Giallo, Ghosts, and Gore: Horror Films at AFS Cinema this October
October is here and the Halloween season is upon us. As you’re scheduling your own 31 Nights of Halloween, look no further than the AFS Cinema calendar to layer in rare theatrical screenings and more. This month, we’re presenting a variety of horror films, from a giallo series to a Japanese vampire trilogy to John Carpenter’s classic THE THING.
GIALLO: FIVE NOTES IN BLACK
October 5 – 28
The Italian style of thriller that has become known as the giallo, is, when done well, fascinating and haunting, thanks in large part to the films’ scores. This series presents some of the best films of the genre, and some of the best soundtracks.
THE BLOODTHIRSTY TRILOGY
October 6 – 20
Inspired by the runaway success of the British and American gothic horror films of the sixties, Toho studios brought the vampiric tropes of the Dracula legend to Japanese screens with The Vampire Doll, Lake of Dracula, and Evil of Dracula – three spookily effective cult classics collectively known as The Bloodthirsty Trilogy.
ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN
October 14
It’s not only Frankenstein’s monster (Glenn Strange) –Dracula (Bela Lugosi) and the Wolf Man (Lon Chaney Jr.) are invited to the party, too! By 1948 the character-driven horror films at Universal had petered out – along with the careers of Abbott and Costello. The genius idea to combine the comedy duo (playing for laughs) and the monsters (playing it straight) was a hit. Although it was a swan song for the monsters it was the first in a series of four comedic horror films for Abbott & Costello. Come celebrate Halloween with AFS while we laugh at the monsters and Abbott & Costello’s antics – no nightmares here!
LATES: THE ADDICTION
October 19 – 20
A PhD candidate in philosophy explores being and nothingness as a vampire and craven junkie for that most precious sanguine fluid – blood. From writer Nicholas St. John (KING OF NEW YORK, DRILLER KILLER) comes a deliriously heady blend of Descartes and Catholic despair set to the colorful hip-hop conceits of Cypress Hill’s “I Wanna Get High”. An utterly original nocturnal trek through the metaphysical starring: Lily Taylor, Christopher Walken, Annabella Sciorra and a third of the eventual Sopranos cast. THE ADDICTION is a bite in the night – Abel Ferrara’s New York –shot in stark black and white.
EVERGREENS: HAUSU
Opens October 23 – Additional showtimes to be added soon
How to describe Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 1977 movie House? As a psychedelic ghost tale? A stream-of-consciousness bedtime story? An episode of Scooby Doo as directed by Dario Argento? Any of the above will do for this hallucinatory head trip about a schoolgirl who travels with six classmates to her ailing aunt’s creaky country home, only to come face to face with evil spirits, bloodthirsty pianos, and a demonic housecat. Too absurd to be genuinely terrifying, yet too nightmarish to be merely comic, House seems like it was beamed to Earth from another planet. Or perhaps the mind of a child: the director fashioned the script after the eccentric musings of his eleven-year-old daughter, then employed all the tricks in his analog arsenal (mattes, animation, and collage) to make them a visually astonishing, raucous reality. Never before released in the United States, and a bona fide cult classic in the making, House is one of the most exciting genre discoveries in years. Janus Films
HUMA BHABHA PRESENTS: THE THING
October 24 – 29
In what may be the most expressive use of practical special effects technology in a horror film, John Carpenter, and effects guru Rob Bottin have created an unforgettably visceral and effective scare machine of a film about a shape-changing alien invader whose first casualties on Earth are the inhabitants of a polar research station.
EYESLICER HALLOWEEN TOUR
October 23
Taking viewers on a chaotic journey through the liminal space of the Halloween season, The Eyeslicer Halloween Special feels like an acid trip down the Halloween aisle at Party City. The Special features work by over a dozen boundary-pushing American filmmakers (and includes shorts that have played at places like Sundance, SXSW, TIFF, and True/False). The Special is created by Dan Schoenbrun and Vanessa McDonnell (collective:unconscious, Chained for Life), executive produced by the radical artist collective Meow Wolf, and hosted by nine amateur Elvira impersonators we found on Craigs List.
HABICAT FOR HUMANITY: SLEEPWALKERS
October 26
Stephen King’s tale about a mother-son duo hiding an unusual secret. When they move to a small town in search of new prey, a high-school girl has to fight for her life in this gory (and at times humorous) horror film.
HALLOWEEN: THE CHANGELING
October 31
The fully-restored 1980 gem that made Martin Scorsese’s 11 Scariest Horror Movies Of All Time list. This movie represents a career peak for both star George C. Scott and director Peter Medak (THE RULING CLASS.) Oscar-winner Scott delivers major feels as a classical music composer consumed by grief after his wife and daughter are killed in a shocking accident. When he moves to a secluded Victorian mansion, he finds himself haunted by a paranormal entity that unleashes an even more disturbing secret. Based on actual events! (AGFA)
HALLOWEEN: SISTERS
October 31
Margot Kidder is Danielle, a beautiful model separated from her Siamese twin, Dominique. When a hotshot reporter (Jennifer Salt) suspects Dominique of a brutal murder, she becomes dangerously ensnared in the sisters’ insidious sibling bond. A scary and stylish paean to female destructiveness, De Palma’s first foray into horror voyeurism is a stunning amalgam of split-screen effects, bloody birthday cakes, and a chilling score by frequent Hitchcock collaborator Bernard Herrmann.-Janus
