First, I want to thank Kyle Ryan for allowing me to participate in this latest Scarestack Society writing event. It is always fun and I always enjoy reading what other Scarestackers end up writing about.

This month we are celebrating the movie adaptions of Stephen King’s literary works. Now technically my chosen movie Pet Semetary 2 is not an adaptation of a Stephen King book but a sequel to a Stephen King adaptation so close enough.

The original Pet Semetary was a success as it was loved by both the fans and the critics. For many people it is considered one of the best movie adaptations. So, when director Mary Lambert, who directed the original, was tasked with making a sequel , she had to be wondering “How am I going to top Pet Semetary?” The answer of course is ‘you can’t” but she comes damn close. Just a few years earlier the same predicament came upon Tobe Hooper when making Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 , the over-the-top sequel to Hooper’s terrifying classic. Makes me wonder if Lambert had a conversation with Hooper about that experience.

Anyway, back to Pet Semetary 2, Lambert would this time team up with writer, Richard Outen to create the story. The direction they went was to take the basic premise of the first film and turn up the volume to an eleven. There is still elements of sadness and grief in the sequel, but it is a bit gorier, has a heavy metal soundtrack and some crazy humor. I will give a brief summary of the movie and then my final thoughts.

The movie starts off on a movie set of all places. We are introduced to a boy , Jeff Mathews played by Edward Furlong (John Conner from Terminator 2). From afar he is watching his mother, Renee, who is a famous actress, making of all things a horror movie. A tragic accident occurs on set, and Renee is electrocuted and dies. Talk about negligence, who was directing this movie, John Landis ???? If you know you know. In case you don’t know, do some research on Twilight Zone The Movie. Jeff’s father, Chase, who is a veterinarian and portrayed by Anthony Edwards, decides to take his son away from California and back to his hometown of Ludlow, Maine, where Renee was also from. There she is buried and they try to make the best of it.

Jeff attends the school in town and is immediately bullied by a gang led by a deranged shit named Clyde who makes Henry Bowers from It look like an angel. I swear this kid is rotten to the core but at least he has a fitting demise, not once but twice. But Jeff does make a friend in Drew, whose stepfather, Gus, happens to be the town sheriff and a straight up asshole. Gus is portrayed brilliantly by Clancy Brown, the king of chewing scenery.

Jeff learns about the Native American burial ground known as Pet Semetary as well as the story of the tragedy of the Creed family from the first movie. This movie does acknowledge the events of the first film and even states that Ellie, the young daughter, was sent to an asylum.

When Drew’s dog is shot and killed by Gus, did I mention he was a real asshole? Drew and Jeff bury the dog in the Pet Semetary and as expected the dog comes back but not a very nice dog as it gets revenge on Gus by ripping his throat out. Gus gets buried, which wasn’t a smart idea because if you thought Gus was a prick when he was alive wait until he rises from the dead. This is where Clancy Brown channels his inner Kurgan (his character from Highlander) and really starts chewing the scenery as now he is even more evil and shall we say animated and even provides a few laughs. Gus at least kills the bully Clyde in a gruesome manner but then proceeds to kill his stepson, Drew and his mom, Amanda, which was a shock because you figured that might escape when Gus is pursuing them in a car chase but instead, they meet their tragic end.

Still consumed with grief of the loss of his mother and the idea he can bring her back, Jeff with the aid of Gus, who has his own ulterior motives, resurrects his mom. At this point Jeff has lost all sense of reality and his plan to reunite his family doesn’t quite go as planned. He loses his mother once again but reconciles with his dad. Gus gets killed again as does Clyde who was also resurrected. The moral of the story is about the same as the original, echoing the words from Jud Crandall, “Sometimes, Dead is Better”.

Mary Lambert knew she couldn’t replicate the first Pet Semetary and wasn’t even going to try. The original was darker and bleaker with no happy ending. What makes the original stand out from the sequel was playing on a parent’s worst fear, the tragic loss of a child which was what hit everyone in the gut. Lambert decided not to go that route again because it had already been done and would have been just the same old same old. Instead, she focused on the grief of a young teenager losing his mother which might not hit as hard as a parent losing a child, but it still hurts. Edward Furlong does an excellent job of conveying that sense of loss. Given how great his performance was in Pet Semetary 2 along with Terminator 2, makes me wonder if he had not gotten involved in some extracurricular activities, how good of an actor he could have become. Despite some of the campiness of the movie brought on by Clancy Brown going full maniac mode in the second half of the movie, the film still has some heart and dread to it. Maybe not has tragic has the original but it is a good effort.

This might sound sacrilegious but there are some areas where the sequel does better. For example, as a whole, I think the cast and performances in the second film are actually better. Outside of Fred Gwynne’s iconic performance as Jud, the rest of the adult cast in the original were at best ..ok with Dale Midkiff’s performance of the dad, as Louis Creed being uninspiring. Not to get off topic but I always thought that Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton would have done much better in those roles of Louis and Rachel Creed, but I digress. The performance in the sequel is much better all around. I just wish Anthony Edwards was given a little more time concerning his character’s grief over the loss of his wife. Granted they were separated at the time of her death but there was still love there. That might be my only critique of this film. But other than that with Pet Semetary 2, I rooted and liked the characters that I was supposed to and despised the characters I was supposed to despise. But I will concede the emotional stakes of the original still hits harder but the performances in the second film are much better. So, for me I enjoy Pet Semetary 2 as much as the original. While re-watching part 2 a week ago, I struggled to find anything wrong with it except burying Gus after he is killed was pretty stupid. Despite that critique I seem to enjoy Pet Semetary 2 more and more on every watch, which is how you know you like a movie. I do believe it is one of the most underrated horror sequels made and for those who haven’t seen it or maybe didn’t care too much about it, I would suggest giving it another try.

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Spring Of King (Post Schedule)

5/1 It miniseries- Sahar Khan

5/2 Pet Semetary- JHong

5/3 Pet Semetary 2- Horror Hangouts

5/4 Cujo- Kyle Ryan

5/5 Creepshow- B-Movie Tea

5/6 The Outsider- Sean Mo

5/7 Gerald’s Game- H. H. Duke

5/8 The Mangler- Timothy Atkinson

5/9 Maximum Overdrive- Yanni Hamburger

5/10 Salem’s Lot 2024- Meat Head Media

5/11 Silver Bullet- George R. Galuschak

5/12 Creepshow 2- Thehumangaze

5/13 Carrie- Hellish Views - Harry Evans

5/14 Christine- Emma

5/15 Big Driver- Molly O’Blivion &

Stand By Me- Matt Cyr

5/16 The Shining- Jamie B.

5/17 The Long Walk- Decarceration

5/18 King Of Home Video- Jean-Pierre Diez

5/19 The Langoliers- Beverley’s Horror Corner

5/20 Sleepwalkers- Brandon Rae

5/21 The Running Man- Stephen Duffy

5/22 Misery- Skyla

5/23 The Night Flier- Bryan Wolford

5/24 The Shawshank Redemption- Genevieve Brock

5/25 Dreamcatcher- Kimberly B

5/26 The Mist- Cedric

5/27 The Dead Zone- Offscreenshaman

5/28 Cat’s Eye- Backyard Movie Critic & Graveyard Shift- Liam Palmer

5/29 Rose Red- Kristen (Blood,Blush ,& Guts) & Storm Of The Century- Adam Hunter

5/30 It Chapter 1- That Horror Lesbian

5/31 Dolores Claiborne- Kimberly Ramsawak & The Lawnmower Man- Mike smith

Character Analysis: The Love Witch (2016)

I just recently viewed The Love Witch for the first time and really loved the film. I truly appreciated the 1960’s setting and vibe as it was shot in Technicolor, which was how films were made back then, and I found the scenes involving the coven to be what most interested me in the movie. Possibly because I have been doing quite a bit of research on real life witches and wiccans for my upcoming story.

The Love Witch centers around a young witch by the name of Elaine, who desperately seeks love from a man. Through her obsessed search she seduces men with her beauty and magical potions. But she fails several times to get the results she wants. There is a Witch coven in which she was initiated in that is lead by Barbara and Gahan, who serve as mentors to Elaine. It is the coven that I was most intrigued with in the movie and would love to see a stand-alone sequel focusing on the coven. Perhaps there is a power struggle between Barbara and Gahan.

My guest contributor, Ashley Hawley, recommended The Love Witch along with a few other movies as potential topics for this post. So thank you to Ashley for participating in this special article and for the recommendation.

Ashley will be writing about the main character, Elaine and I will be writing about Barbara, who is a stark contrast to Elaine/ I hope everyone enjoys.

Finding Love in a Man’s World: A Character Analysis of Elaine Parks in The Love Witch

By Ashley Hawley Ashley Hawley Substack

Early on in The Love Witch, the titular witch in question, Elaine Parks (played flawlessly by Samantha Robinson) is having high tea with interior decorator Trish. Elaine explains her philosophy on love, telling Trish that a man will only love a woman if she gives him “his fantasy.” Trish balks at this, asserting that Elaine sounds as if she’s been “brainwashed by the patriarchy.” What she doesn’t realize is that she has just hit the nerve center of Elaine’s entire personality.

Elaine Parks is a woman who does not realize she is in a cage, because she has never known life outside of one. In one scene, Elaine is getting ready for bed as voiceovers reveal how men in her past have spoken to her. Her late husband, Jerry, criticizes her for her inability to keep a neat house and have dinner ready on time. Another man, her own father, verbally abuses her for her weight. In both instances, these men reflect the belief that Elaine is a failure, unworthy of respect, love, and attention until she changes her ways (for surely, what good is a woman if she is not pretty to look at and adept at household chores?).

Despite this blatant mistreatment, Elaine has not given up on her fantasy of love. In fact, when we first meet her, she appears more determined than ever to find her happily ever after. How is this possible? To answer this, we must look to the witches.

In the scene at the tearoom, Elaine tells Trish that the day her husband “left” her was the day she died. But when she discovers witchcraft, she feels reborn. A flashback shows Elaine’s initiation into a local coven. This coven’s leader, Gahan, is alluded to often exploit his position to exude power over the other (predominantly female) members. He cleverly masks his objectification of women under spiritual language of empowerment and even goes as far as to assault his new initiates in the name of ritual (an act that I believe explains Elaine’s general distaste for the man).

In one scene, Gahan, Elaine, Barbara, and two new coven members are sitting in a bar as a burlesque show plays before them. Gahan expounds on the power of dance and touts that if women play into their femininity and make men “feel like men,” they can gain control over them. This language is just subtle enough to lure susceptible women into a false sense of control, when they are in fact still under patriarchy’s spell. And Elaine is the perfect moth to this flame: a woman, chewed up and tossed out by the men around her, who has determined that love will not come to her, so perhaps she can take it for herself. And she does just that, through the power of her love potions.

In the opening scene of The Love Witch, Elaine is on the run. She claims to desire a fresh start after her husband left, but brief flashbacks heavily imply that she may have poisoned him to death. This suspicion is later confirmed once Elaine uses her potion again on local teacher, Wayne. The days that Elaine spends with Wayne are a perfect case study of her ethos on finding love. On the surface, she plays the man’s fantasy perfectly; she cooks him a hearty dinner, she dances seductively, and she allows him to make love to her. We also learn that she has drugged him with a concoction of unknown but very powerful herbs, which she believes will unlock his love potential. It does not take long to see the potion’s effects, as Wayne begins noting that he feels strange, and soon devolves into a shivering, crying mess.

Unfortunately, Elaine does not realize that her potions are not imbued with a true sense of love, as she has never felt that herself. Instead, they conjure only what Elaine has known: desperation, dependence, and obsession. Elaine can handle these emotions, because they are her life. But for a man like Wayne, who has been taught to suppress his emotions, these bursts are too much to bear. He quickly grows ill, becoming a childlike shell that immediately turns Elaine off. Where she once saw the perfect specimen of a man, she now only sees a needy, pathetic reflection of her own weaknesses until he finally succumbs to the overwhelm and dies. After his death, Elaine is at last in absolute and total control. So, she builds the fantasy the way she wants, burying Wayne in the yard of his cabin and leaving him a witch bottle. It is a quiet, yet powerful moment when we finally see Elaine doing something for herself instead of for the approval of a man.

The event is short-lived, as she immediately seeks her next conquest in the form of Trish’s husband, Richard. While ultimately, Richard’s fate is much the same as Wayne’s, there is an undertone of malice to this particular choice. When we meet Trish, she is an obvious antithesis to Elaine: successful, independent, and in a truly committed relationship. Elaine, subconsciously or not, sees Trish as a threat to her carefully crafted belief system. Her ability to steal Richard away from Trish not only proves the power of her witchcraft, but also shakes the foundation upon which Trish has built her own love philosophy. We see this breakdown further when Trish sneaks into Elaine’s room and puts on her clothes and makeup; before she snaps out of it and realizes that Elaine is simply a poor friend, it is implied that she thinks there may be something to her process.

Where Elaine’s fantasy really begins to crumble is when she meets Griff. By all accounts, Griff is the prototype of Elaine’s perfect man. He is ruggedly handsome, strong, and commands attention. He is also a cop, a fact that comes back into play as he is assigned to uncover Wayne’s disappearance. We see Elaine charm Griff easily in the beginning, whether to get him off her scent or because she really believes that he is the “man in the cards.” Regardless, the two embark on a wonderful date that culminates in a mock wedding ceremony that has Elaine believing he is the one who can finally give her what she’s always wanted. Everything seems perfect, until Wayne’s body is found and more evidence begins linking Elaine to his death. This is when we see Griff’s most crucial character trait that ultimately leads to his death: his ability to turn off his emotions.

As a cop, Griff has learned to keep logic and feelings separate, something that Elaine cannot take from him, despite her prowess. When he finally snaps out of his love trance and sees Elaine for who she is (a killer), Elaine’s perfectly crafted world begins to shatter. She becomes defensive, desperate, and finally, deranged.

In the last scene of the film, we see Elaine and Griff in Elaine’s bedroom. Griff shoots Elaine with a look that proves that no love potion or spell can reach him now. He knows who Elaine is and it is not the powerful creature she believed herself to be. Elaine cowers from his glare, unused to seeing a man look upon her with such utter disdain. No, the man she loves is not supposed to look upon her like this; he is supposed to look at her with love, just like her fantasies show. But we see Elaine realize, in this moment, that no man will ever love her the way she wants to be loved. Elaine is a victim of a system that never had her best interests in mind. Men only see her as an object or a caretaker, and the spiritual community did not unchain her; it just made the chain invisible.

The only way she can truly get what she wants is to live within the fantasy. In a last attempt to be free, Elaine stabs Griff repeatedly in the chest until he is dead, and escapes into a vision of herself being whisked away into a happy ending that will never come.

Elaine Parks is a fascinating study into a woman who longs for love in a world that wishes to control her, until she is forced to take matters into her own hands.

Barbara: An Example of Feminine Strength and Wisdom: A Character Analysis by Josh Cuny aka Horror Hangouts

After watching The Love Witch, It was kind of a no brainer which character I would write about. I found Barbara, despite the fact she is just a supporting character who we probably don’t know enough about, to be the most interesting and intriguing character in the movie.

Barbara, portrayed by Jennifer Ingrum, serves as the High Priestess of the Witch coven along with her male counterpart, Gahan, who I suppose would be the high priest of the coven. Both of whom act as teachers and mentors to Elaine as they provide rituals, spell work and insights into the coven’s ideology. Now I will admit whereas Barbara appears to be a true believer in what she does and teachers, it could be interpreted that Gahan might just be a manipulator as his motivation could be just sexual gratification. Makes me wonder if Barbara is on to him and is just manipulating him as well. Allowing him just enough rope that he may hang himself; physically or metaphorically. She knows the witches would take her side in an instant as she is much more adored and respected than Galan and would use that to her advantage.

The contrast and comparison of Elaine and Barbara is the main reason why I chose Barbara as Ashley chose Elaine and did a wonderful job in her analysis. I thought it only made perfect sense that I would choose Barbara. Clearly Elaine looks up to Barbara as a teacher and a friend and aspires to have her strength and abilities.

Both women share certain core beliefs especially when it comes to female sexuality. The idea that a woman should not be ashamed of their sexuality or feel that it should not be confined and manipulated by society especially the patriarchy but instead be a tool for gaining strength and power is a shared belief between the two witches. The methods they use regarding how they present and navigate their power and femininity through the coven’s ideology illustrates a sharp contrast.

Barbara not only serves as the high priestess of the coven but also a highly respected mother figure to its members especially Elaine. Exuding a certain consistent grace and respect, Barbara teaches the fundamental principles of the coven as she sees it. She believes that society represses the sexuality of women and teaches others to embrace and celebrate their sexuality as a way of fighting back and establishing one’s identity. She often evokes the importance of the god and the goddess as two equal beings to be cherished and celebrates the union of the feminine along with the masculine. At least as I interpreted it. As someone who believes in equality, I found these beliefs to be somewhat inspiring, after all it is how my own wife and I have always attempted to manage our relationship along with our household.

In contrast to Barbara’s stability and authentic nature, Elaine could be looked upon as someone who has fabricated her persona as she hides behind makeup, elaborate costumes and wigs. Barbara always shows her true self and is unapologetic with who she is and doesn’t feel the need to resort to such props.

Elaine’s obsession with a fairy tale ending and trying to force men to fall in love with her becomes her undoing as well as the men involved. The old saying goes, “Be careful about what you wish for because you might get it.”

Whereas Elaine has to force love and happiness, Barbara just has to be herself and love and happiness will find her. This might be the most important lesson of the movie. Just be true to yourself and don’t force things, they will happen on their own. When you do try to force the issue that is when the situation gets messy.

Elaine becomes a victim of the patriarchy while Barbara rises above it without compromising her own values and ideology.

I hope everyone enjoyed this post and thank you once again to Ashley Hawley for participating. If you don’t already , please subscribe to her Substack.

Ashley Hawley

Late Night With The Devil was released in 2024 and written and directed by Colin and Cameron Caines. The independent, supernatural horror movie takes place in 1977 as we follow late night talk show host Jack Delroy hosting a special Halloween themed live broadcast of his show. Over the course of the night Jack has several gifts from a clairvoyant to a magician and finally a young girl who might be possessed by the devil. Over the course of the evening peculiar and terrifying events happen live on television. How much was it real or was it just a trick all along.

For this post, we will be analyzing and discussing two of the characters of this movie. My guest co-collaborator, Spooky Girls Coven Newspaper

Spooky Girls Coven Newspaper

, will be writing about Carmichael Haig, a celebrated magician but also a huge skeptic of the paranormal, played by Ian Bliss. I will be writing about Jack Delroy , a late-night talk show host eager to get his show back on track and finally dethrone Johnny Carson as the king of late-night television, played by David Dastmalchian.

The Skeptic in the Room: Carmichael Haig in Late Night with the Devil by Spooky Girls Coven Newsletter

When I first watched Late Night with the Devil, one of the characters that stuck with me the most wasn’t the possessed girl or even Jack Delroy himself. It was Carmichael Haig.

And if you’ve seen the film, you probably know exactly why.

Carmichael Haig, played by the Ian Bliss, walks into the show as the professional skeptic the guy whose entire career is built on debunking psychics, mediums, and supernatural claims. On the surface he feels like the classic “science guy” horror movies often throw in just to argue with everyone. But what makes Haig interesting is that he isn’t just there to say ghosts aren’t real. He represents the audience that wants logic, proof, and control in a situation that’s spiraling into chaos.

And honestly? In the middle of everything happening on that stage, he might be the only person acting rationally.

The whole premise of Late Night with the Devil plays with the idea of spectacle. A late- night talk show chasing ratings during the 1970s decides to lean into the supernatural for Halloween night. Jack Delroy wants a moment that will capture viewers and keep his show alive, and Haig is brought on as the built-in opposition someone who can challenge the paranormal claims and keep things “credible.”

But Haig isn’t just a skeptic. He’s confident, a little arrogant, and absolutely convinced that everything happening can be explained away.

That confidence becomes part of the tension.

Ian Bliss plays Haig with this really commanding presence. When he talks, people listen. When he calls something fake, you almost believe him. He feels like the guy who has spent his entire career walking into rooms full of believers and dismantling their arguments piece by piece.

Which is why watching him slowly lose control of the situation is so satisfying.

What I like about Haig is that he doesn’t feel like a villain. He’s not malicious and he isn’t trying to hurt anyone. In fact, he genuinely believes he’s protecting the audience from manipulation. In his mind, exposing fraud is a public service.

But horror has always loved characters who think they understand the rules of the world… until they don’t.

As the episode progresses and things start to break down, Haig’s certainty starts to crack. The structure he relies on logic, evidence, rationality doesn’t hold up when the show pushes past the point of performance and into something darker. And that’s where the film really shines.

The tension between belief and skepticism becomes the real horror.

In a movie full of performers trying to create a moment for television, Haig is the one person who refuses to play along. He’s constantly pulling the curtain back and asking the question the audience is thinking: what if this is all just a show?

Ironically, that’s what makes him so compelling.

He’s the grounded presence in a film that slowly removes the ground from under everyone’s feet.

And honestly, I think every horror story needs someone like Carmichael Haig the skeptic who walks into the room convinced monsters aren’t real… only to find out the hard way that they might be.

Jack Delroy: A 1970’s Faust by Horror Hangouts

It is one of the oldest cautionary tales in literature, making a deal with the devil in order to achieve instant success. Wagering your soul for instant gratification.

We are all aware of the old story about Faust and The Devil. So much so that the term “making a Faustian bargain’ exists. Jack Delroy in Late Night With The Devil represents a 1970’s version of Faust.

Because of his ambition, Delroy makes a pact with a secret society known as The Owl Cult located in a place called the Grove. As the audience we are unclear of all the details regarding what Jack negotiated for the pursuit of fame. We do know he instantly becomes an overnight success with a popular late-night talk show, ironically enough called The Night Owls, but he never quite achieves the coveted number one spot held by the King of Late- Night, Johnny Carson.

Jack Delroy does find happiness and love as he marries a beloved actress named Madeleine. But things go terribly awry when his wife is stricken with cancer and dies soon afterwords. Could this be part of the bargain? Did Jack know or at least suspect that losing his wife, Madeline, was payment for his success?

He takes time off from the show but returns. However, the ratings of Night Owls plummet. In a last-ditch effort to save the show, Jack plans a supernatural episode on Halloween night during sweeps week. In the hope that the shows ratings can get a boost and maybe even beet Carson’s show in the ratings, three guests are booked; Christou, a psychic, Carmichael Hague, a magician but also a skeptic who explains away all the tricks that are used, and finally, a young girl named Lilly who is believed to be possessed by the devil and is accompanied by her psychologist and caretaker, Dr. June Mitchell.

The night goes from crazy to bizarre to legitimately scary. At one point, when Christou is attempting to channel spirits on the show, Jack believes his deceased wife is trying to communicate with him, which does leave him unsettled. Does he carry guilt for his wife’s death? Is he even aware that Madeleine’s death was part of the bargain he made at the Grove?

Events become more disturbing when June is able to conjure the demon known as Mr. Wriggles who possesses Lilly and she begins to levitate in the air but what is more distressing for Jack is that Mr. Wriggles seems to know him. Hague proves how this was all a hoax as he accuses June of hypnotizing everyone in to seeing something that never happened as he demonstrates this on Jack’s sidekick, Gus.

But Mr. Wriggles remerges and through Lilly kills June, Gus and Hague as Jack has visions of his late wife, who begs him to kill her to end her suffering but instead Jack kills Lilly with a dagger and awakes to an empty studio with only the corpses of his guests.

I did find the ending to be somewhat confusing. After all since Madeleine had died was that not the price for Jack’s fame. If so why did this demon come after him on this fateful night. Perhaps it had something to do with Jack tempting fate once again. Exploring the world of the paranormal without any concern for the well-being of those involved. Just to get one last chance at success.

When I observe Jack Delroy, I see neither a hero nor a villain at least not intentionally. He does appear to be a decent man who loved his wife very much but at the same time he became so obsessed with fame and fortune, he would discard any concern for himself and those around them to achieve that fame and success. We don’t know the full details of the bargain he made. My guess is, he did not fully understand the consequences of his actions.

It begs the question, what would we do if we had an opportunity at instant success? It is easy to say that we would not have gone as far as Jack. But we are all, also, human and prone to vanity and ego at times.

Jack Delroy is a mirror reflection of society. A society where everyone wants their 15 minutes of fame. We saw that now more than ever in the age of social media where anybody can be famous. What is the price that one is willing to pay and would you be willing to pay. Because that type of success by those means always will burn you in the end. I think that was the point of Late Night With The Devil and Jack Delroy.

First let me show my gratitude to Kyle Horrorble Kyle Horrorble Writer writer for orchestrating this event and allowing me to participate. There are several movies in the Friday the 13^th franchise I would have enjoyed writing about. But I finally decided on Friday the 13^th part 4.

There are a few reasons for my choice. The most obvious being that part 4 happens to be my favorite in the franchise and is in my top 25 favorite horror movies of all time. The other reason might be that part 4 is such a pivotal movie in the franchise. It is the finish of a quadrilogy and a trilogy while starting a new trilogy within the franchise. Let me explain.

The first four movies could be seen as one of the best horror quadrilogies ever made. with the first film focusing on Pamela Voorheas as the killer as a pseudo prequal to the next three films focusing on her son, Jason. The films have a common thread and a basic storyline which climaxes with part 4, hence the subtitle, The Final Chapter. Parts 2,3 and 4 work together as a trilogy in that each movie takes place one day after the previous film with the exception of part 2 which takes place a year after the original. We get one continuous story, each story taking place on a separate day. I guess technically part 4 takes place on Sunday the 15^th.

Part 4, also, marks the beginning of a new trilogy as parts 4, 5 and 6 are often referred to as the ‘Tommy Jarvis” trilogy. Three films where we watch Tommy come of age and have a character arc in defeating Jason. I have argued in the past this is what the Halloween franchise should have done with Jamie in the same number of films, but I digress. These three films also provide a bridge from the more human Jason that we see in the first four films, I suppose the 5^th even though it’s a copycat Jason, to an unstoppable zombie Jason in pars 6,7 and 8. I suppose 9 would fit in with that and Jason X ends with Uber Jason.

Friday the 13^th Part 4, starts off a few hours after part 3 ends. Cops and paramedics are at the scene of the latest bloodbath perpetrated by Jason. His body is taken to the hospital/morgue as he is believed to be dead. Jason, this time played by veteran stunt actor, Ted White awakes in the morgue and is not too keen on being in a hospital as he abruptly kills the sleezy coroner and shortly afterwards a nurse before heading back to Crystal Lake.

The next day we meet a group of friends on their way to Crystal Lake for some fun. The group comprises Paul, his girlfriend Samantha, the shy Sara, Doug, who Sara has a crush on, an awkward Jimmy, and the annoying Ted, who often picks on Jimmie and his lack of action with the opposite gender. Not that Ted has any room to talk.

The group of thrill seekers locate the house they are renting and start unpacking. Located next door is another house where a family lives which includes a single mother, Mrs. Jarvis and her two kids; teenage daughter Trish(Kimberly Beck) and her 12 year old son Tommy(Corey Feldman), who spends most of his time making masks. There is , also, the family dog, Gordon.

Later on, twin sisters, Tina and Terry join the group of partiers as they are participating in the art of skinny dipping and later that night a party at their rental house. An interesting fact, in the skinny dipping scene as most of the actresses were nude in that scene all the actors volunteered to go buff as well in the interest of comradery and fairness. I would have done the same thing at the time… except I can’t swim.

That same day, Trish and Tommy meet a man by the name of Rob, who is camping in the woods and is searching for his sister, Sandra who disappeared at Crystal Lake, more than likely a victim of Jason’s or maybe Pamela. I did some research and I don’t believe Sandra appeared in any of the previous films.

The story progresses like most Friday the 13^th movies. The kids have a party that night , some of them hook up even Jimmy( played by Crispin Glover) who earlier perform the most absurd dance in movie history. There is excessive drinking, pot smoking and a few arguments among the characters. Of course, Jason kills them one by one, leaving no survivors.

This movie contains some of the best kills scenes in the franchise. The ones I liked the most include Jimmy being killed with a corkscrew and a cleaver to the face. At least he got to lose his virginity. The death of Samantha(played by Judy Aronson) who is killed on a raft in the lake and Doug who is killed in the shower. Always like a good shower deaths scene. I will admit I cheered Ted’s deaths scene as he was easily the most annoying of the group.

It begins to rain with thunder and lightning as it always seems to do in these movies. The power goes out in both the party house and the Jarvis household. Trish and Rob investigate and are unable to locate Trish’s mother who is killed off screen. They do discover a slew of bloody corpses and the next-door house. They are confronted by Jason who eventually kills Rob who attempts to make a stand against hockey masked killer. We don’t see too much of the kill, but Rob’s screams of agony tells us all we need to know.

The movie concludes with a showdown between Jason versus Trish and her brother Tommy at their house. Trish shows her resolve by taking the fight to Jason while Tommy opts for a more psychological approach. He has studied Jason and desperately shaves his head to mimic a younger Jason. The masked and relentless killer’s attention is diverted away from Trish to Tommy who may remind him of himself as a child. Trish takes the opportunity to attack Jason Voorheas as his head slides down his own machete.

As Tommy and Trish embrace, Tommy catches a glance of Jason twitching, he is not quite dead yet. So, the young child grabs the machete and in a fit of rage continues to stab Jason repeatedly shouting the words, “Die” several times. This whole sequence is my favorite ending of the franchise. Though officially the end of the movie takes place in a hospital where Trish wakes up and hugs her brother who has a vile look in his eyes. Could Tommy become the next Jason?

There are many reasons why this chapter in the Friday the 13^th franchise is a favorite of mine as it is for many other fans.

First, that late great Ted White is probably my favorite version of Jason Voorheas, which is saying a lot as I am a fan of just about every performance of the character. Each actor seems to take what the previous actor did with the character and then built on it. Whites performance is one of the more brutal performances of Jason up to that point. This is the first time we see the hockey masked clad killer actually threaten to kill a child. As a side note the no- nonsense Ted White really couldn’t stand Corey Feldman who played Tommy and there were a couple occasions where he probably really wanted to do bodily harm to Feldman.

Second the return of famed make-up effects artis Tom Savini. Savini had worked on the original film gifting us some gruesome and memorable kills. He would up his game even more with even more gory kills in this chapter and overall, the best in the series.

Next there are our typical party goers who add to the body count one by one. Friday the 13^th’s main strength is for the most part providing us the viewers with a cast of characters that are fun, at times annoying but most important relatable. These were the people we grew up with. They were our classmates, our friends, our rivals, our crushes and they were us. Part 4 shines in this with the character. It is always a toss up between parts 2,3, and 4 as to my favorite cast.

Finally, there is a Final girl and a Final kid. Kimberly Beck does a terrific job playing Trish who serves as a protector to her younger brother Tommy but holds her own against Jason at the same time. It is a shame we never learned what happened to the character after part 4. I wish they would have brought her back in either part 5 or 6.

Tommy Jarvis is no helpless child as he attempts to outwit Jason, much like Ginny in part two. Where Trish tries to protect Tommy, he reciprocates the gesture by saving her and himself delivering several fatal blows to Jason with the machete. The sister/ brother tandem work well together to defeat and hopefully kill Jason.

Corey Feldman brought a charm and likability to the character of Tommy who paved the way for other future child characters in the slasher genre like Jamie in Halloween 4 and Andy in Childs Play. Wouldn’t it have been great had there been a cross-over between those three films and their characters?

We have all been kids once and all had those monsters we might have been afraid of. Through Tommy Jarvis we could conquer those monsters and feel brave in a world full of monsters.

The Scarestack Society’s 13 Days Of Jason:

3/1 Friday The 13th (2009 Remake)- Skyla

3/2 Freddy vs Jason- Kristen (Blood, Blush, and Guts)

3/3 Jason X- Molly O’Blivion

3/4 Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday- George R. Galuschak (Abandoned Places)

3/5 Friday The 13th: Jason Takes Manhattan- Sean Mo (Mo’s Movie Malpractice)

3/6 Friday The 13th: The New Blood- Kyle (Horrorble Writer)

3/7 Friday The 13th: Jason Lives- Jamie B. (Reel Focus)

3/8 Friday The 13th: The New Beginning- Brandon Rae (Tales From The Tape)

3/9 Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter- Horror Hangouts

3/10 Friday The 13th Part 3- B-Movie Tea

3/11 Friday The 13th Part 2- Hellish Views - Harry Evans

3/12 Friday The 13th Full Series Home Video Overview- Jean-Pierre Diez (Habitual Cinema)

3/13 Friday The 13th (1980)- Kimberly Ramsawak (Horror Concierge)

It has been a long time since I last did one of these side-by-side comparison reviews. Comparing Manhunter with Red Dragon, has been on the top of my to-do lists. Given we just recently lost actor, Tom Noonan, I thought this was an appropriate time to resume this series.

Both of these movies are based off the Thomas Harris novel, Red Dragon, which is a prequel to the highly acclaimed Silence of the Lambs. I will admit I am a much bigger fan of the Red Dragon story and movies than Silence of the Lambs. An unpopular opinion, I am sure, but as most of you know, I am often full of unpopular opinions. Some would say I am full of something else…lol. But for this post I am focusing on the two movie adaptations of the same story, Red Dragon.

Manhunter from 1986 was the first movie to feature the iconic character Dr. Hannibal Lecter and was directed by Michael Mann, whom to most of us Gen Xers is most famous for creating the iconic police drama series, Miami Vice. He would, also, go on to direct movies like Heat and Collateral. His version of this story would star William Peterson, Tom Noonan, Brian Cox and Dennis Farina. The reason why Manhunter was not called Red Dragon had to do with a movie that was released in 1985, titled Year of the Dragon, which flopped at the box office (a shame because that is actually a good movie), and the producers wanted to avoid any confusion or association with that film.

Red Dragon was made in 2002 and directed by Bret Rattner, who is best known for not being such a great human being. This movie starred Edward Norton, Ralph Fiennes, Anthony Hopkins and Harvey Keittel.

Both movies include terrific casts, and I enjoyed both but one manages to stand head and shoulders above the other. Let’s find out which one I prefer. Keep in mind, I am just comparing the movies themselves and not to the original source material.

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The Story:

Obviously, with Red Dragon being a remake of Manhunter, the bare bones of the story for both movies are the same. Ex- FBI agent Will Graham, who just a few years earlier successfully apprehended notorious serial killer, Hannibal Lecter, is asked to return to the bureau by his former superior agent Jack Crawford to advise, profile and help catch a serial killer by the nickname of the Tooth Fairie, who is responsible for brutally killing two families. Both the family of victims were murdered under a full moon and teeth marks were found on their bodies.

Reluctantly Graham agrees to return for this one case and consults with his former adversary, Dr. Lecter, to gain insight into the Tooth Faire who we find out later, that his real name is Francis Dollarhyde. Graham and the FBI desperately try to locate the killer and identify him before he strikes again on the next full moon.

Where the movies differ from a narrative standpoint is that in Red Dragon, the movie starts with Graham capturing Lecter but is severely wounded in the process where in Manhunter, the movie begins with Crawford approaching Graham at his beach house and asks him to come back to the FBI. This is my one critique of Manhunter. I wish they had used the opening scene that we saw in Red Dragon as it would have given more context to the nature of the relationship between Graham and Lecter.

The other big difference is the ending. In Red Dragon the movie ends with a confrontation at Graham’s house in Florida as he along with his wife and son are now targets of Dollarhyde, who locates Graham’s address with the help of Lecter. The subplot of Lecter providing the address to Dollarhyde does play out in Manhunter, but in the second act there is no confrontation.

The climax of Manhunter takes place at Dollarhyde’s home where he has a woman held hostage and plans on murdering her before Graham, other FBI agents and local police arrive and a viscous shootout between Dollarhyde and the cops ensues. Most of the final scene is synchronized to the classic rock anthem In A Gadda Da Vida by Iron Butterfly.

I prefer the ending in Manhunter but prefer the beginning in Red Dragon.

When it comes to the story, I give the edge to… a tie.

The Look, Vibe and Atmosphere:

Red Dragon has the look and feel of a 2000’s movie and let’s face it a movie made in 2002 could easily pass for a movie made in 2012 or 2022. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it is a well-made movie, it just looks like almost every other movie made around that time

Manhunter on the other hand very much looks like a movie made in the 1980’s and with this being made by Michael Mann, it has its own unique style and vibe to it. Mann had the talent of presenting a glamorous look that the eighties were known for while also presenting a seedy element to the movie. Everything looks bright and colorful at first glance but underneath there is something rotting away. The atmosphere of the movie is heightened by the score which does sound very 80’s. Some of those who contributed were composer Michael Rubini and the band, The Reds.

The atmosphere of Manhunter was unique and effective even within 1986.

Edge… Manhunter

The Supporting Cast:

Both films have a strong supporting cast. The character of Jack Crawford is portrayed by Dennis Farina in Manhunter, who always seems to play a cop or a mobster in every role he plays, and Harvey Keittel plays the character in Red Dragon, also, always seems to play a cop or mobster in every role I see him in. Both do a fantastic job in those roles, while bringing their own personality. Playing the sleezy and obnoxious tabloid reporter, Freddy Lounds is Stephen Lang (Manhunter) and Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Red Dragon). Both of whom bring their ‘A” game when portraying that character with both characters meeting a fiery end in the form of the most infamous death scene in either film where Lounds is kidnapped by Dollarhyde, strapped to a wheelchair and set ablaze. Then there is the wife of Will Graham, Molly Graham played by Kim Geist in Manhunter and Mary-Louise Parker in Red Dragon. Both actresses do a good job, but Parker does shine a bit more as she is given a bit more to do in the movie. It is a tough pick.

A slight edge to Red Dragon

Dr. Hannibal Lecter:

Portrayed by Brian Cox in Manhunter and Anthony Hopkins in Red Dargon.

When we think of the character of Hannibal Lecter most people automatically think Anthony Hopkins as he played the character in three movies: Red Dragon being the third. Hopkins gives a great performance. However, Brian Cox was the first to portray the character on the big screen and was my introduction to the character.

The portrayal of Lecter by both actors in Manhunter/Red Dragon are similar but different. Lecter’s articulation and intelligence comes out in both performances as does his sinister qualities. Whereas Hopkins, I would say, gives more of a Shakespearian type of performance with hints of charm and humor, Cox gives more of a grounded performance with a sense of dread and realism.

It might have something to do that I saw Manhunter a few years before Silence of the Lambs was released, but I find Cox as Lecter to be more twisted and frightening. Hopkins as to try to be evil as Lecter. In contrast Cox displays the evil more naturally. There is nothing redeemable about Lecter in Manhunter. Brian cox portrays him as a true villain and not an anti-hero type as Hopkins portrayal comes across.

It would have been interesting if Cox was brought back to play the character in Silence of the Lambs. Would the dynamic between Lecter and Clarice been any different? Perhaps each actor were the right choice for the right movies. But as it pertains to this story?

The edge goes to Manhunter.

Frances Dollarhyde aka The Tooth Fairie:

Played by Tom Noonan in Manhunter and Ralph Fiennes in Red Dragon.

Now, Ralph Fiennes is a terrific actor and always delivers. But comparing the performances of Frances Dollarhyde, the main antagonist. It is not even close. Tom Noonan’s performance makes the character more menacing and intimidating. Perhaps it is his look or his soft-spoken voice that makes him even more creepy than what Fiennes was able to portray. Fiennes still looks like his normal handsome self where Noonan truly looks psychotic. There is too much vulnerability in Fiennes performance as compared to Noonan’s performance. Sure, Dollarhyde in Manhunter has moments of awkwardness and vulnerability but not enough to gain anyone’s sympathy. The way Noonan plays the character is relentless and without fear. We see this in the ending, when after knocking Graham unconscious, Dollarhyde knows there may be other cops around and immediately grabs a shotgun and without hesitation or remorse kills several police in a shootout.

The edge goes to Manhunter

Will Graham:

Portrayed by William Peterson in Manhunter and Edward Norton in Red Dragon.

As always, Edward Norton gives a great performance. But William Peterson gives it something extra. Norton might have played Will Graham, but it feels like Peterson becomes Will Graham.

This is a layered character who is still traumatized by his past career as an FBI profiler, especially regarding Hannibal Lecter. That experience caused Graham to spend time in a mental hospital and resigning from the FBI. On the surface he is a devoted family man with a wife and son. But deep-down underneath, he is obsessed with discovering who and why a killer does what they do. This is evident when Crawford shows Graham pictures of the families who were murdered. Looking at his facial expressions, he has no choice but to return to work even if it is just for this case.

Peterson brings a certain level of intensity and darkness to the role, that Norton just doesn’t quite match.

The Edge goes to Manhunter.

Final Thoughts:

What gives the edge to Manhunter for me comes down to the portrayal of the characters, specifically Graham, Lecter and Dollarhyde. The actors portraying those characters immerse themselves in those characters and become them in a way that the Red Dragon actors don’t quite achieve.

Then there is the obvious 1980’s style and vibe to Manhunter, that only Michael Mann could deliver on. As someone who grew up in the 80’s and first watched this movie on network television in 1988, I can appreciate it. My guess is depending on your age; it might determine which movie you prefer. Gen Xers like myself will more than likely gravitate to Manhunter while younger Millennials and perhaps Gen Z will prefer Red Dragon, but I could be guilty of profiling when I make that statement.

Red Dragon has a cast that includes well-known A- list actors who were well known before making that movie. Manhunter’s cast by contrast includes what many would consider B-list or television actors who gave A-list performances.

I enjoyed Red Dragon as an entertaining and worthy remake and as a strong prequel to Silence of the Lambs, but the intensity and realism isn’t quite where I would like it and I do see Fiennes portrayal of Dollarhyde made that character a bit weaker and not as menacing as Noonan’s portrayal.

Overall, I give Red Dragon an 8/10 and Manhunter a 9.5 out of 10.

Manhunter: Final Confrontation

Molly O' Blivion Substack

Lurking Fear was made by Charles Band’s Full Moon Production which gave the horror movie genre many low- budget yet fun direct to video movies. The movie was based off a short story by H.P. Lovecraft of the same name and was written and directed by C. Courtney Joyner and starred Jeffrey Combs, Ashley Laurence, Blake Adams, Jon Finch and Paul Mantee.

The movie takes place in a small town known as Leffert’s Corner. For decades a race of ghoulish and ungodly creatures inhabit the depths of the town feeding on the unsuspecting citizens.

In an attempt to stop these creatures once and for all, a young woman named Cathryn Farrell and the town doctor, Dr. Haggis devise a plan to destroy these murderous creatures and end their reign of terror once and for all.

Unfortunately, their plans get complicated when a bunch of criminals show up to find a hidden fortune buried somewhere in a church graveyard.

Now I am not going to say this is a great movie. With the exception of a few performances the acting is a bit campy and over the top as you might suspect, the editing is a bit choppy, and it could have been more gruesome. That being said I love this film. It is just dumb fun and there are a few really good characters brought to life by some great performances by those who portrayed them. It is those characters that my horror sibling, Molly and I will be writing about.

I will be writing about Cathryn, played by Ashley Laurence (Kirsty from Hellraiser). While Molly will be writing about Dr. Haggis played by Jeffrey Combs (Herbert West from Re-Animater).

For those who may not know, Molly is a huge fan of Re-Animater and Jeffrey Combs is one of if not her favorite actors in horror. Her love for the movie and the actor is matched by my own love of Hellraiser and my favorite actress in horror, Ashley Laurence.

It was a no-brainer for us to tackle this subject with a movie that stars both our favorite performers in roles that are not talked about much. Prepare to witness the two of us totally nerding out on this one.

Cathryn Farrell by Josh aka Horror Hangouts:

When we first meet Cathryn, it is the pre-credit opening scene. It is a Christmas Eve night, and Cathryn is with her sister and her sister’s baby in a house in Leffert’s Corner. When we first meet our heroin, she is timid and shy and unsure of herself. It is her sister, Leigh, who is the strong and defiant one of the two. Her sister fears for her baby’s safety as she knows what lurks underneath the town. When one of the ghoulish creatures attempt to steal her baby, Leigh fights it off but is dragged away amidst the horror in Cathryn’s who manages to save the baby.

Fast forward a few years later, Cathryn is now dressed for battle, she has since partnered up with Dr. Haggis and between the two of them try to save as many people of Leffert’s Corner as they can. We can tell that Cathryn has changed. The timid insecure young woman has now become hardened and full of rage and ready to exact revenge on the vile creature who killed her sister.

Her and Haggis have a plan to destroy these beings once and for all. They know their nest is underneath the local church and devise a plot to plant explosives in the graveyard.

Their preparations go awry when entering the picture that night is an ex-con by the name of John Martense who is just looking for some money his deceased father buried just for him. But unknowingly he has led three criminals to the church who are also looking for the money.

This is where Cathryn shows her resolve. Not only does she have to deal with what lurks beneath but now there is a bunch of idiotic thieves all looking for their money. She doesn’t back down or cower to any of them. The group of thieves lead by their boss Bennet who is a smug arrogant prick and his two lackeys Pierce (your typical dumb henchman) and a femme fatale in Miss Marlowe.

Cathryn, also, and rightfully so does not trust John one bit as she blames him for leading the unholy trio to the very spot where her and Haggis was planning to blow up the unearthly beings. Some girls may have fallen for John’s charm and good looks but not Cathryn, who forces him to earn her trust and eventually he does.

Her only focus is killing these creatures but has to think on her feet and come up with another way of blowing up the graveyard.

At one point in the final act, Cathryn has a fight outside in the graveyard with Miss Marlowe and despite being outmatched physically The resilient warrior outsmarts her adversary dispatching her when she shoots a pack of dynamite.

Eventually Cathryn accomplishes her mission and gets justice for her sister and Dr. Haggis who eventually perishes at the hands of the creatures who we find out are known as The Martense Clan, which makes John a relative of these beings.

Cathryn has a certain strength in her and shows resolve and determination. She will protect people like Maria, a pregnant lady who is present at the church. Using her quick wit, she proves to be resourceful even when the situation is dire. Cathryn proves that the ability to outsmart your opponents is more important than outfighting them.

She never chose or wanted to be a warrior, she simply had no choice, which in life is often the case for most of us. Cathryn easily could have just left town a long time ago, but when you have cockroaches in your house, you don’t leave your house. Instead, you kill the cockroaches.

I wish we could have gotten a bit more of a back story to Cathryn, being able to see her grow between the events of her sister being killed and present day. It would have been great to have had a sequel so we could follow this character on more journeys.

Dr. Haggis by Molly O’Blivion:

When we first meet Dr. Haggis, he’s wrestling a pregnant and wounded woman onto a hospital bed with a cigarette dangling out of his mouth. Perhaps not the most comforting first impression of a town doctor, for some, but it tells us immediately that he’s a guy who knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s blunt, a little snarky, and clearly exhausted, but he also has surprisingly good bedside manners. In spite of all the horrors he’s witnessed, he genuinely cares about his patients and will continue to fight like hell to keep them alive for as long as he can. It’s not a huge departure from the many doctorly roles Combs’ has played throughout his career, but it’s definitely one of the more grounded. He’s not a mad doctor; just a sad doctor.

Oh, and a very sarcastic one.

“Well, now you and your friends know our little town secret. You wanna move in? I know a lot of places you can get for cheap.”

Unlike Cathryn, we don’t see a major transformation in Haggis at any point in the film. From introduction to exit, he’s just a small-town doctor who’s been warding off the creatures beneath Leffert’s Corner for decades. We’re not given a whole lot of detailed exposition about the monsters, which is a little disappointing, but most of what we do get comes directly from the good doctor, who’s become a bit of an expert in them simply because he’s had to treat so many of their victims. There’s a solid mix of wisdom and weariness in him, and he says himself that he’s tired of healing his patients only to see them torn apart again.

As Cathryn and Haggis put their plan into motion to destroy the creatures’ nest, the differences between them are revealed to be among their greatest strength as allies. They’re both driven by rage at what’s been done to the people they care about, but Cathryn is fueled by revenge while Haggis is motivated more by a deeply rooted sense of responsibility. He carries the full weight of the town’s suffering on his shoulders - which he drowns with alcohol at every opportunity - but even when John and the thieves show up and complicate everything, even as a monstrous bloodbath looms ever closer to the church surface, he never stops caring. Cathryn keeps him focused while Haggis keeps her from losing her humanity entirely to vengeance.

There’s also something unspoken between the two that I can’t quite put my finger on. Mutual respect, for sure, but possibly something deeper, at least from Haggis. At one point, he tells Cathryn that once the monsters are gone, they should leave and go someplace - any place - else. It’s a small moment, but it reveals that underneath the perfectly timed sarcasm and drunken bitterness, Haggis is still a bit of a dreamer, and the light he envisions at the end of this brutal tunnel includes her. I don’t think she feels quite the same way he does, but I also think she’s so fixated on their goal that she doesn’t even have time to think about it.

When I first saw this movie, I was worried they were going to give the character an unceremonious death, as we hard cut away from him just as he’s being attacked by one of the creatures, but we thankfully cut back just in time for him to go out the same way he came in: fighting. The film gets a gaggle of points from me for letting Haggis die a hero. After being torn to shreds by the creatures, he uses his last bit of strength to try to protect Cathryn… and her name is the last thing he utters as he goes. It’s not flashy, but it’s pretty powerful. For a man who’s spent twenty years trying to save everyone, it feels right that his final act is a selfless one.

I agree with my co-writer that Lurking Fear isn’t a great movie, but both Ashley Laurence and Jeffrey Combs bring something special to their roles that make it worth the runtime. Combs was free to use his impeccable sense of timing to give the film a bit of comedic relief, however embittered and drunken that humor may be. And I find it fitting that, in a movie that (in theory) is all about monsters lurking beneath the surface of a small town, that small town’s healer is wrestling with his own inner demons, as well: grief, loss, hatred for the curse upon his home, and possibly unrequited love. He is, in many ways, the heart of the story.

“After we do this, let’s find any place else.”

Like Josh said of Cathryn, I wish we’d gotten more backstory for Haggis and the entire town, for that matter. The whole “reformed thief” storyline with John, Bennett, and the rest is far less interesting, in my opinion, than what’s going on underneath Leffert’s Corner. Whenever we cut away from Cathryn and Haggis, I find myself just biding my time until they come back. If they’d omitted the crooks, let Laurence or Combs narrate instead with some much-needed exposition, and focused on… y’know… the lurking fear, this would be a solid 5-star movie for me. As it stands, I love precisely half of it, and that half is Cathryn and Haggis all the way.

Side note by Molly: Lurking Fear (1994) was actually the second time Jeffrey Combs appeared as a good guy in what is technically a Christmas movie produced by Full Moon. The other is one of my favorite B-movies of all time: Doctor Mordrid (1992). Production design for both films was credited to Milo and both were written by C. Courtney Joyner. I realize that it has nothing to do with character analysis or anything - I just think it’s neat.

In Closing by Josh: I would certainly agree with Molly on her analysis that we needed less of the criminals and more of Haggis and Catherine along with more exposition of the monsters. Sometimes though a mediocre movie can be made enjoyable when that movie includes your favorite actors who have a natural talent for elevating the movie around them.

What does make this movie special is observing ordinary people rising above the challenge and overcoming the hurdles that life throws at us.It gives the movie some heart and soul. Afterall, isn’t that why we love horror in the first place. We don’t need to be Wonder Woman or Captain America, we just need to be ourselves, that is when we are at our strongest. The performances of Cathryn and Haggis by Ashley Laurence and Jeffrey Combs exemplifies this , which is why Molly and I love them and hopefully you will too.

You can find Lurking Fear on TUBI.

Thank you for reading.

Molly and Josh

Prior to 1992, when Candyman was released, most horror films took place in a rural area, far from everywhere and close to nowhere. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre would be a great example of that. Maybe they took place somewhere in the woods or a campground. The suburbs pr a small town became likely settings for evil to strike. Not many that I can think of took place in an urban setting, especially not in an American city. Granted many Giallo movies and gothic movies might take place in a large city, but none really explored the seedy side of these metropolitan areas especially in the context of Black America. That is where Candyman directed by Bernard Rose and starring Tony Todd and Virginia Madson brought something new and fresh to the horror genre. Establishing a setting that many people who grew up and live in those neighborhoods could relate to.

What makes our favorite horror movies unique is not just the story, but what we get out of the story. How we interpret what the movie is trying to say.

So, lets first look at the story of Candyman itself.

The Story

Skeptical graduate student Helen Lyle befriends Anne-Marie McCoy while researching superstitions in a housing project in Chicago’s. Helen learns about the Candyman, a knife-wielding figure of urban legend that some of her neighbors believe to be responsible for a recent murder. After a mysterious man matching the Candyman’s description begins stalking her, Helen comes to fear that the legend may be all too real.

Helen learns about the legend of Candyman, an old urban legend regarding a son of a slave by the name of Daniel Robitaille also known as the Candyman, Say his name while looking in the mirror, five times and he will appear to take you as his victim. It would appear that the Candyman wishes to make Helen, who reminds him of his past love, his victim.

What I learned from the story and what I think it was trying to say?

In my younger years, when I still lived in Indiana, I often traveled to Chicago, where Candyman takes place. There were many times I would watch the White Sox at old Comiskey Park, located in the south side of Chicago in not so great of a neighborhood. I might , also watch the Bulls or Blackhawks in Chicago Stadium or the newer United Center which are located in the southwest part of the city and also not exactly in a desirable neighborhood.

During those travels, I often though it was ironic that I am going to watch a game played by millionaires in the service of billionaire owners right in the middle of a low income area. Observing the run-down neighborhoods and viewing those who might have been homeless made me wonder what life was like for them. Did they live in fear? Was there a sense of despair or hopelessness that surrounded their neighborhood like a fortress they could not escape from. Candyman gives us a glimpse into what it might be like to live in that type of neighborhood in any city in America. Sure, there were movies like Do The Right Thing and Boyz in The Hood, but no horror movies in that setting.

Candyman was based off of a short story written by Clive Barker titled the Forbidden. Barker was approached by writer/director Bernard Rose who expressed his interest in adapting the story. Rose purchased the rights from Barker and the rest is history. The original story was actually based in London and focused on economic class issues where Rose brought the story to Chicago focusing on racism as well as classism, using the urban legend of Daniel Robitaille aka the Candyman played brilliantly by Tony Todd, to convey society’s ills.

Robitaille who in his previous life was murdered by a lynch mob for falling in love with a white woman, doesn’t just represent the sins of the past but, also, regrettably the sins of the present. This could be seen in both 1992 when the movie was released but unfortunately today.

We see the economic despair and the inequality when we meet Helen played by Virginia Madson and her uppity husband, Trevor who live in a affluent apartment, a stark contrast to the apartment building Helen and her friend investigate when they are researching stories of the Candyman. The theme of economic despair is nothing new to the horror genre as it was explored in Texas Chainsaw Massacre, only in a rural area instead of an urban area. The Sawyer family in a way were created by society and a system designed to leave people behind. The same could be said for Daniel Robitialle but those who have endured the inequalities of our economy. The Candyman isn’t your traditional villain, he like another one of Clive Barker’s creation, Pinhead , represents the consequences of our actions.

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Stories written by Barker often do hold a mirror up to society, which is probably why Rose was so enthusiastic in making this movie. The sins of the past, another theme often used in horror, always seem to haunt the present. The question is not only do we acknowledge those sins but how do we make things right and avoid repeating those same sins.

Perhaps, Helen understood this and eventually made the ultimate sacrifice in the end.

Thank you for reading and Happy Black History month.

Candyland was first released at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland, August of 2022 but wasn’t released in America on streaming platforms until January of 2023. So, it’s debatable whether this is a 2022 film or 2023.

Anyway, this gritty and realistic slasher film directed by John Swab made quite the impression on my when I first viewed it shortly after it made its way to TUBI.

The movie takes place in the 1990’s right around Christmas time. It isn’t mentioned but based on the scenic snow topped mountains in the background and references to Route 66 , I am guessing Colorado or northern New Mexico or Arizona. We follow a group of Lot Lizards (prostitutes who work truck stops). The tight nit group are comprised of Sadie (Sam Quartin), Liv (Virginia Rand), Riley (Eden Brolin) and a male prostitute, Levi(Owen Campbell, who some of you might remember played RJ in X.) The sex workers live in a motel near the truck stop which is run by their madame, Nora (Guinevere Turner), who acts as a mother figure. We are also introduced to the local sheriff, Rex( William Baldwin), who looks after the lot lizards, and is not at all bothered by their illegal activity but why would he, as he often enlists the services of Levi.

Early on in the story we get a good amount of time learning about each of the girls and the guy and it clear that have a family dynamic where they support one another. A new girl is introduced to the group named Remy (Olivia Luccardi) who is a member of a strict fundamentalist religious sect but has been kicked out by her family with no where to go. Sadie, who acts as the big sister of the group invites her to stay with them and the sexually repressed Remy soon learns the tricks of the trade.

But shortly after a series of brutal murders engulf the truck stop as many of the customers or johns are found dead and lying with their arms crossed over their chests. Soon the lizards themselves fall prey to the killer.

Now, I will admit, it doesn’t take too long to figure out who the killer is but what remains a mystery is the killer’s true motive. Is the killer stalking and murdering the victims out of spite or does the killer believe they are saving these people. And will anyone survive in the end.

On the surface Candyland, appears to be a sleazy and gritty slasher movie accompanied by gruesome kills, sex and nudity. But similar to Ti West’s X, this movie has some layers and depth to it.

The Lot Lizards are seen and portrayed as human beings despite what opinions we have of those engaged in the world’s oldest profession. They are a family unit that support one another and ironically a much more positive family than the religious sect they come across. By bringing their humanity to the forefront we feel for them when they are in danger or killed. That is where the horror works best when a horror movie becomes a human story.

The direction and cinematography captures the atmosphere and the dark seedy life of prostitutes perfectly. The performances are well done with Sam Quartin and Owen Campbell being the standouts.

Then there is the narrative on the dangers of not just the life of a sex worker but extremism in regard to religion but an analogy could be made for political groups and any other social groups where an individual will commit harm on another human without remorse for what they perceive to be the greater good.

I guess my one critique would have been, I wish there was more mystery as to who was doing the killing. This would have added more suspense to the tragic and sad slasher horror film grounded in reality.

Overall, I give Candyland a 9/10. You can view it on TUBI.

Thanks for reading.

Jinx, You owe me a coke

10. Garden of Eden

Directed by Marcel Walz

Starring Robert Rusler, Monique Parent, Sarah Polednak and Sarah French

I guess this would fall under religious cult horror. A husband and wife who have their own ministry host an exclusive masquerade party where one lucky guest gets the opportunity for salvation through an act of revenge. I enjoyed this movie for the most part. It is certainly weird and unusual, which is a good thing. The performances were good and there are some extremely gruesome deaths. There is a scene at the end of self-mutilation that will make any man cringe. 7.5/10

Streaming on Amazon Prime

9. Death to Snow White

Directed by Jason Brooks

Starring Sanae Loutsis, Chelsea Edmundson, Tristan Nokes, Jeremy Hallam and Ali Chapman.

The Death of Snow White might be my favorite version of this story. It’s gory, the performances are pretty good for a low budget film. The humor is done well and doesn’t feel out of place. The dwarfs are my favorite characters these versions are some viscous and foul mouthed little bad asses. There are some plot holes and some things in the story that don’t make sense, Still had an enjoyable time with the movie. 7.5/10

Streaming on TUBI

8. Predator: Killer of Killers

Directed by Dan Tractenberg

Starring as voice actors: Lindsay LaVanchy, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Rick Gonzales and Michael Biehn

I don’t know if this counts as horror, but I really enjoyed this animated entry to this series. Three separate tales involving a Predator in three different times in history involving Vikings, samurai and a Worl War 2 pilot.All of whom come in conflict with a Predator.

The three stories come together in the last act and there is a fun nod to Predator, Predator 2 and Prey at the very end. My favorite character was Ursa, a Viking Queen; Is it strange to be attracted to an animated character?? Anyhow this is the type of Predator movie I want to see, I loved most of it. The WW2 segment does drag a bit for me, but the rest was excellent. 8.0/10,

Streaming on HULU

7. The Ugly Stepsister

Directed by Emilie Blichfeldt

Starring Lea Myren, Thea Sofie Loch Naess, Ane Dahl Torp and Flo Fagerli.

An entertaining and unique take on this fairy tale. If you like some of the themes of The Substance, I think you will like this movie. There is some fantastic gory scenes and the fact that we are watching this story from the point of view of the ugly stepsister rather than the Cinderella character really works for the story. I would have liked more horror elements, and it is a little longer than it needs to be but highly recommend this movie. Also you will need to turn on closed captions as it is in Norwegian. 8/10

Streaming on AMC Plus, Shudder and HULU

6. It Feeds

Directed by Chad Archibald

Starring Ashley Greene, Shayelin Martin, Shawn Ashemore and Ellie O’Brien

A psychological horror movie where the demon haunts you from the inside, slowly deteriorating its victim. The movie is about a clairvoyant mother and her daughter discover a demon that feeds on people from within and try to stop it. Gruesome body horror with great performances. There is a scene in the third act involving an abduction that just wasn’t needed. The movie would have concluded with or without that scene. Felt like filler. But I enjoyed the movie overall. 8/10

Streaming on HULU

5. Together

Directed by Michael Shanks

Starring Allison Brie and Dave Franco

Nothing like a heartwarming romantic story where a couple moves to the country to rebuild their relationship and a Cronenberg style body horror movie breaks out. Together knows how to finish a story. The movie starts out surreal and gloomy but then gets gory and hysterical, a perfect ending. The moral of the story; When you find that special someone, you are stuck with them for life. 8.5/10

Streaming on HULU

4. In A Grip of Terror

Directed by Lawrie Brewster

Starring Megan Tremethick, Laurence R. Harvey, Jonathan Hansler, Michael Daviot and Jane Merrow.

If you love horror anthologies, then I highly recommend this crowd funded indie film from Scotland. I was impressed with the atmosphere, and all four stories are well written with intrigue and the acting is terrific. 8.5/10

Check out my in-depth review here: Movie Review

Not streaming anywhere but can be purchased here:Hex Studios

3. Sinners

Directed by Ryan Coogler

Starring Michael B Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Wunmi Mosaku, Omar Benson Miller and Jack O’ Connell

What starts off as a post-World War 2 era story about two brothers trying to open up their own club as a business venture, turns on its head as they and their patrons are attacked by vampires.

The movie does drag a little bit in the beginning but gets better and better. The concept seems similar to “From Dusk to Dawn” but better balanced from a plot driven and character driven storyline.

There is a subplot involving a Native American tribe that are vampire hunters but is never explore again. Besides that I eniyed the performances and the well written and directed story. 9/10

Streaming on HBO/Max

2. Weapons

Directed by Zach Cregger

Starring Josh Brolin, Julia Gardner, Amy Madigan and Benedict Wong

This movie wasn’t as good as I thought it would be… it was better. Take a witchcraft horror story told in the structure of a Quinten Tarrantino movie with a splash of humor from a Cohen brothers movie and you have Weapons. Every child one night disappears, and all are in the same class except one child who does not vanish. The father of one of the kids goes on a obsessed quest to find his son and the other kids only to find there is something far more sinister underneath. The ending was absolutely perfect. I actually laughed my ass off during the finale. 9/10

Streaming on HNO MAX

1. Night of the Reaper

Directed by Brandon Christensen

Starring Jessica Clement, Ryan Robbins, Summer Howell, Keegan Connor Tracy and Ben Cockell

The biggest surprise of the year. Now if you are expecting a slasher movie with a high body count, you might be disappointed. In fact, I would guess more dogs get killed than humans but don’t worry there are no scenes where we see dogs get killed. My one critique is that there are too many off-screen kills. Though there is one gruesome kill that will make you shout, “what the fuck!!!”. That being said this is a brilliantly written and well-acted horror movie. I love it when a movie not only exceeds my expectations but subverts them. You think you are watching a slasher movie where someone dressed up as the grim reaper is killing babysitters but turn into a cat and mouse game of revenge. Night of the Reaper does a terrific job of building up its protagonists; Deena and Sherrif Arnold and the twist makes you go “oh wow I did not see that coming” 9/10

Streaming on Shudder and AMC Plus

There is still a few movies I need to see from 2025 and will get to them eventually. Overall I think 2025 was s trong year based on what I have seen. There wasn’t anything as great as The Substance or Nosferatu from last year, But nothing tat i hated like a few movies from last year that I won’t name.

Happy New Years Everyone!!!!

I recently just finished watching the eight-episode HBOMAX series Welcome to Derry which is a prequel to IT, specifically the movies. Overall, I enjoyed the series but there were a few things that I am on the fence on and maybe would have done differently. I am not going to dee a huge deep dive into the plot but will be discussing some spoilers… so

MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD

The story takes place in 1962, 27 years before the events of It Chapter 1. It has woken from its 27-year slumber and is now preying on the people of Derry. It takes his first victim, a boy named Matty, in the opening scene. I could go on and on with the story but that could take several more pages. I will touch on some aspects of the story though.

We are introduced to several characters. First there are as I refer to the Losers Club prototype: Lilly, Will (who we presume is Mike Hanlon’s father), Ronnie (Who could be Mike’s mother), Rich and Marge (who we find out in the last episode is Ritchie Tozier’s mother).

There is also Mike’s grandparents: Major Leroy Hanlon and Charlotte Hanlon.

General Shaw, who is Leroy’s commanding officer.

Dick Halloran, Yes, the same Dick Halloran from The Shining.

Rose, who is an elder of the local Native American tribe that has dealt with It through several generations and knows how to contain him.

Hank Grogan, Ronnie’ father who is falsely accused of killing the children that were victims of It in the first episode.

Police Chief Clint Bowers, who we would assume is the grandfather of Henry Bowers and he is every bit the asshole as his grandson. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree in this family.

What did I like?

For starters Bill Skarsgard as It or Pennywise when he takes that form. His performance was terrific as always. Now we don’t see Pennywise until later in the series. But his presence is felt from the very beginning. And we do see Pennywise at his most brutal in this series, especially in the last two episodes. Skarsgard, like in the movies, makes every on-screen appearance count.

The gore and effects are done really well. Even some of the CGI is done well enough to where you can’t tell what is practical and what is digital. Though some of the CGI does look a little wonky at times.

Buy Me A Coke

Having the character of Dick Halloran was a big positive. He is being used by the military to locate the presence of IT along with three ancient Native American burial markers designed to keep It contained. I love the idea of bringing another Stephen King story into this story. I hope they do more of this in future seasons.

Overall, I enjoyed the child characters in this series with Will and Ronnie being the standouts. Although they still didn’t quite resonate with me in the way that the Losers Club in the movies and mini-series did. Perhaps they need one more kid in the group.

I really liked to character of Rose and thought it was a good idea of introducing the Native American tribe into the story line as they have had an important part in the centuries long battle with IT. I am sure we will see more of them going forward.

Leroy and Charlotte Hanlon were also great characters. Leroy as a bit of an arch in that in the beginning he is a loyal Air Force officer that is committed to the mission but over time finally begins to question authority.

Charlotte is a no-nonsense type of woman who we learn was involve in civil rights marches in the south.

The performances overall were terrific by all the actors involved.

The series which was created by the same brother and sister tandem of Andie and Barbara Muschetti has the same tone and feel of the movies as you would expect though by being set in 1962, also has a bit of the feel of the mini-series.

What am I on the fence on?

For starters, the story is a little all over the place. When the story is focusing on the kids, I enjoyed it. There is a backstory regarding how It decided on using the Pennywise form that works really well.

There is certainly a narrative on racism that was well written into the story line, and I am glad they introduced the Native American tribe into the story.

But then there is the subplot involving the military, that just doesn’t make any sense, and I will discuss it in the next section.

There may have been too much ancestry leading to characters in the original story. Since we know Leroy is Mike Hanlon’s grandfather, we know he lives because he is in It Chapter 1. Mike’s father Will, we know he has to live in order for Mike to be born so he’s safe. Oh, here is Marge, who I thought was a goner for sure, until we find out she is Ritchie’s mother, so she is safe. I might be overstating this, but it would appear that half the characters in this story have to live in order for future events to happen which takes away from the suspense of who lives or dies.

So overall the story and writing does some good things but then there are parts that leave me scratching my head.

Some critiques and grievances.

Forgive my French but the whole military sub-plot is just plain fucking stupid. Sure, through that sub-plot we are introduced to the Hanlons and Dick Haloran, but they could have been introduced in another way.

Ok spoiler alert, General Shaw whom I will now refer to as General Dumb Ass, has this great plan of capturing It and using him as a weapon against the Soviet Union. He plans on using Dick to find It’s location and the Native American burial markers which keeps him contained to s specific area. What an amazing plan (hint of sarcasm). Maybe if he just waits about twenty years, he can make a trip to Camp Crystal Lake, there is a big guy armed with a machete, wearing a hockey mask, I’m sure he will help in the efforts to win the Cold War. Or hey, General Dumb Ass, here is a puzzle box constructed by a French toymaker that unleashes leather clad demons, I am sure they could be of some assistance.

What makes his plan so much more convoluted than it already is, is the fact that as a child he faced It and with the help of Rose as a child, survived. So, what makes him think he can control this intergalactic entity? But wait that is not really his plan. No, actually he plans on unleashing It on the entire civilian population of Derry. That’s why he wants one of those markers so he can destroy the marker and unleash It. Why, you may ask would a military officer who is sworn to defend the United States do such a thing. Because! he thinks this will unite the people. Yeah, brilliant plan? Makes me wonder how this stupid psychotic asshole became a general in the first place. Oh, I know because he is a stupid psychotic asshole. That’s why. At least he falls prey to Pennywise at the end.

That was my main major grievance with this series. The rest are just some minor critiques, and I might be nit picking.

There is this racist lynch mob that is after Hank Grogan. They end up burning down an Army barracks filled with Black soldiers and some of the kids. Only one of these sub-human scums gets what’s coming to him, at the hands of Pennywise who in this particular sequence become an anti-hero. But the rest of this gang get away with it which kind of pisses me off a bit.

In the first episode, It kills a total of four children in Derry, after that I don’t believe he kills a single one. Though he does kill some adults some of whom kind of deserved it. The only child who really dies after episode one in the current setting is Rich but that was done to smoke inhalation while saving Marge. Which brings me to another critique that I know I will get tarred and feathered over. I get it, Rich and Marge were becoming a cute little couple, but Rich’s death scene was too Titanic (Jack and Rose). Of course, I despise Titanic but that was an opportunity for Pennywise to feed on young Rich and that didn’t happen. Plus, that crate could have easily fit both Rich and Marge.

Getting back to Pennywise there is an awesome scene where he takes a whole auditorium full of kids to be his late-night dinner, but they are all saved. In other words, this series finished on too happy of an ending in regard to It. I am content that Hank and his daughter, Ronnie were able to flee to Canada to escape unlawful accusations and of course I expected the Hanlons to survive. But the story needed to end more tragically. Perhaps, Lilly, ho we follow from the very beginning should have fallen prey to Pennywise. This would have given the ending a far more emotional and tragic gut punch that I was expecting. Isn’t that the point and the triumph of the Losers Club after all? They were the ones able to defeat and eventually kill the Eater of Worlds. I was under the assumption that It was feeding at will and had never been stopped or defeated. The fact that his plans in 1962 were thwarted, does that take away from the Loser’s Club victory in the future?

Finally, speaking of the future, it is revealed in the final episode, that It has the ability to see into the future. We learn this when It reveals to Marge that she will have a son named Ritchie who along with his friends will end up killing him. I am paraphrasing but Pennywise says something to the effect, “The past, the future, the present, It’s all the same to me”. So, It already knows he is doomed and are they hinting that he came teleport to different times in history? I hope not because that is opening up a whole bag of worms that could really mess up the timeline and complicate the overall story that much more.

Final Thoughts

Despite some of the issues that I had, Welcome to Derry was still an enjoyable watch and would recommend anyone who is a fan of the original story, the mini-series and the movies, to give it a try.

I hope going forward, that we see more crossovers with other stories from the Stephen King Universe. Maybe Randal Flag will make an appearance or the devil himself, Leland Gaunt. An ancestor of Carrie? A young Judd Crandell? I just hope the ending of each of the future seasons become darker and more tragic for the protagonists. Maybe scrap the idea of It being able to see into the future, less reliance on family bloodlines, and for the love of Jupiter and Juno can we get the fucking turtle.

For now, I give Welcome to Derry an 8/10.

Thank you for reading.

Let me firt say thank you to Kyle Kyle Horrorble Writer , for putting this event together and for inviting me to participate along with all the otehr talented writer. A big round of applause for Kyle.

Christmas Blood Christmas was Shudder original film , released in 2022 to cap off what was already an amazing year for horror. The Christmas slasher film was written and directed by Joe Begos and stars Riley Dandy as Tori, Sam Delich as Robbie, Jeff Daniel Phillips as Sheriff Monroe and Abraham Benrubi.

For decades I would say Black Christmas 1974, was my favorite Christmas horror film, an opinion shared by many, including some of you reading this. But then came along Christmas Bloody Christmas which now edges out Blask Christmas by a few snowflakes.

Despite being a low budget film this new Christmas favorite of mine gave me everything I would want from a horror film and in this case ethe slasher sub-genre: gruesome practical effects, a pretty good score, the right atmosphere, a good but simple story, relatable characters including a great Final Girl, tension and just the right amount of humor.

Minor Spoilers Ahead

The Story and Plot

If you took The Terminator and combined it with Silent Night Deadly Night, you have Christmas Bloody Christmas. The story is fairly straight to the point. A military grade animatronic Santa that resides at the local toy store in this quaint little town, malfunctions and armed with an axe goes on a murderous rampage throughout the town. The killer Santa eventually targets our main protagonist, record store owner, Tori and her employee Robbie and stalks them through the town on this Christmas Eve night, killing everyone that comes across the murderous robot. Simple, good and well-paced at 90 minutes. Nothing too complicated because it doesn’t need to be. Sometimes less is more when it comes to writing a good story.

The Atmosphere, Lighting, Tone and Score.

This movie knocks it out of the ballpark when it comes to creating the perfect Christmas atmosphere. There is just enough Christmas decorations and lights to give the proper Christmas atmosphere while not sacrificing the gritty elements that I love . But it is not just the Christmas lights themselves that work, it is the use of lighting during the interior scenes as well. The movie features a great blend of red, green and blue lighting that is reminiscent of an Argento film. The tone of the movie is well balanced. There are some lighthearted and humorous moments but there is a sense of dread and tension throughout most of the movie. The score composed by Steve Moore works perfect for this movie. It has a Terminator style score with a bit of early John Carpenter style peppered in.

Kills, Gore, Effects and the Killer Santa

Director, Joe Begos relied mostly on practical effects for the kills, and it works very well. I will take practical effects over CGI any day even if some of the gore looks a bit over the top.

The performance and look of the Killer Santa portrayed by Abraham Benrubi was perfectly menacing. The animatronic Santa is relentless, imposing and creepy. It kills without hesitation or remorse. In a disturbing and brutal scene, the Santa annihilates an entire family including a kid (yes it goes there) but the scene does not play for laughs unlike Terrifier 3 and doesn’t resort to torture porn either. There are several other grotesque murders that made me feel a bit unsettled, which is what I want.

Characters, Chemistry and Dialogue

The main criticism I often have for newer horror films is poorly written, directed and acted characters especially the main characters. Often, I find them boring and bland, void of any relatable and human personality traits. Or I just find them annoying and insufferable. This can take me out of a movie quicker than anything. But Christmas Bloody Christmas does a fantastic job with its characters especially with Torie (Riley Dandy) and Robbie (Sam Delich). We get just enough time to know these characters who have great chemistry between the two. The back-and-forth banter between them as they debate music and movies gives the characters a sense of realism and a raw honesty. The heated and hilarious debates they have brings out a certain humor in Tori and Robbie that makes you root for them. I normally don’t read reviews on IMDB or any other movie review platform but saw many people hate this movie for the same reason I loved it. Many criticized the dialogue. ‘There was too much talking” “The used the ‘F’ bomb too much” “They were being raunchy”. To that I say to those prudes that’s how real people outside of your bubble talk. That is also how you build up characters in a story. Anyway, my point is by making Tori and Robbie relatable and for me likeable, the horror becomes more real as I am rooting for them to survive.

The Final Girl

Which brings us to our Final Girl, Tori. Take most of the tropes about final girls and throw them out the window when it comes to Tori. She’s highly opinionated and argumentative. Tori is by no means a virgin, she smokes pot, drinks whiskey like it’s water and curses like a sailor. There is nothing meek or shy about this final girl which I find refreshing. Some people might be thrown off about her abrasive nature; others might love it. I figured if I met her in real life, we would either be at each other’s throats or be the best of friends. You could argue since she starts off the movie as a bit of a bad ass, she might not have the type of character arc that other final girls have. But during the massacre of the town, we do see a range of emotions from fear, sadness, rage and she goes from surviving to warrior.

Tori has some street smarts and common sense about her. There is a scene where she thinks she might have stopped the killer Santa but instead of waiting around to see if the robotic killer wakes up or not, she makes a straight b line to the nearest vehicle. How many times have we’ve seen the protagonist, thinking they have won, just sitting around when the killer wakes up.

The characters of Tori has quickly risen up the ranks as one of my final girls right behind Kirsty (Hellraiser series), Ripley (Alien series), Nancy (NOES series) and Mary Beth(Hatchet series).

Critiques ???

If I had any critiques of this movie, it would be two issues. Maybe Tori a little time to mourn the loss of her friends and sister. That might have given her just a bit more depth and given the chaos a brief break, but this movie is paced pretty quickly so maybe that’s the point. Sometimes you did get a chance to take a breather when shit hits the fan. The other critique is the ending does drag on a bit too long. At one point I was like “Will this fucker die already”. The ending is somewhat reminiscence of the Terminator in that regard.

Themes or lessons to be learned?

This isn’t really a deep movie by any stretch of the imagination. But I guess you could say. quit replacing people with technology because it will come back and cut you in half.

Buy Me Egg Nogg

Final Grade:

First, I hope this movie will get more views and more love than it does. My favorite thing in this space is bringing the spotlight on hidden gems.

Between the simple but effective story, great characters, an unstoppable and unrepentant killer, terrific and terrifying practical effects and an outstanding atmosphere with only a few minor critiques, I give Christmas Bloody Christmas 9.5 glasses of spiked egg nogg out of 10.

THank you for reading and m,ake sure to check out all the other great articles on Christmas Horror Movies.

The full line-up is below to jump right in:

12/1 Silent Night Deadly Night 3: Kyle (Horrorble Writer)

12/2 The Nightmare Before Christmas: Abandoned Places George R. Galuschak

12/3 Silent Night Deadly Night: Molly O’Blivion

12/4 Anna And The Apocalypse: H. is for Horror H. H. Duke

12/5 Terrifier 3: Meat Head Media

12/6 The Advent Calendar: Sahar Writes Sahar Khan

12/7 Silent Night Deadly Night 4: Stephen Duffy

12/8 Violent Night: Robo Pulp Media @robopulp

12/9 It’s A Wonderful Knife: Thehumangaze

AND

The Lodge: Offscreenshaman

12/10 Mean One: Beverley’s Horror Corner

12/11 Silent Night: Skyla

12/12 The Legend of Hell House: Jamie B.

12/13 A Christmas Horror Story: Strange Matters Mike Duffy

12/14 Deadly Games/Dial Code Santa Claus:Hellish Views - Harry Evans

12/15 Black Christmas (2006): Blood, Guts, and Blush Kristen

12/16 Krampus: Pop! Goes My Brain: Joanne Thornborough

12/17 Elves: Creatures of War Emma

12/18 Santa Jaws: Movie Malpractice Sean Mo

12/19 Better Watch Out: Habitual Cinema Jean-Pierre Diez

12/20 Rare Exports: The Macabre Tavern Yanni Hamburger

12/21 Christmas Bloody Christmas: Horror Hangouts

12/22 Silent Night Deadly Night 2: Tales From The Tape Brandon Rae

12/23 Gremlins: B-Movie Tea

12/24 Black Christmas (2019): That Horror Lesbian

12/25 Black Christmas: Horror Concierge Kimberly Ramsawak

No One Lives from 2012 , directed by Ryuhei Kitamura, written by David Cohen and starring Luke Evans,Adelaide Clemons, Derek Magyar, Laura Ramsey and Lee Tergesen, is a suspensful and brutal survior horror film that has a major plot twist that I certainly didn’t see coming.

I viewed this movie for the first time last summer as it was recomended to me and I wasn’t dissapointed. In fact this movie exceeded my expectations which is a rarity. I could not beleive I had gone this long without watching this clever and gory film. Debating with myself, I wondered could I even review this movie without spoiling it.Let me try.

The basic plot is you have this couple. We are not sure if they are married or not and I suppose it really doesn’t matter. They seem to be going through some difficulties and are relocating, trying to make their relationship work again or at least that is what we are lead to believe.

While stopping at this town and having dinner at a local restaraunt, they encounter a gang of criminals. One of these thugs tries to intimidate the husband or boyfriend but the boyfriend defuses the situation and doesn’t engage.

Keep in mind the criminals are as nasty and deranged as they come.You immediately have a deep seated hatred for this group of vile degenerates. After driving away from the restaraunt, the couple are ran off the road by the gang who kidnaps the couple as the gang believes them to be wealthy and figures they can extort some money from them. Then a desperate survival story begins but not what think. Lets just say the hunters become the hunted. You think this movie will end up like Eden Lake or any other movie where a couple innocent people are preyed upon by a gang of merciless killers but that’s not what happens with No One Lives and I am thankful for that.

I am not going to give away anymore of the story but just say how and why I loved this movie which is easliy in my top three horror movies of the 2010’s. The performances are terrific, given that these are mostly unknown actors, or at least to me. An excellent amount of blood and brutality but not too much. Just enough of what is needed. Tension and suspense fills the movie from start to finish and never gets boring. Mostly though its the story that wins me over. I always enjoy when my expectations are subverted and it actually works. You think this movie is going to go one way and it shifts into something else that is much better. I shudder to think of a movie that goes into this direction. I am sure there is. I just can’t think of any.

In closing if you are looking for a movie that doesn’t rely on the same old tropes and enjoy some bloody killings where the bad guys really get whats coming to them and more more. Watch No One Lives, its streaming for free on TUBI. A 10/10 for me.

This is a recent hidden gem that I have been wanting to write about. In a Grip of Terror is a co production between UK based independent studio Hex Studios and the legendary Amicus Productions. This movie was largely a crowd funded film. I myself pledged my support for the film and recently received a Blue Ray copy and watched it immediately durring my October horror movie countdown.

In a Grip of Terror was made in the traditional style of Amicus’s legendary anthology films. The movie was directed by Lawrie Brewster and stars Megan Tremethick, Laurence R. Harvey, Jonathan Hansler, Michael Daviot and Jane Merrow.

I am not going to give to many spoilers but kjust write what this movie is about and my thoughts on the movie itself.

Four individuals are mysteriously summoned to a decaying, gothic-style hospital by the peculiar, Doctor Graves. Each one of the visitors have a past connected to the institution or the mysterious doctor himself. When they arrive, the doctor and the hospital itself, forces the visitors to confront their own fears and secrets through the stories that unfold. The line between reality, the supernatural, life, and death becomes increasingly blurred within the cryptic hospital.

This horror anthology film is broken down into four segments;

The One Way Ward: Adapted from H.P. Lovecraft’s Cool Air

A young nurse named Charlotte works in an isolated hospital ward for terminally ill patients. Charlotte becomes curious about a reclusive patient or scholar, Professor Walker , who lives in an extremely cold room. She inadvertently discovers a horrifying secret about his condition and the necessity of the constant, chilling temperature.

A Watcher by the Dead

A skeptical junior doctor, Dr. Mancher, agrees to a wager to spend a night alone in a locked room with a cadaver to disprove the existence of fear and the supernatural. As the night progresses, he witnesses ghostly apparitions and haunting events that challenge his disbelief, leading to a chilling climax.

And the Dead Spake

A scientist and physicist, Sir James Horten, is obsessed with recording a person’s final thoughts at the moment of death. He invents a device to capture these macabre recordings. As he delves deeper into the final messages from the deceased, the boundary between life and death dissolves, resulting in a horrifying revelation from a violently departed subject.

A Diognosis of Death

This story follows a man, Hampden, who receives a troubling medical diagnosis. As his health deteriorates, strange occurrences blur the natural and the supernatural, leading to a disturbing revelation.

I really enjoyed In a Grip of Terror and was happy to help contribute to the making of the film. It explores the dark consequences when human ambition and experimental science cross moral and natural boundaries, unleashing unthinkable horrors. So the movies blends the classic Amicus structure with Lovecraftian themes.

The performances were terrific and the gloomy and chilling atmopsphere is what you would want with a horror film of any sub-genre.

It is not particulary gory but heavy on the mood. In a Grip of Terror would make a perfect gateway film for novices who might be a little squeemish or for young teenagers or adolescents who might have an interst in exploring the macabre.

As this movie is not availble on any streaming services here in North America, your only option for viewing it would be to purchase a digital or physical copy on the Hex Studios website. I can assure you that it will be money well spent as not only does the film deliver on a haunting anthology but it goes to assiting independent filmakers, actors and crewmembers.

Here is the link

In A Grip of Terror

Also , earlier this year I had the privilage of interviewing actress, Megan Tremethick, who appears in this movie, for an episode of the Horror Hangouts on my channel, Big Slick Adventures. She was extremely gracious with her time and ebjoyed talking with her. I will admit , I had some audio issues but feel free to check out the interview.

Megan Tremethick Interview

Thanks everyone for reading.

Ok, I am cheating again because there is no way I can just pick one movie to end October with. That is like only eating one oreo cookie .. please. Since the last day of October is the glorious holiday known as Halloween, which by the way should be a national holiday and will be if I ever start my own country, it is only fitting that at the end October I always watch a Halloween movie marathon. Now as I only like about half the movies in that franchise, which is kind of a blessing, there are six movies I will typically watch. Since I was thirteen years old when I first watched the first two movies, it has been a tradition to watch those movies on Halloween, thus ending the month of October. The movies have that perfect autumn and Halloween aesthetic; falling leaves, cooler temperatures and kids dressed up in costumes. It is the holiday of ghosts, ghouls, witches and vampires. We spend the whole month in anticipation, and the season represents a time when we horror movie fanatics ramp up our horror movie watching. Michael Meyers, the silent masked killer and the face of the Halloween movies has become the face of Halloween, going back to 1978. For many of us, Michael Meyers is to Halloween what Santa Clause is to Christmas. Before 1978, Halloween never had that one icon, that one entity that represented the holiday. Sure , Sam, from Trick R Treat has become a symbol of Halloween but the boogeyman has been at it a whole lot longer.

So with that being said, here is the six movies from the Halloween franchise that I watch every year to close out the month of October.

Rob Zombie’s Halloween (2007) (Theatrical Cut)

I have to put the emphasis that I am referring to the theatrical cut of this movie as it is the rare occasion that the theatrical cut is better than the uncut version. The big difference being how Michael escapes Smiths Grove is done much better in the theatrical cut which is unfortunately difficult to find on streaming services which is why I purchased both Rob Zombie’s Halloween and Halloween 2 on physical media.

Now I know that quite a few people love to hate this movie. But I am one who really enjoys it despite the faults. Sure, it deviates a bit from the original movie but if you are making a remake, you don’t want to make a carbon copy like the Psycho remake. I could do without the first 15 minutes of the movie and just start where young Michael murders his sister, her boyfriend and his drunken stepdad. I did like the scenes between Michael and Loomis in Smiths Grove which give us more context into that relationship.

Rob Zombie’s remake is a brutal and carnage filled interpretation of the character. I thought the casting and performances were pretty good across the board. You can never really replace Jamie Lee Curtis or Donald Pleasance but Scout Taylor Compton and Malcom McDowell both do a good job respectively. I would even say there were some performances of certain characters that I actually preferred over the original; Brad Dourif as Sherrif Bracket, Danielle Harris as Annie Bracket and I actually prefer the versions of Tommy and Lyndsey as they had more personality to them.

I give it 8 jack-o lanterns out of 10.

Rob Zombies Halloween 2 (2009)

Now I might not watch this movie every Halloween, but it is a good companion to the previous film.

This movie is a bit of a mess for sure. But there is enough to like about it. Such as the movie does a great job in examining the trauma people go through when confronted with a horrific event. I would dare say it is handled better and more realistic than how it was handled with the most recent trilogy (and that’s a hill I will die on). Laurie’s trauma is more realistic and rawer as it takes place only a tear after the events of the previous movie. The heart of this film is the dynamic between Laurie, Annie and Sheriff Bracket. I wished the movie and stayed focused on that aspect and just been a psychological slasher film rather than introduce is to white horses , Loomis being a total asshole, and seeing Michael’s mom portrayed by Sherri Moon Zombie, who I did like in the first movie but we really didn’t need her character in this one. I have already written about the heartbreak I felt when Bracket discovers his daughter’s dead body in an earlier post. Here is a link to that post: Annie Bracket's Death

6 ½ Jack- O- Lanterns out of 10.

Halloween 4 (1988)

I just posted an in-depth review on this :

So, I won’t go into too much detail other than Halloween 4 being my third favorite of the franchise and the first that I saw in the theaters so there is some sentimental attachment to this movie. I will also add that part 4 along with the first two Halloween movies makes a great bookend to my preferred Halloween trilogy which ends on a dour note. Halloween 4

8 ½ Jack- O- Lanterns out of 10.

Halloween H20 (1998)

This is my favorite version of Laurie Strode as portrayed by Jamie Lee Curtis. The first two Halloween films were more of Loomis’s films as those films centered on Loomis versus Michael. But H20 is definitely Laurie’s story and her arc comes full circle. I loved the scene with her standing outside with an axe while shouting ‘Michael!!’. The ending was epic, too bad Resurrection ruined that ending but I pretend that it doesn’t exist in the proper timeline. H20, also, does a better job with Laurie’s trauma than 2018 as this takes place after only 20 years, both 1 and 2 are cannon thus Michael killed more people, and he also happens to be Laurie’s brother. I just wish this movie didn’t look like a Scream movie or another random late 1990’s slasher film. Takes the look of Michael, the score and atmosphere from H40 and put it in H20, I would have liked it much better as I preferred the writing and the performances way better than what we got with H40.

Still, I give Halloween H20 , 7 Jack-O-Lanterns out of 10.

Halloween 1978 and Halloween 2 1981

I am listing and discussing both movies at the same time because I really look at both as one continuous movie, much like Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. I always watch these two movies back-to-back just like I did one Halloween night in 1987 when I first watched these two classic slasher films on some television. I can’t remember which station might have been WGN from Chicago or maybe channel 4 from Indianapolis but that’s not important.

The first Halloween might not have been the first modern slasher, but it was this simple story about a masked stalker killing off babysitters that kicked the door open for an entire sub-genre that would define the 1980’s. Jamie Lee Curtis plays one of the most popular and recognizable final girls in Laurie Strode. Veteran character actor Donald Pleasance would finally find his signature role with the iconic role of Dr. Loomis. Director, John Carpenter would become a household name and go on to direct several iconic films in the horror and science fiction genres. Not to mention his musical ability writing such a well-known score.

Now when it comes to the second film which I believe is a damn near perfect continuation. Now let me discuss a term called manufactured narrative. For decades fans recognized Halloween 2 as the best sequel in the franchise but then one day in an interview, John Carpenter called Halloween 2 an abomination and hated the film. All of the sudden some people changed their tune and turned on Halloween 2. Not me though, the sister- brother angle never made Michael any less terrifying to me, I don’t have a problem with Dick Warlock’s performance as the Shape and is just as good as Nick Castle’s performance in the original. Also, enough about the damn wig, Jamie Lee Curtis was wearing. Up until two years ago, I never knew it was a wig, until a couple You Tubers started bitching about it. So, with all do respect to my favorite horror director, I get it, Carpenter didn’t want to write another movie but you know what, the movie still had a great level of tension, the synthesizer version of the score rocked and the kills were pretty damn gnarly. So at least recognize that it wasn’t as bad as you remember.

Both these films were filmed in Pasadena, California, yet the film crew did an excellent job making everything look like it was in a small midwestern town in the season of fall. Though there is that one scene in the first film, where Loomis is on a pay phone warning the authorities of Michael Meyers. In the background we see mountains..lol. Trust me as someone who grew up in that part of the country, there isn’t any type of mountains like that in Illinois. Not a nitpick , just a fun little oops moment.

I give both movies, especially if you view them as one complete movie 10 Jack-O-Lanterns out of 10.

So, these are the movies from the franchise I will be closing out October with. I opened this month with Hellraiser and finishing with Halloween.

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!!

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Meyers

Background

When the original Halloween came out in 1978, it became a huge success. The movie, directed by John Carpenter, launched the career of Jamie Lee Curtis and would be considered a true horror classic as we were introduced to a new iconic horror villain in the shape of Michael Myers, a knife wielding psychopath brandishing an emotionless mask. Halloween 2, released in 1981, would also be successful. For the third film of the franchise, John Carpenter, who co-wrote and directed the first film and wrote the script for the second, decided to take the franchise in a different direction. He figured that Michael’s story was over and decided to make the franchise into an anthology style series. Where each Halloween movie would be its own separate horror story that takes place on Halloween. A novel idea for sure but when Halloween 3: The Season of the Witch debuted in 1982, it was met with quite a bit of resistance from the fans as it was not well received, and the anthology concept died, and it would look like the Halloween franchise was over.

Fast forward to a few years later, with the rising success and popularity of the Friday the 13^th and Nightmare on Elm Street franchises, financier, Mustapha Akkad, who owned the rights to Halloween decided it was time to bring Michael back. Carpenter was said to have been approached to helm the 4^th film but had moved on to other projects. So, Akkad recruited Alan B McElroy to write the script and Dwight Little to direct. Jamie Lee Curtis would not return to reprise her role as Lauri Strode, and her character was written off by dying in a car accident sometime before the events of Halloween 4. A new final girl or in this case girls would be created in the presence of Rachel played by Ellie Cornell and Jamie played by Danielle Harris. Donald Pleasance would return as Dr. Samuel Loomis. How did he survive that fire at the end of Halloween 2? Who knows? But glad to see Loomis back, who I consider the backbone of the franchise, back in form with relentless pursuit of Michael Myers and his iconic dialogue. Speaking of Michael, playing the masked killer would be George P. Wilbur, though Tom Morga would play the Boogey Man in a few scenes. There is a new sheriff in town as Bracket from Halloween 1 and 2 had retired to move to Florida as was mentioned in part 4. Taking his place is the grizzled and no-nonsense Sheriff Ben Meaker played by Beau Starr. Kathleen Kinmont as Kelly Meaker and Sasha Jenson as Brady, round out the rest of the main cast.

The Plot

The plot is straight forward. The movie starts on Halloween Eve, 1988, ten years after the events of Halloween 1 and 2. Michael Meyers survived being set on fire and is all bandaged up and has been in a coma. As he is being transferred from one hospital to another, he overhears one of the doctors states that his only living relative is his niece. Upon learning this Michael wakes up in the ambulance and kills everyone and goes back to Haddonfield to kill his 8-year-old niece, Jamie Lloyd, who is also the daughter of Laurie Strode, who was killed in an automobile accident with her husband about 11 months prior. Hot on Michael’s trail is Doctor Loomis, who also survived the hospital explosion at the end of Halloween 2 but has burns on his face and hands and walking with a cane.

Jamie is now living with her foster family, the Carruthers, which includes her teenage foster sister, Rachel. Rachel is forced to watch Jamie on Halloween night and takes Jamie trick or treating. Jamie is still mourning the loss of her parents and feels like an outcast as many of her classmates ridicule her about her parents’ death and having her uncle be the ‘Boogey Man”.

Loomis gets in contact with the sherif, Ben Meaker and informs him that Michael is here in Haddonfield and after Jamie. Meaker is hesitant at first to believe Loomis but soon decides it’s better to assume the worst rather relive Halloween night from 1978.

Several people are killed on this Halloween night as Michael attempts to murder Jamie. There are some tense scenes as he stalks Jamie and Rachel throughout the town of Haddonfield. Michael is finally stopped as Meaker and some of the towns people fire on Michael several times with their firearms and he falls into a ditch, seemingly ending Michael’s reign of terror.

But wait, later that night at the Carruthers’s household, Jamie who is still wearing a clown costume that is reminiscent of the costume Michael wore as a child when he killed his sister, stabs her foster mother several times with a pair of scissors. The site of Jamie in full costume, holding the pair of bloody scissors and standing at the top of the staircase is enough to terrify Loomis, who now believes the cycle of evil has been transferred from Michael to Jamie. As Loomis yells in terror, he pulls out his gun but before he can fire the gun at Jamie is stopped by Meaker as everyone looks on in horror. And that is where Halloween 4 ends.

What I enjoyed about Halloween 4?

The Halloween and Fall Atmosphere

Right from the opening credit scene, which is a departure from the opening scenes in Halloween 1 and 2, we are treated by the views of a scarecrow and cornfield bringing to life the fall atmosphere. This resonates throughout the movie as you can believe that it is the season of Halloween. The score composed by Alan Howarth, who assisted John Carpenter on the score for Halloween 2, is also a strong effort that enhances the atmosphere.

Dr. Loomis

As always Donald Pleasance brings his ‘A” game in his intense performance of Doctor Sam Loomis. We get some great lines of dialogue as only Pleasance can deliver.

The Final Girl(s)

Jamie Lee Curtis’s Laurie Strode is a tough act to follow. But the combination of Rachel and Jamie works quite well. With Jamie being Laurie’s daughter, it gives us a connection to the original movies and being a child protagonist gives the audience a relatable character much like Tommy Jarvis in the Friday the 13^th movies. With Rachel we get a character who has a bit of an arc. Early in the film she sees Jamie as an annoyance but as the story progresses further, we see the bond between Rachel and Jamie get stronger as Rachel will do anything to protect her foster sister and becomes a stronger character and an underrated Final Girl. Rachel’s best moment was running over Michael with a pickup truck. The whole arc between Rachel and Jamie gives the movie heart.

Kills and Suspense

Halloween 4 might not quite have the suspense and tension of the first two films but still does a good job. The scene where Rachel and Jamie are trying to escape Michael from the roof of a house in a good example.

There is, also, the scene early in the film where Michael and Loomis have a confrontation in a truck stop where Michael had already killed everyone there. Loomis even pleads with Michael to kill him and spare everyone in Haddonfield but to no avail.

The kills are pretty good; Earl getting his throat ripped out is one that comes to mind and Kelly being impaled to the wall by a shotgun is another.

The Supporting Cast

The supporting cast overall is fine. The standout being Beau Star as Sheriff Meaker, who unlike most law enforcement officials in most horror movies is actually competent and believes the threat.

The Story

On the surface the story is fairly simple but there is some cleverness to the writing. For example, when Jamie is shopping for a Halloween costume and picks out a clown costume. She looks into a mirror and sees young Michael Meyers wearing the same costume. This foreshadows what will happen at the very end of the movie with Jamie stabbing her foster mother. That final scene, also, brings the whole Halloween story full circle. The original Halloween starts off with young Michael killing his sister while wearing a clown costume and Halloween 4 ending with his niece committing a similar act. It harkens back to what Tommy Doyle says to Laurie in the original, “You can’t kill the boogeyman.” In other words, evil never dies. It always re-manifests itself into another ‘shape’. Loomis realizes this when he observes Jamie with a bloody pair of scissors causing him to act unhinged.

What needed Improved

Michael Meyers

Where I liked the performance of Michael Meyers, primarily by George P Wilbur, the look of Michael is a little wonky. The mask is ok but for some reason it looks like he is wearing shoulder pads. (I know it was the 80’s but come on). The best look of the Shape is when he is still bandaged up in the scene where he kills the mechanic. Ironically in that scene Michael was portrayed by stunt man Tom Morga, not sure why that was the case but, on a side note, Morga had portrayed thew copycat Jason on Friday the 13^th part 5. There of course is the famous Michael mask which has blonde hair that appears in the movie for about five seconds.

Laurie’s Death

Killing off Laurie Strode offscreen seems like a unceremoniously way to kill off a beloved character. But with Jamie Lee Curtis not returning and the idea of re-casting her not an option as the fans would not have been receptive to that, I suppose they didn’t have much of a choice. As Halloween H20 is not cannon with the events of Halloween 4,5 or 6, having Laurie fake her death in this timeline would simply make her the worst mother ever. Perhaps if she just went insane and was committed to a sanitarium? Anyway, it doesn’t bother me that much but on the fence.

Final Thoughts

On a personal note, Halloween 4 was the first R rated movie I saw in the theaters back in 1988. I was fourteen then so this movie will always have a sentimental place for me.

This movie also started the career for Danielle Harris would go on to become a mainstay in horror films even returning to the franchise as another character in the Rob Zombie Halloween remakes.

Overall Halloween 4 is a really good entry in the series and my third favorite overall behind 1 and 2. I kind of think that Halloweens 1,2 and 4 make for my preferred trilogy with 1,2 and H20 being a close second. Halloween 4 proves you don’t have to reinvent the wheel to make a good Halloween film or any other horror film for that matter. Just be competent with a simple but clever plot twist. Stay true to the established mythology and have some good characters and kills.

I rate Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers 8 ½ jack-o-lanterns out of 10.

Thank you to Kyle Horrorble Writer for inviting me to participate in this challenge.

10/19 Halloween Ends (2022)

Reviewed by Jean-Pierre Diez Habitual Cinema Newsletter

10/20: Halloween Kills (2021)

Reviewed by Brandon Rae Tales From the Tape Newsletter

10/21 Halloween (2018)

Reviewed by H.H. Duke H. is For Horror Newsletter

Rob Zombie's Halloween 2 (2009)

Reviewed by Tammy Haunts You Later Newsletter

Rob Zombie's Halloween (2007)

Reviewed by Mike Duffy Strange Matters Newsletter

Halloween Resurrection (2002)

Reviewed by Kristen Blood, Blush and Guts Newsletter

Halloween H20 (1998)

Reviewed by George Abandoned Places Newsletter

Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Meyers (1995)

Reviewed by Emma Creatures of War Newsletter

Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Meyers (1989)

Reviewed by Joanne Pop, Goes My Brain

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Meyers (1988)

Reviewed by Josh , Horror Hangouts

Halloween 3: The Season of the Witch (1982)

Reviewed by, B Movie Tea Newletter

Halloween 2 (1981)

Reviewed by Kyle, Kyle(Horrorble Writer)

Halloween (1978)

Reviewed by Kimberly, Horror Concierge Newsletter

Ok, I am actually going to cheat a little, I actually have ten favorite lines as one character has too many quotes to choose from.

1. “Sometimes dead is better.” From Pet Semetary (1989) by Fred Gwynne as Jud

2. “You go; you live. We stay. We belong dead.” From Bride of Frankenstein (1934) by Boris Karloff as the Monster

3. “I met this... six-year-old child with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and... the blackest eyes - the Devil’s eyes. I spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up, because I realized that what was living behind that boy’s eyes was purely and simply... evil.” From Halloween (1978) by Donald Pleasance as Dr. Loomis

4. “You’re going to need a bigger boat.” From Jaws by Roy Scheider as Brody.

The following five quotes are from Doug Bradley as Pinhead.

5. “No tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering.” Hellraiser (1987)

6. “We are explorers from the never-regions of experience. Demons to some, Angels to others.” Hellraiser (1987)

7. “Trick us again girl and your suffering will be legendary, even in Hell.” Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (1988)

8. “If you have a quality, be proud of it. Let it define you, whatever it is.” Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth (1992)

9. “Do I look like someone who cares what God thinks?” Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)

10. “Sometimes that shark, he looks right into you. Right into your eyes. You know the thing about a shark, he’s got... lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll’s eyes. When he comes at you, doesn’t seem to be living’... until he bites you. And those black eyes roll over white, and then... oh, then you hear that terrible high pitch screaming, the ocean turns red, and spite of all the pounding’ and the hollering, they all come in and they... rip you to pieces.” From Jaws (1975) by Robert Shaw as Quint. One large quote from one of the greatest dialogues in movie history.

The Warlock series is a series that doesn’t get talked about all that much. Though, those who have seen the movies generally like series, well at least the first two movies anyway. Most people and myself included, will mention the excellent performance of the late great Julian Sands as the warlock. From what I have read, Sands really enjoyed playing the character despite the Warlock films being B- movie material.

The first Warlock film was released in 1989 and was well received. I enjoyed it mainly for the story and for Sands’ performance. I did find the tone of the movie to be a little campy at times and both the protagonists to be ..meh.

The second film released in 1993 was also popular amongst us die hard horror fans and I felt the second installment was a substantial improvement. Warlock 2:Armegedon was a darker film and the supporting cast was much better and Julian Sands nailed the role as he was even more brutal this time around.

But when it comes to the third and final installment; Warlock 3: The End of Innocence that was released in 1999, that is a movie that at best receives apathy and at worst pure hatred.

There are two reasons, I believe this is the case:

1. Julian Sands did not return to reprise the role. I have still been unable to locate any information as to why he did not return.

2. Where the first two films received theatrical releases, the third film was released straight to video. Nowadays that might not be a big deal as many horror movies go straight to streaming which is the modern-day equivalent but back in 1999, that was considered a death sentence for a movie.

3. Or maybe there were those who objectively didn’t care for it. Which is fair. We all like what we like and don’t like what we don’t like.

Now, I know I am in the minority, I might even be a man alone on an island on this but I really enjoy Warlock 3. Sure, it would have been even better had Julian Sands returned, in fact it would have been my favorite of the trilogy. As it stands it is my second favorite Warlock movie. Liking it better than the original but not quite as good as the second.

I am not going to give away too much of the plot but discuss what I really enjoyed about the movie and maybe some of its flaws.

Warlock 3 does have a different tone and feel compared to the first two movies. Warlock 1 and 2 were much bigger productions that had several different settings. The first two films each had a budget of anywhere between 10 and 15 million dollars where Warlock 3 only had a budget of two million dollars. This explains why Warlock 3 has one main setting for the most part. This actually serves the film well as the setting is an old dreary house. I am a sucker for that type of setting. So Warlock 3 has a much more gothic feel to it. By having this house, which is set in New England but was actually filmed in Ireland, as the main setting gives this movie a haunting and claustrophobic atmosphere.

The bare bones of the story is we meet a college student named Kris who was adopted as a young girl and has no knowledge of her true ancestry. Until she is informed that she has inherited an old house that belonged to her biological family for generations.

She goes to visit the house, hoping to learn more about her ancestry. Accompanying her is her boyfriend, Michael, and their mutual friends, Jerry, Robin, Scott and Lisa.

The Warlock who goes by the name of Phillip Covington arrives at the house claiming to be an architect but has a secret nefarious plan for Kris and her friends as one of Kris’s ancestors once did battle with Covington and in order to protect her daughter is able to use the Warlock’s magic against him, trapping him in the house. Now free, the warlock once to sacrifice Kris’s soul to Satan and make her a mother of satanic beings. To do this he must manipulate her friends into betraying her or else they will suffer an excruciating torturous death.

Bruce Payne now plays the role of the Warlock. Payne is no stranger to playing villains as he co-starred in Passenger 57 and Highlander: Endgame. He does a great job playing an evil and sadistic character. Though he does lack Sands’ charisma and charm.

Playing the role of Kris is Ashley Laurence who played Kirsty in the Hellraiser movies. As always, she gives a great performance, and I could argue that her character is the strongest protagonist in the series.

The rest of the cast overall does ok with the characters Robin, who is a practicing witch herself and does battle the Warlock in one scene and Jerry, who is a shy musician and happens to be smitten with Kris even though she has a boyfriend being the standouts. I will admit the rest of the cast is just kind of bland as is their acting. Though I will say the characters of Lisa and Scott, happen to be a couple that is heavily into S&M. So, that does make them somewhat interesting.

I would also add , that despite the low budget, the effects and makeup hold up quite well. Even in the previous films there are some scenes of CGI, that just don’t look good at all. WE do get some gruesome and inventive kills in this movie and the last act of the film we get a good battle between the Warlock and Kris.

To summarize, even though we have a different actor playing the Warlock and the movie may not feel connected to the first two and given that we get an upgrade with the story’s protagonist, the movie is still a good watch. Keep in mind the first two films really aren’t connected either. They do feel like separate stand-alone Warlock films. Only the first two having the same actor, playing the villain.

The movie as a good amount of suspense and haunting imagery. The filmmakers did a great job with the atmosphere and effects. The story is simple as the setting but sometimes simple works best.

The performances range from great to decent enough, with Payne and Laurence holding up most of the film.

So if you have seen the movie and didn’t like it, maybe give it a second look and just treat it as it’s own thing. If you haven’t watched it or even heard of it and you like the setting of an old isolated house then give it a watch sometime.

There are many films I could have chosen for this topic. Perhaps I could have chosen Psycho or The Night of the Living Dead. Maybe one of the old Universal films that I grew up on like Dracula or Frankenstein. There is the any number of Roger Corman directed movies adapted from Edgar Allen Poe stories starring Vincent Price or Italian gothic horror starring Barbara Steele like Black Sunday.

But for this topic the choice was clear it would be one of the Hammer Studio films, specifically 1958’s The Horror of Dracula.

It was Hammer films that kind of started the first wave of remakes or reboots if you prefer. In 1957 they made The Curse of Frankenstein and now they were onto the most prolific vampire of them all, Dracula.

The Horror of Dracula was directed by Terrence Fisher and starred Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Peter Cushing as Professor Van Helsing. The two actors starred together a year earlier in The Curse of Frankenstein and would go on to star in several horror films , mostly under the banner of Hammer.

As much as I love the original Dracula from 1931 starring Bela Lugosi, this version as not only been my favorite Dracula movie, though not by much, it is probably my 5^th favorite horror movie of all time.

The movie does deviate quite a bit from the book and the original movie. For example, when Jonathan Harker ( played by John Van Eyssen) arrives at Dracula’s castle in the beginning of the movie, he is not this unassuming person just trying to deliver some legal papers to Dracula, Harker actually knows who Dracula is. Harker was sent to Castle Dracula to destroy the vampire as he is friends and a colleague of Van Helsing. Unfortunately, Harker’s fate is that of doom as he is bitten by the vampire and infected. Van Helsing arrives at the castle but is too late as Dracula has fled and Van Helsing finds Harker in a coffin and reluctantly has to do what is necessary, by driving a stake through his friend’s heart to prevent him from turning into a vampire.

Another difference is instead of Harker’s love interest being Mina it is instead Lucy( played by Carol Marsh), whose fate is the same as in the book and the previous versions of Dracula as she is the first to be bitten and rises from the grave to feed on children. But is eventually killed by Van Helsing.

Mina(played by Melissa Stribling) is actually married to Lucy’s brother, Arthur( played by Michael Gough, who you would know as Alfred in the earlier Batman movies).

Once you get past those differences you can enjoy the movie as a stand-alone interpretation of the Dracula story. The final showdown between Van Helsing and Dracula is epic and one of my favorite closing sequences in a horror film.

I can’t quite explain why this movie is one of my favorites of all time. It might have something to do with the fact that I am a huge fan of the vampire mythology, especially as it pertains to Dracula. Between the haunting atmosphere that is enhanced by the cinematography, the set designs of the castle and the other settings, along with the music score, this makes was an absolutely necessary watch of this film.

For sure, my love for this film is accentuated by the performances of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. For me Lee is the quintessential Dracula as he would play the Count ten times in total. For the first time you seen him on screen as the blood thirsty vampire, you are immediately focused on his screen presence. He brings both a charm and pure evil to the role. Lee has the right charisma while bringing a sense of brutality to the role. His version of Dracula is an unapologetic vampire whom only lusts for blood and control.

Cushing is my favorite Van Helsing, he is intelligent, refined and calculating. Always in control, he attempts to outwit the vampire and never loses his composure, He knows what we are dealing with regarding Dracula and knows how to stop him and anyone else that is turned into a vampire by Dracula.

If you haven’t seen this version , please give it a chance. Just realize that this movie was made in 1958 so you kind of have to judge in that context.

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful bloody day or evening.

Watch and listen to the video version on You Tube You Tube

Apologies for the extra-long post but I had a lot to say about this character.

“Your uncle is in your father’s skin, and he wants to kill you and have sex with you. Probably in that order.” That was the statement that Clive Barker said to then twenty-year-old Ashley Laurence at her audition for the role of Kirsty Cotton in the film, Hellraiser adapted from Barker’s novella, The Hellbound Heart. Whatever Ashley’s reaction was, Clive Barker knew he had found his Kirsty.

I know what a shocker to many of you. “Oh, really Josh, Mr. Hellraiser fanatic himself picks Kirsty has his favorite girl.” As many of you know, Hellraiser is my favorite horror movie of all time so it would stand to reason that, yes, Kirsty would be my final girl in the wonderful genre of horror which we all love.

For many years, the character, Kirsty, has flown under the radar when the topic of Final Girls come up. Perhaps due to the fact that Hellraiser, never achieved the same mainstream notoriety of other movies like the big three; Halloween, Friday the 13^th or Nightmare on Elm street or even Scream. Which is fine with us Hellraiser fans as we prefer to hide under the floorboards of horror or lurking in the shadows or being confined in the darkness of another dimension, patiently waiting for some poor, curious unassuming soul to solve the mystery of the Lament configuration bringing us from the dark to the light.

But in recent years as younger fans have recently discovered Hellraiser or older fans revisiting Barker’s masterpiece or perhaps the popularity of Ashley Laurence on the horror convention circuit, the horror fandom our looking at Kirsty as one kick ass final girl, worthy of being discussed as one of the best.

Kirsty displays all the typical attributes that you would want from a Final Girl. She has that ‘girl next door look’, pretty but not necessarily sexualized. She is likeable and relatable. Kirsty is someone you would want to be friends with, or have as a sister or someone you would want to go out on a date with. She is smart, loyal and can take care of herself and others. By the second movie, she is not only trying to save herself but her father and becomes a protector of sorts to Tiffany. You can depend on her. Kirsty, also, is fierce and courageous, willing to take the fight to the enemy. Sure, this final girl makes a few mistakes, especially in the first movie but all Final Girls do. We all make mistakes. It is all about learning and growing. Some will say she doesn’t have much of an arc in the first film, which is fair but most final girls don’t really complete their arch until the next sequel. Because it is in Hellraiser 2 that Kirsty completes her character arc. There are a few attributes that might differentiate herself from the others, but I will discuss those later.

I am not going to do a full run down of both movies just discuss them in the context of Kirsty.

Hellraiser 1987

In Hellraiser Kirsty is trying to establish herself by getting her own apartment and finding a job at a local pet store, while also being a supportive daughter to her father, Larry. She doesn’t get along well with Larry’s wife Julia but tries to make the best of it. She goes against the grain when it comes to the trope of the ‘Final Girl’ being pure and a virgin when she meets a guy, Steve, at her father’s dinner party and takes him to her place. This trope often annoyed me as ones sexuality shouldn’t have anything to do with how virtuous you are. I mean this was 1987, not 1947. But this was Reagan’s America or Thatcher’s England so maybe that has something to do with that trope. But I digress.

At her father’s request, she drops by the old Cotton family home in an attempt to make friends with Julia, only to discover that Julia is bringing home another man. Kirsty investigates further, suspecting Julia is having an affair, but it is much worse than that. Her uncle Frank is feeding off this unassuming man and has no skin. In the opening scene of the movie Frank acquires a mysterious puzzle box and solves it leading him to the pleasure and pains of Hell, but he is resurrected, and Julia is his accomplice as they have had a prior affair themselves. When she stumbles on this deplorable event Frank comes after her with his signature quote, “Come to Daddy”. We see that Kirsty is a fighter and resourceful as she gives a knee to Frank’s groin, (apparently Frank’s testicles must have regenerated by this point…lol) and throws the box through a window. Running out of the house she grabs the box and keeps running before fainting.

Moments later she awakens in a hospital and is locked in her room. A doctor(who has the bedside manner of Attila the Hun) presents to her the puzzle box and leaves her in her room. Kirsty’s curiosity nearly gets the better of her as she solves the box bringing fourth the Cenobites. (In her defense she really didn’t know what that box was or what it does) Confronted by Pinhead along with the other Cenobites who threaten to tear her soul apart. Kirsty shows her intelligence and her ability to think on her feet by making a bargain with the demons, spare her and she will lead them to Frank, who escaped them.

Kirsty runs back to the dreary family home to warn her father, but he has been murdered by Julia and Frank, who is wearing Larry’s skin. She doesn’t notice this at first as she is highly distressed but when Frank mutters those cryptic words, “Come to daddy” she is horrified but shows her resilience with some luck and perseverance. This is what might set Kirsty apart from other final girls. Most of these heroines typically have only one adbasary to deal with. Not only does she have to deal with Pinhead and the Cenobites who destroy Frank but then come after her, but she also has to deal with the real villains of the story, Frank and Julia. She manages to defeat them by outsmarting Frank and dispatching the Cenobites back to Hell by using the box, with no help at all. Sure, Steve shows up at the end but is of little help and at one point as Kirsty is fighting with the last remaining Cenobite known as ‘the engineer’ she actually pushes Steve out of the way, as she is thinking “I got this”. As a sidenote the character of Steve was meant to have more of a role in the film but as the making of the film progressed, Barker could see that Kirsty really doesn’t need much help and cut most of his scenes out of the movie. This is due to Ashley’s performance and Barker’s being able to recognize it.

Hellbound: Hellraiser 2(1988)

Just a few hours after the events of Hellraiser, Kirsty wakes up in yet another hospital, this time in amental hospital, The Channard Institute run by Dr. Channard. Now not only does Kirsty have to fight for her life and soul but now her sanity as no on believes her story. She sees images of a skinned corpse with a cryptic message, “I’m in Hell, Help me”, she assumes its’s her father. Her journey will eventually lead our determined final girl to Hell to rescue her father. But Julia is back, resurrected, much like Frank from the previous film, with the help from Channard who is obsessed with the lore of the lament configuration and the Leviathan, a lord of Hell and the god of flesh and desire.

At least Kirsty gets some useful assistance this time. First there is Kyle, a young doctor who works at the institute and soon believes her story as he witnesses Julia’s resurrection and views a whole collection of puzzle boxes that belong to Channard. Unfortunately make a grave lapse in judgement and falls prey to Julia. The there is Tiffany, a young mute teenager who is a patient at the institute and has remarkable puzzle solving skills. Channard uses Tiffany’s skills to open the box and a doorway to Leviathan’s labyrinth, a section of Hell we presume.

Kirsty enters the corridor to Hell, hoping to find her father but instead find Frank who sent the message in the first place. Once again, Kirsty stands her ground in an act of defiance. This is where Kirsty strength shows, and I will talk more about this Kirsty versus Frank theme in both movies at the end of this post.

She once again encounters Pinhead and the Cenobites who decide to let her roam around Hell as Pinhead states,” We have eternity to know your flesh.” Even though she fails to find her father she finds Tiffany and becomes a protector. She couldn’t save Larry but maybe she can still save herself and Tiffany while thwarting Julia who loses her skin to a wind tunnel of sorts. At this point Kirsty has been running on adrenaline; no time to rest, regroup or plan just reacting to what’s in front of her. She does take a brief moment to reflect on her failure to save her dad. It is possible the first time she has had to mourn the loss. Tiffany comforts her and the two women become an evil fighting duo. Tiffany is the Robin to Kirsty’s Batman.

Where Frank and Julia have been defeated, Channard has become a super charged Cenobite. Kirsty is once again able to bargain with Pinhead by reminding him and the other Cenobites of their lost humanity when the Channard Cenobites makes his entrance and destroys Pinhead and crew. This was my one main critique of the story, that scene was rushed and the fight should have lasted longer.

In a desperate move to save Tiffany from Channard, Kirsty actually puts on Julia’s skin to distract Channard long enough for Tiffany to finish solving the puzzle, killing Channard while the two women escape. Now that’s what I call teamwork.

Throughout these two movies Kirsty was covered in dirt, blood and maggots but never lost her edge.

Kirsty vs Frank

I have a theory about Kirsty and one of her main adversaries, Frank. Now this has never been confirmed by anyone involved in these movies but myself and a few other Hellraiser fans have theorized that given Frank’s sick and incestuous obsession with Kirsty established in the first film, leads me to believe that perhaps when Kirsty was younger , Frank may have attempted to get, shall we say, “inappropriate’ with her’ but probably did not succeed, hence his obsession; the one that got away. I think we can assume that there are no limits to what Frank will or won’t do. After all it’s why Frank seeks out the box in the first place.

More than likely, this was a memory that Kirsty suppressed as many people do. It is the words spoken by Frank, “come to daddy” that triggers that memory for Kirsty. So, if that is true, then that scene in the second film between her and Frank becomes that much more powerful. In the first movie she was terrified of Frank, not because of how he looked but what he did to her father and what he tried to do to her all those years ago. But by the second movie, Kirsty is no longer afraid but disgusted by Frank and loathes him and is able to manipulate Frank by pretending to give in to him. But with a look of disdain on her face she looks at Frank and says, ‘I’d rather burn”. This brings her character full circle, and it is the classic tale of the victim taking her power back from her attacker.

On A Personal Note

I was fourteen years old when I first watched Hellraiser as my mom let me rent it at the video store and then later that year I saw Hellraiser 2 in the theater (I had to sneak in to see it) At that time I was going through a rough time. Now there are plenty of fantastic Final girls out there and a few Final guys but for some reason watching Kirsty’s journey through those first two movies resonated with me in a way that no one else has and it is hard to explain. Perhaps it was something as simple as watching her go to Hell and back both figuratively and literally and coming out stronger and more confident. Anyway that character gave me hope that things could get better and inspired me to keep my head up and soldier on. It won’t be easy, but it can happen. Whenever I need a pick me up those two movies are often my go to, After all isn’t that what is great about having a great protagonist regardless of gender or genre, to inspire.

If you like horror movie, despite the obvious flaws, is it really bad? Maybe or maybe not. But when Molly O’Blivion posed this question during this October challenge, the answer was a no brainer, Dracula 3D directed by Dario Argento and starring Thomas Kretschmann as Dracula, Marta Gastini as Mina, Unax Ugalde as Jonathan Harker, Asia Argento(Dario Argento’s daughter) as Lucy and Rutger Hauer as Van Helsing.

This movie does get a lot of hate and a reputation for just being a bad movie. I suppose I can understand that when you compare this absurd take on Dracula with Argento’s earlier films. But I just get quite a bit of enjoyment. I can’t tell if Argento was trying to make a serious movie or perhaps at his advanced age he just said, “Fuck it, I am making the most bat shit crazy Dracula film I can.” I would like to believe the latter. But let me break it down for you.

The Story

The plot is about the same as any other Dracula adaptation. The blood sucking vampire from Transylvania lusts over Lucy and her loving man, Jonathan recruits Abraham Van Helsing to stop Dracula from turning Mina into his bride and kill him once and for all. You have Mina and Renfield, not to mention one of Dracula’s brides, Tanja. But where the story is different, instead of taking place in London, the setting is a small village in Romania. So Jonathan Harker is not taking a long voyage from London to Transylvania. Dracula already lives in the village. He acts as the town’s main benefactor. It is revealed that the elders. Including the police are aware of Dracula’s activities of feeding on the living but look the other way as their village would not survive without his financial resources. It is one of the oldest tales, making a deal with the devil.

What I Enjoyed

From a narrative standpoint, I did enjoy the slightly different take on Dracula. I doubt, Argento was going for any deep meaning in this movie but often people will compromise what is right in the name of self-preservation. Even if it means sacrificing the wellbeing of a few people.

I really enjoyed the performance by Thomas Kretschmann as Dracula, who is on eof the more brutal and sinister Dracula’s we see in the film. There is nothing redeemable or sympathetic about this version of the count. There is a scene where the leaders of the town begin to conspire against Dracula as they believe he has gone too far but Dracula is aware of their treachery and massacres, all of them.

The performances by the rest of the cast are good enough to at least keep me interested. I will admit though as much as I like Ruther Hauer, he does seem a little out of place in this movie but does his best.

As in any horror film, this movie does provide a good haunting atmosphere with good set designs.

Ok, What is bad about this movie?

This is where I can understand the criticism of the movie. For starters this movie was filmed in 3D which doesn’t look good at all. But what’s even more a glaring flaw is the horrendous and even absurd use of CGI. It leaves you scratching your head. “Why would Dario Argento, someone known for having such great practical effects, resort to implementing CGI in his movies?” I get that is one of the great mysteries of the movie. The CGI is so awful it is almost funny and doesn’t hold up at all. Hell, it didn’t even hold up in 2013. There is a scene where Dracula transforms into a giant praying mantis. That’s correct, you read that right, a giant CGI praying mantis.

The ending of the movie doesn’t make much sense either. Dracula is fighting Van Helsing and you would think he should have no problem fighting him hand to hand as he earlier wiped out a whole group of men within minutes. You would think he would be able to kill his adversary within seconds but either this scene is played out where Dracula is toying with Van Helsing or Argento didn’t think of that when shooting the scene.

Conclusion

Yes, there is quite a bit of bad in this movie so bad you will either turn it off or if you are like me will have a good laugh and just accept it for what it is. But for me there is enough I enjoy in Dracula 3D that I can just shut off my brain for almost two hours and have some dumb fun with it.

I will say this, I would much rather watch this version of our favorite vampire then other recent versions.