Day 31: It's Halloween! Mission Accomplished!

Well, it has been 31 days, and I can say that I have accomplished my goal of watching a scary movie for each day in October!

Trick 'r Treat was a great movie to complete my goal and to celebrate Halloween. Was the movie great? Not by any means, but it was fun. It reminded me of Creepshow, except more coherent and intertwined. What really made this movie good was that it was basically four acts, which subtly blend together to keep the viewer interested. The casting was great and the film contained all the horror movie essentials that fans of the genre love. It had werewolves, vampires, strange creatures, zombies/ghouls, a psycho-killer, and the whole urban-legend-scary-story plotline.

All-in-all, it has been a great run! And don't think for a second that the scary movie watchin' is over!

Day 30: Look Who's Evil Now!

What better way to pay tribute to the cult classic horror trilogy than to combine all the films into one bloody hilarious musical?

I was first introduced to this musical roughly 2 years ago, when I went to a production in Springfield, MO. It was vulgar, gory, and absolutely the funniest musical I had ever seen.

Fast forward to the present, having found out this musical would be in Kansas City, there was absolutely no way I was going to miss out. I convinced my lovely girlfriend (herself a fan of musicals) and she convinced some friends of ours to come with us to see the one and only, Evil Dead The Musical.

Somehow, though we tried to avoid it, we found ourselves front and center, right behind a row designated as the splatter section. When we realized that our seats were covered in plastic, we knew we would be in for one evil night...

I cannot express the greatness of this musical, which combines all the greatest scenes from all 3 Evil Dead movies. During the production, die hard fans yell out famous lines from the movies, laughter fills the theater, and fun is had by all! We left the night blood sprayed and happy, finishing the evening by watching The Evil Dead, which needs no introduction.

What an amazing prelude to Halloween!!!

Day 29: A little Psychoanalysis...

Nightmares in Red, White, and Blue: The Evolution of the American Horror Film isn't a feature length horror film, but rather a documentary about what the horror genre means in America and to Americans, and how it has evolved over time. With interviews and commentary from John Carpenter, George A. Romero, and a handful of other horror film writers, producers, and directors, the film is basically a social and political history of the genre within the U.S.

For me, this film, aiding as a sort of self induced psychotherapy, helped put some understanding to my strange obsession with horror. After all, I have nearly completed my 31 day journey and am still itching for more! After watching the documentary, I have only began to realize that there are several reasons why I love horror movies so much. It has less and less to do with psychopaths running around killing people (insert alternate plot here), and more to do with the metaphors and symbolism within the movies, which ultimately hint at real life fears and social concerns.

Horror movies give me an outlet to face my biggest fears without getting a scratch. They give me political and social insight. They give me inspirational and discouraging outlooks on human beings. Horror movies give viewers the opportunities to love and hate any aspect they choose, without external judgement. I can love that a womanizing jerk gets axed by an ex lover. I can hate that a serial killer can manipulate systems and go 30 years without retribution, and at the same time, love that the people at his mercy "get what they deserve".

In short, horror movies are just awesome! They are not just about killing and dying, in fact, that is rarely their main intention. Horror movies tell us something about ourselves, our culture, and current situations that often feel out of our control. I have a feeling that my journey is just starting.

Day 28: Time to Cringe!

Red State made me cringe.

Not because it was jump out of your seat scary.

Not because it was close your eyes gruesome.

Not even because it was horribly cruel (though it was).

Though it was scary, it was gruesome, and it was utterly cruel, Red State, made me cringe be cause it was 100% believable. The film is basically about a wacked out cult, set on sending sinners to hell, and doing "the lord's work" by condemning different people groups as they see fit. The film opens by giving the viewer a glimpse at the group holding picket signs outside a funeral home as a homosexual student is laid to rest after having been murdered. The viewer later ventures into the group's chapel, on a secluded commune, and gets a chance to hear the pastor deliver a sermon that sounds both deranged and familiar.

Throughout the movie, the viewer comes to despise both the good guys and the bad guys in this film, and is left contemplating the reality of the situation at hand. Hmm....

Day 27: A nice little 80s throwback.

The House of the Devil, released in 2009, is a homage to the1970s and 1980s horror flicks that millions fell in love with...wait, is love the right word? Amityville Horror, When a Stranger Calls, The Last House on the Left, The Exorcist, The Omen, and the list could go on and on and on.

Nearly every aspect of this film is meant to resemble these movies. The movie was shot on 16mm film and similar camera techniques were used to give the movie a retro feel. Characters looked the part too, complete with high waisted jeans and feathered hair. The film was even released on VHS, now that's dedication!

The House of the Devil follows a college girl who is strapped for cash and looking to move into her own apartment. In order to make some quick cash, she agrees to babysit for a family who lives out in the middle of nowhere, with a full lunar eclipse set to hit at midnight. Sound like a bad idea?

The girl arrives at the house to make acquaintance with a very awkward (possibly the most awkward sequence of scenes I have ever witnessed) and creepy old man and his wife, at which time they inform the girl that they haven't been completely honest with her.

Though it is slow to develop, and spirals to an end quickly, this movie is worth a watch if you love the horror movies of yesterday.

Day 26: A good old fashioned pig hunt!

Prey, yet another French horror, is a short, and concise film by first time director Antoine Blossier.

This eco-horror creature feature was lacking in some areas, but really hit the ball out of the park in other areas. I will say that the greatest characteristics of this movie are the makeup and effects. Prey will be appealing to those who prefer live-action creatures as opposed to CG, and will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout. For me, not being a fan of over the top, unbelievably made up creature-monsters, the wild boars in this movie were perfect and terrifyingly believable. However, the downfalls of this movie are that the characters never really develop enough for the viewer to get attached, and the storyline progresses in a way that is easily predictable.

This movie was short and semi-sweet, especially for a first time director. Put another notch on the belt for the French.

Day 25: The Decent meets Wrong Turn? Hardly!

Described as a movie with elements from The Descent and Wrong Turn, there was no way I could resist picking this movie up.

High Lane starts out promising, with gorgeous aerial views of the Balkans. Though the acting was terrible and the plot was predictable before any diologue between characters, the tension factor kept this movie interesting for the first half-hour or so, with excellent shots of the group of hikers scaling cliffs and making their way across a footbridge. This action had my heart pounding and I was loving it.

Unfortunately, the moving became uninteresting before anyone ran into the real problem, a crazed-Wrong Turnesque-lunatic named Anton, living in a cabin in the woods. There was no backstory to this guy, other than his name carved on a door in his torture cabin.

The plot fell apart so quickly that the movie came to an end by telling the viewer, via screen text, that the bodies of the group members were never found, and that people go missing in the Balkans quite regularly. Apparently the director realized what a goof of a movie this was and decided to throw in the towel before any resolve could be made.