Halloween: Two Weeks In (Overview)

Well, I try to take it slow until the thick of the season, but I've already stumbled on some really great finds. I don't have time to delve into TV right now so I'll stick with the films.


Absence (2013)
8/10

Oops, I may have screwed myself. If I knew it'd be half this good, I'd have saved it for later. There's never been a truly flawless, 10/10 alien-themed found footage movie in equal to The Blair Witch Project or [REC]. Absence doesn't quite reach that height, but it's the best the genre has shown me so far. Incident In Lake County will always have a place in my heart, but the superior effects in Absence just barely edge it out.

Alien movies don't need to have convoluted storylines. The idea of beings from another world with no concept of humane treatment and who can grab you right out of your bed from the sky is terrifying enough. I was worried it'd be more of a mystery like The Fourth Kind, but the premise of a woman losing her baby was only used as the excuse to film everything that's happening. Ultimately this is just your classic, cabin in the woods, strange lights in the sky film. And for that, I adore it. All the great money shots you never get from most alien found footage movies, Absence finally gives us. And the characters, and their slice of life activities, actually were quite enjoyable in and of themselves. Definitely scared the crap out of me and definitely a great film.


Midnight Son (2011)
7/10

This instantly has become one of my favorite vampire films. I love, love films of this style. In the tradition of Let The Right One In and Ginger Snaps, this is a coolly dark, slow and brooding, seductive story of a human being who just happens to be a monster. Most impressive.


Pontypool (2008)
7/10

A charismatic radio DJ gets a new gig in a small town. Unfortunately he finds himself in the midst of... the zombie apocalypse. Watch them scramble in the studio to find out what's going on, and listen to the horrific bits and pieces of the story trickle in. It's an interesting concept, definitely a different and welcome vanage point from which to explore the zombie apocalypse. I was genuinely impressed. The ending was very clever although it was definitely not what I would have preferred.


The Pact (2012)
7/10

Traditionally ghosts have not been one of my favorite topics for horror. So this year I'm making a conscious effort to explore and endear the genre to myself. The Pact is a fairly run-of-the-mill ghost movie but it is highly effective and fairly clever.


The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
5/10

I've heard a lot about this being among the worst remakes. But I thoroughly enjoyed it. How much more do you expect from your average 'sadistic hillbilly' film? I mean I'm no huge fan, nor afficionado, of that subgenre, but this is probably the best film of its ilk that I've seen so far. I found the characters somehow more believable than their counterparts in other sadistic hillbilly films such as The Hills Have Eyes remake.


The Lost World (1992)
4/10

The old story of Arthur Conan Doyle's Lost World. It's my favorite cryptozoological concept. The effects were less than satisfactory, but the story was solid enough and the characters were charismatic. Not a horror movie but a good adventure film for kids.


Truth or Die (2012)
4/10

A group of hot shot mean kids (college or high school I guess), get caught up in the sadistic game of an ex-military man looking for some answers. It's pretty run of the mill for the genre but it gets some props for subverting expectations a bit. It's a fun romp, if you're into this kind of movie. Torture & serial killers are not among my interests so it has to be a truly exemplary film of that genre to work for me, which Truth or Die is not. But I did find the characters pretty interesting.


My Babysitter's a Vampire (2010)
4/10

Disney Channel still puts out paranormal-themed TV movies most years, this one they imported from Canada. They're never scary but they're sometimes good fun. This time they take their stab at the Twilight craze, and for the portion of the film that mostly pokes fun at Twilight -- this was a very funny and fun movie. But when they end up fighting vampires, I quickly lost interest. Action movies in general are not what I'm out for, let alone action movies that can't show blood or violence or treat it realistically. But hey this is sort of like a vampire-themed Shaun of the Dead. If that's the kind of thing you're into, you may well like it.


Hansel & Gretel Get Baked (2013)
3/10

I'm all for an adult interpretation of a fairy tale, films like that can be incredibly chilling. But Hansel & Gretel Get Baked fell short. Not nearly enough pot smoking, not nearly enough comedy for a supposed comedy movie, and I just wasn't invested in the story. Good concept, good try, just wasn't to my liking.