More streaming picks for your #ScaryMovieMonth viewing!
Friday, October 18, 2019
I Stream, You Stream Vol. 121
by Patrick Bromley
The Battery (2013, dir. Jeremy Gardner) With Zombieland: Double Tap in theaters today, we're reminded of just how worn out the zombie genre has become. The Battery is the antidote for that. The super low-budget (reportedly about $6,000) debut feature from writer/director/star Jeremy Gardner knocked my socks off when I finally saw it (after lots and lots of hype) a few years back on Scream Factory's Blu-ray. It's a very different kind of zombie movie, which is exactly what we need at a time when the genre is so over saturated and played out. If you haven't yet seen it, you really should rectify that. Even if you don't love it -- and you really ought to love it -- you'll at least know you've seen something. And The Battery is something. Jeremy Gardner's latest is making the festival rounds now and I can't wait to see it. (Watch on Amazon Prime)
Lady in White (1988, dir. Frank LaLoggia) This late '80s ghost story kicked off the 24-hour marathon Erika and I did last weekend, and I was really happy with how well it played for both her and our 10-year old son Charlie, who sat captivated by the whole thing. Lukas Haas plays a kid in the early '60s who gets locked in a coatroom at school, where he both sees a ghost and survives a murder attempt. Where it goes from there, I won't say. The film is sincere almost to a fault, but viewers who can get on its wavelength will find a lot to like. This is a good gateway horror movie for kids, provided you're ok with them seeing some of the darker elements. (Watch free with ads on TubiTV)
The Forest of Lost Souls (2017, dir. José Pedro Lopes) A beautiful, stark black and white thriller about a young woman and an older man who meet up in the suicide forest. I won't spoil where it goes from there, because the movie's lack of predictability is one of its charms: it starts and ends as something very different. At under 80 minutes, it knows how to get it and get the job done quickly. That almost never happens anymore. (Watch on Hulu)
Waxwork (1988, dir. Anthony Hickox) This one came up on the podcast this week in a conversation about director Anthony Hickox. This is still my favorite of his films. If '80s horror can be characterized by the mix of comedy and horror, a sense of fun, and lots of practical makeup and gore effects, then Waxwork is one of the most '80s horror movies ever made. It's a good pick for this month because it throws so many things together in the same movie -- the Cabin in the Woods of its day. Also Deborah Foreman. Also Michelle Johnson. (Watch free with ads on Vudu)
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Watched The Battery during Junesploitation and it was a breath of fresh air for sure.
ReplyDeleteJeremy Gardner's latest film, After Midnight, is also superbly made on a shoestring budget. Someone give this guy a few million.
ReplyDeleteLady in White sounds pretty cool, I might need to watch that this week! I also need to see Waxwork--that cover art always enchants me.
ReplyDeleteGreat suggestions as always!
Just saw The Battery and loved it so much a favourite of SMM. I was lucky enough to see his latest Something Else (or it might be called After Midnight now or not) at a festival. See it when you can, it's wonderful. It plays with similar themes of Battery but more controlled. It's a favourite of the year for me.
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