2023 Halloween Challenge

So far, so good... my wife and I have been doing one film per night, and we are still on target to perhaps finish the challenge this year. I have also been watching a film at lunch, in pieces, to try to get a few extra in over the entire run. I will continue to update my list on page 1 as we move along, and will hopefully have time to post some more thoughts on the films if I get time.

__________________

Watch a film released in 2022
Ressurection (2022)

One of the biggest problems in Hollywood is the lack of originality. This was the third horror film about an abused woman and the long term effects of her abuse that came out that year. Now, Alex Garland's Men had the better effects and budget(and a fantastic ending), The Watcher was a much more well crafted and tense stranger in a strange land take this is anchored by an incredible performance from Rebecca Ferguson.

Now the film is your typical low budget four actor story but it does aspire for more. By the end of the film I'm not quite sure what I watched but it has left a bit of an imprint on me. Tim Roth plays the creep and he is certainly creepy but I do wish the film wasn't so ambiguous because it took away from the horror aspect of the story.

Yea...I hated this movie! ^^^^

Idiotic third act unravels the entire thing. I did enjoy the performances by the two leads, but this otherwise had me questioning whether or not I should only watch classic films! I have since moved on from that silly notion, but for a minute...

A horror film that you consider "low art": Tucker and Dale vs Evil (Eli Craig, 2010)



First time watch, was amusing and I liked the ideas, but the dialogue isn't funny enough to make it something special, and aside from the three main characters the rest of the bunch were very forgettable. The directing felt uninspired and it felt like everyone involved put in minimum effort. Still I can maybe recommend it for horror comedy fans who have seen everything else already.

I liked Shivers quite a bit myself, cheers.

This one shines for me particularly because of the movie Final Girls. They seem to be going for the same tone but that movie sucked and this one was entertaining. So this one has a direct comp that it beats easily which somehow elevates it in my mind. And I expect I thought it was funnier than you did.

I think in a lot of ways we didn't even get a third act and that was the problem. It was like they didn't know which way they wanted to go with the film so they left if up in the air. It also didn't help that the whole feminist horror thing is being done to death.

Watch a film released in 1998 (25 years ago)
Ringu (1998)





Pick a film from one continent
Spiral (1998)

Gonna talk about both of these films...because Spiral is like a sequel to The Ring that came out the same year. But I actually enjoyed it more because it felt like a newer version of the story. It's like a detective story with horror elements...reminded me a lot of the direct to DVD Hellraiser films...which are good until they aren't. Spiral manahes to be good for the entire duration of the film.

As for the original Ringu I didn't care for it. I think Gore Verbinski's vision really elevated the horror elements of the story while going back and watching the original it was to me lacking. I might check out the other two ring movies later but I hated the US sequels and I didn't care for the original so it's a low priority.

I found myself laughing mostly in the first half. Haven't seen Final Girls. I recently watched Young Frankenstein, so having that movie in my mind I was probably was much harsher on Tucker than you were.

A religious horror film: Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun (Jesus Franco, 1977)



A nunsploitation by Jess Franco that tells the story of a 16 year old girl who is forced into a convent whose leaders have very questionable motives to say the least. The main theme is about people in power using religion for their own benefit. For the most part it's a drama with maybe 3-4 scenes that I would classify as softcore sex. The directing is often very good, but often also very bare bones and seemed rushed. The soundtrack is used very well. What lets the film down for me is the writing, I never get really invested.

I haven't seen Ringu in 20+ years, but I remember being scared by it back then but didn't love it. Maybe Spiral would be more my thing.

Watch a film released in 1932: Vampyr (Dreyer, 1932)



Probably the best shot vampire film I've seen with countless iconic moments. Intriguing story told expertably by great camera work, combined with the occasional dialogue and readings from a book.

You really could make a whole scrapbook out of all the awesome shots in this film.

A pretty good "Living Dead" movie wherein corpses are being reanimated in Manchester and only the forceful yet hip good-looking motorcycle paladin, now accused of the murders the zombies have committed, can save everyone. Or can he?
A bit of an Environmental Horror as a new agricultural technology may be raising the dead. It's a fairly good if simple idea that works well for the film. But what really works is the film's very violent very bloody third act. The movie lulls you into almost-boredom for a bit (at least it did with me, though I seem to remember being more into it last time I saw it) before a gore-fest final 30 minutes. Which is well-executed, they really go for it for the time. I mean, there's something about the level of violence this movie goes to that sort of forces it to work. And I must say that the surprising (though not "twist") ending pleased me very much.

Ultimately, this movie won't make you forget George Romero or even Dan O'Bannon, but it's a worth-seeing earlyish entry into the now-overstuffed zombie canon.

Also, I must say, and I really hate going out of order on my Horrorthons, but The Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the theater last night was a chef's-kiss moment and also a personal triumph as the movie immediately and fully won over my Gen Z friend. She actually insisted that we go sit down at a table outside the theater and discuss it at length. And her takeaway was the same as mine... There is simply nothing like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
(I'll say more on this later.)

PS - If you ever wondered if TCM was a movie you should watch high, especially if you thought the answer was "obviously No", the answer is actually, "HELL YES".

Hannibal (2001)
Watch a Horror Film from a Director who has won or was nominated for an Oscar

The Hannibal Lechter films were all directed by Oscar nominated directors. The films all had different casts and told different stories and seemingly received in vastly different ways. Hannibal actually got bad reviews when it came out...but 20 years later the reviewers definitely got it wrong.

In this film, Lechter is in Italy, he's being hunted by a private citizen Mason Verger a survivor of the attack from Hannibal. Verger is a pedophile who's wealth allows him to exercise freedom and control. Clarice has been sent into the basement thanks to a shooting gone wrong by a corupt official Paul (Ray Liotta).

The scope and scale of the film are fantastic, it has great pacing and I think Moore is actually an improvement on Sterling over Foster for this story (and the sexual tension) for both characters.

The Case of the Scorpion's Tail (1971)
A film by Sergio Martino


Giallo's often walk the line between horror and noir and this film is a perfect example of such. The film starts with a woman collecting her husbands insurance money and the bodies pile up. This was like a Hitchcock movie on steroids each kill scene was set up with a great sense of suspense. As for the mystery...it was alright I didn't see it coming so I would want to revisit the film and see if they left any clues to the killer or just pulled it out of thin air. But I would recommend this film for Giallo fans. This was a good find.

Very enjoyable. Have a feeling I will rewatch this many times.

This is definately on my watchlist after recently having seen the awesome Mrs Wardh.

On a streaming site: Friday the 13th (Cunningham, 1980)



An enjoyable and moody slasher that takes its time to let us get introduced to the many people, and then slowly takes them out one by one. Well crafted overall. The editing is sometimes overly generous as some of the killings go on for too long with not enough payoff, and the long sequence with the final girl kind of loses its momentum. What keeps this from greatness in my opinion is partly that it loses tempo in the final third, and also some of the dialogue could have been more memorable. Still, this ranks among the 10 best slashers I've seen so far. Particularly enjoy hanging with the characters and watching them slowly move through buildings and through the camp.

Watch an Oscar Nominated Horror Film
The Fly (1986)

It's always jarring when a film that came out close to 40 years ago is technologically better than most of the films that come out today. Not just talking about the makeup and FX but the pacing and performances and script. This movie is barely an hour and forty minutes and it tells the start/collapse/ending of a full on relationship between Davis and Goldblum,

This one is a better film than some of the stuffier BP noms and winners from this year...and it also features a nuanced and adult conversation about abortion that feels more precent today than it likely did in the mid80's.

A Horror Film you would suggest to someone under 15
No One Will Save You (2023)

PG-13 Horror is often more miss than hit and while this isn't a great film it was a watchable one. This is the story of an isolated woman living alone functioning as the town pariah when something happens and everything gets turned upside down.

Unlike the Fly that speeds along this one drags a bit but it's got a couple things going for it. The lead performance by Kaitlyn Deavers is really solid...she doesn't say a word throughout the film which is a nice little twist on the genre. The creature designs are also very strong better than the same creature designs that were on a recent show that shall not be named.

But this is the bloodless, sexless, lack of foul language that could have been a below average twilight zone episode.