The Devil's Muse

Category: horror cinema

  • Horror Cinema: Insidious – Chapter 3

    Horror movies are my comfort viewing. I start with my favorite ghost story, Ti West’s The Innkeepers, and then I revisit my favorite franchises, like Wrong Turn, Hatchet or Freddy Kreuger. I was recently in a spooky mood, so I revisited the Insidious franchise.

    I’m a fanboy of the series, so I have nothing negative to say about it. I love the cast of characters, the exploration into the netherworld, and the numerous jump scares. My favorite in the series was the third chapter, but my appeal to it relies on having watched the first movie, so I would not recommend it on its own.

    The third chapter is refreshing because it is about a new cast of characters, even a different demon, than the previous two. The one constant is the psychic, Elise Rainier. Played by Lin Shaye, Elise is a tender but fearless character. I am glad that the third and fourth movies are both about her.

    In the third chapter, Elise sees her future, which is a vision of the ending of the first movie. I love the connection in time between the two movies, and I especially loved how the movie ended with Elise recognizing her finite, numbered days and choosing to use them to help others and become friends with her two ghost-hunting buddies.

    For a horror junkie, I’m a total sap, I know!

    Aside from the feel-good moments, the third chapter had scary visuals, like a demon looking out from the protagonist’s throat, and an engaging story. It is a great central chapter in the five-movie series.

    Whannell, Leigh. Insidious: Chapter 3, Focus Features (USA), 2015.

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  • Horror Cinema: The Evil Within

    The demonic villain alone makes The Evil Within worth watching. The demon’s make-up and his overall psychotically violent demeanor was scary. His relationship to the protagonist was intriguing and interesting to watch as he forced the protagonist into becoming a killer. I found the story thoughtfully layered, from the protagonist’s back story with his brother to the protagonist’s shifting identities near the end of the story as the demon possessed him. Narrative aside, the demon and the killer were unlike anything I had seen before and were memorable.

    Getty, Andrew. The Evil Within, Vision Films, 2017.

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  • Horror Cinema: Ginger Snaps

    My favorite aspect of Ginger Snaps is its setting: suburbia. The movie captures the unsettling homogeny of suburbia so well, and it does a great job of ripping it apart. Add to that the intelligently written story that touches thoughtfully on women’s sexuality, and this movie stands apart from the average horror movie, let alone werewolf flick.

    Fawcett, John. Ginger Snaps, Motion International, 2000.

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  • Horror Cinema: The Crone

    On more than one occasion while watching The Crone, I exclaimed, “What the heck is going on right now?” Some of the visuals were surreal and others were body horror, which were super gross, but that is what I want from a horror movie, so it was great. The movie, overall, was spooky as sh*t, and I loved it. For a supernatural movie and a Japanese horror film, this one is a classic!

    Naito, Eisuke. The Crone, Travis, 2013.

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  • Horror Cinema: Final Destination 5

    Of the Final Destination movies, the fifth one stands out as my favorite. The gore is shockingly and satisfyingly brutal, and the flimsy plot holds up well with good pacing. I liked how the initial gorefest took up a significant portion of the movie, and the domino-effect deaths followed somewhat quickly after. Also, I am always a fan of a 3D horror movie because the gore scenes are much more aggressively directed at the viewer.

    Quale, Steven. Final Destination 5, Warner Bros. Pictures, 2011.

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  • Horror Cinema: Phoenix Forgotten

    Phoenix Forgotten was like The Blair Witch Project in that it was a story about a group of missing individuals told through found video. Where Phoenix Forgotten excelled was in its storytelling. Going into the movie, I had certain expectations based on the trailer that the story would be about an alien abduction. What I liked about the movie most was that it gave me exactly what I wanted from it. The twists and turns, and particularly the pacing of the story and of how the narrative unfolded, were well executed and made for an unexpectedly good movie.

    The characters were sweet, endearing and believable, and the discovery of found video halfway through the narrative was an expert way to take the movie into a direction I did not think it could go, with an ending that was, to me, very satisfying. Highly recommended! 👽

    Barber, Justin. Phoenix Forgotten, Cinelou Films, 2017.

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  • Horror Cinema: Nocturne

    Nocturne was a unique take on a cursed book horror narrative. What made it special, for me, was that it took place in a specific group of people: competitive musicians. The story’s interplay of the cursed book with the drama of a young classical musician trying to make a name for herself made the movie more interesting than if the curse had happened to an average teenager. The movie also had some good bloody visuals and unexpected spooky, mystical moments.

    Quirke, Zu. Nocturne, Amazon Studios, 2020.

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  • Horror Cinema: Urban Myths

    Urban Myths is a series of short horror stories based on urban myths that are loosely woven together to make up the movie. While not every story was my taste, like one about a dentist and a mouth parasite that was gross and good but not my jam, there were enough great ones to make the movie as a whole enjoyable. I particularly liked the paranormal stories. They were gory and fantastic in ways that I could not expect. Highly recommended!

    Image credit: CNN Indonesia

    Won-ki, Hong. Urban Myths, Megabox JoongAng PlusM, 2022.

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  • Horror Cinema: The Maid

    A ghost, a psycho and a blood bath: The Maid was awesome! Highly recommended!

    Thongkham, Lee. The Maid, Netflix, 2020.

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  • Horror Cinema: Exte – Hair Extensions

    Exte: Hair Extensions is a campy Japanese horror movie. It did a great job of never taking itself too seriously while offering gross-out body horror. The most unforgettable image was when a character’s tongue would grow thick with hair. Something about the idea of hair coming out of your tongue was too disgusting for me 🫣.

    Sono, Sion. Exte: Hair Extensions, Toei Company, 2007.

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