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OK - the 23rd challenge thread is now live. It's not Halloween until the HTF challenge is good to go.

Typically the prior year's winner gets things going for the next year but we're fast approaching October 1. So unless Travis, Howie, Michael, or Jason object, I'll get the 23rd annual challenge going later today. I know my numbers will be even lower this year because of some social events that...

Sorry to read this. My condolences to you and your mom.

Totals: 121 with 10 new views. Will deal with the post-Halloween blues by diving into Kino's release of Kolchak: The Night Stalker: The Complete Series. With 21 commentaries that should take a while.

Rating - Out of a possible 4 117) 10/31/2021 It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! (1966) Still the best Halloween TV special ever. The animators really capture the feeling of autumn and the teleplay is cleverly constructed. 118) 10/31/2021 Bugs Bunny's Howl-oween Special (1977) It's...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 115) 10/31/2021 The Thing (1982) Superior horror from director John Carpenter was inexplicably given the cold shoulder by critics and audiences in June 1982. Great cast, nonstop tension, special effects that holdup today... this is a timeless masterpiece of...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 110) 10/30/2021 The Curse of the Werewolf (1961) 1/2 Hammer's only werewolf film is elegant fairy tale-like story of unwanted child born on Christmas day, doomed to become a savage beast. Oliver Reed is terrific as sympathetic Leon. Just shows Hammer could make a...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 106) 10/29/2021 Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989) 1/2 They made a big mistake bumping off Rachel and replacing her with the ill-conceived Tina in this lame sequel. Little mute Jamie has psychic link to her unstoppable Uncle Michael, while Dr. Loomis...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 103) 10/28/2021 Halloween (1978) The most elegant film of its kind ever made, this rumination on evil personified/the bogeyman draws the viewer no matter how many times one has seen it. This might just be the only film I watch every year without fail. 104)...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 100) 10/27/2021 Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972) Count Dracula is brought back to life in 1972 England by one of his followers. He spends his time though in a dilapidated church and orders room service. Horribly dated by fashion, language, etc. because the filmmakers...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 097) 10/26/2021 The Horror of Frankenstein (1970) Ralph Bates takes over for Peter Cushing in this Hammer retake on the origins of Dr. Victor Frankenstein. Bates is a total sociopath who creates a monster more for his own amusement than anything else. I've always...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 093) 10/25/2021 The Haunting (1963) Thanks to rich characterizations this is one of the finest ghost stories ever put on film. Scientist invites trio to aid in investigation of allegedly haunted Hill House. One visitor forms instant bond with the place, sealing...

Well, Rosemary's husband is a POS right from the beginning. He's supposed to be. He's vain, arrogant, and the stereotypical self-involved artist. He has to be so you will believe he does what he does. He's not a nice guy at any point in the film. Cassavetes has so many great moments; my favorite...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 089) 10/24/2021 The City of the Dead (1960) 1/2 Well-made gothic chiller about college student who visits obscure Massachusetts town to research term paper on witchcraft. Christopher Lee is her professor. Low-key but highly effective, with atmosphere to spare...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 081) 10/22/2021 The Crime of Dr. Crespi (1935) Favorite bad guy Erich von Stroheim plays doctor who plots revenge against the man who married his old sweetheart. When his rival is injured in a car accident, Crespi arranges for him to be buried alive. Supposedly...

In the case of Warren I think watching paint dry is much more interesting.

Rating - Out of a possible 4 077) 10/21/2021 The Mummy's Hand (1940) 1/2 First of the Kharis films is probably the best, with group of fortune hunters unwisely seeking tomb of Princess Ananka, which ticks off high priest George Zucco and Tom Tyler's mummy guardian. The horror stuff is good...

That's from Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed.

Rating - Out of a possible 4 074) 10/20/2021 The Dark Eyes of London (1939) Because I'm stupid, I sprung for the Region B release of this film also know as The Human Monster since VCI botched their Blu Ray transfer. The good news is the film looks the best I've ever scene. The bad news is I...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 070) 10/19/2021 Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) All-time great horror comedy finds a way to get Dracula, the Wolf Man, and the Monster involved in the same story, unlike the House of... pictures. Dracula wants Costello's brain to put in the Monster...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 065) 10/18/2021 The Wolf Man (1941) Superior Universal horror. Lon Chaney, Jr. is bitten by werewolf Bela Lugosi so he'll become one too. Film combines powerful psychological and visceral horror for a most tragic tale. Claude Rains and Maria Ouspenskaya add...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 061) 10/17/2021 Frankenstein (1931) Perhaps my favorite of the classic monster movies, with two outstanding performances (Colin Clive and Boris Karloff), perfect direction, and a sense of horror from first frame to last. I like it better than the sequel, which...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 057) 10/16/2021 Dracula (1931) 1/2 Despite the stakes tossed at this film, I still think very highly of it for its atmosphere and memorable characters. I also love the fact it doesn't have a music score. Lugosi is so impressive in the role that even when he's not...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 053) 10/16/2021 The Ghost Ship (1943) New third officer discovers his captain (Richard Dix) it bat-sh*t crazy but no one will believe him, meaning he may be the next person to die. Dix is terrific as the murderous captain in this handsome, suspenseful Val Lewton...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 050) 10/15/2021 The Masque of the Red Death (1964) Roger Corman goes artsy fartsy in his penultimate Poe film. Vincent Price plays Satan-worshiping prince who holds extravagant ball for his followers while the nearby peasant village suffers the red plague...

Bold - Denotes first ever viewing Rating - Out of a possible 4 046) 10/14/2021 Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966) Christopher Lee's second outing as Dracula for Hammer Films is an enjoyable effort. Two stranded couples mistakenly accept the hospitality of Drac's manservant who offers room...

Rating - Out of a possible 4 043) 10/13/2021 Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) 1/2 When a patient is murdered and then his killer sets himself ablaze, a small town doctor teams with the victim's daughter to find out what the hell is going on. Their investigation takes them to a...

Bold - Denotes first ever viewing Rating - Out of a possible 4 040) 10/12/2021 The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958) Good sequel to Hammer's The Curse of Frankenstein finds the Baron (Peter Cushing), having escaped the guillotine, assuming new identity and carrying on with his experiments...

Bold - Denotes first ever viewing Rating - Out of a possible 4 037) 10/11/2021 Dune (2021) Took advantage of some free passes to venture to the movie theater with the wife. I never did see the 1980 film nor have I read the novels, so this Dune thing is new to me. I did like it, enough so...

Bold - Denotes first ever viewing Rating - Out of a possible 4 034) 10/10/2021 The Brides of Dracula (1960) 1/2 Excellent follow up to Horror of Dracula finds Peter Cushing's Dr. Van Helsing answering priest's request for help. The doctor arrives just in time to offer his aid to French...