September 18, 2018
Written by: Damien Leone
Starring: Katie Macguire, Catherine A. Callahan, Marie Maser
Quote: "Please the killer is out here, he's following me... a man in a clown costume..."
Trivia: The short films on the VHS tape are actually old films made by the director, Damien Leone, years earlier such as The 9th Circle (2008) and Terrifier (2011).
This film is a three part Halloween anthology where all the stories revolve around a terrifying clown. I decided to give the film a watch to prepare for this spinoff movie that came out recently about the clown called Terrifier (I'm watching that one tomorrow). All Hallows' Eve has a couple great stories, a interesting overarching story, and a truly terrifying clown. Also, despite its small budget, the filmmakers are able to create effective effects and gore. However, the film ultimately lacks originality in its stories causing them to be largely forgettable. This seems to be a problem with anthology films (which is why after more than 100 movies, this is the first one I have watched). It is rare to find anthologies with stories as memorable as Creepshow or Tales for the Hood. Also, the second story about an alien seems to have been an afterthought of the director, filmed in order to fill the third slot necessary in the anthology. Not a bad movie, but not great either.
After trick or treating, a boy and his sister receive an unlabeled VHS tape in their bag. Despite concerns from their babysitter they decide to watch the tape. What ensues is three short horror stories. The first story has a woman kidnapped and drugged by the clown. When she awakes she is chained in a basement with other women. As monsters come in and kill the women, the woman we have been following is able to escape the monster (while trying to kill her he swings his meat cleaver cutting her chain). She is ultimately caught by other demons. The devil (or a devil) then rapes her and a demon baby is cut out of her body as a group surround her. This story seems to be somewhat of an homage to Rosemary's Baby, albeit with more gore and a much quicker moving plot. The second story has a cheesy looking alien that floats around chasing a woman in a country home. He eventually catches her and as she is dragged away, she pulls the sheet off a painting revealing a picture of the clown. The third story follows a college student who walks into the clown chopping up the body of a gas station attendant. What ensues is a long elaborate chase. She tries to call for help but is ultimate caught. The clown then chops her arms and legs off. At this moment, the VHS begins to interact with the babysitter. The clown walks towards the screen as the babysitter tries but fails to turn the tape off. Meanwhile she gets a call from the woman who was killed in the third story asking for help. Finally, she is able to destroy the tape but after checking on the children she discovers that the clown has already killed them.
The filmmakers went out of their way to make the film bloody and shocking. In the film we have two children murdered, a demon/devil rape, a baby cut out of a woman, a woman having all her limbs cut off, and the hacksawing of a man. One would think that these scenes would be really scary or disgusting, but for the most part, they come off as silly. The lack of plot is largely to blame. It seems like the director had ideas about how to shock the audience and then wrote his stories around those making the shocks the focus of the film neglecting character development and story structure. Also, after writing a few words about it, I am even more convinced that the second story about aliens was the director's half-assed attempt to kill time. The first and last stories were shorts that the director shot five and two years before. The alien one was made last. There is no real story and even the clown is not really in the story (alright, his painted picture appears at the end in the story (anti)climax).
What I did really like was the ending. I didn't recognize the voice of the woman on the phone that the college girl calls during the third story. Nor did I recognize that the college girl's voice was the same voice that the babysitter had been talking to over the phone throughout the movie. It wasn't until after the third story when she talks on the phone that I realized the interaction between the VHS stories and real life. Also, I thought it was really effective when she walked into the room to find the mutilated bodies of the children. It is the one moment in the film where the filmmakers showed some restraint and didn't have to show the clown chopping up the bodies. Instead the killings happen off screen and the blood and body parts are more than enough. Subtlety is something this film lacks and it really turns what could be great moments into silly ones.
There are so great moments but the focus on shock and awe makes for a largely unmemorable film. Gore and scares are important, but so to is story.
...what's your thoughts?
No comments:
Post a Comment