31stday

[31stday]

October 2023 Ranking

So close to making it to 31 this year. Ah, well there's always next year. Good mix of classics with probably more new releases that I've ever done before.

Talk to Me

Rosemary's Baby

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Kuroneko

The Black Phone

The Birds

Hidden

 Prey

Jacob’s Ladder

No One Will Save You

From Dusk Till Dawn

Hell House LLC

Black Box

Totally Killer

The Final Girls

The People Under the Stairs

Juan of the Dead

My Best Friend’s Exorcism

Pet Sematary Bloodlines

Paranormal Activity Next of Kin

Men

There’s Something Wrong with the Children

The Watcher in the Woods

Night of the Comet

The Lighthouse

Jigsaw

The Haunting of the Queen Mary

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Annabelle

Pod

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #do you like scary movies?

[31stday]

2023 - Week 5 Rankings

Rosemary's Baby

The Black Phone

Jacob’s Ladder

The Haunting of the Queen Mary

Comparisons to Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB, as well as the month so far after the cut…

Rotten Tomatoes Ratings:

Rosemary's Baby (96%)

The Black Phone (81%)

Jacob’s Ladder (72%)

The Haunting of the Queen Mary (62%)

IMDB Ratings:

Rosemary's Baby (8.0)

Jacob's Ladder (7.4) [+1]

The Black Phone (6.9) [-1]

The Haunting of the Queen Mary (4.3)

So close to being all in agreement this week...

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies

[31stday]

30 - Rosemarys Baby

Synopsis: Rosemary wants to have a baby more than anything but her dream turns into a nightmare as she starts to see her odd neighbors in a different light.

Year/Country:  1968/US

Subgenres: psychological thriller, satanic panic

Reason for watching: A classic that I have loved, my partner had never seen it.

Highlights: The cinematography and mood/atmosphere

Lowlights: I think Anne Cohen sums it up better than I can (though I think she is being too generous by referring to Roman Polanski as "accused" of raping a teenage girl since he did plead guild to drugging and raping a 13 year old before fleeing the county):

Still, no matter how much feminist leeway you give the film, it's hard to get around the big elephant in the room: that this nuanced, empathetic story with a female lead was written for the screen, and directed by a man accused of raping a teenage girl. And I don't think it's something we can get around. If you watch the film, it's something you have to face, and ponder, especially in scenes dealing with non-consensual sex, just as you can't watch Gone With The Wind without grappling with how it falsely portrays slavery as benevolent. But those considerations don't have to obscure the whole film, which remains a cinematic feat, and movie with tremendous impact on future works. Without Rosemary’s Baby, we wouldn’t have The Babadook, or Hereditary where the journey into a woman’s psyche becomes the centerpiece of horror.

Rewatchabilty: Yes

Overall review: There is so much about this movie that makes it an essential classic in my eyes: the tension, the way that you won't help but identify with and root for Rosemary, the reversals and the reveals along the way. While it might not be stictly horror (it's more unsettling than scary), it's an important film in the horror cannon.

Who should watch it: I think every horror fan should watch it.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #rosemary's baby

[31stday]

29 - Jacobs Ladder

Synopsis: Mourning his dead child, a Vietnam vet doesn't know if he's been haunted or descending into madness as the world around him becomes increasingly erratic.

Year/Country:  1990/US

Subgenres: psychological thriller, am I losing my mind?, don't trust the government

Reason for watching: This is a movie that I was aware of based on its name but had never actually seen.

Highlights: I liked the makeup/effects and the ambiguity/confusion around what was happening was really effectively done in a way that made me curious to see what would happen next rather than uninterested. Also that hospital/hell scene is so effective even though it's fairly simple (my partner pointed this out to me during our watching and it's so true!) - this is something that could easily be replicated for a haunted house or something.

Lowlights: The pacing felt really slow. I always have mixed feelings about biblical references

Rewatchabilty: Yes, I think so. I'm guessing this movie just allows you to pick up on more things and unravel it further with repeat viewings.

Overall review: I enjoyed this movie though I don't know how scary I found it - often with these types of psychological horror films (those were you aren't sure if the protagonist is going crazy) I feel really uneasy throughout. Perhaps it's because my attention was split (I was carving my jackolantern while watching) but I just didn't feel that same deep visceral feeling I often get with this sort of film, like I was keeping it at a distance and just watching it rather than feeling it. Nonetheless, I thought it was a well done movie. I was also pleased to see a pre-Home Alone Macaulay Culkin and a pre-Seinfeld Jason Alexander in this (they both were well cast in their roles). I also can't help but always love an anti-war film.

Who should watch it: Anyone who enjoys a surreal, psychological thrill ride of a movie or those who like to dissect the meaning and detail of a film.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #jacob's ladder #scary movies #happy halloween

[31stday]

28 - The Haunting of the Queen Mary

Synopsis: This movie follows two timelines: Halloween 1938 when a series of murders happened upon the RMS Queen Mary while out to sea and the present day when a family is exploring the ship hoping to work on a creative project. Families from the two timelines share a strange connection to the ship and each other.

Year/Country:  2023/US

Subgenres: haunting, timey wimey, posession

Reason for watching: This was something I went into without knowing much of anything about it- it popped up as an option to watch on Hulu last night so I took a chance on it.

Highlights: I think I've said it before, but I love a well executed period piece. My favorite portions of this movie took place in the 1938 timeline and were visually so fun.

Lowlights: I think this movie was intentionally crafted to keep the viewers in the dark which I believe was meant to add to the mystery of the movie, for me it just felt confusing and a little boring.

Rewatchabilty: No

Overall review: Interesting premise but poorly executed. I was so much less invested in the present day story than the 1938 story that I found the move between the two to be a little boring. Also, I fell asleep (which maybe wasn't entirely the movie's fault) which didn't help. I honestly don't feel too invested to watch it again which is a shame because I think the world is lacking in haunted ship movies.

Who should watch it: I wonder if someone who has been to The Queen Mary might enjoy this more?

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #haunting #creepy kid #possession #the queen mary #the haunting of the queen mary

[31stday]

27 - The Black Phone

Synopsis: 13-year old Finney is kidnapped and kept in a basement where there is a mysterious black phone that allows him to speak with his kindnapper's previous victims from beyond the grave.

Year/Country:  2022/US

Subgenres: serial killers, horror movie with kid leads, communicating with the dead

Reason for watching: The trailer was pretty intense.

Highlights: Perhaps more than any other movie I watched this month, this really sucked me into the world and I felt so invested in the main character's survival.

Lowlights: I had a lot of visceral reactions to the violence in this movie (even more so that Jigsaw which I watched earlier this month) - child abuse and kids fighting is so hard for me to watch.

Rewatchabilty: Yes

Overall review: I was really impressed by this movie. Firstly, my favorite type of horror film involves somehow speaking to the dead or some sort of haunting (check), I also love a period piece (set in 1978, so check), the loner with a heart of gold who has to grow into themselves (check), and a strong sibling relationship (check). Ultimately though, what makes The Black Phone so terrifying is that it's human - people doing terrible things to other people that can't protect themselves and that truly scares me.

Who should watch it: Someone who's looking for The Wonder Years made terrifying with child murders, psychic dreams, and ghosts.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #haunting #the black phone

[31stday]

2023 - Week 4 Rankings

Kuroneko

Hidden

 Prey

The Final Girls

Men

The Lighthouse

Annabelle

A fun week with a wide variety of films many of which were very visually stunning. Also, Annabelle.

Comparisons to Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB, as well as the month so far after the cut…

Rotten Tomatoes Ratings:

Kuroneko (96%)

Prey (94%) [+1]

The Lighthouse (90%) [+3]

Hidden (80%) [-1]

The Final Girls (74%) [-1]

Men (69%) [-1]

Annabelle (28%)

IMDB Ratings:

Kuroneko (7.7)

The Lighthouse (7.4) [+4]

Prey (7.1)

The Final Girls (6.5)

Hidden (6.4) [-3]

Men (6.1) [-1]

Annabelle (5.4)

October 2023 (so far):

Talk to Me

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Kuroneko

The Birds

Hidden

 Prey

No One Will Save You

From Dusk Till Dawn

Hell House LLC

Black Box

Totally Killer

The Final Girls

The People Under the Stairs

Juan of the Dead

My Best Friend’s Exorcism

Pet Sematary Bloodlines

Paranormal Activity Next of Kin

Men

There’s Something Wrong with the Children

The Watcher in the Woods

Night of the Comet

The Lighthouse

Jigsaw

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Annabelle

Pod

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #scary movies #ranking movies #october vibes #spooky season

[31stday]

26 - Kuroneko

or 藪の中の黒猫 - Yabu no naka no Kuroneko (Eng: "Black Cat in a Bamboo Grove") in its original Japanese release

Synopsis: In feudal Japan, two women are brutally killed becoming vengeful spirits, who take the shape of black cats in the daylight, set on taking revenge on samurai.

Year/Country:  1968, Japan

Subgenres: haunting, j-horror, kaibyō eiga or bake neko mono ("moster cat" or "ghost cat" movies)

Reason for watching: Kuroneko means "black cat" in Japanese and I have two black cats. ;) Also, I am a big fan of Japanese horror but really only know j-horror starting with the Ringu and Ju-on era so was excited to see an earlier example.

Highlights: There was so much I loved about this movie, but perhaps the thing I loved the most was the low-tech theatre-like effects! The flying and various other pieces were straight out of kabuki (a type of traditional Japanese theatre that I, coincidentally, actually focused on in my studies for my master's of fine arts degree). Also the lighting was so theatrical and I loved it.

Lowlights: I think what I found to be a highlight could really be a lowlight for someone else - it was very over the top which isn't for everyone.

Rewatchabilty: Yes

Overall review: This movie was wild. First, in full disclosure, I should share that I watched in Japanese with Spanish subtitles because that was the only version I found, so I definitely missed some of the depth of the movie in my multi-language translation while watching. However, it was straightforward and very visually fun to watch. I was also somewhat shocked by how graphic without showing much the opening scene was, particularly for 1960s Japan.

Who should watch it: J-horror fans (also that small subset of Japanese theatre nerds like me)

For fun, here's a related kabuki reference:

Woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi featuring the kabuki play Ume no Haru Gojūsantsugi (eng: "Plum Spring: The Fifty-three Stations"). It was performed in 1835 in Ichimura-za. It depicts a cat that has shapeshifted into an old woman, a cat wearing a napkin and dancing, and the shadow of a cat licking a lamp (indicating that it's a bakeneko, or monster cat). The actors featured: Mimasu Gennosuke I as Shirasuga Jûemon (right), Onoe Kikugorô III as Neko-ishi no Kai (Spirit of the Cat Stone, center) and Ichimura Uzaemon XII as Inabanosuke (left).

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #haunting #kuroneko #cats #woodblock print #shapeshifter #bakeneko #obake #Japanese folklore #Kabuki

[31stday]

25 - Hidden

Synopsis: A family living inside a fallout shelter fears for their safety from a threat on the surface.

Year/Country:  2015 (filmed in 2012?), US

Subgenres: psychological thriller, post-apocalyptic

Reason for watching: This was a tiktok find, I think. I was drawn to it because (1) the premise sounded interesting and (2) it was written and directed by the Duffer Brothers (the team behind Stranger Things).

Highlights: I love a tight, little capsule of a movie - small cast, minimal location, allow the dread to build. This movie did that very well. I also think the way the flashbacks were included and build over time. Also, I love a good twist.

Lowlights: The end was a little long with a few false endings (points where it felt the story could just end).

Rewatchabilty: Maybe.

Overall review: In many ways this was a very familiar film - we've seen it before, a family trying to survive following a mysterious plague (is it zombies? vampires? something else?). However, the execution was well done so I'm not even bothered by it. The atmosphere is great. The acting is (mostly) convincing. And I felt invested in the characters. The ending was a little mediocre but questions were answered and it was tied up with a neat bow.

Who should watch it: I think this a good one for people who aren't really horror movie fans (who scare easily) but still want to watch something to be put in a creeped out mood. I don't think it really sticks with you, but the aesthetic and atmosphere are well suited to get you in the Halloween spirit. There is some blood and some violence, particularly near the end.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #hidden #hidden movie #post/apocalyptic

[31stday]

24 - Men

Synopsis: Following the suicide of her estranged husband, Harper gets away to the countryside only to find that all the men are uncannily similar and completely unsettling.

Year/Country:  2022, UK

Subgenres: psychological horror

Reason for watching: While I've heard mostly negative takes on this film, it was sill one that I couldn't help but be interested in seeing.

Highlights: I have been watching a lot of visually stunning movies this year in terms of locales and cinematography - but I think this one might be my favorite. The location as character was done so well, what a beautiful house, lovely natural settings, and so stunningly caught on film.

Lowlights: This movie really felt quite redundant and I think it could have been tightened up a bit. I also couldn't help but wonder what this movie might have been had it been created by a group of women instead of men.

Rewatchabilty: No.

Overall review: Interesting premise. Beautiful cinematography. But I don't think I liked the execution of it. No specific spoilers, but the bonkers last half hour of it lacked any sort of real catharsis for me, a femme viewer of this film. I also don't think it captured the problem of misogyny and toxic masculinity for the male audience. Despite trying to be symbolic in an over-the-top grotesque way, I don't think any real depth was explored.

Who should watch it: Maybe film students?

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #scary movies #men #movie reivew

[31stday]

23 - The Lighthouse

Synopsis: Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious island in the 1890s.

Year/Country:  2019, US

Subgenres: psychological horror, isolation is scary, mermaids are sexy?

Reason for watching: This was a movie that's just been sitting on my to-watch list for a while.

Highlights: I loved that it was filmed on film and the choice to have it be black and white - it really set an interesting tone and made the feel of the movie pretty unique for a recent one. The acting was also well done - it's essentially a two person script and they handle the material really well.

Lowlights: Could be a little slow and felt a little long. Also, the accents sometimes were a bit hard for me to follow.

Rewatchabilty: Potentially, but not one I'm eager to rewatch even though I still have a lot of questions

Overall review: What a wild film. I don't really know what I just watched. The decent into madness made me a feel a little bit like I was going mad. I'm not sure what was "real" within the world of the film.

Who should watch it: Folks who love artsy, unsettling film.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #the lighthouse

[31stday]

22 - Annabelle

Synopsis: In this prequel to The Conjuring, we discover the backstory of the creepy doll Annabelle.

Year/Country:  2014, US

Subgenres: creepy doll, haunting, possession

Reason for watching: I did enjoy The Conjuring and while I don't have a fear of creepy dolls, I thought this might be a scary watch.

Highlights: The movie was its strongest when it leaned into the Rosemary's Baby vibes

Lowlights: This movie just does not hit very deeply. I'm not sure if it's the acting, the writing, the directing - nothing is really bad but it's just not as unsettling or scary as I wish it was. The scariest moment of the movie was the clip from The Conjuring at the beginning.

Rewatchabilty: No.

Overall review: At first this is a somewhat interesting movie but it gets pretty cliche as the movie goes on. If you're interested in a spinoff of The Conjuring, I think The Nun is a better pick.

Who should watch it: I don't think there's anyone in particular I would recommend this movie to - maybe Conjuring universe completionists?

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #possession #annabelle

[31stday]

21 - The Final Girls

Synopsis: Max, recently orphaned, goes to see a screening of a B-horror movie that her mother made 20 years earlier. When Max and her friends find themselves in the world of the film itself, they must apply their knowledge of horror tropes to survive.

Year/Country:  2015, US

Subgenres: slasher, teen screams

Reason for watching: The description sounded good.

Highlights: Fun comedic parody of a horror movie - never too scary but not afraid to make fun of common tropes

Lowlights: Not really scary.

Rewatchabilty: Yes, I think so.

Overall review: Wow, it's hard to not feel like Totally Killer copied this movie. Sure, it's not too original of a premise. And while Totally Killer is Back to the Future meets Scream, The Final Girls is Friday the 13th meets Pleasantville (does anyone else remember that movie? I must have rented it a dozen times). Nonetheless, I think this movie was a lot of fun and that anyone who is a fan of 80s slasher flicks will like it.

Who should watch it: This is a movie that I think horror fans who don't take the genre too seriously would enjoy. I could see this movie being a good one to put on at a Halloween party.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #scarymovies #the final girls

[31stday]

20 - Prey

Synopsis: Naru, a young Comanche woman, wants to be a warrior and after setting out to prove herself she encounters a highly evolved alien predator.

Year/Country:  2022, US (filmed in Canada)

Subgenres: science fiction, action

Reason for watching: I have been wanting to see this one since it came out - it looked pretty scary based on the previews and I'm loving the increased Indigenous representation in Hollywood.

Highlights: Strong lead! I love to see a young woman holding her own. The visuals were also so good throughout.

Lowlights: The story felt a bit flat in places (a young woman fighting to prove herself worthy despite no one believing she could be a warrior because she's a woman).

Rewatchabilty: Yes. There's evidently a Comanche dubbed version that you can watch on Hulu which seems very cool to me - I'd definitely check out that version when I'm ready to watch it again.

Overall review: This was another really quiet movie, focused highly on atmosphere. I liked the characters a lot and found the scenery to be really beautiful. I don't actually know much about the Predator franchise (I don't think I've seen any of the movies entirely through), but was able to enjoy the story nevertheless. From what I've read, a lot of care of taken to be accurate to the Comanche tribe (I should ask some Comanche relatives what they think, but I believe most of them aren't into horror films so I'm not sure if they've seen it).

Who should watch it: I think this movie overall was more action than horror, but I do think there's a wide appeal here. Of course, I think for those of us with Indigenous heritage it's a refreshing take on representation but any alien-adventure fan should check it out too.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #scary movies #prey movie #predator

[31stday]

2023 - Week 3 Rankings

From Dusk Till Dawn (rewatch)

Hell House LLC

The People Under the Stairs

Juan of the Dead

There’s Something Wrong with the Children

This was another week where it's hard to rank most of these since they're so different and I feel that they have different reasons why I would or would not recommend them. I do think From Dusk Till Dawn is a standout in terms of being the "best." I may be being influenced by the experience of watching it in a theater though. I think Hell House LLC might be the only one I would categorize as scary. Though I do think there's a certain type of horror fan who would find There's Something Wrong with the Children to be the standout here.

Comparisons to Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB, as well as the month so far after the cut…

Rotten Tomatoes Ratings:

Juan of the Dead (83%) [+3]

Hell House LLC (75%)

The People Under the Stairs (70%)

From Dusk Till Dawn (63%) [-3]

There’s Something Wrong with the Children (62%)

IMDB Ratings:

From Dusk Till Dawn (7.2)

Hell House LLC (6.4)

The People Under the Stairs (6.4)

Juan of the Dead (6.4)

There’s Something Wrong with the Children (5.0)

Wow, I don't know if I've been completely in sync with an IMDB or Rotten Tomatoes ranking before.

October 2023 (so far):

Talk to Me

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

The Birds

No One Will Save You

From Dusk Till Dawn

Hell House LLC

Black Box

Totally Killer

The People Under the Stairs

Juan of the Dead

My Best Friend’s Exorcism

Pet Sematary Bloodlines

Paranormal Activity Next of Kin

There's Something Wrong with the Children

The Watcher in the Woods

Night of the Comet

Jigsaw

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Pod

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #scary movie #horror movie ranking

[31stday]

19 - From Dusk Till Dawn - Rewatch

Synopsis: Two criminal brothers hold a family hostage and force them to help them escape over the US/Mexico border in their RV, as they wait for their escape at dawn they encounter the undead in a biker bar.

Year/Country:  1996, USA

Subgenres: vampires, comedy, action, thriller

Reason for watching: I try to avoid rewatching movies on this blog (you can read my previous review here) but I saw this viewing at a free event in a theater. There were several movies they were showing but this fit my schedule the best and was one I think my partner would really enjoy (he did). It was a lot of fun to see it on the big screen with surround sound.

Highlights: The effects are just so great (I love practical effects!). Also, it's just so over the top, which I enjoy so much in a horror film. And, the acting is surprisingly good for the type of film it is.

Lowlights: I think I still find the dancers in the bar to be the most eyeroll part of the film. Also Quentin Tarantino's character is just so creepy. It's generally pretty vulgar so if you're sensitive to that this is definitely not the movie for you.

Rewatchabilty: Yes.

Overall review: Still found George Clooney and Cheech to be awesome in this movie. I've also recently heard folks talking about how Quentin Tarantino is obsessed with feet, and I definitely see that here. 😆 Overall though, the effects, the pacing, the twist - it's just such a fun movie to watch (I'm really seeing a trend this year with watching a lot of "fun" horror films.)

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #vampires #from dusk till dawn #robert rodriguez #quintin tarantino #george clooney

[31stday]

18 - The People Under the Stairs

Synopsis: After breaking into a house belonging to the neighborhood's slumlords, 13 year old Poindexter "Fool" Williams discovers a dark secret about the couple.

Year/Country: 1991/ US

Subgenres: slasher, stay out of the basement

Reason for watching: This Wes Craven classic is one I have never seen before.

Highlights: I love horror with social commentary driving the story - this movie could be a poster child for such a movie.

Lowlights: Not a lot of lowlights here, except maybe sometimes the humor doesn't really hit in the way I think it was intended. More unsettling than scary, but not unsettling in the way where it sticks with you.

Rewatchabilty: Maybe. I would definitely recommend horror fans watch it at least once though.

Overall review: I think this movie could be pretty disturbing for a broad audience, but I think it's a great horror movie for horror fans. The story and pacing are great. Some Home Alone vibes.

Who should watch it?: People who can handle gore. Also, I think the social commentary still holds up.

#31 days of horror #31daysofhorror #horror films #31 days of halloween #horror movies #wes craven #the people under the stairs