31 Nights of Halloween

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

NIGHT 27:



And here we are, with yet another John Carpenter film. While not my personal favorite horror film of his, The Fog is a movie with a rich concept and contains much of Carpenter's trademark brilliance. Needless to say, it was absolutely butchered with the 2005 remake, but we still have this underrated and mostly forgotten gem from the very early 80's to turn back to. It's been a long while since I've seen this movie, so admittedly it's one of the many that I need to go back to for a re-watch, which probably won't be soon enough given my backlog, but I can still remember some iconic scenes from it, including that scene with the fisherman on the boat, as well as that infamous kitchen scene as well, and that last shot of the movie that deserves to be as iconic as some of the most famous scenes in horror cinema.

My only real gripe with this movie is that most of the side characters are kind of flat, and it has that one annoying kid actor that kind of drags down otherwise good movies like this, but on the whole, it's a really minor complaint. I'd say it's definitely worth your time for a fresh horror movie experience that strays away from embracing far too many of the cliches that Carpenter's earlier film, Halloween, had set up. Though, this movie does still take part in its own fair share of cliches, but Carpenter's execution always makes it feel entertaining. Now, if only they could release a DVD collection pack of all of Carpenter's best horror films, that'd be a must buy for me. And yes, they do have a 4-pack with some of his cult favorite 80's films, but they contain only 2 movies that really belong in the collection in terms of matching genre, and they severely lack in special features. I want a 4-pack with Halloween, The Fog, The Thing, and They Live, and with tons of special features. All I really have is a cheap DVD of Halloween with practically no special features, and an old DVD of The Thing which actually has a respectable amount of bonus content.

[Daikun]

My only real gripe with this movie is that most of the side characters are kind of flat, and it has that one annoying kid actor that kind of drags down otherwise good movies like this, but on the whole, it's a really minor complaint.

Yeah, developing characters isn't exactly one of Carpenter's strengths. Surprisingly, though, his style and execution are so damn good that his movies still wind up entertaining.

[Avaitor]

I actually just saw this for the first time about a week or so ago. It's true, the characters aren't exceptional, but Carpenter nailed the atmosphere here, which made for a great experience that I'm definitely hoping to try again.

But yeah, that fisherman scene is ace, as are the other bits you mentioned.

[Spark Of Spirit]

This is on my pile to watch for Halloween. Should be fun.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Have you seen They Live, yet? Because that should totally be part of anyone's Halloween pile.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

NIGHT 28:



This movie is a really entertaining combo of horror, action, and comedy. I used to just flat-out not get this movie when I was a kid, but coming back to it years later, I just loved how there was really nothing else like it in the genre. I mean, this movie gave us a fucking vampire with a crotch gun. How can you get any more ridiculously awesome than that? And if that's not enough, you get to see Quentin Tarantino as a vampire, and even if you don't like Quentin Tarantino, then....

Spoiler

....you get to see him violently killed off, so either way, it's a win-win.

[close]

This film is a one of a kind experience, and like many old-school B-horror movies, this one featured a then much less well known George Clooney before he became such a prominent movie star, so it's just another one of those movies featuring a big actor before their career truly got kick started.

Anyways, if you take this movie for what it is, it's a ton of fun. I just never cared for any of the sequels, though, which seemed to comprehend the right tone, but just weren't able to successfully blend all 3 elements that make this movie in particular so memorable.

[Rynnec]

I saw this movie a couple years ago, but this was my first time seeing the whole thing, and I love it even more. Like all of Rodriguez and Tarantino's movies, it has great acting, great action, and a kickass soundtrack. The only other franchise I'm familiar with is the TV series that aired earlier this year, which was an OK sort of remake of this film, but doesn't really hold a candle to it in comparison.

[Foggle]

From Dusk Till Dawn is awesome! I think the most surprising thing about it is that Tarantino actually managed to turn in a good performance.

[Daikun]

Ah, yeah! This movie is awesome!

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I saw this movie a couple years ago, but this was my first time seeing the whole thing, and I love it even more. Like all of Rodriguez and Tarantino's movies, it has great acting, great action, and a kickass soundtrack. The only other franchise I'm familiar with is the TV series that aired earlier this year, which was an OK sort of remake of this film, but doesn't really hold a candle to it in comparison.

There's a TV show? First I've heard of this. That must have been what kept turning up when I was googling a movie poster image for this movie, and saw pictures that looked completely unrelated but with the same title and made me wonder WTF I was looking at.

[Rynnec]

Eeyup. It only aired on El Rey, which is a pretty cool channel that not a lot of people get. It's 10 episodes long and is mostly a retread of the first movie set in modern times. Since it's a series, there's quite a few changes from its source material, some of which is for the better, and some for the worse. Regardlesss it's at least worth a watch if you're able to catch it.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Thanks for letting me know. Sounds interesting. I may give it a try if I can find a way to stream or rent it from somewhere.

But, yeah, I don't think anything can too the original film. There's just something about it that can't ever be replicated, hence why I didn't care for any of the sequels.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

NIGHT 29:



It's Hammer-time, tonight! That is, Hammer film studio's first take on one of the classic Universal monsters, with Dracula, or as was known in North America, Horror of Dracula. While the Hammer-made films were mostly thought of as schlock horror, I do remember their earlier entries seeming a bit more dignified in their presentation, including this film, even if it's still full of hokey moments (and let's be honest, so was the Lugosi version).

Peter Cushing as Van Helsing is excellent casting, and Christopher Lee as Dracula is also great, with this particular role really helping to kick-start his career in film, and good god what a career it was considering that the guy is still going strong today as one of the most well-respected character actors of all time. Overall, this movie isn't perfect, and barely bares any resemblance to the original novel, but it's still a classic in its own right.

[Avaitor]

In some ways, this is definitely better than Universal's Dracula. But you just can't top Bela Lugosi.

Hammer's stuff is always fun to watch, though.

[talonmalon333]

I might argue that it's better than the 1931 Dracula (though Lee isn't necessarily better than Lugosi). The 1931 Dracula was great solely because of Lugosi's iconic performance but I always felt that the acting of everyone else was either too over the top (Renfield, etc.) or too stiff (Van Helsing, etc.), and pretty much any scene without Lugosi kind of dragged. I highly recommend the Spanish version of Dracula. All of the performances are better, except for Dracula (though Carlos Villarias puts his own great spin on the role), the camerawork was better, and the story flows better. In fact, the Spanish crew supposedly actually watched footage of the English version with the goal of "topping it".

But anyway, Horror of Dracula was great. Peter Cushing is a perfect casting choice, and Christopher Lee gives one of the scariest Dracula performances. Their final confrontation is classic.