Cinema on the Edge

In terms of permeating the public mindspace, Halloween is huge. I mean HUGE. Throughout October, we’re all busy building awesome costumes, seeing Halloween plays, visiting pumpkin patches and corn mazes, buying witch cookies and, these days, even decorating our homes for Halloween. I have no complaints: Halloween is the kind...

By Susan Froyd

October 22, 2009

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In terms of permeating the public mindspace, Halloween is huge. I mean HUGE. Throughout October, we’re all busy building awesome costumes, seeing Halloween plays, visiting pumpkin patches and corn mazes, buying witch cookies and, these days, even decorating our homes for Halloween. I have no complaints: Halloween is the kind of benign holiday — with an edge — that I can get behind and celebrate without qualms about religion or commercialism. But for me, it’s the movies that are the meat of Halloween culture-seeking: From classic creature features to more contemporary freaky fodder, there’s nothing like a scary, gory, creepy movie to get me in the spooking spirit.

So here’s a tip from me: For a really cool trio of Halloween film fare, University of Colorado at Boulder’s International Film Series has it all wrapped up this week, starting tonight with Hausu, a 1977 Japanese horror film that eFilm critic J. Seaver called “absolutely batshit crazy.” On its tail, the cult favorite Dead Snow, complete with Nazi zombies, screens tomorrow (“It’s not often that I can program a Norwegian zombie film, so I really just couldn’t help myself,” says IFS director Pablo Kjolseth of the choice), and I Can See You, a more subtle work with an avant-garde, David Lynch-y look rounds out the mini-series on Friday. All the films screen at 7 and 9 p.m. on campus in Muenzinger Auditorium, and special promotions (including a chance to win free tickets to the screenings) are promised (tweet "@boulderifs halloween" for information). IFS Admission is $5 to $6; get info at www.internationalfilmseries.com.
Oct. 28-30, 7 & 9 p.m., 2009

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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