Horror Movies

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

I always wanted to see the Battle of Helm's Deep... everyone is all quiet... and then you see everyone at the wall kind of looking back shocked... and the T-800 from T2 (Arnold) steps forward with his minigun and grenade launcher and just starts going to town. God that'd be great.

Keep up with that count Legolas, you fuckin' Gary Stu.

Lol... as the Uruk-hai commander roars his battlecry on top of that rock in front of the Helm's Deep wall... the T-800 casually steps on top of the wall & buries a grenade from his launcher down its throat...

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

Lol... as the Uruk-hai commander roars his battlecry on top of that rock in front of the Helm's Deep wall... the T-800 casually steps on top of the wall & buries a grenade from his launcher down its throat...

It would've been so awesome. With the same music that played during that office scene in T2... tne Uruk-hai are all fleeing and scrambling wondering WTF is going on.

And at the end we see like casualty count in the 5000s LOL.

 

[returnofjakedog]

.....next round!
Waxwork (1988)-

A group of annoying young adults attend an exclusive midnight grand opening of a wax museum in their neighborhood. However it turns out the displays are actually portals to other dimensions where the kids are attacked by the likes of vampires, werewoves, mummies, Phantom of the Opera, zombies, etc and then incorporated back into the displays in the real world. Zach Galligan (the main guy from Gremlins) works with one of the chicks, and eventually uncovers a group of old folks whose purpose is to fight this waxwork curse?
A bit crazy, but not particularly well done. The storylines breaking off causes it to be very convoluted. There are some good actors in it, but the performances aren't great overall. The monsters are overly generic and the fxs are on the low budget side. Very little sense is made. The protagonists are generally forgettable and/or unlikeable.
That being said, it is kinda fun. It is a mash up of classic stories, and they try to capture that late '80s comedy-horror like Fright Night but come off a bit hit and miss.

4.5 to 5 outta 10 range. Fun for nostalgia, and has some cool ideas, but overall a bit of a mess.

Waxwork 2: Lost in Time (1992)-
So the surviving chick from the first movie is on trial for murder after a disembodied hand (also from the first movie) offs her abusive step father. Zach and her then travel through dimensions fighting evil and searching for proof to exonerate her
Similar to the first movie conceptually but the focus on 2 characters instead of 8 or so makes it a bit less convoluted. They "visit" the likes of Alien, Dawn of the Dead, Nosferatu, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, etc this time.

The first movie was comedic, but this one embraces the comedy aspects more. The acting and execution are still a bit of a mixed bag. Bruce Campbell and David Carradine make appearances. They recast the main chick for some reason, which is fine but the new actress looks and acts nothing like the original.

Anyways, I'll go 5 to 5.5 range. Still flawed, but an improvement on the original.

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970)-

An American in Italy witnesses an attempted murder inside of an art gallery through the huge glass front windows. The murderer escapes, and a string of attacks and kills follow. The American works with the police to investigate, and closes in on the culprit as the violence escalates......

I was hyped for this one as it is the breakout film from Dario Argento whom is my fav of the Italian giallo genre. This one is very highly thought of and gets high marks all around. But, in a bit of a surprise to myself, I didn't find it to be as good as some of his other films.

The movie suffers from the same negatives from the giallo genre as a whole: bad dubbing, sometimes questionable acting but where it falls slightly short is in the typical positives (particularly in respect to Argento films). It does have a bit of the dream like/nightmare reality creepy feel to it, and has some cool shots but it falls short of some of his other works like Susperia, Deep Red, Inferno, etc. in those areas.
It does have an Ennio Morricone score, which is always good!

Still a decent watch but not top tier giallo imo, despite general critical love.
6 outta 10 range. An important historical work in the genre, but not the peak (imo).

Deadly Blessing (1981)-

A relatively early Wes Craven film! Well, I say relatively because in 1972 he had The Last House on the Left, and in '78 he did The Hills Have Eyes. But, interestingly, Craven didn't expect hardly anyone to see The Last House on the Left so he went over the top on the violence which largely made him a pariah in the mainstream film community for the better part of a decade. During that time period he apparently made many pron movies under a pseudonym!

Anyways, Deadly Blessing was his first fully financed "big" production.

A young man and his new wife move back into his home area and start up a farm. They live right next to a Hittite community that the young man used to be a member of but he was kicked out when he left to get a university education and married a non-Hittite woman. The young man is killed in a supposed accident. The young man's father is the Hittite leader who preaches hardcore fire and brimstone, and verbally and even physically attacks all that oppose him.
3 of the now-widow's friends show up to comfort her, but are also subjected to harassement from the religious group.
Eventually things escalate, people are stabbed, cars explode, religious virtue is beaten into folks etc, until a kinda cool double twist climax and finale occur.

A mostly good mixed bag from the religious horror sub-genre. Well shot, decent to good acting, solid story telling. Some weird, surreal imagery is pretty cool.
Much better than Craven's tv movies from the same time frame (Stranger in Our House, which bored me to tears, and Invitation to Hell which started strong but....meh). A little convoluted, and a slow moving plot are negatives.
Ernest Borgnine is spectacular as the crazed Hittite asshole leader, in what might be my fav role from him! He chews up the scenery throughout and you hate his character. A quite young Sharon Stone looks great in a supporting role but sadly stays fully clothed.

I've always wanted to see this one but never got around to it until now.

A solid film but a little slow. The ending comes out of nowhere and will divide audiences with the complete left turn it takes (and no, I don't mean the first twist conclusion).

6 to 6.5 outta 10. Worth a watch, particularly for Craven fans.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Lots of classic Raimi horror in Doctor Strange 2. Surprisingly graphic for the MCU.

Finally watched this yesterday... it was fantastic. Loved the horror elements casually blended into a blockbuster superhero movie.

 

[Sparhawk]

‘The Thing’ and ‘Blade Runner’ at 40: The Day Sci-fi Hit Its Peak

Forty years ago this week, two science-fiction films released on the same day but failed to live up to box office expectations. They later went on to achieve cult status, cement the legacy of their directors, and inspire countless other entries in the genre.

www.theringer.com

Nice read.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Kinda watched a horror documentary from 2014 called The 50 Best Horror Movies You've Never Seen.


*The worst kind of documentary where they mostly just have some random insiders and B-list celebrities describing parts of the movies (kinda like my reviews here!). Not a lot of interesting insight or information.

*2 hours and 20 minutes long of the same people randomly describing things.

I ended up just jumping from one movie to the next to see what is on the list instead of sitting through the mindless blathering.

Lazy. Don't bother. 3 outta 10 for lack of an interesting approach and taking way to long. It just annoyed me.

I did add about 20 I haven't seen before to my list, so it wasn't a total waste.

 

[Sparhawk]

Kinda watched a horror documentary from 2014 called The 50 Best Horror Movies You've Never Seen.


*The worst kind of documentary where they mostly just have some random insiders and B-list celebrities describing parts of the movies (kinda like my reviews here!). Not a lot of interesting insight or information.

*2 hours and 20 minutes long of the same people randomly describing things.

I ended up just jumping from one movie to the next to see what is on the list instead of sitting through the mindless blathering.

Lazy. Don't bother. 3 outta 10 for lack of an interesting approach and taking way to long. It just annoyed me.

I did add about 20 I haven't seen before to my list, so it wasn't a total waste.

Is there an actual list to read?
Or what were your top 5 that you had not seen?

 

[UVA_Guy81]

‘The Thing’ and ‘Blade Runner’ at 40: The Day Sci-fi Hit Its Peak

Forty years ago this week, two science-fiction films released on the same day but failed to live up to box office expectations. They later went on to achieve cult status, cement the legacy of their directors, and inspire countless other entries in the genre.

www.theringer.com

Nice read.

I was thinking about going to see The Thing during one of those Fathom Events things this past week. I heard that the aspect ratio was all messed up for it though and people got pissed.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Is there an actual list to read?
Or what were your top 5 that you had not seen?

Fuck. I just deleted my list!!! I'll have to go back and rebuild it. Shit!

Here are 5 that are up there though:
*Castle Freak (95)- Stuart Gordon directs with Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton. I reviewed a mediocre to average Fangoria remake here recently.
*The Wailing (2016)- Highly rated South Korean film.
*The Beast Within (82)
*Alone in the Dark (82)
*Audition (99)- highly rated Japanese film

.......and here is the list from the documentary:
#50 Basket Case
#49 When A Stranger Calls
#48 Silent Night, Deadly Night
#47 Slumber Party Massacre
#46 Valentine
#45 Grace
#44 The Hunger
#43 Prophecy
#42 The Dentist
#41 The Food Of The Gods
#40 Motel Hell
#39 Wrong Turn
#38 The Fury
#37 April Fool's Day
#36 Humanoids From The Deep
#35 Hatchet
#34 May
#33 Lemora
#32 The Brides Of Dracula
#31 The Exorcist III
#30 Burnt Offerings
#29 The Funhouse
#28 Halloween III
#27 Hard Candy
#26 Castle Freak
#25 Feast
#24 Slither
#23 Inside
#22 Tourist Trap
#21 Trilogy Of Terror
#20 Splinter
#19 Session 9
#18 Ginger Snaps
#17 Alice Sweet Alice
#16 Visiting Hours
#15 Repulsion
#14 Alone With Her
#13 Near Dark
#12 Joshua
#11 Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark
#10 Audition
#9 Let The Right One In
#8 Re-Animator
#7 Wishmaster
#6 The Descent
#5 Alone In The Dark
#4 The Night Of The Hunter
#3 The Beast Within
#2 Pumpkinhead
#1 Black Christmas

That is another issue problem. It is a fine list but the only people that would want to watch it are freaks like myself, but I've already seen 2/3 of these.

 

[BeaReylo]

.....next round!
Waxwork (1988)-

A group of annoying young adults attend an exclusive midnight grand opening of a wax museum in their neighborhood. However it turns out the displays are actually portals to other dimensions where the kids are attacked by the likes of vampires, werewoves, mummies, Phantom of the Opera, zombies, etc and then incorporated back into the displays in the real world. Zach Galligan (the main guy from Gremlins) works with one of the chicks, and eventually uncovers a group of old folks whose purpose is to fight this waxwork curse?
A bit crazy, but not particularly well done. The storylines breaking off causes it to be very convoluted. There are some good actors in it, but the performances aren't great overall. The monsters are overly generic and the fxs are on the low budget side. Very little sense is made. The protagonists are generally forgettable and/or unlikeable.
That being said, it is kinda fun. It is a mash up of classic stories, and they try to capture that late '80s comedy-horror like Fright Night but come off a bit hit and miss.

4.5 to 5 outta 10 range. Fun for nostalgia, and has some cool ideas, but overall a bit of a mess.


Deadly Blessing (1981)-

A relatively early Wes Craven film! Well, I say relatively because in 1972 he had The Last House on the Left, and in '78 he did The Hills Have Eyes. But, interestingly, Craven didn't expect hardly anyone to see The Last House on the Left so he went over the top on the violence which largely made him a pariah in the mainstream film community for the better part of a decade. During that time period he apparently made many pron movies under a pseudonym!

Anyways, Deadly Blessing was his first fully financed "big" production.

A young man and his new wife move back into his home area and start up a farm. They live right next to a Hittite community that the young man used to be a member of but he was kicked out when he left to get a university education and married a non-Hittite woman. The young man is killed in a supposed accident. The young man's father is the Hittite leader who preaches hardcore fire and brimstone, and verbally and even physically attacks all that oppose him.
3 of the now-widow's friends show up to comfort her, but are also subjected to harassement from the religious group.
Eventually things escalate, people are stabbed, cars explode, religious virtue is beaten into folks etc, until a kinda cool double twist climax and finale occur.

A mostly good mixed bag from the religious horror sub-genre. Well shot, decent to good acting, solid story telling. Some weird, surreal imagery is pretty cool.
Much better than Craven's tv movies from the same time frame (Stranger in Our House, which bored me to tears, and Invitation to Hell which started strong but....meh). A little convoluted, and a slow moving plot are negatives.
Ernest Borgnine is spectacular as the crazed Hittite asshole leader, in what might be my fav role from him! He chews up the scenery throughout and you hate his character. A quite young Sharon Stone looks great in a supporting role but sadly stays fully clothed.

I've always wanted to see this one but never got around to it until now.

A solid film but a little slow. The ending comes out of nowhere and will divide audiences with the complete left turn it takes (and no, I don't mean the first twist conclusion).

6 to 6.5 outta 10. Worth a watch, particularly for Craven fans.

Oh wow bruv I saw Deadly Blessing when I was a kid I've always remembered it but couldn't recall the title. Thanks for posting about it!

I've seen Waxwork a ton when I was primary school and I still love it to this day! I saw its sequel once but didn't like it as much as the first outing. I may rewatch it again to see how I like it now as an adult.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Oh wow bruv I saw Deadly Blessing when I was a kid I've always remembered it but couldn't recall the title. Thanks for posting about it!

I've seen Waxwork a ton when I was primary school and I still love it to this day! I saw its sequel once but didn't like it as much as the first outing. I may rewatch it again to see how I like it now as an adult.

Yeah. We all have our "guilty pleasures" from our youth. My rather negative review of Chopping Mall brought a bit of backlash from a few folks, despite it being an obviously flawed Wynorski flick.

Waxworks is better than Chopping Mall (despite CM's awesome head explosion), but it is an odd and flawed flick. I can see the appeal of both movies but neither are particularly well done.

Waxwork 2 also isn't particularly good, but the story and execution are tighter, and the focus on 2 characters across 8 or so scenerios as opposed to 8 or so characters AND scenerios made it slightly easier to follow (though I admit to being initially confused by the Alien scene).

Regardless, if you loved the original Waxwork back in the day, then I'm sure you will still prefer it over Waxwork 2. No Academy nominations for either, but they have some fun appeal points.

Deadly Blessing was pretty cool imo. Ernest Borgnine was awesomely hateable as the asshole religious leader.

 

[DJ Fieri]

 

[returnofjakedog]

I know it never stops, but they are backing up.....!

Shivers (1975)-

David Cronenberg's 1st feature length film!
A couple of doctors develop a parasite that will support failing organ function, but there are violent sexual side effects! People start spreading the infection throughout a fancy highrise apartment complex, which quickly devolves into what is essentially a big sex zombie building. The protagonists try to navigate their way out while constantly under attack.

A really cool story but the execution is spotty. The characters are not memorable, and in fact secondary to the story. The acting itself is very hit and miss, and the actors are generally not pleasant to look at (low budget '70 Canada folks). The apt complex is a good setting, and there are lots of fun fxs of various quality blended in with a fair amount of violence.

All in all, I'll give it a 5 to 5.5 outta 10 range. The whole thing kinda acts as a precursor to Cronenberg's '77 flick Rabid which has a similar story. I'd give Rapid about a 6.5.

Watch it if you want to see how Cronenberg's career progressed through to Scanners, The Dead Zone, The Fly, etc., etc.

Werewolf: The Beast Among Us (2012)-

This one actually started out ok, with a pretty cool opening scene in which a family is attacked by a werewolf. Some decent practical effects (don't get too used to that though). A young boy survives the attack and grows up to be a werewolf hunter.

Fast forward 20 some years, and to a small village that had been under siege by a werewolf's increasing attacks. A young man works with the local doctor to investigate. Then a group of cool werewolf hunters shows up. They hunt the wolf, only to find this one isn't a mindless beast when it lures a villager's hunting party into their traps.

Things escalate. People are slaughtered. Surprise reveals happen. One person turns out to be a wurdalak (Russian vampire) who has a battle with the werewolf.

They seem to be trying. The story is ok but somewhat standard and the execution is a little bit SyFy channel level. It generally looks good. Some good cinematography and fxs. The acting is hit and miss (more leaning towards miss). Probably the biggest sin is the overuse of bad cgi on the werewolf and action stuff.

Too slick for it's own good. Kinda a poor man's Van Helsing. 4.5 to 5 outta 10 range from me.

Phenomena (1985)-
Another Dario Argento giallo, but sadly not one of his best.

A killer is slashing up people in an isolated area. Some of the victims are girls from a prestigious girl's school. A young Jennifer Connelly starts attending the school, only to start investigating the murders, which are basically considered missing persons to this point. She meets Donald Pleasance, a crippled entomologist (insect guy) with a pet chimpanzee, who notices her ability to seemingly control insects. Jennifer then uses insects in her investigation to find the killer.

This one is weird. It is essentially a standard giallo plot (violent murderer, witness gets pulled into the investigations) blended with Carrie (if Carrie's powers were only insect control), finished off with a twist, followed by a ridiculous twist, followed by a kinda hilarious twist.

Insects and mutants and monkeys, oh my! Not top tier giallo. 5.5 to 6 outta 10 range (and that might be a bit generous). A lot of convoluted nonsense and, as always from the Italians, bad English dubbing.

Jessabelle (2014)-

A pregnant young lady's unborn child and her fiancee are killed in an auto accident. The accident also leaves her in a wheelchair, and she has to move back to her small bayou town with her poor dad. Strange things start occuring, and she is drawn to a series of video tapes that her mother made to her. The creepy stuff keeps happening, her father gets defensively violent, and an old friend starts helping her to figure out what is happening. The violence ramps up, and the twisty truths are eventually uncovered.

This one didn't fare well critically (26% on RT), and is mid-5s on overall RT and IMDB, but a couple of folks in this thread mentioned that they liked it some years back. I also think it is a bit underrated.

A decent story with enough intrigue and twists to keep you involved (though one common critic complaint is it is a bit slow). It is fairly compact. The acting and essentially all production aspects are pretty good. Some good fxs here and there.

I'll go 6.5 outta 10 range. Reminds me a lot of the also underrated Skelton Key with Kate Hudson. Both are worth a watch for slow burn, modern Southern gothic horror fans.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

.....next round!
Waxwork (1988)-

A group of annoying young adults attend an exclusive midnight grand opening of a wax museum in their neighborhood. However it turns out the displays are actually portals to other dimensions where the kids are attacked by the likes of vampires, werewoves, mummies, Phantom of the Opera, zombies, etc and then incorporated back into the displays in the real world. Zach Galligan (the main guy from Gremlins) works with one of the chicks, and eventually uncovers a group of old folks whose purpose is to fight this waxwork curse?
A bit crazy, but not particularly well done. The storylines breaking off causes it to be very convoluted. There are some good actors in it, but the performances aren't great overall. The monsters are overly generic and the fxs are on the low budget side. Very little sense is made. The protagonists are generally forgettable and/or unlikeable.
That being said, it is kinda fun. It is a mash up of classic stories, and they try to capture that late '80s comedy-horror like Fright Night but come off a bit hit and miss.

4.5 to 5 outta 10 range. Fun for nostalgia, and has some cool ideas, but overall a bit of a mess.

Holy shit! I'm almost positive (based on the trailer) this is a movie I remember seeing at a pretty young age that was on television that I was watching without my parent's permission, but I couldn't remember the name of it! I have to watch it now and see if it really was that movie. I've been wondering what it was for years now lol.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

‘The Thing’ and ‘Blade Runner’ at 40: The Day Sci-fi Hit Its Peak

Forty years ago this week, two science-fiction films released on the same day but failed to live up to box office expectations. They later went on to achieve cult status, cement the legacy of their directors, and inspire countless other entries in the genre.

www.theringer.com

Nice read.

F those audiences in the late 70s/early 80s... greatest horror film of all time and a bunch of pansy ass hippies couldn't take it (just like Alien)!

 

[Think McFly Think]

F those audiences in the late 70s/early 80s... greatest horror film of all time and a bunch of pansy ass hippies couldn't take it (just like Alien)!

Yeah, The Thing is one of my favorite movies period, not even taking into account genre.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

Yeah, The Thing is one of my favorite movies period, not even taking into account genre.

Same. Top 10 for sure on my list (of all movies). I always have to plug it in during the winter and pour myself a bourbon/whiskey (or two or three lol). Even better if Chicago has a good winter storm going. Get the fireplace going with the snowstorm outside, and this on, all other lights off with my drink? OH YEAH. That's a cinematic experience at its best.

 

[Think McFly Think]

Same. Top 10 for sure on my list (of all movies). I always have to plug it in during the winter and pour myself a bourbon/whiskey (or two or three lol). Even better if Chicago has a good winter storm going. Get the fireplace going with the snowstorm outside, and this on, all other lights off with my drink? OH YEAH. That's a cinematic experience at its best.

One of Kurt Russel’s best roles under Carpenter IMO but I might have to give an edge to Jack Burton because “what the hell”.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

One of Kurt Russel’s best roles under Carpenter IMO but I might have to give an edge to Jack Burton because “what the hell”.

The quote that had me dying in that movie was:

"God aren't you even going to kiss her goodbye!?"
".......... nope."

LMAO

I love some Big Trouble in Little China, and what was great about that movie was Kurt despite a few moments isn't just some Rambo/Schwarz stealing the show. There's various times where he does something stupid or is a bumbling fool and requires someone else to bail him out lol. The poster paints him as some absolute hero that's just going to mow through everything, but it's exactly the opposite.

Great movie and he was great in both films. Russell is one of my favorite actors. Even on celeb roast some person writes in: "Kurt Russell's face is like old worn leather." And what does Kurt reply with: "I couldn't agree more" and then starts genuinely laughing as opposed to being all sour grapes/upset.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Holy shit! I'm almost positive (based on the trailer) this is a movie I remember seeing at a pretty young age that was on television that I was watching without my parent's permission, but I couldn't remember the name of it! I have to watch it now and see if it really was that movie. I've been wondering what it was for years now lol.

It isn't a great flick, but it is fun nostalgic '80s cheese!