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In for 31 and will try to fill the bingo card as usual. Thanks to everyone who helped organize! I'm going to use bingo card #9 (if anyone else wants to use the same one we can be card buddies).
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Sep 29, 2023 20:17
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 1. Basket Case (1982) (Rewatch) Started with a rewatch. Always nice to see Henenlotter's NYC, hot wet and grimy. Less funny than I remembered, but also a better movie than I remembered - the pacing is good, the minor actors are usually funny even if they're not exactly great performers, and the stop motion stuff is a hoot. I wish Belial didn't just spend every scene screaming AHHHHHHHHHHH though. Give that lil dude a lozenge and maybe he will chill out!  3.5/5This completes  CineD Horror Thread Poll Challenge (though I'm going to watch one movie from each of the two thread lists before I cross off the bingo squares).
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Sep 30, 2023 00:57
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 2. Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) Set four years after The Wolf Man, grave robbers open Talbot's coffin during a full moon and toss the wolfsbane inside it, and now the Wolf Man is back, jack. The movie is essentially Talbot trying to find a way to die, which leads him to the research of Dr. Frankenstein. It's not much of a movie really, not a lot happens, Bela Lugosi kind of sucks as the monster (he mostly exists to get Encino Man'd), but Lon Chaney Jr. carries the whole thing. His Wolf Man has a sort of tragic resignation that I think is really compelling, even if there isn't much else here. 3/5This completes Freddy vs Jason 20th Anniversary Challenge (it counts under the Monster Mash clause) 3. Terrified (2017) I'm always happy to see a focused, well paced ghost story. This is centered on a neighborhood in Buenos Aires where spooky things are happening and people are dying. Lots of scary moments without being overly reliant on jump scares, which is great - I also liked that Funes, the police commissioner, doesn't waste time with a lot of "you must be mistaken" style bullshit - he calls a paranormal investigator and they get to work. Last act brings it all home with a slightly goofy ending, but this is one I would recommend for sure. This counts for South America towards the Around the World challenge. 4/5Total Watched: 3/31 Thread Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man) New To You: 2/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified) History Lesson: 3/5 (1980s, 1940s, 2010s) Around the World: 1/4 (Terrified - South America)
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Sep 30, 2023 23:04
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 4. An American Werewolf in London (1981) (Rewatch) I've only seen this once in full (during the early days of the pandemic) so I was glad to watch it again. Yes it's funny, yes the leads are all great, yes Rick Baker and company did an incredible job with the effects, but I forgot how great the pacing of this is, how off the wall some of the sequences get (like David's nightmare and the finale), and I forgot about how the curse actually works in terms of the victims - harrowing to think about. Fantastic movie. 4.5/5 5. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) (Rewatch, kinda) Kind of a rewatch - I've seen it once but I believe I saw the theatrical version, this time I watched the "unrated producer's cut" - I'll count it as a rewatch anyway. My wife wanted to fill in her Michael Myers viewing gaps so we watched 4 and 5 last month and watched this one today. It's bad! They finally try to give some context for the cult that has been creeping around the edges of the series and it's all too goofy, Michael's mask is better than say Halloween 4, but he has this wild bedhead hair that makes him look confused, and I just wish Loomis would go lie down. At least Paul Rudd is there to be a weird little cutie pie but this really stinks. I don't need Michael incest baby nonsense. This completes The Samhain Challenge 1/5 6. Hour of the Wolf (1968) This is one of those movies that ends and I'm immediately thinking I'm going to have to go read a bunch of analysis about it because I'm sure people have a lot of different interpretations of it. An artist struggles with insomnia, guilt, trauma, and maintaining some sanity. Hard to really say much else but there's a great sense of slow dread building throughout, and some truly eerie sequences (like the fishing scene, or the party guests gathered in the doorway). I'd like to watch this again next year after some reading and see if I like it even more, as I expect I will. This is the fifth decade I've covered, so the History Lesson challenge is complete with this one. 4/5Total Watched: 6/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Birth of Horror, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Box Art, Bite-Size Horror, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE POC, HIFE Women New To You: 3/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf) History Lesson: 5/5 (1980s, 1940s, 2010s, 1990s, 1960s) Around the World: 2/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf)
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Oct 1, 2023 18:51
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 7. Destroyer (1988) For this challenge I basically pulled up the Tubi app on my TV and scrolled until I saw a sick poster for a movie I hadn't seen before, and hell, check that poster out! It's awesome! The movie is not nearly as awesome, but it was okay. A serial killer's execution flops due to a power outage, and the prison is closed. 18 months later, Anthony Perkins is directing a yabbofest in the abandoned prison, until bodies start dropping. The killer is played by a former NFL player and his size helps a lot - he also uses a jackhammer at one point, and cuts off a woman's hair and eats it. It's not great, but there are some melting faces and it's fine Tubi slasher garbage - I just wish we didn't fast forward to "final girl" territory so early, there were a lot of people in that prison, they could have done more. 2.5/5This completes the Back of the Video Store (Box Art Challenge) Total Watched: 7/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Birth of Horror, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Bite-Size Horror, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE POC, HIFE Women New To You: 4/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer) History Lesson: 5/5 (1980s, 1940s, 2010s, 1990s, 1960s) Around the World: 2/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf)
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Oct 1, 2023 23:50
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 8. Gaia (2021) Members of the South African forestry service patrol the Tsitsikamma area and accidentally wander into a The Last of Us-style nightmare. I was not expecting this level of practical make-up eco-body-horror, but it was impressive - Gaia looks and sounds great. The story is pretty bare bones (our hero finds a man living in the woods with his son, father considers humanity to be parasites etc.), but from those bare bones grow a lot of extremely gross fungus, monsters, and trippy dream sequences. 3.5/5This is another notch on the 'New To You' challenge and also marks off Africa for 'Around the World' Total Watched: 8/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Birth of Horror, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Bite-Size Horror, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE POC, HIFE Women New To You: 5/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia) History Lesson: 6/5 (1940s, 1960s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 3/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia)
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Oct 2, 2023 22:06
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Got a little behind this week. 9. Silver Bullet (1985) (Rewatch) My wife wants to fill in her Stephen King blind spots this month, so we started with Silver Bullet. All things considered this is a pretty good werewolf movie - Everett McGill has a lot of menace, and Corey Haim has a lot of spunk. I love the scene with the fireworks in the woods. Gary Busey is an unhinged delight, perfectly cast as a drunk goober uncle. 3.5/5late edit: I forgot to mark this off for the Birth of Horror challenge since I was born in 1985! 10. Salem's Lot (1979) (Rewatch) The first hour of this is slow but necessary as it's a classic Stephen King small town full of characters, many of which will become vampire food as things progress. Once this pops off it gets really exciting - some great jump scares (the first appearance of Barlow) and some slow dread too (like when Jason Burke makes his way upstairs to investigate a noise - so tense). I think there's a way to condense some of the characters and plot beats without turning Callahan into basically nothing, and the Susan related changes are pretty corny, but I like this quite a bit even though there is a lot changed from one of my top three scariest King books. 3.5/5 11. Scream Blacula Scream (1973) This starts with a voodoo queen dying and naming Pam Grier as her successor, which infuriates her son Willis. Willis is an idiot, and buys the bones of Prince Mamuwalde (Blacula), resurrecting him to do his bidding - as you can probably guess, Willis is soon the first of many vampires created by Mamuwalde. This is part police procedural (with one ex-cop sounding the vampire alarm and being ignored), and part tragedy as Mamuwalde tries to convince Pam Grier to use voodoo magic to un-curse him from vampirism. It's a bit amateury with some confusing shots and bad lighting, but William Marshall and Grier are both so good that it doesn't really matter. This is a good time. 3.5/5Scream Blacula Scream will mark off the Horror Is For Everyone: POC challenge, and is also my sixth new watch so this also completes New To You Total Watched: 11/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Bite-Size Horror, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE Women New To You: 6/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream) History Lesson: 7/5 (1940s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 3/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia) The Berzerker fucked around with this message at 18:01 on Oct 7, 2023 |
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Oct 7, 2023 00:29
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 12. American Gothic (1987) Half a dozen twenty-somethings go on vacation but their little plane malfunctions and they find themselves stuck on a remote island, with the only inhabitants being a family who turn out to be like a bizarre non-cannibal Canadian version of the Sawyers. I know it's American Gothic but everyone in this is overwhelmingly Canadian and they're clearly in BC. What starts out as a bit creepy escalates until eventually you've got necrophilia, statues in eyeballs, and Brent's mom from Corner Gas ripping a mummified alien in half during a tug-of-war with the Final Girl (who has joined the family because hey, why not). Bizarre, but never boring! 3.5/5 13. V/H/S/85 (2023) I get that they're going for a 1985 vibe, but putting a bunch of lovely artifacting all over the screen is annoying, hard to look at, and doesn't even look like degraded VHS. I'd put VHS 85 near the bottom of the VHS franchise pile (somewhere in the Viral zone). The wrap-around, Total Copy, is fine (which is a compliment considering how bad the wrap-arounds usually are in this series) but too drawn out. I really liked No Wake (gun violence is scary!) but splitting it into two halves felt unnecessary. God of Death felt like fifty other shorts I've seen, TKNOGD completely took me out of the movie with how bored I was (though it had a couple of fun effects near the end), and I liked Dreamkill. Overall I hope the series continues because I love horror anthologies, but this one just didn't click for me. 2.5/5This knocks off the Bite-Sized Horror challengeTotal Watched: 13/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (VHS 85) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE Women New To You: 8/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream) History Lesson: 7/5 (1940s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 3/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia) The Berzerker fucked around with this message at 18:02 on Oct 7, 2023 |
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Oct 7, 2023 15:49
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Leatherhead posted:2.) Demonwarp (1988) Well, I guess I am adding this to my watch list! Leatherhead posted:3.) Critters (1986) If you haven't seen the sequel, Critters II is a ton of fun and some (including me) would argue it is better than the first.
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Oct 7, 2023 17:58
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I went back and edited an old post as I forgot to mark off the Birth of Horror challenge when I watched Silver Bullet, which came out the year I was born. 14. Shin Godzilla (2016) What a(n atomic) blast! This is essentially a reboot, starting with a googly-eyed Godzilla slithering and slumping into the streets while an largely ineffective government wrings their hands over who has the authority to approve various suggestions to contain or eliminate the threat. The satire of bureaucracy is laid on thick but it gives plenty of laughs (e.g. during evacuation efforts, an official says "We'll make every effort to control traffic" and it immediately cuts to a gridlocked highway with someone shouting "Traffic signals are out of order!"). Godzilla mutates into different forms throughout the course of the movie but I really liked the gross dead eel eyes jiggling around on him in his first couple of forms, very unsettling. I appreciate the optimism shown in the second half as humanity pulls together to come up with a solution that doesn't involve nuking Tokyo. Probably goes without saying, but Godzilla also gets to do some real loving damage as things progress. Fantastic! 4.5/5This was my fourth and final continent for the Around the World challenge which is now complete. I've got 9 more thread challenges to do, but I've finished all of the meta ones.Total Watched: 14/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Rob Zombie, That Guy, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ, HIFE Women New To You: 9/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla) History Lesson: 7/5 (1940s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 7, 2023 18:20
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 15. Totally Killer (2023) Fun slasher with Kiernan Shipka traveling back in time to 1987 to try and stop a serial killer that killed a bunch of her mom's friends in high school. Lots of jokes, violent scary kills, and enough twists and turns to keep you guessing until the end. A good time, though I don't know that I'd watch it more than once. 3.5/5This was directed by a woman (Nahnatchka Khan) so it crosses off Horror Is For Everyone: Women  16. A Bucket of Blood (1959) Walter is a busboy at a trendy cafe where the artsy patrons look down on him for his un-hip vibe. Walter accidentally kills his landlady's cat, covers it in plaster, and suddenly becomes the talk of the town with his incredible lifelike sculpture... but he needs to make more. This kind of feels like a House of Wax riff on beatnik culture but elevated by Dick Miller who is great in this, Walter is so meek and "aw shucks" at the start but turns into a real entitled prick as things progress. 3.5/5This covers the "That Guy" Challenge since it stars Dick MillerTotal Watched: 16/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Rob Zombie, Exorcist Anniversary, Horror Adjacent, Animals Attack, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ New To You: 11/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood) History Lesson: 8/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 9, 2023 16:15
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 17. Alice, Sweet Alice (1976) (Rewatch) Uncomfortable and mysterious, I guess this could be considered an early slasher or American giallo, I don't know. I haven't seen this in a long time and mixed up some parts with Don't Look Now in my mind (maybe I should rewatch that too). Good lord the landlord is monstrous. 3.5/5 18. Life (2017) There's nothing wrong with this movie, it's just the same thing you've seen twenty times. A crew on the ISS find an alien life form, they poke and prod it, it's angry and smarter than they expected, blah blah blah. You'll see the ending coming light years away. It's well made, the performances are fine, it just does nothing new. 2.5/5This covers the Horror Adjacent Challenge since it's a sci-fi / horrorTotal Watched: 18/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Rob Zombie, Exorcist Anniversary, Animals Attack, Childhood Trauma, HIFE LGBTQ New To You: 12/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life) History Lesson: 8/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 9, 2023 22:24
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 19. Pet Sematary (1989) (Rewatch) Haven't watched this in many years. I saw this too young and was afraid that our family's cat was going to turn evil as a result, so I think it qualifies for the challenge, though my wife picked this as she is on a Stephen King kick this month. Onto the movie - the way Dale Midkiff reacts in every scene (with harrowing horrible poo poo going down) is so bland and tepid, it's like how I react to getting an annoying email at work. He brings the movie down, tbh. Gage is an adorable little psycho though, and Fred Gwynne is the backbone of the whole thing, ayuh. From what I am hearing about Pet Sematary Bloodlines that just came out, it's clear that sometimes a dead franchise is bettah. 3.5/5This covers the Childhood Trauma challenge 20. World War Z (2013) I remembered liking the book, and hearing that the movie was very different, so maybe that's why I avoided this for so long? It's fine, though. Brad Pitt is some sort of nebulous U.N. problem solver guy and is tasked with solving the zombie outbreak. The opening chunk with the world falling into chaos is nothing we haven't seen in a dozen other movies but it's still tense and enjoyable. The middle is a bit of a drag - Pitt travels around the world, finds another dead end, zombies arrive and kill everyone, he gets away and repeat - but they pull it together for a silly final act involving a disease heist. That said, I like the "solution" to the zombie outbreak they come up with, it's a neat idea and overall this is a perfectly cromulent zombie movie. 3/5This covers the Rob Zombie Challenge challengeTotal Watched: 20/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Exorcist Anniversary, Animals Attack, HIFE LGBTQ New To You: 13/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z) History Lesson: 8/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 11, 2023 22:10
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 21. Thinner (1996) (Rewatch) This movie is bad but it's on TV basically on repeat around this time of year and I always wind up watching it at least once. Robert John Burke is doing a Batman voice the whole time, it's bizarre. So many nonsensical things happen, and it's so racist and lovely. Here's an example: Old man: "Here, this pie now has the curse, if somebody eats it they'll die horribly but you'll live." Billy: *gives pie to his wife, she eats it and dies* Billy the next morning: *wakes up and licks that same cursed pie off his dead wife's face* 2/5Total Watched: 21/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Exorcist Anniversary, Animals Attack, HIFE LGBTQ New To You: 13/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z) History Lesson: 8/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 13, 2023 16:33
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 22. Trick R Treat (2007) (Rewatch) Definitely one of the better modern anthologies and I especially like how the stories are interwoven instead of the more typical frame story -> short 1 -> frame story -> short 2 type of thing. I really enjoy the deranged Dylan Baker and the college girl stories (both twists feel a little obvious but they're just a solid good time). I can't see Brian Cox and not think of Succession anymore, maybe Sam just wants a kiss from daddy. I will say that Sam looks pretty goofy (in a bad way) under the mask, and the school bus story isn't great, but otherwise this is still a good time. 4/5 23. Star Time (1992) Henry Pinkle becomes suicidal when his favorite TV show is canceled until a mysterious old man named Sam Bones offers to make him a TV star if he stays alive and does what he's told. Unfortunately Sam Bones tells Henry to put on a creepy baby mask and go on an axe murdering spree across L.A. This has some really creepy moments (especially when Henry is talking to walls of TVs or wearing his mask), some parts give Videodrome vibes. The pacing is slow (especially for something under 90 minutes) but I guess that's low budget for you. John P Ryan is great as Sam Bones. The theme song over the end credits is loving bananas. Definitely an underseen gem. 4/5Total Watched: 23/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Exorcist Anniversary, Animals Attack, HIFE LGBTQ New To You: 14/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 16, 2023 22:55
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 24. Bit (2019) I was worried Bit was going to have that Ryan Murphy "how do you do fellow queer kids" dialog but thankfully it only seemed that way for five minutes. Nicole Maines is a fantastic lead in this queer vampire girl gang movie which has a trans character actually played by a trans actor, what a welcome sight. The story is a bit predictable and some of the performers are flat but I liked this overall, it has fun head squishing and neck chomping! 3.5/5This covers Horror Is For Everyone: LGBTQ+  25. Alligator (1980) (Rewatch) "I'm gonna find that alligator and I'm gonna kick his rear end." Hard to argue against a movie with an alligator chompin' down on cops. This punches above its weight, great use of framing / shadow and quick cuts to make the alligator seem more dynamic than it probably was - it is completely Bad rear end. The first half is a bit slow (and yes Forster's character is a misogynist turd) but the second half goes all out, especially the wedding scene, which is pure chaos. 4/5This covers When Animals of Unusual Size Attack! Total Watched: 25/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space, Exorcist Anniversary New To You: 15/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 18, 2023 22:41
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 26. Death Becomes Her (1992) (Rewatch) Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn are two vain frenemies who fear aging and battle over Bruce Willis (who is a successful plastic surgeon). Isabella Rossellini offers a new (ancient?) anti-aging treatment and things kind of spiral from there. As a kid, I was fascinated by this because I didn't understand how they made the hole in the middle of Goldie Hawn. The effects haven't held up as well in 2023 but it's still a really fun campy flick, how often do you get to see Meryl Streep get bonked on the head with a shovel? Also, one of only two films tagged as horror on Letterboxd that include Streep (the other is Still of the Night)! 4.5/5 27. Prince of Darkness (1987) (Rewatch) Researchers set up shop in an abandoned church to scientifically investigate a tube of Satanic ooze. I like a lot about this. It's a slow burn, with all the shots of the exits being blocked and the moon in the sky building an oppressive atmosphere along with the classic Carpenter score, and there are some shots that are just incredible (Catherine stuck in the mirrorverse, Calder laughing at his undead appearance). But I wish we got a bit more of the Prince of Darkness himself, and I could do without all of the sexism, racist jokes and so on. In the end, it's a devil movie with Alice Cooper stabbing somebody with a bicycle and that has to be worth something. 3.5/5This covers The Exorcist 50th Anniversary Challenge since it involves the devil. One challenge left!Total Watched: 27/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator), Exorcist Anniversary (Prince of Darkness) Outstanding Challenges: Picnic in Space New To You: 15/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 21, 2023 14:26
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twernt posted:I caught up to page 43 so I have another stats dump. Very cool - thanks for compiling!  28. Pitch Black (2000) A spaceship transporting a diverse group of folks in cryostasis gets smashed up by meteors and most of them die. The survivors find themselves on a planet with three suns and an abandoned research facility. Vin Diesel is among the survivors as Riddick, a "dangerous criminal" with sci-fi eyes that grant darkvision, but he's not the actual danger - the danger are hordes of flying creatures living underground and waiting for an eclipse to come out and hunt. This felt pretty by the numbers with twists that shock nobody (Keith David is cool! Cole Hauser plays an rear end in a top hat!), and the aliens look like Cylon Basestars from Battlestar Galactica for some reason, the CGI is awful since it's 2000. It's not bad, but not particularly memorable beyond Riddick's goofy little goggles, I am kind of baffled why this has multiple sequels. 2.5/5This covers Picnic at Hanging Rock... in Space! since it takes place in "the distant future" - this also means  I have completed all of the thread challenges except for finishing my 31 movies!Total Watched: 28/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator), Exorcist Anniversary (Prince of Darkness), Picnic in Space (Pitch Black) New To You: 16/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit, Pitch Black) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 21, 2023 18:30
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 29. The Witches of Eastwick (1987) I thought I had seen this before but I think I had it mixed up with a bunch of different movies in my brain. This isn't a horror movie but I think it should count. Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle Pfeiffer are three single 4/5 30. House (1985) (Rewatch) This is definitely one of the VHS boxes that scared me as a kid, but the movie is more of a comedy than anything. A writer moves into his aunt's house after his aunt hangs herself, planning to write about his experiences in Vietnam. Unfortunately, he has PTSD and also the house is haunted and those two things turn into some slapstick shenanigans with George Wendt for whatever reason. It's not a great movie, but I like it because I'm a sucker for goofy practical effects and house has them out the wazoo. 3/5 31. Ravenous (1999) (Rewatch) Manifest Destiny and a big bowl of Dude Stew. I love this movie, I think it's criminally underrated. Robert Carlyle is fantastic and the score (done entirely on period accurate instruments) makes me feel like I am going insane, which is a compliment. 4.5/5Total Watched: 31/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator), Exorcist Anniversary (Prince of Darkness), Picnic in Space (Pitch Black) New To You: 17/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit, Pitch Black, The Witches of Eastwick) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla) That's 31 movies hit and the thread challenges were already complete, so I've achieved my goal - but there's still a week until Halloween, so I know I will get some more movies in and I'll keep posting about em.
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Oct 24, 2023 22:34
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 32. The Fog (1980) (Rewatch) Gave this another chance after not really clicking it with when I watched it early in the pandemic, and I'm glad I did. Maybe I was more patient this time, but I liked the slow burn as the g-g-g-ghost pirates creep around and the mystery unravels, and there are some real standout shots, like this one:  I love the score for this one. 4/5 33. Saw X (2023) With this being a prequel / sequel nonsense thing so that they could bring back Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith, I didn't have particularly high hopes, but Saw X is one of the better entries for the series. The 'victims' mostly deserve it and Cecilia is a good villain (weird to say that the villain isn't the guy making people scoop their brains out or whatever but I guess that's the Saw franchise for you), laughed when Billy the puppet rolled out and Mateo seemed more freaked out by him than the trap strapped to his head. Mid-credits scene got a genuine LOL from me. Fun movie. 3.5/5Total Watched: 33/31 All Challenges Complete: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator), Exorcist Anniversary (Prince of Darkness), Picnic in Space (Pitch Black) New To You: 18/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit, Pitch Black, The Witches of Eastwick, Saw X) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 27, 2023 19:49
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With all of the challenges finished, I've just been watching whatever my wife picks and/or revisiting some favorites. 34. Ghostwatch (1992) (Rewatch) This is still one of the coolest ghost stories ever, the kind of thing you could never get away with today. Like a War of the Worlds scenario but it's early 90s Halloween haunting chaos on the BBC. It starts very slow and lulls you into that false sense of security, and then it gets super creepy. The new transfer looks great! 4.5/5 35. The Funhouse (1981) (Rewatch) A slow, stoned wander through the midway games and freak shows, the titty tent and the fortune teller, and you're kind of bored but there's lots to look at. Then Grunting Frankingstein gets a handjob and we're off to the races! Lots of fun puppets and the most annoying teen gets killed first. Hilarious that Tobe Hooper turned down directing E.T. because he was making this. 3/5 36. Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight (1995) (Rewatch) Hello boils and ghouls, loved this just as much on a rewatch. William Sadler is a solid anchor to Billy Zane having the time of his loving life as the campiest demon with the goopiest practical effects. Love a good siege horror! 4/5Total Watched: 36/31 Completed Challenges: CineD Horror Thread (Basket Case), FvJ Monster Mash (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man), Samhain (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), Back of the Video Store (Destroyer), Birth of Horror (Silver Bullet), HIFE POC (Scream Blacula Scream), Bite-Size Horror (V/H/S/85), HIFE Women (Totally Killer), That Guy Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood), Horror Adjacent (Life), Childhood Trauma (Pet Sematary), Rob Zombie (World War Z), HIFE LGBTQ+ (Bit), Animals Attack (Alligator), Exorcist Anniversary (Prince of Darkness), Picnic in Space (Pitch Black) New To You: 18/6 (Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Terrified, Hour of the Wolf, Destroyer, Gaia, Scream Blacula Scream, American Gothic, VHS 85, Shin Godzilla, Totally Killer, A Bucket of Blood, Life, World War Z, Star Time, Bit, Pitch Black, The Witches of Eastwick, Saw X) History Lesson: 9/5 (1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s) Around the World: 4/4 (South America: Terrified, Europe: Hour of the Wolf, Africa: Gaia, Asia: Shin Godzilla)
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Oct 30, 2023 19:43
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| # ¿ May 22, 2024 13:10 |
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Happy to keep my current gang tag and not upgrade to the Jason one (if the other ones wind up on the table I'd be interested maybe). I also don't need any codes for anything so you can take me off that list. Had a good time participating as always 
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Nov 3, 2023 18:13
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