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Oct 2017 *
EBOSSERT’s OCTOBER CHALLENGE REVIEW THREAD

Well, it’s that time of year again. This will be my ninth attempt at the October Challenge. Here are my results from prior years:

2008 – 34 movies (17 first-time)
2009 – 45 movies (28 first-time)
2010 – 55 movies (38 first-time)
2011 – 35 movies (30 first-time)
2012 – 59 movies (34 first-time)
2013 – 63 movies (46 first-time)
2014 – 63 movies (44 first-time)
2015 – 61 movies (41 first-time)
2016 – 47 movies (29 first-time)

I’ll be tracking my progress in the Official Progress thread, but this thread will provide the opportunity to provide my mini-reviews and hold discussions without cluttering the Official Progress thread with too many reply posts.

Total Viewings – 60

First Time Viewings – 31

1. The Green Inferno (2013, U.S.) – Recommended
2. The Conjuring 2 (2016, U.S.) – Not Recommended
3. Black Hand (2015, Korea) – Recommended
4. Alien: Covenant (2017, U.S./U.K.) – Not Recommended
5. Halloween Nightmare (2015, Japan) – Recommended
6. Halloween Nightmare 2 (2015, Japan) – Not Recommended
7. The Girl With All the Gifts (2016, U.K.) – Recommended
8. Saikyojyureiko (2016, Japan) – Not Recommended
9. Fuuin!! Hoso Kinshi Kensho Douga File Vol.16 (2013, Japan) – Not Recommended
10. Shinrei Toko Shin Shu Noroi No Doga Densetsu (2016, Japan) – Not Recommended
11. Kyo Akurei Jyusan Bon No Norowareta Toko Eizo (2014, Japan) – Not Recommended
12. Annabelle (2014, U.S.) – Not Recommended
13. The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016, U.S.) – Strongly Recommended
14. Illusion of Blood (1965, Japan) – Recommended
15. Inferno (aka Kidan) (2005, Japan) – Recommended
16. The Void (2016, Canada) – Recommended
17. Sinister 2 (2015, U.S.) – Not Recommended
18. 31 (2016, U.S.) – Not Recommended
19. All Night Long 4 (2002, Japan) – Recommended
20. All Night Long 5 (2003, Japan) – Not Recommended
21. Hana-Dama: Phantom (2016, Japan) – Recommended
22. Among the Living (2014, France) – Not Recommended
23. Leatherface (2017, U.S.) – Cautiously Recommended
24. The Eyes of My Mother (2016, U.S.) – Recommended
25. Yami Douga 9 (2014, Japan) – Recommended
26. Pod (2015, U.S.) – Not Recommended
27. The Invitation (2015, U.S.) – Not Recommended
28. Blood Glacier (2013, Austria) – Recommended
29. Pumpkinhead (1988, U.S.) – Recommended
30. Zomvideo (2011, Japan) – Recommended
31. Jigsaw (2017, U.S.) – Cautiously Recommended

Repeat Viewings – 29

1. The Conjuring (2013, U.S.) – Recommended
2. House of Voices (aka Saint Ange) (2004, France) – Strongly Recommended
3. Horror Stories (2012, Korea) – Recommended
4. Dabbe (2006, Turkey) – Recommended
5. As the Gods Will (2014, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
6. Horror Stories 2 (2013, Korea) – Recommended
7. Them (2006, France) – Strongly Recommended
8. Cold Fish (2010, Japan) – Recommended
9. High Tension (2003, France) – Strongly Recommended
10. Baskin (2015, Turkey) – Recommended
11. Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
12. Sinister (2012, U.S.) – Strongly Recommended
13. Strange Circus (2005, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
14. Spider Forest (2004, Korea) – Strongly Recommended
15. Dream Home (2010, Hong Kong) – Strongly Recommended
16. Greatful Dead (2013, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
17. Hana-Dama: The Origins (2014, Japan) – Recommended
18. Horror Stories 3 (2016, Korea) – Strongly Recommended
19. Inside (2007, France) – Strongly Recommended
20. Livide (2011, France) – Recommended
21. The Sleep Curse (2017, Hong Kong) – Recommended
22. Haunted School (1995, Japan) – Recommended
23. Haunted School 2 (1996, Japan) – Recommended
24. Haunted School 3 (1997, Japan) – Recommended
25. Haunted School 4 (1999, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
26. A Tale of Two Sisters (2003, Korea) – Strongly Recommended
27. Reincarnation (2005, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
28. Vampire Hunter D (1985, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
29. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000, Japan) – Strongly Recommended
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ebossert says:
#1
Oct 2017 *
The Conjuring (2013, U.S.) (repeat viewing) – Set in 1971, two paranormal investigators work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their old farmhouse. The story is painfully generic (failing to provide a narrative or motif that drives interest between the scares) and moves as slow as molasses in January, which causes some pacing issues. On the positive side, the camerawork and performances are good. The house provides a creepy environment. The film only has a small handful of jump scares, which is also encouraging. Some of the scare tactics are effectively unnerving, but some are a bit too gimmicky (especially during the final third). The ending is kinda lame. Overall, this is good stuff though. Recommended
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ebossert says:
#2
Oct 2017
The Green Inferno (2013, U.S.) – A group of student activists travels to the Amazon to save the rain forest but are captured by vicious cannibals, and that no good deed goes unpunished. This actually has a decent setup, but it does drag out for a bit too long (an atmospheric traveling montage would have worked better). There is some graphic, brutal violence on display; and for the first time in his career, Eli Roth is able to make it somewhat memorable at times (good practical gore effects too). This film is also very un-PC in its depiction of Amazon natives, so I give it credit for that. There are some really stupid scenes though (the tarantula scene, the poop scene, the masturbation scene, the dream scene, etc.) and this is pretty thin, repetitive stuff overall. Still, it’s a watchable gore-fest and easily Roth’s best film, in my opinion. Recommended
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markus-san says:
#14, Reply to #2
Oct 2017
I'm surprised to see that you recommend this. I personally thought it was terrible and worse than both Hostel movies and Cabin Fever.

an atmospheric traveling montage would have worked better


Probably true but that would be asking a bit too much as I don't think Roth knows how to create "atmosphere".
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ebossert says:
#3
Oct 2017
The Conjuring 2 (2016, U.S.) – Ed and Lorraine Warren travel to North London to help a single mother raising 4 children alone in a house plagued by a supernatural spirit. This movie feels very tired and cliched, with some incredibly lazy scare tactics (e.g., cheap jump scares, people screaming, ghosts screaming, etc.) that repeat over and over again. I’m a sucker for characters walking slowly thru atmospheric environments, but the visuals here are way too bland and monotonous to hold interest. To be fair, there is one interesting visual regarding an obviously CGI ghost that I actually liked. The absurdly long runtime of 134 minutes really hurts, especially since there’s no character development and the backstory is skimpy. Some scenes feel superfluous. The ending is anticlimactic and non-impactful, just like its predecessor. Not Recommended
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NoseOfNicko says:
#4, Reply to #3
Oct 2017 *
To be fair, there is one interesting visual regarding an obviously CGI ghost that I actually liked

If you’re talking about the crooked man, he actually wasn’t CGI. It was Javier Botet, the actor who played Nina in the REC movies and Mama in Mama.
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ebossert says:
#5, Reply to #4
Oct 2017
Thanks for the info! I just read an article with James Wan talking about it being practical effects, but he only referred to the "unnatural walk" aspect. I still assume that the opening transformation is CG, which is probably what fooled me into thinking that the subsequent, weirdly edited images, were also CG. Regardless, it's probably my favorite part of the film.
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ebossert says:
#6
Oct 2017
Black Hand (2015, Korea) – The official plot synopsis is a bit of a spoiler because the main plot does not kick in until after the 30-minute mark. Our protagonist is a woman who is having an affair with a doctor whose wife is aware of the situation, which causes some friction between the ladies. Also, our protagonist has a blind sister who is ready for an eye transplant using the cutting edge technology that was recently developed at the hospital. This movie is a mix of predictable and unpredictable moments, but it’s simply engaging and interesting to watch. I wanted to see what would happen next. In terms of horror, there is some bloody imagery, mostly in the form of organ transplants, dismemberments, plastic surgery, or mutilated corpses. Nothing excessively graphic, but there is some wince-worthy stuff here. Not what I expected. Recommended
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ebossert says:
#7
Oct 2017
Alien: Covenant (2017, U.S./U.K.) – The crew of a colony ship, bound for a remote planet, pursue an unknown signal with a threat beyond their imagination, and must attempt a harrowing escape. First things first. Michael Fassbender is one of most boring actors around. Every time I see him, I feel like falling asleep. The bigger problem here is that “Alien Covenant” is basically just a lazy, low-grade slasher rehash of other “Alien” films, with more incomprehensibly stupid character decision-making to wave a stick at. Monster/gore effects range from good to mediocre, which is surprising given the $97 million budget. Despite a few good death scenes, this is a mostly dull-as-dirt, shoddily made affair. Not Recommended
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markus-san says:
#15, Reply to #7
Oct 2017
Agree with you on this.. and worse of all, we really didn't need a movie explaining how the xenomorphs were created in the first place.
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ebossert says:
#16, Reply to #15
Oct 2017
Yeah. Plus, the ultimate "explanation" that was given for the xenomorphs was underwhelming, to say the least.
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ebossert says:
#8
Oct 2017 *
I still think this is one of the more under-appreciated horror films of the mid-2000s.

House of Voices (aka Saint Ange) (2014, France) (repeat viewing) – Set in 1958, a young cleaning girl is dispatched to tend to a crumbling orphanage, but begins to investigate a tragic event in the facility’s history. This is a high quality film in a number of aspects (acting, production values, direction, etc.). The deliberate pacing supplements the creaky floors and rundown, decrepit rooms to create some effective atmosphere. The sets do have some variety too. Overall style is top notch here. The lead actress is very good and the mystery is intriguing enough to hold one’s attention from start to finish. This director is most well-known for his brutally violent film “Martyrs”, but this is a better film overall, in my opinion. Don’t let the terrible online reviews deter you from watching this one. It’s damn good. (FYI, the film was recorded in both French and English, spoken by the actual actors themselves, but the English version is most widely available.) Strongly Recommended

Trailer: https://youtu.be/tIhEDnq5RRc
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iceflamez says:
#10, Reply to #8
Oct 2017
Martyrs is one of my all time favorite horror watches, a movie that actually achieved to disturb me and with that it goes without saying that i will definitely be checking this movie out.
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ebossert says:
#11, Reply to #10
Oct 2017
Cool. Let me know if you enjoy it. It's more of a traditional haunted location film, so there's no graphic violence. I really liked it though.
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ebossert says:
#9
Oct 2017 *
Halloween Nightmare (2015, Japan) – A girl lands a job in the publishing industry, but she is assigned in the editorial department of an occult magazine and begins to explore a bizarre, unsolved murder case that occurs every year on Halloween night. There’s a pretty cool intro scene involving our villain, who emerges from black smoke. He has a pumpkin head but wears a purple suit and carries an axe, which is pretty cool. He also uses a neat ability to isolate his victims, so they can never be safe. The lead actress is actually good. Sound design is surprisingly effective in spots. There are also a few creepy moments. This is a low budget affair that has quite a few investigation and dialogue scenes that create a pacing problem because subtitles are not currently available. Regardless, I thought this was pretty cool and I could see myself rewatching it in the future. Recommended

Halloween Nightmare 2 (2015, Japan) – The pumpkin-headed villain returns and targets a high school girl and her friends on Halloween. This is a big downgrade from the moderately enjoyable original film. The protagonists are annoying and whiny and the villain shows up for about 1 minute of screentime, which is completely unacceptable. There is one creepy image early on in a bathroom stall, but all of the other horror scenes are weak. This is basically crap and it’s obvious that the filmmakers put no effort into it. Not Recommended
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ebossert says:
#12
Oct 2017 *
Horror Stories (2012, Korea) (repeat viewing) – This anthology surrounds the “wrap-around” story of a girl who is kidnapped by a killer who challenges her to save her own life. He tells her that he cannot sleep unless he is scared or tastes blood, so she must tell him scary stories if she wants to escape. This wrap-around story(entitled “Beginning”) is advanced further in between the other segments. The first story (“Don’t Answer the Door”) is about a young brother and sister who are visited by a suspicious delivery man. This is a really cool home invasion film that morphs into something else. Great performances by the kids and there’s a boatload of suspense. The second story (“Endless Flight”) is about a flight attendant who eludes a serial killer during a plane flight. Not especially unique or clever, but it is moderately enjoyable. The third story (“Secret Recipe”) is about two stepsisters who vie for the same man. The ending makes no sense, but the interaction between these nutcase characters is entertaining. The scares are a mix of blood and suspense, and are fun to watch. The fourth story (“Ambulence in the Death Zone”) is about five people in an ambulance, one of whom is infected with a zombie virus. This starts off predictably but gets exciting as it progresses. Overall, this is a fun collection of short stories that has rather shallow, undeveloped characters and a few too many dream sequences. Recommended

Trailer: https://youtu.be/hcBz2xMDmew
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ebossert says:
#13
Oct 2017
The Girl With All the Gifts (2016, U.K.) – When a fungus turns most of the population into flesh-eating zombies, a scientist seeking a cure studies a young girl who is infected yet mentally normal. The zombies are the running kind and they are sufficiently creepy in how they rapidly chomp their teeth. I like that the lead protagonist is mostly human but still exhibits a few zombie qualities. Visuals of buildings covered with overgrown plants is a nice touch. Content is more simplistic than what I was expecting (given the extremely positive online reviews), and it does have some pacing issues (the 111-minute runtime is a bit too long), but this is good quality stuff. Recommended
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ebossert says:
#17
Oct 2017 *
Dabbe (aka D@bbe) (2006, Turkey) (repeat viewing) – This is a remake of the Japanese ghost film “Pulse” (2001), and involves a small group of friends who are frightened by an escalating series of suicides and ghostly hauntings. Right from the get go, this film by Hasan Karacadag does some things right that the U.S. remake got wrong. First and foremost, it’s glacially paced (as it should be) and there’s an emphasis on establishing an eerie atmosphere that wears the viewer down. Scoring is an effective mix of ambient sounds and otherworldly wailing. There’s also excessive use of yellow on the sets and lighting, which is visually striking. The Turkish architecture that is showcased is also pretty damn cool. The horror scenes have some integrity because they are successfully awkward, bizarre, and creepy (the ghosts are freaky buggers). There are a handful of jump scares peppered in, but not enough to get annoying. This will be a bizarre viewing for fans of the Japanese film because a number of shots are almost exactly the same, but the filmmakers here also mix it up and that makes it interesting to watch. Fans of odd, lower budget ghost films may want to check this out, but some viewers may dislike its awkward, slightly cheesy vibe. Recommended

Trailer: https://youtu.be/cJ4pc7RPg8g
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ebossert says:
#18
Oct 2017
As the Gods Will (2014, Japan) (repeat viewing) – Takashi Miike goes insane . . . again. A group of highschoolers must outwit some sadistic Japanese dieties in a series of deadly games. Right from the opening scene, the viewer is going to realize that this is something quite different. This has one of the more creative and entertaining opening sequences in recent memory. It’s extremely demented and nutty, with a wide variety of supernatural death games that utilize culturally specific objects as the physical bodies of gods. Some of the games are solved in clever ways too. Lots of CGI is used, but it’s still fun due to the fantastical nature of the attacks as well as the boatload of black humor that is present. Very fast paced and enjoyable. Strongly Recommended

After watching and enjoying all 9 of the Senritsu Kaiki File films, as well as 12 of the Yami Douga films in recent years, I figured that blind buying more Japanese documentary style horror films for the October Challenge was a good idea. I was wrong. All 4 of the films I saw this weekend are not worth seeking out, and they’re so obscure that I’m not gonna bother to review them here.
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ebossert says:
#19
Oct 2017
Annabelle (2014, U.S.) – A couple begins to experience terrifying supernatural occurrences involving a vintage doll shortly after their home is invaded by satanic cultists. Most people think that this movie is worse than the Insidious films, but I disagree. In fact, there are certain things that are better, like the minimal number of jump scares. My favorite horror scene involves a closing door, which was cool. The problem, however, is that it spends too much time with its boring characters and boring story. Also, the resolution is lazy and really cliched. Not Recommended
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ebossert says:
#20
Oct 2017
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016, U.S.) – A father and son, both coroners, are pulled into a complex mystery while attempting to identify the body of a young woman, who was apparently harboring dark secrets. Almost the entire film takes place in the autopsy room and nearby hallways/rooms that are in the same building, but this is very impressive stuff! First of all, the methodical dissection and thought process for determining cause of death is very detailed and interesting. Second, there are some legitimately creepy moments. Third, Brian Cox is the co-lead actor, and that helps to anchor the film with a quality performance and a likeable relationship between the leads. Fourth, I’ve never seen an actual autopsy, but the practical effects looked good. Very solid flick. Strongly Recommended
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