/horror/ general megathread - Let's talk about movies and shit.

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From what I hear, the first half of the new sequel is fairly decent(in terms of setting a mood) and then it just nosedives HARD in quality for the rest of the film.
 
Today I did a triple feature of movies, those being V/H/S 85, The Exorcist, and a camrip of the new one (I won't even pay money for that one at all)

V/H/S 85 is a pretty solid film with a lot of pretty good shorts. The only garbage one is the virtual one since it was just unintentionally hilarious. But the other shorts were pretty interesting. Don't know where I'd rank it so I'd have to think more about it.

The Exorcist is a really great film that was really worth the hype and watching it was an captivating experience. It's a slow burn experience but it was really worth it and had plenty of great scenes. Though while Chris was great, the best part of the movie is definitely Father Karras who is just a great character and what he does at the end of the movie is pretty sad especially given it was for a child he never really got to know. The demon itself while the profanity can be a bit comical, does have a point to show how Regan is being corrupted into a foul and disgusting presence. The handling of the paranormal elements were also great since they just build up to it as it increases in scale, which makes it worth it. It is a great stand-alone movie that deserved the accolades it got.

Exorcist Believer is just a generic demon possession movie that has the brand name of the Exorcist on it. The movie is basically an attempt by Blumhouse to continue the nostalgic soft reboot trend that started in horror with Halloween (2018) but the soft reboot trend really started with Star Wars Episode 7 and this film was really pointless. Instead of a good slow burn like the original movie, the movie just has very generic jumpscares, and the possession is just the generic creepy child bullshit that is in horror films. The return of Chris was clearly just for a trailer moment, and given how in a quick google search that her actor really did this for money, it really shows. I can't really fault Chris' actress since this film really just uses her for like 4 scenes, and just leaves her in the hospital for the rest of the movie just to have another cameo later on that feels forced. There's a lot of bullshit in the script that doesn't make sense and the cast is extremely bloated with only the generic atheist father getting most of the focus, and it really doesn't work since it makes me not give a shit about the other family dealing with a possessed child. Also that patriarchy comment was actually real in the film and it was for a shitty joke that is in poor taste and makes Chris come across as unlikable especially with how powerful the ending of the first film was because of Karras' sacrifice.

Believer in general is just an generic garbage horror film, that after I saw it, I immediately rewatched the ending to the original Exorcist. The fact this is going to get a trilogy really is making me groan since this film really doesn't leave room open for a sequel unless it becomes the Demon trying to possess Regan again given how it mentions wanting her for some reason!?


tl;dr V/H/S 85 is decent, The Exorcist is a beautifully great film worth the hype, and do anything else instead of watching Believer.
 
I jut watched V/H/S/85 yesterday myself, it’s pretty good. Two of the shorts are connected to each other and the twist to them both was fucking great. Overall it was just as a good as 99 was. I kind hope they do more 80’s stuff with it and hell even some late 70’s stuff too.
 
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Finished Bad Moon (1996) last night, a Halloween movie suggestion by the YouTube channel Good Bad Flicks. I would generally agree with the host it's an underrated movie.


The positives:

• a strong premise that was probably adapted from the novel in the smartest way possible (focusing on the family and the dog instead of just the dog's POV... you can do that in a novel but not in a movie)

• a hell of a nasty opening scene

• good, practical special effects, especially the impressive gore (the full transformation scene is marred by bad 90s morph effects, but that's not in the director's cut)

• decent performances by all the main players (the director's disdain for Mariel Hemingway's performance and admiration for Michael Paré's is a little baffling, as she's probably better than he is here despite having less to do... You can only imagine how different this movie would feel if Robert Patrick or Michael Biehn had gotten the main male role)

• genuinely good and extensive animal "performance(s)" (must have been a nightmare to shoot) that gets across a lot of ambiguity and nuance in Thor's character... he is unsure if he sees the uncle as a threat (or if understands the uncle is the SAME as the threat he's seen in the woods), and that is clear without dialogue

• the film is occasionally genuinely effective, and it's schlocky in a good way when it isn't

• there's a great fake-out pre-ending that would have been an effective gut punch if they had gone with it as the actual ending

The neutral:

• ONE particularly hammy character that would have been more successful if it had been played with more nuance (but this is schlock, so it's fine)

• A ho-hum kid actor (but he's not too bad)

• an unfortunate, apparent "setup" that never goes anywhere (the eventual fate of the werewolf is good, but we really needed another exploding head)

• the movie looks great in the HD transfer, but the "Thor POV" shots were still in 4:3 aspect ratio for some reason (and they're not even really "special effects" shots)... but those shots looking a little weird is fine as they're animal POV shots

The negatives:

• Too much of the (impressive) creature effects were shown off too early. It would have benefited from even more tension-building in that regard.

• not too speak ill of the dead, but Daniel Licht's soundtrack is banal and overtly conventional. A smaller film like this could have benefited from a more creative approach.

• the movie feels way too confined to a limited set of locations later in the film

• inconsistent dialogue quality (many good scenes punctuated by occasional nonsense)

• a boring, very brief ending that feels studio mandated

• No explanation as to how the authorities will explain the uncle's death, how that impacts the family, etc.

Bottom line: if you're in the mood for a decent B-movie that's better than it should be, you could do a lot worse. It's streaming for free on basically every service.

I think my next film will probably be Lake Mungo (2008 ). I started watching it a while back and never gave it a full, fair shake.
 
Going to echo everyone else that VHS 85 is actually pretty good. Just in terms of gore and the use of the VHS gimmick it is much better than the past couple installments. My only real knock is that it almost feels like more of an action-thriller than a horror movie.

Segments
No Wake/Ambrosia - two-parter that I expected to go like The Raft from Creepshow 2, but it takes a really unusual turn instead. Keeping spoilers as minor as possible, this segment is weirdly similar to the last episode of Aqua Team Hunger Force. Not especially spooky, but good gore and decent enough acting.

God of Death - story is kind of predictable but they employ some cool technical tricks to flush-out the found footage gimmick. Follows a rescue team during the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, and I'm sucker for horror stuff that incorporates real events creatively.

TKNOGD - worst segment by a longshot, feels as undercooked as the average shit in those ABCs of Death movies. Neuromancer came out in 84 so I see what they were going for, but it just doesn't work. Pretty short though, so works as a good time for a piss break.

Dreamkill - feels like one of those sleazy serial killer movies like Relentless that came out in the late 80s, early 90s. Great aesthetic, really violent, and a simple, satisfying story. Maybe my favorite of the bunch.

Total Copy - David Bruckner comes back for the frame narrative and it's the first time the frame narrative in one of the VHS movies doesn't suck. Takes place in one of those weirdly maze-like basements that some universities inexplicably have - great setting. Has some Altered States and Re-Animator vibes.

Final Ranking of the VHS movies

2 > 85 > 1 > 94 > 99 (I completely forgot this one even existed) > Viral (appropriate name as it is AIDS).
 
Ged! said:
I won't watch it, but it's entirely possible that the new Exorcist is even worse than Exorcist II, which I must say is quite an accomplishment.
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It really doesn't take much effort when Believer has a very bloated cast and just checks off all the boxes for a nostalgic soft reboot while blatantly disrespecting the original.

The multiple faith exorcism was retarded since it was just three sects of Christianity where one of them acted like a mega church pastor and some weird african ritual. If they did the whole "other cultures have exorcisms" then maybe they should've used an exorcism related to the demon instead of what bullshit they used.

Merrin and Karras would've done the job successfully even if they died.

Pitbull Victim said:
Going to echo everyone else that VHS 85 is actually pretty good. Just in terms of gore and the use of the VHS gimmick it is much better than the past couple installments. My only real knock is that it almost feels like more of an action-thriller than a horror movie.

Segments
No Wake/Ambrosia - two-parter that I expected to go like The Raft from Creepshow 2, but it takes a really unusual turn instead. Keeping spoilers as minor as possible, this segment is weirdly similar to the last episode of Aqua Team Hunger Force. Not especially spooky, but good gore and decent enough acting.

God of Death - story is kind of predictable but they employ some cool technical tricks to flush-out the found footage gimmick. Follows a rescue team during the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, and I'm sucker for horror stuff that incorporates real events creatively.

TKNOGD - worst segment by a longshot, feels as undercooked as the average shit in those ABCs of Death movies. Neuromancer came out in 84 so I see what they were going for, but it just doesn't work. Pretty short though, so works as a good time for a piss break.

Dreamkill - feels like one of those sleazy serial killer movies like Relentless that came out in the late 80s, early 90s. Great aesthetic, really violent, and a simple, satisfying story. Maybe my favorite of the bunch.

Total Copy - David Bruckner comes back for the frame narrative and it's the first time the frame narrative in one of the VHS movies doesn't suck. Takes place in one of those weirdly maze-like basements that some universities inexplicably have - great setting. Has some Altered States and Re-Animator vibes.

Final Ranking of the VHS movies

2 > 85 > 1 > 94 > 99 (I completely forgot this one even existed) > Viral (appropriate name as it is AIDS).
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Yeah 85 was really good, the best segments were definitely Dreamkill and God of Death. The VR one was just a cringe schizo episode

My rankings would be 94 > 2 >= 85 > 99 > 1 >>>>>> Viral
 
Doctor of Autism said:
The multiple faith exorcism was retarded since it was just three sects of Christianity where one of them acted like a mega church pastor and some weird african ritual. If they did the whole "other cultures have exorcisms" then maybe they should've used an exorcism related to the demon instead of what bullshit they used.
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So they tried to justify the weird locust voodoo or whatever it was from the second movie by having a voodoo doctor added I guess?
 
Vampirella said:
So they tried to justify the weird locust voodoo or whatever it was from the second movie by having a voodoo doctor added I guess?
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I don't think it was even voodoo, and no locusts there from what I recall.

She literally did nothing and was there for brownie points of "representing other cultures"
 
Tubi-diving revealed to me that this film had been added, from indie Japanese director Yugo Sakamoto (who's directed some micro-budget action films that have gained attention) Yellow Dragon's Village, a 68-minute micro-budget movie about a group of college students who end up in remote village that's the home of a cult, it lacks some of the polish of Sakamoto's later endeavors but this folk horror/slasher/martial-arts hybrid is ambitious and has fun.


Clicking on the director's name on the site also revealed a couple of his other films in the action genre are currently on the site, A Janitor (a man has gone undercover as a janitor at a school in order to secretly protect the daughter of the mobster who raised him) and Baby Assassins (a light-hearted romp about two young hitwomen employed by an "agency", dealing with friendship, growing up, job hunting, underworld contacts, and being targeted by yakuza).
 
Calandrino said:
I thought Eddie Izzard was a he/him but it looks like I've not kept up and xe's full-blown genderspecial nowadays.
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He's only doing it because he thinks it'll finally get him the spot as a Labour MP candidate that he's been trying and failing to get for the last 20 years.
 
Commander X said:
Tubi-diving revealed to me that this film had been added, from indie Japanese director Yugo Sakamoto (who's directed some micro-budget action films that have gained attention) Yellow Dragon's Village, a 68-minute micro-budget movie about a group of college students who end up in remote village that's the home of a cult, it lacks some of the polish of Sakamoto's later endeavors but this folk horror/slasher/martial-arts hybrid is ambitious and has fun.


Clicking on the director's name on the site also revealed a couple of his other films in the action genre are currently on the site, A Janitor (a man has gone undercover as a janitor at a school in order to secretly protect the daughter of the mobster who raised him) and Baby Assassins (a light-hearted romp about two young hitwomen employed by an "agency", dealing with friendship, growing up, job hunting, underworld contacts, and being targeted by yakuza).
Click to expand...
A lot of people from Japan were praising how fun the movie was, but it was originally a streaming exclusive for an app called Screambox? Glad to see it's now available on Tubi. Thanks!
 
I just impulse-bought Exorcist 3 on Bluray while watching RLM trash Believer. And you know what? I need to own the first (and only real) season of The Terror as well. :informative:Everyone in this thread should see AMC's The Terror for the spooky season if they haven't already seen it.:informative:

Anyway, I'm pondering a "morbid curiosity" watch of Exorcist 2...
 
Last night I watched The American Scream 1988 it was weird and almost indescribable. It's about a family and two of their kids friends on vacation that stop in a strange town populated by only adults. The whole film has a strange dream logic like quality to it that even made me uncomfortable in some parts. Other parts were comedy, intentional and unintentional, like a scene where the father gets a cold and starts rubbing his snot all over his face when he blows his noses as his teeth fall out and an ear falls off. Definitely worth a watch.

 
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