Collection of Shorts
Not sure why there was a sudden influx of hate for this movie in the first part of October. It's actually a very good movie. I didn't pay much for it, it's obviously a collection of short films made by others, and, it's all wrapped up in a low budget package. However, most of the shorts are VERY well done. A couple are style over substance, but, in anthologies, different people will like different aspects, so, a mixture of decent and weaker stories are to be expected. The opening story, which, actually, seems more of a ghost story montage, is pretty bizarre. What I consider the first actual story is, in my opinion, the best one. Truly creepy, the child actress playing "Mary" does an outstanding job, and this is the stuff of campfire ghost stories. Though most of the ones in the middle are rather "meh", the story about Marta, the Spanish dancer, though groan-inducingly cliche', is, nevertheless, well done. The story about the convict paying for his crime was pointless, but, at least very well acted. One stand-out is the one about the toddler who follows a trail of balloons in her house. Truly disturbing in a rather non-sensical way, I guess that's the point. The final installment is a perfect final act. Truly scary, it ends this film on a high note. The wrapping story is atmospheric if somewhat predictable and lends the proper mood throughout. I can only assume that the hate for this movie comes from jaded 14 year olds who lack the imagination to suspend their disbelief and must depend on lots of CGI gore or something. It's refreshing to see an actual scary movie than one that just throws gore and violence at the audience, not realizing how laughable it all is to any emergency worker that's seen the real thing. Though this movie would probably garner an "R" rating if rated, I think it would make a great Halloween flick for the family; kids are a lot more resilient than our modern formica-plated, sit-com molded, backbone lacking parents give them credit for; this is just the kind of stuff they talk about among themselves. Just look at what kids were reading in the '50s before the self-imposed censorship. Recommended, as long as you realize the inherent shortcomings of the format. Still, this, along with "Trick or Treat", are perhaps the only 2 anthology movies I've enjoyed since the "Tales from the Dark Side" movie (not the lame TV show). Read more