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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 2, 2013 1:09:11 GMT -5
Thank you Jake, and sorry about your computer. Computers can sure be annoying.
So, how about the 1980s, a golden era of Horror?
The Rules:
Any non-horror movie or documentary made in the 1980s is worth one point. Any Horror movie or documentary made in the 1980s is worth two points. Any version of 1984 is worth four points from any year. Competition ends at midnight Pacific time on the last day of the month. Honor system at play.
Should be a good one, and I'll bring it this month, that whomping hurt.
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Post by jakeawesomesnake on Aug 4, 2013 16:26:37 GMT -5
Good idea LOB, I was actually thinking of doing the same thing.
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 15, 2013 9:55:58 GMT -5
I watched four movies, all horror.
First I watched John Carpenter's The Thing (1983), a favorite of mine and one of a handful of Carpenter movies that I consider perfect. It's funny, four of my five favorite John Carpenter movies star Kurt Russel. Damn, I do hate that freakin' dog.
Second, I finished the "It's Alive" trilogy by watching It's Alive III: Island of the Alive (1987). All three movies were written and directed by Larry Cohen, THAT Larry Cohen (I also listened separately to the commentary tracks, boy does Larry Cohen have a huge head, he is the opposite of William Friedken. Wow). The first two movies from the seventies have incredibly great acting and are serious movies. This time the star is Michael Moriarty who Cohen used in another horror film he directed, Q (he also directed the Maniac Cop movies and Return to Salem's Lot... I had no idea). Moriarty is fun, fun, fun here and this is the comedy film of the trilogy. I recommend all three movies watched in chronological order.
Third I watched Zombie Holocaust (1980), directed by Italian director Marino Girolami. The plot takes place in New York City (shot in NYC) and the Phillipines (shot in Rome, Italy). Well, I am not a huge Italian horror film fan. I start off detached from the film only until the last half or so of the film. To generalize, too many of these films feel like Euro-pervy set pieces with little plot and character development and heavy on the blood, gore, and female nudity. Same here. The first half of the movie is a cannibal flick in the tradition of Cannibal Holocaust, and only at the 49 minute mark are the island zombies introduced. The undead look like Fulci's dead from Zombi 2, feel that way at first, and then the movie gets really bizarre with the appearance of a very Hammer studios villain a la Dr. Frankenstein who controls both the cannibals and the zombies. Zombie close-ups looked like poo. The boobies kept it real.... Very gory and that was all gold. The zombie kills were top-notch.
Fourth I watched Play Dead (1986). It was shot in 1981 in Dallas, Texas by director Peter Whittman, and released five years later, I believe, conflicting info on this non-gem of Horror out there. I liked it, but it was far from great. Yvonne De Carlo plays the evil Satanic witch who has trained a diabolically clever rottweiler to frame her niece in murder/suicides of her loved ones and to slowly drive her mad. It's funny, she plays a role close to her role in Satan's Cheerleaders, the head witch of a Satanic circle, but her acting is much, much better, and like that film, she telepathically controlled Satanic pooches. This movie is one third horror, one third boring drama, and one third soft porn. Twice a boom is visible during the shooting of a scene. But the boobies are good. I think Troma is now the distributor. Well, I found this on Youtube, and international soft-porn in now available on Youtube. All the movie links went to booby movies. Wow. Oh yeah, the detective character steals his every scene and is reason enough to watch this thing.
Here is the movie if you ever want to watch it.
LOB-8
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 18, 2013 4:52:53 GMT -5
I watched The Devil's Gift (1984). This was a creepy toy movie about a possesed monkey toy from my youth. Actually this movie captured many things from my youth. First the toy clapping monkey, second Star Wars themed toys and a kid's Return of the Jedi tee-shirt, references to classic actors like Bogart and John Wayne, Saturday morning Looney Tunes, and such stuff.
Well the toy monkey was creepy. The dad's nightmares were good horror moments. The earth opening up scene was authentic as fuck, that looked real. The son who is the recipient of the evil monkey toy was a hrribly boring actor. The kid couldn't act out of a wet paper sack. The neighbor without a conventional job was a fun character. The story itself was interesting. The monkey first killed all the house plants (oh the horror). Then the goldfish. Then the dog (Bad Monkey!!!). Then kept going after the kid and his dad till the end of the movie.
The movie ran an hour and a half. Would have made a great Tales from the Darkside episode at under thirty minutes. It was an okay movie that gave me many moments of nostalgia for those kid years in the eighties. Saturday morning cartoons used to be so good.
LOB-10
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 18, 2013 4:58:39 GMT -5
Oh yeah, it was based on a Stephen King Story, "The Monkey". I think...
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Post by jakeawesomesnake on Aug 18, 2013 7:11:04 GMT -5
I started out with a quartet of films from 1986. Spoilers below:
First I watched Neil Jordan's British film Mona Lisa starring Bob Hoskins, Cathy Tyson, and Michael Caine. It's about a British criminal taking on a job and trying to get his life together after spending 7 years in prison. The acting, cinematography, soundtrack, acts of violence, and gore were all great. Bob Hoskins (who was also great in The Long Good Friday) was nominated for an Oscar for his role. Caine had an intimidating presence, Hoskins was a good guy who seemed lost in the world, but was still tough, and Tyson's character was mysterious. Great film and a recommend.
Second I watched Robert Mandel's American film F/X starring Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy, it's about a special effects artist who gets caught up in a conspiracy and has to use his effects to survive. The acting was ok-good, the cinematography was great, the gore was good-really good, acts of violence were ok, and the soundtrack was good. I liked how the protagonist had to use creativity and be resourceful to survive and how they were referencing the various low budget (and usually bad horror movies) that were memorable because of their special effects, for example the in universe I Dismember Mama. Overall the movie was pretty good and it was enjoyable throughout. Good fun movie.
After that I (against my better judgment) watched Philippe Mora's American-British horror movie Howling II: Your is a Werewolf starring Christopher Lee, it's a sequel to the great The Howling, and is about the previous protagonist's brother and his girlfriend getting embroiled into a werewolf plot. The acting was bad-ok, cinematography was great, 80's rock soundtrack was great, the gore was good, and the special effects were bad-ok. This movie was unintentionally funny due to the bad acting and the dumb werewolf orgy, also thought it was dumb how they went to Transylvania. This was a bad, but sort of entertaining movie. That being said it's sad when such great movies become the victim's to horrible franchises.
Finally I watched David Lnych's American film starring Kyle MachLachlan and Dennis Hopper, about a bored college student getting more than he bargained for while returning to his small town. The acting, diverse soundtrack (jazz, rock, pop, and more traditional film score), gore, cinematography, and acts of violence were all great. The only fault to this movie at all were the sound effects when somebody was physically getting hit, would sound obviously fake, but otherwise the movie was great. Dennis Hopper in particular was great as the psychotic Frank and I loved the climax to the film. Great movie and a recommend.
I agree with you about a lot of Italian horror films, while a lot of them have or had reputations as classics overall I'd say the acting and/ or dubbing in the majority that I have scene aren't good. A lot of times they also seem to be incoherent, but at the same time they tend to have interesting cinematography, gore , soundtracks, or be unintentionally funny about half the time. Most of them just don't seem to be good movies overall though and I think the reason a lot of them have such reputations is just due to how different they must have seemed when they first came out to horror fans of the time.
It's also amazing what you can find on YouTube now, I was able to find A Serbian Film and Grotesque on there. It's amazing how many movies I've seen through both it and Netflix.
JAS-5
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Post by jakeawesomesnake on Aug 21, 2013 12:21:14 GMT -5
Spoilers Below:
First I watched Alan Parker's 1987 horror film Angel Heart starring Mickey Rourke, Robert De Niro, and Lisa Bonet. It's about a private eye who's hired to find someone who didn't keep his part of the deal. The acting, cinematography, gore, acts of violence, and the diverse soundtrack (blues, jazz, gospel, rock, voodoo drumming) was all great. Rourke and De Niro are great in particular, with Rourke doing a good job as playing a likeable character who find himself in over his head and De Niro as the enigmatic man who hired him. De Niro has such a great presence here managing to be creepy, classy, and funny all at the same time. Interestingly enough it manages to combine both noir and horror, managing to do it well. I loved all the little symbolism throughout the movie and that the protagonist doesn't lose his cool immediately and irrationally, it's a slow process that slowly wears him down. I also liked that everything made sense in the end and that on a repeat viewing all the previously unknown details fit. The only off thing about this movie was some of the sound effects during fights, but it wasn't bad enough to take away my enjoyment of this movie. Great movie and a recommend.
Second I watched a movie that LOB intrigued me with, Agusti Villaronga's 1987 Spanish horror film In A Glass Cage. It's about a now ill man with a dark past that comes back to haunt him. The acting, cinematography, 80's synth soundtrack, acts of violence, and gore were all great. I liked that the characters were smart enough to make sure they had weapons and I really liked the shot (and sound) after the first kill, so effective. The movie's interesting in that the antagonist is doing horrible things, yet the most vulnerable person is also a horrible person so it's hard to feel bad for him. The movie manages to imply what happens a lot of times, without actually showing it. I thought the antagonist (played by David Sust) had a great, creepy presence. It also shows the sad cycle of abuse and how victims become victimizers, with no one really coming out unharmed. That last shot was creepy and sort of haunting. Great movie.
After that I watched James Bryan's 1981 American slasher Don't Go in the Woods about a group of friends who venture into the woods for a camping trip and get more than they bargained for. It was also an early Video Nasty (and like a lot of Video Nasties) got an undeserved reputation. The acting and acts of violence were awful. The cinematography was great and the gore was good. There was a soundtrack ,but because of it's aforementioned status it's not there in the DVD versions more currently available, including the version that I saw. The killer looked ridiculous and the characters were unlikeable (you don't knock over a rock in a trap on someone's hand or tie someone up in a bag and then hang someone in a tree as retaliation. Oddly despite being an American film it appeared to be dubbed in English, which was a little annoying. I did like that one of the character's brought up the fact that most of the animals are long gone by the time you get where they already were and that it was unintentionally funny.
Finally I watched Michael Stanley's 1985 horror movie Attack of the Beast Creatures, which is about a group of shipwrecked survivors who find themselves attacked by the titular creatures. Now I was expecting this movie to be bad and was also expecting some dumb costumed creatures ,but instead I got these tiny voodoo dolls. The acting, cinematography, acts of violence, dialogue, and special effects were awful. The gore ranged from bad to good ,but the synth soundtrack was good. The characters were dumb, jumping into water despite the fact that it melted one of their friend's face off earlier, and not making much of the fact that a fresh body was stripped clean to the bone in less than a day. That being said the movie was somewhat amusing because of the "beast creatures". They're essentially just little dolls, so during scenes where they're attacking, it just looks like somebody throwing toys on somebody or that the actors are holding them there. Another bad, yet somewhat entertaining movie.
JAS-13
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Post by jakeawesomesnake on Aug 23, 2013 9:28:41 GMT -5
Spoilers Below:
First I watched a Stephen King adaptation, John Carpenter's 1983 horror movie Christine starring Keith Gordon and John Stockwell. It's about a teen who's personality begins to change after getting the titular car. I thought the acting, cinematography, gore, acts of violence, special effects, and soundtrack (an excellent mix of various eras of rock songs and Carpenter synth) was all great. This movie shows that just because a premise might seem dumb (killer car) if you execute things right you can still make it work. What really makes this movie is all the details: the fact that the garage owner checks to make sure his shotguns loaded, how all the rock songs fit the scene perfectly (especially Bad to the Bone), that the main character Arnie slowly transforms both physically and psychologically getting more confident and muscular as the movie goes on, and the fact that Christine's so cheap isn't an obvious case of too good to be true like in a lot of horror movies (she's in pretty bad shape) so that it isn't suspicious. The chase scene was amazing, I loved how Christine just mirror's the bullies' car perfectly before deciding to kill them and the visual of Christine on fire chasing after the lone survivor was just so good. I felt bad for Arnie and it made sense why he'd be so into that car since it basically turned his life around and started bringing him happiness and in general just liked how Christine was portrayed as this unstoppable, determined force. I was surprised at how much I liked this film, great movie.
Second I watched Walter Hill's 1981 horror movie Southern Comfort starring Keith Carradine and Powers Boothe, about a group of national guard members on training exercises in Louisiana who start to find themselves hunted by the locals. The acting, cinematography, acts of violence, gore, and blues (Ry Cooder)/ zydeco soundtrack was all great. All of the main characters have distinct personalities and I liked how the antagonists were justified in their actions to a degree. Referencing the National Guard's negative reputation, a lot of the characters are assholes and stupid. Seriously you don't go into somebodies home, take their boats, and then shoot a clip of blanks at them. Afterall, they'd have no idea you were firing blanks. I liked the gradual increase in dread and degradation amongst the group as the movie went on. The finale was one of the most tense sequences I've seen from a film in a long time and definitely the most tense I've felt while listening to zydeco. Great movie and a recommend.
After that I watched Tony Richardson's 1982 film The Border starring Jack Nicholson, Harvey Keitel, and Warren Oates. It's about a disgruntled border agent who hates his life and has trouble adjusting. The acting, soundtrack, cinematography, and gore was great. The shootout and chase scenes were good, but the problem was the fight scene wasn't too good. I liked how Nicholson's character was just starting to hate his life more and more , because he has a wife he seems to be completely incompatible with, money problems, and dissatisfaction with his job. This was a good movie overall, but it felt like it could've been a lot more.
Finally I watched William Fruet's 1982 horror movie Trapped starring Henry Silva and is about a group of college students going on a hiking trip that end up angering a group of local hillbillies. The acting, acts of violence, and gore were good. The cinematography and blues- bluegrass soundtrack was great. I really liked the main antagonist's (Silva) presence and mannerisms. Surprisingly good movie.
JAS-20
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 27, 2013 23:59:52 GMT -5
I decided to find movies I had either never seen or never heard of before on Youtube. Wow, Youtube has become a haven for full uncensored movies. The days of ten minute long Youtube clips is dead and buried, and I'm hooked on the site now. So much Horror gold to find there from around the world, and some of these flicks are in HD. I love it..... I watched four movies, and three were good enough for me to recommend or watch again in the future. Only one was Eighties awful, and full of cliches we all know from the genre, which is fine, but it was too lame to ever revisit. Utter crap. First I watched Witchboard (1986). I was expecting a crap movie and happily, I was sooo wrong. This movie was quality and I found no faults with it. It was written and directed by Kevin S. Tenney and is about a (an?) Ouija Board, an evil spirit, and the posession of a beautiful (gorgeous redheaded) woman. Part of the plot involves two ex- best friends and their attempts to battle the evil of the spirit taking control of the woman they both love, one her ex boyfriend, the other her fiance. Much character development here and a great script through and through. The acting was great from all the actors, and the plot held up for me from beginning to end. A big time recommend. Seek this one out... Second I watched Pandemonium (1982). Bless my Uncle Satan, this movie was fun, fun, fun, and funny to boot. A brief synopsis from the mighty Wikipedia: Pandemonium is a 1982 comedy film spoofing horror movies. It had an ensemble cast including Eileen Brennan, Phil Hartman, Tab Hunter, Carol Kane, David Lander, Eve Arden, Paul Reubens, (LOB EDIT: and Judge Reinhold) and Tom Smothers. The film went into production under the working title of Thursday the 12th. Pandemonium takes place at a cheerleader camp in Indiana and spoofs Halloween, Friday the 13th, Carrie, and Dudley Doright. Paul "Pee Wee Herman" Reubens stole his every scene especially in his interactions with his Royal Canadian Mountie's superior's beloved horse, Bob. Two red herrings here, the escaped murderer and the escaped mental patient who are on the verge of a friendship and partnership, before the real killer takes 'em both out. Good freakin' times. A huge recommend. Here is the full movie for those interested. Third I watched Sleepaway Camp (1983). Okay, no spoilers here. I have been watching Horror movies for over three decades. A few movies scare me, The Exorcist and The Shining's bathtub witch scene to be specific are the only two movies that have gotten me in my post teenage years. Sleepaway Camp is the first movie to send chills down my spine, ever as far back as I can remember. I rewatched the scene that got me, and got chills again. Today when I told my ex about it, I got the chilly chill chiils again. For the first fifty minutes, the movie is typical fun Eighties horror. Then there is a disturbing and uncomfortable scene that begins to set the audience up for the big fucked up shocker ending. Well, that scene is totally warped, and well.... chilling as all Hell. Overall the acting was good and the movie had some very good special effects, not in the killings, but in the end results, the corpses. A huge recommend here. Seek it out guys. Finally, I watched Home Sweet Home (1981). No recommend here. This was awful overall. The killer is a Lyle Alzado clone who shoots up PCP into his tongue. The acting throughout was dry. The dialogue was sad. The night scenes were those too dark to see shit night scenes from the 1980s. The script was sad. Throughout I was waiting for the "I'll be back" line. It was delivered in the last ten minutes and the movie becomes a "Survivor Girl" flick. Cliches abound including a little girl who couldn't act out of a wet paper sack, but none of the actors could. My favorite characters, the two "scene stealers" were Maria the beautiful Mexican gal who spoke zero English, and the teenage Rock and Roller son with the white face paint, ala either a mime, or the illegitimate sissy son of KISS. Don't waste your time with this pile of stinking monkey shit. One scene I did like was when one of the characters is checking under a car hood, and the PCP loving killer delivers a Frog Splash to the hood, crushing the lame ass character. Drinkin' a Lagunitas Lucky 13 Mondo Large Red Ale, a beer i love from one of my favorite California breweries. Because of the Fukishima disaster, sadly this will be one of my final West Coast beers to drink, and I am reading labels to avoid produce and seafood. Also no more Pinot Noir from Oregon for me. Not overreacting. Read the following. Not hating, just extremely concerned. guardianlv.com/2013/07/radiation-shocking-over-americas-from-chile-to-oregon/www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-08-26/fukushima-radiation-contaminating-tuna-salmon-and-herring-west-coast-north-amwww.naturalnews.com/039923_fukushima_radiation_hypothyroidism.htmljeromiewilliams.com/2013/04/12/holy-fukushima-radiation-from-japan-is-already-killing-north-americans/LOB-18
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 29, 2013 23:40:03 GMT -5
I was crabby when I started this last movie I watched, and it made me much more angry. Yes angry. Very fucking angry and extremely annoyed. This movie turned my crabby mood into sheer anger. I am still shaking my head in disgust.
I agree with everything JAS said about the majority of Eye-talian horror films. I still have not watched a Bava movie, but at the moment I don't have much desire to.
I watched Zombie Hell House, aka The House by the Cemetery, aka "Quella Villa Accanto al Cimitero" (original title) from 1981 and directed by Lucio Fulci. It was filmed in NYC and a small Massachusetts town.
The Great: The gore, the cinematography, the vampire bat attack (in New England?), the close-ups of eyes (Fulci loves tight eyeball shots), and the maggoty innards of the 100 year old zombie.
The Good: The creepy house, the synth soundtrack, and.... shit that's about it.
The Bad: The zombie's name is Dr. Freudstein, and that for some reason kept making me think of the name Fredrick Frankenstein from Young Frankenstein, which usually makes me happy to think about, but not here. And the house is constantly referred to as "The Freudstein House". Constantly. I got it the first freakin' time Fulci, you fucking asshole! Yeesh.
The Ugly: The acting, the scripted dialogue, the children actors, the "Shine" of the little boy who looked like a fish lipped nine year old Lex Luger, his name "Bob" pronounced constantly as "Bahb", and the English dubbing of the English language. And the preposterous plot points throughout the movie.
A family moves from NYC to Massachusetts into a house by a cemetery with a grave in the middle of their living room. This is explained by saying that most houses in New England have graves dug inside of them because of the frozen ground in winter. I have never heard such fucking nonsense, and Wulfie, set me straight if this is common. I found myself yelling at the screen and especially at the mother and "Bahb" throughout. Terribly annoying voices, and "Bahb" screamed like a three year old girl. Screechy little Shining "Bahb". Fucking little bastard. I just let out a sigh, not my first tonight.
No freaking recommend here, just another convoluted Eye-talian horror film, bordering on torture porn, whose barely, sole saving grace here was the excessive gory kills that looked awesome and the special effects and makeup.
Fuck Lucio Fulci, I wanna kick his ass! Is the fucker still among the living (Anthrax the band reference, thank you very much, I love Scott Ian and Danny Spitz, and Frank, and Joey)? Sigh. Again.
Drinking a hoppy as Hell Texas Hill Country brew, Real Ale's Four Squared Dry-Hopped Ale. Cheers!
LOB-20
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Post by loverofbeers on Aug 31, 2013 20:23:46 GMT -5
I watched King Kong Lives (1986). It was a direct sequel to the 1970s Kong movie and starts with the end of that film. Kong survives but is in a coma for a decade until he gets a blood transfusion from a newly discovered Lady Kong and a new artificial heart. This movie was cute, silly, fun, and romantic. The Kongs bump monkeys off screen resulting in a baby Kong. This movie starred Linda Hamilton and had references to Deliverance and Raiders of the Lost Ark. It was hokey fun.
I started watching Rawhead Rex, but I was called into work, so unless I'm cut early, I'll have to call it a month. And I was planning to sneak in a version of 1984 for four points, but nope, I gots to go.
LOB-22
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Post by jakeawesomesnake on Sept 1, 2013 1:40:19 GMT -5
Watched Pin: A Plastic Nightmare, The Killing of America, Dressed to Kill, Angst, Altered States, and They Live. Having connection issues and am going to try and edit this post later.
JAS-31
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Post by loverofbeers on Sept 1, 2013 16:27:38 GMT -5
Damn. I knew you would pull off a victory, I just did not foresee you so thoroughly kicking my narrow, scrawny ass. Well done sir. You are in the driver's seat. What is the theme for September?
On a different note, I don't drink and drive. But I have learned a new lesson. Don't pantomime how you dance with your dogs after drinking a half bottle of Kracken Black Rum to entertain your ex. Broke my nose. Dancing, slipping, and falling squarely on my face. Wish my ex had been filming this idiotic yet amusing moment. I'm still laughing at myself, but my nose hurts and I think I am going to end up with two black eyes. Don't drink and dance people, learn from my shenanigans, and please, feel free to mock me. I'm an idiot sometimes, but I sure am entertaining.
With that said, I'm going back to avoiding liquor, and sticking with my love, BEER. So I'm opening up an Imperial Cerveza de Costa Rica to commemorate my thrashing at Jake's hands. But... it's thirty days to Halloween month. My friend, I will be going ball's out to stop your string of victories, and remain unbeaten in October. I am bringing it in September, though. Can't have you kick my ass month after month. This cold cerveza is dedicated to you, you one-man Miracle Violence Connection. Cheers, y arriba!
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Post by loverofbeers on Sept 6, 2013 7:29:14 GMT -5
Hey JAS, how about a 21st Century Competition?
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