Didn't really start watching any movies until this past weekend Friday the 28th: Cannibal Holocaust Saturday the 29th: Hellsing (Episode 1) Fright Night Hell Night Night of the Living Dead Suspiria The Blair Witch Project Monday the 31st Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Season 2, episode 6: Halloween Horror of Dracula The Exorcist
I watched WHEN A STRANGER CALLS last night and went to bed. I gotta stop going staying out until 7am on Saturdays if I'm going to have any kind of fun on Sundays.
October 31st: The Card Player Halloween 4 Poltergeist I'll play too... Best movie watched that I had seen already: Poltergeist - I'd been wanting to watch it for months and wound up seeing it last night... perfect choice for me this year. Best movie watched that I had never seen before: Haute Tension... so good I had to see it twice, showing it to a group of people for a Halloween party. Worst movie watched that I'd never seen: Razorteeth, because the best place to store hungry, secret government experiment piranhas is inside a Ziploc bag. Funniest movie watched: Red Eye, by far! That movie had me practically on the floor laughing. In fact, I blame that movie for the subsequent breaking of my glasses. Mr. Craven, I demand new frames! Most movies watched in one day: Halloween night: The Card Player, Halloween 4, Poltergeist Biggest pleasant surprise: The Card Player - After seeing all of the bitching about this movie, I half-expected to be disappointed. I wasn't, at all. Tombs of the Blind Dead was another pleasant surprise... love the Templars on horseback. Total: 32 listed viewings, 24 of those horror movies.
It's great to see some love for The Card Player. I really enjoyed it, and the more it sinks in after having viewed it for the first time, the more I seem to appreciate it. It's kind of a reverse affect, if you will (effect?? I'm suddenly brain dead, it seems). A lot of times movies get so hyped up that by the time you see it, it's anti-climactic because of the incredibly high expectations you develope towards film. And The Blind Dead set was one of the greatest blind buys I've made recently. My favorite was Return of the Evil Dead, and my least favorite was The Ghost Galleon, but I really enjoyed each one of them.
Best movie watched that I had seen already: Nightmare on Elm Street. I don't think I've watched the whole thing since the 1980's and I don't think I've ever seen it wide screen. Best movie watched that I had never seen before: Land of the Dead. I think this one has the potential to overtake Day of the Dead as my favorite Romero Zombie film. Worst movie watched that I'd never seen: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003). Why? Funniest movie watched:Probably Man With The Screaming Brain Most movies watched in one day: 10/31/2005: TCM(2003), Nightmare on Elm Street, Nightmare on Elm Street:Freddy's Revenge, Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors Biggest pleasant surprise: Lucio Fulci's The Black Cat, mostly based on an offhand remark made by David Warbeck on The Beyond commentary track, I had low expectations for this film but it was pretty good.
Best movie watched that I had seen already: Dawn of the Dead, my all-time favorite movie. Best movie watched that I had never seen before: I only watched 3 movies that I'd never seen before in October, so out of those three I'll have to go with Strangers on a Train. I caught it on TCM and thought since there are no commercial interruptions on that channel, I might as well watch it and save a Netflix rental. Worst movie watched that I'd never seen: A History of Violence. I loved it, but I liked it the least of the three movies I'd never seen before that month. I know it's not horror, but it's Cronenberg so I guess that's close enough. Funniest movie watched: I'm not counting Polyester, because it's not a horror film, so I'll go with Flesh for Frankenstein. It's not exactly laugh-out-loud funny, but I think it is brilliant because Paul Morrisey directed it intending it to be bad. Most movies watched in one day: October 15th: Psycho II, Opera, Blood and Black Lace Biggest pleasant surprise: The Wicker Man. I'd seen it before, but really hated it. I saw the film in a whole new light this second time around, and now it's one of my favorite films. Total: 18 movies in all, 16 of them horror
The final tally of an esoteric Halloween: The recap: Oct 1st: Audition Oct 2nd: H.P. Lovecraft's Shunned House Oct 3rd: Dr Moreau's House of Pain (boy does it suck!) Oct 3rd: Horrific Oct 4th: Dark Water Oct 5th: Opera Oct 6th: Trick or Treat Oct 7th: Deranged Oct 8th: Prowler Oct 9th: Near Dark Oct 10th: Godzilla Final Wars Oct 11th: The Fog Oct 12th: Versus Oct 13th: Scanners OCt 14th: From Dusk till Dawn Oct 15th: Mark of the Devil Oct 16th: Prom Night Oct 17th Carnival of Souls Oct 18th: Gothic Oct 19th: Devil's Nightmare Oct 20th: Horrors of Spider Island Oct 21st: Sisters of Death Oct 22nd: The Night Evelyn Came Out from the Grave Oct 23rd: Fangs of the Living Dead Oct 24th: Starship Troopers Oct 25th: Silent Night, Bloody Night Oct 25th: Night of Bloody Horror Oct 26th: Don't Look in the Basement Oct 27th: Kill, Baby...Kill Oct 29th: Deep Red Oct 30th: Its the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown Oct 20th: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (74) Oct 30th: Boogeyman (80) Oct 30th: The Nightmare Never Ends Oct 31st: Nightmare Before Christmas Oct 31st: Death Scream Oct 31st: The Beyond Oct 31st: Texas Chainsaw Massacre II Nov 1st: Salems Lot Nov 1st: Clownhouse Best movie I watched that I have seen before: tough call, narrowed it down to Deep Red and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and I'll go with TCM by a nose, just a classic movie that is still chilling to this day. Best movie I watched that I never saw before: Versus....yakuza, Zombies, Samurai, and Vampires! fun movie, but will never be confused with Ran or the Joy Luck Club. Worst Movie I watched that I never saw before: tie between Dr Moreau's House of Pain and Horrific, actually, I'll give it to Horrific, only because H.O.P. had a bit of noir feel to it inspite of its lame make up effects and story Funniest movie I watched: Either Horrors of Spider Island, because of its cheesy "aqua velva" machismo or From Dusk til Dawn. Most movies I watched in one day: Oct31st into Nov 1st Long night into morning of work, and that lead to six films being played. Biggest Surprise: I gotta go with "Gothic" surprising atmospheric film about the creation of idea for Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. Total movies watched: 40
If I am not mistaken, Clownhouse was pulled because of the controversy around the molestation of the actor, but the studios were sitting on stacks of these DVDs, so they waited it out for months then rereleased them without any fanfare or advertisment. I found my copy at Newbury Comcis for around 12 bucks, I can't say that I have seen it around recently, but nor have I kept an eye out for it. Really entertaining movie though, inspite of its reputation.
