31 Days of Drafts and Darkness:

"Creepshow" (1982)

An interesting facet of the horror genre is that not all scary movies are designed to outright terrify you. True, some are all about getting under your skin. But just as many are as focused on the audience having fun, too. Like a haunted house attraction, these movies want you to spend the runtime screaming, but to leave smiling.

And so we have the horror classic from George A. Romero ('Night of the Living Dead') and Stephen King.

The Plot:

"Creepshow" centers around a young boy hiding a horror-comic from his parents. With the child only able to catch quick peeks of the warped stories, the film unfolds in vignettes. Each story is one of the tales the boy manages to quickly read in secret. Thus, while the stories don't intersect, each of them is seen through the eyes of a 12-year old.

There are five stories in total, each varying in degree of scares-to-humor, but all soaked in classic horror style.

"Father's Day", our opening bit, features a wealthy family recounting memories of their deceased patriarch. A whole host of skeletons in the closet come out as they tell stories of their father's life and the abuse he put them through. That it just so happens to be Father's Day and that his grave lies directly outside the mansion becomes relevant real quickly.

"The Lonely Death of Jordy Verrill" features a young Stephen King as a dim-witted farmer who stumbles upon a meteorite in his backyard. If horror films have taught us anything, it's that you don't mess with glowing meteorites. But of course Jordy can't help but fool around with the strange space-rock, hoping to get rich off of the discovery. Touching the bizarre space rock doesn't turn out to be the best idea.

Our next tale, "Something to Tide you Over", sees Leslie Nelson ("Airplane") in a rare dramatic role as a vengeful husband. Upon discovering his wife is cheating on him with another man, Leslie's character hatches a scheme to slowly drown them both in the incoming tide. Buried up to their necks in sand, the cheating lovers watch helplessly as the waves draw closer and closer.

"The Crate" is perhaps my favorite story of the bunch. The delivery of a large package to a university science lab yields a mysterious and deadly surprise for anyone who dares open its lid. When the lead scientist discovers the crate's murderous contents, he realizes how easy it would be to make certain rivals disappear if he so wanted them to. He just needs to keep the crate secret long enough to get them close enough.

Finally, "They're Creeping up on You" features a reclusive old millionaire (huh, lots of millionaires in this movie) who's secluded himself on the top floor of a high-rise apartment building. Fearing all manner of germ, the elderly hypochondriac has surrounded his home with state-of-the-art air purification systems and plastic sheeting over every surface. With all the cleanliness, why then do roaches seem so fond of the place?

The Flavor:

A horror classic, "Creepshow" is the sort of scary movie that strives to be spooky rather than outright terrifying. The filmmakers are obviously having fun with their twisted parables and it's clear they want the viewer to enjoy themselves as well. While there are plenty of creepy and bloody moments, the overall tone of the film is surprisingly light-hearted. The comic-book origins and twelve-year-old viewpoint makes each story charming in the campfire-story sort of way.

The amount of love put into "Creepshow's" style and atmosphere really illustrates how much George Romero and Stephen King must've grown up with these horror comics. One can easily picture their younger selves in the role of the kid hiding the comic from his stern parents. Though some of the effects are a bit dated, the make-up and monsters largely hold up very well. Considering the movie was made more than thirty years ago shows how much work went into its effects. Legendary makeup artist Tom Savini helped work on the film, and his talent shows. Not only is each beast and ghoul skillfully crafted, but the creepy lighting used to highlight key scenes really makes them stick out, much like a comic panel.

I also have to applaud the filmmakers for the variety of storytelling going on in "Creepshow". Though each tale is understandably grim, each is its own unique entity and feels vastly different from the others. Despite this film essentially breaking down into five mini-movies, you'll have no trouble remembering each one after the credits role.

Best Paired with:

"Creepshow's" tagline - the most fun you'll ever have being scared - perfectly sums up what to expect. I doubt there are many horror fans that haven't already seen the film, as it's a love-letter to classic scary stories and comics.

As a Halloween movie, "Creepshow" is the sort of eerie crowd-pleaser many audiences can enjoy. There are a few grisly moments and gory splatters, but nothing that would seriously bother even the most squeamish of viewer. There's also enough variety through the changing stories that everyone's bound to find at least one or two they'll enjoy. As such, "Creepshow" makes for a great seasonal scary movie to watch with friends or with family (provided the kids are preteens and up). 

Accompanying Brew:

Just as "Creepshow" combines Halloween creeps with an air of fun, I feel tonight's brew should stick to the lighter side of things but retain a kick of body. Upping the seasonal factor, let's make it a pumpkin brew as well, but one a little different from the rest.

UFO Pumpkinhead from Harpoon Brewery shares many of the qualities of your typical pumpkin ale. It's loaded with Fall spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice), contains a fair bit of sweetness, showcases a lovely amber color, and packs a mellow pumpkiny background. It also adds a bit of something else to the mix.

As an unfiltered ale, UFO Pumpkinhead appears slightly cloudy when poured into a pint glass. That haze is the remaining yeast, often filtered out of typical ales to give them a clearer color. Anyone who's sampled a homebrew will note that many are often a similarly hazy shade, mainly because few homebrewers bother to filter their beers. Personally, I'm a big fan of unfiltered offerings, as I feel the yeast provides a nutty flavor to go along with the hops and malt of the ale. UFO Pumpkinhead is no exception, with a nutty aftertaste complimenting its blend of spices and pumpkin. Another aspect of the brew I enjoy is how the sweetness has an almost 'toasted sugar' sort of tang to it that helps up the 'Fall' factor of the beer.

A solid pumpkinhead, Harpoon's UFO Pumpkin makes for a great pairing with "Creepshow's" balance of scary and fun. Light enough to have multiples enough, but far from bland or watery. There's enough substance to make both memorable in their own unique ways, while staying familiar enough to be enjoyed by most anyone. A tough balance to hit, but both tonight's movie and brew do the job admirably.