Halloween Horrorfest: Poltergeist

When I realized that Poltergeist turned 40 this year, I knew what movie I needed to review to close out this year's Spooky Season. Few films have garnered the reputation this one has, especially for people my age, as not only an exceptionally scary movie but also as an allegedly cursed film. I'm not sure I believe in that last part but it is a film that has by and large held up remarkably well as a supremely scary movie. 

Steven and Diane Freeling (played by Craig T. Nelson and JoBeth Williams) live in the suburban housing development Cuesta Verde with their three kids, Dana (played by Dominique Dunn), Robbie (played by Oliver Robins) and Carol Anne (played by Heather O'Rourke). Late one night, Carol Anne begins conversing with the family television set while the set is on static. When she does it again the next night, a ghostly white hand emerges from the television and the house is rocked by a earthquake, after which Carol Anne eerily announces, "They're here." Strange events occur the next day, including furniture moving on it's own, glasses breaking and silverware getting bent. Things escalate when the creepy old Oak tree outside the kids' room comes to life, breaks through the window and snatches Robbie right out of bed. While the rest of her family is distracted with rescuing Robbie, Carol Ann is pulled into a portal that opens in her bedroom closet. Not knowing how to rescue their daughter, Steven and Diane reach out to Parapsychologist Dr. Martha Lesh (played by Beatrice Straight) and her colleagues, Dr. Marty Casey (played by Martin Casella) and Dr. Ryan Mitchell (played by Richard Lawson). They eventually bring in a medium, Tangina Barrons (played by Zelda Rubinstein) to assist further once they realize just how much paranormal activity they are dealing with. 

Poltergeist is a unique collaboration between co-screenwriter and producer Steven Spielberg and Director Tobe Hooper. Controversy has raged to this day as to who the actual director of the film is. Tobe Hooper is the credited director for the film but rumors persist that Spielberg actually ghost directed the movie. I watched it again the other night with this controversy in mind to see if my knowledge of both filmmakers to see what I could discern and honestly, the bulk of the movie feels more like a Tobe Hooper movie than a Spielberg movie. That said, Spielberg's fingerprints are still all over it. He co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Grais and Mark Victor from a story he developed with Hooper. There are also some trademark Spielberg shots that show just how involved he was with the production and collaborated on shot setups and storyboards for the movie. Together, the two managed to craft one of the all time scary movies accentuated with a unique take on the haunted house genre and memorable special effects that still hold up today, including a couple really gnarly ones that had me wondering aloud, "This movie is rated PG?!". No doubt, this movie (along with Gremlins and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom a couple years later) would bring about the need for the PG-13 rating. 

The cast for the film is fantastic. JoBeth Williams does quite well as Diane Freeling, who finds herself tested in ways she could never imagine trying to protect her family from the evil forces that have invaded her home but she does a magnificent job portraying Diane's strength and resilience as she does what is needed to protect her kids. Craig T. Nelson is great as Steven, who is trying his best to cope with everything that is going on around him but of the two parents is definitely the more skeptical one, despite everything that is happening. Still, Nelson has one of my favorite moments late in the movie when he finally realizes the reason for the hauntings and has an epic meltdown on his boss, subdivision developer Lewis Teague (played by James Karen). I won't get into specifics because of spoilers, but it has been replaying in my head for the past day since I watched the movie. Beatrice Straight gives a  warm and caring performance as Dr. Lesh, trying to be reassuring to the Freelings even as she tries to figure out how to help them. Zelda Rubinstein is instantly iconic from the moment she steps on-screen as Tangina, giving her character a sort of no-nonsense seriousness that makes her character so memorable. Heather O'Rourke adds a certain otherworldliness to Carol Ann while being absolutely precious and lovable that makes it easy for her to endear herself to the audience, which is important since she spends so much of the movie off screen. 

Of course, Poltergeist would go on to spawn two sequels of varying quality but neither would match the original, which still holds up as the best film. I may have to cover the sequels at some point because neither is bad necessarily, but neither is perfect either. The first film stands on it's own as a classic scary movie (I think I can say that since it's 40 years old now) and perfect Halloween viewing for the whole family. I, for one, can't wait to show this one to my nephews. How else are they going to develop a totally normal and rational fear of clown dolls, skeletons, and half-finished swimming pools?   

Halloween Horrorfest: Session 9

Session 9 is a movie that I certainly knew by reputation as a very good scary movie but was one I kept putting off until finally this year I decided I was finally going to sit down and watch it. I went in knowing only the basic premise and not much else and was surprised what an effective little flick this was. 

Gordon Fleming (played by Peter Mullan) is the owner of a hazardous waste removal company. He and his associate Phil (played by David Caruso) are called in to assess cleaning up and removing asbestos from the abandoned Danvers State Mental Hospital. Desperate to land the bid, he agrees to have the job done in one week instead of the two-three weeks it would realistically take. They assemble a crew that includes Mike (played by Stephen Gevedon), a law school dropout who is familiar with the history of the asylum, Hank (played by Josh Lucas), a gambling addict who stole Phil's girlfriend, and Jeff (played by Brendan Sexton III), Gordon's nephew who has a pathological fear of the dark. As the crew gets to work with the clean-up, unsettling things begin to happen. Gordon hears a voice greet him by name and finds himself strangely drawn to the nearby cemetery that contains the remains of over 700 patients. Mike discovers a bunch of abandoned case files, including one in particular of a patient named Mary Hobbes, who suffered from Dissociative Identity Disorder. He starts to listen to a group of tapes he found of sessions between her and her doctor, a total of 9 sessions. As the days go on, the place starts to have an effect on each of the guys as they each begin to experience unsettling things within the confines of the hospital, taking a toll on their own mental health.

The film was directed by Brad Anderson from a script he co-wrote with Stephen Gevedon. There is a definite slow burn pacing to the film as it establishes the hospital and it's history as the film builds it's tension and sense of dread. The film was shot on location in the actual abandoned Danvers State Mental Hospital in Massachusetts and apparently they had to do very little work dressing the sets for the film. Much of what we see in the film is actually how it was, with all the abandoned equipment, as well as much of the vandalism and deterioration of the property being exactly as they found it. It's such a large and imposing building as well it is practically another character in the movie, not unlike the Overlook Hotel in The Shining, which this movie takes more than a little inspiration from. Still, the story did keep me on my toes throughout. I knew things were going to go wrong, I just wasn't quite sure how. This movie is also an example of less is more, using the atmosphere of the setting, the sound design and effective cinematography, as well as an effective score from Climax Golden Twins, to create the scares rather than CGI and extensive practical effects. 

The cast is really solid, led by Peter Mullan as Gordon. He captures his character's increasingly fragile mental state quite well without overdoing it. He really conveys the pressure he's under and how much is riding on this job so he can keep his company afloat. There are also certain other secrets with his character that he reveals in a way that is compelling and at times rather sympathetic. David Caruso handles the role of Phil well, who throughout the film is the voice of reason trying to keep it together for the rest of the group. Josh Lucas is clearly reveling playing the scummy and shady Hank, who loves to tease and torment his co-workers, among many other things. Brendan Sexton III gives some real vulnerability to his character of Jeff. He's a bit of a goof, but Sexton keeps him sympathetic without being annoying. 

Overall, I found Session 9 lived up to it's reputation as a unique and chilling spook flick, using atmosphere and subtlety to deliver it's scares. It may have taken inspiration from films that came before, but it also stands on its own as a unique and genuinely scary movie. I'm only sorry I waited this long to actually watch this one. 

  

Halloween Horrorfest: Urban Legend

On the surface, Urban Legend (or Lurban Egend, as it was referred to by my friend group back in the day for some reason) is a pretty shameless rip-off of the Scream films with a killer taking inspiration from famous urban legends rather than horror movies. That doesn't mean it's not an entertaining movie on it's own. Heck, in it's heyday, they Slasher genre was just a bunch of filmmakers shamelessly ripping each other off to varied success. Why should it be any different in the 90s? 

On a rainy night, Michelle Mancini (played by Natasha Gregson-Wagner) is decapitated with an axe while driving down an isolated road by an unseen attacker in her back seat (believe me, I have spent the past 24 years trying to figure out how they managed to do that too, even if the car was a huge SUV). Meanwhile, on the Pendleton College Campus, Natalie (played by Alicia Witt) is hanging out with her friends Brenda (played by Rebecca Gayheart) and Parker (played by Michael Rosenbaum) as the latter regales them with the tale of the Stanley Hall massacre that happened on campus back in the 70s, which Journalism student Paul (played by Jared Leto), overhearing the conversation, is quick to try to debunk. News of Michelle's murder spreads across campus the following morning, but Dean Adams (played by John Neville) and Campus Security Officer Reese (played by Loretta Devine) try their best to cover up the story, to the frustration of Paul when he finds them pulling copies of the school paper with the story he wrote about it featured on the front cover. Natalie takes the news of Michelle's passing hard as they had been close friends in High School. One of the classes they take is an Urban Folklore class taught by Professor Wexler (played by Robert Englund), who discusses and debunks such urban legends as the one regarding Pop Rocks and Soda. Soon enough, the killer strikes again and again as it becomes clear to Natalie that the killer is targeting her and her friends. Soon, she teams up with Paul to try and figure out who the killer is, their connection to her, and if it has anything to do with the impending anniversary of the legendary Stanley Hall Massacre. 

The film was directed by Jamie Blanks from a script by Silvio Horta. To their credit, they manage to craft a perfectly decent slasher movie with plenty of atmosphere and tension throughout. They even play things mostly serious for the bulk of the run time. The design of the killer, with the over-sized Parka with a large hood obscuring the killer's face is certainly a unique choice, even if it does make them stick out at a time that is definitely not winter. The setting of a secluded New England university certainly adds to the film with it's gothic architecture creating a foreboding mood. The death sequences are certainly memorable and tense as the killer offs the cast one at a time utilizing creative means that recall famous Urban Legends. That's not to say the movie doesn't have a sense of humor, which it certainly does, as the movie gets sillier as it goes along until it gloriously goes off the rails at the end when the killer is finally revealed, throwing everything we have just seen previously into question of plausibility. Even better, the killer gives a deranged rant that is so over the top it even includes a slide show presentation. Trying to figure out how the killer was able to set all this up while also chase after the main characters will no doubt make the viewer go cross-eyed, so best just to sit back and enjoy the lunacy. 

The film does assemble a solid cast of actors, led by Alicia Witt as Natalie. Witt does well in the role, giving her character a real strength and resourcefulness. When the authorities won't believe her that there is a killer on campus, she takes it upon to find out who the killer is. Jared Leto makes a decent partner in investigation as the two team up to figure out who the killer is. Leto also does a well playing to Paul's darker sides, including his lack of empathy regarding the stories he covers as well as being just suspicious enough to potentially be the killer. Rebecca Gayheart is clearly having fun in her role as Natalie's best friend. Loretta Devine his also clearly having fun as the Pam Grier idolizing Campus Security Officer Reese (and apparently the only Campus officer...we never see another one, which is...odd). She is easily one of the most memorable characters in the movie and one of the only competent members of the campus staff. Michael Rosenbaum is a hoot as the jokester frat boy Parker, making the most of his supporting role. Robert Englund is also having a good time chewing the scenery as Professor Wexler, being as menacing and suspicious as possible.     

Urban Legend is probably not top tier in the pantheon of 90's slasher flicks, but there is a certain guilty pleasure quality to it that makes it a lot of fun to revisit every couple of years. The movie is very much a product of the 90s, with amusing references to certain Noxzema commercials and a Dawson's Creek reference that will never not be funny to me. It's certainly an entertaining one and there is a certain amount of nostalgia tied up in this one for me to make for a fun late night watch from time to time.       

Halloween Horrorfest: I Know What You Did Last Summer

It's hard to believe that it's been 25 years since I Know What You Did Last Summer was first released to theatres. I was in High School at the time it came out putting me in a prime demographic for this film, released just as the teen slasher flick was having it's renaissance in the late 90's thanks to Scream. In fact, I am surprised I haven't covered this one on my blog yet, but I indeed have not. 

In the small fishing village of Croaker, North Carolina, four friends, Julie James (played by Jennifer Love Hewett), Barry Cox (played by Ryan Phillipe), Helen Shivers (played by Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Ray Bronson (played by Freddie Prinze, Jr.), are celebrating the Fourth of July alone on a secluded beach. They share ghost stories around a camp fire, specifically the urban legend of the escaped mental patient with a hook for a hand. While driving back to town, a drunken Barry distracts Ray, who is driving, causing them to accidentally hit a pedestrian. Panicking and fearing this could ruin their futures, they panic and decide to dump the body off a nearby dock. After, they make a pact to never tell anyone what happened that night. A year later, Julie returns from college. She is withdrawn and has been struggling with school. She has lost contact with the other three over the past year. However, she quickly tracks them down when she receives an anonymous note reading: I Know What You Did Last Summer. Initially, they suspect a former classmate, Max (played by Johnny Galecki), but it becomes clear it isn't him when a mystery assailant dressed in a fisherman slicker and hat starts tormenting each one of them to make them pay for their past misdeeds. 

The film was directed by Jim Gillespie from a script by Kevin Williamson, and is very loosely based on a novel by Lois Duncan. I say that because aside from the initial premise and the characters, the movie and book bear little similarity to one another. The biggest change is that the movie is a full on slasher movie with an actual body count, with the Fisherman character stalking our characters with a large, sharp meat hook. This proved to be a controversial change, especially with Lois Duncan who hated the idea of her novel being turned into a cheap slasher flick. Except, the film actually works well mixing in elements of mystery and thriller elements while downplaying explicit gore (there is actually very little in the movie). The writing is sharp, as one would expect from Kevin Williamson, with witty dialogue and tight plotting as the four characters try to figure out the identity of their tormentor, especially as the attacks on them escalate. I appreciated the morality play aspect of the film as well, the way it turns the screws on these four that committed a crime and their past sins come back to haunt them a year later. Of course, this plot point prevents them from going to the police too so it falls to them to try and save themselves. 

For the main cast, they assembled four of the then hottest up and coming actors. Jennifer Love Hewitt gives Julie the perfect mix of vulnerability and strength. Julie is the voice of reason for the group and Hewitt portrays that wonderfully. She even makes one of the silliest moments in the movie, when Julie stands in the middle of the road yelling to the unseen killer, "What are you waiting for?!", work so well it is kind of awesome. Sarah Michelle Gellar has a trickier role as Helen, since her character is a recently crowned beauty queen, has a bit of an ego and has some bitchier tendencies, yet Gellar is able to still make her character likable. She is at her best when she is investigating with Hewitt, trying to figure out the identity of not only their attacker but the person they hit that night. She also has one of the all time great chase scenes towards the end of the movie between her and the killer that ranks among the best in the genre. Ryan Phillipe's role as Barry is another tricky role as his character is snob, a hothead and reckless to a fault. In short, he's a bit of an asshole. Still, Phillipe brings enough charm to the character to keep him compelling even when he's not particularly likable. Freddie Prinze, Jr. does reasonably well as Ray, who has to play many of his scenes two ways, as both the friendly Ray, but also possibly as the one who is actually their mysterious tormentor as the film tries to make him a viable suspect, except I never really bought into it as a viewer myself. Anne Heche turns up for a couple scenes as a potential suspect Julie and Helen talk to in the film and she gives her performance a certain edge of menace and mystery that make her character memorable.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that this movie is actually 25 years old now. It was certainly popular when it came out, staying at #1 at the Box Office for three weeks. It spawned two sequels, neither of which were as good as this one (although I Still Know What You Did Last Summer does have it's moments). It also has a TV series remake on Amazon Prime that I never bothered to watch because everyone told me it was terrible. Still, on it's own, as I rewatched the movie again on 4K Blu-Ray, I feel like time has been kind to this one. It still works as a very entertaining horror thriller all these years later. What more can you ask for than that?             

Halloween Horrorfest: Ernest Scared Stupid

There are a number of films that I remember fondly from my childhood and many of them I still watch and enjoy from time to time as an adult with a similar appreciation. One series of films that seemed to fall through the cracks over time was the Ernest films, starring Jim Varney, that were popular from the late eighties through the early nineties and I have fond memories seeing a couple of them in the theater even with my Dad and my Brother. I've recently been revisiting these to see if they still hold up including, for the Halloween Season, his final theatrical feature Ernest Scared Stupid. 

Ernest P. Worrell (played by Jim Varney) lives a simple life in the small town of Briarville, Missouri with his beloved dog Rimshot and his quirky inventions. He works in the city Sanitation department and is tasked with cleaning up around the estate of Old Lady Hackmore (played by Eartha Kitt). After she chases him away, Ernest meets a few of his middle school friends, Kenny (played by Austin Nagler), Elizabeth (played by Shay Astar) and Joey (played by Alec Klapper), and agrees to help them build a treehouse after their planned haunted house gets trashed by local bullies, Mike and Matt Murdock (played by Nick Victory and Richard Woolf). Turns out, the big, old, gnarly tree they pick to build their treehouse on grows over an entrapped troll named Trantor. In the late 19th century, the troll was captured and imprisoned in the ground by the townsfolk of Briarville, led by Phineas Worrell (played by Jim Varney). Before he was imprisoned, the troll placed a curse on the town that one day he would be release on the night before Halloween by a Worrell and that each passing generation of Worrell would get dumber and dumber until the dumbest one would be foolish enough to release him. Of course, as Ernest relates the story to the kids he manages to do just that. Realizing what has happened, Ernest tries to warn the townsfolk of the troll's return. When no one believes him, it falls to Ernest to mount a one man (and one dog) operation to stop Trantor and save the children of Briarville, who Trantor intends to turn into wooden dolls and use them to bring forth an army of trolls. 

The film was directed by John Cherry from a script by Charlie Gale and Coke Sams. Revisiting this movie all these years later, and it's probably been a good thirty years since I last saw it, I was surprised by how much of it I actually remembered. The film is an odd mix of very goofy comedy with some genuinely creepy and spooky moments, including a couple moments that I remember actually starling me a bit as a kid. Based on what I have read online in the past few years, as I came to realize this movie had a bit of a cult following, was that others shared similar reactions of finding this film genuinely scary as kids. Now, watching it as an adult I did not have the same reaction, but I still clearly could recall the moments that did scare me as a kid, so there is something to this after all. The effects for the trolls are solid, with the main troll Trantor being a large, slimy, nasty creature, no doubt contributing to little kids nightmares. Yet, this is paired with very silly comedy with Jim Varney mugging for the camera at every opportunity in the one part of this film that probably did not age as well for me. Some of it works but a lot of it didn't as I revisited the film. 

There is something that I still find endearing about the character of Ernest P. Worrell and the way Jim Varney plays him. The character has a certain innocence about him and yes, there is some foolishness and stupidity there too, but the character always means well and that makes it easy to like him. At different times in the film, Ernest adopts a series of different personas that I still find amusing, including a army general and my favorite, Auntie Nelda, who is a eternally put upon older woman who complains constantly. It's completely ridiculous of course and Varney switches rapidly between the personas to the befuddlement of his middle school friends and probably the viewer as well. Eartha Kitt is clearly having a blast playing Old Lady Hackmore, playing up the character's eccentricities in a very amusing performance as she initially warns Ernest not to build the treehouse in the old gnarly oak tree and later becomes his ally in trying to defeat Trantor. Bill Byrge returns as one of Ernest's friends Bobby Tulip, this time paired with Tom, played by John Cadenhead, on hand to sell Ernest an assortment of troll fighting items, none of which do any good at all. Austin Nagler does reasonably well as Kenny, often playing the straight man to Ernest's goofy antics throughout the movie.  

One very interesting thing about re-watching this movie all these years later is discovering just how much the plot resembles another beloved Halloween film called Hocus Pocus, which came out two years later. An ancient evil lays down a curse before they are defeated only to have the curse fulfilled many many years later by a foolish individual only for it to fall to that individual, and their friends, to defeat the threat themselves and save the day. I'm not saying one is ripping off the other, but the similarities are striking and amusing. As it stands on it's own, I imagine one's mileage would vary greatly with Ernest Scared Stupid, depending on one's tolerance for silly humor, Jim Varney's mugging and the amount of nostalgia one has for these films. Since I do, I found I still enjoyed the film all these years later and look forward to revisiting some of the others. 

  

Halloween Horrorfest: Halloween Ends

This new trilogy of Halloween films has proven to be some of the more interesting installments in the veritable horror franchise, breaking new ground and exploring themes of trauma and fear in very grounded ways. These themes continue in new and interesting ways in the concluding chapter, Halloween Ends. Already proving to be a divisive film, I was actually surprised by how much I actually liked it. This is going to be a tricky one to review without getting into some spoilers, so if you don't want to be spoiled at all consider this your warning. 

On Halloween Night 2019, Corey Cunningham (played by Rohan Campbell) is babysitting a young boy, Jeremy (played by Jaxon Goldberg). When the boy dies in a tragic accident, Corey is branded a pariah by the town of Haddonfield. Three years later, Corey is living under a cloud of guilt and barely getting by working at his uncle's auto shop and junk yard. One day, he crosses paths with Laurie Strode (played by Jamie Lee Curtis) while being hassled by some local punks. She takes him to the hospital to get a cut he endured treated, introducing him to her granddaughter Allyson (played by Andi Matichak) in the process. Corey and Allyson hit it off, beginning a tentative relationship. When Corey is again jumped by the same bullies, this time beat up and pushed off a bridge, Corey finds himself face to face with Michael Myers (played by James Jude Courtney), who has been living for the four years in the sewers of Haddonfield, defeated but not dead. Michael seems to recognize something in the young man, the evil that has been part of him for so long spreads to Corey as well unleashing a new wave of terror on Haddonfield. 

The film was once again directed by David Gordon Green, from a script he co-wrote with Paul Brad Logan, Chris Bernier, and Danny McBride. The film takes some large departures from the previous Halloween films and in many ways is all better for it. This film is far more interested in the impact and after effects a rampage like Michael had over the course of the last two movies can have on a community. The way that sort of evil had a ripple effect over the entire community. It delves into how a community in need of a new boogeyman after Michael's disappearance winds up creating one. Alongside this is a theme of moving on and healing from trauma, especially with Laurie and Allyson's characters. It's a bold choice that will understandably divide audiences, with some expecting yet another slaughterhouse while others are intrigued to be getting something new. The film signals this to fans right from the beginning, adopting the same font and color to the opening credits as seen in Halloween III: Season of the Witch, the last entry in the series to break free from the established formula. However, unlike that film, Michael Myers does appear in this one but much more of a broken down old man, which makes sense given all the damage he received over the past two films. Along with this, the film still manages to work in nods not only to the previous Halloween films, but other John Carpenter films as well, especially some pretty overt nods to his film Christine, with the character Corey.  Still, not all the elements of the film pay off as well as I would have hoped, especially Corey's descent into darkness feeling too abrupt. The final showdown between Laurie and Michael might also leave some disappointed, but considering we already had the big, epic fight in Halloween H20, this one offers something a little different. 

The cast is led by Jamie Lee Curtis, who we find in a very different place than we left her four years prior. She has been working through her trauma by writing a book about her experiences and trying to live a more open life alongside her granddaughter. Curtis goes all in too, no doubt thrilled to be able to bring new dimensions to the character, crafting a Laurie who has finally allowed herself to start healing. Andi Matichak has a similar arc as Allyson, who likewise is trying to move on with her life after the death of her parents at the hands of Michael Myers. She sees an opportunity for that with Corey. Matichak handles the role as well, someone who is trying to figure out what their future should be and perhaps feeling a bit stuck and bit lost, which would explain why she goes all in with Corey so fast. Rohan Campbell does well as Corey, creating a sympathetic performance that makes his character's descent all the more tragic. Will Patton once again turns up at Frank Hawkins as he and Laurie continue their flirtatious relationship from the past two movies, which is very endearing as both seem almost hesitant to take it further than that. Kyle Richards also turns up several times in the film as Lindsey Wallace, who goes back to the first film with Jamie Lee Curtis and it's great to see another legacy character in the film. I loved that they had a more well established friendship this time around, especially since they didn't share any screen time in the previous film. James Jude Courtney once again proves to be an intimidating figure as Michael Myers, while adding new dimensions to the character. This time around, Michael has been hiding away, healing up from the events of the previous films. He's moving slower, stumbling a bit, like not everything healed correctly (not much for medical care in the sewers of Haddonfield after all). Despite that, he still shows Michael is one to be feared and is lethal as ever, even if it's maybe a little more of a fair fight this time. 

Still, Halloween Ends definitely lives up to it's title. The filmmakers took a big swing with this one making some bold narrative choices that may not quite be a home run but is still a refreshing change of pace after 12 movies that followed a very familiar pattern. This one feels very much like a concluding chapter. The final shots of the movie echo the ending of the original film, minus the mask breathing. Things are at peace, as they should be, as the survivors are finally free to move on. I doubt the Halloween series is truly at an end, as these things never do, but it sure will be interesting to see what form it takes next.         

Halloween Horrorfest: The Midnight Club

"To those before, to those after, to us now, and to those beyond, seen or unseen, here but not here..."

I have fond memories of the Christopher Pike novels from my junior high and high school days. Even at that point, they were already beyond my reading level but I enjoyed the stories as they were all about kids roughly my age, if not a little older. They were also easy reads over the course of an afternoon so I could burn through them. Among my favorites was The Midnight Club, which just premiered the first season on Netflix and I was eager to dive into it. 

Ilonka (played by Iman Benson) had a bright future ahead of her. She was Valedictorian and preparing to head to college in the fall when she is diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer. As she researches her condition, she discovers the story of a patient named Julia Jayne who made a miraculous recovery while staying at Brightcliffe Home Hospice for terminally ill teens. The facility is run by the warm but enigmatic Dr. Georgina Sutton (played by Heather Langenkamp) along with Nurse Practitioner Mark (played by Zach Gilford). Ilonka decides to enroll, hoping that she will find an unconventional cure, just as Julia Jayne had. Upon her arrival, she begins meeting the other residents, including her roommate, Anya (played by Ruth Codd), her acerbic but fiercely protective roommate. She quickly bonds with Kevin (played by Igby Rigney), who she meets when she first arrives. Among the other residents are Spencer (played by Chris Sumpter), Sandra (played by Annarah Cymone), Cheri (played by Adia), Natsuki (played by Aya Furukawa) and Amesh (played by Sauriyan Sapkota). On the first night, Illonka follows Anya when she quietly leaves the room close to midnight. It turns out that every night, the residents convene in the Library, in front of a roaring fireplace, for a meeting of the Midnight Club, where they swap scary stories with the group, with one member taking a turn each night. They also made a pact, if one of them dies, the should make every effort to reach out to the rest of the group from beyond the grave. As Illonka further digs into the history of Brightcliffe and Julie Jayne's miraculous recovery, she discovers there is something decidedly supernatural and potentially sinister about the place 

The series was created by Mike Flanagan and Leah Fong, based on the original novel by Christopher Pike. Christopher Pike was inspired to write the original novel when he received a letter from a fan who was in a terminal cancer ward with several other teens who would meet at midnight every night and discuss his books. He wrote the book specifically for her, but rather than have the characters discuss his books, he had them tell scary stories. This comes full circle with the series though because each story a member tells in the series is and adaptation of another Christopher Pike book. The series has a unique set up in this sense because while it is an adaptation of The Midnight Club, it also is a bit of an anthology series as each story that is told is presented as a vignette with all the characters within the story played be the main cast members. The genres of the stories told are refreshingly varied, spanning from ghost stories to serial killer thriller to science fiction and even a hard boiled detective story. Each story that is told is born from the character telling the tale's own struggles or internal conflicts, with certain thematic parallels to their real world struggles. The show does keep a respectful balance between the scares, both in the stories and in the series as a whole, while treating the characters with dignity and respect, creating a unique blend of scares and heartwarming moments. These are kids struggling with terminal illnesses and each one is carefully fleshed out as we learn their hopes, dreams and fears as they face an unimaginable reality. Setting the series in the mid-90s, when the books originally were published, was a nice touch as well. 

The show assembled an impressive cast led by Iman Benson as Ilonka. She initially arrives at Brightcliffe with the goal of healing herself, but quickly bonds with the others and wants to find a way to cure everyone if she can. Her character is very driven and ambitious, but also has a strong compassionate side and Benson does a fantastic job balancing those two character traits. Ruth Codd has one of the trickiest roles as Anya, who has been through many stages with her illness and it has worn her down, leaving her with a very sarcastic and at times almost bitter personality, but she is also fierce and strong character just without any tolerance for bullshit and speaks her mind freely. It's tough to make a character like Anya likable, but Codd manages to pull it off remarkably well. Igby Rigney is endearing as Kevin, bringing the good hearted character to life quite well, a character who is still trying to cling to his current life, including trying to maintain his relationship with his girlfriend, even though he is terminally ill and it is clearly taking a toll on him. Annarah Cymone has a tricky role as Sandra, who since becoming ill has become deeply religious, something that deeply irritates Spencer, who is gay and in the advanced stages of AIDs. She manages to find a balance with the character who needs her faith to help face her diagnosis but doesn't use to judge others. There is a very touching scene where she reconciles with Spencer that she handles beautifully and moved me to tears. Likewise, Chris Sumpter gives a heartfelt performance as Spencer, who clearly feels isolated in at least some ways from the other teens, as the only gay kid there. The others try to be as supportive as they can but there is only so much we they can do. He wonderfully conveys both the fear and frustration his character feels, while also trying to maintain a strong façade. Zach Gilford turns in a sensitive performance as Mark, the nurse practitioner for the facility that sees over many of the teens care directly, especially Spencer, who he has a certain kinship with as a gay man himself and tries to give him some sense of connection to the LGBTQ community, even if Spencer is primarily stuck in the Hospice. Heather Langenkamp, horror royalty, gives a great performance as Dr. Georgina Sutton. She has a delicate balancing act with the character who has to at once be warm, caring and almost maternal towards the teens under her care, yet knows more than she is letting on and it's not certain you can completely trust her. It was such a thrill seeing her in this and I loved her interactions with the younger characters, especially a scene where she clues them in that she knows they meet in secret every night, "Why do you think there's always fresh firewood every night?"         

The Midnight Club is another winner of a series from Mike Flanagan, sitting comfortably with his other series such as The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and Midnight Mass. This series even works in some Easter Eggs to his past works, including appearances by his frequent past collaborators, that I won't spoil. Unlike the other series though, this one is not a limited series and leaves the door wide open for a season 2. Considering how much I thoroughly enjoyed this series, I have my fingers crossed it gets renewed for a Season 2. It doesn't end on a cliffhanger exactly, but it is clear there is still so much more story to tell, both with our group of teens but with Dr. Sutton and Brightcliffe itself. I just hope we get to see it. As it is though, The Midnight Club is fantastic Spooky Season entertainment.