31 Days of Halloween

October is my absolute favorite month of the year. Besides being my the month in which my Beloved was born and my parents were married it is also the month in which we celebrate HALLOWEEN! Yes, friends, this is the month of all things scary. Ghosts, goblins, things that go bump in the night...I love 'em all. Every October I make it my perogative to watch a scary movie daily. It makes me happy and I like to share my happiness with a world. So, I've decided to post about my scary movie watching experiences. Enjoy!

ALIEN

This was a double whammy. It's also on Empire's 500 Movies to See Before You Die, which I am trying to work my way through. ALIEN is an amazing movie and one that should be seen by everyone. It's scary, holds up really well and features Sigourney Weaver kicking ass. Check it out!


MUM and DAD

This movie isn't for everyone. It's pretty violent. It's a British movie about a girl who is kidnapped by a family that has an...odd lifestyle. The acting is pretty good, and I found myself actually caring about the characters, which is rare in a horror film.


CHRISTINE

Aah, a classic. A movie based on a Stephen King book that is actually good. Another rarity in the horror world. This movie taught me to fear classic cars. And also to kind of be in awe of them. What does that say about me?


THE NEW DAUGHTER

Um....Kevin Costner. In a direct to DVD horror movie. That I got for free from Redbox. 'Nuff said.

AMITYVILLE 2: THE POSSESSION

This is a complete rip-off of THE EXORCIST and, for some incomprehensible

reason, I can't get enough of it. It seems like it takes

place before the first AMITYVILLE movie, but no real time line is ever given.

The title pretty much explains the movie. It's a POSSESSION!

LET ME IN

This is currently playing in theatres, possibly in one near you. It's the American remake of the

fantastically awesome Swedish film LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. And, really, it's pretty much the same movie as the original. I enjoyed it greatly, but it furthered my theory that people need to learn to read subtitles. Check out the original from Netflix or take a date to the theatre to catch the American version of this excellent vampire flick. You won't be dissapointed.

COMMUNE

This is a truly independent movie. Low budget, smaller actors...but, still, an interesting story and very good direction. The bonus is that this film was written, directed and produced by a woman and I always support my fellow Ladies of Cinema. There aren't enough films by women, so COMMUNE was a breath of fresh air in that respect.

SLEEPAWAY CAMP 3: TEENAGE WASTELAND

Another awesome 80s horror movie. I have all three of these movies, but I chose to watch them backwards. Are they better that way? Meh, probably not. The best part about these slasher flicks is that they know exactly what they are -- B Level Gory Horror -- and they embrace it. Combine relatives of famous people (Pamela Springsteen, Tracy Griffith), sassy one liners, absurd deaths, paper thin characters...80s horror at its best.

TRAIN

Despite the presence of AMERICAN BEAUTY's Thora Birch, this horror movie set in Eastern Europe is essentially a low rent version of HOSTEL. And as I didn't really care much for HOSTEL in the first place, I was less than thrilled by its imitator.

SLEEPAWAY CAMP 2: UNHAPPY CAMPERS

My personal favorite out of the triology. Here we get to see an adult Angela Baker and what has become of her. Poor Angela. She still can't catch a break at camp, but that's okay. She'll show those bad kids whose boss! Pamela Springsteen (sister of Bruce) is the psycho camper and Renee Estevez (sister of Emilio and Charlie Sheen) is the virginal girl that may or may not ma

ke it. This film is completely worth watching for the death of one character...a nasty "Mean Girl." Watch it and you'll see what I mean.

SARAH'S CHILD

This movie about a woman who wants a child so badly that she spontaneously made one appear was more like a Lifetime movie than a genuine horror flick. Yeah, the child may or may not have been evil but it was hard to look past the lousy production values and over acting long enough to care.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2

Full confession: I LOVED Paranormal Activity. Like, LOVED it. If someone comes to my house and they haven't seen it, I insist that they watch it. I think that it's an excellent horror movie. It's scary, effective and the relationship between the main characters is real and compelling.

Paranormal 2 is more of the same scares, but they're still effective. And I loved the way they kept the original main characters in the story. If you've seen, and enjoyed, Paranormal 2 then be sure to check out Paranormal 2.

976-EVIL

Fun fact: this was directed by Robert "Freddy Krueger" England. It's a fun film, about a dangerous 976 number that gives callers more than they bargained for. If you dig 80s horror movies, then this one is for you.

976-EVIL 2

Let's be honest here. The first movie wasn't that great. The sequel was not as good. Nuff said?

HELLRAISER 2

The first three Hellraiser movies are awesome! The others...not so much. Especially once they put Pinhead in space. I firmly believe that every horror franchise jumps the shark when they decide to do a space movie. That said, the second Hellraiser was a very good sequel. It picked up right where the first left off and it didn't spare the gore. Viva Pinhead!

THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE

Yet another exorcism movie that wants to be, but isn't, The Exorcist. This one is lucky enough to feature amazing performances from Jennifer Carpenter, Laura Linney and Tom Wilkinson. It's more of a courtroom drama than a horror movie, but there are enough scary scenes to drive fear into the heart of anyone that believes in evil.

LEATHERFACE: THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE III

I own this on DVD. Don't judge me. It's fairly hilarious and has a young Viggo Mortensen as one of the cannibalistic killers. That said, it's really subpar. Although, not as bad as the Texas Chainsaw remake with Jessica Biel.

MY SUPER PSYCHO SWEET SIXTEEN

Why did TiVo record "My Super Psycho Sweet Sixteen" for me? Why did I watch it? It should have been called "montage of scantily clad teenagers set to music I don't recognise because I am ten years beyond MTV's target demographic." And there was underage drinking. CHILDREN! Be good.

UNEARTHED

This film was featured After Dark's 8 Films to Die for fest. Evil things live underground and kill when they're awoken. Meh. I liked it when it was Tremors.

UNREST

Another of the 8 Films to Die for, this one about a medical student whose cadaver has deadly intentions. Not great, but definitely not terrible. A solid entry to that film festival.

MY SUPER PSYCHO SWEET 16 PART 2

Okay, I totally asked TiVo to record this for me. And I'm not even sorry! It was super fun. A girl was lit on fire and then ran though a party. There was a twist ending. And more montage hilarity. Well, played, MTV. Well played indeed.

SAW

Oh, Saw franchise. What will I do now that you aren't releasing a new movie every Halloween? Granted, I havent'seen one in the theatres since Saw III, but still. It's the end of an era. And, to celebrate that I decided to watch the first, and best, of the series.

RINGU

The Japanese film that "The Ring" was based on. The rare thing about both Ringu and The Ring is that they are both terrific movies. Scary in similar yet not exactly the same way. I actually prefer Ringu because it has more of the mysticism that Japanese horror movies are famous for.

AUDREY ROSE

I love this 1970s horror movie starring a young Anthony Hopkins. It's about reincarnation and what happens when the soul is not at rest. It's not particularly scary, but it is very intriguing.

THE EXORCIST

Hands down, the scariest movie of all time. I'm not saying that to be cool. It's legitimately terrifying. When I told my mother that I was going to watch it on Halloween, her response was "Alone?! In the dark?! I'll pray for you." Maybe it's just because I was raised Catholic, or maybe it's because Linda Blair's performace is epically scary, but this is one of the few movies that made me lose sleep at night.

Well, that's that. Happy Halloween, everyone. Be safe and don't overdose on candy!