The Review Lounge (original) (raw)

Part 4!!! I'm almost all caught up here. Only 2 more days left in the month! Yay for Halloween!!!

Oct. 14th:

Child's Play (1988):

A chubby toy doll named Chucky becomes an instrument of terror in director Tom Holland's unnerving tale of horror. Before cops gun down a serial killer (Brad Dourif), he invokes a spell that transfers his soul into the body of Chucky -- who ends up as a birthday present for 6-year-old Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent). When a rash of murders ensues, he knows Chucky is the culprit, but neither Andy's mother (Catherine Hicks) nor the police believe him.

My Thoughts:

Up until 8th grade I was terrified of horror movies. Once I caught the scene in Child's Play where Chucky is running up the stairs on tv late one October night and it seriously scarred me for a long time. I still have a weird fear about dolls running up stairs. That being said, Child's Play is not scary. In fact it's very cheesy and totally 80's. It is, however, surprisingly good. The only Chucky I remember is the incredibly grating one featured in "Bride of Chucky" and "Seed of Chucky". It's like the "Nightmare on Elm Street" films...Freddy K gets more and more annoying as the sequels keep piling up. Anyway, it was a pretty average movie, but had some good scenes like when the batteries fall out of the box and when he's walking around burnt, which make up for the lag in between. I think everyone needs to see Child's Play because Chucky is definitely a horror movie icon. In fact I'd be surprised if you haven't seen it already. Overall it's a decent Halloween movie. 3 stars.

Oct. 15th:

Lady in White (1988):

When a Halloween prank traps young Frankie Scarlatti (Lukas Haas) in a school coat closet, he witnesses the replay of a girl's death. Narrowly escaping the grip of her unseen killer, Frankie vows to help solve the murder and exonerate a wrongly accused janitor. All the while, the legend of the ghostly lady in white lingers. Writer-director Frank LaLoggia composed the film's musical score and plays the adult Frankie.

My Thoughts:

I thought that "Lady in White" was going to be a terrible, terrible movie. Like "Burnt Offerings" I had no idea how it got on my Q or why it was so close to the top. Surprisingly "Lady in White" turned out to be a really good movie. It's not really a horror movie though. The beginning was light and funny and the rest was more of a somewhat suspenseful whodunit murder mystery coming of age story. The killer becomes rather obvious less than halfway through, but it's kind of exciting watching them slowly uncover who the killer is with the help of a ghost. Since the beginning of the movie takes place on Halloween it makes this movie perfect for Halloween, but there aren't any scares or horror elements in it. It's a toss up, but I really recommend this movie. The end is a little cheesy with the special effects (c'mon it was the 80's), but the story and the acting was wonderful. 3.5 Stars.

Oct. 16th:

I missed my horror movie this day because I had to spend the day in Houston. I'm a failure. I'm sorry!

Oct. 17th:

Shutter (2008):

This American remake of a Thai horror blockbuster follows the Shaws, a young newlywed couple who become haunted by strange shadowlike images in the photographs they develop after their involvement in a car accident. As more terrifying supernatural occurrences befall them, they begin to wonder whether the photographic ghosts are connected to the accident -- and to question whether they can survive learning the truth.

My Thoughts:

As a remake "Shutter" is a decent movie. On its own as a movie it kind of sucks...a lot. It takes everything that was creepy and interesting about the original and whitewashed it till it seemed silly or just left it out completely. First, I don't understand why this movie has to take place in Japan. This movie could happen in the US. Maybe they don't realize that Asian girls live in the US and they can be creepy, possessive, and have really traditional parents here too. Also, why Japan? The original is a Thai movie that takes place in Thailand. I could understand the Americans being out of place in Thailand, but Japan makes less sense. Do they think Americans are stupid and that they think all Asian horror films are from Japan? Some of the best A-Horror movies I've seen are either Thai or Korean. They made a lot of little changes that don't really make sense and really just took everything that was creepy about the original out. All his friends were incredibly sleazy, so it's not surprising that they had something to do with what happens to the girl. In the original they seem totally normal, nice guys and that makes it more shocking. I could go on and on about the differences that made this movie far inferior to the original, but I won't. I'd skip this one and just watch the original. It gets 2 stars for the actual story plus one star for it's source material. 3 Stars.

Oct. 18th:

Uhh...I missed a horror movie on this day too. I forget why. Oops! That's 2 days I missed! LOSER!

Oct. 19th:

The Brood (1979):

After the painful breakup of her marriage, Nola (Samantha Egger) seeks help at an experimental psychiatric clinic where she's encouraged to work through her subconscious feelings of hurt and rage through bodily manifestation. Unwittingly, Nola gives "birth" to living incarnations of her darkest inner impulses. Once released, "the brood" exacts gruesome revenge against Nola's family for every real and imagined slight. David Cronenberg directs.

My Thoughts:

I was dreading this one. The synopsis sounded stupid and I honestly didn't think that they could pull off good special effects in 1979. I think that I've added and removed this movie from my Q several times. Well, after watching this one all I can say is: what...the...fuck. The Brood was weird, twisted, and downright disturbing at times. The creepy deformed children are totally scary and they're nothing compared to the very end. What I want to know is how have I never heard of this movie before? It's creepy and grotesque, but most importantly it's INTERESTING and even got my horror movie hating husband sucked in (and that's a feat all on its own). I highly recommend this one, especially for the Halloween season. Toward the end you'll need to have a strong stomach. The special effects are really, really well done. See this ASAP! 4 Stars.

Oct. 20th:

Captivity (2007):

After a night of drunken decadence, self-absorbed fashion model Jennifer (Elisha Cuthbert) awakens to find herself locked in a cellar, along with fellow prisoner Gary (Daniel Gillies). As the two try to escape, their invisible, voyeuristic captor -- who has a penchant for sadistic mind games -- is watching every move they make. But all may not what it seems in this tense chiller directed by Roland Joffé.

My Thoughts:

Alright...this one was okay until the very end. They pushed my suspension of disbelieve way too far. The whole premise was stupid enough without having to believe that a 100 pound model becomes a vigilante. Yeah, I just spoiled it for you, but only in hopes that you won't waste your time on this one. The torture scenes aren't scary or even seem that much like torture. Maybe for a model it scary, but not for the average Jane such as myself. The worst part is when they blend face parts and make her drink it, but it's so comically fake that it takes away from its purpose. The whole reason why the killers do what they do is so incredibly stupid too. The main guy was reasonably attractive just go out and hook up with someone. Jeez. Anyway it was a 2 star movie until the last 10 minutes, but the movie just got even more stupid. I honestly didn't think that they could do it, but they did. Skip this one at all costs. 1 Star.