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Author Topic: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019  (Read 27260 times)

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #70 on: October 02, 2019, 08:10:21 PM »
Overall, on the Goosebumps scale, I would give it a Revenge Of The Lawn Gnomes. Now to find tonight's feature.

I forgot about this scale. What's the top? Night of the Living Dummy?

FLYmeatwad

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #71 on: October 02, 2019, 09:50:06 PM »
I forgot about the scale too. While Slappy is the king, those weren't my favorite books. I'll need to think if 'best' and 'scariest' are one and the same. Figure that the consensus pick for best would be The Haunted Mask though.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Certainly a lot of screaming going on here, and for the most part this thing, making pretty good use of a sub-90 minute run time, works. Have to figure that at the time of its release it played better than looking at it with a pair of eyes that sees how its style of horror has transformed and been cranked up to almost absurd levels in a modern context. Not particularly scary, but these slasher things typically don't get me that much, and I always appreciate that there aren't a ton of manufactured jump scares. As it goes on too you get the bigger performances, which I enjoyed. I did really enjoy this, but not too much to say about it.

On the Goosebumps scale, I would give this a Piano Lessons Can Be Murder.

Junior

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #72 on: October 03, 2019, 05:53:55 AM »
That dinner scene, while not particularly scary in what actually happens, is one of the most intense and terrifying things I have ever seen. It and the remarkably good conclusion are the reasons why I rate that film so high. The short running time helps too.
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FLYmeatwad

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #73 on: October 03, 2019, 10:30:36 PM »
Yeah, the ending is definitely the strongest part, pretty much from the when the cop shows up at the end until the conclusion.

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #74 on: October 04, 2019, 05:00:43 AM »
The Perfection (2018)
★ ★ ½
Figured I better get to this one because I don't know how much longer my fortune of knowing nothing would hold out. I don't even know how you describe it without giving something away. It has twists the size of From Dusk Till Dawn, and that marketing couldn't hide the vampires or they risk ticking off people who get on board for a Tarantino crime film. When this veers into horror, it's really effective and pretty damn horrible to imagine (in a good way.)

On that level the script and direction are pretty impressive. However, once this thing stops twisting and you're able to see what happens in full, I had a pretty big question that the film cannot answer. I think they're trying to say something about the psychological damage of abuse, but that's just trying to explain away a story that's unfortunately more of an empty gimmick.


- Really Scary when it's working
« Last Edit: October 04, 2019, 12:21:19 PM by 1SO »

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #75 on: October 04, 2019, 12:17:18 PM »

Kind Lady (1935)

I always enjoy Basil Rathbone, but this may be the strongest combination of his snobby upper crust superiority and his viper interior. (He would've made a great Hannibal Lector.) It's what puts him above Vincent Price. When Price is playing the gentleman you can see the murder in his eyes, Rathbone is genuinely charming. You want to believe him even though you're aware this is Shocktober.

I can't get too much into the plot of this one because it turns out it's very similar to Joon-ho Bong's Parasite, so much so that there are scenes that play out nearly identical. (I can't find any evidence on the net, which makes me feel like I've stumbled onto a secret.) This doesn't have Bong's way of genre-bending surprises or the underlying theme of class struggle, but as a thriller, this has a higher feeling of helplessness and anxiety for the title character. BTW, she's played by a favorite of mine too, Aline MacMahon (Heat Lightning), so there's a lot to like here.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ - Very Good

- Slightly Scary

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #76 on: October 04, 2019, 06:32:39 PM »
Mrs. 1SO Not-So-Scary


Red Eye
(2005)
★ ★ ★ - Good
It's been fun finding these modern selections that work along similar lines to our morning movie. Basil Rathbone taking advantage of the titular Kind Lady is now Cillian Murphy menacing the well connected Rachel McAdams on a night flight to Miami. Some may remember the clever marketing for this film where the trailer plays like a romantic comedy until the credit "From Director Wes Craven" appears on screen. That sinister seduction is still fun to watch even knowing Murphy is not on the level, and when it's time to get dirty the actor bravely pushes his character to real deep Dirtbag levels. Makes it all the sweeter when McAdams decides she's done being the victim.

It's unfortunate that when the thrills turn cat-and-mouse, Murphy loses not only the charm but most of his humanity turning him into a slasher no different from Jason or Michael. There's also a weird disconnect between the high-budget look of the film and some of the low-budget choices. Moments of Art Direction, green screen and stuntwork are distractingly amateur, but the bulk of the film is the lengthy interactions between the two stars and they dance a terrific tango.
« Last Edit: October 06, 2019, 12:28:42 PM by 1SO »

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #77 on: October 04, 2019, 11:58:49 PM »
Prom Night (1980)
* ½
Wildly over-popular 80s slasher staple, because it stars Jamie Lee Curtis. Director Paul Lynch brings the whodunit mystery to the subgenre, where a past crime gives everyone a solid motive to be the killer. There are some style points in the beginning, but the actual stalk-and-slash scenes are crushingly routine, and the acting by the unknowns in the cast is terrible. The guy trying to be John Travolta is as distancing as the disco music trying to be hit songs they didn’t want to pay for.

Any interest in the sequels? I just saw that they're all streaming on Prime. :)

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #78 on: October 05, 2019, 10:25:07 AM »
No interest in the sequels or the remake. I'd rather watch all the Carrie films.

1SO

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Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2019
« Reply #79 on: October 05, 2019, 10:38:59 AM »
The Void (2016)
★ ★
Taken from a list of the best Horror this decade, this combines John Carpenter's filmography with a mysterious cult creeping slowly onto a hospital which they assault to try and get back their creature who looks like us but can change into many grotesque shapes. There's a Stranger Things doorway to an alternate demon world thrown in for extra atmosphere. The results are a mess and attempts at emotional character beats are dropped in like my clunky writing. ("You're only doing this because of the miscarriage.") The creature effects are really well done, but lack the creativity of those in The Thing, plus their often disguised by quick cuts, darkness and strobe, so maybe they're not as impressive as they look. I think the filmmakers were lacking confidence, especially when the scary sounds are twice as loud as the dialogue. (This is something I measured with my volume button. The difference between the sound levels is as bad as I've ever heard.)

- Don't eat while watching


Strangler vs Strangler (1984)
★ ★
Serbian film (not A Serbian Film) about an overweight, sweaty, social misfit who can't resist strangling women and a handsome literal rock star who does the same, but so much better. I get the jokes, with the contrast of the two people and an opening narration about how in order for a town to get on the map you need a murderer. It's just not funny in the execution, which is as desperate as the unlucky strangler. It's also too busy being a black comedy to attempt any real scares.

- Safe for Sandy

 

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