Hey! Happy November!
If you've been following my Twitter at all, specifically in the beginning of October, you probably already know a bit of what I'll be discussing.
I attempted a sort of October movie challenge, made by myself. I would try to watch thirty-one scary, schlocky, campy horror movies in thirty-one days! And I am saddened to say, I only was able to watch eleven movies (Mostly thanks to Shudder and Netflix!)
However, I still wanted to do a ranking on all of the movies I was able to watch.
These are the movies I was able to watch (and where you can find them!)
- October 1st: Vampires vs The Bronx (Netflix)
- October 2nd: Till Death (Netflix)
- October 3rd: The Sadness (Shudder) *
- October 4th: Terror Train (Shudder)
- October 5th: Open 24 Hours (Shudder)
- October 6th: The Descent (Shudder)
- October 7th: Death Drop Gorgeous (Shudder)
- October 8th: Girls With Balls (Netflix)
- October 9th: The Babysitter (Netflix)
- October 10th: The Babysitter: Killer Queen (Netflix)
- October 12th: Slumber Party Massacre (Shudder)
*: Sadly, I was not able to finish this movie as it was way too intense for me. But I would definitely still recommend it based on what I did watch. Unfortunately, it will not be so high on my ranking due to not finishing it. Watch with your own discretion as it is SUPER GOREY.
How am I going to rank them?
Well, every ranking is usually decided by looking at several different categories. For this, I'll consider each movie in a few different ways, then do a small top-three ranking for each individual category.
- Enjoyability
- The Protagonist(s)
- The Final Girl/Guy
- The Antagonist(s)
- The Killers
- The Kills
- The Supporting Characters
- The Story
Points will be assigned as follows.
- First: 3 points
- Second: 2 points
- Third: 1 Point
- Honorable Mention: Half a point. Because some of these movies had great qualities.
If you choose to proceed, there will be spoilers for these movies! If you wish to watch some of them and come back later, this would be a wonderful place to stop.
Enjoyability
This category represents how much I enjoyed watching a movie, and also how likely I would be to watch it again. This was both an easy category, and a hard one. Because I was able to cut out the movies I enjoyed less rather quickly. But the choices I was left with were all really good picks. So here's what I came up with.
- Till Death
- Open 24 Hours
- Vampires vs The Bronx
- Death Drop Gorgeous
Till Death narrowly beats out Open 24 Hours for my top spot, because I remember going into it knowing only the Netflix bio (and that Megan Fox was the lead) and it proceeded to shock and surprise me at almost every turn. It was the perfect home-invasion film that had enough tension and intrigue to keep me glued to the screen. Now while I gave Till Death my top spot, Open 24 Hours is my new favorite slasher movie. The concept is so complex, and the movie makes the reader question their perception of events with the main character. Vampires vs The Bronx was probably the most family-friendly movie on this list, and it doesn't hurt the movie at all. You actively care for the characters and their passion to protect their community. Death Drop Gorgeous beats out The Descent for an Honourable Mention because the twist towards the end of the second act makes me really excited to rewatch it over.
The Protagonist(s)
You must be wondering "Dude! Protagonists and Final Girls/Guys are usually the same people!" And that's true. This category is for the characters who are protagonists and survived their encounters but in a genre that is not the slasher genre. (As most of the films I watched fall under the slasher genre.)
- Emma - Til Death
- Miguel, Bobby, and Luis - Vampires vs The Bronx
- Sarah - The Descent
- No Honorable Mention
As these were the only three non-slashers I was able to watch, it came down to who I liked the most. Megan Fox's Emma was a solid character. A woman in an unhappy marriage is forced into an awful situation by her cruel, demented, and very much dead-weight husband. The boys from Vampires vs The Bronx were teens who wanted to protect their community even if it meant they put themselves in danger. Sarah was a badass who suffered major trauma that was all connected to a person she trusted. All of these characters could have fallen anywhere on this list.
The Final Girl/Guy
The Final Girl has always been a major part of the appeal of a horror movie. People want someone to root for. They want to watch them kick the killer in the butt and get revenge for all of the death they caused. Unfortunately for me, there are some fantastic choices in this category. But I think I came to a solid conclusion.
- Mary - Open 24 Hours
- Dwayne - Drop Dead Gorgeous
- Valerie - Slumber Party Massacre
- Alana - Terror Train
I am not going to say too much here, as the first three are such good characters. I will say, that Alana from Terror Train is played by an early Jamie Lee Curtis, so if you want some classic Jamie Lee, go watch Terror Train.
Antagonist
This is a category for characters who are not the big bad, but still manage to make themselves the bad guy in other ways.
- Juno - The Descent
- Bee - The Babysitter
- Morgane - Girls With Balls
- Mark - Till Death
These characters are all in some way demented and twisted. Juno is the worst of the worst. Bee is for sure my favorite antagonist on this list. Samara Weaving is great at playing a cool babysitter who sometimes worships the devil! But she's so chill! And Juno is way worse. As is Morgane, but I like Bee more than Morgane. Mark is Emma's husband. He does some super F*CKED up stuff in this movie (and he's not even alive for over half of it!
Killer
The Killers are usually the main source of trouble in a slasher movie. These are killers that purposely go out of their way to kill as many people as they can. They can also sometimes be creatures, but on this list, they are all people.
- Gloria - Death Drop Gorgeous
- James - Open 24 Hours
- Bobby Ray - Till Death
- Russ Thorn - Slumber Party Massacre
The reveal of Gloria being the killer, made me absolutely love Death Drop Gorgeous. A tired old drag queen, killing young gay men to regain her youth? It was everything! James was a complex killer, and whether he is actually around or not, his presence is continuously felt during the movie. Bobby Ray is an interesting one. He's more like a hired killer for Emma's late husband.
Kills
Kills make a slasher film, and creative kills are what get reactions from an audience. And damn... These are kills that got a reaction out of me.
- Death Drop Gorgeous - A racist gay homophobe meats a grinder...
- The Sadness - That ENTIRE TRAIN SCENE and the Hot oil.
- Open 24 Hours - Antlers
- The Babysitter - Max's Deaths in both movies. Yikes.
These were just some of the ones that have really stuck with me after all this time. I know I said I didn't finish The Sadness because of how gory it was... But that scene in Death Drop Gorgeous... I had to close my eyes.
Supporting Characters
These are not the main characters by any chance, and some might not even make it to the end of the film, but they are good characters and some of the ones I enjoyed watching.
- Bobby (And everyone else) - Open 24 Hours
- Max, Allison, John, and Phoebe- The Babysitter: Killer Queen
- Tony, Rita, and Gloria - Vampires vs The Bronx
- Tragedi - Death Drop Gorgeous.
Bobby is my main pick from Open 24 Hours, and he's at the top because he is such an endearing character. His presence in the film is comforting to the main character, and he's played as such a likable person! Max, Allison, and Phoebe were my favorite parts about Killer Queen, with the first three being three of the demon-worshipping cultists from the first film, and Pheobe being played by Jenna Ortega as a tie to new lore of the movies. The Vampires vs The Bronx characters were great, I honestly loved Gloria the most (despite the fact that she was in it for maybe ten minutes?!) And Tragedi literally was such a funny character. I had to laugh everytime she was on screen.
Story
Story is another part of what can make or break a horror film! And eleven films gives me quite a few stories to work with. And with those stories, I am also thinking about how I enjoyed them, if I cared about what happened to the characters, and how I felt about the overall plot.
- Vampires vs The Bronx
- Open 24 Hours
- Till Death
- The Sadness
The story of Vampires vs The Bronx is an engaging one. It's setting and plot revolves around the future of the Bronx and how much the characters are willing to risk for their homes. Open 24 Hours, again, is my favorite slasher-esque movie! The backstory of Mary and James sets up this plot where you do not know for sure who or what is real! Till Death had me screaming as Emma had to overcome stairs, snow, and two men coming for her neck all while dragging around her dead husband.
I looked up the ending of The Sadness, as I was so upset I couldn't stomach the rest... And I am so glad I did. It's a good story. A great story even. But the rest of the movie is a complete dive into chaos and tragedy. Again... not for the faint of heart.
With all that, I can now give a rough ranking from one to eleven for these movies!
- Open 24 Hours
- Death Drop Gorgeous
- Till Death
- Vampires vs The Bronx
- The Descent
- The Babysitter
- The Babysitter: Killer Queen
- The Sadness
- Slumber Party Massacre
- Girls with Balls
- Terror Train
No surprises there for me.
I would totally love to do this again next year, and if you have any suggestions for movies I could watch, let me know!
Okay?
Well! Time for me to hide for a few days or so! I'll be back soon though for a self-promotion post! YAY!
