***Official 23rd Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge 2022*** (1 Viewer)

[Jeff Flugel]

A last couple to wrap things up for this year, as it's Halloween night here in Japan:

25. Sleepy Hollow (1999)
At the turn of the 18th century, young constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp), an early proponent of deductive reasoning and forensic science, is dispatched to the remote burg of Sleepy Hollow to get to the bottom of a series of murders in which the victims have been beheaded. He finds a tangled web of interrelated families and eventually (after MANY bodies have hit the floor) discovers that not only is the legendary Headless Horseman real, but he is being controlled by a human culprit out for revenge. Together with his new friends, the winsome Katrina (Christina Ricci, blond yet still stunning) and plucky young orphan Masbeth (Marc Pickering), Ichabod sets out to stop the killer's evil plan.

It's been a long time since I've seen this one, and what a treat it was to see it again. Bloody, and bloody marvelous. Seeped in lovely autumnal atmosphere, fast-paced and mysterious, perhaps the textbook example of a Tim Burton movie that totally works. Not only is the movie gorgeous to look at, and peopled with a fabulous cast, but it actually has a proper story with a well-worked-out plot. This one's my favorite Tim Burton joint, along with the joyous Ed Wood. And the ending shot is letter perfect. I watched this on Netflix, and found their HD transfer overly grainy...guess it's high time I picked up the Blu-Ray.

26. The Simpsons - 34.6 “Treehouse of Horror XXXIII”
I'm with Jason R., love these. This one includes parodies of The Babadook, Death Note (with the Simpsons depicted in spot-on anime fashion) and Westworld (the TV series).

When The Simpsons eventually ends (if it ever ends!), then I hope Disney somehow sees their way to releasing a multi-disc Blu-Ray set of just "Treehouse of Terror" episodes. I'd be on that like a shot. It's a pipe dream, I know...but what the hey.

Well, that's it for me. Happy Halloween, everyone!

 

[BobO'Link]

Claws (1977) FTV
...
Kind of boring, and sleep inducing. I didn't care much for it. I'm crossing my fingers for a restored version on Blu-Ray

Really having trouble wrapping my head around this quite contradictory comment...

 

[Bryan^H]

Really having trouble wrapping my head around this quite contradictory comment...

I'm not well

 

[Malcolm R]

Never seen Claws, but I like Grizzly.

Terrifier 2 had another great weekend at the box office, increasing its take +8% over last weekend. The question will be if it can continue to play and crack the $10 million barrier, or if it will collapse once Halloween is over? Though it's already one of the most profitable films of the year with a reported budget of only $250K and practically zero marketing.

Pre-orders for the blu-ray are running behind only Top Gun at Amazon:

 

[BobO'Link]

October 30th
☼ = First time viewing

121. The Ghost Ship (1943)

Tom Merriam (Russell Wade) excitedly assumes his position as third officer on the freighter Altair. Captain Will Stone (Richard Dix) is a curious man who believes that the responsibility of command bestows extra-legal rights. Strange deaths aboard ship combined with Stone's erratic behavior make it clear to Tom that he's signed on to serve a psychopath.

More a psychological character study and less a horror film. It's also one of my least favorite Lewton productions. You see... I look it much differently than most interpretations. I see Merriam as the villain and Capt. Stone is the victim. Merriam is constantly making unfounded accusations against the Captain which slowly drives him over the edge - against Merriam and any who chose to help Merriam in his vendetta against the Captain. Merriam is jumping to conclusions all based on how the Captain tells him he sees the duty of a ship's captain towards both the crew and ship.

122. Bedlam (1946)

Nell Bowen (Anna Lee), the protégé of piggish Lord Mortimer (Billy House), wants to change the conditions of notorious St. Mary's of Bethlehem Asylum (Bedlam). She tries to reform Bedlam, but the cruel Master George Sims (Boris Karloff), who runs the asylum, has her committed. Trapped in a chamber of horrors, Nell must rely on her wits and her compassion to effect an escape.

This one's a favorite - Karloff's character is duplicitous and scheming. Lee's is rather manipulative yet searching/wanting to do the "right thing" while House's is the typical parliamentarian just wanting to keep the status quo. The horror starts as "Bowen" is put on trial and committed. Lewton somewhat steals Sims' fate from Poe - but it's a good one.

123. Bad Moon (1996)

Anthropologist Ted Harrison (Michael Pare) returns from an expedition to India where he was attacked and gored by a werewolf. Ted goes to stay in a camper outside his sister Janet’s (Mariel Hemingway) house and handcuffs himself to a tree in the woods each night to restrain himself as he transforms into a werewolf. Janet’s dog Thor takes an immediate dislike to this invader in his domain and a territorial dispute ensues between the two.

So... it's a werewolf film with the hook that the werewolf and family dog pretty much get into a pissing match. It's occasionally violent, somewhat cliche, average vfx, and just kind of OK, though Pare turns in an untypically decent performance. It's good for fans of werewolf movies (like me) but otherwise has little offer over the better werewolf films out there.

124. The Castle of the Living Dead (1964)

Count Drago (Christopher Lee) invites a traveling theater troupe to his castle, but what they don't know is that Drago has a collection of mummified animals and humans with an eye towards adding *them* to his collection.

From "The EuroCrypt of Christopher Lee Collection" comes a transfer that's quite good. The film features the typical good performance from Lee, with an interesting makeup choice, as well as a young Donald Sutherland in *three* separate roles (Police Sergeant, Cantankerous old man, and a witch) doing a very good job with each. It's a quite nice Italian Gothic horror film that's better than I'd recalled (from a screening years ago on an Elvira disc).

125. The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (1967)☼

Count Regula (Christopher Lee) is tried for his crimes of killing twelve young women and is sentenced to be drawn and quartered. Before his execution, he vows vengeance. Many years later, after receiving invitations, a young lawyer named Roger (Lex Baxter), his client Lilian (Karin Dor), her friend Babette (Christian Rucker), and the wayward monk Fabian (Vladimir Medar) make their way to his castle where they meet the Count’s assistant (Carl Lange), who reveals that his master will soon be returning to life, having discovered the secret to immortality.

Wow! I really enjoyed this one. The castle is very atmospheric and tricked out with all manner of torture devices and a maze of chambers - blood-stained racks, snake pits, spike bed, and a swinging blade (stolen directly from Poe as the film's obviously adapted from "The Pit and the Pendulum") - to test the mettle of our group and relieve them of life. Barker has all the personality of a stump (not much different than his Tarzan) but everyone else is quite good. The journey to the castle is a kind of ride through a house of horrors, featuring a corpse forest, a fogbound wood with arms and legs jutting out of trees, the requisite fearful town, and more. Lee is barely in the film, mostly in the short intro and then the final act - but you really don't notice his absence as the film just looks like a horror fun house and pulls you further in with every twist and turn. It's lots of fun!

126. Crypt of the Vampire (1964)☼

Count Karnstein (Christopher Lee), a wealthy and reclusive man who grows more and more concerned that a possible curse put on the family by his ancestor Sira von Karnstein, who was but to death as a witch, may befall his daughter, Laura (Audry Amber). He sends for genealogist researcher Klauss (Jose Campos) to dig through his family history and confirm the truth of the matter. Meanwhile, Laura befriends the beautiful Ljuba (Ursula Davis), and as the two grow closer the threat of death begins to creep into their lives.

Yet another adaptation of Carmilla, though not as obvious as other entries and with the sex parts being alluded to. It's a somewhat slower moving film with good performances and nice atmosphere. Lee plays against type and is the good guy with the housekeeper being the one to watch out for as she summons the spirit of Sira back from the dead. It's another good entry.

Those 3 films wrap up the main horror element of "The EuroCrypt of Christopher Lee Collection" and, including that disc of interviews/etc., absolutely make the set worthwhile. And I still have the Polish TV horror anthology series to watch as well as Lee's entry into the Sherlock Holmes mythos.

127. The Mask (1961)☼

A young archaeologist believes he is cursed by a mask that causes him to have weird nightmares and possibly to murder. Before committing suicide, he mails the mask to his psychiatrist, Dr. Barnes, who is soon plunged into the nightmare world of the mask.

One of those 3D gimmick films...and it came too late to benefit. It's a rather dull affair outside the 3D segments, which are quite trippy in nature (you'd think it was a late 60s LSD type movie) and worth the cost of watching this quite generic film. Not that it's truly bad, just that it uses the 3D as a crutch and never truly develops a personality of its own - and it could have had a nice late 50s horror vibe had it dumped that crutch.

Unfortunately, Kino's very nice looking remaster of the film does *not* integrate the anaglyph 3D into the 2D presentation but includes the anaglyph version of the 3D sequences as a "bonus feature." What a missed opportunity as this film was originally presented in anaglyph style 3D during its run and those sequences (roughly 1/4 of the film) could have been integrated via seamless branching, allowing use of glasses or not. That means you can at least see the sequences but absolutely miss out of the fun and immersiveness when the voice over proclaims "Put on the mask, NOW!" Because of this I just can't see myself viewing it again.

128. The Black Castle (1952)

A young adventurer, Sir Ronald Burton (Richard Greene), believes his friends may have been murdered while being guests of the evil Count von Bruno (Stephen McNally). Traveling to the count's castle under the secret identity of Richard Beckett, as to not arouse suspicion, Greene tries to unravel clues and divert attention from himself, as von Bruno and he are former enemies who have not met face to face. When Burton/Beckett falls in love with the count's wife (Paula Corday), they are aided by the castle physician Dr. Meissen (Boris Karloff), who is also a captive of Count von Bruno.

This is a gothic mystery melodrama that borrows liberally from "The Most Dangerous Game" and does it fairly well. Lon Chaney is in a minor role as a mute servant. Karloff's isn't that large either. It's mostly Greene's film and he does a good job in a "costume adventure" role he played many times. It also features the requisite dungeons, traps, deformed servants, and crocodile pits. It's a film style I tend to favor and is quite fun.

 

[Malcolm R]

Unfortunately, Kino's very nice looking remaster of the film does *not* integrate the anaglyph 3D into the 2D presentation but includes the anaglyph version of the 3D sequences as a "bonus feature." What a missed opportunity as this film was originally presented in anaglyph style 3D during its run and those sequences (roughly 1/4 of the film) could have been integrated via seamless branching, allowing use of glasses or not. That means you can at least see the sequences but absolutely miss out of the fun and immersiveness when the voice over proclaims "Put on the mask, NOW!" Because of this I just can't see myself viewing it again.

I think inclusion of an anaglyph version of these 3D releases is mostly a recent development as 3D TV's die or get replaced by non-3D models, allowing fans to continue to view 3D at home.

The 3D disc of The Mask was released in 2015 when most every home TV had digital 3D capability and it didn't seem like there would be any need for an anaglyph version.

 

[dpippel]

OCTOBER 30:

* next to film title = new to me

56) Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) (4K UHD Disc) 4/5 stars - This film totally grabbed me as a kid and I've always loved it. Filmed primarily at Wakulla Springs (underwater sequences) and along the St. John's River, both in Florida, it manages to do a decent job of portraying the Amazon River setting, and the cast is great. The lovely Julie Adams was a heartthrob for my younger self, and the design of the Creature is still one of the most iconic monsters in film history. The 4K presentation is a mixed bag. Large portions of Creature have always been soft, and I'm not sure if that's because the movie was filmed that way and it's baked into the OCN, or if it's due to the condition of the surviving elements. Either way, when it's soft it looks soft, but when it's not it looks spectacular.

57) Winchester* (2018) (iTunes HD Streaming) 3.5/5 stars - Winchester was quite an entertaining "ghost" story with a very unique premise. Well made and featuring a great cast, I wasn't sure what to expect going into this film but ended up enjoying it. Helen Mirren is fabulous as Sarah Winchester, the heiress to the Winchester rifle fortune, and Jason Clarke is equally good as the psychiatrist hired by the company to determine the state of Sarah's mental health.

58) Hellboy - Director's Cut (2004) (4K UHD Disc) 4.5/5 stars - I just love this movie! It's one of Guillermo del Toro's best efforts, and you can see that it was a labor of love in practically every frame. Ron Perlman is exceptional as Hellboy, and he really carries the film. John Hurt, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, and the rest of the cast are also on top of their games here. The story and characters are interesting and off-the-wall, and the cinematography and effects are exceptional. A personal favorite of mine that I never tire of watching. The 4K release looks absolutely gorgeous.

 

[EricSchulz]

Well, I made 14! Post-op meds messed with my sleeping schedule big time and didn’t let me watch as many as planned. There’s always next year…

 

[Malcolm R]

I'm not going to make my goal of 31 films, either. I think I'm at 27, but will not be watching 4 tonight.

 

[dpippel]

I'm shooting for 60, and should be able to make it today.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I'm not going to make my goal of 31 films, either. I think I'm at 27, but will not be watching 4 tonight.

I'm shooting for 60, and should be able to make it today.

My final tally will be 88 as I have one more title to go before tonight's deadline. That would average out to 4 movies per day, since, I only participated in the Challenge over the last 22 days of October.

Next year, I'll start on October 1st, but my goal will be 31 titles as that would give me more time to enjoy each movie before moving on to the next one.

 

[dpippel]

I'm thinking along those same lines, Robert, and will be cutting back on the number of films I watch next year. A more relaxed approach will be nice.

 

[Kaskade1309]

 

[Kaskade1309]

Re-Watch

From

 

[Kaskade1309]

 

[Kaskade1309]

 

[Kaskade1309]

Re-Watch

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[Kaskade1309]

 

[Robert Crawford]

I didn't start this "Scary Movie Challenge" until October 10th. My final film tally is 88 movies with 46 of them being first time viewings. See my summary for film grades with the movies in bold being first time viewings!

87) Kongo (1932) (DVD) 3.5/5 Stars
Talk about a strange Pre-code film with some perverse and racist themes throughout this movie that takes place in an African jungle during its colonial phase. Starring Walter Huston as a paralyzed and crazed man seeking revenge on a man, who supposedly stolen his wife and paralyzed him many years ago. Huston rules an African colony by using trickery to hold power over the local natives in his area. He abuses a young woman, who he thinks is the daughter of the man he seeks revenge. Huston gives an interesting performance in this film with some human sacrifices along with alcohol, substance and sexual abuse. This movie isn't for the faint of heart as human beings are treated horribly along with some racist dialogue and such throughout the movie.

88) Boris Karloff: The Man Behind the Monster (2021) (iTunes HD Digital) 5/5 Stars
After watching so many of his movies the last 22 days, I thought it was fitting to end my "Scary Movie Challenge" by finally watching the 2021 documentary about Boris Karloff that I purchased from iTunes last December. The HD digital's video presentation is excellent. However, this documentary had a couple of Blu-ray releases on October 18th, which I'll pick up once it hits my price point. The documentary delves deeply into Karloff's life and his films and gave me some information that I didn't know about Karloff until today. Actually, the more I think about this documentary, the more I think I will probably purchase the Limited Extended Edition Blu-ray. This documentary covers many of Karloff's horror movies and his fractured relationship with James Whale. They did not agree about a certain scene in "Frankenstein" which caused the animosity between the two men. I think most of us can guess which scene that was.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I'm thinking along those same lines, Robert, and will be cutting back on the number of films I watch next year. A more relaxed approach will be nice.

Yup, also it will give me more time to watch bonus material and listen to audio commentaries. Another advantage with only watching 31 movies is that it will allow me enough time to watch other movie genres during the challenge.