I just finished watching 28 Weeks Later, and it prompted me to think that I have seen a lot of horror movies this year, more than in most, and I've really been enjoying them. So I put together a list of my favorite horror movies and was curious as to what others are enjoyed in these parts. (List is not ranked).

1. 28 Days Later
2. 28 Weeks Later
3. The Descent
4. The Exorcist
5. Pulse (Japanese original)
6. The Ring
7. A Tale of Two Sisters
8. The Fly
9. The Devil's Backbone
10. Dark Water (either original or remake)

That's probably a complete list of all the horror movies I really like. It doesn't include movies like Silence of the Lambs and Se7en, just because I feel like serial killer movies are a different genre, even though those two movies in particular are often lumped into horror. On my "to see" list are The Thing and Exorcist: The Beginning. Not sure what others are worth seeing. Post your top list and help me add to my Netflix que!

I'm not a huge horror fan, but some of my faves include:

The Shining
The Innocents
Ju-On (The Japanese original)
Dark Water (The Japanese original)
28 Days Later

I think I like horror movies in theory, but don't like most in practice. My favorites:

-Night of the Demon
-The Thing (John Carpenter's version)
-The Fog (Carpenter's)
-All four of Romero's ...of the Dead movies
-28 Days Later

The Exorcist. So scary I re-rented it this year and actually chose to not watch it again. I didn't even like having the DVD in the house.

Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens. Max Schreck is simply the most evil vampire ever in the history of film. People have tried to make a scarier vampire for close to ninety years now and it can't be done.

Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht. Klaus Kinski comes the closest to Schreck; Herzog comes the closest to Murnau.

Vampyr - Der Traum des Allan Grey. Although it turns campy in the last twenty minutes, the first twenty minutes are astounding. I will never forget those creepy shadows. Definitely Dreyer's most "fun" film.

The Blair Witch Project. Maybe this was only so much scary fun because I went in knowing nothing (we went on opening night). Still, it was one of the most nerve-wracking horror film experiences I've had with the big screen, so it easily makes the list.

I think Gin gwai (The Eye) and The Others both made me seriously think about what could be watching from that other dimension. OK, add Ju-On to this section as well. Loved seeing that one in the theater -- walked out into the Chicago streets wondering where it was and when it was gonna get me.

Psycho. Scared me as a child. Love it.

Halloween. Scared me as a child. Love it.

Killer Party. Scared me and my sister as kids. Guilty pleasure. Terrible, terrible film -- save under "B-party with Friends and Film Night."

I didn't include Se7en or Silence of the Lambs because I agree with you, Solishu. I didn't include Un chien andalou or any number of David Lynch films or Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary or Takashi's Audition or The Shining for the same reason, simply that they are horrifying in many ways, and that they are well made films, but they are not standard "horror" films. I didn't include Rosemary's Baby or Carrie because I'm still coming to terms with those two. I didn't include The Hills Have Eyes cuz that movie really sucks the wad.

I really, really, really wanted to include Jeepers Creepers, and I am so full of pride that I will defend that film to my dying day. But it probably sux too.

I think I agree with Jason that I like the idea of horror films more than I end up liking most horror films. The Descent is a perfect example of this. I like the idea of it, but, ehh, well, that's about it.

-s.

Hey, Jeffrey's ideas in another thread tell us why The Exorcist is a better horror movie than all the rest:

(from Anders' E.T. thread)


IIRC, there's a lot of time to get to know Regan before she really goes berserk. No?

I'd probably have to see it again to know for sure, but I don't think that's gonna happen.

-s.

solishu wrote:
: 8. The Fly

Which version?

stef wrote:
: IIRC, there's a lot of time to get to know Regan before she really goes berserk. No?

Regan, maybe. Her mother and the priest who first tries to help them, definitely.

Links to our threads on The Exorcist (1973) and its sequels and prequels (1977-2005).

Cronenburg, with Jeff Goldblum.

FTR, I do not consider Cronenberg's _The Fly_ as horror. It is a masterful film, but it, to me, resembles more like sci-fi, or gory tragedy, than horror. FWIW.

I'm surprised only one mention of _Halloween_, and nary a single mention of _Nightmare on Elm St_, nor _Scream_. These are essentials of the genre.

I have a guilty spot for _Re-Animator_. Sue me.

And while I don't rate _The Legend of Hell House_ or _The Haunting (orig)_ as highly as the others, they still deserve some kudos for accomplishing genuine shivers under very low budget.

And of the older classics that I've seen, I rank _The Invisible Man_ the best.

And I still think I need to see some older classics, particularly _Cat People_ and some of the other films that director had made...

There are quite a few Tourneur fans on A&F: I listed his Night of the Demon on my top horror movie list, and though I've only seen a handful of his movies, I know Cat People, I Walked With A Zombie and the Leopard Man are all highly regarded.

Very surprised not to see any mention of the first two Alien films. Alien, which drew a lot of inspiration from It! The Terror from Beyond Space, took the really old concept of several people trapped in an isolated location and are slowly being killed off by a monster or madman, and invented something that felt very new. This idea had been used in countless other ways, from Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians, to William Castle's House on Haunted Hill, to George Romero's Living Dead films.

Aliens succeeded in taking the idea further, and improving on a lot of what Ridley Scott introduced in the first film. Unlike the Jaws series, which just recycled the same idea but put different actors on the menu, I think Aliens is a triumph for actually making us care for Ripley and her escort of Marines. The first film was great on atmosphere, but looking back at it, less than stellar in developing characer. Everybody, including Ripley, were fairly interchangable, but their surroundings were just fantastic! Aliens provides surroundings that are just as incredible, but James Cameron takes his time by building up some background to his characters. You identify with Ripley as a real person in this film, rather than just another possible menu item. Cameron gives her some background, and I really felt for her when the entire debacle of the first film is laid at her feet. If you haven't had the chance to see the extended version, rent it for one scene in particular that I wish could have found a spot in the original cut of Aliens. There is a moment where we find out that Ripley had a daughter whom she outlived, because of her 57 years spent in cryogenic freeze. This lends a great deal more weight to the later relationship between Ripley and Newt. What I love about Aliens is that Cameron just didn't start throwing the monsters at you... it takes nearly an hour before the first alien shows up.

Sure, as Nick Alexander points out with The Fly, the Alien films may be considered more sci-fi than horror, but who am I to argue with the cover of the July 28th, 1986 cover of TIME...



Oh, and another movie to add to the list... Todd Brownings Freaks... completely made my skin crawl!

Alien IS one that I should've put on my list; it's a favorite, though for some reason I always lump it immediately into the 'sci-fi' corner in my mind. As much as I like Aliens, it felt more like a suspense movie with xenomorphs and guns than a horror film. Thanks for the mental nudge, Baal.

All due respect to Time magazine, and as a loving fan to the two Alien movies mentioned... it's sci-fi. It may be the scariest sci-fi ever made, but there are concepts in the film that make it firmly entrenched in sci-fi.

And Freaks... geez, I just caught that a few weeks ago. It's an odd film--the movie is more melodrama than anything else, and in this day of political correctness, I found myself resisting to its horror charms. After all, the film was making the point that despite their grotesque appearances, these were people equally as deserving of respect as anybody else. In light of that, and in light of special effects (both phenomenal--e.g. any modern horror movie, and crude--e.g. Monty Python and the Holy Grail), have allowed us to see much, much worse on celluloid, I found myself actually thrilled that these particular individuals were caught on film, to the point that I couldn't quite buy the film's last twenty minutes. But then, gabba gabba hey.

I think I'd rate Apocalypse Now as my favorite horror movie.

I haven't seen Jacob's Ladder in a long time, but it left scars.

Safe makes my chest ache.

I'm also a big fan of 28 Days Later. And Alien. And The Thing.

Oh... and Birth... the most severly underrated horror flick of the last several years.

And speaking of horror movies: Just saw Tom Tykwer's Perfume: The Story of a Murderer last night and, uh, wow. That is one sorely overlooked, ambitious motion picture, powerfully acted and exquisitely designed. It walks the razor's edge between genius and folly, and the last act will divide viewers the way A.I.'s last act divided them. I can't say it was pleasant to watch (although it features one of Dustin Hoffman's most amusing performances), but I have a feeling I'll be thinking it over for a long, long time to come. Highly recommended, but with heavy cautions about the numerous naked beauties left in the killer's wake.

Big horror fan here (old stuff mostly; I take no pleasure in the trendy sadism that seems to have monopolized the industry). Its paradoxical nature (how can we be both attracted and repulsed by the same object? how can we be frightened by something we know is fictitious?) fascinates me, and its philosophical implications are deep and seductive.

For starters, you ought to try watching a few of the early Universal classics (especially any of those directed by James Whale); the German silents (The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Nosferatu, Waxworks) a couple of Terence Fisher's (The Brides of Dracula, The Devil Rides Out); a couple of Roger Corman's (A Bucket of Blood, The Masque of the Red Death), anything by Georges Franju (Eyes without a Face in particular); anything by Jacques Tourneur (Curse of the Demon above all) an Ealing horror anthology called Dead of Night; The Innocents, Jack Clayton's unmissable Henry James adaptation; the postmodern Shadow of the Vampire; Michael Powell's controversial Peeping Tom, etc.

Then there's Hitchcock, Clouzot, Polanski...

I see a couple things here. One is that there seem to be quite a few working definitions of what makes a horror movie. Jeffery's inclusion of Apocalypse Now is particularly interesting, as I've never considered that movie to be a horror movie. I wrestled with including Aliens on my list but didn't because it clearly straddles the line between horror and sci-fi. I think that there are a lot of really good movies that, rather than laying squarely within the horror genres, adopt alot of the elements of the genre. Such movies would include:

Se7en
The Bone Collector
Silence of the Lambs
Alien/s
The Others
The Sixth Sense

I'm also a big fan of Perfume, Jeffery. I had never thought of it as a horror movie before, but I think that it just might make it over the line.

Genre purists, what are the essential elements that a horror movie has to/can't have? The best I can do is to offer the following list:

A villain with superhuman or supernatural powers
A sympathetic character endangered by that villain, sometimes by accident, sometimes puts self in harms way to rescue another character from the villain
A sense of danger permeating the film

That seems like a pretty weak test to pass. Anyone else think they can put some better boundaries on the genre?

I view horror as distinct from terror. Animals can feel terror (the fear of physical harm), but horror is a sophisticated and uniquely human emotion. Only human beings can contemplate death and reflect on what comes after. We fear a mad slasher for what he can do to us, but we fear a ghost mainly for what it is. To quote author Bruce Lanier Wright, "Horror tells us that our maps of reality are incomplete, that some impossible thing can in fact happen. The inexplicable tends to awaken a nebulous sort of panic in us, a suspicion that the universe is even stranger and more uncertain than we had imagined it to be."

So, maybe horror is the kind of feeling you get from looking at a painting by Bosch or Fuseli, or listening to A Night on the Bare Mountain by Rimsky-Korsakov. I guess it's something you have to intuit. I don't consider Se7en a horror film, although you could broaden the definition to include anything that shocks or terrifies, in which case a film like The Silence of the Lambs would fit the bill.

By that definition, The Fly would fit squarely within horror I would think.... It is the horrible thing that he *is* that makes the film so frightening.... Just think of the scene where Veronica has the nightmare of delivering Brundle-Fly's maggot. That strikes me as about as horrific and it can get.

Definitely!

Hurray! Glad to finally hear you comment on it, JO!!!

It ain't no horror movie though.

And besides, only one of the films on Jeffrey's list actually is a horror movie. And I fell asleep on it.

-s.

Nope. But as JO didn't actually comment on Perfume on the Perfume thread, I had to comment here... I'll shut up now.

Turner Classic Movies is being very kind to me this October. Lots of good movies from your list made the cut. I'm already making a strong DVR list.

Since you're a huge fan of these films, if you'd like to peruse the list and let me know which films are absolutely unmissable, I'd be much appreciated. And I say this, already highlighting the Tourneur, the Franju, and the Corman films...

http://www.tcm.com/schedule/month/?cid=N&a...p;oid=10/1/2007

Thanks!
Nick

Looks like the October roster is the real deal! In addition to the ones I already mentioned, I'd strongly suggest seeing The Picture of Dorian Gray, Vampyr, Scream of Fear, and The Devil Doll.

Incidentally, A Matter of Life and Death is one of the most wondrous films ever made, though strictly speaking, it's not horror. It's fantasy.

12 Angry Men is neither horror nor fantasy, but it's my favorite movie. See that one, too. And then see Detour, and Moby Dick, and Fear Strikes Out, and Sleuth...

Avoid On Golden Pond at all costs.

Dude... thanks so much for this.

Indeed, I must ask the powers-that-be: can there be a sticky called "Turner Classic Movies Watch" or something like that? Where if there is a good movie for the upcoming week/month, we are made aware of it, so as to set our DVR/VCR/Alarm Clocks?

And I know it could go out of control--I only have basic cable and do not subscribe to any of the major movie channels, nor IFC/Sundance. And the movies shown on all basic cable stations [* with the exception of Turner Classic, Fox Movie Channel, and public television] are edited for television, full-screen, sometimes sped-up slightly, and interpersed with Ziploc bag advertisements...

But since TCM is such a tremendous resource, we ought to be recommending films from it. Just this week I've caught my first non-Robin-Hood Erril Flynn flick--Captain Blood. It's quite good.

BTW, of the films you mentioned, I concur on "A Matter of Life or Death"--some of the most bizarre heavenly imagery in a film (and Sir Richard Attenborough is supposedly one of the soldiers in the early scene). I agree w/12AM, own it. I disagree with OGP, own it. And I couldn't get into _Dorian Gray_, altho I love George Sanders, and I knew where it was going (but give me an _All About Eve_ Sanders, or _Shot in the Dark_ Sanders)...

We barely touched upon September's list, and it appears that the only film that's caught my eye is _The Taking of Pelham One Two Three_, perhaps as a counterpoint to ESPN's "The Bronx is Burning"... FWIW...

BTW, studying the list, it appears there's a very odd double-feature on Oct 29, both with a pretty strong pedigree:

2:00 AM Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell (1968)
Alien creatures turn plane crash survivors into vampires. Cast: Teruo Yoshida, Tomomi Sato, Eizo Kitamura. Dir: Hajime Sato. C-84 mins, TV-14, Letterbox Format

3:30 AM Kwaidan (1964)
Four stories mix love and the supernatural in exotic settings. Cast: Rentaro Mikuni, Michiyo Aratama, Misako Watanabe. Dir: Masaki Kobayashi. C-161 mins, TV-14, Letterbox Format

Both films come highly recommended by classic-horror.com... FWIW...

Some of my favourites:

The Exorcist (nothing else comes close)
The Innocents
Bride of Frankenstein
Alien (let's not carp about genre, this film has a monster that jumps out of the shadows. "Boo!" is its whole raison d'etre, so it's a horror film plain and simple).
Martin (George A. Romero's best film is also the greatest vampire movie of all time, in my view. Contains nudity so it's possible that I won't ever sit through it again, but I dearly miss hanging out with "The Count")
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Hansel and Gretel for grown-ups)
Dark Water (The Japanese original only!)
Kwaiden (preferably the 183 minute version)
Nosferatu
Onibaba
Quatermass and the Pit
A Chinese Ghost Story
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (the Don Siegel original was the first film that ever gave me sleepless nights. I was eight or nine).
Inferno (Argento's masterpiece)
Black Christmas (probably not a bona fide classic but worth seeing to make one realize how completely unoriginal John Carpenter is)

It's not a horror film as such (even though Boris Karloff is the star) but Peter Bogdanovich's wonderful "Targets" remains one of the scariest films I have ever seen.

Are you a Nigel Kneale fan, perchance? I've always appreciated his cerebral excursions into science fiction and horror (the recently available "Beasts" being a prime example of his ability to turn a genre on its ear).

Not really. I simply find "Quatermass and the Pit" (which I believe is retitled "Five Million Years to Earth" on the other side of the pond) to be extraordinary. It begins with the discovery of a martian spaceship in the underground system and ends with the devil appearing in the skies over London. Creepy stuff!

If you are a Kneale fan, "The Stone Tape" is generally regarded as the thing to see. I haven't ever seen it myself, I hasten to add, but I have always wanted to.

Yes, the Hammer film is excellent. I love how Kneale cast a scientist as the protagonist, thus giving his script a coldly rational framework. I managed to see the original three-hour serial (with Andre Morell) and it didn't measure up to the 1967 film. Not by a long shot.

BFI has allowed for easy access to some of Kneale's most extraordinary work through their excellent Archive TV strand.

Thanks for posting that link. Sadly, BFI DVDs are a little overpriced - they are beyond my pocket, at least. I didn't realize that "The Stone Tape" was commissioned for the BBC's "A Ghost Story For Christmas" series. I watched several of these as a teenager and they were terrific fun. I sat through "The Signalman" again recently and it still stands up. Very creepy, very well directed and with a fabulous central performance from Denholm Elliott.

I would also mention "Ghostwatch" in passing. Horror on TV really doesn't get any better than this, but, given the programme's cast, it would probably make more sense to a British audience than an American one. It begins so blandly, looking like typical winter's night fare, but then it gradually cranks up the tension and spirals out of control. It caught out an awful lot of people.

Hmmm... I am not sure how ethical it is for me to recommend a movie that I would no longer watch myself.

Some of the creepiest films I've seen in recent years have been Ju-On and The Eye. Their strength lies in the imagery rather than storytelling, so I don't know if they could be considered great films but they sure creeped me out.

Candyman is a film that deserves a mention. For years I avoided it, thinking it was a generic slasher. I was pleasantly surprised when I finally rented it.

Although they are more comedy than horror, I'm a huge fan of An American Werewolf in London and Evil Dead II.

I would also recommend Argento's Deep Red. Its one of the most beautifully shot horror films and has the creepiest puppet in movie history.

I spent part of the Christmas holiday reacquainting myself with the horror films of James Whale, and I wasn't disappointed. All of these are bona fide masterpieces:

Frankenstein (1931)
The Old Dark House (1932)
The Invisible Man (1933)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

I also recently enjoyed Edgar G. Ulmer's bizarre The Black Cat.

I finally caught up with "The Stone Tape" and found it to be up to the hype. It's low-key by today's standards, but very, very creepy. I need to now see kneale's "The Year of the Sex Olympics", which sounds like a portent of these postmodern times.

From Wikipedia:

Stephen King explains why low budget horror films are scarier than their big budget counterparts.



I think most of this article seems to be an updated rehash of some of King's ideas from his book Danse Macabre.

The New Yorker names the five scariest movies of all time, and asks for reader input. (HT: Anne Thompson)

I haven't reflected on the question for many, many years, but I wouldn't have chosen any of the five films the magazine selected. I wouldn't go too obscure -- mainly because I haven't seen too many obscure horror movies -- but of those I have seen, I'd probably pick "The Evil Dead" and "The Exorcist." John Carpenter's "Halloween" is a good pick.

I like writers that pick outside the mainstream. But I disagree with "The Body Snatcher" (ok) and ... ugh... Mulholland Drive.

But I did respond to them, listing three of my favorite unheralded horror classics, some of which I've seen this past year, thanks to the recommendations on this board: Eyes Without a Face, The Wicker Man (orig), and... Pee Wee's Big Adventure.

Speaking of which, it's October again in TCM-land, which means a number of lesser-known horror flicks are on display. Of the films that I have not seen, these are what's playing (accompanied by its current imdb rating):

Dead of Night 8.0
Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane 7.2
The Honeymoon Killers 7.0
Peeping Tom 7.8
Hunchback of Notre Dame 7.9
Mad Love 7.4

13 Ghosts 5.9
Wicked Wicked 5.0
House of Usher 6.9
Mystery of the Wax Museum 6.9
Kongo 6.8
Ghost Ship 5.8/6.6(43)
Seventh Victim 6.9
Return of Doctor X 5.4
Isle of the Dead 6.5
Strait-Jacket 6.56
Homicidal 6.8
Beast With Five Fingers 6.4
The Gorgon 6.1
Mr. Sardonicus 6.51
Tomb of Ligea 6.5
Torture Garden 6.0
Twice-Told Tales 6.7
Spirits of the Dead 6.5
Mark of the Vampire 6.2
Devil Bat 5.1
White Zombie 6.5
Bedlam 638
The Ghoul 5.8
Haunted Palace 6.5
Die Monster Die 5.3
Shuttered Room 5.9
Dunwich Horror 4.9
Blood Feast 4.2
Two Thousand Maniacs 5.8

-----------
The top six I will most likely be taping. Any other favorites from the other selections?

Nick

When it comes to movies on TV, October is my favorite month. Between TCM, AMC, Sci Fi, Fearnet.com...I can see a slew of both genuinely well made horror flicks as well as plenty of hilariously bad ones.

Looks like TCM saved my most anticipated not-yet-seen horror film for November.

Suspiria (Dario Argento) will play on Nov 14-15 at 2am.

I've been dying to see this since I saw snippets of the first-twenty-minutes murders on Bravo's Countdown of scariest movie moments. It has stayed with me for months.

Gotta get that DVR set up!