31 Nights of Halloween: Creepy Evil

Drugs are bad, mmmkay? Especially drugs referred to as "Scary Pills". That goes double during the 31 Nights of Halloween!

Creepy Evil (2017)
Starring: Michelle Perez and Tara Milante
Director: Alexander Henderson
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: The Bridge Partner

You don't see many slow-burn psychological thrillers during the "31 Nights of Halloween, not only because they're hard to pull off in the length of time films are limited to here, but also because they just dont' seem very "Halloweeny". However, tonight's offering is so good--the story, the pacing, the casting... everything is just about perfect here--that it HAD to be part of this year's horror mini-film festival.


And since the month has barely started, and the Halloween Creatures are just now waking from their slumber, I'm sure there will be no objections to something a little different.


The Bridge Partner (2015)
Starring: Beth Grant, Sharon Lawerence, Robert Forster, and Catherine Carlen
Director: Gabriel Olson
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Gamer Over

Let's get this year's 31 Nights of Halloween off to a great start with a little chiller that gives us treats and tricks, and illustrates the horror genres non-stop adaptability. Whatever new technology enters our lives, story-tellers will make it scary.

Gamer Over (2016)
Starring: Bobes Zabojnik and Emmka Rekova
Director: Viktor Rek
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars


My favorite part? Bobes Zabojnik's facial expressions!

31 Nights of Halloween: The Last Halloween!

We're closing out this year's 31 Nights of Halloween with a tale of four trick-or-treaters on a very unusual All Hallows Eve.

The Last Halloween (2014)

Starring: Ron Basch, Emily Alatalo, and Brendan Heard
Director: Marc Roussel
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

There are one or two more posts coming before we're done with this year's Halloween festival... and we hope to be back next year! Who knows... there may even be a review or two that'll show up between now and then.

Until then--we encourage you live every day like it's the Last Halloween!

31 Nights of Halloween: Is That You?

Here's hoping you have more fun this Halloween than poor Whitney...

Is That You? (2016)
Starring: Karlee Broschinsky and Charla Cochran Bocchicchio
Director: James Morris
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: The Long Walk

Another bridge, another incident... on this, one of the final 31 Nights of Halloween!

The Long Walk (2017)
Starring: Carlos Lenz
Director: Carlos Lenz
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Ouiji

Today's film gives you insight into the life of that most mysterious of creatures--the solitary writer in his or her natural habitat. (Yes... we do sit around and write in our underwear!)

Oh yeah... it also features a Ouija board with an evil spirit attached. This film is a little too slow moving for its own good, and the set (which is a room in some crewmember's house I assume) left me with a very annoying and distracting question ("why does a writer have four desktop computers sitting around her house?"), but it's still plenty creepy and well worth your time!

Ouiji (2016)
Starring: Laura Overton
Director: Azron Shai
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: The Rattler

During the 31 Nights of Halloween, it’s not safe for beautiful young ladies to answer their front doors, their cellphones, or even their VoIP, as the woman in tonight's tale learns. (This is another internet-based chiller from writer/director Deric Nunez that starts out strong but sort of falters at the end. I would have liked it far more if it had stayed black after the fade.)

The Rattler (2015)
Starring: Ana Valverde
Director: Deric Nunez
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: On the Road Again

While driving along a back road at night, a young man (Manguray) encounters and is pursued by a twisted apparition.

"On the Road Again" is nearly flawless on a technical level--with great use of music and sound to raise the tension and excellent cinematography My only complaint is that I would have liked a little more context for the events, but it's a minor one.

On the Road Again (2017)
Starring: Andio Manguray
Directors: Loghan Strong & Andio Manguray
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Rasp

Tonight's offering is a refreshing change from horror films, be they short or long: It's about a guy who is smart enough to NOT open the door! He wins the 2017 award for Smartest Horror Movie Character in a Short Film!

That said... you should still open the door when the Trick-or-Treaters come around, exactly one week from today.

Rasp (2017)
Starring: Jamie Daniels
Director: Danny Donahue
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Killer Kart

Just when you thought it was safe to go to the grocery store, it strikes!

Killer Kart (2012)
Starring: Christine Rodriquez, Ray Bouchard, and Ella Shaefer
Director: James Feeney
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars


I LOVED this monster movie spoof... but the central ridiculousness also annoyed me slightly, especially at the end. Like many killer dolls (such as the ones featured in so many Charles Band productions), it seems like there's a fairly easy way to defeat a Killer Kart. (Although maybe knocking over a shopping cart isn't as easy as I think it is. If I didn't fear arrest, I'd conduct an experiment or two.)

That said, you should view "Killer Kart" as a cautionary tale and get the Trick-or-Treat candy now. Things may get weirder and weirder as Halloween draws closer...

31 Nights of Halloween: The Open Doors

Here's an excellent adaptation of a classic gothic twist-ending story. It's a perfect mood-setter for the tricks and treats of Halloween!

The Open Doors (2004)
Starring: Charlotte Ritchie, Michael Sheen, and Cherie Lunghi
Director: James Rogan
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Last Bus Home

All alone, while waiting for a late-night bus, a young woman (Bennett) encounters a yob. Any guesses how things turn out, given that we're entering the home stretch of the 31 Nights of Halloween?

Last Bus Home (2013)
Starring: Alicia Bennett and Todd von Joel
Director: Mark Jackson
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: 3 Verses

After a frightening encounter with the supernatural, a pair of sisters seek the help of a local medium.

"3 Verses" is a Mexican horror short (the first I think I've featured from that nation in the many years of doing 31 Nights of Halloween)--and it's a doozy! Even if you're the sort of person who usually says "Yuck! Subtitles!" this one is worth it. It is guaranteed to get that Halloween spirit started! Its Ten-Star rating is well-deserved.

3 Verses (aka "3 Versos") (2013)
Starring: Edvan Galvan, Laura Mariscal, Dayhana Garcia, Daniela Lopez. and Cirilo Cortez
Director: Antonio Yee
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Not So Fast

The troubles of Lotta Losten  continue in tonight's short fright film...

Not So Fast (2013)
Starring: Lotta Losten and David F. Sandberg
Director: David F. Sandberg
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

31 Days of Halloween: The Last Bus

Tonight's offering is another example of "less is more" when it comes to scary movies. (In fact, I wonder if as far as the musical score goes, even a little less might not have been called for.)

This tale of an ill-fated bus ride is great viewing to get you ready for Halloween!

The Last Bus (2017)
Starring: Megan Statchani
Director: Danny Lowman
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Mirrored

A young man (Rome) gets a new mirror installed in this bathroom... and it's not functioning as it should.

Funny and scary in equal parts, "Mirrored" is just the sort of thing to get you in the mood for Halloween. I don't like the way the last few seconds were handled, but up to the very end, This is an exceptionally strong film.

Mirrored (2015)
Starring: Aaron Jay Rome, David Colan, and Bryan Mordechai Jackson
Director: Ryan Shovey
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: Selfie

Here's a spooky film about the camera capturing what the eye can't see. It also does what it does without a single line of spoken dialogue.

(Phones are featuring rather heavily in this year's film selection. It's the whole "horror films evolve to keep up with technology" trend I've commented on a few times over the years.)

Selfie (2017) 
Starring: Unknown [I don’t read Japanese]
Director: Unknown [I don’t read Japanese]
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

 

31 Nights of Halloween: The 5th Floor

Today we offer a cautionary tale: Don't get on the lift if there's someone in it who appears to a ghost that's escaped from a Japanese horror film.

While I'm being a bit flippant above, "The Fifth Floor" is a technically competent little horror film that hits the ground running and stays strong until the finish. (I still would have taken the stairs if I'd been the main character, however.)

The 5th Floor (2017)

Starring: Georgia Burnette and Charlie Falconer

Director: Peter Falconer

Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

31 Nights of Halloween: The Dress

A young woman (Boulet) finds that the former occupant of her new apartment has left some things behind in tonight's excellent mini-chiller.

The Dress (2017)
Starring: Amandine Boulet
Director: Erwann Kerroc'h
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars