Halloween at the Movies: Part 3 - In Your Living Room

Fear(s) of the Dark—A Fantastic Fest 3 alumnus—is an animated feature that tells four stories of fear with a tale of killer dogs in between each segment. The first tale, created by renowned illustrator and author Charles Burns, is the most cherished by those that have seen the movie, but the final installment is a genuinely gripping story of a man caught in a snow storm, who walks into an empty, haunted home with no lights. It’s use of black-and-white imagery is beautiful, inventive, and clever. Overall, Fear(s) of the Dark is exquisitely animated in different styles, impressive in its ability to occasionally keep you on the edge of your seat considering that it’s an animated movie. Two of the shorts unfortunately leave you hanging as they don’t necessarily have an ending, but what leads up to their finales is haunting and entertaining.

Asylum, one of the many, many horror anthologies put out by Amicus Productions in the 1970’s, is also one of its finest. Conceptually clever, each segment plays a role in the overall plot of the picture, making each part feel pertinent despite existing as stories unto themselves. A young psychiatrist is looking to fill an empty position at a hospital for the mentally insane. The man in charge of the facility challenges the young doctor, telling him that if he can identify his predecessor (now an inmate) amongst the patients by listening to their stories, then he would be fit to handle the work. He visits each patient’s room and listens to the reason why they've been committed, trying to find the piece of their story that would match that of a former doctor. He hears about a reanimated dismembered corpse, a suit made with a unique material, and the claims of one man that his self-made dolls are living organisms. Amongst the four total stories only one is considerably weak, but that may have more to do with the fact that twists no longer containing much surprise for today’s audiences.

Kwaidan, a horror anthology from Japan was nominated for Best Foreign Language film at the 1965 Academy Awards. Yes, a collection of horror shorts (which combined reach a nearly 3 hour run time) from Japan was at one point considered one of the best films in the world. Once you’ve seen it you’ll know why: incredible cinematography, an eerie atmosphere all throughout each story, and a simple and effective closing shot bookends the film nicely. There is not a weak link in any of these ghost stories, which include a gifted blind musician being visited by an ancient ghost of an imperial court, a stranded woodcutter making a deal with a snow spirit (this segment was actually remade in 1990’s Tales from the Darkside: The Movie), and a poor samurai that opts to end the relationship with his true love to marry for money. Its length may be considered taxing, but the rewards at the end are plentiful if you give it a chance.

Something Wicked This Way Comes, a Disney adaptation of the Ray Bradbury story of the same name, tells the tale of a small town being visited by a traveling circus that may be causing more suffering behind the curtains than pleasantry. Don’t be fooled by the fact that this film was distributed by Walt Disney pictures—it may be a shade intense for some very young viewers. While probably not terrifying to any adult audience members, it does contain a few scenes that are capable of causing a nightmare or two with the younger patrons. No permanent damage, but possibly enough to warrant a night’s sleep with Mommy and Daddy.

Mad Monster Party - Dr. Frankenstein has decided that he’s ready to retire and wants to find a successor, so he decides to throw a party and invite everyone potentially eligible to fill the role, including the likes of Count Dracula, The Wolfman, The Invisible Man, Dr. Jekyll (so, coincidentally Mr. Hyde, too), and others. This stop-motion gem from the 1960s is a wonderful treat for parents to enjoy with their kids. It features the voice talents of the legendary Boris Karloff and Allen Swift, who takes on the voices of pretty much every character in the film. If you’re looking for a movie that combines all of the classic Universal monster characters into one picture that isn’t titled The Monster Squad, look no further than Mad Monster Party.

The Witches, adapted from the book by Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), is a fantasy/comedy/adventure that tells the story of a young boy and his grandmother who have unfortunately scheduled a stay in a hotel resort at the same time as a witch convention. The boy stumbles into a room, sees a little too much, and is turned into a mouse for his accidental eye witness. Starring Anjelica Huston, who is brilliant as the grand high witch, The Witches is one of the films that can really make us feel how old we're getting. It seemed like yesterday that it played non-stop on HBO, when in fact it's is nearing its 20th anniversary. It’s a little quirky, a little spooky, and a ton of fun.

This grouping actually deserves an accompanying definition. These next three films all share a likeness in that they’re all ghost stories and feature lead ensembles of military characters. Hopefully now the title of the group seems more clever, less dumb. On we go.

Sauna—another Fantastic Fest 3 alum—is a Finnish film that chronicles the 16th century joint task force assigned to draw the post-war boundary lines between Russia and Sweden. During their travels they happen upon a small village with very few inhabitants that boasts a sauna in the middle of a swamp, a sauna which is perceived to have the ability to wash away all of one’s sins. On the surface the movie is about a group of soldiers that get caught up in a haunted village, but the underlying themes deal with the effects of battle on human beings and their ability to cope with sins committed. Even if the film didn’t come with any scares (which it does) it would still succeed as an intelligent period piece. Chilling cinematography and highly impressive practical make-up work (no CG) combine with solid performances and a good script to give you one of the better horror titles of the past few years.

Below - If you thought being stuck in a cabin out in the middle of nowhere was terrifying, imagine being submerged under water in a submarine with little things playing tricks on your psyche. This WWII “Haunting underwater” (not sure if that needs quotes, but someone’s sure to have said it already) comes packaged with a creepy atmosphere and a unique take on the submarine sub-genre of war films. It was directed by David “I helped make Vin Diesel famous” Twohy, and co-scripted by Darren “I am incapable of making a non-brilliant film” Aranofsky. Unfairly dismissed on initial release due to a release date and content very close to that of Warner Brother's Ghost Ship, we’re prepared to guaranty you that Below is a much more rewarding experience than that piece of shi….iiinema.

Deathwatch takes you to the European front during WWI where a group of soldiers arrive at a secluded trench in the middle of a thick fog. Its lone breathing occupier tries to warn them of the danger they’re about to jump into. Of the three films in this grouping, Deathwatch is the most gruesome. The supernatural elements aren’t satisfied with just frightening the those in the trench, they like to make a more Hellraiser-esque impression on the current tenants. Like a lot of war films there is some subtext regarding PTSD, but mostly its intent is to frighten the viewer. If you happened to catch Solomon Kane at this past year’s Fantastic Fest, which was directed by Michael J. Bassett, then you may already know that Deathwatch was his first film, and just further adds to the belief that he is a genre talent to keep an eye on.

Unlike the previous group, we think this title actually speaks for itself. Just in case though, these next films are thrillers whose subject matter involves the filming of murder.

Thesis is the first film from the Academy Award winning director of The Sea Inside, and Abre Los Ojos (the original Vanilla Sky). This very low budget Spanish thriller is about a young college student who follows her film professor into a hidden area of the campus and uncovers a collection of tapes of former students being murdered. A copy of this DVD may be a tad difficult to come by, but if you can locate one around town it’s an incredibly tense piece of filmmaking despite a considerably and noticeably low budget. The acting is top-notch and it’s undoubtedly a superior movie to the similarly-themed 8MM.

Mute Witness - A cute, mute make-up artist gets locked in the film studio of the slasher film she’s working on and notices that a few other people stayed back to film something after hours. She first thinks it’s another slasher film being made, but quickly realizes that it’s not fake blood being spilt on the set. She must then make it out of the studio unnoticed so that she can relay what she saw to the proper authorities. Mute Witness contains one of the longest and most chair-gripping chase sequences you’re likely to experience, placed early on in the flick ensuring your rapt attention for the remainder of the film. It mixes in a little bit of tongue-in-cheek humor along the way and boasts a somewhat twisty and fun plot to complement the intense escape sequences. Even if you can’t find a copy of this movie for rent somewhere (which is unlikely) you’re liable to find a copy for sale in Wal-Mart’s $5.00 bin, or Big Lots for a similar price. Don’t be turned off by the price, which implies mediocrity; you’ll get a considerable return on this investment.

Peeping Tom is considered by a number of great filmmakers from the 70s (including Martin Scorsese) as a source of influence. This 1960 shocker from Michael Powell—of THE Powell & Pressburger team—is one of the most complex psychological thrillers ever made. It follows the life of a film set focus puller, who in his off time takes photos of women at the local brothel. He is secretly filming a documentary in which he murders women by stabbing them with a knife that’s attached and extended from his camera. Things begin to get complicated when one of the other tenants in the house he rents starts to show a fascination and romantic connection with him. By today’s standards the film is by no means as shocking as it once was, but it’s still an excellent piece of film history and way ahead of its time in regards to voyeuristic content. Whatever shock quality has diminished over the years, the appreciation for it addressing the fascination and urge human beings have to see something horrendous has grown in spades, especially with the recent popularity in the horror-torture genre. On top of that, Peeping Tom is an interesting character study into the mind of a man with a very unique upbringing and the impact a damaged childhood can have on a person’s psyche.

We suggest that you check I Luv Video and Vulcan Video for all of these titles and more. From everyone at Austinist, we wish you a Happy Halloween!