Topic: Jimmy's - 2011 Ooctober Horror Marathon

[Jimmy]

I am no need to worry, I just find it hard to be in a good mood or really enjoy something after I've lost the most important person in my life. It's hard to continue as usual...

[addicted2dvd]

I know that feeling Jimmy. When I lost my mother a couple years back it stopped that marathon completely.

Sorry for your loss.

[Najemikon]

I am no need to worry, I just find it hard to be in a good mood or really enjoy something after I've lost the most important person in my life. It's hard to continue as usual...

Well you know we're good listeners if you need to sound off, mate.

This is just a movie that doesn't make sense, seriously how the hell can you find that much info about someone you had talk with only on a C.B.? Are kids these days think a C.B. is like a phone and you got a call viewer to know who call?

I know how that is. Makes me laugh almost every time I see computers in film! I swear the French thriller, Tell No One, is the only recent film that actually showed a proper email account being used properly. Still, sometimes you have to be an expert to spot how far writers go with bending logic, so I wonder how much it really matters. My dad wasn't a pedantic sort of bloke, but he could never resist pausing a film or TV show when a reel-to-reel tape recorder appeared on screen. He'd identify the model instantly and then insist on explaining how the scene was rubbish because that model recording at that speed would be unable to produce the sound definition they were playing!  Like I'd know... 

[Dragonfire]

I am no need to worry, I just find it hard to be in a good mood or really enjoy something after I've lost the most important person in my life. It's hard to continue as usual...

There's no need for you to be sorry because of that.  It is perfectly understandable. 
I'm sorry for your loss.

[Jimmy]

MOVIE / DVD INFO:

Title: Urban Legend (1998)

Genre: Horror
Director: Jamie Blanks
Rating: R
Length: 1h40
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1
Audio: English
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Jared Leto
Alicia Witt
Rebecca Gayheart
Michael Rosenbaum
Loretta Devine

Plot:
When New England college student Natalie finds herself at the center of a series of sadistic murders seemingly inspired by urban legends, she resolves to find the truth about Pendleton's own legend--a twenty-five-year-old story of a student massacre at the hands of an abnormal Psych professor. As the fraternities prepare to celebrate the macabre anniversary, Natalie discovers that she is the focus of the crazed killer's intentions in the ultimate urban legend--the story of her own horrific murder.

My Thoughts:

Finally something I like, but it isn't a surprise since I already enjoyed this film when it was theatrically released. I've always found that this movie is highly underated compare to the same type of films during this period. OK some of the acting is pretty weak (Michael Rosenbaum and Joshua Jackson being the perfect exemple of this), Rebecca Gayheart overact way too much, some legend are used more than one time (as if they were a lack of legends) and they got some legends wrong (by exemple the Love Rollercoater one, the legend is that a girl was killed during the recording not that the group did sample a 911 call). But on the other side you got a nice looking Tara Reid when she was an actress, Rebecca Gayheart in a different casting (I knew her for the US soap Loving at that time, yeah shoot me I was a fan of some TV soap opera ), a small cameo by Danielle Harris who start her career as a kid in Halloween 4 (talking of her, she star in a film who will be release soon that look 100% in my chord), another cameo by Natasha Gregson Wagner (she also had a small role in Wonderland that I recommand highly) and of course an uncredited appearance by the great Brad Dourif.

The sequels are awfull but this one is recommanded


 
Rating :

[Jimmy]

BTW this is the trailer for Shiver the Danielle Harris' movie I talked about in the precedent review


Even better, John Jarratt who is the only positive in Wolf Creek is in this film

[Jimmy]

MOVIE / DVD INFO:

Title: Mardi Gras Massacre (1978)

Genre: Horror
Director: Jack Weis
Rating: NR
Length: 1h32
Video: Full Frame
Audio: English
Subtitles: None

Stars:
Curt Dawson
William Metzo
Gwen Arment
Ronald Tanet
Laura Misch Owens

Plot:
Mardi Gras Massacre is a nasty and gory 70's horror film set in New Orleans. A killer (William Metzgo) picks up prostitutes and sacrifices them to the Win Gods. This nut will stop at nothing to make his killings and he literally pulls the hearts out of his victims. Only two rogue cops are hot on his trail and they go to the seedy side of Bourbon Street to find him. Banned in the U.K. for being too violent, it now can be seen on dvd uncut!

My Thoughts:

This movie isn't what most people would call a good one and to be honest I won't too. But as I often say for me the fact that a movie is good or not isn't important at all, I ask one thing to a movie and this is that it entertain me. Did he does? You bet it did

What can you ask more than a serial killer cult priest sacrificing young prostitute because they are evil in a repetitive way with Hershell Gordon Lewis look-a-like special effects and all this scored with the most inappropriate music possible. We also follow the investigation done ineptly by two cops, one of them pass more time in a bed with a prostitute than working on the case. But at the end the right defeat the wrong or maybe not?

Really this is a fun ride, more or less well acted and mysteriously edited. In bonus you get some good vintage footage of New Orlean as this film was made in the French Quarter of the city during the real Mardi Gras.

I know the chances are high that I'm the only one who appreciate this type of film here, but the British Office of Censorship didn't banned this one for nothing...   


 
Rating :

[Najemikon]

Jimmy, did you call your marathon "Ooctober" on purpose?  In a weird way, it suits it. 

[Jimmy]

No it's a skipo, but I won't correct it

[addicted2dvd]

I am almost embarrassed to say... I didn't even notice it! 

[RossRoy]

Actually, after Jon mentioned it, I looked at the thread title and thought "Jimmy must've fixed it" .. the Jimmy said he didn't fix it so I looked again .. and still couldn't see it! I'm useless ..

[Jimmy]

MOVIE / DVD INFO:

Title: Cursed (2005)

Genre: Horror
Director: Wes Craven
Rating: NR
Length: 1h39
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.40:1
Audio: English / French
Subtitles: English / Spanish

Stars:
Christina Ricci
Jesse Eisenberg
Joshua Jackson
Judy Greer
Milo Ventimiglia

Plot:
Packed with even more intense thrills than audiences experienced in theaters, this unrated version of Wes Craven's Cursed brings you the terror of werewolves as never before! Christina Ricci (Monster), Jesse Eisenberg (The Village), Joshua Jackson (TV's Dawson's Creek), Judy Greer (The Village), and Milo Ventimiglia (TV's Gilmore Girls) find themselves caught up in an unimaginable horror! A werewolf loose in Los Angeles changes the lives of three young adults who, after being mauled by the beast, learn that the only way to break the curse put upon them is to kill the one who started it all! From the creators of Scream, this never-before-seen version is shockingly more frightening and undeniably more fun than the original release!

My Thoughts:

I will be fast on this one. What a pathetic pile of crap... This is poorly acted, we are not sure if we watch an horror movie or a comedy (and a really bad one), the transformation scene are lame (funny how it was perfectly done 24 years before with physical effects, guess CGI had made people lazy...),...

It would have been so better if the film would have continue with the performance of Bowling for Soup who start the film (even if the song is one of the worst thing they have recorded). Actually one line make me laugh and it's when Scott Baio say "who do I have to blow to get out of here" as I was thinking the same thing. Oh and what's the point of whoring the Shannon Elizabeth's name on the cover that much as she is in this movie for less than 2 minutes...

When I read something like "this never-before-seen version is shockingly more frightening and undeniably more fun than the original release!" I can't imagine how the theatrical release could have been less scary and unfunny than this pathetic "unrated" version is....

Wes Craven must be ashamed of himself but since he haven't done a real scary horror movie since The Hills Have Eyes in 77, I guess he live in a constant shameful status and he is used to it...


 
Rating :

[Jimmy]

MOVIE / DVD INFO:

Title: Last House on Dead End Street (1973)

Genre: Horror
Director: Roger Watkins
Rating: NR
Length: 1h18
Video: Full Frame
Audio: English
Subtitles: None

Stars:
Roger Watkins
Ken Fisher
Bill Schlageter
Kathy Curtin
Pat Canestro

Plot:
Roger Watkins stars as Terry Hawkins, a down and out pornographer, fresh out of prison. Disgusted by the world around him, he begins work on a series of snuff films-targeting the very society that put him away. Lock your doors! Terry Hawkins is shooting his masterpiece at 'The Last House on Dead End Street'!

My Thoughts:

Here you have the most valuable piece of my collection. This is the first film made by Roger Watkins after a long serie of short films (most of them are include on the second disc of this dvd), after this film he will work with Otto Preminger and Freddie Francis among others and finally he will restart to direct film in the last part of his career doing some of the best adult films ever made (I've reviewed some of them in my blog and some here too I think). This movie was made for less than 1000$ with a cast of university student and professors (if you are a graduates of the New York State University it's possible that you had a class with Paul M. Jensen or Edward E. Pixley). The fact that it was shooted on a small budget with an unknown cast bring a lot to the movie credibility. The story is more or less important, anyway the original movie distributor ruined a lot of it because of bad editorial decision and a redubbing. It's the kind of movie you watch for the money shot wich is the serie of murder who will happen in the last part of it. So is this well done? yes they are. The effects doesn't look phony as the one in Snuff who is sadly the most known movie of this genre. The most brutal murder is quite realist (no I won't describe it...) and one of the most effective is the less graphic one. Of course not all is perfect and the last one look a little bit phony.

BTW this is not the original title of the film as it was made as The Cuckoo Clocks of Hell (the theatrical distributor change it to take advantage of Last House on the Left) and the original version done by Watkins had a running time of 2h55, sadly this version is currently missing in action.

You know already if this is for you or not, but anyway this film is OOP for a long time (a fact that will not change) and it quite costly to get now.


 
Rating :

[Achim]

Wow, that trailer already used the "fade-to-black" thing that is so incredibly overused nowadays.

A movie like this is much more effective when kept tight and short, so I doubt a three hour cut will work better. But it surely would be interesting to see it in comparison!

[Jimmy]

MOVIE / DVD INFO:

Title: Saw (2004)

Genre: Horror
Director: James Wan
Rating: R
Length: 1h43
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: English
Subtitles: English / Spanish

Stars:
Leigh Whannell
Cary Elwes
Danny Glover
Ken Leung
Dina Meyer

Plot:
Obsessed with teaching his victims the value of life, a deranged, sadistic serial killer abducts the morally wayward. Once captured, they must face impossible choices in a horrific game of survival. The victims must fight to win their lives back, or die trying...

My Thoughts:

This one was a nice little independant hit in 2004 and I must say that I've like this one the first time I watched it years ago. Of course it isn't perfect first imperfection being the overacting of Leigh Whannell but I give him a pass as he isn't an actor (he acted in it to save money as the budget was low). There are some illogical flaws here and there (the corpse being a big one and the impossibilty for the camera to shoot at those angles). But the athmosphere is good and you care about the two guys destiny. Just one last thing : at one point one of the police officer say he isn't a killer because he didn't kill anyone... Please give me break! If I give a gun to someone, tell him to shoot himself and I'm catch that will be prosecuted as a murder (at least as accessory to a murder). We don't get a "get out of jail" Monopoly card for this...


 
Rating :