Horror Bulletin Monthly November 2022: Horror Bulletin Monthly Issues, #14

By Brian Schell

Horror Bulletin Monthly November 2022

 

The newest issue of the Horror Bulletin Monthly includes reviews of thirty-two full-length films and horror shorts-- one each day this month (plus an extra!).

Each of the films contains a complete synopsis of the film, including spoilers (so beware!), as well as our commentary on the quality of the story and how well it holds up for viewers today.

Part One: Movie Reviews
1942 Cat People

1958 The Thing That Couldn't Die

1971 The Mephisto Waltz

1977 Martin

1980 The Shining

1982 Cat People

1997 The Shining

2012 Mockingbird Lane

2014 The Descent: Part 2

2014 The Quiet Ones

2015 Poltergeist

2018 Birdboy: The Forgotten Children

2020 Kratt

2021 When the Screaming Starts

2022 Ash and Bone

2022 Barbarian

2022 Dangerous Game: The Legacy Murders

2022 Dead Bride

2022 Halloween Ends

2022 Hellraiser

2022 Hocus Pocus 2

2022 Margaux

2022 The Guest Room

2022 The Munsters

2022 The Things We Cannot Change

2022 The Visitor

2022 V/H/S/99

Part Two: Short Film Reviews
2022 Werewolf by Night

2022 Down and Out In Vampire Hills

2022 Life and Death of a Living Dead

2022 Mukbang

2022 Sewn Up

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brian Schell
• Release date: Nov 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215491485

Brian Schell

Brian Schell is a College English Instructor who has an extensive background in Buddhism and other world religions. After spending time in Japan, he returned to America where he created the immensely popular website, Daily Buddhism. For the next several years, Schell wrote extensively on applying Buddhism to real-world topics such as War, Drugs, Tattoos, Sex, Relationships, Pet Food and yes, even Horror Movies. Twitter: @BrianSchell Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/Brian.Schell Web: http://BrianSchell.com

Book preview

PART ONE

MOVIE REVIEWS

1942 CAT PEOPLE

Directed by Jacques Tourneur

Written by DeWitt Bodeen

Stars Simone Simon, Tom Conway, Kent Smith

Run Time: 1 Hour, 13 Minutes

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ADPSaybusM

SPOILER-FREE JUDGMENT ZONE

It’s pretty tame but interesting. Gender roles and expectations were different in 1942, and this movie shows that. The cinematography and direction are top-notch. There’s suspense and intrigue, and all in all, it’s a watchable classic.

SYNOPSIS

A woman, Irena, at the zoo does a drawing of a panther in a cage. Oliver walks over, and he flirts with her. We see that she’s drawn the panther with a dagger through it. She takes him home to her apartment and invites him in. She says that she’s from Serbia, and he’s her first real friend in America.

They can hear the lions in the zoo nearby. She says that sometimes the panther screams, and it sounds like a woman. She gives him an explanation of Serbian history and how King John drove out the Mamalukes. There were Satan worshippers and witches there, and King John got rid of all that. They agree to meet tomorrow night again.

Oliver, who works at a shipping company, brings a cat to work; he’s bought it for Irena. That night, he gives her the cat, but the cat hates her. Cats just don’t like me, she laments. The pair go to the pet store to return the cat, and all the animals inside go wild. The lady inside claims that most animals are a little psychic. Later, they profess their love for each other (on the second date). He wants a kiss, but she refuses. If she gives in to that, something bad will happen.

Some time passes, and there’s a wedding party, and co-worker Alice and the Commodore talk about the bride being a little strange. A strange woman comes over and says something to Irena in Serbian. The woman is one of the cat people, a silly thing that Oliver laughs at. They get married, but she says they can’t consummate the marriage, and he reluctantly agrees to wait. She’s tempted to let Oliver into her bedroom, but then she hears a big cat yowling at the zoo.

At home, she plays with her pet canary, and it ends up dead. She takes the dead bird to the zoo and feeds it to the panther. She tells Oliver that the bird died of fear and that she had to feed the bird to the panther. Oliver says Irena needs help with her silly beliefs; a psychiatrist. She tells all to Dr. Judd. Women in her village can turn into cats, but only when they embrace a lover. The cat-women then kill their lovers.

Irena finds out that Alice suggested Dr. Judd to Oliver, and she’s not happy that he’s been talking about her with his friends. The next morning, Alice confesses she’s in love with Oliver too. He’s starting to have doubts about his own love for Irena.

One day at the zoo, Irena notices the key to the cage is out, and she hands it back to the zookeeper. Dr. Judd says that she fears the panther as an instrument of death. She tells him to get lost. Oliver gets after her for not wanting to help herself then goes to the office to work late. Irena calls the office, and Alice is there working late too. Irena follows Alice home, and Alice gets spooked. Something kills several sheep, and the big cat footprints become human-looking footprints. That night, she dreams of cats, Dr. Judd, and King John.

The next morning at the zoo, Irena sees the forgotten key again, and this time, she takes it. Once again, she follows Alice home. Alice has gone to her building’s pool, and she hears a giant cat come in, growling and prowling. She never actually sees anything, and then Irena walks in to ask where Oliver is. When Alice gets out of the pool, she finds her robe has been torn to ribbons.

Alice talks to Dr. Judd about the cat people. Twice I’ve been followed by something that was not human. I believe it was the cat form of Irena. Alice warns Judd not to talk to Irena alone, and he shows her his sword-cane. Judd talks to Irena and threatens to have her committed– she doesn’t want to be helped.

Irena tells Oliver that Dr. Judd is helping her, but he’s decided to get a divorce instead. Dr. Judd suggests an annulment. One cannot divorce an insane person, he states as he offers to have commitment papers drawn up.

Oliver and Alice work late again, and the phone rings; no one is there. Could it be Irena? No, it’s a great big black panther locked in the office with them. Suddenly, it’s gone. They smell Irena’s perfume as they run outside into the fog. They call Dr. Judd to warn him, but Irena walks in on Judd during the call.

Dr. Judd embraces Irena and takes her into his arms. They kiss, and she smiles evilly. Dr. Judd then watches as Irena actually turns into a panther and attacks him. Oliver and Alice rush in to help, but they don’t see Irena on her way out. Judd is dead, but Irena is gone. Half of Judd’s sword-cane is gone; it broke off inside the cat.

Irena walks to the zoo, holding her wounded shoulder. She opens up the panther cage and lets the big cat out, which promptly gets hit by a car. Oliver comes to the cat cage and finds Irena on the ground, dead with half a sword-cane stuck in her back.

COMMENTARY

It’s another one of those is she really or is she crazy stories. This one is a classic, but it’s awfully dated by now. It’s got some fairly complex ideas about marriage, chatting, infidelity, and consummation which were all pretty radical for 1942. It makes interesting use of light and shadow, and it all looks good, especially for a black-and-white film.

Turns out in the end, she really was a killer cat. There’s no transformation, no blood, but quite a bit of suspense and intrigue.

1958 THE THING THAT COULDN'T DIE

Directed by Will Cowan

Written by David Duncan

Stars William Reynolds, Andra Martin, Jeffrey Stone

Run Time: 1 Hour, 9 Minutes

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlKfNdQQ6Bc

SPOILER-FREE JUDGMENT ZONE

It’s okay in pretty much every way. Horror Guy Kevin had never even heard of this one before, and it’s clear why this one isn’t really a classic. It’s not bad. Everyone shows up and does the work. There’s just nothing really exceptional about it. The story is pretty basic and ends abruptly. You probably wouldn’t regret watching it, but don’t feel like you need to make a special effort.

SYNOPSIS

Gordon, Hank, and Linda watch Jessica with her dowsing rod. She's out trying to find water, but she comes up empty. Gordon has doubts, but Aunt Flavia knows Jessica can do the job. Her stick points down, so she’s found something. Suddenly, she yells for the digging men to stop; There’s something evil down there! Aunt Flavia overrules her. Jessica calls them all terrible people and says she hopes a tree falls on them. A tree then falls on Linda, so the digging stops. Temporarily. Linda is shaken but okay.

Jessica thinks she made the tree fall. It was an evil wish! Gordon still thinks it’s all fairy tales. Jessica tells them where to find the watch Linda lost last week - a pack rat stole it for its nest. They also find a really old medallion and some other stuff down there. Gordon then apologizes to Jessica; he’s a believer now. She admits that sometimes she hears evil voices too. He puts the medallion on her, telling her it’s medieval and benign and she should keep it on for protection.

The diggers finally find something. It’s an old chest. Aunt Flavia thinks it must be gold, but they can’t get the chest open. Gordon thinks the chest itself might be valuable since the date 1579 is on the top, and he advises her not to bust it open by force. There’s a warning to not open this accused chest, but of course, that’s just superstition. Only Sir Francis Drake would have been in the region in the 1500s. He wants to open the lock with chemicals to preserve the chest itself, so he goes off to town to pick up what they need.

Jessica doesn’t want to stay in the house with the evil chest, so she stays in the cabin with Linda. Ranch hand Boyd peeks through the window to watch Jessica get ready for bed. Then Boyd goes into Aunt Flavia’s room with a knife and steals the key to the door where the chest is stored. His sidekick Mike is really strong, and he thinks he can open the chest without destroying it.

Mike finally gets the chest open, and he finds a head inside. A living head. The head hypnotizes Mike, and then Mike kills Boyd. Flavia calls Jessica to help, and they find the chest open and empty. Mike wouldn’t hurt anyone, Jessica insists. Mike carries the head around, and it notices the amulet around Jessica’s neck.

Gordon returns, and he brings Julian Ash, the president of the historical society. The police don’t show up right away, so Gordon suggests that Jessica use her stick to find the wounded man. Julian reads the inscription on the chest; the disembodied spirit of Gideon Drew was said to be inside. No one notices that Jessica is out in the woods following her stick.

Mike and the head of Gideon see her coming, Gideon can’t speak, but he communicates with Mike telepathically. Jessica gets a flashback to 1593 and watches as Gideon is beheaded and his head and body are buried separately. He was cursed never to die.

Jessica wakes up from her flashback and finds Boyd in the hole where they found the chest in the first place. Linda and Hank return at the same time the police finally arrive. Linda opens the window and