As each October approaches I vow to watch thirty-one scary movies throughout the month, one a day (or night). I’ve never actually succeeded or, truth be told, even come close to this goal. The closest I came was a few years ago when our local Albertsons got out of the DVD rental business and I bought their horror section. Yeah, read that again; I bought their horror section.
Once again this year I vowed to watch a gaggle of horror films, and once again I failed. I did, however, manage to squeeze in two movies so far this week.
Paranormal Activity: Filmed for only $15,000, this “spiritual” successor to the Blair Witch fauxumentary (I just made that up) delivers plenty of genuinely creepy moments if you’re willing to perform some serious suspension of belief. In the film we meet twenty-something day trader Micah and his girlfriend Katie, who neglected to mention during their three years of dating that she is occasionally visited at night by a “dark presence.” Through tech-savvy Micah’s camcorder we experience the couple’s experiences with their creepy night visitor. For about the same price as a Kia, Paranormal Activity manages to deliver some real scares. The movie delivers enough tension to keep you from thinking about the plot holes until you get home.
Zombieland: Shaun of the Dead may be the most well-known entry in the “Zombie Horror/Comedy” genre, but Zombieland gives Shawn a run for its money. Like in the 28 Days films, the zombies in Zombieland aren’t the lumbering, stumbling zombies from George Romero’s classic films. In this post-apocalyptic adventure, former-college student Columbus manages to survive by following his own list of rules. Trying to work his way across country, Columbus meets Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a zombie-ass-kicker who constantly suggests people should “nut up or shut up” and laments that when his momma told him he would be good for something, she never imagined it would be killing zombies. Although we really don’t get a good feel of the scope of the zombie infestation until the movie’s climax, Zombieland delivers more laughs than scares and definitely gets two thumbs up.
Sweet dreams are made of these
Who am I to disagree
Zombieland was great. I think it may, over time, prove to be more highly regarded than Shaun of the Dead (which was also great, don’t get me wrong) with respect to American audiences. There’s definitely a lot of potential for sequels too.
Heh, every year I think it would be cool to watch a horror movie a day during October, but life always gets in the way. Watched the original Night of the Living Dead last night.
I’m up to 90 so far. tee hee
Wait a minute….you said get home in the Paranormal review? Did you go to a theater??
@ lethargic: Don’t ask, don’t tell!
I won’t…but….the version of Paranormal Activity on the intertubes is not the same version that is in theaters. It’s the original version from 2006. I like the home version much better that the theatrical. I mean…or so I hear, of course, not that I’ve ever seen it at home or anything.
@Leth: The version floating around on the intertubes now contains both endings.