Sinister Surname

[sinister-surname]

It's always annoyed me how low down or absent The Leader is when it comes to talks of the greatest minds in the Marvel universe.

Like, Samuel Sterns is supposed to be 'as smart as the Hulk is strong', which by all metrics means he should be one of the smartest beings in the known universe.

I dunno, for my money there aren't many villains in Marvel who come off as 'the smart one', there's plenty of powerhouses and galactic level threats but few to none who are defined solely by their terrifying intellect.

I think the issue stems from the fact that too many writers are afraid of writing geniuses. Too often is the case that a 'genius' in fiction is a character who has access to information the writers obfuscate from the readers to give the illusion of intelligence, and instead genius in comic books is more about who can create the most reality altering, physics defying sci-fi tech.

I dunno, villains with sci-fi super weaponry are a dime a dozen but The Leader feels like the kind of malevolent bond villain who never has to show his face cause he's pulling strings we can't even begin to fathom.

[sinister-surname]

So some quick thoughts on Hellraiser Revival

Thank GOD we have a game based on a horror IP that isn't an asymmetrical multiplayer game. None of them are at this rate ever gonna challenge DBD (which is sad because IMO at least DBD has fell off bad) and the amount of single player horror experiences we were robbed of, Texas Chainsaw, Evil Dead, is just depressing.

When I saw the fetish gear, the ball gag and FULL frontal nudity in the first few seconds of the trailer I instantly gained a lot more hope for the game. Hellraiser is all about sex, the exploration of pain and pleasure, what people will do to feel a new thrill, as well as how such desires left unchecked can swallow people whole. I'm glad this doesn't seem to be just a walking sim with cenobites in it, but (hopefully) an interesting exploration of the themes first set out by Hellbound Heart. Clive Barker is writing which is a big plus.

I think the dynamic of the main character is interesting, usually anybody who opens the box is usually the main villain of the movie with the cenobites as secondary antagonists just doing their job. I think it further gives me some hope for the story and Clive Barker's involvement that we can have someone open the box and NOT be seen as evil because of it. Like, Frank wasn't evil because he was into some heavy ass BDSM, he was evil and just happened to be into heavy ass BDSM.

I'm probably bugging and this is probably just a common enemy or something but I so want to believe this is Frank

[sinister-surname]

So I've started reading Knight of the Black Rose and can I say I hate how much art there is of Soth that DOESNT HAVE A ROSE ON HIS ARMOUR. The charred black armour and the once proud rose now blackened is a reflection of his very soul, PUT IT ON THERE!

[sinister-surname]

So can any Call of Cthulhu players sell me on it? From what I've heard described by a few players and YouTube DM's like Matt Colville is, true to Lovecraftian literature, the only happy ending is being unaware of your pitiful existence, and that it's basically a guarantee that eventually your character will either die or go insane, that you'll never beat any of the Elder gods only hold them at bay for another day.

I dunno, again that does sound very on brand, but I guess I don't see the appeal in a game where you put in so much time and effort knowing your character will die or go mad and will never have a tangible effect on the world.

[sinister-surname]

It's funny how much movies with or about child murderers effect me so much considering I fucking hate kids.

[sinister-surname]

"We can build motorways but we cannot overcome ignorance and superstition"

Don't Torture A Duckling/Non si sevizia un paperino, 1972, Dir. Lucio Fulci

[sinister-surname]

This is a great movie, easily a 4/5 for me. I had only previously seen one of Fulci's movies, the Black Cat, which for its admittedly cheesy premise was propped up by some great atmosphere and, I guess is his trademark, super visceral gore effects.

Don't Torture A Duckling, while it has one or two instances of some great gore, is lifted up more by its social commentary on rural ignorance and the perversity and stranglehold of the Catholic church. It's a movie of stark and profound contrasts which serve to make its violence all the more shocking. A woman is beating brutally to near death in front of the pure white walls of a church, the ideallic Italian countryside is littered with the bodies of children, the horror here comes from within and in plain sight.

It's been said that in American horrors of the time children were off limits, and making children the main victims puts it into the viewers head that no one and nowhere is safe.

[sinister-surname]

"We can build motorways but we cannot overcome ignorance and superstition"

Don't Torture A Duckling/Non si sevizia un paperino, 1972, Dir. Lucio Fulci

[sinister-surname]

"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him"

This is your reminder to please go watch Alice, Sweet Alice, a disturbing Hitchcockian thriller/American Giallo that touches on the horrors of religion and parenthood that's a lot more than just a creepy little girl running around in a raincoat with a kitchen knife, it's maybe entered my top 5 horror movies of all time, and believe me, it's a long list.

[sinister-surname]

PLEASE, if you watch one horror movie this month make it Alice, Sweet Alice. It's a disturbing meditation on motherhood, the failures of parenting and the perversity of religion with some weirdly good child acting and a muted, bleak colour palette, more akin to a grizzly hitchcockian thriller or American Giallo than a straight up slasher movie as its rather sadly advertised. It's easily entered my top 10 horror movies.

[sinister-surname]

Anybody else hold off on watching their favourite movies with the director/writer commentaries on, not because you don't like it, but because you don't want the makers of the film telling you your reading of it is wrong?

[sinister-surname]

2nd of October: Deathship (1980)

Now it was impossible for this film to live up to its poster, but I was still disappointed. I'll start with what I liked:

The titular ship of death itself looked great, a colourless hunk of rotten metal that dominates the barren seascapes, covered in rust and stagnant water, behind the scenes there was a lot of questions during its acquisition as to whether or not it was even seaworthy

The very opening (even if it went on for way too long) was effectively atmospheric with long shots of the empty ship corridors broken up with nothing but the sound of the decades old lumbering titan as it heaved and creaked

For a movie that really lacked in gore (has some blood in it but it's disembodied for the most part) it's scenes of horror, populated with festering corpses and sludge covered skeletons, we're well done, making you more nauseous than horrified hut adding to the sense of the ship's unfathomable age and the bodies it's amassed.

Now, onto the bad stuff. The acting ranges from okay to horrendous, the premise itself (an old nazi torture ship that mysteriously vanished on its way to be scrapped and now stalks the open ocean literally feeding on blood) is never used even close to it's full potential and the quality of actual kills (how little they are) are all major letdowns.

It's sad because I think the movie makes an admirable attempt at a point, with the survivors of a ship the Deathship sank being made up of partygoers, an old curmudgeonly captain and the new captain replacing him, with the ship possessing the old captain and playing on his obsessive need for power and control, there's definitely something there.

The production was very troubled, with the director being closer to the Hollywood alum than the writer who genuinely WANTED to write a good horror movie, and even in the interviews the cast and crew will openly admit it sucks and are awestruck that it has fans.

Still, if you have a tolerance for schlock, I say check it out.

6.5/10

[sinister-surname]

So I've been doing little mini-reviews of the horror media I've been watching each day of October over on my Instagram but I thought I'd expand on my thoughts here. So with that said:

1st of October: Oh Whistle and I'll Come To You My Lad, audiobook version read by Jonathan Keeble

Whistle is one of the M R James stories, probably THE one, most celebrated which did set the bar a little too high but nevertheless it still delivered all the Jamesian goodness. Stuffy old professors thinking they know better than the folkloric superstitions and unknowns, old country houses (of which more than a few of are by the seaside), I adore the subtlety in his short stories which (much as they have their own merits) are sorely missing from a lot of modern ghost stories. I forget if I've said it on here but while slasher movies are the genre I can most consistently put on and gave a decent time good or bad, when done right the Ghost genre is my favourite, with some of my favourite horrors I can rewatch endlessly, like the Changeling, Woman in Black and, to a lesser extent, The Shining.

The audiobook itself was a good and easy listen, Keeble brought a lot of heart and character to James' admittedly stuffy usuals.

Lastly, I wonder if this story was a big inspiration for the popularisation of the bedsheet ghost.

7.5/10

[sinister-surname]

So I had some extra candles laying around, so here's my (botched) attempt at Souichi from Junji Ito's manga, at the very least he makes for a good lamp.

[sinister-surname]

So with the spooky month fast approaching I'm once again going to try my hand at 31 horror movies through October. I got a few lined up already if only because I own them physically and haven't got around to watching them (Deathship from 1980, House from 1985, Bride of Re-Animator) and I'd love some suggestions. More specifically, if you, like I, love good horror movies but love trash horror movies even more I'd especially love some recommendations.

[sinister-surname]

Okay so I'll preface this by saying that I won't be using any example pictures because I don't wanna hate on any artists specifically, that being said:

Please, please can we stop with THAT monster design.

If you've spent any amount of time in creepy pasta circles or browsing horror art on here or Pinterest you'll know the one I mean. Shaggy, hairy, vaguely humanoid, kinda werewolf-y body, BUT with a skeletal head, usually an animal head like a stag (because then you get antlers too).

This may sound super hyperspecific and way less prevalent than I think it is but I see it EVERYWHERE.

And for those who like that aesthetic, great, I don't mind it either, or at least I didn't like 10 years and a thousand iterations ago.

I feel like my biggest issue with it from a creature design standpoint is you're not aiming for it to look scary, you're trying to make it look edgy and cool, which is especially sad because as subjects go monsters allow for such a wealth of creativity and we just keep coming back to this fucking design.

Again, no hate (a little hate), also I'll be amazed if people actually understand the design I'm talking about.

[sinister-surname]

Aight so this is a little clip from the old Betty Boop short 'Betty Boop's Penthouse' and all the YouTube videos of it either have zero comments or comments disabled and I just need everyone to appreciate how this is the jazziest fucking monster ever so I can feel better about how these 30 or so seconds have stuck to my brain like super glue.

FYI the name of the track the short is animated to is 'Heat Waves' by Baron Lee and the Blue Rhythm Band

[sinister-surname]

So there was a pride parade in the city near where I work today and while I didn't have any pride stuff to rep I was wearing a Re-Animator shirt with Herbert West on it, which is tantamount to wrapping yourself in a pride flag.