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Post by silverbullet63 on Oct 28, 2019 19:23:33 GMT -5
Having not read the book or seen the original, I liked Daniel Radcliffe's 2012 The Woman in Black. Not checked out the sequel yet. I recommend you checkout the 1989 tv adaptation. |
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Post by someoldguy on Oct 28, 2019 21:06:39 GMT -5
For a 'found-footage' movie (which I generally don't like but they keep making them based on things I'm interested in so I keep watching them) the first Hell House LLC isn't bad. I haven't tried out the 2nd or 3rd ones yet. If you don't mind slipping over to haunted asylums, I liked the first Grave Encounters (2011) - another found-footage one - and liked the idea behind its 2012 sequel. Having not read the book or seen the original, I liked Daniel Radcliffe's 2012 The Woman in Black. Not checked out the sequel yet. I checked out Hell House LLC II. Not as good as the original. Not a lot new in it except at the end. Also harder to maintain imagining that this is found footage. Have not looked at III yet. Irrelevant aside: The movie tries to equate Abaddon with the Lake of Fire, both images in the Book of Revelation, aka Apocalypse. They are quite distinct. But then Hollywood has everyone convinced that 666 is the Mark of the Devil. In fact it is the Number of the Beast, who is not Satan. Today's trivia...  I have not seen Grave Encounters or its sequel. Likewise The Woman in Black. |
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Post by someoldguy on Oct 30, 2019 16:50:18 GMT -5
I watched The Old Dark House (1932) on Shudder. I had not seen it in many years. Travelers caught in a storm take refuge in a large isolated foreboding mansion. Electricity goes out so it it mostly candle lit. Not exactly a haunted house but full of secrets (plural) menaces (plural) madnesses (plural) and spooky atmosphere.
Great character portrayals here.
The inimitable Ernest Thesiger (Dr Pretorius in Bride of Frankenstein) as the nervously neurotic host with secrets.
Karloff as the disfigured mute and dangerous when drunk servant.
The unjustly little known Eva Moore as Thesiger's weird sister. Great character portrayal here!
Charles Laughton once more paints a vivid portrait of a character. Little to do with the story but fun.
Melvyn Douglas and Raymond Massey do their usual professional acting jobs as Melvyn Douglas and Raymond Massey.
Young and pretty Gloria Stuart and Lilian Bond play young and pretty girls being menaced.
Nicely done if you like old movies of this type.
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Post by someoldguy on Nov 4, 2019 19:07:07 GMT -5
Late 1950s horror movies have been on my mind lately for unknown reasons. I gave in and watched House on Haunted Hill (1959). Campy, hammy, cheesy fun in the best William Castle tradition. I saw this in the movies when it first came out, complete with the corny Emergo effect. When you see the camera pan around the dark basement with dramatic scary music playing and nothing happening on the screen, that is when the illuminated 'skeleton' came out from behind its curtain near the screen and sailed out on wires over the heads of the audience. This was supposed to be the skeleton that just came out of the acid vat (yes, that's what I said) and disappeared off the edge of the screen. Castle at his cheesiest! Don't even talk to me about the 1999 remake. That budget and that cast and all they could come up with was that boring POS? IMO anyway. |
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Post by someoldguy on Nov 9, 2019 16:06:51 GMT -5
Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark (2010)
The exact opposite is the case, of course. 😱 Old house with secrets ... and other things. Not your typical ghost story by a long shot. Good one.
Then 10 year old Bailee Madison and Katie Holmes own this movie, especially Bailee.
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Post by someoldguy on Nov 12, 2019 16:13:22 GMT -5
The Legend of Hell House 1973 A scientist and some psychics investigate the most haunted house in the world where most visitors die. Lots of things happen on the way to investigating the secret of the house, with red herrings here and there. Good one if perhaps not as good as the novel, IMO anyway. But definitely worth a watch if you like this kind of movie. Available online for pay (or membership) from a variety of providers. An unusual role for Roddy McDowall BTW. www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-legend-of-hell-houseThe movie does not bring out as much as the novel did that the house turns people against each other, although it does to some extent. Since this is the real power of the house and why most people die, it is an important point.
Roddy McDowall needling the spirit near the end reminds me of Ray Milland needling the spirit near the end of The Uninvited. |
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Post by someoldguy on Dec 9, 2019 16:29:36 GMT -5
Haunter 2018 A subtle and complex piece that slowly delves into what is going on. The early part of the movie refers rather obviously to other movies, giving the initial clues. (We even see the Clue game on a shelf. Ha Ha.) These set you up for sliding into the basic concept of the movie. But that is only the start. There are layers to this onion. There are no 'blinding revelations' or 'shock twists' but step by step exposition of the big picture. And the ending is not of the hackneyed It Ain't Over type but a genuine ending. There is also no overuse of CGI or FX. In fact there are almost no FX at all. Not to everyone's taste but definitely to mine. BTW apropos to this site, the musical theme that keeps recurring in the movie is Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf.  No wolves in the movie tho' |
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Post by someoldguy on Dec 13, 2019 9:11:29 GMT -5
Winchester The Winchester House in San Jose California is real. It is an enormous, architecturally chaotic mansion with weird features like staircases that simply lead to ceilings and many other oddities. Supposedly it was built, and rebuilt and rebuilt, over several decades by Sarah Winchester, very rich widow of the rifle inventor and manufacturer, as a home for the spirits of those killed by Winchester rifles. This movie takes that idea and makes a very haunted house story out of it. The movie has been endlessly bad mouthed by critics but I think they are all wrong. It is nicely spooky and builds to a good extended climax that ties everything together. But there is no gore to speak of, the violence is a long time in coming and the few jump scares are about sneakily building the logic of the story rather than merely gratuitous. If you are looking for endless gory murders and instant thrill gratification, this movie is not for you. If you want a slow, spooky build up and a conclusion that wraps it all up tidily, but without any boring ex post facto expositions by anybody, screw the critics and check out Winchester. PS The It Ain't Over snippet before the credits is entirely fitting. You see, the (real) Winchester House is still haunted to this day |
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Post by someoldguy on Dec 27, 2019 21:55:24 GMT -5
Malevolent (2018)
Big mansion haunted by murdered children. Fake ghost experts who make a big show of relieving people of their imaginary fears find out this one is for real. I saw where it was going pretty early on and I imagine others would as well. Kind of spooky and gets pretty bloody later in the movie. Not bad but not really good either.
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Post by someoldguy on Jan 10, 2020 15:10:58 GMT -5
We Are Still Here (2015) Spookiness starts early and builds slowly, with a red herring or two along the way. Not until close to halfway through does it get serious, which makes that all the more effective because you are not expecting it. The creepiness grows as the backstory starts to come out. A very satisfying ending with the bad guys getting theirs. And do they ever! Remember the old Gallagher shows where he would finish up with the watermelon and the people in the front rows had those big plastic sheets? Hold that thought. I especially liked how the chief bad guy who tries to turn the tables gets his. Definitely plastic sheet time.  Some good guys get creamed along the way but all is well at the end for the main characters. Even the red herrings get nicely resolved. At one point in the movie, I suddenly realized I knew where they filmed it, recognizing the road and a unique building. A visit to IMDb confirmed my impression. I have been there. Kinda made it spookier for me. |
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Post by ArcLight on Jan 10, 2020 16:45:06 GMT -5
We Are Still Here (2015) Spookiness starts early and builds slowly, with a red herring or two along the way. Not until close to halfway through does it get serious, which makes that all the more effective because you are not expecting it. The creepiness grows as the backstory starts to come out. A very satisfying ending with the bad guys getting theirs. And do they ever! Remember the old Gallagher shows where he would finish up with the watermelon and the people in the front rows had those big plastic sheets? Hold that thought. I especially liked how the chief bad guy who tries to turn the tables gets his. Definitely plastic sheet time. Some good guys get creamed along the way but all is well at the end for the main characters. Even the red herrings get nicely resolved. At one point in the movie, I suddenly realized I knew where they filmed it, recognizing the road and a unique building. A visit to IMDb confirmed my impression. I have been there. Kinda made it spookier for me. I liked that one. I watched it mainly because Barbara Crampton was in it and was pleasantly surprised to see Monte Markham pop up for a bit, too. Very cool that you knew the location. |
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Post by someoldguy on Jan 10, 2020 21:01:04 GMT -5
We Are Still Here (2015) Spookiness starts early and builds slowly, with a red herring or two along the way. Not until close to halfway through does it get serious, which makes that all the more effective because you are not expecting it. The creepiness grows as the backstory starts to come out. A very satisfying ending with the bad guys getting theirs. And do they ever! Remember the old Gallagher shows where he would finish up with the watermelon and the people in the front rows had those big plastic sheets? Hold that thought. I especially liked how the chief bad guy who tries to turn the tables gets his. Definitely plastic sheet time. Some good guys get creamed along the way but all is well at the end for the main characters. Even the red herrings get nicely resolved. At one point in the movie, I suddenly realized I knew where they filmed it, recognizing the road and a unique building. A visit to IMDb confirmed my impression. I have been there. Kinda made it spookier for me. I liked that one. I watched it mainly because Barbara Crampton was in it and was pleasantly surprised to see Monte Markham pop up for a bit, too. Very cool that you knew the location. I was driving through the Finger Lakes region (beautiful country) on my way to the New York State Thruway and then west to Buffalo to see Niagara Falls. (Sightseeing by one's self has its pros and cons.) The road I recognized was 21 North. I stopped to eat in Shortsville but not at Buffalo Bill's, some other place that was a regular restaurant, not a bar and grill. |
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Post by someoldguy on Jan 10, 2020 21:21:59 GMT -5
Saturday the 14th (1981) They let you know it is a comedy from the first moment when the cartoon wolf howls and then coughs. And comedy it is. Oh there are a bunch of nasty looking monsters but for the most part they do not do monstrous things, except maybe mess up the kitchen having midnight snacks. The biggest exception is the cop from next door gets decapitated but the severed head gets used for some laughs later on Richard Benjamin and Paula Prentiss do the oblivious parents including a running gag about 'owls'. The always welcome Jeffrey Tambor does a vampire with male pattern baldness. A pre-'Gimme a Break' teenage Kari Michaelsen strips for a bath but you do not get to see very much. Little bits here and there refer to other horror movies, generally for laughs such as the shark fin in the bubble bath or the heavy fog inside the house Bottom line: Fun if you are in the mood for something light involving a mysterious old house, miscellaneous monsters, an old book of magic, cheap FX involving dry ice and/or sparklers. And 'owls'. |
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Post by someoldguy on Jan 11, 2020 9:25:05 GMT -5
Watched The Woman In Black (1989) as recommended by silverbullet. It is available on DailyMotion Subtly creepy and nicely understated. Good performances by the young Adrian Rawlins (*) and by the dog Spider who is important to keeping the story moving. Good atmosphere with little touches reminiscent of The Haunting (1963) like the locked/unlocked nursery door. Kidd's slowly deteriorating state of mind is nicely conveyed by him going to get an axe to break down that door. And the toy soldier as a link to the past events is a clever touch. All told, a good watch if you do not insist on gore and screams in your haunted houses. * Adrian Who? Although his talents are not appreciated much outside the UK, nonetheless his face is known to many millions throughout the world. He does James Potter. |
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Post by someoldguy on Jan 27, 2020 10:41:21 GMT -5
Hausu (House) 1977 Japanese, English subtitles Obayashi's surreal haunted house horror comedy with special effects that are both terrifying and wacky. FX are rather cheap but that adds to the fun IMO. Nine Japanese schoolgirls go to the house of one girl's aunt for summer vacation. Big house in the country, demonic cat, hungry piano, that skeleton ... Things slowly get weird with a totally wild climax and a chilling but inevitable anti-climax. Loaded with humor along the way, although sometimes of a grotesque nature. A bit late to have been part of the psychedelic era, it might still be characterized as such. A psychedelic horror movie?  Can be seen on archive.org presented by Bizarre TV. The first 18 minutes of the two hours is supposed to provide the old time movie theater experience with commercials, 'Coming Attractions', invitations to go to the refreshment center etc. The final 15 minutes is weirdness from Bizarre TV. The movie itself is in between. |
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Le Loup-Garou Qui Rit
No wolves in the movie tho'
