Monday, October 31, 2022

SCARE-A-THON 2022: WEEK 4!!!!


Biggie and Nessie salute you!

IT IS ACCOMPLISHED!

Before we get to the final grab-bag of features that passed through our blurry and bloodshot eyes during the final lap, I'll make a short entreaty for folks to head IMMEDIATELY to the Scare-a-Thon fundraiser link and consider adding to our already record-breaking total. All month, we have been raising funds and awareness for the Women's Reproductive Rights Assistance Project, a non-partisan, nonprofit organization assisting women who are financially unable to pay for safe, legal abortions or emergency contraceptives. WRRAP works directly with pre-qualified, reputable reproductive health clinics across the U.S. on behalf of the person in need.

NOTE: If you are reading this after the fundraiser is closed, you can go directly to the WRRAP website and make a donation directly. Now is the time. You can make the difference for someone's sister, mother, daughter, or friend. Even if you are only able to pledge $5, you can still send a message of hope. Please do. Someone right now needs your help.

The H101 with Dr. AC YouTube channel has 31 more reviews and conversations with fellow film fans than it had one short month ago. Thank you for watching, subscribing, and Sharing the Scare. Click on the links below - looking forward to reading your thoughts and comments!

We'll be back with one final post to bind them all. Stay tuned!

Here's that donation link once again:

https://www.plumfund.com/charity-fundraising/october-scare-a-thon-2022

And here are the flicks!

24.
Sputnik (2020)
d. Egor Abramenko (Russia) (113 min)

Filmmaker Gert Verbeeck (At the Pond) returns to the Doc's office for another Scare-a-Thon mission, perhaps their most ambitious yet! This time, they attempt to solve the mysteries of director Egor Abramenko's monster movie, SPUTNIK, which borrows from other sci-fi/horror playbooks whilst scribbling a few unique maneuvers of its own in the margins. With solid acting, special effects, and atmosphere to burn, there is a lot to appreciate and unpack here - whether it sticks the landing is a question to be pondered, and ponder we do....

SPUTNIK (2020) MOVIE REVIEW





25.
Werewolves Within (2021) d. Josh Ruben (USA) (97 min)

Cati Glidewell (The Blonde In Front) gets hairy, scary, and hil-larrry with AC as they geek out on the lycanthropic laugh-fest that is WEREWOLVES WITHIN. Yes, it's based on a videogame, but don't hold that against director Josh Ruben and first-time screenwriter Mishna Wolff (nice) because they have cracked the code for a winning combination of fun and frights, served up by an outstanding ensemble cast led by Sam Richardson and Milana Vayntrub.

WEREWOLVES WITHIN (2021) MOVIE REVIEW





26.
The Forever Purge (2021)
d. Everado Gout (USA) (103 min)

Author (The South Never Plays Itself) Ben Beard delivers a hat trick with his latest appearance in the Doc's office, this time to discuss the latest installment in James DeMonaco's successful and scarily prescient apocalyptic franchise, THE FOREVER PURGE. Having directed the first three films, JD bravely and appropriately passed the reins to directors of color, starting with James McMurray on The First Purge, and now Mexican filmmaker Everado Gout to tell the stories of their own cultural experiences. It's a series with something to say, and Ben and AC have something to say about that!

THE FOREVER PURGE (2021) MOVIE REVIEW





27.
A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
d. John Krasinski (USA) (97 min)

Actor, director, and joyous movie-viewing companion Daniel Millhouse tackles his second sequel for the Scare-a-Thon with A QUIET PLACE PART II aka A QUIETER PLACE aka SHHHHH: EVEN QUIETER THAN BEFORE. I would say all joking aside, but, well, there was no end of joking during our discussion of the perfectly enjoyable and ultimately ridiculous follow-up to its perfectly enjoyable, ultimately ridiculous predecessor, two films that require both hands on the "don't think too hard" lever at all times. Apologies to writer/director John Krasinski, although on some level he should be the one apologizing to us, right?

A QUIET PLACE PART II (2020) MOVIE REVIEW





28.
So Cold the River (2022)
d. Paul Shoulberg (USA) (95 min)

Ian Simmons (Kicking the Seat) takes a break from having AC on HIS show to sit on the other side of the desk/screen as we tackle the Indiana-lensed ghost story (or is it?), SO COLD THE RIVER, featuring Scare-a-Thon All-Star and Tony Award-winner Deanna Dunagan. Based on Michael Koryta's bestselling novel, writer/director Paul Shoulberg follows the story of fallen documentarian Erica Shaw (Bethany Joy Lenz, One Tree Hill) as she attempts to learn the dark secrets of an aging invalid at the behest of his daughter. But, as the saying goes, when you look into the abyss, the abyss looks back at you, and the reflection is not always pretty to see....

SO COLD THE RIVER (2022) MOVIE REVIEW





29.
Son (2021)
d. Ivan Kavanagh (Ireland/USA) (98 min)

Filmmaker (At the Pond) and Belgian Blood Brother Gert Verbeeck logs his fourth (!) Scare-a-Thon appearance to chat about the surprisingly under-the-radar SON, Ivan Kavanagh's suspenseful and gory 2021 feature about cults, cannibals, and creepy goings-on, starring Andi Matichak (Halloween Kills) and Emile Hirsch (Killer Joe, The Autopsy of Jane Doe).

SON (2021) MOVIE REVIEW





30.
Last Night in Soho (2021)
d. Edgar Wright (UK/USA) (116 min)

Author (A Consternation of Monsters) Eric Fritzius joins AC for a triple crown of unexplored terrain, this time tackling Edgar Wright's latest exercise in loving nostalgia and tribute, LAST NIGHT IN SOHO. With stellar turns from Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy, Matt Smith, and the immortal Diana Rigg, it's a fascinating dive into 1960s London seen through the eyes of an aspiring fashion designer who finds herself knee-deep in ghosts and unsolved murders, all set to a toe-tapping musical beat.

LAST NIGHT IN SOHO (2021) MOVIE REVIEW





31.
The Dark and the Wicked (2020) d. Bryan Bertino (USA) (95 min)

Jon Kitley of Kitley's Krypt swings by to close out this year's Scare-a-Thon with a bloodcurdling bang, examining a film that lives up to its title, writer/director Bryan Bertino's THE DARK AND THE WICKED. Aging farmer David Straker (Michael Zagst) is dying. His estranged son Michael (Michael Abbott, Jr.) and daughter Louise (Marin Ireland) arrive to support their mother (Julia Oliver-Touchstone), despite her urging them to the contrary. As the hours and days pass, things go from bad to impossibly worse in a nightmarish onslaught of pain and insanity... in other words, it's a great, no-nonsense horror flick that deserves your respect and attention.

THE DARK AND THE WICKED (2020) MOVIE REVIEW




See you in a few with final tallies, fun facts, and much, much more!


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