31 movies to watch in October: The Houses October Built
By Carla Davis
As we close in on the week of Halloween, we are at day 25 of 31 movies to watch in October. This movie is SO Halloween that it even has the word “October” in the title.
The Houses October Built is a found footage horror film, and it’s one of those movies where several people involved did double-duty. Writer/Director Bobby Roe also appears in the movie, as does Writer/Producer Zack Andrews.
The main characters share the same first name as the unknown actors portraying them, so we have Brandy (Brandy Schaefer), Zack, Bobby, Mikey (Mikey Roe) and Jeff (Jeff Larson). This group of good pals sets off on a quest to visit the best haunted house attractions in the US in the days leading up to Halloween.
They have heard of an extreme haunt called Blue Skeleton, which is rumored to move around frequently, operate in secret, and possibly uses real torture techniques in its haunts. Of course, Blue Skeleton is the haunt they REALLY want to find.
As they visit the “regular” haunts, they manage to piss off the actors by filming them, and a couple of the actors follow our friends and scare them. Eventually, they are told that Blue Skeleton has popped up in Louisiana, and are told how to get there.
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Things start to get scary when someone breaks into the group’s camper and films them, then Brandy is terrorized in a bar bathroom. That night, they find themselves surrounded by costumed haunt actors, who disappear after the lights go out.
After our friends reach their connection for Blue Skeleton, we are thrown into high-gear horror. Those of you who read my stories regularly know that I don’t deal in spoilers, so I will let you experience the hair-raising finale of The Houses October Built for yourselves.
The Houses October Built was released in 2014, and its sequel, The Houses October Built 2 was released in 2017. Though the first is the best, the sequel is worth seeing as well, so make it a double feature.
It’s worth noting that the filmmakers released a map of America’s Scariest Haunted House Attractions, which should help those of you who can’t get enough scary stuff to suit you.
The Houses October Built can be streamed on Amazon Prime, Vudu, and other streaming platforms.
Next. 31 movies to watch in October: Black Christmas. dark
Do you like found footage films? What did you think of The Houses October Built? Let us know in the comments section.