Oct
01
2017
0

31 Days of Horror: Day 1- Gerald’s Game

October has arrived, ghosts and ghouls, and that can only mean one thing- it’s time for horror movies. I’ll be watching a horror film a day for October, and be posting them here to help you with suggestions for your own frightful viewing. Each movie will be given a brief plot synopsis without spoilers, followed by my impressions. These will not be full on reviews, though I will include a score at the end, plus a trailer of the movie. I will be watching movies I have not seen before, so you won’t be seeing familiar titles like John Carpenter’s Halloween, Wes Craven’s Nightmare on Elm Street, or Tobe Hooper’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre (all classics to be sure, and should be part of your October horror viewing). I will note how I watched each film, be it through Netflix, Amazon Prime, Blu-ray or DVD, or some other means, so you know where to check these films out. Hope you’ll enjoy the ride, and find some new fright flicks for your viewing pleasure. All movies are 2017 releases unless otherwise noted.

Kicking things off on Day 1 is the latest Stephen King adaptation Gerald’s Game, now showing on Netflix. King adaptations were split in the theater this year, with The Dark Tower being a miss and IT being a very solid hit (the movie recently crossed the half million mark in ticket sales). Happily, Gerald’s Game is more of a hit. It’s at times creepy and at other times quite uncomfortable to watch.

Gerald’s Game tells the tale of Gerald Burlingame (Bruce Greenwood) and his wife Jessie (Carla Gugino) heading to a secluded lakeside house. Once there, Gerald decides to spice things up to help their failing marriage with a sex game, and handcuffs Jessie to the bed. Things don’t get too far when Gerald drops dead of a heart attack, leaving Jessie a prisoner in the cuffs. Visions and hallucinations follow, as well as having to deal with staying alive and trying to escape her bondage. The visions are at times creepy and other times they are darkly humorous. There is one scene that’s sure to make some people squirm, and there are a couple of jump scares thrown in for good measure. Both Greenwood and Gugino deliver with their performances, and director Mike Flanagan (Oculus, Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil) keeps the tension high throughout the film’s 103 minute run time. It’s a solid adaptation of King’s novel, though the third act seems to move at a faster pace than maybe it should have. Overall, this is well worth your time, and while not being overly scary, it does make for some unsettling viewing. 8/10 stars