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I loved episode 7 so, so much. It was a perfect mix of farce, wonderful cinematography, and horror. The slow creeping horror of the abusive billionaire was interesting. He takes them to an unknown location where they are locked in. He clearly hires spies to obsessively document them and lets them know this implicitly. He love bombs them with cocaine voice praise, and then when they behave in ways he doesn't like he harshly cuts them down. Thoughout this, he gets them intoxicated on increasingly harder drugs that they are increasingly uncomfortable with. Then, with all the characters and this absurdly surreal situation and cast setup, They meet an alien while the entire cast is high off their mind and the majority of them loving die. Amazing. The episode had some flaws (I didn't really vibe with the writer and psychic as much as the rest of the cast who were all giving outstanding performances, especially the scumbag billionare and the astro-physicist), but drat did it do what it did really really well. I laughed out loud so many times, because the humor was always funny and unexpected. Rob Filter fucked around with this message at 14:27 on Oct 31, 2022 |
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Oct 31, 2022 09:42
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I just started watching this last night and enjoyed the first episode. The premise reminds me of the twilight zone / outer limits which is a good thing. Unfortunately when I was recommending we watch it to my wife, I forgot what it was called and now it is known in my house as the "wardrobe of wanking".
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Oct 31, 2022 14:36
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LifeLynx posted:Dreams in the Witch-House could use some butchering if I'm being honest. Not one of Lovecraft's best stories. I just finished Pickman's Model and the story did not need to be done like that. Pickman's model kind of missed what made the original so effective. It didn't need the paintings to be supernaturally causing madness and hallucinations. They were grotesque, vulgar, and deeply disturbing, but just viewing them wouldn't cause people to commit murder, self-mutilation, and cannibalism. The true horror came from the fact that what they were depicting was real.. Like other's have said the Lovecraft adaptations really suffered from being more than an hour long. We don't need a character's entire backstory, and in fact they shouldn't really have one. A lot of Lovecraft's stories are about a normal person uncovering something horrific about the nature of the universe. They both would have worked way better if they were only 30 minutes long and not being extremely padded out. My favorite episode was the Autopsy. One fun thing I noticed in The Viewing is that the Alien's mind powers doesn't work on the guy with the Golden AK-47 since he never got high. Not that it really saves him.
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Oct 31, 2022 14:47
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I'm 4 episodes in so far. The Autopsy was the standout so far, really great stuff. The Outside was awful, I really did not enjoy that one. Kate Micucci is great and did a great job, but the episode felt like it should have been 15 minutes long. It made its point really early and then kept beating that point over and over and over again without adding anything fun or interesting.
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Oct 31, 2022 14:57
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Liked everything but Murmurs and Dreams in the Witch-House. Both were boring as hell. Murmurs had a belligerent rear end in a top hat main character that refuses to communicate which is instant frustration for any story but made worse with the obvious ending. Dreams in the Witch-House showed the monster too much and became boring in the first 5 minutes. All the episodes were beautifully crafted. Great cinematography all around. Pretty good actors too for everyone but the main character in lot 36. I don't mind the extended version of Graveyard Rats or Pickman's Model. The original story for both aren't that interesting for modern day audiences and they had to spice it up a bit by adding in some extraneous stuff that takes away from the cosmic horror.
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Oct 31, 2022 16:51
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IShallRiseAgain posted:Pickman's model kind of missed what made the original so effective. It didn't need the paintings to be supernaturally causing madness and hallucinations. They were grotesque, vulgar, and deeply disturbing, but just viewing them wouldn't cause people to commit murder, self-mutilation, and cannibalism. The true horror came from the fact that what they were depicting was real.. Like other's have said the Lovecraft adaptations really suffered from being more than an hour long. We don't need a character's entire backstory, and in fact they shouldn't really have one. A lot of Lovecraft's stories are about a normal person uncovering something horrific about the nature of the universe. They both would have worked way better if they were only 30 minutes long and not being extremely padded out. After thinking about it last night, Pickman's Model is really three quite servicable Lovecraft stories... if they weren't trying to be part of a complete story. 1. Guy sees Pickman's witch paintings, which drives him to see the "true" world everywhere including his fiance's father and his Big Titty Ghoul Girlfriend. He dreams of seeing that grotesque feast, and ends with him getting his head cut off by the coven. 2. The Lovecraft story proper. Minor change in that the main character isn't narrating this to someone, and we see the monster instead of it being implied. I thought this was very effective. 3. Pickman's paintings are a harbinger of some Ancient One who is coming to Feast on humanity. People who stare at the paintings too long get hypnotized into mutilating themselves to "prepare for the feast". This was cool, but like I said, really felt like a last minute addition to fill time. In the original story, the ghouls are preparing for at akeover of the city and maybe the world, and Pickman's paintings depict them invading subway stations, studying maps, etc. Instead of a made-up Ancient One, this should have been Will seeing signs that yes, Pickman's paintings were all coming true and there was nothing he or anyone could do to stop it, and even his own son was a changeling. This was very strongly hinted at: the kid's creepy drawings, Pickman saying "I see a little of myself in him" (in Lovecraft's extended universe, Pickman is a ghoul), etc.
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Oct 31, 2022 17:25
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Good series. The Autopay, the Outside, and the Viewing are the standouts. The Autopsy is solid all around and feels like a classic outer limits or x files. The Outside is really well written and I just felt for Kates character so much even as she lost it more and more. The Viewing has less plot, but just so much vibes and style. It’s visually a treat with some great soundtrack.
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Oct 31, 2022 22:19
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Finished watching the series! My personal episode preference list. Pickman's Model < Dreams in the Witch House < The Murmuring < Graveyard Rats < Lot 36 < The Outside < The Viewing < The Autopsy. F. Murray Abraham can really carry an episode (I think I learned that while watching Mythic Quest) so I definitely recommend The Autopsy. The Viewing and The Outside are both pretty standout, as well. The Outside being great because of the last two minutes just being Kate Micucci emoting at the camera in a sort of manic/depressive state. The only ones that I think were bad are Pickman's Model and Dreams in the Witch House. Pickman's Model being the worst because whenever Crispin Glover started to talk I kept thinking his character was Elmer Fudd.
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Nov 1, 2022 12:06
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I'm only up to ep 4 now, which was just too long. I don't know if I'm just imagining connections linking the consecutive episodes or not, or maybe it's just coincidence... In the first, the main character is trying to pay off a debt. Same as the second episode, and the main character looks after the dead. The coroner in the next episode also looks after the dead, of course. Then, in Outside, she does the same thing to a dead body as the coroner did in the previous episode. Will there be a connection to the next episode, or am I just a crazy person... doesn't have to be either/or.
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Nov 2, 2022 23:17
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Marmaduke! posted:I'm only up to ep 4 now, which was just too long. I don't know if I'm just imagining connections linking the consecutive episodes or not, or maybe it's just coincidence... In the first, the main character is trying to pay off a debt. Same as the second episode, and the main character looks after the dead. The coroner in the next episode also looks after the dead, of course. Then, in Outside, she does the same thing to a dead body as the coroner did in the previous episode. There's connections. 5 & 6 are Lovecraft adaptations and 7 & 8 are understated cerebral horror... I think. I didn't like 7.
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Nov 3, 2022 00:54
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This series is loving good. The Viewing was amazing, probably my favorite ep so far
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Nov 3, 2022 01:54
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Episode 7 seems to be the most divisive, people either love it or hate it. Im in the love it camp.
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Nov 3, 2022 08:36
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How many times do you think Panos Cosmatos has seen the Heavy Metal cartoon?
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Nov 4, 2022 07:28
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I liked episode 1 - it was really well shot and acted, but the end left me a bit cold. "rear end in a top hat main character gets cathartically eaten by a monster" is classic horror anthology stuff, but it is a bit underwhelming when the actual kill is so PG13. Left me wanting something much schlockier and nastier Still, I'm in
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Nov 4, 2022 18:02
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favorites: The Outside, The Viewing, The Murmuring least favorites: Lot 36, Dreams in the Witch House the rest are in between. I get the praise for The Autopsy, but I'm not sure it quite earned the amount of time spent building up to the titular scene.
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Nov 4, 2022 18:42
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ricro posted:I liked episode 1 - it was really well shot and acted, but the end left me a bit cold. I liked the payoff with the broken padlock. I thought that was pretty fun.
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Nov 4, 2022 18:42
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I'd just recently watched Predator and immediately recognised Elpidia Carrillo in lot 36 so that was cool. I just watched The Murmering and found it to be one of the scariest ones even though yeah it's a bit boring.
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Nov 4, 2022 19:00
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Blackchamber posted:Episode 7 seems to be the most divisive, people either love it or hate it. My biggest problem with episode 7 is that it just ends. No real conclusion, just end credits.
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Nov 5, 2022 10:18
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Feels classic sci fi to me. Monster wanders off into city, leaves question marks of what he's going to do. I just loved the dichotomy between well crafted shots and things that looked like melt man from Kablaam. Definitely a unique viewing experience.
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Nov 5, 2022 17:05
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Regardless of my thoughts about the ending the only two episodes that really stands out are the Viewing and Outside. The rest isn't bad, but it felt like they could've been directed by anyone. Which was a little disappointing about the Murmuring considering Kent's other movies.
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Nov 5, 2022 19:17
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The Murmuring desperately needed to be half an hour shorter. The premise was stretched thin to the point of transparency.
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Nov 5, 2022 19:35
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Only three episodes in so far but I'm joining the "Episodes 1 and 3 are really great" camp. Graveyard Rats was okay, though I did enjoy the main character's total bastardness. Buster Scruggs as a weird bitter rear end in a top hat right-wing dick was weird, though.
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Nov 6, 2022 00:55
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Ep 7 was insulting. Amazing cast, scenery, art direction, sound direction, setup etc. all in service of the most pointless script of them all. Not everything has to be a tale of morality, but christ, there was no point to any of it. Give me *some* payoff. Especially if I'm investing 45 minutes into the banter. The billionaire actor is a delight to watch, and the banter was mostly ok, but there was zero relationship to any of it and what occurred in the final scene. Learning about these characters had seemingly no impact on how they were destroyed or what they did once big monster showed up. It was all just red herrings. Guy made his fortune off of uranium, ok. Woman helped treat Gadaffi. Ok. Author is a bit of a prick, cool. Billionaire talks about how much he respects the physician, but we never see a reaction from him on her melting. Andre is a musician past his prime and a recovered addict, cool cool. Scientist girl is a dork, but gives into peer pressure easily, roger. Ah well, gently caress me for getting invested in your table setting. I'm just bewildered by how that played out. Overall I do hope they get another season. These are beautifully shot and executed on. ...but I hope they get scripts that are just a couple degrees more clever, or more tied to some sort of theme. Pickman's Model was going to be my example until I saw ep 7. Really thought they were going to run with alcohol being the real witch – his sinful indulgences made him more open to the evils that Pickman was sealing away in the paintings, or something like that. Him painting actual demons fell super flat to me, as I couldn't recall a scene where that was implied or relevant. Hero dude sees a woman as a witch, but then she's a regular woman in another scene. Was that woman a real monster that had a human form, or did the dad also know he was getting hot and heavy with a witch or... Like with 7, the reveal just landed super flat for me, because it didn't feel that set up. Which is a shame as everything else is so good! Always fun seeing Crispin Glover show up. Ep 1, 2, 3 are great. The Autopsy is easily the best of the bunch. Graveyard Rats is claustrophobia incarnate, and I'm a sucker for stories featuring an overly-book-learned poor man. CatstropheWaitress fucked around with this message at 06:22 on Nov 6, 2022 |
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Nov 6, 2022 06:20
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One thing I thought was really funny about the Graveyards Rats: During the episode the sword is constantly talked about and Masson carries it throughout the episode. Then when the finale showdown is about to happen he completely fails to use the sword and dump some rocks on the rat and zombie instead.SolarFire2 posted:The Murmuring desperately needed to be half an hour shorter. The premise was stretched thin to the point of transparency. It also needed to be something else than another Sad Ghost Story by Guillermo Del Toro.
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Nov 6, 2022 10:23
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Man that first one was such a nothing. Kinda corny too. Glad Martha Burns and Demetrius Grosse are getting paid though. And I don't normally complain about characters doing dumb things in horror, but I just don't believe that he'd walk over the top of a corpse like that. He's callous and frustrated, definitely, and he's the type of idiot who'll double down on something actively inconvenient to him rather than give up any of his alpha tough guy posturing, sure. But it's a dead, mutilated body in a secret room, and he's a self styled hero with a self righteous streak. He'd at least check the corpse out. Monster had a cool sort Silent Hill / Resident Evil design though, I'll give them that. And it kinda spent a lot of time loving around on the way to it's not really an ending. Open Source Idiom fucked around with this message at 11:30 on Nov 6, 2022 |
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Nov 6, 2022 11:26
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Open Source Idiom posted:And it kinda spent a lot of time loving around on the way to it's not really an ending. I enjoyed it regardless, but agree to a degree. I think the episode really missed the mark with him callously walking over the TERRIFYING CORPSE WITH IT'S HEAD SUNKEN IN, which rear end in a top hat or not, presumably that would freak out the average Joe. And also dropped the ball on what the old lady's connection to the old guy was. It was disappointing she came back only to let him die because he was rude. Was waiting for them to say she was part of the experiments... or she was someone with knowledge of the beast and wanted to bring it food... or destroy it. As is, she seems to know about it, but it is also cool with it just chilling in the storage facility? Maybe it'll break free? Who knows.
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Nov 6, 2022 15:37
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CatstropheWaitress posted:Ep 7 was insulting. Amazing cast, scenery, art direction, sound direction, setup etc. all in service of the most pointless script of them all. Can't really disagree with any of this but still liked The Viewing. There's something about it that just feels like there's substance there even though the dialogue is completely inane and the story doesn't make sense. Totally understand people not liking it. Almost like a Jackson Pollock painting.
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Nov 6, 2022 17:03
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The Viewing felt like a great throwback. It felt very "tales from the darkside" or other b-team anthology show from the early 90s. Very "mood" as the kids are no longer saying.
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Nov 6, 2022 17:34
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there are for sure things I could quibble with about The Viewing, but the brutalist synthwave ‘70s coke party capital-V Vibes of the whole thing are just too impeccable for me not to love it. Not going to be for everyone, though. imo, the “it just stops” criticism is more applicable to Lot 36. The whole thing felt like an overlong first act for a feature-length horror film, with an ending tacked on where it ought to just be pivoting into the second act.
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Nov 6, 2022 18:03
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Rob Filter posted:I loved episode 7 so, so much. It was a perfect mix of farce, wonderful cinematography, and horror. The slow creeping horror of the abusive billionaire was interesting. He takes them to an unknown location where they are locked in. He clearly hires spies to obsessively document them and lets them know this implicitly. He love bombs them with cocaine voice praise, and then when they behave in ways he doesn't like he harshly cuts them down. Thoughout this, he gets them intoxicated on increasingly harder drugs that they are increasingly uncomfortable with. Feel the same way, dont post much in this forum but to me 'the autopsy' and 'the viewing' were perfect for me. 'The viewing' is like a strange love note to john carpenter films(the build up made me think of watching the thing or the dark prince where the build up seems like 90 percent of the film) with dialogue to complement the music(rather that the other way around). Peter weller playing some reclusive elitist prick used to manipluating anything and anyone to get the most unique experience, finally gets the most unique experience. Plus i was laughing my rear end of at most of the reactions of the cast. numptyboy fucked around with this message at 18:28 on Nov 6, 2022 |
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Nov 6, 2022 18:23
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I think that's why I had such a volatile reaction to that episode. Agree with everyone that the ambiance is just top notch. Had it just had a better payoff, it would be one of my favorite things of the year. It's like how the end of Game of Thrones makes it hard to recommend anyone even start the series knowing it's all for naught.
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Nov 6, 2022 22:52
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Peter Weller is like that scene from Judge Dredd where Pauly Shore only recognizes him when he covers the top part of his face.
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Nov 6, 2022 23:06
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At some point Graveyard Rats suddenly becomes Diablo: The Movie that set looked straight out of a dungeon crawler! And he’s picking up loot and weapons and an amulet across from a demon shrine. And then he’s getting attacked by early level enemies like rats, giant rats, and zombies. 
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Nov 8, 2022 04:10
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numptyboy posted:Feel the same way, dont post much in this forum but to me 'the autopsy' and 'the viewing' were perfect for me. Yea those two were hands down my favourite. The Viewing has just a loving amazing atmosphere and while the very end isn't AMAZING I don't really mind because of the way it's been built up. It makes sense too, he's brought a very specific group of people to have a look at this thing nobody can work out.. Also having a lol that the scientist was Ruby from Steven Universe, I didn't realise that was her normal voice and I've never really heard a person that sounds like that before. It even had a great chekov's gun moment which I'm sure is deliberately a play on that. Autopsy was helped a lot by having F Murray Abraham's energy there, it really played well for me because of that. I found the Murmuring kinda tedious - I can really see the Babadook in it and I didn't enjoy that much either. My main takeaway from it was there's a loving huge hole in the attic so that house must be loving bone freezing all the time. I wouldn't have even thought about it if the caretaker guy hadn't specifically said about being cold to them as well. Just felt off. Pickman's Model I didn't like but Glover's accent was loving amazing and it's worth it just for that. He studied with someone to try and make the most "real" 1900s new england accent he could and it was proper good. Graveyard Rats was kinda boring, very creature feature. Interesting to see Rodney from Stargate in something though, I guess. Lot 36 I know that Del Toro has had that happen to him (as in someone sold his lockup when he didn't expect it) so I read it as a "gently caress you, person who did that". Made it pretty funny. Dreams in the Witch House is the hands down worse though. It makes no sense whatsoever. I know the short story and it feels like they merged two stories together and missed out important bits of both. Jenkins makes no sense AT ALL with the context they give in the episode, for one. Also the magic native americans? C'mon guys. The Outside was fun, with Dan Stevens hamming it up with a weird Dutch accent and it was really interesting to see the woman who plays Sadie in Steven Universe "in the flesh", never seen her in anything before. It felt very "story from 1950s galaxy magazine" and I really like that air. I did like that the same woman played the monster in Lot 36, The Outside and Dreams though! That was interesting. I think I blame the marketing for the low scores on IMDB, I don't think it's quite been aimed at the right people. It's a clear play at people who like 80s horror and b-movie tropes but it's been marketed at the mass market.
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Nov 8, 2022 14:14
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The Viewing was my favourite episode by far lol, everything about it worked so well. I actually liked every episode a lot, the one exception being Witch House. It was a bad adaptation of the story, and what they came up with also wasn't that interesting or visually appealing. Rupert Grint is also not a great actor. Still perfectly decent, though. Pickman's Model was quite a deviation, but I think it captured the spirit of the original story pretty well. Also Crispin Glover's accent was amazing. Graveyard Rats was carried by David Hewlett - just an impeccable piece of poo poo having the worst day of his life. The Outside was a not that great story carried by really good acting and direction. Special shout-outs to another incredible accent from Dan Stevens. I'll be remembering the way he says "Alo Glo" for the rest of my loving life. Really hope they make more of these, can't think of another recent anthology series with this many hits.
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Nov 8, 2022 15:28
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Taear posted:it was really interesting to see the woman who plays Sadie in Steven Universe "in the flesh", never seen her in anything before. You should chuck out her comedy act, Garfunkel and Oates. They're pretty known for their anal sex song.
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Nov 8, 2022 17:05
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Guillermo del Toro presents: Came for the Lovecraftian existential dread, stayed for the anal sex songs
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Nov 8, 2022 18:12
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Alien Autopsy and Skin Cream were the only ones I really liked so far from those I've seen. The first episode was as cliche ghost story as it gets and the rat coffin was too cartoony to be scary or thrilling, felt like a simpsons treehouse of horror script. The one where the weird lady just lurks outside of a storage facility just leaves me wondering why the hell was this lady hanging around menacingly all drat day. Especially since she didn't even need to be there to seal his fate, like in the end she hangs around all day, doesn't get her crap back, and I guess finally tries to fin a bus or something after watching some dude die to a demon. That guy was such an obvious jerk paired with another jerk that it's weird she came off as the weirdest rear end in a top hat in the plot.
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Nov 8, 2022 19:16
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i don't understand why Lot 36 focused on some pathetic rear end in a top hat and not the nazi who summoned a demon.
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Nov 8, 2022 19:44
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Taear posted:I found the Murmuring kinda tedious - I can really see the Babadook in it and I didn't enjoy that much either. My main takeaway from it was there's a loving huge hole in the attic so that house must be loving bone freezing all the time. I wouldn't have even thought about it if the caretaker guy hadn't specifically said about being cold to them as well. Just felt off. The problem with Drama Horror or any that really cares about the message over the actual scares is that there's a razor edge between interesting and unbelievably tedious/boring. The Murmuring was clearly about the woman's psyche after losing a child but in order to get to a point where she can save the ghost child you have to endure her being a total fuckhead or mopey for the duration of the episode. Completely unlikable character traits in order to pad out the time to get to the conclusion statement the director was trying to make. I do blame A24 for this and the success of a lot of their underwhelming or not scary horrors. Tacking on a drama to slight horror elements is just too easy to make it a boring slog.
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Nov 8, 2022 20:29
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