Tag Archives: Ghosts

31 Days of Horror: The Intruders (PG-13; 2015; 92 min)

Posted on October 4, 2015 | 1 comment

The Intruders

Miranda Cosgrove of Nickelodeon’s iCarly fame is all grown up, but is she ready to take on the lead role of a horror movie? Unfortunately, no.

Cosgrove plays Rose, a college-age girl on a break from school following the death of her mother and a subsequent breakdown. Rose and her father – who remodels houses – have just moved into an old house where a girl had gone missing. As odd happenings begin in the house, we are left to wonder if they are real or if Rose is imagining them, a side effect of a genetic predisposition to schizophrenia or possibly related to her dumping her meds down the toilet.

While there is a good bit of tension in some scenes and some odd characters to throw red herrings around, Cosgrove is just not powerful enough to help us really feel the tension and fear of her situation. Plus, it’s hard to believe she’s not twelve during several scenes – a kiss later in the movie is uncomfortable at best. So while the plot itself has potential, it falls somewhat flat at times and feels more like a movie-of-the-week. Still, for the younger viewers Cosgrove will attract to this genre, it just might be enough to introduce them to some safer scares.

  • Top Scare: Basement scene
  • Heartbeats: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 1 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 2 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 14 and up

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31 Days of Horror: Unfriended (R; 2014; 83 min.)

Posted on October 3, 2015 | 1 comment

unfriended2

While what’s truly scary is how much time teenagers spend online nowadays (was that a giveaway that I’m a bit “older”?), this scary movie uses the young generation’s uber-connectedness in its favor. Seen entirely from the viewpoint of teenager Laura, while she is chatting, IMing, researching, viewing, and flirting with friends who are each on their own computer one evening, Unfriended lets us join the group chat as they learn each others’ secrets and lies. But they aren’t giving up these scandalous tidbits willingly. They have another “guest” in their chat room who is pulling all the strings and forcing the teens to play a game designed to show how each teen is connected to the recent death of Laura’s friend, Blaire, while exacting revenge as the night unfolds.

Unfriended starts out a bit slow, and you have to be prepared to read A LOT during the movie to keep up (the movie itself is actually a shot of Laura’s computer screen as she pulls up various videos, websites, etc. and clicks away during the chat). Yet it picks up the pace nicely and lets us see only exactly what the teens are seeing, so it feels realistic and we understand the fear the teens are feeling. All in all, a decent movie, though if you are looking for true scares, you won’t find many here.

  • Top Scare: At the end
  • Heartbeats: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 3 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 3 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 17 and up due to gore and adult content

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Posted in 31 Days of Horror, Facebook, horror, Horror Movie, Movies, Paranormal, scary movies, Teenagers, Unfriended

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31 Days of Horror: Oculus (R; 2013; 104 min)

Posted on October 21, 2014 | Leave a comment

oculus

 

Ever feel like a horror movie has the possibility of being a great scare, yet it falls just short? That’s how I felt about Oculus. Even though it did have some scary-ish moments, and a decent horror movie premise underlying it all, it never managed to pull me out of my living room and into the spirit world like it could have.

Switching back and forth – sometimes quite confusingly (the director’s intention) –  between today and ten years ago, Oculus is the story of two siblings, Tim and Kaylie. Tim has just been released from a mental institute where he was being treated after murdering his parents as a young boy a decade ago. But Kaylie wants to prove via an elaborate set-up of alarms, switches and cameras that the murderer was actually an evil spirit residing in the antique mirror hanging in their father’s office, known as the Lasser Glass, and that the spirit has been murdering its owners for hundreds of years. A la Stephen King’s IT, Kaylie also wants Tim to keep his promise of coming back and helping her to take care of the spirit once and for all. The problem is, Tim doesn’t remember the events quite the same, until he is caught up in Kaylie’s efforts and starts to relive the night in question. But the evil that resides within the mirror has many tricks up its sleeve, all designed to prevent Tim and Kaylie from accomplishing their goal. The question is, who will be victorious?

  •  Top Scare: Evil Spirit in office
  • Heartbeats: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 3 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 15 and up

 

 

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31 Day of Horror: Mama (PG-13; 2013; 100 min)

Posted on October 30, 2013 | Leave a comment

mama

When two girls, Victoria and Lilly, are found after being left alone in a cabin in the woods for five years, their uncle takes on the challenge of trying to raise them. With the help of a psychiatrist, he and his girlfriend begin to make progress, such as getting them to walk upright and stop eating cherries for every meal (or certain creatures, as eventually becomes the case). But it soon becomes clear that they weren’t alone in that cabin after all – Mama was with them. And Mama does not want to give them up quite so easily.

With an almost unrecognizable Jessica Chastain, and an adorable Megan Charpentier as Victoria, Mama has a solid, believable cast. The majority of the movie is suspenseful, quite scary, and a bit gruesome, thanks to some great special effects. I was disappointed in the surreal-type ending, however, and wish the movie had stuck more closely with its horror theme. All in all, a great scare for your 31 Days of Horror.

  • Top Scare: Any with Mama
  • Heartbeats: 4 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 4 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 14 or 15 and up

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31 Days of Horror: House at the End of the Street (PG-13; 2012; 101 min)

Posted on October 29, 2013 | Leave a comment

house at end of street

With Jennifer Lawrence, Max Thieriot, and Elisabeth Shue, I was happy to give this movie a try, and I’m glad I did. Though not the scariest of plots, it did have a few good jump-out-of-my-seat moments, some good suspense, and an interesting story. Plus, it had not just one, but two or three twists thrown in, and I’m a sucker for plot twists!

Teenager Elissa (Lawrence) and her wildish mom Sarah (an amazing-looking Shue) have just rented a house in the woods. They got it for a steal since the house next door was the location of a family slaying – a not-quite-all-there girl (Carrie Anne) had murdered her mother and father one night before disappearing into the woods to never be seen again. When they discover the girl’s brother, Ryan, has moved back into the abandoned house after many years staying with an Aunt, Elissa strikes up a friendship with him. As the friendship deepens, Sarah tries to put a stop to it, but Elissa is too clever for that.

Now, Ryan is a quiet, shy type of college kid, fixing up his family home in hopes to sell it one day. But as time goes on, we learn that there’s something very odd going on in Ryan’s house, something that involves Carrie Anne, who may or may not have disappeared for good on that fateful night. And just when you think you’ve figured it out – TWIST – you have to look at things differently. And as soon as you’re comfortable with that -TWIST – you have to figure it all out again. But it doesn’t stop there…you’ll be thinking this movie through right up to the very end!

  • Top Scare: In Ryan’s house
  • Heartbeats: 3 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 3 1/4 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 14 and up

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31 Days of Horror: The Cabin in the Woods (R; 2012; 95 min)

Posted on October 28, 2013 | Leave a comment

the cabin in the woods

Okay, stop me if you’ve heard this one before: five college friends head for a remote cabin in the woods. When strange things begin happening, and they are soon dying one by one, they realize they are not alone.

What? Stop? Are you sure?

But if I do, you’ll never discover the mind-bending secrets you can only discover if you watch this unique version of the story. Secrets too big and, um, different, to reveal here! Suffice it to say, you won’t want to miss this cult classic brought to you by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard, if only so you know the secret(s) and can yuck it up a bit in the process at not only the storyline, but the acting too. And maybe enjoy a few small scares here and there as well.

  • Top Scare: Undead
  • Heartbeats: 2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 4 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 1 1/2 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 15 and up

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31 Days of Horror: The Conjuring (R; 2013; 112 min)

Posted on October 27, 2013 | Leave a comment

the conjuring

Wow, wow, and wow! I’d heard great things about this movie, so wanted to be sure to include it in my 31 Days of Horror. I’m just glad I didn’t watch it late at night!

The Conjuring is based on real-life husband and wife team, Ed and Lorraine Warren, and their most difficult case as demonologists/paranormal researchers. In 1971 Rhode Island, the Perron family has just moved into an old, creaky-door house they got for a steal (uh, oh…red flag!). Almost immediately, they begin to hear strange sounds (flag), and soon discover the house’s boarded up cellar, stocked full of old furniture, toys, etc. (flag). The youngest of five daughters, April, soon has an invisible playmate (flag). The Mom is noticing strange bruises on her body (flag). And another daughter is seeing people and being tugged at while sleeping (flag).

Now, before you say, “I’ve seen this kind of movie a hundred times,” just wait. Because before you know it, the scares kick up a notch or twelve, with scares aplenty. You’ll be squeezing that pillow pretty tightly in no time flat! Because as soon as the Perrons decide to enlist the Warrens’ help, the spirits and demons living in the house start getting pretty mad about it all, and try to put a stop to their every effort. Adults, children, pets – all in the crosshairs. The question is, will the Perrons and the Warrens all make it through to tell the tale?

With amazing timing, special effects, lighting, and cast, The Conjuring is the perfect combination of “truth and scare,” one you won’t want to miss!

  • Top Scare: Very hard to choose, but I’ll go with bedroom scene
  • Heartbeats: 4 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 2 1/2 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 4 1/2 out of 5
  • Recommended for: 15 or 16 and up

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Posted in 31 Days of Horror, Exorcism, Hell, horror, Horror Movie, Movies, Paranormal, Satan, scary movies, witches

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31 Days of Horror: Paranormal Activity 4 (R; 2012; 88 min)

Posted on October 14, 2013 | Leave a comment

paranormal activity 4

I remember it like it was yesterday: the creative movie that was Paranormal Activity, with all its tension, heart-pounding scares, and terror. Then along came PA 2, perhaps better than the original. With PA 3, I had a few good scares, but laughed at the ending. And now, here’s PA 4, promising that “all of the activity has led to this!” Who can blame me for being hopeful?

Alas, as you can probably guess, PA 4 is but a mere shadow of its name. A long trudge through boring days of a teenage girl, Alex, and her family, who have taken in the new neighbor boy Robby when his mother ends up in the hospital. Alex’s boyfriend Ben teaches her to set up computers throughout the house to capture the odd happenings that start as soon as Robby arrives. Loud noises at night? Yup. Unexplained trails of toys leading to nothing? Sure! Little boys who walk around the house and yard at 3 am? You bet. Thrills and scares to make you scream and jump? Well, no. Of the only three scares I had in the whole movie, two were at the very end and were related to jump shots by the camera (the other, another jump shot closer to the beginning of the movie).

So, yes, I was surely disappointed. I guess the writers had to wrap up the storyline somehow, but this wasn’t even close to being worth the title. Save yourself the rental fee and relive PA 1 and 2 for the best scares of the series.

  • Top Scare: Bedroom shot near end
  • Heartbeats: 1 1/2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 1 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 2 out of 5
  • Recommended for: ages 13 or 14 and up

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31 Days of Horror: The Awakening (R; 2011; 107 min)

Posted on October 13, 2013 | Leave a comment

the awakening

I was so glad to have taken a chance on this instant-watch movie on Netflix…a true ghost story with smart acting and an engaging plot.

Set in post-war 1921 London, The Awakening follows Florence Cathcart, an uppity young writer and ghost researcher who has dedicated her days to exposing hoaxes which prey on those experiencing loss after World War I. Summoned to a boys’ boarding school in the countryside to explain recent sightings of a ghost, Florence is all science and reason. She uses her extensive knowledge and skills to lay traps for the foolish person trying to scare those at the school. The list of suspects is not too long: a hateful caretaker, a cruel teacher with an odd medical condition, the old headmaster, an odd yet kind cook/housekeeper, a handful of mean boys who shun and tease the weaker among them relentlessly, and Robert, the war-damaged man who brought her to the school to begin with.

As her investigation takes her deeper into the workings of the school, we also learn more about what propelled Florence to enter into such an unusual field of study and career path. And as we learn more about the estate’s history, we discover that maybe, just maybe, there might really be a ghost residing within. How else can you explain some of the things which are happening even as Florence continues laying her traps and finding reasonable explanations? Or is it all just her mind playing tricks on her too? Will she find the answer she is seeking for herself and the school?

The Awakening features many twists and turns, with lots of great scares, wonderful mood lighting and sufficiently creepy characters. But more than that, it’s an intelligent ghost story that doesn’t rely on gore to do the hard work. I highly recommend it during your 31 Days of Horror.

  • Top Scare: Little figures
  • Heartbeats: 3 1/2 out of 5
  • Gore Factor: 2 out of 5
  • Suspense Factor: 4 1/4 out of 5
  • Recommended for 17 and up, due to full frontal nudity

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31 Days of Horror: The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georga (R; 2013; 100 min.)

Posted on October 11, 2013 | Leave a comment

haunting of connecticut 2

After loving the scares from The Haunting in Connecticut, I was anxious to see THIC 2! Unfortunately, like most sequels, this installment left much to be desired.

The setting: 1993 rural Georgia, where these events supposedly occurred. The I-refuse-to-believe-that-weird-and-unexplainable-things-are-really-happening-despite-my-meds Mom: an unbelievably skinny (yet curvy), and gorgeous, country-girl named Lisa who is settling into a new house along with her forgettable husband (see, I can’t even remember his name), daughter Heidi (a bright spot in the movie), and also-gorgeous sister, Joyce. Seems the females in this family have a “gift,” you see, and are able to see things others can’t because they were born with a veil on their faces. O-kay.

Now, this new abode is located, it turns out, on the property which used to house a Stationmaster of the Underground Railroad (a taxidermist by trade), and later was owned by a bigoted Mr. Gordy, and which is still haunted by many ghosts and, um, others. As Heidi continues to speak to dead people and goes missing again and again, and Lisa continues to deny her “gift” while curled up half-submerged in a tub, and Joyce continues to be the cool cowboy boot-wearing Aunt, and what’s-his-name is forced to leave his day job as a police officer over and over without getting fired, the tension builds until finally, the family is forced to discover the property’s true past to try to save their daughter once and for all.

To be fair, while the first half of the movie nearly left me comatose, the action and scares did pick up a little after the mid-way point. Never was I truly terrified or jumpy or any of those reactions I look for in a scary movie. It was all just a little too, well, boring. If you want to learn more about the Underground Railroad, well, this movie is not really for you. And if you want a good scare, well, again, not for you. But if you need something long to sleep by, you’ve found your match.

*Top Scare: Creature man in long coat

*Heartbeats: 2 out of 5

*Gore Factor: 2 3/4 out of 5

*Suspense Factor: 2 out of 5

*Recommended for: 16 and up, due to theme and gore

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