Recap is a day early for tomorrow begins the 13 Days of Creepmas! And as we're in the holiday season, I'll remind you the movie links go to Amazon where your purchase will drop a few coins in the coffers. There's also an Entertainment Earth affiliate link on the right if you can't find that perfect gift on Amazon.
Streaming
Daybreak (Netflix) - It's Ferris Bueller's Day Of the Dead after a missile strike turns adults into zombie-like creatures and high school cliques go Mad Max to control the city. The show is a lot of fun and might just unexpectedly punch you in the feels if you get attached to the characters.
The Toys That Made Us, Season 3 (Netflix) - These aren't the toys that made me, those were earlier seasons, but I am always down for learning more about toy history, The TMNT episode is by far the best of this go round for me.
The Mandalorian (Disney+) - I have yet to see anything but praise for the show and that's all I've had for it since the start. I'd love to see Favreau and Filoni tackle something for the big screen.
The Big Screen
The Toys That Made Us, Season 3 (Netflix) - These aren't the toys that made me, those were earlier seasons, but I am always down for learning more about toy history, The TMNT episode is by far the best of this go round for me.
The Mandalorian (Disney+) - I have yet to see anything but praise for the show and that's all I've had for it since the start. I'd love to see Favreau and Filoni tackle something for the big screen.
The Big Screen
The Scarehouse (2014, Amazon Prime)
This one was hard to watch for me. Not because of the violence but because of the way the story is told. After 15 minutes I thought about turning it off as it seemed it was just going to be two crazy girls torturing other girls one by one. After 30 minutes I did turn it off but I went back to it the next day. I watch some really bad movies and this isn't that bad just poorly told. I don't know if the writers thought it was clever to unfold the story in flashback but it's more clunky than anything. One of the few times I suggest watching the trailer first as it gives more context for the movie up front.
Rating: 4/10
Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (1988, Amazon Prime)
I'm pretty sure I must have watched this before but if I did I didn't remember any of it. If you're watching a movie with Elvira as the lead, you should know what to expect. From the cheesy horror bits to the sex jokes to the gratuitous cleavage shots, it's Elvira through and through.
Rating: 7/10
Too Macabre: The Making of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (2018)
If you're a fan of the above movie, this is a must see. Plenty of interviews and behind the scenes stories. Also, I didn't even recognize the Wizard Master from Dream Warriors when I watched the movie.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019, Redbox)
I absolutely love the 1968 Halloween setting but that's only a portion of the movie. If you're not familiar with the book series, I don't know that you'd enjoy this as much without the books as a point of reference. They do a great job of bringing a few of the Stories' monsters to the screen even if the way it happens is a little clumsy. It sort of reminded me of the first Goosebumps movie where the beasties are coming to life from a book.
Rating: 7/10
Crawl (2019, Redbox)
My initial reaction to the trailer was "Really? An alligator movie?" Then I started seeing lots of positive reviews so I gave it a shot and I am so glad I did! It plays a lot like an 80s slasher film except with hungry, hungry alligators in place of a serial killer. There's plenty of "No! Don't do that!" and yanking hope out from under you moments.
Rating: 8/10
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019, Redbox)
I've said it before and will continue to do so, no one will ever mistake a F&F movie for being high brow entertainment. This installment goes even further over the top and strays into scifi. I like both the leads so it was a forgone conclusion that I'd see this. A lot of the movie kept making me think of Roger Moore era Bond and as long as you can stand the "we can't stand each other" buddy cop-ness, dick jokes, and suspend disbelief, it's dumb fun. My biggest problem is it's about an hour too long for dumb fun.
Rating: 7/10
Anna and the Apocalypse (2017, Amazon Prime)
High School Musical meets Shaun of the Dead! Not that I've ever seen a second of any HSM but it's high school students and a musical. What more can you ask for than a Christmas time zom-com? How about insanely catchy tunes? I am a sucker for bubblegum pop and bought the soundtrack after I watched it. The third act doesn't quite land right for me but it was still a surprisingly great time.
Rating: 8/10
Month
New: 7 Rewatch: 1
Year to Date
New: 69 Rewatch: 3
