Murder Party (2007)

Halloween Month Movie Marathon continues with the film Murder Party!

A lonely pathetic man finds an invitation to a murder party on Halloween and decides to dress up in costume and attend. Unbeknownst to him, though, the party consists of a small group of artsy friends looking to murder their surprise guest in the most creative way in order to win a grant.

This film felt like a movie about art people, made by art people. It was pretty low budget and spent a lot of time trying to build a mood instead of doing anything meaningful. It was entertaining to watch, mostly because I was interested to see how this loser of a protagonist escapes (or IF he even escapes).

This film was advertised as a comedy horror, but there were only a couple chuckle-worthy scenes. It didn't drag on and on, but it also didn't have much happening for 90% of the film. If you like your movies slow-paced, this might be of interest to you.

Scream (1996)

It's Halloween Month Movie Marathon! Kicking it off with a classic horror flick - Scream!

Scream takes place in a small town where a serial killer starts killing people close to Sidney Prescott (played by Neve Campbell). And it just so happens to be the one-year anniversary of her mother's brutal murder. Coincidence? With the aid of her best friend's deputy brother, Sidney has to survive long enough to figure out who the killer is and why he wants to kill her.

This is a classic Wes Craven mystery horror that will keep you guessing until the end. And it is very self-acknowledging, constantly talking about the rules of horror movies. One character is even a fanatic of horror films and is constantly pointing out the obvious next move the film should take, which it typically does. All in all, a very fun slasher film.

Trivia: One of the main characters was left for dead near the end of the movie. Wes Craven decided last-minute to add in a scene of the character being carted away in an ambulance. It proved a good move, as that character would go on to become very important in future sequels.

More trivia: There are some big celebrity cameos in this film, like Drew Barrymore being the first victim at the beginning of the film, Liev Schrieber as the man on death row for Sidney's mother's murder, and Henry Winkler as the principal. Also, Wes Craven did some of the costumed shots and also was the janitor "Fred" who dressed like Freddy Kruger.

Marvel Zombies Franchise

Halloween Month Movie Marathon starts on Monday! But i'm giving you a review a few days early, since it's not a movie (or video game). Hmm... Maybe I should change the title to Halloween Month Media Marathon.

Marvel Zombies is a collection of comic mini-series involving an alternate reality where all the Marvel superheroes become zombies and end up terrorizing the world instead of saving it.

In this universe, a random super-powered man appears and falls from the sky in New York. When Captain America and his team of Avengers arrive to the scene, he ends up bitten by the man and immediately suffers an insatiable hunger for flesh. He turns on his own Avengers, infecting them as well. With superheroes rapidly turning into zombies, the planet quickly falls to their craving for flesh and blood.

Marvel's version of zombies are not the brain-dead type; on the contrary, they maintain their original minds, memories, and superpowers, able to essentially "live" the same as they did before becoming infected. They are considered undead, as they no longer need to breathe or eat. And they don't suffer if/when their bodies rot or are torn apart. However, they suffer an insatiable hunger that overpowers all rational thought, causing them to binge on living flesh before coming back to their senses. They are only free of the hunger for a few moments before the pain and desire start gnawing at them again.

This is a very dark universe in the Marvel continuity. You experience the story from the perspective of the super-powered zombies as they deal with the horror of their new-found cravings. Superheroes become the plague that ends the world, and they won't stop until they've consumed all flesh in the entire multiverse. The end to the original storyline explains how it all started, which is a shocking and sad revelation.

I absolutely love this series of comic books! They're well worth the read. Definitely a unique take on the concept of zombies. If Marvel made a live action movie out of this story, that would be the greatest thing ever!

Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018)

I just finished watching Pacific Rim: Uprising. It was way better than I expected! And I went in with some pretty high expectations too.

When the first Pacific Rim came out, I thought, "Finally! Giant mech/monster movies have progressed to the point where a live-action Neon Genesis Evangelion can finally be made! (That project's been on indefinite hold since 2003, by the way)

With this movie, all I could think of is, "This looks like it borrowed a lot from NGE. I mean, A LOT." No spoilers, but if you've watched NGE, you'll get a very familiar vibe watching this movie.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)

I just saw Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. It was excellent! A fun movie from start to finish. I love how they included a bunch of video game tropes into the world, like NPCs repeating their one line over and over.

No spoilers, but I caught two subtle references to the original Jumanji, marking this a definite sequel, not a remake or reboot. I'd highly recommend it!

Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)

I finally got around to watching Zathura, the unofficial sequel to Jumanji. (Only took me 12 years)

This film was actually pretty great! I don't know why it did so poorly when it came out. Probably because it was following on the heels of Jumanji and was essentially Jumanji in space. Also, despite its original book version, the movie makes no reference whatsoever to Jumanji, which probably made people think it was just a clone rip-off.

I'd highly recommend checking it out! I'm about to go see the new film, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. It looks pretty awesome!

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

I saw Star Wars Episode VIII today. It was excellent! I especially love how they included a lot of humor in this one. Star Wars has always been an action/adventure drama, so it was nice to have some funny lines and witty banter.

Spoiler: C3PO's red arm is never explained. Despite all the attention he brought to it in episode VII.