Jeff Reviews CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL (2018)

"Following a series of inexplicable events, a woman comes to believe that a doll possesses the soul of a vengeful witch."

CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL is a 2017 British supernatural horror film written and directed by Lawrence Fowler. The Up A Notch Productions film stars Helen Crevel, Neil Hobbs, and Philip Ridout. Originally called "Conjuring the Witch's Doll" the filmmakers/distributors attempted to ride the popularity of Annabelle and The Conjuring. Dropping the obvious tease that it is somehow related to the successful franchises, CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL advertising still promised an evil doll worse than Annabelle threatening "Back in your box, Annabelle."

Adeline Gray’s attempt to escape the Blitz bombing leads her to a derelict, creepy manor in the woods of the English countryside. When Adeline’s young daughter Chloe goes missing, a series of inexplicable events lead her to believe a haunted doll holds a vengeful soul; the soul of a murdered witch. As the plot thickens we learn these past events still haunt Adeline, now called Mary, as she struggles with reality and fantasy while in an asylum. The doll is still a central focus and may be controlling her doctor as well. Our goal as voyeurs is to figure out if the evil doll is a really a thing if Adeline/Mary is truly insane, and what time period we are truly in. It's an eclectic mystery well blended to keep us on our toes and hinged on the dolls next move.

CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL is a proper British film with slow deliberate pacing, dark and dingy scenes, and morose atmosphere. It is very Hammer like while attempting to be on par with The Woman in Black 2, right down to the basic story elements of a woman seeking asylum from the war in 1942 in a creepy old country manor presumably run by an equally creepy gentleman with possible notorious intent. All actors are brilliant in proper British fashion and definitely helped create the atmosphere you'd expect from a 70's era Hammer film. Extra credit goes to Doris for being a very convincing mentally unstable witness to the evil doll, even the tension in this scene is palpable. As characteristic of the films the filmmakers are paying homage too, there's little to no blood and gore, just artful builds in tension, implying what will happen next, and then fade out to next scene. Though an enjoyable horror film, its boast that it is somehow better or more evil then Annabelle is hardly proven. There's nothing particularly scary as much as it is intriguing and less of a mind game than it is a hotbed for conjecture as to what is really going on. The doll is pretty cool though, the craftsmanship is excellent and the stop-motion isn't ridiculously overzealous.

CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL is a worthwhile homage to Hammer style filmmaking. In the US, High Octane Pictures released CURSE OF THE WITCH'S DOLL on VOD February 2nd, DVD March 6th and SVOD on June 5th.

Behind the Scenes of Your Favorite Horror Films: Ils aka Them (2006)

The "true story" in which the film was based upon involved an Austrian couple that was murdered by three teenagers in their vacation home in Romania (IMDB).

On this day in horror history.... March 24th, 1939

On this day in horror history.... my favorite of the Sherlock Holmes films, 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' is released. Portrayed by Basil Rathbone, this film is just as engaging today as it was when it was released. He may not be by the books, with the character, but he owns it all the same.

Jeff Reviews BAD APPLES (2018)

On Halloween night, two malevolent children terrorize a young and innocent couple in their home, subjecting them to an evening they will never forget.

BAD APPLES is written, produced and directed by Bryan Coyne (Utero; Infernal). The movie stars Andrea Collins (The Hospital), Brea Grant (Dexter), and Graham Skipper (Beyond the Gates). Coyne's work thus far seems to favor evil and babies. In Inferno when a girl starts acting strangely, unexplained phenomena starts happening. For Utero Coyne will be exloring the world of pre-partum madness as an agoraphobic unwed mother finds her psyche unraveling as she becomes convinced that her unborn child is more monster than human. BAD APPLES is a familiar story as on Halloween night, two “bad apples” decide to play some wicked tricks on the one house in a suburban cul-de-sac that is not celebrating Halloween. They also kill a few other non-holiday friendly people along the way. In keeping with his current theme, Coyne starts us off with the murder of a pregnant woman. Fast forward to our two girls in masks and then let Halloween festivities commence.

BAD APPLES is a true independent, low budget horror. You can tell by the production quality that not a lot of money was behind the film. Despite some audio issues, and the lapse in actingor over acting, the overall outcome was not horrible. We tend to gauge lower budget horrors on a different scale, looking more at the overall quality of the work rather than the episodes of lapse in production and acting. As previously mentioned, it is a well known story, so the storyline isn't hard to follow. If you  let yourself you can even forgive Coyne for sticking safely to a tried and true pattern. If you let the film carry into its world you can even appreciate the slight tweeks. It helps that Richard Riehle cameos as the girls Principal, and that Brea Grant and Graham Skipper's portrayal, though slightly over the top, is actually believable and the characters likable. The masks are sufficiently creepy. Especially after being worn for awhile and splatters of blood added to their effect. The setup for a sequel is obvious, and when we learn the history of the house through exposition it probably wasn't needed. But in the end one tease I have for you should be enough to make you want to see it... pumpkin chest.

Distributor Uncork’d is the champions of ultra low budget horror these days. BAD APPLES was released on VOD via Uncork’d Entertainment on February 6, 2018.

Your March 24th Horror for the Day by Shaenon K. Garrity

Shaenon K. Garrity, the self-professed Mayor of Horror Movies, is mostly a cartoonist who just happens to watch a lot of scary movies while drawing cartoons. Check out her thematically appropriate horror movie for each day of the year at Horror Every Day. Continue to visit the Creepercast every day for that days featured Horror offering.

A Terror Time Out Featuring: Sinister (2012)

"Before the Stevensons moved here, they lived where the Miller family murders happened. Holy shit."

A reinvention of the demonic ghost film complete with a thrilling murder mystery plot.

On this day in horror history.... March 23rd, 1964

On this day in horror history.... a character actor for the ages, Peter Lorre, dies. Best known for his bulging eyes and broken English, he was a regular in many films of the era. Sadly, he shuffled off this mortal coil on March 23rd, 2964. Rest in peace, Mr. Lorre.