I was so unsatisfied at the end of Hereditary
The turn toward the more conventional horror in the last half hour was a bit abrupt. I do think Aster sprinkled plenty of clues about the reveal throughout the movie. It worked for me, but the friends I was with were less enthused about the turn. We all agreed that the family drama and simmering then explosive emotional damage unfolding in the first half of the movie were more effective than the finish.
There were some indelible images in that last half hour of the movie though. Oh boy. Sticky stuff that worms into your brain.
Also, I know it's a horror house and all, but that craft style home they set the movie in had me salivating with real estate envy. So what if there were rotting corpses here and there and people spontaneously bursting into flames! Those gorgeous wooden accents! That amazing staircase! I was surprised to find out later that it wasn't a real house, but the one that built from scratch just for the movie.
So, Dark Phoenix looks like Darth Willow: The Movie, right?
My God, the trailer looks TERRIBLE. I mean, they have good actors on board, and presumably a decent budget, right? Then why do special effect shots look like ass? Not to mention how they give away the entire movie.
There were some indelible images in that last half hour of the movie though. Oh boy. Sticky stuff that worms into your brain.
Oh, absolutely. And just some pure creep moments. But I thought
Mother!
had those, too, and in the end that movie seemed to make more sense to me, which is not something I thought I would ever say. But
Mother!
also really stayed with me, in a very disturbing way, for a while.
I also really liked Netflix's
The Ritual,
which I've heard a lot of people hated, so who knows. But one thing I really liked about it was the character development, which I thought got tossed to the wind at the end of
Hereditary.
I also really liked Netflix's The Ritual, which I've heard a lot of people hated, so who knows.
Wha? But The Ritual was amazing! His nightmares that
progressively had more and more of the forest creeping into the store!
The
CREATURE DESIGN.
Vonnie, have you seen The Endless? That was the scariest movie of 2018 for me. There was something about it that just hit all the right notes to freak me out. I want to watch it again.
We Have Always Lived In The Castle comes out this weekend, and I've got tickets. Give me weird and creepy girls.
Vonnie, have you seen The Endless?
Nope. Have I mentioned that I am a scaredy cat? I only saw Hereditary because there was so much buzz about the film. I *have* heard good things about The Endless though. And someone I follow on Twitter was also raving about a movie called A Dark Song. I have both of them on my Netflix queue but have been too chickenshit to watch them. Maybe this convo will push me toward finally giving them a try...
I also really liked Netflix's The Ritual, which I've heard a lot of people hated, so who knows.
How could any horror fan hate The Ritual?? The
monster is stuck to my brain
still.
Vonnie, I'd describe A Dark Song as bleak and unsettling rather than scary. I don't recall much in the way of gotcha moments.
I hate bleak movies. I'm depressed enough without any encouragement.
That's what the news is for.
Putting The Endless and A Dark Song on my watchlist immediately.
The dreams in The Ritual were the creepiest part, and so well done.
I'm so excited for We Have Always Lived in the Castle! I really hope it's good, because it is one of my all-time favorite books -- Merricat's cool, dreamy narration with the touch of ghoulish smeared over it and the creaking, nook-and-crannied old house in the woods...
Speaking of dreary and depressing, I ended up feeling that way about The Haunting of Hill House (series, not movie). I loved it, it was well-written and the cast was incredible, but the heart of the story was really about grief and love and mental illness, and it overshadowed the scary parts for me.
