29. Stay Alive 30. Hobgoblins 31. Knife + Heart 32. Rats: Night of Terror Friends Are Evil fucked around with this message at 05:03 on Oct 22, 2019 |
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Oct 22, 2019 05:00
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 #133) The Dead Pit (1989) Bad medical man gets sealed away underground with his experiments, until an earthquake releases him, twenty years later. Reminded me a lot of Bad Dreams, being set in a mental institution and giving our protagonist amnesia. Mental illness gets demonized, nightmares crop up without much impact or thematic development on actual events, and they kill time with creepy giggling and lots of screaming. The plot is thin and not especially compelling, but the atmosphere and visuals paper over a fair amount of the weaknesses. Things pick up in the last quarter, with some NotLD-looking shots of people in hospital smocks staggering through dark, moon-lit fields. And I do like the idea of blessing a water tower. If they'd done a few more passes over the script, this might have amounted to something notable. Or if it had been a short film, it could have been awesome, since the imagery of a 'dead pit' is cool and strong on its own. At least it was better than most Full Moon movies. rating: 6/10"He's harmless." "Of course I am. Of course I am."
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Oct 22, 2019 05:07
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 23. Wolfman’s Got Nards (2018) My elementary school movie club showed us a copy of The Monster Squad back when it would have been on the New Releases shelf at the video store, and given that the other things we watched were all Universal monster movies from the 30s and 40s, I’m not entirely sure that the teacher prescreened it. I remember it seeming a little intense for something that we watched in school. After that I watched it fairly often thanks to a taped copy from HBO, so it was always surprising for me that I kept running into horror fans who'd never even heard of it until its more recent resurgence. Tonight I went to see Wolfman’s Got Nards, which is a thorough documentary that includes some making-of details as well as a look at the movie’s cultural impact. It was a treat to see that the doc has a quick interview with the local film buffs who dug up one of the rare copies of the 35mm print, because I’ve been going to screenings that one or the other of those guys have hosted for the past twenty years and I remember dragging a few friends who’d never seen The Monster Squad to their late-00s screening of it. If you’re a fan of The Monster Squad this is a must-see. It’s got some interesting info about the Stan Winston creature designs, interviews with cast members, and an interview with the director, who seems proud of the movie while also acknowledging that it stalled out his career. I loved all the moments with the fans who poured their hearts out about how this weird little movie made them feel less awkward and alone. Watched: 1. Burn, Witch, Burn (1962); 2. TerrorVision (1986); 3. Evilspeak (1981) - Challenge #1; 4. Blood on Satan’s Claw (1971); 5. The City of the Dead (1960); 6. The Witches (1966); 7. The Crimson Cult (1968); 8. A Return to Salem’s Lot (1987) - Challenge #2; 9. Next of Kin (1982); 10. The Ritual (2017); 11. Def by Temptation (1990) - Challenge #3; 12. Halloween III (1982); 13. House by the Cemetery (1981); 14. The Dorm That Dripped Blood (1982); 15. Phenomena (1985); 16. Color Me Blood Red (1965) - Challenge #4; 17. Girls With Balls (2018); 18. Tarot (2009) - Challenge #5; 19. Jug Face (2013); 20. Wake Wood (2009); 21. Happy Death Day (2017); 22. Poltergeist II (1986) - Challenge #6; 23. Wolfman’s Got Nards (2018)
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Oct 22, 2019 06:11
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SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #7: Monster Mash-up Watch a horror film that you haven't seen that features two different monsters. #29: Sadako vs. Kayako (The Ring vs. The Grudge) (2016)  I would never have watched this movie if it weren't for this challenge. I got a trial subscription to Shudder because of the October Challenge, and it turns out there is a lot of good content on there. I did not think this movie would be part of that "good content," and I really do regret judging a movie by its cover (or in this case splash screen). This movie isn't as bad as some here have said, but I think your enjoyment of it will be determined by your expectations going in. I don't have any real sentimental ties to either of these franchises outside of seeing the American remakes made almost two decades ago at this point (which originally prompted me to see "Ringu" in the early 2000's which was my first genuine exposure to Japanese horror). As for "Kayako," I remember that Sarah Michelle Gellar was in the remake of "The Grudge" and it had some jump scares. That was about it. I really haven't thought about it since I was a teenager, and I couldn't tell you what it was about, because the only reason I watched it was because it had Buffy the Vampire Slayer in it. All this is to say that my expectations was that this was the Japanese version of "Freddy vs. Jason," and expectations were at rock bottom. I like the idea of the creepy girl from "The Ring," and the creepy girl from "The Grudge," and watching them fight in a battle of supernatural wills sounded awesome. Except this movie isn't about that. None of the movies that I've seen that these are based on have ever been about creature feature battles. They're about psychological fuckery and the build-up of an inevitable unpleasant demise. Pitting the haunted house ghost against the haunted video tape hair girl is pretty cool on paper, but you're not going to get the knock-down drag-out supernatural throwdown the title suggests without that buildup of tension. It builds up a reasonable (read: contrived) situation for why these two cursed entities would ever meet, and lets them do their thing for a few minutes at the climax before leaving you hanging and waiting for something more. Those couple of minutes are pretty cool though, and if you're willing to sit through the buildup to get there, it's worth it. 3/5 Watched: Midsommar; One Cut of the Dead; Apostle; Wolf Creek; Lake Mungo; Viy (Challenge #1); Demon Knight; Witchfinder General; Razorback; Joker; A Quiet Place; Spider Baby, or the Maddest Story Ever Told (Challenge #2); Hereditary; The First Purge (Challenge #3); Killer Condom; Road Games; Next of Kin; Zombie aka Zombi 2; Suspiria (1977) (Challenge #4); Phantom of the Paradise; In Her Skin; Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon; Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead; Troll Hunter aka Trollhunter (Challenge #5); The Tunnel; Profondo Rossa aka Deep Red; Body Melt; Suspiria (2018) (Challenge #6); Sadako vs. Kayako (Challenge #7) Total: 29
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Oct 22, 2019 06:33
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https://twitter.com/KennethJWaste2/status/1186131277604413441?s=20 https://twitter.com/KennethJWaste2/status/1186518018781798401?s=20
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Oct 22, 2019 06:46
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Franchescanado posted:22. Frenzy I saw this in the theater when I was pretty young, like maybe twelveish. It hosed me up pretty bad. Thanks Mom and Dad! The rape/murder that happens early in the film and is the central event putting the plot in motion is harrowing and horrifying. If I recall, it happen in broad daylight. The killer was well known to the victim, thus allowing him trust and access. It's just that his human mask came off in private and he revealed himself to be the boogeyman. The scene is long and pretty explicit including the strangulation of the victim. You feel the full depth of the killer's depravity. Also Hitchcock certainly doesn't stray away with killing off likeable appealing characters does he, like Babs the friend and helper of the protagonist.
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Oct 22, 2019 06:55
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SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #6: Sometimes They Come Back #20 Halloween (2018)  I really enjoyed this! I went into the movie expecting it to be more serious than it was, so I had to adjust my expectations, but once I was able to accept the goofiness that permeates a lot of it I had a really great time. It really has a lot of fun playing with expectations in general. It sets up rules that it then later breaks, like how it establishes the first person POV as code for looking at something through Michael's eyes, then later on goes to use that as a fake out. It contrasts goofy characters and over the top saccharine scenes with legitimately brutal and disturbing kills (The gas station scene in particular, my god). It often holds shots and delays reveals longer than is comfortable. It doesn't even always grant you the tension breaking relief of a jump scar. Michael is just as likely to walk silently into frame from the shadows as he is to make a grand entrance. I could feel the movie playing around with me and I liked that about it. Nothing super groundbreaking but there was a lot of it and I thought it all worked. I was looking at a few other reviews on some other sites and it seemed like a lot of people had issues with some part of the movie, but most of those issues were with a different part. There wasn't an obvious consensus of where the problem really was. In particular there seemed to be a division of people who either didn't like the beginning or didn't like the end. I basically liked all of it, but I do think the different segments of the movie had fairly different tones and pacing, so I imagine a lot of the complaints are due to the movie switching from a direction people liked to a direction they didn't, or vice versa. I personally thought it all worked to pull together a super fun slasher that hit all the beats I would've hoped for. And then of course I thought "that one shot" was pretty great. Perfect little tribute. I can see how people might want to nitpick this movie but most of its dumber details felt like they were in service of making the movie more fun, so I don't really feel right complaining about them. Like sure, Laurie had some obvious security flaws in her mega fortress, but she still managed to come off as extremely capable, and those flaws made for some great shots and a dramatic sequence of events. Sad I missed this in theaters, because I think it would've been even better with an enthusiastic group. Watched (20/31): #1 Gozu (2003), #2 Spider Baby or, the Maddest Story Ever Told (1967), #3 Viy (1967), #4 Mondo Cane (1962), #5 Dark Water (2002), #6 Blood and Black Lace (1964), #7 Daughters of Darkness (1971), #8 Sliders of Ghost Town: Origins (2016), #9 One Cut of the Dead (2017), #10 Possum (2018), #11 EGG. (2005), #12 Adventures of Electric Rod Boy (1987), #13 House of 1000 Corpses (2003), #14 Ganja and Hess (1973), #15 Q (1982), #16 Hungry Stones (1960), #17 The Ruins (2008), #18 The Lighthouse (2019), #19 Pulgasari (1985), #20 Halloween (2018) Challenges (6/7):
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Oct 22, 2019 07:05
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16: Overlord ABCs: O After so many grungy small scale films, it's nice to see something with a budget. This was a fun ride with some good old fashioned nazi mad science. I also appreciate how they show how awful war is, too; the movie is still plenty horrifying in the first half before any monsters show up. Only real issue I had was that they played it quiet with a lot of the how and why. Over explaining can definitely kill a movie, but I feel like this could have used a little more backstory.
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Oct 22, 2019 07:53
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# 24. Child's Play SUPER SAMHAIN CHALLENGE #6: Sometimes They Come Back  I have never seen any of the Child's Play movies. Both a friend and one of my cousins were crazy about them, they were always playing in the background when I came over. I remember someone being suffocated with a plastic bag in a car, saw Andy throw his match with a one-liner a dozen times, but I've never watched a whole movie. When I started with these challenges a few years back I went through all the classics I missed; Halloween, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Hellraiser, but for some reason Child's Play was not among them. So now, I have finally seen a Chucky movie. And I dug it! I really think the movie is missing a clear focus and the tone is all over the place, just like the plot, but the ride is enjoyable start to finish. Chucky's switch from poor, misunderstood AI, learning the wrong things and building up a warped view of what he should do to crazed killer was a bit too sudden. I really enjoyed some of the gore, but it seems oddly subdued at other times. Maybe some struggling with the rating? Same with the humor, it is there but the movie doesn't really lean into it. Leftovers from an earlier draft or added later? Kids ganging up to fight Chucky felt a bit Stranger Things, but it comes out of nowhere and didn't really fit in with the rest of the movie. Despite all of that it was just a ton of fun. As an aside, would any of the movies below qualify for the Monster Mash-up challenge? I don't want to spoiler myself by reading plots of going through lists of actors to see their roles, but if someone has seen them and can confirm there are two monsters in them I'd appreciate it. The Fearless Vampire Killers Jennifer's Body Krampus Critters 4 Antropophagus Massacre in Dinosaur Valley Red Billabong Kawaki I Am a Hero If not, I'll just pick up something else.
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Oct 22, 2019 08:35
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