DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 31, 2018

Hack-O-Lantern (1988) Senile Satanist tries to initiate his grandson on Halloween while devil masked goon slashes people with a pitchfork. Bad in that special 80s way. TIL: Studies show kids raised religious are happier, healthier adults. Of course, just which religion matters.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Tales of Halloween (2015) - “I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” - L.M. Montgomery

And finally, for those of you who aren’t part of the Catholic Movie Geeks group on Facebook, I ended up giving an impromptu take on the new Netflix show, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Here it is for anyone who is interested.

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 30, 2018

The Ice Pirates (1984) In a galaxy where water is currency, intergalactic goofballs try to locate a legendary planet of ice. Also, space herpes. TIL: Water of Life is an old term for the Holy Spirit, so maybe Ice Pirates is actually a metaphor for mankind's search for... Nah.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Silent Scream (1979) - "A scream is always just that - a noise and not music." - Carl Jung

And finally, I'm going to hell for Aleteia this week. Um, in the movies that is.  Join me as we take a look at five unique visions of the bad place cinema has provided us over the years.

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 29, 2018

The Gate (1987) Kids uncover a portal to Hell in their backyard and unleash hordes of stop-motion monsters. It's Goosebumps meets The Evil Dead, but in a good way. TIL: Hell's attacks are usually a bit more subtle than dead men in the walls, but hey, I wouldn't put it past them.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Get Crazy (1983) - "The devil ain't got no music. All music is God's music." - Mavis Staples

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 28, 2018

Ghoulies (1984) Doofus follows in dad's footsteps and summons imps to help him sire an heir. Maybe he should have just tried Viagra instead. TIL: Because they aid rather than restrict the conjugal act, ED drugs are considered morally licit. Black magic is still out however.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Dawn of the Dead (2014) - “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” - Mark Twain

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 27, 2018

Watchers (1988) Touching tale of a boy and his dog and the monster that wants to rip them both into tiny little pieces. Three sequels? One with Mark Hamill? Really? TIL: Animals are already by nature destined for the common good of humanity. No need to try and improve them.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Bananas (1971) - “This is the choice before us: either try to revolutionize the world and break under it or revolutionize ourselves and remake the world.” - Fulton J. Sheen

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 26, 2018

Galaxy of Terror (1981) Space explorers travel to a planet that preys on their fears which, considering the worm rape scene, are oddly specific. Man, Corman's stuff got really weird in the 80s, didn't it? TIL: The more you trust in God, the less power fear has over you.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Church (1989) - “The Church is a perpetually defeated thing that always outlives her conquerors.” - Hilaire Belloc

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 25, 2018

The Dungeonmaster (1984) Evil wizard Richard Moll forces a nerd armed with a brick-sized Apple Watch to fight various stop motion monsters. God bless Charles Band. TIL: As the good book says, no person can serve two masters, not even if the second one is Bull from Night Court.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Race with the Devil (1975) - "Haste is of the Devil." - St. Jerome

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 24, 2018

Gorp (1980) Meandering Meatballs wannabe has Dennis Quaid heading up the kitchen crew at a Jewish sleepaway camp. If ever a bunch of kids needed a Jason Voorhies... TIL: Fortunately the Kashrut was negated for Christians because kosher campfire fare sounds pretty unappealing.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Enter the Fat Dragon (1978) - "God sends no one away empty except those who are full of themselves." - Dwight L. Moody

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 23, 2018

From a Whisper to a Scream (1987) Unjustly forgotten anthology has Vincent Price relating gruesome tales of bad romance, circus geeks, and really rotten kids. TIL: Boyce noted that conventional storytelling is about consequences, while great stories are about mercy and grace.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Devil's Rain (1975) - "Thy fate is the common fate of all; Into each life some rain must fall." - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 22, 2018

Full Moon High (1981) Larry Cohen takes an atypical comedic turn with this proto-Teen Wolf. Not saying he should have, just noting that he did. TIL: You won't find them on many dashboards, but some old icons of St. Christopher actually portrayed him as having the head of a dog.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Psychos in Love (1987) - "A great marriage is not when the ‘perfect couple’ comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences.” – Dave Meurer

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 21, 2018

Teen Witch (1989) Lovelorn Louise uses her newfound powers to get big 80s hair and become the most popular girl in school. Meanwhile, rich white boys try to rap. TIL: Self reflection is different than self absorption. One leads to sainthood, the other to psychopathy.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters (2007) - “The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it” – Epicurus

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 20, 2018

Gor (1987) John Norman's sci-fi fantasy series eventually sank into a cesspool of misogynistic S&M. This adaptation never goes there, but it doesn't really go anywhere else either. TIL: If it weren't obvious, any sexual act that violates the dignity of another should be avoided.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Dolls (1987) - “She who dies with the most toys is, nonetheless, still dead.” - Claudio Encarnacion Montero

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 19, 2018

The Hallow (2015) Family freshly moved to the Irish forests come under assault by ferocious... fairies. It's good. No, really, I'm not kidding. TIL: Tolkien considered a fairy tale's happy ending an evangelium on the joy of deliverance and the denial of universal final defeat.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Funland (1987) - “America is the first culture in jeopardy of amusing itself to death.” - John Piper

And finally, in case you missed the (literally) big news, NASA just gave Godzilla his own constellation. The Xiliens will  not be pleased.

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 18, 2018

Fatal Instinct (1993) Successful spoof of thrillers apes everything from Double Indemnity to Sleeping With The Enemy. Deserves a bigger following. TIL: Oddly enough, some of the biblical femme fatales such as Judith, Esther, and Jael are actually the heroines of their stories.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Final Exam (1981) - "I was thinking about how people seem to read the Bible a whole lot more as they get older; then it dawned on me... they're cramming for their final exam." - George Carlin

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 17, 2018

The Neptune Factor (1973) Recognizable cast tries in vain to make you forget the "special" effects consist of plastic toys in a 20 gallon aquarium. Beware the striped catfish! TIL: Tertullian saw parallels between fish and Christians as both are "born" in the water.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Day of the Animals (1977) - “Let me be food for wild beasts, for they are my way to God.” - St. Ignatius of Antioch

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 17, 2018

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) Uncanny valley meets insufferable dialog as CGI tree-hugging scientists rush to save Mother Earth from dead aliens. TIL: "Man is suddenly becoming aware that by an ill-considered exploitation of nature he risks destroying it." Pope Paul VI

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Mole People (1956) - "Men do not stumble over mountains, but over mole hills." - Confucius

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 15, 2018

Donovan’s Brain (1953) Dead scientist's gray matter dominates the dope who preserved it. Standard B-stuff. Needless to say, Nancy Reagan would go on to bigger things. TIL: Surrendering to the will of God leads to sainthood. Surrendering to the will of evil brains, not so much.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Zombie Walks (1968) - “If trouble comes when you least expect it then maybe the thing to do is to always expect it.” - Cormac McCarthy

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 14, 2018

Evolver (1994) Adaptable robot made for gaming slips a gear, starts cussing like a sailor, and goes on a killing spree. If only Transformers had been half this fun. TIL: An A.I. has no rational soul, so if it gets out of line, just go ahead and put it down.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of America 3000 (1986) - “The last generation's worst fears become the next one's B-grade entertainment.” - Barbara Kingsolver

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 13, 2018

World Without End (1956) Manly armed astronauts from the past save future gunless soyboys from mutant cavemen. Insert your Millenial insults here. TIL: A real spiritual masculinity is one that actively initiates love and uses strength to protect and promote that love.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Devil Commands (1941) - "A working knowledge of the devil can be very well had from resisting him." - Flannery O'Connor

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 12, 2018

The Evil Clergyman (1988) Long lost loose Lovecraft adaptation from Charles Band and the Re-Animator cast. Well worth 30 minutes of your time. TIL: There have been Popes who have committed just about every crime. There have been none who changed Church teaching. Interesting huh?

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Sea Serpent (1985) - "A fallen lighthouse is more dangerous than a reef." - Old Proverb

And finally, for Aleteia this week I take an intimate journey to the moon with Neil Armstrong. My review of First Man.

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 11, 2018

From Beyond (1986) Follow-up to Re-Animator isn't as lovable as its predecessor, but may be more loopy, if such a thing is even possible. TIL: One point which Lovecraft's mythos and Christianity agrees on: Be careful, because if you call, someone, or some thing, will answer.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of Island of the Doomed (1967) - "Even the richest soil, if left uncultivated will produce the rankest weeds." - Leonardo da Vinci

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 10, 2018

Deadly Friend (1986) Boy meets girl, girl gets murdered, boy uses robot brain to turn girl into vindictive zombie. Not Craven's proudest moment. TIL: Attempts to preserve life that are unduly burdensome on the patient are not morally obligatory. Pretty sure this counts.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of The Seventh Victim (1943) - "Fear is a noose that binds until it strangles." - Jean Toomer

And finally, Catholic Skywalker has taken a look at the fourth go around for A Star Is Born so you don’t have to.

DAILY CALL SHEET: OCTOBER 9, 2018

Escape from Tomorrow (2013) Harried hubby's trip to Disney World turns surreal after meeting two flirtatious French teens. Great exercise in guerrilla filmmaking with uneven results. TIL: Just because you go on vacation doesn't mean your moral center should as well.

Your daily dose of culture courtesy of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) - “The eyes of others our prisons; their thoughts our cages.” ― Virginia Woolf