One day to go until it is time to dress your children in strange costumes and send them into the streets to beg for candy from strangers. This means one day to go until we reach the end of BlastofsilenceJJ’s Halloween odyssey. Here is another installment of his 31 Chills of Halloween
26. Night of the Demon (1980/83) – Director: James C. Wasson
I just realized I didn’t have enough schlock on the list. This will remedy that problem. A Bigfoot movie made for $70,000 in 1980 and boasts a 35% on Rotten Tomatoes. Demon was hit with the infamous video nasty tag in the UK, it underwent heavy censorship there.
Not much story here. A woman suspects her father was murdered by Bigfoot, she enlists the help of an anthropology professor. A vile beast to be sure, this Bigfoot would rip off Harry’s Henderson and force-feed it to The Creature from Black Lake. Confession: I really like Bigfoot movies. This has woods, campfires, and people being terrified by my favorite cryptid. But that RT score is probably accurate. Rent it on Prime.
27. When Evil Lurks (2023) – Director: Demian Rugna
This didn’t hit with me the way it did for some. I’ll give him credit though. Rugna’s film has good gore effects and a fast pace. When Evil Lurks has some gross-out moments that turned me off. It isn’t the plentiful violence. It’s the festering wounds on bedridden people brought about by demonic possession.
Two brothers living in a remote village find an infected man and get rid of the body. This sets off chilling consequences for the town and their loved ones. I’m on an island here with this one, disgusting ending didn’t help. Watch it for yourselves though. It has plenty of thrills and kills and at least three memorable visceral moments. Including a gnarly one involving a dog that will make you sit back in your chair. Stream it on Hulu this Halloween.
28. Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) – Directors: Nick Park and Steve Box
I’m normally not a fan of stop-motion animation but these are so smooth and well done. Curse of the Were-Rabbit looks quite cinematic. The camera sweeps through this world as the inventive gadgets do their thing. It is a well-directed parody of classic Hammer Horror films with some fun British humor spread through.
Wallace and Gromit come to the rescue of their town being ravaged by rabbits before the annual Giant Vegetable Competition. A fun change up from all the carnage. Do any of you chaps in the comments fancy a slice of Stinking Bishop cheese? Watch it on Netflix.
29. Killers (2014) – Directors: The Mo Brothers
Indonesian directing duo The Mo Brothers bring this Japanese slice of mayhem to us. A serial killer who films his meticulous murders and posts them online inspires a journalist to explore his own dark side.
A competition of sorts develops between the two men that gives way to a game of cat and mouse. The journalist is also obsessed with exposing a crooked politician. They are all about to collide. Killers brings the pain. That ending is memorable and the surprise still holds up. Violent and unflinching. Prime has it.
30. The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015) – Director: Osgood Perkins
This story definitely takes place in the Longlegs universe. The mood and cinematography are exactly the same. I’m happy this exists. It was like finding a weird little treasure. Three different time-lines intercut one another as Rose and Kat are left behind at their Catholic boarding school in upstate NY during a week long winter break. A little later Joan, who is sitting out in the cold at a bus stop gets a ride with an older couple driving to upstate NY themselves.
Loneliness and isolation are the themes here. Just like Longlegs this film is loaded with subliminal messages that linger in the background. Small details for you to piece together while you watch the mystery unfold. A slow-burn possession horror, Oz Perkins gets great performances from his three leads. Spot on directing. Stream it on Prime.
Thank you to everyone who read any of these articles or participated in the Disqus. I had a blast doing them. Thanks most of all to the wonderful soul who edited these. But wait there’s one more…
…To Be Continued
Halloween is upon us.