General Horror Films & TV Discussion Thread

[Youth N Asia]

Cargill, and Scott also have a segment in the latest V/H/S movie. Haven’t seen it yet though. Been a fan of his since he was doing the Spill movie reviews.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Cargill is one of those guys I could just listen to about anything. His gravelly voice, the enthusiasm he talks with, and his knowledge on so many trivial matters make JFC as great as it is.

 

[HarleyQuinn]

Watched Totally Killer on Prime. Solid movie with Kiernan Shipka being a highlight. The script was pretty solid although it leaned on some gags a little hard and the reveal, to me, wasn't too surprising. It definitely had the vibes of those 80s slasher films from the 1982-1985 period but not as overtly homaged with a bit of a modernist take. Jamie's "takes" on that era considering the current day thinking was enjoyable and at times pretty funny though.

6/10

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Watched Totally Killer on Prime. Solid movie with Kiernan Shipka being a highlight. The script was pretty solid although it leaned on some gags a little hard and the reveal, to me, wasn't too surprising. It definitely had the vibes of those 80s slasher films from the 1982-1985 period but not as overtly homaged with a bit of a modernist take. Jamie's "takes" on that era considering the current day thinking was enjoyable and at times pretty funny though.

6/10

I liked it a bit more than you did, but we clearly differ on how we enjoyed Jamie's "takes." They felt forced to me, even if they were entirely in character.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

So the good things about Evil Dead Rise (2023) are the lead, the gore, the claustrophobia, and the emphasis on the demons using madness instead of just brutal kills. There are plenty of gross out moments, naturally, but they're well built and oddly reserved, which lends to their impact (the "creepy crawlies in my tummy" scene especially). The bad is that it, much like the 2013 remake, feels too "modern" at times, relying on the kinds of tropes that the original series intentionally threw out the window. It's a better film and overall experience than that disappointment, and I love the in-universe explanation for why things are different here than in the original series timeline (the recording stressing there being three books discovered), but it never quite rises above its place as the fifth cinematic entry in a landmark franchise.

Another thing that annoys me about this and the remake before it? The reliance on Christianity as a basis for the lore. The originals never focused on it, instead utilizing the idea of eldritch horrors and threats to increase the dread, but this and the 2013 remake both regularly make mention of Hell and even invoke prayer. I get why it's done, but doing so takes away some of the bite.

6.5/10

 

[strummer]

RIP Piper Laurie, 91. Of course she played the mom in Carrie.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Fourth graders shown Winnie The Pooh: Blood And Honey in class

A Miami math teacher apparently didn't think much of showing his class Winnie The Pooh: Blood And Honey

www.avclub.com

They shouldn’t be watching this! It’s not even a good horror movie. I am sure some of you guys could come up with way better slashers to show an elementary school class.

 

[RedJed]

So onto the next franchise binge for October....

Ended up going through the entire Pet Sematary run of films over the last week. This was a bit of a chore as I particularly (still) fucking hate the remake from 2019. To me it's still one of the more significantly terrible horror remakes of them all with a third act that is so offensively stupid and ridiculous. That out of the way, the original is still quite a classic, particularly the performances were elevated compared to the other entries. There also is a doc out there on Screambox and potentially other platforms on the first film which is a really fun compliment to the OG film. Lots of interesting background on the production for sure.

Pet Sematary 2 was certainly a weird one looking back. Considering it was directed by the same gal as the first, I expected more consistency. Instead this felt like a completely different film with more overt gore and strange not fleshed out well stuff. I wish Stephen King would have been a consultant on this or something as it just was off more moments than not. It holds a bit of a cult feel to it now looking back as there is some worthwhile stuff, particularly Clancy Brown's character. Ultimately, I wish they could have pulled away from the Edward Furlong character, revisited the Ellie Creed character instead (this was the original idea but the studio shot it down) and kept maybe some of the certain elements of the film, like the aforementioned Clancy Brown role.

I've said what I've said about the remake, complete fuckin garbage.

Then comes the new prequel to the remake, which was supposed to be set 50 years before the remake....this was eons better than the remake itself, but still nothing compared to the first two. It expands on the mythology of everything, but for the star power on this, this felt like it didn't hit how it intended to and multiple characters were underutilized. The dots of the mythology weren't connected as well as they could have been either, everything felt disjointed. I can see why it went direct to Paramount Plus....this wouldn't have fared well in theaters, very likely. It felt like there was an intention to make further prequel films to give further background on particularly Judd and his wife down the road. And there is some rumors that there is a push to just make a sequel to the remake too....please God no! I would like if this producing company got away from this franchise and I think its time to just let it rest.

1. Pet Sematary
2. Pet Sematary 2
3. Pet Sematary: Bloodlines
4. Pet Sematary remake

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Horror comedies are a dime a dozen, but the best always seem to strike that perfect balance where it would work as both a straight entry in either of the blended genres. Shaun of the Dead would have been an incredible slacker comedy even without the zombies, Gremlins had enough wacky satire of small-town Americana to chew on even without the titular mischievous ghouls, and What We Do in the Shadows is a classic without the undead throughline.

Maybe we should talk about adding The Conference (2023) to that list, as it balances the classic workplace comedy tropes (crotchety elder employees, over-enthusiastic but dimwitted managers, and sarcastic regular Joe's) with the most beloved of slasher beats with great results. Hailing from Sweden, this little slice of sardonic sadism could have easily been an enjoyable little romp without the masked killer, but its inclusion leads to some of the more imaginative kills in a subgenre known for them. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this, and I'm hoping to check out the rest of Patrik Eklund's filmography if ant of them are even near as entertaining as this. 6.5/10

So far, my rankings for the horror I've consumed this season, best to worst:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Children of the Corn remake
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door

 

[Brocklock]

So onto the next franchise binge for October....

Ended up going through the entire Pet Sematary run of films over the last week. This was a bit of a chore as I particularly (still) fucking hate the remake from 2019. To me it's still one of the more significantly terrible horror remakes of them all with a third act that is so offensively stupid and ridiculous. That out of the way, the original is still quite a classic, particularly the performances were elevated compared to the other entries. There also is a doc out there on Screambox and potentially other platforms on the first film which is a really fun compliment to the OG film. Lots of interesting background on the production for sure.

Pet Sematary 2 was certainly a weird one looking back. Considering it was directed by the same gal as the first, I expected more consistency. Instead this felt like a completely different film with more overt gore and strange not fleshed out well stuff. I wish Stephen King would have been a consultant on this or something as it just was off more moments than not. It holds a bit of a cult feel to it now looking back as there is some worthwhile stuff, particularly Clancy Brown's character. Ultimately, I wish they could have pulled away from the Edward Furlong character, revisited the Ellie Creed character instead (this was the original idea but the studio shot it down) and kept maybe some of the certain elements of the film, like the aforementioned Clancy Brown role.

I've said what I've said about the remake, complete fuckin garbage.

Then comes the new prequel to the remake, which was supposed to be set 50 years before the remake....this was eons better than the remake itself, but still nothing compared to the first two. It expands on the mythology of everything, but for the star power on this, this felt like it didn't hit how it intended to and multiple characters were underutilized. The dots of the mythology weren't connected as well as they could have been either, everything felt disjointed. I can see why it went direct to Paramount Plus....this wouldn't have fared well in theaters, very likely. It felt like there was an intention to make further prequel films to give further background on particularly Judd and his wife down the road. And there is some rumors that there is a push to just make a sequel to the remake too....please God no! I would like if this producing company got away from this franchise and I think its time to just let it rest.

1. Pet Sematary
2. Pet Sematary 2
3. Pet Sematary: Bloodlines
4. Pet Sematary remake

Pet Sematary 2 grows on me more every year. It's so bizarre and weird. There's a campiness to it that shouldn't work, but it kind of does. Clancy Brown is amazing in it. Furlong is definitely the weak link and Anthony Edwards was pretty dull as well. I dig the use of L7's Shitlist and some of the rest of the soundtrack is hilariously 90's. The original is the better movie, but if I had a choice to watch a Pet Sematary movie randomly, it might be 2.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Pet Sematary 2 grows on me more every year. It's so bizarre and weird. There's a campiness to it that shouldn't work, but it kind of does. Clancy Brown is amazing in it. Furlong is definitely the weak link and Anthony Edwards was pretty dull as well. I dig the use of L7's Shitlist and some of the rest of the soundtrack is hilariously 90's. The original is the better movie, but if I had a choice to watch a Pet Sematary movie randomly, it might be 2.

That's the magic of early 90s horror. They're somehow both dirtier and more polished, darker but more clear. They're all over the place tonally and it doesn't quite start making a lot of sense until Scream in '96.

 

[Valeyard]

Pet Sematary is one of those I don't really like but can and have seen a million times. Fred Gwynn is a treasure. If only King got his way and it had Bruce Campbell though.

2 I haven't seen in years. Somewhat afraid I won't like it now.

Watched Carrie, which is just in general among my favorite movies of all time. I hate calling it a horror movie though because it definitely never feels like a proper classification but man it holds up. PJ Soles should be an icon.

I also gotta say Never Sleep Again and Crystal Lake Memories are such a fun breeze to go through. Straight up comfort movies these days.

 

[HarleyQuinn]

Pet Sematary 2 grows on me more every year. It's so bizarre and weird. There's a campiness to it that shouldn't work, but it kind of does. Clancy Brown is amazing in it. Furlong is definitely the weak link and Anthony Edwards was pretty dull as well. I dig the use of L7's Shitlist and some of the rest of the soundtrack is hilariously 90's. The original is the better movie, but if I had a choice to watch a Pet Sematary movie randomly, it might be 2.

This is pretty much my take. I liken it to Gremlins 2 (although that's a stronger movie vs. PS2) in that it's just so off-the-wall weird and different from the original that it almost stands on its own as a fun watch. Come to think of it, Hellraiser 2 also had that vibe so maybe it was just something in the water then.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

This is pretty much my take. I liken it to Gremlins 2 (although that's a stronger movie vs. PS2) in that it's just so off-the-wall weird and different from the original that it almost stands on its own as a fun watch. Come to think of it, Hellraiser 2 also had that vibe so maybe it was just something in the water then.

Ba-da, ba-da, ba-DUM...


...THE 90'S!!!!

 

[Valeyard]

Whatever straight to video Children of the Corn sequel had Michael Ironside is legit the second best one. Actual atmosphere, nudity, not feeling like a Children Of the Corn movie. It's fucking trash but that trash that surpasses low expectations just enough.

 

[AA484]

Whatever straight to video Children of the Corn sequel had Michael Ironside is legit the second best one. Actual atmosphere, nudity, not feeling like a Children Of the Corn movie. It's fucking trash but that trash that surpasses low expectations just enough.

Children of the Corn is one of the few horror franchises where the movies actually get better with each successive sequel (at least until around 666 or so)

 

[Valeyard]

666 hits the funny bad level for me. Last ten-fifteen minutes kill me.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://www.facebook.com/100063584912398/posts/pfbid02kkdLhZqNZFj1bsu5vbQ1889VQ38y7jCF7TMuWEFsTxeFMY2eb4taQ4faTc9TgEVVl

Vintage NBC Thread crosspost

 

[Valeyard]

I still hate that. Always felt extremely unnecessary for the story.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Well, at least Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey (2023) has some incredibly brutal kills on top of the gimmick, because the entire thing falls apart halfway in. I wasn't expecting much, but started to actually feel like this was better than people were making it out to be, entirely based on how gruesome the first half was. Then they break into the house.

"HEY. I HAVE A GUN. WHERE DID I PUT IT..."

...are you fucking stupid? You deserve what happens.

4.5/10

Updated rankings for my spooky season watches:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Haunted Mansion (2023)
Children of the Corn (2023)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

I decided to give Terrifier (2016) another chance and wish I hadn't. This movie is what happens when someone wants to make the ultimate Rob Zombie worship without any of artistic ability. The only thing this has going for it is the performance of Art the Clown, which deserves a better...well, better fucking everything. Writing, acting, SFX, plotting, lighting, staging, sound design, etc.

Which makes the incredibly stupid moment where he, the supernatural psycho killer that can manipulate reality and cheat death, uses a handgun all the worse.

Catherine Cocoran deserved better. Jenna Kanell deserved better. Once those two are gone? There isn't a single character or actor worth the coffee they drank on set. 4/10, because at least Art and the first two girls are worth seeing for a bit before the gimmick wears thin.

Updated rankings for my spooky season watches:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Haunted Mansion (2023)
Children of the Corn (2023)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey
Terrifier
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door

 

[Youth N Asia]

@Laz stop watching bad stuff. Give 2020’s Bloody Hell a spin. Streaming on Prime, 93 minutes.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Looking it up quick, I see there's some crossover with the Nekrotronic cast/crew, which is already a point in its favor (since that wasn't great but it was actively fun). I'll add it to the list.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

@Laz stop watching bad stuff. Give 2020’s Bloody Hell a spin. Streaming on Prime, 93 minutes.

Well, sir, I'll have you know that I watched Bloody Hell (2020) on your suggestion, and...I really, really enjoyed the hell out of it. This is barely a horror film, mind you, but definitely uses horror tropes mixed with some clever storytelling tricks and editing to produce a quality result. I won't say it isn't horror, but it's more horror-adjacent, like a second cousin.

Rex (Ben O'Toole) is a combat veteran who found himself as a hero during an armed bank robbery. As a result of his actions, however, he is sentenced to 8 years in prison. Upon release, he decides to travel abroad, hoping for a place where he isn't hounded by paparazzi due to his highly publicized case, choosing Finland. Once there, he is drugged and captured by a psychopathic family, one hiding a dark and monstrous secret.

The regular use of flashbacks to the bank robbery, each one relaying more information than the last, are some of the best uses of the tool I've seen in a very, very long time. They are energetic, extremely well placed within the story, and each new reveal leads into the next moment of Rex's tenure as a prisoner of the family. In addition to the flashbacks, we see Rex's Conscience (also played by O'Toole) debating him and offering advice, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. It's less Jiminy Cricket and more Tyler Durden, right down to the reveal as to why Rex served prison time by following his Conscience.

Of course, not all of the family are willing participants in the horrors that occur on their secluded property. Daughter Alia (Meg Fraser) is regularly chastised and overtly abused by her family, particularly her mother, for her lack of participation and constant escape attempts. It's her accidental involvement with Rex that leads us through the second and third acts, which are played with such sarcastic sadism that you're not sure if you really should root for Rex to help her or not.

In the end, the horror elements may be sparse, and I'd have adored another 15-20 minutes dedicated entirely to the final showdown, as it flies by in such quick fashion that it comes ass a letdown. Sinking the landing is especially important in revenge stories, which this ultimately becomes, but a greater focus on that element (though it would have extended the runtime to nearly 2 hours instead of a tight 93 minutes) would have cemented this as an instant classic.

As it is, though? It's an incredibly enjoyable slice of junk food, one that I'll gladly revisit in the future. 7/10

Updated rankings for my spooky season watches:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
Bloody Hell
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Haunted Mansion (2023)
Children of the Corn (2023)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey
Terrifier
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

You know, as far as remakes of cult classics go? You can do a fuckton worse than Night of the Demons (2010). It at least has some great eye candy with the ever-gorgeous Shannon Elizabeth, not to mention Monica Keena, Diora Baird, and Bobbi Sue Luther. Sure, it has Edward Furlong at his worst, right at the peak of his addiction issues (or maybe just after getting clean?), and I may never forgive him for almost taking Natasha Lyonne away from the world, but he's decent enough in it. Plus, any movie with a soundtrack featuring 45 Grave and TSOL can't be too bad, right?

...right?!

There are a few fun nods to the original, particularly Linnea Quigley's cameo wearing a similar ballerina costume as she did in the cult classic, but it's ultimately just so run-of-the-mill as to not be particularly offensive. 5/10

Updated rankings for my spooky season watches:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
Bloody Hell
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Night of the Demons (2010)
Haunted Mansion (2023)
Children of the Corn (2023)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey
Terrifier
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door

 

[HarleyQuinn]

I re-watched Drag Me to Hell and I low-key like that Justin Long has started engaging more in the horror genre after Jeepers Creepers: After.Life, Tusk, Ghost Team, an episode of Creepshow, Barbarian, the Goosebumps series.

Often you'll find actors become "too prestige" for the horror/sci-fi genre after a breakout role but it's nice to see when actor leans into it a little bit rather than running away when they become more well known thanks to a film in the genre.

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

I've been noticing a lot of "name" actors embracing genre. Not only do you have Ethan Hawke delivering the goods whenever he steps back in, but Jamie Lee Curtis has always been willing to step back in to the genre that made her career, and Sigourney Weaver has fully accepted her importance to sci-fi.

 

[HarleyQuinn]

I've been noticing a lot of "name" actors embracing genre. Not only do you have Ethan Hawke delivering the goods whenever he steps back in, but Jamie Lee Curtis has always been willing to step back in to the genre that made her career, and Sigourney Weaver has fully accepted her importance to sci-fi.

I think a lot of the recent horror movie success (and bigger name attachments, somewhat) can be traced back to the massive success of Jordan Peele's Get Out in 2017 and Del Toro winning Best Picture for The Shape of Water that same year. I also think a lot of the streaming shows on Netflix/Apple+/Paramount+ are also helping boost the genre as a whole (just look at the star-studded cast for The Fall of the House of Usher on Netflix).

Re-watched V/H/S and I still think the first story is by far the best and my favorite. It's just done so well and it's simply told but effectively done between the gore and acting job by Hannah Fierman. What I like a lot about horror/sci-fi is that the acting is more reliant on... restraint and the actors themselves vs. a lot of the prestige films where let's be honest, the script (and direction) can do a lot of the heavy lifting for them.

The emotion of a film like One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest or Schindler's List or Amistad is largely "baked" into the plot and direction of the movie compared to a film like Jaws or Alien where (IMO) it's more reliant on the actors to carry the film because they're essentially the emotional glue of the movie. There's a reason some final girls become iconic movie figures and actors become as known for a movie as the creature effects/direction (think Kathy Bates in Misery or Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween).

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

I'd say it's also because horror guarantees a long-term ROI, if we're going to be cynical about it. Horror cons are a dime a dozen these days, almost as popular as comic cons, but they don't rely on multi-million dollar properties striking big to justify booking appearances, they rely on memorable talents.

It's a genre that maintains itself, essentially. It doesn't need big hits to stay relevant, it just needs halfway decent movies popping out here and there to keep the cash flowing. Actors have to see that and go "well, my days of leading for an Oscar or a blockbuster may never come, but if I do a good job here then I'll have cons to make cash from for the rest of my life."

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

We dive back into the schlock with The Funhouse Massacre (2015), an entry about a batch of serial killers kept hidden in a secret asylum that break loose and turn a local haunted attraction into their own personal orgy of gore. There are a few names you're going to recognize right off the bat, and it's both clear that (a) most of the budget went to paying their salaries, and (b) they were only available for a day or two of shoots. Robert Englund, Jere Burns, and Clint Howard elevate each scene they're in, which is a "no shit" statement, and Scottie Thompson even shows up as the Sheriff. There's a few other names that you may recognize from other works, like Matt Angel and Chasty Ballesteros or even Candice de Visser, and Malachai himself (Courtney Gains) has a brief part.

Hell, there's even a few really good kills, and one character is supremely fucking annoying for most of the movie before delivering some legitimately hilarious moments later on...but that's it. It's just another piece of direct to video schlock made by amateurs who blew their budget on attracting known character actors to trick assholes like me into watching their flick. Which is kind of a shame, because the third act is when there were some solid laughs and the comedy takes center stage, so the whole thing could have been a halfway decent horror comedy if that tone was steady. As it is, though? As generic a schlock slasher can be. 4.5/10

Interesting fact: one of the cast/crew members shares my name. And they, apparently, also share my love of shit movies, because that's been their entire career. Maybe the Mandela Effect is real and alt-universe Laz decides to blow his mom's life insurance payout on making d-grade movies.

Updated rankings for my spooky season watches:
The Black Phone
Totally Killer
Blood Quantum
Bloody Hell
The Conference
Evil Dead Rise
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Alligator
Night of the Demons (2010)
Haunted Mansion (2023)
Children of the Corn (2023)
The Funhouse Massacre
Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey
Terrifier
No One Will Save You
The Dark and the Wicked
Bad Dreams Door