The October Horror Movie Challenge slouches along…

My pacing for October is…not looking good, you guys! I am not sure that I’ll complete the OHMC this year, but I can also safely say that this is the best I’ve done in a long time. It hasn’t helped that I’ve been relegating viewings to Sunday afternoons. I don’t feel too bad about it, though – it’s been nice getting back into the writing side of things, so I’ll take that as a win. I got five more movies under the belt recently and I gotta’ say, this batch of first time views (FTVs) left me…not underwhelmed. Maybe just whelmed? Oh well. Onward!

Aterrados (Terrified, 2017, Demián Rugna) – FTV
A neighborhood in Argentina is experiencing a variety of supernatural events – banging in the walls, monsters under the bed, children returning from the grave. What’s the cause and how can it be stopped? Aterrados is certainly creepy, with a good amount of scares, but I felt like there was something lacking in the story. There’s a mention of a possible cause for the phenomena, but it all seems a bit weightless in the end. The bit with a dead boy coming back home after a gruesome and tragic death was chilling and I wished there had been more of that. Still, if you’re a fan of the Conjuring Cinematic Universe (I cannot believe that’s a thing, but here we are), this movie might be your jam.

Heretic (2024, Scott Beck and Bryan Woods) – FTV
Two young Mormon women make a house call to a man who had shown interest in learning more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, but they soon discover his intentions are not as good as they seem. Not too long ago at work, I ran a poll titled “Is Hugh Grant Funny?” The general consensus was that no, he is not funny (for the record, I think he is funny, but he also has floppy hair, so it’s hard to be sure what’s what). Heretic makes a case though for a future poll: “Is Hugh Grant Scary?” I think we can say the answer is yes. It’s a slick move when horror films cast historically mostly-harmless guys as villains. That said, the filmmakers don’t give Grant much to work with here – there’s a bit where he compares the world’s major religions to variations of Monopoly that’s supposed to be Meaningful, but it plays out like listening to your stoned cousin trying to make a really profound point – and ultimately the whole thing sort of collapses under its own weight. I got a bit worried about halfway through the film that this would turn into a Martyrs situation (if you don’t know, DON’T LOOK), and it thankfully did not, but I also felt like the end result pulls its punches, as if the filmmakers were a bit scared to push the envelope even a little. Still and all, it’s a decent little thriller with some fine acting.

The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014, Adam Robitel) – FTV
A woman invites a film crew into her home to document her mother’s battle with Alzheimer’s, but it soon becomes apparent that there’s something more sinister going on. The Taking of Deborah Logan is interesting in that we haven’t really seen an Alzheimer’s-themed horror film before, so it plays on the fears of the unique loss of mental and bodily control that accompanies the disease. Unfortunately, the film rather quickly dissolves into a fairly standard found footage possession horror film (er, spoilers I guess), falling into most of the same traps and beats of the FF subgenre. For the life of me, I will never understand why FF films add non-diegetic sound and stinger cues when it just breaks the spell of what the filmmakers are apparently trying to achieve. Please, I beg you, if you are making a found footage film – resist the urge to punch up your jump scares with stingers. That said, if you’re into FF, there are worse ways to spend your time.

V/H/S/Halloween (2025; Bryan M. Ferguson, Casper Kelly, Micheline Pitt-Norman, R.H. Norman, Alex Ross Perry, Paco Plaza, and Anna Zlokovic) – FTV
The V/H/S series is back with its eighth (!!) installment, and this time the stories are geared towards the greatest holiday of all – Halloween. If you’re not familiar with the V/H/S films, they are basically found footage anthologies, sometimes with framing stories, sometimes thematically linked, sometimes playing out as sequels or even prequels to each other. I tried to watch the first one years ago and tapped out pretty quickly, although I could not remember why, and I’ve never watched another one until V/H/S/Halloween. I can’t say I’m in any real rush to watch any of the others, despite how much I generally love a portmanteau. If V/H/S/Halloween is any indication, it seems like the whole series is a whole lotta hit or miss. For what it’s worth, here are my brief thoughts on the segments, ranked from worst to best:

“Kidprint” – well-made but completely reprehensible. I’m sorry, but showing kids being tortured is an absolute deal-breaker for me.
“Diet Phantasma” (framing story) – neat concept, but got pretty grating and repetitive over the five interludes. Still, there were some good EFX, and the mid-credit conclusion was pretty funny.
“Coochie Coochie Coo” – creepy-fun short that called to mind weirdo 70s stuff like The Baby.
“Fun Size” – a hilarious bit of confection that’ll make me second-guess candy with totally incomprehensible labels. There’s a gag here, emphasis on the gag, that made me bust out laughing but also might have ruined gumballs for me.
“Home Haunt” – excellent Halloween treat with a tricky, poison center. The Rick Baker cameo was a hoot. Fun fun fun.
“Ut Supra Sic Infra” – outstanding story and execution. A near-perfect creepy short that I would rewatch on its own again.

The Cabin in the Woods (2011, Drew Goddard) – repeat
A group of college kids head out for a weekend at a cabin in the woods, but what happens to them is only half the story. A clever twist on the tried-and-true sub-sub-genre of Dumb Teens Meet Slashers in the Woods, this film remains delightfully fresh by subverting everything we thought we knew about these types of films. It’s best if you go into it knowing nothing ahead of time, so I hesitate to say much more. A double feature of this and Tucker & Dale vs. Evil would be just about perfect, though.

A reminder that my old chum (emphasis on the chum, for you Jaws fans) Dr. AC is once again raising funds for this year’s Scare-a-Thon. All donations are going to International Rescue Committee so if you’re feeling generous, drop some coin at the link here.