What I Watched in October 2022

BARBARIAN (2022) is a horror thriller that does an excellent job of keeping the darker edge of its central premise hidden until the second act. In fact, it might be possible – if you could avoid the trailer or the ongoing online discussions – to see the film and wonder if it was going to be a meet-cute romantic drama. The initial lead characters are likeable and their situation compelling in ways that draw you into the scenario. It helps that both are being played by solid actors capable of walking the fine line between wary and curious. The point at which the film pulls its first narrative split is masterfully handled as the story switches to a third character we learn to dislike and slowly to distrust. But then the film adds another wrinkle that shows us the past awfulness that brings this entire tale to horror territory. BARBARIAN is a well made and smart film that knows its tricks are old but makes up for that by inventing new ways to hide their inevitable culmination. You have probably seen a version of this story before but not told in this way. That makes me appreciate the film that much more.

The List

BARBARIAN (2022) – 7 (well done mystery/horror)

UNINVITED (1987) – 5 (not bad but the budget hampers things)

THE MUNSTERS (2022) – 7

LADY MORGAN’S VENGEANCE (1965) – 6 (interesting gothic gaslighting tale)

HOUSE (1985) – 5 (rewatch)

TRICK ‘R’ TREAT (2008) – 9 (rewatch on the big screen)

STRIPPED TO KILL (1987) – 4

DOCTOR SLEEP (2019) – 9 (rewatch) (director’s cut on Blu)

THE HORRIBLE SEXY VAMPIRE (1971) – 5

HOUSE II: THE SECOND STORY (1987) – 5 (mostly a waste but – stop-motion!)

BLOOD RED SKY (2021) – 9 (very well done)

SMILE (2022) – 6 (well-made, but not as engrossing as I hoped)

THE MUMMY (1933) – 9 (rewatch)

THE MUMMY’S CURSE (1944) – 6 (rewatch)

FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL (1974) – 8 (rewatch on Blu)

HALLOWEEN ENDS (2022) – 7

DARK GLASSES (2022) – 6 (Argento returns for an OK thriller)

THE BLACK CAT (1934) – 9 (rewatch)

THE RAVEN (1935) – 8 (rewatch)

HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1944) – 7 (rewatch)

CRUCIBLE OF HORROR (1971) – 6 (interesting British creeper)

PARSOMNIA (2008) – 4 (needs to be about 15 minutes shorter)

X (2022) – 9

FATAL EXAM (1990) – 3 (needs to be about 30 minutes shorter – at least)  

HALLOWEEN 5: THE REVENGE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1989) – 4 (rewatch)

MEMORIAL VALLEY MASSACRE (1989) – 3 (low budget backwoods slasher)

HALLOWEEN II (1981) – 7 (rewatch)

SCARE PACKAGE (2020) – 5 (mostly unfunny, poorly paced anthology horror – last act ups it a point)

RENEGADE RANGER (1938) – 5 (standard B-western)

DON’T DELIVER US FROM EVIL (1971) – 7 (excellent French tale of adolescent obsession)

FREDDIE’S DEAD: THE FINAL NIGHTMARE (1991) – 4 (rewatch)

SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD (2009) – 7 (rewatch on Blu)

SHALLOW GRAVE (1987) – 7 (surprisingly solid thriller)

PHONE (2002) – 7 (well done South Korean ghost tale)

GOODNIGHT, MOMMY (2022) – 8 (good psychological horror)

THE DEEP HOUSE (2021) – 8 (very good French horror)

FRIDAY THE 13^TH PART 6: JASON LIVES (1986) – 7 (rewatch on Blu)

DEADSTREAM (2022) – 7 (entertaining, funny take on livestreamed ghost hunting)

SCOOBY DOO AND KISS: ROCK AND ROLL MYSTERY (2015) – 6 (fun animated adventure)

THE KILLER MUST KILL AGAIN (1975) – 8 (rewatch)

SHOCK (1977) – 7 (rewatch on Blu)

TERROR ABOARD (1933) – 6 (good pre-code murder thriller)

THE RETURN OF THE VAMPIRE (1943) – 8 (rewatch)

Happy Halloween 2020!

 

I know this is going to be a strange Halloween for all of us but keep safe and try to enjoy it as best you can. Hopefully by next year we can get back to our usual shenanigan's! 

It does suck that the year the holiday falls on a Saturday we all have to crouch inside to avoid making a freaking pandemic worse. 

Here's a couple of HALLOWEEN III trailers to put a smile on your face. 

TRICK (2019) - New Slasher!

Having now caught up with TRICK (2019) I am finding it difficult to understand why the film is not better known. It features a straightforward slasher film plot crossed with a police procedural structure to add more to the tale than just waiting for the next set of victims to present themselves. In fact, the ongoing police interest in the initial murder serves to build the mystery of the killer’s possible supernatural nature and deepens the story's darker details. The first multiple murder incident happens at a Halloween party in 2015 with the known killer escaping custody by diving into a freezing river. As the cops and the FBI investigate, they end up following subsequent October 31st attacks that seem to be the work of the same person taking place in places further down the river in which he supposedly died. The small-town atmosphere of the location and its people add a lot to the feeling of a community assaulted by shocking violence and gives the characters more appeal than the usual faceless drones. I would have even enjoyed some more time spent with a few of the students that survived the 2015 attack specifically. The appearance of Tom Adkins as a local restaurant owner and the man in charge of the annual Halloween festival shows how good the added details already are, so I guess I just want more.

 The story zigs and zags finding smart ways to pull new scares out of the genre tropes that horror fans know so well. Having the attacks center on Halloween makes for the perfect setting to both hide the killer in the open and make chasing him difficult. Situating an attack in a haunted maze that makes it easy to hide and even easier to disguise fresh costumed corpses is even smarter. The script is also clever enough to factor in a lie being told about the first attack that doesn’t pays off until the third act giving the attentive audience another reason to be curious about how things will play out. The movie has a good cast as well, meaning that the dialog is delivered with the right nuance to make things work when doubts start to surface and questions start being answered. I would suggest that new viewers not learn too much about the film so that the fun surprises can have maximum effect.

 

If more slasher efforts were this inventive and well made, I could see a resurgence of the genre. Now, I just hope the writer and director have an equally entertaining sequel up their sleeves. 

HALLOWEEN (1978) - Poster Art

Trailers From Hell - HALLOWEEN (1978)

The Bloody Pit #113 - PRIMAL RAGE (1988)

The late 1980’s were an odd time for Euro-trash exploitation filmmakers. The slasher genre was played out and no other type of horror film was considered a sure bet so, what to do? Why not find a way to somehow piece several sub-genres together to see if, combined, they will make a coherent film and rake in the profits! So they took a little from the animal attack sub-genre with a dash of mad scientist then added in some biting rage zombies and rape-happy frat scumbags to see what would happen. And then they sold it as if it were a slasher film! Madness, thy name is PRIMAL RAGE (1988).

Joining me to talk about this bizarre mixture is Bobby Hazzard who starts things off diving deep into the Claudio Simonetti produced collection of songs that pepper this film. This was released back when a major selling point for a movie was the multi-artist soundtrack album featuring hoped for hit tunes and at times film’s the dialog is often less noticeable than the music. We argue about which song is worse and I sprinkle samples from most of them into the show. You’re welcome/I apologize!

We discuss the film’s ‘rage virus’ and how it, at times, feels a little like a dry run for 28 DAYS LATER (2002). Bobby takes great pleasure in noting the motor vehicles that this film shares with that other Florida-shot Italian-made horror film NIGHTMARE BEACH (1989) made by the same team. We lament the lack of Umberto Lenzi’s directorial touch and wonder about the song this movie shares with a certain Dario Argento film. Of course, we comment on the clothing choices and the odd hairstyles because the 80’s were a dead space for taste and this film is a document of those sad times. My favorite moment in the show is when Bobby rattles off a detailed list of every mad costume he could spot in the chaotic Halloween Party climax. Luckily this entertainingly sleazy, bloody mess moves at a good pace, making talking about it fun.

Let us know what you think about this film or our overlong conversation about it at thebloodypit@gmail.com or over on the show’s FaceBook page. We’d love hear your opinion of this jumbled Italian horror mess.

iTunes LINK

Direct MP3 Download LINK

Happy Halloween 2019!

I hope everyone has a safe and exciting Halloween! Don't eat too many sweets and make sure you keep that Jack O'Lantern lit to scare away the ghouls and goblins! 

You too can survive even the roughest October the 31st! 

What I Watched in August

TOY STORY 4 (2019) is the weakest of the animated series but it’s still an excellent movie. It really only seems less than perfect because of its predecessors. The writers have found another touching and heartfelt tale for these characters that shows that the creators are willing to let the toys grow up in ways similar to how the stories have allowed the kids change. It’s funny, fast, inventive and finds new ways to make the eventual loss of childhood innocence feel like a scary journey worth taking. And the film has a lot of interesting subtext about the importance of imagination to a healthy life. Plus, I would love to see a series of shorts starring the two characters voiced by Key & Peele. That was some hilarious stuff! 

CRAWL (2019) is a throwback to the lean, mean animal attack films of the 1970’s. A hurricane caused flood traps a man under his house and when his daughter arrives to help, things escalate with both of them menaced by alligators. There are a few moments of dodgy CGI and at least one point where I think there is too much physical damage done to a character for them to survive, but it’s a pretty solid small-scale creature feature.

SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK (2019) is based on a series of kid’s books which had me dialing down my expectations. Luckily, the movie does a good job of using well the idea of a book filled with magically real stories. The 1968 setting helps as well with the small-town backdrop adding a Ray Bradbury style touch, at least until the terrifying monsters show up to scare the bejeezus out of the young characters. The movie makes good use of a Halloween setting and well-done practical effects work to amp up the creepiness. Although I enjoyed the film overall, I think it’s missing something that could have pushed it into classic territory. But, I’ll watch it again next October to see if I have a more positive reaction.

The List

20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954) – 8 (rewatch on Blu)
TOY STORY 4 (2019) – 8
FRANKENSTEIN 1970 (1958) – 5 (rewatch on Blu)
THE PROFESSIONALS (1966) – 8
THE MUMMY’S REVENGE (1975) – 8 (rewatch on Blu!)
THE SEA SERPENT (1985) – 4 (Ossorio’s last)
CRAWL (2019) – 6 (animal attack tale - nothing new but well done)
LOS PASAJEROS (1975) – 4 (a.k.a. The Travelers – failed Spanish arthouse w/Naschy)
THE SPIDER WOMAN (1943) – 7 (rewatch of Sherlock Holmes adventure)
LAS ALIMANAS (1977) – 7  (a.k.a. The Vermin – Ossorio crime film)
KEEP WATCHING (2017) – 3 (bad home invasion effort)
TREASURE ISLAND (1934) – 8 (very good version)
BATMAN: HUSH (2019) – 8  (excellent story with a host of villains)
THE GIRL IN THE SPIDER’S WEB (2018)- 4 (well directed but stupidly plotted)
SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK (2019) – 6 (slight but well made)
BILLY THE KID VS DRACULA (1966) – 4 (rewatch on Blu – why do I like this?)
TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD (1972) – 9 (rewatch)
AVENGING FORCE (1986) – 4 (dumb, overlong action film)
DEATH WARMED UP (1984) - 3 (terrible New Zealand horror film)
EMBODIMENT OF EVIL (2008) – 8 (rewatch)
THE LOST SKELETON RETURNS AGAIN (2009) – 8 (rewatch on Blu)
DEMONOID (1980) – 6 (interesting possessed hand story)

What I Watched In October

Sometimes what you need in October is a straightforward, simple slasher film. HELL FEST (2018)  fits that bill perfectly. It's not overly clever and it's not anything it doesn't need to be. It's just an uncomplicated thrill ride built on the bones established in the 80's for this type of story. The film starts by establishing it's slasher bona fides with a pre-credit stalk and kill scene that sets up the killer's modus operandi - killing random people he perceives as jerks on Halloween night - and then sets up more victims. This group of likable characters are introduced effectively and then we are off into the story. The basics of a slasher are tension followed by release and this film knows that very well. The story takes place over the course of one Halloween night as we follow these happy folks around a large, professionally run haunted amusement park. Needless to say, things don't end well for most of them. This isn't a great film but it is exactly what it claims to be and that is a good thing. 

At this point why would anyone care about the timeline of the HALLOWEEN films? Before going out to see the new one I took it upon myself to verbally describe the various sub-lines and divergent tracks that this sad series has stumbled down. Short version - there is a classic film, a pretty good sequel, an excellent non sequitur, a bunch of pointless sequels, a new sequel that ignored the pointless ones, a terrible remake and it's even more idiotic sequel. (Trust me - that is the short version.) So where does the 2018 HALLOWEEN film stand? At about the midpoint, I guess.

By ignoring the original sequel (not to mention 1998's pretty good H20) the creators have set themselves a nice table. In the center of this table they have placed the excellent Jamie Lee Curtis reprising her role for the fourth time. Here is the first problem. For this story to work her character has to be right about Michael Myers returning. But since this film posits that he has been locked up for the last forty years this is madness. She is basing her entire reason for living as she has on something that she has zero evidence for believing. In this timeline she has no history of Michael resurrecting himself multiple times or surviving being burned to death or whatever. She has held this insane belief for decades based on ...... nothing. In fact, without a specific spoiler I won't reveal she would have lived the rest of her life without ever seeing Myers again. In this film Laurie Strode is crazy. Not well prepared, not smart. She's off her rocker. Which is only a problem if you want to see a drama about an older woman's struggles with mental health and poorly handled grief. But we came here for a horror show, so...... how does it do?

It's not bad. There are some good ideas, some bad ones and a lot of style that effectively kept me entertained. The teenager characters are strong and their dialog is the best written of the series since the near perfect original. The interpersonal dynamics of the three generations of family are well done with some well crafted scenes for each actress. The script holds two nice surprises that are well thought out. I especially like that the first of these surprises solves one of the odder problems I had with the beginning of the film. I enjoyed this new film about as much as I did the last Jamie Lee Curtis return to the series H20. It's a shame they negate each other but what the hell. This is all just campfire tale telling stuff. Best to have fun seeing what new eyes can bring to this concept. It's miles better than the Zombie remake, that's for sure!

The List 

AND GOD SAID TO CAIN (1970) - 7 (rewatch)

HELL FEST (2018) - 6

WISHMASTER (1997) - 6 (better than I anticipated) 

THE CORPSE VANISHES (1942) - 4 (rewatch on Blu) 

ISLAND OF TERROR (1966) - 8 (rewatch on Blu) 

CAMPFIRE TALES (1991) - 3 (low budget anthology horror film) 

CATHY'S CURSE (1976) - 2 (low budget mess) 

ASYLUM (1972) - 8 (rewatch) 

HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL (1958) - 7 (rewatch) 

THE STEPFATHER (2009) - 6 (not bad remake) 

SWIMFAN (2002) - 6 (solid 'from-Hell' film) 

THE SOUND (2017) - 6 (interesting paranormal story that gets weak near the end) 

BRIDES OF DRACULA (1968) - 8 (rewatch) 

CALLING DR. DEATH (1943) - 5 (rewatch) 

BAD NIGHT AT THE EL ROYALE (2018) - 9 

THE DUNWICH HORROR (1970) - 7 (rewatch)

THE PREMATURE BURIAL (1962) - 8 (rewatch) 

THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) - 8 (rewatch) 

IN THE MOUTH OF MADNESS (1994) - 9 (rewatch) 

DEVIL'S DUE (2014) - 4 (late period found footage horror) 

SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE III (1990) - 3 

FRANKENSTEIN - THE TRUE STORY (1973) - 9

GHOST STORIES (2018) - 9 

HALLOWEEN (2018) - 7 

AMITYVILLE: THE AWAKENING (2017) - 6 

JIGSAW (2017) - 5 (well made but as silly as the rest of the series) 

FINAL GIRL (2015) - 7 (interesting thriller) 

FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN (1989) - 3 (rewatch) 

BLACK NOON (1971) - 5 (horror western TV movie - a little too long) 

OFFERINGS (1989) - 3 (terrible Halloween copy) 

GHOULIES II (1988) - 5 

WISHMASTER 2: EVIL NEVER DIES (1999) - 5 

THE DEVIL'S CANDY (2015) - 6 

PET SEMETARY II (1992) - 3 

THE BABY'S ROOM (2006) - 7 (Spanish horror) 

HALLOWEEN II (1981) - 7 (rewatch) 

GRAVEYARD OF HORROR (1971) - 4 

TERRIFIER (2016) - 6 (OTT gory evil clown tale) 

THE MUMMY'S SHROUD (1967) - 7 (rewatch) 

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS (2012) - 9 (rewatch)

TALOS THE MUMMY (1998) - 7 (finally watched the full two hour version) 

THE CONJURING 2 (2016) - 7 

Visions of The Halloween Tree

Music from HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982)

First up is the entire excellent score by John Carpenter and Alan Horwarth!

Next, the television commercial from the film that eventually drives every viewer nuts! 

Lastly, here's a 10 and a half hour long super edit of the Silver Shamrock tune. It's guaranteed to drive you mad. 

Happy 35th Anniversary to HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982)

On October 22, 1982 HALLOWEEN III was released. It was savaged by critics and hated by fans looking for more Michael Meyers. It took several years but the film is now a beloved part of the Halloween tradition for millions. 

Video - Exploring HALLOWEEN 3: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982)

I have not yet indulged in my annual viewing of HALLOWEEN III (1982) but I did enjoy this fellow's brief history of the film's progress from disappointing failure to eventually being seen as an impressive stand alone Halloween story. 

If you have never seen the film I would stay away until you do, but for the rest of us this is a interesting look at a twisted classic. 

 

HALLOWEEN 6: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1995)

A few years ago I decided it was time to stop avoiding the various Halloween sequels and finally check them out. Maybe there was some gold in those movies- who knew? Well, after I finished slogging through HALLOWEEN 4, HALLOWEEN 5 and the sad-ass HALLOWEEN 6 I realized that I had wasted my time in a futile hunt. For all the talk about how many bizarre avenues the producers of the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street franchises walked their boogeyman characters down clearly the most potholed road was travelled by Michael Myers. My god! There should have never been a Michael Myers film made after HALLOWEEN II (1982) and these three movies only made me wish harder that the direction of HALLOWEEN III (1983) had been realized. The stories for 4 and 5 are pretty damned bad but by the time they got to 6 - subtitled The Curse of Michael Myers - they had written themselves into a corner from which there was no escape. Celtic priests, runic tattoos, constellations in alignment, shadowy conspiracies, evil cults and druids -fucking DRUIDS, people - were woven together into a threadbare mess that only partially resembled a coherent story. Watching Paul Rudd try his best (in his screen debut) to make the expository dialog sound sane is almost worth your time, but not quite. I'm not surprised the producers decided to scrap this storyline, ignore it completely and pretend it never happened with the next film in the series HALLOWEEN H2O (1998). That was a pretty strong and well made sequel to the original two films even if they had to go and screw it up with the next one. Damned Halloween sequels. 

Anyway- this past week I couldn't stop myself from rewatching HALLOWEEN 6 (1995) mainly because I wanted to watch both versions back to back - again. You see, HALLOWEEN 6 exists in two sort-of official cuts. There is the hideous and stupid theatrical cut that everyone saw in 1995 which plays like a typical sequel except that Donald Pleasance's Dr. Loomis character disappears for the final thirty minutes. That's because the entire ending was reshot to change the mad druid priest curse clusterfuck ending that confused and pissed off the test screened audiences. Pleasance isn't in this ending because he had died before it was shot! The original version of the film - now known as the Producer's Cut - is better than the theatrical but only by virtue of being so totally nuts that it becomes goofily entertaining for the wrong reasons. Guys in black robes stealing babies while trying to create another Michael Myers to bring about the end of the world - or something like that - is much more fun than watching Paul Rudd run around a basement and beat Myers to death with a pipe. But maybe I'm stating the obvious there. 

HALLOWEEN: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1995) is a terrible movie and quite possible the perfect example of what happens when you don't think a franchise through or extend its life past its 'sell by' date. But I suspect I will watch it again. And when I do I will question my own sanity again while I shake my head and laugh at the idiocy of the plot hole riddled script. Is it so bad it's good? Maybe. I don't know. I just know it's stupid as hell and I'm drawn to watch it every few years.