OH! Halloween. So anyway, as I'll be watching a lot of horror movies in the coming days I thought this would be a good opportunity to get back into my blog. Or maybe I'm blogging about it as an excuse to watch a bunch of movies. Either way, I'm doing it. And yes, I know, everyone and their kid sister does a horror movie review blog at this time of year. 31 Days of Horror, A Horror Movie a Day for October, blah, blah, blah. But so what. If you're one of the five people reading this, maybe you don't read any of those other blogs. Maybe you're looking for some good suggestions on movies you could watch this spooky season. Well, that's what I'm here for. Besides, I'm also getting a jump on everyone else by starting early. It's not quite October yet, but hey, Halloween Express just opened and CVS is already selling candy corn, so in the name of good capitalism, I'm starting my Halloween movie watching now too.
These won't be hard-hitting, in-depth reviews, but more overviews of films I dig, why I re-watch them again and again, and then maybe a new film or two. So let's not even call them reviews. More like holiday viewing suggestions. Might even throw in a "warning, stay away suggestion" as well just because I'm nice like that.
I'm going to shoot for at least three moves a week, with maybe a double feature or two thrown in on weekends, but don't hold me to that. Life sometimes gets in the way of movie watching. Yeah, I know, sucks.
So here we go, my Halloween Movie Marathon begins with ...
We all know that "The Exorcist" is a classic film regardless of genre. We also know that the money-grab of a sequel, "The Exorcist II: Heretic" is a goofy, train wreck of a film. Wait, scratch that. A train wreck of a film is one that's so bad you can't look away. You would quite easily look away, or more likely fall asleep, during "The Exorcist II."
"The Exorcist III" is a completely different animal. Firstly, it was written and directed by William Peter Blatty, the writer of the original novel and film, and the writer of the novel that this film is based on. That's not always a good thing, but in this case it is. Secondly, it isn't a sequel really. At least not in the typical way one thinks of a sequel. Honestly, I always believed this film would have done better keeping the title of the novel, "Legion," and then being sold as a standalone film allowing audiences to find out the links to "The Exorcist" on their own. But I guess that's why I'm not in Marketing.
The story follows a police detective - a minor character in "The Exorcist" - as he tracks down a serial killer who supposedly died in the electric chair years before. A few other minor characters and loose ties to the original pop up here and there, but as I said, this is really its own story. (The original script didn't even contain an actual exorcism scene, though the producers later demanded one be added.) Part police procedural, part character study, part supernatural horror story all wrapped up with interesting philosophical musings on the nature of evil. And Blatty writes wonderfully witty banter for his characters, which is one of the things I've always loved about his films and books.
Now, truth told, if you're a hardcore horror movie fan you're not likely going to find this film terribly scary. The casual horror fan might, but really the film is more about creating a creepy atmosphere than trying to out and out scare you. That is with the exception of one scene, which I assure you, you will know which one I mean when it happens. I could write an entire post on that scene, but I'm already running long, so I'll move on.
To sum up, great characters, wonderfully performances, well directed, humor, scares, and a bit of thoughtful pondering make this one of my Halloween regulars.
And if you're interested in getting away from the TV for a while ...
I also highly recommend the book, which is available in paperback and on most e-readers.
