October 2019

I seem to have an unwritten rule these days: Don't Write Anything on Your Blog.

But I'm breakin' that rule, baby.

I've been percolating a watchlist of horror films for this month, October, the best time of the year. Some are new (to me), and some will be rewatches. Check out my list, some of which I've already gotten to:

Full Watch

• Brightburn
• Child’s Play (2019)
• Crawl
• Little Monsters
• Pet Sematary ('19)
• The Burning
• Tigers Are Not Afraid

TV

• Castle Rock Season 2 
• Creepshow 

Fassbender Double Feature

• Eden Lake (I've heard it's great/underrated)
• The Snowman (I've heard it's terrible)

Rewatch

• Insidious
• The Blair Witch Project Franchise

Fear of Better Films

So I need to explain this a bit. Lately I've been watching the first 10 minutes of three different films. Whichever one (at least) I like the best gets finished. I'll be approaching a lot of the films on my list like this. I've randomly picked the combatants. And I'm actually upping each chunk to 15 minutes - I feel like that's a better amount of time. 

• Psycho II vs. Eye See You vs. The Hills Have Eyes ('77)
• Winner: Psycho II
• The Rezort vs. Cooties vs. Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse
• Winner: Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse
• Malevolent vs. The Vault vs. Wolf Creek
• Apostle vs. Julia's Eyes vs. The Blackcoat's Daughter
• The Endless vs. The Green Inferno vs. You Might Be The Killer
• Zombie vs. Black Christmas ('74) vs. Head Count
• Hell House LLC vs. In The Tall Grass vs. Mayhem
• Slice vs. I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House vs. In the Shadow of the Moon
• Kill List vs. Revenge vs. The Gallows
• The Silence vs. The Babysitter vs. Stage Fright

I obviously won't get to all of these but I'll have fun trying...

Unseen Halloween: The Purge

The Purge takes place in a world where, one night a year, all crime is legal. The film focuses on the Sandin family. Father James (Ethan Hawke) - who works for a security company and has sold everyone in their posh neighborhood their security systems - mother Mary (Lena Headey) and two kids, Charlie and Zoey.

On the night of the purge, Charlie lets in a man who's been targeted for murder by a group of purgers. Zoey's older boyfriend also sneaks into the house before lockdown. He claims he's there to simply talk to James (the father has an issue with the age difference in the relationship) but we find out his intentions aren't really what they seem. All this leads to the Sandin family fighting to stay alive on purge night.

CraveOnline

The biggest problem with this movie for me is that every character is near insufferable. Ethan's James is kind of smug. Lena Headey is kind of bland. The kids are super annoying. But I guess maybe this was intentional.

Something that also annoyed me is that, sure, everything is legal on Purge Night. But it seems like most people who purge put a lot of thought and planning into their activities. Couldn't these people be held accountable for conspiracy to commit...whatever? I don't remember hearing or reading anything that would explain this away. There was some type of announcement that (certain? all?) politicians are immune but that's all I really remember.

The bad guys also get really bent out of shape about people infringing on their right to purge or something like that. But...everything is legal and nothing is illegal, so the "right to purge" kind of goes out the window?

All in all, this was a decent horror/thriller, but nothing to get too worked up over.

Favorite Scene Friday! The Birds: Pecked

This week's Favorite Scene Friday! was written by Jay from Life vs Film!

HitchcOctober is being celebrated both at French Toast Sunday and Life vs Film, plus it's Horror month pretty much everywhere online, so it seemed right to fuse the two together and pick one of my favourite scenes from one of Alfred Hitchcock's horror movies. I'm not taking the low-hanging fruit of Psycho's shower scene, I'm instead opting for 1963's The Birds, and again, I'm not taking the obvious birds-gathering-on-the-climbing-frame scene, or even one of the big bombastic set pieces, instead I'm going for the moment the film takes a sudden lurch into horror.

Lafar Posters via JoBlo

Before this point in the film, the small San Francisco fishing town of Bodega Bay has suffered a few inexplicable attacks from feathered fiends - a lone seagull clawed at the head of our heroine Melanie (Tippi Hedren), another flies into a closed door, a flock of seagulls set about a children's birthday party and a swarm of sparrows wreaked havoc in the lounge via its chimney, but nothing serious has occurred other than a little scarring - both physically and mentally. However, when Lydia (Jessica Tandy) goes to visit a fellow farmer to discuss the odd behaviour of the town's birds, we discover the true peril these people are in store for.



That's right, he's dead. And not just dead, he's had the eyes pecked out of his head. There are deep red pools where his eyes used to be, and it's ruddy terrifying. It isn't helped by the film's complete lack of score, making Lydia's slow approach down the corridor seemingly take all the longer, as there's almost no sound whatsoever. Similarly, she looks around the room in silent confusion, noticing the extreme disarray and littering of bird corpses, one of which apparently bled to death whilst impaled in a window. This is the point where we realise that a bird attack, which previously sounded more comical than actually fatal, could in fact be incredibly dangerous and life threatening, and every attack that comes after this point comes with its serious consequences, but it all starts here.

Lydia's silent, gasping fleeing from the scene looks a little odd, but was an homage to Edward Munch's The Scream. I'm grateful that we don't actually see the attack take place - if there's one thing I can't watch, it's eye trauma - but I think not showing it makes it all the more powerful anyway, especially in the jump-scare value of the moment Lydia sees the body, as the camera zooms in on his face not once but twice. It's an image I won't soon forget.

What's your favorite scene from The Birds?

Favorite Scene Friday! The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Meet Leatherface

Our newest horror-themed FSF is by none other than the horror-averse Nick from French Toast Sunday! Yes, one of Nick's favorite genres is "not horror". When not watching scary movies, you can find Nick on the FTS podcast or reviewing new flicks over on their site. You can check out all of Nick's FTS posts here. Follow him on twitter - @therehak.

French Toast Sunday

To be honest, I don’t know why I asked to participate in this series. If you know me, I’m very vocal about my fear of horror films. I just can’t do it. I even hide my face during horror movie trailers (ask any member of FTS, they’ll tell you). My problem is, when I watch something, my brain holds onto those images, and then I can’t fall asleep at night without my brain showing me those images every time I close my eyes. The only way to combat that is to stay up all night until it’s daytime OR I turn all the lights on in the house. Why all the lights? Well, as we all know, monsters don’t come out in the light, they only come out when it’s dark. I whole-heartedly believed that until I saw Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974). This film was a terrifying exclamation that horror doesn’t happen at night, it can happen anytime.

Vogler Art via JoBlo

About 32 or so minutes into the film, Kirk and Pam set off to find a local swimming hole, as you do in the middle of nowhere Texas. They discover that the swimming hole is all dried up, but they see a generator running, maybe someone nearby can point them in the direction of a proper swimming hole? Wrong. Absolutely wrong. They come across a generic non-descript looking house. Kirk knocks a few times and finds himself inside, leaving Pam outside. He hears some squeals coming from the back of the house. Probably a pig right? I mean, they did drive past a slaughterhouse earlier. Kirk explores the hallway and attempts to walk through a doorway. All of a sudden, Leatherface. The scare causes Kirk to trip and fall, and while on the ground, Leatherface bashes Kirk’s head in with a hammer. It’s a soft, almost mute thud sound as Kirk is struck not once, but several times. It’s not this over the top crunch or smack effect sound, it’s natural and real. You can feel the bones in his skull breaking with every hammer hit. Kirk's body goes into shock and he spasms and bleeds like a slaughtered pig. Leatherface drags him away and slams a metal door behind him, cue music.

Let that set in a second. In the middle of the day, in broad fucking daylight, inside a normal-seeming home, a man’s skull is brutally bashed in with a hammer and is dragged away, THEN the music happens. There is nothing to prepare you for the kill. No build-up. It attacks you and catches you off guard much like Leatherface catches Kirk. Wham! It happens, you accept it, then realize Leatherface, and this film, are not fucking around. You are not going to make it out alive.

So you’d think the scene would be over, right? WRONG! Pam, sitting on a swing outside, calls to Kirk. No answer. She enters the home and all we hear is the generator outside running. Pam walks around the home and falls into a room filled with chicken feathers and bones. The music kicks in, a low dull humbuzz rattle that builds. She screams and is immediately greeted by Leatherface who runs after her and catches her just as she makes it out the door. He RUNS. He doesn’t walk. He doesn’t say something funny or campy. He bolts after, catches her, and laughs, LAUGHS, as he carries her into the kitchen and hangs her from a meat hook. Did I mention Leatherface is laughing? All of this is accentuated by the humbuzz rattle that builds, a semitone at a time, twisting and turning your stomach at the unknown horror still to come.

Scene’s over, right? NOPE. Like any sundae, it’s not complete without the cherry. And the cherry on top of this psycho-nightmare is Pam, hanging from a meat hook, watching and screaming in horror as Leatherface revs up his chainsaw and begins to dismember Kirk right in front of her. Cut to weather vane.

What's your favorite scene from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre?

Unseen Halloween: Carrie (1976)

Unseen Halloween is an October feature where we watch and review older horror films that we'd never seen before. Enjoy!

Carrie is a 1976 horror film directed by Brian De Palma and adapted from the novel by Stephen King. It's about the titular Carrie (Sissy Spacek), who discovers that she has telekinetic abilities and uses them to get revenge on her classmates when they pull a cruel prank on her at prom. Meanwhile, Carrie's mom (Piper Laurie) is batshit crazy.

malikafavre via joblo

The highlight of the film for me was Spacek as Carrie. There's a theme of growth and self-discovery throughout the film and Spacek really nails it. Carrie goes from being a shy, near-mute girl to a happy person to a chilling murderer in the space of a week or so. The famous shower scene at the beginning of the movie marks Carrie's first period, and it's as awkward as it sounds. That scene also perfectly demonstrates how cruel Carrie's classmates are. Seriously, these women behave like animals.

Carrie's gym teacher Miss Collins is one of the only nice people in Carrie's life. Betty Buckley did a really great job in the role. Nancy Allen and John Travolta play a couple of assholes, one of your standard high school couples named Chris and Billy, the ones that dump all the pig's blood on Carrie at the prom. They were pretty good in their roles, although Travolta for some reason can't drink a beer to save his life - he's constantly got a beer mustache/beard on his face.

One of the more interesting parts of the film concerned the characters of Tommy (William Katt) and Sue (Amy Irving). I was never really sure what their intentions with Carrie were (although maybe I just didn't pay close enough attention). They cooked up a plan to have Tommy take Carrie to the prom (despite the fact that Tommy and Sue are dating), but I didn't know if that was part of Chris and Billy's plan to humiliate Carrie. Tommy seems to genuinely like Carrie, however. One of the movie's more memorable scenes involves Tommy and Carrie dancing. As they spin, the camera rotates around them in the opposite direction. It's all rather dizzying, and it kind of makes you feel like you're dancing with them, their giddy mood almost rubbing off on you.

In the end, it turns out that Tommy and Sue were genuinely just trying to help Carrie, so it makes it all the worse when we discover that Tommy is killed in Carrie's massacre. Sue survived however, and one of the final scenes shows Carrie reaching up from the remains of her house to grab her. Turns out this was all a dream, however.

Wait...let me back up. Carrie and her crazy mother got sucked under the Earth  - along with their entire house - after Carrie's mother tried to murder her for showing her "dirty pillows" at the prom. Carrie ended up having to kill her mother with her telekinesis, slinging a bunch of knives into her and crucifying her (the religious imagery in the film isn't very subtle). And while we're on the subject of Carrie's mother, Piper Laurie was definitely a standout. She apparently thought she was filming a "black comedy" and not a horror film. I don't really know what that says about her performance, although her "dirty pillows" and "They're all gonna laugh at you," lines are pretty funny (now I appreciate that Adam Sandler bit even more).

So as someone who has now seen Carrie, I would recommend it. It's got some great central performances and it's a pretty unique horror story to boot.

3 Out of 5 Stars

Favorite Scene Friday! The Cabin in the Woods: The Elevator Doors (to Hell) Open

This week's horror-themed FSF was written by Sara from A Redhead at the Movies! Sara is a movie fiend (who isn't, but seriously, she's got a degree in film studies and writes papers on horror flicks like Saw and Hostel). She's also a fellow member of the illustrious French Toast Sunday B-Squad. So if you're not checking out Sara's site for movie reviews, The Walking Dead recaps, and more, you're missing out! You can also follow Sara on Twitter - @RedheadAtMovies.

FTS

When it came down to choosing my favorite scene from a horror movie, I just knew I had to go with this scene from The Cabin in the Woods (2012). This moment, no matter how many times I watch it, fills me with glee, terror and awe. Directed by Drew Goddard and co-written by Joss Whedon, The Cabin in the Woods pays hilarious homage to the horror genre by presenting us with every trope and creature, and they simultaneously honor and satirize horror narrative conventions. This scene is an encapsulation— or rather, an explosion— of all that this movie is and wants to be: a horror nerd’s outrageous fever dream, a hodgepodge whose reverence for its contents verges on absurd zealotry at times.

society6

In the lead-up to this scene, two of our protagonists— attempted horror archetypes Dana (the virginal, would-be final girl played by Kristen Connolly) and Marty (the silly, slacker-stoner played by Fran Kranz) — have just discovered a network of futuristic, glass elevators. These elevators take them on an underground journey through neat compartments containing the stuff of nightmares.

Upon realizing they are in more danger off the elevator than on though, they decide what better way of fighting their unidentified, unexplained human captors than by unleashing upon them the very hell they just toured? And that is what this scene is - a comical but disturbing look at what would happen if every horror creature were truly let loose at once.

At first, we see a group of bewildered soldier-types as they listen to the churning sounds of elevators in motion. The elevators eventually grow silent, which is very much a harbinger of doom (to which one of the solider-types even says, “Oh shit.”), and then we hear a classic, seemingly innocuous “ding” noise.

The following shot is framed perfectly, with soldiers in the middle of two rows of elevator doors, on the right and left of the frame. So everything meets in the middle in a loud, bloody mess, and it is glorious. The suspense turns to utter chaos, so much so that it’s hard to necessarily take it all in at first: a giant snake (cobra?), a pterodactyl (maybe?), a kind of evil chainsaw robot thing (think Wall-E gone wrong), a triumphant-looking werewolf, and lots and lots of blood, in case I didn’t mention that already. The soldiers are being torn to shreds, more or less literally, and the screen goes dark with what we can assume is either a blood splatter or perhaps a thrown limb.

In darkness, we hear a siren or an alarm of some sort. We then start to follow a new group of guards who stumble upon the same area we just witnessed, and it looks as messy as you’d expect - blood everywhere and some happy zombies partaking in the feast. The rest of the sequence features more ding-noises indicating more elevator doors opening, more blood, more chaos, and more creatures - creepy masks, giant insects, ghosts, you name it. I especially love when it shifts to security camera footage of the many varied horror-movie scenarios now being enacted in various parts of the facility. What I love about it is that even if it seems like we’ve seen them all before, you’ve never seen them quite like this - all together, all happening at the same time, and all being monitored. The camera pulls back to show the many screens depicting the numerous horrific situations taking place, and once again, it becomes a chilling, daunting task to understand and keep track of all of them.

This minute-and-a-half or so of filmmaking is flawless. It’s fun and terrifying in equal measure. Goddard and Whedon know how to use sound, music, editing and off-screen space to utter perfection, and there are so many resulting nuances in this short sequence alone. It becomes quite clear who this film is ultimately meant for: horror fanatics who would gladly wade through the blood, sift through the severed limbs, brave the monsters and organize the chaos all in order to recognize the references and celebrate the only genre that could yield such a cacophonous concoction in the first place.

What's your favorite scene from The Cabin in the Woods?

Favorite Scene Friday! Ghostbusters 2: The Ghost Train

Ghostbusters is getting a lot of love lately, what with its 30th anniversary celebration, those Krispy Kreme donuts, and talk of the fabled third movie. You know what's not getting a lot of love? Ghostbusters 2.

ghostbusters30th

Ask me about Ghostbusters 2 and I'll tell ya what I think. Go ahead...ask. G'head.

Well I'll tell ya, internet. It's actually really scary compared to the first one, which was pretty much just a comedy (one of the greatest comedies of all time, sure) with ghosts, save for a scene or two. It's really not uncommon for a sequel to go darker. Think Temple of Doom or The Empire Strikes Back. It was just kinda the thing to do in the '80s and Ghostbusters 2 was no exception. Think about it. Vigo the Carpathian's scary-ass self. The subterranean river of evil, pink slime. That bathtub nose monster. The scene where the guys almost get murdered with fire in their darkroom whilst developing scary Polaroids. I could go on and on. Oh wait, I have to go on!

Yes, our scene is the creepy (but still very funny) ghost train sequence. Picture it. You're down under the streets of New York. Like, under the subway deep. You're in the dark. You're searching for the source of crazy levels of paranormal activity. Then this happens.



Poor Winston! He just wanted to hear his echo like the other guys, but he never gets to have any fun. Instead he gets run over by a ghost train. Aside from being a funny concept, there is something genuinely terrifying about hearing your own echo replaced by a deep, booming, soul-piercing voice bellowing your name. And aren't those disembodied heads frickin' gruesome (why the hell did the guys not bring their proton packs with them to begin with???)? Compare that shit to the first film, where we don't get anything nearly as terrifying. Hell, the Ghost Librarian was originally scarier but they replaced the effect with something a little less terrifying.

Some of the comedy's a little broad in this scene (the guys tip-toe around like they're in a Scooby Doo episode or something and Egon's question about the number on the locomotive, while funny, is a little cliche) but Ernie Hudson's performance as Winston (the way his scream dies out is hilarious) and the horror more than makes up for it. So if you need a great horror comedy that doesn't skimp on the horror this Halloween season, think of Ghostbusters 2.

What's your favorite scene from Ghostbusters 2?

Favorite Scene Friday! Mulholland Drive: Winkies

This FSF was written by Lindsay from French Toast Sunday! Now try not to freak out, but this is just the first of TWO FSFs today. Lindsay wrote this one a little while back, but the scene vanished from the world wide inter-netz. It recently resurfaced on YouTube (split into two parts) and we jumped at the chance to feature it. It serves as a late addition to FTS' David Lynch. September. celebration, but it fits in quite nicely with our month of horror scenes as well. Enjoy!

iamgabz via JoBlo

Director David Lynch is best known for his bizarre, surreal films and Mulholland Drive might be his most recognizable. The movie kick started the career of the lovely Naomi Watts and was critically praised, but I don’t know if it’s a movie that is as easily accessible now. I first watched the film in high school after searching for movies that were "a little on the weird side." Well, this film certainly had that shit covered. It’s a dreamy masterpiece of the strange and confusing, changing narrative and character focus more times that the viewer can count. But I love it. I was mesmerized and curious and yearning for more after the credits rolled. Admittedly there are a lot of special scenes in Mulholland Drive, but none so perfect as the one chosen here. The scene below describes a man’s dream in eerie detail and prompts the viewer to question the reality of the event. The scene works wonders because of Lynch’s absorbing direction and an unnerving performance from Patrick Fischler.





I'm not entirely sure how this scene plays out of context from the rest of the film but on my first viewing of the movie I was stunned at just how effective it was. Within minutes, Lynch completely draws you into this small story. There is a foreboding sense of dread that starts to mount with such urgency that the viewer can't backtrack fast enough to figure it out. You don't know why the scene exists or how it will play into the rest of the story (it happens fairly early on in the film) but you submit that it must be important. As you follow Dan's (Fischler) recalling of a dream, you don't realize exactly what you're in for. The scene is telling, in a way that almost never fits on a first watch. As Dan becomes more nervous, so does the viewer. What cold possibly be behind this dumpster? How could anything that exists there be so awful? Luckily for us, Lynch answers those questions with a moment of arresting shock felt at the end of the sequence. This entire scene is without question one of my all time favorite scenes of any film I have ever watched. It solidified my quest to barrel through David Lynch's filmography and started my love/hate relationship with the challenging director.

This Favorite Scene was partially excerpted from the post 7 Scenes You Shouldn't Miss From Movies You Might Have.

You can check out all of Lindsay's FSFs right here.

What's your favorite scene from Mulholland Drive?

Favorite Horror Scene Friday! The Descent

Great horror films are scary on multiple levels. Think about every zombie movie ever made. Sure, the lifeless corpses trying to eat your brains are creepy, but the living and humanity in general are terrifying as well.

IMDb

The Descent, if you’re unfamiliar with it, is a horror flick from 2005 directed by Neil Marshall. It’s about a group of women - lead by the bitchy Juno (Natalie Mendoza) and grieving-over-the-loss-of-her-husband-and-child Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) - who get lost on a spelunking trip.

Here's our first scene (that's right, we've got a two for one deal here). While squeezing through a tight tunnel, Sarah gets stuck.



I’m terrified of tight spaces. I won't go so far as to say that I'm claustrophobic, but getting stuck in a narrow cave system like Sarah here would give me a heart attack. I'm not gonna go crawling under the ground anytime soon is what I'm saying.

So as if playing off of humanity's inherent claustrophobia wasn’t scary enough, this shit happens:



That’s right, this movie has fuckin' monsters in it. The scariest part of this scene (other than the reveal of the creature, obviously) is the quick build up. Everyone realizes that they're completely, hopelessly lost and the only option is to freak out. And freak out they do. The way (Sam? Beth? Rebecca? Not sure who it is.) desperately screams for help just before the camera zips over to reveal the creature just STANDING there is terrible. And those flippin' monsters. I remember watching this movie (not for the first time, mind you) with my family once. Every one of us jumped (big time) when we saw that monster standing there.

My hat is off to Neil Marshall. He knows how to scare us, and not just with monsters.

Favorite Horror Scene Friday! The Omen: "It's All For You!"

It's October once more here in the Escape Hatch and that can only mean one thing - well actually it means quite a few things but mostly it means FAVORITEHORRORSCENESOMGOMG!!!

Lindsay (no stranger to the Favorite Scene Friday business) from French Toast Sunday is kicking the month of horror scenes off with an absolute classic. It's from a horror film that needs no introduction...in fact, I'm gonna just let Lindsay take it away. You can follow her on Twitter - @lindsay_fts.

frenchtoastsunday.com

Far and away my favorite classic horror film is 1976's The Omen. Starring Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, and David Warner, the film deals with the horrific repercussions of a father's difficult decision to adopt a child without the mother’s knowledge on the same night her baby died during childbirth. Years later the couple starts to suspect something unthinkable of the child. Could little Damien be a bonafide example of evil incarnate?

Wikipedia

The chilling religious horror film is filled with memorable moments, but one of its best is displayed early on. Contrasted with the backdrop of a normally joyous occasion, Damien's fifth birthday party turns out to be anything but when an unexpected death occurs.



“Look at me, Damien! It’s all for you!” Could this be the disturbing ramblings of a mentally ill woman or something much more ominous (see what I did there?!)  The scene is effective on every level for the audience. Shocking is an understatement as we follow the nanny's last footsteps to death. The camera lingers on her body for longer than one might expect only to be interrupted by Lee Remick's expression of utter disbelief. The entire sequence is quite upsetting but when the close up changes to Damien's unaffected face, that's when the real scope of terror starts to settle in. The Omen remains a classic for a reason. If you haven't had the pleasure already, seek out the film and see for yourself. It would be the perfect October treat.

Batch o’ Hatch: The LAMB Shenanigans, French Toast Sunday, and October Awesomeness!

Happy October, hatchlings! If you’re anything like me, you’re happy right now, with thoughts of horror flicks, Oktoberfests, cooler weather, and seasonal beer flirting with your head. Here’s a quick Batch o’ Hatch to read while you’re sippin’ on that tasty pumpkin ale you like so much.

The LAMB Shenanigans

Check out the latest episode of the LAMBcast, where I drop in to ramble about upcoming fall flicks and my love for Breaking Bad!



Also, the next installment of #LAMBWatch is this Sunday at 4:00 EST! Tune in to watch the cinematic mindfuck that is Upstream Color and tweet along. If you’re unfamiliar with #LAMBWatch, you can read about the last installment right here. Don’t forget, one random participant will win a prize!

French Toast Sunday

I’m stoked to announce that I’m now a contributing writer for French Toast Sunday! Keep an eye out for my first posts this month.

frenchtoastsunday.com

October Awesomeness

We’ve got a ton of October awesomeness on the way! New installments of Unseen Halloween! New horror reviews! Horror scenes every Friday! It’s gonna be amazing!

Tweets

They are leaving it pretty late to call me about the Doctor part.
— edgarwright (@edgarwright) August 2, 2013

I like Peter Capaldi, but this would have been awesome too.

Tip to make everyday activities more exciting: listen to Bernard Hermann's score for NORTH BY NORTHWEST.
— Andy (@AndyJames_ink) August 4, 2013

He's right. Just try it. Here, try it right now.

American Werewolf in London is a brilliant, classic film. From the effects to the soundtrack it's incredible. It holds up so well. #horror
— The Sexy Armpit (@sexyarmpit) August 6, 2013

You can't argue with Jay, it's just not possible on this.

Harry and the Hendersons is on.  Suddenly nothing I had planned for tonight seems as important as this.
— Hummingbird Heart ♥ (@Tiff0728) August 10, 2013

Nothing is as important as Harry and the Hendersons, ever.

If I can get that Evil Dead bikini made with some damn good support cups, it's a-mine.
— Camie  (@silvershamrockd) August 12, 2013

No context needed. Oh, you do need some? Here.

With all this thunder & lightning I feel like I should be up in Mikey's attic looking at rejects from the history of Astoria.
— The Sexy Armpit (@sexyarmpit) August 22, 2013

Everyone should have an attic like Mikey.

I'm just an angry Lieutenant Dan on the inside.
— Hummingbird Heart ♥ (@Tiff0728) August 23, 2013

Lt. Daaaan, ice creeamm.

Why is there not a documentary TV show that puts Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart together on holiday for weeks and just films them? #gold
— Man, I Love Films (@manilovefilms) September 20, 2013

Let's get a kickstarter going for this.

A Haunted House That You Walk Through Naked? http://t.co/PCkyKgeTUx via @GeekTyrant
— GeekTyrant (@GeekTyrant) September 23, 2013

Would any of you do this???

happy halloween!!! too soon? i'm excited #horrormoviemarathon
— Candice Frederick (@ReelTalker) October 1, 2013

It's never too soon. Happy October!!!

Music Video Tuesday! The Nightmare Before Christmas: "This is Halloween"

This really isn't a music video but who the hell cares? Oogie Boogie will come get you if you make a stink.

Nothing gets me in the Halloween spirit like listening to some tracks from The Nightmare Before Christmas. And seeing as how tomorrow is the big day and I haven't listened to the soundtrack at all this year, I figured I'd post my favorite tune right here on the blog for all to enjoy.

The song speaks to the most primal fears in all of us - "the shadow on the moon at night" the monsters under the bed and the stairs - cripes.

Next year marks the film's 20th anniversary and its songs have been covered by various artists - check out versions of "Halloween" by Marilyn Manson and Panic! at the Disco below.

Really bummed that October is almost over. I'll squeeze all the fun out of tomorrow as I can, but after that I'll be slipping into my annual post Halloween funk. Hope you guys have a great All Hallows Eve!

Zombie Prize Pack!

Zombie fans! If you want to enter to win a copy of Dawn of the Dead (1978) plus some other zombie goodies, email your name and mailing address to totheescapehatch[at]gmail.com, plus the correct answers to the following questions:

1. Where does the majority of Dawn of the Dead (1978) take place?
2. What brings the dead back to life in Return of the Living Dead?
3. In Shaun of the Dead, the soundtrack to what superhero film is used as a weapon against a zombie?

Get your emails in by 5:00 p.m. EST tomorrow, Friday, October 26th to enter the contest! Please use the subject line "Zombie Prize Pack". We'll pick a winner out of the folks that get all three questions right and announce them here on the blog on Halloween, Wednesday, October 31.

P.S. Open to U.S. residents only. And we’re assuming you’re over 18 or have parents that don’t mind us mailing you zombie prizes. Sorry, comments are disabled on this post.

Music Video Monday, Halloween Edition! MGMT: Kids

Today's Music Video Monday! is a dedication of sorts to the Halloween movies that scared the living hell out of me when I was a kid.  These movies are as follows:

• The Exorcist - this is actually the first horror film I remember seeing and I watched it specifically because my parents told me I couldn't.  I don't need to discuss how scary this movie is.  I'll just say that for a long time, I was terribly frightened of becoming that innocent little girl who randomly falls victim to demonic possession.  

• The Amityville Horror - if possession wasn't scary enough, this one left me to worry about a ghostly "imaginary friend" who would take over my house with evil, terrorize my stepfather and lock my babysitter in my closet. 

• A Nightmare on Elm Street - in some ways, this one takes the cake.  I mean, for a long time when I got scared, I did what most kids did - told myself that if I shut my eyes and fell asleep, the fear would go away.  This movie blew that all to hell. 

• Jaws - okay, so this one wasn't directed so much AT kids.  But as a child who spent entire summers at the beach, it put a pretty healthy fear in me.  Hell, it even made me afraid of my parents' swimming pool (true story).

If you're wondering what this music video, by one of the most talented, hipster-friendly bands to hit the music scene in recent years, has to do with scaring kids, all you have to do is watch it.  The entire video is made up of different things terrifying a poor crying toddler.  The first time I watched it, I was actually pretty disturbed - not only by the imagery, but also by what must have been done to keep this kid crying during the long period of filming.  But the more I thought about it, I realized that the very things that scared me most when I was a kid (the terrifying films listed above), sort of aimed to do just that - make me AFRAID.

While I'm not sure what MGMT's exact message is with this song and video (they may argue the negligent mother is scarier than any of the monsters), I decided to celebrate the coming holiday with a Halloween tradition we all know and enjoy - scaring kids!

Happy Monday!

Favorite Scene Friday! Jeepers Creepers: Wrapped and Roped in a Sheet

Jeepers Creepers disturbed me. I knew little to nothing about the film before I sat down to watch it 11 years ago, it's filled with scares, and the ending is twisted and chilling.

Wikipedia

If you're unfamiliar with the film, it follows siblings Trish (Gina Phillips) and Darry (Justin Long), driving home together during a college break. Soon into the film, the pair has a run-in with a mystery motorist in a run-down (but souped-up) truck. Before passing the siblings and leaving them in his dust, the driver gets on their tail and maniacally swerves around the road behind them, all while blaring his deafening horn.

This week's scene happens after the truck driver (dubbed "BEATNGU" since it's his license plate number) passes the siblings. Lazily driving and chatting after their encounter with BEATNGU, Trish and Darry suddenly come across his truck, parked next to a boarded-up, dilapidated building. The mystery driver is throwing something down a pipe...wrapped and roped in a sheet. Just a note before you watch the clip - it should be set to start around 9:20 and it ends around the 13:00 minute mark, so feel free to wander off after that point.

The creepiest part of this scene for me - and the movie as a whole - is the fact that it was filmed in and around Ocala, Florida, which is less than an hour and a half from where I grew up. So that shadowy, rickety building BEATNGU's dumping something under? Those twisted, tangled trees and vines that mask his dirty deeds? I drove by stuff like that all the time. Sometimes I wonder how close I've come to that exact spot. And sometimes - and this is the most disturbing thought of all  - I wonder if I might happen upon it some lazy afternoon while visiting home. Maybe that building still exists, despite what happens in the film. Maybe that pipe is real.

This scene proves that terrifying moments aren't reserved for the darkness. Happy Halloween, friends. And happy driving...

CONTEST: Zombie Prize Package!

Since it’s such a great time of year, we’re feeling a little generous. We’ve got a copy of Dawn of the Dead (1978) and a few mystery zombie goodies to give away, and all you have to do is answer a few questions about the living dead...

On October 25th at 5:00 p.m. EST we’ll post three zombie movie questions right here on the blog. Email your three correct answers along with your name and mailing address to totheescapehatch[at]gmail.com by 5:00 p.m. EST on October 26th to enter the drawing for the prize pack!

Since we run this blog on the cheap, we have to limit the contest to U.S. residents only. And since part of the prize package is a DVD you'd need a region-free DVD player anywayi’mrambling

So anyway, bone up (no pun intended...?) on your zombie movie trivia and tune in here on October 25th at 5:00 p.m. to enter to win some zombie swag!

Favorite Scene Friday: A Nightmare In The Escape Hatch

October is officially in full swing and you know what that means:  Horror Movies Galore!  We love horror movies here in the Hatch and we love to share them with you even more.  As I was trekking through my memories of such movies, I couldn’t help but to keep coming back to Freddy and his manicure fetish.  There are officially 9 movies featuring the charcoaled character and while half of them may be uber-lame, half of them are really unforgettable.  I didn’t care much for the most recent in this series, the remake starring Jackie Earle Haley (in his defense, he had a lot to live up to), to be honest I was kind of bored throughout the whole thing.  Maybe I need to give it another chance.  My personal favorites are numbers 1, 3, and 7 (New Nightmare) and while all three contain at least one or two scenes of “okay, they could’ve done without that” the majority of their run-times make for vividly appalling entertainment, but you know, in a good way.  

Not only does he have 9 movies on his IMDB page, Freddy has also appeared in television, “Freddy’s Nightmares” – 44 episodes; video games, a 1989 NES game based on the original movie and more recently in the 2011/12 version of “Mortal Kombat (Komplete Edition)”; and music, most notably (see below – couldn’t find an official video, but the lyrics alone are fun as hell) the hilarious “A Nightmare On My Street” by none other than DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince.  That’s a helluva resume and what we here in the Hatch refer to as an Icon.  So today’s Favorite Scene Friday is not only one scene from one movie, but Freddy’s entire kill list.  Some are horrific, some are funny, some are weirder than they should be, and some are just downright delightful.  So if you’ve got 10 minutes to spare, check out which kills you like best and post them below (disclaimer:  not included are the kills from the Earle Haley version).  I’ve also included, due to my lack of memory, a few music videos to make up for missing this past Monday.  I hope you enjoy them and at the same time forgive the cloud that stands in place of what most refer to as:  my memory.  Happy Friday, Killers and don’t forget to SCREAM!!!

 

Batch o' Hatch: Night of the Podcast, The Walking Dead Season 3 at Sun-Ray, and Tweets

Night of the Podcast

Like a zombie crawling out of the grave, I’ll be returning to the Nerd Lunch Podcast next Tuesday! I won’t completely spoil the topic, but I will say it involves the living dead...

Nerd Lunch

New episodes of the podcast typically go live one week after they’re recorded, so look for it here or over at Nerd Lunch on Tuesday the 23rd.

The Walking Dead Season 3 at Sun-Ray Cinema

While we’re on the topic of zombies, this Sunday the 14th marks the return of The Walking Dead on AMC. Our friends at Sun-Ray Cinema are showing the premiere (for free!) and we’re throwing in a copy of the second season on DVD! So if you wanna see some zed-word TV on the big screen and possibly win The Walking Dead Season 2 on DVD, head to Sun-Ray this Sunday at 9:00 p.m.

Sun-Ray

Tweets

Some tweets are just too great to confine to Twitter, so I figured I'd start sharing some of my favorites in each Batch o' Hatch. So without further ado, here’s some tweets! From Twitter!

Holy moly is it frigging time I can see #Looper yet???
— Pete Turner (@ilovethatfilm) September 24, 2012

Pete over at I Love That Film couldn’t wait to see Looper. He later took part in a group review of the film - check it out here!

Ever have a "I wish Sam Beckett would quantum leap into me and deal with my problems" kind of day?
— CT (from Nerd Lunch) (@nerdlunch) September 27, 2012

CT from Nerd Lunch shares my love of Quantum Leap. And yes, I do have days like that.

And so AWESOME-tober-fest 2012 begins. blog.paxholley.net/2012/10/01/awe… #Halloween
— Paxton Holley (@paxtonholley) October 1, 2012

This was Pax at Cavalcade of Awesome kicking off AWESOME-tober-fest 2012! Tune into Cavalcade throughout the month for more Movie Maniac mania.

Thanks for tuning in! Stay scary, my friends.

Music Video Monday! Band of Horses: "Is There a Ghost"

Happy October, folks! On this fine Monday I'm bringing you a ghostly music video by Band of Horses. Okay, there are no actual ghosts in the video, only pillow thieves.

Wikipedia

Despite it's lack of paranormal activity, "Is There a Ghost" is top notch. I much prefer this sound to the stripped-down, folksy tunes on BoH's new album "Mirage Rock". Speaking of, check out Pat's review here.

I hope you enjoy your Monday, your week, and, by all means, your October and Halloween. I think it's gonna be a good one. Off to find my pillow.



BONUS

Since my music video doesn't include any actual ghosts, here are some I found on YouTube. Don't blame me for any nightmares.