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maroonghoul · 7 months

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Terror Time 2023!: Days 1 thru 6

Alright! Meant to start a few days ago, but got busy. Here we go!

Dracula: Pages from a Virgin Diary Sometimes, I like starting my annual marathon with one of the many adaptations of Dracula. I was considering the Coppola movie from 1992, but the more I thought about how much I don't like the actual story changes from the book in that one, despite the title. (Mostly how it treats the female characters), I switched it with this one. Turns out those themes were here too, but unlike with the other movie, at least it was made by a director who admits he's doing something different with Dracula, and not claiming he's doing the definitive version only to not do so. That was interpretation. This is almost a parody, what with the opening montage nailing the uncomfortable themes of the original, and the Count literally seducing people with all his (stolen) money!

If any horror story lends itself to ballet, Dracula naturally makes the most sense. I'm only surprised to not hear at least a little nod to Swan Lake in there. I don't know if it's a rights thing or it would've been distracting, but oh well.

Telling the story out of order like this is pretty interesting. Introduces the vampirism more gradually and saves Transylvania, arguably the best part of the story, for the middle. Bit of a shock that this version rushes through that, but I guess you couldn't justify dancing while looking over legal documents.

But yeah, surprisingly this does make a better argument for why Dracula might be the real good guy better then Coppola's did. Maybe because the light dialogue leaves a lot more open, but it can be argued what's done with Mina and Lucy is either more consensual or more due to the normal men's biased outlook. They only think their nightmares are over by the end. But history can show it has only begun. Once you've had a taste of Chinese ballet dancing Dracula, you can't really go back.

Body Bags (1993) This theming on this one's a bit weird. Stories one and three are about serial killers, and two and three are about surgical implants gone wrong. You would think that if these themes weren't there, or one was present in all three (besides of course, at least one person has to die to fit the framing device). I mean, at least the nature of the horror is a bit different each one. First one's a slasher, second one is sci-fi with aliens it turns out, and the third is supernatural in the form of possession. But, from what heard is right, these segments really were the only one's from this rejected TV show that worked. the framing device is fun, even though it's surreal to see John Carpenter on screen for once. as for the stories themselves;

The Gas Station these places are scary enough to be at for long amount of times even without the crazed killer. I relate too much to that whole bit with the keys. Last note is slasher settings usually are one of two types; either the character is invading area the slasher is more familiar with or vice versa. Kudos to this one for making us think it's the second one while it's more of the former. Also, yay Sam Raimi cameo!

Hair Easily the least effective, but it at least makes me feel better about losing my own hair. Though that jazz music is really out of place. Just does not work.

Eye I think I saw this remade in the second V/H/S movie. But at least why it's scary is a bit different each time. Also, the inciting incident makes me like to pretend it's Dr. Strange's origin gone even more horribly wrong. I get why it's making him see visions of the dead killer's life, but does it possess by infecting his bloodstream or something? I feel bad for his wife and I also feel bad he ever got to play one last time when he felt like he had hope again. I guess they didn't have enough money to film at an actual baseball stadium.

The Blackcoat's Daughter The slowest burn of a horror movie I think I've ever seen since the Invitation. I didn't have any clue as to what the threat was until she called that nun the c-word. That kinda gave away the whole game, especially funny considering what I rewatched a few days later, as you can see. But yeah, once you see exactly where it's been leading up to, it sticks with you. The second part does too. Like the darkest possible Exorcist sequel you could've gotten without including a demon. Just goes to show rehabilitation and therapy are just as, if not more, crucial to get right as the actual saving.

Night of the Living Dead 1990 I haven't seen the original in about 14 years, so I can't do much to compare the two. Most of what it does different is cool, especially where the first zombie comes from. Other parts were making them more consistent with established zombie lore, but I'll still miss that trowel kill. There's still not as many zombies as most films that came after this one, but these are actually some of the scariest looking zombies I've seen in a while. I would've liked if just a little bit more of it was set at night, though.

How it changes the characters is a bit of a mixed bag. Yes, it's cool to Barbara a lot more competent. And I even liked how her arc to be tougher and less of a "helpless woman" has just led her to a world filled with toxic masculinity. That bit actually aged well. Less so what happened to Ben, though that's not Tony Todd's fault. Mostly how they changed his death. Sure, it meant they shifted his original death to Cooper who deserves it more, but sadly the original still resonates more in our world.

So yeah, an effective update of the story for the 80s/90s. But not too much for now.

The Exorcist I'm still on the fence over whether I'm going to see the new one. Luckily, this anniversary screening can tide me over.

Watching this now, I think a big reason why it's easy to consider this the greatest horror movie of all time (not the scariest movie of all time. That's different), is that most of it's scenes feel like a film rather than a movie. That might seem like a weird distinction, but it's the best to describe it. Friedkin pretty much directed every Regan-less scene so realistically and down to earth, more so then even in the most mature and sophisticated horror films made today. I know that sounds like an insult, but it's because those films go heavy on the atmosphere. Here there is none for the most part. Only character.

Of course, that changes with Pazuzu itself. I get the feeling most films, back and then or today, horror or otherwise, would either make it more ambiguous or more arthouse. This kind of performance you expect to see in more campy horror movies that aim for the cheap seats, but it's here in a movie with very down to earth 1970s filmmaking. Sure, it's laughed at now because we're all familiar at it or we're just in shock. (Or there are actually a lot of non-possessed kids who act like this), but I think that juxtaposition is why it's still leaves as big as an impact as it does.

You do it all subdued, people just look at the film as art. You do it like cheap shockfest, no one but the established horror fans will pay attention to it. But here, the world actually feels normal, and Pazuzu is made as urgent a threat as humanly possible to it. Hell, you can argue Linda Blair's, and Mercedes McCambridge performances being cranked up to 11 compared to everyone else works so well, because it's literally a different species pretty much.

Sure, a lot of horror is about the nasty surprises the world turned out to have had all along. But the first part of that is a clear idea of what we thought the real world is before it's upended like this. A lot of horror movies play like we feel like we're observing theses events from outside. That can be played with brilliantly, but I do feel the best one's are the ones who place as close to the level the characters are when experiencing. The Exorcist is one of the best films to have done that, so that's why I think it has landed as so many lists of the best Horror films of all time.

I leave what it says about faith, demons, and the belief in god to those more knowledgable in such subjects then I am.

Crimes of the Future Not really a horror movie, at least not to the extent The Fly, VideoDrome, or even the Dead Zone is. But it's definitely a Cronenberg movie.

I missed the bioengineered technology, even though no company today would make such things. But outside of that, I was expecting more of this to make me feel sick or at least wince. But most of the gross stuff is biopsies or body piercings taken to the next level. Not exactly Jeff Goldblum losing body parts one at a time, but considering what I think the point of this story is, I think it's intentional.

I relate so much to Saul at the start of this, considering I came down with some really bad acid reflux earlier this year. I'm not sure his solution is right for me, metaphorically speaking. But maybe I need to apply it to something else in me. Cronenberg for so long made films about the worse things that can happen to the human body. Maybe the reason he took a break from that until now, is he got a lot of time and step back, think, reflect, and maybe made peace with a subject that is still very much considered his oeuvre. The moral of the story; learn to get comfortable in your own skin. Or accept what makes it different from what society tells you it should be. Learn to live and make peace, even if it means you won't fit in.

Extra point here; I think I understood why Disney timed it so the Ahsoka season finale came out in October. It's the episode where they're fighting space witches controlling ZOMBIE STORM TROOPERS! Rad!

Until next time...

#Body Bags 1993 #the blackcoat's daughter #Night of the Living Dead 1990 #the exorcist #crimes of the future #Dracula pages from a Virgin Diary

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