2023 Halloween Challenge

Watch a horror film that you consider "Low Art"

Night School (1981)

A mix of Halloween and Giallo films of the 70's this is a low budget high quality slasher. It centers around a wise cracking detective and his harvard educated partner as they investigate a series of murders. The murders all involve decapitations of coeds and bodies of water. Is the mystery good...nah but the film has it's charms.

The cinematographer went well above and beyond with how he shot this film. Interesting angles, great chase scenes, multiple locations...this was a B film with high aspirations. The film also has solid character work, the female administrator is a personal fav as she is deliciously predatory.

The movie does have issues, they cut away from kills because they don't have the FX skill yet. And you can tell when the killer is in the suit and the stunt man is in the suit but still enjoyable and watchable.

An Oscar nominated horror film: Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1975)



First time watching. It's very entertaining, funny and has wonderful set design. Still - now I'll get unpopular - I consider it massively overrated compared to all the very high praise I'd heard about it. I consider Blazing Saddles one of the funniest movies I have ever seen, but this is far from that. The jokes don't hit nearly as hard and are fewer in between. There are some amazing scenes though, so it's still mandatory viewing. I'll give it a three and a half on the old capture the lightning meter.

A film released 75 years ago: The Amazing Mr. X (Bernard Vorhaus)



My favourite so far this month - a wonderful noir-ish horror thriller I can recommend to everyone. A widow, living with her sister, stands outside the house by the beach looking out over the Pacific when she suddenly hears the whispers of her dead husband. Thinking she's going crazy she walks inside to relax, only to hear her husband's favourite piano piece starting to play, and the whispers continue. What follows is an exciting uncovering of what's going on, filled with unexpected twists and a great screenplay. A hidden gem for sure.

A movie from Australia: Wake in Fright (Kotcheff, 1971)



I had read this was a psychological horror, but it's really more of a psychological drama thriller. A newcomer to a small isolated town in the Australian outback is out of money, and starts falls for gambling and drinking. Excellent direction makes this film eerily relatable on many levels, it gives you the feeling of being stuck in a place and mindset where you don't want to be. In tone it's very gritty and reminded me of Peckinpah movies. Recommended for a very realistic and intense experience.

Wake in Fright is ok.

Quick thoughts so far:


Ledesma, 2011
A film from the continent of Australia



A found footage flick from 2011 that was crowd-funded. Super low budget, but still pretty effective. I had seen it before, and it held up fairly well on a second watch, with the just the first third perhaps dragging a bit, before the news crew heads to the main location.



Balagueró/Plaza, 2007
A film from the continent of Europe



More found footage, with this one being one of the more well-known and well-respected of the genre. Again, I had seen it before, but it remains incredibly effective. I have been learning more Spanish lately, so it was fun watching the film in the original language, trying to understand as much as possible.



Bauwer, 2021
A film from the continent of Africa



South African bio/eco horror. This one had some rocky reviews, but I thought it was pretty damned good. It fully embraces modern sensibilities as far as effects and technology, and very much feels like a film of today. It leans into CGI and crisp digital photography, as well as a liberal coating of post production shine. It all worked for me, though, even if it clearly borrows from works like Annihilation and The Last of Us in its themes.



Softley, 2005
A film from the continent of North America



My wife picked this one out, as she is a Kate Hudson fan. This was decent, but nothing to write home about. I did like that it didn't cop out at the end, and it looked pretty good, but overall it was just OK.



Demme, 1991
A horror film nominated for an Oscar



When I called up a list of horror films that were nominated for an Oscar, I scratched my head when I saw this listed as one of the only 6 films ever to get the nod. Much more a procedural and psychological thriller in my mind, but hey, there it is on the list. This one just never gets old, and is a true classic, held aloft by the twin performances of both Foster and Hopkins, who both just put on a clinic. Perfectly paced, an air-tight script, and perfectly directed by Demme.



Philippou, 2022
A horror film released in 2022



It's cool when film makers take a well-worn trope, in this case teens ****ing around and finding out when they dabble in the occult, and make it feel fresh and engaging. There are so many retreads and misfires when film makers attempt this, it's always cool when they can really make it work, bringing something new to the table. This was excellent, from start to finish, and all the actors really killed it.



Harder, 2023
A horror film released in 2023



Not as good as Talk to Me, but still quite enjoyable, with some fun twists. Another good-not-great entry, but I am glad I watched it.

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Thomas, 2019





Watched this to fill the Religious Horror Film category. Excellent film. Uses its limited resources and claustrophobic location to generate suspense for pretty much the entire film. Heavily based on Jewish culture and history, I took this as allegory for how many Jews deal with processing the horrors of the past. A bit on the nose at times, the metaphor was still very effective. The suspense and scares were very effective, and my wife was hiding under a blanket at times.

Challenge off, theres some flicks i want to get to before the year ends, but I will watch some Halloween horror this year. Not a whole lot of it though. Wishful thinking / time constraints

October 2nd
The Possessed(1965)

A Horror Film sold as a horror film but it's really something else.

Yeah I went into ths expected it to be Luigi Bazzoni other horror film. As The Fifth Cord was a huge revelation for me, might be one of my favorite Giallo's. This is good, it's very close to The Innocents but it plays more like a detective/Bergman inspired film. It has very deliberate pacing and gorgeous visuals...the story plays out like a mystery. It you like Hitchcock than this is a good one for you.

October 3rd
The Killer is One of 13 (1973)

Watch a film released in 1973 (50 years ago)


Well I love me a nice little Agatha Christie style horror film, and this seems to be common in the Giallos. This one was kinda flawed the film has heavy exposition for the first half of the film to the point were I was somewhat bored. It did pick up later on and I started really getting into the story but it was a little too soft core for me. Not a whole lot stood out from this one so I don't think I would recommend it.

October 4fh
The Monster Walks (1932)
Watch a film released in 1932


1932 had a number of good horror films...this wasn't it. A family comes to an isolated estate and gets picked off one by one by a monkey hand. It's a good idea but this was a bit of a cheapo B picture....I would so far as to even call a C picture.

If anyone is still pondering what 2023 film to watch, I'll give a thumbs up for In My Mother's Skin. This Filippino horror was just added to Amazon (at least here in Finland it was).

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A film Made in 1973


Friedkin, 1973





A true classic in every sense of the word. Pretty much a perfect film. These days, I tend to enjoy the quiet conversations between the priests more so than all the shock stuff, but that said, the shocks are still just as effective as the first time I saw the film. Easily in the Top 3 best horror flicks ever made.

For sure one of the very best movies I've seen.

Watched by someone else in a previous thread: Under the Skin (Glazer, 2013)



Well directed scifi horror with an interesting story, however its problem is it drags at times. We get to hang out with many different people that the protagonist meets, but the interactions are for the most part not that memorable or well written, with some exceptions. The best parts are the more alien moments when the "prey" gets trapped, as well as many nice shots of the Scottish towns and nature. Ultimately a good watch but not a very memorable one. The director is a fine visual artist but needs to improve his storytelling skills.

A film released in 2023: The Last Voyage of the Demeter (André Øvredal)



It's weird how you can take such a great idea - an action horror set during the Victorian era with the crew of a sailing ship unknowingly having a certain Romanian beast aboard, combined with that perfect setting of being surrounded by the sea, the isolation and darkness - and still make a movie that feels so forgettable, so bland and so "meh". Most of all, it's frustrating since with its story it could so easily have been a great movie had they bothered to put some effort into the dialogue, directing, acting, editing. It starts out fine, but halfway in I realized I didn't care what happens to the characters.

Honestly, that's about what I expected and why I will never see it.

It's wokism this was a film that didn't need to have a racial subplot but if you are going do it,,,have it be historically accurate. This one had so much potential but they had to play politics and give us the same uninspired ideas that took up screen time and killed some scenes that could have been very suspenseful.

A film directed by Sergio Martino: The Strange Vice of Mrs Wardh (1971)



Too tired to write much so I'll just sum it up like this: My favourite giallo so far (just ahead of Deep Red). Everything works here and the film is engaging the whole way through. Edwige is absolutely gorgeous. Well fitting soundtrack. One of the coolest endings I've seen.

A horror film directed by a director that has been nominated for or has won an Oscar


Fincher, 1995





Another top classic, and yet another perfect film. As many times as I have seen this, I never tire of it, and it is always enthralling. One of the best psychological horror/thrillers ever made.


A horror film celebrating a big anniversary - 20 Years


Ellis, 2003



or maybe

An absolute 30-car pile up of a film, and not just because of the opening scene. This film is so completely terrible, so absurdly acted, so poorly executed, that is just incredibly entertaining from the first frame to side-splittingly funny last. Multiple times, my wife and I were in tears, holding our sides laughing. One of the worst screenplays ever put on film, played out by some of the worst actors in the business. Ali Larter is an ridiculous block of wood, and I can't figure out how she ever made it out of a 4th grade play thinking she had any acting ability. Every scene she is in is brought to its knees by her clinic in terrible acting. She might even trump the legendary Lar Park Lincoln in Friday VII for the worst actress ever award. One of the logs from the opening scene had more acting ability. Man, what a fun watch. Awful film, though.


A film by David Cronenberg


Cronenberg, 1977





What the ****! This had the same effect that most of Cronenberg's films have on me: I can't look away, but I can't wait for it to end.

I really like Rabid. I prefer Shivers, though. That's possibly my favourite Cronenberg film.

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5-time MoFo Award winner.