IMAGINARY (2024 Film Review) - Imagine A Better Film

MEET CHAUNCEY. HE’S NOT IMAGINARY. AND HE’S NOT YOUR FRIEND.

When Jessica moves back into her childhood home with her family, her youngest stepdaughter Alice develops an eerie attachment to a stuffed bear named Chauncey she finds in the basement. Alice starts playing games with Chauncey that begin playful and become increasingly sinister. As Alice’s behaviour becomes more and more concerning, Jessica intervenes, only to realize Chauncey is much more than the stuffed toy bear she believed him to be.

Chauncey monster form was awesome in its design and looked scary. This film however was trying to be a mix match of different films, it felt like. Jump scares are lame. Nothing terrifying here besides Chauncey monster form and big bear form.

Interesting ideas, but it couldn't make it mind up on what it wanted to do. Blumhouse needs more time and effort to their projects, they are a missing way too much by taking on and making so many horrors.

This film mentioned Pixar and Disney's inside out, More than it needed to.

The cast was good, and the story was alright. First half totally different to the second half. Didn't see the twist coming near the end, so that was a surprise. The people with the weird bulging black eyes were freaky, sure. Once they entered Chauncey world it felt like Pennywise and his domain, maybe that's where they were inspired from.

Hey maybe I am being really picky but if they are in an imaginary world then couldn't they just fight back imaging good stuff. Kinda like fighting back against Freddy Kruger. It ends like another Blumhouse film where some fire scares the monster off and everyone's happy and free again and of course we have the typical really fast response from firefighters which is just ridiculous, come on like the house fire literally just started😂 Another twisty end if they feel like doing a sequel.

Overall, a meh film.

3/10

Night Swim - (Film Review) - Yawn Drown

Forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, former baseball player Ray Waller moves into a new house with his wife and two children. He hopes that the backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for himself. However, a dark secret from the home’s past soon unleashes a malevolent force that drags the family into the depths of inescapable terror.

Wyatt Russell was great and so was his character. This film is based on a short YouTube film and yet the short film is much better. The imagery and "creature" was scary sure but other than that this was bad. Horrors released in January almost always tend to bomb.

Overall

1/10

Five Nights At Freddy's - Movie REVIEW

Happy Halloween!

Five Nights At Freddy's is based on the cult hit indie horror game of the same name by Scott Crawthon. It stars Josh Hutcherson and Matthew Lillard among others and was directed by Emma Tammi and David Fisher and produced by Scott Crawthon and Jason Blum. It's the latest horror film from Blumhouse. This is about a security guard named Mike who lost his job and his life is crumbling, and he gets offered a night security job in an old abandoned restaurant akin to Chuck E Cheese in order to keep money flowing and keep custody of his Sister, Mike takes the job. In Freddy's Fazzbear Pizzarea nothing is what it seems as Mike quickly realises as things go bump in the night and come alive ready to scare and kill as animatronics come alive. Will Mike survive his five nights? Or will these pesky killer animatronics claim another life? Find out by watching it in cinemas or home streaming platforms....

Right so off the bat, I know a fair bit of FNAF lore and universe so as a fan, I enjoyed this film, I thought it was good. Yes it could have been better. Less flashback woodland stuff. More Afton. More action. Less predictable scares with more tension and more blood and gore.

This is just the start, and it's delved in deep with a lot of the game's elements. It's not scary. It's got minimal blood. Furthermore, it should have been a 12A rated film if I am honest rather than a 15 because I've seen worse 15 rated films than this.

The animatronics were outstanding, they looked just pure amazing! Lot of fan service with this film too. The film has its quirky nature of the series and the seriousness too.

The score and licenced tracks were great even the fan addition at the end. The opening game like titles were so cool too! Crazy to think this film has been in the works for 10 years and a film similar to it came out before this. Shout-out to Willie's Wonderland which was just a batshit cheap copy of this haha.

Lots of laughs and meme references shouted out during my screening. One woman in front of me got up and said "well that was disappointing I wanted to see a Markiplier appearance and sex scene"😂 some funny shit! I didn't see any fights in cinema nor anyone stealing posters or cardboard cutouts, unfortunately. Had a good time, no alcohol required haha.

7/10

Braindead (1992) FILM REVIEW

Peter Jackson, Zombies, Gore, Ridiculousness and comedy, this is what today's Horror Movie Review contains in 1992's Braindead. Oh, and yes it is THE Peter Jackson of LOTR fame.

Overprotective mother Vera Cosgrove (Elizabeth Moody), spying on her grown son, Lionel (Timothy Balme), as he visits the zoo with the lovely Paquita (Diana Peñalver), is accidentally bitten by the fearsome Sumatran rat-monkey. When the bite turns his beloved mother into a zombie, Lionel tries to keep her locked safely in the basement, but her repeated escapes turn most of the neighbors into the walking dead, who then crash a high-society party thrown by Lionel's boorish Uncle Les (Ian Watkin).

Ridiculously gory and funny. I did feel it dragged in parts. Crazy and creative practical zombie designs. A super sized lawnmowers. The final act has everything covered in thick blood and it reminds me of someone throwing a full blown McDonald's strawberry milkshake all over the place haha. The zombie baby was annoying but funny. The thicc zombie at the end was just the most ridiculous thing and trust me this film gets more and more over the top as you go through it, it's almost as if Peter Jackson kept pushing the roof of ridiculousness haha. 

The fact it tries to bring you a serious deep story revelation at the end was out of place for me and the fact the thicc zombie could talk and think like a human compared to the mindless zombies was something else too. See what I mean by it keeps getting ridiculous. It's not a film to take seriously by any means and my god is it entertaining haha. I've just been laughing and saying "what the fuck" for a large majority of this classic cult horror film haha.

God damn early years of Peter Jackson was fucking nuts! Defo has to have been somewhat influenced by Evil Dead. Easily the most ridiculous horror film I've ever seen. I can't believe this film just ends though haha I wanted to see or gain clarity that it was the end of the outbreak haha.

8/10

The Boogeyman - FILM REVIEW

Today's Horror film review comes from The Boogeyman. I missed out on this in the cinema and I watched this on DISNEY+ and I enjoyed it, it's very good.

High school student Sadie Harper and her younger sister, Sawyer, are still reeling from the recent death of their mother. They're not getting much support from their father, Will, a therapist who's dealing with his own intense pain. When a desperate patient unexpectedly shows up at their house seeking help, he leaves behind a terrifying supernatural entity that preys on families and feeds on the suffering of its victims.

Bro the shots of the monster in the dark legit unsettled me. I jumped and said "BRUH" a lot I won't lie haha. That motherfucker Boogeyman scared me I can't lie. Jesus Christ like, maybe watching this before sleep wasn't a good idea, this film has me watching it between my fingers at points haha. The so called "friends" Sadie has I would have happily hit and run over repeatedly and would have happily ate a bag of popcorn watching them get killed one by one instead of this nice innocent family.

7/10

MOM & DAD - FILM REVIEW!

The intense insanity of parents killing kids is easily broken up with sparks of Nick Cage being Nick Cage. Also features the slap meme as seen in viral videos.

A teenage girl and her younger brother must survive a wild 24 hours during which a mass hysteria of unknown origin causes parents to turn violently on their own kids.

Not entirely sure why the parents go on killing their kids and their kids only. Only thing mentioned was about animal instincts in other animals and some TV static and high pitch noise that turns the parents to crazy murderous people. Gnarly twist at the end. Also features Nick Cage barking chasing a kid so for the amount of Caging going on you'd easily assume this is a masterpiece 5-star film. You would unfortunately only be half right there. This film's alright like, and it's a good mind-numbingly entertaining film where Nick Cage has a midlife crisis and parents kill their kids. Quite funny and quite gnarly but a bit of a letdown in how it ends.

6/10

Saw X - Gruesome Feature (REVIEW)

I want to play a game.....the rules are simple, sit there and read my review on Saw X and live, scroll past or don't read it and well let's say you won't have a pleasant day ahead.

Saw X is essentially Saw 1.5 in the timeline of the beloved torture porn franchise. 

Tobin Bell returns as John Kramer as we go back in time and see the untold story of events of him undergoing this new experimental procedure to clear cancer. Unfortunately, Mr. Kramer gets conned and so the games begin! We will see some familiar faces and new unique and brutal traps as well as get more character development and new characters to follow.

It took 20 years to get a film where the protagonist is John Kramer and guess what? Second-best Saw film in the franchise! I really enjoyed this and the traps were so brutal, I was so tensed and just squirming watching as these people died in horrific yet creative ways. Bravo! Tobin Bell with the best performance in his career, perhaps. So what's next? This was a return to form for the series but where do we go from here is the biggest question in the series.

8/10

No One Will Save You - Film Review!

Home invasion, plus Alien invasion, plus being alienated by a whole town = this film.

No One Will Save You is alien invasion horror film directed by Brian Duffield and it's lead star Katlin Denver.

Jesus Christ this was terrifying. I was legit scared watching this. My gut was all in a knot from how tense this film is. It's awesome! I loved seeing a scary alien film, the last alien film that scared me was The Fourth Kind.

I thought everything in this film was excellent from directing, music, acting, story. I was gripped and on edge for the entire film. The ending was super weird I didn't get it.

I wish this was released in cinemas and for it to have made big bucks and hopefully been seen by more people. There was 8 lines spoken and yet I still had subtitles on😂

8/10

So what did you think of this film or are you yet to see it? 

Let me know, comment below. Stay shiny and I'll see you again soon!

Top 10 Halloween Films (Michael Myers series)

Alright I have been patient and held off making a top 10 Halloween franchise list until I have seen Halloween Ends. Well that time is up and my review of Halloween Ends is out. Also, my whole take on the entire Halloween series is also out on my blog. Be sure to check those out for more in depth looks and thoughts on those films and the series as a whole from my point of view. 

I am a massive fan of this series and I love the Michael Myers character. In terms of how I will be ranking these, well I will be sorting them in order of one's I love best and which I felt had the best story, soundtrack etc. So no more delay, let's get to the killing.....I MEAN.....ranking....

10: H5

OK look this one sucks BUT I got to have a top 10 list as I could not just simply leave this list on a Top 8 Halloween films. To me H5, H6, Resurrection, Rob Zombie H2 and Ends are bad films of the series. There are bad films in the series, but I still have something I like about each one and for me in Halloween 5, what I like most is Loomis and Michael's interactions. I also like the scene where Jamie goes down the clothes shoot, and it's a bit tense for how she can escape that one.

9: H6

Again another bad one of the bunch BUT I will applaud them for trying to make sense why Michael can't die, and it's all some ritual and cult stuff even if I find the whole cult explanation in films to be cheap and overdone, it's something that prior to H20 and above that kinda fit. The off-screen kill of Loomis was not good and in the producer's cut they made Loomis the new leader of the cult of Thorn.

8: RZ's Halloween 1

And breathe this is where THE REAL LIST begins! Rob Zombie's first take with Halloween was great, it was different, it offered us a fresh new telling of the story we all knew but added more elements and backgrounds to Michaels character for sure, and it took his character to the realm of gritty almost factual take on what made him the monster he is and how his abusive home life background helped push him to be the killer we know today but not just that but all the bullies he had in his life and of course the kid was demented seeing as he was killing animals but hey, this was a good take. Rob Zombie did good, and the kills were brutal, and they actually made you feel the impact of them.

7: Halloween 4

Alright look, this and Halloween 2 (1981) both have better ends to Michael and a passing of the torch than Halloween Ends. It's a massive shame they killed Laurie off-screen for this film, and we got brought her daughter to carry on the whole family ties story with Michael. Loomis is one of my fave characters in the Halloween franchise, and he delivers a great performance here especially with its twist ending.

6: H20

Happy 20th Birthday to you, Michael Myers comes soon, Laurie you're in trouble, Happy 20th To you! Yes H20 is set 20 years after Halloween, and it's a direct sequel to Halloween 2 and all that came after H2 was retconned. Great to see Jamie Lee Curtis back as Laurie and she and Michael had a good reunion. There's little Easter eggs in this film showing other horror slashers too, and I think it's in part thanks to the scream writer who wrote this. The mask in this was terrible. Apparently they went for a CGI mask because they couldn't make up their minds on one? What?! Michael being decapitated should have ended the series at the time.

5: Halloween 3

So this one is an Anthology film and does not contain anything from the Halloween films before it. Michael is not in it besides a 2 seconds cameo as in this one Halloween 1 is just a scary film advertised on TV. This is underrated. Yes it was majorly different and shocking in its time because they departed from Michael of course BUT leave that aside and think of it as its own thing, and you will have a good time.

4: Halloween Kills

Alright so now we are back to a more recent time of Halloween series with the second part of Blumhouse's trilogy of the series. I love this one, it's brutal, and the soundtrack is awesome, it feels so evil and big just like the Shape himself, and it's a great continuation from Halloween 2018 and of course it is fantastic seeing so many of the OG'S here.

3: Halloween 2 (1981)

OK so this one's ending for the series was better again than H4 and Halloween Ends. This one takes place exactly as Halloween 1978 ends and this one sets up the whole family ties story with Laurie being so special to Michael since Laurie is his sister. This is the best sequel in the original timeline.

2: Halloween 2018

Back to top form here with so many originals returning to reprise their roles, and it all works brilliantly. Mask, soundtrack, story, characters, fear, kills well it's perfect, I've talked about this one and the others on this list in more depth and detail over on my other blog post which had me write up about the entire series, so please check it out.

1: Halloween 1978

Of course this is what started it all and deserves to be crowned the best one. Not only did it start this extraordinary franchise, but it also gave birth to the whole slasher genre and outbreak from the 80s onwards. This started so many tropes to the horror genre and will always be the king of them all to me. I cannot big this film up more. Iconic, classic, masterpiece.

Alright that's my list, this will probably be the last post I make on Michael Myers and the whole Halloween franchise until the day comes where Evil comes back home to our screens again with fresh paint of course.

Thanks for reading, see you again soon.

Stay Spooky!

Halloween Ends Review - Deflated Finale

I was so excited and hyped for this film for over a year!

Jesus Christ this left me so deflated, disappointed, dissatisfied and depressed. 

It's taken me a few hours to come to terms with what I have just seen and here are my entire thoughts on this film and this will contain spoilers.

Basically this is set 4 years after the last film and everyone seems to be moving on, but the town is still feeling the effects of Myers and his evil with people coming out of the woodwork committing horrible crimes. Laurie is trying to move on as is everyone, but it's only for Michael to show up one more time. First let me say the new Blumhouse logo at the start mmm chef's kiss. Also, the title screen was lovely too and interesting with pumpkins breaking through other pumpkins. I've really enjoyed this current H40 timeline Blumhouse has given us well until this one emerged....

I was curious and excited for how this franchise was to meet its end and uhmmm well.....hmmm.....wow that's uh.....that's a bad taste in my mouth. So is this a joke and like the real Halloween Films will release soon? Because uhm......urgh. What?!

If I was in the writers room, I'd like to have seen their reasons for all of this film to be honest. I'll applaud the boldness of them for the new ideas brought into this film BUT they were executed poorly. For me this didn't feel like a Halloween film. Jamie Lee Curtis as her final outing as Laurie Strode was great! The soundtrack in this one was not the best of the trilogy in my opinion. On my first viewing of the film, I couldn't hear much of OST of the Carpenters sound, yes there's moment you hear the themes, but this film is mostly dominated by other third part tracks and very little of the OST I felt. Laurie's theme ends is the best on the soundtrack. Transformation, The Junkyard, The Fight, The Procession, Cherry Blossoms themes are also good. The end song choice with Don't Fear The Reaper was a decent shout. Halloween 78,18 and Kills have such great scores and this one was lacklustre and hardly present but of course I write this after only one viewing of the film, so it can be hard to take in all aspects of a film from one single viewing. Sure in the title sequence the OG, classic, iconic theme was there with added synth and bass as far as my ears could pick up. 

I'll give props to the guy who plays Corey too, fair play to that dude. 

The final showdown is the best part of this film. 

Honestly this film disrespected Michael also for me and considering the past two films and James Jude Courtney's take on The Shape because JJC delivered us a scary older version of The Haddonfield Boogeyman, this film's take with Michael is absolutely shockingly disappointing, he doesn't feel threatening or scary at all, and it's a disservice to the character's legacy. Remember we have had Michael disrespected in past films too, and they were bad and sadly this film for me is going to be in with the bad pile. With how the story goes the kills for me didn't convince me or give me much of a reaction because *SPOILER ALERT* it was not Michael doing those sick kills, but it was a basic copycat killer and for me that's not the same and doesn't have the same weight and doesn't do the same thing for me as it would have if it was actual Michael doing the killing.

There's some lovely Easter eggs in here and references to John Carpenter and also seeing the OG Shape at the Halloween party gave me a big smile because Nick Castle is a legend man! Halloween End's title screen's font and colour scheme is also the same as Halloween 3.

*SPOILER ALERT*

The Hawkins and Strode relationship angle was nice. It was also interesting having other people commit crimes or killings when Michael wasn't around and people still blaming him or his evil which seems to have affected the town like a dark cloud that still lingers over it. The people blaming Laurie was also good I will say because even though we had Laurie be more free and not hung up on survival and hunting down Michael and being the Victor of her survivor's guilt in a way, it was cool to see not everyone has moved and some blame her for atrocities as they are convinced she brought him back to their town, and so she should be blamed for the deaths and injuries from Michael. Social commentary again is "Evil is infectious and people will always want to blame someone else and hate others". I'll be honest here the Evil of Michael's eyes influencing others to go crazy or evil or delve more into their evil sides is great I mean we have seen this happen with Loomis and Dr Seratin and even Jamie Lloyd. Michael is evil pure evil, and he has the blackest eyes, the devil's eyes and of course stating the idea of Michael being that pure evil that, the more he kills, the stronger he gets. You know, yes cool that's true I agree, there's always been so much mystery and supernatural elements with Michael and that's just so fascinating to me so to see him act like a shrivelled old man in Halloween Ends sucked! You know the dude is a fucking monster! He's in his 60s in 2018 and Kills films, and he's shrugging off everything anyone throws at him and that should have stuck, and he should not have gone into hiding for me this is all out of character and does a disservice to Michael Myers "The Shape" character. Yes, the brute strength and appearing he does is here in this film, but we mostly get the copycat Michael getting all the kills in even if the copycat goes against what Michael does as the copycat just goes for revenge kills rather than Michael's "if you're in my way or in my interest I will kill you!". We really should have had these OG characters and characters from the past few films face off with Michael and in my opinion they should have all died by Michael's hands except for Laurie, but I'll get to that in a moment. For the big finale film honestly Michael technically only kills one person, the others he's assisted with. It's a shame "The Shape" we get in this film is not the same monster they set up with the previous two. 

*SPOILER ALERT* 

OK look this film should have ended with Laurie and Michael taking each other down that was the only fitting way for this to have ended or maybe have a twist where Laurie puts on Michael's mask as Michael is laid out pinned on the floor, and she kills Alison and then goes for Michael. Either way right we definitely should have had a closing shot or after credits aimed at the Mask and having some breathing. No shadow of a doubt we will get a reboot of the series in the next 10 years because Evil never dies and evil always takes on new shapes. 😉

Anyway, a disappointing and deflating finale to Blumhouse 40th anniversary Halloween series. 

This will be joining the ranks with the bad Halloween films for me personally. 

A sour pumpkin spiced end to the Blumhouse Halloween era.

3/10

What did you think of Halloween Ends?

Let me know by commenting or tweeting me @ScottyJ193

For my entire thoughts on every single other Halloween film please CLICK HERE!

Thanks for visiting my blog and for reading this review. 

It means a lot to me and I value and appreciate all your support.

Stay Spooky!

THE HALLOWEEN FRANCHISE WRITE UP

It's as of writing this right now the 6th October at 10:30pm and I am here to document and write up the entire Halloween franchise! Yes that is correct every single film even Halloween 3 and Rob Zombies Halloween's are here in this list with my thoughts and bits and bobs about the films and their stories and all my likes and dislikes, they are all pretty much here! 

This is all done in preperation and hype for the new film and potentially last Halloween film. I will also admit this is also done in prep for me eventually Ranking the series in a future top 10 list! SO buckle up as you join me on a deep dive into the Halloween franchise.

Halloween

Classic! So good! My fave horror character and slasher film. This slasher changed the game for horror. Michael is such an iconic character and Carpenters score is also very iconic and memorable. Initially this was going to be called the baby sitter murders. This also had a budget of 300k. I get chills to this day from the music. I love everything about this film. This is what started my fascination with the series and with its titular character of The Shape aka Michael Myers. The pov shots and tracking shots and music just mmf chefs kiss. Another iconic character I've always enjoyed besides Laurie is Dr. LOOMIS. So much mystery to Michael it's just so fascinating to me. The best mask for Michael of course. The build up to the kills and suspense and tension as a whole is also perfect. I have seen this so many times and I'm still so captivated by it all. Its amusing how Michael kills Bob and then puts on a white sheet and glasses just like playing with his victim before getting the kill and also the brute strength of Michael stabbing Bob and lifting him off the ground and just standing there admiring his kill is something else. There's a beautiful shot of Michael in the shadows and stabbing Laurie and the chase scene is superb. His gentle slow stroll is something else because he will always be at 1mph and behind you even if you are running away at 5mph and there's times where he just appears ahead of you. The iconic rise up of Michael is something else too and of course when Michael is shot 6 times and falls off a balcony and is laying on the ground in the next shot as LOOMIS looks over the balcony well he is gone. The first theme is the most iconic for me its got a sense of foreboding threat aswell as a sense of trancendance and of course the running lurking repeated tones although for the most part the instrumentals are the lightest played of the series in terms of themes this is iconic and legendary.

Halloween 2

The best sequel in the original timeline, set directly after the first so to watch the first two back to back is a nice treat. The one male paramedic is creepier than Michael in this haha. The kills are more creative and BOY the end mask shot is nice with the bloody tears as they dubbed it. The pov Michael shots are awesome. The soundtrack is so different more industrial, deep and synthy with its music. A lot of elements of this film are taken and remade later in the series. 

H3: Season Of The Witch

Nothing to do with Myers but this is still underrated and a great Halloween/horror film as this was supposed to be the start of a new anthology series of films. Hospital emergency room Dr. Dan Challis and Ellie Grimbridge, the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran, a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial all designed to kill millions of children. The catchy silver shamrock jingle that plays constantly throughout this is so catchy. I actually like this one and I never skip this in a series rewatch and sometimes I watch this on it's own just because it is that good a halloween film and a great standalone film. 

H4: The Return Of Michael Myers

Not bad some fine kills as Myers returns. Praise be to loomis as he's one of my fave characters in the series. Shamefully they say Laurie died somehow and of course she had a 6 year old daughter and that's legit all we know of the strode story. One of the best endings. I'm not a massive fan of Michael being all "I must kill all my relatives". Oh the whole Michael waiting in a rocking chair bit and then kills someone by impaling them with the barrel of a shot gun was wicked fun. The mob coming together to stop Michael was another idea used better later on in the series. The theme has added instruments to it most notably added drums and the synth keyboards too and of course the tambourine shaking.

H5: The Revenge Of Michael Myers

Oh this is bad. We also have an unlikeable new girl main character. The worst mask for myers. They try to make Loomis unlikeable. It's silly and dumb considering the film that came before it. My fave moments are with Loomis and Michael, the laundry shoot escape with Jamie and Michael and Michael killing people with farm equipment haha. The lowest grossing Halloween film. The change made to the Myers House was stupid and for continuity of the series was a horrible decision to change its design and look inside and out. The script wasn't even completed when filming began, this was just a huge mess. The theme is more in line with the first but there's again added instruments in the mix and different sound going on among the iconic track, I think there's more xylophone in this mix.

H6: The Curse Of Michael Myers

Contining the bad Halloween trend here. Sadly this is the last we ever see of Donald as Loomis. There's actually for the first time in the franchise history 2 cuts of this one. Good mask though. Good to have seen a brutal Michael with this one for sure. Just not a fan of the bad acting and the whole cult thing. The cult of Thorn story I feel would have worked with some dealings with the Halloween 3 story as Silvershamrock and Thorn cult could have been related given their Irish celtic roots but I digress. The offscreen kill of Loomis was not good and in the producers cut they made Loomis the new leader of the cult of Thorn. The producers cut suggests Michael went off and had a baby with his niece and yeah no that's not the character at all and they also made Michael get stuck in a circle of runes unable to leave until plot twist it's shown he switches places with someone else. Yeah this is just a big facepalm. More electric guitar in this theme. 

H20: Halloween 20

Direct sequel to halloween 2, this retconned everything onward as Laurie returns. This is Halloween 20 years later. Michael is looking for Laurie as always. It's cool how the film basically starts with Michael killing nurse Mirian and that she was taking care of Loomis in his final days and also helped keep all the information. Also Laurie went on to change her name and had a son and they moved to California. Laurie still has ptsd from her past with Michael as she is protective of her son around halloween and this is great to see and used much better later on in the series. Laurie still has a pretty balanced life however. Also a funny thing in this film is the bathroom scene when Michael is en route to Laurie as he leaves two people alive and just takes their car where as in a later film he kills two people in a similar setting so yeah later films take a lot out of these retconned films and make them better if you ask me. Janet Lee Curtis appearing in this is just so good. There's little Easter eggs in this film showing other horror slashers too and I think its in part thanks to the scream writer who wrote this. The mask in this was terrible. Apparently they went for a cgi mask because they couldn't make up their minds on one? What?! The iconic shot of Michael and Laurie meeting face to face is just oof lush. The fight between Laurie and Michael is also great. Decapitating Michael should have been the nail in the coffin to be honest. The theme song in this film feels like a bigger musical scored peiece with added violins and string instruments to the mix and a soft piano rendition.

Halloween Resurrection

Trick or treat motherfucker! Set after H20. Basically Michael apparently switched bodies with someone before getting decapitated and this is dumb as like I said the last film ended shockingly and also was not too bad overall. I'm not a fan of the mask in this one either. Laurie's death was just terrible. So many uninteresting characters in this and this is not the typical Halloween movie and doesn't feel like it. Its a bunch of teens making a reality show in a "haunted house" and it happens to be Myers house and he returns home and you can imagine what happens here. The theme song is slow with its build but the piano is normal speed but heavier on its low sounding chords. This film is stupid and rediculous and disrespects Michael. This was the one which nailed the series down and let it die. Until.....

Rob Zombies Halloween

First of all I don't mind Rob Zombies takes on the series BUT they could have been better and also for me these are Robs best films and that's not saying too much. The first Zombie Halloween starts with a huge backstory on Michael Myers and his abusive as fuck family history with a serious broken home dynamic with an abusive as hell dad, his mom is a stripper and Michael kills animals and gets bullied at school because he's different and of course one day his rage got a hold of him and he beat one of his bullies to death. The Rob Zombie Halloween are mostly gritty and unsettling and beyond gory and Michael is like a feral animal in how he kills. Malcom Mcdowell as Loomis I also liked. The relationship with Loomis and Michael I also like and the fact Michaels mother still visits Michael despite the horrible crimes up until she one day kills herself and so this is where Michael becomes mute because it seems that's the last of his humanity which is alive and soon as his mother is gone so is he and then we get this empty, hulking psychopathic monster. He just exists waiting and bidding his time til he is ready to leave to kill again. TYLER MANE as Michael is fucking great I loved his portrayal and even met Tyler and told him this and got a signed photo from him and of course Tyler Mane is one of the tallest and nicest guys you will ever meet. Anyway back to the film. Its so upsetting when Michael kills the only guard who was helping Michael. The kills in this film make you feel them. When we meet adult Laurie we see a lot of recreated scenes from the first Halloween. The mask is nice more similar to the original but weathered and cracked. Respect to the cast of this one as there's some cracking actors in this. Laurie tries to kill Michael after Michael takes her away to her house and kind of like gets on her level as if to say "it's just us now" and when Laurie attack Michael, he just reacts with rage because the one person left in his life has now turned against him too so he goes back to trying to kill her before getting shot by Loomis and we get the same Halloween quote "was that the boogeyman" all before having Michael attack again all before Michael and Laurie fight to the death so to speak as Laurie flat out shoots Michael straight in his face and then ends. The theme song for this feels a lot more demented and distorted probably to keep in shape with Rob's version of Michael and the theme is also accorporated with some distortion and synth and the traditional piano which now sounds like a music box. It was great to take Michael back out to the big screen in a new take on his story and the Halloween series but now let's move to the sequel because evil never dies....

Rob Zombie's Halloween 2

I watched this in cinema and being a massive fan of Halloween I had a pretty good time at the time of first seeing this because it was my first time seeing my fave slasher and horror series on the big screen and the mask was great. This one defo made Rob Zombie go crazy creatively with this film because White Horses and metaphors. So this again starts from the end of the first and Laurie goes to hospital as 2 pervy paramedics take Michael's body to the hospital BUT he was not dead and he awakens and kills the paramedics. The practical effects and gory kills are just wicked and the grotesque nature of showing Laurie and her injuries was so brutal. The dream sequence was great just wish it wasn't set as a dream sequence. Exploring the themes of ptsd was interesting we seen Laurie change into a completely different person following the year after the attack. Loomis turns into a scumbag in this one who's more for the fame and chasing fame and selling the story of Michael to others. Sure the stories and consequences do catch up with Loomis as he gets a lot of flack for it and it's good that the Film shows that. Compared to the first Halloween Rob made this one feels like a weird mix up as a lot of the characters don't feel the same and are quite unlikable in this one. Michael often doesn't wear a mask unless he wants to kill someone so it seems. In the finale Michael takes Laurie again to an abandoned place for some ritual this time which again urgh and also goes back on the ending of Robs first Halloween so wtf and why do this Rob? Was it all for getting your wife some screen time and money? That's what it feels like ahaha. Cult coo koo going on because only Michael and Laurie can see the visions of their mother and the white horses. Loomis does just appear and try to talk michael over and prove to the world that he's not a phony. Loomis gets brutalised and the police kill Michael and apparently freeing Laurie from the loopy spell shit going on and then shes crying and saying she loves her brother. Like what?! Of course then Laurie kills Michael for good and wears his mask and then she's set to be the next killer but then the film ends. The theme is the same as the last one really. It's a big disappointment compared to the first and I just don't know why Rob went the direction he did. We almost got Halloween 3D but thank god it ended and that was it. Until 2018 when Evil Came Home!

Halloween 2018

Alright so we are back to true and top form here. Laurie's back. Carpenter is back and he has updated his classic score adding in a more synth edge to it, the piano soft undertones are nice and so are the little riffs of electric guitar and electro style sounds in the theme, this is probs my second fave theme in the series. It's a direct sequel to the first Halloween 40 years ago and we are dealing with Michael in the modern age. It's great to see The Shape and his legacy that is still so much alive as two podcasters go to try and meet Michael and when they present his mask things change. The atmosphere and people around everything changes. Evil is aware his precious mask is within reach in the first time in over 40 years. This is a bad omen for SURE. The reverse shot of the rotting pumpkin coming back to life was beautiful. So good to see Jamie Lee Curtis back! In the past 40 years Laurie has had a bad life plagued of ptsd thanks to the boogeyman. Laurie has had 2 failed marriages and a rocky relationship to her daughter, however she does have a good relationship with her granddaughter. Alison is great but her friends and boyfriend at the time are not. Michael is being moved to a new prison when disaster strikes and of course Michael breaks free along with all the other prisoners. Michael's new Dr, Dr Seratin is pretty good and I like the contrast in him compared to Loomis as this Dr is most obsessed with Myers and his evil rather than Loomis's fear of evil and has to be stopped. Here's the bathroom scene from H20 but this time it's BRUTAL. MICHAEL IS BACK. Great mask. James Jude Courtney plays the body for this Michael for the next 3 films and he's great just the perfect body for Myers. They fill us in on this film saying after The Shape disappeared at the end of first Halloween but was found a few houses away and stopped and taken away basically after they stopped Loomis from killing him. Michael kills anyone and everyone because he just wants to and the track shots in this are golden. These films just oh my god I love the Michael pov and track shots. There's some great humor in this film especially with the little kid Julian. The easter egg of kids wearing masks from Halloween 3 is great. Dr Seratin tries to twist us with Michael seemingly dead and the doctor removes Michael's mask and wears it and stabs the good officer who was out to protect Alison Strode and you know what I liked this twist as I said it's a great contrast compared to Loomis. Michael is the essence of evil and he always changes those around him in some way shape or form and you can look at the entire series Canon and non Canon and see the evil rubs off and changes others exposed to Michael. Dr Seratin wants to get a feel of inside the mind of Michael and what Michael must feel killing and wearing the mask and helped free Michael to study him however this does bite Seratin back as he gets viciously killed and curbed stomped by Michael. Now we set the stage for the Strodes vs Michael. Michael playing with the mannequins is a tense scene and we get window call backs and a great fight between Laurie and Michael and then we get Karen and Michael and Alison all beating or rather shooting The Shape is great and refreshing to see. 3 generations of strode later they manage to capture the monster who tormented their family and burn the house down with Michael stuck inside the house. We don't see Michael burning but we do hear him breathing you can't kill the boogeyman. With Alison holding a knife while the strode family flee to safety we can see this as a passing down of the trauma to the next generation.

Halloween Kills

Basically we follow the exact same night and straight after the 2018 film after Michael was locked away in the burning strode house only for foolish firemen to come along and free Michael which they end up regretting on account of Michael absolutely brutalising them all with such ease. We get an ensemble of legacy characters from the first Halloween returning and that's so great to see and we see how they are and have been affected by The Shape after all these years and of course when death comes back to their little town, they take the law into their own hands because "Evil dies tonight". Probably the bloodiest and goriest film in the series with the highest body count too for Michael. The recreation of 1978 scenes are so perfectly done. The theme in this film is more ethereal choir singing along with the traditional piano theme. The social commentary with this film asks what fear does with mob mentality and with society. Big John and Little John are great new characters which we lose quickly because Michael is pure evil and of course they had to be living in his house. I'm not a fan of Alison getting back with her cheating bf and of course he dies. This film is of course about Laurie healing and resting because of course she gonna have a massive fight when she is recovered. Michael playing with bodies is class and on par for what he'd actually do given that now and then he has this playful nature even if it's with dead people haha. Badass Karen is great and ending with Karen dying I did feel was rushed but hey its the mysterious ways of the shape and maheb Halloween ends redoes this scene. Of course this is one of the better Halloween sequels. What will happen now when Halloween Ends....

That is all I have for you today, thanks so much for reading my little passion project piece on the entire Halloween franchise up to this point. :) 

CLICK HERE FOR MY Halloween Ends review!

AND CLICK HERE FOR MY Halloween films ranked list!

Please share this blog post to other Halloween or horror fans, I would love this post to get a lot more exposure than other posts from the shere amount of work I did and put into it. 

Thanks for reading, stay spooky!

Bodies, Bodies, Bodies Movie Review

First off I had heard nothing and knew nothing about this film going into it. I have seen friends recently post about watching it, and they said "this is good" and I was curious and here I am after watching A24's latest horror slasher flick. I say horror, but this is more of a thriller and dark comedy slasher type of film really.

Set in current times, a group of 20 somethings get stuck at a remote mansion during a hurricane and a party game ends up very wrong when they find a dead body. They must try to work out who is behind it whilst trying to turn the power on and just survive the night.

This is very much an Among Us type film and the cast I have no idea of besides Pete Davidson and I had no idea of anything going into this film besides "it's the latest a24 horror flick, and it's good". So I was curious, and you know it's not bad, like it could have been better but also could have been worse. This film likes to mock the Gen Z and that's why all the characters are basically obnoxious. Humour was weak to me. I won't give much away, but it's got a nice twist at the end which I did not see coming. It's a mixed bag film where people either love it or don't and that is fair enough as I said above there's a way to make this a better film, but perhaps that better film will come from somewhere at a later date. 

So in short, I felt this film was OK and was a slow burn to start. It's basically Among Us but not in space haha. There's content I would have cut out BUT it had a nice twist. Also props to them for including blooper reel as after credits.

6/10

Thanks for visiting my blog and for checking out this review!

What did you think of Bodies x3? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for reading, Stay Shiny!

Top 10 Horror Movies

I was recently asked by two of my friends "Have you made a top 10 Horror movie list?" and I without any hesitation said "Yeah it was probably a while ago." I checked through my blog and results came back empty.

I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVE NOT DONE A TOP 10 HORROR MOVIES LIST!!!! 

My rules for this list are to bring you 1 film per franchise, so no I cannot pick Alien and also pick Aliens, It has to be one or the other to qualify. Ok so that's my rules. Also, this is my list, and I am basing it on horror films that scared me or disturbed me at some point and also ones which I like because of the stories etc.

IT'S TIME TO BRING YOU THAT LIST!

10: IT FOLLOWS

Infections in horror go one of two ways and are spread one of two ways, through bites and some zombie like disease or some foreign alien parasitic thing entering your blood stream BUT, It follows breaks that norm and well you get some creepy thing following you looking to kill you if it touches you and you of course get this infection through sex. Yep! Creepy premise, unsettling score, this has stuck with me in my mind since my first viewing, it's a modern masterpiece of horror.

9: The Descent

A group of teens go spelunking and run into dark tight cramped spaces, OH and of course scary creatures who can climb walls and smell and hear you from a mile off. This British made horror film scared the crap out of me for ages when I have first seen it, it made me stay away from dark places and caves for a while, not that I even like going spelunking anyway.

8: Insidious

A recent online survey has shown that this has been voted the scariest movie and for me this is largely true but most of all I have only ever seen this film twice and the score is so unsettling, the entire title sequence gets my anxiety levels through the roof. The entity and scares are well done and even though the entity has gone on to be named Lipstick Man it takes away nothing from his scary appearance, and you can call him a Darth Maul lookalike all you want but if he invades your mind well you don't want to see what happens next. 

7: REC 2

First off, the English remake of the rec films (Quarantine) does not exist, haha. So this Spanish horror Zombie film is tense and unnerving and well I found scary and really disturbing and worse of all was the female mutated zombie and that whole bit in the dark. Seriously, that gets me covering my eyes with my hands every time. 

6: Predator

Alright so this one is more Action than horror I would say but alas it is still one with the horror genre and between this and Halloween they are two of the first horror films I have ever watched. This film gave us one of the most iconic aliens ever made. A tough buff squad was not a match for The Predator alone or apart with their military arms, and you will see why. The soundtrack is wicked and that tense theme is something else. 

5: A Nightmare On Elm St

1,2, Freddies coming for you. You know the song, and you have most likely stayed awake or tried to for as long as you could when you have first seen or heard the tales of Mr. Freddy Kruger. Bed is supposed to be a safe space, so nothing was the same when this Boogeyman invaded our dreams and tore people asunder. Rob Englund does a phenomenal job as the menacing Freddy, and it's an iconic role that has lasted a lifetime, not even a rebooted Freddy could top the O.G.

4: The Conjuring

James Wan brought the real life paranormal investigators The Warrens to the big screen, and he went all out with this and with the sequel. Wan directs with old-school verve, swinging his camera around in glorious tracking shots that trace the geography of the Perron family home, orchestrating spine-tingling set pieces with perfectly-timed jolts – and delivering a stellar, self-contained mini horror flick in that opening Annabelle sequence. But the real secret to The Conjuring's success is the Warrens themselves, played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga – it's so rare to see a loving, married couple lead a horror film, and their palpable bond adds real heart to the hauntings. 

3: Saw

A twist that still lingers strong in my mind since the first time I watched this. The iconic Zepp theme song is just so intertwined excellently with the scene, and it lingers for hours. Considering this film was made on a shoestring budget, it has made such a big impact and pretty much brought back that whole "torture porn" horror scene and genre. The series that followed Saw became a massive hit and even though to me none come close to the first film this series overall I still love and enjoy.

2: The Shining

A legendary film, you will know of its events by its fame and depictions in so many various media settings and parodies over the years. This one feels like it's driven by a mad man because you don't know what he will hit next on his course because this one never makes you feel safe. Stellar and iconic performance from Jack Nicholson. You got the iconic, brooding theme song that follows the descent into madness and into this insane hotel. A Kubrick/King classic.

1: Halloween (1978)

Halloween started the slasher genre of horror and for me this has always held a special place in my heart, from it's chilling memorable score, to its characters and murderous silent akin supernatural masked character. I love how Carpenter scored and shot this iconic horror film and for me this is my number one.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Chucky, Final Destination, Hellraiser, Alien, The Thing, The Mist, Texas Chainsaw

Friday 13th, Scanners, Re-Animator, 28 Days Later, Exorcist, Poltergeist, 

IT, Ready Or Not, You're Next, The Evil Dead.

Alright and that is mah list. Whatcha think?

Got any suggestions or a film for me to check out? Hit me up!

Thanks for reading!

Stay Shiny!

Psycho Goreman - Film Review - A Psychotic Good Time!

The plot: Siblings Mimi and Luke unwittingly resurrect an ancient alien overlord who was entombed on Earth millions of years ago after a failed attempt to destroy the universe. They nickname the evil creature Psycho Goreman (or PG for short) and use the magical amulet they discovered to force him to obey their childish whims. It isn't long before PG's reappearance draws the attention of intergalactic friends and foes from across the cosmos and a rogues' gallery of alien combatants converges in small-town suburbia to battle for the fate of the galaxy.

This is such a cheesy, funny, entertaining, bloody horror comedy family film. I know that's a lot of genre's into one film but this is a lot and I had such a laugh and fun, thrilling time watching this film! I seen the trailer a few months ago and I was intrigued and it did not disappoint and if anything this film for me OVERDELIVERED! Cap's because I was so pleasantly surprised, the practical costumes and effects were epic, seriously this just made me wish for more practical effects again in Hollywood and in other films in general. PG is such a wickedly evil, violent, malevolent character but he is also weirdly fun and charming and dry and quick with his humour. Don't take this film seriously and you will have a blast of a time. Hell you may even enjoy it with seriousness going into it. It's a lot of fun! Highly recommend a viewing! 

9/10

US - Movie Review

Get in your jumpsuits and let's tether together because you're about to see double as I review US!

 Us is just a tense thriller from the mind of Jordan Peele a very good interesting film with well acted cast, good script, good comedic moments that don't ruin the tone of the film. creepy as fuck music and visuals to boot. 

Us tell's the story of a family on vacation accompanied by her husband, son and daughter, Adelaide Wilson returns to the beachfront home where she grew up as a child. Haunted by a traumatic experience from the past, Adelaide grows increasingly concerned that something bad is going to happen. Her worst fears soon become a reality when four masked strangers descend upon the house, forcing the Wilsons into a fight for survival. When the masks come off, the family is horrified to learn that each attacker takes the appearance of one of them. It's a thrilling and tense watch despite it's logistical flaws and predictable outcome. 

Peele channels his inner M Knight Shamalan in his new outing simply put. The soundtrack and many moments of the film early on inspire such dread, it gets so tense it's great. 

Us was really good, better than get out but equally as confusing and creepy but my god, soundtrack, acting and story are all really good like and for that i gave US.

8/10

"Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them."

SHORT SCARY HALLOWEEN STORIES

So as a special extra Halloween themed post I have decided to pick out a couple of short scary stories from google and share them here, so sit back get your flashlight ready and prepare to be scared...MUAHAHAHAHAH!

These 5 stories come from the world wide web and credit is to the original creators.

1: Submitted via Reddit by Scoopwhoop: “When my sister Betsy and I were kids, our family lived for awhile in a charming old farmhouse. We loved exploring its dusty corners and climbing the apple tree in the backyard. But our favourite thing was the ghost. We called her Mother, because she seemed so kind and nurturing. Some mornings Betsy and I would wake up, and on each of our nightstands, we’d find a cup that hadn’t been there the night before. Mother had left them there, worried that we’d get thirsty during the night. She just wanted to take care of us. Among the homes’ original furnishings was an antique wooden chair which we kept against the back wall of the living room. Whenever we were preoccupied, watching TV or playing a game, Mother would inch that chair forward, across the room, toward us. Sometimes she’d manage to move it all the way to the centre of the room. We always felt sad putting it back against the wall. Mother just wanted to be near us. Years later, long after we’d moved out, I found an old newspaper article about the farmhouse’s original occupant, a widow. She’d murdered her two children by giving them each a cup of poisoned milk before bed. Then she hung herself. The article included a photo of the farmhouse’s living room, with a woman’s body hanging from a beam. Beneath her, knocked over, was that old wooden chair, placed exactly in the center of the room.”

2: THE RUSSIAN SLEEP EXPERIMENT: IN THE 1940s, a group of Russian researchers sealed five prison inmates in an airtight chamber. The prisoners were dosed with an experimental gas that would prevent them from sleeping. Their conversations were electronically monitored, and their behaviour was observed through secret two-way mirrors. For the first few days, everything seemed fine. But after the fifth day, they slowly began to exhibit signs of stress. They became paranoid and stopped talking to one another, whispering about each other into the microphones. Nine days in, the screaming began. Two of the sleepless prisoners just started running around the chamber, yelling so hard their vocal chords nearly broke. Suddenly, however, the voices stopped, and the chamber became dead quiet. Fearing the worst, the researchers announced that they were opening the chamber. But a voice from inside answered: “We no longer want to be freed.” On the fifteenth day, the stimulant gas was replaced by fresh air. The results were chaotic. One inmate was dead. The inmates had been severely mutilated, flesh torn off their bodies and stuffed into the floor drain. They seemed to have ripped open their own abdomens, and even eaten their own flesh. They refused to leave by force, fighting back with a powerful aggression none of the researchers could have imagined they possessed. They fought furiously against being removed and anaesthetised; one even tore his own muscles and ripped his bones apart during the struggle. When asked why they had mutilated themselves, each gave the exact same answer: “I must remain awake.” The researchers wanted to kill the prisoners and remove all traces of the experiment, but their commanding officer demanded it be resumed immediately, with the researchers joining the inmates in the sealed chamber. Horrified, the chief researcher shot him point blank. He then shot and killed the two last surviving subjects, and set about covering up all that had taken place.

3: This short ghost story, found on Reddit, is super creepy: “Mommy told me never to go in the basement, but I wanted to see what was making that noise. It kind of sounded like a puppy, and I wanted to see the puppy, so I opened the basement door and tiptoed down a bit. I didn’t see a puppy, and then Mommy yanked me out of the basement and yelled at me. Mommy had never yelled at me before, and it made me sad and I cried. Then Mommy told me never to go into the basement again, and she gave me a cookie. That made me feel better, so I didn’t ask her why the boy in the basement was making noises like a puppy, or why he had no hands or feet.”

4: A young girl named Lisa often had to spend time alone at home at night, as her parents worked late. They bought her a dog to keep her company and protect her. One night Lisa was awakened by a dripping sound. She got up and went to the kitchen to make sure the tap was off. As she was getting back into the bed she stuck her hand under the bed, and the dog licked it. The dripping sound continued, so she went to the bathroom and made sure the tap was turned off there, too. She went back to her bedroom and stuck her hand under the bed, and the dog licked it again. But the dripping continued, so she went outside and turned off all the faucets out there. She came back to bed, stuck her hand under it, and the dog licked it again. The dripping continued: drip, drip, drip. This time she listened and located the source of the dripping—it was coming from her closet! She opened the closet door, and there found her poor dog hanging upside down with its neck cut. Written on the inside of the cupboard was, "Humans can lick, too!"

5: A young boy is sleeping in his bed on a usual night. He hears footsteps outside his door, and peeks out of his eyes to see what is happening. His door swings open quietly to reveal a murderer carrying the corpses of his parents. After silently propping them up on a chair, he writes something on the wall in the blood of the dead bodies. He then hides under the childs bed. The child is scared beyond belief. He can’t read the writing on the wall and he knows the man is under his bed. Like any child, he pretends that he slept through the whole thing and hasn’t awoken yet. He lays still as the bodies, quietly hearing the breathes from under his bed. An hour passes, and his eyes are adjusting more and more to the darkness. He tries to make out the words, but it’s a struggle. He gasps when he finally makes out the sentence. “I know you’re awake”. He feels something shift underneath his bed.

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed these shorts I have collected and credit once again goes to their rightful owners. Stay shiny and sleep tight...

HALLOWEEN HOLIDAY HISTORY! - Let's Make Halloween Great Again!

Oh I do wish people would stop blabbering their lips like fish. Yapping their gums about Christmas from the summer time to now they prioritise it over another day which used to be seen as a great holiday but now it's seen as a excuse to dress up and get drunk and this holiday happens at the 31st October every year. Halloween.

My friends Halloween as a child was a special time it's where not only would the day itself be spooky but there would be a great build up of spookiness and creepy shows and decorations and costumes would fill up our tvs, shops and homes to be paranormal instead of well normal and trick r treating was beast unless you got bullied or treats got pinched that night of hallows eve.

As you get older into the Teens you see the point in dressing up fun still but to trick or treat is not on the menu because social anxiety and laziness but you appreciate the horrifying films and TV shows that would air this season.

When your an adult we should be still in love with the horror movies on this month and that dressing up is still fun but now everyone is on about Christmas this and Santa that every day, every month, every year and even on Christmas they are like "oh can't wait for the next one" yes you can lay down off the eggnog and come do your dooty and get spooky with me as I explore the origins of this once great day known as....

HALLOWEEN

So 31st October is celebrated yearly and known as a holiday called Halloween but did you know that Halloween originated with that of an ancient Celtic festival called; Samhain and in that festival people would light bonfires, and wear costumes to fight off any evil spirits that lurked near by. In the 8th century Pope Gregory 3 declared November first to be All Saints Day and this had a lot of the same traditions as Samhain and so the evening before was known as All Hallows Eve and later became Halloween. Overtime this holiday evolved into what we see today a day of sweets and other activities in costumes and pumpkin carving and bobbing for apples etc.

Back to Samhain now where the Celts on November 1st celebrate their annual new year and this was all some like 2 thousand years ago. November first marked the end of summer and the harvest and that the winter meant the beginning of the dark and cold season, a time of year that was often associated with human death to them. The Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the spirits of the dead returned to earth. Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for their Druids, or priests, to make predictions about the future. For people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter so the Druids/Priests would build big bonfires they considered sacred and gathered people round them to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to their gods and the Celts would all wear costumes of animal skins and heads and tried to reassure one another by telling each other their futures. This sounds pretty bonkers don't it? Well when the celebration was over, they re-lit their fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the winter.

Now if you are wondering, "where the bloody hell did bobbing for apples come from?" well fear not for I have googled and I shall reveal it to you right here. In 43AD the Romans conquered the Celts well the majority at least, the Romans had two festivals which joined with Samhain. The first was Feralia, which was a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honour Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple, and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain, explains the tradition of “bobbing” for apples that is practised today on Halloween. So that's pretty interesting huh?

Now I referenced All Saints Day above somewhere and it's time to dive into that quickly. On May 13, 609AD, Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon in Rome in honour of all Christian martyrs, and the Catholic feast of All Martyrs Day was established in the Western church. Pope Gregory 3 would later expand the festival to include All Saints as well as All Martyrs, and moved the observance from May 13 to November 1.Now in the 9th century the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands, where it gradually blended with the older Celtic rites. In 1000AD, the church would make November 2 All Souls’ Day, a day to honour the dead. All Souls Day was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels and devils. The All Saints Day celebration was also called All-hallows or All-hallowmas and the night before it, the traditional night of Samhain in the Celtic religion, began to be called All-Hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween.

ORIGINS OF HALLOWEEN TRADITIONS!

In terms of Bad Luck; We avoid crossing paths with black cats, afraid that they might bring us bad luck. This idea has its roots in the Middle Ages, when many people believed that witches avoided detection by turning themselves into black cats. We try not to walk under ladders for the same reason. This superstition may have come from the ancient Egyptians, who believed that triangles were sacred (it also may have something to do with the fact that walking under a leaning ladder tends to be fairly unsafe). And around Halloween, especially, we try to avoid breaking mirrors, stepping on cracks in the road or spilling salt.

Origin of the Jack O Lantern: A fun fall activity, carving Jack-o'-lanterns actually has its roots in a sinister, tragic fable. Celtic folklore tells the tale of a drunken farmer named Jack who tricked the devil, but his trickery resulted in him being turned away from both the gates of heaven and hell after he died. Having no choice but to wander around the darkness of purgatory, Jack made a lantern from a turnip and a burning lump of coal that the devil had tossed him from hell. Jack, the story goes, used the lantern to guide his lost soul; as such, the Celts believed that placing Jack-o'-lanterns outside would help guide lost spirits home when they wander the streets on Halloween. Originally made using a hollowed-out turnip with a small candle inside, Jack-o'-lanterns' frightening carved faces also served to scare evil spirits away. When the Irish potato famine of 1846 forced Irish families to flee to North America, the tradition came with them. Since turnips were hard to come by in the states at the time, pumpkins were used as a substitute.

Halloween Bats: Medieval folklore also described bats as witches' familiars, and seeing a bat on Halloween was considered to be quite an ominous sign. One myth was that if a bat was spotted flying around one's house three times, it meant that someone in that house would soon die. Another myth was that if a bat flew into your house on Halloween, it was a sign that your house was haunted because ghosts had let the bat in.

Halloween Spiders; A common source of fear, spiders make for creepy, crawly Halloween staples. They join the ranks of bats and black cats in folklore as being evil companions of witches during medieval times. One superstition held that if a spider falls into a candle-lit lamp and is consumed by the flame, witches are nearby. And if you spot a spider on Halloween, goes another superstition, it means that the spirit of a deceased loved one is watching over you.

Hallowed Cauldrons: The pagan Celts believed that after death, all souls went into the crone's cauldron, which symbolised the Earth mother's womb. There, the souls awaited reincarnation, as the goddess' stirring allowed for new souls to enter the cauldron and old souls to be reborn. That image of the cauldron of life has now been replaced by the steaming, bubbling, ominous brew.

The Witch's Broomstick; This is another superstition that has its roots in medieval myths. The elderly, introverted women that were accused of witchcraft were often poor and could not afford horses, so they navigated through the woods on foot with the help of walking sticks, which were sometimes substituted by brooms. English folklore tells that during night-time ceremonies, witches rubbed a "flying" potion on their bodies, closed their eyes and felt as though they were flying. The hallucinogenic ointment, which caused numbness, rapid heartbeat and confusion, gave them the illusion that they were soaring through the sky.

The traditional Halloween colours: These consist of orange and black actually stem from the pagan celebration of autumn and the harvest, with orange symbolising the colours of the crops and turning leaves, while black marks the "death" of summer and the changing season. Over time, green, purple and yellow have also been introduced into the colour scheme of Halloween decorations.

Trick Or Treat?; It surprisingly came from Irish and English traditions, Americans began to dress up in costumes and go house to house asking for food or money, a practice that eventually became “trick-or-treat” tradition. Young women believed that on Halloween they could divine the name or appearance of their future husband by doing tricks with yarn, apple parings or mirrors. Wish they would still believe this haha. In the 1800s, there was a move in America to mold Halloween into a holiday more about community and neighbourly get-togethers than about ghosts, pranks and witchcraft. At the turn of the century, Halloween parties for both children and adults became the most common way to celebrate the day. Parties focused on games, foods of the season and festive costumes. However parents were encouraged by newspapers and community leaders to take anything “frightening” or “grotesque” out of Halloween celebrations. Because of these efforts, Halloween lost most of its superstitious and religious overtones by the beginning of the twentieth century. And we thought today's standards are too P.C. this clearly is the origin of the butthurt society sad times.

This has been a horrific holiday history piece on Halloween. Brought to you from Me and Google because not all the information I knew here and I googled some and sliced it up and brought it here with me.

If anyone wants me to do a post on scary stories for Halloween or based around Halloween let me know and i'll get onto it.

For now: Stay Spooky and Do Your Dooty!

The Monsters That Hide (Original Lyrics)

In the dead of night, all is quiet, all is right, no one in sight, but your not alone,
you can't see it, but it's there, trying to get inside,

Who's there in the shadows, They lurk within, with you unaware,
they stare, do you hear them?

You cant run, you can't hide, from the monsters that lurk deep inside.
They always seek, they always find, they know where to go, they know you well,
how well do you trust those memories in which you dwell?,
I run now from the monsters that hide, the monsters that hide, inside!

You'll get these hands, you'll get worse, don't come close, I know someone's there,
show yourself before you get into trouble,

Oh no we don't want no trouble, we just want you, we want your body,
we want to use it, let us in and you'll be fine we promise,

Who are you, show yourself, stop talking nonsense,
your so delusional, with us in control you could be so beautiful, unstoppable.

Leave me be, can't you see, you're messing with me, there's no one here,
I'm alone, talking to myself, I'm not crazy,

Keep telling yourself what you want, at the end of the day we will haunt,
we're always here, watching, waiting, planning, creating,
we will take control, this we promise,

You cant run, you can't hide, from the monsters that lurk inside. They always seek, they always find, they know where to go, they know you well, how well do you trust those memories in which you dwell?, The monsters are coming, the monsters which hide, they hide, inside!

There's something wrong I got a feeling I just cannot shake,
what are you doing to me, why do my legs quake,

Testing, testing, 1 2 3?, we have control of your knees, ah-ha-ha, bend the knee,
kneel to your new controller, for the only way to gain control is to plea to the new order,

Please stop this, I did no wrong, to deserve such a wish,
I don't want to be squished, I hope you leave me be, alone in peace,

That can be arranged but first we must show you the horrors,
that lurked for years beneath your remorse, so get off your high horse,
Come follow us down and we will show you those suppressed memories that adore you ever so,

You can't run, you could never hide, we only seek, we only destroy,
your dreams, your wishes, we're gonna make you one of our bitches!
So lock the door forever more and live with us here, become a guide, In this darkness that you wonder, you will forever ponder, how you let us tear you up inside. We are the monsters, the monsters that hide, inside!

We was left behind, reeling from the death of her, the torture you left us with will unwind, you were never that kind, its why you left me deep inside, oh if only we could rewind, would you go back to her or leave her behind?

You've always tucked your tail, and run and hide from us inside, your not so divine and now your body is mine.

I can't seem to run, i can't seem to hide, from these terrors inside, someone please help me, get me out of here please, i refuse to face these feelings I've suppressed, i don't believe i could have created such a monstrous being, there's got to be some kind of hidden meaning, for these monsters and why they hide, they hide, inside!

What do you think of the brand new look, don't we look cute, open you're eyes and you will see, the truth will set you free, so don't flee, believe me, you want to stick around for this next part is sublime, as the bells begin to chime, you can't climb, out of this.

I refuse to believe such trivial speak, her death was apart of you as much as it was to me, you're so bleak!, this mean streak just reeks, you only want to control me because your weak,

Weak!? Ha-ha-ha, go ahead and say that while you can, for you can't stand my brilliant plan, it's worked out for the best that you take a rest and i take control, for i am whole so let me stroll and strut and just keep your mouth shut, you did this to yourself, it's your fault you are in this situation, it's my job to correct civilisation in your world,

You left us behind, while you slept and wept, over the loss of dear daughter and mother, we was left to smother, we was left behind, in the dark is where we stayed, always watching, planning for this day for when we put you in your grave, this torture will not unwind, you did this to yourself, oh if only you could rewind, would time still be the same?, or will you make the same mistake again.

It's not over yet, don't celebrate too early, I'm breathing in new life, i accept my fate, i only ask for forgiveness as i lay inside our tomb tonight, i'll hold my dying breath so spawn such a deadly rise, i will make you demise,

No please, let us be, don't do this we can't keep you alive, all this torture will be undone, i'm sorry but it's fun, i just want to be out there, feeling and breathing in the air, it's not fair, we have nowhere else to go, don't you know?,

It's time to run and flee because death's your destiny, i won't hold back no more, tread carefully,

You let them lay there, YOU LEFT THEM BURNING TO DIE, to no surprise, your emotions gave me life, and we arise, you can't be rid of me so easily, there's always going be a part of me to remain, And that's a chain you will never break,

Let's make us cleanse our sins!

You cant leave us behind!

Oh yes it's time, i can feel the evil slipping away, as my body starts to sway, i can run and hide and you won't find me, now, after all this time, i'm feeling free, im feeling fine, with you gone from controlling me, my body, I am set free,

It was me, all along, running and hiding from the monsters that hide.

From the monsters inside, they hide!

Written by Myself

21/5/18

Now I can't quite remember how i came up with this but i was on a roll from the opening line and i went with it and based it upon a grieving husband and father just hiding away the mistake he's made for years and its all bubbled up and coming out to speak to him to try and take over him after suppressing his emotions for years. We all have a monster hiding inside of us it's just a give and take of how and when it will appear i like to think. 

If you wish to make an instrumental or if you wish to do that and sing your version of the song, please tag me and share the video with me and credit me please.