Put Away the Tomatoes

This is another of what I like to call a demi-post. I did one a while back as an opportunity to get on my soapbox and talk about voting. Today I’m using one to revisit what I promised several weeks ago. So stow the pillory, for now at least.

The ghost story is done...after a fashion. The arc is complete, the pieces are there, but I don’t think it’s quite finished yet. I’ll likely continue to tinker with it before I seek to formally publish it, but for those of you who want a spooky read, enjoy.

It is November 2nd, and I’m proud to say I’ve managed to watch my 31 horror movies in 31 days for the second time since I started attempting this. I always try to watch as many new ones as possible, but I end up revisiting a few old favorites every year, and I always conclude the same way: on Halloween night, I watch Theater of Blood.

There were a number of good new ones this year, including some indie films that I’d never heard of before watching them. I think overall this was the best year, ranking-wise. My top five are as follows:

1. The Lighthouse--a tense and claustrophobic film that follows a seasoned lighthouse keeper (Willem Dafoe) and his new assistant (Robert Pattinson) during their time together. It plays a lot with memory, time, and unreliability, and throws in a heavy dose of sailor’s mythology. I can’t go into much more detail without giving away plot points, but it’s definitely worth a watch. In theaters.
2. The Alchemist Cookbook--a surprisingly enjoyable indie horror film about a young man living in the woods with his cat as he tries to work alchemy. Funny, dark, and disturbing all at once, with fantastic effects and a plot that strikes the right balance between real or hallucinatory. This was a real dark horse; I watched the trailer on a whim, thought it looked interesting, and dove in. On Hulu. 
3. Annihilation--this one was on my list for a while, and I’m glad I checked it off as part of this month. A biologist (Natalie Portman) joins a research team to investigate an anomalous zone around a meteor crash. Spectacular cosmic horror without any hint of Lovecraftian entities (which is rare). Trippy sci-fi weirdness that is both gorgeous and grotesque with a stellar cast. On Hulu.
4. The Eyes of My Mother--this is the most upsetting film I’ve seen since Antichrist. From the very start, there’s something off about the film, and that feeling doesn’t go away for what feels like an extremely long 76 minutes. Kika Magalhaes is absolutely chilling as Francisca, the young woman who the film follows as she tries to navigate life after the tragic death of her mother. Have something light and fun on hand for after; you’ll need it. On Netflix.
5. The Blackcoat’s Daughter--I wasn’t sure what to expect from this film about two teenage girls stuck at an elite boarding school over the holidays, but it delivered a heavy dose of spooky, witchy goodness. The film is a slow burn; it builds its world carefully and methodically, taking its time to give you the complete and creepy picture. Stars a pre-Sabrina Kiernan Shipka. On Netflix.

There were a number of great films that didn’t make the cut. Little Monsters is a delightful zombie comedy, Green Room was brutal non-supernatural horror, and Pyewacket was a great disturbing demon tale, just to name a few. 

Hope you had a Happy and Spooky Halloween, my friends! Until next year!

...with the spookiness, that is. I promise to post before then.

-NG

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