Horror Movies

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Watching It Follows. This chick is not very bright, is she?

View attachment 255496

She's a real giver, that one...

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Tried to watch Vampires vs the Bronx (2020) but couldn't get into it. Wife wanted to talk through most of it so that didn't help. But still didn't look like we were missing out on much. Pretty weak cast. Method Man cameo as the priest was pretty hilarious.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[DJ]

#LegendinHorror

 

[DJ]

Awesome.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

@returnofjakedog

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[returnofjakedog]

I just took my own advice and rewatched Peter Jackson's The Frighteners, which he did just before he broke out with The Lord of the Rings triology. It is a really good horror comedy that has largely been forgotten for some reason.


Michael J. Fox plays a paranormal psychic who gained the power to see and converse with dead spirits after a car accident that took his wife. Now he drives around in a real shitty old Volvo and runs grifts with some spirits who haunt a location, then he moves in to exorcize them (I'm not clear on what the spirits gain from this relationship, but whatever).
Meanwhile a new (and pretty) doctor makes a housecall on Dee Wallace Stone in a creepy mansion where DWS's overbearing mother treats her like a prisioner and spouts cryptic dialog.
MJF bumbles around (he constantly wreaks his car) and goes to funerals where he hands out business cards until he gets ran off.
MJF "exorcizes" pretty doctor's house despite her dillhole husband's objection.
Then a plot point about many people dying from their hearts being squeezed is introduced, along with some history about a local murderer (played Jake Busey and his genetically enhanced teeth) and his girlfriend (a 15 year old version of the DWS character) from 30 some years ago who killed 11 people in a hospital rampage.
All of this ties together as MJF and the pretty doc try to unravel the mystery of all of the current deaths all while they are the prime suspects. Oh, and Jeffrey Combs plays a mentally disturbed FBI paranormal expert who pursues them.
Lots of ghosts, lots of kills, lots of comedy and violence!
Some highlights include:
*The acting in general. MJF does his standard "likeable little guy who tries hard" to great effect. DWS does a great job in her against type cast crazy lady role, and the rest of the cast performs admirably. I also give a lot of credit to Peter Jackson who seemingly got the best out of the cast with strong direction.
*R. Lee Emory famously reprising his Sargent role from Full Metal Jacket. Here he plays a spirit guarding a graveyard and while his scenes are limited, they are hilarious.
*The pacing is a little frantic at times as the story pushes hard to squeeze everything into the run time but the story is effectively done.
*Some of the fxs are dated (the cgi killer ghost, or MJF's "flying" scenes for example), but overall pretty fun. The look of the standard spirits is awesome, with their bright whited out glow and various stages of decomposition. Not sure how they did it but it was great!
*The characters themselves are generally really well rounded, as even the spirits have distinct and interesting personalities arcs. I love how the spirits retain their individual personalities in their afterlife.
*Jeffrey Combs is batshit crazy! Maybe even crazier than the killers? Fun stuff!
*Danny Elfman score! Remember this is pre-LotR so a bit surprising that Elfman agreed to do it imo.

Negatives are few. I already mentioned pacing issues, and some dated fxs. Other than that, just some small stuff.
*Location. The studio insisted it be set in the USA, and this is emphasized by dialog, characters, some set stuff, etc. But it doesn't look like the USA. The houses, and cars are not typical for the USA. There is a small snow tipped peak right next to the town, which is sitting on step hillsides next to a bay. This might happen somewhere in Alaska, but it feels like.......New Zealand (for some reason).
*Some of the humor is bit over the top for what is actually a very dark movie. The feel is similar to Jackson's previous work Braindead. PJ actually does a fine job walking that fine humor/horror line but it might be frustrating for some.

Some interesting stuff:
*Jake Busey's killer often references his killcount as he is trying to "move past" other famous murderers for totals. He first mentions Charles Starkweather, then Gacy, Bundy, and "the Russian cannibal creep" (Andrei Chikatilo). This is interesting as the Jake Busey and DWS characters are obviously based on Charles Starkweather and his "sidekick" Caril Ann Fugate (check out their story). It also struck me that Brad Pitt and Juliette Lewis' characters in Kalifornia are also based on Starkweather and Fugate!
*Movie closes with a cover of Blue Oyster Cults' Don't Fear the Reaper, much like Scream does just a few years later.

All in all, I'm going a 7.5 to 8 out of 10. A fine movie that for seems to have faded from modern memory. Check it out if you haven't seen it!

 

[returnofjakedog]

@returnofjakedog

I always hope for the best but, as we previously discussed, good werewolf movies are few and far between. From the trailer this one seems to strongly character driven.
Fingers crossed!

 

[Nasty_Magician]

Watched Annabelle Comes Home last night, I enjoyed it. Definitely over the top at times but still very creepy and didn't go over board with the jump scares.

Also watched Visions, was a complete snoozefest. The characters were not likable or relatable, the payoff/reveal was pretty absurd. I guess it was a semi original concept so they get points for that but just didn't hit the mark.

3 episodes in on Haunting of Bly Manor, much slower burn than Haunting of Hill House but still liking it a lot.

 

[UVA_Guy81]

Of those, I'd go with Poltergeist as my favorite.

I just took my own advice and rewatched Peter Jackson's The Frighteners, which he did just before he broke out with The Lord of the Rings triology. It is a really good horror comedy that has largely been forgotten for some reason.


Michael J. Fox plays a paranormal psychic who gained the power to see and converse with dead spirits after a car accident that took his wife. Now he drives around in a real shitty old Volvo and runs grifts with some spirits who haunt a location, then he moves in to exorcize them (I'm not clear on what the spirits gain from this relationship, but whatever).
Meanwhile a new (and pretty) doctor makes a housecall on Dee Wallace Stone in a creepy mansion where DWS's overbearing mother treats her like a prisioner and spouts cryptic dialog.
MJF bumbles around (he constantly wreaks his car) and goes to funerals where he hands out business cards until he gets ran off.
MJF "exorcizes" pretty doctor's house despite her dillhole husband's objection.
Then a plot point about many people dying from their hearts being squeezed is introduced, along with some history about a local murderer (played Jake Busey and his genetically enhanced teeth) and his girlfriend (a 15 year old version of the DWS character) from 30 some years ago who killed 11 people in a hospital rampage.
All of this ties together as MJF and the pretty doc try to unravel the mystery of all of the current deaths all while they are the prime suspects. Oh, and Jeffrey Combs plays a mentally disturbed FBI paranormal expert who pursues them.
Lots of ghosts, lots of kills, lots of comedy and violence!
Some highlights include:
*The acting in general. MJF does his standard "likeable little guy who tries hard" to great effect. DWS does a great job in her against type cast crazy lady role, and the rest of the cast performs admirably. I also give a lot of credit to Peter Jackson who seemingly got the best out of the cast with strong direction.
*R. Lee Emory famously reprising his Sargent role from Full Metal Jacket. Here he plays a spirit guarding a graveyard and while his scenes are limited, they are hilarious.
*The pacing is a little frantic at times as the story pushes hard to squeeze everything into the run time but the story is effectively done.
*Some of the fxs are dated (the cgi killer ghost, or MJF's "flying" scenes for example), but overall pretty fun. The look of the standard spirits is awesome, with their bright whited out glow and various stages of decomposition. Not sure how they did it but it was great!
*The characters themselves are generally really well rounded, as even the spirits have distinct and interesting personalities arcs. I love how the spirits retain their individual personalities in their afterlife.
*Jeffrey Combs is batshit crazy! Maybe even crazier than the killers? Fun stuff!
*Danny Elfman score! Remember this is pre-LotR so a bit surprising that Elfman agreed to do it imo.

Negatives are few. I already mentioned pacing issues, and some dated fxs. Other than that, just some small stuff.
*Location. The studio insisted it be set in the USA, and this is emphasized by dialog, characters, some set stuff, etc. But it doesn't look like the USA. The houses, and cars are not typical for the USA. There is a small snow tipped peak right next to the town, which is sitting on step hillsides next to a bay. This might happen somewhere in Alaska, but it feels like.......New Zealand (for some reason).
*Some of the humor is bit over the top for what is actually a very dark movie. The feel is similar to Jackson's previous work Braindead. PJ actually does a fine job walking that fine humor/horror line but it might be frustrating for some.

Some interesting stuff:
*Jake Busey's killer often references his killcount as he is trying to "move past" other famous murderers for totals. He first mentions Charles Starkweather, then Gacy, Bundy, and "the Russian cannibal creep" (Andrei Chikatilo). This is interesting as the Jake Busey and DWS characters are obviously based on Charles Starkweather and his "sidekick" Caril Ann Fugate (check out their story). It also struck me that Brad Pitt and Juliette Lewis' characters in Kalifornia are also based on Starkweather and Fugate!
*Movie closes with a cover of Blue Oyster Cults' Don't Fear the Reaper, much like Scream does just a few years later.

All in all, I'm going a 7.5 to 8 out of 10. A fine movie that for seems to have faded from modern memory. Check it out if you haven't seen it!

I'd probably give that movie around the same grade. I also liked John Astin in it as well.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Of those, I'd go with Poltergeist as my favorite.

I went with Poltergeist as well!

This one's tougher, but I went Shining.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[UVA_Guy81]

I went with Poltergeist as well!

This one's tougher, but I went Shining.

That’s tough because I really enjoyed the first Nightmare on Elm Street as well.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

That’s tough because I really enjoyed the first Nightmare on Elm Street as well.

I enjoyed every single one of those movies... All for different reasons. Nostalgia played a big part in my choice.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Of those, I'd go with Poltergeist as my favorite.


I'd probably give that movie around the same grade. I also liked John Astin in it as well.

Yeah. His portrayal of the grizzled old west corpse ghost was pretty hilarious. When he jumps into the coffin to get it on with the Egyptian mummy was rather bizarre!