Horror Hall of Fame II

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Opening posts should be updated now. Only two people haven't started yet so considering the holidays I think we're on a good pace (20/81). Still almost a week before I start sending the notification messages about inactivity so for now I'm just assuming everyone is busy with (hopefully) less horrifying reality



The Amityville Horror


I saw this so long ago that I could only remember scattered images. I wasn't even sure if I liked it. I was planning on watching it again for the countdown so I was happy to see it nominated.

It's a lot like many movies that have come after it, but I'd say most of those others don't measure up. I like that it's at least based on a true story and I love how it starts off. James Brolin was great in it and perhaps my favorite aspect was watching him slowly change. I find Margot Kidder a little unappealing generally but she played her role well, especially with her reactions to her husband's sudden shortness of temper. There are some chilling scenes and the score was excellent. It reeks of a time period that I love. There were a couple of moments that I thought were a bit much, like the oozing blood and goo, and when he saw his reflection, but I'm not overly critical of horror movies. I liked it and I was never bored.






Sorry I haven't tackled this Hall of Fame yet no worries though I'll likely run through this in a weekend, but I want to finish the 2018 film challenge. The good news is we've got an overlap and that's Dario Argento's Deep Red(1975). If you can't find something to love in Deep Red than Horror really isn't your genre.


I psychic sees a killer in the audience though she can't quite figure out who it is...later that night she's murdered and we kick off a series of bloody killings shot is beautiful and empty Rome. While the mystery is compelling though not really all that satisfying to me the real charm is how Argento shoots this film. This movie looks and feels like a mix of The Shining and Halloween. You get this series of weird shots which I don't think after a third watch I can even explain but you also have these beautiful composition shots with horror in the background or foreground (similar to Halloween).


If the film has a weakness it's in the performances, Italians in horror films are an acquired taste but in a film like this I think you just let the beauty wash over you. The use of color, the score, the set design...really this movie just feels like if it were remade it would be a 100 million dollar movie.



Deep Red (1975)
Nominated by Siddon

Jazz piano player David Hemmings begrudgingly joins up with stubborn reporter Daria Nicolodi, after he sees the butchery of a famous magician who could telepathically read her spectator's minds. The twosome track a twisted trail of deranged clues and unrelenting savagery as blood runs cold into TERROR by Dario Argento. Out for drinks in Rome, alley chases by night, black leather gloves, haunted house folktales, flipped-out "House of the screaming child" urban myth wall paintings, screams, shocks, and secret rooms. A likable giallo that I'd consider buying for myself, and I have at least a handful more Italian horror I want to view in the coming months. Scrapping stars / popcorn boxes for THREE THUMBS.




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Another rewatch. On second viewing this felt even worse and I kept looking at my watch a lot.

The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) R

A father and son coroner duo attempt to figure out the secrets of a mysterious young woman who's corpse was found during a crime investigation.


I saw this when it was new and only rewatched it because of HoF nomination. Like many small budget horrors (and scifi too) this primarily feels like an extended episode of The Twilight Zone (or, I guess, Black Mirror but I haven't bothered with that one) and as a rule I don't like that style.

First of all I hate it when these films do that "oh, it all happened in your head" thing. It's an easy and cheap cop-out to have things happen without paying attention to logic and explanations. All we get is a premise (kind of interesting one too) followed by a hollow chain of events that leads nowhere. I can't shake the feeling that even the makers of the film didn't know what was actually going on or why.

On surface level the film is technically fine but extremely predictable with its scares. There's very little content in it (which enhances the feeling of watching a stretched out TV episode) and a good premise is largely wasted. Just not my kind of horror.







There I just saved everyone two hours...cause that's really the only good moment in the film.


Alright I'm somewhat joking but man three times I've watched this film and three times it's bored me. You can point to several reasons why the story fails. If it's a drama most of the drama occurs with side characters not the leads. The religious stuff is just sort of there and it feels superfluous to the story. It also takes forever to get to the point afer opening in such a strong fashion. Then you've got James Brolin who is sort of going crazy in one scene and then he's the lead in the next where the focus and perspective of the plot should have been with Kidder who almost feels like a supporting player.


So for me the Amityville horror just misses the mark to much to recommend or enjoy



Yup I'm here and I'll watch the films I forgot about it sorry XD
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28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
The Descent




One of my favourite horror films and from a director I eagerly want to see more work from. Neil Marshall's work includes Dog Soldiers (high recommended), Centurion (highly underrated) and Doomsday (it has its fans). With The Descent, he manages to terrify people with claustrophobic spaces, creepy creatures and great use of colour/sound.

6 women go on a cave expedition, little do they know this isn't a cave that has been explored before. Someone decided it would be more fun to do a last minute switcharoo and not tell anyone. Now they are stuck in this cave with something lurking in the darkness.

Pure horror, scary and thrilling. Hopefully everyone sees the original ending and not the Americanized version. Excellent use of sound, you'd hear the crawlers before you see them. In the pitch black cave, not seeing what is right in front of you is terrifying. I wish I saw this in theatres, it would have been a delight to share this with other scared people.

Marshall shoots in tight spaces, giving the viewer the same sense of claustrophobia as the characters. We get some creative colour palettes with green and red flares used. Small pieces to give the film a more memorable look and feel.

Excellent nomination and one of the best horror films of the last 15 years.
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Suspect's Reviews



Ginger Snaps


My second time watching this, and I showed it to my wife this time. She just thought it was ok which kind of surprised me. Anyway, I love it for the most part but the last half hour loses a little when it goes full horror. I think it's at it's best when it's also a coming of age/struggling to fit in story. That's also when there's some pretty good dark humor. No real complaints with it however, although I was thinking how awesome it might have been had it been set in the 80's with the soundtrack to match. I didn't realize when I watched American Mary that the hot lead was the girl who played Ginger. A very good flick overall. Anybody see the sequel?



28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
Anybody see the sequel?
I saw the sequel, but not the third (which was shot back to back). The sequel deals with addiction. I wasn't a huge fan, but there are some defenders of it out there. I think I should actually give it a second chance.



I saw the sequel, but not the third (which was shot back to back). The sequel deals with addiction. I wasn't a huge fan, but there are some defenders of it out there. I think I should actually give it a second chance.
I was wondering because the IMDb rating is pretty good. 6.5 I think.



the samoan lawyer's Avatar
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The Amityville Horror (1979)


So it had been a long time since I had seen this and my initial rating was a
. Had a really enjoyable rewatch last night and pleased to say that I really really enjoyed it. Probably even more so than the last watch.
Yes, the blood didn't look great, more like a dark sticky tar and the scenes that included said tar, weren't the best. I did have issues with at times the story just felt like it was going nowhere, seemingly just making things up as it went along. And lastly the movie it general is like several horror films rolled into one.
In saying that, I do have to remember that the film is 40 years old and despite these flaws I think it still holds up really well. Brolin's character is totally wild but I love it, its like watching a descent into madness and I thought he played it really well. Kidder on the other hand, although was good, I thought wasn't used enough. The scene with the flies and also with the kids in bed at night were particularly unnerving. Like Cricket, I also love the era. Has that gritty unsettling feel.


Another great nomination.





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I've always been interested in the other Ginger Snaps films but never got round to them for whatever reason. I should really make an effort to see at least the second one by the sounds of it!