SHOCKtober
Re: SHOCKtober
The Waypoint casts really dive into the social commentary of the movies while also breaking down what happens in them clearly enough that you can probably follow along even without seeing the films. Patrick and his wife do a super sporadically updated horror podcast as well that usually focuses on one or two movies at a time that I like, and the Waypoint Purgecasts are supposed to just be the opening month of a more general media-focused rewatch podcast as it goes on.
Re: SHOCKtober
30.) It Stains the Sands Red (2016)
well that puts me at two for two movies with ladies trudging through the desert and getting raped across the past two days
It Stains the Sands Red is, at least, pretty significantly better than Revenge. I don't know that I love it, but it's having fun with itself in enough places that I like it. The elevator pitch is that the zombie apocalypse has happened, people are fleeing the cities, and out in the desert beyond Las Vegas, a couple is driving to an airfield to catch their plane to Mexico. But you know how things go, and now there's a woman stranded in the desert and .. a single zombie is there with her. Just one. One zombie that doesn't need to sleep or stop moving or stop walking, just trudging along right behind her while she tries to walk the remaining miles to the airfield. It's a fun premise that stretches beyond just that, and the emotional core of it isn't terrible (even if it didn't entirely work for me), and on the negative side well now you know what happens when the inevitable first "saviors" show up because of COURSE it's what happens. It's the kind of movie that I wish was a little better at doing what it does overall and which really didn't need to trot out that old chestnut, but I don't regret watching it.
well that puts me at two for two movies with ladies trudging through the desert and getting raped across the past two days
It Stains the Sands Red is, at least, pretty significantly better than Revenge. I don't know that I love it, but it's having fun with itself in enough places that I like it. The elevator pitch is that the zombie apocalypse has happened, people are fleeing the cities, and out in the desert beyond Las Vegas, a couple is driving to an airfield to catch their plane to Mexico. But you know how things go, and now there's a woman stranded in the desert and .. a single zombie is there with her. Just one. One zombie that doesn't need to sleep or stop moving or stop walking, just trudging along right behind her while she tries to walk the remaining miles to the airfield. It's a fun premise that stretches beyond just that, and the emotional core of it isn't terrible (even if it didn't entirely work for me), and on the negative side well now you know what happens when the inevitable first "saviors" show up because of COURSE it's what happens. It's the kind of movie that I wish was a little better at doing what it does overall and which really didn't need to trot out that old chestnut, but I don't regret watching it.
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WingSounds
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Re: SHOCKtober
On the one hand, I actually think - having looked at Revenge - it might be made more for people like me; I totally get why it wasn't your bag, and I'm sorry you had to endure two dumb desert rape movies in a row, but it looks like there's also lots of blood and, well, revenge. That being said, I was left cold by I Spit on Your Grave, so we'll see. Chances are I'll be revisiting this thread to add an errata:
It stains the Sands Red -- Errata
Mm, this sounds pretty good, but I kind of wish it was more a comedy? A dark one, maybe, where after seeming to form a deep and sweet bond between zombie and woman, one must betray the other - but I think I'll give it a chance even outside of my dumb sense of humour.
The premise sounds more intelligent (really!) than a lot of zombie movies, and I'm always more interested in a micro scale.
WingErrata IV: Grave/Raw (2016)
Aww, dangit. This had everything I love. I wanted to love this so much; it's got Blood Red Shoes, for pity's sake! And 4itchytasty! But the reality is that I felt it straddled too many lines, and didn't really click with any of them. It's not horrific enough to be a horror film (or maybe that says too much about me), the drama isn't quite dramatic enough to make it stand as a film that deal with metaphor, and all the good acting and snazzy camerawork couldn't quite save it for me.
To be honest, I feel like this'd be a better film for folk not usually keen on horror films. There's a lot of real clever moments that'll keep you guessing, even if you know the core conceit a moment in. The acting, as mention, is really good, and even some of the stranger moments in the film make sense in the films own way. That said, there is a lot of gore, but it's kind of... Hmn, more shock-y, than horror-y? I feel like I could put it better by someone else, but for me it was too predictable, too pedestrian, and kind of sold itself as being something more. If it were just a 'dumb gore' movie, I'd be more inclined to save some choice cuts; as is, I'm afraid this one'll have to drain out.
WingSounds, but from the future wrote:'hey yo don't even think it'
It stains the Sands Red -- Errata
Mm, this sounds pretty good, but I kind of wish it was more a comedy? A dark one, maybe, where after seeming to form a deep and sweet bond between zombie and woman, one must betray the other - but I think I'll give it a chance even outside of my dumb sense of humour.
The premise sounds more intelligent (really!) than a lot of zombie movies, and I'm always more interested in a micro scale.
WingErrata IV: Grave/Raw (2016)
Aww, dangit. This had everything I love. I wanted to love this so much; it's got Blood Red Shoes, for pity's sake! And 4itchytasty! But the reality is that I felt it straddled too many lines, and didn't really click with any of them. It's not horrific enough to be a horror film (or maybe that says too much about me), the drama isn't quite dramatic enough to make it stand as a film that deal with metaphor, and all the good acting and snazzy camerawork couldn't quite save it for me.
To be honest, I feel like this'd be a better film for folk not usually keen on horror films. There's a lot of real clever moments that'll keep you guessing, even if you know the core conceit a moment in. The acting, as mention, is really good, and even some of the stranger moments in the film make sense in the films own way. That said, there is a lot of gore, but it's kind of... Hmn, more shock-y, than horror-y? I feel like I could put it better by someone else, but for me it was too predictable, too pedestrian, and kind of sold itself as being something more. If it were just a 'dumb gore' movie, I'd be more inclined to save some choice cuts; as is, I'm afraid this one'll have to drain out.
Re: SHOCKtober
I felt about Raw a lot of the same way I felt about Mandy; they're extremely different movies, with different aims and goals, but I was left with the same sort of shrug at the end of it. I liked a LOT about it, but it felt less than the sum of its parts in the final reckoning.
31.) The Thing (1982)
What can be said about The Thing that hasn't already been said? This was the ACTUAL final Film and 40s Podcast from Giant Bomb this month since Vinny couldn't decide whether he wanted to do Jason X or The Thing more, so that was as good an excuse as any to revisit a stone cold classic. The tale of a group of very cold gentlemen and their velvet voiced antagonist needs no real introduction or exposition on just how good the paranoia is, how well the effects the hold up, or how great pretty much the entire cast is. The music! The setting! The doggy! The Thing might never be my all time number one favorite movie, but it constantly tries to muscle its way up to the number two or three spot for good goddamn reason.
And that's a wrap! .. until I end up watching Hocus Pocus before the night is through.
31.) The Thing (1982)
What can be said about The Thing that hasn't already been said? This was the ACTUAL final Film and 40s Podcast from Giant Bomb this month since Vinny couldn't decide whether he wanted to do Jason X or The Thing more, so that was as good an excuse as any to revisit a stone cold classic. The tale of a group of very cold gentlemen and their velvet voiced antagonist needs no real introduction or exposition on just how good the paranoia is, how well the effects the hold up, or how great pretty much the entire cast is. The music! The setting! The doggy! The Thing might never be my all time number one favorite movie, but it constantly tries to muscle its way up to the number two or three spot for good goddamn reason.
And that's a wrap! .. until I end up watching Hocus Pocus before the night is through.
Re: SHOCKtober
all citizens must watch hocus pocus
Re: SHOCKtober
a friend of mine once told me that Hocus Pocus wasn't that good and he didn't understand why I liked it
so i killed him
so i killed him
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Mongrel
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Re: SHOCKtober
Friday wrote:a friend of mine once told me that Hocus Pocus wasn't that good and he didn't understand why I liked it
so i killed him
I hope you impaled him on a flute.
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WingSounds
- Posts: 219
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Re: SHOCKtober
Friday wrote:a friend of mine once told me that Hocus Pocus wasn't that good and he didn't understand why I liked it
That doesn't sound like a frien -
also Friday wrote:logical endpoint
nice
Not only do I have time for hocus pocus and practical magic...
Let's keep halloween spirit alive
forever
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beatbandito
- Posts: 4306
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Re: SHOCKtober
Hocus Pocus is truly the scariest movie on this list for how interested the plot is in a 13 year old boy's virginity.
Re: SHOCKtober
Not truly a scary movie, but,
32) He Never Died (2015)
What would otherwise have been a fairly humdrum affair is a fascinating slow burn of a story thanks to Henry Rollins's incredible performance as a man truly incapable of giving a shit about anything. The man has this angry deadpan style that turns scene after scene into something either weirdly hilarious or genuinely chilling, and you get pretty invested in a story that probably wouldn't hold up if it was centered on a lesser actor. It's 97 minutes, it's on Netflix, it's really worth a watch.
32) He Never Died (2015)
What would otherwise have been a fairly humdrum affair is a fascinating slow burn of a story thanks to Henry Rollins's incredible performance as a man truly incapable of giving a shit about anything. The man has this angry deadpan style that turns scene after scene into something either weirdly hilarious or genuinely chilling, and you get pretty invested in a story that probably wouldn't hold up if it was centered on a lesser actor. It's 97 minutes, it's on Netflix, it's really worth a watch.
Re: SHOCKtober
IT'S SHOCKTOBER BITCHES
1.) Candyman (Candyman Candyman Candyman Candyman) [Available on Netflix]
Some movies exist in your memory as long dormant images. So far from a complete picture that they may as well have been a bad dream. For the longest time, Monster Squad was the ultimate example of this for me; I had nightmarish half-recollections of a Frankenstein being sucked into a goddamn vortex that I could not ever place or understand until I finally revisited the film a few years back and confirmed that I hadn't just been imagining things from childhood. Candyman isn't quite on that level, because I always remembered where those recollections came from. The spectre in the mirror, bees buzzing out of the mouth, and (spoilers/warning) a dog's severed head. The movie my sister always shuddered and called one of the scariest things she'd ever seen, but which I could only barely recall actually watching with her (probably because I was a wiener kid) and mostly remembered those few images. With a remake/reboot coming with Jordan Peele's involvement (and rumors that Tony Todd will be reprising) in the air, it seemed time to finally revisit Candyman.
I love urban legend horror (no, really?) so I loved finally sitting down and revisiting this. It takes its time laying out the simple Bloody Mary premise and expanding it to the history of the titular character and what his legend means for the place where it was born, but by the end it's hard not to want to believe in Candyman. (Because when Tony Todd says he's come for you, you best not shut that shit down. I'm looking at you, Helen.) Very easy to see the places where the mythology can be expanded and the rough edges can be smoothed over, so if any kind of re-do keeps the best part of the original (Tony Todd, in case that's not clear) it has a shot at being One Of The Good Ones.
Re: SHOCKtober
Yeah here's hoping for at least one good new creepy movie this year to add to the classics
This one has/had all the right things going for it, jumpscares and comedy and Steve Buscemi.
Placeholder for something witty that doesn't make me sound like an asshole
Re: SHOCKtober
2.) Bait 3D [Available on Amazon Prime Video]
Australia is really good for lean, low budget horror thrillers. Bait 3D is not at the top of the vaunted heights from down under, but it's an a'ight way to waste 90 minutes. If the premise "a bunch of people are trapped by sharks .. IN A GROCERY STORE!" is dumb enough to make you want to watch it, you'll probably have a good enough time. There's some laughably bad effects (the tsunami that causes the implausible situation is a highlight), and pretty much every character is nothing more than a boiled down archetype, but hey, sharks sure do jump at the camera.
If you'd like a similar "trapped in confined spaces by ravenous predators" style flick, I can't recommend this year's Crawl highly enough instead. It's a near perfect execution of this style of film, and doesn't forget that the inciting incident (a massive hurricane) is just as much of a threat as its scaly critters.
Australia is really good for lean, low budget horror thrillers. Bait 3D is not at the top of the vaunted heights from down under, but it's an a'ight way to waste 90 minutes. If the premise "a bunch of people are trapped by sharks .. IN A GROCERY STORE!" is dumb enough to make you want to watch it, you'll probably have a good enough time. There's some laughably bad effects (the tsunami that causes the implausible situation is a highlight), and pretty much every character is nothing more than a boiled down archetype, but hey, sharks sure do jump at the camera.
If you'd like a similar "trapped in confined spaces by ravenous predators" style flick, I can't recommend this year's Crawl highly enough instead. It's a near perfect execution of this style of film, and doesn't forget that the inciting incident (a massive hurricane) is just as much of a threat as its scaly critters.
Re: SHOCKtober
3.) Charlotte: THE RETURN [Available on Amazon Prime Video]
The follow up to the juggernaut success of the world's most famous killer doll -- no, not that one -- not THAT one -- not that one either -- you know the one I mean, Charlotte! -- is exactly what you might hope for in a sequel. If you haven't seen Charlotte, and you love absolute SHITTRASH, you are doing yourself a disservice. It is the laziest, hackiest, most ridiculous fucking excuse for an anthology horror movie you will ever see, and it is wildly goddamn entertaining. The framing device might be the most ridiculous thing you've ever seen if it wasn't for all of the shorts that it's framing. And if you're not willing to get fucked up on whatever your vice of choice is and trust me on this one, at the very least scrub through to the segment where a little girl is trying to buy a movie ticket.
Anyway, this sequel is also sub-Goosebumps level trash in exactly the same insanely slipshod way that makes it well worth your time in a way that a lot of other more mediocre trash is not. This is hot garbage from a fucking microwave, not your fancy-ass stove. We ain't got time for stoves. This time, the framing device is even MORE incredible in that it is barely even stills from the original framing device that the movie sometimes then flat out forgets to or doesn't even use in between the absolutely shitty shorts. One middle segment is pretty unfortunately drawn out, but complaining "this bad part of this bad movie is bad" is bad. I could probably watch a million Charlotte movies if they keep failing to achieve this level of quality while being this batshit weird.
The follow up to the juggernaut success of the world's most famous killer doll -- no, not that one -- not THAT one -- not that one either -- you know the one I mean, Charlotte! -- is exactly what you might hope for in a sequel. If you haven't seen Charlotte, and you love absolute SHITTRASH, you are doing yourself a disservice. It is the laziest, hackiest, most ridiculous fucking excuse for an anthology horror movie you will ever see, and it is wildly goddamn entertaining. The framing device might be the most ridiculous thing you've ever seen if it wasn't for all of the shorts that it's framing. And if you're not willing to get fucked up on whatever your vice of choice is and trust me on this one, at the very least scrub through to the segment where a little girl is trying to buy a movie ticket.
Anyway, this sequel is also sub-Goosebumps level trash in exactly the same insanely slipshod way that makes it well worth your time in a way that a lot of other more mediocre trash is not. This is hot garbage from a fucking microwave, not your fancy-ass stove. We ain't got time for stoves. This time, the framing device is even MORE incredible in that it is barely even stills from the original framing device that the movie sometimes then flat out forgets to or doesn't even use in between the absolutely shitty shorts. One middle segment is pretty unfortunately drawn out, but complaining "this bad part of this bad movie is bad" is bad. I could probably watch a million Charlotte movies if they keep failing to achieve this level of quality while being this batshit weird.
Re: SHOCKtober
4.) Aterrados (Terrified) [Available on Shudder]
This slick little Argentinian movie reminded me of elements of Insidious and Lights Out but was very much its own thing. It's one that I'd be loathe to dive too much into the plot elements of just because it's legitimately unique and interesting when it comes to the why of what's going on, but even if that part doesn't end up tickling you there's still some quality creeps and scares throughout the film. There's slow builds and there's jump scares and there's just some weird and unsettling shit, and in general it's a movie that likes to zig instead of zag and then just for good measure zag again once you're used to the zigs. Definite recommendation.
This slick little Argentinian movie reminded me of elements of Insidious and Lights Out but was very much its own thing. It's one that I'd be loathe to dive too much into the plot elements of just because it's legitimately unique and interesting when it comes to the why of what's going on, but even if that part doesn't end up tickling you there's still some quality creeps and scares throughout the film. There's slow builds and there's jump scares and there's just some weird and unsettling shit, and in general it's a movie that likes to zig instead of zag and then just for good measure zag again once you're used to the zigs. Definite recommendation.
Re: SHOCKtober
5.) Hell House LLC [Available on Amazon Prime Video]
Found footage, as always, is going to be an acquired taste. Most found footage horror films have a particular style and build to their scares and narratives that turn them much more into a specific genre of horror film rather than just a technique for shooting on a low budget. I'd heard some pretty good things about Hell House LLC and seen it crop up on some other monthly lists, and hey, there are two sequels to round out my own month if I fall behind or come up short on other things to watch, so why not?
Hell House LLC is .. a pretty good found footage horror movie! And it is still very much a found footage horror movie. There's not a lot new here, it's just a well done version of the thing, and there are a LOT of bad versions of the thing that me and the missus have watched a few minutes of across streaming platforms. The conceit of a documentary wrapping around the main found footage gives some stylistic variance so you're not always watching grainy crap, a haunted house attraction makes for an appropriately Halloweeny vibe for the season, and there are a few good spooks (though a few too many of them are hurt by not really trusting the audience to see what just happened initially). It's also very rarely shaky cam, so you don't have to worry so much about motion sickness.
Found footage, as always, is going to be an acquired taste. Most found footage horror films have a particular style and build to their scares and narratives that turn them much more into a specific genre of horror film rather than just a technique for shooting on a low budget. I'd heard some pretty good things about Hell House LLC and seen it crop up on some other monthly lists, and hey, there are two sequels to round out my own month if I fall behind or come up short on other things to watch, so why not?
Hell House LLC is .. a pretty good found footage horror movie! And it is still very much a found footage horror movie. There's not a lot new here, it's just a well done version of the thing, and there are a LOT of bad versions of the thing that me and the missus have watched a few minutes of across streaming platforms. The conceit of a documentary wrapping around the main found footage gives some stylistic variance so you're not always watching grainy crap, a haunted house attraction makes for an appropriately Halloweeny vibe for the season, and there are a few good spooks (though a few too many of them are hurt by not really trusting the audience to see what just happened initially). It's also very rarely shaky cam, so you don't have to worry so much about motion sickness.
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