#547

Horror buffs pls vote in my poll

#548

Watched the original IT over the weekend, really scared me as a kid but it has not aged well and is terribly structured. Tim Curry’s performance is an all time classic mind.

#549

1408 is great but I’m with you on The Mist.

#550

I recall liking 1408, I just don’t remember anything about it. Just seems oddly placed.

#551

I watched it last year when I was looking for a horror film to watch with my then just turned 14 year old son. It was deemed too scary, and I don’t scare easily.

#552

That list makes me realize how many minor-league King adaptations there are floating around out there that I have no desire to see. Here are some random thoughts on some of the ones I’m familiar with:

Creepshow - Have loved this ever since I first saw it on a big-box VHS back in the day. The cockroach sequence freaks me out to this day and I love the whole EC vibe. Plus - George Romero!

The Mist - This is one of my favourite modern horror films. This was one of the first horror movies I saw after several years away from the genre and I loved it. The black and white version is worth checking out if you like the original. Ending still totally works for me - but then I love me some nihilistic irony.

Stand By Me - Total classic.

The Shining - If not my favourite horror film ever, then it’s certainly up there. I went for years buying into the received wisdom that this isn’t very good and that’s just bullshit. I love the sense of escalating dread; it scared me when I first saw it in my teens and still scares me today.

Carrie - Another personal favourite. What I most like about this is that it manages to balance genuinely humorous sequences with moments that remain disturbing no matter how many times you see them. Piper Laurie in this freaks me right the fuck out.

Haven’t seen the new IT yet - will probably go see it next week, maybe…

And finally some non-King stuff. Re-watched 10 Cloverfield Lane last night and loved it, which just goes to show that you shouldn’t watch a film for the first time on a plane… Over and out…

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#553

It - excellent stuff, really good performances all round. Thought the dialogue was fine (and pretty damn funny), yer man Finn from Stranger Things obviously having a total blast being an absolute lad with his lines.

Didn’t find Pennywise that scary, but I really didn’t like the face-body horror shizzle much, that was grim. Thought the creepy woman from the painting second time around was the scariest thing to be honest and Georgie when his face was all rotten.

Would happily watch again, genuinely a really great film and a decent Stephen King adaption.

#554

Squinting while reading this thread in order to avoid IT spoilers for just one more day. Anyway, caught up with a couple of slightly disappointing films at the weekend…

Before I Wake - having started off on a great run with Absentia, Oculus and Hush, Mike Flannagan seems to have hit a bit of a flat spot with Ouija: Origin Of Evil and this. In fairness, Ouija II made about a gazillion dollars so I’m sure he doesn’t feel too bad when he’s Scrooge McDucking his way into his giant pool of cash. Before I Wake faced numerous problems with actually getting released, and there’s signs that it might have been tinkered with disadvantageously - the ending feels like it was tacked on after negative test screenings and much of the CGI feels half finished. There are some genuinely creepy ideas here, but the execution falls flat and it’s hard to care about the main characters as a result. Also, is Thomas Jane actually any good in anything or is he just…there? 5/10

Alien: Covenant - after Prometheus, we were promised some proper alien action this time around. Unfortunately this is still primarily origin story, again, only this time the architects are dispensed with in a single scene, as is Noomi Rapace’s Elizabeth Shaw character. The alien action is vstly inferior to anything in the first three films annoyingly. Much like Prometheus, it looks good, and also much like Prometheus it doesn’t always make a whole load of sense. Previous Alien films have suceeded by having an interesting ensemble mix of everyday characters, but by the end of this I could barely tell you the name of any of the main characters. Michael Fassbender is however excellently creepy again as the terrifying David, plus he actually gets double screentime this time around. Overall, a bit more aliens fucking shit up and a bit less origin story would be welcome. Also, the ‘twist’ at the end could barely have been more signposted. 5/10

#555

Far, far too generous on Covenant mate. Also, Fassbender was laughably bad.

#556

Been reading some articles about 10 Cloverfield Lane. Think this one largely misses the point: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/the-psychological-fakery-of-10-cloverfield-lane

Whereas this one is genuinely insightful:https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/the-psychological-fakery-of-10-cloverfield-lane

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#557

Finally saw IT :clown_face: last night having avoided any spoilers :balloon: Spoilered in case some losers :wink: haven’t seen it yet…

Thought it was good. The kids were all great obviously, although the film struggled slightly to give them all adequate screentime/character development - Stan and Mike missing out somewhat at the expense of the others. The dialogue was probably the highlight of the film - not quite Stand By Me but almost at that level. Overall, this was vastly superior in every way to the previous adaptation including the key one, Pennywise, who was fantastic - genuinely creepy. Whoever was whining in the other thread about Bill Skarsgard being miscast must be feeling quite the…clown right now. Only complaint was that after he kills Georgie early in the film, which was properly horrifying, we don’t see him kill another child which detracts from his menace somewhat (although I don’t know why I’m complaining - since having kids of my own, children in peril in films is my kryptonite). The whole nostalgic tone of the film was spot on, and the attention to detail was great. The score certainly was in your face, but personally that didn’t bother me; plus any excuse to shoehorn some Anthrax into a film is always welcome. The scares came thick and fast, and if anything in the middle section there was almost too many, if such a thing is possible. Was worried for a second during the final showdown that Pennywise was about to go full spider, when he sprouted the crustacean style legs, but actually him disintegrating into the void was the perfect end (for now) for him. 8/10

#558

I saw IT last night as well. Generally really positive about it, enjoyed it a lot and thought it was a good adaptation of half of the book. As a book wanker I also enjoyed the nods towards the scenes to come, like the references to the water tower and the Paul Bunyan statue, and really liked the way it captures the childhood friendships that are such a key part of the book. Only a couple of small gripes - like someone says upthread, the music is way overblown and could have done with a bit more subtlety (I realise that I am asking for subtlety in a movie about a shapechanging killer clown who rips childrens’ arms off), some of the kids are a little underdeveloped (understandable enough when you’re reducing a 1000 page book to a two hour movie) and one more thing that is honestly tiny but really leapt out at me, reminded me that this thing went through dozens of drafts before making the screen and generally knocked me out of the illusion for a bit - in the final confrontation in the sewer, IT taunts Richie by saying “Beep beep Richie!”. In the books, that’s a big thing, it’s like Richie’s catchphrase, but I don’t remember it being mentioned in the film at all before then. It made me think it was a hang on from a previous draft, and felt a bit out of place once the thing it was referencing had (presumably) been written out of the movie. Super nitpicky, but it did jar for me.

2 Likes
#559

One other thing I meant to say, last night was first visit to The Electric in Shoreditch - man, that is a nice cinema. Armchairs, cashmere lap blankets, Camden Helles on my side table…

EC
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#560

Nice. There’s an Electric cinema in Birmingham which is similar, not all sofas though. Last time I went was to see High Rise. It’s claimed to be the oldest working cinema in the U.K.

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#561

Wrote quite a big reply the other day saying why I thought it was rubbish but realised it made me sound a bit joyless so deleted it.

#562

I noticed that as well. To be honest, probably not a bad thing to cut some of Richie’s lines as he was annoying as fuck in the book, but they should’ve kept a couple of those lines in there just to make Pennywise’s line land better.

#563

Watched last night, Turbo Kid…

Set in a retro post-apocalyptic ‘future’ of 1997, this pushes the 80s cheese to the max with BMX’s, comics, viewfinders and the obligatory synth soundtrack. Uses the old 1980s Dr Who trick of filming in a quarry to make everything look sc-fi. Doesn’t take itself seriously at any stage, although still manages to deliver lashings of highly comical gore. All the cast give it their max, but Michael Ironside is the star as the scenery chewing bad guy. DVD cover declares this to be ‘Mad Max on a BMX’, and it would make a good double bill with Dead End Drive In mentioned a few times ^upthread. 7/10

#564

Loved Turbokid. Way better than Dead End Drive In, but maybe because it’s more knowing because it’s more recent. Dedi seemed a half arsed distopian effort mostly based in a carpark.

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#565

Anyone here seen mother! ? Went to see it last night; if I said I enjoyed I’d be worried that y’all might view me as some kind of weirdo, but as a cinematic experience to be appreciated and admired, it’s pretty intense. Definitely best to know as little as possible going in. It’s refreshing to see films like this getting major releases, I’ve seen comparisons to Von Trier’s Antichrist and that’s not too far off the mark: plays like a nightmare committed to celluloid. Definitely worth seeing if you seek out confrontational cinema…

#566

Watched ‘Lights Out’ last night. Had been looking forward to this for some time, as I really enjoyed the short film it was based on. Really, really enjoyed this – probably the most genuinely scared I’ve been during a horror film for some time. Tons of really well done scares and the whole premise is super-creepy. And while it’s not quite up there with the likes of the Babadook, I appreciated the fact that it wasn’t just an exercise in jump scares and could arguably be read as a comment on the devastation severe depression can bring to families. The cast are all likeable and the ending worked for me. Plus, I’d recommend checking out the deleted scenes as one is an epilogue that really deserves to be seen. I can understand why it was cut from the film, as it nearly derails things by steering the film into a scenario reminiscent of the endings of A Nightmare on Elm Street or It Follows, but there’s no doubt that it includes even more scares. All in all, a really effective film, that had me leaning back into the sofa dreading the next jolt. I hear that there’s a sequel coming out at some point and I just hope they manage to keep what made this special and not just launch into a mindless, cash-grab franchise. Highly recommended.