Spook Out! Day 3 ~ Culture Shock (2019)

Hulu Says...
"This thriller follows a young Mexican woman in pursuit of the American Dream, who crosses illegally into the United States, only to find herself in an American nightmare."

I Say...
Gritty thriller bends into bizarre techno-drama as a determined woman seeks a better future for herself and her unborn child.

Horror Type...
Thriller, Surreal, Technological

Main Players...
Martha Higareda as Marisol Ramirez (American Dreamer)
Richard Cabral as Santo Cristobal (Assassin?)
Barbara Crampton as Betty (Hostess from Hell?)

I liked...

• that Marisol suffers some knock-downs but persists, in a realistic way (she's not suddenly some amazing fighting badass after some cheesy workout montage)
• that she doesn't become embittered by all the crap she goes through--her heart only grows stronger
• that an assassin-by-profession (apparently?) turns out to be one of the most decent dudes in this flick (and there are a number of seriously bad guys, so that's really saying something), which just goes to show that you never know
• the tightly-written, clearly delineated three-act structure (and I even liked that I felt exhausted from the tension of the first act by the time it yielded to the second)

The Meh...
Not gonna lie, some of the gritty reality experienced in that grueling first act is really hard to witness. Though the ending satisfies, you may want to plan on taking in some more light-hearted fare as a palate cleanser afterward. Also, Marisol makes a big decision at the end that I'm not altogether sure she's making for the right reason. However, I can't say it's the wrong decision...

Would I recommend it...?

As a thriller, absolutely. As a horror movie, maybe not so much, but terror's in the eye and mind of the beholder. (Mind you, the excellent Barbara Crampton's facial expressions in this are pretty danged freaky.)

Miscellany...

• Culture Shock is the tenth feature-length installment in Hulu's horror anthology Into the Dark. (They've released one movie a month with a theme central to that month's holiday--as observed in the US, at least. Culture Shock was the Independence Day offering.)
• Creed Bratton (who plays Creed...Bratton (say what?) in The Office) portrays one of Culture Shock's many Bad Guys.

Ratings...
My Grade: A if considering the movie as a thriller, B- if considering as a horror movie.

Rotten Tomatoes Scores (contains spoilers): Tomatometer=100%, Audience Score=Not Available

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched Culture Shock on Hulu (bc it's currently exclusive to Hulu AFAIK)

Culture Shock's IMDb Page

Culture Shock's Wikipedia Page (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 3 of...

Spook Out! Day 2 ~ Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006)

Amazon Says...
"The next great psycho horror slasher has given a documentary crew exclusive access to his life as he plans his reign of terror over the sleepy town of Glen Echo."

I Say...
Dopey twits don't think through implausible opportunity to film the exploits of a serial-killer-in-the-making. (To my great delight.)

Horror Type...
Comedic horror, black comedy, mockumentary.

Main Players...
Nathan Baesel as Leslie Vernon / Leslie Mancuso (He's the serial killer? Really?)
Angela Goethals as Taylor Gentry (Curiously Naive Journalist)
Kate Lang Johnson as Kelly (Leslie's Dream "Survivor Girl")

I liked...

• the earnestness with which the documentary film crew approaches this study of a wannabe murderer
• the boyish enthusiasm of said wannabe and how he eagerly explains Serial Killer Practicum 101 to the crew
• the deliciously dry gruesomeness of this Christopher-Guest-style mockumentary
• that Scott Wilson, the actor who played the wise and kindly Hershel Greene on The Walking Dead, here portrays a retired serial killer who serves as affable mentor to Leslie Vernon (Hah!)
• that everybody's favorite striped-shirt-wearing nightmare, Robert Englund, plays the wise and kindly psychiatrist who treated young Leslie and has a bad feeling about all this...
• how in the third act things smoothly shift from mockumentary to straight-up horror movie

The Meh...
I honestly can't think of one thing about Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon that chaffed my chaps, although I can't help being critical of a film crew who considers the moral implications of standing by while some guy slices and dices others only after he's already started doing it. Comedic-horror flicks are my catnip, so I really just heart this one. (SPOILER ALERT: More so, probs, than the expendable-guy-in-the-movie who literally got his heart handed to him after it was pulled from his chest.)

Would I recommend it...?

Heck yes, I would! I'm already looking forward to watching it again!

Miscellany...

Freaking Hershel Greene! A retired serial killer! (Double Hah!!)

Ratings...

My Grade: A
Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=76%, Audience Score=75%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon on Amazon (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other host sites)

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon's IMDb Page

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon's Wikipedia Page (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 2 of...

Spook Out! Day 1 ~ The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)

Netflix Says...

"A father-son team of small-town coroners performs an autopsy on an unidentified woman with mysterious injuries and a terrifying secret."

I say...

That's a pretty good summary. Bravo, Netflix.

Horror Type...

Supernatural, mystery, medical-procedural

Main Players...

Brian Cox as Tommy Tilden (That's Papa Coroner)

Emile Hirsch as Austin Tilden (Baby Coroner)

Olwen Kelly as Jane Doe (make that Jane Don't bc EEEK!)

I liked...

• the very methodical, matter-of-fact way the gentlemen go about their work, and the compassion they show their Jane Doe (until it's thoroughly appropriate not to)
• the vibe, which is moody to start and masterfully builds up the creep factor to 11
• the pacing, which raised the level of intrigue in a steady, satisfying way
• the way the story engaged me and made me both desire and dread to learn more about the deceased's origins
• the way it made me worry about Papa and Baby Coroners

I thought The Autopsy of Jane Doe presented an original idea in an entertaining, hair-raising, way. Also, an occasional view of the body's unmentionables was to be expected, as it was being autopsied after all, but I'm pleased to report there was no gratuitous squickery. (If you will.)

The Meh...

• Papa Coroner came to some (very kind) conclusions about Jane that I can't agree with, given how the movie ends
• Important questions are left unanswered (but then, there's probs going to be a sequel)
• Baby Coroner (medical assistant) had a stereotypically two-dimensional, annoying girlfriend (I liked the actor who played her a lot in her role on Whiskey Cavalier) who served as a mere...what? I don't even know. Plot device? Through her we learn something interesting about the son, but it never develops further because...well, no spoilers here but I just wonder what the point was in even bringing his little secret up as it neither reveals character, nor advances the plot. But that's a minor quibble, bc...

Would I recommend it...?

I would, and I do! Watch it during an ominous storm, if you can. Definitely don't let the sunshine in...

Miscellany...

I knew I recognized Papa Coroner from something or other. But I've looked up his filmography and I still don't know where I've seen him before, lol. (Probably bc he's been in a LOT of stuff!) I have to commend his wonderful American accent in this flick--I had no idea he was a Scot!

Ratings...

My Grade: B+

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=86%, Audience Score=70%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched The Autopsy of Jane Doe on Netflix (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other host sites)

The Autopsy of Jane Doe's IMDb Page

The Autopsy of Jane Doe's Wikipedia Page (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 1 of...

Spook Out!

Le freak c'est chic, y'all!

Last year I watched a different horror movie every day of October. At the time it did occur to me to blog about it (especially since I wasn't blogging all that much and I thought it'd behoove me to get back to it). But I didn't bc depression.

Anyway.

I'm doing the one-horror-movie-a-day thing again this October and felt inspiration nudging me a little harder so what the heck. Uh, I should say, I'm trying to do one-flick-a-day but I'm coming up a bit short (about 5 days short of flicks). I'm trying to keep re-watches to only a couple, if that many, and want to see if I can watch on platforms to which I'm already subscribed so I don't have to dish out too many monies. I may just sprinkle in some stuff from last year that I really liked. Look, you work with whatcha got, OK?

So please stand by as I hope to serve up the spooks soonishly!

Words, wOrds, WoRDS

Oh online playmates, come out and play with me...

Using the Random Word Generator at CreativityGames.net, I'm going to toss out a word and you're going to share the first thing that comes to your mind, in the comments section below.

Like, if you want to and junk, I ain't the boss o' youse.


Today's random word is...

COFFEE

To learn what came to my mind, select the darkened text between the asterisks.

***

Forget what I'd do for a Klondike bar (which isn't much, bc I'm not all that into them), the things I would do to lay hands on the perfect cuppa joe*...

Ooof!

By which I mean there's a lot I'd consider doing. Unless it required a lot of effort on my part. But, you know, I'd think about it...

***

Go on, then. Reveal unto the world what that word inspired in your little gray cells.

If you dare...


*The things I'd do for the perfect Joe, on the other hand, well! (Ahem.)

Opening Up by Writing It Down

Amazon Buy Link

I picked this e-book up at the bitter end of 2018, a year that provided me with some shock-and-awe that knocked me on my ass*. Time passed without, I felt, significant recovery on my part (or any, as far as I could tell). As anyone who struggles with depression can probably attest, pulling oneself out from the mire can seem impossible. But then comes a moment in which we're able to bestir ourselves to try some small movement, and learning about this book** was one for me.

Amazon says:

Expressing painful emotions is hard--yet it can actually improve our mental and physical health. This lucid, compassionate book has introduced tens of thousands of readers to expressive writing, a simple yet powerful self-help technique grounded in scientific research. Leading experts James W. Pennebaker and Joshua M. Smyth describe how taking just a few minutes to write about deeply felt personal experiences or problems may help you: 

• Heal old emotional wounds
• Feel a greater sense of well-being
• Decrease stress
• Improve relationships
• Boost your immune system 

Vivid stories and examples yield compelling insights into secrets, self-disclosure, and the hidden price of silence. The third edition incorporates findings from hundreds of recent studies and includes practical exercises to help you try expressive writing for yourself. It features extensive new information on specific health benefits, as well as when the approach may not be helpful.

My thoughts

I enjoyed this book, particularly the straightforward and matter-of-fact tone of the authors. So many self-help books pump themselves up with over-caffeinated, hyperbolic enthusiasm and are sales-oriented, pushing the reader to authors' websites to become dependent on them and spend more, More, MORE money on their products. Not "Opening Up by Writing It Down"--the authors gave their background info on the subject, discussed trials and errors, and provided details from multiple studies to support their thesis. However, they didn't make exaggerated claims that their method was THE method and openly acknowledged that they didn't have all the answers and that their ideas wouldn't work for everyone in every circumstance. They came off as genuine to me and I felt I could trust whatever they had to share, even if they couldn't make any promises that this sharing would help me solve all my problems (which, of course, no one in good conscience can do). They provided some preliminary exercises which I found beneficial and sparked some impromptu writing that also felt helpful. I feel like I'd have liked a few more exercises, or more information on variables of the expressive writing process. But that's a small criticism for a largely worthwhile read. If you're going through a rough patch, of any sort, it might prove helpful to you also, if you're ready (which, the authors note, may not be for some time after a traumatic event). 

My rating

5 stars out of 5

*Don't ask; won't tell.

**To give credit where it's due, props and thanks to Eric Barker, from whose recent blog post The 3-Step Evening Ritual That Will Make You Happy I learned about the "Opening Up" book. I subscribe to Eric's "weekly updates" (he wisely avoids calling them "newsletters," because ugh, like we need one more thing on our plates, jeeeeez). Though they're sometimes just a touch perkier than my irritable soul can typically stand, over the past two years I've grown to take some comfort from them.

***I've had to edit this blog post several times for tweaky purposes bc I appear to have forgotten how to write, ffs.

But the Drugs Like Me...

Remember my last post, when I complained that my antidepressants didn't work? I wrote that (while on them):

...mostly I just feel like I'm in a fog. I'm cloudy-headed, numb, anxious, despairing. I think of death and mortality every day. I'm the living dead. I'm not suicidal--I'm far too Catholic and, frankly, cowardly for that. Besides, I seem to prefer a slow death by tobacco, sugar, and hope. 

I should note that I've been off work for the past week and off my routine; I've forgotten to take my antidepressants more often than not...And skipping the meds, though inadvertent, doesn't really seem to have made things any worse so I may just go off the stuff. I mean, maybe.

Yeah, about that...

I forgot to mention a pertinent fact--I had actually called in a refill at my local mom'n'pop pharmacy. I don't normally get my prescriptions filled there but back in November I was a day away from a business trip and needed my two happy-pill 'scripts pronto. My normal chain pharmacy didn't have one of them, another chain didn't have the other. I was desperate and short on time. (Story of my life.) While I like supporting local businesses, I don't like their store hours, which don't jive with my commute into/out of Manhattan (there's a Rite Aid in Grand Central, my usual joint because it's pretty damned convenient but it didn't work out for me that time around).

Anyway.

The local pharmacy's supposed to be open on Saturdays. I went to pick up my meds December 30--closed. With a fucking sign taped to the door saying they were closed for the weekend and thanking customers for their "anticipation." How the hell could I have anticipated that?

Tried again the following Saturday--also closed! No reason given! What the fuck?!

So I'd been rationing the few pills remaining from each prescription but was done with them a few days into the new year. "OK, then, motherfuckers." I thought to myself. "I'll just go commando." So to speak.

I started getting headaches. I think had headaches maybe 4 or 5 days in a row. Sleeping was bad. Had a few nightmares. Didn't snap out of my fog, in fact, things worsened--by Wednesday of this past week I felt confused, I couldn't concentrate at work, a sort of hysteria seemed to rise around and within me. I'd been feeling stressed anyway, from my day job, but that day was...well, I was frightened. Close to 5 I went to my boss' office and closed the door, gave her an abbreviated version of the above, and asked if I could go in later on Thursday to see if I could catch the fucking pharmacy open on my way into work. I'd never wanted to talk to her about this, and not because she's a horrible person or anything--this shit's just too...how do I explain it...raw, personal. Painful. I protect my pain. Does that make sense? Writing about it here is different, somehow. Apart from the safety of being behind a screen...

Well, she was perfectly decent about it, as I had every reason to expect, and so I was able to pick up my stuff the next morning. Both remaining refills, as it happened, so I don't have to worry about dealing with these folks again. Funk them and their anticipating asses.

Meanwhile, I'll not go off a regular pill regimen on my own again, not if I can help it. If coming off the stuff's the right move, I'll do it under the doc's orders. For now I'll just keep doping myself up and I guess just try to be more patient...(?)