WARNING: This Article May Contain Spoilers
I’m sure we’ve all heard about the upcoming Winnie-the-Poohniverse that is in the works, started off by Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (which I having been dying to see by the way). However, this isn’t the start of horror films based around things from our childhood, including nursery rhymes and children’s fairytales as you’ll see below…
Legend of Jack and Jill
Jack and Jill ran up the hill to escape from being slaughtered…wait, I’m sure that’s not how the nursery rhyme went… no but it’s how this film opens. For a while, this film reminds me of being a British version of Wrong Turn but at least Jack and Jill have a clear purpose! They believe all who come through the valley are evil after witnessing what happened to their mother but I’d love to know at what age they decided they would start killing people to protect it!It drags in most places especially with the subplot of Lucas’ suicide and the fact that our main characters don’t meet Jack and Jill until 45 minutes in. I want to say that this doesn’t have a happy ending, but it does in a roundabout way. It’s not a happy ending for our protagonists which I love but it is a happy ending for Jack and Jill.
The Curse of Humpty Dumpty
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall….off an armchair instead of a wall, which seems to awaken some sort of demonic spirit inside of him. Now, I’m not going to say I enjoyed this film because honestly, by around 30 minutes in I was pretty bored – however the Humpty Dumpty doll is rather creepy – with its bulging eyes and tooth-filled mouth, it reminds me of a cross between Momo and Pennywise. Like most films with some sort of demonic possession involved – one of the characters does a little research and usually you’re able to follow-along with what they’re reading but not this time! Thankfully they explain it a little later. The one thing I will say though, Wendy does kind of bring this all on herself…if she hadn’t conjured Humpty all those years ago – none of this would have happened
Three Blind Mice
I just want to start by saying that I expected the titular 3 blind mice, to look more like mice! I feel like they looked more like goblins than mutated human/mice hybrids. This aside, the plot (outside of these mice) irritates me a little bit. Mainly because the family, which I assume are supposed to be British, have American accents. It is then made more confusing when Cara refers to an intervention as an American term. It also didn’t help that something about Cara made me really suspicious of her, so I was kind of glad when the mice killed her or else it would have been a little clichéd. Even though the acting is pretty weak, the opening of the film slightly set you up for more than you actually get with the way Scratch, Sniff and Squealer (yes, the mice have names) tear the young girl apart.
Mary had a Little Lamb
So it looks like the film is actually from the same makers as Three Blind Mice but at least this monster actually looks like a lamb! It’s even the same lead actress! The plot for this also makes a little more sense to me, because of the fact that the group go out there on purpose, it’s not a coincidence. What makes this film even better is that the character of Mary is that perfect level of sweetness that it’s creepy and that means that you don’t lose the darkness from the opening scene like in some of the other films on this list. It also means I’m not sure whose more terrifying – her or her lamb!
Hansel and Gretel
Now, I’m sure we all know that the original story of Hansel and Gretel is pretty damn creepy on its own, but you know what – let’s make a horror film out of it anyway! Especially as there’s something a little more sadistic about it being a regular person trapping these children than an evil witch. Speaking of which, I unfortunately wasn’t surprised that Lilith turned out to be the villain just down to the meat pies at the beginning, you know a little like Mrs Lovett, and the fact that she works at The Gingerbread House. Interestingly, this and Mary Had a Little Lamb are very similar in storyline when it comes to a mother and her children. I actually think, acting wise and storyline wise – this is the best film in this article! Not that that’s really saying much.
Little Dead Rotting Hood
I’m certain this isn’t the first film to follow the idea that Red Riding Hood was a werewolf but I think with Amanda Seyfried’s Little Red Riding Hood is a little more implied. Even though when you use the words rotting and dead it implies a zombie instead of werewolf in my opinion. This is actually how they refer to her, as a zombie I mean, but when you look at the teeth and claws…it all says wolf! The interesting thing is that the Red Riding Hood character only takes up a small part of the story – the majority of the film, until about the last half an hour, focuses on the wolves and their new den mother. I’ll say this, the film can drag a little bit but I did love the twist of the identity of the den mother because I think the whole time that it’s Becky Sanders. It can learn a little bit from An American Werewolf in London and The Howling in regard to transitions though…
