i haven't even seen this movie and i agree
31 Days of October
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liquidnature
- Posts: 556
- Joined: Tue Dec 11, 2018 3:44 am
hooray i managed to create a halloween avatar 
Thanks for a rec, Thoxans! Added it to my list. Killer pov angle might be interesting.thoxans wrote: ↑Tue Oct 08, 2019 1:05 pm another son of sam (dave a. adams) no budget nc horror! wooden stilted acting would be an understatement, but the pic does the killer pov thing a year before carp's halloween. and it sneaks in a seriously deadly serious ending out of nowhere; cut to black is rarely used as well. plus, dat slo mo n dem freeze frames doe! rec'd for wba and maybe silga and maybe no one else
roeg's the witches is pretty good thx to anjelica huston and roald dahl. and jim henson i guess
I once shows roeg’s witches to bunch of ten year old kids in cambria heights. during the transformation scene they yelled that it was too scary, I asked if I should turn off and they screamed “nooooo!”
other rece watches:
the robot vs. the aztec mummy (rafael portillo) didn't know until after i watched it that not only is this the third part in a trilogy of flicks, but it also reuses a lot of footage from the first two flicks, seemingly making this a pretty lazy effort overall. alas, i enjoyed it (perhaps in part cuz i didn't know it was so 'lazily' thrown together)! certainly made me want to watch the first two entries. plus, bonus points for mexican orson welles!
the city of the dead (john llwellyn moxey) this one was actually really good. while it didn't follow through on the pitch black pessimistic ending, it still goes pretty dark. easily up there with some of the top hammer horrors (which this can def be confused as being)
game over (ashwin saravanan) i always thought that the nonsensical can really play into the hands of the horror genre... and this proves just that! story strands are sometimes tangential at best, popping up, seeming important, and then fading away, in favor of some other random twist or turn. the movie is simultaneously a movie adaptation of pac-man, a remake of run lola run (if lola were in a wheelchair), a home invasion thriller, a trauma drama, and a meditation on recovery/reincarnation. crazy stuff. but fun af to watch (admittedly enjoyed the first third, started to think 'this sux' during the second third, and really came around to 'haha cool' in the final third)
the medium (jacek koprowicz) netflix randomly dropped a bunch of polish films out of nowhere like a week or two ago, so i made sure to hop on one of the horror/thriller themed ones first. like game over, this really doesn't make much sense; and just like game over, my feelings somewhat wavered throughout (i think this stumbles a bit towards the end). nevertheless, there is lots to like here. it's well shot, has an affecting score, and the acting is all around solid. i'd give it a rec. looks like there's a copy on tube as well, for those netflix-adverse. sidenote: would make a great double bill with cronenberg's scanners
the robot vs. the aztec mummy (rafael portillo) didn't know until after i watched it that not only is this the third part in a trilogy of flicks, but it also reuses a lot of footage from the first two flicks, seemingly making this a pretty lazy effort overall. alas, i enjoyed it (perhaps in part cuz i didn't know it was so 'lazily' thrown together)! certainly made me want to watch the first two entries. plus, bonus points for mexican orson welles!
the city of the dead (john llwellyn moxey) this one was actually really good. while it didn't follow through on the pitch black pessimistic ending, it still goes pretty dark. easily up there with some of the top hammer horrors (which this can def be confused as being)
game over (ashwin saravanan) i always thought that the nonsensical can really play into the hands of the horror genre... and this proves just that! story strands are sometimes tangential at best, popping up, seeming important, and then fading away, in favor of some other random twist or turn. the movie is simultaneously a movie adaptation of pac-man, a remake of run lola run (if lola were in a wheelchair), a home invasion thriller, a trauma drama, and a meditation on recovery/reincarnation. crazy stuff. but fun af to watch (admittedly enjoyed the first third, started to think 'this sux' during the second third, and really came around to 'haha cool' in the final third)
the medium (jacek koprowicz) netflix randomly dropped a bunch of polish films out of nowhere like a week or two ago, so i made sure to hop on one of the horror/thriller themed ones first. like game over, this really doesn't make much sense; and just like game over, my feelings somewhat wavered throughout (i think this stumbles a bit towards the end). nevertheless, there is lots to like here. it's well shot, has an affecting score, and the acting is all around solid. i'd give it a rec. looks like there's a copy on tube as well, for those netflix-adverse. sidenote: would make a great double bill with cronenberg's scanners
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Evelyn Library P.I.
- Posts: 1339
- Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2018 10:36 pm
This October I've been developing a strange, wonderful crush on Bela Lugosi. Pictured is Lugosi showing off his aftershave lotion in The Devil Bat. Not pictured, me sacrificing the dictates of good taste in the name of love. How Lugosi can you go?
Update on recent horror watches:
The Eye (David Moreau & Xavier Palud, 2008) 3/10
Crawl (Alexandre Aja, 2019) 3/10
The House on Sorority Row (Mark Rosman, 1983) 3/10
Piranha (Joe Dante, 1978) 4/10
The Guardian (William Friedkin, 1990) 4/10
Annabelle Comes Home (Gary Dauberman, 2019) 4/10
Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers (Michael A. Simpson, 1988) 4/10
Child’s Play (Lars Klevberg, 2019) 5/10
Virus (John Bruno, 1999) 5/10
Ma (Tate Taylor, 2019) 6/10
Final Exam (Jimmy Huston, 1981) 6/10
Summer of 84 (François Simard, Anouk Whissell & Yoann-Karl Whissell, 2018) 7/10
The Eye (David Moreau & Xavier Palud, 2008) 3/10
Crawl (Alexandre Aja, 2019) 3/10
The House on Sorority Row (Mark Rosman, 1983) 3/10
Piranha (Joe Dante, 1978) 4/10
The Guardian (William Friedkin, 1990) 4/10
Annabelle Comes Home (Gary Dauberman, 2019) 4/10
Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers (Michael A. Simpson, 1988) 4/10
Child’s Play (Lars Klevberg, 2019) 5/10
Virus (John Bruno, 1999) 5/10
Ma (Tate Taylor, 2019) 6/10
Final Exam (Jimmy Huston, 1981) 6/10
Summer of 84 (François Simard, Anouk Whissell & Yoann-Karl Whissell, 2018) 7/10
watching charisma and it's creepy af and also 1999 so
THE QUEEN OF SPADES -- Anton Walbrook as Suvorin, an engineer in early 19th Century Russia who wants to gain wealth at the gaming table by obtaining the Secret Of The Cards from Countess Ranevskaya, who got the secret herself by selling her soul, and yeah there's a catch. Great fun, vonSternbergian sets and costumes and cinematography and there's good old Anton Walbrook who is never more alarming than when he's telling someone to not be alarmed.
These matters are best disposed of from a great height. Over water.
troublesome night 5, herman yau
1999 poll/october thread cross post i guess?
i totally love these yau troublesome night films - extreme low budget anthology films (where the stories are often wonderfully interwoven, and there are a few like 6 which comes out in '99 also that aren't anthology films) based on weird hk urban legends.
this one is just kind of perfect - barely scraping by taxi driver has a weird night of picking up dying gangsters and ghosts, another in debt cab driver makes a deal with a ghost in his new haunted apartment to give away half his life (including half his wife and son!) in exchange for winning at gambling, the son grows up to be bumbling security guard in new urban development built over the apartment of his childhood.
the whole thing is really mean (they show full clip of margaret thatcher falling down the stairs in her visit to china in the first few minutes) and more than a little sad, just economic precariousness as the road to all horror. these films are definitely not the best yau stuff, but there is something about them that makes me remember why i love hk film in the first place. slightly shabbier versions than the one i watched on youtube if anyone is interested...
I'm going to try to fit at least a few episodes of this Korean psycho-thriller thing into my Halloween schedule:
It's a 2019 series called Hell is Other People (aka Strangers From Hell), directed by Kim Yong-ki.
It has 10 episodes, each an hour long.
"It tells the story of a young man in his 20's who moves to Seoul after landing an internship in a company and decides to stay in an ominous dormitory as he needs to save money. It is the residents of the dormitory that would creep you out. " - Wikipedia
It's a 2019 series called Hell is Other People (aka Strangers From Hell), directed by Kim Yong-ki.
It has 10 episodes, each an hour long.
"It tells the story of a young man in his 20's who moves to Seoul after landing an internship in a company and decides to stay in an ominous dormitory as he needs to save money. It is the residents of the dormitory that would creep you out. " - Wikipedia
Last few days of horror:
Candyman (Bernard Rose, 1992) 9/10
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (Tom McLoughlin, 1986) 8/10
Jennifer's Body (Karyn Kusama, 2009) 6/10
The Entity (Sidney J. Furie, 1982) 3/10
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (Dominique Othenin-Girard, 1989) 2/10
Candyman is the best horror film I've seen in many years. Multi-layered commentary on society, racism, social divide and so much more. Aerial camera shots are used wisely and serves the story rather than just being a pointless gimmick. Virginia Madsen is a great choice for a lead. She brings her usual curiosity and playfulness. New blu-ray restoration is among the best works of remastering I've ever seen - perfect video and audio quality.
Friday the 13th Part 6 was the biggest surprise of the month so far. It is a kind of meta-film. Well aware of its standard slasher movie tropes, but also sporting a healthy dose of irony and sarcasm. No wonder that it inspired Kevin Williamson to write Scream. I generally like Friday the 13th franchise, but no previous film came even close to the detailed direction and symbolism of Part 6. Props to director Tom McLoughlin who embraced the best bits of story's premise and merged it with carefully constructed thriller rather than a dumb scene-by-scene marathon of shallowness of Halloween 5.
Also, I can't see how and why Martin Scorsese admires The Entity aside from the usually competent performance by Barbara Hershey.
Jennifer's Body rightfully deserves its cult status and resurgence in admiration, but I wish that Kusama made a more detailed and carefully constructed film that could live up to the promise of the great ideas of Diablo Cody's story.
Candyman (Bernard Rose, 1992) 9/10
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (Tom McLoughlin, 1986) 8/10
Jennifer's Body (Karyn Kusama, 2009) 6/10
The Entity (Sidney J. Furie, 1982) 3/10
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (Dominique Othenin-Girard, 1989) 2/10
Candyman is the best horror film I've seen in many years. Multi-layered commentary on society, racism, social divide and so much more. Aerial camera shots are used wisely and serves the story rather than just being a pointless gimmick. Virginia Madsen is a great choice for a lead. She brings her usual curiosity and playfulness. New blu-ray restoration is among the best works of remastering I've ever seen - perfect video and audio quality.
Friday the 13th Part 6 was the biggest surprise of the month so far. It is a kind of meta-film. Well aware of its standard slasher movie tropes, but also sporting a healthy dose of irony and sarcasm. No wonder that it inspired Kevin Williamson to write Scream. I generally like Friday the 13th franchise, but no previous film came even close to the detailed direction and symbolism of Part 6. Props to director Tom McLoughlin who embraced the best bits of story's premise and merged it with carefully constructed thriller rather than a dumb scene-by-scene marathon of shallowness of Halloween 5.
Also, I can't see how and why Martin Scorsese admires The Entity aside from the usually competent performance by Barbara Hershey.
Jennifer's Body rightfully deserves its cult status and resurgence in admiration, but I wish that Kusama made a more detailed and carefully constructed film that could live up to the promise of the great ideas of Diablo Cody's story.
watching the rollin. alone. in the dark. howling winds etc
it may suffer on the heels of as bodas de deus but the opening is promisingedit: it's definitely a mood. wasn't convinced till the last half hour though
yet more rece watches:
ghoulies (luca bercovici) within the first five min of this, i was almost positive it was going to be abs horrible, but then something strange happened on the way to it being abs horrible - it started to revel in the horribleness. gleefully. it's stupid, sure, but so sincere in its stupidity, that it ends up being admirable in its own goofy way. features not only the titular gremlin ripoffs, but sorcery, a strangely claustrophobic setting (similar to the deadly spawn), suitably mediocre-to-poor acting across the board, a richard band score that danny elfman has ripped off countless times, and last but certainly not least jack fuxkin nance
the unknown (tod browning) faux freak freaks out, becoming freak, freaking out, i.e., good stuff. insert footjob joke here
nang nak (nonzee nimibutr) meh. interesting cuz outside of joe, thai cinema isn't really on my radar; other than that, it was mostly just ok. but nak saying mak over and over again will probs stick in my head for a while tbh...
sugar hill (paul maslansky) dope. afrozombixploitation. thought marki bey was gonna be a liability at the start (which proved part of the point), but then, damn
the devil-doll (tod browning) def ain't no unknown. barrymore's arthritic hands are the scariest thing about this flick. cool old skool special effects tho
forgotten (jang hang-jun) netflix made this look like a horror film grrr
tusk (kevin smith) the auteur's piece de resistance. lulz
the forest of love (sion sono) it's sono, sooo...
ghoulies (luca bercovici) within the first five min of this, i was almost positive it was going to be abs horrible, but then something strange happened on the way to it being abs horrible - it started to revel in the horribleness. gleefully. it's stupid, sure, but so sincere in its stupidity, that it ends up being admirable in its own goofy way. features not only the titular gremlin ripoffs, but sorcery, a strangely claustrophobic setting (similar to the deadly spawn), suitably mediocre-to-poor acting across the board, a richard band score that danny elfman has ripped off countless times, and last but certainly not least jack fuxkin nance
the unknown (tod browning) faux freak freaks out, becoming freak, freaking out, i.e., good stuff. insert footjob joke here
nang nak (nonzee nimibutr) meh. interesting cuz outside of joe, thai cinema isn't really on my radar; other than that, it was mostly just ok. but nak saying mak over and over again will probs stick in my head for a while tbh...
sugar hill (paul maslansky) dope. afrozombixploitation. thought marki bey was gonna be a liability at the start (which proved part of the point), but then, damn
the devil-doll (tod browning) def ain't no unknown. barrymore's arthritic hands are the scariest thing about this flick. cool old skool special effects tho
forgotten (jang hang-jun) netflix made this look like a horror film grrr
tusk (kevin smith) the auteur's piece de resistance. lulz
the forest of love (sion sono) it's sono, sooo...
la maldición de la llorona (baledón 1961) opens with a strangely familiar image --
yes it's straight out of bava's black sunday from the previous year let's see what happens next
\
not a bad movie
if only tangentially related to the llorona legend
yes it's straight out of bava's black sunday from the previous year
let's see what happens next\not a bad movie
if only tangentially related to the llorona legend
Last edited by rischka on Thu Oct 31, 2019 2:39 am, edited 3 times in total.
sooooo halloween viewing anyone? i'm thinking midsommar or alucarda 
i tried to do some halloween viewing this year. it was partially a chance to catch up on some well-known films that i've never seen. i watched some terrible movies like the curse of la llorona, child's play, hellraiser, and killer workout (so bad i couldn't finish it; wba might like it- it reminded me thematically of that jamie lee curtis/john travolta movie he made us watch in a cup a few years back), and some decent-ish ones like 28 days later, yellowbrickroad, hereditary, sleepaway camp, slumber party massacre, and 30 days of night. didn't see anything that was really good. i think i'm going to watch midsommar tomorrow night. that'll bring me up to 4 2019 movies, which will be the most same year releases that i've watched in probably 10 years. 
"Most esteemed biographer of Peter Barrington Hutton"
yeah i'm at a record pace for current films too -- 6!
only because breaking bad and deadwood which probably shouldn't count lol
only because breaking bad and deadwood which probably shouldn't count lol
I finished October with these titles:
Species (Roger Donaldson, 1995) 6/10
Mimic (Guillermo del Toro, 1997) 6/10
The Faculty (Robert Rodriguez, 1998) 5/10
The Keep (Michael Mann, 1983) 5/10
The Island of Dr. Moreau (John Frankenheimer, 1996) 4/10
Ghosts of Mars (John Carpenter, 2001) 2/10
Mostly just filling in the blanks in the filmographies of the aforementioned directors. Nothing spectacular, but Species and Mimic kept my interest throughout their run-time. And boy was that Carp's film terrible.
Species (Roger Donaldson, 1995) 6/10
Mimic (Guillermo del Toro, 1997) 6/10
The Faculty (Robert Rodriguez, 1998) 5/10
The Keep (Michael Mann, 1983) 5/10
The Island of Dr. Moreau (John Frankenheimer, 1996) 4/10
Ghosts of Mars (John Carpenter, 2001) 2/10
Mostly just filling in the blanks in the filmographies of the aforementioned directors. Nothing spectacular, but Species and Mimic kept my interest throughout their run-time. And boy was that Carp's film terrible.
I'm extremely disappointed in myself, I only saw one seasonal film from my now two-year old, to-watch horror list: The Serpent and the Rainbow.
One of the crappiest, least scary films I ever saw. I really miss being scared!
One of the crappiest, least scary films I ever saw. I really miss being scared!
October summarization:
The Living Dead Girl (Jean Rollin, 1982) - Or Jean Rollin's Céline...or well, that might be pushing it a little. I enjoy the alien acting he often extracts out of his limited actresses, Françoise Blanchard truly gives a living dead impression. It was really rough around the edges like most Rollin films with poor special effects, supporting set-pieces and whatnot, but the Rollinian charms of the two girls made it worthwhile. A lesser Rollin is still very much an interesting film.
One detail I just learned is that surrealist Georges Bataille, whose work have been referenced by Rollin several times, had an affair with Rollin's mom and used to read him bed time stories.
Other highlights:
She Killed in Ecstasy (Jesús Franco, 1971) - I feel like I should like Franco's films a lot more than I usually do. Soledad Miranda pushed this one over the edge.
All the Colors of the Dark (Sergio Martino, 1972)
Dead of Night (Bob Clark, 1974) - How the hell did a director of fine horror films like Black Christmas and this one end up directing Porky's??
Prince of Darkness (John Carpenter, 1987)
eXistenZ (David Cronenberg, 1999) - Cronenberg can't fool me, all I saw was a movie about anal sex.
See You in Hell, My Darling (Nikos Nikolaidis, 1999)
Halloween II (Rob Zombie, 2009)
Cam (Daniel Goldhaber, 2018)
The Living Dead Girl (Jean Rollin, 1982) - Or Jean Rollin's Céline...or well, that might be pushing it a little. I enjoy the alien acting he often extracts out of his limited actresses, Françoise Blanchard truly gives a living dead impression. It was really rough around the edges like most Rollin films with poor special effects, supporting set-pieces and whatnot, but the Rollinian charms of the two girls made it worthwhile. A lesser Rollin is still very much an interesting film.
One detail I just learned is that surrealist Georges Bataille, whose work have been referenced by Rollin several times, had an affair with Rollin's mom and used to read him bed time stories.
As far back as I can remember, my earliest memories are of a man stooped over my cradle. This man was talking to me, telling me bedtime stories. […] Other memories return. Images. This man and I hiding around a corner, watching from cover the little village square with its church. A host of little girls in white emerge, veils on their heads, white gloves […] “Big wolf babies,” he said. […] That phrase, “Big wolf baby” can be found in a short text entitled La petite écrevisse blanche […] All of the female adolescents in my books and films are faces made after the one and only ‘Simone’ (from Histoire de l’oeil) and the possibilities of her. […] Only adolescents could stay innocent and beautiful whilst owning up to the filthiest acts, for disobedience pervades their atmosphere
Georges Bataille entered the life of Denise Rollin-Roth-Le Gentil on October 2, 1939 just after her separation from her husband, Jean’s father. A model for painters, Denise was a bright, cultured woman whose circle of friends included Jean Cocteau, André Breton and Jacques Prévert. She has been described by her entourage as a woman possessed of an extraordinary beauty characterised as “melancholy and taciturn.” Her son was less than a year old when her adventure with the writer started. Jean Rollin wallowed in the atmosphere created and tales told by Bataille who at the time was living with them on rue de Lille in Paris. Between the autumn of 1941 and March 1943, the writer regularly hosted readings-cum-discussions at Denise Rollin’s apartment. Two discussion groups grew out of them; they included a number of intellectuals like Maurice Blanchot, Michel Leiris, Raymond Queneau or Michel Fardoulis-Lagrange.
Other highlights:
She Killed in Ecstasy (Jesús Franco, 1971) - I feel like I should like Franco's films a lot more than I usually do. Soledad Miranda pushed this one over the edge.
All the Colors of the Dark (Sergio Martino, 1972)
Dead of Night (Bob Clark, 1974) - How the hell did a director of fine horror films like Black Christmas and this one end up directing Porky's??
Prince of Darkness (John Carpenter, 1987)
eXistenZ (David Cronenberg, 1999) - Cronenberg can't fool me, all I saw was a movie about anal sex.
See You in Hell, My Darling (Nikos Nikolaidis, 1999)
Halloween II (Rob Zombie, 2009)
Cam (Daniel Goldhaber, 2018)
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Evelyn Library P.I.
- Posts: 1339
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OMG wowhalloweennui wrote: ↑Fri Nov 01, 2019 11:42 am One detail I just learned is that surrealist Georges Bataille, whose work have been referenced by Rollin several times, had an affair with Rollin's mom and used to read him bed time stories.
That's the neatest of tidbits, and explains a lot 
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Evelyn Library P.I.
- Posts: 1339
- Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2018 10:36 pm
Favourite Halloween/horror-ish gleanings this October, in order viewed:
Double, Double, Toil and Trouble (1993)
The Alligator People (1959)
Return of the Vampire (1943) <3 Bela <3
Davey Jones' Locker (1900)
Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) <3 Bela <3
The Mummy (1999)
The Devil Bat (1940) <3 Bela <3
Chandu the Magician (1932) <3 Bela <3
Blood Feast (1963)
Day the World Ended (1955) <3 Corman <3
The Wasp Woman (1959) <3 Corman <3
A Bucket of Blood (1959) <3 Corman <3
Double, Double, Toil and Trouble (1993)
The Alligator People (1959)
Return of the Vampire (1943) <3 Bela <3
Davey Jones' Locker (1900)
Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) <3 Bela <3
The Mummy (1999)
The Devil Bat (1940) <3 Bela <3
Chandu the Magician (1932) <3 Bela <3
Blood Feast (1963)
Day the World Ended (1955) <3 Corman <3
The Wasp Woman (1959) <3 Corman <3
A Bucket of Blood (1959) <3 Corman <3
This Halloween was something of a wash -- I just watched BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN and called it a night.
These matters are best disposed of from a great height. Over water.
Has anyone else been preparing their watchlist for this year? My own list for 2020 started taking shape in November 2019.
i've been hoarding horror flicks on my dvr for months now in preparation! just a smattering of the collection to be consumed includes black cats and broomsticks, blacula, the devil within her, dolls, from beyond, the gorgon, house on haunted hill, lifeforce, the living skeleton, mad monster party, night of the creeps, q: the winged serpent, and the terminal man