rsmurphy wrote: Tue Oct 08, 2024 11:03 pm Salem's Lot

Felt the same way.

rsmurphy wrote: Thu Oct 10, 2024 12:29 pm The Innkeepers - supernatural haunted house. FUN

This has been in my Peacock queue for like two years and I finally watched it this October. I'd say "fun" is a pretty fair descriptor. It's not heavy at all, pretty easy to digest without giving away the ending.

Enjoyed The Devil's Bath. Seidl is an exec on it and it shows - obviously had a guiding hand here and there. Nicely made.

Charlie D wrote: Mon Oct 14, 2024 9:36 pm

rsmurphy wrote: Thu Oct 10, 2024 12:29 pm The Innkeepers - supernatural haunted house. FUN

This has been in my Peacock queue for like two years and I finally watched it this October. I'd say "fun" is a pretty fair descriptor. It's not heavy at all, pretty easy to digest without giving away the ending.

The first time I didn't like it, save for the ending. Sara Paxton gives good fear and my horror boner was on point while she was scratching and wailing at the door trying to escape Madeline's ghost. Second time it all clicked and became a favorite. It's straightforward with likeable characters, good pacing with scares, and a traditional gothic flavor.

A_Man_Who_Tries wrote:Enjoyed The Devil's Bath. Seidl is an exec on it and it shows - obviously had a guiding hand here and there. Nicely made.

One of the year's best.

Some stuff I recently watched

Daddy's Head had great potential. Hard for me to pin down what exactly is wrong with it, but it scored major points for atmosphere and genuinely disturbing creature design. I was disturbed. Repulsed. Freaked-out. It's hard to strike a balance between giving a creature too much or just enough air time and I felt the director did a disservice to the film by limiting how little we get to see that nasty little fucker. Still I liked it in spite of some flaws. Anything that has your spidey senses on alert as you peer into the corners of your bedroom is tops in my book.

Watched Dark Harvest for the first time. I never read the book and wasn't aware of its similarities to The Hunger Games, another book/movie that passed me by. Visually it was pretty great but the story left me cold.

In the past I've been fine with the A Quiet Place franchise. Saw both in the theater but didn't care too much for its sequel. I watched Day 1 and thought Nyong'o and Quinn both did spectacular jobs, but that movie left me with a question I've been struggling with since the first movie: what the fuck is up with these thrill killing aliens? What's their deal? I find the whole thing ridiculous! Their planet exploded and the body armor they evolved with is strong enough to ride on pieces of that exploded planet to Earf where they just kill ninjas for the hell of it. dumB. Cool story, bro...NOT.

Significant Other with Maika Monroe and Jake Lacey turned into a dud.

Ghost Stories wasn't as good as I remembered but it's still a pretty good British anthology though the ending was hella telegraphed.

Talk to Me is such a great story and cool concept.

EDIT: also rewatched Smile. This one surprised me at first and still think it's an OK movie, but The Harbinger (dir Andy Mitton) was the dark horse of 2022 and is a far scarier horror film.

I watched Mads last night and it was paranoiac suitable to the current witchy season...hard to call it fun, but I was caught up in the manic and preposterous tone of the impressively one-shot film. Directed by David Moreau who made Winter Soldier which, as dumb as Marvel movies are, was not a bad espionage trip. Thoroughly unhinged performances, especially from the girlfriend character.

kmc wrote: Sat Oct 19, 2024 7:26 am hard to call it fun, but I was caught up in the manic and preposterous tone of the impressively one-shot film.

I enjoyed it as much as one could enjoy non-stop anxiety and chaos. Ana was all fucked up! Can't exactly explain why but the lead-up to the conclusion gave me [REC] vibes. Moreau's other film, Ils (Them US), is pretty tight like a French version of The Strangers. Semi-related: seriously impressed with recent one-take horror movies. The manic pace of MadS reminded me of the mania and brutality of Soft and Quiet once it finally kicks-in. That is one upsetting movie.

After MadS I watched I Will Never Leave You. Meh. There is one scene where this dude that's being haunted walks out of a bathroom. As soon as he leaves a disembodied arm closes the shower curtain and all I could think about for the rest of the movie was why. So silly. There are some creepy moments, but honestly I found much of the dialogue in the flashback sequences - and there are a lot - laughable, and some of the acting is kind of cringe. Brutal violence towards the end looks cool, but overall I thought the whole thing was a bit daft.

kmc wrote: Sat Oct 19, 2024 7:26 am Directed by David Moreau who made Winter Soldier which, as dumb as Marvel movies are, was not a bad espionage trip.

Sorry, totally wrong David Moreau

Travels thus far

Watched Mr. Crocket. First half was cool with an exhilarating villain, dark weird childlike atmosphere and fun practical effects, but then it got all predictable. The ending set up possibilities for a sequel which I'd probably watch.



Finally caught The Woman in Black. Good ghost story, but I was distracted by Radcliffe's eyes. He is one adorable brit in Edwardian era cosplay.

Twenty-some years ago, I watched a version of Woman in Black made for British TV that my uncle had videotaped in the 80s or 90s. It had the look of a TV movie, but once you got past that, it was absolutely excellent. Scary as hell, in fact.

I liked the Harry Potter version well enough, but I could’ve done without the jump scares every 30 seconds. (And most of the jump scares had nothing to do with the supernatural elements of the story. A story should follow its own internal logic, so when toys start moving just because, it irked me a bit.)

Anyway, the older version is well worth your time.

Just finished Hunter Hunter from 2020. It's been on my radar for a while and I'm glad to have finally stopped fucking around and give it the attention needed. Slow burn survivalist horror about a family of fur trappers living in the remote wilderness and a wolf. I had no idea where this was going and will offer nary a hint, but once everything starts falling into place you think you know where it's going and you may be right, but there's still more road up ahead. The destination is very much worth your patience as you are weirdly treated to catharsis and one of the most disturbing visuals and bleakest finales. Go in blind and have fun.