Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
70s Invasion of the Body Snatchers is really good. Also, I thought I saw the movie before but now I think I'd only seen the last half. I don't remember the first, which is some good, slow burn stuff.
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General Spoopmas Film Discussion
- Thread starter Issun
- Start date
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
Lover Never Dies
This has always been one of my favorite horror movies (or dramas with horror elements).
The story is serviceable, but the visual design is the star of the show.
I was struck this time how every scene is beautiful or interesting in some way. There is amazing shot composition, color, costumes and practical fx throughout the movies 2+ hour run time.
I was also struck this time with how good the score is. The score has sharp strings and some chanting in parts that really gives the movie an other worldly feel. The score feels grandiose, which is appropriate given the themes of confronting god and history repeating over centuries.
Nice to end spooky season on a reliable treat.
Rating (out of 5):
Lover Never Dies
This has always been one of my favorite horror movies (or dramas with horror elements).
The story is serviceable, but the visual design is the star of the show.
I was struck this time how every scene is beautiful or interesting in some way. There is amazing shot composition, color, costumes and practical fx throughout the movies 2+ hour run time.
I was also struck this time with how good the score is. The score has sharp strings and some chanting in parts that really gives the movie an other worldly feel. The score feels grandiose, which is appropriate given the themes of confronting god and history repeating over centuries.
Nice to end spooky season on a reliable treat.
Rating (out of 5):
On Halloween I watched Skinamarink, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie so focused on the specific fears of childhood: the arbitrariness of the world, the inscrutability of adults, and, most of all, the dark. If you can call to mind the fear that comes with being alone in your dark, silent house in the middle of the night, and suddenly hearing a noise that you can’t identify—especially if you can take away the adult voice in your brain that there’s really nothing to be afraid of—then you’ve got the vibe of this movie. I do definitely see where the criticisms are coming from. It’s not a long movie, but I do think some shots could have been a little more tightly edited. The director has a lot of trust that the audience will figure out what the characters are doing from sound cues and indirect shots, but I don’t know that things are always as clear as he means them to be. There’s a decision to subtitle some barely-intelligible lines and not others, when I felt that I was still missing more dialogue than I wanted to. Still, if you’re in the mood for a horror movie that is willing to take its time with creeping dread, and if you think things can be scarier if left implied rather than shown directly, then I think Skinamarink delivers.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Watched the 2 Grizzly movies.
The first is a watchable and blatant Jaws rip off. The big problem for me is thw live action bear actor is too beautiful to root against. Its physically imposing but it doesn't feel like a titan of rage the film wants me to think. Also somehow just blowing up the bear with a rocket launcher feels unsportsmanlike.
Grizzly II was filmed in the 80s and completed in 2020. Its cheesy and dumb but the editing kind of kills it since its padded with 30 some minutes if unending concert footage and modern stock footage. I feel you could have gotten a much better editor to work wonders while playing it straight. On the plus side, Jonathan Rhys-Davies is... makin' choices for sure.
The first is a watchable and blatant Jaws rip off. The big problem for me is thw live action bear actor is too beautiful to root against. Its physically imposing but it doesn't feel like a titan of rage the film wants me to think. Also somehow just blowing up the bear with a rocket launcher feels unsportsmanlike.
Grizzly II was filmed in the 80s and completed in 2020. Its cheesy and dumb but the editing kind of kills it since its padded with 30 some minutes if unending concert footage and modern stock footage. I feel you could have gotten a much better editor to work wonders while playing it straight. On the plus side, Jonathan Rhys-Davies is... makin' choices for sure.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The Last Voyage of the Demeter is a 2023 movie that somehow feels refreshingly 90s. Which is funny because I have very little nostalgia for big budget 1990s horror. But it feels kind of very Hollywood as far as horror movies go. Dialogue is on the nose, the ideas are unsubtle and it's strengths lie mostly in some set pieces.
It's a hammy film and somehow a in Dracula movie with ham, Dracula might be the least hammy performance. But the hamminess isn't in a cheeky way. No quipping or bon mots. The film is played seriously and that's possibly what I like; in a film with broad speechifying, it doesn't feel overly somber but also doesn't try to lampshade anything and plays it straight.
It's sometimes to it's detriment; in feeling like an artifact of 90s horror, sometimes it's a little too hokey for its own good. And there a lot of points where things were going down a fairly obvious path. But while it is straight faced, it is still a fun film overall and the calibre of actors is fairly strong. It's a fun vampire thriller that's easy to get sucked into even as you are clocking the cliches.
It's a hammy film and somehow a in Dracula movie with ham, Dracula might be the least hammy performance. But the hamminess isn't in a cheeky way. No quipping or bon mots. The film is played seriously and that's possibly what I like; in a film with broad speechifying, it doesn't feel overly somber but also doesn't try to lampshade anything and plays it straight.
It's sometimes to it's detriment; in feeling like an artifact of 90s horror, sometimes it's a little too hokey for its own good. And there a lot of points where things were going down a fairly obvious path. But while it is straight faced, it is still a fun film overall and the calibre of actors is fairly strong. It's a fun vampire thriller that's easy to get sucked into even as you are clocking the cliches.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
You could continue the trend and watch Swamp Thing or Angel Heart
I’ve watched Bring Her Back and The First Omen so far, and am watching VHS Halloween right now
So apparently my theme is “Being a mom is hard”
So apparently my theme is “Being a mom is hard”
So, you’re rewatching “The Babadook” next?
Or Barbarian; gotta keep my options open
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Surprising no one, Alien is still one of the great movies. I love how little music there is. It's in there but it's gentle and ominous and mostly out of the way because this is a film that works mostly in silence and quiet till the monster gets ya. It just makes the space monster movie feel somehow more real.
Will be spending the next 3 days watching the rest of the original series. Pray for me by Resurrection
Will be spending the next 3 days watching the rest of the original series. Pray for me by Resurrection
Purple
(She/Her)
I will continue to go to bat for Resurrection until the day I die. Everything bad about it comes from having to do something to get things going again after 3 decided to steal the ending from Terminator 2. Once you're out of that sloppy retcon it's full of memorable scenes and a decent conclusion to the arc of Ripley's robot trauma. I mean that failed clone room alone is one of those scenes everyone since has been ripping off for anything at all space horror themed for a reason.
A YouTube video I watched recently discussed how the visual design of the sets and costumes added to that sense of realism:
(That channel also has other videos which expand upon this topic which includes a video on the sound design.)
I love Resurrection. Particularly when the team is climbing a ladder and the Alien is climbing after them. They could easily just shoot their guns down at the Alien. Instead, one guy lets go of the ladder has two guns drawn and fires at the Alien as he falls face first to his death. Its glorious.
Blood Theater (1984)
Who will survive opening night?
In the 50s a crazed theater worker sets the theater he works at on fire and all the patrons inside die in the fire.
Cut to modern times (80s) and their is a reward of $25,000 for someone to reopen the cursed and now derelict theater. I assume 25k is a crazy amount of money in the 1980s.
In any case, the manager of the Starlight Theater Chain promotes three teenage employees to run the cursed theater. The manager is a real sleazeball he intends to collect the reward and not tell his employees the history of the theater.
As the teenage employees clean up the theater strange events occur. Lights turn on and off on their own and film reels fly off of tables. Then people start to be killed in the theater. It turns out the original theater owner is still in the theater and he is killing off employees and visitors.
On a surface level, if feels like this movie should be in my wheelhouse. I like movies where a group of employees are killing time (Clerks and the Innkeepers). I like 80s horror movies and I like movies set in one location.
The vibe and certain comedy bits worked for me. The theater where the filmmakers shot the movie is cool: The movie was shot in an old Art Deco theater shortly before the theater was demolished. There was also a light wind blowing in the sound mix throughout most of the film. The wind blowing gave the film some atmosphere.
However, Blood Theater doesn't come together in a satisfying way for me. The comedy bits are hit and miss. The killer in the past and present has no stated motivation. The resolution is unsatisfying. I didn't hate the movie, but it felt like it could have been better.
Rating (Out of 5):
Who will survive opening night?
In the 50s a crazed theater worker sets the theater he works at on fire and all the patrons inside die in the fire.
Cut to modern times (80s) and their is a reward of $25,000 for someone to reopen the cursed and now derelict theater. I assume 25k is a crazy amount of money in the 1980s.
In any case, the manager of the Starlight Theater Chain promotes three teenage employees to run the cursed theater. The manager is a real sleazeball he intends to collect the reward and not tell his employees the history of the theater.
As the teenage employees clean up the theater strange events occur. Lights turn on and off on their own and film reels fly off of tables. Then people start to be killed in the theater. It turns out the original theater owner is still in the theater and he is killing off employees and visitors.
On a surface level, if feels like this movie should be in my wheelhouse. I like movies where a group of employees are killing time (Clerks and the Innkeepers). I like 80s horror movies and I like movies set in one location.
The vibe and certain comedy bits worked for me. The theater where the filmmakers shot the movie is cool: The movie was shot in an old Art Deco theater shortly before the theater was demolished. There was also a light wind blowing in the sound mix throughout most of the film. The wind blowing gave the film some atmosphere.
However, Blood Theater doesn't come together in a satisfying way for me. The comedy bits are hit and miss. The killer in the past and present has no stated motivation. The resolution is unsatisfying. I didn't hate the movie, but it felt like it could have been better.
Rating (Out of 5):
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Aliens
It's easy to forget what this movie is. While Ridley Scott's film feels like a haunted house movie, Aliens is a war movie. So naturally, it should be the more action packed film. And eventually it is. And when it is, it explodes. But it's also a film that is a surprisingly slow burn for the first hour of it's run time until the horror finally explodes across screen. And even in it's action, it remains a horror film, completely drowning the characters in a seemingly hopeless case.
Cameron is mostly known as an action director so it's surprisingly to see how much dread in their is revisiting it. Slowly moving with the marines, knowing things will go south but getting small hints of exactly how unprepared the characters are for this nightmare. In fact, though Cameron is doing his own thing compared to Scott, even as he is changing tone he makes much of the early film feel of a piece with Scott's film before hitting the gas. And even in doing to, he never blunts how horrifying the aliens are.
Though Cameron often is a far-less-subtle but accomplished director, his film manages to sell you on the genre change without it feeling like it is turning on the original. The themes of inhuman corporate powers throwing humans under the bus is still there and somehow making the alien into an army doesn't make an individual less horrifying. Still, Cameron manages to make the film a very "him" film in the best of ways and by the end, I forget how far away we've gotten from "claustrophobic horror" to "apocalyptic war" and that itself is impressive.
It's easy to forget what this movie is. While Ridley Scott's film feels like a haunted house movie, Aliens is a war movie. So naturally, it should be the more action packed film. And eventually it is. And when it is, it explodes. But it's also a film that is a surprisingly slow burn for the first hour of it's run time until the horror finally explodes across screen. And even in it's action, it remains a horror film, completely drowning the characters in a seemingly hopeless case.
Cameron is mostly known as an action director so it's surprisingly to see how much dread in their is revisiting it. Slowly moving with the marines, knowing things will go south but getting small hints of exactly how unprepared the characters are for this nightmare. In fact, though Cameron is doing his own thing compared to Scott, even as he is changing tone he makes much of the early film feel of a piece with Scott's film before hitting the gas. And even in doing to, he never blunts how horrifying the aliens are.
Though Cameron often is a far-less-subtle but accomplished director, his film manages to sell you on the genre change without it feeling like it is turning on the original. The themes of inhuman corporate powers throwing humans under the bus is still there and somehow making the alien into an army doesn't make an individual less horrifying. Still, Cameron manages to make the film a very "him" film in the best of ways and by the end, I forget how far away we've gotten from "claustrophobic horror" to "apocalyptic war" and that itself is impressive.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Alien: the Cube is a slog of a film. You can tell Fincher has a future as an auter here but this is a film that is a pain to get through, despite some interesting ideas. It doesn't help that despite being played by amazing character actors, I can't tell most of the bald white dudes apart and I kind of don't care about them. I would like too; there's a smart logic in making what is intended to be Ripley's final film one where the heroes are the ultimate underclass (exiled prisoners) to oppose Weyland-Yutani. But at two and a half hours, even the "superior" cut of the film is just a death march with people I don't care about.
Meanwhile Alien: Resurrection feels like Luc Besson's Firefly, for obvious reasons (I know Jeunet is not Besson but they have a similar quirky aesthetic). It makes it both more watchable but also more of a mess that feels like the core ideas of the franchise are truly lost. Yes, Weyland-Yutani are still "THE REAL MONSTERS" but also instead of verisimilitude, a word I'm weirdly using unironically and it makes me uncomfortable, it feels extremely "movie" with a grand score and quips and bright glory shots and a character actually proclaiming they "saved the world". There's stuff to like, putting aside the fact that someone I once considered among my favourite writers is a creep (always hurts when that happens), but overall it feels like when a comic book is too encumbered by mythos and other baggage and the writer is writing to that.
Meanwhile Alien: Resurrection feels like Luc Besson's Firefly, for obvious reasons (I know Jeunet is not Besson but they have a similar quirky aesthetic). It makes it both more watchable but also more of a mess that feels like the core ideas of the franchise are truly lost. Yes, Weyland-Yutani are still "THE REAL MONSTERS" but also instead of verisimilitude, a word I'm weirdly using unironically and it makes me uncomfortable, it feels extremely "movie" with a grand score and quips and bright glory shots and a character actually proclaiming they "saved the world". There's stuff to like, putting aside the fact that someone I once considered among my favourite writers is a creep (always hurts when that happens), but overall it feels like when a comic book is too encumbered by mythos and other baggage and the writer is writing to that.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I wanted to like Constantine. I'm glad it MOSTLY wasn't an action movie. But at the same time, it was a bit too languid and not quite clever enough. That said, the climax was very good and earned a lot of good will.
Peter Stormare turned in one of the great performances of the Devil in that movie, I think.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Antlers was a far more dour film than I expected. It wasn't bad, per se. The acting is good and the directing and cinematography is good and the monster looks neat even though we only see it in the climax. But I feel like what it wants to say about the trauma of abuse is very on the nose and not that engaging. It's just a drab monster movie. I liked in the first act how it is about a former abuse victim trying to help a child who she feels is abused but needs to navigate legal barriers without it being anti-legal barriers but recognizing as this happens, someone is going to suffer. It's tricky because when you are trying to help someone who isn't your child, you REALLY need to do it right. But that interesting conflict kind of falls away when the monster goes full monster.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The Fog is not the best Carpenter movie but it's a really good mix of classy ghost story and genuinely tense chiller. Really good selection of character actors, too.
Trick 'r Treat was weird; I didn't realize at first it was a collection of vignettes with crossover rather than one cohesive story. It was comedic but not actually funny, and none of the short stories were particularly interesting on their own.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Carnival of Souls is a horror movie but while it effectively eerie, I think the thing I come away with is how sad it is, in the best way.
The Visitants (1986)
There goes the neighborhood!
I have a blu-ray with Blood Theater and the Visitants on it. Both movies are directed by Rick Sloane. Sloane is probably best known for Hobgoblins (one of those best worst horror movies) or Vice Academy (Softcore Police Academy).
This is the second movie I watched off of that disc.
Aliens, the Visitants, move into a home in suburban California. They have plans to take over the world and will launch their plan on Halloween night.
A teenager next door is awakened by the aliens communication device (a satellite receiver). He discovers the aliens plans and steals their ray gun. His parents are oblivious to the aliens next door.
The Visitants is like Fright Night where the vampire next door is traded for the alien next door. Fright Night is the better film, but the Visitants is not without its charms.
Its a cheap film, but the shots are enhanced by quality colored lighting. The whole movie has carnival horror movie vibe to it. Additionally, Sloan loves 50s sci-fi. The ray gun and alien costumes, humans in glittered spandex, feel right out of 50s movies. Both the colored lighting and 50s sci-fi are right up my alley.
I really want to love this movie, but I end up merely liking it. The acting is super wooden in places and the film drags in parts.
I have not seen Hobgoblins, but I'm curious to check it out. Despite two 3 star ratings I've given to Sloane movies I've seen, I like the vibe he creates in his films.
Rating (Out of 5):
There goes the neighborhood!
I have a blu-ray with Blood Theater and the Visitants on it. Both movies are directed by Rick Sloane. Sloane is probably best known for Hobgoblins (one of those best worst horror movies) or Vice Academy (Softcore Police Academy).
This is the second movie I watched off of that disc.
Aliens, the Visitants, move into a home in suburban California. They have plans to take over the world and will launch their plan on Halloween night.
A teenager next door is awakened by the aliens communication device (a satellite receiver). He discovers the aliens plans and steals their ray gun. His parents are oblivious to the aliens next door.
The Visitants is like Fright Night where the vampire next door is traded for the alien next door. Fright Night is the better film, but the Visitants is not without its charms.
Its a cheap film, but the shots are enhanced by quality colored lighting. The whole movie has carnival horror movie vibe to it. Additionally, Sloan loves 50s sci-fi. The ray gun and alien costumes, humans in glittered spandex, feel right out of 50s movies. Both the colored lighting and 50s sci-fi are right up my alley.
I really want to love this movie, but I end up merely liking it. The acting is super wooden in places and the film drags in parts.
I have not seen Hobgoblins, but I'm curious to check it out. Despite two 3 star ratings I've given to Sloane movies I've seen, I like the vibe he creates in his films.
Rating (Out of 5):
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Demons is still a fun, gross out thrill ride with ridiculous line reads and dialogue. A joy. That said, it works best as a party movie.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Demons 2 is not that different in overall quality and tone but is far inferior. I think taking it out of a crowded public space where people share an experience makes it a sparser film and since the first succeeds in being a raucous party film of a horror feature, it makes the laundry list of atrocities less fun. It's just a less joyfully nasty movie and then you are just left with nasty.
Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Putting aside he's in Manhattan for only the last 30 minutes of a 1 hour 40 minute film, it's wild they made a movie predicated on the idea that you could take a cruise ship from a lake in New Jersey to New York City. Logic isn't super important to me but it's bold to not even try to rationalize this madness.
Also probably the only horror movie that has Sbarro's in the final shot.
Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Putting aside he's in Manhattan for only the last 30 minutes of a 1 hour 40 minute film, it's wild they made a movie predicated on the idea that you could take a cruise ship from a lake in New Jersey to New York City. Logic isn't super important to me but it's bold to not even try to rationalize this madness.
Also probably the only horror movie that has Sbarro's in the final shot.
In the Freddy v Jason debate, I'm team Freddy all the way.
I do however have a soft spot for F13 Part VIII.
I love how fraudulently titled the movie is. As you point out, Jason is only in NYC for the last part of the movie. It reminds me of renting a VHS with an awesome cover (often a horror movie) and being underwhelmed by the movie. Its a strange thing to be nostalgic for, but I am.
I also love how insane the ending is: Nightly NYC flushes all the acid and corrosive chemicals out of its sewer system. The teens manage to catch Jason in the sewer chemical flush at the right time. IIRC, there is no real setup for this chemical flush it just happens. I don't live in NYC, but I imagine the NYC sewer system portrayed in F13 Part VIII is not accurate. Its wild.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
A Chinese Ghost Story is a wild romcom that turns into an epic fantasy and also right in the middle is a rap.
jpfriction
(He, Him)
The Faculty is just several other better movies mashed together but does have a hell of a 90s soundtrack and you’ll recognize every single person in there. 4 stars.
The queen alien could have ended the movie in her favor at any point. I think she was just addicted to high school drama. Also I don’t think the literature teacher is allowed to date the drug dealer even if he’s in his third year of being a senior or whatever.
The queen alien could have ended the movie in her favor at any point. I think she was just addicted to high school drama. Also I don’t think the literature teacher is allowed to date the drug dealer even if he’s in his third year of being a senior or whatever.