50 Nights of Horror Challenge: Week Four - Ground Down to Blood and Screams

50 NIGHTS OF HORROR CHALLENGE:  WEEK 4

One week of married life in the books, and I was still able to sneak in a glut of horror movies.  At this rate I'll pass the 50 movie mark early (which I did last year, too).  At this point, let's see how many gems I can uncover.  I'll try to watch fewer movies that I've already seen, but there are some solid films that I'd like to add into my regular Halloween rotation.

Innocent Blood (1992)
Genre:  Vampire
Format:  DVD

"Don't worry.  You're not my type."

I rented this bad boy from Netflix based solely on the name of its director, one Mr. John Landis.  I have enjoyed Landis' works for a long time (Animal House, An American Werewolf in London, etc.), and I have really enjoyed his participation in many documentaries about the horror genre.  More than anything, though, I've really come to appreciate how much fun Landis seems to put into his work.  Innocent Blood is no exception.  From start to finish, this feels like the kind of movie that would have been a lot of fun to make.

By no means is this a terrifying movie.  Admittedly, I jumped during the movie, many more times than I would have expected.  But this isn't a dreadful, bleak vampire tale.  The premise would make for a fine comic book that would ultimately be made into an action movie starring Ryan Reynolds today.  It's very light-hearted and fast-paced.  If it weren't for the nudity and explicit language, the movie could easily have been given a PG-13 rating.  Fortunately, we're given nudity AND explicit language AND some excellent special effects AND some nice doses of appropriately-used humor.  Not much gore, but that's ok, because that's not what this movie really needed.

The cast was pretty incredible:  the main babe/vampiress is sexy and sympathetic (Anne Parillaud), Robert Loggia plays a convincing bad guy crime boss, Anthony LaPaglia plays the undercover detective hero of the story, and the rest of the characters (various cops and robbers) are played by some considerable actors:  David Proval and Tony Sirico (both would later have large roles in The Sopranos), Angela Basset, Luis Guzman, Frank Oz, and even a scene-stealing Don Rickles (whose scenes were ALL very cool).  There are even cameos by Sam Raimi and Tom Savini.  Very cool.

It was never made clear why vampire eyes are always crossed or googly or why they change colors, but who cares?  At least they don't sparkle or fall in love with teenagers.

World War Z (2013)
Genre:  Zombies
Format:  Blu-Ray


"Mother Nature is a serial killer."

This was a very entertaining movie.  There were the typical elements of the zombie genre, but we're also treated to elements typical of international thrillers.  That being said, I effing LOVE the novel World War Z, and this movie disregards and dismisses 99% of the book's themes.  It's a shame.  But maybe the book is too big to be captured by a single movie.  Maybe it's best left for people that can treat the source material better.

I, Madman (1989)
Format:  Serial Killer
Format:  DVD


Remember the kid's book The Indian in the Cupboard?  This movie is basically that same premise, but instead of putting toys into magic cupboards, here we have characters from horror books coming into the real world from...book world?  It's a convoluted story that doesn't make a whole lot of sense.  It isn't the scariest or sexiest thing, either, but it was probably a nice change of pace in the late 80's when most horror movies were some derivation of Michael Myers or Freddy Kreuger.

The Possession (2012)
Genre:  Possession
Format:  Netflix Streaming


This movie caught my attention because it was produced by Sam Raimi's Ghost House studios, and it is only rated PG-13.  I'm of the train of thought that some of the scariest movies don't always require an R rating (Poltergeist for example).  The trailer felt really spooky.  I was all in.

And I'm glad I watched it, too.  This is one that actually caught Kelley's eye, as well, so we settled in to watch this late on Friday night.  It wasn't the first possession movie either of us had ever seen (The Exorcist still holds the distinction as most-frightening possession movie for us), but it was a fun movie to turn on as a spur of the moment kind of deal.  It felt very similar to an old Hammer or Amicus production, and I love those movies.  Just enough scary to keep you watching without ever making you too bored.

One of my favorite special effects of the movie were the eyes.  When the possessed entity was struggling to take hold of a person's body in the movie, their eyes got all wopper-jawed, and that looked SO cool!  I jumped a couple times.  I murmured to Kelley "there is NO way I would make the decision this character is making right now!"  Usually that's a sign of some sort of panicked anxiety I'm feeling as a viewer.

Ultimately, this was a pleasant surprise in a lot of ways.  I didn't have any expectations when I sat down to watch the movie, and I was thoroughly entertained.  I was also surprised that this was already on Netflix streaming, because it felt like this had just been in theaters.

Before I forget, this movie also features one of the scariest CAT Scans you'll ever see.

Also, Matisyahu.

Let Me In (2010)
Genre:  Vampires
Format:  Blu-Ray

"I'll help you."

I had seen the original Let The Right One In when it was released in America.  I remember thinking it was slowly-paced, but artfully so.  The style and story dictated that this was necessary for this kind of story.  The American remake features almost all of the shots that I remember from the original, and that's a good thing.  The movie was cast very well, and I was very happy to see that few to no artistic liberties were taken when translating this movie from the original.

Deadly Friend (1986)
Genre:  Frankenstein-ish
Format:  DVD


What do you get when you mix Frankenstein with Short Circuit and Weekend at Bernie's with Nightmare on Elm Street?  You get Deadly Friend, and boy, is it weird.  You've seen this movie before (Return of the Living Dead 3, DeathDream, etc.)  There's a semi-sentient robot that makes sounds like Gizmo from Gremlins.  There's Kristy Swanson as a babe.  She meets an untimely end.  Her friend-zoned boy friend/boyfriend happens to be a well-intentioned genius that thinks he can resurrect her.  What happens next you can probably imagine.  Craven, however, surprises the audience with some sporadic scares, but not enough to make this one to hang on to.  It's a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon, but not one to anchor your horror experience on.

The actress that played Ma Fratelli in The Goonies (one of my favorite movies) has a very cool part in this movie, and hers was one of the very best story arcs in the movie (I won't ruin it for you).  One actor has a turning point that seems EXTREMELY reminiscent of Freddy Kreuger.  And we really forgive Kristy Swanson for such a poor acting job because, really.....you'll have to see it to believe it.


Eyes of a Stranger (1981)
Genre:  Slasher
Format:  DVD


Holy smokes!  This movie came out of nowhere and surprised the hell out of me.  Violent.  Sexy.  Gory. Thrilling.   All around a very solid addition to the ol' slasher collection!  I recommend setting aside some time to watch it if you get a chance.  The final scene reminded me very much of Wait Until Dark, which is a good thing.  There's a lot here to enjoy.  And it's one of the few slashers where we meet our killer and know his identity early on in the movie.

Mimic (1997)
Genre:  Creature Feature
Format:  Netflix Streaming


Guillermo Del Toro's first Hollywood movie is by no means bad, but it doesn't carry the weight of his other horror movies.  There's nothing really personal about this movie like had been in his other horror entries, and that's too bad, because I feel like that's on aspect that really separates his movies from others.

I became an even bigger fan of del Toro's after reading The Strain trilogy, novels that seem like a meshing of Stephen King's Salem's Lot and Mimic.  I love NYC being used in horror movies, and they're used here in a big way.  The subway system played a large part in The Strain, and it does in Mimic, too.

The one unfortunate aspect of the movie, and I alluded to it a bit earlier, is that this never really seems like that personal of a movie.  There is a father and son wrapped up in the conflict, but you never truly root for them.  There's a tough-acting transit cop, but we never feel too much for him.  And finally there's the husband and wife scientist couple who are ultimately responsible for the monster bugs, and for whatever reason, we never completely empathize with them, either.  Perhaps its the inherent coldness of Hollywood that caused this disconnect, but it's there, and it's a shame.

Carrie (1976)
Genre:  Coming of Age Horror
Format:  Netflix Streaming


This was only the second time that I've seen this movie, and I had forgotten many of the scenes that happen in between the notorious opening and closing shots.  It's funny that those two scenes bookend what would otherwise be a very typical, very bland teenage angst film.  And even though people often reference the ending of this film, I have been scared more of the opening shower scene that almost any other scene in movies.  It's terrible, and there's no other way around it.

Fatal Attraction (1987)
Genre:  Psychological Thriller
Format:  Netflix Streaming


Good Lord, this is one of the most terrifying movies I've seen in a long time.  I'd never seen it before, and when Kelley and I stumbled across this on Netflix, she insisted that I watch it.  And I totally understand why.  All of the terrible things that happen to Michael Douglas...he deserves all of it.  The movie boils down to one man coming to terms with the consequences of his bad decisions.  What's kind of crazy, though, is that his bad decision was really a quality that appears in most heroic lead characters in typical action movies.  James Bond, Indiana Jones, and all sorts of "heroes" in action movies jump from bed to bed as they accomplish amazing feats or solve mysteries.  Unlike those movies, Michael Douglas has a family, and when he commits his act of adultery, he's unknowingly opening Pandora's Box and exposing both himself and his family to jealous wrath of a miserable, frightening Glenn Close.  This one scares the shit out of me.

!!50 NIGHTS OF HORROR RECOMMENDED DOUBLE FEATURE!!
The Hitcher (1986)
Genre:  Slasher, Thriller
Format:  VHS

"Do I look like a killer to you?!"

Despite C. Thomas Howell's terrible haircut in this movie, we still have a very fun, very gloomy, bleak, desperate movie on our hands here.  Rutger Hauer plays a very cool, very depraved killer, too, one that does not distinguish between men, women, or children when it comes time to perform his bloody acts of violence.  It's a sleazy, sweaty, grimy story, one that left a similar taste in my mouth to that of Tarrantino's Death Proof.  It should be noted that feeling of isolation that comes with driving by yourself along long stretches of road is one familiar to me, and it plays a significant role in the movie.

Duel (1971)
Format:  Thriller, Road Rage
Format:  VHS

"Come on you miserable fat-head, get your fat-ass out of my way!"

Similar to The Hitcher, Duel is another movie where our protagonist is driving a long stretch by himself, and, like Hitcher, he encounters a force of nature whose intentions are never made clear.  Unlike the other movie, though, there is no Rutger Hauer-caliber actor, just one angry looking semi that never seems to stop giving our hero a hard time.  This was actually a made-for-TV movie that received such high praise that it was re-released into theaters.  It was directed by pre-Jaws Steven Spielberg, and though it's a little rough around the edges, it still makes for a very violent-feeling movie.  That being said, there is little to no violence portrayed on screen, and nothing remotely close to nudity or gore.  There is absolutely tension and conflict, and I think that's one of the aspects that makes this movie so entertaining - it achieves those feelings of dread and desperation without exposing too much to the audience.