Horror Movies

[Yo Tee]

Same here. I don't have time to hunt the streaming platforms for something good on weeknights. Get home at 5:30-6, cook dinner, and have about 20-30mins to myself before the wife & kids get home. I just throw something on as soon as I step in the door. Have to pause it when the kids get there so I don't scar them for life lol. Wait til they go to bed then I finish the movie.

I kicked my 31-days off with Hush (2016)

I would recommend a bunch of other Flanagan horror movies. He's quickly become my favorite Horror movie director. Oculus, Before I Wake, Gerald's Game and the Netflix TV show A Haunting on Hill House are just some of his movies that are really good. Oculus isn't the best but it's still good and the imagery on his movies, especially in Ouija: Origin of Evil, are haunting at times.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

The whole pregnancy thing was something that I missed also. First off, why are you having a baby during, what seems to be, the WORST time for something like a crying baby that can't be kept shut for periods of time? But, regardless, the first time I watched the movie, it came as a shock to me to see exactly how pregnant she was in, what seemed to be, out of nowhere. But after watching it a few more times I can see some subtle things that could hint to her being pregnant. The waterfall discussion you guys were having was spot on. That is the BEST place to live in a world where making noises signs your death certificate.

Something that I thought about after watching the movie 2-3 times was, did the son REALLY need to die at the beginning of the movie? I get that built in a bigger sense of protection for the daughter for the entire movie, but it didn't seem necessary to me. I do get, cinematically, why they did it, I just fight with some movies that do things that are unnecessary to the story as a whole. It's not like they learned anything from that event aside from ''protect your kids'' but that's something that should've been instilled in them from the beginning.

If the 2nd movie doesn't have them building a home near the waterfall, they don't know how to survive a world-ending event properly lol.

Agreed with most the above. Seems like movies like to unsettle their audiences right out of the gate with some sort of shock value, and AQP was no different with the kid. But for AQP I think it was important to create a heightened sense of just how scary the world they live in is. I thought it was a necessary action to really establish the movie, both the plot & cinematic atmosphere. Without it, the movie would have been dismally dry for the first half hour without ever really making the audience feel scared of making noise.

 

[Taddy Mason]

So what was the end result? I know it's getting great reviews but that doesn't mean much.

Didn't really care for it. Done by the same person that did Hereditary (didn't care much for that either, though liked it better than this). So, if you liked Hereditary, perhaps this might do more for you than me.

 

[Taddy Mason]

Crawl (2019)


I tried to turn my brain off and simply enjoy this one, but I failed. This film expects you to ignore a lot in order to enjoy it. Mainly had a hard time believing this film in regards to the behavior of the alligators. I'm not a gator expert, but you could tell they wanted them to behave like great white sharks to make them more menacing.

The story is very predictable, but it has a pretty solid story arc between the main character & her dad. The confidence angle seemed a little forced. We were led to believe that Haley had struggled with confidence her entire life, and yet not once in the fight for survival did I feel she didn't have the confidence to do anything. Didn't quite fit, but I understand why they did it. They wanted the triumph at the end to play out more significantly in regards to the main character, both as a story arc for the character and as a mending of fences with her father. However it sort of missed its mark there. The acting is decent, although I thought the lead actress could have done a much better job to really connect those emotional moments. All other characters in the movie are just lambs being led to slaughter.

The visuals & special effects are pretty solid for a non-blockbuster-budgeted film. The effects of the hurricane felt real enough, and the gore moments are fulfilling. I really liked the lighting & color they used. While the CGI of the gators aren't "bad", they still have a subpar look to them that makes them feel a little cartoonish. I also took issue with the gator bites. Seemed awful convenient that the main character was merely being nibbled on. Her injuries she sustained by 2 bites in particular should have maimed her to the point where she couldn't swim, let alone stand. Had to look this one up, but an alligator has a bite force in excess of 2000 pounds per square inch. And it takes roughly HALF of that to break a human bone. My point is, there's no f-ing way this girl would have been able to swim like she was after getting bit in both the leg & arm. Not to mention the injuries they sustained should have been gruesome but they barely bleed. It wasn't until the final death roll bite did she ever look really injured. The dad's injuries seemed a lot more realistic.

The scare element relies heavily on jump scares. But there is a pretty good heightened suspense from the presence of the gators swarming the house. And that is especially prevalent in the claustrophobic basement, with an added threat of rising water. That was probably the best scene of the movie because everything thereafter gets a little silly. Still had relatively good pacing all throughout so you're never bored. Just be prepared for lots of stupid decisions and useless scenes. Lots of stupid scenes that felt like runtime fillers.

Overall I had a hard time believing this film in most aspects and it had a lot of really stupid & useless parts, but if you can turn off your brain and simply enjoy it for popcorn entertainment then you may like it. If you're really critical about movies then you won't enjoy it. For those of you that enjoy the silly syfy films, you will like this movie.

Mindless popcorn entertainment... 5/10

As someone that enjoys the silly syfy films, I tried watching this twice, thinking maybe i just wasn't in the mood for it the first time. Trying to build that story arc and making characters seem important is what did it in for me. It's like, I don't care who this guy is and if he has a crush on your sister, guess this might come up later though... remember when you couldn't hold your breath as long as your sister... Just never got into this movie at all.

 

[Taddy Mason]

I would recommend a bunch of other Flanagan horror movies. He's quickly become my favorite Horror movie director. Oculus, Before I Wake, Gerald's Game and the Netflix TV show A Haunting on Hill House are just some of his movies that are really good. Oculus isn't the best but it's still good and the imagery on his movies, especially in Ouija: Origin of Evil, are haunting at times.

Agree, think I've seen everything he did from Absentia on and enjoyed them all. I remember going into Ouija with no expectations, as I remember they made a bunch of them around that time and remember watching one that was complete garbage (think most of them were), but this one was great and their was a spanish language one that did it well too, can't recall the name.

 

[Blackshirts BLVD]

COMING SOON:

Don't Let Go (2019)

Rated R

Release Date: 9/27 (didn't realize this was already out!)

Synopsis: After a man's family dies in what appears to be a murder, he gets a phone call from one of the dead, his niece. He's not sure if she's a ghost or if he's going mad, but as it turns out, he's not.

edit: @DJ posted this 3-4 pages ago. Good work my man!

Not anticipating this one too much. Reminds me of Frequency with Denis Quaid, which I actually kind of liked, but idk... this seems like a mediocre reboot of that.

COMING SOON:

The Lighthouse (2019)

Rated R

Release Date: 10/18

Synopsis: The hypnotic and hallucinatory tale of two lighthouse keepers on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.

I am anticipating this. I hope its good.

A little preemptive but....

Halloween Kills (2020) - Oct 2020
Halloween Ends (2021) - Oct 2021

 

[Shanemansj13]

Crawl (2019)


I tried to turn my brain off and simply enjoy this one, but I failed. This film expects you to ignore a lot in order to enjoy it. Mainly had a hard time believing this film in regards to the behavior of the alligators. I'm not a gator expert, but you could tell they wanted them to behave like great white sharks to make them more menacing.

The story is very predictable, but it has a pretty solid story arc between the main character & her dad. The confidence angle seemed a little forced. We were led to believe that Haley had struggled with confidence her entire life, and yet not once in the fight for survival did I feel she didn't have the confidence to do anything. Didn't quite fit, but I understand why they did it. They wanted the triumph at the end to play out more significantly in regards to the main character, both as a story arc for the character and as a mending of fences with her father. However it sort of missed its mark there. The acting is decent, although I thought the lead actress could have done a much better job to really connect those emotional moments. All other characters in the movie are just lambs being led to slaughter.

The visuals & special effects are pretty solid for a non-blockbuster-budgeted film. The effects of the hurricane felt real enough, and the gore moments are fulfilling. I really liked the lighting & color they used. While the CGI of the gators aren't "bad", they still have a subpar look to them that makes them feel a little cartoonish. I also took issue with the gator bites. Seemed awful convenient that the main character was merely being nibbled on. Her injuries she sustained by 2 bites in particular should have maimed her to the point where she couldn't swim, let alone stand. Had to look this one up, but an alligator has a bite force in excess of 2000 pounds per square inch. And it takes roughly HALF of that to break a human bone. My point is, there's no f-ing way this girl would have been able to swim like she was after getting bit in both the leg & arm. Not to mention the injuries they sustained should have been gruesome but they barely bleed. It wasn't until the final death roll bite did she ever look really injured. The dad's injuries seemed a lot more realistic.

The scare element relies heavily on jump scares. But there is a pretty good heightened suspense from the presence of the gators swarming the house. And that is especially prevalent in the claustrophobic basement, with an added threat of rising water. That was probably the best scene of the movie because everything thereafter gets a little silly. Still had relatively good pacing all throughout so you're never bored. Just be prepared for lots of stupid decisions and useless scenes. Lots of stupid scenes that felt like runtime fillers.

Overall I had a hard time believing this film in most aspects and it had a lot of really stupid & useless parts, but if you can turn off your brain and simply enjoy it for popcorn entertainment then you may like it. If you're really critical about movies then you won't enjoy it. For those of you that enjoy the silly syfy films, you will like this movie.

Mindless popcorn entertainment... 5/10

I enjoyed it. I like jumpy movies. Plus, just the thought of those gators scares the shit out of me. BUT and a big BUT like you said...those fuckers aren't that smart. I could see if they had a backstory where all the gators had chips in their brain to be that intelligent but lets be real...some of that shit was too unrealistic...still enjoyed it though.

 

[Shanemansj13]

A little preemptive but....

Halloween Kills (2020) - Oct 2020
Halloween Ends (2021) - Oct 2021

I love the Halloween movies and the newest won blew my expectations away but cmon lol....I will still watch both though, probably in theaters. One of my favorite horror movie series ever

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

I love the Halloween movies and the newest won blew my expectations away but cmon lol....I will still watch both though, probably in theaters. One of my favorite horror movie series ever

The reboot was a huge disappointment for me. Honestly makes it very hard for me to look forward to the next 2. But of course I will still see them. Just with lowered expectations.

 

[Chef99]

Mercy Black (2019)


This movie has a great premise & story. It's visually appealing & well shot, and the writing is solid. Written & directed by Owen Egerton (Blood Fest). This guy is relatively new to the game having so little accredited to him, but he has a great eye for horror storytelling. His stories are original, thoughtful, and the settings are well used to support the story. He uses some of our childhood fears against us in a magnificent way.

That said, this film in particular is suited to be a children's bedtime horror story, or even a campfire scare story, and is a perfect film for teenagers that enjoy the genre. The writing gives us a good story. It begins the story with 3 young girls alone in the woods giving you a mysterious background then jumps forward 15 years. We then get detailed flashbacks throughout the film. Slowly but surely the flashbacks depicting the tragic events unfold the character arcs & bring them to their fates at the forefront. There was a LOT that COULD have gone wrong with this presentation & progression, but it was generally fluid, albeit slow. Only a few questions here & there but they could be resolved by simple theories.

These flashbacks present some suspense, as we slowly get acquainted with the tragic event & the "creature". However it wasn't much suspense, and it tends to drag by its slow pacing. The progression doesn't quite give us the full depiction of what the "creature" is, which makes it intriguing. The story is evolved around a true crime incident with disturbing events that unfolded and it is up to us to connect some dots here & there as to what the true menace of the story is. It was very dry in the gore department which I think could have vaulted this film to a higher level, but that would have tailored to adults whereas this film is meant to be for younger crowds. Plus it would have derailed the story that Egerton was trying to tell. But I would have liked it lol.

The acting in this film was ok. I think we could have gotten more out of the sister's character in regards to her insanity. Her demeanor was far too normal for a young girl that was locked away for so long. The main character, Marina, had a solid performance throughout. Even her character could have evolved from a darker place considering the story.

Overall its a decent film for all age audiences. But it will come off as slightly cheesy to adults that are used to their horror movies being tailored to them. Its sold as a creature feature, but it doesn't come close to fulfilling that, which was disappointing to say the least. It comes off as more of a mythic presence, and ends up alluding to psychological elements instead. It's very slow paced, but it tells a good story if you can stay enthralled.

A Dark Children's Bedtime Story... 6.5/10

Is this Netflix or what?

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Is this Netflix or what?

Yes sir!

 

[Blackshirts BLVD]

Just watched In The Tall Grass. A Stephen King and Joe Hill (his son) short story made into a film on Netflix.

In short, it is about a brother and sister that enter a field because of a boys cries for help only to find out that the field of tall grass is a maze that manipulates time and space.

All in all, I got this vibe that it was supposed to be or lead to some moral understanding/discovery, but it never really developed in my opinion at least in the film (never read the story). It seems to play on its time travel theme, but also never explains really anything. Patrick Wilson is the highlight in my opinion, an underrated actor (surprised he hasn't been in more A list style movies).

I didn't really care for this, too confusing with little to no explanation about anything. Just leaves your mind to fill the blanks.

 

[Taddy Mason]

Just watched In The Tall Grass. A Stephen King and Joe Hill (his son) short story made into a film on Netflix.

In short, it is about a brother and sister that enter a field because of a boys cries for help only to find out that the field of tall grass is a maze that manipulates time and space.

All in all, I got this vibe that it was supposed to be or lead to some moral understanding/discovery, but it never really developed in my opinion at least in the film (never read the story). It seems to play on its time travel theme, but also never explains really anything. Patrick Wilson is the highlight in my opinion, an underrated actor (surprised he hasn't been in more A list style movies).

I didn't really care for this, too confusing with little to no explanation about anything. Just leaves your mind to fill the blanks.

yeah, i watched that the other night. it was a clusterfuck of ... no clue. i liked the initial premise of it, but they lost me pretty quickly.

 

[Taddy Mason]

I did catch It: Chapter II over the weekend. Liked it a lot more than the first. Still got slightly annoyed when they'd make whatever form pennywise was in shake like he was hit with a tuning fork, but overall, much better, imo.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Just watched In The Tall Grass. A Stephen King and Joe Hill (his son) short story made into a film on Netflix.

In short, it is about a brother and sister that enter a field because of a boys cries for help only to find out that the field of tall grass is a maze that manipulates time and space.

All in all, I got this vibe that it was supposed to be or lead to some moral understanding/discovery, but it never really developed in my opinion at least in the film (never read the story). It seems to play on its time travel theme, but also never explains really anything. Patrick Wilson is the highlight in my opinion, an underrated actor (surprised he hasn't been in more A list style movies).

I didn't really care for this, too confusing with little to no explanation about anything. Just leaves your mind to fill the blanks.

yeah, i watched that the other night. it was a clusterfuck of ... no clue. i liked the initial premise of it, but they lost me pretty quickly.

Glad I wasn't the only one. I got lost and my interest dissolved about midway. Didn't even finish it because I just didn't feel like they were going to reconnect so many dots in such little time, nor did I feel they would do it in climactic fashion worth watching.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

@Taddy Mason @Nasty_Magician @Terry Rode @Psych-Ward @Win TWINS!!! @Montalban @R.J. MacReady @Chef99 @Blackshirts BLVD @DJ @UVA_Guy81 @Nosferatu

Got a request for anyone that wants to answer...

Give me your top 5 horror TV shows. This can be all-time or just current favorites. Or hell, if you're bored enough give me a top 10 (or however many) to encompass both. Or if you're lazy just give me some good recommendations!

I need to get into more horror TV shows. Seriously lacking in that department. I'm looking for great TV shows with an emphasis on horror.

Shows I have watched:
The Twilight Zone
The X-Files
Tales From the Crypt
Penny Dreadful
American Horror Story (not this newest one yet)
The Walking Dead
Stranger Things
Supernatural (didn't watch the last 3-4 seasons, because honestly I'm not sure why I made it that far... Tailored to teenaged girls lol. First couple seasons were better for horror, but now its just a sci-fantasy drama).
Ash vs Evil Dead

My wife & I just finished Black Summer, and honestly I thought it was garbage. She liked it. Not a bad story, just not a fan of the characters or acting at all. And the Tarantino-esque production gets tiresome quickly.

Still need to get into NOS4A2. Also heard good things about Hannibal & Bates Motel. Haven't taken the plunge yet.

 

[Taddy Mason]

If you didn't check out The Haunting of Hill House on netflix last year I would go with that.
Marianne also on Netflix now has been great.
I liked the exorcist series fox did, too bad it's no more.
What We do in the Shadows is funny (similarly Wellington Paranormal is good too).
Just to get to 5, I'll say Evil, though I've only seen one episode so far (only two out so far, new basic cable show).

Will try and think of some more later.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Updates on my 31 Days of Horror!

Day 1 - Hush (2018)
Day 2 - The Babysitter (2018)
Day 3 - The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Day 4 - Dale & Tucker Vs. Evil (2010)
Day 5 - Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Day 6 - The Shining (1980)

 

[Win TWINS!!!]

Marianne also on Netflix now has been great.

It's in limbo, last I saw. I really hope they sign for another season or 2.... Loved the 1st.

 

[Taddy Mason]

It's in limbo, last I saw. I really hope they sign for another season or 2.... Loved the 1st.

i still have 2 episodes to go.

thinking about checking out The Terror on AMC. remember seeing commercials for it last year, but didn't look interesting. guess it's an anthology series and every time i see a commercial for this years it looks intriguing.