31 Days of Horror: The Privilege (2022; TV-MA; 107 mins.)

This German movie dubbed in English is one of those that starts out with a bit of promise for good scares and an interesting plot, but veers off the rails about halfway through. The best thing I can say about it is that the dark spirit which appears is truly very creepy and does offer a couple of good jump scares.

In The Privilege, teenager Finn attends an elite school with his twin sister Sophie and various friends. He has been seeing a psychologist/doctor and taking medications since he was young and watched his older sister jump from a bridge after being attacked by an evil spirit. Now, he is once again noticing odd things happening, this time involving his parents, twin, and others near his family. As he, his best gal friend, and new girlfriend seek answers, they uncover a dark conspiracy, yet he is gaslighted left and right by his family and won’t stand up for himself or what he knows is true. All is not lost, though, as they do manage to fit in a ménage à trois (it is a teen flick, after all) during all the running around and investigating (add eye roll here). When his parents’ plan progresses toward helping the spirit become all-powerful, Finn et al must put the puzzle pieces together and stop it before it’s too late.

• Top Scare: Evil Spirit
• Heartbeats: 2 1/4 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Recommended For: 15 and up

31 Days of Horror: Day Shift (2022; R; 113 mins.)

I love a funny horror movie interspersed with my scares each October, so I decided to check out this Chris Rock/Dave Franco/Snoop Dog vampire comedy. While it wasn’t a laugh a minute, it was light enough and had some incredible acrobatic feats throughout adding to the cool special effects. Plus, come on…vampires!

Chris Rock is hard-working dad Bud, trying to do right by his ten-year-old daughter and her mom by pretending to be a pool cleaner while really hunting vampires to make a living (certain teeth are worth different amounts of money). Thing is, he needs $10,000 fast, and he can only do that with a Union vampire hunting job, which he had been kicked out of. So he calls on his buddy Big John (Snoop Dog), top vampire dude in the Union, to help him get back in. He gets one more chance, but the deal is, he has to have a Union rep with him (enter uptight Franco as Seth) to make sure he doesn’t break any rules again. 

Meanwhile, a local Realtor named Audrey (who is really a top sunscreen-wearing vampire looking to take over “the day”) is out for revenge when she discovers a vampire she was close with has been decapitated (the only true way to kill them) and her tooth removed. Soon, Audrey, along with her vampire minions, is on Bud’s trail, and she has her sight set on Bud’s family. While Bud and Seth team up to destroy the town’s influx of vampires, they must also fight Audrey and work to keep Bud’s family safe.

• Top Scare: Vampire Attack
• Heartbeats: 1 3/4 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 3 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 out of 5
• Recommended For: 16 or 17 and up, due to violence, gore, and profanity

31 Days of Horror: The Faculty (1998; R; 104 mins.)

Many of us thought our teachers and other staff were aliens in high school, but in this fun late 90s movie with fantastic special effects, they really are. It’s also chock full of stars and soon-to-be stars, including Elijah Wood, Josh Hartnett, Clea DuVall, Salma Hayek, Bebe Neuwirth, Usher, Robert Patrick, Famke Janssen, Jon Stewart, Piper Laurie, and Shawn Hatosy!

When a few students start noticing some teachers acting oddly, they band together to find out why. They are soon outwitted and outnumbered, though, by teachers and staff who have been possessed by aliens and are looking to take over the entire faculty and student body. Of course, parents don’t believe them and police officers are soon possessed too, so the group realizes they are on their own to stop the invasion before it spreads beyond the school. One problem: how can they be sure any of them aren’t also secretly possessed? Oh, and what can they use to kill the creatures they know so little about? As the alien lifeforms advance and become stronger and more creative to possess these final holdouts, the students must be smarter to defeat The (alien) Faculty.

• Top Scare: Locker room
• Heartbeats: 1 3/4 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 1 3/4 out of 5
• Recommended For: 16 and up, due to violence, gore, drugs, profanity

31 Days of Horror: Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin (2021; R; 98 mins.)

Upon discovering another installment in the found-footage style Paranormal Activity franchise–of which I’m a big fan–I wanted to check out the streaming-only movie which I apparently missed around the Covid lockdown. Well, turns out I didn’t miss all that much. Even though there was good tension and some nice jump scares thrown in, the plot itself was subpar and seemed to drag on too long. Here’s hoping the next installment gets back on track.

In Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin, Margot is a young woman who was abandoned as a baby by her mother. She has just been tracked down by a relative, Samuel, who tells her she has kinfolk in the Amish community he has recently left. Desperate to know more, Margot decides to create a documentary, so gathers Chris and Dale to travel with her to meet these people and find out why she was abandoned. After arriving, she begins discovering hints that all is not well with her relatives or their community, and continues digging deeper. Meanwhile, her kinfolk are welcoming her with open arms, and hoping she will stay…forever.

• Top Scare: Pit
• Heartbeats: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 3 1/4 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 3/4 out of 5
• Recommended For: 16 and up, due to violence, gore, profanity

 

31 Days of Horror: No One Will Save You (2023; PG-13; 93 mins.)

If you are looking for an atmospheric, creepy/eerie, sci-fi horror movie, look no further–No One Will Save You has it all and brains to boot! With an incredible performance by Kaitlyn Dever (as Brynn), which is not always easy with so little dialogue and working with special effects, this Hulu-streaming movie sucks you right in and never lets up. And as Stephen King himself said after its release, it’s “brilliant, daring, involving, scary…truly unique.”

Brynn is an anxious young woman living alone in a rural farmhouse, basically exiled from the nearby town after an undisclosed event involving her childhood best friend. Nevertheless, she works as a seamstress, and has a rich inner life and unique throwback style. One night, an invader enters her home, and she soon disovers it is an alien. She is able to fight it and flee, only to discover her neighbors weren’t so lucky and have been possessed by the aliens. As Brynn tries to escape, fight, or outsmart the increasingly scary invaders, her past returns to intertwine with her present in unexpected ways.

• Top Scare: First Invader
• Heartbeats: 3 1/2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 1 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 4 out of 5
• Recommended For: 13 and up

31 Days of Horror: The Open House (2018; TV-MA; 94 mins.)

With the price of streaming going up, up, and yes, UP, I was glad to find another movie to watch on a platform I pay (dearly) for each month. This Netflix film had a nice creepy vibe and a great cast, plus as the main character points out in the movie, Open Houses are weird situations where you give your keys to someone, they let in a bunch of strangers to roam around your home, and then when they lock up and leave, you never really know what–or who–might be left behind.

In The Open House, teenager Logan and his mom Naomi need time away after the fiscally-irresponsible patriarch of the family dies. Naomi’s sister happens to have a five-star remote “cabin” (and by cabin, I mean luxury home) for sale, which she offers for their mourning period, with the caveat that they will need to leave whenever there is an Open House scheduled. Arriving in town, Logan and Naomi meet a cast of characters/future suspects, including a handsome store clerk who flirts with Naomi, a kooky older neighbor who may or may not have Alzheimer’s and whose husband may or may not have died, the Realtor showing the house, and the Realtor’s odd assistant. Soon, things begin happening in the house which make Logan suspicious of everyone, while Naomi is clueless. As events grow darker and more sinister, it becomes obvious Logan and Naomi are not welcome anymore, and this house is NOT for sale.

• Top Scare: Basement
• Heartbeats: 3 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 3 1/4 out of 5
• Recommended for: 15 and up, due to brief nudity, language, some violence

31 Days of Horror: Vikingulven (Viking Wolf) (2022; TV-MA; 97 mins.)

This Norwegian movie streaming on Netflix caught my eye as it’s been a good while since I’ve seen a decent werewolf flick. All in all, I liked the atmospheric setting and lead teenager Thale, but could have done without about half the gore and blood, which was extreme.

In Viking Wolf, Thale has recently moved to town with her family, including her mother Liv who is a police officer. When Thale attends a party one night, she witnesses another teenager being brutally attacked by some “thing” and is scratched as she tries to intervene to help. The teen ends up dying, while Thale begins having unusual visions and is oddly affected by the moon. Hmmm.

When a grizzled hunter shows up in town to suggest the beast attacking townsfolk is a devil werewolf he has been hunting for a long time, and that the only way to kill it and its bloodline is with silver bullets, Liv continues investigating. Will she find the creature? Will she be able to kill it? And most importantly, can–and will–she stop the bloodline from continuing?

• Top Scare: Outdoors
• Heartbeats: 2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 4 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 1/4 out of 5
• Recommended for: 16 and up, due to violence, gore, and brief nudity

31 Days of Horror: The Conference (2023; TV-MA; 100 mins.)

I was looking for something humorous, and saw this Netflix movie from Norway (dubbed in English), so I decided to give it a try. Well, maybe the humor just didn’t quite translate (were they going for dark humor?), because I didn’t laugh once and found it mind-numbingly boring and over-the-top gory as well.

In The Conference, a small group of municipal employees are off to a woodsy conference center for team building, and to prepare for an upcoming groundbreaking ceremony for a project they have been working on which includes a controversial shopping center. Not only are the employees ineffective at their jobs, they are led by an odd duo with suspicious motives. Soon, one employee who has just returned from an unexplained absence–Lina–begins to question the project, various other employees, and how the group should proceed. Meanwhile, a mysterious figure has begun picking off the skeleton staff at the conference center one by one. The killer then swipes the large head from the project’s creepy “mascot” and continues its gruesome rampage in an oh, so bloody, manner.

Will Lina convince other employees to join forces with her to fight the company’s greed and corruption? Will the murderer get to all the employees, or just the weirdest ones? Will Lina save the day by figuring out who the murderer is and why they are doing this? Will any viewer still care after the first twenty minutes? Alas, all good questions, but I forgive you if you don’t care to find the answers and pass on this one for your 31 Days of Horror.

• Top Scare: Jonas
• Heartbeats: 1 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 4 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor 1 1/2 out of 5
• Recommended for: 17 and up, due to gore, violence, nudity

31 Days of Horror: Goosebumps 2023 Series (2023; TV-PG; 10-Parts/60 mins each)

 

Though based on five of R.L. Stine’s classic books from the 1990s, this 10-part series on Hulu and Disney+ has been updated for the modern viewer (don’t worry, there are plenty of Easter eggs thrown in for diehard fans). And with episodes being released each Friday, viewers will be able to finish the new series before sitting down for a Thanksgiving meal.

The series’ first five episodes are origin stories for the main characters, high schoolers who unleash supernatural forces. In the final five episodes, their stories connect, and they “must all work together thanks to and in spite of their friendships, rivalries, and pasts with each other in order to save [their town], learning much about their own parents’ teenage secrets in the process.” 

The first episode, “Say Cheese and Die!” was released on Friday, October 13th, and provided some nice creepy vibes, a good jump scare or two, and some humor thrown in as well. With aged-up characters (the characters in the books were younger), it’s not your classic Goosebumps for middle grade kids; this series is able to go darker and appeal to an older audience, adults included. I’m looking forward to seeing how the storylines play out and where the series takes us, since the creators hope to continue this collaboration down the road.

• Top Scare Episode 1: In Basement
• Heartbeats: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 1/4 out of 5
• Recommended for: 12 or 13 and up, due to blood, cussing, some gore

 

31 Days of Horror: Scream VI (2023; R; 122 mins.)

One of my favorite franchises, Scream always keeps me guessing, “Who is Ghostface?” and “Why is he/her/they killing all these people?” right up until the end. This installment was no different, and even delivered a couple good jump scares as well as solid reminiscing opportunities as it looked back over previous installments in a plot-fun way.

Living now in New York City after having survived Ghostface’s latest Woodsboro killfest, the four survivors (Sam, her sister Tara, Mindy, and Chad) are trying to get on with life, looking out for each other as they do. But it isn’t long before the phone starts ringing with calls from that unique voice, letting them know Ghostface is baaaaack and once again seeking revenge for some unknown transgression. Luckily, others are back too: Gale Weathers as the intrepid journalist and Kirby Reed, now an FBI agent who may or may not be helpful in the long run.

As Ghostface attempts to reach the “Core Four,” others in their lives must die gruesome deaths first (of course), the terror increases, possible suspects and motives as well as new “Franchise Rules” are spelled out, and plenty of opportunities arise for screaming to the screen, “Watch out behind you!” (a new drinking game, perhaps?). In the end, the twists and turns once again surprise, the survivors leave us to wonder how on earth people can survive so much stabbing, and viewers like me are chanting, “Scream VII, Scream VII, Scream VII!”

• Top Scare: Subway
• Heartbeats: 3 1/2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 4 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 3 1/2 out of 5
• Recommended for: 16/17 and up due to violence, gore, language

31 Days of Horror: Cabin Fever (2002; R; 93 mins.)

Thinking I’d enjoy a throwback movie set in the woods, I happened upon this multi-award winning (horror awards) movie from a couple of decades ago by Eli Roth and thought, sounds good! Um, no.

When a group of college grads decide to head out to an isolated cabin for a week, they quickly discover the nearby townspeople are, well, interesting. At the cabin itself, the friends’ personalities start to shine through, with Backwoods Bert taking a gun out to shoot squirrels, yet accidentally hitting a flesh eating virus-infected local who is hiding out in the woods instead. The local survives and shows up at the cabin later that night, but Bert convinces his friends to set the man on fire. Afterwards, the crispy crazy falls into the town’s water reservoir and dies, infecting the drinking water.

Of course, it isn’t long before one of the friends drinks some of the water and shows signs of infection too. Her “friends” turn on her, but soon others are infected and townies take it upon themselves to try to quash this outbreak in a very final way. Throw in crazed animals, a weird cop, dead cell phones, and other horror clichés and you’re sure to understand why it was all I could do to watch this movie to its end.

If you’re looking for a good horror movie set in the woods, you won’t go wrong with Deliverance, The Blair Witch Project, or The Ritual. Save yourself some time and choose one of them instead of Cabin Fever for your 31 Days of Horror.

• Top Scare: Peer Pressure
• Heartbeats: 1 1/2 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 3 1/4 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 1 3/4 out of 5
• Recommended for: 16 and up due to violence, sex, and gore

31 Days of Horror: Tales of Halloween (2015; R; 97 mins.)

 

After reading rave reviews of this horror anthology created by some of horror’s top directors (“the best horror anthology since Trick ‘r Treat” by Fangoria and “among the best Halloween-themed horror movies ever made” by DailyDead, according to IMDb), I had to check it out. And WOW…this is truly a Halloween gorefest full of dark themes, so be forewarned!

Tales of Halloween is a loosely-connected story with ten tales full of monsters, aliens, murderers, and more on a single Halloween night, set in one suburban American town. Starting off with a classic-style tale, the stories soon become more imaginative, creepy, and disturbing. Featuring attacking pumpkins, candy-obsessed kids AND parents, more tricks than treats, and lots of blood and internal organs, these tales are not for the casual horror watcher. So if you’re really into this genre and can roll with the gross stuff and darkness, go ahead and give it a go; otherwise, you’ll want to steer clear of this gorefest.

• Top Scare: Kids’ Tricks
• Heartbeats: 3 3/4 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 5 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 3 1/2 out of 5
• Recommended for: 17 and up, due to violence, gore, sex, and dark themes

31 Days of Horror: Killer Book Club (2023; MA; 89 mins.)

This Netflix original-filmed in Spain and dubbed over in English-had me at “book club.” Throw in a killer clown, multiple characters with dubious motivations, and a twisty plot and I even forgave the beauty, youth, and vitality of the university students at the heart of the story. Heck, I even overlooked all the bad reviews I saw online before watching!

Eight students, all fans of the horror genre, have formed a book club at university focused on this shared interest. When one of them is accosted, the group forms a revenge plan featuring a clown costume per their latest read. However, the plan goes awry and a fatal accident occurs. Making a pact to remain silent, the group soon begins to receive chapters from a new horror book, written and sent from an anonymous stalker who knows about their secret, and who threatens to pick them off one by one. As mistrust builds among group members, people start and continue disappearing thanks to the stalker turned killer, who is wearing the same clown costume the group had worn.

Who is this killer? Why are they doing this? Is it someone who saw what the group did? Is it someone in the group? How can they make the killings stop? These are all good questions, and as the movie twists and turns, with plenty of blood and a few nice jump scares, you’ll learn the answers. If you’re a fan of Scream, you’ll like this movie too. Don’t worry about some bad reviews. I loved this movie and am glad I watched it for my 31 Days of Horror.

• Top Scare: Library
• Heartbeats: 2 3/4 out of 5
• Gore factor: 3 1/4 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 3 out of 5
• Recommended for: 16 or 17 and up due to nudity, sexual situations, violence, and gore

31 Days of Horror: The Sandman (R; 2017; 88 min.)

Haylie Duff (sister of the famous Hilary Duff) stars in this so-so Peter Sullivan-written and directed outing which warns viewers, “Don’t fall asleep.” Maybe not the best tagline for a movie which doesn’t always keep your attention, eh?

Here’s the plot: a young girl named Madison, who was born en caul (inside an intact amniotic sac), and thus has special powers, is now older but having night terrors in which a “Sandman” from her nightmares takes revenge upon anyone who tries to hurt her. After her father is killed in what looks like a swirl of gritty beach dirt, she goes to live with her Aunt Claire (his sister/aka Haylie). Meanwhile, nefarious men in dark suits are investigating a string of deaths they attribute to her father, a social worker doesn’t like Claire’s line of work as an ahem, boudoir photographer, and is trying to take Madison away, Claire’s airhead boyfriend and suspicious neighbor complicate things, and every time Madison goes to sleep, The Sandman gets stronger and more evil.

At first Claire doesn’t believe The Sandman is real. But soon, she sees him in action, and tries to help Madison. As the body count increases and the suit-men move in, Claire knows that help must defeat not only the humans who want Madison, but The Sandman himself.

• Top Scare: In morgue
• Heartbeats 2 1/4 out of 5
• Gore factor: 3 out of 5
• Scare factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
• Recommended for: 16 and up due to gore and violence

31 Days of Horror: Barbarian (R; 2022; 102 min.)

It’s important to me when reviewing movies to not give too much away or provide spoilers that affect your watching experience. Yet, it’s also important to give enough information up-front for you to know whether or not a movie is your type of movie in the first place. This is one of those instances where I hope to walk a fine line but also paint a picture vivid enough to help you make a decision for your 31 Days of Horror.

When a movie starts out with one vibe–and it’s going great and leading down a certain path–I don’t usually want to suddenly be jolted into a new vibe. With Barbarian, the first third of the movie is a slow-build, psychologically-tense guess-fest of personal darkness, featuring great acting and suspense. Within the space of a minute or two, though, it turns into horror-weird, before morphing once again. And I’m still not sure how I feel about it.

But let me back up.

Tess has arrived in Detroit for a job interview. She has rented a house on Airbnb, arriving late at night to discover it is in a bad, derelict neighborhood and was double-booked: a man named Keith is already staying there. However Keith is kind and slowly puts her at ease, offering to let her stay the night while taking into consideration concerns she may have about the weird situation. Reluctanly, Tess agrees. The two get to know one another a bit more, and Tess starts to let her guard down.

When Tess needs to head to the basement to find a spare roll of toilet paper, the basement door closes and locks, and she is stuck down there with no phone and very little light (never a good situation in any horror movie!). And that’s when she discovers there’s more to the house, much more, right before Keith finds her in the basement. That’s also when the movie veers in a second direction, one which will later converge with this first one in a creepy, horrific way. And fair warning: certain scenes you’ll see will make you cringe and just simply can’t be unseen.

• Top Scare: Nighttime Outside
• Heartbeats: 3 out of 5
• Gore Factor: 3 out of 5
• Scare Factor: 2 3/4 out of 5
• Recommended for: 17 and up, due to gore, extended nudity, and violence