Halloween Spooktacular

[Totenkindly]

Carnival of Souls is great.... If you haven't seen it, you're in for a treat.

As expected, my list has been expanded to about 24 and then curated back to 13 -- but Carnival of Souls is still on it (covering the 1960's, lol). I will post my new list at end of month. One issue is I realized the majority had been from 2020-2024, so I wanted to get some variance in it.

While I try to watch almost all new things, I often include 1-2 films I've seen that I really enjoy. I think this year I will close on one of my favorite Sam Raimi films -- "Drag Me to Hell" -- which I haven't watched for some years.

This is my list of films from each year, in case people want to get some ideas or maybe things they have not heard of before. I tried usually to get a wide variety of horror subgenres, countries, and decades of release. I've seen a lot more horror films than these, these are just the ones I curated for my viewing over the last ten years.

Hallowscream 2015

Each year I choose 13 horror films to sample for Halloween, most being ones I haven't yet seen. So here are 13 days of terror and mayhem, from a variety of subgenres and countries.

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2016

Each year I choose 13 horror films to sample for Halloween, most being ones I haven't yet seen. So here are 13 days of terror and mayhem, from a variety of subgenres and countries.

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2017

Each year I choose 13 horror films to sample for Halloween, most being ones I haven't yet seen. So here are 13 days of terror and mayhem, from a variety of subgenres and countries.

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2018

Thirteen nights of horror for 2018, in order of viewing

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2019

Thirteen nights of horror for 2019, in order of viewing...

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2020

Thirteen nights of horror for 2020, in order of viewing -- although I'm not sure 2020 needed any more horror than it already has had...

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2021

Thirteen nights of horror for 2021, in order of viewing

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2022

Thirteen nights of horror for 2022, in order of viewing

letterboxd.com

Hallowscream 2023

13 films watched during the 2023 Witching season. The big winner this year seems to be "The Conference," a comedy-horror Swedish film subtitled in English, with amusing dialogue blending a comedy slasher with a workplace satire as a team-building exercise at an isolated campground goes...

letterboxd.com

 

[Totenkindly]

I watched The Empty Man (2020) next, on Hulu. Surprised I never heard of this film, really, before -- the director also did maybe the one episode noted to be pretty intense for del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosity TV show that came out last year (?).

It's not a perfect film, but it's decent for a writer/director's first film and without getting to surreal or artsy it's got a distinctive visual/audial approach and the scenes are well-framed. I'm like, "Nice, a director who actually has a style or at least his own particular vision."

one of the film's flaws is that it feels too long at times (it runs 2:17) but it's not quite enough to avoid compacting the final act, which would have been better if allowed to build more. As it went, it reminded me more and more of Angel Heart (for particular reasons, even if the details are different). In any case, I appreciate that at least the director had something he was trying to achieve in how this story was told and what was told, and had enough skills to not just cookie-cutter everything.

James Badge Dale is the lead, but there are some familiar faces here -- Stephen Root, Robert Aramayo, Marin Ireland. So weird, but freaking Owen Teague shows up as a small side character for a small part of the film. Also... there is a lake camp sequence where I feel strongly this might have been the same camp that was used briefly near the end of A Simple Favor.... I really want to see if I can confirm.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Day 16: The Howling II: Your Sister Is A Werewolf

Summary: A sheriff (whose sister was a werewolf) and his TV journalist girlfriend battle a coven of werewolves in Transylvania.

This movie is dumb. I expected it to be dumb. It stars Reb Brown and Christopher Lee. I love Christopher Lee, but you have to admit that the man wasn't picky. This movie also irritated me, because it's not really a werewolf movie. It's a vampire movie.

I read that this movie had a werewolf queen in it, and I thought that was weird, because I can't picture werewolves being into monarchy. When I watched this movie, I realized that it's almost like they did CTRL F and replaced "vampires" with "werewolves", except they made this in the 80s and they couldn't have done that. Christopher Lee is in the habit of stabbing werewolves through the heart with stake, and Jennifer, Reb Brown's girlfriend buys garlic to "ward off evil". There's also a ton of crucifix imagery in here, although it doesn't seem to actually deter the werewolves. They investigate a castle in Transylvania for God's sake. Christopher Lee's character, Stefan, is Van Helsing but for werewolves. It's not just dumb but lazy.

At no point do we see anyone expressing any anguish or horror about what they have become, which I maintain is central to the concept of werewolves. I may get into that more elsewhere.

The movie begins with Stefan doing his best Princess Irulan impression, presumably reading from the Book of Revelation.

We go to a club where we see Stefan wearing some goofy sunglasses that remind me a little of what Hollywood wears in Mannequin; to be fair I think Doc wears something similar in one of the BTTF films. The club in this is playing a song about the "pale moonlight" that is constantly reused through the movie and I quickly got very tired of it.

Doc and Ben (Reb Brown) have a discussion about Ben's dead werewolf sister (presumably a character in the first film). When talking with Jennifer, Ben says that Stefan is going to drive a stake through his dead sister's heart. He then says that he's going to kill Stefan. My thought? "Well, that escalated quickly."

There is a scene with Ben fighting off werewolves while on his way to kill Stefan, and this scene was very rewarding. He does the same goofy yell he does in Space Mutiny, and he keeps doing it! Over and over. I've added the clip above for those not in the know.

After coming to an agreement that werewolves are real, Stefan and Ben reconcile. They all travel to Transylvania. There are scenes that go nowhere of an old-fashioned street festival.

At one point it is revealed that Stefan's sister is also a werewolf (and thus the title refers to two sisters), and in fact is the werewolf queen Stirba. We also get not only werewolf sex, but a werewolf threesome. Thankfully, it didn't awaken anything in me.

Anyway, the werewolves kidnap Jenny to lure Stefan to Stirba, so that Stirba can kill Stefan. This succeeds in bringing Stefan to Stirba, and there's some magic mumbo jumbo here with cheesy cel animation that often signified magic in movies from this period. The very end of this confrontation, when Stefan and Stirba are in each other's arms, and Stefan stabs Stirba before the conflagration, is, however, done decently. There's some poignancy to it and a little bit of a sense of tragedy. It punches a little a above its weight, really.

After watching this movie, it's settled. I'm never going to Europe. Everyone there is a werewolf, j/k.

Oh, and there's a scene at the end where Your Neighbor is a Werewolf.

I didn't get a great sense of who any of the characters, and I think good werewolf movies require at least a little bit of a psychological aspect. It's not just about the monster, it's the fear that you are the monster. This dumb little movie does nothing with that. It's just a lazy movie that can't even be bothered about the difference between vampires and werewolves.

I was reading up on some wiki trivia. I didn't realize Joe Dante directed the original. Apparently Christopher Lee apologized to Joe Dante for making this film.

Gremlins was kind of a creepy movie in spots. I think the prospect of a full-blooded Joe Dante horror movie has merit. Tomorrow, I'll watch the original The Howling. Some unknown force seems to draw me towards it. It compels me, and I cannot resist....

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Day 17: The Howling

Summary: Karen White, a TV journalist, tormented by her experience with a serial killer, is send to a retreat where something strange seems to be going on.

I had to sign up for a free trial of Shudder to watch this. That was very irritating.

This was more like it. The difference between this and the sequel is night and day. This movie gets what the subtext is; being a werewolf is about our beastly animal natures and the fear that they aren't really contained. It's still relevant, IMO.

I'm reminded of how beautiful the California coast is.

The psychiatrist who sends Karen to his retreat turns out to be a werewolf hoping to tame himself and other werewolves, but the rest of the Colony rejects this, preferring to embrace what they are becoming. (John Carradine is hilarious in this, by the way.)

This movie is tense and atmospheric, and is actually scary in a few places. It's also actually about werewolves.

I don't know if people like my attempts at MST3k clips (they probably don't make sense out of context, and I probably suck at them), but I swear Karen's vegetarian husband used to be on rolls of paper towels, before they "updated it."

This movie seems a little satirical towards various New Age trends. Scientology is even mentioned.

The serial killer in this (who is actually a werewolf) is the Doctor from Star Trek: Voyager.

The transformation scenes in this are pretty good, although they aren't as good as in an American Werewolf in London.

Look at the moon tonight, by the way (or just google it).

I'll add that movie does away with the conceit of the full moon, which makes sense. It must be very hard to write around the werewolf action taking place on only one night each month.

I really enjoyed this. It was what I was hoping for. It's a well-made movie about werewolves that mostly stands the test of time. There was one scene where I thought the werewolf looked goofy, but otherwise, I appreciated the practical effects. Honestly, I think practical effects are much more important in horror than in science fiction/fantasy. The tactile nature really helps sell things.

I'm not entirely sure what I'm watching next. I wanted to continue the wolf theme originally, but I might skip this for another Kirsten Dunst movie.

 

[The Cat]

Day 17: The Howling

Summary: Karen White, a TV journalist, tormented by her experience with a serial killer, is send to a retreat where something strange seems to be going on.

I had to sign up for a free trial of Shudder to watch this. That was very irritating.

This was more like it. The difference between this and the sequel is night and day. This movie gets what the subtext is; being a werewolf is about our beastly animal natures and the fear that they aren't really contained. It's still relevant, IMO.

I'm reminded of how beautiful the California coast is.

The psychiatrist who sends Karen to his retreat turns out to be a werewolf hoping to tame himself and other werewolves, but the rest of the Colony rejects this, preferring to embrace what they are becoming. (John Carradine is hilarious in this, by the way.)

This movie is tense and atmospheric, and is actually scary in a few places. It's also actually about werewolves.

I don't know if people like my attempts at MST3k clips (they probably don't make sense out of context, and I probably suck at them), but I swear Karen's vegetarian husband used to be on rolls of paper towels, before they "updated it."

This movie seems a little satirical towards various New Age trends. Scientology is even mentioned.

The serial killer in this (who is actually a werewolf) is the Doctor from Star Trek: Voyager.

The transformation scenes in this are pretty good, although they aren't as good as in an American Werewolf in London.

Look at the moon tonight, by the way (or just google it).

I'll add that movie does away with the conceit of the full moon, which makes sense. It must be very hard to write around the werewolf action taking place on only one night each month.

I really enjoyed this. It was what I was hoping for. It's a well-made movie about werewolves that mostly stands the test of time. There was one scene where I thought the werewolf looked goofy, but otherwise, I appreciated the practical effects. Honestly, I think practical effects are much more important in horror than in science fiction/fantasy. The tactile nature really helps sell things.

I'm not entirely sure what I'm watching next. I wanted to continue the wolf theme originally, but I might skip this for another Kirsten Dunst movie.

Now you need to watch the Howling III: The Marsupials.

 

[The Cat]

I watched The Empty Man (2020) next, on Hulu. Surprised I never heard of this film, really, before -- the director also did maybe the one episode noted to be pretty intense for del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosity TV show that came out last year (?).

It's not a perfect film, but it's decent for a writer/director's first film and without getting to surreal or artsy it's got a distinctive visual/audial approach and the scenes are well-framed. I'm like, "Nice, a director who actually has a style or at least his own particular vision."

one of the film's flaws is that it feels too long at times (it runs 2:17) but it's not quite enough to avoid compacting the final act, which would have been better if allowed to build more. As it went, it reminded me more and more of Angel Heart (for particular reasons, even if the details are different). In any case, I appreciate that at least the director had something he was trying to achieve in how this story was told and what was told, and had enough skills to not just cookie-cutter everything.

James Badge Dale is the lead, but there are some familiar faces here -- Stephen Root, Robert Aramayo, Marin Ireland. So weird, but freaking Owen Teague shows up as a small side character for a small part of the film. Also... there is a lake camp sequence where I feel strongly this might have been the same camp that was used briefly near the end of A Simple Favor.... I really want to see if I can confirm.

The movie is a lot more fun if you're a lovecraft fan. The Empty man is an incarnation of Nyarlanthotep. I think it would have been better served as a mini series event. But Im glad they made this movie. I want more like this.

 

[Totenkindly]

The movie is a lot more fun if you're a lovecraft fan. The Empty man is an incarnation of Nyarlanthotep. I think it would have been better served as a mini series event. But Im glad they made this movie. I want more like this.

Turns out my kid had already seen it twice and really liked it -- we had a nice convo about it when I mentioned it to him. He didn't know much about tulpas though.

They really bulloxed the rollout, but I'm glad it seems to be be developing a cult following.

 

[The Cat]

Turns out my kid had already seen it twice and really liked it -- we had a nice convo about it when I mentioned it to him. He didn't know much about tulpas though.

They really bulloxed the rollout, but I'm glad it seems to be be developing a cult following.

I didnt find out about this one till i was watching Mista GG do a review of it. I had a flash back to one trailer I saw for it at the theater. And then nothing. Which given the nature of what the movie is about. Kinda makes for an awesome accidental arg moment. I've remembered the movie so highly because it is the perfect movie for anyone who wants to know how to do a classy modern version of Lovecraftian Cosmic Horror: DONT MENTION IT AT ALL BY NAME IN THE FILM, just have the one brief flash of the monster be the most famous illustration of your monster of a thousand masked faces. Every chaosium nerd in the audience will love you to death for it.

But I'm biased, I love when horror doesnt explain itself fully. Its what makes it alive while so many other movie genres are just stories.

Tulpa folklore is fascinating as hell too. Makes you wonder how much of the nightmares in the world we've given life to just by obsessively thinking about them.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Now you need to watch the Howling III: The Marsupials.

Yes, but that will have to wait for Sunday, I think. I need a break from werewolves tonight. I'm going to do werewolves in France, tomorrow.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Day 18: Melancholia

Summary: A clinically depressed woman and her sister await the destruction of planet Earth by the rogue planet Melancholia.

This director is controversial, but I had to see this movie. Everything I read about it only made me want to see it more.

After having seen it, I love this fucking movie.

On Justine:

The first half of this takes place at Justine's (Kirsten Dunst) wedding reception. This takes place at the palatial estate of her brother-in-law's. It's mentioned how expensive it is, and much is made of how much Justine owes it to everyone to be happy, but it doesn't seem like this fancy party was even her idea to begin with. Her brother-in-law even pledges to make a "deal" for her to be happy and everyone keeps on going on about how terrible that it is that she's ruining her own wedding reception. The marriage also falls apart almost immediately, because, I think, Justine is too much for her husband Michael to deal with. The planet Melancholia is barely even mentioned, which surprised me. It's pretty much just a really good drama about a wedding reception.

Kirsten Dunst nails it, by the way. She is incredible at giving you hints of the actual emotions hiding behind her smiles.

On Claire:

I hated this character at first (and I should add that I really like Charlotte Gainsbourg, so that was no mean feat)and thought she was the worst, but I felt after the second half I was too harsh. Claire becomes more likeable here. I get the sense that she does put a lot of effort into trying to care for her sister, and then gets frustrated at those efforts failing to bear any fruit. Perhaps Justine getting married to this guy (who seems a bit of a dope on based on how ridiculously high his bean count was ), was actually more Claire's idea, because Claire thought it would make Justine happy. I also get the sense that Claire is someone who is very fixated on how things are "supposed to be", and then has a hard time handling it when that doesn't happen. (Like, say, at the end of the movie.) Both of these things added a great deal of context to her attitude in the first half of the movie, where she was constantly criticizing her sister for screwing up her own wedding.

I think the worst person in this movie was Stellan Skarsgard's character, who, for instance, gave her a work assignment at her wedding, and if she doesn't complete it, somebody will be fired. It was great when Justine told him to go screw himself.

I like the device of these hoops of wire to show how close Melancholia is getting. It tells you everything you need to know without saying anything.

"It's just sucking up our atmosphere, don't worry about it, it's perfectly normal." Yeah, don't tell that to the inhabitants of the planet Druidia.

That "magic cave" looks more like a teepee without a covering, but if you want to call it a cave, go nuts I guess. I suppose that's the point, though. They're all vulnerable and exposed and there is no safety and that's just a fiction to make a little kid feel better, which probably isn't even believable to the little kid. Maybe if there was a canvas/animal hide covering it could convince the kid...

That winter painting we see at the beginning and then later in the movie is probably intended reference to the Little Ice Age. I'm not entirely sure of the causes of the Little Ice Age (volcanoes?), but I think the point is to remind those in the know of how we're at the mercy of forces beyond our own. I also appreciated the references to Ophelia and other paintings like that.

Next up: A werewolf movie set in France.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

I like little green ghouls:

 

[The Cat]

Yes, but that will have to wait for Sunday, I think. I need a break from werewolves tonight. I'm going to do werewolves in France, tomorrow.

Don't forget Dog Soldiers.

 

[Totenkindly]

Don't forget Dog Soldiers.

Wooo! I should watch the fancy box set version of that I bought a year or two back.

 

[Totenkindly]

Finished The Stepfather (1987?) starring Terry O' Quinn. What a hilariously awesome film! It's like a B film, except it seems aware of that and leans into it hard with the writing and execution.

The music is so cheesy and over the top (vintage cheap 80's films), and there's not a lot of subtlety, but that just seems to make it better. I laughed so much during this film, yet not derisively because it was the kind of "evil parent" slasher film that is very enjoyable to watch -- and it never overstays its welcome at 90 minutes. We kinda get a final girl allusion, and we see bare butts both for a woman and for a man at different parts of the film. It feels like it should have been made for TV, yet the violence and gore kinda pushes beyond what TV censors allowed at the time.

Terry O' Quinn is just great.
And we get to see him with hair.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Don't forget Dog Soldiers.

I think on Monday I unfortunately have to move past the wolf theme. I'm thinking of a movie about a strange color so unknown the eyes of man have never glimpsed upon it before, a color which drives men mad and which also happens to look a lot like magenta.

 

[The Cat]

I think on Monday I unfortunately have to move past the wolf theme. I'm thinking of a movie about a strange color so unknown the eyes of man have never glimpsed upon it before, a color which drives men mad and which also happens to look a lot like magenta.

Dont let this halloween go by without seeing perhaps the best werewolf movie ever shot when youve waded through so much shlock.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Dont let this halloween go by without seeing perhaps the best werewolf movie ever shot when youve waded through so much shlock.

Maybe October 30. I was originally going to do Melancholia then. I know what I'm doing for Halloween.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Day 19: Brotherhood of the Wolf

Summary: A Knight, a Marquis, and a Mohawk attempt to stop the depredations of a mysterious beast in rural 18th century France

This isn't a werewolf movie in the strictest sense of the word, but I wanted to trick people into thinking I would be watching an American Werewolf in Paris. It has the most in common with The Howling II for reasons I'll discuss later, but it is a much better and more competently made film.

Brotherhood of the wolf is the craziest movie I've watched for the Halloween Spooktacular. To give you an idea, the movie playing next on YouTube is a Japanese film called Tetsuo: The Iron Man, which is also supposed to be pretty strange (no Robert Downey Jr. in sight, either).

I have much more to say about Brotherhood of the Wolf, but I need time to process it.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Part 2

This movie is a combination of several styles. There's horror/suspense, period drama/romance, action scenes with early 2000's Hong-Kong inspired fight choreography, clockpunk elements, and there's even a portion that reminds me of Indiana Jones. I don't think I've seen a movie do this kind of thing without being a complete disaster.

Anyway, it turns out the wolf isn't even a wolf, it's a lion with bizarre armor on, reminiscent of the "monster" in The Village. The Brotherhood is in fact an ultraconservative Opus Dei-like offshot of Catholicism, with members in the clergy and nobility alike. I'd argue that this is more in keeping with vampire mythology, also. Vampires are about sexuality, and I also think they about power. Not in terms of raw physical strength, but power related to social position. Louis in Interview with the Vampire was a slave owner, and even in The Lost Boys, Max (the head vampire) owns video stores. Max's status as a successful entrepreneur essentially makes him American nobility.

Despite this, it didn't irritate me like The Howling II did. This was a fascinating movie to watch, but I did think this was too long. I felt myself impatient during the first hour (unlike with Melancholia); too many guys in powdered wigs to keep track of, I think. The CG effects sometimes show their age but the sequences still work. There are some tense/scary sequences in this one.

I also like that the movie portrays rationality in a positive light; that seems very French to me.

Verdict:

If you're in the mood for a wild foreign film, give this a shot.