October Movie Recommendations
So it's October, which means that it's time for Halloween scary movies. For those that don't know, I love scary movies. They are really amazing in the terms of that they really fascinate me, or they actually scare me. There are various kinds of scary movies, but my favorite genre would probably have to be Horror and Zombies. So right now I just wanted to take the time to list some scary movies worth seeing if you are defintely up for the scare - in my opinion.
Zombie Flicks to see:
Dawn of the Dead (2004): I like the remake more than the original because the capture a greater sense of survival instincts when faced with zombies. The original had a more menacing pace like an impending doom filled with claustrophobic imagery. The 2004 version caters to my generations sense of urgency, and what it does is that it makes you wonder how rational can you be with a group of zombies literally sprinting in your direction.
REC 1 and 2 (Spanish; Quarantine is American version): I like the Spanish version better because it actually contains sequels that tend to give the whole thing a back story. Also, because it's Spanish, there are Christian tendencies in the entire film. Also, them speaking in Spanish adds to more of the feel of the dialogue because blazing through Spanish just emotes this feeling of panic in the audience. I think it had a great feel and some scary aspects in the story, but if you feel Christian Ideology is used as a painstaking cop-out then don't be hating.
28 Days Later: Shot with an old school grainy kind of feel, we get running vomiting zombie-like infected people. Lots of gore, but not a whole lot of zombie. Sort of a post zombie apocalypse with an evacuated Britain, and only maybe a handful of survivors among infected people. Love the feel, love the emotions. It's like the English version of Dawn of the Dead. The sequel "28 Weeks Later" isn't that bad, but it goes more into the actions horror aspect of zombie movies over the survival horror.
Shaun of the Dead (Comedy-Horror): This is a spoof of Dawn of the Dead, but it was hilarious. It literally takes a critique of zombie survival and totally makes the concept laughable. Has Simon Pegg in it from other comedies like "Hot Fuzz" and "Paul". It's worth a watch for a good laugh
I would recommend all of George A. Romero's Zombie flicks (Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead), but a lot of them just don't really hold up to the horror standards of today. Still, all of his zombie movies have social commentary behind them, which still amazes me.
Found Footage Genre:
The Blair Witch Project: The first best "found footage" movie. There were a couple before this, but it failed in developing the buzz around this film. The marketing campaign made the movie seem so realistic, and the budget was about $30000. They play off of the senses of the camera, so sight, sound, and imagery are what ends up fucking with your imagination. The movie manipulates your mind into creating your own worst fear because the first person view draws you as if you were in the woods with them. I still get chills every time I see the ending. The screaming was just so real.
Home Movie: No wide release, not much of a profit, yet this movie is, by far, one of the best found footage scary movies I have ever seen. I think it was made for the IFC channel, but I saw it and I almost pissed myself. The film is what implied by the title. It's a family taking home movies of there family, then crazy shit starts happening. The actors make the film very realistic, and the last 30 minutes of the film is just amazing. It is A MUST SEE if you want to see the best of the "Found Footage" genre.
Paranormal Activity: When I saw this film I applauded the way the director manipulates the environment to make it creepy as shit. The entire time you are introduced to relatively mundane scenes and you are constantly looking for the slightest change only to be abruptly surprised by something you never expect. Sometimes it's easy, and sometimes it;s hard to spot the eerie changes. It's only scary for the first run through though because you end up knowing what happens and where through the second time.
Grotesque and Gore (a.k.a. Splatterhouse):
Silence of the Lambs: Buffalo Bill and Hannibal Lecter. If you don't know why then you need more lotion or you're getting hosed.
Saw 1-3: This movie revitalized the idea that criminals can be sadistic. I haven't seen something like this since Silence of the Lambs. The first three are great with the set-up and the finale of the story. There are 7 films total, which culminate the entire story, but I can only appreciate the first 3 for have actually being successful in fulfilling my "blood thirst" and ironic endings.
Hostel: The only reason I can respect Jay Hernandez as an actor. My favorite Eli Roth horror film. One of the first to cross a boundary never done in horror movies. Yes there is torture. VERY DETAILED TORTURE. Japanese Girl....
Cabin Fever: Another Eli Roth movie, and probably the one that jump started his name to fame in horror. A strange flesh eating disease infects these college students on a vacation. Not a pretty sight.
The Human Centipede: Yet another boundary in film trampled on. Not scary. Very much about the implied in terms of disgusting;y horrible. I really want to see the second one.
Scanners: You know that meme of the newsreporter's head exploding. This is that film. I would like to see this.
Monsters:
Alien 1: essentially being the original to create all other monster movies this plays off the surprise of the unexpected, and never really seeing the antagonist until the end. Claustrophobia is a big factor hear since it's in space, and there are practically no real ways to defend yourself or escape. Lovely.
The Thing: One of my favorite monster movies of all time. A parasitic alien found in Antarctica is capable of mutating and copying the excat body of it's victims. Paranoia plays a big factor as nobody trusts anyone, and that the craziest disgusting surprises pop out when you least expect it. I want to see the prequel this weekend :)
Jaws: all the old people I know say Jaws was scary, but I just can't be afraid of an animal through a movie. That's probably my fault. I did the same of Jurassic Park.
The Fly (with Jeff Goldblum): Yes this gets a place on the monster list. It's his transition from human to fly that starts to creep people out. The finale is exactly what you expect
Signs: M. Night Shamalamdingdong's best in my opinion. It caught the fear and emotion only apparent in being completely isolated and attacked by an unknown alien. The fear stems from the feeling of being alone, protecting children, and seeing your child dying in front of you. It's very sincere in the story telling. Also, probably the last best movie of Mel Gibson.
Horror (Ghost and/or Demons; the only genre that actually scares me):
The Exorcist: TO me this is THE EPITOME OF SCARY. I an a Catholic so it does resonate with me a lot, but this is just something that even has a back story to it. Apparently, while making the movie several of the people involved met with dire circumstances as if being involved in the movie was a curse. This movie seriously still scares me to shit myself beyond a reasonable doubt and of clean underwear. If you need to stay awake for a few days then I suggest watching this.
The Shining: The original unedited version has everything of creepy. The length of the movie adds to the feeling of isolation. Stanley Kubrick actually tortured the actors by making them redo scenes hundreds of times to drill a real feeling of dread and helplessness into the actor. That sickly look that some of them have - that's not make-up.
The Ring: This movie did a great job at building up to the climax. When I first saw it I thought that it went for cheap scares and what not, but the final 10 minutes of the movie totally caught me off guard. Literally, had trouble sleeping for 7 days - I kept on looking at my TV for any indication of the curse.
The Evil Dead Series (Sam Raimi first and finest): The entire series gradually went from legitimate horror movie to a slap stick action comedy going from Evil Dead 1 to Army of Darkness. The transition went from splatterhouse demon killing fest to ridiculous methods of killing and deformity to straight up slap stick. Hell they even made a musical about it in Canada (I even watched that musical online; really captures the horror and slap stick blend present in Evil Dead 2). Evil Dead 1 is pretty difficult to find nowadays because it was a borderline NC-17 back in the day, and still kind of is - let's just say woman gets raped by tree and gallons of blood everywhere. Evil Dead 2 is easier to find and has a small recap of Evil Dead 1 so that should be much better. Army of Darkness is practically a comedy s that's not hard at all. Definitely worth the watch though
The Grudge: The movie that made me afraid of the dark again. This movie scared me because it was like this spirit could not be avoided. She would appear out of anywhere and everywhere. I still appreciate the American versions a lot - hell the director of the Japanese Ju-on directed the American Grudge so it is essentially the same. I watched all 3 American version movies - even the direct to video one. Still got scared in all of them (Funny Fact: The direct-to-video Grudge 3 still made like $40 million off of a $5 million budget)
Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi FTW): This is Sam Raimi's return to horror after putting out the Spiderman movies. It was very reminiscent of Evil Dead 2 in that you have the horrors of demon position, but also the ridiculous slap stick elements of fame. The story revolves around a girl pissing off a gypsy woman who then curses her with a goat demon. What makes the movie even more interesting to me was an article I read about it that reinterprets the entire movie in that the cursed girl is actually suffering the mental effects of bulimia or anorexia nervosa. Both interpretations of the film make it really entertaining though.
Insidious: The most recent good scary movie I can think of in the past year. Story revolves around the idea that a kid is cursed. The whole story takes a left turn into the second half of the movie, but is still really creepy at times. I believe it's directed by the same guy who did "Saw" so it is generally really good. It is reminiscent of "Carnival of Souls."
Movies I MUST SEE (but haven't)
Audition: Movie is about a Japanese man that pulls a ploy to snag a lady for himself by holding fake auditions. Unfortunately, the girl that lands the role is a psycho, and really bad things happen to him.
The Human Centipede 2: Human Centipede 1 but x6
Paranormal Activity 3: It's a prequel to the first two films, but there seems to be a lot more active moments involved compared to the first two.
The Thing (2011): This is a prequel to The Thing (1982), and is going to focus on the Norwegians that were throwing grenades at the infected dog from the beginning of the film. Silly Norwegians.
If anyone wants to view scary movies give me a call. I love the good ones. BTW, no slashers because I find them to be boring (i.e. Halloween, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Chucky, etc.)
Zombie Flicks to see:
Dawn of the Dead (2004): I like the remake more than the original because the capture a greater sense of survival instincts when faced with zombies. The original had a more menacing pace like an impending doom filled with claustrophobic imagery. The 2004 version caters to my generations sense of urgency, and what it does is that it makes you wonder how rational can you be with a group of zombies literally sprinting in your direction.
REC 1 and 2 (Spanish; Quarantine is American version): I like the Spanish version better because it actually contains sequels that tend to give the whole thing a back story. Also, because it's Spanish, there are Christian tendencies in the entire film. Also, them speaking in Spanish adds to more of the feel of the dialogue because blazing through Spanish just emotes this feeling of panic in the audience. I think it had a great feel and some scary aspects in the story, but if you feel Christian Ideology is used as a painstaking cop-out then don't be hating.
28 Days Later: Shot with an old school grainy kind of feel, we get running vomiting zombie-like infected people. Lots of gore, but not a whole lot of zombie. Sort of a post zombie apocalypse with an evacuated Britain, and only maybe a handful of survivors among infected people. Love the feel, love the emotions. It's like the English version of Dawn of the Dead. The sequel "28 Weeks Later" isn't that bad, but it goes more into the actions horror aspect of zombie movies over the survival horror.
Shaun of the Dead (Comedy-Horror): This is a spoof of Dawn of the Dead, but it was hilarious. It literally takes a critique of zombie survival and totally makes the concept laughable. Has Simon Pegg in it from other comedies like "Hot Fuzz" and "Paul". It's worth a watch for a good laugh
I would recommend all of George A. Romero's Zombie flicks (Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead), but a lot of them just don't really hold up to the horror standards of today. Still, all of his zombie movies have social commentary behind them, which still amazes me.
Found Footage Genre:
The Blair Witch Project: The first best "found footage" movie. There were a couple before this, but it failed in developing the buzz around this film. The marketing campaign made the movie seem so realistic, and the budget was about $30000. They play off of the senses of the camera, so sight, sound, and imagery are what ends up fucking with your imagination. The movie manipulates your mind into creating your own worst fear because the first person view draws you as if you were in the woods with them. I still get chills every time I see the ending. The screaming was just so real.
Home Movie: No wide release, not much of a profit, yet this movie is, by far, one of the best found footage scary movies I have ever seen. I think it was made for the IFC channel, but I saw it and I almost pissed myself. The film is what implied by the title. It's a family taking home movies of there family, then crazy shit starts happening. The actors make the film very realistic, and the last 30 minutes of the film is just amazing. It is A MUST SEE if you want to see the best of the "Found Footage" genre.
Paranormal Activity: When I saw this film I applauded the way the director manipulates the environment to make it creepy as shit. The entire time you are introduced to relatively mundane scenes and you are constantly looking for the slightest change only to be abruptly surprised by something you never expect. Sometimes it's easy, and sometimes it;s hard to spot the eerie changes. It's only scary for the first run through though because you end up knowing what happens and where through the second time.
Grotesque and Gore (a.k.a. Splatterhouse):
Silence of the Lambs: Buffalo Bill and Hannibal Lecter. If you don't know why then you need more lotion or you're getting hosed.
Saw 1-3: This movie revitalized the idea that criminals can be sadistic. I haven't seen something like this since Silence of the Lambs. The first three are great with the set-up and the finale of the story. There are 7 films total, which culminate the entire story, but I can only appreciate the first 3 for have actually being successful in fulfilling my "blood thirst" and ironic endings.
Hostel: The only reason I can respect Jay Hernandez as an actor. My favorite Eli Roth horror film. One of the first to cross a boundary never done in horror movies. Yes there is torture. VERY DETAILED TORTURE. Japanese Girl....
Cabin Fever: Another Eli Roth movie, and probably the one that jump started his name to fame in horror. A strange flesh eating disease infects these college students on a vacation. Not a pretty sight.
The Human Centipede: Yet another boundary in film trampled on. Not scary. Very much about the implied in terms of disgusting;y horrible. I really want to see the second one.
Scanners: You know that meme of the newsreporter's head exploding. This is that film. I would like to see this.
Monsters:
Alien 1: essentially being the original to create all other monster movies this plays off the surprise of the unexpected, and never really seeing the antagonist until the end. Claustrophobia is a big factor hear since it's in space, and there are practically no real ways to defend yourself or escape. Lovely.
The Thing: One of my favorite monster movies of all time. A parasitic alien found in Antarctica is capable of mutating and copying the excat body of it's victims. Paranoia plays a big factor as nobody trusts anyone, and that the craziest disgusting surprises pop out when you least expect it. I want to see the prequel this weekend :)
Jaws: all the old people I know say Jaws was scary, but I just can't be afraid of an animal through a movie. That's probably my fault. I did the same of Jurassic Park.
The Fly (with Jeff Goldblum): Yes this gets a place on the monster list. It's his transition from human to fly that starts to creep people out. The finale is exactly what you expect
Signs: M. Night Shamalamdingdong's best in my opinion. It caught the fear and emotion only apparent in being completely isolated and attacked by an unknown alien. The fear stems from the feeling of being alone, protecting children, and seeing your child dying in front of you. It's very sincere in the story telling. Also, probably the last best movie of Mel Gibson.
Horror (Ghost and/or Demons; the only genre that actually scares me):
The Exorcist: TO me this is THE EPITOME OF SCARY. I an a Catholic so it does resonate with me a lot, but this is just something that even has a back story to it. Apparently, while making the movie several of the people involved met with dire circumstances as if being involved in the movie was a curse. This movie seriously still scares me to shit myself beyond a reasonable doubt and of clean underwear. If you need to stay awake for a few days then I suggest watching this.
The Shining: The original unedited version has everything of creepy. The length of the movie adds to the feeling of isolation. Stanley Kubrick actually tortured the actors by making them redo scenes hundreds of times to drill a real feeling of dread and helplessness into the actor. That sickly look that some of them have - that's not make-up.
The Ring: This movie did a great job at building up to the climax. When I first saw it I thought that it went for cheap scares and what not, but the final 10 minutes of the movie totally caught me off guard. Literally, had trouble sleeping for 7 days - I kept on looking at my TV for any indication of the curse.
The Evil Dead Series (Sam Raimi first and finest): The entire series gradually went from legitimate horror movie to a slap stick action comedy going from Evil Dead 1 to Army of Darkness. The transition went from splatterhouse demon killing fest to ridiculous methods of killing and deformity to straight up slap stick. Hell they even made a musical about it in Canada (I even watched that musical online; really captures the horror and slap stick blend present in Evil Dead 2). Evil Dead 1 is pretty difficult to find nowadays because it was a borderline NC-17 back in the day, and still kind of is - let's just say woman gets raped by tree and gallons of blood everywhere. Evil Dead 2 is easier to find and has a small recap of Evil Dead 1 so that should be much better. Army of Darkness is practically a comedy s that's not hard at all. Definitely worth the watch though
The Grudge: The movie that made me afraid of the dark again. This movie scared me because it was like this spirit could not be avoided. She would appear out of anywhere and everywhere. I still appreciate the American versions a lot - hell the director of the Japanese Ju-on directed the American Grudge so it is essentially the same. I watched all 3 American version movies - even the direct to video one. Still got scared in all of them (Funny Fact: The direct-to-video Grudge 3 still made like $40 million off of a $5 million budget)
Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi FTW): This is Sam Raimi's return to horror after putting out the Spiderman movies. It was very reminiscent of Evil Dead 2 in that you have the horrors of demon position, but also the ridiculous slap stick elements of fame. The story revolves around a girl pissing off a gypsy woman who then curses her with a goat demon. What makes the movie even more interesting to me was an article I read about it that reinterprets the entire movie in that the cursed girl is actually suffering the mental effects of bulimia or anorexia nervosa. Both interpretations of the film make it really entertaining though.
Insidious: The most recent good scary movie I can think of in the past year. Story revolves around the idea that a kid is cursed. The whole story takes a left turn into the second half of the movie, but is still really creepy at times. I believe it's directed by the same guy who did "Saw" so it is generally really good. It is reminiscent of "Carnival of Souls."
Movies I MUST SEE (but haven't)
Audition: Movie is about a Japanese man that pulls a ploy to snag a lady for himself by holding fake auditions. Unfortunately, the girl that lands the role is a psycho, and really bad things happen to him.
The Human Centipede 2: Human Centipede 1 but x6
Paranormal Activity 3: It's a prequel to the first two films, but there seems to be a lot more active moments involved compared to the first two.
The Thing (2011): This is a prequel to The Thing (1982), and is going to focus on the Norwegians that were throwing grenades at the infected dog from the beginning of the film. Silly Norwegians.
If anyone wants to view scary movies give me a call. I love the good ones. BTW, no slashers because I find them to be boring (i.e. Halloween, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Chucky, etc.)