Last Updated on July 27, 2021
Yesterday, Eric Red and I gave you our
HALLOWEEN MOVIE PICKS
HERE. Today, on this lovely Halloween Day, board up
your windows, lock your doors, hide your daughters in Jeans cause “this
time” its some of them psychotic AITH STAFFERS
spitting out what they feel would be ideal HALLLOWEEN VIEWING with bitches
and tricks in tow (it just felt right to write that, just go with it, nobody
gets hurt). Here we go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
KILLER KLOWNS FROM
OUTSPACE (1988)
AMMON GILBERT -SENIOR NEWS EDITOR
It’s Halloween, and that
means it’s time to make a decision about what to watch Halloween night. Some
go for creepy atmospheric tales, while others look to have the piss scared
out of them…. me, I try to go for something that’s bit more on the ‘fun’
side, while simultaneously horrifying. The logical choice then is KILLER
KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE, the low budget B-movie straight out of 1987.
This movie has it all to
make your Halloween night complete: scary looking alien clowns from outer
space, a totally 80s cast and soundtrack, cotton candy cocoons, popcorn
guns, evil alien/clown spawn, and enough pokes at circus life to make even
the biggest carnie grin. It’s goofy, it’s fun, it’s 100% bizarre, but is it
scary? Not unless you count the initial premise of killer clowns from outer
space being scary… which, when you think about it, kinda is!
Most people over the age of
5 find clowns absolutely terrifying… and these clowns are no exception!
While the clowns here are somewhat goofy (they are clowns, remember),
they’re are ugly as sin, and mean as f*ck. Get in their way and it’s cotton
candy time for you! Be sure to keep your eye on the shower scene, as it
balances on being both hysterically funny and disgustingly terrifying at the
same time. Besides venturing into the bizarre and all-out camp, maybe one
of the more appealing aspects of KLOWNS is being apart of that elite group
of people who have actually seen it.
The joy of
finding others out there who have experienced KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE
is monumental, making this the perfect movie to experience Halloween night.
If you’ve seen it before and are throwing a Halloween bash, I highly
recommend throwing this puppy on in the background, as the images of clowns
cocooning people and the totally rockin’ 80s style is the perfect backdrop
for any Halloween party.
EXORCIST III (1990)
ERIC WALKUSKI – NEWS EDITOR
If you’re thinking, “Blech!
F*ck you for picking some generic sequel!” then you certainly haven’t seen
THE EXORCIST III. Thankfully ignoring the idiocy that is THE EXORCIST 2,
this is the REAL sequel to THE EXORCIST, taking place 15 years after the
events that saw young Regen MacNeill possessed by evil spirit Pazuzu…
A string of awful murders
are plaguing Georgetown, with Detective Kinderman (George C. Scott,
inhabiting the role originated by Lee J. Cobb) increasingly suspicious of
their similarity in style to that of the Gemini Killer, a serial killer
executed years ago. His investigation leads him to a sinister mental
hospital, where he comes face to face with an incarcerated patient claiming
responsibility for the rampage… But what does any of this have to do with
the first film? Well… you’ll just have to find out.
William Peter Blatty
directs his own story in spare, spooky strokes, creating a quietly menacing
atmosphere. He deals in a little-used commodity in horror nowadays:
subtlety. This isn’t the blustery, smash-you-in-the-face-with-a-hammer
intensity of THE EXORCIST, this is muted dread mixed with palpable madness.
(That’s not to say this film doesn’t provide a few genuinely frightening
jolts.)
That said, the greatest
asset the film has are the strong performances from all involved, from Scott
as the hardened cop, to Ed Flanders as the affable Father Dyer, to the great
Brad Dourif, as the thoughtful (and thoroughly evil) Gemini Killer. (The
film’s main weakness is a tacked-on subplot about a priest who conducts an
exorcism at the conclusion – this was the product of reshoots ordered by the
studio, who were unimpressed with the original cut’s deliberate pace and
lack of explosive action.)
Oh, and if old people freak
you out, this movie’s got a few of the flippin’ scariest geezers you’ve ever
seen – and their importance to the tale is probably its creepiest aspect. So
this Halloween, if you’re thinking of going with the old standby, the
original EXORCIST (for my money, still the greatest horror movie I’ve ever
seen), why not extend the evil thrills by following it up with THE EXORCIST
III – you’ll get a double-feature as chilling as any other I can think of.
JUST BEFORE DAWN (1981)
JAMES OSTER-DVD REVIEWER-FREELANCER
This Halloween, it’s time
to go camping again. In Jeff Lieberman’s underappreciated cult classic,
Just Before Dawn, a group of five campers trek to some land one of them has
ownership to. They arrive with a warning from a forest ranger, played by
George Kennedy, who tells them they have no business camping up there. But
even George underestimates what they will find deep in the woods.
In sort of a cross between
Deliverance and The Hills Have Eyes, Dawn takes it’s time to explore some
incredibly beautiful scenery and to get to know the characters. It is
atmospheric and lets the situation build to a very unique and freaky
climax. I love the fact that we as the audience know how much danger is
abound.
The sense of dread and fear
is set up nicely. In fact, the first murder is so disturbing and more than
a little homoerotic, but very painful and damn creepy. The film has very
little blood, but it really didn’t need it. The killer has a very distinct
personality and likes to “play” with his victims. It offers up a sadistic
tone to the murders without the need for hacking off body parts.
Watching the film again, it
is amazing to me how much of it stood out in my memory. Several scenes
seemed to have burned their way into my young mind with my original
viewing. From the opening sequence with a machete, to an uninvited guest
for skinny dipping with the lovely (and naked) Jamie Rose.
And of course,
the final battle with a very strong performance from Deborah Benson. Also
standing out was that damn whistle… trust me, it’s one of those things you
just don’t forget. Along with a very simple and monotonous score that
serves the film very well and disappears when the killings occur, leaving
only the sound of nature as the machete falls. If you like old-school
slasher flicks that rely on atmosphere more than gore, make sure that on
Halloween, you stay up just before dawn.
976-EVIL (1989)
ANDRE MANSEAU-DVD REVIEWER
First of all, this bad boy
stars Stephen Geoffreys from Fright Night and marks Robert “Who?” Englund’s
directorial debut. If that isn’t enough to get you to pick this up, I don’t
know what is. Steven plays Hoax, a young man who’s been tortured by the
jocks and other assorted jerks from his school. His only saving grace is
(you guessed it) a 976 line that tells him his horoscope. Unfortunately,
Hoax gets really, really into it and dials incessantly, until eventually
turning into a demon himself, loosed upon the world to vanquish those who
wronged him.
We all know what it’s like
to have someone we wish we were more like- a way to be cooler. We all know
what it’s like to be picked on and have people give us shit for something we
have no control over. And that’s what this movie’s all about, except it’s a
horror-fest that will rock your ass off. Although it does feel like a
first-time effort at times, Englund is no stranger to his horror trade and
pulls off some sweet shots and knows how to deliver atmosphere in steaming
heaps.
The kills and gore tend to
be a bit tame by today’s standards and I can’t help but feel the studio
messed with this movie before it was released, The first half is better than
the second half and the effects date this movie, but it’s a rockin’ 80s
horror flick that is a little outside the box, and you may not have known
about it! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got apples that need razorblades.
GHOST STORY (1981)
MATT WITHERS-INTERVIEWER-FREELANCER
There’s plenty of hack and
slash, torture porn, nature gone amok fun that’s available for a Halloween
viewing, so let’s take a look at something with a little different flavor –
the film adaptation of Peter Straub’s novel GHOST STORY. It’s not a tale
that does anything we haven’t encountered before (ample nudity and gore,
past wrongs coming back with a vengeance), but it provides a surprisingly
elite cast chewing their way through a film that has the pace and tenor of a
classic, well, ghost story.
About the cast
let me simply give you the four leads – Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas, John
Houseman, and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. How’s that for some old school
Hollywood royalty, eh? Of course, if you look at that list and think, “Who
the hell are they?”, it’s probably best you skip this one.
It’s ancient,
dry and dusty, just like an old ghost story should be. The four leads
real-life agedness lends a strong credibility to their characters fear as
death from both natural and unnatural causes beckons. It’s not everyone’s
cup of tea, but as a change of pace from most Halloween spirits, this GHOST
STORY is one that will go down pretty damn smoothly.
BURIED ALIVE (1979)
DAVE MURRAY-DVD REVIEWER
When any movie claims to be
the goriest ever made, how can you not check it out, especially when having
a Halloween fright fest. When a movie actually steps up and delivers the
goods it promises, now that is a very special thing! Buried Alive, from Joe
D’Amato, the Italian “master” of everything that is completely rotten and
disgusting in horror films, is kind of a forgotten gem, probably because it
is so bloody disgusting, and it deals with necrophilia.
While not as twisted and
perverted in the way that, say, Nekromantic is, this is still one seriously
f**ked up movie! The gore is unapologetically hard and heavy, and the whole
show never lets up. It doesn’t have any of the comedy of Peter Jackson’s
Dead Alive to balance out the massive gross factor, which manages to top
most, if not all of the gore gags produced by H.G. Lewis and other masters
of throwing buckets of guts at the camera. For you fans of European horror,
it’s right up there with City Of The Living Dead and Anthrophagus (another
of D’Amato’s infamous gore shockers that have been banned and universally
hated by fans of more mild fare).
To put it simply, it’s
about a twisted dude who digs up his dead girlfriend and does a little
taxidermy on her corpse. With the help of his equally nutty voodoo maid, he
gleefully starts killing young nubile ladies trying to replace his dead
honey, who he still sleeps next to every night. Reportedly using a real
human corpse for the infamous embalming scene, and featuring many more ways
to slice up people, this is Italian sleaze that is definitely an acquired
taste, but is a must see for any fan of extreme classic Euro horror.
It’s out there under a
bunch of names (Blue Holocaust, Beyond The Darkness, Final Darkness, Buio
Omega), and despite the weak story, the effects are solid and the gore is
unbelievable. So if it’s blood, guts and vomit you’re looking for on
Halloween, you can’t get any better (or is that ‘worse’) than this.
THE CHANGELING (1980)
JAMEY HUGHTON -DVD REVIEWER
George C. Scott is a music
professor who recently suffered the loss of his wife and son in a tragic
highway accident. After moving to Seattle, he takes up residence in a very
large house that, as it turns out, seems to be haunted by the spirit of a
young boy who once lived there.
After following a creaky
staircase up to a secret attic, Scott discovers a music box that plays
itself and an abandoned wheelchair. Finding himself consumed by the mystery
surrounding his new home, Scott invites local “experts” over to conduct a
seance in an attempt to communicate with the spirit. Scary shit ensues.
THE CHANGELING is that rare
old-school horror film that really works your nerves and makes you check the
dark corners of your home after viewing. It’s a creepy, classy haunted house
flick, expertly shot by director Peter Medak and containing some truly
startling and eerie scenes. If you haven’t seen this overlooked gem, seek it
out this Halloween. You might be surprised how it digs its way under your
skin and stays there.
BLACK ROSES (1988)
DONNY BROUSSARD -DVD REVIEWER
Black Roses is a rock n
roll horror masterpiece of cheese that kicks so much ass if you watch it in
the middle of December, Halloween might make its way to your house twice in
one year. Set in a small town called Mill Basin, where the legendary rock
band Black Roses is about to play a concert for the Metal deprived youth
that live there, this flick is exactly what I wanted out of a horror flick
in the late 1980’s.
This movie has everything a
horror fan could want on Halloween; a metal band that are really a group of
rubber looking demons, kids become possessed and kill their parents, chicks
get naked, and lots of 80’s hair metal rocks the soundtrack. Black Roses
made me want to start a metal band, and cemented the fact that nothing goes
better with horror than metal…except naked girls.
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