I remember watching the first Scream in 1996 at the theatre with my friends. It was a great Saturday eve slasher, and I loved it. I can still hear the iconic “Hello Sidney”, I think that these 2 words are imprinted in a lot of minds of people of my generation. However, after my disappointment with the second and third movie, I completely gave up on the franchise, and forgot it even existed. Until a new Scream was released this year.

It was fun seeing the old cast back in action, even though I have mixed feelings about Courteney Cox. I know that getting old isn’t easy, whether your appearance is mandatory or not. Every one I know suffers the same fate, and I understand that some people try to escape the inevitability by going to a plastic surgeon. Yet, I think that in most cases plastic surgery makes things far worse than they are. Honestly, I didn’t know whether to be scared of the killer(s) or Courteney Cox’ appearance.

Regardless, Scream 5 was a fun watch and brought back a lot of memories. Don’t expect anything deep though. I pity the ones who watch a slasher movie, and write a bad review cause they expected an award winning quality. Scream is what it is, a perfect Saturday Eve horror movie, and I’m glad a 6th one’ll be released in 2023. To be continued…

In an isolated Oregon town, a middle-school teacher and her sheriff brother become embroiled with her enigmatic student, whose dark secrets lead to terrifying encounters with an ancestral creature. (source: IMDB)

Antlers is an adaptation of Nick Antosca’s short story, “The Quiet Boy” and is Scott Cooper’s first foray into horror filmmaking. Cooper was guided by a hands-on producer and mentor, Guillermo del Toro – the “Monster Maestro” – and it shows.

The creature is impressive, terrifying even, but it’s the boy, Lucas (portrayed by Jeremy T. Thomas), who creates the entire ambiance. He’s awkward, secretive and carries his dark secret like a shadow that engulfs the entire town (which is the same town where Rambo – First Blood was shot).

The disturbing sight of a young boy in such a filthy state added to the poverty that surrounds the townsfolk contribute to keeping the horror grounded in the reality.

Antlers is the real deal, from ambiance to creature creation, it’s what horror should be.

I could copy/paste the synopsis from IMDB, but it’s useless as the plot goes like this: “Make no sound or the beasts will come for you. Oh, and humans are dangerous too”. It’s pretty much the plot of any survival movie/TV show in the last two decades. Why do I sound as unenthusiastic? I’m trying to figure this out for 3 months now and I still don’t know. Actually this post has been like an intestinal obstruction (follow this link, you won’t regret it), preventing me to write the 6 next posts that are on my todo list since January. It’s as if I couldn’t write anything as long as this post wasn’t out of the way.

But, it isn’t as bad as it sounds… I guess the movie reflects what I think about Emily Blunt. Most of the time that she plays in a movie, from Funny Games to Sicario, I’m left with absolutely no feelings. I don’t hate these movies, but I don’t like them either. (with one exception to this rule: Windchill, which I really enjoyed ). But it’s just an analogy, I don’t think that Emily Blunt makes these movies “tasteless”. However, there’s definitely a connection.

Anyway, A quiet place II is a decent sequel to an average movie. I wouldn’t advise my future self against a rewatch. I would maybe see something I didn’t during the first viewing. I definitely wouldn’t rewatch it during a great week-end though, more when I’m sick with the flu, wrapped in a blanket.

When archivist Dan Turner takes a mysterious job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes from 1994, he finds himself reconstructing the work of documentary filmmaker Melody Pendras and her investigation into a dangerous cult. As Dan is drawn into Melody’s story, he becomes convinced he can save her from the terrifying end she met 25 years ago. – IMDb

This TV-show is amazing, I absolutely loved it. First of all, I had no idea that nowadays people would be interested in restoring old tapes. I googled “restoring old tapes”, the amount of results that appeared surprised me. Watching Dan working his magic in Archive 81, was hypnotic. Granted, it was shot in a way that I looked like eye candy. I think that I would have really liked this job.

The videotapes Dan needs to restore, were shot at the Visser in the 90’s. The decade that gems like Twin Peaks and the X-files were created. Archive 81 belongs on that same shelf to me. I think that the reason why I love this TV-show this much is because so many boxes are checked for me. 

Imagine taking on a mysterious job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes in a remote location where there is absolutely no connection, and no way to get in contact with anyone but your shady employer. Things start to happen, and none can be explained scientifically. All you know is that it’s real. If I would have been in Dans’ shoes, I would have gone insane.

I think that this concept mixed with Cthulhu-esque elements like alternate timelines, comets, some otherworldly intoxicating mould, a cult who worships a demon / god named Kaelego,… works like a charm on me. 

Archive 81 is based on a podcast with the same name so I started researching about Kaelego, hoping I would stumble on some ancient historical facts. Of course, like expected, it’s pure fiction (one can only dream). However, I did read an interesting article on Den of Geek about the deity / demon Kaelego, the comets, the Vos Society, the Baldung witches, the Otherworld,… All I can say is that I’m awestruck by the world they’ve created.

There are many references to Dante’s Divine Comedy. The main character’s name is Dan T. (Dante) and he’s being taken on a journey with a man named Virgil (Dante’s guide). I still can’t believe I’ve read those books one day though, it’s not exactly light reading.

The music Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow created for the show is haunting. It crawls under your skin and gives a dark and intense vibe to the show. You feel something building up, like they’re trying to create a rift between two worlds. It’s daunting and tense. It reminds me a lot of Eyes Wide Shut, The Lords of Salem, and Twin Peaks.

There are only a few jump scares in the entire first season, but it weren’t those that scared the living hell out of me. This show is more about a lingering feeling of eeriness / creepiness which creates a tense atmosphere. I absolutely love this kind of thing, and I was sad to hear that Netflix cancelled the show without giving any reason. Regardless, I still don’t give up hope that it’ll be renewed one day.