Review: Tales of Halloween

There are some films that when you hear about you hope you end up loving them, even if you know in your heart it may not live up to the hype or your expectations. Sometimes, you get the movie you expect but that doesn't mean it is the film you want or hoped for. That was the case for me with Tales of Halloween, the newest horror anthology film that features 10 stories (thinly connected) taking place on everyone's favorite Pumpkin infused holiday.

I was lucky enough to catch this early screening on the opening night of the Popcorn Frights Film Festival, which is south Florida's first horror film festival. It seemed fitting to kick off October with this film and as stated above, I was pretty excited to check this out. On a related note I must say before I get into the review, that I did have great time at the screening and meeting like minded horror fans in festival organizers/founders Igor and Marc was a pleasure. It was great to see horror fans getting together to make something happen in a place where it is sorely needed. Have to also shout out Mercy as well who was one of the volunteers there for being so helpful and cool. I look forward to what these guys do next and anything I can do to help, you guys let me know!

As for the film, was Tales of Halloween the film horror/Halloween lovers have been waiting for?
Depends who you ask I suppose, There are a lot of possibilities with the subject matter at hand, and with 10 different segments you just know some are going to be hit or miss, so the best way to discuss them is to tackle them all one by one, spoiler free as possible as always.

1. Sweet Tooth directed by Dave Parker
This hands down was my favorite segment in the film, I personally wish it would have been the final story told as it for me would have ended everything on a high note. It is a simple story about an urban legend told to scare a young boy and what happens when that urban legend turns out to be more than just a story. The segment is shot well, appropriately creepy,gory and manages to be humorous without losing it's edge, it was also well acted. It captures the Halloween vibe very well and only helped to build my hope that this whole thing would be of the same quality and tone. It is the perfect example of how a horror short should work.

2. The Night Billy Raised Hell directed by Darren Lynn Bousman
I did not like this one bit, think Satan's Little Helper but with a slight twist. On it's own this short could have been amusing as something to watch on like youtube and never watch again. The story of a young trick or treater being taught a lesson about playing pranks is a solid idea for a Halloween themed short, but the execution is just so cheesy (complete with cartoonish sound effects) that it quickly took me out of the film. There is plenty of great humor to be found in horror films, I am not opposed to that, but here it just felt as if it were trying to hard while being too cartoonish for any of it to have any real impact other than being obnoxious, something that unfortunately I found to be prevalent throughout many of the segments.

3. Trick directed by Adam Gierasch
This was another standout, it's a wonderfully shot segment that tells story of two couples hanging out, watching a horror movie, who suddenly become the victims of a rather violent group of Trick or Treaters, The segment has some great shots in it and has some truly shocking moments found within. The payoff is what elevates it from being just another mean spirited home invasion film to something much more creepy and satisfying. Definitely one of the best of the bunch.This one got the film back on track after the previous short derailed it.

4. The Weak and The Wicked directed by Paul Solet
A bizarre modern take on a Halloween western, this short worked for me for the most part, It really doesn't have the same suburban neighborhood aesthetic as the rest of the stories as it takes place in the back alleys of Los Angeles (presumably) and features Keir Gilchrist (It Follows) out for revenge on three lifelong bullies. It was an interesting concept, that should have a great supernatural payoff, but it is cut far too short and leaves you wishing for a bit more chaos before we leave it. Still I felt it was one of the more engrossing entries even if the "bullies" weren't exactly well cast, they played the roles well enough.

5. Grimm Grinning Ghost directed by Axelle Carolyn (who put together the entire project)
Starry Eyes alum Alexandra Essoe stars in one of the stronger segments to be found in the film. Essoe is at her mother's (Insidious's Lin Shaye) Halloween party and decides she has had enough and it's time to go home, what follows is a spooky walk through a dark neighborhood, the cinematography here is top notch and adds to the eerie locations that Essoe must traverse to get home, all while she feels she is being followed by someone or something, with plenty of faint glimpses of her would be stalker, the segment might be my second favorite, even if it could have used some more meat to it's story before the eventual payoff. More shorts like this would have been welcomed.

6. Ding Dong directed by Lucky McKee
This one was just weird, there is no way around that, there was some sort of message of abusive behavior strewn about, relating to the featured couple lamenting not having a child of their own to take trick or treating, and some heavy handed Hansel and Gretel references and imagery becomes far to silly and exaggerated to really have any impact. It is almost nonsensical in the end and for me, would have been much better off not being included at all as it is really just all over the place. Even with an admittedly fun performance by Pollyanna McIntosh.

7. This Means War directed by Andrew Kasch and John Skipp
The story of two neighbors with differing views on just what Halloween decorating and partying should be that culminates in a goofy brawl. It's fun enough but still turns into a total cheesefest that has nothing much to offer passed it's extremely thin premise. Again, this is another segment that might have been fun to watch on youtube or vimeo but not in a full on film.

8. Friday the 31st directed by Mike Mendez (mild spoilers)
Starts off strong with us being dropped in the tail end of what is essentially a Friday the 13th film, the hero girl, running into a shed where she discovers bodies while searching for a weapon to fend off the obvious Jason Voorhees homage character. Things take a turn for the worse when a UFO shows up and a trick or treating claymation alien shows up, yes claymation, and possesses the final girls body Once possessed she takes on the form of a green glowing eyed deadite from Evil Dead and she/it begins to fight the backwoods killer. This was the segment where I really checked out of the film.
You may be reading this and thinking "oh whats your problem, that sounds like it could be fun?" Well sure it could be if it wasn't SO extremely goofy and cheesy. I am not opposed to goofy or cheesy, but this segment actually could have still had the same sense of fun and been really cool and violent to boot WITHOUT the excessive goofiness. It was just too much for me by that point, especially with it being the third segment in a row to have an almost immature tone. I delve more into this during my recap. Even though I didn't like it, I expect it to be a favorite of many viewers.

9. The Ransom of Rusty Rex directed by Ryan Schifrin
This segment boasted some of the best acting as it featured Sam Witwer(the Mist) and Jose Pablo Cantillo(Walking Dead) as two would be kidnappers who ultimately chose the wrong victim to mess with. As it turns out the child they kidnap for ransom is not one who the millionaire father (John Landis) is interested in getting back. Once they realize their hostage is not what they expected things get weird. I won't go too much into depth, but the lead performances are what carry this piece and make it work. It is yet another segment much more interested in jokes, however they are handled much better than those in the previous three segments. I didn't LOVE this one but it felt as if it was handled with a steady hand and a good cast kept it mostly lighthearted, fun and amusing instead of grating, childish and crass. It definitely had a good Tales From The Crypt vibe going for it.

10. Bad Seed directed by Neil Marshall 
After directing so many great films such as The Descent, Dog Soldiers and even Doomsday, not to mention one of the greatest episodes of Game of Thrones ever. I was excited to see what Neil Marshall would do here to hopefully close out the film on a positive note. I don't know what the hell
happened here, but this might have been one of the worst if not for at least having a much more fun and interesting premise than the others. Bad Seed is the story of a killer pumpkin...complete with vine tentacles that it crawls along with. Starring Kristina Klebe ( Rob Zombies Halloween) as a miscast police detective, this one just completely goes full blown camp and while that can be fun, it was just  embarrassing here. Again before i get called a downer, I AM THE EXACT PERSON THAT WOULD LOVE A KILLER PUMPKIN FILM. Just not this one. The killer pumpkin FX were far too clunky, I just could not get into this at all after it's initial setup which was yes fun, but once that was over it was all down hill for me, and after it's extra silly climax, ends the film with a whimper, even if it was more than likely an homage to one of my favorite horror films, Halloween III.

It also must be noted that the "narrator" for the film is Adrienne Barbeau "reprising" her role from the fog as the unseen voice on the radio throughout town. That was cool but should have been utilized more.

So there you have it. Tales of Halloween is a film that I wanted to love upon hearing about it, but it just isn't my kind of horror film or even my kind of horror comedy. Now I will say two things, One I realize there are plenty of people who will read this review and think I don't like any fun or cheesy horror films, that is not true, I do, I love Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Bride of Chucky, Return of the Living Dead and Night of the Creeps, I also love Creepshow 2! What I love about those films is that while cheesy, they are actually very funny and deliver their horror bits well. The problem I have here is a lot of this stuff just isn't actually funny. It's mildly amusing and comes off as extremely juvenile not clever and in some cases it's rather embarrassing. I will compare it to Trick 'r Treat, granted Trick 'r Treat has one director, this has eleven. Still what I am referring to in the comparison is Trick 'r Treat has charm for days and it's humor is present without being overbearing or eye roll inducing. I was literally rolling my eyes through half the segments in Tales of Halloween. For me personally that is a problem .

With that being said, there is absolutely an audience for this film. There will absolutely be people who love it and think I am an idiot for disliking segments that they will undoubtedly love. I am okay with that. There have been plenty of films I dislike for these very same reasons that people I know loved. All Hallows Eve comes to mind, I despised it. Many people thought it was great. I actually would still recommend any fan and lover of Halloween watch this film, as I know many people will find much more entertainment in it than I did. Again there is nothing wrong with that. I would never condemn a film completely if I know that many in it's target audience will enjoy it. Especially this month. It was a fun way to kick off October. I myself will have no problem watching the few segments I enjoyed again. Still, I know I will not be the only one who was disappointed with Tales of Halloween, for us, we can sit here and try to patiently wait for Trick 'r Treat 2.

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We were also treated to a separate short film prior to the screening entitled "INVADERS" by director Jason Kupfer. I personally really enjoyed this one and the crowd seemed to love it too. It is definitely worth watching whenever you come across it. It is quick, gory and fun.

Thanks again to Igor, Marc and Mercy with Popcorn Frights. You all did a great thing for horror fans in South Florida and despite my mixed feelings on the film, the screening and atmosphere was top notch fun. I look forward to attending future screenings and talking more to you all soon!