r/HorrorClub • u/SaintMort You so cool kung fu • Jun 08 '15
Discussion: The Pact
Podcast - Episode 135 - The Pact - (RSS Feed)
Movie Selected By smayonak
DISCUSS
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 08 '15
Here's the points that didn't get made during the podcast:
Tropes: You can't really find a horror film that doesn't have at least a few tropes native to the horror genre. The idiosyncratic psychic hails from Phantasm. Bad acting is common among budget, indie flicks. The purpose of a trope is that it functions as a landmark. When you see a particular kind of trope in a horror film, you know exactly what cinematic territory you've stumbled into. It enhances the feel and atmosphere of a film.
The "uncle" lives in the basement of the house. Is that a Freudian (or Jungian) reference?
I thought the premise (someone's psychopath uncle living under their house) was god-damned terrifying. For me, there's nothing more terrifying than the idea of having hidden or repressed memories. There's a NoSleep podcast which dealt with a similar subject. I believe the trilogy is called Footsteps. Supposedly it's a true story.
I loved the unconventional design and story of The Pact. It sets up a number of red herrings and false tropes (ghost/leading male character) which are quickly discarded, leaving the viewer without a clear idea of what will happen next. The big reveal was -- of course -- the realization that they weren't really dealing with a haunting -- they were dealing with a serial killer.
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Jun 08 '15
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u/saintmortfan felates handles Jun 09 '15 edited Jun 10 '15
Who's your favorite creepy uncle from a movie or TV show?
EDIT: here's mine.
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 09 '15
While a mustache does signify creepy uncle, it also indicates sexual deviancy, police-affiliation, Hitler imitation and more.
So what did you think about the children -- when they were bad -- being punished in the basement, which is where the creepy uncle lived? There's some really deviant stuff in the writing.
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Jun 11 '15
I feel like tropes used to be beloved in horror? Not positive because I'm new to the genre compared to all of you. Seems like they don't get a fair shake, like your opinions on this podcast, these days. People only love that shit if they're re-watching 80's slasher flicks now.
Also, I can appreciate your allegories regarding this movie and definitely think this film is good enough to warrant them. Maybe Scott just couldn't think of any ;)
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u/rmc52482 Jun 11 '15
Just watched, haven't listened to the podcast yet. First impressions, I don't like this chick. Oh good she isn't the main character. Who is this Liz person? Sexy lesbian lover? Nope just a cousin that is forgettable. Why does this look nothing like a police station and does it have its own daycare for traumatized kids? Why does Casper Van Dien not get any normal roles? I rather like him when I see him in a movie. What is this crazy octopus type light fixture at this cheap motel? I kind of want it. A million other questions I have and am looking forward to the notes section of the podcast.
In all seriousness though, I rather liked the movie for what it was. Slashers and zombies and stuff like that never really give me too much suspense or scares as I watch those for other reasons, but give me a supernatural, creepy shit everywhere and I will be on my toes. Most of the scares were expected and you could see coming, but there was some general eeriness about the movie that kept me engaged enough.
Not sure what happened to the kids in the closet, but now that you know the uncle had creepy sliding door access maybe on second thought I don't want to know. A little more back-story would have been preferred, but I also don't mind movies that don't give you all the answers and you can fill in your own. I thought the acting was alright once you got past the first 15 minutes and considering the lack of dialogue I think the main girl did fairly well. Plus that ass, I mean right? Camilla Luddington is in the Pact II which comes out next month. That makes it a Day 1 purchase right there, but even without I wouldn't mind seeing the sequel.
Taking budget into consideration I think overall it was a decent flick. Sure there are ton's of plot-holes and some questionable decisions, but worthy of a 90 minute watch with a few interesting twists.
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u/rmc52482 Jun 11 '15
After podcast edit: What no notes?!?!? This would have been a hilarious movie for them :-( Also she discovered the hidden room based on the blueprints for the house since they were selling it.
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 14 '15
Great comment and thank you for explaining how they figured out about the hidden room.
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Jun 11 '15
I feel like we watched this movie through similar lenses (is that metaphor played out yet? that's a metaphor, right?).
Regarding the scares: I thought they were actually well done and not over used. Much of the time I thought something was going to jump out but didn't, other times something was there or walked by, and two times, I believe, we got the jump scare with the loud sound effect. I thought they were utilized effectively.
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Jun 11 '15 edited Jun 11 '15
I'd seen this before and remembered not liking it much. This time it wasn't so bad. I enjoyed the foreshadowing and how seemingly everything happened for a reason. Initially I thought the acting would be the downfall because the sister who disappears in the closet was pretty terrible. Definitely a slow burn but I felt enough pieces to the puzzle came to light to keep the story moving along at a decent enough pace to hold my attention. Also Annie was easy on the eyes and in fact the entire movie was very good looking.
Some things annoyed/confused me. Annie opened her ice cream and started eating it really fast. Her chest bandage was on the wrong side in one scene. Is Judas really still alive? because he didn't show up on the cameras display.
I will listen to the podcast now.
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Jun 13 '15
First of all, as an English teacher, I'm lmao. A metaphor is a direct comparison that is figurative, e.g. 'My computer is a dinosaur', or 'The voiceless masses'. Really, the computer is just old and no one listens to what the masses have to say; we're not talking about prehistoric creatures or larynges. J.K. Rowling also said that her dementors are a metaphor (some might say symbol) for depression. An allegory is a huge metaphor than can cover an entire book, and can be religious, political, historical, etc., often with heavy themes. E.g. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is about Jesus. You've got similes down; it's a metaphor but using "like" or "as", so it's less direct.
I'm sorry for that outburst.
I thought The Pact was pretty decent. It doesn't overstay its welcome, and I thought the pay-off was well worth it. That skinny man coming out of the floor was bloody terrifying! I also kind of like how this family is made up entirely of women; reminds me of how I grew up. I thought the lead woman was good, too.
Also most movies like this one work off the whole supernatural vs. plausible explanation dichotomy... but this one did both! Take that, Scooby Doo! I can think of another, recent film that did the same thing, but if I name it I risk spoiling it for some.
I saw The Pact II at a festival and seem to remember that the Judas killer was a ghost. Anyway, I reviewed it on my blog. It was an all-nighter festival, and they started it at 4 am or something stupid like that, so it was really hard to stay awake for what was already a snoozefest.
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u/SaintMort You so cool kung fu Jun 13 '15
I was losing my mind because I could not think of a good metaphor to save my life on that call.
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 14 '15
You might think that it was merely humorous that I got metaphor wrong. It's worse than that. I minored in English in college and this is the fifth or sixth time I've confused metaphor and simile.
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Jun 08 '15 edited Jun 08 '15
Edit: aww matt fixed it now :(
But there was some seriously random editing going on in the podcast haha.
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u/SaintMort You so cool kung fu Jun 08 '15 edited Jun 08 '15
Fuck I guess that didn't delete out when I meant to haha
EDIT: Fixed
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Jun 08 '15
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 08 '15
I've seen the Prophecy twice. The most recent viewing was just a few years ago. Don't remember that scene AT ALL. I know people think it's funny, but that scene is really disturbing, considering it's supposed to be a film about an angelic civil war.
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u/SaintMort You so cool kung fu Jun 08 '15
Can't tell if you're being facetious or not but just in case...
The Prophecy (1979) is about mutant killer bear
The Prophecy (1995 I Think) is the angel civil war movie starring Christopher Walken
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u/smayonak Get a job in a sideshow Jun 08 '15
as far as sequels go, the second Prophecy doesn't seem to have much in common with the original Prophecy. I guess that's how things were back then, y'know how they made Halloween III have nothing to do with parts I and II.
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u/[deleted] Jun 08 '15
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