Spook Out! Day 18 ~ Happy Death Day (2017)

Amazon Says...
"A woman relives the day of her murder over and over in this slasher twist on 'Groundhog Day'."

I Say...

^Nailed it!

Horror Type...
Slasher, Horror Comedy

Main Players...

Jessica Rothe as Theresa "Tree" Gelbman (BirthDeathday Girl)

Israel Broussard as Carter Davis (Stand-Up Guy)

Ruby Modine as Lori Spengler (Baker Roommate)

I liked...

• Jessica Rothe's work in this--she carried the whole thing like a BOSS and seemed to have a really great time doing it. Go on with your bad self, girl!
• how the humor played out, without cheesing things up
• how Tree starts off as unlikable but we grow to care about as she grows (even if she has to die a few times to do it)
• the puzzling aspect of trying to identify the killer(s???)
• that, unlike in Groundhog Day, each re-lived day (specifically, being murdered each day) took a physical toll on Tree, which lent some urgency to the need to solve the time-loop problem
• how grief was explored, without being heavy-handed

The Meh...
The Who was interesting but the Why was kinda flimsy--it meant earlier bits didn't make too much sense, but then, it's not that heady a movie, if you know what I mean.

Would I recommend it...?

Yeah, man, this comedy-mystery-horror-romp is loads of fun! You can sink right into it for your Halloween kicks and still get to sleep easily. (Probably.) Mild jump scares only, and the death-scenes aren't really gory (or even shown in great detail, from what I recall). It may be a bit too light on the scares for hardcore horror fans, tho.

Miscellany...

The director, Christopher Landon, is one of (the late) Michael Landon's sons. (Yes, Pa-Ingalls-Michael-Landon!). AND bitch sorority sister, played by Rachel Matthews, is one of Michael Landon's grandchildren!

Ratings...

My Grade: B+

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=71%, Audience Score=66%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched Happy Death Day on Amazon (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 18 of

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Spook Out! Day 17 ~ I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020)

Netflix Says...

"Nothing is as it seems when a woman experiencing misgivings about her new boyfriend joins him on a road trip to meet his parents at their remote farm."

I Say...
Yes. And no.

Horror Type...
Psychological Horror

Main Players...

Jesse Plemons as Jake (Diligent)

Jessie Buckley as Young Woman (Cerebral)

Toni Collette as Mother (Manic)

About the movie...

I can't tackle this movie as I have the others I'm reviewing this month, I'm Thinking of Ending Things defies the simplicity of stating things I liked vs things I disliked. This is a new kind of horror movie (to me), although for a good portion of it, you'll find that numerous horror movie conventions play out. After a while you begin to wonder if you've fallen asleep and are in a nightmare, or if someone spiked your drink, bc "WTF did I just see/hear and what does it all mean???"* becomes a common refrain in your mind as you watch. With apparent time shifts, weird coincidences, nonsensical name and wardrobe changes, as well as the dour, uncomfortable mood and creepy vibes, you question the very basis of reality in this movie world. And "What's really happening here?" is a good question. The key to arriving at an answer (that I didn't fully realize I had, until I listened to a few podcasts about the movie) is to ask, not what is this film about, but whom.

*But, at least, not like a WTF you'd ask watching the movie mother! 

Would I recommend it...?

Welp...if you like fiction that utterly messes with your mind, sure. If you like working out weird little puzzles, you bet. If you're not a super-sensitive type who cries during, like, long-distance phone service commercials, yeah. BUT if you're a cream puff (as I am) or suffer from any kind of depressive symptoms (as I do), maybe don't watch this, bc the horror here isn't solely psychological but existential, and the bitter end is sad af. If these latter conditions apply, please see if you can watch the movie with a good pal, someone you can go out for dinner/drinks with after, with whom you can dissect what you've just experienced.

There aren't any jump scares, and the acting is excellent across the board--but it's hella quiet and over two hours long, so it may have a pronounced soporific effect on you (yes, as it did on me, ngl--had to rewatch about the last 30-ish minutes or so bc Zzzzzz...). In a way, I'm kind of angry at this movie, as I feel the horror aspects are a bit bait and switch. On the other hand, in terms of how the story's told, it's rather genus genius.

Miscellany...

Both Jess-es/ies (and David Thewlis, who plays Jake's father) are Fargo (the TV series) alums; Plemons from season two, Buckley from the current fourth season, and Thewlis from season three. They're all brilliant, as is the show in all its particulars--truly prestige TV. I've yet to meet with a season I haven't loved. Highly recommend!

Ratings...

My Grade: B+

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=Not Available, Audience Score=Not Available

Details, Schmeetails...

Watch I'm Thinking of Ending Things on Netflix

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

I'll also link here the podcasts I listened to, to gain clarity on the movie. Spoilers abound, but these helped me shake off the jittery, uncomfortable vibes I had after I finished the movie.

npr pop culture happy hour: We're Still Thinking Of Things In 'I'm Thinking Of Ending Things'

Slate Spoiler Specials: I’m Thinking of Ending Things

Filmspotting: #791: Tenet / I'm Thinking of Ending Things / Feels Good Man

This concludes Day 17 of

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Spook Out! Day 16 ~ Howl (2015)

Shudder Says...

"Passengers on a night train are attacked by a vicious creature out of folklore, and must band together in order to survive until morning."

I Say...
If only it were just "a" vicious creature...

Horror Type...
Werewolves

Main Players...
Ed Speleers as Joe (Humble Guard)

Holly Weston as Ellen (Love Object)

Elliot Cowan as Adrian (Treacherous Ass)

I liked...

• how the basic horror story rule of isolating your characters with The Big Bad was applied--by stranding a train in the woods at night, and
• how they made the most of this atmospheric, though stationary, setting to build dread
• that the eight passengers, and two crew, managed to kill one of the beasties
• that an older couple proved important to the plot--the gentleman stopped an early descent into panicked chaos and got the group to focus on survival, and his lady wife...well...I can't say, but she's something else!
• the pacing, which was pretty good, and the even cycling of action with dialogue

The Meh...

• The beasties were CGI, which I don't object to in principal, but that can lead to somewhat unlikely looking creatures--I mean, they gave me the heebie-freaking-jeebies, for realz, but I'd have liked some more practical effects, over the slick swiftness of digital. As well, they were peculiarly hairless, for werewolves.
• One of the passengers takes on a difficult and dangerous task in order to get the stalled train moving, and that person's fate just goes to show that no good deed goes rewarded in a horror movie. 

Would I recommend it...?

Sure, it's a perfectly competent creature feature, and werewolf movies have been in short supply of late. But, given the weirdly awful political climate in which we've been living since 2016, it wouldn't surprise me if more appeared on the scene. Anyway, loads of jump scares here, and closeups of the critters (though just seeing their glowing eyes emerge from the dark woods is pretty terrifying), so sensitive types may wish to watch something like Jim & Jamie Dutcher: The Hidden Life of Wolves instead.

Miscellany...

The wonderfully gruff Sean Pertwee, alumnus of the most excellently chilling Dog Soldiers, has a (brief) cameo here!

Ratings...

My Grade: B

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=67%, Audience Score=36%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched Howl on Shudder (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

I've been putting a movie trailer just before

the closing of the blogpost more or less in this area,

however,

as the still shot for this movie's trailer

features a close-up

of a creature,

I've moved it to after the blogfest badge appears.

SO

if you are of a sensitive nature,

you may wish to stop reading here.

This concludes Day 16 of

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Spook Out! Day 15 ~ The House That Jack Built (2018)

IMDb Says...

"The story follows Jack, a highly intelligent serial killer, over the course of twelve years, and depicts the murders that really develop his inner madman."

I Say...
I'm not sure I buy the "highly intelligent" bit, but otherwise it's an accurate summary.

Horror Type...
Psychological Horror, Serial Killer, Art Film

Main Players...

Matt Dillon as Jack, aka "Mr. Sophistication" (Architect of Destruction)

Bruno Ganz as Verge (Framing Device)

I liked...

• that there were five distinct "incidents" (murders) which Jack discussed with Verge, to explain how he evolved in his "art"
• the dark, mordant humor in the first two incidents, and that it reappeared for the fifth
• the acting, all around, especially Matt Dillon (definitely award-winning work)

The Meh...

• The framing device of Jack's (unseen) conversation with "Verge" often went off on long-ish tangents on such topics of art, poetry, Nazis,icons, and quite frankly I did not give a carp about any of that--especially since...
• This movie's two and a half hours long! The time-consuming philosophical discourse could've easily been done away with, without injuring the film (but then I guess it wouldn't be a von Trier film? I dunno, this was my first.)
• Spoilers ahead, double-click the dark to read :: It's true that serial killers may have a particular type of victim to which they're drawn, as in Ted Bundy (after whom Jack was largely patterned, it seems) who preyed upon young women with long dark hair. Here, though Jack tells Verge he's also killed men, we're shown more than 4 women being murdered (and, actually, some children) and only one man (in a kind of self-defense, so, not for pleasure). Toward the end, Jack's got about five men awaiting his cold-blooded mercies but their fates are left unknown--we're not shown Jack delighting in their deaths, as he does in those of the women, it's not even clear whether he kills them. So in this particular case, the killer didn't only target women--so why not show us how (if!) he murdered those five men??? I am just so fucking sick of women and children being disposable targets for men's bullshit. von Trier, and other male directors/writers/etc., have never had to worry about their tits being sliced off and made into wallets and it shows. ::
• One more spoiler :: During some of Jack's conversations with Verge, we're shown a younger Jack mutilating an animal and some footage from concentration camps. Some other points, we see the horrible things Jack's done to the corpses in his walk-in freezer. There may have been further grotesqueries but I must've blocked them out. Frankly, I can't wait for this flick to evaporate from my memory. ::

Would I recommend it...?

The House That Jack Built is no traditional Hollywood horror movie, but it is filled with gruesome horrors that could probably turn all but the most cast iron of stomachs. It has some funny moments, but the humor is very dark indeed. If you dig the severely twisted, this movie's for you. Otherwise, you may wish to consider viewing the serial-killer mockumentary I reviewed last October: Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon.

Miscellany...

Uma Thurman was great here, as the first (and most annoying) victim we're shown. I also enjoyed seeing the fabulous Siobhan Fallon Hogan reunited with Dillon, fellow alumnus from the creepy af Wayward Pines series.

Ratings...

My Grade: B

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=59%, Audience Score=65%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched The House That Jack Built on Hulu (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

WARNING:

This trailer contains disturbing scenes of violence, actual and implied.

VIEWER DISCRETION IS STRONGLY ADVISED

This concludes Day 15 of

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Spook Out! Day 14 ~ The House of the Devil (2009)

IMDb Says...
"In 1983, financially struggling college student Samantha Hughes takes a strange babysitting job that coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret, putting her life in mortal danger."

I Say...
Slowly, indeed. Oh, so very slowly. Also, one little part of this descriptor is a necessary bit of misdirection, but to avoid spoilers, I'll say no more about it.

Horror Type...
Occult, Supernatural

Main Players...

Jocelin Donahue as Samantha Hughes (Babysitter Who Doesn't Like Kids)

Greta Gerwig as Megan (Groovy BFF)

Tom Noonan as Mr. Ulman (Creepy MFR)

I liked...

• the great acting from Gerwig, Noonan, and Mary Woronov (who played the Creepy MFR's wife). Even Dee Wallace's teeny little cameo was terrific
• being steeped in the early '80s--from hair and makeup, to costume, to props, it all took me back to a time I refuse to believe was 40 years ago
• the three '80s tunes they employed--great choices. (Even the music from the opening credits was pretty groovy--borrowing the riff and mood from The Cars' "Moving in Stereo".)

The Meh...

• I've seen this flick referred to as a slow burn. For me, it was more of an, "Oh, shit, did we forget to pay the gas bill, why isn't the stove lighting???" Dudes. DOOODS. From my notes as I watched:
• A bit too slow moving
• 34 mins in, still kinda boring
• 50 mins in, snooze fest
• 1 hour 8 mins I'm sorry, this flick's boring af I'm ready for it to be over

My lovelies--the movie's an hour and a half-ish long. Having to wait for over an hour to give a shit about what was going on in it was too long. I actually grabbed my phone to check on an expected Verizon withdrawal from my checking account, I was so frickin bored.

• This bit's spoilery, so I've blocked it out. Double click on the space between the two sets of colons to read it :: Do you seriously expect me to believe some mfkn satanists are so incompetent as to be incapable of tying proper knots to secure their offering to the evil one? Come tf on. ::

Would I recommend it...?

Oh, my sweet darlings--I wouldn't do that to you. Unless you're having trouble falling asleep, in which case, by all means do watch it.* Or just watch the trailer, below. It's another film that's done way better with critics and audiences than I can readily comprehend. Unless they were all high or something, when they saw it...? Did we even watch the same movie, wt actual f???

*Actually, even using it as a sleep aid is problematic, because the shit doesn't hit the fan till the last 20 minutes or so, but it does so to disturbing effect. Waking to see that portion of the movie would not be conducive to getting back to sleep. Tell you what, listen to some podcasts about this movie instead (to paraphrase one podcaster, I'd rather listen to others talk about this film than watch it again).

Miscellany...

I enjoyed a few moments of recognition with Tom Noonan (Frankenstein's Monster from 1987's The Monster Squad) and Mary Woronov (the Channeler from 1989's Warlock)--these actors have done way more than just these flicks, but they happen to be among my fave '80s movies. 

Ratings...

My Grade: D

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=85%, Audience Score=63%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched The House of the Devil on Shudder (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 14 of

Thanks for reading and come back tomorrow...

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Spook Out! Day 13 ~ Host (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes Says...

"Six friends accidentally invite the attention of a demonic presence during an online séance and begin noticing strange occurrences in their homes."

I Say...
That's a tight summary of a lithe little flick. I approve it 100%.

Horror Type...
Found Footage, Supernatural

Main Players...

Haley Bishop as Haley (Hopeless Hostess)

Jemma Moore as Jemma (Intrepid Idiot)

Seylan Baxter as Seylan (Unprofessional Medium!)

I liked...

• how this takes place in the real Covid-19 present, and the friends are all Zooming weekly to stay in touch, since they're all locked-down
• their excitement at seeing one another (virtually), and how that contrasts with the eerie vibes building around them
• that little by little my peace was subtly disturbed (like, seeing some of the gals having the doors of the rooms they were in wide open--it made me anxiously anticipate seeing something pass by that oughtn't to do so)
• the moments of humor revolving around the Medium
• the irony of them all, including the Medium, encouraging one another not to be afraid, as though they had any control over anything about to happen
• how, when shit got real, it REALLY GOT REAL

The Meh...
It did have some of the flaws that typically keep me from watching found-footage movies--shaky camera work that doesn't always give you a clear view, or understanding, of wtf's going on. Ugh, so annoying! But it did a lot better than some other such flicks.

Would I recommend it...?

ABSO-FREAKING-LUTELY--to horror fans. This lean little number (just under an hour long!) scared the stuffin out of me. With tons of foreboding, multiple jump scares, and an uncompromising body count, Host is the stuff of horror fans' bad dreams (hardcore horror fans probs won't be quite as wigged out as I was, but I had chills bubble up on my arms several times, and that last jump scare? Hooo, boy!). Light-horror fans may wish to opt for something else--at the very least, don't watch this just before bedtime (I was going to suggest, "Don't watch if you live alone," but having others around didn't help some of the characters in the movie, so...).

Miscellany...

This bad boy was made during Covid-19 quarantine, directed/filmed remotely, and the actors had to learn how to do their own practical effects and stunts--and it was completed in three months! (I mean, dang!) These folks better be winning ALL THE AWARDS!!!

Ratings...

My Grade: A+

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=100%, Audience Score=77%

Details, Schmeetails...

Watch Host on Shudder 

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 13 of

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Spook Out! Day 12 ~ A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (in Farsi w/English subtitles, 2014)

Amazon Says...
"Strange things are afoot in Bad City. The Iranian ghost town, home to prostitutes, junkies, pimps, and other sordid souls, is a place that reeks of death and hopelessness, where a lonely vampire is stalking the towns' [sic] most unsavory inhabitants. But when boy meets girl, an unusual love story begins to blossom...blood red."

I Say...
A) You've said too much, Amazon, B) That's an impressive run-on sentence, and C) You need to work on your apostrophe placement...

Horror Type...
Vampire, Thriller, Drama

Main Players...

Sheila Vand as The Girl (The Vampiest Vamp Who Ever Vamped)

Arash Marandi as Arash (The Persian Fonz)

Masuka The Cat as The Cat (Meow)

I liked...

• the cinematography. Shot in gorgeously noir black and white, the setting, the framing, the lighting, the angles--GAH, the EVERYTHING makes this film a luxurious feast for the eyes
• The Girl. So menacingly stylish, so effortlessly compelling--I've never found an antihero as morosely, forbiddingly sexy as this gal! (WTF is not to love about a skateboarding vampire???)
• Arash, her lovably goofy, yet sincere love interest. He's got his flaws (more on those in the next section) but he's still the heart and soul of this movie
• the hilarious scene in which The Girl comes upon a very high Arash, who's lost and staring up at a street lamp. How she gets him moving is adorbz!
• how it explores our connections to others: how we're drawn and repulsed, how we make and break them, how we endure and how we fail. As in life, the "whys" sometimes remain mysteries...
• how the director uses the stereotypical attributes of females/female victims--silence, stillness, downcast eyes--to render the Girl utterly terrifying
• how The Cat ratchets the tension up in pretty much every scene featuring him
• the soundtrack which (forgive me) really rocks my kasbah
• how the movie really takes its time...

The Meh...

• ...although it does take a little too long here and there, and its hypnotic hold really start to work on you. Shaving off a few minutes would've alleviated the soporific effect
• Arash, whom I love, is concerningly impetuous and rash. This is due to his youth, no doubt, but some of his actions do bother me
• I'm left with a ton of questions! (As I noted earlier, the "whys" remain mysteries.) The biggest one arises toward the end, when Arash fails to confront The Girl about a very suspicious, and serious, coincidence--it's clear that he's bothered by it but, apart from a bit of a quiet fit, he doesn't address it directly. Say what, Arash? I know you've got the warm and fuzzies for her, but still! I would do anything for love, but I--well, you know...

Would I recommend it...?

Heck yes! This is a fabulous film full of girl-powah! It's more of a drama/thriller than horror, though--no jump scares and I don't remember any gore, really. There's one disturbing scene about forced drug use but it's not, IMO, exploitive. It's more creepy than scary (that noted, if The Girl had interrogated me the way she did a street urchin in the film, I'd have definitely soiled myself).

Miscellany...

• A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night has been described in various places as an Iranian vampire spaghetti-western--and it totally is. However, it was shot, not in Iran, but in California
• the film's writer/director, Ana Lily Amirpour, has a cameo as "Skeleton Partygirl," and doubles for The Girl in some of the skateboarding shots
• the bones of the movie came to Amirpour when she tried on a chador, like The Girl wears in the movie (not a hijab, as some reviewers have asserted)
• this was a re-watch for me. I'm ding-dang-donged if I can recall when I first watched this, but it was long enough ago that I forgot all the particulars--though I never forgot how much I heart this film

Ratings...

My Grade: A- as a drama/thriller, B as a horror movie

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=96%, Audience Score=75%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night on Amazon (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 12 of

Thanks for reading and come back tomorrow...

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