October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 24

Day 24 was filled with catching up on episodes of Masters of Horror that I'd never seen so let's get to it -

The V Word is a vampire story from Ernest Dickerson that doesn't take long to get started but quickly loses steam and becomes a waiting game for anything interesting to happen in the 2nd half. The make up and effects are good but this isn't one of the better episodes.

The acting in Brad Anderson's Sounds Like may be among the best in the series, especially from the lead Chris Bauer who carries the film as a man dealing with the tragic death of his young son and suffering from a condition that drastically amplifies his hearing levels. As his marriage falls apart it is easy to predict the complete and total mental breakdown and all of the horrors that come with it. If the rest of the episode was as good the end this would be a classic episode. Unfrotunately it is a bit too slow going and aside from Bauer there's not a single interesting character.

Tobe Hooper's season 2 entry was The Damned Thing and much like his entry in season 1, Dance of the Dead, I'm not a fan. The Damned Thing starts out with a bang and builds immediate interest in the story. There are a few incredibly violent and gory moments but the story just isn't strong enough. 

Lastly there was Dream Cruise from director Norio Tsuruta which was the extended episode of the season clocking in at around 87 minutes which helped this one a bit but unfortunately it's still mediocre. This is a love triangle that turns murderous with a very mid-2000s ghost story thrown on top of it set in the middle of the ocean on a yacht. Some chilling scenes and an okay story makes it worth a watch. 

Today's Rundown

The V Word - 4/10

Sounds Like - 5/10

The Damned Thing - 4/10

Dream Cruise - 5/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 23

Cushing and Lee, Lee and Cushing... are you getting tired of hearing about them? You shouldn't because they always mean a good time. Nothing But The Night isn't great but the acting is superb. This crime thriller turned horror story has a great ending that really pulls it above being average. It's worth checking out.

Cave Of The Living Dead is missing that moment to really lift it up. I can't say I think the movie is bad but I was disinterested for almost the entire film and it feels very cliche. It has all the tropes of a classic gothic vampire film but it never pulls you in or shocks you.

The last film of the night was The Exorcism Of Molly Hartley, which I'll be doing a full review on the Blu-ray release. I'll sum it up like this - I don't remember much about the first Molly Hartley movie other than I hated it. I don't think I hated this one quite as much but I certainly didn't like it.

Today's Rundown
Nothing But The Night - 6/10
Cave Of The Living Dead - 4/10
The Exorcism Of Molly Hartley - 3/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 21

Day 21 was a fun one with three first time viewings that I really enjoyed and revisiting one movie that had been on my mind lately.

First up was Bloody Knuckles, a Canadian production from last year that is absolutely hilarious as an underground comic book writer offends a local gang leader and gets his hand lopped off. Of course his hand comes back to life in order to exact revenge and help get his owner's life back together. Filled with lots of raunchy humor and plenty of violence, Bloody Knuckles reminds me of a "classier" Troma production. Or a film similar in tone to Troma productions without having the Troma schtick. Offensive, violent and a bit heartwarming at times, this is one of my favorite new movies from the last couple of years.

Then came another HP Lovecraft adaptation, one that I've wanted to see for several years. The Color Out Of Space was adapted in 2010 by director Huan Vu in Germany and it's a pretty good one. Despite some very poor CGI effects the film has that vibe and atmosphere that can only be summed up as "Lovecraftian". The performances also give off that eery and not quite right feeling as well. Solid writing, directing and acting really make this one a decent success that diehard Lovecraft fans will appreciate.

I'd been curious about 28 Weeks Later for several weeks. I haven't seen it since it was first released to DVD, and even then I may not have actually watched the disc in which case I haven't seen it since it was in theaters. It played out very similarly to how I remember it but everything seemed to move faster. There was no time t really let the suspense and tension build which was part of the reason this movie feels more like an action film than a horror sequel. The direction, shaky cam and effects also make sure that this movie is more of an action film in tone than a horror film. The movie isn't bad but it is predictable and very much style over substance.

Lastly was my favorite film of the day which is no surprise given the cast and director... Imagine being Pete Walker and waking on set for the first day and realizing that you actually get to direct Peter Cushing, Vincent Price, Christopher Lee and not least of all John Carradine all in one picture. That's my film making wet dream if there ever was one. The House Of The Long Shadows is horror comedy romp featuring an entire generation's worth of legends. The comedy isn't only written in the dialogue but in body language and facial expressions. The quartet prove they're more than capable of generating laughs from the audience. The natural energy that Pete Walker brought to the film is similar to that of the movie Clue that would hit theaters 2 short years later. It's that frenetic energy of Clue but slowed down a bit and a bit less zany, but only a bit. You can tell they had a blast making this picture and it translates to the screen. It's brilliant to watch them seamlessly switch between their serious acting chops and then add that ever so slight comedic touch.

Today's Rundown
Bloody Knuckles - 7.5/10
The Color Out Of Space - 6.5/10
28 Weeks Later - 5.5/10
House Of The Long Shadows - 8/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 20

I have always enjoyed nature's revenge type horror films but one that had escaped me seeing it for a long time was The Food Of The Gods. This film directed by Bert I. Gordon is an adaptation of a H. G. Wells story and is a wildly entertaining 70s B-movie. Featuring giant rats, giant wasps, giant worms and even a giant chicken, this fight for survival on a sparsely inhabited island isn't going to be easy for our group of country bumpkins, scientists and stranded vacationers. At least if they kill the chicken they'll have a few weeks worth of delicious dinners. The effects in this are questionable and extremely dated but it only adds to the charm and campiness.

I decided to make my way through Larry Cohen's It's Alive trilogy next. I have previously seen the first film and admittedly wasn't too impressed with it. It had been quite a few years however so I decided to revisit that one to start off with. The movie about a couple that give birth to a dangerous and deformed baby who murders anyone in his way actually features very little murderous baby action and focuses more on the father and his struggle to hold together his marriage and family with their older son and whether he can emotionally distance himself from this rampaging infant who local authorities are trying to capture. The acting is good, the score is good and the effects are good. The only thing holding this back for me is that there are stretches that could have been broken up with a bit more excitement from the baby.

The second film, It Lives Again, starts out with great promise. The first 30 minutes or so set up the story, and bring back our main character from the first film as he visits with families suspected of possibly having the chance at birthing a monster baby which the government has set out to eradicate as it has become a widespread problem. He's a voice fighting for the families right to have the child and love it. Unfortunately right when the movie should take off and hit the next gear in the story and become something great it veers straight into a brick wall and comes to a screeching halt. It immediately starts to drag on at this point and never recovers. It's not a bad film but it does end up being a missed opportunity to make a bigger and better version of the first.

Lastly is It's Alive 3: Island Of The Alive - At this point I think the best option for the series would have been to take the series and ram it head first into a cheese factory, especially for the fact that this film wasn't made until 1986, 13 years after the original and 8 after its immediate predecessor. The battle for the right for these babies to live is a courtroom topic and the judge rules that they be sent to a deserted island to live out their years safely removed from society. There are a few groups that don't like that idea and take their ideas and their guns to the island to exterminate them and meet nasty and untimely deaths as these creatures have become full grown in just a few years time and can reproduce. Eventually taking control of a boat and reaching landfall this would have been the perfect time for Larry Cohen to totally unleash a gory monster movie romp on the audience. The scene where the monsters make landfall is extremely reminiscent of the carnival attack scene in Humanoids From The Deep. Unfortunately the movie restrains itself and we're left with a movie with a very confused identity. I enjoyed the film and think it rivals the first movie for best in the series but this could have been a classic slice of 80s cheese.

Today's Rundown
Food Of The Gods - 7/10
It's Alive - 6.5/10
It Lives Again - 5.5/10
It's Alive 3 - 6.5/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 19

The Witch's Mirror is a chilly and creepy tale of black magic and revenge as a witch seeks vengeance after the murder of her daughter by her husband.  The story is simple and the film is beautifully shot and framed and is thick with atmosphere. Had it felt less familiar and given us a couple more moments that we maybe haven't seen before, or if the production felt just a bit bigger I think this one could be a classic. It's still quite good and one of my favorite Mexican horror films I've ever seen.

I wish the next two films of the day were as good as The Witch's Mirror but that's how these marathons go.

The Executioner Part 2 has a great poster, a great plot fit for exploitation gold. Hell even the opening 10 minutes are promising. And then it comes to a grinding halt where we have to watch a couple girls beg for cocaine with awful acting and horrible dubbing and just plain boring bullshit. This movie drags on and on and on and on. I wasn't expecting anything amazing and I definitely was expecting subpar filmmaking but I was at least hoping to be entertained. The only thing The Executioner killed was this movie. And for those wondering, no, there's no part 1.

And bad goes to worse. The Frozen Scream is awful in every single way. A weak story about slowing down life functions are bringing the person back at a lower body temperature to prevent the effects of aging is just barely touched upon while a series of gruesome murders is taking place and corpses are being turned into mind-controlled zombies. Or something. I was distracted through most of the movie wondering why everyone has a German or Eastern European accent. It didn't make any sense to me. And if I hear the name "Anne" one more fucking time I'm smashing something. Without exaggerating "Anne" has to be said close to 500 times. There's nothing at all worth checking out here. This is a Video Nasty but I'm not really sure why. I guess that the single shot of an axe to a head is what landed the movie on the banned films list but I'd like to think the censors actually cared about us for real this one time and just didn't want anyone to see this piece of shit.

Today's Rundown
The Witch's Mirror - 6.5/10
The Executioner Part 2 - 3/10
The Frozen Scream - 1/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 18

Just a couple of movies for this day, starting with the first time viewing of Stuart Gordon's Daughter Of Darkness. This 1990 made-for-tv movies stars Mia Sara of Ferris Bueller's Day Off fame and Anthony Perkins and follows her as she head's to Romania after the recent death of her mother to find out about the history of her father which leads her down a dark path into vampire lure. I held out hope for this one because it was directed by Stuart Gordon but I was afraid it was going to be entirely forgettable. Well it isn't a lost classic but it is a passable vampire film with good performances that is more graphic in terms of both violence and nudity than I thought it could ever be. Go ahead and track it down if you're a fan of Gordon's.

I've had Lovecraft on my mind quite a bit this passed week and I think I might be on a mini Lovecraft kick this week and to start it off there was no better way than with 2005's The Call Of Cthulhu. This is my 3rd viewing of the movie and it remains an immensely entertaining and great feat of indie filmmaking. The movie is filmed in the silent style of the 1920s that the story was written in and it works really well. There's a few really impressive set pieces and an amazing stop motion animation sequence with Cthulhu. If you're a Lovecraft fan you need to see this one.

Today's Rundown
Daughter Of Darkness - 5/10
The Call Of Cthulhu - 8/10

October Horror Challenge 2015 - Day 17

Morituris: Legion Of The Dead is an Italian horror film recently released on Blu-ray by Synapse Films with special effects work from perhaps the king of Italian special effects Sergio Stivaletti. I had high hopes that this would be a return to Italian horror greatness but then I saw that this film was made in 2011. All expectations were tossed out the window as I figured I'd have heard something about it in four years if it was worth a damn. Well, the movie isn't terrible but it also isn't going to make Italy relevant in the world of horror again either. While Stivaletti can still do great things with his practical effects makeup, Morituris felt like two different movies with the first part being an overdrawn rape/revenge type film without any of the revenge satisfaction. It is brutal and nasty but takes too long and doesn't give the audience the satisfaction of the antagonists getting their just due. That would be where the resurrected Roman gladiators come in but they don't really provide the revenge either as they attack everyone and for as long as is it takes to get to their part of the movie it is a bit of a let down. The movie isn't bad, but it takes too long to get where it should be and then offers too little of what we came to see.

Next up was a viewing of a childhood favorite, Return Of The Living Dead 2... with the French audio track. Why did I watch this with the French audio track, you ask? Well I've seen the movie plenty of times over the years but it has been a very long time since I've been able to see it with the original soundtrack which is only available on the DVD on the French track. I didn't miss anything in the movie as I know exactly what is going on but the French audio did give me drunken giggles. The original soundtrack is superior to the edited one in the film but not enough to make a big deal out of. The movie is a great cheeseball flick and very similar to the original but the soundtrack isn't even comparable to the original which has one of my favorite soundtracks of all time.

Fuck The Green Inferno. This movie is total and complete crap. That's it.

Lastly was a rather boring and uneventful film from Amicus - The Blood Beast Terror. Peter Cushing completists are really the only people that need to check it out. I can't say its really awful, and watching it after The Green Inferno certainly made it seem a bit more palatable. It is well acted but there's so little going on that it just doesn't matter. The end gets a bit more interesting but much too little, far too late.

Today's Rundown
Morituris - 5.5/10
Return Of The Living Dead 2 - 8/10
The Green Inferno - 2/10
The Blood Beast Terror - 4.5/10