Shocktober - 31 Horror Films, 31 Days!

Well doesn't time fly when you are having fun?!?!  Can't believe it is October already in the year 2016! Ever since the days of How B Grade Movies Saved or Ruined My Life I have often challenged myself to find new ways to watch movies I haven't seen.  One such way I have been doing for a few years now is Shocktober.  31 Horror Films in 31 Days leading up to Halloween! Usually I just keep the lists to myself, but in those rare moments where I get inspired I occasionally write about them...and guess what...I seem to be inspired.

So the rules (cause what good is a horror movie without rules!)

1. It must be a film you have not seen (Or A variant such as a Director's Cut)
2. If you miss a day, you must make it up (gotta reach that total 31 ;) )
3. Enjoy

So, obviously it is not October first... so here is the list thus far:

The House at the End of Time (2013)

Not your typical haunted house movie, but certainly reminiscent of films like The Others, The Orphanage or Time Crimes. The film creates a pretty tense atmosphere and manages to keep its secret pretty well hidden for the duration.

The Body (2012)

This Spanish flick has been on my to watch list for a number of years now and is probably more of a thriller than a horror film, but hey, I make the rules so I can sure as heck break em.  It is quite suspenseful in parts and certainly keeps you on your toes as to what exactly is going on, but if you ever feel that you have a fool proof plan to murder someone, this film is proof positive that even the best laid plans can have unexpected road bumps and the past will always come back to haunt you.

Don't Speak (2015)

When watching 31 films you are always bound to have a few lemons...this was the first of my 2016 lemons. Basically taking a bunch of holiday makers to a deserted location where something bad happens and one by one they get picked off.  Every character in this was unlikable and thus made you just wish they would hurry up and die already so you could move on to the next film....

The Windmill Massacre (2016)

And here we have the first 2016 film of my 2016 Shocktober viewings!  I was actually pleasantly surprised by this one.  Whilst it doesn't lend anything new to genre and is a little disjointed in parts it was overall quite entertaining and certainly bleaker than any of the other entries so far this year! (I do enjoy an unhappy ending!)

Well so far, so good....here's hoping the enthusiasm continues over the coming weeks!!

Carrie (2013)

Some actors continue to get typecast in certain roles, either as a result of their particular acting style or their physical appearance, but few actors have been cast in roles that are updating or remaking previous roles asoften as Chloe Grace Moretz appears to be

Young Carrie has a rather unfortunate experience in gym class when she gets her first period. Coming from a seriously devout religious household she has not been informed of the change her body is going through and thus thinks she is injured or worse dying.  Her peers, ever wary of her oddness, rather than helping her, take to bullying her in the most disgusting manner whilst filming it for posterity. (Aren't camera phones great!)

I guess really they have aimed Carrie at a more teenage audience... it kind of has elements of the Final Destination movies melded into it (slow motion death sequences along with blatant CGI and multiple angle repetition of shots), what I thought was a really big let down, was the missed opportunity to fit in a moral message regarding bullying, given that it is quite the issue these days. Instead it kind of hints at the whole "bullying has consequences", but takes it way too far in the end.

An interesting thing happened whilst watching this! I haven't seen the original in 10 years or so and re-watching it last night made me appreciate the remake more. (Hence the review) Don't get me wrong, I still think it was a needless remake, but seeing how dated the original is, I had to appreciate the work that went into bringing the new one into the 21st century and it did do it quite well.