BobO'Link

I keep a TV series or two in constant rotation for late night or fill-in (not-enough-time-for-a-whole-movie) viewings. I finally opened and watched my DVD set of "Hammer House of Horrors" this past week (picked it up in July 2017). Wow! That's a superb series. I wish it could have lasted longer than 13 meager episodes. I followed it up with a long overdue viewing of "The Veil" (I purchased that one in October 2009!!) I've only seen 4 episodes of that one so far but at this point I'd say it's another very good series. I highly recommend both for fans of pre-1970s horror.

rbrown498

It was my subset pick in 2014.

Chad

Quick reminder since I forgot to post this yesterday...

DaveyJoe

Yeah, when the subset list was finalized I was worried my pick would feel redundant since we did Come Out and Play a few years ago. Unfortunately the remake was very similar to the original, even reusing a lot of the same shots. However I thought the original had enough value and substance that I think it was a worthy choice. I hope others feel the same.

Trevor

Most definitely a great selection. Films that good are worth re-visiting.

MysterioMan007

Just got home from seeing Halloween (2018).... and I loved it. Well worth a watch.

jholmes

Question: I've seen people talk about doing the checklist with a) never repeating the use of a film or b) completing every person/category even when it says you can do 20 out of 30 or 5 out of 10 etc.

There actual rules of the checklist are clear, like "select 2 writers" and you can reuse films if they count for multiple things on the checklist. Is there any benefit to going beyond that in terms of the prizes? Because from what I can gather from the official rules, there isn't any benefit. If you "complete" the checklist, per the actual stated checklist rules, you are entered in a random drawing.

Is that correct? Or am I missing something?

This is my first year doing the full challenge so I'm trying to figure out what folks are doing and why.

SterlingBen

People like to stretch for fun, for the "Challenge" of it.

Undeadcow

Ok, you people suckered me into watching Tag. I agree the first 10 minutes were especially intense/gorey setup, but also remember the director's Suicide Club being an even more wtf intense display (I am due for a revisit). Tag is a film that feel like it has more depth to it although I suspect so much of it is just a nonsensical framework for gorey and surreal imagery there is no real rationale for. As cool as the first segment is, the film never even seems to resolve some mysteries (or does so in a very cryptic/abstract way that eludes me). Starts with epic bloody carnage before parading off to a series of pseudo-metaphysical nonsense punctuated by more bloody carnage. It's like a gorey Japanese spin on The Matrix with arterial spray and pondering on free will versus fate in terms of shaping reality and identity. Like a one person chase sequence I cannot decide if it's a setback that Tag lacks plot or if abstract and weird enough to not need one. For as many ideas that resonate or intense visuals there any number of plot holes, shortcuts, or just irreverent sight gags.

SethDLH

For anyone with kids or that grew up with the books - I think it is worth checking out the new Goosebumps movie while it's in theaters. It's not going to blow your mind but it is entertaining family friendly horror that sets the Halloween mood pretty well. Good solid fun.

Undeadcow

Forest of Lost Souls is pretty stellar, bonus for only be 70 minutes long and available on Amazon Prime streaming. Black and white Portuguese film with artful shot compositions in a scenic forest and a thematic focus on bleak sadness that matches the drab colors of the film. Gradual subtle plot that is both shocking and nicely cryptic building on itself from abstract themes of the suicide forest (length of sadness) to more base slasher elements but with an arthouse slow mo style which I found to be a good metaphor for suicide/sadness devastating loved ones (which is my interpretation, not an obvious part of the film). Easily a highlight from my recent watchings.

Undeadcow

My favorite were the gummy bears; evil gummy bears could be a film in itself. I also enjoyed G2 but felt it stepped more away from the books and into a more generic Halloween romp. House With a Clock in It's Wall is also worth checking out, Jack Black is big with family movies these days.

Damn... looking forward to checking new Halloween out; and Suspiria remake. This year might actually be one of the strongest Halloween theatrical offerings in some time.I use to try to do this, complete every checklist item to 100% (which SterlingBen is correct is just a weird personal challenge thing) but that horrible horrible 'masters of commentary' category killed that. I hate commentaries, generally speaking, and might listen to one or two for especially interesting films but listening to 10 commentaries would be such a chore. Whoever suggested that should be flogged, actually I know who suggested it... curses, Trevor. Anyone who can 100% this deserves an instant prize.

Trevor

Watching a Shudder exclusive right now called Terrified. It’s living up to its name. Pausing until daylight, ‘night all!

Undeadcow

Don't... go... to... sleep... this is the October horror movie challenge, you can sleep in November or if you go all out for comedy then December unless you also like holiday movies in which case you might be able to adapt to not getting much sleep. One two Freddy's coming for you...

WillieMLF

Trying to get one more in, as I've got tomorrow off. I was going to do Mandy (2018), but I wanted to save Nick Cage for a sober night. It looks like The Cured (2017) may be the winner.

DaveyJoe

If you've ever wondered what Aliens would be like with a shoestring budget and set on a submarine, check out The Rift to see how it would turn out(not well).

SterlingBen

I was so disappointed in that movie. It kept coming up on lists with Leviathan, Deep Star Six & Unknown Origin so when it finally made it to optical I was super jazzed, and it ended up sucking. Hard.

shadokitty

Showtime Beyond seems to be a good channel for this month's Challenge viewing. In two days, I've seen two horror movies on there. Tonight was an interesting first time view, called The Scarehouse. It was an interesting take on the revenge genre, taking place at a Sorority house.

DaveyJoe

Yeah as someone who really enjoys Pieces and Slugs(from the same director) I had high hopes that this would be cheesy, yet fun. It wasn't. It was boring and the horror elements are confined to a ten minute window near the end. R Lee Ermey was wasted.

shadokitty

I have the DVR add-on on Sling TV, and have been going through episodes of Paranormal Survivor this month. I've seen the occasional episode before, but am enjoying watching episodes more regularly. I'm glad that Travel Channel has been participating in Ghostober this year. Interestingly enough, while I was just watching an episode, the radio station I was listening to played 'Enter Sandman', by Metallica.

DaveyJoe

Pyewacket (2017) is a very effective slow-burn horror about a girl's obsession with the occult going too far. It's very deliberately paced, with a strong emphasis on character, but it genuinely frightened me a few times. I thought it was a strong film but I can see some people wanting more scary moments by the end. One of my favorite FTVs this year.

Bite (2015) takes the gross-out gags from Cronenberg's The Fly and builds an entire movie around them. Pretty much a waste of time.

jholmes

Thanks. That's what I figured but just wanted to be sure. I am trying to watch more than the minimum and do all the categories. But there are so many films I have on my "to watch" list, and I'd rather use this time to hit some of them versus watching films I don't really want to if it's not necessary for the challenge.

jholmes

I really liked Pyewacket. I'm enjoying all of the recs on this thread.

Has anyone watched the new The Apostle with Dan Stevens on Netflix? Looks great.

jholmes

Thanks for that clarification.

Yeah, there are a few sections of the checklist that, if I tried to do them all, I'd end up watching a lot of marginal stuff (marginal for me), and there are so many films I still need, and want, to see for the first time. The commentary section is a good example. I don't usually listen to commentaries either. On first viewing it's too distracting. And I don't watch things repeatedly unless it's once a year for something like "Halloween", but even then, I prefer to experience the film itself. I know I should listen to more commentaries because I'm sure they're interesting. A few of the actors/deceased too have a very limited horror list. But I am trying to do all of the category/genre trope sections. Between that and the subset, I'm watching things I wouldn't have picked, which is a nice stretch.

I'm planning to watch the Joe Bob Briggs commentary on "I Spit On Your Grave" for that section. I've never seen the film, and I figure it's probably not a film where you really need to focus on the story to follow it. Plus his commentary may help lighten it up a bit. Found the DVD on ebay.

I'm at my conference and I've managed to watch a bit each day so far, so that's good. Though last night a friend I talked into coming back to my room with me to watch Repo! The Genetic Opera fled after the first twenty minutes. Portsmouth/Norfolk Virginia is a beautiful area.

GoldenWheels

Well, I hate SAW movies, and Jigsaw was no different. Not sure why I even bothered with it...I guess I was in the mood for something newer.

Awful. Awful, overdone, overwrought, stupidly fantastical nonsense. Blech. The worst movie I've watched all month.