Horror Movies

[Jigsaw9 6783]

@Bear

Sounds good! To be honest when I first heard of this movie I thought it would be shit, so immediately forgot about it, lol. But might check it out later.

Edited September 19, 2020 by Jigsaw9

[Bear 1817]

25 minutes ago, Jigsaw9 said:

@Bear

Sounds good! To be honest when I first heard of this movie I thought it would be shit, so immediately forgot about it, lol. But might check it out later.

 

Same, but it really isn't. Currently holds 100% on RT with 62 reviews as well, which is pretty damn good for a movie like this.

[Jigsaw9 6783]

21 hours ago, Bear said:

 

Currently holds 100% on RT with 62 reviews as well, which is pretty damn good for a movie like this.

I am convinced this is some elaborate trolling, lol. I tried to watch the movie last night, but gave up a bit after halftime, it just wasn't doing anything for me. I skipped into it for a few minutes afterwards but it was just all so lame-looking and weak... Also, seemed very much jumpscare-heavy, which I absolutely hate. Guess this just wasn't for me.

Edited September 20, 2020 by Jigsaw9

[nullmoon 784]

8 hours ago, Jigsaw9 said:

I am convinced this is some elaborate trolling, lol. I tried to watch the movie last night, but gave up a bit after halftime, it just wasn't doing anything for me. I skipped into it for a few minutes afterwards but it was just all so lame-looking and weak... Also, seemed very much jumpscare-heavy, which I absolutely hate. Guess this just wasn't for me.

I watched the whole thing and it's overrated. It's OK but doesn't do anything new or clever. I think people's standards are lower due to lockdown boredom

[Bear 1817]

Been re-watching some of the later Friday the 13th movies, and to my huge surprise they're way, way, way better then I remembered.

 

Friday the 13th: A New Beginning - This is in some ways Friday the 13th own Halloween III: Season of the Witch, which is also criminally underrated. It's straight-forward as hell, with loads of murders, blood, gore, nudity and drugs. Can't ask for much more, can ye? Probably the sleaziest in the franchise. 8/10

 

Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives - This is one of the best in the series. What hit me this time is that the new action elements, as well as metahumour, made it seem very inspired by the great The Town That Dreaded Sundown. 9/10

 

Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood - While supernatural elements had already been included in a previous movie, this takes it all to a new level with way more supernatural elements and it works really well. 8/10

 

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan - Super underrated, and obviously very different than the previous movies. This is, by far, the most visually impressive movie in the franchise, and the first 70 minutes or so on the boat are brilliant. When they come to Manhattan it turns into more of a campy movie, but it still works really well. Had a blast! 8/10

 

Will watch the rest before the week is over. Will also re-watch Halloween III: Season of the Witch and the following Halloween movies next month. Probably Hellraiser II and the rest of that franchise as well. I watched the entire Nightmare on Elm Street franchise not too long ago, and I was completely taken by surprise at how much better part 3-> was. So I realized I have to re-watch a lot of the later movies in the other big franchises as well. Should be fun!

[Bear 1817]

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday - Uh... well, after having been taken by surprise by how fun the previous entries have been I must say this was awfully disappointing. Some cool gore and violence, but the plot is a mess, and the whole supernatural element did not work in this movie at all. This would've been so much cooler if Jason went to hell and fucked people up there. Heh.  4/10

[Bear 1817]

And we're on the way:

 

Day 1:

Jason X - Silly, cheesy and dumb, for pretty fun. Contains one of the best kills in the series, and it's pretty enjoyable. 6/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 2:

Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight - This is such a fun movie, and it really works. I would not have mind if this was the last episode of the series, because of just fits so well with the series. It's got darkness, it's got cheese, it's good sleaze, it's got comedy, it's got blood, violence and gore, and it's all around really fun. Super underrated film. 810

[Bear 1817]

Day 3:

Vampires vs. the Bronx - Vampires vs. the Bronx is a new film distributed by Netflix, and it's a really fun and charming movie. It feels familiar, and it feels incredibly 80's in all its camp, cheese and moral, and I really liked it. Think Attack on the Block and The Lost Boys meets The Goonies, and you're kinda there. 8/10

 

Also plus for having horror nerd Luis rocking both a Ghost and Slayer tee. That's pretty rad.

Edited October 3, 2020 by Bear

[Bear 1817]

Day 4:

Ghost Killers vs. Bloody Mary - Ghost Killers vs. Bloody Mary is a Brazilian cheesefest that is slightly too long (about 15-20 minutes), but is also filled with hilarious jokes, buckets on buckets on buckets on buckets on buckets etc. with blood, gore, sleaze, craziness and everything in-between. Think Ghostbusters meets Evil Dead meets Abbott and Costello Meets Frankenstein or something. It's incredibly 80's, and it totally works. 8/10

Edited October 4, 2020 by Bear

[Bear 1817]

Day 5

Christine - Re-watched this John Carpenter classic, and it's as good today as it was 20 years ago. Great atmosphere, visually stunning, well-acted and superbly scored. Great film! 8/10

 

 

 

Day 6

#Alive - South-Korean zombie flick, and yet again a very good one. It's nice and bleak, with some really good atmosphere and intense moments. 7/10

Edited October 8, 2020 by Bear

[Bear 1817]

Day 7

Gretel & Hansel - Director Oz Perkins has become known for making slow-burning horror movies with focus on atmosphere and visceral/cinematic elements above everything else, and Gretel & Hansel is no different. It's based on Hansel and Gretel, it's faithful and probably the one of the best adaptations so far. It's visually perfect with its use of colours, long shots and sets, it's superbly acted and, to me at least, perfectly paced. Incredible film! 9/10

[Jigsaw9 6783]

Watched the new HULU movie Books of Blood loosely based on some of Clive Barker's writing. I was preparing myself for disappointment but... it was actually good??? I enjoyed it at least, almost all the way through. There was some dumb stuff in it (some of the "connections" between the stories were kinda forced/lame) but otherwise I liked the individiual stories they presented. This sort of format is ripe for sequels so I hope that 1. they'll make one, 2. when they do, they won't fuck it up. Solid stuff.

Edited October 8, 2020 by Jigsaw9

[Bear 1817]

Day 8

Tremors: Shrieker Island - Tremors: Shrieker Island is the seventh in the series, and possibly the last? I don't know, but it is, like the vast majority of the series, loads and loads of fun. Michael Gross is, as always, brilliant, and Richard Brake (31, 

Mandy, 3 from Hell) isn't too far behind either. He did superbly, as usual. Very fun film, and if it's the last in the series then it was a proper good ending like. 7/10

 

Day 9

Hubie Halloween - Steven Brill's fourth collaboration with Adam Sandler in the 2000's, and by far, his best one. That isn't to say this is amazing however, because it isn't. But it was fun enough, but its tone is so changing throughout the movie. At times it plays like a children's "horror" comedy, and other time it's much darker and more vulgar, being something way different than a children's "horror" comedy. But it's ok for what it is, and Adam Sandler is pretty good here. But the real stars are easily Kevin James, who has impressed me hella lot lately (didn't even realize it was him until I saw the credits), Steve Buscemi and Ben Stiller. They were all hilarious. 6/10

 

Day 10

Brain Damage - While not Frank Henenlotter's best film, it's still absolutely fantastic. Fun, innovative, nice and gory. Loads and loads of fun. 8/10

 

Brain Damage is so good that even Ghetto Ghouls made a song based off of it:

 

 

Edited October 10, 2020 by Bear

[Bear 1817]

Day 11:

Destroyer - Destroyer is a low-budget slasher set to a prison, starring Deborah Foreman, Clayton Rohner, Lyle Alzado and Anthony Perkins, whoa re all phenomenal. They deliver the kind of acting you don't expect in this type of a cheap slasher. But this was pretty fun. Full of cheese, bad dialogue and all that. Just the way I like it. 7/10

 

Day 12:

Reptilicus - Early 60's giant monster flick, and not one of the better one. This is a Danish-American film with Danish actors, and apparently it was made in both English and Danish with the same cast. I watched it in English. It's standard, and far from the best type of these late 50's-early 60's sci-fi horror flicks with giant monsters. But it was fun nonetheless. I am after all a sucker for this kind of shit. 6/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 13

The Wolf of Snow Hollow - Young Jim Cummings have crafted a movie that feels like a mix of Coen Brothers' Fargo and John Carpenter's The Thing or something, with clear influences from other movies as he more or less wears them on his sleeve. There's obvious homages to Scream, Universal Monster movies or Hammer Horror movies. It's a horror comedy that's neither too funny or scary, but it's just lies somewhere between. It's weirdly acted, but in a beautiful and unique way, it looks gorgeous and feels very different. Totally taken by surprise by this film. Thought it was outright brilliant. 9/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 14

Vampires - I've always disliked John Carpenter's Vampires a lot, despite being a huge, huge fan of John Carpenter. So big of a fan that I consider him one of the greats, but this never did much for me. But having popped up on Netflix I just decided to give it a new chance and I am glad I did, because this was really one. It's a neo-western horror flick, and I am a sucker for all these types of movies (western horrors like Tremors, Ravenous, Bone Tomahawk, Near Dark etc.). Great atmosphere, awesome setting and well-directed and acted. This was a huge surprise. 7/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 15

The Bat - A horror mystery from 1959 with Vincent Price, Agnes Moorehead, Gavin Gordon, John Sutton and Lenita Lane among others. Like more or less all Vincent Price movies it has some excellent camp elements to it, and as usual Vincent Price just steals the show. He's most brilliant, the movie is fun and atmospheric and all around really good. 8/10

 

Day 16

 

Mortuary - Slightly campy, early 80's slasher film. I had never seen this, and I do not know how I've missed it. It's pretty fun and enjoyable, with some fun death scenes and a superb Bill Paxton. 7/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 17

The Murder Mansion - A spanish-italian co-production that feels like a giallo meets a murder mystery. It's fine, but not all that too be honest. It just feels a bit lackluster on both the giallo and mystery side of things. 6/10

 

Day 18

Satan's School for Girls - Satan's School for Girls is something as rare as a 70's TV-movie that is absolutely brilliant. The atmosphere is on point, the actors do really well, it looks nice and the plot is awesome. Also, this movie MUST have been a HUGE inspiration on Dari Argento for Suspiria. Not that they are the same movies, as Suspiria is way more arty, viscerial and complex, but there's so many huge similarities that it just can't have been anything else than Dario been super inspired by it. 9/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 19

Herschell Gordon Lewis' BloodMania - I consider myself a huge fan of Herschell Gordon Lewis, and love plenty of his movie. But dear god, this anthology of four movies, two which were directed by HGL, was so disappointing. The first one, a horror comedy, is nice and gory, and fun. But the others however was just bad. This was HGL's last movie before death, and an awful way to end a career. Sad but true. 4/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 20

Sound from the Deep  - A finnish short movie clocking in at 30 minutes about a team looking for oil, but who ends up finding something very different. It's inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and it's very Lovecraftian. It's not perfect, but I liked the atmosphere a lot and thought it was very good despite its faults. 7/10

[Bear 1817]

Two short movies clocking in at 41 and 32 minutes today, both adaptations of Lovecraft.

 

Day 21

Rough Magik - H.P. Lovecraft adaptation and a part of the H.P. Lovecraft Collection (alongside phenomenal movies like Cool Air, Out of Mind and Pickmans Model (not seen the others)) starring none other than Paul Darrow, who is really good here. The movie itself is not quite as good as Cool Air, Out of Mind and Pickmans Model, but it's certainly a really good adaptation nonetheless. 8/10

 

Day 22

Pickman's Model - This one's even better than Rough Magik. It's from 1981, but looks and feels like it was made in the 50's or something. Like a rough, worn out movie from the 50's. It feels like it looks, with lovely cinematography, thick and gorgeous atmosphere and is overall really good. 8/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 23

The Vampire Doll - The first in a trilogy of Japanese vampire movies from the 70's directed by Yamamoto Michio, and a trilogy I've been wanting to watch for years now, but I could never find one of the movies so I never got going. But the entire Bloodthirsty trilogy popped up on tubi.tv the other day and I could not be happier about it. The Vampire Doll is the first one and it's a classic 60's and 70's Japanese horror mixed with Hammer Horror, and it's absolutely amazing. Think something like The Ghost of Yotsuya and The Snow Woman meets gothic Hammer Horror vampire movies. Or just imagine a Hammer Horror vampire movies set in a more modern Japan with a Japanese twist and a hint of Jean Rollin, and you're there. Anyway, this is superbly written, acted, scored and photographed, with gorgeous visuals and a really well-written story and characters. It's fast-paced, but it never forgets its characters or plot. Absolutely brilliant! 9/10

 

 

I was also told this was by far the worst in the trilogy, so I am kinda looking forward to the two others. Holy shit, that just can't be true.

Edited October 24, 2020 by Bear

[Bear 1817]

Day 24

Lake of Dracula - The second film in Yamamoto Michio's Bloodthirsty trilogy, and it's another very good piece of Japanese gothic horror. This is, despite being the second part of a trilogy, not a continuation of the first movie. They  got nothing to do with eachother, and is only shares common themes. It does have a lot in common, and again it feels like a 1970's Japanese Hammer Horror movie, and it's excellent. It's perhaps a bit more Hammer Horror-esque and less Japanese folklore-esque than The Vampire Doll, but it still feels both fresh and unique. Not quite as good as The Vampire Doll, tho. 8/10

[Bear 1817]

Day 25

Evil of Dracula - The third and last movie in Michio Yamamoto's Bloodthirsty trilogy, and it's a very fine way to end the series. Gothic, Hammar Horror-esque vampire movie with a good, creepy atmosphere, beautiful settings, amazing camera work and superbly acted. It's a really good, and on par with Lake of Dracula. 8/10

 

Day 26:

Mark of the Devil - 1970's folk horror that was made to cash in on the success of Witchfinder General, and this is, in many, many ways, just a much grimmer and more exploitative version of said movie. The movie is grim and dark, it's brutal and really nice and atmospheric. It looks gorgeous, being filmed in Austria and utilizing an actual castle where witchfinding interrogations has taken place, as well as using authentic torture tools and such. Is it as good as Witchfinder General? I would say no, but it's a bit different too. Witchfinder General has a bit more omph and camp over it, especially because of the legend that is Vincent Price, but this is more darker and grimmer, and Reggie Nalder (know for his role as the super grim and trrifying Kurt Barlow in Salem's Lot) as Albino is the standout. He's absolutely terrifying. Perfect performance. 9/10

Edited October 28, 2020 by Bear