Halloween Movie Recap 2018: Part 1

Every October me and my wife hold a "Scary Movie Marathon". This year is no different. We try to pick a new movie or show each day that gets us ready for the Halloween season. This year the majority of movies we watched were on Netflix. Here is a short list of some of the films we watched and what I thought of them. Please don't be upset if I didn't like something you liked, we all have our own opinions and tastes in horror movie cinema.

The Boy (2016)

The Boy is the story of a Montanan named Greta who is looking to escape her abusive past by taking a nanny job in England. Upon her arrival at the house, she discovers that she will be watching over a doll by the name of Brahms. She needs to dress him, feed him and teach him. It all seems weird, but she takes the job and strange things begin to happen around the house and they all link back to the inanimate doll of Brahms. She finds out that Brahms died years ago and begins to believe the doll is a vessel for the spirit of the boy. Up to this point I was with this film. It was a little slow, but I wanted to see the payoff. Unfortunately the twist the makers of the film tried to surprise us with at the end of the movie did not pay off once the doll is smashed by Greta's former lover. It felt sloppy and lazy to me. This movie really did have a decent premise, and had a few scares in it, but ultimately it did not satisfy. I would skip this one.

Oculus (2013)

Once the credits began to roll in the intro to the film, I should have known what I was in for. One of the production companies for the film was WWE Studios. Yes the same studios that bring us Monday Night Raw is now in the business of making horror movies. To theirs and the other producers credit though, this was not a terrible movie. In short, two siblings find a mirror that they believed was the cause of their parents going crazy and killing each other. They want this mirror so they can prove their parents weren't crazy psychos, but victims of the mirrors powers. The siblings set up cameras, traps, etc to record their findings. In the end though their exposure to the mirror causes them some problems. The acting was pretty good. The cast Karen Gillan (Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle, Guardians of the Galaxy) and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica). The writing was okay and the visual effects were solid. I wouldn't say this was a great movie, but maybe once you get to the end of your Halloween movie viewing, maybe give this one a chance.

The Vault (2017)

Let me start off by saying, I had no idea this movie was a supernatural thriller! Everytime I would scroll by it on Netflix all I would see was an image of Mr. James Franco and his amazing mustache. I knew it was a bank robbery heist film, but didn't know it included hauntings and paranormal twists. Needless to say, I was very pleasantly surprised by this flick! A family of bank robbers decides to knock off  a local bank to pay off their debts, but man did they pick the wrong place. When they find the main vault only has a few thousand dollars in it, a bank employee tells them of another vault in the basement that contains millions. He didn't tell them though that this vault was the scene of a brutal robbery in the 80s! The robbers attempt to get the loot, but they each ultimately end up becoming victims to the paranormal specters that roam the old vault. The twist at the end caught me off guard and there was just enough scares and gore to keep me satisfied as a horror movie viewer. I definitely recommend this one for your holiday viewing! 

 Friday The 13th (1980)

Do I really need to explain why this movie made my list of films to watch during Halloween? I have seen Friday The 13th a million times since I was a kid and it still does the trick for me every Halloween. Plus, as I've mentioned a hundred times on this blog already...I grew up in the town where parts of the movie were filmed, so it gives me a little glimpse of my home. If you have not seen this slasher/horror classic yet, do it!