Starring - Jennifer Moriarty (Big Bad CGI Monsters, Beyond the Gates of Hell), Sayeed Bensalama (SlashFM, Slash-O-Lantern), and Cody J. Briscoe (VHS Violence: Bootlegged, Spider Baby)
Release Date - 2024
Genre - Horror/Comedy
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection)
Rating (out of 5):
The 10/31 horror anthology series is one of the more popular Halloween horror films of recent years. You can easily find hundreds, if not thousands, of posts on various social media platforms for the film series as October approaches. Honestly, I enjoyed the first three 10/31 films and when the fourth film was announced I had to add it to my collection. My goal was to watch it during my annual Halloween horror binge but I forgot to place the order in time and it didn't arrive until after October. Just like with the Out There Halloween Mega Tape, I added it to my review list so I could still see it even though Halloween was behind us.
The film once again follows Malvolia (this time in animated form) as she spins four tales of terror. The first tale, Ejectdead, follows a group of friends as they prepare for a night of horror movies on Halloween. What they don't know is that one of the tapes they are about to watch is actually cursed and the masked killer inside is about to make their night a living hell. The second, Haig's Heart, follows a candy factory owner who never got over the accidental poisoning of his daughter. The third tale, The Witch's Curse, follows a group of as they visit a supposedly haunted house to film a reality show only to find their deaths. The final tale, Moonlight Massacre, follows a haunted attraction employee who may have bitten off more than they can chew.
The 10/31 series has been pretty consistent up to this point and hasn't let me down and Part IV is no exception. While it is the weakest of the series, it still offers up at least two stories that I really enjoyed. With that being said, the stories were not consistent and I don't see myself revisiting this one anytime soon. I might revisit one of the shorts sometime in the future but not the film as a whole. The acting in this one is very inconsistent, like almost every aspect of the film. Some of the stories have a fantastic cast that really get into their roles while others feel almost as if they told to get the scene over as quick as possible. I don't expect consistent segments when you have an anthology with shorts from different filmmakers and this is the clear reason why. The stories for this one really try to get in to the Halloween spirit. Ejectdead is my favorite of the anthology with a simple and straight slasher story that blends The Ring and The Video Dead with any masked slasher to come out of the early 80s. It's short, sweet, and straight to the point. The second story is from one of my favorite indie filmmakers, Dylan R. Nix. Some of you may remember him from another one of my favorite Halloween films, Baron von Laugho's Halloween Spook-O-Thon. I was really looking forward to this one but it was, sadly, the middle of the road in my opinion. It has a lot of nods to Halloween III: Season of the Witch ranging from the iconic theme song to the commercial used to trigger the masks. While I did like the tribute to this underrated Halloween classic, the short itself wasn't something I enjoyed. It has potential to be extremely powerful especially if you are a parent but the Creepshow "Something to Tide You Over" ending missed it's mark in my opinion. The third segment is from controversial filmmaker Dustin Ferguson who has helmed some of the lowest rated horror films on imdb and Rotten Tomatoes. His segment was the one I was looking forward to the most. Not because he was behind the camera but because I absolutely love horror movies centered around witches. Sadly, this was another dud with absolutely no heart or imagination. Just a paint by number piece used to take up space. The final segment really caught me off guard. I was expecting another segment that would miss it's mark with me but was very surprised. It did have some room to grow but for a no to low budget indie short I enjoyed it for the most part. I'm not necessarily a fan of horror films taking place at a haunted attraction but this one didn't make it's entire identity the attraction. Finally, the film doesn't shy away from blood but it's not as gruesome as I would have liked. We do get a few small shots of computer generated effects but most of the film consists of practical effects. The deaths fit the films but they are nothing memorable or that would stand out to the viewer. I would have loved to see some imaginative kills in this one but that wasn't in the cards. Overall, 10/31 Part IV is a solid enough watch with the first and final segment being the highlight of the film. I really wanted to like Nix's segment, and while I respect him as a filmmaker, that segment wasn't for me. I recommend checking it out if you dig the franchise but if you are looking for something new to watch during your Halloween season then I would suggest the first three films in the series.
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