Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th- Daniel Farrands

I have lived with Friday the 13th my whole life. The first one came out the year I was born, and by the time I was six or seven I was watching them all religiously after I caught part five on cable and fell in love. Through the years I continued to watch them sometimes one at a time, sometimes in marathon form, especially on any Friday the 13th that popped up. Jason is a huge part of our culture, and I dare you to find someone not familiar with his name.

"Crystal Lake Memories" spends just shy of seven hours going over every detail of the process of bringing him from the bottom of Crystal Lake all the way to space, or even pot fields. To some that might scare you off. I mean seven hours is a long time, don't worry. It's worth it. I put this bad boy in and was hooked right off the bat. I watched the entire thing in one sitting, then turned around the next day and watched it again, with commentary.

You will learn and hear from a large majority of people that have been involved over the years. I could nitpick that some are missing, but with this many people involved it is not realistic to get everyone. Sure Kevin Bacon was busy, but for that there are hundreds of others that took the time to sit down and reminisce on all things Crystal Lake.

It comes as a DVD/Blu Ray combo pack, so no matter what your watching preferences are you're covered, unless you prefer VHS, but we can hope for a future special edition while we enjoy it digitally. It looks and sounds fantastic. Every backdrop is great, and the sound is sharp the whole time.

As far as special features, you get a commentary. That is right, a seven hour commentary. I watched this directly after the feature, and was shocked that there was so much more to say after I watched a seven hour documentary about it. They stay talking and interesting the whole time. That is about it as far as features go, unless you pre-ordered it, then you get a  bonus disc with four more hours of material.

From the second it starts you can tell that "Crystal Lake Memories" is a labor of love. It took years to put this together, and I don't know if it would be possible to get a better end result. This is the end all on Friday the 13th. Made with blood and love.

You can order the disc directly from Crystal Lake Memories here, and I promise it is worth it.


 

5/5


-  Tromeric

Jeremy Gaulkenstein's 49 Days of Horror

               The 2002 49 Days of Horror is one of my fondest horror movie related memories.  I was living with Tromeric in a shitty, literally most of the time, basement apartment on north first st. in Yakima.  Our upstairs neighbors were morbidly obese, cockroach infested, prostitutes and the house next to us belonged to a youth pastor guy who always had Christian hipsters around who would come to our house to watch horror movies, drink, swear, and smoke cigarettes.  It was insane and fun and disgusting at all times for a while and we watched a ridiculous amount of movies.  The 49 Days of Horror was probably the height of my living there.  This was before all the video stores disappeared and VHS still had a really strong presence.  It was a fucking masters course in horror basically.  Every once in a while a random person would drop in but for most of it, it was me, Tromeric, Gabe Nye the Science Guy, and the late Jimmy Magguts.  It was simple.  From Friday the 13^th til Halloween we watch as many horror movies as possible, tally, and review.  This year was the first year we had a Friday the 13^th in September and we lost Jimmy this summer.  So it seemed right to give it another go.  Eric has kept up the stamina and momentum as far as watching and reviewing horror shit we used to have back then but I definitely haven’t.  I still love and watch horror movies religiously but have been really discouraged by the horror fare lately.  Not to say there hasn’t been a lot of really great horror movies since 2002 but these days I usually give a movie about 3 minutes before I decide to turn it off and watch The Thing or something for the thousandth time.   But I know there is tons I’m missing out on.  But to start I’ve been watching mostly old stuff.  Here’s the shit I’ve watched and written about so far.  More soon. 

Poltergeist –

Tobe Hooper

This was the first horror movie I remember seeing.  My parents would watch it over and over again because it was on HBO or something at the time.  It fucking terrified me and is one of the only movies that ever gave me nightmares.  Badass nightmares too.  I was five or so and would dream about a giant Freddy Kruger slashing up the houses in my neighborhood (I wasn’t allowed to watch Nightmare at five but I had seen the posters and thought of Freddy as the most terrifying thing in the world) and the pale dick priest guy from poltergeist would stand on my roof and scream “You’re gonna die in there!” and I would run inside and my living room would be a movie theater and my family would be watching static with 3D glasses on.  I had this dream every week until HBO changed their line up.  Despite it being terrifying I loved Poltergeist.  It is still me favorite haunting movie of all time.  Fuck Spielberg but he brought a financial and technical weight to the film that made it a perfect American horror narrative.  Toby Hooper was and is certainly capable of making Poltergeist alone.  Texas Chainsaw is still the greatest American horror movie to date in my opinion.  Spielberg just had to tap that.  And they made something wonderful.   But of course Steve never called…

5/5

My Amityville Horror –
Eric Walter

So this isn’t a horror movie.  It’s a documentary about the oldest kid from the actual Amityville Horror and how he’s been doing the last 35 years.  He’s not doing very well.  This movie is really intense and focuses almost exclusively on Daniel Lutz.  He seems to live in his garage and chain smokes, takes us to therapy, threatens the documentarians, and makes it very clear that his step-dad was a sociopath who abused him and his family and fostered an occult delusion that was perpetuated by the press, media, and mediums.  He doesn’t say this himself.  He defends his accounts of the haunting viciously.  Either shutting down or exploding if anyone asks an even remotely skeptical question.  This is all interspersed with his accounts of his relationship with his step-father( an abusive Vietnam vet, who jumped on the darker side of the occult band wagon in the 70’s)  and interviews with most of the journalists, parapsychologists, and psychologists involved with the case.  At first we get Lutz’ story and without anyone to contradict him he is pretty convincing.  But shit starts to get creepier and creepier the more we learn about how things really were in the Lutz house.  The creepiest interview is with famed demonologist/parapsychologist/ghost hunter/ whatever the fuck she’s getting paid to pretend she’s an expert on Lorraine Warren(the Tangina character in Poltergeist is based on this chic she’s just much more full of shit).  I don’t mean to insinuate that I think Warren is a total swindler.  But she spouts a lot of dangerous bullshit and vindicates a guy who is obviously severely traumatized.  At one point she presents what she says is a splinter of the cross Jesus was crucified on.  Before this she asks if anyone doesn’t believe in God.  Daniel freaks out when one of the camera man says he’s agnostic.  From this point we see the façade of some kind of spiritual warrior who had a show down with the forces of evil degrade into a very traumatized, damaged, and delusional man.  This is the reality of the “haunting” phenomenon and the place it holds as horror allegory.  There are many correlations between abuse and hauntings.  Just as there are with alien abductions.  It’s a lot easier for the traumatized brain to create an elaborate supernatural fantasy than to come to grips with the fact that their father came into their room at night and molested them.  And with excessive media attention and an endless supply or paranormal and religious “experts” to add fuel to the fire we end up with things like the Ritual Satanic Abuse cases of the 1980’s.   That’s why I like ghost movies.   They are allegories.  Just as Dracula was an allegory for sexual repression and deviance and Frankenstein represented the real horrors of society coping with a new wave of scientific discovery and progress, and Cthulhu is a big penis vagina, the ghost in horror movies is the specter of trauma and very real human evil. 

4/5

Witchfinder General –

Michael Reeves

This is my favorite Vincent Price movie.  He plays a guy named Matthew Hopkins, who was a real witch finder during the English Civil War in the 1600’s in England.  Basically shit was out of control in England and this guy rode around England finding people to extort and/or prosecute as witches.  He did the usual stuff witch finders did.  Torture, rape, murder, extortion, theft, fraud, and on and on.  He was able to make a lot of money and kill a lot of people until he was subjected to his own notorious “drowning test” by a mob of people who didn’t buy his shit.  The movie isn’t really an accurate historical piece, if anything it’s a really tame account, but is one of Price’s best performances and one he regarded as the best of his career.  So the story is about this chick named Sara’s dad is accused of being a witch by Price and he tells her, “Hey just slob my knob and he’s off the hook.” She does and of course Price kills her dad the next day.  Then he tortures and kills her for being a witch.  Her boyfriend who is fighting in the silly English war nobody understands comes back and is pissed.  So he devotes his life to chasing Price around.  Fucking great flick.  Slow in parts like the early Price occult movies can be but worth it all the way.  “You took him from meeeee!!  You took him from meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

3/5

Troll Hunter
André Øvredal

This movie is perfect.  Everything about it is perfect.  The trolls are more amazing and imaginative than anything that has been produced previous related to trolls and the plot is silly but not distracting.  Very refreshing fare from Norway.  Its about damn time someone do something with the really weird Norse mythology shit.  Non-stop horror fantasy. 

5/5

Pandorum –

Christian Alvart

One of the most neglected and terrifying genres of horror to me is space horror.  For a really long time the only truly great space horror flicks were the Alien franchise.  Not much else came close to touching the territory blazed by three of the best mainstream American directors in the last 30 years.  Event Horizon was great but in order to create the illusion of space and tap into all of the truly horrifying things about space and treasure trove or visual potential you needed a really really big budget.  Pandorum stepped up with an excellent both psychological and directly terrifying story of the first colonists who set out for the first habitable planet we’ve discovered.  Of course something goes wrong while everyone is in their and Ben Foster wakes up to find the ship’s power off, his memory hazy, and Dennis Quaid.  He tries to figure out what is going on and goes on an extremely dark and claustrophobic journey into the bowels of the ship.  It doesn’t take long for him to discover that the ship is infested with sadomasochistic mutants who pursue him as he tries to repair the ship.  I’ll stop talking about it there in case anyone hasn’t seen it.  Not that it is really dependent on twists or anything its just a really fun movie to experience as much in the dark as possible.  Definitely worth a watch. 

4/5

House –

Steve Miner

So Steve Miner has done a lot of crappy movies.  But he also directed probably the best croc movie of all time Lake Placid, kicked ass with Warlock, not to mention establishing the existing Jason mythology and personae with Friday the 13^th 2 and 3, and Forever Young is pretty good.  But House is probably my favorite.  In the vein of the kind of sillier Full Moonish stuff I grew up on and loved House is about  Vietnam Vet/ horror novelist who moves into a house after his divorce.   He soon discovers the house doesn’t want him there.  Its not so much haunted as a portal to the beyond or something and he goes thru a lot of slapstick shit and pals around with Norm from cheers.  Great fun creature horror. 

3/5

Tromeric's Top 125 Horror Films of All Time

This is just my personal list. I know many will not agree. I am in no way claiming some are better than other as films.


125. Friday the 13th V: A New Beginning
124. Amer
123. Silent Night, Deadly Night Pt 2
122. Chopping Mall
121. Critters 2
120. Friday the 13th VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan
119. Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead
118. The Brood
117. Torso
116. Pieces
115. Grapes of Death
114. Castle Freak
113. Frankenhooker
112. Alien
111. Puppet Master
110. Aftermath
109. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
108. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3
107. Basket Case
106. Tremors
105. Subspecies
104. Basket Case 2
103. Family Portraits: A Trilogy of America
102. Terror Firmer
101. Tenebrae
100. Shivers: AKA They Came From Within
99. May
98. Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
97. Visitor Q
96. The Toxic Avenger
95. Dead Alive
94. The Gate
93. The Prowler
92. The Beyond
91. I Stand Alone
90. Auschwitz
89. Bad Channels
88. Black Roses
87. Bride of Frankenstein
86. Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers
85. The Burbs
84. Hardware
83. Rock and Roll Nightmare
82. Dear God No
81. The Woman
80. The Bunny Game
79. House of the Devil
78. Bad Taste
77. Popcorn
76. Murder Set Pieces
75. Sleepaway Camp
74. The Convent
73. The Evil Dead(1981)
72.  The Exorcist
71. Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger 4
70. Nightbreed
69. The Lords of Salem
68. Possession(1981)  
67. Hobo with a Shotgun
66. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
65. Irreversible
64. A Nightmare on Elm Street
63. City of the Living Dead
62. Combat Shock
61. Santa Sangre
60.The Taint
59. Red White & Blue
58. Fascination
57. Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge
56. Dawn of the Dead
55. Father's Day
54. House by the Cemetery
53. Creature from the Black Lagoon
52. Dellamorte Dellamore: AKA Cemetery Man
51. Inside
50. C.H.U.D. 2: Bud the Chud
49. Ghoulies III: Ghoulies go to College
48. Near Dark
47. Opera
46. Begotten
45. Antichrist
44. John Dies at the End
43. The Willies
42. 2000 Maniacs
41. Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
40. Night of the Creeps
39. Wolf Creek
38. Trick r' Treat
37. Re-Animator
36. Zombi 2
35. Street Trash
34. Nekromantik
33. Hellraiser
32. Return of the Living Dead
31. Pumpkinhead
30. A Serbian Film
29.Salo: Or the 120 Days of Sodom
28.Ernest Scared Stupid
27. Let the Right One In
26. Trick or Treat
25. Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead
24. The Thing
23. The Manson Family
22. Psycho(1960)
21. Day of the Dead(1985)
20. Fire in the Sky
19. The Monster Squad
18. The Devils Rejects
17. Killer Klowns from Outer Space
16. Maniac(1980)
15. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
14. The Deadly Spawn
13. Last House on the Left(1972)
12. Bubba Ho-Tep
11. Phantasm II
10. Phantasm: OblIVion
9. Subconscious Cruelty
8. Audition
7. Suspiria
6. Cannibal Holocaust
5. Videodrome
4. Eraserhead
3. Phantasm
2. Halloween(1978)
1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre(1974)

49 Days of Horror: Mortician Matt's First 13

Full disclosure before I kick off the reviews for the first 13 films I've watched during the 49 Days of Horror.  1. I'm lazy and took a fucking christ age to write these first 13 up, even though it's been 2+ weeks since I watched them. 2. I have children under 10, thus a large chunk of my reviews will be for kids horror, or as Tromeric puts it, Horror on Training Wheels.  3. Aside from the kids movies, I haven't seen these in a good 10 years or more, so I'm approaching these with a fresh perspective.  Enjoy.

Friday the 13th
Director: Sean S. Cunningham

Obviously a classic, no bullshit slasher.  I actually am quite fond of this one as I think the mother's involvement sort of makes it stand alone among the franchise and of course without it, the franchise has no lore at all.  Fucking Jason Muthafuckin' Voorhees!  You cannot deny the importance of that.

4/5



Friday the 13th: Part 2
Steve Miner

Most people think back as this being the pivotal film of the series.  Really introducing Jason Voorhees as the murderous maniac he is.  There are times when I've watched this that I have been struck by the spectacular ability of the campers to fuck up their own shit by acting irrationally.  That sort of shit seemed to end with this Friday as from here on it would be Jason being unrealistically fast or incredibly cunning that would catch his victims off guard.  While I prefer the latter, this is one of my favorite films where the victims are dipshits who avoid reason.

4/5

Friday the 13th: Part 3
Steve Miner

Due to 1 and 2 being so important to the franchise, and my absolute preference for 4 and 5 as you'll read below, I find Friday the 13th: Part 3 akin to masturbation.  You enjoy it while it's happening, but you forget it as soon as it's over.  Yep, pretty much.

3/5

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Joseph Zito

Of the "Jason" flicks, by far my favorite and in fact one of my favorite horror films period.  I love the ending chase scene, and of course the great ending scene that sets up the next 2 films.  Crispin Hellion Glover is fucking spectacular as Jimmy.  I feel like I can totally relate to the guy, but not at that age.  Great stuff.  Corey Feldman really puts on what I'd consider the defining moment of the entire franchise when he kills Jason.  I'm stoked just writing this shit!

5/5

Friday the 13th: Part 5: A New Beginning
Danny Steinmann

After watching 4 for the first time in over a decade, I'd forgotten how I felt about 5.  I really dig this one and don't give a fuck that it isn't a "Jason" film.  I love it.  It's got more kills, more titties and the BEST titties of the entire franchise.  What's not to love?  The middle Tommy Jarvis story, and as a Tommy Jarvis, it's probably the most important one.  I find the whole this about as awesome as the day I first learned what a blumpkin is.  (Documented on the Grog's Facebook photos).


4/5

World War Z
Marc Forster

So my wife dragged me off to see this.  Not being a Bad Pitt fan and thinking a majority of apocolyptic films are so canned I can't actually enjoy them without feeling that "haven't I seen this before" feeling, I didn't have a lot of hope going in.  Let me put it this way, I saw this in Victoria, BC and that was the best thing about this film.  I enjoyed a portion of it, but fuck, I'm just tired of this type of stuff.  Zombies have a certain lore, do NOT fuck with that lore unless you have something way cooler.

2/5

Ghoulies
Charles Band

Oh fuck yes son!  Here we go!  Awesome creatures from the fucking toilet!  I love this shit up and down like I love my own penis.  The fountain scene makes me shit my drawers thrice.  While it certainly doesn't live up to the time they went to college (great memories!), it certain is fucking fun and that's what counts.

3.5/5

Re-Animator
Stuart Gordon

Fuck yeah.  Talking Heads!  So much camp that I picture one Tromeric breaking open a bag of chips on a picnic table at a campground, pulling down his pants, sitting on the pile of chips, mashing them with the cheeks of his ass then turning around and eating the chips.  THAT is how camp this film is.  I love it.  One of my favorites, a classic.  FUCK YEAH!

5/5

Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge
Mary Lambert

You guessed it, my kids wanted me to watch this with them.  I dig pretty much all Halloween movies so as expected I enjoyed it enough.  It's nothing great, not the first by any means, but it's entertaining and Debbie Reynolds looks like Tromeric's grandma except without an Eve Light hanging from her craw.

2/5

Return to Horror High
Bill Froehlich

Know primarily for being George Clooney's first film role, this film is kind of cool in that it can be a bit confusing when you watch it that you have to unblur the filming portions from reality.  Maybe it was just the ridiculous amount of gin I had consumed prior to watching it.

2.5/5

Return to Halloweentown
David S. Jackson

Again with the fucking children!  This wasn't too bad to watch, the chick that played Marnie here is better looking than the original.  Fuck, there is nothing to say about this movie.  It's not good. 

1/5

Halloweentown High
Mark A.Z. Dippe

Take a pretty decent, but flawed little Halloween kids movie franchise and take a HUGE FUCKING SHIT ON IT!  That's what this is.  Disney came all over this, repeatedly and with gusto.

0/5

Friday the 13th: Part 6: Jason Lives
Tom McLoughlin

After the amazing kill and titfest that was Part 5, this one just didn't do it for me quite as much.  I did enjoy it though and it feature some of the most likeable victims of the franchise.  I don't know, I actually thought these counselors were quite alright, and didn't want them to die, which is a first while watching through these films.  However, a Friday with no titties?  ESPECIALLY after the last Friday?  Not OK.  Did Disney edit this shit?

3.5/5


Mortician Matt

49 Days of Horror: VonKlingele's weekend

Well things have been a little crazy in my neck of the woods lately, but I thought I'd throw together a couple of quick reviews for some newer movies I managed to catch over the weekend while I was at the House of Grog.

Lords of Salem
Director: Rob Zombie

This is a movie I've been really anxious to see.  A lot of Zombie's films are hit and miss for me, but the second Halloween really gave me hope that he was finding his groove.  It was a movie that I really enjoyed, despite the fact that I really didn't care for the first one.  Well Lords is exactly what I was hoping for.  It's an original story, though admittedly weak in that department at times, and doesn't just rely on shock or familiarity to entertain.  This movie is beautiful to look at and mesmerizing  to watch.  Even when the story slowed down or lost it's way I couldn't take my eyes and ears off the screen.  It really gave me hope that Zombie is going to turn into someone who makes movies, not really long music videos.  This is one that will definitely be going in the collection at some point soon.

4/5

Maniac (2012)
Director: Franck Khalfoun

Much like Tromeric I really wanted to hate this movie.  The original is one of the few grindhouse style movies that I really consider a great movie.  Most of them I find fairly boring, but Maniac always rose above the pack, with a raw, dark story to tell.  The only thing that gave me hope for this new one, was Elijah Wood.  He's an actor that has really grown on me over the last few years and he just straight kills it in this.  A lot of that is due to the incredible use of first person.  I really wasn't looking forward to sitting through a bunch a shaky unwatchable camera work, but the end result is a smooth, floating camera that bring you right into the world of the killer and aids in the suspension of disbelief that Frodo could straight kill a bitch.  The movie has an unsettling atmosphere and implicates you in everything that's happening and really makes Wood's character well rounded and relatable in a very uneasy way.  From the cinematography, to the music, to the well done, visceral gore  everything just works, as much as I didn't want it to.  As a side note, I love this score and had been listening to it for about a month before I'd even seen the movie, I can't recommend it enough.

3.5/5

This is the End
Director: Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen

Holy shit, I don't even know where to begin.  This is one of those rare comedies that actually lives up to the hype.  I kept hearing all this talk of how amazing it was, and it totally delivers.  This is a movie that will end up being a classic that's remembered and quoted for years to come.  Everything works from the set up, to the endless barrage of jokes that rarely miss, the slightly skewed characters, the apocalyptic story it becomes, and the little bits of genuine emotion sprinkled through out.  Bottom line, I laughed my ass off start to finish and can't wait to watch it again and catch everything I missed while I was pissing my pants with laughter.

4/5

49 Days of Horror: Week Two

Not quite going at the pace I wish I was. This week was pretty full of awesome things. Jacob VonKlingele came to town and we hit up a comicon. Had some sweet scores while we were there. We also did some VHS hunting around Portland. It was nice to be able to watch a couple films with us in the same city. Now if I could just get the rest of the participants in the same room for a day. I of course had work getting in the way, but still managed to rock about twenty films the second week.

Prince of Darkness

Holy shit! This movie kills me. The intro is so amazing. I love how long it takes for the opening credits to roll while intermittently setting up the story. Like all of Carpenter's films the music is a  main character. This has to be one of his best scores. The effects are perfect, and it is so full of atmosphere I expect it to put out some mediocre albums in its later years. Alice Cooper was great, and his song Prince of Darkness is a favorite from my childhood.

5/5

Rocktober Blood

Starts off with an amazing song. Then bitches be getting killed. This is full of amazing acting and the script. Wow. Not perfect, but full of enough awesome that I can't help but love it. Love ya Rainbow Eyes.

3.5/5

The Lords of Salem

One of the prettiest movies in years. Sheri Moon is so sexy. She loves goats. The music is haunting and awesome. The story may be lacking, but the atmosphere and style more than make up for it. I have watched this at least ten times since it came out a few months ago. Still high in the running for best film of the year for me.

Satan! Come to us!

5/5

Maniac(2012)

I would give anything to hate this. I hate how much I liked it. Maniac is one of my favorites of all time, I assumed the worst for this. I mean what does Elijah Wood have on Joe Spinell? Well nothing, but he does kill it in this. The intro is great, the music is goddamn amazing, and the first person angle works really well. They nailed it. I love it, it doesn't feel shaky or annoying, and when they zoom out the few times they do, it is beautiful. The homages to the original are done in clever ways, without taking you out of the story. Damn I really liked this. Fuck!

4/5

Zombie

Fulci is a god. This is one of his best. The music is epic, the gore never lets up. The splinter scene is still amazingly effective to this day, and who the hell can forget Zombie vs Shark? I mean it's in Windows commercials, and Seth Rogen movies for Christs sake.

5/5

Street Trash

The original melt. This is so slimy and awesome. I wish I had a bottle of Tenefly Viper. Sure, it would suck to kill someone, but watching them melt into an awesome explosion of color and foam would be worth it.

5/5

The Crow

I remember vividly when this came out. It may have suffered some aging, but overall it holds up pretty well. I met James O Barr once, he was as crazy as I expected.

4/5

The Crow: Wicked Prayer

I love this movie. I know I am one of the few. In my opinion it is the only sequel worth while. It is so bat shit insane I can't help but love it. I love how over the top it is. It basically makes fun of what the crow became. They only eat things like devil's food cake. Dennis Hopper is so good as the jive talking pimp, Danny Trejo is bad ass and does an amazing dance to bring the crow back, and I don't feel as guilty thinking the girl from "Snow Day" is sexy as I did in
"Snow Day."  "Quoth the raven nevermore, mother fucker."

3.5/5

Nightmares In Red White And Blue

A great doc on the history of American horror. Lance Henricksen is the narrator, and he nails it. Not perfect, but a fun, interesting, informative documentary.

3.5/5

American Grindhouse

A trip down memory lane. I was just a hair to young to really take advantage of the Grindhouse days, but have always loved the films that came out of the time. Robert Forster is a great narrator, and it is full of great interviews.

3.5/5

Curse of Chucky

A lot more fun than I ever expected. The effects are great, there is hardly any CGI, and it ties all the movies together. Still shocked how much I liked this one.

3.5/5

Heartstoppers

A pretty basic made for TV doc. It is basically trivia and clips. There are some good interviews, and the cryptkeeper does bumpers for the commercial breaks.

2.5/5

Video Nasties: Moral Panic, Censorship & Videotape

This is a great doc from a four disc set that has about 7 hours of trailers and special features. I have watched it all more than once, but this time just checked the excellent doc by Jake West. Great interviews, and gives you a full history lesson in the nasty. Opening is great with a graveyard full of all 72 films buried while The Damned plays in the background.

4/5

Cujo

One of the King classics. Has that feel I love and grew up on. The dog is so bad ass. At the beginning I just want to hang out with it. I assume he is related to Beethoven. Then once he goes rabid I peed my pants a bit.

3.5/5

The Frighteners

Peter Jackson's last great film. Sure it's not quite as good as his gore opus', but it is a lot of fun. The effects are pretty solid for the era it came out. Michael J. Fox rules. Jake Busey is bad ass, and it is all around a fun ride.

4/5

Creepers

This is the American cut of Argento's "Phenomena." It is a bit shorter, but still has most of the important stuff. The gore and atmosphere are the main characters, as they are in most of Argento's films. The insects rule. Goblin's score is amazing, but it is also full of amazing metal. The finale is one of my favorite of his films.

4/5

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

What can I say? This is a perfect film. It is one of the reasons I am into horror, and it has never lost it's edge.


5/5

Faces of Death IV

A staple of my childhood. The intro is cheesy as hell, the host is hilarious, and the reenactments are some of the lamest. I love it. Fun to grab a brew and put on late at night.

2.5/5

Puppet Master


Very few things remind me of how awesome my childhood was as a Full Moon movie, specifically the "Puppet Master" films. This is a great way to start the series. The puppets all rule.The music takes me to my happy place, and the kills are excellent.

4.5/5








Well, there is week two. I will try and get some goodies this week.


- Tromeric

Curse of Chucky- Don Mancini

I have always been a fan of Chucky. I saw the first couple in the theater when I hadn't even reached double digits in age. Over the years each sequel got more and more goofy. I was not against this. I actually really enjoyed Bride and Seed, but they definitely had changed tonally, as do most sequels. When I got the first info about Curse it was stated that it was going back to a more serious tone like the first. This intrigued me, but also worried me. Could it work? I watched the trailer and was not that interested. It looked like it was gonna be another straight to DVD sequel that had lost touch with the rest of the series, granted the rest of the series had already lost touch with previous entries, so there's that. Well I decided to give it a go anyways and was more than pleasantly surprised. 

It starts off with a great intro that sets up the tone and story perfectly. You're in a big old mansion that kind of feels off. You meet Nica played pretty brilliantly by Fiona Dourif, daughter of Chucky himself, Brad Dourif. She receives a package, that of course ends up being a good guy doll. You know shit is going to get real now, and it does.

To say I had reservations about this would be an understatement, but luckily most of them quickly disappeared as I watched the film unfold. I had assumed it would be full of ridiculous CGI, especially when Chucky was involved. That  was not the case. Chucky still had that look when he moved, you know the way  a mother fucking puppet would move. The music is solid. It really helped the story and the atmosphere. Mancini managed to build quite a bit of tension in this. There is a scene where the family is having dinner and the food may or may not of been poisoned that had me squirming quite a bit. The pace is pretty great throughout, there are a couple points in the middle that kind of lose the flow, but it quickly picks back up.

Tony Gardner came back for the effects and Christ are they awesome. As with Chucky, you will find very little CGI here. Practical effects the plenty, and some of the gore is top notch. There is a scene involving a car accident that has a beheading that would make the crew on "Twilight Zone:The Movie" cringe.

This is not a perfect movie. There are flaws and parts that are a bit off, but for being a sequel in a series over twenty years old it stands up surprisingly well. The kills are fun, the music is great, and if you're a fan of the series there are plenty of moments that will remind you of the previous entries, as well as tie up the entire series.

One last word of advice. Stay through the credits. You will be glad you did.

3.5/5

-Tromeric 

49 Days of Horror: The First 6 Days(Tromeric)

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