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12. Firestarter 2022 My expectations were low, I knew this would be the worst film I'd see in theaters over the next 8-9 days (I've already got a booking for Downton Abbey next Sunday and I'm seeing Men a day or two before that). So all I wanted was for this to feel like neither a complete waste of 90 minutes nor the worst film I've seen in theaters all year so far It felt like neither, so! My list of positives beyond that are low; I liked the kid, Efron was alright, and this felt well-paced for its runtime. The CG was laughable and the last act felt like it was really rushed through, to the point I couldn't believe the credits were already rolling. But overall, not the worst Or second-worst film I've seen in theaters in 2022 so far! (Death on the Nile and Umma) Obviously though, if you want a new horror film to see this month on the big screen: pick Men. If you have to pick one to see on VOD/streaming: pick Hatching. If you need to see a version of Firestarter: pick the 1984 one ** 12/13+ (Presence 2022, Bitch rear end, Dawn Breaks Behind the Eyes, The Outwaters, Masking Threshold, When the Screaming Starts, The Abandon 2022, To the Moon 2022, Dawning 2022, La Pasajera, Pennywise: The Story of IT, Firestarter 2022)
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May 14, 2022 20:13
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I've been meaning to do the shorts challenge for a few marathons now but never got around to finding good horror shorts to watch. Recommendations would be appreciated, preferably stuff that's available online!
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May 14, 2022 20:27
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The City of the Dead 1960 Directed by John Llewellyn Moxey Watched on Shudder  This really surprised me. I wasn't expecting very much. I love that they made little to no effort to make the village look like a real place. Whitewood really seemed like a place that both did and did not exist at the same time, which makes sense, given the residents' secret. The characters themselves were mostly forgettable. At the end, I had lost track of which guy was Nan's brother and which guy was Nan's fiancé. Either way, it's a very short movie and the conclusion is definitely worth the wait. 💀💀💀1/2 Spooky Non-American 1960s Challenge 10/13 1. Matango (1963), 2. Mill of the Stone Women (1960), 3. The Brainiac (1962), 4. Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966), 5. Gamera, the Giant Monster (1960), 6. Genocide (1968), 7. The House That Screamed (1969), 8. The Whip and the Body (1963), 9. The Snow Woman (1968), 10. The City of the Dead (1960) Bracketology 7/? 1. Night of the Living Dead (1990), 2. Strait-Jacket (1964), 3. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011), 4. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), 5. The Changeover (2017), 6. It Came from Outer Space (1953), 7. Morgiana (1972) GMM Challenges 8/13 1. The Other Lamb (2019), 2. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), 3. Madhouse (1974), 4. Suck (2009), 5. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006), 6. Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972), 7. Various shorts, 8. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
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May 14, 2022 20:29
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 Lisey’s Story (2021) Directed by Pablo Larraín; Written by Stephen King Watched on AppleTV+ King Spring II: 10/13 There’s basically two Stephen King stories. Well he’s written like 300 stories, there’s a ton. But there’s two he comes back to over and over. The first is a story about a sleepy New England town filled with secrets and problems that gets invaded by some evil thing. You’ve seen that one. The other is a world famous writer who happens to kind of resemble Stephen King who has problems that happen to mirror Stephen King’s at the time. This is definitely one of those, a really deep and intimate feeling story that can sometimes feel esoteric and maybe too personal for us to understand but that really comes together by the end. A lot of King writing is like that kind of starting off a jumbled mess that picks up half way through the story and slowly pulls everything together into a cathartic place. Its no surprise the show mirrors King’s style since he wrote the screenplays for that, and that can be frustrating. The first few episodes had me spinning and unsure where to hold on and its King so of course the ending doesn’t fully land. Still even during the bumpier parts of the show its buoyed by some tremendous performances. Julianna Moore is at the forefront in a really powerful performance of a woman dealing with her own grief while the world starts to fall apart around her but Joan Allen stands out doing a great job and Jennifer Jason Leigh puts in what I imagine is an unappreciated performance as the bratty sister who kind of has a reason to be annoyed since she’s the only one in the dark about all this magic nonsense. Dane Dehaan is also excellent as the terrifying super fan stalker. You gotta wonder how much of that was from him and how much was King writing from experience. He’s had to have a few really unstable “deep space cowboys” over the last 40+ years. Whether the film works better as metaphor or fantasy or in that in between of both, I really ended up feeling it by the end. King revealing anxieties about the world of fantasy and imagination writers have to tap into for their stories and how close a vivid imagination might feel to a detachment from reality for him. The monster being a basic representation of losing yourself to mental illness either thanks to a family history of violence, a personal inability to cope, a loss and grief hole you’re struggling to pull yourself out of, or just spending so much of your time in the wonder of fantasy that you lose sight of the real world. And in a lot of basic ways this just feels like a love letter from King to his wife of 40 years. A sadness for the poo poo she might have to deal with after he’s gone and a hope that he can leave her something to help, and a ton of appreciation that she was his anchor and source of strength during a mad life. Its not the scariest King story. Probably not the best either. But its a great cast, a singular talented director, and King writing for himself about himself. That could be called self indulgent and that’s not an unfair label for King but King also seems very happy to rip back his own flaws and regrets and expose them to people so I think it works. This isn’t a story about how awesome the writer is. Its a story about what a mess he is and how awesome his wife is. And King has talked about how the current streaming era appeals to him so much since it gives him a chance to make mini-series that fully adapt his novels without the time constraints that force compromises in a feature film or even an old school 3-4 hour mini series. 8 hours with a King story might be too much for some and certainly its been said that King could use an editor. But its his story in his words and I’ve been reading him my entire life. So I’m tuned in well and I enjoy his voice. Also the monster is really cool looking, especially once you figure out what it is.   21 (32). Never Hike Alone: the Ghost Cut (2020) Written and directed by Vincente DiSanti Watched on Youtube GMM Challenges: 3/13 gey muckle mowser posted:
I hate Friday the 13th and Jason. Don’t @ me. Its not my thing at all. Slashers aren’t in general but the Friday series in particular seems more interested in “cool kills” and body counts than story or character or tension or any of the things I tend to enjoy. So I wasn’t really planning on watching a Jason movie this 13th but a challenge is a challenge and this is new and a little different. And I always am curious to see what amateur filmmakers can do. And you know, this is actually pretty good? I watched The Ghost Cut which is like the original short plus a prequel follow up plus a bunch of random things. And like… most of that ranges from cute to bad. The Snow feature in particular just feels like a completely unfinished and not terribly compelling story. I appreciated the seeming interest in character and buildup but it goes nowhere slowly and the whole thing feels more focused on some fan service with any real clear idea why its existing. The main feature is solid though. A very straight forward and simple but effective man vs monster story. Its well shot and solidly acted and it does what most of the Friday movies fail to do in establishing a protagonist and a struggle. Now for a lot of fans of the movies this is probably not what they want to see. There’s not a bunch of random people to get killed in various ways through the course of the feature. DiSanti actually approaches things more like… well… a Carpenter/Halloween type story where the focus is in the buildup of tension and anticipation for the big conflict and moment. And you know what, that’s exactly what I feel like is missing from all those films! And there’s still a body count and some fan service and a laugh or two. It feels like DiSanti is definitely a fan of all that stuff. But it also feels like he set out to make a better Jason movie. And I actually think he succeeded. If I were judging the main feature alone I’d probably give it a solid 3 1/2 stars and rank it as one of my favorite Jason movies if not THE favorite. The whole package is a little more uneven and the other feature just did nothing for me. Its all very well shot and made. There’s genuine talent here and it feels a lot better than a lot of “fan films” or “student films”. The idea feels stretched out past whatever core idea or point DiSanti had in the first one. I mean its not a deep film, but the more stuff that gets added to it the more it starts to feel very “fan filmy” and less like just a decent little Jason movie. But as much as the overall continuity doesn’t make a ton of sense the Ghost Cut does right by finishing strong. And trust me, no one is surprised to hear this as much as I am. But I actually kind of enjoyed that.  22 (33). Freaky (2020) Directed by Christopher Landon; Written by Michael Kennedy and Christopher Landon Watched on HBOMax Return of the Fallen: 6/13 - The Silver Spoons I was actually kind of pumped for this. “Pumped” is probably the wrong word. Slashers aren’t my thing. But I really like Landon’s Happy Death Day films and what he did with the slasher format in those. And I really like Kathryn Newton. And this just looked like a lot of fun. And I was saving it for May and then when I started it a week or so ago and discovered it was a backdoor Friday the 13th film I decided to save it for the right day. So it was just a lot of anticipation and waiting that had me very pleased to finally hit play. And for the most part it was a lot of fun and a really good time. I really don’t have any complaints. I think its probably a lot more of a standard slasher in some ways than I thought it would be. I mean its goofy too and fun because its obviously Freaky Friday the 13th. But it feels like it leans more into the slasher than the Freaky Friday stuff. That’s fine but Happy Death Day felt maybe a bit more ambitious or truly unique. Still, this is a cool and fun premise. Newton is good in the dual role but actually kind of doesn’t get to do a ton as the generic slasher villain. She has some good lines and an overall very good presence but its a lot of looming and slashing. Which you know… makes sense. Vince Vaughn ends up being the star, which I guess is something I should have realized but it feels like a bit of a trick. Like the whole film feels marketed as “slasher possesses a teenage girl” but of course that means the other half of the film is Vince Vaughn playing a teenage girl. When I say tricked I’m not mad or saying I feel like I was duped into something, I just feel like the film and marketing kind of purposely says “here’s a story about Millie… now Vince Vaughn is playing Millie!” Which makes complete sense and I didn’t see coming at all. Which makes me feel dumb but I also give credit to Landon for the kind of rope a dope. And Vaughn playing a teenage girl could have been dumb and bad but its generally just a lot of fun. He really leans into it and with the help of Millie’s teen friends ends up really being the focus of much of the movie. Its less of a slasher transported into the body of a teenager and more of a teenager transported into the body of a slasher and now having to go figure out the voodoo and poo poo to fix this and evade the cops and convince her friends and make out with the boy she has a crush on? The film goes there and its all very lighthearted goofy fun. I don’t think this was as good as Happy Death Day for me and I probably had it a little too built up because of that and because of all the waiting I did to watch it. But I still had a really good time with it and think is a very fun slasher comedy. And it felt like a very appropriate Friday the 13th substitute for someone like me who wants to abstain from the real thing.
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May 14, 2022 20:37
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SECRET BONUS LIMITED TIME CHALLENGE
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Shaman Tank Spec posted:I've been meaning to do the shorts challenge for a few marathons now but never got around to finding good horror shorts to watch. Recommendations would be appreciated, preferably stuff that's available online! These are my favorite shorts from this Challenge and last October that are free. Prey (2001) 10 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3SVQR_VS2Q The Jigsaw (2017) 8 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gs5zQBBOXrA A Sickness (2020) 10 minutes https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2021/07/08/a-sickness/ Curve (2016) 10 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dD3Fawk4y0 A Warning to the Curious (1972) 50 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7xJSQY8Ssw
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May 14, 2022 20:40
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Shaman Tank Spec posted:I've been meaning to do the shorts challenge for a few marathons now but never got around to finding good horror shorts to watch. Recommendations would be appreciated, preferably stuff that's available online! For this challenge, as well as in October, I used Famous First Films (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOb-xABgTt19pM4hez1bTrw). There are some big names on here--browse for your favorite horror directors and watch away! I'll also quote myself from the past two challenges with some ideas. I definitely had more highlights in October: Crescent Wrench posted:
Crescent Wrench posted:
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May 14, 2022 21:40
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16/13 - November (2017) 8. A Perfect Getaway Exceptionally beautiful (seriously some of the best black and white cinematography I've ever seen), deeply surreal, and exceedingly dark, November might be a new favorite to recommend for people looking for something off the beaten path. Dripping with folkloric references from Eastern Europe, the movie is like a nightmare campfire tale you may have heard once as a kid. It's dark and ponderous and mysterious, and creates a strange universe where almost anything seems possible for the poor people of a remote, tiny village. Moments of pitch black comedy and drama are interspersed with creepy and memorable visuals, and the film just feels absolutely unforgettable. Not a perfect movie, but highly recommended.  -- All right, I've officially completed all the challenges as of 5/14/22. I'm still going to keep watching movies but I've already hit my target goal of 13+/13, and all the challenges, so I'm not sure if I'm going to keep posting write-ups. But I have conquered the beast, huzzah! FINAL LIST:  1. Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched - Cry Blue Sky / Eyes of Fire 2. Scream, Queen! - Der Samurai 3. Rated PG - Roadgames 4. Music of the Night - The Happiness of the Katakuris 5. Behind the Screams - Document of the Dead 6. The King in Yellow - The Last Matinee 7. Short Cuts - Various 8. A Perfect Getaway - November 9. Hidden Gems - Kairo (Pulse) 10. The Price is Right - From a Whisper to a Scream 11. Horror Noire - Bones 12. All Hail the King - Christine 13. Sins of the Past - Dead of NightBONUS - Never Hike Alone - The Ghost Cut
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May 14, 2022 22:05
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7. Audition Well, that was something. Miike's film doesn't tip its hat at all about how dark it's going to get until 45 minutes into the film. At that point a sitting pose and an a large canvas bag cut through the heretofore unstylized cinematography to warn us that we are leaving the fishing trips, offices, and hotel bars behind for something much scarier. The final 20 minutes are actually excruciating, providing just enough hallucinatory cutaways to hold back the urge to pause the film for a little relief. Both the leads are dialed in to exactly how they need to shift their presentation over the course of the movie without actually feeling like they've changed at all, only that something we assumed was innocence is actually a façade. 2) A Nightmare on Elm Street 3) Scream 4 4) Scream 2022 5) You Won’t Be Alone 6) The Night House 7) Audition 8) Dracula (1931) 9) Suspiria (1977) 10) Drag Me To Hell 11) Us 12) Men 13) Night of the Living Dead (1968)
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May 14, 2022 22:50
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gey muckle mowser posted:
 8.) Friday the 13th Part 2 Steve Miner | 1981 | Digital rental (watching this in place of #7 Short Cuts) It’s funny, I only watched the original Friday the 13th for the first time in 2019 at a friend’s house because it was Friday the 13th! (9/13/19) So it’s only fitting that I watch the sequel on a Friday the 13th as well. I had fun! I don’t feel it’s quite as good as the original but there’s some cool stuff here too. It should feel odd in hindsight to have Jason take over as the franchise villain, but in all honesty it didn’t really faze me, perhaps because of cultural osmosis. He’s so iconic even if he wasn’t the original villain. That being said, I wasn’t digging the burlap sack, it just doesn’t feel right (which to be fair was acknowledged by like, everyone). And let me be frank, the kills were cool. Overall, it was fun and I look to the next time the 13th is on a Friday so I can watch Part 3  Rating: ½ Total: 8/13 New: 7 Rewatches: 1 Challenges: X. SECRET BONUS LIMITED TIME CHALLENGE ( Friday the 13th Part 2), 12. All Hail the King (Firestarter (2022)) My Letterboxd list (in progress) Greekonomics fucked around with this message at 23:47 on May 15, 2022 |
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May 14, 2022 23:51
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Way behind on logging these... 12. The Spine of Night (2021) (dir. Philip Gelatt, Morgan Galen King) Shudder A grim fantasy/horror epic filled with dark magic, bloody violence, ancient gods, and lots of animated nudity. You’d think when you’re fighting with swords and spears and poo poo around you’d at least want your junk covered. I like the setting and story in this, it reminds me of a FromSoftware game or maybe a bit of Game of Thrones before it got bad. The animation is sometimes kind of bad though. There were parts I thought looked very cool but more often than not it just feels janky. Faces are occasionally hideous. Fight scenes feel floaty and slow, like the characters are just sort of lazily mock fighting. The gore is extreme and brutal, but the action itself is kind of boring. The voice acting is fine, none of the performances really stood out as especially good or bad. Bonus points for uniqueness, but IMO the execution left something to be desired. 3.5 split skulls out of 5  13. Anaconda (1997) (dir. Luis Llosa) Netflix re-watch A documentary film crew in search of a lost tribe find themselves facing a monstrous anaconda as well as a dangerously insane snake hunter (Jon Voight). Jennifer Lopez and Ice Cube star, with a supporting cast that includes Eric Stoltz and a very young Owen Wilson. This is a very ‘90s movie and features some very bad snake CGI mixed with some dopey looking practical effects (which I kind of loved). Pretty sure I saw this in theaters back when it came out, but that was 25 years ago (!) so I remembered virtually nothing about it. This is about what you would expect it to be. It has some fun moments, even more dumb moments, and action scenes that are entertaining but marred by the bad effects. Jon Voight is the most memorable part of the film, his performance is completely bonkers and he chews the poo poo out of every line. He’s not, like, “good” by most definitions, but it sure is something to watch. As a ‘90s blockbuster about a giant snake, it does its job well enough. Entertaining for what it is but not exactly great cinema. 3 sssssnakes out of 5 Total: 13 Watched: The Exorcist | Exorcist II: The Heretic | We're All Going to the World's Fair | Irreversible | Amsterdamned | Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched | We Have Always Lived in the Castle | Valerie and Her Week of Wonders | Hollow Man | Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Broadcast Signal Intrusion | The Spine of Night | Anaconda
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May 15, 2022 02:50
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almost forgot the most important one 14. Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986) (dir. Tom McLoughlin) blu-ray re-watch Tommy Jarvis, now an adult but still suffering hallucinations of Jason Voorhees, returns to Crystal Lake (now renamed Forest Green) to dig up Jason’s grave to prove to himself that the killer is truly dead. In the process, Jason’s corpse is zapped by lightning and he is brought back to life. Oops. Now a hulking zombie, Jason heads back to “Camp Blood”, killing anyone he encounters on the way. My favorite Friday the 13th film is either this, part 2, or part 4, usually depending on which I’ve watched most recently. This one works because it doesn’t take itself too seriously and adds a lot of humor into the mix - at times it’s practically a comedy, but mostly it’s just a slasher that is fully aware of its own goofiness and embraces it. There isn’t anything all that scary here, although zombie Jason is pretty gross and there are some memorable kill scenes. I also like that there are actual children at the summer camp this time around - I think this may be the only film in the series that isn’t just teens and adults. Jason mostly ignores them, but they do make things slightly more interesting since the counselors have to protect the kids while they avoid getting killed themselves. Plus the kids have some pretty funny lines (“So, what were you going to be when you grew up?”). This may not be the best one in the series (that’s part 4 in my opinion) but it is a pure distillation of why I enjoy these films and it’s always a blast to watch. 4.5 red dots out of 5 Total: 14 Watched: The Exorcist | Exorcist II: The Heretic | We're All Going to the World's Fair | Irreversible | Amsterdamned | Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched | We Have Always Lived in the Castle | Valerie and Her Week of Wonders | Hollow Man | Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Broadcast Signal Intrusion | The Spine of Night | Anaconda | Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives
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May 15, 2022 02:54
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The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (El esqueleto de la señora Morales) 1960 Directed by Rogelio A. González Watched on Tubi  If you can ignore some mid-century Latin American machismo, The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales is a delightful dark comedy. It's like W.C. Fields meets Alfred Hitchcock. An affable but insensitive taxidermist is married to a pious hypochondriac. How they ended up together is anybody's guess, but if they got along then there wouldn't be a movie. The two leads are great. The ending is great. It's just really charming. 💀💀💀💀 Spooky Non-American 1960s Challenge 11/13 1. Matango (1963), 2. Mill of the Stone Women (1960), 3. The Brainiac (1962), 4. Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966), 5. Gamera, the Giant Monster (1960), 6. Genocide (1968), 7. The House That Screamed (1969), 8. The Whip and the Body (1963), 9. The Snow Woman (1968), 10. The City of the Dead (1960), 11. The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1960) Bracketology 7/? 1. Night of the Living Dead (1990), 2. Strait-Jacket (1964), 3. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011), 4. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), 5. The Changeover (2017), 6. It Came from Outer Space (1953), 7. Morgiana (1972) GMM Challenges 8/13 1. The Other Lamb (2019), 2. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), 3. Madhouse (1974), 4. Suck (2009), 5. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006), 6. Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972), 7. Various shorts, 8. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
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May 15, 2022 03:00
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You know I’ve been asking myself, “What movie could possibly follow a Friday the 13th film?”  gey muckle mowser posted:
 9.) Saturday the 14th Howard R. Cohen | 1981 | Shudder Disappointingly, despite what the title would lead you to believe, this film is not a parody of Friday the 13th (though weirdly enough the film takes place on “Elm St”, three years before Nightmare on Elm Street). Instead, it’s just a parody of old monster movies. It’s not particularly a great movie, but there are some cute jokes here and there though the parents, specifically the father, get kind of annoying after a while. The little twist at the end is neat though. I mean I’ve definitely seen worse comedies but I also have seen much better ones too. Apparently there’s a sequel, yet some how it’s not named “Sunday the 15th?!” Rating: ½ Total: 9/13 New: 8 Rewatches: 1 Challenges: 3. Rated PG (Saturday the 14th ), X. SECRET BONUS LIMITED TIME CHALLENGE ( Friday the 13th Part 2), 12. All Hail the King (Firestarter (2022)) My Letterboxd list (in progress) Greekonomics fucked around with this message at 20:46 on May 17, 2022 |
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May 15, 2022 06:02
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 - (34). Attack the Block (2011) Written and directed by Joe Cornish Watched on Starz ”You know what? I’m making GBS threads myself, innit. But at the same time… “What?” “This is sick.” I love Attack The Block. Absolutely love it. I grew up a white kid in the projects in NYC in the 80s and 90s and yet I just feel a kinship to this and its characters. It nails the feeling and people who live in that world. Its a thrilling, fun, funny ride but its also a very quietly deep story of people and labels and circumstances. Its a story that deliberately starts with Moses with a mask over his face mugging a woman and looking like the “scary black man” and ends with that same woman vouching for him and his whole block chanting his name. Its basically about how we are not our worst choices and actions. We are not the easily described labels you can put on someone. We’re more complicated than that. And it doesn’t put Moses off the hook. Jodie Whitaker doesn’t really give him and his crew a pass for what they did and the movie never tells us she’s wrong for being mad or seeing them in a bad light. Because its the way they WANTED her to see them. Its the way they presented themselves because its the way they were raised and taught. But given a second chance, put in a situation that demanded cooperation and choices, given a chance to understand each other a little bit? There’s a line midway where the boys finally do apologize to her and say “we never would have mugged you if we knew you lived here.” Its the same protected, macho non-apology attitude and she calls it for its bs, but its also basically true and part of them all getting past their instincts and labels and understanding one another. I was gonna give it 5 stars but a dear friend got a little upset with me and the film pointing out that that initial confrontation of 5 men attacking a woman is a little too severe to the way its treated. I absolutely understand that, or I do now. I don’t think its done casually or without intent. I think Cornish is purposely presenting us with a threatening image to tell his story. And I think as a dude who grew up in the projects I almost think of muggings in the same way those kids do. Its a thing that happened to me more than once. Sometimes you get rolled. You don’t carry a lot of cash or expensive poo poo and pay attention to your surroundings. And it still happens. And I definitely think that’s the mindset of Moses and his crew. They don’t think they’ve done something terrible. They just did the thing people do. Its not until later that they even really try and put themselves in the perspective of the woman. And again, I think that’s the point but I also absolutely understand my friend’s point that maybe its too heavy an image for the transition that follows. Maybe in a world filled with women who have been assaulted by men in terrible, similar ways using that fear has deeper consequences and responsibility. And horror and film in general always uses real things and traumas and anxieties to move its drama. Its part of fiction. But I can absolutely see how the general tone of the film, quick transition to the “boys being boys”, and overall focus on Moses a bit more than Jodie Whitaker… who sadly I don’t remember the character name of which probably underlines the point. That maybe that’s a huge mis step for the film and a place where Cornish (and I) failed to see another perspective in the same way that Moses and them did. So yeah, I’ve been thinking about it. And I still really love and enjoy this film, but I can absolutely see where it might contain a very real flaw and trigger for some. And that sucks and should not be dismissed. Every film is not for everyone but art shouldn’t hurt people. It sucks that sometimes a piece of art that many love and brings them joy can hurt someone else. And sometimes that a really deep eye opener. There’s definitely some of that here. I still love the story of Moses but I should really remember Jodie Whitaker’s name too.  23 (35). The Horror of Frankenstein (1970) Directed by Jimmy Sangster; Screenplay by Jeremy Burnham and Jimmy Sangster 13 Frankenst13ns: 7/13 Where the hell is Peter Cushing? This isn’t a terrible film but you can’t just pull Cushing out of your Hammer Frankenstein series and act like everything is ok. I can probably get past that and Ralph Bates isn’t terrible or anything. And he’s playing a more deliberately evil Frankenstein than Cushing so its different. But its not better and its not really just as good either. Bates’ Frankenstein feels like any evil villain. Cushing’s portrayal wasn’t just about how good he was but also the uniqueness of his character’s kind of apathetic disregard for morality. He wasn’t setting out to kill anyone, he just didn’t care if they died. And if they did, hey… useful body parts. Its a compelling and engaging villain who has that ability to charm you and lull you into a false sense of safety. His endless string of lackies who know what they’re doing is messed up but keep just getting talked into it by Frankenstein’s cold logic are gone now. Now Frankenstein’s assistant literally bolts for the door when he’s had enough. Because Frankenstein is just a little over the top and someone you back away slowly from now. And yeah, I basically get that this is a deadpan comedy. It definitely shines through in a few spots. I don’t think it really works overall as a tone though. Maybe because Hammer is already pretty campy to start with so just ramping that up a little doesn’t register very much. Or maybe it does and does damage. Maybe laughing at it breaks the charm and makes you wonder why you’re bothering. I’ve been enjoying these Hammer films all along and now you’re laughing at them. Are you laughing at me? I dunno. I’m not mad about it but I’m not sure I really get the point. This isn’t terribly funny and you’re really not going anywhere Hammer hasn’t already gone. So where’s the joke? Or maybe its as simple as not being very funny. Its still a Hammer film so there’s lots of style and costuming and setting and mood and heaving chests. And since its a comedy or satire or something that’s really enhanced. The boobs I mean. They’re basically a punchline. And despite everything I’ve said there’s still a basic charm here to Hammer. But this is like the 6th Frankenstein movie and like my 15th Hammer movie and there’s not Cushing or Lee or anything really special. Its just there an since its not even part of Cushing’s run it barely seems worth doing.  24 (36). Firestarter (2022) Directed by Keith Thomas; Screenplay by Scott Teems; Based on Firestarter by Stephen King Watched on Peacock King Spring II: 11/13 GMM Challenges: 4/13 gey muckle mowser posted:
I didn’t exactly go into this expecting a lot. In my opinion Firestarter isn’t a terribly good King story and its aged poorly. Its an artifact of that 70s government conspiracy ESP is the future of mankind sci fi thing and now just feels like one of the million random X-Men one offs or new character origins. And the reviews have been bad although to be honest so many of the reviews I’ve seen have been of the very hostile “another bad King adaption” or “I wanted to die watching this” or “this is the worst thing ever” variety that I think some of the first wave of any new release (especially a streaming release) is just some people looking to be the first one to be mad. Still, I wasn’t hoping for much and I wasn’t really seeing anything good. But I love King and its a rare modern release that stays under 100 minutes so why not? And like.. yeah, its not great. Its not the worst thing either. Its not even bottom 5 King movies I’ve seen so far this month. But its not especially good either. Again the story feels very aged and overly familiar and dry. This version really doesn’t add anything to update it, just some odd story changes that feel like they’re done to set up a sequel. Like a lot of King adaptions there’s just too much story in the original novel to squeeze into 90 minutes of film, and when the movie skips portions and speeds up elements it just doesn’t really give anything room to breath or get you engaged. Its just so set in the basic path King scripted for it (and I think part of that is that King’s story starts with them already on the run skipping the first part of their story) that it feels very by the numbers and hitting story beats rather than actually telling a story. The ending is ok enough but it definitely kind of took an overall “this feels like a show pilot” feeling and confirmed that this felt more designed for what follows than to be a fully satisfying stand alone. And I think that’s a big mistake not just for the usual reasons but because when you think about it there’s really not many King stories that have sequels are there? He tends to tell stories in one go. And Firestarter just feels like a story that isn’t fleshed out or complete. I don’t entirely blame the director and crew. As I said, its not the King story I’d choose to adapt in 2022. But I also do kind of blame the people who made this. A lot has been said about John Carpenter scoring this and there’s definitely a cool little retro vibe in there. But the rest of the movie doesn’t do anything with it or match it. It just all feels like a movie put together in parts or something. Like an Ikea film or something. I dunno. Its not an especially bad watch but its also not something I’m gonna remember a year from now or probably a week or two from now. Its just there. 🌻💀 Spook-A-Doodle Half-Way-To-Halloween ’22: Return of the Fallen & King Spring II💀🌻 Watched - New (Total) 1. Magic (1978); - (2). A Quiet Place (2018); 2 (3). A Quiet Place Part II (2020); 3 (4). Benny Loves You (2019); 4 (5). Strait-Jacket (1964); 5 (6). Werewolves Within (2021); - (7). The Curse of Frankenstein (1957); - (8). Children of the Corn (1984); (9). The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958); - (10). The Evil of Frankenstein (1964); - (11). Frankenstein Created Woman (1967); - (12). Night of the Living Dead (1990); - (13). Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice (1992); - (14). Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest (1995); 6 (15). National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011); 7 (16). The Shallows (2016); 8 (17). Leviathan (1989); 9 (18). Piranha 3DD (2012); 10 (19). Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering (1996); 11 (20). Stephen King’s Night Shift Collection (The Boogeyman (1982)/Disciples of the Crow (1983)/The Woman in the Room (1983)); 12 (21). Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror (1998); 13 (22). The Ghoul (1933); 14 (23). Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return (1999); 15 (24). Night of the Living Dead (2014); 16 (25). Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969); - (26). Night of the Living Dead (1968); 17 (27). The Changeover (2017); - (28). Salem’s Lot (1979); 18 (29). Children of the Corn: Revelation (2001); 19 (30). It Came from Outer Space (1953); 20 (31). Morgiana (1972); 21 (32). Never Hike Alone: the Ghost Cut (2020); 22 (33). Freaky (2020);- (34). Attack the Block (2011); 23 (35). The Horror of Frankenstein (1970); 24 (36). Firestarter (2022); 📺Series: Moon Knight (2022); Midnight Mass (2021); Lisey’s Story (2021); 📺 💀GMM Challenges: 4/13💀 🌽King Spring II: 11/13🌽 🧑💻Return of the Fallen: 6/13🧑💻 ⚡13 Frankenst13ns: 7/13⚡ 🧟Knockoffs of the 13 Dead: 3/13🧟
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May 15, 2022 06:48
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Movie 10: SHORTS (Short Cuts) I picked a lot of these from Crescent Wrench and PKMN Trainer Red's lists of recommended shorts, so a big thanks to them and everyone else who gave recommendations. I'll definitely keep watching more of these later outside the challenge. These were a lot of fun to watch! I've always enjoyed short horror stories because they let their authors play with neat ideas without having them overstay their welcome. Turns out the same thing is true for short horror films as well! Evil Demon Golf Ball From Hell (8 minutes) From a technical perspective this was an extremely student film. The acting is very amateurish, and Rian Johnson does the beginner director thing of trying to cram in all the weird shots he's ever seen somewhere. But the end result is a lot of fun and feels a bit like Rian Johnson's take on Evil Dead II, specifically the surreal scene where Ash is tormented by the laughing hunting trophies and evil spirits. Except in this case it's an evil(?) golf ball. Elevated (19 minutes) Yeah, this definitely feels like Vincenzo Natali had his formula figured out from the very beginning of his career. We don't get any setup, just a handful of people we don't know at all thrust into a strange and deadly situation and then we get to find out more about it as they do, kinda like a proto-Cube or In the Tall Grass. The similarities don't end there; they run on to the types of shots and angles he'd later use and hell, even two of the three actors, so it's easy to see the path from here to Cube. That's really neat. Definitely recommended for anyone who enjoyed Natali's later work! Other Side of the Box (15 minutes) A young couple is cooking dinner when the doorbell rings. It's a man who they clearly have some unpleasant history with. He's come to give them a gift in a box, insisting they open it and then everything would make sense. But instead things just get spooky. It's got atmosphere and some neat ideas, but Doctor Who did it better with the Weeping Angels. Honestly it feels like there's too much setup for too little payoff, which I know is a weird thing to say with a 15 minute short, but this might have worked better if the ending sequence had been a bit longer. Also it appears there's a cottage industry of "X reacts to Other Side of the Box" YouTube videos because now my recommendations are full of that poo poo and god damnit all anyway. Box Fort (15 minutes) A group of friends build a box fort, with spooky consequences. At first things are all laughter and games, but not for long, as things start disappearing in the fort. A very professional production. Well acted, well directed, well everythinged. This was definitely the spookiest movie of the bunch, and the crew did a really good job building a lot of tension and an almost palpale sense of dread with very little. Guest (11 minutes) A blinded and deafened woman in bandages wakes up in a stranger's bedroom with neither party having any idea of how she ended up there or what the hell has happened to her. As the stranger asks the woman questions we get flashbacks to what happened the night before, and sure enough, it's spooky. Another very unsettling and creepy movie. These are all on YouTube. My May 2022 Movies: 1. Saturday Morning Mystery, 2. Ghostbusters Afterlife (Rated PG), 3. Superstition, 4. Vampyr (Hidden Gems), 5. The People Under the Stairs (Horror Noire), 6. Rock & Roll Nightmare (Music of the Night), 7. Nosferatu (Sins of the Past), 8. Shadow of the Vampire (Behind the Screams), 9. Witchfinder General (The Price is Right), 10. Shorts (Short Cuts)
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May 15, 2022 13:36
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  9. Never Hike Alone: The Ghost Cut (2017 / 2020) "Today's mission will be: find the lake." I watched the Ghost Cut as did many others and I don't think it's worth watching, it adds a bad music video and some other uneventful stuff. I think Never Hike Alone in the Snow is a stronger effort or at least it held my attention more, certainly had better gore and seems like it was a little bit more tightened up than Never Hike Alone itself. I think the mix of found footage and not was a big part of why I didn't like NHA, I feel like you either lean into it and have the footage all be from a dead hiker or whatever, or you shoot it like a normal flick. A lot of the time it felt like we were seeing the same stuff twice using different methods, I don't know I just didn't really like it I guess. There is a solid chunk where Jason is actively chasing the vlogger dude and there's some back and forth fighting and escaping that was fun, then it turns into pure nonsense. 2.5/5 overall -- used to replace 7. Short Cuts 10. White of the Eye (1987) "Dad's wearing a bunch of hotdogs." Found this cool thriller from the late 80s on Shudder. Set in Tucson, David Keith plays a stereo equipment expert who finds himself the lead suspect in a bunch of brutal murders of suburban housewives. He's adamant about his innocence, someone from his past comes to town, and his wife starts digging to find out the truth. Pacing issues make the first two thirds of this drag a bit, but it's a violent little flashback filled thriller and the final 20 minutes are really wild. Overall the destination is worth the journey. 3.5/5 11. Firestarter (2022) "I'm not special, I'm a monster!" Look I'm not saying that the book is a perfect masterpiece, but this changes so many things and none of them for the better. Bland and somehow paced worse than the original despite being 20 minutes shorter. Fun score, awful effects, watch the original instead, there's my hot take. Also, what was that ending? Very "I'm Rainbird and I want to talk to you about the Avengers initiative". 2/5Total Watched: 11 // GMM Challenges Complete: #12, #10, #9, #8, #7, #5, #3, #2
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May 15, 2022 17:46
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 King of the Zombies (1941) Challenge #13: Sins of the Past Mac, Bill, and Jeff are flying somewhere in the caribbean when they get blown off course and then crash land on an island where they are found by Dr. Miklos Sangre who taken to his jungle mansion and find out there's some weird poo poo going on. There's two things going on in this movie we have the spooky stuff and the funny stuff which is all Mantan Moreland playing the perpetually gobsmacked manservant. The scenes he has with Marguerite Whitten who plays the doctors maid are all hilarious and by the far the high points of the film. Aside from that there's a whole lot going on with the zombies and voodoo, but also there's spys and intrigue, but none of that really stands out. One thing that really confused me is are the zombies being made by voodoo, or hypnotism, cuz it seems like it's both, but we have one guy that gets bitten by a zombie, dies, comes back, then later they say he lives because he was hypnotized (he also gets shot five times as a zombie). I suppose not much actually makes sense in this film it's much better to just suspend your disbelief and enjoy Morelands performance. 3/5 With that should be all the challenges watched. 1. Errementari - Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched 2. Knife+Heart - Scream, Queen! 3. My Demon Lover - Rated PG 4. The Lure - Music of the Night 5. Stagefright - Behind the Screams 6. Eye in the Labyrinth - The King in Yellow 7. Never Hike Alone/Never Hike in the Snow - Wildcard 8. Aval (The House Next Door) - A Perfect Getaway 9. Seeding of a Ghost - Hidden Gems 10. The Oblong Box - The Price is Right 11. His House - Horror Noire 12. The Dead Zone - All Hail the King 13. King of the Zombies - Sins of the Past I think Knife+Heart was the best overall movie with His House and Stagefright being the best horror films and Seeding of a Ghost was the most disappointing. TheMopeSquad fucked around with this message at 20:30 on May 15, 2022 |
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May 15, 2022 20:10
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Phantasm II 1988 Directed by Don Coscarelli  Phantasm II is just as borderline incomprehensible as the first one, which is weird because this is supposed to be the most mainstream entry in the series. To recap, the Tall Man is an alien from another planet and/or dimension and he's still on earth, stealing corpses, so he can shrink them into Jawa slaves. That's the whole plan. It all just seems so incredibly inefficient. Anyway, New Mike and Regular Reggie go on a road trip to stop him. There's also a psychic lady and the Tall Man has other random powers as the story requires them. 💀💀💀 Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead 1994 Directed by Don Coscarelli Watched on Shudder  The American mortuary industry is ghastly, bizarre, and ultimately unknowable. In the third installment in this series, we're in some kind of post apocalyptic world, or at least as post apocalyptic as the budget will allow. Regular Reggie is on a quest to save yet another New Mike from the Tall Man and there's a sassy kid sidekick, so there's that. It does a lot to try to flesh out all of the implied mythology of the Phantasm series, which is helpful. Otherwise, it's the goofiest but also probably least compelling part of the series so far. 💀💀1/2 Spooky Non-American 1960s Challenge 11/13 1. Matango (1963), 2. Mill of the Stone Women (1960), 3. The Brainiac (1962), 4. Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966), 5. Gamera, the Giant Monster (1960), 6. Genocide (1968), 7. The House That Screamed (1969), 8. The Whip and the Body (1963), 9. The Snow Woman (1968), 10. The City of the Dead (1960), 11. The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1960) Bracketology 9/? 1. Night of the Living Dead (1990), 2. Strait-Jacket (1964), 3. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011), 4. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), 5. The Changeover (2017), 6. It Came from Outer Space (1953), 7. Morgiana (1972), 8. Phantasm II (1988), 9. Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead (1994) GMM Challenges 8/13 1. The Other Lamb (2019), 2. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), 3. Madhouse (1974), 4. Suck (2009), 5. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006), 6. Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972), 7. Various shorts, 8. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
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May 15, 2022 23:21
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 Monstrous (2022) It's the 1950's or early 60's I guess, Laura (Ricci) moves into a new house, she seems to be on the run with her son. The house is in the middle of nowhere next to a pond and there's a pond monster that has an interest in her kid. Laura is acting weird but so is her son so you know something's up. This is one of those movies where, from the trailer, and the title, you think it's gonna be one thing but it's something else and I don't like those kinda movies. It's trite, not done particularly well, and I was already suspicious of the tweest they didn't do a very good job of hiding it. The main draw of this film Is Ricci but there's not much going on where one person can carry everything it's just her and the kid and for the most part kids suck. Then we have the monster which was dope but turns out it wasn't as big a part of the film and just kinda disappears halfway through. 2/5
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May 15, 2022 23:37
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5. One Dark Night (1982) Rated PG challengeHigh schooler Julie desperately wants to fit in. When she gets a chance to join the clique known as The Sisters she is willing to do whatever it takes. What she doesn't realize that Carol, the leader of the group, has a grudge against her for dating her ex-boyfriend. Carol decides to get one over on Julie by making her spend a night in a mausoleum making her think she's alone but then sneaking and spooking her. What neither Julie nor The Sisters know is that eccentric psychic Karl Raymar was recently entombed there and his powers go on beyond death. A pretty slow burn. Very little explicitly supernatural actually happens until the last 20 minutes but from there on it's a rollercoaster ride as the corpses in the mausoleum burst out of their coffins and terrorize the teens. The fact that they aren't zombies as such but more puppets controlled by Reymar's psychic powers makes them pretty unique and is a take on the undead I don't think I've seen before. They don't really walk they just sort of float around, their toes brushing against the floor slightly, and bump against their victims until the victims fall over and are buried under a mountain of dead bodies suffocating them to death. Which is just as, if not more creepy, than flesh eating ghouls. I really like that each corpse puppet has it's own unique look. They could've made them all non-descript skeletons or just people in gray make-up but they come in all sizes, shapes, and stages of decomposition which shows that a lot of care went into this film. It is possible that if they had all been uniform it would've underlined the fact that they aren't actual beings and aren't really being reanimated as such but just being piloted through telekinesis but I think it was a better move to make them all distinct. How this is PG (according to Wikipedia at least) I don't understand because although there isn't a lot of blood there's plenty of gross bodily destruction in the finale. A lot of great imagery that would probably be iconic if this hadn't flown entirely under the radar on its release and a great building of tension that ratchets and ratchets up until it explodes gloriously in the climax. A true hidden gem of the genre that will hopefully get one of those fancy blu-ray restorations from Arrow or Severin one of these days.
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May 16, 2022 00:15
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The Devil Rides Out 1968 Directed by Terence Fisher  The Devil Rides Out is a strange Hammer movie. It's set relatively close to the time it was made, at least compared to other Hammer productions. It's also weirdly reactionary. Someone at Hammer must have had a real bee in their bonnet about Aleister Crowley and other folks like him, because the cultists in The Devil Rides Out appear to wield actual magic and the dour old Dlc de Richleau takes them very seriously. Mocata is all "Osiris this" and "Hermetic that" and it's honestly kind of silly. On the surface, it's a simple story about good, God-fearing folks fighting evil that they don't really understand. Christopher Lee's proscriptive and combative character probably reminds many folks of religious authorities they've encountered. You could make the case that the cult is meant to symbolize counterculture movements in general and we should cheer on anyone who opposes them, but then the hero is also a villain and it's a remarkably nihilistic message. The production is solid, I just don't know for sure what it's trying to say, except that free will is an illusion and God is directly responsible for everything that happens. 💀💀💀 Spooky Non-American 1960s Challenge 12/13 1. Matango (1963), 2. Mill of the Stone Women (1960), 3. The Brainiac (1962), 4. Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966), 5. Gamera, the Giant Monster (1960), 6. Genocide (1968), 7. The House That Screamed (1969), 8. The Whip and the Body (1963), 9. The Snow Woman (1968), 10. The City of the Dead (1960), 11. The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1960), 12. The Devil Rides Out (1968) Bracketology 9/? 1. Night of the Living Dead (1990), 2. Strait-Jacket (1964), 3. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011), 4. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), 5. The Changeover (2017), 6. It Came from Outer Space (1953), 7. Morgiana (1972), 8. Phantasm II (1988), 9. Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead (1994) GMM Challenges 8/13 1. The Other Lamb (2019), 2. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), 3. Madhouse (1974), 4. Suck (2009), 5. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006), 6. Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972), 7. Various shorts, 8. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
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May 16, 2022 02:36
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#14: Before We Vanish Three aliens take over human bodies to prepare for an invasion. Their job is to learn how humans think by stealing concepts from them. The first time we see this, an alien takes "family" from a woman. Afterwards the aliens begins to feel affection for and responsibility towards the wife of the man whose body he is inhabiting. Meanwhile the woman loses all sense of connection to her own family members. As this is going on, the government notices that people are acting weird. At first they don't understand that they are the victims of conceptual theft by aliens, but believe it to be a kind of contagious mental illness, and are able to locate three potential patient zeros. As more victims appear, the aliens learn more about humanity, and more prepared to call in the invasion. Before We Vanish is really good. Usually in movies where a guy get's possesses or replaced or whatver, the wife is all "You have to understand, something is wrong with my husband!!" But here the wife's reaction to her husband becoming a barely verbal blank slate who doesn't understand anything and can barely follow basic commands is "jesus christ what is this rear end in a top hat doing now". Which make for a much more interesting and entertaining dynamic. Especially since the first thing the alien took was "family", and that guides his further development. He tries to become the idea of what a husband should be, which is far superior to what her husband actually was. It's a very unusual love story. The reporter who becomes the guide to the other two aliens is a really great character. He is the only human who really grasps what's going on, and he kinda spirals out because he knows this horrible thing is happening but also there's really no way for him to stop it. Good performances all around but I liked his the best. Never goes too big with it, but you still get a good idea of his struggle. Before we vanish features the best going for a cop's gun scene I've ever seen. A+ stuff. And possible the most ominous scene I've ever seen, where an alien who steals concepts from people walks into a children's choir singing Jesus Loves Me. Just absolute pit of the stomach dread created very simply. The one problem is that the natural comparison is to Pulse. Same director, similar slow sci-fi apocalypse setup. And Before We Vanish is no Pulse. Not by a longshot. But it's still very good and unique and worth watching. 1) One Cut of the Dead, 2) Land of the MinotaurCH8, 3) Terra Formars, 4)The Great Buddha ArrivalCH5, 5) BogCH3, 6) Satan's Cheerleaders, 7) Zombie For Sale, 8) JeruZalem, 9) CandymanCH11, 10) Curse of the Crimson Altar, 11) PreyCH2, 12) The Possession of Michael King, 13) The Green KnightCH1, 14) Before We Vanish
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May 16, 2022 03:15
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Movie #13, Challenge #11 - Watch a film directed by a black filmmaker Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight  I watched a bunch of Tales From the Crypt when I was younger but somehow never saw any of the movies. I actually thought they were anthology films! I'm glad I finally checked out Demon Knight, this was a ton of fun. Great monster effects, campy humor, a cosmic Christian mythology story that leads to a black woman inheriting the blood of Christ, an absolutely delightful, unhinged Billy Zane. There's a lot of great stuff here! Jackass Surfer Bro Thomas Hayden Church was not a role I ever expected to see him in but it worked. This is a film that's very effective at feeling both small and, thematically, quite large. I'm a sucker for horror movies going all in on angel/demon mythology and just saying "yeah, God's real but the universe still kind of sucks, time to fight some monsters." Yes, even the goofball mythology from the middle Nightmare on Elm Street movies appeals to me.
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May 16, 2022 05:10
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 - (37). Phantasm (1979) Written and directed by Don Coscarelli Watched on Peacock The god’s honest truth is I’m not much of a fan of the Phantasm series or Don Coscarelli as a director/writer. The series feels like a mess of half thought ideas, things pulled from other stuff, and a very poor attempt to make any of it link up or make sense together. But that all kind of works in the first film’s favor and I think is a big part of why its great and a cult classic. The confusing narrative and messy editing really fits the dreamlike atmosphere of the story and even the things that feel cribbed from something like Star Wars feels like exactly the kind of thing a kid’s subconscious wrestling with grief would pull out to spice things up. I think everyone’s pretty well covered in what we all interpret Phantasm as. Whether its a real life nightmare or just a kid’s nightmare its all a big metaphor for what a kid would go through reeling from losing his family. Hell, I was 20 when I lost my dad and the weeks around it are a blur and I kind of half lost my mind and convinced myself of stuff that couldn’t be true. So a kid who has no real understanding of death but is forced to deal with it with no one really left to help him is gonna come up with some gnarly stuff. And it works, really. The scary mortician, the man who only seems to show up when someone dies, who basically profits off their death, who often lives with the dead, who does some strange things with the dead. Yeah… that dude’s probably some kind of monster or warlock or necromancer or some poo poo. And my loved one is now in that box we put in the ground? They’ve gone to a better place? Yeah, ok… I guess maybe they’ve been turned into something else. Filled with those chemicals, smushed into that box, forced to do god knows what by that scary man. And the spinning balls of death? Ok, I have no idea what that’s about. Mini Death Stars? Some surreal interpretation of embalming tools? Just some cool idea Coscarelli had and put in there for some more gore? That’s probably the easiest answer and yeah, sure. Cool. The cast isn’t very good but that’s not a huge problem. Again the janky editing and dreamlike atmosphere covers up for a lot of it. And there’s a charm to the whole thing. That one scene where Jody and Reggie just randomly jam kind of sums it up. They feel like real dudes just doing their thing. And that works for the whole atmosphere and fits the idea that this one kid uncovers this nightmare happening in the mundane place us adults don’t thing twice about. And really, thinking about it any more beyond that just isn’t necessary. Its a kid’s nightmare, and its a random spooky ghost story. It works. A clear labor of love and one that manages to not really age even as it gets older because that basic spookiness and grief stuff is still there. And so are the basic characters and real life behavior. Just a real good idea worked on really hard for a real long time that makes a real good movie. Shame about the sequels.  - (38). Dolores Claiborne (1995) Directed by Taylor Hackford; Screenplay by Tony Gilroy; Based on Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King Watched on ShowtimeAnytime King Spring II: 12/13 Return of the Fallen: 7/13 - All Hail Stephen King; I hadn’t seen this in a very long time but seeing Jennifer Jason Leigh in Lisey’s Story got me thinking about it so I decided to revisit. And man, its still a powerful and good film. I had really forgotten most of the details. I knew Leigh and Kathy Bates put in great performances, and Dolores may or may not have killed some people, and its a sleepy New England town… because Stephen King. I had forgotten Christopher Plummer is in here doing a good job as the walking symbol of the patriarchy, and probably had no idea who John C. Reilly was last time i saw it. I know I didn’t realize Ellen Muth plays a young Leigh. drat that’s a perfect casting and she’s very good. I had even forgotten this was set in the same town as Storm of the Century, one of my favorite Kings and one I know want to rewatch as well. You could really just keep going following the King reference rabbit chase, can’t you? Would it be a reach to go from Storm of the Century’s Tim Daly to The (remake) Shining’s Steven Webber by Wings? I digress. The details all came rolling back as I watched the film. I even remembered that one cop in Storm of the Century saying something like “we haven’t had a murder since Dolores Claiborne”. The story isn’t terribly complicated but its that classic King mystery approach of telling things backwards slowly unraveling the histories and secrets into a full picture. It works very effectively here, not because of any supernatural magic affecting things, but because of plain old human trauma, repression, and secrets. Its heartbreaking story as you find out the full one and even more heartbreaking as the characters do. Its not quite a whodunit. Hell its actually kind of the inverse of a whodunit, isn’t it? The who is the name of the movie. But I’d be surprised if many could guess how it all unravels when the story first begins. Especially since the “dunit” part isn’t even the right one. This is a murder mystery about a whole other murder. Its also clearly a feminist piece. I dunno if King qualifies as a feminist and I know I’m not terribly qualified to speak on it but its impossible to ignore the overriding theme of women being let down and hosed around and hurt by men and the system they all seem to hold positions of power in and how ultimately they’re left with no real options but to help themselves. “Sometimes being a bitch is all you have to hold on to” its subtle but its shown to us time and time again without overtly spelling it out. The boss/boyfriend who takes it upon himself to take away something she’s worked hard on because of his personal evaluation of her emotional state. The bank manager who can’t deny that he should have asked questions when her husband started withdrawing money from her account but didn’t. The cop who makes it his personal vendetta to bring a woman to justice because he thinks she’s gotten away with murder… or because she ruined his perfect record… or because she beat him and hurt his ego. And he’s got the full law to do it including any indignity from rifling through her underwear to pulling out her hair. And Bates’ Dolores just made a choice a long time ago to be tough, take care of what she has to take care of, and give no quarter to the fragile egos or idea of decorum from these men. Maybe it makes her a “bitch” but the alternative wasn’t really working either. And all the women here find a way to fix their problems and get stuff done in spite of the men in their way. Good? Bad? Necessary? Gripping performances, great atmosphere, strong directing, and an excellent story. I’ve never read the original novel but to my understanding the story is largely the same although the film brings Selena more into the story which is absolutely a positive. The complicated mother/daughter relationship and the theme of sacrifice and hard choices and tough consequences all shine through there and of course it allows us to get a second great performance from JJL to match Bates’. Just a really great and powerful movie that holds up. Away from the usual King horror its still got plenty of gothic feel and the presence of “ghosts” of memories and secrets that haunt people long after others are gone. And tell me the content isn’t horrific. Shook me more than any evil clown.
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May 16, 2022 08:20
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04. The Deep House (2021) A couple go diving in search of a flooded mansion for their urbex youtube channel. It's a little reminiscent of Grave Encounters, where the characters start off playing heightened versions of themselves, hoping for some good content. I really liked it! I'm currently near the end of House of Leaves, and a couple months ago someone in the main horror thread mentioned this as tapping into a similar vibe. That was... not really true, this is more of a straight ghost story than a cosmic horror thing, but it was still a good movie, so I can't complain. In spite of being found-footage, it was really nicely shot. The house - oh spoiler alert, they find the house - is spooky and characterful, and you get a good sense of the layout, of how it all fits together. The movie takes its time to really build up tension; I thought it was neat how all the actual on-screen violence is committed by the character Ben, while the ghosts mostly just look threatening. I mean, the haunted-or-crazy narrative isn't especially fresh ground, but it was done in an understated way, without calling attention to it; it feels like the wights are trying to kill them, but they kind of aren't. Ben's death had some real pathos to it, too. Back to the point about buildup; often in this sort of horror movie, the best parts are in the first half, the exploration, where it's creepy in an ill-defined way, and then the movie loses steam when it starts actually trying to kill people. I guess that happens in The Deep House to an extent, but I still thought it was well-done; it didn't get too specific about things.  Definitely worth a watch. Doesn't seem to fit into any of the challenges, unfortunately. 05. Here Comes Hell (2019) (Shudder)  A dinner party becomes a séance becomes a battle against Hell. Had its moments. The movie is very frank about the fact that it's going to be a lighthearted romp, and I'm always kind of leery about that; I prefer it when a movie establishes itself as serious and then turns into a joke midway through. Telling me not to take the movie seriously from minute 1 is like putting on a silly voice to tell a joke; the camp should be self-evident. Still, it was a fun time. I genuinely loved the séance scene itself. It wouldn't surprise me if the actor playing the little old lady was a real (you know what I mean, "real") medium; she was really good at establishing the atmosphere of the thing. The movie's in black and white, which took away a lot of impact from the gore (though it's an extremely low-budget production, maybe the B&W was necessary to get the gore off the ground at all). There's worse ways to spend 80 minutes.
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May 16, 2022 09:02
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gey muckle mowser posted:
 #15. Firestarter (2022) (Theatrical) A young girl has the ability to start fires with her mind when she gets angry or upset (and some other superpowers too but don't worry about it). Government agents pursue her and her parents, to try and secure her and her abilities. Not much of interest ensues. Shockingly bad and boring, this movie somehow manages to be a standout of garbage in a year that already saw dog poo poo like Morbius and Uncharted deposited into theaters. The Firestarter reboot lands with a similar plop as those two pieces of junk, yet somehow having less of interest going on than either. I'd call it a miracle, but when you cast (a loving somnambulant) Zac Efron as your emotional core, you kinda get what you deserve. The only people who get out of this unscathed are Kurtwood Smith (who gets like third billing in the opening credits for what amounts to a glorified cameo), Michael Greyeyes kind of, and John Carpenter. (And Carpenter only because his score is so forgettable and bland for this one that you barely notice it, so it hardly matters who would have turned in the music.) I'm giving this one a point for the three people above, and them only. Otherwise, this is one of those terrible adaptations that makes you start thinking that maybe Stephen King wasn't all that good to begin with. Stay away from this one, folks. Only you can prevent movies like Firestarter (by not spending any money on it). /5Watched so far: Night of the Living Dead (1968), Escape Room (2019), The Company of Wolves (GMM Challenge 9), Shutter (2008) (GMM Challenge 3), bunch o' shorts (GMM Challenge 7), Black Sunday (1960), The Hallow (GMM Challenge 1), Dr. Strange 2, Madhouse (1974) (GMM Challenge 10), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941) (GMM Challenge 13), Memory: The Origins of Alien (GMM Challenge 5), Trollhunter (GMM Challenge 8), Friday the 13th Part 2 (SBLT Challenge), The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, Firestarter (2022) (GMM Challenge 12)
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May 16, 2022 15:03
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6. Doctor Jekyll & Sister Hyde (1971) Scream, Queen! challenge Young dr.Jekyll is worried that he won't have time to complete his research into curing literally every single disease in the world and will die of old age before doing so. So instead he sets out to create an elixir that prolongs the natural lifespan however in doing so he also transforms himself into the bodacious babe "Sister Hyde". Also he's Jack the Ripper I don't think this was purposely made as any sort of queer and/or trans allegory but the elements are nonetheless there. Stripped down to the bare essentials this is a movie about someone who takes female hormones to (temporarily) reassign their own gender. Aside from the main plot there are also a few slight nods at Jekyll being seen as a bit "queer" like a comment from the upstairs neighbor about Jekyll not being "impervious to women" and Jekyll's friend and colleague Professor Robertson is constantly complaining that Jekyll needs to stop working so much and try to find a woman to get laid which Jekyll dismisses as a waste of time. There is also scene later where Jekyll, coming out of a women's lingerie shop, gently strokes the neighbors face (presumably while being influenced by Hyde). Like in most versions of the story Jekyll is a fairly meek and nervous man and Hyde is brash, bold, and headstrong. But interestingly in this version Hyde isn't really any more evil than Jekyll even though Jekyll pretends she is. The good doctor is killing people before he even turns into Hyde in the first place and does most of the killings as himself at first only changing into Hyde to fool the authorities. He justifies it by the extremely egotistical claim that he needs to live forever so he can cure all those diseases (which he will surely do because he is so much of a genius). Even before he starts killing on his own he is sourcing bodies through some very dodgy methods. First from a implied necrophilic coroner and later from famous Resurrection Men turned serial killers Burke and Hare until they get caught and he needs to do the dirty work himself as Jack the Ripper. The fact that Burke and Hare died 60 years before the Ripper killings and operated in Edinburgh is beside the point because the film is more of a All Stars of 19th century spookiness combining one of the most famous works of weird ficiton of that era with Jack the Ripper and the most famous graverobbers (that never actually robbed a grave) as well. The film is obviously filmed on sets but they almost always obscured in the famous London peasoup fog* which not only provides heaps of atmospheric eeriness and also makes the sets feel a bit more convincing in their cramped tininess. It also provides explanation for why on numerous occasions Jekyll/Hyde gets away with murdering someone a spitting distance away from witnesses without them seeing anything. This is probably one of the foggiest movies I've ever seen alongside The Fog, The Mist, and City of the Dead. More horror movies should use fog it's a great tool both for obscuring the special effects to make them more convincing and for adding atmosphere to any scene. Needless to say it's a very horny movie and all the male characters, aside from Jekyll, are drooling horndogs constantly oggling and even groping the female characters (most of whom are sex workers aside from Jekyll's love interest Susan who seems to be madly in love with him even after only glimpsing him through a window a couple of times.). But despite the somewhat dodgy sexual politics it's a very fun romp if the Hammer brand of tits and gore appeals to you in anyway. *Which was famously mostly coal dust and smog and engulfed London on most calm rainless days until the 1950s when a partiularly bad case combined with extremely calm and cold weather conditions killed at least 4000 people and made a hundred thousand more very ill in one week in a disaster known as the Great Smog of 1952. After that pollution laws were put in place to prevent the same from happening again. FreudianSlippers fucked around with this message at 18:09 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 16:10
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 Prophecy I had a good weekend of rolling the dice on a few films that I ended up liking a lot. I feel like this is a movie I've been vaguely aware of by reputation, but whatever I may have heard, the movie is even more bizarre than that. The weirdness mostly comes from the fact that this is a John Frankenheimer film, a director who is/was very well respected and not somebody who would be my first guess for director of the giant mutant bear monster movie. It also stars Talia Shire, who I'm just not used to seeing in anything other than serious dramas. And Frankenheimer definitely plays up the contrast between the two sides of the film, the serious environmental drama side and the ridiculous giant mutant bear monster side. So I think a person will probably go either way on this film. You'll either get frustrated and bored by the somewhat mundane EPA investigation storyline, or you'll enjoy the combination of the two and the unique contrast it brings to what otherwise could easily be a throwaway, standard monster flick. Personally I loved it, because of the uniqueness and the fact that they just don't make stuff like this anymore. The scenery is gorgeous at times, you can tell they spent money going out on location and shooting at visually stunning places and so I was engaged even when nothing was "happening". But then of course there is the giant mutant bear monster. It's probably better experienced for yourself because it provides a bunch of memorable, often goofy, but always entertaining moments that again, I just don't quite understand how they ended up in this John Frankenheimer movie but I'm glad they did. Highly recommended if you like this odd mix of serious drama and ridiculous creature feature, something that is very rare these days when everything has to wink at the camera and so many monster movies don't even give the audience a chance to take their own monster seriously.    1. Intruder 2. Spookies 3. Subspecies 4. Megalodon Rising 5. The Spine of Night 6. Eyes of Laura Mars(Hidden Gems) 7. Prophecy
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May 16, 2022 16:19
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 Rigor Mortis (2013) Chin moves into a tenement building in an effort to get away from his past but gets embroiled with the supernatural forces dwelling there. I like how they go into the ritual and ceremony involved with the spirits and jiangshi there a lot of gore which I also like and the martial arts scenes are good. It is a pretty slow film though, moody, stylish, and well acted. 4/5  The Funhouse (1981) Some teens go to the carnival and stay after closing where they see something they should not have seen and have to fight for their lives. I guess the deciding factor in liking this movie is how much you enjoy an hour of walking around the carnival before we get to the part where stuff starts going down. One it gets going its fine and the very final scenes are really good but I'm tired of movies like this where it does get good until it's practically over. 2/5  The Sadness (2021) Pretty sure everyone knows about this so yadda yadda virus yadda crazy people yadda yadda it was really good gore is my favorite and there is so much loving blood. There is quite a lot of rape and a skullfucking it's practically a snuff film maybe some people watching this might be into it for the wrong reasons and it makes me a little uncomfortable. It's kinda funny that opposite how it usually goes if you get infected you get to cover yourself in blood and have orgies so being infected is better than not getting infected, where you just get dismembered. 4/5  Sweetheart (2019) A woman gets stranded on a deserted island with no way of escape and there's a fish-man. She's strangely competent for some unexplained reason and always looks impeccable and attractive and manages to have several cute wardrobe changes during the film. I guess it detracts because you never feel like being stranded is a dire situation for her, besides the fish-man that want's to eat her. Mysteriously there's a hole on the seabed near the island so maybe the fish-man has something to do with Outer Range, or Raised By Wolves, or comes from the kaiju-verse from Pacific Rim. Mysterious holes are so hot right now. Eventually some people show up and coincidentally she knows them but they're not around long enough to make the film more interesting. Then she has a Predator style mano a mano showdown with the monster and that's it. Not a particularly interesting film. 2/5
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May 16, 2022 17:39
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FreudianSlippers posted:implied negrophilic coroner Post/username combo, or did you really mean to say that the coroner is sexually attracted to black people?
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May 16, 2022 17:48
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That's a very unfortunate typo. FreudianSlippers fucked around with this message at 18:09 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 17:51
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Spirits of the Dead (Histoires extraordinaires) 1968 Directed by Federico Fellini, Louis Malle, Roger Vadim Watched on Criterion Channel  This is the final film for my self-imposed challenge to watch 13 non-American horror films from the 1960s. I'll keep watching though. Got some challenges to do to. An anthology that gets better as it goes. I didn't really care for the first one -- Roger Vadim's Metzengerstein. It's as though they spent all of their money on costumes and thought they could coast on Jane Fonda's looks or the idea that she wants to have sex with a character played by her brother. The second segment -- Louis Malle's William Wilson -- is done better and somewhat more interesting. Alain Delon plays William Wilson, a cruel boy who grows up to be a cruel man and has a double who is constantly foiling him. There's a message here about darkness requiring light, which one of the characters spells out in case you miss it. The last segment -- Federico Fellini's Toby Dammit -- is the best by far. Terence Stamp is fantastic. It's a real nightmare and made me more anxious than any other recent film has. 💀💀💀1/2 Spooky Non-American 1960s Challenge 13/13 1. Matango (1963), 2. Mill of the Stone Women (1960), 3. The Brainiac (1962), 4. Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966), 5. Gamera, the Giant Monster (1960), 6. Genocide (1968), 7. The House That Screamed (1969), 8. The Whip and the Body (1963), 9. The Snow Woman (1968), 10. The City of the Dead (1960), 11. The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1960), 12. The Devil Rides Out (1968), 13. Spirits of the Dead (1968) Bracketology 9/? 1. Night of the Living Dead (1990), 2. Strait-Jacket (1964), 3. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein (2011), 4. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), 5. The Changeover (2017), 6. It Came from Outer Space (1953), 7. Morgiana (1972), 8. Phantasm II (1988), 9. Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead (1994) GMM Challenges 8/13 1. The Other Lamb (2019), 2. A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), 3. Madhouse (1974), 4. Suck (2009), 5. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006), 6. Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972), 7. Various shorts, 8. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
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May 16, 2022 18:40
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The double feature I went to on Friday the 13th ended up showing F13 Part 4 instead of part 5, and the print they had for Freddy's Dead was in 3D, so the night ended up being pretty awesome. I saw Freddy's Dead in the theater when it first came out so it was a blast getting to relive that experience. Here's a rundown of what I've been watching the past few days Pro-Wrestlers Vs. Zombies  I saw they had a bunch of wrestler vs. zombie movies on tubi so decided to take the plunge. I got excited when I saw Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Rowdy Roddy Piper were top billed in this, then that excitement deflated as I watched them try to act. There's a bunch of recognizable wrestlers in this (Shane Douglas, Kurt Angle, Matt Hardy), but the budget and story are really bad. They should've leaned more into the wrestling angle of this and really play up the vaudeville aspect of wrestling, but as it is this is just too low budget to bother. 1 star Enter... Zombie King!  Slightly better than Pro-Wrestlers Vs. Zombies, this has its moments and the soundtrack is pretty good, I wish the lucha masks were better, but again, this movie's limited by its budget. I really enjoyed the swerve in this, where it's revealed one of the antagonistic luchas learned to domesticate zombies and he's actually a good guy who turns the zombies into friends. 2 stars Manson Brothers Midnight Zombie Massacre  This was surprisingly pretty good, but I guess technically it stars MMA fighters instead of wrestlers, even tho they're playing wrestlers in the movie. When I first saw this in the Tubi recs, I was worried it would be another right wing jerkoff fest like Range 15, but luckily that wasn't the case. The two leads playing the brothers have pretty good chemistry and while the plot is pretty straightforward (zombie outbreak during a wrestling match), it's pretty lean and moves at a brisk pace. 2 1/2 stars Blood Salvage  Texas Chainsaw knockoff with a fantastical bent, I liked the angle that the backwoods crazy serial killer is also a crazy medical genius on the level of Dr. Frankenstein. 3 stars Last House on Dead End Street  Some friends get together to make a snuff film. Good times were had by some. 3 1/2 stars Living Dead Girl  A woman returns from the dead and her childhood friend has to help/protect her. I'm a big fan of Jean Rollin's films and need to rewatch his filmography, it's really good. 3 1/2 stars Silent Night Deadly Night Part 5  Mickey Rooney and his puppet son terrorize small town america with their killer toys and inappropriate relationship. I remember the actor who played the pinnochio character as the hillbilly son in Pumpkinhead. 2 stars The Boys Next Door  Charlie Sheen and Rex Manning are two valley boys turned thrill killers who spend their graduation weekend murdering minorities, gays, and women all over Los Angeles. Directed by one of my favorites, Penelope Spheeris. 3 1/2 stars The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane  Jodie Foster is terrorized by local pedophile Martin Sheen. Really strong performances from both, it's crazy to think that Jodie Foster made this, Taxi Driver, Freaky Friday, Bugsy Malone, and Echoes of a Summer all in the same year. 3 1/2 stars Housebound  Pretty fun "practical" haunted house film from New Zealand. I always loved the poster for this, I wish I didn't put it off for so long. Shout out to Joe Bob for screening this and finally getting me to watch it. Reminded me of both Bad Ronald and People Under The Stairs at points. 3 1/2 stars ruddiger fucked around with this message at 19:31 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 19:25
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 25 (39). Phantom of the Paradise (1974) Written and directed by Brian De Palma Opening with doo wop and then giving me no more is a false promise. Shame on you, DePalma. I dunno. I understand why people like this but it just never clicked for me. The music is fine. Paul Williams knew how to write a catchy song. Jessica Harper sings very well and has a presence, but she’s really not very much a part of this. She just sings songs and then is the women men just get because they want her. She has no actual character or motivation or anything and that sucks. It somehow seems like less agency than the traditional Christine or I’m not actually overly familiar with the Phantom as a story so I don’t know if there’s a consistent name for that character. But she feels like she’s usually more of the main protagonist while Phoenix is really just a plot device here. DePalma’s gender politics have never seemed great. But I digress. The problem might mostly be that this isn’t exactly a Phantom adaption but also kind of a Faust thing? But also kind of a Psycho thing too? But also kind of the Cabinet of Dr Caligari? I think that’s my main problem. It just felt like kind of a mess of ideas and none of them really stuck. I guess its a critique of the record industry but it doesn’t feel especially dense. This definitely has the feel of those 70s spoof comedies that were like “referencing a thing or doing something wacky is better than writing a joke.” See, signing a record deal is signing a deal with the devil and the record industry just cycles through the same song with different acts and sounds or something. I dunno. Comedy is subjective and you either laugh or you don’t. This one just didn’t resonate for me at all and the rest seemed just too messy and dumb to really do much for me. William Finley gives it his all. As I said Harper is good in limited time and Williams makes solid music, even if nothing’s sticking with me the next day. Gerrit Graham’s performance seems somewhere between problematic and the exact kind of insane people enjoy? Not sure. Ultimately I didn’t hate it but it just never really clicked for me. I get why people like it. People who just want some wild, dumb stuff will get that. But it just wasn’t for me.  - (40). Phantasm II (1988) Written and directed by Don Coscarelli quote:Writer-director Don Coscarelli says that he had been under pressure to film a sequel but could not come up with a story Ya think? The first film is great. The sequels are not. But this one has always kind of had a soft spot for me. Its your very standard horror movie of the era and does nothing especially well, and a complete departure from the tone or elements that made the first film work. I guess that’s studio interference but Coscarelli openly admitting he couldn’t come up with a story or need for a sequel for the better part of a decade and just kind of gave in to the pressure of demand also sums it up pretty well. There really isn’t much of a story or goal here. We sort of end up back where we started and the idea of introducing a love interest through a psychic link is… well that didn’t really go anywhere. Still, I kinda like it. Why? Probably because its one that was aired on TV a bunch when I was a kid and that scene of breaking into a hardware store and making up some weapons always stuck with me. Maybe because I was in puberty and Paula Irvine was pretty without her character being just a random damsel or hook up (like poor Alchemy)? Or maybe its just the fun of the road movie about two dudes traveling from town to town fighting monsters and meeting pretty girls? Wait, two dudes who lost their family shooting monsters with shotguns and kissing pretty girls before jumping in their car to the next town? This is the second thing in awhile I realized was something I kinda liked as a teen but was really just waiting for Supernatural to happen. I should rewatch/finish that. But seriously, Alchemy, I get the appeal of being on the road and hitchhiking and hooking up with randos but the sawed off shotgun, chainsaw, and grenade booby trap should have been some warning signs. Its not a good film. But its an easy watch. And we’re in that place where the continuity doesn’t exactly make sense but its not really confusing or nonsense yet either. Its all fairly straight forward and easy to follow. That makes it a worse film than the first one because its just kind of generic horror and action and gore. But at least its not a head scratching mess of ideas not really connecting to each other as I recall the series devolving into. This is just a generic, simple horror movie that’s a little fun. Maybe you need nostalgia like i have? Maybe not. But sequels go a lot worse than this and at least it gives you something different from the first film. For better or worse.  26 (41). Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead (2011) Written and directed by Douglas Schulze; co-written by Joshua Wagner Knockoffs of the 13 Dead: 4/13 The idea here is very interesting. A bunch of people at a horror convention find themselves waking up inside of a reenactment of Night of the Living Dead complete with zombies. I didn’t really know where it could go with that idea but I was intrigued. Sadly it doesn’t really go anywhere interesting. The “twist” isn’t terribly surprising and I’m not sure it was meant to be. There’s plenty of little clues to it along the way. But it still feels like its dragged out past where you’ve probably figured it out and doesn’t really go anywhere besides some generic rehash of poo poo Scream said over a decade earlier and isn’t terribly deep or interesting now. And it fell into this weird place where like I wasn’t sure it if was teasing things it never paid off or if I was just reading into stuff because I was looking or something more. Like were they hiding that one zombie at the end because he was supposed to be a reveal of someone we knew like I suspected or was I just looking or more? And what WAS Owen doing there? Did that question get asked and then never answered or was he just there and I’m over thinking it? And I’m falling into that trap of questioning the choices of characters in horror movies when they’re under stressful situations with less information than I have if I think maybe they should have tried to escape at some point? Is that an actual plot issue or was I just getting bored and nitpicky wanting something to happen? Mostly it plays out like a generic zombie plot. Its not an especially bad one and it does avoid following the NotLD plot line as I was a little worried it might. It wasn’t really bad but the promise of something more interesting kind of made me anxious for the standard zombie stuff to go anywhere. Plus… you know… it was aping NotLD a bit too much so it was like “ok, what’s next?” And unfortunately the answer is “not very much.”
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May 16, 2022 19:27
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Movie 11: Creepshow (Hail to the King) It may be on some subjects that I'm not entirely sane. All this time I thought I had seen Creepshow, but nope: it must've been one of the Tales from the Crypt movies instead, because this was all new to me. And great! It's a five movie anthology by George Romero, written by Stephen King. The whole thing delights in being campy as all hell. If you need any proof, just look at the second short, where Stephen King plays an extremely stupid farmer who finds a space meteor and turns into a swamp thing. His acting would make the Three Stooges look subtle and nuanced, but it's fine. Creepshow is at least equal parts comedy and horror, with the exact mixture varying story by story. For instance while the "yokel becomes swamp thing" story is almost pure comedy, there's also a story where Leslie Nielsen, as an insanely jealous husband, lures Ted Danson out to a secluded beach so he can very slowly drown him in the rising tide. Not many laughs in that one! It's not all gold. The fourth short story is a bit of a turd. It's about 80% faculty drama and 20% monkey monster biting people. We could've done with much less dumb faculty bullshit and more monkey mayhem. Yeah I get that it was setup for one professor's plot to have his loutish wife killed by the monkey but come on movie. But the good massively outweighs the bad. In the fifth and final story we have a rich old bastard in his supposedly germ-proof apartment fighting a losing battle against bugs. It's great, surreal, weird. It was also extremely hard to watch as someone who doesn't exactly deal well with bugs. Overall definitely worth the watch! A bunch of good actors and fun cameos like Tom Savini as a garbageman .The stories are inventive and good comedy horror always works for me. / 5My May 2022 Movies: 1. Saturday Morning Mystery, 2. Ghostbusters Afterlife (Rated PG), 3. Superstition, 4. Vampyr (Hidden Gems), 5. The People Under the Stairs (Horror Noire), 6. Rock & Roll Nightmare (Music of the Night), 7. Nosferatu (Sins of the Past), 8. Shadow of the Vampire (Behind the Screams), 9. Witchfinder General (The Price is Right), 10. Shorts (Short Cuts), 11. Creepshow (Hail to the King)
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May 16, 2022 20:13
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43 Now THIS ONE was a complete surprise. Just the right amount of everything from this psycho-sexual nature, depravity in the violence and gore and this manic feel of being dizzyingly out of control of your body and person. Easily one of my favorite vampire movies now, just a total off the wall story and very very well attuned to the creative slumps, addicition, depression and madness. Might fall apart for some people in the end, I think there's a more satisfying ending if they really wanted it, but this one works if not just incredibly abrupt.  out of 544  What a weird one. Just on the face of it (knowing its a direct to video production) it felt super cheap, but also strangely high end (When you get to the kills). Like everyone but Walken is doing a respectable job with the material (its no LA Aids Jabber in the worst of the worst acting), but its all still kinda stilted and you're either waiting for more Walken or (god bless em) Richard Kind. Those gore effects though are king. the whole workout machine death was wicked. Solid if not forgettable flick. out of 545  It's a bummer the creator and primary writer of this one is who it is, but dammit if it isnt a solid as hell slasher and like just well done on the kills and the setups. Very enjoyable first viewing and I'd probably return to this one in the future if I were to do a 80's slasher run again.  out of 546  It's TCM2! what else is there to say but that its a Cannon classic with some of the best gore you'll see in awhile. Just like holy crap so good still and I put this on while I was having coffee and breakfast in the morning and it felt like a Saturday morning cartoon. The madcap/comic energy of it all is very infectious and just a tremendous amount of fun. I could watch a bunch more times in a single sitting and just be super satisfied each time. out of 547  NOW this is a weird loving movie. I didnt expect like the introspective take on depression, grief and being haunted by your past in such a manner. Like that poster/box art is a classic but totally sells me on one kind of movie and then we end up with a fairly like dramatic take on all these topics, but then hey here's a giant puppet monster(s) and the embodiment of your fears in like an EC Comics sorta way. Interesting small little movie that shouldnt have worked as well as it did, but it does. out of 548  I am officially a David Decoteau fan. After Nightmare Sisters and this one I'm going to plunge through the rest of his work, maybe even some of his more modern/gayer stuff now that he's an out and out gay man doing a ton of DTV stuff. What a weird and wondeful little movie. It's got all of that 80's tits and gore you could ever want, a terrible little imp controlling all the scenarios, a kinda tastefully done "girl possessed by a sex demon spirit and boy recognizes it would be taking advantage of her if he did anything with her while possessed" situation and its a brisk sub 90 minute picture. Just in and out with tons of gags and plenty of Linnea Quigley that I am going to just canonize in my head as what Trash was up to before she met up with her friends the next night. Good flick. out of 5
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May 16, 2022 20:13
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Looks like I still need these challenges to have completed the bunch: Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched (thinking either Apostle or Lair of the White Worm for this one) A Perfect Getaway (The Queen of Black Magic or November maybe?) Scream, Queen! (No idea what to watch for this one) The King in Yellow (No idea) Any suggestions for LGBTQ horror movies or Giallo-inspired movies? Elm Street 2 might've been a good shout for Scream, Queen, but I watched it already last fall. Shaman Tank Spec fucked around with this message at 20:51 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 20:49
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6. 1922 (2017) (first viewing) This is an adaptation of a Stephen King novella. A farmer (Thomas Jane) decides to kill his wife because she wants to sell her father's land and split up the family. But the father and his teenage son are slowly consumed and destroyed by the guilt of the murder. The family has to keep their story straight with the wife's lawyer and the sheriff. The son's girlfriend senses something's wrong. And what's with all the rats showing up at the farm? Very much in the tradition of The Tell-Tale Heart. Aside from a few elements that straddle the line between delusions and the supernatural, this handles like a drama and plays out pretty much as you might expect. CHALLENGE: "All Hail the King." --- CHALLENGES: 1. Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched 2. Scream, Queen! 3. 4. Music of the Night Nocturne (2020) 5. Behind the Screams Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror (2019) 6. The King in Yellow 7. Short Cuts (various short films) (misc) 8. A Perfect Getaway 9. Hidden Gems 10. The Price is Right 11. Horror Noire Tales from the Hood (1995) 12. All Hail the King 1922 (2017) 13. Sins of the Past
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May 16, 2022 20:49
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| # ? Jun 7, 2024 16:57 |
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Shaman Tank Spec posted:
A few that come to mind: Bride of Frankenstein (1935)* The Haunting (1963) Multiple Maniacs (1970)* Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971) Penda's Fen (1974) Cruising (1980) Gothic (1986) Hellraiser (1987)* Nightbreed (1990)* The Haunting (1999) Thirst (2019) Fear Street 1994/1974/1666 (2021) *LGBQT+ director
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May 16, 2022 21:14
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