Bloody Birthday, The Blob (1988), Mark Of The Devil, Hands Of The Ripper, Animal Kingdom

Jan 25, 2011

Blood Birthday (1981)

What can you say about kids that are born during an eclipse? Apparently they are born missing something... but that wouldn't be the urge to KILL!!! I do love me some killer kid movies, and this doesn't disappoint. Not a swear word to be found, but boobies EVERYWHERE! These early 80's flicks really do (real) boobs and blood well. Can you believe we kids used to play in the junkyards of the world? Empty fridges for everyone! 

Jan 25, 2011

The Blob (1988)

Chris wanted to watch this one, he has really fond memories of it. I did see it in the theatres when it came out, but didn't remember much of it. LOVED IT! Kind of less campy than the older but seriously grosser. It was cool to see Shawnee Smith of Saw doing a little more mainstream less crack whore role. Her hair was amazingly huge. The blob effects were stellar, they looked a little like Tetsuo from Akiras' explodey hand thingy. Nice and fleshy... euw.

Jan 26, 2011

Mark Of The Devil (1969)

I did not need a vomit bag contrary to the poster. BUT, if people think Hostel and Saw were the advent of the torture porn industry WRONG. This is all torture all the time. Really disturbing witch hunting torture device torture. I have now written torture so many times it becomes meaningless and strange looking. I sort of liked this, but the dubbing was pretty terrible, and the story was weak sauce. But it was pretty interesting to watch. And it had a very young Udo Kier with a full head of hair!

Jan 27, 2011

Hands Of The Ripper (1971)

Oh Jack the Ripper! See what you have done? Well that connection is pretty weak. I guess seeing (allegedly) JtR kill your Mum turns you MAD I SAY. This was kind of awfully hilarious. Not one of Hammers finest efforts, but a nice Thursday afternoon movie. Chris and I both laughed at it, but I should caveat, I am trying out some new meds, so can't be responsible for anything I review in the next little while. I miss Christopher Lee.

Jan 28, 2011

The Uninvited (2009)

Just you shut up all you PG-13 haters. Remember we have to hook the young'uns to keep the genre alive! Not all kids like hard R films. Yet. Ok, having leapt off the soapbox, I really really liked this movie. In fact this is the second time I watched it, The story was tight, the scenery was gorgeous, the girls realistic in their stupid teenager ways. And yes, I know, it's a re-make of a Korean movie Tale of Two Sisters, but I still haven't seen that so this was all new to me. I can truly say I did not see the twist coming and it delighted me! So there.

SUPER AWESOME BONUS MOVIE!!!

Jan 28, 2011

Animal Kingdom (2009)

Chris listens to the /film podcast regularly. He tends to run behind do he doesn't get spoiled. He came home yesterday with this little gem and wow. Seriously wow. This film out of Australia is one of the best movies I've seen. Like Black Swan, it totally engulfed me and I had no idea which way the story would go. The acting was absolutely top notch. The story was in turns heartbreaking and frustrating, sometimes painful to watch but simply outstanding. The story of a boy who is suddenly adrift in his world who is tossed into another he has no footing in. Brilliant. Go watch it.

Fubar 2, Pontypool, The Uninvited (1944), Daybreakers

Jan 23, 2011

Fubar 2 (2010)

Yeah. I know. But it has a ghost in it. And is even better than the first one if that was even possible. It shows off West Edmonton Mall (my teenage hangout), Ft McMurray, and rig piggin'. It is a horror movie of a sort. If you grew up in a small town, or just knew someone who did, it's the horror of what could happen to you if you let it all go. Just Give'r.

Jan 24, 2011

Pontypool (2008)

To make up for my transgressions, I watched 3 movies today. 3!! Pontypool is an amazing Canadian piece of film making. Stephen McHattie is elevated to Ian McShane levels of voice amazing-ness in this. In fact I think he supersedes him. The dulcet tones of Mazzy in the morning could wake me up any day. The premise of this is nothing short of fantastic in the true sense. language becomes the carrier of a raging zombie type infection. It's one of the best takes on the genre I have seen. I love this movie with my whole heart. Everyone should watch it. Do it for the Can-con.

The Uninvited (1944)

A rather lovely haunted house story. It's set in England but no one really has British accents, just that weird affected way of speaking people had back in ye olden days. I'm not sure if this was actually ever scary, but it is really sumptuous and there is a terrier named Bobby in it. So there. Everyone lived happily ever after. 

Daybreakers (2009)

We saw this in the theatre and this is the first time we re-watched it. It holds up as one of the prettiest movies that made me think of Bioshock (video game). There are lots of nice cold blues and popping reds, mixed with a warm palette representing the human world. It's really stylised with terrific effects. Good funny performance from Willem Dafoe too. Damn he is skinny! A fun re-watch.

The Burning, Ghosthouse, Let Me In.

Jan 21, 2011

The Burning (aka Cropsey) (1981)

What can I say about a movie that features a young George Costanza apparently playing himself? Well lots I guess. I love these 80's summer camp slashers. They are gross and funny. Tom Savini did the effects so the gross is a given. I'm always pleasantly surprised by the amount of sheer fuckery that goes on in these movies. Buying illicit porno mags, sex, really young kids smoking, adults not having a clue. Ah the 80's! This was also a really early Weinstein bros outing. If you have a chance I'd say watch this, it's pretty awesome. 

Jan 22, 2011

Ghosthouse (1988)

Clearly an Italian co-production, this is one of those movies that barely makes sense. But it's not really a bad thing, in fact it can be pretty entertaining. There is the obligatory set up which is weird and features an exploding light bulb. Yeah, I said it, exploding light bulb. Someone must have liked that effect (and it is pretty cool) cause they use it again in the basement with jars! Cut to the present day and meet our hero. A ham radio operator. Yeah. It's just gets better and batshittier crazy. Some good gags, some yelling at the TV, its all in good fun. And it has a creepy clown doll and wacky carnival music. Oh go on, you know you wanna watch this, you totally do.

Jan 22, 2011

Let Me In (2010)

I was apprehensive about watching this. I really was. The original is just such a gem I was worried that the remake would try to polish a turd and sell it as a diamond. But I was actually really pleased with it. Chloe Grace Moretz has a real future. She is quite wonderful to watch. Anyways, back to the movie.. The pacing was definitely faster than the original, and they did add some *scary* effects to Abby when she changes. I think a lot of the subtlety of the original is lost here, and the sense of stillness and isolation isn't as amped. I for sure know having seen the original added layers to my experience, I'd hope that anyone who watched one, would watch the other to get the full story. It is missing some crucial elements that add dimension to the story but in essence doesn't change it. I don't want to go on and on about this, just watch them both ok? The fundamental difference in the two movies can be explained by the way they utilise Morse code. The Swedes tap with one finger, the Americans knock with a fist. 

Friday the 13th (2009), Squirm, Phantasm 3 & 4, The Living Dead Girl

Jan 18, 2011

Friday the 13th (2009)

We went and saw this in the theatre and Chris left before it was over as he was not impressed. I stayed but didn't remember any of it. That was my brain protecting me from the boring. Because when I re-watched it, I was distracted and bored through the whole thing. Yawn.

and fake boobs are scary looking. Much scarier than that movie.

 Jan 18, 2011

Squirm (1976)

This was a filthy filthy movie. The set was dirty, the costumes were dirty and the people? DIRTY! It was also a grand ol' good time of Nature Striking Back! I was skeeved out through the whole damn thing. The worms were gross, the acting was decent (FYI Kim Basinger tried out for the lead and didn't get it!) and it achieved it's nasty gram of skin crawling goodness. SO MUCH FUN. 

Jan 19, 2011

Phantasm 3 & 4

Well I couldn't stop at just one! 3 had a perky kid sidekick and a lady Wesley Snipes. They explained away the lady, but the kid inexplicably disappears for 4. I mean not even a mention. One minute he was there then BOOM! Excised from the whole mythos. That kid is probably thrilled. I'm not sure if I would want this on me resume either. Don Coscarelli must write these so Reggie can get action. 4 does have the girl with the spheres as boobs. That was awesome, but all said and done, it should have stopped at 2. 

Jan 20, 2011

The Living Dead Girl (1982)

I don't know how this inspired Rob Zombie to make House of A Thousand Corpses but I'm glad it did. I love that move! This was very... French. A lot of long lingering shots/looks/drawn out howling scenes. There was some full frontal nudity, and some gross finger poking gags, but on the whole, this could have been edited down to a short film. Meh.

Body Melt, Vampire Circus, Black Swan

Jan 15, 2011

Body Melt (1993)

This is a little known Aussie gem that I heard about from a guy on my knitting/horror movie board. See how crazy knitters are? It is a lovely, nasty little gross out flick the likes of the Davids Cronenberg/Lynch would be pleased to see they inspired. There are some down under Deliverance style characters, some yuppies, something for everyone you could say. Great fun and a bloody good gross out!

Jan 16, 2011

Vampire Circus (1972)

I was 4 when this was made! The beginning is a wonderful, almost short film of the enticement and murder of a small girl. Who looked a lot like I did back then. CREEPY! Holy hell is this ever a departure from the earlier more heaving bosoms of Hammer Film's beginnings. Boobs and sex and gore! A somewhat flimsy premise never kept a horror film down and why should it start now. Absolute must watch if you are a fan of the Hammer films, and maybe even if you aren't.

Jan 17, 2011

Black Swan (2010)

I don't think I was prepared to like this movie as much as I did. I thought at the start of the film "how many shots are going to be behind Natalie Portman's head walking?" But I stopped caring about that as it drew me in. It's a tight twisted story that provides you with many a hallucinatory views. Body image, identity, control and torture (not the Hostel kind, the Ballet life kind. The scarier of the two IMHO) are themes most of us are familiar with, but this has a wicked edge. I still am not sure what exactly happened and what didn't. I just know this really is one of the best movies I've seen in a while. Creeptacular.

Amityville 2: The Posession, Phantasm, The Deadly Spawn, Dead Silence

Jan 12, 2011

Amityville 2: The Possession

Now that is more like it! Bleeding walls, exploding faces, torrents of blood, incest, flies, secret rooms, and soulful priests. While perhaps not an award winning flick, this was oodles of fun to watch. As much for the sweaty pained look on most of the actors faces at one point or another as anything. Good fun, good horror!

 Jan 13, 2011
Phantasm

You know, I went to see the sequel to this without knowing a thing about t he first one. And to tell the truth, this is the first time I've watched it. Or at least the first time I remember watching it. The Tall Man is scary, Reggie is even a worse actor and shit didn't make a lick of sense. All good things. Fun story and I love seeing every cent up on the screen.

Jan 15, 2011
The Deadly Spawn (1983)

Oh how I love these 80's movies. The hideous hair, the appalling decor, the terrible acting. How I miss you. But I don't miss giant aliens that look VERY PHALLIC eating my parents and tearing off my girlfriends head. This movie was super fun to watch even if the copy we have sounds like all the vocals were recorded in a dumpster and it was pretty dark. This is the great fun of this project, rediscovering these little gems. SO AWESOME.

BONUS MOVIE:

Dead Silence (2007)

I don't care what anyone says, I am a HUGE James Wan fan. His vision translates really well to film for me. Quick cuts without the shaky cam (HATE) and images that stay with me, good stuff. The first time we watched this I was expecting a throw away Toothfairy/Boogeyman kinda deal. I was pleasantly surprised by the way this little movie stuck with me. The blue filtered land where the red really pops, it's a scary place. The gag at the end completely took me by surprise and I did not see it coming. I hope his career escalates, his view is an interesting one.

The Curse Of the Living Corpse, Whiteout

Jan 10, 2011

The Curse of the Living Corpse

So this movie is the film debut of Roy (Jaws) Scheider! My he was young and handsome! It is also the only other movie that  Candace (Carnival of Souls) Hilligoss ever did. Her career never did blossom, and seeing as she was a wooden as on old fashioned tent  peg, that is probably for the best. This is NOT a zombie movie, it's more of a murder mystery type deal. That isn't terribly interesting. And you can tell they had limited indoor sets. For a giant Manor house, it took place in about 3 rooms. All of them crowded. Ah well...

Jan 11, 2011

Whiteout

Chris and I have actually tried to watch this one other time, but stopped because it got boring. Or something, But you know, I'm game. I'll give it a go again I thought. Why didn't I listen to our first gut instincts? Ugh. Kate Beckinsale is kind of pretty, but a US Marshall? HELL NO. The bright spot was seeing Alex O'Laughlin in it. I loved that stupid vampire show Moonlight SO HARD. But um, back to the movie. Ah, fuck it, I'm just gonna think about that dumb tv show and try to block this boring ass turd from my mind. 

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The Dead Next Door, Graveyard shift, The Ninth Gate,

Jan 7, 2011

The Dead Next Door

I watched this on a recommendation of friend, He suggested I give it a watch as it had a super secret financier/producer (Sam Raimi) and thought as a fan of the genre I might enjoy it. And I did, kind of. I love when I see passion on the screen. It doesn't really matter if the movie is a blockbuster or even particularly good. If the people involved in making it love it, it shows. This was no exception, but holy shit did it have it's flaws. I reckon being shot over a 4 year period would impair any one's sense of continuity, and this suffered greatly from that. Also, all the leads looked vaguely like other more famous actors so I was cheering them on by their doppelganger names. Come on David Boreanaz dude! Watch out Kirstie Alley lookalike! Holy shit David Arquette guy! That was pretty fun. What wasn't was how stupid the Zombie Squad (who I would have assumed were pretty good at what they did right? I mean they ARE the Zombie Squad...right?) but alas. No. They were dumb as paint and prone to walking into hordes of zombies and/or accidentally sticking body parts into a zombies mouth. Oh well. It was a totally not making sense, hot damn mess of a script, splatter-fest but GODDAMN. The gore gags were AMAZING for such a low budget production. Really top notch for what they were. I wish more film makers would toss their hearts up on the screen. It may not be award winning cinema, but both Chris and I had a pretty good time watching it. Thanks Trev!

Jan 8, 2011

Graveyard Shift

I am a HUGE Stephen King dork, and yet somehow missed this fine piece of film making. Really, I'd never seen it before. And I wish I could still lay claim to that. This was silly. Silly silly silly. But the giant rat/bat thing was kinda cool. And I got to tick off a HMOTD. so yeah..

Jan 9, 2011

The Ninth Gate

I am a fan of Roman Polanski. His work has this quality to it, I don't know what it is, but I've enjoyed all of his movies that I've seen and he did make one of my all time faves, Rosemary's Baby! That will for sure be on here somewhere. So even this horror movie with no horror in it (it was only about a book ABOUT Satan. Go figure), was really pleasurable to watch. Sure Johnny Depp was in it and he is one of a handful of actors I'd watch read the phone book for fun, so maybe that was part of it. But I liked it, even on repeat viewings. Take from that what you will.

The Amityville Horror 2005

Jan 6, 2011

The Amityville Horror (2005)

So this movie had Ryan Reynolds in it and it was clearly right after he finished doing Blade 3 because he was all muscley and ripped and shirtless. Which is about the only thing I enjoyed. It was frantic and goofy. Chris hates evil stepfather movies and this was a doozy which I why I ended up watching this alone. Although did I mention Ryan Reynolds was shirtless? Cause yeah. He sure was. The effects were well done, but the story wasn't anything like I wanted it to be, I mean come on! I damn near wore out the paperback novel back in Jr High! And while I don't always think James Brolin is a damn fine actor, he sure did better than Mr Reynolds. Who just seemed surly and pouty, not POSSESSED BY THE DEBBIL.

But he *was* shirtless..

Liquid Sky, The Last Horror Movie

Jan 4, 2011
Liquid Sky (1983)

I was told when I was in High school that I had seen this movie. It was one of the more notorious flicks out there along with Evil Dead (coming soon!) and seems to have been played at many a party I attended. Now maybe it's the old age talking or perhaps I was too drunk at the time (ahh.. such good memories. or.. wait.. I don't remember HS. sigh) but I have no recollection of seeing this. Perhaps because if I had been drinking this would have bored me to sleep. The worst sin of ANY movie is to be boring. This wins. Aside from the atrocious acting, the questionable costuming (I went to many a gay bar.. never once did I see a dude wearing a colander on his head for a hat) and lack of plot, this was DULL. Nihilism was never so boring.

 Jan 5, 2011
The Last Horror Movie (2003)

Not exactly batting a thousand here so far. This was a slightly dull mockumentary about a charming (real ones aren't charming) serial killer named Max. It starts off looking like a formulaic slasher movie then OH NOES! The video switches to a I RECORDED OVER THIS VIDEO TO SHOCK YOU! kinda deal. A little bit lifeless and I can't say I'd rec this to anyone. Like anyone. ever. And for the Fango GOREZONE deal? Huh? I must have missed the gore part. Or the filmmaker did. I don't care enough to bother.

Hey there! Saw, Eyes Without A Face

I have the notion that I should try to watch a movie a day. More specifically a horror movie a day. Not that it hasn't been done before* but I rarely want to set goals for myself because I am lazy, afraid of failing, really really lazy not a goal oriented person.I've been thinking about it for a few days and the idea has stuck. Probably because we've watched nothing but horror movies for a week now. So I may not be able to make all 365 days, I'll try heartily, but will be super impressed if I hit 300. AND since I don't know if I can find 300+ (although I'll damn sure try) HORROR movies I'm going to open the genre up a bit and include sci-fi, fantasy and thrillers. Sounds like I'm wussing out already...

Dec 30 Saw 1
Dec 31 Saw 2 &3
Jan 1 (WOOT 2011) Saw4&5
Jan 2 Saw 6
Jan 3 Saw 3D & Eyes Without a Face (1960)

I have to say, seeing all the Saw films in a row really proves their cohesive whole. I can't think of 7 (HOLY SHIT 7!) movies that work together like these did. With 4 different directors and a big staff of writers, they kept it together through it all. Very impressive. See the Saw wiki page for more details. But be aware, there are spoilers. There were definite weak points, but since they all blur into one giant movie, I was happy enough with them.

Jan 3, 2011

Eyes Without A Face (1960)

Gothic french arthouse classic. Beautifully shot, and I called the Givenchy gowns even before I saw the credits. A descent into madness for the daughter of a doctor who has lost her face (!) in an accident. He is determined to fix her with a face transplant. Surprisingly gory for a B&W film, I loved it. Chris redid the SRT (subtitle) file so it was a much better translation than the original one. Gorgeous movie.

*and far better than I could ever hope to do by the fine BC from Horror Movie A Day, He is awesome!