More .. Earth may be in great danger as the sun’s path through the galaxy sends comet flying towards our planet, scientists have warned. Researchers have identified a 26 million-year cycle of meteor impacts that coincides with the timing of mass extinctions over the past 260 million years.
There is a close shave on Halloween set by an asteroid .. And now days before that hopeful non event, this news about how eventually a comet accident could kill us all..
“I think if she killed someone, I would literally be like, ‘I got it, where do you want me to help you bury the body?’ ” the actress says. “I wouldn’t even question it, and I can’t say that about anybody else in my life.”
And there you get the headline.. reported over and over again by entertainment rags that proclaim journalistic integrity.
That is my problem with these types of publications. It would go without saying..
Lay off Kunis.
She’s a mom and the voice of Meg.
And I don’t think she deserves headlines in NEW YORK MAGAZINE proclaiming:
“I think if she killed someone, I would literally be like, ‘I got it, where do you want me to help you bury the body?’ ” the actress says. “I wouldn’t even question it, and I can’t say that about anybody else in my life.”
And there you get the headline.. reported over and over again by entertainment rags that proclaim journalistic integrity.
That is my problem with these types of publications. It would go without saying..
Lay off Kunis.
She’s a mom and the voice of Meg.
And I don’t think she deserves headlines in NEW YORK MAGAZINE proclaiming:
The same thing that has always been wrong, I would say. As said before, horror is an elementary education of the pop culture of the time. The fears presented in horror are the fears of the age they appear it. When a movie comes a little too early, or a little too late, they flop. You have to strike while the iron is hot. UNFRIENDED would not work two years from now. It works now. BLAIR WITCH worked when it did, and began a series of unfortunate “found” stories..all of which are becoming quickly hackneyed under the weight of time.
The SAW films? Enough already.. ROB ZOMBIE? I never could stomach it.. REMAKES? I never appreciated them to begin with.
The website BLOODY-DISGUSTING’S Brad Miska wrote up a story about what is wrong with the genre.. a few valid points presented:
For me, the biggest thing he nails is that modern horror is littered with fake jump-scares. I often cite the use of authentic scares in reviews of films I love – most notably ones directed by James Wan (Insidious, The Conjuring). Many studio films fatigue the audience with bullshit jump-scares that utilize loud sound design to make the audience jolt out of their seat. They aren’t being scared, they’re being yelled at. That’s not horror. He relates it to having sex – films are blowing their load and releasing tension too early, leaving the film’s climax to have little to no effect.
Graphic description .. but I see the point. Horror is slow and methodical.. it brings you to a point where you realize the conclusion is awfully scary.. Deep and disturbing .. that was the success of this autumn’s M NIGHT film THE VISIT. It took a while. You got to enjoy it.. and you got surprised at the end.
Lastly, he [
Chris Stuckmann] points to expectations vs reality as a major issue. Marketing of The Village is his prime example, in which he points out that even M. Night Shyamalan regrets the false advertising. Studios need to get asses in the seats and will do so by any means necessary (For example, much of the footage in The Gallows trailers and TV spots weren’t actually in the movie).
I agree.. Another good example of advertising to seduce is this past week’s failure CRIMSON PEAK. It was a romance horror.. And it failed, because as people found out it was not the ‘scariest movie of the year’ that was promised, they shunned like an Amish sinner in Lancaster county.
Fans vote with wallets, for sure. But sadly they vote for what is heaped on them by studios that just want quick bucks off of horror flicks.
A few horrors that were good, and not because of profit, exist in the past few years.. THE HOUSES OCTOBER BUILT, IT FOLLOWS, and the BABADOOK.
You can find a lot more gems on Netflix. Lower budget gems. I talk about them often on this website. And you should search them out as well..
Rummage through the pile of studio-produced garbage and find the things that matter.. the prizes in the puzzle of horror.
There are truly really scary things out there. Sadly in the way we’re given films, you have to search them out yourself. They certainly will not be handed to you.
I would love to hear feedback.
What do you, reader, say is good and bad about modern horror?
We are days away from my favorite day of the year, Halloween.. the history and amazing aura of culture that has been passed down through the ages leading to Samhain, All Hallow’s Eve, or Hallo’ween is amazing. You can pick your name. Some would say you’re picking a poison. I say you’re taking part in a celebration and festival that dates back centuries.. The Celts. The Romans.. Bobbing for apples even has a history. The skimpy sexy outfits of today’s Halloween look different than what was done prior .. but that’s just the natural pop culture evolution of a populace.
But pumpkins.. Now that is one interesting topic.
I told a few folk this week of where Jack O Lanterns actually came from. They looked at my like I was crazy–literally. They rolled their eyes, raised their brows, and dismissed my brief history lesson about the origins of one of the coolest Halloween traditions that humans still keep.
With that said, here is the legend of Stingy Jack..
Stingy Jack was a miserable, old drunk who loved playing tricks on anyone and everyone. One dark, Halloween night, Jack ran into the Devil himself in a local public house. Jack tricked the Devil by offering his soul in exchange for one last drink. The Devil quickly turned himself into a sixpence to pay the bartender, but Jack immediately snatched the coin and deposited it into his pocket, next to a silver cross that he was carrying. Thus, the Devil could not change himself back and Jack refused to allow the Devil to go free until the Devil had promised not to claim Jack’s soul for ten years.
The Devil agreed, and ten years later Jack again came across the Devil while out walking on a country road. The Devil tried collecting what he was due, but Jack thinking quickly, said, “I’ll go, but before I do, will you get me an apple from that tree?”
The Devil, thinking he had nothing to lose, jumped up into the tree to retrieve an apple. As soon as he did, Jack placed crosses all around the trunk of the tree, thus trapping the Devil once again. This time, Jack made the Devil promise that he would not take his soul when he finally died. Seeing no way around his predicament, the Devil grudgingly agreed.
When Stingy Jack eventually passed away several years later, he went to the Gates of Heaven, but was refused entrance because of his life of drinking and because he had been so tight-fisted and deceitful. So, Jack then went down to Hell to see the Devil and find out whether it were possible to gain entrance into the depths of Hell, but the Devil kept the promise that had been made to Jack years earlier, and would not let him enter.
“But where can I go?” asked Jack.
“Back to where you came from!” replied the Devil.
The way back was windy and very dark. Stingy Jack pleaded with the Devil to at least provide him with a light to help find his way. The Devil, as a final gesture, tossed Jack an ember straight from the fires of Hell. Jack placed the ember in a hollowed-out turnip…one of Jack’s favorite foods which he always carried around with him whenever he could steal one. From that day forward, Stingy Jack has been doomed to roam the earth without a resting place and with only his lit turnip to light the way in the darkness.
And now you know.
The pumpkin you carve has a brilliant history .. filled with paranormal tales of long, long ago.
For those who fear the mystery and ghoulish days to come before HALLOWEEN, you may not want to let your guard down. Halloween begins it all. And the paranormal tales and ghost stories will continue all the way through Christmas–perhaps one of the most paranormal holidays of all..
It wouold appear that despite the fact Patricia was the strongest storm for a time on the planet earth ni history, her devastation may not of been as widespread as some feared..
MORE..
Reporting from USA TODAY:
MONTERREY, Mexico — Early reports on the aftermath of Hurricane Patricia — one of the biggest storms to ever make landfall — were cautiously optimistic: No deaths reported and no signs of major damage along Mexico’s Pacific seaboard.
TV stations in Mexico broadcast news on Hurricane Patricia throughout the night, showing bright-red satellite images of the monster storm’s landfall on the Pacific Coast and its slow trudge northeast and interviews with residents and officials near the impacted area.
Landslides and flash floods were reported, but the mass evacuations that occurred prior to the hurricane’s landing appeared to have worked in saving lives. There were no deaths initially reported or major infrastructure damage, according to early TV reports. Residents from Colima to Puerto Vallarta heeded the warnings and evacuated out of dangerous areas or stayed indoors.
Whatever they did worked well. It would seem.
And whatever storm punch that was packed appears not to have been as deadly as feared. As quickly as the storm strengthened, it just as rapidly decreased in intensity.
It will now, however, be a dramatic rain storm for Texas..
It will not be razor blades in apples–kids don’t eat them anymore.. not it’s ecstasy in the candy..
From CBS NEWS:
Parents across the country may have been spooked by warnings spread through social media in recent days, raising fears that Ecstasy tablets could be mistaken for brightly colored Halloween candy – potentially putting children at risk.
Police in Jackson, Mississippi, posted about it on their Facebook page, and the warning went viral.
“If your kids get these for Halloween candy, they ARE NOT CANDY,” the post said. “They are the new shapes of Ecstasy and can kill kids through overdoses!!!”
But don’t panic.
This is yet another baseless fear for Halloween–one spread by rumor and now helped by social networking.
It twas always thus and always thus shall be.
I can see the scares of the future: There may be nanotechnology in your Butterfinger.
