You’ve heard of Christmas in July, but how about Halloween in March and April?
Blumhouse is partnering with AMC Theatres for the first-ever Halfway to Halloween Film Festival, a five-day multiplex event that launches this weekend in over 40 cities across the U.S.
“We’re very excited about Halfway to Halloween,” Blumhouse Vice President of Feature Film Development Ryan Turek told WTOP. “It’s something that took hold on social media. People who are obsessed, like we are, with the holiday wanted it a little sooner, so let’s mark the halfway point with a little bit of a celebration. … We’re hoping that people get out and go have a good time at the theater with some scary movies that we created.”
It’s a spooky alternative to annual Easter airings of Biblical epics from “Ben-Hur” to “The Ten Commandments.”
“We call it counter programming,” Turek said. “‘The Exorcist’ way back in the day was released around Christmas if you remember, and so did ‘Scream,’ which was a huge success. … They found that everybody was gonna be in the holiday spirit, but there’s some horror fans out there that are gonna wanna go out for a scary good time.”
The festival kicks off Friday, March 29 with Scott Derrickson’s “Sinister” (2012) starring Ethan Hawke.
“We have a really great relationship with Scott Derrickson, who directed a fantastic film for us called ‘The Black Phone,'” Turek said. “There was a science study like: ‘Are horror films good for your health and what are the scariest movies of all time according to science?’ — and ‘Sinister’ was the scariest movie of all time. They tested a bunch of people watching the movie. … The lawn mower is a sequence that needs to be seen in the theaters.”
The lineup continues Saturday, March 30 with James DeMonaco’s “The Purge” (2013), also starring Ethan Hawke.
“‘The Purge’ is the perfect collision of social commentary, political subtext and obviously popcorn thrills,” Turek said. “It kicked off a long-running franchise, a television series and it holds a special place in our heart because DeMonaco came to us with an idea that was just a fantastic, no-brainer, Rod Serling ‘Twilight Zone’-esque idea, which is: What if for 12 hours all crime was legal? … It becomes a siege movie, a keyhole look at a wider world.”
Easter Sunday, March 31 brings “Ouija: Origin of Evil” (2016) by Towson University alumni Mike Flanagan, who had previously directed “Oculus” (2013) and went on to direct “Gerald’s Game” (2017) and “Doctor Sleep” (2019), as well as many successful Netflix series with “The Haunting of Hill House” (2018), “The Haunting of Bly Manor” (2020), “Midnight Mass” (2021), “The Midnight Club” (2022) and “The Fall of the House of Usher” (2023).
“We love Mike Flanagan,” Turek said. “(‘Ouija’) kind of sat into the realm of the supernatural and he just did a really great job. … This is kind of like a period piece, he brought a lot of style to it, it’s very clever, it’s about a family that are not necessarily scam artists but they’re pulling a ruse on people, then real supernatural stuff kicks into gear.”
Monday, April 1 brings “Insidious” (2010) starring Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne. Directed by James Wan in between “Saw” (2004) and “The Conjuring” (2013), “Insidious” features a legendary jump scare with a demonic red face appearing behind a character’s head at the dinner table in what has become a staple of social media.
“It came after ‘Paranormal Activity’ for us,” Turek said. “Blumhouse was starting to find its footing working with really creative filmmakers, working on small budgets, betting on themselves to tell a scary movie and get creative freedom at the same time. This is a prime example of that. James Wan did ‘Saw’ and a couple big studio movies, but then pared it back for ‘Insidious’ and went back to basics to tell a scary movie that’s a little ‘Poltergeist’ inspired.”
It all culminates Tuesday, April 2 with “The Invisible Man” (2020) starring Elisabeth Moss and directed by “Saw” screenwriter Leigh Whannell. Adapted from the 1933 classic, it remains one of the best horror remakes ever.
“This is one of my favorites that Blumhouse has produced,” Turek said. “It’s so, so great. It’s taking an age-old Universal classic movie monster idea and truly contemporizing it in the way that John Carpenter took ‘The Thing from Another World,’ which was a 1950s creature feature, and then brought it into the ’80s. … Leigh applied the same approach: What’s scary about the Invisible Man? How can I apply that to contemporary ideas or relationships and then turn up the tension and scares? He did such a fantastic job. There are some all-timer moments in it.”
Tickets are $8 plus tax, including a mystery gift with purchase.
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