Shocktober: Presence

Presence (2024)

As much as I enjoyed our journey through the world of ghost movies, I do have to wonder if I watched one ghost movie too many. Or perhaps I just chose the wrong ghost movie to end my series of reviews. Because if I had seen Presence when it was released in this January, one of theaters’ notorious down months for new movies, I probably would’ve found its brand of eerie minimalism refreshing. However, watching it after several other, more complex and ambitious ghost movies, something about it couldn’t help but ring a little slight, even if it is another prime example of Steven Soderbergh’s ability to be formally playful and compelling, even when working on a small budget. Continue reading →

Shocktober: Last Night in Soho

Last Night in Soho (2021)

After three posts where I struggled to even find anything resembling an interesting angle to write about, I conclude my Shocktober with a movie that overwhelmed me with too many options. Not one to lightly repeat himself, Edgar Wright’s return to the horror genre after Shaun of the Dead was highly anticipated, especially after a pandemic delay. Last Night in Soho was hyped up as a proper spooky story, without the comedy elements Wright was known for, as well as his first film with women as main characters instead of just love interests. Was that too much of a departure for him to handle? Yeah dude.

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Shocktober: Monster House

Monster House (2006)

Ah yes, once again we turn ourselves to the world of Robert Zemeckis-produced spooky projects. I don’t know how we ended up in this pocket of Hollywood filmmaking in the ’90s and ’00s, but I guess the guy had his finger in a lot of pies and a lot of those pies were filled with ectoplasm. Today’s entry, Monster House, doesn’t feel so far removed from one of Zemeckis’s directorial efforts, The Polar Express, which had just come out a few years prior and used some of the same animation techniques. Much like that film, its animation doesn’t entirely hold up (though for different reasons). Still, luckily, it does have a slightly more enjoyable hook and screenplay that make it enjoyable enough in 2025. Continue reading →

Shocktober: Ghost Ship

Ghost Ship (2002)

Ghost Ship opens with a shipload of people getting bisected and ends with a profoundly unsatisfying explosion/sinking sequence that shows that five years of technological advancements was not enough to bridge the gap between a $20 million movie and James Cameron’s ten times more expensive Titanic. And, you know, right now, where I’m at in my life, that’s enough. Steve Beck wasn’t trying to be the next James Cameron, he just a guy who liked naked lady ghosts.

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C.A.T: Ace Frehley

Ace Frehley – Ace Frehley (1978)

The Spaceman has left us. Like E.T., he came into our lives, enriched them, got drunk, and returned to his home planet. “Space Ace” was a character. Everyone in Kiss was a character, but the Spaceman always felt like the most irreverent, carefree, and fun member of the band.

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Shocktober: I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House

I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016)

Every time a new Oz Perkins movie comes out, I get excited, and every time, I leave feeling like I watched a missed opportunity. I loved the look and style and dark humor of Perkins’ King adaptation The Monkey, yet it left me cold. The same goes for Perkins’ sleeper hit Longlegs, a dark, beautiful film with whispers of Fincher’s Se7en, dripping with chilly PNW atmosphere but ending in a ho-hum conclusion. Perkins gets so close to making classics, yet perfection remains elusive. I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House is no exception.

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