Bad Milo!

Starting this year's fest with a Wacky Wednesday.

I saw a preview for this movie sometime last year and had high hopes for it. Although it was crude and funny, it just didn't flow very well. The best part of the movie was the end credits with extra lines that weren't included in the movie and some bloopers. It's kind of a bad sign that I liked the credits more. That being said, I did enjoy a lot of the movie, and am happy that Joey was able to join me for the kick-off of this year's festivities.

"You've got a little trooper in your pooper."

We all deal with stress in our daily lives, but what if that stress manifested itself in a different way. Say in a polyp in your colon that becomes a monster that pops out and kills those causing your stress. Well, that is what happens to mild-mannered Duncan. Lots and lots of poop, ass and sex jokes are strewn throughout the movie. Normally, I like that sort of thing, but it could have been reigned in a little better. I found some similarities in this film with New Zealand's Black Sheep, which may appear this year on a Throwback Thursday because I absolutely adore that film. However, Milo didn't quite reach the same level as Sheep. But for what could be classified a B Horror movie, the acting was really good and believable, which is to be expected with the caliber of the actors in the film, including Patrick Warburton, Ken Marino (Party Down, Wet Hot American Summer) and Peter Stormare (Fargo). Joey kind of summed it up in a weird way that makes sense, a "touching" film about dealing with parenthood.

Couch cuddles with Milo

The practical effects with the puppet of Milo, were outstanding.  Always one of my number one complaints about a lot of movies is when they are heavy on the CGI but here it is hardly used at all.  I am still astounded by how well CGI is designed nowadays but when all creature effects or gore effects are CGI, it gets a little tiring and the suspension of disbelief is lost when it is obviously not realistic. It's funny saying something as absurd as a monster manifested by stress coming out of your anus to kill people is realistic, but it was well done. I've included this nice interview with the director from Fangoria about using puppets for the movie.

Milo and his puppeteer.

Not great but not too bad either. Joey and I both give it:

Year 2 of the Merry Horror-tober Fest

The changing leaves of Autumn and the chilly air that makes your hairs stand on end mark the beginning of another year of Horror-tober fest.  I spent some time going over possible picks for this years festivities and am  excited to begin again.  I realized I did not fully complete my posts last year, but am ready to bust them out as quick as I can this year.  Here is a friendly reminder of what the categories are, with an edit or two:

Supernatural Sunday Is almost a little too general, but it was hard to think of something that would fit ghosts, witches, vampires, etc. Anything otherworldly that doesn't necessarily fall into any of the other categories.

Zombday I decided that since zombies have (really, always have been) so popular, they should have their own day. And since they don't really rhyme or alliterate with the other days, they just take over the whole day.

Transcontinental Tuesday This was a hard one to come up with. I wanted a day for Foreign horror movies since they are just as good (and often better) than American, but like zombies, foreign doesn't really fit with any of the days. Hence, transcontinental.

Wacky Wednesday Not all horror movies fit into one genre, and not all are serious. So this one was borne out of a need to fit those odd, so-terrible-they-are-funny, fun and even "childish" movies. A few examples would be; Shaun of the Dead, Hocus Pocus and Troll 2. But none of those will be on this day as I have also created:

Throwback Thursday In which I will watch movies I have previously seen. They may be some of my favorites, as the aforementioned. Or ones I haven't seen in a number of years, even decades, and wish to enjoy again or wonder why I even watched them in the first place. 

Creature-Feature Friday For all things monster and creepy-crawly. 'Nough said. 

Slasher Saturday Also kind of enough in the title. Slasher's make up a large percentage of the horror genre, and this is a day for them all! EDIT: I have a few "Thrillers" on my list that don't really fit into any of the other categories, so I will probably include some on this day as well as on Sunday. All in all, I make the rules and can do whatever I want! 

Strap in boys and ghouls, and let the movie feast-ivities begin!

13 Ghosts

As with the last posts, this is the last Supernatural Sunday for the month. I had to go with an old one with some good kitsch.

13 Ghosts comes from the mind of horror genius William Castle. In the late 50's and early 60's, Castle made a bunch of horror movies, each with their own gimmick to either scare or excite the theater audiences. In The Tingler, Castle rigged chairs to give a little shock to patrons at certain parts of the film. In this one, he provided modified 3D glasses that would allow the viewer to see or not see the ghosts. Titled "Illusion-O," this idea was a pretty genius way to use the 3D technology of the time. To view the ghosts, you would look through the red part, but if you got scared you could look through the blue part and the ghosts would disappear. The ghosts were still viewable with the naked eye, which apparently helped its run on television for many years after it ran in theaters. 

Audience member is instructed to use the viewer

Aaah! A ghost!

13 Ghosts is a story about a family in dire straits that inherits a mansion from a late-estranged uncle. Dr. Plato Zorba studied the paranormal and traveled the world capturing ghosts that now reside inside the house. Dr. Zorba's lawyer, Ben Rush, helps the family with the process and gives Zorba's nephew a box that contains strange glasses with no explanation as to what they are for. Cyrus's son Buck loves ghost stories and is all too excited to live amongst the spirits. But there is also a "witch" in the house. Iconic Margaret Hamilton plays the housekeeper, Elaine Zacharides, which was a pleasant surprise. Of course the witch aspect is also a play on her having portrayed the wicked witch of the west in The Wizard of Oz - and there is a nice touch at the end of the film when she grabs the broom and winks at the camera. 

Margaret Hamilton

When Buck and the family play with a ouija board, it tells them one person will die in the house and become... the 13th ghost! Later Cyrus finds a strange room (or before the ouija board thing, I can't quite remember) where he hears voices and tries on the glasses. He sees ghosts! And it is the viewer's first chance to use the glasses. Even later, Elaine explains that Dr. Zorba left a large sum of money hidden somewhere in the house. However, there is someone else that knows about the money inside the house, and is willing to scare or kill for it. Dun, dun... DUN! 

How the living see the ghosts

The lion and lion tamer ghosts

It is fun, kind of silly, but enjoyable and worth a watch. It built the story well, and had a predictable, but good twist. This is one of the older horror movies that has been remade (ala The Haunting, House on Haunted Hill) and I am not ashamed to admit I liked the remake. But I can also say, I enjoyed this one a lot too, maybe even a little more. I checked out the entire William Castle collection from the library, and even though I will not get to fit them all into this month, I will be sure to enjoy them outside of it. 

The man himself, William Castle

My rating:

Office Killer

The last of Slasher Saturday and I decided to go for something with a little bit of dark humor.

I chose Office Killer mostly for Molly Ringwald and Carol Kane. Of course we all know Ringwald is known for her stint in the 80's with a lot of John Hughes films. And Carol Kane is a pretty iconic funny lady but she's no "stranger" to the horror genre (Get it? She was in When a Stranger Calls). Mousy Dorine (Kane) is often ignored and made fun of at work. She has worked as a copy editor for Constant Consumer magazine for a long time but is downsized and forced to work at home as a contract employee. When she is called in to work late and her computer breaks down, her co-worker Gary is accidentally electrocuted trying to help, but she takes him home instead of calling 911. Dorine has clearly snapped and Gary now lives in her basement with her cats. Gives new meaning to "crazy cat lady" if you know what I mean. She covers up his death by sending emails from his address to other coworkers. After that incident, she starts a killing spree, taking care of all those that piss her off or stand in her way. No one is safe from Dorine, no one.    

Deceased Gary just hanging out

The "librarian" look

This movie comes from the mind of photographer Cindy Sherman. She is known for her conceptual portraits and self-portraits, and throughout the movie you get a sense of her "photographer's eye." The story flows well and you only feel scared of Dorine, even after discovering her "daddy" issues that may have prompted her further descent into irrationally killing her co-workers. Kane was pretty superb as a psycho and it was a pretty witty tribute to slasher films of old - being generous with the gore and mayhem. All in all, I liked it. 

My rating:

Infestation

The last of Creature-Feature Friday for the month and I couldn't resist something with large creepy crawlies even though it probably would have been a good fit for a Wacky Wednesday too.

Infestation plays on everyone's fear of large and ferocious insects. Cooper is kind of a loser, although we don't know it yet, he recently lost his mom, and his dad is a hard-ass. So when Cooper loses his job, there seems to be no hope for him. In the firing meeting with his boss, an ear-piercing sound afflicts the entire office and the film jumps right into the action after that. In the next scene, there are a bunch of people wrapped in cocoons with very large insects jamming appendages into them and excreting some kind of fluid. Cooper wakes from his catatonic state, escapes from the cocoon, vomits the fluid and is attacked by what appears to be a large beetle. He rescues some fellow workers and discovers that the entire city has succumbed to this swarm of bugs. 

Cooper in the office with co-workers in cocoons

Some of the insects turn people into this. Yikes! 

It had some pretty well done special effects - just the right amount of cheese. The story is pretty typical as end-of-the-world monster movies go but with a good sense of humor about it. There is a love story to go along with it, which, meh. I enjoyed seeing Ray Wise (Reaper, How I Met Your Mother). He plays a good tough father that doesn't easily show his emotions or connect with his son. Otherwise, most of the acting and story development was kind of blah. 

Ray Wise

NO! Not Fluffykins! 

My rating:

Pumpkinhead

Pumpkinhead terrified me as a child, and of all of those featured on Throwback Thursday to date, is the one that has been the longest since I first saw it.

Pumpkinhead was the directorial debut for special-effects guru, Stan Winston (Jurassic Park). The story takes place in some small backwoods town. It shows a farmer and market owner Ed Harley (Lance Henriksen) and his son. One day at the shop, some young city folk show up with their motorcycles and fancy sports car as they are heading to a cabin in the woods for some weekend fun. Tragedy strikes and the young boy is killed in a reckless motorcycle accident, and the one responsible flees the scene leaving the others to try to find help. Grieving for his son, Ed seeks the aid of a witch. It is beyond her power to bring the child back, but she provides him another solution. She suggests calling forth the legendary revenge demon, Pumpkinhead, to exact his revenge on those responsible for the senseless death of his son. Pumpkinhead is released and begins taking out the youths, one by one. Ed is somehow connected to the demon and through its eyes witnesses their deaths - which forces him to doubt his rash decision. He tries to call the demon back, but it is too late. The other towns folk won't help because they know if they interfere, the demon will come for them too. But Ed knows he has to do something to try to save the others before their fate is also sealed by Pumpkinhead. 

The stuff of my childhood nightmares

A grieving father

The witch helps invoke Pumpkinhead

Pumpkinhead's revenge befalls one of the teens

Winston has a good eye for visuals in this movie, and of course the creature design for Pumpkinhead is outstanding. He also has some good character development, although the small town hick people are a little trite. When the movie gets really disturbing for me is when the demon begins to take on the face of Lance Henriksen. Of all of the scares, this time around, that is the one that will stick with me in my now adult life. Otherwise, I can say that I am over my childhood fear of Pumpkinhead. 

Pumpkinhead-Henriksen hybrid face *shutter*

Overall, I enjoyed the re-watch and the re-visit to a childhood nightmare. For the nostalgia and because, in my opinion, it holds up pretty well for effects, creature design and story, I give it a 3.5-skull rating.

My rating:

Student Bodies

Another Wacky Wednesday and I found myself watching Student Bodies.

Before Scary Movie there was Student Bodies. Think of it as a mix of horror movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th with the added comedy of say, Airplane or the Naked Gun series. When teens engaging in sexual intercourse are being murdered with bizarre weapons, the school looks to the "prude" as the one to blame. But she didn't do it, and becomes our protagonist, trying to discover who the real killer is. Each girl is killed with some strange object and boy is suffocated inside a black plastic trash bag. One girl is murdered with paperclips and the next an eggplant. As the teens start dying off, a kill count flashes on the screen. The killer is called "The Breather" because he breathes heavily when he kills and calls on the phone. He also disguises his voice with a rubber chicken. 

Killed by paper clips

Begin the body count! 

Killed by wooden horse book end

I liked it quite a bit. It had some clever dialogue, jokes and gags, and toward the end became quite absurd, but it dragged on a little long for my liking. For that reason I give it a 2.5-skull rating. 

Chased by an old lady in a trash can, for some reason

Mt rating: