Editorial: Happy, Happy, Halloween...

Well October is here, that happy month that sees the leaves turn to gold, the mornings get crisper and our thoughts turn to ghouls, ghosts and all things spooky... so I thought it would be a good time to see what's coming up in the theatres to hopefully excite and inspire us into spending the price of a meal on a cinema ticket...

So as far as Halloween treats go there seems to be a poor showing this year, Saw VI heading up the pack (in budget terms only...), but with a little luck we may see the one-footed return of Cary Elwes which might make things a little more interesting, or then again maybe not... As for The Stepfather, even though I am a fan of the horror/thriller genre in general, the original Stepfather franchise never grabbed me, so I can't see this changing my mind. As for Cirque de Freak: The Vampire's Assistant, well I assume if you are going to see this you love Twilight... so enjoy...

So I am sure your asking yourself by now, jeez what IS this guy looking forward to... well.. if the festival circuit feedback is anything to by Ti West's straight-playing 80's horror tribute The House of the Devil, which is outfitted with cult actors both new (Greta Gerwig) and vintage (Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov), is looking like a winner, makes a change for someone to actually go ahead and make a balls-out horror movie these days without having to resort to clever asides or knowing winks to genre conventions. Then, of course, the pièce de résistance for this Halloween season... 28 years after it's initial release it's back with a whole new 4K digital remaster... An American Werewolf in London... sorry gotta go book my ticket now... brb...
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... there that's me sorted for Halloween, as for the rest of October, the standouts seem to be the quirky, indie fare... Good Hair is looking like a documentary that could have legs, even with Chris Rock acting like a shocked rabbit most of the way through the trailer, Black Dynamite is BLAXPLOITATION without the -ploitation ... nice to see the joke finally being played straight rather than trying to appeal to the market who bought into blaxploitation in the first place.

The two movies, I personally am most looking forward too, have to be Gentleman Broncos and Whip It. The former coming from the minds behind Napoleon Dynamite and showcasing the brilliance of Jemaine Clement (of Flight of the Conchords fame) and positioned very much in the territory of Kevin Smith superhero/sci-fi land, meanwhile the latter is a small town roller derby spectacular starring and helmed by Drew Barrymore, with the lead being taken by Juno herself, Ellen Page... trust me this one is going to be a dream ticket :)

To keep the kiddies happy at half term we have Spike Jonze's, much anticipated and much delayed, Where the Wild Things Are and what looks to be a faithful reimagining of the classic Japanese anime Astro Boy, featuring state of the art computer animation, a stellar voice cast and, no-doubt, 3D too!

Everything else is pretty much what we expect in the pre-Crimble build up... steady studio fare... more Gerard Butler to keep the over 40 female crowd happy in Law Abiding Citizen (with the added bonus of Jamie Foxx too!!)... some zany zombie shenanigans in Zombieland... one last tip... keep an eye on the Ricky Gervais written, directed and starred The Invention of Lying, the ensemble cast alone could be worth the ticket price.

Enjoy October... and remember the 31st is still and always will be... the night HE came home...