4th Annual N&G 31 Days* of Halloween (2022)

[debianlinux]

Sissy (2022)

I let someone else pick this one and not gonna lie it started out so brutally bad.. Just extremely cringe and every single character is so toxic and unlikeable I would have likely turned it off if it was just me but then the second half happened and it got pretty brutal and had some legitimate crazy moments I was not expecting to happen at all. Still not a movie i'd watch again but not nearly as bad as I expected it to be a few minutes in either.

​

Bruh i watched this secondhand and only at the end and it was still terrible af.

 

[debianlinux]

Day 48.

The Watcher


It's a miniseries that the wife and I finished last night. The first episode had me hoping it would be a horror, but it's mostly a suspense with a little thriller mixed in occasionally. I don't know how much was based on "a true story" but the premise was good and it could have been made into a great horror. As it was I enjoyed it, but it fell short in the end.

Still working through this one. As a connoisseur of all things macabre I can tell you this series is an amalgamation of several true stories with a strong emphasis on combining 2 main real storylines.

 

[Hemotep]

Still working through this one. As a connoisseur of all things macabre I can tell you this series is an amalgamation of several true stories with a strong emphasis on combining 2 main real storylines.

It was worth watching given how much I love the cast, but based on what you said, I think had they fictionalized it a bit more they could have cranked the creepy/horror factor up and made it a classic.

 

[Bennnnn]

Okay, so The Babadook, was it as scary as I imagined? ...Not quite.

So, I knew quite a bit about it before going in. I knew it was about mental illness, and I knew the marketing of it was pretty misleading. That said, I didn't realize how small it all was - not at all in a bad way. There were a lot of great sequences where horror was crafted perfectly all on a small scale. It plays really well with shadows and atmosphere. However, I did still kinda expect more of The Babadook itself (the look of it is so goddamn creepy). But I get why you don't see it. I really loved the terrifying illustrations of the children's book. Like a lot. And although the movie is not as scary as I imagined, it still had some moments that were pretty scary. Towards the end, when there is more ramping up a bit, there are some scenes that are horrifying - just not in the way I imagined. Thing is, I don't see many people saying it's scary necessarily, but I have heard many positive things about it. Like with The Witch, I feel like maybe with another viewing I'd like it even more. It's interesting that so many people found Hereditary genuinely scary. That hype built it up so much for me that I wound up pretty disappointed in it (although I think it's a solid film, just not scary). The Babadook is much scarier to me, especially in what its overall metaphor and meaning is because it's something that hits close to some of my experiences (although much bigger and wilder).

 

[hype]

Bruh i watched this secondhand and only at the end and it was still terrible af.

I just enjoyed seeing the super annoying characters finally die brutally .. The practical effects were surprisingly well done and there were two or three kills especially that were pretty creative and well done imo. I agree outside of that it was pretty terrible though!

 

[EvanBenner]

When planning my HoopTober list, I like to look ahead at new movies coming to streaming during October and pick a few at random. That's what ultimately led me to this new movie on Screambox. (HoopTober included a promo code for a free trial since a couple of their extra credit films are on the service.)

Deep Fear sees some adventurous friends enter Paris's subterranean catacombs only to find themselves in a lawless land with unexpected threats.

It's fine. I didn't get anything out of it that I hadn't already gotten from Catacombs and As Above, So Below.

 

[Hemotep]

Day 48.

Old People



I really wanted to rank this one higher. It started with such promise and had moments of genuine horror. The grotesque side of old people and the disposability with which our cultures treat them was a great premise. And some scenes captured it so well on top of being beautifully shot. But ultimately it descends into a derivative mess by copying zombie movie cliches. Such a shame. I'd almost say it was worth watching for the good, I really was impressed by those aspects, but by the end I was so disappointed that I'm not sure.

 

[hype]

I have been seeing people post and say good things about this one a lot recently so went in mostly blind hoping for the best. I wasn't a fan as it was just boring and uninteresting for the first 2/3's along with an unsatisfying ending to top it all off. I'm guessing since I haven't seen the short it was based on that you'd likely be much better off just watching that.

 

[EvanBenner]

My daily prompt was "Weird & Pretty," so I took a suggestion from my roommate who had put this movie on in the background while working a few weeks back and said it qualified. They said they also wouldn't mind rewatching it, so that was confidence enough for me.

A House on the Bayou has quite the varied reviews, but you can count me on the positive side of things for sure.

A wife finds her husband has been cheating and girlboss books an isolated bayou estate for a getaway to rebuild for their daughter's sake. After their arrival, things take several weird turns.

Early on, I literally started asking if this was a Burnt Offerings remake, but it turned out to be its own thing.

I can see why people might not like this. The script is VERY on the nose. Like, you can actually start calling lines before they are said, but I think that all kind of adds to the overall unpretentious nature of the film that I enjoyed. Everything is kinda conspicuous, even the score. It stands out in a way that's really obvious but feels right. It's a weird one for sure!

 

[siremobunny]

Big Moorhead & Benson fan. The Endless was my first, Spring is my favorite, Synchronic was a bit of a dud, but I'm super stoked for Something in the Dirt!

Something in the Dirt was pretty fun...I think Spring and The Endless are still my favs of theirs though.

 

[siremobunny]

16. Climax (2018)
Rating:
This one is a rough watch. Most of the characters are probably professional dancers not actors and it kinda shows... The last 15 minutes is nauseating to watch because it's entirely filmed upside down in flashing red lights, and the camera is twisting back and forth like it's being rolled around on a fixed ball. If that doesn't turn you off and you still want to watch, just a warning, there's a pretty triggering scene in here involving a pregnant woman being kneed in the stomach - and a crowd inducing her to self-harm because they don't believe she's pregnant

I absolutely HATED this film. Visually cool at times, but otherwise no redeeming qualities.

 

[siremobunny]

Knocked out another notable blindspot for me with Gremlins 2.
Pure insanity. Thank gosh for Joe Dante.

This film is GOAT level

 

[EvanBenner]

I absolutely HATED this film. Visually cool at times, but otherwise no redeeming qualities.

It might be my favorite Noe film. UwU

 

[Sebastian]

Anyone seen this?

 

[hype]

Hell Fest (2018)

I thought I remembered liking this one a bit more the first time I seen it but it was still a decent enough movie. Nothing at all exceptional just a good one to turn the brain off and throw on. I love the concept and setting of it all but we get mostly lazy writing, mediocre acting & uneventful kills but even with all that it still kind of felt like a 2010's version of a B level slasher from the 80's and has some charm to it mostly because of the awesome setting. Pretty sure Haunt came out within a year or so of this? That was much better with a somewhat similar premise.




Edit - Just seen from the poster it has the executive producer from The Walking Dead which explains the lazy writing part at least!​

 

[hype]

Lamb (2021)

This movie was a fucking bizarre trip which is the case with a decent amount of a24 movies obviously. I'm happy I went in blind and forgot the trailer since it had been awhile because when Ada is introduced as a bit older that was a shock and unexpected to say the least haha. The cinematography/atmosphere is top notch and nearly worth a watch just for that alone which is very welcomed since the movie is an extremely slow burn. I really wish this would not have been marketed as much as a Horror because outside of 2 maybe 3 scenes it is def. not but considering the spooky vibes and score they clearly give the audience extra tension as you never really know wtf is about to happen around the next corner. This is another movie where there are A LOT of easily missed undertones throughout the entire film that is not spoon fed at all so requires you to not only watch closely but think about it afterwards. I missed a decent amount I seen talked about after it was over and reading some of the director's thoughts which really helped my opinion of the film for sure. I'm going 4/5 but only about 12 hours after seeing it so I have a feeling my opinion is going to sway a bit after more thought and a second viewing eventually!

​

Spoiler

At first I was a bit irritated by how the movie concluded but the more you think about it you realize the creepy asf real goat human dad was simply taking back his daughter and possibly even avenging the death of Ada's real sheep mother. The human mom and dad were just clearly trying to replace there own daughter that passed which is pretty hard hitting when you realize they still had the crib and clothes of the deceased child as well. It basically leaves you with the simple message "don't take what isn't yours". It was mostly just heartbreaking seeing the confusion/teary eyes of Ada at the end who had so much innocence and love throughout the movie. Never thought i'd care about a human/lamb hybrid as much as I did with Ada . I really wish there was more information about the backstory of the mystical goat man because he was unsettling asf. There's also a part of me that wonders how good this could have been if they cut the horror out and made it more with the vibe of Marcel The Shell with a happy ending.

 

[EvanBenner]

Give Mia Goth all the awards this year. No other nominations needed.

A ★★★★ review of Pearl (2022)

Super relieved that Pearl made it to the A24 Screening Room before HoopTober ended. I'd planned this one especially for the select directors challenge, but its theater run escaped me. I loved this so much. West & Goth and crew are absolutely FEEDING us what we never knew we wanted but now could...

boxd.it

 

[Hemotep]

Day 50.

Astonishing Tales of Terror: Rocktapussy



I was in the mood for a low budget creature feature and this fit the bill. I was expecting trash, but was very surprised by how this played on adventure/fantasy/horror tropes without succumbing to them. It was story driven and the plot delivered on the classic cartoon adventure logic. I think I'll end up getting this on Blu-ray to watch again.

 

[Hemotep]

Day 51.

The Loneliest Boy In The World



I don't know how to feel about this one. It is being sold as a horror comedy, but I thought it lacked both. It was more like a quirky art film that's disgusting and sweet at the same time. It's somewhat successful in what is trying to do, but I was the wrong audience for it tonight. It's f*cking weird but not in the way I wanted it to be. I hope one of you watch this one and tell me your thoughts.

 

[gaporter]

Time to start playing catch up! I got a week's worth of movies to get through so let's get into it

MOVIE #49
The Howling: Reborn (2011)

Finally the Howling-ween(?) Marathon comes to an end.

The fact that the poster I pulled directly from Letterboxd is so low-res says it all. Nowhere near as bad as New Moon Rising (or even The Original Nightmare), but nothing special for the first installment of the franchise in sixteen years. It's pretty much just a schlocky early-2010s romantic teen movie with werewolves inserted. I guess the producers wanted to go for the Teen Wolf crowd or something? I don't know, I didn't hate it or anything but it wasn't really well-made or interesting on any level. A blah finale to a truly strange series of movies.

Also I was wondering where I'd seen the main girl before and it turns out she was on Ned's Declassified. I haven't seen that show since it was on in the 2000s but I'm sure it's aged better than this has in just eleven years.

Rating:

A ★★ review of The Howling: Reborn (2011)

I can't believe I actually watched all of these. Is there a support group for people who made it through the entire Howling franchise? In all seriousness, this one wasn't that bad, but then again, pretty much anything would have been upgrade from New Moon Rising. This just felt like a...

boxd.it