Happy Halloween...I guess

Horrorfest is over. I'm typing this e-mail on my battery powered labtop, while a candle lights the room. Far and away, the worst Halloween ever. October its last days and we're right in Christmas. Thanks, snow. I guess I'll send my remaining movies back to NetFlix and take one back to the video store. The last video store there seems to be. I can't believe they went out that fast. Sorry, I won't make this another post waxing nostalgic about the video aisles of yesteryear. Anywho, thought I'd post this article from Slant magazine listing the 25 best horror movies of the modern age. Their top 10 is rather wonky and some questionable picks in there, but otherwise just about everything that should be is represented.

What a waste of a couple of days.

The Innkeepers Trailer

I first heard about this movie earlier in the year when it played at some festivals and got decent reviews. Given Ti West, one of the best of the modern splat pack, is behind the camera adds to my excitement. This debuts early next year on VOD with a small theatrical release. Many of the indie horror successes of the past several years have had similar launches. I love the vintage poster and the trailer is really fun. Sara Paxton (2009's Last House on the Left) and Kelly McGillis (haven't seen her in a while!) costar.

TRAILER HERE.

Horrorfest: TV Stuff

The Walking Dead
Ep 2.1 "What Lies Ahead": A-
Ep 2.2 "Bloodletting": B+
Season 2 has so far been more consistent and more of what this should be than what season 1 was. Outside of the pilot, season 1 was all over the place - some greatness, some really bad moments, but mostly a lot of "where is this going?" and "stop trying to be like Lost." That being said, all that could come to an end with episode three, the first non-Darabont episode. The show has been hinting at fixing its largest problem: the bland story and acting of its three leads. Stick with Jeff DeMunn and Laurie Holden because their aces. The set piece from the season's first episode, in which our survivors hide from a herd of walkers on a highway, was one of the most thrilling moments TV has offered in recent memory. Granted, I don't watch much if any of "serious TV."

Suburgatory
Ep 1.5 "Halloween": B-
Despite being down on this show outside of its pitch perfect pilot, I've stuck with it because a) there's nothing else on. b) Jane Levy is terrific and a genuine find. c) Cheryl Hines was dead on when she said on Chelsea Lately the other week that Jeremy Sisto is a total DILF. d) I rather love Cheryl's character. It has some nice sataric touches here and there, but mostly the "city vs. suburbia" mentality that dominates it is already old. Anytime Levy does her parody of a suburban girl sipping Red Bull from a straw while calling someone 'bitch', it always makes me laugh.

Happy Endings
Ep 2.5 "Spooky Endings": B+
I've become aware that everyone is now becoming aware of this really funny little show. If you like trials and tribulations of late twentysomethings, rapid fire dialogue, sarcastic people and tons of pop culture references, you've found your Holy Grail. Episodes 2 and 4 of season 2 have been borderline perfect, while this is an enjoyable Halloween episode of a series. Not quite a classic, though they are slowly fixing the series one major problem: that Zachary Knighton and Elisha Cuthbert's characters and performances aren't nearly as strong as their costars.


Community
Ep 3.5 "Horror Fiction In Seven Spooky Steps": A-
I wish this was an hour long. If it was, it could have been as great as last year's zombie episode and ranked among TV's all time Halloween classics. Gillian Jacobs has slowly emerged as MVP now that the writers know how to write for her correctly. The setup to this ep, in which everyone basically tells some variation of a scary story, is about too much for the half hour format. Abed's deadpan story and Shirley's fire and brimstone were easily the best. Jacobs was great with Pudi. As they stared at each other awaiting the serial killer while the awkward music played, that was probably the hardest I've laughed at a show in some time. I think of all the shows currently on air, this is probably the one that can most pull off a Simpsons' 'Treehouse of Horror' style episode. Keep that in mind for senior year, and make it an hour long.

Park and Recreation
Ep 4.5 "Meet'n'Greet": B
Are we going to witness a relationship between Ann and Ron? That would certainly be interesting? I'm glad it seems the Entertainment 720 plot seems to be done, as it was a little too unreal for this show. There was lots of nice little moments, but I really wanted Oren to do something crazy at the party. Ben and Andy's story was this episode's best, and I like how they've dealt with just how sad Ben is over and his breakup with Leslie. Last episode's shot of him sitting on a bench eating soup was just as funny and pathetic as Donna pointed it out to be. April's costume was brilliant, and she had a lot of use of her trademark smirk.

Re: American Horror Story. I really want to watch this, it just never quite fit in. It doesn't help that I'm apparently losing FX after Monday. Thanks DirecTV! I'll check out when it comes to DVD.

ABC reran Modern Family's Emmy-winning Season 2 "Halloween" episode. I was looking forward to a new Halloween ep, but that episode is about as perfect a Halloween ep a TV show can do.

Box Office: Return to Gattaca

1. Puss-In-Boots - $42m / $42m / $165m
2. Paranormal Activity 3 - $21m / $84m / $115m
3. In Time - $16m / $16m / $46m
4. The Rum Diary - $8m / $8m / $22m
5. Real Steel - $6.5m / $75.5m / $92m
6. Footloose - $6m / $39m / $52m
7. The Three Musketeers - $4.5m / $16m / $26m
8. Ides of March - $3m / $33.5m / $44m
9. Moneyball - $2.5m / $67.5m / $78m
10. Dolphin Tale - $2.5m / $67.5m / $74m
***Anonymous - $1.5m / $1.5m / $7m

Lots of weird stuff happening this weekend, not just whatever goes down in PA3. Firstly, In Time looks like a sequel to Gattaca but will do more this weekend than that one did in its entire run. The Rum Diary probably should have gotten a limited release before expanding. Film District's track record is all over the place, but I'm expecting Rum to do a tad less than Drive. Puss-In-Boots was supposed to kick off November but was inexplicably moved to this weekend. I think that could mean a softer opening, but very small drop for next week. Lastly, Sony made the really dumb decision to platform Anonymous a mere 10 days before its release date. These 200-ish releases almost always fail. It would have been smarter to just suck up as much money as they could have in wide release even if it was DOA. Sony plans on adding theatres. Their strategy reminds me of the one they used 4 years back on Across the Universe. In limited, I'm keeping a close eye on Martha Marcy May Marlene. I expect its run to match Winter's Bone.

Horrorfest: You Might Be a Redneck If....

WRONG TURN 4: BLOODY BEGINNINGS
(Declan O'Brien, 2011)
Since I've seen all the other Wrong Turn movies... The first one I saw in a theatre alone (most people who saw it theatrically were probably the only ones in the theatre) and rather enjoyed it. I'll admit that backwoods cannibal redneck movies are my #1 guilty pleasure. The second film (straight to dvd) is watchably bad, but picks up as it goes along till it actually becomes decent in its final act. The third film was just bad. This one lies somewhere in the middle of part 2 & 3, if closer to #3 in quality. There's a lot to dislike: really annoying characters, bad acting, an interracial lesbian couple who can do nothing but have sex. Why are there never gay male couples in these things? I digress. The gore is gross, you can spot the Final Girl a mile away and god was she annoying. I liked the wintry setting and the inbred cannibals did their job effeciently. It's a prequel, but doesn't really take advantage of that story-wise. All the sordid charms of the original have been replaced by typical annoyances of d2DVD horror fodder. GRADE: D+

RED STATE
(Kevin Smith, 2011?)
Not quite a horror movie, even if Smith somewhat promised it was. Turns into an Oliver Stone-esque semi-action film about a third of the way in. Three teens are led to a trailer with the promise of sex but end up kidnapped by Phelps-esque church that wants to eradicate them for their sins. Michael Parks is chillingly accurate as the pastor, Melissa Leo perfectly nutjob as his daughter. John Goodman, always perfect, rounds out the cast as the SWAT team captain who wants to bring them in. I think the idea for this film would have been perfect for a horror film, unfortunately its almost like Smith chickened out and went with too many action cliches. Shakey cam abounds. The ending is the only time Smith's usual humor rears its head, and I found that unfortunate. Despite my qualms with the direction of the story, his dialogue and skill with the veteran actors is excellent. I have to give him credit for doing a film that will hopefully spark a lot of debate, even if it does at times feel like he went a somewhat safe route. GRADE: B


Melissa Leo in Red State / Melissa Leo Winning an Oscar

Horrorfest: Blah Blah Blob

TROLLHUNTER
(Andre Ovredal, 2010)
Norwegian "found footage" film about a group of film students who look to find what happened in a series of bear killings, but come across a man who hunts trolls. Not really a horror film, more of a fun fantasy with some great humor thrown in. Special effects are effective, and there's several really good action set pieces. Otto Jespersen's performance as the troll hunter is the best part, flourishing the fairy tale elements yet grounding it in reality. Summitt is planning a remake. May I suggest Liam Neeson in the title role? One thing they should consider is dropping the found footage angle. I get its intention, but it came off as a distraction most of the time. GRADE: B


THE BLOB
(Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr, 1958)
Steve McQueen! Then Steven McQueen, the hunk stars as a 28-year-old teenager who along with his teenybopper friends (all in their 30's) battles a big red blob that overtakes his small town after crashing from space. I watched Criterion's edition, which was colorized. A drive-in staple, this is deliriously campy fun. Though I wanted more shots of a giant blob wreaking havoc. There really wasn't any? I loved it invading the theatre and everyone running out. In regards to the ending, I'm sure a remake could address the global warming issue. GRADE: B+

THE ROOST
(Ti West, 2005)
I loved West's House of the Devil so much I thought I'd check out one of his earlier efforts. I believe he was right out of film school when he made this. It does come off at times like a student film, especially the acting. While the college kids won't be winning Oscars anytime soon, West's talent shows through. Labled boring by many people on Netflix, West really knows how to draw out the tension. He is very limited by the budget of the film, which is about a group of college students on their way to a friend's wedding when they have car trouble. Arriving at a desolate farm house, they are soon fending off killer bats that turn people into zombies. The storyline is riddled with cliches as you can tell, but when the film works it works. Bookended by a "late night horror show" hosted by Tom Noonan, this aspect doesn't work at all, and the ending is too abrupt. I wish we had more of these late night horror shows still around, though. GRADE: B-

DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW
(Frank De Felitta, 1981)
TV movie (though you'd never know it) about a mentally challenged man wrongly accused of murdering a young girl. Some men in the town kill him, and a while later are haunted by a scarecrow that comes for them one by one. Seems a lot of people who remember watching this as a kid on late night television hold it in high regard, and I see why. While there is some minor blood, this is more suspenseful and some things are rightfully left unexplained. The story and characters are kept first, though I'm not sure why exactly the four men believed they were totally innocent of the crime. Of the cast, only Charles Durning is famous. This could easily be remade, though they'd probably ruin the film's ambiguous ending. GRADE: B

MANHUNTER
(Michael Mann, 1986)
First Hannibal Lecter movie, though he's here named Lecktor. Remade by Brett Ratner in 2002 under the novel's original name, Red Dragon, this ranks along Silence of the Lambs as the best of the Hannibal movies. Here he's briefly played by one of my faves, Brian Cox. William Peterson is excellent as the detective tracking down The Tooth Fairy killer, despite being damaged from his previous case involving bringing in Hannibal. Cox's version of the legendary psychopath is not as mannered as Hopkins, and is probably closer to how the character is intended to be: a psychotic genius. Mann's stylized 80's noir directing may come across as dated to some, but works very thoroughly in the context of the film. Cinematography, like all of Mann's films, is perfect. This is one of those films where being very much of a product of its time works for it. Some of the editing of the climax left me a little cold, but I doubt I'll ever think of "In-a-gadda-da-vida" the same way. Tom Noonan (again!) is masterful as the serial killer. There's apparently many versions of this available, but I watched the theatrical version. A box office disappointment when it opened, the film has amassed a cult following. Despite how the character Hannibal has entered the lexicon, most people still aren't aware of this film. Check it out not just because you love serial killer procedurals, but because William Peterson in short shorts is very worth it. GRADE: A-

Box Office: So will the next Paranormal Activity take place on a ultrasound looking at Katie in the womb?

1. Paranormal Activity 3 - $32m / $32m / $68m
2. The Three Musketeers - $15m / $15m / $44m
3. Real Steel - $10m / $68m / $94m
4. Footloose - $9m / $29m / $50m
5. Johnny English Returns - $8m / $8m / $24m
6. Ides of March - $4.5m / $28.5m / $40m
7. Dolphin Tale - $4m / $64m / $75m
8. The Thing - $4m / $15m / $24m
9. Moneyball - $3.5m / $63m / $80m
10. 50/50 - $2.5m / $28.5m / $35m
*The Mighty Macs - $2m / $2m / $6m

With the exception of Insidious, horror has been DOA this year. PA3 hopes to revive it, if only for a weekend. Puss-In-Boots arrives next weekend, hopefully giving the box office a shot to the heart and a nice start to a robust holiday season.

Horrorfest: Joel Edgerton's Thing

THE THING
(Matthijs van Heijningen Jr, 2011)
Coulda been much better, coulda been a lot worse. Bland remake - err, I'm sorry, PREQUEL - of John Carpenter's classic (itself a remake) that boasted trademark Carpenter elements: ominous score, terrifying use of anamorphic widescreen, Kurt Russell. This one has a largely forgettable score by Marco Beltrami (though Carpenter's has a nice cameo), shots that could have been directed by anyone (there are some lovely shots of Antarctica or whatever land that was) and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Regarding the leading lady, I get that she's cute and on a geek's "to bang" list after Scott Pilgrim, but she's sooooooo bland. This part really could have been played by anyone and I, of all people, have no problem with a woman stepping into Kurt's badass shoes. But bah. Can we send her to TV? All things considered, the thing (har har!) that does this one in is its overuse of CGI. Yes, the Carpenter film boasts wildly dated makeup effects. I will take those anyday over actors staring at tennis balls in front of a green screen. In fact, I really wish filmmakers would drop CGI when practical makeup effects can be used. There's also way too many characters here, none of which we care about. Other than lead Ann Veal, Eric Christian Olsen, Joel Edgerton and the black guy, everyone else in the movie looks exactly alike. They all have scruffy hair and beards! AND I LOVE SCRUFFY HAIR AND BEARDS!!! I sound like I'm being pretty negative against this film, but it is decently paced with some effective jolts and not the worst remake/prequel/whatever Hollywood has put out probably even this year. GRADE: C


Mary Elizabeth Winstead (not pictured)

Box: By the end, I really didn't want to hear it for the boy.

1. Footloose - $24m / $24m / $76m
2. Real Steel - $17.5m / $53m / $100m
3. The Thing - $16m / $16m / $40m
4. The Big Year - $7m / $7m / $20m
5. Dolphin Tale - $6.5m / $58.5m / $80m
6. The Ides of March - $6m / $20.5m / $36m
7. Moneyball - $4.5m / $56.5m / $74m
8. 50/50 - $3.5m / $23.5m / $32m
9. Courageous - $3m / $20.5m / $29m
10. The Lion King 3D - $2.5m / $90m / $96m

Two remakes of early 80's classics, one of which is said to be pretty good. I'm rooting for Footloose if only because Craig Brewer deserves a hit and he needs to make more films. Worth mentioning is Real Steel's A+ Cinemascore grade, so expect legs.

Horrorfest: Sweet Dee

WAKE WOOD
(David Keating, 2011)
I guess this would be the first horror movie from Ireland that I've seen. I'm making an attempt to check out more horror/world cinema. Playing like a cross between The Wicker Man, Pet Cemetary and The Bad Seed, the film follows a couple that moves to a small town after their daughter is killed by a dog (not Cujo, mind you.) They find out that a local ritual will allow her to come back for three days. Of course, they agree to it, and there is no downside whatsoever. No, it is a horror movie and there's always something bad waiting to happen. The parts of the film that focus on the ritual and the creepy town are easily its best, but then it switches to a "demon child" horror movie and loses steam. One of the first films from the modern Hammer horror films. GRADE: B-

[REC] 2
(Jaume Balaguero and Paca Plaza, 2009)
I had heard good things about this sequel, but was mostly disappointed with it. There are some pulse-racing moments, but I'm not sure how I feel about the whole possession angle. These are supposed to be zombies? Film follows a SWAT team and group of teens that go into the quarantined building from the first film. Essentially more of the same, but not nearly as effective as the original. Sidenote: the American remake Quarantine recently had a direct-2-dvd sequel. The sequel to the remake is not a remake of the original sequel. Thank you, Hollywood, for making me say shit like that. GRADE: C+

CUJO
(Lewis Teague, 1983)
Let's be honest. This is sort of dumb. Yet, it works thanks to actual characters and a solid performance from genre fave Dee Wallace. I thought the dog was supposed to be some demon dog, not just a dog with rabies. I must have assumed this was like Critters but with a demon dog, so I was off a bit. I wasn't expecting it to be more of a realistic horror movie, which is probably way its a semi-classic that is still popular. Maybe because Stephen King wrote the book its based on I'm used to his stuff having more supernatural or fantastical elements. GRADE: B

Horrorfest: Starting to Sound Like a Wes Carpenter Flick

I began with two of the masters: Wes Craven and John Carpenter.



SCREAM 4
(Wes Craven, 2011)
Yeah, so I saw this in theatres and it technically shouldn't count, but maybe I'll be revisiting some stuff (The Thing, perhaps!). It really is shocking how divisive this film became with some hailing it as a worthy sequel and others saying its almost as bad if not worse than part three. The film's triple opener has grown on me quite a bit, and I'll still defend its triple climaxes. All that considered, it does has the worst moment in the series ("Fuck you, Bruce Willis") and it is still distracting how little Adam Brody, Anthony Anderson and especially Mary McDonnell have to do. Aunt Kate should have had more screentime, and I doubt if Lauren Graham had ended up playing her the part would have been whittled down so much. Other than these aspects, I think this is a pretty terrific sequel. It really is wonderful to see Neve Campbell back, and I still have my fingers crossed she will continue to get notable work. Thinking back on it, I don't think she touched her head once in this film. That was always her thing? Kristen Stewart stole it. Really fun performances by Alison Brie, Marley Shelton and Erik Knudsen. Hayden Panetierre's Kirby is one of the series best characters. Someday, I want to have a home with a barn so I can have a Screamathon.
GRADE: B+



THE WARD
(John Carpenter, 2011)
Feels weird that this is John's first film in a decade, his last being 2001's dud-that-I-enjoyed Ghosts of Mars. It doesn't feel very much like a John Carpenter film as he didn't write it or compose the score. However, the score is one of the film's strong points, sounding ridiculously Suspiria-y. Amber Heard is a young woman who winds up in a mental institute in 1966, where a ghost is taking a group of girls one by one. Servicable performances by Heard, Mamie Gummer (Meryl Streep's daughter), and Danielle Panabaker who seems to be the closest thing to a modern day scream queen we have. Given the film's setting, you can guess that all is not what it appears and the twists aren't really surprising. Almost the entire second half of the film is escape sequences, only the first of which has any bite. There's a bit too many fast cuts and things jumping out with loud music. Carpenter could have done (and has done!) a lot worse. But after a ten year wait, this is a let down.
GRADE: C+

Upcoming: The Blob, [Rec] 2 and Wake Wood.

Get it? Got it. Good.

P.S. Horrorfest starts this weekend!

Box Office: Rocky meets Transformers?

1. Real Steel - $26m / $26m / $85m
2. The Ides of March - $14m / $14m / $50m
3. Dolphin Tale - $10.5m / $50m / $82m
4. Moneyball - $8.5m / $50m / $75m
5. 50/50 - $5.5m / $17m / $32m
6. Courageous - $5m / $16.5m / $30m
7. The Lion King - $5m / $86.5m / $94m
8. Dream House - $4m / $14m / $23m
9. Contagion - $3m / $69m / $76m
10. Abduction - $3m / $23.5m / $30m

Real Steel should do comparable business to Eagle Eye, while I'm predicting Ides of March to perform almost exactly as Michael Clayton. Holdovers will have modest drops. The Lion King dropped 50% last weekend, and I'm thinking it'll drop even more this weekend due to the Blu-ray release on Tuesday.