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Post by erik on Oct 29, 2006 14:03:40 GMT -5
With Halloween just about upon us, how about anyone who wants to posting their 20 favorite fright flicks?
Here are my 20:
PSYCHO (1960) THE BIRDS (1963) DUEL (1971) JAWS (1975) THE SHINING (1980) POLTERGEIST (1982) CARRIE (1976) HALLOWEEN (1978) STRAW DOGS (1971) DELIVERANCE (1972) FRENZY (1972) DRESSED TO KILL (1980) CAPE FEAR (1962) ARACHNOPHOBIA (1990) THE FOG (1980) THE NIGHT STALKER (1972) CHRISTINE (1983) THE RING (2002) NIGHT GALLERY (1969) THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (1974)
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Post by walt on Oct 29, 2006 17:51:36 GMT -5
rosemary's baby frankenstein night of the living dead (george romero pittsburgh's own) bride of frankenstein freaks the demon (english-kate bush used an excerpt on "hounds of love"--"it's in the trees!") psycho carnival of souls birds the mummy (subtle) dracula silence of the lambs dr. jeykll & mr. hyde (fredrick march version) hunchback of notre dame (lon chaney version) hunchback of notre dame (charles laughton version) the phantom of the opera (lon chaney version) creature from the black lagoon the cat people dr. jeykll & mr. hyde (spencer tracy version) mystery of the wax museum-(original)
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Post by arjan on Oct 29, 2006 18:23:33 GMT -5
Well, since it's not for a poll I didn't limit myself to 20... Seeing your lists I think I have to go search some movies.
I listed them alphabetically:
An American Werewolf in London / An American Werewolf in Paris London is much better, but Paris has Julie Delpy. She's not scary but beautiful. The Beyond (E Tu Vivrai nel Terrore - L'AldilĂ ) Gore movie with a great, rememerable ending Braindead / Bad Taste Two gore movies of Peter Jackson. More humour than fright really. Gallons of blood, puke and other fluids. Cat People Another beauty, Nastasja Kinski. Cool movie though not too scary. The Craft By far the best 'wanna be witches on a highschool' movie. Dark Water (Honogurai Mizu no Soko Kara) Haven't seen the remake, but why would I anyway? The original is super scary. The Exorcist What can I say that not everyone knows? This is the real thing. From Dusk Til Dawn Only half of the movie is a horror movie of course. But Juliette Lewis + Vampires is a good combination. The Gathering Christina Ricci in a movie that's more a thriller really but with a religious theme. Ginger Snaps / Ginger Snaps 2 Werewolves in the 21st cenury. I prefer part 2, surprisingly. Hellraiser / Hellraiser 2 I don't know how many have been made in these series. But the first 2 are the only ones that matter. Last House on the Left Banned in the UK for a long time, maybe the scariest about this movie is that it's so very likely possible. The Mummy The 1932 version of course. Sometimes less (monster makeup) is more (suspense). Night of the Living Dead Cool zombie movie. Actual the entire trilogy is good. Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) / Dracula (1931) / Nosferatu (1922) Classic vampire story, I prefer the 1979 version with Klaus Kinski as Dracula. Bela Lugosi (1931) is great too and the silent 1922 version is really cool for it's time. Scary Dracula there too. The Omen Sometime, or maybe most of the times, suggestion is scarier than frontal gore and mutilation. Part 2 and 3 are not half as good. A part 4, made for TV only, is cool too. Poltergeist-trilogy (One of) the best trilogies.. The Prophecy First a trilogy, than an almost unrelated part 4 and 5. But part 1 is really good with Christopher Walken as a fallen angel and Satan himself saving humanity. Ringu Again the japanese original. Though I liked the us version too, but really, if you like that version also watch this one... Scream Nice trilogy too, with some humour too. The Seventh Sign Good armegaddon movie. The Tenant One of the scariest movies when I saw it the first time. Vampires Vampires are always cool. There's a lot of trash, sometimes even nice trash, but this one I really like.
I really don't like movies like the Halloween series or the Friday the 13th series... they make no sense at all.
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Post by Andrew on Oct 30, 2006 12:11:58 GMT -5
Hmmm. This won't be in any kind of order.
28 Days Shadow of the Vampire Shaun of the Dead Devil's Backbone Interview with a Vampire The Haunting (1963) Rosemary's Baby American Werewolf in London Alien Aliens Salem's Lot (does nothing for me now, but made me scared of looking out of windows at night for a long time when I was a kid) Sixth Sense The Shining Poltergeist (first one only) The Others Fatal Attraction Nightmare Before Christmas Joy Ride Fright Night Constantine Eraserhead The Believers April Fool's Day (as a teenager anyway) Trick or Treat (a bit silly, but what can you do) The Seventh Sign (another high school memory)
Arjan mentioned "Vampires," and I'll give it props for James Woods' performance. Not really my cup of tea otherwise.
Television: Several episodes of X-Files are incredibly scary Buffy the Vampire Slayer's episode "Hush" is scary, plus some of the manifestations of the first evil freak me out too.
Generally I dislike slasher flicks...but I just had to rent "Hellbent," a GAY slasher pick. It sucked something awful. I really hate slasher flicks.
I haven't seen The Exorcist. Maybe I should?
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Post by erik on Oct 31, 2006 9:42:06 GMT -5
Quote by Andrew:
Most slasher flicks just deteriorate into a mechanical body-count fashion, and they also betray a cultural conservatism, as usually all of those who get hacked or slashed so gorily to death have engaged in illicit sex or drugs. After the original HALLOWEEN, which has almost no bloodshed but a lot of suspense, forget it...
As for THE EXORCIST--you may want to be prepared for a lot of shocking stuff therein. Even today, it is beyond hair-raising.
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Post by Andrew on Oct 31, 2006 9:52:00 GMT -5
I forgot to include Duel, even though when I saw it on Erik's list it reminded me of Joy Ride. Duel was amazing for its ominous mystery and its suspense.
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Post by erik on Oct 31, 2006 10:38:31 GMT -5
I only saw JOY RIDE once, on video, and it came across as a Gen-X version of Spielberg's film. The difference, it seems to me, is that the teens who tease this truck driver that goes after them pretty much "ask" for it. All Dennis Weaver does in DUEL is legally pass the truck, and then he finds himself terrorized the rest of the way.
About DUEL, by the way--the screenplay is the work of veteran sci-fi and horror writer Richard Matheson, whose books include I Am Legend, The Shrinking Man, and What Dreams May Come, as well as several scripts for "The Twilight Zone" in the early 1960s. Spielberg was handed a very simple concept and, in my opinion, made it extremely credible--the first "road rage" movie, although the term didn't exist in 1971 when he made it.
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Post by arjan on Oct 31, 2006 11:27:06 GMT -5
Oh, I have to give "Skeleton Key" an honourable mention. At first I wasn't sure if the combination Kate Hudson + Horror would work, but it did actually. It's a story with some suspense about a girl in New Orleans (home of the voodoo) who finds some weird old voodoo stuff in a house where she has to nurse the old resident occupant. When she wants to find out what it means and does she gets herself in danger... nicely done, good role by Kate, nice pictures with the New Orleans swamps, good story... you even get to learn something, the difference between voodoo and hoodoo.
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Post by Andrew on Oct 31, 2006 11:55:15 GMT -5
I completely forgot Misery and Silence of the Lambs!
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Post by Andrew on Oct 31, 2006 12:32:08 GMT -5
Quote by Andrew: Most slasher flicks just deteriorate into a mechanical body-count fashion, and they also betray a cultural conservatism, as usually all of those who get hacked or slashed so gorily to death have engaged in illicit sex or drugs. After the original HALLOWEEN, which has almost no bloodshed but a lot of suspense, forget it... Spoilers, for those who are actually planning on seeing this film: With Hellbent, the first two are killed in the middle of having sex, the next is a virgin kid just after getting the phone number of his major crush (he's in bliss before getting killed), the next is the drug-using sleeps-with-anything bisexual (no cliches there) in the middle of a rave whilst completely high, and then a drag queen. Puh-leez. Sorry if I ruined the "plot" for anyone. Of course, the audience is warned before each murder by "scary" music. Did I mention I hated this movie?
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Post by erik on Oct 31, 2006 14:12:28 GMT -5
Quote by Andrew re. HELLBENT:
Like I said, a typical slasher film; is there any other type?
The only one I've ever seen that I think has any modicum of interest is the 1980 film TERROR TRAIN. The formula remains the same, but there is less gore, more suspense and atmosphere (being set on a train). Jamie Lee Curtis is in this one, along with veteran character actor Ben Johnson. The cinematography is first-rate as well, having been done by John Alcott, who worked with Kubrick on THE SHINING.
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Post by Andrew on Nov 1, 2006 16:07:44 GMT -5
I was just reminded of another great horror flick, and I'm surprised I forgot it: The Blair Witch Project. Setting aside the hype aspects of the filmmaking and such, that film genuinely gave me the full-fledged creeps.
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Post by walt on Nov 1, 2006 16:51:07 GMT -5
yeah that was extremely creepy
the ending, especially, freaked me the f**k out!
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Post by robertaxel on Nov 1, 2006 19:21:09 GMT -5
I was not overly impressed by the Blair Witch movie, however what I find FAR more significant is the fact that it was the first movie I was aware of which built up an audience buzz from the internet rather than the print media..
R
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Post by arjan on Nov 2, 2006 4:16:06 GMT -5
I was not very impressed by the Blair Witch. Scary? Hardly. Over-hyped? Definately.
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Post by walt on Nov 2, 2006 11:12:52 GMT -5
if you had seen it before the hype, you'd have been terrified. i was
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Post by arjan on Nov 2, 2006 11:32:03 GMT -5
Hm. If this terrifies you you may stay away from movies like The Ring or Dark water (the Japanese versions of course)...
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Post by Kathy ~ on Nov 2, 2006 16:18:50 GMT -5
I was not very impressed by the Blair Witch. Scary? Hardly. Over-hyped? Definately. TAKES A LOT TO SCARE METHE BIRDS (1963 The Omen Rosemary's Baby Seven Burned at the Stake ;D
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Post by walt on Nov 2, 2006 19:33:28 GMT -5
well speaking of the blair witch even tho you guys didn't like it what do you think the ending meant?
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Post by erik on Nov 2, 2006 23:20:42 GMT -5
Quote by Kathy:
What I think is the true impact of THE BIRDS, besides the obvious attacks themselves, which even today are fairly hair-raising, is the disturbingly enigmatic ending, of the survivors driving away into a sunlit morning where the whole landscape is covered in birds. It is a chilling final shot, because you just don't know what the birds might do next, or when....
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Post by robertaxel on Nov 5, 2006 16:26:45 GMT -5
well speaking of the blair witch even tho you guys didn't like it what do you think the ending meant? It was pretty clear to me, that there was a witch and they were getting their asses roundly kicked Robert
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Post by arjan on Nov 5, 2006 18:08:32 GMT -5
Yes, sort of like that. By the time the endscene happened I wasn't that interested anymore, but anyway, the entire movie was about whether there was a witch or that it was an urban legend. Apperently, it was all true. The end.
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Post by walt on Nov 5, 2006 23:43:11 GMT -5
well i think you guys both missed it
it wasn't about a witch at all. it was about a twisted molestor that killed kids
he would make one stand in the corner facing away while he killed the other
that's why the last frame of the movie the one guy was standing, facing away in the corner
crreeee-py
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Post by arjan on Nov 6, 2006 3:42:43 GMT -5
Oh yes, well, I didn't remember. That well. I know the scene where the guy is standing in the corner while the other gets killed, but didn't remember about a killer other than the witch. Wasn't the killer made into the witch by the urban stories anyway? Like 'the stories are true except it wasn't a super natural witch but a twisted but real human'. Or maybe they met the ghost of this killer? Been a while since I saw it...
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Post by Andrew on Nov 6, 2006 10:31:32 GMT -5
Much like Eraserhead and other films, I think Blair Witch is more about creepy atmospherics than plot. It was certainly more interesting that any slasher film I've ever seen. Even Halloween.
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