We’re continuing our December of Holiday Horror with five more holiday-themed scare classics.
We’ll begin with an odd home invasion kind of story with 2020’s “Hosts,” then we’ll find that “There’s Something in the Barn” from 2023. We’ll deal with grief and isolation with “The Melancholy Fantastic” from 2011, then visit “The Dorm That Dripped Blood” from 1982. Then we’ll go way back in time to watch how “The Curse of the Cat People” from 1944 plays out. Yes, all of these have a holiday tie-in of some sort.
And, of course, we have five excellent short films for you, although they aren’t all particularly holiday-themed.
The latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale, with 43 reviews plus a short story, this time by Brian. Check out Issue #39 and all our books with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.com
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Mainstream Films:
2020 Hosts
Directed by Adam Leader, Richard Oakes
Written by Adam Leader, Richard Oakes
Stars Neal Ward, Frank Jakeman, Samantha Loxley
Run Time: 1 Hour, 29 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
It starts out strong, with some over-the-top violence. The violence continues, but the tone changes as it goes along. We both went into it blind, thinking it was going to be a standard home invasion kind of situation. There’s more to it than that. Kevin liked it somewhat better than Brian, with a mix of votes.
Spoilery Synopsis
A man drives an empty train into the station, parks, and then gets out. He walks across a field and sees a man dressed as Santa. Jack talks to the red-clad Michael about dinner tonight and admires the pheasants he’s just shot. Jack goes home to his wife, Lucy, and shows her the bad haircut he just got.
The couple trades Christmas gifts, and Lucy sees two small lights out in their garden– we see them too, but Jack missed it. He goes outside, but doesn’t see anything; when he comes inside, he hears banging upstairs. He finds Lucy upstairs, convulsing, but she’s also got a bright light inside her that seems to want out.
Over at Michael’s house, Michael and Eric talk about Cassie, Michael’s wife. They watch the news complain about the Pagan traditions replacing the traditional Christmas traditions. They speak of what people are calling “electrical anomalies” that people are reporting. Lauren and Ben play a boring game of checkers until she gets a call from Matt, who couldn’t come to dinner tonight.
Jack and Lucy come to the door, as planned, and it’s obvious that they aren’t quite right. Their eyes glow, for one thing. Cassie and Lucy cook in the kitchen while Michael shows Jack an antique TV set. The old man talks about how much the old TV means to him as Jack stands there impassively. They sit through dinner like zombies, and it’s all very awkward; Lucy has a hammer in her hand throughout the meal.
As Lauren talks about maybe getting married to Matt, Jack leaves the table. Cassie wants to announce that her cancer is now in remission, which no one was expecting. Everyone is overjoyed at the news, and Michael proposes a toast to his wife. Lucy stands up and beats Cassie to death excessively with the hammer. Before anyone can react, Jack returns with Michael’s shotgun and makes everyone sit back down.
Jack and Lucy make each of the family members go to their bedrooms. Lucy tells Ben a “fairy tale” about guests in a father’s house who destroy everything he loves. “Demons come as angels of light” is how Lucy describes herself. Rather than call 911, Lauren calls Matt and tells him to bring help. We see that Jack is hiding under her bed throughout the conversation. Matt says on the phone, “We’ve been watching you for a long time.”
Lauren wakes up. Jack has given her the shotgun and says she’ll need to make a decision. Eric is tied up across from her, and Lauren is told to kill him. Lauren and Eric talk about how she has no choice but to kill her brother. The discussion goes on for an hour and half, and she finally pulls the trigger– and there’s the click of an empty chamber.
Eric crawls downstairs, and Michael admits that Jack is his illegitimate son. He abandoned that family to start this new one. Soon, Eric is possessed or converted, and he’s with the baddies now. Before long, Lucy is hanging from a tree in the woods. Jack stabs Michael to little pieces until Lauren comes in and shoots him in the back. At one point we see there are many people infected with the glowing eyes.
Ben comes out of his room and he and Lauren go outside. Ben’s eyes glow, and we see lights all over the sky– this was some kind of invasion!
Brian’s Commentary
We went into this one completely blind, and that probably helped, as we had no idea what the story was even about. The characters were good, and the first half hour was all very well done. When the killing started, it was basically just another “home invasion” movie, as the monsters, or aliens, or whatever, didn’t really do anything supernatural. Although Lucy’s fairy tale and Michael’s paternity admission seem to coincide with each other, the whole alien invasion thing at the end shows that to be untrue.
It started well, but then went downhill fast.
Kevin’s Commentary
I agree that it started strong and then changed. But I’m not sure it went downhill. It just went sideways into more of an apocalyptic haze with a fairy tale. I also don’t think it was aliens; it was demonic forces from down below. With subtle warnings around the edges of turning away from Christianity toward the pagan. I accepted, maybe, that whatever was going on must have been fogging the minds of the victims too, preventing them from simple ideas like escaping out the window when they were locked in a first-floor room. Anyway, I liked it more than I disliked it.
2023 There’s Something in the Barn
Directed by Magnus Martens
Written by Aleksander Kirkwood Brown, Josh Epstein, Kyle Rideout
Stars Martin Starr, Amrita Acharia, Kiran Shah
Run Time: 1 Hour, 40 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
Who knew that there were so many rules to follow when your barn is infested with elves and how cranky they can get? An American family in Norway finds out. There’s loads of humor in this one, along with gore and violence. We liked it a lot.
Spoilery Synopsis
A man chains his tractor to something in the barn. The tractor won’t start, and he finds the wires have been cut. He goes back inside and pours gasoline all over the barn. Then he sees… it. The gasoline thing goes badly, and he burns to death while the barn remains intact. Credits roll.
One year later, Bill, Carol, Lucas, and Nora Nordheim arrive in Norway. “It’s the happiest country in Europe.” They all stop to take a photo with a moose-crossing sign. Then they see a real moose– which attacks them. The sheriff stops to help, and she warns them about the mooses. It’s all very scenic and remote, but they’ve inherited a very large house– in the middle of nowhere, not too far from a town though. Nora is not pleased, but everyone else seems thrilled.
Bill takes them all out to the barn, which he thinks might make a good bed and breakfast someday. Lucas hears something out there that scares them. That night, he sees eyes watching him from the barn.
The family goes into town the next day, and they stand out among the real Norwegians. Lucas goes to a strange shop that sells barn elf statues and has a museum. The man there, Tor Age, tells him all about elves. “If you treat the barn elves nice, they will be good to you. If you make him angry, he’ll do whatever it takes to get rid of you.” Tor explains the rules: they hate changes, bright lights, and loud noises. He stops smiling when Carol mentions the Nordheim farm.
That night, Lucas goes out and meets the elf. He offers him a cookie. Carol tries to console Nora about her not wanting to live there, but Nora doesn’t much like Carol, the replacement mother, much either. Carol suggests that they could throw a party for the neighbors… in the barn.
Bill finds that the whole parking area has been shoveled; the elf did it in exchange for the cookie. Lucas thanks him and they have more cookies. He tells Carol about talking to an elf, and that goes about as it always does. The elf then cuts a huge amount of firewood for the family.
Later, Bill decorates the whole house with bright lights, which terrifies the elf; Lucas explains about the barn elf, but no one listens to Lucas. The elf is, in fact, not pleased. In the morning, all the decorations have been brutally destroyed. They call the sheriff, who blames local kids but is otherwise not so helpful. “You’re in Norway now. Nothing bad ever happens here.”
It’s time for the party, and many locals attend. None of them can understand Bill’s gibberish-Norwegian. No one really speaks at first, but then they all drink a lot. They’re very friendly when they get enough alcohol. A woman tells Carol about the rumors that the farm is haunted. Nora makes a friend and gets drunk. Raymond has many questions about America and volunteers to play Santa on Christmas Eve.
It’s a fun, though awkward night, and the elf doesn’t like that the party happened in the barn. Lucas talks to Tor again, who suggests giving a bowl of porridge to the elf for Christmas Eve to make amends. Meanwhile, the elf comes into the house and destroys their kitchen. The elf then pushes Bill into the basement and locks him inside. The sheriff suggests that they all drank too much alcohol at the party– or maybe it’s the ghost.
Carol mentions the “ghost” to Bill, who admits that his uncle died while trying to burn down the barn. This results in an argument.
On Christmas Eve, Lucas makes porridge, which is the peace offering for the elf. Bill, on the other hand, makes Lutefisk for the family dinner, which smells just horrible. It tastes even worse. This time, even Carol has had enough. Lucas catches Bill eating the porridge; none left now. “That was our only chance of having peace with the elf!” Bill still laughs.
Lucas takes leftover Lutefisk to the elf. The elf tastes it and finds it as revolting as the family did. This means war! He roars and grabs a sledge hammer just as Raymond staggers by in his Santa Suit. Raymond doesn’t live long. Bill finds Raymond hanging and impaled with an icicle, which was clearly not an accident.
Bill runs everyone out to the car, but it won’t start. The elf hops onto the roof of the car and terrorizes the family. The elf screams, and the noise echoes over the countryside… and is answered by more of his kind. Many more, and they’re all armed.
Everyone gets into the house, followed by the elves. We get a mostly-comedic fight between the humans and elves. Nora finds that all the batting practice really pays off. Lucas talks to the original elf, and he promises to follow the rules from now on.
Suddenly, the sheriff drives up, and the bright light gives the elves reason to leave. They tell her about the elves, and she tells them all not to believe in fairy tales. She calls them crazy Americans– until the elves run over her in her own snow machine– excessively.
One of the elves finds the sheriff’s gun and soon learns how that works, unfortunately for him. The rest of the elves make themselves at home, especially once they find the alcohol and the music.
The family hides in Nora’s room and compares stories about how this really isn’t the worst Christmas they’ve had. Bill and Lucas sneak out the window, hoping to make it to Tor’s place for help. Nora and Carol stay behind to make bombs filled with Raymond’s moonshine. Even the moose gets involved– sorta.
The battle rages on. Carol kills two in the bedroom and Nora runs cross country. Bill and Lucas make it to Tor’s house, and they get a call from Carol, who says Nora has been captured. Tor lectures them about gun violence in America. The three drive back to Bill’s house and see carnage everywhere.
Tor sees the elves and is shocked. “They’re real?” They follow the elves into the barn and down into the secret tunnels below. Tor wants to negotiate with the elves. “This isn’t Detroit, Bill!” They soon find the women tied up in the center of the elf village, and one of them has the gun. Tor speaks to them in Norwegian asking to discuss peace between the two sides. Then the elf shoots him. “Why does he have the only gun in Norway?”
Lucas reminds the original elf about the cookies, and he unties the women. Tor wakes up and continues talking. The family makes it back to the barn, but they’re soon surrounded. The original elf tries to argue for them, but the old elf leader with the gun refuses to listen– until he runs out of bullets.
Finally, Nora uses her paper airplane skills to set the crashed snow machine on fire, which explodes and takes the barn with it. The family and the now-good elf make it outside. Tor and a couple more elves show up; they all want peace, and alcohol, now.
The good elf is homeless now. Lucas wants him to live with the family, but it’s just a matter of time before he gets mad again. They take the elf to Tor’s museum, which no one visits; he can live there. Bill says this still isn’t their worst Christmas.
Brian’s Commentary
No one takes Americans seriously in Norway, even though the Norwegians are the silly people here. The family actors are all great, each one in denial in their own way. The elves are funny and scary at the same time, and the locals are a hoot as well.
There are some deaths and gore, but it’s all mostly played for laughs, like a twisted child’s movie. The elf is happy now.
Kevin’s Commentary
I hadn’t seen the poster or preview before going into this, so it was a real surprise when a bunch of the elves popped out. The balance of horror and humor is just right. I thought this was a lot of fun with the cast and everything about it being very good.
2011 The Melancholy Fantastic
AKA “The Doll in the Dark”
Directed by A.D. Calvo, Alejandro Daniel
Written by A.D. Calvo
Stars Amy Crowdis, Robin Lord Taylor, Josh Caras
Run Time: 1 Hour, 13 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
It’s a story of loneliness, guilt, mourning, and a little insanity set during the Christmas season. We’ve been hard on some of the tropes of “are things real or in their head, are they crazy or is it really happening,” in the past. But this one is very well made and interesting enough to keep us engrossed in it. We give it a strong thumbs up.
Spoilery Synopsis
As the credits roll, we see someone assembling something; a craft project– it's a creepy doll. Melanie explains that “Mother died today. Maybe yesterday.” She gets in the car and talks to the doll. She goes to a gas station and buys a bunch of Sno-Ball snacks.
When she goes home, we get a look at the doll from behind. Is that a mask on a corpse? It’s blurry, so we’re not sure (We see later that it’s just an ugly doll). Melanie has a whole conversation about the doll not being polite as they eat their snacks. She continues talking to the doll as she puts up Christmas lights.
We hear a voice “Don’t cut yourself,” as we see she’s hanging razor-blade garland on the tree. Melanie clearly hears her dead mother’s words coming out of the doll. “I’ll never leave you again.”
Melanie goes to the library and talks to a weird guy there, Dukken. Mrs. Wiley is also there, and she mentions that her son is home from school and would love to see her. Dukken likes her and follows her out to the car, “Who’s your creepy friend?” He asks when he sees the doll. Melanie drives away and ignores him.
The insurance company calls; they have papers for Melanie to sign about her mother’s policy.
Later, Melanie is out driving alone and sees Dukken again, he’s got a dead bird that he wants to bury. He talks about two birds; he killed one with his car, but the other one flew into a wall and died. She asks him to go see a movie tomorrow.
Melanie goes home and makes a sandwich with moldy bread. She talks to “Mor,” the doll, about reading a book where a man kills a complete stranger after losing his own mother. “Razor blades,” whispers Mor.
The next day, Melanie takes Dukken to a barn out in the country. He tells her that the bird flew away; it wasn’t really dead. They argue about death being permanent. She tells the story about how her father died and her mother deteriorated into depression, eventually killing herself– with razor blades. They sit in the car in the barn and watch a movie; it’s their own personal drive-in. Dukken is a weird guy, but she’s got him beat by a mile. She talks about talking to a doll that’s really her mother. She eventually abandons him in the woods and runs off down the road.
Melanie goes home and puts tape over the doll’s mouth; that’ll shut her up. Dokken comes by; he’s fixed and returned her car to her. She invites him inside. He gets a good look at the doll, and he’s impressed with Melanie’s skill at dollmaking. She complains about what the doll’s been telling her, and he admires the razor-blades on the trees. He’s very goth, so he thinks this is all pretty cool.
“You know what has to happen now, don’t you?” asks the doll after Dukken leaves. “Someone dies,” Melanie responds.
Melanie goes back to the gas station and buys more snacks; she doesn’t have any real groceries at home. Kenny is the clerk in the store, and he clearly likes her.
Dukken comes over again, and he sees that Melanie is making a doll of him now. This creeps him out just a little, and then she serves him PB&J on moldy bread with Sno-Balls. He talks about how he’s invisible to his family before he gags on long-expired milk.
“I need you to help me get rid of Mor,” she whispers. They put the doll in the trunk and drive to where Dukken said the bird flew away. Except the bird is there, really dead, and Melanie accuses him of lying to her. She sets Mor on fire and cries.
They go home, and Melanie draws Dukken. She hears her mother’s voice coming from the basement. She sees her mother’s corpse down there– no, Dukken says it was just a dream, she was sleepwalking. He explains that Dukken, his name, is Danish for “Doll.”
She stabs him, and he falls to the floor, dead.
We cut to happy, smiling Melanie, driving down the street, but then she breaks down crying again. She goes to the gas station and Kenny gives her a whole case of Sno-Balls, on the house. She tells him the same story that she told Dukken earlier. She invites him to the drive-in tomorrow, which is Christmas. He invites her over for Christmas.
She goes to Christmas at Kenny's house, leaving her dead Dukken doll on the kitchen floor.
Brian’s Commentary
The most horrifying thing in this film is the chunky expired milk.
It’s a happy Christmas story of grief, suicide, depression, and more than a little insanity. Dukken is nice, gentle, empathic, and exactly what Melanie needs; most of the movie is suspense– will she kill him or not? Is he even real? There were some hints that he wasn’t.
It’s weird. Considering it’s one of those “grief as horror” movies that we’re all generally sick of, this was interesting and well done.
Kevin’s Commentary
This movie made me want Sno-balls, something I haven’t had in years. Not with a glass of chunky spoiled milk though. I liked this one for the elements of not being sure what was real and what was not, it was very well done and interesting. It’s a grim piece of work, but I enjoyed it.
1982 The Dorm That Dripped Blood
AKA “Death Dorm”
Directed by Stephen Carpenter, Jeffrey Obrow
Written by Stephen Carpenter, Jeffrey Obrow, Stanley Giachino
Stars Laurie Lapinski, Stephen Sachs, David Snow
Run Time: 1 Hour, 28 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
It’s another variation of a group of people in an isolated situation getting terrorized and picked off one or two at a time by an unseen slasher. There’s the who-is-doing-it question raised by keeping the killer’s face from us until the big reveal and final showdown. It’s decently made and has good effects. If you’re into the genre, this one is pretty good.
Spoilery Synopsis
We open on Dayton Hall, a condemned dormitory. One guy runs through a dark hallway and hides from someone– who strangles him from behind and cuts his hand at the same time. Credits roll.
Tim has found an apartment for him and Joanne to move in together, but she wants more time to think about it. He’s leaving in the morning for his Christmas ski trip, but she’s staying behind to help pack up the beds and stuff in the condemned dorm high-rise. Most of the campus will be closed for the winter break.
Debbie shows up in the morning and says she can’t stay to help long, but it’s going to be a huge job. Joanne’s got a long checklist and only two weeks to finish the project. We get a POV shot from someone skulking around the building watching the various characters.
Debbie’s parents come for her, and she waves at them from the roof. They wait for her in the car for a bit, but then the father goes inside after her. Someone with a spiked baseball bat beats his head in. The killer then strangles Debbie’s mother. By the time Debbie gets downstairs, both her parents are dead. She faints, and the killer runs over her in the car before driving away with the bodies.
Joanne, Craig, Patti, and Brian fix breakfast in the morning, and Patti notices John, a weird student with funky hair, going through their dumpster. Bill, the maintenance man, complains to Joanne about his best drill going missing.
Bobby Lee Tremble stops by to pick up 75 desks that his boss is buying.
Craig talks about how easy it is to get “A’s” in this school; Patti finds it much harder than he does. Joanne talks to Brian about how Tim gets on her nerves.
As the four young workers play pool, we see someone outside acting suspiciously– it’s John, who peeps in their window. The group splits up to go outside and find John.
Bobby Lee leaves his girlfriend Alice in bed and calls Joanne on the phone. Alice tempts Bobby to stay with her, but he’s not interested and heads over to the dorm… at 2 a.m.
The killer returns Bill’s missing drill to him, but Bill isn’t appreciative.
Brian and Craig find John and warn him that he shouldn’t be hanging around the closed school. Later, Brian goes missing, and someone trashes the nice dinner that Joanne made for everyone. They all assume that it was John getting his revenge.
Joanne calls the police about John. The officer says the description sounds like a guy they just picked up not far from here.
Joanne hears someone up on the roof; she tries to call the police but the phone and the power suddenly go out. Brian goes to check on the breaker, but he runs into the killer by accident. Craig comes in, he thought the power outage was a prank. The killer grabs Patti from behind and puts her in a boiling pot in the kitchen.
We cut to John, wandering the halls with a machete and looking terrified. Craig and Joanne go out searching. John attacks them, knocking out Craig and scaring Joanne. “Open the door. You’ve got to trust me. I came back here to find you.” He looks and sounds crazy. She finds Brian’s corpse behind her, and then she attacks John with the machete that was stuck in Brian.
Joanne and Craig gang up on John and beat him severely. Joane wants to leave right now, but Craig says they killed John together. “It’s been me the whole time. I’m the one. John knew all along, that’s why he’s been trying to warn you.” She punches Craig and runs away.
Joanne finds a tunnel out of the building with a big “Beware of Rats” sign on the door. When Craig goes back for a flashlight, she doubles back, but he grabs her anyway.
He then explains how he made it look like it was someone else doing the killings. He shows her Debbie’s family, inside a freezer. She pushes him inside and locks the door; he soon gets out and chases her some more.
Bobby Lee arrives outside with his truck, whistling “Jingle Bells” as he scrounges for useful junk. He hears Criag explaining the whole thing, but he can’t get in the building. Three cops also show up.
Craig jumps Bobby Lee, and they fight for a bit. Bobby Lee wins the fight, but then the police pull their guns on him. Craig yells that Bobby Lee is the killer, so they shoot him. The cops help Craig up and then they all run upstairs to find bodies.
Craig picks up Joanne’s unconscious body and carries her to the incinerator…
Outside, the policemen stand next to the smoking chimney as they call in for more ambulances.
Brian’s Commentary
Oddly enough, these students aren’t potheads or sex fiends who are getting killed, these are all the good, hardworking students looking to make a few bucks over break. It was still obvious all along who the “final girl” was going to be, but at least it wasn’t for the usual reasons.
It’s got a great set and location, it really looks like an abandoned building. The cast is fine but not really standout. The plot is the same as a hundred other kill-them-one-by-one films we’ve seen.
Kevin’s Commentary
It’s a standard slasher film of the 80s for the most part. A couple differences are that it’s not a bunch of youngsters doing drugs and having continuous sex. And you’ll be right about who the survivor girl is, but she doesn’t survive. The baddie, just a regular human guy, gets away with it. It’s worth checking out if you like these kinds of movies and want to collect another.
1944 Curse of the Cat People
Directed by Gunther von Fritsch, Robert Wise
Written by DeWitt Bodeen
Stars Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Jane Randolph
Run Time: 1 Hour, 10 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
It’s presented as a sequel to 1942’s “Cat People,” and there is a thin connection. Except they didn’t put in any Cat People, and there’s barely any cat. There might be a ghost, but it’s really pushing it to call it horror. It’s an okay family drama about a little girl with an overactive imagination who struggles to fit in without being judged insane. Though she might be skirting the edge of it. We’d rate it as just okay, and downright misleading in the title and the scary-looking poster.
Spoilery Synopsis
A bunch of kids take a class trip to the park. Some boys see a black cat in a tree and pretend to shoot it. The girls all pick on Amy because she’s “only a little different.” She talks to bugs. A boy squishes a butterfly, and she slaps him; this results in the parents being called.
The principal talks to Oliver and Alice, from the first film, about Amy’s lack of friends. “Something moody; something sickly. She’s almost like Irena’s child,” Oliver thinks. Alice says he spends too much time thinking about Irena, and Amy really is Alice’s child.
Amy has a birthday party, and no children show up. Amy begged to mail the invitations herself, but then she didn’t. It turns out that she put them in an old tree that she imagines is a magic mailbox, not a real mailbox. The three have a small party, just them and Edward, the servant. She wishes to “be a good girl” and act like a normal kid.
Amy goes exploring at the nearby haunted house, and someone inside gives her a ring. Could it be a magic wishing ring? Amy says, “I wish for a friend,” with her new ring. She tells Oliver about the house later, and he gets angry– she’s just too bound up in fantasies and her overactive imagination.
Alice tells Amy that she needs to return that ring to the old house. Mrs. Callahan, the teacher, comes over, and they talk about Oliver’s first wife, and how he hasn’t really gotten over her. Sometimes, Alice thinks Irena haunts the house.
Meanwhile, Amy goes back to the old house to return the ring. She meets Barbara Farren, who is sullen and creepy. The old woman comes in, laughing like a maniac, and gives Amy a good scare. “I’ve been watching you,” Julia Farren says. She’s an aging stage actress who doesn’t want the ring back. She doesn’t much care for Barbara, “a liar and a cheat!” The old lady then tells little Amy the story of the headless horseman. Barbara shows them the way out, but she never says a word.
Julia says her daughter Barbara died when she was six, but adult Barabara swears she’s really Julia’s daughter. “You are an imposter!” the old woman proclaims.
That night Amy dreams about the headless horseman, but this time, the wishing ring brings her someone else. A ghost who sings her a Christmas song– in French.
The next morning, Amy finds a photo of Irena, Oliver’s dead wife. She likes the name and soon sees that the ghost is Irena herself. “I come from great darkness and deep peace. You must promise never to tell anyone about me.” They play all day, but winter is coming, and it’s getting cold outside…
Christmas is coming, and now everything is decorated. Amy has gotten gifts for everyone she knows, plus one box with no name on it. A bunch of carolers come by and Alice invites them all inside. Amy sees Irena outside singing along with them, again in French. Amy gives her her present. Later, she takes a gift to Mrs. Farren who hasn’t even opened Barbara’s gift.
Soon, Christmas is over and they burn bits of the tree in the fireplace for luck. Amy finds another photo of Irena, and this time, she tells Oliver that she’s her special friend. “She plays with me in the garden all the time,” says Amy. “She’s there whenever I call her.”
They go outside. Amy sees Irena, but Oliver doesn’t see anyone. He tries to make her say she doesn’t see anyone, but she doesn’t cooperate. Oliver takes Amy upstairs and spanks her. “First spanking is an important occasion,” says Miss Callahan.
Oliver tells Callahan about the lies that Irena told herself; “In the end, she went completely mad. She killed a man and then killed herself.” Callahan tells him all about imaginary friends and that it isn’t so unusual.
Irena appears to Amy and says goodbye before vanishing. Amy goes out into the snowy woods looking for her vanished friend. She hears the headless horseman and hides from him in terror– nope, it’s just a car. She gets lost in the blizzard and eventually ends up at the Farren house.
The old woman complains “It was on a night like this that Barbara died.” Barbara tries again to explain that she really is her daughter. Barbara blames all this on Amy. “If that little girl comes by again, I’ll kill her!”
The police have bloodhounds out looking for Amy, who has passed out in the snow. She hears the dogs and runs away, banging on the old woman’s door. “I must hide you,” says the crazy old woman. She collapses on the stairs, too old to go all the way up.
Barbara spots Amy and closes in malevolently. “Even my mother's last moment you’ve stolen from me!” Suddenly, Amy sees Irena and hugs her. It’s really Barbara, who hears Amy calling her “my friend” and can’t harm her now. Oliver, Alice, and the police barge in.
Amy says she still sees Irena in the garden, and now Oliver says he can see her too..
Brian’s Commentary
This is only marginally related to “Cat People” (1942). It’s got a couple of the same characters, now married with a child, and the main character returns as a ghost. Other than that, there’s nothing here about cat people or curses at all. It’s mostly about a child with an overactive imagination and how people think she’s borderline insane– or maybe it’s a ghost story.
It’s barely horror. It’s barely a sequel. It’s an OK story, but the whole title is very misleading.
Kevin’s Commentary
The poster is cool; the best part of the whole affair. The movie doesn’t live up to it. Sometimes, when a movie ends, you wonder what happened next to some of the characters, and this gives us a continuation of sorts from “Cat People.” But it’s not really very interesting, and certainly pushing it to call it horror. I’d rate it “meh.”
Short Films:
2024 Short Film: Hide Your Crazy
Directed by Austin Kase
Written by Austin Kase
Stars Amy-Helene Carlson, Will Toussaint
Run Time: 13:36
Watch it:
What Happens
Iris rushes into her house to find that she’s not alone. It’s a surprise birthday party set up by her boyfriend, Dan. She is surprised, for sure, but not exactly happy about it as he explains everything. He’s also cleaned her kitchen, which upsets her tremendously. She insists that he leave, but he demands to stay and talk it out. He soon finds that she’s more than just a little uptight.
Commentary:
“I’m not uptight, all right!?!?!”
The moral of the story is to never throw out someone else’s goat intestines and pig’s blood!
It’s very well-acted and nicely shot. We know because of the type of film that something nasty is gonna happen, but it all starts out normal enough, cute even. Then it gets really weird, really fast. The special effects are really well done and look great as well.
This is just… cute.
2014 Short Film: Flesh Computer
Directed by Ethan Shaftel
Written by Ethan Shaftel
Stars David Chalmers, Elle Gabriel, Anthony Guerino
Run Time: 13:12
Watch it:
What Happens
We watch a girl with a cybernetic eye playing with a toy robot as a man on TV talks about consciousness and self. We cut to a couple of angry drunks outside, shooting at bottles and cats. We then cut to a man building a computer interface to a pulsing, living blob. Soon, all three of these groups combine in a very dangerous way…
Commentary
This is really neat and really weird. It’s got that whole futuristic cyberpunk grittiness, but the characters are all relatable and believable. The special effects here are mixed; the CGI fly is pretty awful, but the flesh computer and what it does toward the end are pretty good. The film is ten years old, so it can get by with the fly thing.
It’s quite good!
2024 Short Film: Slashing Through the Snow
Directed by Chance Stewart
Written by Chance Stewart
Stars Hannah Dienhart, Zion Baron, Conrinne Nuncio, Liz Luna, Hayden Stewart
Run Time: 12:10
Watch it:
What Happens
Cindy and Billy argue about her sleeping with his best friend. They hear a news report about a madman running loose in the neighborhood, and they’ve left the back door unlocked. Mayhem ensues.
Commentary
It’s got a decent enough story and it moves quickly. There’s some drama so we care about the characters, but the cinematography leaves a bit to be desired. Some scenes are blurry, the audio is a little mushy, and at times, it’s overshadowed by the music. It was a student film, so we’ll cut it some slack– there’s a complete story here, and there’s never any doubt as to what’s going on. It delivers some slashy goodness.
2024 Short Film: The Bottom
Directed by Morgan Ruaidhrí O'Sullivan, James Kautz
Written by James Kautz
Stars Alex Grubbs, James Kautz, Earl Rothfus
Run Time: 8:05
Watch it:
What Happens
“What’s at the bottom of the lake? What’s waiting down there?” One man points a shotgun at a naked man at the side of the lake. He’s going to shoot if the naked man doesn’t do as he’s told. These guys have been friends a long time, so there’s some confusion as to why this is happening. The two talk back and forth, playing mind games with each other. How will this end?
Commentary
It certainly looks cold, that’s for darned sure. John really knows how to hold a grudge, even after 25 years. Will he go into the lake, or won’t he? And what will he find if he does? There’s some psychological metaphorical thing going on here that I don’t quite grasp, but it’s very well-made and creepy, even without any obvious gore.
2024 Short Film: Twinkle
Directed by Kheireddine El-Helou
Written by Kheireddine El-Helou
Stars Britni Camacho, Gregory Battle
Run Time: 4:02
Watch it:
What Happens
A woman takes care of an old deaf man, her father. She turns on his hearing aid and then goes into the next room to make tea. The old man starts hearing mysterious music in his hearing aid. There’s a bright light from outside and a wave of pulsating energy wave sweeps through. The lights blink, and when the girl returns, her father gets up out of his wheelchair, a new man...
Commentary
It’s very sharp-looking in black and white.
We don’t know exactly what happened here or why. Since it also happened outside, I’m guessing an alien attack or something of the sort. Or possibly some sort of energy burst from the sun or out in space. There’s a lot of the story we don’t get, but what we do see is interesting and very well shot– I’d like to see more of this story!
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