Beyond the Black Rainbow (2010)
Last month I reviewed Mandy the sophomore effort from Italian/Canadian filmmaker Panos Cosmatos. For those who don’t know,
Shocktober Day 26: Beyond the Black Rainbow
John Otteni
Shocktober Day 24: Grace
Grace (2009)
I don’t feel great about giving a so-so star rating. I’m a fan of Adam Green’s ArieScope Pictures the independent studio behind cult classics like Frozen (the ski lift one, not that snowman one) and the Victor Crowley series. Adam Green’s podcast “The Movie Crypt” is my favorite podcast and one I would recommend to fans of the genre or aspiring filmmakers. Of course being a fan means checking out other projects from the studio. Grace is a 2009 horror/drama written and directed by Paul Solet, Produced by Adam Green and released through ArieScope. The film details a mother, Madeline Matheson (Jordan Ladd), whose child dies in the womb. Yet she takes it to term, it’s born and it wants to suck blood. There that’s the whole movie. Goodnight everybody.
Shocktober Day 22: Splinter
Splinter (2008)
I decided to watch Splinter after watching the 2014 film The 50 Best Horror Movies You’ve Never Seen on Amazon Prime . I’ve been chipping away at the list since June–I have 13 left–and I have to say most of the film’s recommendations have been solid. If not for that list I may have never watched cult classics like Burnt Offerings or Alone in the Dark (Not the Uwe Boll version, oh god.) Though not all of the recommendations have been good. There’s no reason anyone should have to witness the laughable onslaught of giant rats in Food of the Gods or the rapey sea creatures in Humanoids from the Deep. Splinter aka #20 sits somewhere in between good and bad. It’s not a must see movie for horror fans but it’s not a bad film. It has good performances and a unique antagonist. I just wish that wasn’t all it had.
Shocktober Day 20: Noroi: The Curse
Noroi: The Curse (2005)
I made a film this summer. I won’t disclose the details here but I will say that it was a mockumentary that utilized found footage elements. We decided upon this style because it was the best way to tell the kind of story we wanted to tell. Another reason was we thought it might be a more practical style of film on a low budget. Only now do I realize that this style isn’t easier. Do you realize how much footage you have to shoot for a mockumentary? Not to mention the variety of footage you’ll need to keep the film interesting. Noroi: The Curse helped me appreciate how much work really goes into this kind of film.
Shocktober Day 19: Dead End
Dead End (2003)
You know a movie has a good premise when your mom can sum it up and one sentence and you’re immediately hooked. “A family on a road trip stuck on a never-ending road.” That’s an idea good enough to make Rod Serling rise from his grave and give a bony thumb of approval. It’s a good film too. Dated but simple and effective. A film that by all means should have launched the career of Jean-Baptiste Andrea into the Hollywood spotlight. Yet all he did after this was a dark comedy with David Schwimmer and the script for a movie called
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Shocktober Day 10: The Ninth Configuration
The Ninth Configuration (1980)
We have a late substitution. Originally, I had planned to review the 1980 Australian film Harlequin today but it would appear the film has been removed from Shudder and off the face of the Earth. Luckily, I have a backup, the enigmatic 1980 thriller The Ninth Configuration written and directed by Exorcist scribe William Peter Blatty. Let this review also stand as a tribute to the star of The Ninth Configuration Scott Wilson who passed away four days ago at the age of 76. You may remember Wilson for his roles in the 1967 drama In Cold Blood and as Hershel Greene on The Walking Dead. Though after watching The Ninth Configuration. I believe this is the role Wilson should be remembered for.
Shocktober Day 8: Inferno
Inferno (1980)
No one shoots a kill scene better than Dario Argento. We’ve reviewed six Argento movies on Mildly Pleased now and it never fails to amaze me how much work goes into the demise of an Argento character. Here’s an example in today’s film Inferno. A woman after being attacked takes shelter in a neighbor’s apartment. She tries to relax in a sealed bedroom and puts on an opera record. As the music plays, we cut away to a pair of gloved hands—a classic Argento touch—making children out of paper and then cutting their heads off with scissors, we cut to a pet lizard eating a moth. We cut back to the woman as the power in the apartment goes off and on, the music cutting out with each flicker. She hears a noise and opens her door. Her neighbor friend enters with a knife lodged in his neck. The unseen gloved figure then proceeds to stab the woman repeatedly in the back to the tune of the opera music. That’s how you do it.