So far every week has been an adventure with Shudder’s Creepshow revival. You never quite know what to expect out of each new batch of scary shorts. This latest pairing, titled All Hallow’s Eve and The Man in The Suitcase, brings us two tales of irony and in doing so the best episode of the series yet. Each segment is refreshingly imaginative and offers plenty of food for thought with two compelling moral dilemmas.
All Hallow’s Eve
Directed by: John Harrison
Written by: Bruce Jones
Starring: Connor Christie, Madison Thompson, Andrew Eakle, Jasun Jabbar & Michael May
Recalling Stephen King’s IT and the Losers Club, the first segment opens on– you guessed it– the night of All Hallow’s Eve, also known as Halloween, as five costumed teenagers and a younger sheet-covered kid calling themselves “The Golden Dragons” come together for one last year of trick-r-treating. As they travel door-to-door it becomes clear that the residents of this small and sleepy town are intimidated by the Dragons, nervously offering elaborate desserts in place of candy. Are they notorious bullies? Perhaps the children of some powerful people?
The questions continue to mount as the group hits up the last house of the evening where they find a frightened lady with a shotgun who threatens the group after they ask about her son. Despite her desperate pleas to leave them in peace, the son comes forward and is dragged away by the quintet. The Dragons tie the teen to a tree before setting him ablaze. At this point it’s revealed what’s really going on and we learn the tragic backstory of the five friends.
Without giving too much away, the things we learn are disheartening and along with the strong performances from the central five leads, lends credence to a genuinely emotional story that wraps up in bitter-sweet fashion.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 (out of five)
The Man in the Suitcase
Directed by: David Buckner
Written by: Christopher Buehlman
Starring: Will Kidrachuck, Ravi Naidu, Madison Bailey & Ian Gregg
The second story begins as a slacker college student named Justin (Kidrachuck) returns home from a trip. He swipes his luggage from the airport baggage claim and heads home. On the way he gets a call from his girlfriend Carla (Bailey), who proceeds to break up with him for his lack of ambition. Heartbroken, Justin turns to a trustworthy bag of weed to get high.
After a short while, a mumbled voice begins crying out to Justin from inside his suitcase. A timid unzipping reveals a Turkish man (Naidu), unnaturally contorted to fit inside the carry-on. Justin agonizingly attempts to un-mangle the stranger, only to discover that he miraculously spits out gold coins in response to pain. Confused and unsure of what to do, Justin turns to his ex-girlfriend and roommate Alex (Gregg) for help. Needless to say things quickly take a turn for the worse once they too figure out the man’s unique ability.
Though the central conflict of The Man in the Suitcase is a derivative one we’ve seen explored countless times in the past, the creative team manages to explore it in a fresh and interesting way via a story that’s never boring and, like the first segment, ends on a deliciously cathartic note.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 (out of five)
Those were our thoughts on the third episode of Creepshow. What did you think? Do you agree with our assessments? Or do you think differently? Jump down to the comments section below and let your voice be heard!
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