61 Nights of Halloween, 2023 Edition

[Sithborg]

I don't know how Bloodlines can compete with unhinged Clancy Brown.

 

[Ninjablade]

Watching it right now. After a boring first 25ish mins, it's now got kinda of racist? Good music though. So going well.

Sounds about right for most horror

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Sounds about right for most horror

This must of been a trip for Elliot after 7 years of being in good horror **** with Flanagan.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I don't know how Bloodlines can compete with unhinged Clancy Brown.

It can't.

 

[Snow Queen]

 

[Ninjablade]

11. Friday the 13th (1980) dir. Sean S. Cunningham

Quote of the film: "You're making a science out of coincidence."

This movie more than any others is pretty much the formula for slashers. It hits all the notes at the very core, which makes it understandable as to why this one has been copied to eternity. Kids are stupid and horny, some of them die, the killer's identity is a twist. Simple as all hell, and I love it for it.

 

[Man in the Suit]

Jigsaw (2017) dir. The Spierig Brothers

A Saw movie for people who don't like Saw. The whole vibe is Saw: The TV Series. I have a hard time accepting this as canon. Blah.

Spiral (2021) dir. Darren Lynn Bousman

I love DLB's Saw movies, but this is just... why?

And this completes my Saw rewatch. Tomorrow I'll finally see Saw X... which has the same writers as Jigsaw and Spiral. Third time's the charm?

 

[DarthSkywalker]

@Man in the Suit I hope you enjoy Saw X. Know it's a big one for you.

 

[Snow Queen]

Jigsaw (2017) dir. The Spierig Brothers

A Saw movie for people who don't like Saw. The whole vibe is Saw: The TV Series. I have a hard time accepting this as canon. Blah.

Spiral (2021) dir. Darren Lynn Bousman

I love DLB's Saw movies, but this is just... why?

And this completes my Saw rewatch. Tomorrow I'll finally see Saw X... which has the same writers as Jigsaw and Spiral. Third time's the charm?

Spiral is my favourite because all I can see when I hear Chris Rock's voice is that zebra from Madagascar. It's a much better movie that way.

 

[NDX]

Seriously. There are so many of these retro posters as artwork on streaming sites that sucker you into thinking that the movie is going to be some sort of throwback.

Then you press play and it looks like a fan film on YouTube circa 2011.

Some movies have the worst poster art but hide great films, too. Rammbock: Berlin Undead is a fantastic zombie flick, 61 minutes long and has a great look, and my friends and I almost overlooked it because the poster was too generic to be called generic.

 

[Kane52630]

V/H/S/85

I dunno if I should get the eye-phone 15. I hear it overheats.

So happy that Shudder continues cranking these out every year and this year has yet another banger of horror segments. I think 85 was a slight improvement over 99 but it almost reached the horror heights of 94. You can tell the budgets of these segments have grown compared to the last ones but still maintain the rough edges that make them work. The wraparound is pretty clever considering the 80s and newsreels of that time and what they do with the buildup so by the end, it was pretty fun.

Total Copy

This is the documentary/newsreel that is the wraparound of the movie that takes a very Stranger Things approach to the horror. I thought David Bruckner did a great job making that 60 Minutes-esque newsreel feel like it actually happened. As for the documentary/science lab of it all, they did a good job of being creepy and when it gets silly they go all in and it has a funny punchline at the end that ends the movie.

No Wake

This is the first real segment and it opens really strong with a very Stephen King/Friday the 13th homage that takes you by surprise. The movie does a lot to make you think it's two different kinds of horror before it shows you what it's really about. It's the one that feels very naturalistic out of all of them and feels more in line with the first two VHS movies. It's probably my favorite out of the bunch and I'm actually excited to see what Mike P. Nelson does next. This one could have been a full feature.

God of Death

This one takes place in the Mexico City earthquake that really happened and uses it to tell a survival story that takes a more supernatural turn. It's probably the most straightforward segment of the bunch that goes exactly where you think it does. I will say Gigi Saul Guerrero did a phenomenal job recreating the Mexican newscasters and the aesthetic of these news reports that feel real and authentic. Although, I feel like this needed something more especially when it got to the ending.

TKNOGD

This was a fun one and it taps into my love for Tron. The segment is pretty much a one-woman show theater production that goes off the rails and Chivonne Michelle did a good job carrying it by herself. Natasha Kermani did a good job keeping it interesting and light and the gore was pretty gnarly.

Ambrosia

The less said about this one the better because I don't wanna spoil it. It's so good... I loved the reveal and then the insane stuff that follows.

Dreamkill

It's probably my second favorite and it's by Scott Derrickson. He does a great job recapturing those grimy 8mm films as he did in Sinister and The Black Phone through a POV lens. I will say this is the only segment with actual horror and when the segment was focused on those kills, it reminded me of John Carpenter and William Lustig. The segment also takes a turn and where that goes is pretty nuts and takes a page from The Terminator.


Overall, V/H/S/85 is another solid addition to the VHS series and they keep continuing to deliver some interesting horror ideas that you would love to see become full-length films. I still think of the last three, 94 is still the best when it comes to horror, but 85 and 99 are probably the most fun.
4/5

31 Days of Horror Marathon
Day 1: Saw X (3.5/5)
Day 2: No One Will Save You (4/5)
Day 3: Cobweb (3.5/5)
Day 4: The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (4/5)
Day 5: The Exorcist: Believer (2.5/5)
Day 6: V/H/S/85 (4/5)
​

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I am currently watching a woman speak whale into a mic, while Tron plays in the background.

 

[Sithborg]

12. Underworld

Yeah, I enjoy doing the Underworld movies every year. So sue me. Kate Beckinsale in a leather catsuit. I do enjoy the Lycan designs as well. The first is still that quinessential someone stole someone's VtES campaign.

13. Totally Killer

Totally mash up between Back to the Future and a slasher. Pretty fun. Poor 80's weed though. The twist on Back to the Future's ending was amazing, though.

And in horror television related viewings.

A. The Exorcist S1

God, such a freaking creepy season. Just added some additional horrors there to the possession. And Ben Daniels is great. That damn extra pupil effect.

Probably not going to do season 2, what with Chucky and House of Usher and Goosebumps, plus the need to catch up on Flanigan's other stuff.

 

[NDX]

01. Rifftrax: The Night Of The Living Dead (1968)*
02. Halloween III: Season Of The Witch (1982)*
03. The Boogey Man (1980)*
04. The Devonsville Terror (1983)*
05. The Dentist (1996)*
06. The Dentist 2 (1998)*
07. Brain Dead (1990)*
08. Night Of The Living Dead 3D: Re-Animation (2012)*

This would have been much better if it was just an adaption of My Dinner With André with Andrew Divoff and Jeffrey Combs. No zombies. No horror. Just a conversation.

Still in ****ty 3D.

 

[KaijuDude1992]

This was generic and lazy asf. I can see why it got released directly on streaming because Paramount obviously had no faith in it from the start and just wanted something to put on their streaming service that people would watch in time for Halloween. Even saying that still doesn't justify this movies existence because it brings absolutely nothing new the table and worst of all isn't even as entertaining or campy as something like Pet Semetary 2. It also criminally wastes a pretty decent cast. I felt really bad seeing Pam Grier, Henry Thomas and David Duchovney in this dreck.

5/10



I'll be honest I really wasn't crazy about this one at first and if it wasn't for the Scott Derrickson and David Bruckner segments this would easily be my least favorite V/H/S/ film since Viral. Those two segments really saved it for me and I thought the first segment had potential because of the cool concept but I didn't like the payoff at all. Out of these recent ones I still think 94 is the best and I even enjoyed 99 more than this but it looks like V/H/S/2 is going to remain my favorite installment in this franchise for the foreseeable future.

6/10

 

[Mani-Man]

Night 6 brought us the good old Jack The Ripper

From Hell

I dont know why, but it feels like im the only one who likes the movie.
I see way too few lists that have the movie in it and i dont really get why.
I think the movie is done quite well, looks neat and is good.
The vibe is fantastic, the costumes and visuals, you got a great cast and the story isnt too awful either.

To me this is a movie i find myself watching at least once a year, strangely often after or before going with Sleepy Hollow.
Somehow it feels like this is a double feature i have to do.
I enjoy the movie.
Maybe im wrong here or so and its really the visuals and the setting that sells it to me...but i really like this one.


1.Winnie Pooh: Blood and Honey
2.Terrifier 2
3.Halloween Ends
4.Smile
5.The Last Voyage of the Demeter
6.From Hell

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Night 36

89. Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (2023) dir. Lindsey Anderson Beer (NEW)

Bite-Sized Review: Not good.

*1/2

90. The Boogeyman (2023) dir. Rob Savage (NEW)

Bite-Sized Review: They have everything they need to make something really good here. Strong lead, sympathetic kid sister, a disposable friend group, and a potentially fun villain. But the desire to stretch this out hurts it big time. Tell the story over 36 hours, integrate the sleep over into the main plot, cut 15 mins, and you have something. But instead you're left asking what are we waiting for?

**3/4

91. V/H/S/85 (2023) dir. David Bruckner, Scott Derrickson, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Natasha Kermani, and Mike P. Nelson (NEW)

Bite-Sized Review: Worth it for Nelson's effort. Nothing else sucks but nothing compares to my favorites from 94 or 99. Guerrero's could of used some trimming and I did not enjoy Derrickson breaking the "convention" but I did like the resolution.

***1/4

 

[OtherwiseKnownAs]

Watched Exorcist III last night. Cannot for the life of me understand why it was so hated when it came out. A worthy follow-up to the Exorcist.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

The Boogeyman is frustrating to me because it has all the ingredients for a fantastic horror film, but it just doesn't get there. It ends up being needlessly generic, for how fun some of those key sequences are.

 

[Kane52630]

Totally Killer

Not to totally be Comic Book Guy for a second, but there's no way they were able to obtain a VHS copy of Robocop in 1987. They were released in 1988.
*pushes up glasses* Worst. Metaslasher. Ever.

MY FULL REVIEW
3/5

31 Days of Horror Marathon
Day 1: Saw X (3.5/5)
Day 2: No One Will Save You (4/5)
Day 3: Cobweb (3.5/5)
Day 4: The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (4/5)
Day 5: The Exorcist: Believer (2.5/5)
Day 6: V/H/S/85 (4/5)
Day 7: Totally Killer (3/5)​

 

[-Arya-]

5/10

I wish I like this more. Apart from a couple of scenes

Spoiler

the tree, and the face melt

it isn’t scary at all. Far more similar in tone to Ghost Busters and E.T. than Texas Chainsaw Massacre which isn’t what I’m looking for in a movie like this. The editing and pacing also felt off, and as a result I was mostly bored. For example

Spoiler

right after a ghost encounter, there is a long drawn out scene with the father and another realtor walking through the town talking about real estate. I know the interaction eventually leads to important information but it felt awkwardly placed within the movie.

I can’t bring myself to hate it because it is competently made, and the last 20 minutes are fun. Can’t say I’d ever want to watch it again though.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Seems that everyone is getting around to Totally Killer. I agree with this part in your review @Kane52630



I think the look of the ''Sweet 16 Killer'' is great but the reveal and motive didn't really work for me.

I disagree on Shipka being given the role of an overt "stereotype" in the flick. While yes, she does have some obvious Gen Z traits, it basically boils down to her being socially conscious. Which is to be expected of kids, especially young women, with a decent education these days.

I also rather like the reveal. I think it nails one issue I have with a lot of the slashers that take themselves a bit too seriously. But I get why others wouldn't.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Yeah, I guess I just like to actually see the ''how and why'' rather than people just talk about what happened in the past that led to the reveal.

I still enjoyed it for the most part though. :basicgrin:

Sorry, didn't mean to come off defensive about it.

 

[Sithborg]

I think the look of the ''Sweet 16 Killer'' is great but the reveal and motive didn't really work for me.

Given my contempt of people like who got revealed, I rather liked it.

 

[Man in the Suit]

Saw X (2023) dir. Kevin Greutert

I can't believe this movie exists... It's like everything I want from a Saw sequel. Been waiting 14 years for this. Kevin Greutert is the GOAT!