October Horror Movie Challenge- Day 27

It's been a long time since I've seen the first Dead Snow, but I remember really liking it. Although I'd have to re-watch the first film to be sure, I think I enjoyed Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead (2014) even more. Picking up from the exact moment that Dead Snow ended, Dead Snow 2 follows our main character Martin as he's fleeing Herzog, the Nazi Colonel. Taking Herzog's arm off in the escape, he succumbs to exhaustion and crashes his car into a snow bank. After waking up in a hospital, he discovers that not only is he being blamed for the death of his friends from the first film, but they have accidentally replaced his arm (which he previously cut off to avoid infection) with Colonel Herzog's arm that was still in the car. Because of the zombie arm, Martin now has increased strength and the ability to raise the dead. Enlisting the help of an American "zombie squad" and a WWII museum staffer, Martin sets out to raise a group of Russian soldiers to help take out Herzog's forces which are now intent on following through on their original orders from Hitler himself by destroying a nearby Norwegian town. Dead Snow 2 is a blast from start to finish and constantly surprises with new, inventive, and incredibly awesome kills. It's rare to find a horror/comedy that is a perfect blend of both. Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead fits nicely into that category. 11 out of 12 beers.

The Houses October Built (2014) is a found-footage style film that follows a group of friends on a road trip trying to find the most extreme haunted attractions. Scouring the most underground and backwoods of  attractions, they soon begin to realize that the attraction they're looking for has found them. The Houses October Built did a lot of things right and I have to give it credit for that. I really like the idea of a horror movie built around haunted attractions and there was a point somewhere around a third of the way through where I was fully invested and was excited that this film was also going to feel like a thrill-a-minute haunted attraction. Unfortunately, I never felt any actual connection to the characters and the movie quickly became a typical "Oh my god! What's happening? I'm so scared, guys!" found-footage film. Once it reaches this point, the film can only go one of two ways, neither of which are very appealing or interesting. I wanted to like The Houses October Built, but it just didn't do anything for me. I feel like I've had my fill of found-footage movies for the month, but unfortunately I know that this won't be the last one I see. 7 out of 12 beers.