Welcome to another installment of 31 Days of Halloween! This is our chance to set the mood for the spookiest and scariest month of the year as we focus our attention on horror and Halloween fun. For the month of October we’ll be sharing various pieces of underappreciated scary books, comics, movies, and television to help keep you terrified and entertained all the way up to Halloween.
Dismember the Alamo is a horror movie marathon held at the Alamo Drafthouse. The event is comprised of four horror movies that are revealed to the audience over the course of the night. Last year’s event was a resounding success. Will the 2018 version be a worthy sequel?
Eaten Alive
The late Tobe Hooper was a horror legend. But even he had trouble following up his iconic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Where Chainsaw Massacre has a seedy almost documentary look to it, 1977’s Eaten Alive was shot on a sound stage and looks like it. The film looks more like a Hammer film than a grindhouse flick. Notably there is lots of use of red and fog. These were both techniques that Hooper would perfect and utilize in his sequel to Chainsaw Massacre. Eaten Alive can be meandering at times but when it when it deals with horror, it is a fine. This was the perfect start to the marathon.
Rating: 7
Deep Red
This is the second time I have watched this movie in less than a week. However this was the first time I have ever seen it on the big screen. I recently reviewed the Dario Argento classic, however here are some additional takeaways:
- Goblins music is timeless. It sounds magnificent on the big screen.
- David Hemmings does a great job of playing the clumsy and out of this depth Marcus Daly.
- This is one of our Argento’s best films and I didn’t give it enough credit in my initial review.
Rating: 9
The New Kids
Sean S Cunningham of Friday the 13th fame directs, Lori Loughlin stars, Eric Stoltz makes an appearance, and James Spader seams it to be auditioning for Pretty in Pink in 1985’s The New Kids. It is funny and action packed has a shower scene, jump scares, creepy music, and a twist ending, but make no mistake about it; this is an action film. Very fun and enjoyable but an odd choice for a horror movie marathons. Nonetheless, an easy recommendation.
Rating: 8
May
Dismember the Alamo began with an introduction from director Lucky McKee and ended with his directorial debut. The final film of the night was released into thousand two. After two movies from the 1970s and one from the 1980s, 2002’s May was a great pick to end the festival. The movie is a microcosm of how the much the horror genre has changed. Most noticeably are the realistic characters and situations. The horror movies of previous decades dealt with extreme and fantastic situations. May is also a fun movie to watch. The plot deals with a socially awkward girl trying to find love and the first two acts play like a coming of age story. It is it is charming, delightful, and very witty. Underneath it all is a tension leading to an intentionally telegraphed ending. Once the horror begins the movie loses a little steam, but the last scene is frightening and cute. A great ending for a horror movie marathon.
Rating: 7.5
This year’s Dismember the Alamo was an eclectic and fun mix. There was and Italian classic, a forgotten film directed by a horror icon, a movie that was more action than horror, and a touching and scary indy film. Overall, the event was a resounding success guaranteeing yet another sequel.
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