***Official 17th Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge 2016*** (2 Viewers)

[Tony J Case]

Ahhh..did not realize that. I pretty much gave up on the Halloween movies soon after that 1989 POS.

You're a wiser man than I. . . .

 

[Michael Elliott]

A Werewolf in Slovenia (2015) * 1/2

This tries to pass itself off as a documentary about various werewolf sightings in Slovenia but then, after wasting your time watching it, they tell you everything was made up. Even before that this here was a pretty bland and boring documentary with some fake found footage material, which looked really bad to the point where it was obviously not a werewolf. Even worse is that we're told a bunch of useless information.

Escapes (1986) * 1/2

I wanted to watch a Vincent Price movie and came across this one. I had never heard of it but Price plays a small part and hosts six different short stories. This here was obviously inspired by CREEPSHOW and The Twilight Zone but this direct-to-VHS offering just doesn't work. The stories are either too bland or too long to be entertaining and none of them are well-made as it seems like the director (this is his only credit) just hired some buddies. How Price got involved here is a mystery to me but he's certainly the best thing about the picture. This remains weirdly watchable just due to how weird the stories are but it's still pretty bad.

Dead Heat (1989) **

Another one I watched because of Vincent Price but he just has a small role here. Treat Williams and Joe Piscopo play cops who discover a company bringing the dead back life. Williams ends up getting killed but he too is brought back so that they can determine what's going on. I've known about this movie for thirty years but never bothered with it until now. It's not overly bad but Williams and Piscopo just aren't Laurel and Hardy if you know what I mean. There are some great special effects including a scene where a woman basically melts and falls apart. The R-rated is certainly due to the violence, which is a plus. There just aren't enough laughs to make this work.

Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964) ***

You damn Yankees. It's time for the South to rise again in this cult classic from Herschell Gordon Lewis. Of Lewis' gore trilogy this here is my favorite and I still think it's the best thing he ever did and I'd say it's the best thing David Friedman ever did too. The gore moments aren't as graphic as BLOOD FEAST or COLOR ME BLOOD RED but the Southern setting is just funny as are the rednecks carrying out the revenge. The death games are all rather creative in their own ways and makes this one of the better drive-in films of its era.

The Haunting of Fox Hollow Farm (2011) **

One of the most haunted houses in Indiana belonged to a serial killer. Today many people believe his victims still haunt the property so various ghost hunters show up to see what they can find. This isn't great and it's not bad. It's just kinda bland. Perhaps it's just me but those EVP devices that record ghosts talking just make me roll my eyes no matter which show or documentary I watch. I mean, they give subtitles of what the ghosts are saying yet I can NEVER hear it for myself.

Queen of Blood (1966) ** 1/2

Curtin Harrington directs this great looking but mildly entertaining horror film about an alien that crashes on Mars and is picked up by a U.S. crew. It turns out the alien is actually a vampire needing blood to survive. The look of this picture is wonderful and Harrington deserves just as much credit for that as Mario Bava gets for PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES. I will say that the story itself isn't that original and the pacing is off but it's great fun getting to see John Saxon, Basil Rathbone and Dennis Hopper in the same movie. This here is just as weird as the director's NIGHT TIDE. The green alien/vampire is another plus.

 

[TravisR]

That was also one of the problems with Zombie's remake - in the original Laurie was just had the misfortune to being in the wrong place at the wrong time, that her friend mouthed off to the wrong person driving by. When you make Michael a product of a broken home or a experiment by a thousand year old cult, it really takes the wind out of his sails.

Since I hate the explanations (sister, cult) for Michael being evil in the original movies, I was shocked that I ended up thinking that the 'origin' of Michael in the remake was the best part of the movie. The second half of the movie with the stalk & slash stuff should have been great but it didn't work for me.

 

[Tony J Case]

Since I hate the explanations (sister, cult) for Michael being evil in the original movies, I was shocked that I ended up thinking that the 'origin' of Michael in the remake was the best part of the movie. The second half of the movie with the stalk & slash stuff should have been great but it didn't work for me.

It really felt like two completely separate movies bolted together - and I agree that the first half was the stronger of the two. While not particularly subtle (Playing Love Hurts while Michael's mom does her stripper job? Thanks, Rob - I would have never made the connection), it's a lot better than the second half. It's a shame that he didnt have the confidence to do (or Malek Akkad didn't have the confidence in the brand to let him do) an all-prequel entry and stay away from the Carpenter version.

Ah well, it is what it is.

 

[TravisR]

124. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

A family breaks down in the middle of a desert and a group of cannibals attacks them. A true grindhouse classic and one of Wes Craven's best movies.


125. Dawn Of The Dead (1978)

A group of people take refuge in a mall as the dead rise and society collapses. Another classic and George Romero's best.


These two great movies will probably be the point where I wrap it up. I'll be watching Halloween and Halloween II tonight but I won't count those towards my total since I already watched them.

 

[Tony J Case]

Yeah, Halloween evening is the worst time to get any horror movie viewing in for me. On a good night we'll have 200-ish kids come to the door. It looks like it'll be raining tonight, so that might kill the numbers slightly, but yeah - any quality viewing time is not happening. I'll put something I've seen a million times on like Ghostbusters or something.

 

[Oliver Ravencrest]

112) Monster House (2006)

A kid and his friend have an unhealthy obsession with the neighbour across the street. Strange things happen around his house and anything that touches his lawn disappears. As the two boys and a girl watch the house, they begin to believe that it is haunted! Their investigation takes them deep into the bowels of the house, when no one believes them. This is a really good animated movie with a great voice cast. The characters feel like real people. I'm not a big fan of the performance capture animation they used here but the overall design and execution work. I enjoy watching this one every year.

 

[Oliver Ravencrest]

Yeah, Halloween evening is the worst time to get any horror movie viewing in for me. On a good night we'll have 200-ish kids come to the door. It looks like it'll be raining tonight, so that might kill the numbers slightly, but yeah - any quality viewing time is not happening. I'll put something I've seen a million times on like Ghostbusters or something.

I stopped giving out candy years ago, we didn't get as many kids as the previous year. I got stuck with with loads of extra candy. I also had an older lady in a costume with a bad attitude demanding candy. So, now I just buy a bag of candy that I like and watch Halloween themed TV shows and a movie. I'm going to watch the original Halloween and the Great Pumpkin later.

 

[TravisR]

I stopped giving out candy years ago, we didn't get as many kids as the previous year.

Yeah, apparently all the kids have aged beyond trick or treating around me because I haven't had anyone come to my house in years and I haven't heard or seen anyone forever either. It probably helps that there isn't a sidewalk on my side of the street and there's a decent sized development right across the street. Either way, I have one bag of mini-candy bars that I'll end up eating in the coming weeks.

And for any smart asses out there , it's not that they're scared to come to my house because my neighbors have gotten any trick or treaters for years either.

 

[dpippel]

Well, maybe if you didn't live in the basement of the FBI Building...

 

[Tony J Case]

Okay, had some time over lunch to type up my Sunday viewings:

124) Diary of the Dead (2007)
You know, I cant fault Romero for not experimenting with his baby. While I generally don't like Found Footage movies, I thought this one was kind of clever - especially the way that it addresses the "Why don't you put down the camera and run when being attacked by the Monster/witch/zombie" thing straight out of the gate. It's got the usual social commentary - this time, Romero takes on today's fast-paced, high-tech information Youtube age, examining the role of both popular, mainstream media as well as the rise of alternative media sources - AKA the Internet. It's not a bad message and it's not a bad film - it just fails to live up to the legacy of the other Dead movies.
I give it 3 Huffington Posts out of 5

* * * * * * *

125) Survival of the Dead (2009)
Sorry George, I've defended even your weaker movies, but I cant defend Survival. The major problem here? A lack of focus. Lets consider Night - one group of people, seven characters. Dawn had four characters (plus a bunch of walk-on parts) and Day had six (plus Bub and a whole bunch of Redshirts to serve as Zombie fodder). Here, we have the four Mercenaries (plus the Teen), Poppa Flynn and his daughters, and Muldoon and his clan - all vying for space in the script. It's like watching 1/4th of several movies all mushed together. Oh, and then there's the zombies.

Kinda.

That's the other big problem - the zombies are more of an afterthought. There's no real menace, no real sense of threat or looming hordes of thousands of brain eaters. They occasionally shuffle in one at a time, get quickly dispatched and we move onto the next scene. There are no moments like Stephen in the elevator fumbling with the revolver. There are no grasping hands clutching at Barbra through the boarded up windows. And when the walking dead serving as more a source of inconvenience instead of an unholy, unstoppable army, there’s no urgency to the proceedings. Any tension has been effectively undermined and all the drama has been drained out of the movie.
I give it 1 Just stop, Georges out of 5

* * * * * * *

126) Night of the Living Dead (1990)
While I generally don't like remakes, I had no issue with this. Mind you, it's more or less the same story as the original, so it's hard to go wrong with it. My only real issues is that EVERYONE IS SHOUTING. Oh sure, Ben and Cooper had their fair share of yelling at each other in the original, but here every single cast member seems to be dialed to 11. The other problem? The painfully dated eighties synth music that is omnipotent and omnipresent. The stock library music from the original worked SO much better - and took moments to let the film just breath.
I give it 3 Twist Endings out of 5

* * * * * * *

127) Zombi 2 (1980)
Ah, god bless you Lucio Fulci. You delivered the most cringe-worthy death I've ever seen in horror. Yeah, I'm talking about The Eye Splinter. That shit still makes me squirm, jaded horror fan I am. The rest of the movie is pretty good too!
I give it 4 Squicks out of 5

* * * * * * *

128) Dawn of the Dead (2004)
I'm beginning to suspect that Dawn of the Dead was a fluke. How is it that Zack Snyder can make a pretty good remake here and then go on to screw up pretty much every other movie he's made? Those opening 15 minutes comprise one of the best opening sequences I've had the pleasure to watch. In a beautifully shot, deftly edited sequence, we get all the exposition we need to get us up to speed, hints of the danger as it rapidly escalates into chaos, and the sudden collapse of society - and of course Johnny Cash is always welcome. While I prefer the slow, methodical restless zombie, I don't mind the running zombies. While not quite as good as the original, Dawn '04 really should be taken as it's own thing.
I give it 4 Snydermen out of 5

 

[Michael Elliott]

I shall be doing the trick or treating with the kids tonight. I dressed up last year but I won't be doing it this year. My three-month-old is going as Raggedy Ann since I didn't get my wish of making her the Bride of Frankenstein. My boy is going as a ninja for some reason. He's usually dying to be one of the monsters.

Re: Zombie's HALLOWEEN

I don't like ANY of his movies but I must take his side over Carpenter's. I know Carpenter recently bashed zombie for adding the "reasons" behind Myers but I at least give Zombie credit for trying something different and not just delivering a straight remake. The "mystery" of Myers is something people blame Zombie for messing with but what he did wasn't nearly as bad as the various subplots brought in by the countless sequels.

But yeah, the Love Hurts sequence was painful as was the horse stuff from the sequel. If the song selection bothered you I can't wait till you see 31 and it's ending.

 

[Tony J Case]

I stopped giving out candy years ago, we didn't get as many kids as the previous year. I got stuck with with loads of extra candy. I also had an older lady in a costume with a bad attitude demanding candy.

See, my front yard is covered in Halloween decorations (and have been since the 1st) and we're directly across from a really popular playground - so I've been 'advertising' for the last 3 weeks. That tends to bring the kids a runnin'.

Hopefully we get some folks - I have a bunch of Canadian candy to give out, so they freak out, going "Areo Bar? Crunchie? What the hell is all this!"

 

[Ruz-El]

We don't get many kids either anymore. I have "The Swarm" on the DVR, I might chuck it on to watch while giving out candy. I'm back at work today so finally updating from yesterday. I broke 100!

100 10/30 The Puppet Masters (1994) Blu 3.5/5
Another retelling of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”. This one switches things up a bit by concentrating on a government agency trying to figure out and contain the invasion. Think “The X-Files” only with Donald Sutherland. It works, though it plays more like an action film that a horror.

101 10/30 Darkman (1990) Blu 4/5
Mix-up the best traits of the Universal Monsters and slam them into a pulpy super-hero story and you get another winner from Sam Raimi. Raimi nails this stuff with style and humour and the cast featuring Liam Neeson and Francis McDormand manage to pull this one off.

102 10/30 The Conjuring 2 (2016) Digital 3.5/5
I’m a big fan of the first one so I was looking forward to this one. It’s good, and I found it to be pretty spooky. Only problem is they go too big in the second half so it loses a bit of its charm. That said, it’s still a fun journey.

 

[whacky blacky]

October 31
99. Restoration (2016) * New To Me 2/5 Watched On DVD

I think Cabin in The Woods made sure that all horror films involving a house has it displayed on the front cover with a skull or a scary face. This one has a couple moving into a new house and golly gee its haunted. A diary is found in the house which aids in trying to figure out the haunting which leads to bigger discoveries.
No originality once again. They take the common ghost story and mix it with a little Satanism and add a whole bunch of boring.

 

[Oliver Ravencrest]

See, my front yard is covered in Halloween decorations (and have been since the 1st) and we're directly across from a really popular playground - so I've been 'advertising' for the last 3 weeks. That tends to bring the kids a runnin'.

Hopefully we get some folks - I have a bunch of Canadian candy to give out, so they freak out, going "Areo Bar? Crunchie? What the hell is all this!"

I hope you're giving our Smarties, they're like M&Ms but taste better. The Canadian version of the Oh Henry was better too, eh!

 

[Oliver Ravencrest]

113) Trick 'r Treat (2007) 1/2

A series of seemingly random stories set on Halloween are interconnected as the residents of a small town face ghosts and goblins that are real. The director does a great job of connecting all of these stories together and the set and costume designs are very good too. My favourite story is the one where the kids go to the quarry. Probably the best character in the movie is Sam, the sinister Trick-or-Treater. I wish they had left his mask on, it ruins the mystery.

 

[Doug Wallen]

Well. this was my first time to participate in the Challenge. I have not completed as many films as some of our more illustrious members did. I completed 16. I am unaware of how to update my original post so I will just list everything here again in one convenient post.

October 2nd
1. The Thing (1982) - Shout remaster - 4.5/5
2. Twilight Zone - It's A Good Life (1961) 5/5
3. The Mummy (1932) 3.5/5 New

October 6th
4. Frankenstein (1931) 4/5

October 7th
5. Bride of Frankenstein (1935) 4.5/5

October 8th
6. Young Frankenstein (1974) 5/5

October 9th
7. Christine (1983) 4/5
8. The Mist (2007) 3.5/5

October 14th
9. Jeepers Creepers (2001) 3/5 New

October 15th
10. Jeepers Creepers 2 (2003) 3.5/5 New
11. House of Wax (1953) 4.5/5
12. Alien - Theatrical (1979) 4.5/5

October 22nd
13. The Omen (1976) 4.5/5

October 23rd
14. Frankenstein Created Woman (1967) 3/5

October 29th
15. Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983) 4/5
16. Halloween (1978) 4.5/5

Wish I had more time, but life intervenes. It has been fun being a part of this challenge. I have enjoyed reading what everyone has been posting about the films (good and bad) that have been viewed.


15 Films 3 New to Me
1 Anthology Show =
16 points for me

 

[Tony J Case]

I hope you're giving our Smarties, they're like M&Ms but taste better. The Canadian version of the Oh Henry was better too, eh!

You know, I'm not sure what I have. The original plan was to send someone with a car to Vancouver, but he lost his wallet a couple of days before he was going to get enough for the whole night. So I had to fall back to plan B, and tap a friend who was spending the weekend in Victoria, as much as he could carry on the clipper - and I haven't looked at what he got me.

Smarties? Pretty good. Oh Henry? Not so bad. But the one that I love the best is probably Crispy Crunch or Wunderbar - those ones are tremendous! Mind you, Ketchup Potato Chips trump all other forms of food, candy or otherwise. That's what I'm really regretting not having.

We now return you to your horror discussion, already in progress.

 

[Oliver Ravencrest]

You know, I'm not sure what I have. The original plan was to send someone with a car to Vancouver, but he lost his wallet a couple of days before he was going to get enough for the whole night. So I had to fall back to plan B, and tap a friend who was spending the weekend in Victoria, as much as he could carry on the clipper - and I haven't looked at what he got me.

Smarties? Pretty good. Oh Henry? Not so bad. But the one that I love the best is probably Crispy Crunch or Wunderbar - those ones are tremendous! Mind you, Ketchup Potato Chips trump all other forms of food, candy or otherwise. That's what I'm really regretting not having.

We now return you to your horror discussion, already in progress.

Not sure if I ever had a Wunderbar. I miss ketchup flavoured chips but they don't sell any of that stuff down here Oh well, bought some Reese Pieces for tonight.

TV: CHiPs: Trick or Trick

Officers Jon and Ponch patrol the city streets on Halloween, deal with scavenger hunters, a lost kid, a candy thief, a robber dressed as a ghost and the CHP Hobgoblin! Fun episode.