***Official 8th Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge*** (1 Viewer)

[John Stell]

073) 10/29/07 D The Brainiac (1961) :star::star:

In 1661, a warlock is put to death, only to return 300 years later to murder the descendents of his persecutors. A great movie monster is wasted in what becomes a repetitive revenge picture. Worth seeing at least once, but once you've seen the first murder, you've seen them all.

074) 10/29/07 D Slaughter of the Vampires (1961) :star::star:

A vampire sets his sights on the mistress of the castle in which he is hiding, much to the chagrin of her husband. Attractive looking film is rather routine in the story department. And the main vampire isn't particularly memorable.

075) 10/30/07 D Child's Play (1988) :star::star::star:

Chicago's Lakeshore Strangler transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll, which ends being six year old Andy's birthday gift. Energetic, fast-paced fun from the director of Fright Night. Great cast too.

076) 10/30/07 D Child's Play 2 (1990) :star::star:

Poor Andy Barclay is put into foster care while Chucky returns to hunt him. Not nearly as much fun as the first film, this actually is on the dull side until the lively finale.

077) 10/30/07 D Child's Play 3 (1991) :star::star:1/2

Andy is now 16 and at military school, while Chucky is revived yet again. A step-up from the previous installment gives Chucky much more screen time and adds a bit of a twist to what Chucky needs to do. Also features a terrific (if not altogether believable) finale inside a funhouse ride.

 

[John Stell]

The first time I saw Psycho III I really hated it. I mean, HATED it. I was expecting something closer to the original film instead of a black comedy. I've revisited it several times and I do now like it for what it tries to do. And Perkins' direction is very strong. The "Ice Box" scene is better than anything in Psycho II, a film I liked from the get-go.

Regarding Psycho IV, it's certainly possibly it was intended as a direct sequel. Norman's father dies of bee stings in this one versus being murdered as explained in Psycho III. However, during a phone conversation Norman mentions the last murders taking place 4 years ago, which makes it appear to follow the events in Psycho III. Truth is, that doesn't really bother me as much as the fact Stefano wasn't consistent with his own screenplay for Psycho regarding who built the motel.

 

[Ruz-El]

ha ha, I can't believe "The Braniac" gets watched every year! A friend of mine grabbed a PD copy out of the bins at Zellers with "Robot Vs. Aztrec Mummy". We thought it hilarious, but had no idea there were fans of these.

Man, I love Scary Movie Challenge!

It's the final day, and I think I'm watching the end of "The Dunwich Horror" (put me to sleep last night) and "Strike Up the Band" with Mickey Rooney.
How sad. :frowning:

STREET TRASH 3/5 : A gore movie that's a lot of fun. Bums get mutated on killer booze. Good stuff, like a TRAUMA flick.

tally
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...70&postcount=7

 

[John Stell]

I didn't realize The Brainiac was an annual favorite! But I LOVE the monster - it's such an original. I watched the Casa Negra disc which looks beautiful and has robust sound. If you're a fan of the film this disc is a must.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Well, although I wasn't into Halloween much this October, all that has changed TODAY, as I'm off work and am REALLY in the October 31st spirit! I've already watched three movies this morning (started at 6:30 am) and I have enjoyed them all and am looking forward to continuing the marathon later today! I'm much more excited about it and there's something about doing this on the actual day of Halloween itself that really makes it more special than doing it through October. Maybe it's that horror viewing becomes more "validated" on this one day, and also because we know the whole world is celebrating at the same time, and that other TV channels are concurrently doing their own programming. Although I'll always do the monthly Horror Challenge in October, I will DEFINITELY make this Halloween October 31st marathon an annual tradition for every Halloween day from this point on!

 

[Ruz-El]

I knew I should of booked off work today. XD

 

[Mario Gauci]

10/29/07: HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR: THE TWO FACES OF EVIL (Alan Gibson, 1980) (TV) :star::star:

Rather unpleasant entry in the series, which also seems confused as to what it wants to be: starting off with a maniacal figure in fisherman attire stalking a vacationing family, he’s later revealed to be a doppelganger for the husband (whom he has replaced) – eventually, it transpires that a widespread INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)-like takeover plot is in effect! While there is a reasonable amount of suspense (and a palpable sense of dread) throughout, the episode is marred by the irritating central performances of Anna Calder-Marshall (frumpy-looking and resorting too often to histrionics) and Gary Raymond (especially unconvincing when attempting to portray the evil side of his character – the fact that he looks quite a bit like Rowan Atkinson’s Mr. Bean at times certainly doesn’t help any in this respect!).


10/29/07: HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR: THE MARK OF SATAN (Don Leaver, 1980) (TV) :star::star::star:

This is one of the best episodes in the series – benefiting a great deal from an excellent central performance by Peter McEnery as a paranoid hospital attendant. His obsession with the number 9 and its association with evil gives this almost the feel of a black comedy – as he tries to persuade others to his ‘logical’ way of thinking (especially the local parish priest and the young woman who lodges with him and his mother, and who harbors an affection for McEnery despite having a kid in tow).

There’s even a surreal dream sequence in which the girl assumes a beastly countenance and most other characters (who are shown to be in on the conspiracy) invite the hero to eat the woman’s baby – a perverse Satanic twist on the Eucharist! – as the only way he can exorcise the demon within him…but the priest, wielding a large cross, comes to his aid. Unfortunately, however, the abrupt denouement to it all is rather limp!

Incidentally, this also makes prescient comments about the danger of transmitted diseases – which would soon become the topic of the day with the advent of AIDS, not to mention the omnipresent threat of biological warfare! By the way, given the similar title of an entry in the following Hammer House series called MARK OF THE DEVIL (1984) – which I watched back in the day when it aired on local TV! – I was mistaken into thinking it was a remake of this one; the “mark” is very different: it has a psychological effect here, whereas it takes a physical shape in the later episode.


10/30/07: HOWLING II…YOUR SISTER IS A WEREWOLF (Philippe Mora, 1985) BOMB

I have always been somewhat underwhelmed by Joe Dante’s original THE HOWLING (1981) – so I wasn’t particularly interested in checking out any of its sequels; some time ago, I did catch HOWLING III: THE MARSUPIALS (1987) – by the same director as this one – and found it to be watchable but nothing special.

The second instalment, however, has quite a bad rep and I knew I’d have a good time watching it – if mainly to wallow in the sight of dear but pompous horror icon Christopher Lee squirming in the midst of it all (the gracefully-aged star has pathetically asserted a number of times in interviews that he hasn’t appeared in horror-oriented fare since his last picture for Hammer Films back in 1976!). Anyway, this film should have borne the subtitle “Your Movie Is A Turd” – being astoundingly inept in all departments (beginning with the all-important werewolf make-up)!

The plot (and dialogue) is not only terrible, but it has the limpest connection with Dante’s film – strangely enough, the author of the original novel Gary Brandner co-wrote this himself! Still, one of the undeniable highlights (er…low points) of the film is the pointless elliptical editing – which tries to give the whole a semblance of style, but only serves to accentuate its embarrassment factor! Similarly phoney (and grating) are the hokey transitions between scenes, the inane punk-rock theme song, and the cheapjack special-effects at the climax!

What about the characters, then?: Lee is the werewolf expert, naturally, whom everybody thinks a crackpot – until they come into contact with the monsters, that is; at the very least, though, one has to admire the makers’ ingenuity (or gall) in devising a stupid subtitle with a dual meaning! Incidentally, Sybil Danning (as Stirba, Werewolf Bitch – the subtitle by which this is known in the U.K.!) is quite fetching in an assortment of outrageous S&M outfits…but her character is virtually given nothing to do (except preside over her brood of followers and engage in the occasional hilarious three-way lycanthrope sex!); her two snarling lieutenants (one of them a sluttish black girl) are especially irritating.

Aiding Lee on the side of good are the two yuppie heroes (he being the brother of the Dee Wallace character from the first film and she a colleague of hers) and a ragged guerrilla-type band of Transylvians (still, they generally manage to effortlessly overcome Danning’s rather dumb werewolves!). Notable among them is a knife-throwing dwarf who gets a particularly nasty (but, at the same time, side-splitting) demise; he’s later revived, under Stirba’s control, in order to lure Lee (by making childish taunts at him all through the village streets) into a trap. The latter scene has to be a career nadir for the distinguished and imposing actor – well, either this or the early sequence in a discotheque where Lee is made to don a pair of ultra-cool sunglasses so as to appear inconspicuous among the partying youngsters!

In the end, if I were forced to mention elements in this which weren’t entirely displeasing, I guess I could say that the ossuary set (in which the heroine is to be sacrificed) is interesting, or that the hybrid werewolf/bat creature (Danning’s pet who likes to ‘inhabit’ the body of its victims) is just too weird to be despised…


10/30/07: THE VALLEY OF GWANGI (James O’Connolly, 1969) :star::star:1/2

Likeable rehash of KING KONG (1933) with a traveling sideshow instead of a film crew, Forbidden Valley instead of Skull Island, Mexico instead of New York, and a dinosaur instead of a giant ape! The film may lack the essential interaction between the heroine and the monster (the latter seems to be only interested in eating!) but substitutes pleasing Technicolor and the eccentric (yet agreeable) blending of styles – being part-Western and part-adventure/mythical fable!

The script dusted off an unfilmed Willis O’Brien project from the early 1940s – with the necessary elaborate trickwork (exposed somewhat by the digital transfer, but fully maintaining its make-believe factor and distinctive charm) handled by Ray Harryhausen, O’Brien’s former protégé and who eventually took from him the mantle of cinema’s foremost special effects wizard. Perhaps the film’s most notable sequence in this regard is when Gwangi the dinosaur is roped by a number of people on horseback – involving incredible precision in order to match the movement of the monster (obviously added in later) with two sets of live-action footage brought together by the split-screen technique! The narrative introduces three different species of dinosaur – though, naturally, Gwangi gets the biggest ‘role’; unfortunately, however, this means that the amiable miniature horse (mythical ancestor of the much bigger variety prevalent today) is forgotten after a while – prior to Gwangi’s appearance, it had been intended as the sideshow’s new attraction.

The cast is okay: James Franciscus plays the rugged hero, Gila Golan the atractive (if bland) leading lady, sci-fi veteran Richard Carlson appears as the entrepreneur figure (though he’s never quite the egomaniac that Carl Denham was!), Laurence Naismith (who comes off best) is the inevitable anthropologist, while Freda Jackson provides some camp value as a blind and superstitious local woman. The rousing score by Jerome Moross recalls his best-known work – the large-scale Western THE BIG COUNTRY (1958).

Though clearly intended as a kiddie film (with a smart local boy teaming up with con-man Franciscus), the antics of the rampaging Gwangi are quite intense and bloody: his ingenious introduction, darting from behind a rock to seize and munch on a dinosaur of a much smaller size, was actually replicated in Steven Spielberg’s JURASSIC PARK (1993). The climax, then, is highly satisfactory as the dinosaur escapes from captivity in the arena (cue an endless parade of screaming Mexicans as they run for their lives!) but is eventually cornered in a cathedral – which is convincingly destroyed in the ensuing blaze.


P.S.I’m now left with only THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953) still to watch from the Harryhausen canon. I hope I can be able to remedy this soon…


10/30/07: BUG (Jeannot Szwarc, 1975) :star::star::star:

This was a surprise: not only is it a solid entry in the monster animal cycle of the 1970s, but it eventually took a totally unexpected path which elevates the film above most of its kind (reminiscent of the well-regarded PHASE IV [1974]). Another big plus here is the excellent central performance by Bradford Dillman – his presence in any film is always welcome, but I’ve rarely seen him this good!

I’m not squeamish about bugs, so I wasn’t bothered by having to watch a film with hordes of them menacing a community (unlike snakes, for instance – which has kept me from checking out SSSSSSS [1973] during this Halloween challenge!); even so, it’s not that the insects are used throughout for any overtly revolting effect. Like I said at the beginning – thanks also to the unenthusing write-ups on it by both Leslie Halliwell and Leonard Maltin (online assessment at the time of Paramount’s DVD release, then, is split pretty much down the middle) – I had anticipated this to be a typical (read: low-brow) small-town-invaded-by-insects film a` la THE SWARM (1978), presenting a succession of contrived situations where various cast members meet a grisly death at the hands of the bugs.

While it has a few scenes in this vein to cater to just that section of its intended audience – and the fact that they are combustible (their sudden emergence the direct cause of an impressively-staged earthquake) certainly provides a novel touch for this type of film! – the second half virtually revolves exclusively around Dillman’s obsession with the insects (following the death of his wife, who fell victim to them). In fact, he isolates a number of bugs in a pressurized container for experimental purposes – the result of his endeavor is, however, far greater than he could have imagined: the concept of intelligent carnivorous bugs must have seemed like the height of silliness on paper, but there’s no denying that its execution in cinematic terms is reasonably persuasive and downright scary (especially since they keep evolving into ever more diabolical creatures)!

The film makes use of an electronic score for maximum unsettling effect; incidentally, this proved to be notorious showman producer William Castle’s swan-song (he also co-wrote the script with Thomas Page, author of the novel on which it was based).

 

[Mario Gauci]

THE BRIDES OF DRACULA (1960), TASTE OF FEAR aka SCREAM OF FEAR(1961) and THE DAMNED aka THESE ARE THE DAMNED (1963; which I recently acquired on DivX) were my three holy grails from the Hammer Films catalogue for ages and, luckily enough, I managed to catch up with all three of them while I was in Hollywood between November 2005-January 2006. I'd go so far as saying that the last two are Hammer's best films (outside of the Gothic Horror field they specialized in); the fact that they had two distinguished directors - Seth Holt and Joseph Losey respectively - rather than the usual Hammer regulars, certainly has something to do with that. For the record, Holt did direct two other notabe flicks for Hammer - THE NANNY (1965; which surprisingly underwhelmed me and had intended to revisit during this Halloween Challenge) and BLOOD FROM THE MUMMY'S TOMB (1972; one of their best 1970s efforts).

Anyway, my brother and I actually had to sneak out of the farewell party for us NYFA students to go catch SCREAM OF FEAR at the Egyptian Theater. Incidentally, it was shown as part of a double-bill with Hitchcock's PSYCHO (1960) itself...but, as I said, I had to miss out on that one!; I even managed to catch a few more rare Hammer/British chillers at the same venue - namely THE SNORKEL (1958) and SHADOW OF THE CAT (1961). To get back to SCREAM OF FEAR itself for a minute, Christopher Lee himself thinks of it as the best picture he ever made at Hammer Films. Obviously, the influence of Henri-Georges Clouzot's LES DIABOLIQUES (1954) is palpable but it's interesting to note that Hammer kept reworking the same formula as late as FEAR IN THE NIGHT (1972).


As for BERSERK (1967), I'm obviously interested in checking that one out - along with TROG (1970) - eventually. With regards to GOKE - BODY SNATCHER FROM HELL (1968), I liked that one much better than you did, Mike. Unfortunately, I also intended to watch two more notable Japanese Horror films these last couple of days, namely SNAKEWOMAN'S CURSE (1968) and HORRORS OF MALFORMED MEN (1969)...but, I decided against it since both my brother and I (and our pet mutt, Roy) have come down with the flu!; as it happens, an Italian TV channel is showing two more Ishiro Honda films next week back-to-back so that would be the perfect time to indulge in these Asian cult classics.


P.S. What's worse, I had long planned to close off this Halloween Challenge with my long-postponed viewing of Wes Craven's THE HILLS HAVE EYES (1977) but, like I said, I'm not in the ideal shape to tackle it at present...

 

[Michael Elliott]

Just a reminder but since I have to add up everyone's numbers, if you could, just post your complete list with the titles and so on sometime between tonight and Friday night. I've got a five-day weekend so I'd like to get this done before Saturday. My DVR is around 95% full so I need to use these days to get that down since I neglected it in order to do a month long horror fest.


Mario, I'm shocked that you enjoyed BUG because I thought it was pretty awful. I normally don't give away my DVDs but I shipped that one out the day after watching it.

As for SCREAM OF FEAR, I might even give this more credit than PSYCHO on the twists factor. I think PSYCHO is one of the greatest films ever made but Hitchcock certainly cheated to deliver the plot twists. I think all of the ones in SCREAM OF FEAR worked perfectly and they didn't need to cheat for them to work.

As for the films you missed, well, I missed a lot to including HORRORS, which you mentioned but I'll save this for next year when I plan on doing a month of nothing but foreign films. I didn't this last year so I'm going to try it again. I also didn't get to watch THE BAT, THE CAT AND THE CANARY, my HALLOWEEN marathon or my giallo marathon. With three Dylan concerts, the Mellencamp concert and traveling to Cincinnati every weekend, I'm rather shocked at how much I did get watched.

 

[Ruz-El]

HA HAAAA! I have the same issue! I'm transferring my old VHS to DVDs with my DVR, and have it full of "Beavis And Butt-head". It's going to take me a week to edit it all down to burn off, easily the most soul killing tedious thing ever, editing tv shows on a DVR.

 

[TravisR]

As always, I'm not a critic- I just know what I like but I'm not very good at articulating it.

10/30/07
119. The Night Stalker (1972)
Darren McGavin plays reporter Carl Kolchak who investigates a vampire stalking Las Vegas. An excellent TV movie written by Richard Matheson and was a huge hit and led to another telemovie and a TV series. It was also the prototype for The X-Files.

10/31/07
120. Jaws
Still my favorite Speilberg movie.

121. The Last House On The Left
Grim, unpleasant and depressing but I like checking it out once a year or so since it's very powerful.

My full list is in post #389.

 

[Brook K]

I've had a number of different things going on and have had no time to keep up with my reviews or even with reading the thread, but here is my list as it stands now. I should just make it over the magic 31 barrier, as I have 40m left of a movie I couldn't quite finish last night, my annual Halloween viewing of a Universal Horror flick with my son, and maybe squeeze in a late night Argento, though I'm going to have to grit my teeth watching Suspiria or Deep Red through my TV speakers since my receiver died.

1. The Wicker Man "Director's Cut" Version - :star::star::star::star::star:
2. Phenomena - :star::star::star::star::star:
3. The Man Who Laughs - :star::star::star::star: 1/2
4. The Devil Rides Out - :star::star::star::star: 1/2
5. Opera - :star::star::star::star:
6. Dawn of the Dead (2004) - :star::star::star::star:
7. The Curse of Frankenstein - :star::star::star::star:
8. Black Christmas - :star::star::star::star:
9. Basket Case - :star::star::star::star:
10. 28 Weeks Later - :star::star::star::star:
11. Dracula Has Risen from the Grave - :star::star::star::star:
12. Horror of Dracula - :star::star::star:
13. Witchfinder General - :star::star::star:
14. Frankenweenie - :star::star::star:
15. Vincent - :star::star::star:
16. Them! - :star::star::star:
17. The Card Player - :star::star::star:
18. Q - :star::star: 1/2
19. The Flesh and the Fiends - :star::star: 1/2
20. Cannibal Holocaust - :star::star: 1/2
21. Do You Like Hitchcock? - :star::star: 1/2
22. The Black Scorpion - :star::star: 1/2
23. 2001 Maniacs - :star::star: 1/2
24. The Church - :star::star: 1/2
25. Trauma - :star::star:
26. Dellamorte Dellamore - :star::star:
27. 1408 - :star::star:
28. SS Hell Camp - :star:1/2
29. Oasis of the Zombies - Bomb

 

[Tim Tucker]

First time viewings in red.

15. Night Monster (1942). Another “old dark house” mystery? Yes, but this time it’s not played for laughs and there’s an honest-to-goodness supernatural monster behind it all. And once again, Bela Lugosi gets top billing, along with Lionel Atwill, even though both play minor roles. I wonder if audiences in 1942 felt cheated by such bait-and-switch tactics. We don’t even know if Lugosi’s character survives the final conflagration. I’m imagining what this film would have been like if Lugosi played Agor Singh and Atwill played Kurt Ingston. Now that would have been something! Despite this, the film is an effective little chiller that shows that Universal in the 1940’s was capable of more than endless retreads of their classic monsters. One final note: did anyone else notice how frail Bela looked in this movie? Granted he was 60 at the time, but it looks like a decade in Hollywood had really taken its toll.

My tally.

 

[JohnRice]

(30) Black Candles - :star::star::star: / :star::star::star::star::star:
Standard issue raunchy, eurotrash horror, but gets at least an extra star for the balls to be borderline hardcore. Lots of fun stuff, including good old girl on girl action, goat fallating (for starters) and lots of muffin eating. There's a story in there somewhere too. Think Rosemary's Baby with truckloads of gratuitous sex and nudity.

(31) An American Werewolf in London - :star::star::star: / :star::star::star::star::star:
It's been years since I saw this one and it's still pretty fun, even if not much actually happens. Someone expressed some sentiments about Fairuza Balk recently, ditto that, in spades, for Jenny Agutter.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

UPDATE:

TOTALS... SCARY MOVIE CHALLENGE 2007
01) The Phantom of the Opera (1925) ***
02) The Black Cat (1941) **1/2
03) Horror Island (1941) *1/2
04) Man Made Monster (1941) ***
05) Dracula (1931) ***
06) The Monster and the Girl (1941) *
07) The Lodger (1944) ***1/2
08) Hangover Square (1945) ***
09) The Undying Monster (1942) **1/2
10) Cat People (1942) ***
11) Cry of the Werewolf (1944) **
12) Night Monster (1942) **1/2
13) Captive Wild Woman (1943) **1/2
14) The Invisible Man Returns (1940) ***
15) The Invisible Man's Revenge (1944) **1/2
16) The Return of the Vampire (1943) ***
17) The Werewolf (1956) **1/2
18) Creature with the Atom Brain (1955) **1/2
19) The Giant Claw (1957) **
20) The Mummy (1932) **1/2
21) The Mummy's Hand (1940) ***
22) The Mummy's Tomb (1942) **1/2
23) The Mummy's Ghost (1944) ***
24) The Mummy's Curse (1944) **
25) Count Dracula (BBC 1977) ***
26) Frankenstein (1931) ****
27) The Old Dark House (1932) ***1/2
28) Bride of Frankenstein (1935) ****
29) 28 Weeks Later (2007) ***1/2
30) Corridors of Blood (1958) ***
31) Saw IV (2007) BOMB
32) Saw III (2006) **1/2
33) Dracula's Daughter (1936) ***1/2
34) Return of the Ape Man (1944) **1/2
35) The Wolf Man (1941) ****
36) The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942) ***1/2
37) Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) ***
38) House of Frankenstein (1944) ***
39) House of Dracula (1945) **1/2
40) Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931 - audio commentary ) ****

 

[SteveGon]

Finishing up the Scary Movie Challenge with:


That Damned Thing (2007)

Viewed 10/31/2007 (first viewing)

Another Masters of Horror entry. A small town sheriff is haunted by the memory of his father murdering his mother, but that's nothing compared to the vicious force of nature that's sending the townsfolk into a killing frenzy. Neat little monster flick based on a story by Ambrose Bierce.

:star: :star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star:


Drive Thru (2007)

Viewed 10/31/2007 (first viewing)

Hellzapoppin at the Orange County Hella Burger as chain mascot Horny the Clown goes all Jason on the local teens. But what dark secret lies behind his rampage? With the exception of seeing lead Leighton Meester in her undies, there's no reason to waste your time with this run of the mill slasher flick.

:star: 1/2 out of :star: :star: :star: :star:


And the crown jewel of the month:


Special dEaD (2006)

Viewed 10/31/2007 (first viewing)

"Sometimes heroes ride the short bus."

If you're offended by the word "retard," or the sight of the mentally challenged killing and being killed by zombies, well, don't even think about watching this flick. But if you've a twisted sense of humor and a defiance of politically correct sensibilities, then by all means, dig in! When an outbreak of zombies menaces Camp Special Dude, hard-loving, nunchuk-wielding hero Machiavelli Stone must lead a ragtag band of special people, girlfriends and a lone black gangsta ("I must have got on the wrong fuckin' bus!") to safety. Some overdone moments aside, this is good, gory, not-so-clean fun.

"Does your plan include popsicle sticks and talking really loud?"

:star: :star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Scale: 1=awful 2=bad 3=average 4=good 5=excellent. 1st viewings in red.

Interview With The Vampire (1994):star::star::star::star::star: I noticed quite a few continuity errors this time. Am really waiting for this on HD.

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992):star::star::star::star::star: Don't have the new release, this is the Dave Mack approved Superbit DVD.

Figured I'd end the challenge with two of my favorites, and two very different vampire movies. The sad thing is that in the last 13 years I don't think there has been another horror movie released with the amount of film excellence that either of these movies possess in spades.

And I didn't even get to watch all the horror DVds I own! I just got burned-out near the end and skipped too many days.

the butcher's bill...
1. Monster Squad
2. Call of the Cthulhu
3. Mimic
4. The Omen
5. The Descent
6. Manos: The Hands Of Fate
7. Isolation
8. Insatiable
9. The Changeling
10. Perfect Creature
11. The Ninth Gate
12. The Nightmare Before Christmas
13. Nekromantik
14. Nekromantik 2
15. Bride Of The Monster
16. Saw 3
17. Plan 9 From Outer Space
18. Primeval
19. Slither
20. Bug
21. 28 Weeks Later
22. Fright Night
23. Feast
24. Dead Silence
25. C.H.U.D.
26. The Abandoned
27. Unrest
28. The Gravedancers
29. The Hamiltons
30. The Tripper
31. Penny Dreadful
32. The Fly
33. The Fly 2
34. Panic In Year Zero!
35. The Last Man On Earth
36. Poltergeist 2
37. Poltergeist 3
38. The Terminator
39. Hostel Part 2
40. The Craft
41. Interview With The Vampire
42. Bram Stoker's Dracula


2007 Scary Movie Challenge Total: 42 watched 32 First Views.

 

[Rick Spruill]

Limping into the finish, here's my final list. I ran out of steam about half way through the month.


Official 8th Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge Totals

1. Cult of the Cobra (1955)
2. Hillbillys in a Haunted House (1967)
3. The She-Creature (1956)
4. The Black Cat (1941)
5. Horror Island (1941)
6. The Slime People (1963)
7. Captive Wild Woman (1943)
8. Night Monster (1943)
9. Earth vs. the Spider (1958)
10. Bride of the Monster (1955)
11. Man Mad Monster (1941)
12. The Vampire (1957)
13. She Demons (1958)
14. I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957)
15. The Woman Who Came Back (1945)
16. Beginning of the End (1957)
17. Son of Dracula (1943)
18. One Body Too Many (1944)
19. Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955)
20. The Earth Dies Screaming (1965)
21. The Mad Monster (1942)
22. The Undying Monster (1942)
23. How to Make a Monster (1958)
24. Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953)
25. The Screaming Skull (1958)
26. The Fly (1958)
27. Return of the Fly (1959)
28. Curse of the Fly (1965)
29. Weird Woman (1944)
30. Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959)
31. The Projected Man (1967)
32. The Lodger
33. Witchcraft (1964)
34. The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961)
35. X: The Unknown (1956)
36. Devils of Darkness (1965)
37. Zombies of Mora Tau (1957)
38. The Amazing Transparent Man (1960)
39. The Giant Claw (1957)
40. Night of the Blood Beast (1958)
41. The Night of the Hunter (1955)
42. The Giant Gila Monster (1959)
43. Daughter of Dr. Jekyll (1957)
44. The Creeping Terror (1964)
45. Witchfinder General (1968)
46. Black Sunday (1960)


Total - 46
Total 1st Time Viewings - 26

 

[Michael Elliott]

Invisible Man, The (1933) :star::star::star::star:

James Whale's classic about a scientist (Claude Rains) who turns himself invisible and slowly starts to go mad. This is probably, at least, my twentieth viewing and I might have enjoyed this film more this time than ever before. Before starting the movie I was think about all the Universal monsters and for some reason it came into my head that this one here was the most threatening due to being invisible and with that mindset I found myself really drawn more into the movie and seeing a lot of things for the first time. Of all the monsters this one here is the most deranged as well. I mean, just look at the scene where he kills everyone on the train. The special effects are still terrific and Rains performance, even though it's mostly just his voice, remains powerful.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse (1946) :star::star::star:1/2

Wonderful Tom and Jerry short has Tom creating a drink that he thinks will keep Jerry out of his water but instead it turns him into a monster via Mr. Hyde. There are plenty of laughs in this short but the highlight has to be the ending when Tom drinks the mix and turns small.

Cry of the Werewolf (1944) :star:1/2

A gypsy woman is cursed by being a werewolf in this Columbia film. After five minutes I had to pause this film so that I could pass out candy and I must say that this was a lot more fun (and scary) than watching this film, which is incredibly dull and it's quite shocking that this would come from a major studio. The werewolf transformation scenes are laughable and the story seems to be about everything except for the actual werewolf. The cast is extremely dull and lifeless and the direction isn't any better. I had seen this years ago but forgot just about everything so that's why I watched it again and I've got the feeling that I'll have forgotten the movie by morning. Check out The Undying Monster instead.

West of Zanzibar (1928) :star::star::star:

Tod Browning's shocker about a man (Lon Chaney) who loses his wife to another man (Lionel Barrymore) but to make matters worse he also paralyzes him. The man eventually moves to Africa where he sets up shop with plans to seek vengeance by kidnapping the daughter that the lover had with his wife. It goes without saying that once again Browning creates a world of weirdos, crazies and downright evilness that no other director could ever create. It also goes without saying that Chaney once again delivers a brilliant performance and again he's able to get sympathy while at the same time coming off evil. Chaney has a lot of work to do with his crippled body and he pulls this of without a hitch. Barrymore and Warner Baxter also give good performances. The final showdown between Chaney and Barrymore is priceless as is the big plot twist. Later remake with Walter Huston as Kongo.

Mark of the Vampire (1935) :star::star:

Tod Browning's remake of his very own London After Midnight is deadly dull without any energy or life going for it. With Lionel Barrymore, Lionel Atwill and Bela Lugosi you'd expect something to be going on but nothing ever does. Barrymore is too over the top, Atwill is the most interesting thing and Lugosi is decent for the time he's on screen. A lot of people talk about the ending but it was the same in the original version. I actually get more entertainment out of watching the photo reconstruction of the original film.

Mask of Fu Manchu, The (1932) :star::star::star:

A group of scientists find the tomb of Genghis Khan only to have Dr. Fu Manchu (Boris Karloff) and his crazy daughter (Myma Loy) come after them. Here’s a good little MGM horror film that has some wonderful sets in the torture room as well as one of Karloff’s best performances. You can tell Karloff’s having loads of fun and this comes to the screen very well. Loy is very good as his beautiful but deadly daughter and Lewis Stone is good as well. While watching the movie I kept wondering if this thing plays better today than it did when originally released. The film has a lot of politically incorrect moments, which make the film stand out today compared to other horror films released at the time. These elements make this film somewhat unique in their own way.


2007 Scary Movie Totals:

1. Frankenstein (1910)
2. Dr. Chopper (2005)
3. Beast of Yucca Flats, The (1961)
4. Grizzly Rage (2007)
5. Earth Dies Screaming, The (1962)
6. Raven, The (1935)
7. Evil Breed: The Legend of Samhain (2003)
8. Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932)
9. Tomb, The (2003)
10. Sealed Room, The (1909)
11. Land of Death (2003)
12. Borderline Cult (2007)
13. Invisible Ghost (1941)
14. Corpse Vanishes, The (1942)
15. Giant Gila Monster, The (1959)
16. Man Made Monster (1941)
17. Maniac (1980)
18. Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958)
19. Ghost Wanted (1940)
20. Earth vs. the Spider (2001)
21. Murder By Numbers (2002)
22. My Son the Vampire (1952)
23. Return of the Vampire, The (1943)
24. Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire (2003)
25. Scooby-Doo and the Loch Ness Monster (2004)
26. All Work and No Play (1942)
27. Spook to Me (1945)
28. One Spooky Night (1955)
29. Pardon My Nightshirt (1956)
30. Ghost of Slumber Mountain, The (1917)
31. Scooby-Doo: Where's My Mummy (2005)
32. Adoration (1987)
33. Hollywood Babylon (2000)
34. Le Poeme (1986)
35. Maneater (2007)
36. Strangler of the Swamp (1946)
37. Tomb, The (2007)
38. Blue Demon (2004)
39. Corruption (1968)
40. House on Bare Mountain (1962)
41. Kiss Me Quick! (1964)
42. Vampyros Lesbos (1970)
43. Venom (2005)
44. Body Snatcher, The (1945)
45. She Creature (2001)
46. Vampire, The (1957)
47. Maniac (1934)
48. Zodiac Killer (2005)
49. Curse of the Zodiac (2007)
50. London After Midnight (1927)
51. Teenage Monster (1958)
52. Lycantropus (1996)
53. Sister Lulu (2001)
54. Chambre Jaune (2002)
55. Miss Greeny (1997)
56. Tea Break (2004)
57. Bad Moon (1996)
58. Zombie Island Massacre (1984)
59. Cannibal Campout (1988)
60. Watch the Skies (2005)
61. Unknown, The (1927)
62. Masters of Horror: Pick Me Up (2006)
63. Demons of Lust (1999)
64. Return of Dracula, The (1958)
65. Purei (2005)
66. To Heir is Human (1944)
67. Raven, The (2006)
68. Wolf Man, The (1941)
69. Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)
70. Homicidal (1961)
71. Ghosts (1915)
72. Savage Man...Savage Beast (1975)
73. Women's Camp 119 (1977)
74. Strike of the Tortured Angels (1982)
75. MOH: Dreams in the Witch-House (2005)
76. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1912)
77. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920) Lewis version
78. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)
79. Horror Island (1941)
80. Living Coffin, The (1959)
81. Man and the Monster, The (1958)
82. Last Warning, The (1929)
83. House of Fear, The (1939)
84. Freaks (1932)
85. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
86. Lost Book of Nostradamus, The (2007)
87. Zombies on Broadway (1945)
88. Revenge of the Zombies (1943)
89. Brain Eaters, The (1958)
90. Horror of It All, The (1963)
91. Scream of Fear (1961)
92. Berserk (1967)
93. Monster a Go-Go (1965)
94. Psyched by the 2D Dot (196x)
95. Bedtime Booga Booga (197x)
96. Psyched by the 4D Witch (1972)
97. Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell (1968)
98. Invisible Man, The (1933)
99. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse (1944)
100. Cry of the Werewolf (1944)
101. West of Zanzibar (1928)
102. Mark of the vampire (1935)
103. Mask of Fu Manchu, The (1932)

 

[TravisR]

As always, I'm not a critic- I just know what I like but I'm not very good at articulating it.

10/31/07
122. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
Another great Wes Craven low budget sleaze fest. Mutant cannibals kill a family that crosses into their area in the desert.

123. Halloween (Television Version)
Since it's Halloween night, I decided to watch the television version of Halloween which I haven't watched in years. For those that don't know, this isn't a version of the movie that is edited for content. It's the theatrical cut of the movie and the scenes that were shot for its TV airing in 1981 are added into the movie. Carpenter prefers his theatrical cut but I like a couple of the scenes. I also rewatched Halloween II but I won't count that since it's a duplicate viewing.

And with that, I am finished (and I'm looking forward to watching some movies without any murders ). All in all, I watched 29 movies that I hadn't seen before.

My complete list
(new titles in bold)
001. Dracula (1931)
002. Dracula (Spanish language)
003. Frankenstein (1931)
004. The Mummy (1932)
005. The Invisible Man
006. Bride Of Frankenstein
007. Werewolf Of London
008. Dracula's Daughter
009. Son Of Frankenstein
010. The Invisible Man Returns
011. The Mummy's Hand
012. Invisible Woman
013. The Wolf Man (1941)
014. The Ghost Of Frankenstein
015. Invisible Agent
016. The Mummy's Tomb
017. Cat People (1942)
018. Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man
019. I Walked With A Zombie
020. The Leopard Man
021. The 7th Victim
022. Son Of Dracula
023. The Ghost Ship
024. The Curse Of The Cat People
025. The Invisible Man's Revenge
026. The Mummy's Ghost
027. House Of Frankenstein
028. The Mummy's Curse
029. The Body Snatcher
030. House Of Dracula
031. Isle Of The Dead
032. Bedlam
033. She-Wolf Of London
034. Creature From The Black Lagoon
035. Revenge Of The Creature
036. The Creature Walks Among Us
037. Curse Of The Demon
038. Carnival Of Souls (1962)
039. Masters Of Horror: Sounds Like
040. Masters Of Horror: The Washingtonians
041. Poltergeist
042. Twilight Zone: The Movie
043. Dr. Giggles
044. From Beyond The Grave
045. Deadly Friend
046. Eyes Of A Stranger
047. The Hand
048. Someone's Watching Me!
049. Homicidal
050. Strait Jacket
051. Black Christmas (1974)
052. Black Christmas (2006)
053. The Lodger (1944)
054. He Knows You're Alone
055. Maniac (1980)
056. Terror Train
057. My Bloody Valentine
058. Happy Birthday To Me
059. The Burning
060. Hell Night
061. The Prowler
062. Masters Of Horror: The Damned Thing
063. Planet Terror (Extended Version)
064. April Fool's Day
065. A Nightmare On Elm Street
066. A Nightmare On Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge
067. A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
068. A Nightmare On Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
069. A Nightmare On Elm Street: The Dream Child
070. Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
071. Wes Craven's New Nightmare
072. Christine
073. The Fog (1980)
074. The Thing
075. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
076. The Funhouse
077. Night Of The Living Dead (1968)
078. Toolbox Murders (2004)
079. The Car
080. Eaten Alive
081. Scream
082. Scream 2
083. Scream 3
084. The Evil Dead
085. Evil Dead II
086. Cabin Fever
087. Hostel (Director's Cut)
088. Hostel Part II (Unrated)
089. Dawn Of The Dead (1978)
090. Alien
091. The Devil's Rejects (Unrated)
092. Saw (Unrated)
093. Saw II (Extended Version)
094. Saw III (Director's Cut)
095. Saw IV
096. Friday The 13th
097. Friday The 13th Part 2
098. Friday The 13th Part III
099. Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter
100. Friday The 13th: A New Beginning
101. Friday The 13th Part VI: Jason Lives
102. Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood
103. Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan
104. Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday (Unrated)
105. Jason X
106. Freddy Vs. Jason
107. Halloween (1978)
108. Halloween II
109. Halloween III: Season Of The Witch
110. Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers
111. Halloween 5
112. Halloween: The Curse Of Michael Myers
113. Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
114. Halloween Resurrection
115. The Blob (1988)
116. Re-Animator
117. The Exorcist
118. Suspiria
119. The Night Stalker (1972)
120. Jaws
121. The Last House On The Left
122. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
123. Halloween (1978- Television Version)