NOT THAT ANYONE ASKED ME, BUT... #2

[raul grau]

<img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/columns/ntaamb.jpg" hspace=10 align=left border=0 alt="Not That Anyone Asked me, But...">By Keith Giffen, keith_giffen@comixfan.cjb.net

THIRTEEN ESSENTIAL HORROR MOVIES

HORROR. My favorite all around genre, bar none. And by horror, I'm not talking the latest installment of I Know What You Did Last Friday the 13th or The Boogeyman or that wretched remake of Ju On (The Grudge). I'm talking grindhouse horror. The kind of horror that used to crop up in various, pre-Disney, 42nd Street theaters in between the XXX rated marathons that went a long way toward explaining the near universal flypaper consistency of the carpeting.

I'm not even all that certain that grindhouse is the correct term for these drive-in double billers, but the term works for me and it's my column so deal with it. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, here's a baker's dozen of what I consider to be the HORROR MOVIES that every fan of horror should see at least once.

In no particular order...

1) LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT

Vile. Just... vile. Poorly acted, poorly filmed and all the more disturbing for it. I've heard it's up for one of those inbred Hollywood remakes. Now that's vile!

2) TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE

I still think this is the single, great, fall on the floor funny horror movie of all time. I'm not a quick one to laugh, but grandpa trying for his last kill gets me every time.

3) THE HILLS HAVE EYES

Inbred, cannibal family versus dysfunctional, vanilla people. It just doesn't get any better.

4) NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD

"They eat the living." Brilliant. Just brilliant. Four words that forever changed the landscape of horror.

5) DEMONS

An underappreciated gem. One of those movies within a movie crapfests enlivened by liberal helpings of gore. Definitely a guilty pleasure.

6) EVIL DEAD

Another no-budget, "spam in a cabin" extravaganza that blows way the recent spate of misguided, big budget remakes. The Dawn of the Dead remake? I mean, c'mon...

7) NEAR DARK

The best vampire movie ever. Fright Night's close, but Near Dark managed to dispose of the Euro-trash vampire template altogether.

8) HALLOWEEN

Somebody stop giving John Carpenter money so he can go back to making good movies. One of the best horror soundtracks ever.

9) THE THING

Okay... Maybe give him some money... A Kurt Russell movie made the list. Go figure.

10) BATTLE ROYALE

Give it up. This'll never see the light of day in the U.S. (bootlegs and imports excepted, natch). High school kids and semi-automatic weapons don't mesh well in a country that refuses to face Columbine and similar events head on.

11) ALIEN

One of two movies that I get sucked into again and again if I stumble across it while channel surfing. The other one is My Cousin Vinnie. The less said about that the better.

12) RE-ANIMATOR

That's right. I'm a perv. Sue me.

13) THE EXORCIST

Looking back on this film and realizing just how much it got away with... Hat's off to the cast and crew.


Thirteen seems an appropriate place to stop. I know, I know, a lot got left out. Jaws comes immediately to mind... and Audition, Mothers Day, the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers... Trust me. A lot got left out.

I'm still not all that sure why I opted for a horror list this time out... No... Wait. That's a lie. It's the list that I'd idly scrawled on the post-it reminding me to call Andy Schmidt about those Defenders revisions. I figured, since the bulk work was already done, I'd...

Damn! Sorry, Andy. Right on it.


Castigating gleefully accepted at the address below.

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Send your list submissions to keith_giffen@comixfan.cjb.net, subject line 'Not That Anyone Asked Me, But...' and they just might appear in future installments.

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Keith Giffen apparently quite likes horror movies. He is also co-writer of Defenders #1, which is waiting for you at your local comic shop as you read these very words... so finish reading already, and go buy it!

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The opinions expressed in the above column are solely those of the writer, and are not reflective of Comixfan or its staff.

[the_5th_child]

Cool column. Did Battle Royale never make it to the cinemas in the states? it did in the uk. Awesome movie. It’s strange to think that wes craven used to be able to make great horror films. Unlike now, did anyone see Cursed erg...

Paulo

[gaptandil]

Is the Audition you mention the Japanese movie? y'know, the one with the piano strings and long needles? That's my pick for the scariest, most intense movie-going experience ever... i'm not sure if i liked it, but i sure as hell couldn't get those images of my mind for days. "kiri-kiri-kiri!!"
mr. giffen, great column.

[spinarakboi]

Texas Chainsaw Massacre really is a scary movie for what it is. Now there are so many teen clones ect but that was really the first so i like it. and the Exorcists yeah

Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Night of Living Dead
Jaws
Battle Royal
Nightmare on Elm Street
Phone
Halloween
The Blair Witch Project
A Tale of Two Sisters
The Exorcists

Those would be my 10 that i quickly threw together. A tale of two sisters, if you haven't seen, you really should. At the end it just plays a number on ya. (It's a foriegn film)

[evilomar]

I love the Horror gender as well. I would have mentioned Planet of Vampires, which inspired Alien. I also loved Cannibal Holocaust...that movie always made me feel dirty, and I liked it!!!! But the worst most sickest, graphic horror flick I saw was Aftermath! That stuff was hard core!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0159241/

http://www.fangoria.com/news_article.php?id=4369

[James Groves]

Damn Raul

U mean Keith Giffen? ;)

[Spider-X]

Of course Dawn of the Dead has to be up there. I mean its the best zombie movie ever. All hail Steven Zombie!!

[gabesummers]

didnt you see "the stupids"??? omg that was terror!!!!!!!


http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&id=1800261234&cf=info&intl=us

[Jon Hancock]

Brain Dead would make my list

"I kick arse for the lord!"

Oh and Body Melt. But only because Ian Smith is in it and is very funny. And it has boobies. And steroid filled muscle men with squeaky voices.

[darkcypherlad]

I'd include these films:

1. Black Christmas (1973). You know that cliche about the killer calling a terrified heroine and she discovers that (gasp!) HE'S INSIDE THE HOUSE? Well, this is where it came from. THis is a genuinely creepy movie, with the luscious Olivia Hussey and the skanky Margot KIdder as the main sorority sisters stalked by a stark raving loon. Directed by Bob Clark, who brought us "Porkys" (!) and "A Christmas Story" (!!!)

2. I Spit on Your Grave. The bathroom scene. If anyone has seen the film, you know what I'm talking about. Ouch.

3. Session 9 (2001). Yeah, this is a modern one, but oh! what a film. It's more psychological than gory, although there is one scene at the end that made me grab my stomach. Good stuff.

4. Night of the Creeps (1985/6). More of a comedy/horror/sci-fi mix, with killer slugs from outer space terrorizing frats and sororities. Oh yeah, there's also a suicidal cop, a frozen corpse, an axe-wielding mass murderer who has been dead for thirty years, and a little puppy with a mean bite. This one has two different ending, both kinda downbeat and oh so good.

5. Creepers (mid 1980s). Ah, Dario Argento. I picked this one out of many Argento films because it stars Jennifer Connelly as a girl who can speak with insects and animals. Oh yeah, she converses with a monkey too. The plot makes zero sense, and yes, you can call technically call it a bad film, but it still scares the pants off ya.

6. The Fog (1980). Low key horror in classic John C. style. Halloween's better, but that's already been mention, and they're about to inflict a remake of this on us (with Tom Welling and Maggie Grace! Ugh!). This one is heavy on mood rather than gore, and I like that. An added bonus: Adrienne Barbeau. Meowww!

7. Village of the Damned (1960s). Skip the Carpenter remake and check out this classic chiller about alien babies with super intelligence. Creepy eye effect gets me every time.

8, 9, 10. Invasion of the Body Snatchers /Body Snatchers (94)(1956, 1978, 1994)

Don Siegel's 56 version is classic. But here's the amazing thing: Phillip Kaufman's 78 version and Abel Ferrera's 94 take are just as good, if not better. Check out all three and ponder why our society resembles the pod people's with each passing day...

11. Eyes without a Face (1959). A French horror film? Get out! This one is a chiller, if only for the main visual of a disfigured girl wearing an angelic, expressionless mask. Tim Burton would later steal this image in his original Batman, when Jerry Hall wears that mask to cover up what nasty Jack did to her. This one's a keeper...

Oh yeah, and check out all the Hammer films too.

Jason, a.k.a. Mr. Terror!

[Ken Boehm]

Battle Royale made the list because Giffen's writing the manga adaptation. Self promotion right there ;)

[Dylan McKay]

I really have to check Battle Royale out, love the manga... Not sure where to find it though...

[Anand Khatri]

I really have to check Battle Royale out, love the manga... Not sure where to find it though...

The manga is ace. Try online for the movie or any place that sells bootlegs. My friend got his copy in Chinatown here in NY for $8. There's this place near my house that sells it for $5 Ii think. I must go get it...

Great Column Keith!

[Kevin Sutton]

2) TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE

I still think this is the single, great, fall on the floor funny horror movie of all time. I'm not a quick one to laugh, but grandpa trying for his last kill gets me every time.

The results at the end actually surprised me. The flow of the movie was quite effective.

4) NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD

"They eat the living." Brilliant. Just brilliant. Four words that forever changed the landscape of horror.

Hell yes.

DEMONS

An underappreciated gem. One of those movies within a movie crapfests enlivened by liberal helpings of gore. Definitely a guilty pleasure.

The end surprise totally ignored the established rules of the movie monsters. Nevertheless the combination of rediculous events and the incredibly dangerous situation makes for a genuinely frightening premise.

EVIL DEAD

Another no-budget, "spam in a cabin" extravaganza that blows way the recent spate of misguided, big budget remakes. The Dawn of the Dead remake? I mean, c'mon...[/quote[

Both of these movies were extremely good.

8) HALLOWEEN

Somebody stop giving John Carpenter money so he can go back to making good movies. One of the best horror soundtracks ever.

Synthesizers are great for horror soundtracks. The theme is one of the greatest ever. Amazingly every cut of this film I've seen has virtually no blood at all. (Unlike the sequel, which came out after Friday the 13th changed the expectations-- althought the sequel was still great)


9) THE THING

Okay... Maybe give him some money... A Kurt Russell movie made the list. Go figure.

Love this movie.

[qutoe]11) ALIEN

One of two movies that I get sucked into again and again if I stumble across it while channel surfing. The other one is My Cousin Vinnie. The less said about that the better.

Another great film.

13) THE EXORCIST

Looking back on this film and realizing just how much it got away with... Hat's off to the cast and crew.

...and again.

[Ann Nichols]

I grew up on cheesy b&w horror flicks shown on weekend nights, then one of my sisters and I watched cheesy slasher flicks during the '80s. Yes, I've seen some of these. (Anyone remember "Motel Hell" and the farmer's confession?)

But the film we loved (and played) as kids and one that I rewatch on Halloween & still get the shivers from is the original version of "The Haunting". That one preys on the mind.

[Rictor]

an obvious one is Friday the 13th, probably the ultimate teen-slasher pic.

Id really recommed the original "The Haunting" from the 60's though. Black&White, extremely creepy, eerie inner monologues. it is by FAR the best Haunted House movie ever. the remake was a travesty.

[Angel]

I think I'm afraid of all the movies stephen king has made by how bad they are (tommyknockers) and scary pet semetary eing the top one :scared:

[ImpossibleM]

The Exorcist is one of my favorite films. But the last time I saw Halloween it was extremely unscary--still has a great score, though. And the Thing is awesome.

Other good horror flicks for me would be Polanski's Repulsion, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1979), The Pit and the Pendulum with Vincent Price, the original Japanese television Juon series, Kubrick's the Shining, Psycho, the original Dawn of the Dead, and Cronenberg's the Fly. As for simply disturbing picks--definitely Audition, a really wonderful and thought provoking film, and Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, which I'm not even sure that I like, come to think of it.

And as long as we're including more campy fun stuff like Evil Dead, then what about Peter Jackson's stuff like Bad Taste (fun) and Dead Alive (not so fun)?

[Gormant]

Had to add a few of my own:

Night of the Demon (1957) - a genuinely creepy movie based on an M.R. James short story. Ancient curses, spooky children's party and the great line 'Its in the trees! Its coming!' make this one of my favourites. A real sense of dread is built up over the course of the film which some believe is ruined by the giant rubber monster at the end. Personally speaking, I've always liked the monster anyway (it has a great sound effect that sounds like my old car).

Vampyr (1932) is another gem. Directed by Carl Th Dreyer and only really existing in terrible, mutilated prints this is the stuff of real nightmares. There's something about this film (it is possible that the poor quality of the remaining prints actually helps it) that really makes you feel that you are trapped in a nightmare. Living shadows, ghosts, vampire in the foggy wood and the scene where man watch himself to be buried alive. There is no way you can say what moments in this film are 'real' and what moments are part of a dream.

I could also add Argento's Suspiria (still not sure what's going on here but the soundtrack alone is enough to scare the beejesus out of me), Carnival of Souls (cheaply made, shakily acted but genuinely disturbing) and Mario Bava's Black Sabbath (3 stories, all good, but The Drop of Water story will have you running round the house and checking the taps before you go to bed (just to be sure...).

[Spider-X]

I knew I was forgetting something...has anyone ever heard of Martin, the attempt by George Romero to do a pseudo vampire movie? It was pretty scary and the idea alone would send shivers up your spine! :LOL:

[Germania9]

Does Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds* count? What about Psycho?









*Freudian slip.

[darkcypherlad]

Carl Theodore Dreyer? Carnival of Souls? Wow, I'm impressed with the depth of film knowledge displayed in the previous posts. I forgot those classics on my list, and they're definitely worthy of inclusion. I'd also add both Murnau and Werner Herzog's version of Nosferatu, The Body Snatcher (with Boris Karloff), and Jack Clayton's superb "The Innocents."

And yes, "The Birds" DOES count as horror. All those birds...plus, Tippi Hedren's acting...scary.

[david r]

IT'S ALIVE (1974): I felt like I'd been slapped in the face while watching this. Really shocking 70s horror.

DEMENTIA 13 (1963): Francis Coppolla's first film, made in Ireland. Murders in an old castle, eerie atmosphere. Good little shocker.

LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH (1971): This is a must-see for horror fans. Group of friends move to country house. They meet a young woman who seems to have dropped out of society. Weird things begin to happen. This is one of the best, creepiest films I've ever seen.

LEMORA (1973): Teenage girl travels to the Deep South to find her missing father. Instead, she encounters Lemora, the Lady Dracula. As well as werewolf creatures and zombie children. The 1970s was the Golden Age of horror, IMO. And "Lemora" is one of those lost gems that needs to be resurrected someday.

ERASERHEAD (1977): David Lynch's first film. Possibly the most disturbing film I've ever seen. Black and White imagery that conjures feelings of despair and loneliness like I've never seen. Shots from this film will stay with you forever, like the "baby".

MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (1964): Roger Corman and Vincent Price's ultimate Edgar Allan Poe masterpiece. It works in "Hop Frog" as a subplot; has Price as an evil prince living up in an eerie castle while the Plague ravages the countryside. Beautifully done film, I'd say the greatest adaptation of Poe ever put on film.

REPULSION (1965) and THE TENANT (1976): Roman Polanski's 2 visions of loneliness, isolation and sadness. "The Tenant" is even more hard to find than "Repulsion" but well worth the effort to find it.

[Al Harahap]

And by horror, I'm not talking the latest installment of I Know What You Did Last Friday the 13th or The Boogeyman or that wretched remake of Ju On (The Grudge).

It's a shame because the four Japanese Ju-On films made me crap my pants. The American remake-sequel was done by the same Japanese director, but something went horribly wrong. I think Sarah Michelle Gellar carries a lot of sugar that no amount of camera filtering and film editing can hide.

1) LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT

Vile. Just... vile. Poorly acted, poorly filmed and all the more disturbing for it. I've heard it's up for one of those inbred Hollywood remakes. Now that's vile!

I'm a pretty desensitised viewer, but even this film made me squirm...

9) THE THING

Okay... Maybe give him some money... A Kurt Russell movie made the list. Go figure.

To be fair, Kurt Russell is pretty horrific.

10) BATTLE ROYALE

Give it up. This'll never see the light of day in the U.S. (bootlegs and imports excepted, natch). High school kids and semi-automatic weapons don't mesh well in a country that refuses to face Columbine and similar events head on.

I think you hit the nail on the head with this one. If Columbine didn't happen, or it did and people could face it instead of burying their heads in the sand, I think this society would be able to see Battle Royale for its great commentary, not to mention entertainment, value.

For anyone who enjoyed Battle Royale, I recommend Suicide Club / Suicide Circle for more in-your-face Japanese perspectives of real teen/social issues.

Does Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds* count?

I used to live near Bodega Bay (near San Francisco, California), where Hitchcock shot the film. I swear the birds there would give me looks like they were about to peck out my eyes. Nice seafood though.

ERASERHEAD (1977): David Lynch's first film. Possibly the most disturbing film I've ever seen. Black and White imagery that conjures feelings of despair and loneliness like I've never seen. Shots from this film will stay with you forever, like the "baby".

Babies are just inherently scary as they are, let alone when they're intentionally made to scare like in Eraserhead and Trainspotting.

[david r]

I want to see this "Battle Royale". I've never even heard of it before.

How could we forget "The Omen". It's lost some of it's punch, but still a good movie. Especially that graveyard scene!!

PHASE IV (1974): Ants out in the desert suddenly become intelligent. Build pyramids to watch over humans. Scientists arrive to study them and piss the little buggers off. You can guess what happens next. Good 70s horror gem.

THE WICKER MAN (1973): Ed Woodward (the Equalizer) plays a police officer who travels to a small island in search of a missing child. He discovers a secret society of pagans. Christopher Lee gives another bravura performance as the head chief. Eerie and erotic, with characters singing at times. A spontaneous fun, and a must see.

I give another thumbs up for the 1960s "The Haunting". This is a bona-fide horror classic. One of the best.

I really didn't like "Suspiria". It was just weird to me, and not scary. Modern day horrors I like are "Jeepers Creepers", "The Ring", "Seven", "Silence of the Lambs", "Deep Blue Sea", "The Others", remake of "Dawn of the Dead".

Evil babies are always disturbing. Has anyone seen Cronenberg's "The Brood"?

[grivonetti]

everybodys forgetting The Shining with Jack Nicholson