fluffydelusions
Member
The devils rock is on netflix and I found it entertaining
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Horror-GAF |OT|
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Bobby Roberts
Banned
The thing about horror is that you have to be prepared to sludge through a TON of shlock and cheeze and other semi-liquid greasy messes in order to pluck out the gems. I think it's why horror fans are as hardcore as they are - they've probably put in more work than any other type of genre fan to find new, raw hits of gold horror.
The other thing about horror is that while there's a LOT of dross to wade through, it's also got a rich history, and it's just as fun diving into the past as it is waiting for something new to land wriggling in your laps.
I don't know if there are any two horror movies better than ALIEN and Carpenter's The Thing, but the Descent somehow manages to blend the feeling of both films really well. Happy to see it named pretty much straight out the gate in a horror movie thread, as it definitely deserves it.
Speaking of remakes - horror is a genre that is actually kinder to the remake than some other genres. The Thing is a good example. The Fly is another. People are divided on the Dawn of the Dead remake, but I think it's a pretty damned good riff on ALIENS. It's definitely not the original, but I think it's worth a mention most definitely.
The other thing about horror is that while there's a LOT of dross to wade through, it's also got a rich history, and it's just as fun diving into the past as it is waiting for something new to land wriggling in your laps.
I don't know if there are any two horror movies better than ALIEN and Carpenter's The Thing, but the Descent somehow manages to blend the feeling of both films really well. Happy to see it named pretty much straight out the gate in a horror movie thread, as it definitely deserves it.
Speaking of remakes - horror is a genre that is actually kinder to the remake than some other genres. The Thing is a good example. The Fly is another. People are divided on the Dawn of the Dead remake, but I think it's a pretty damned good riff on ALIENS. It's definitely not the original, but I think it's worth a mention most definitely.
The Return of
Banned
I'll never get what people see in Session 9, that movie was a total disappointment and you say it's your favorite of all time. wow. There has to be two Session 9 movies and I saw the bad one.
The Take Out Bandit
Member
Why limit this topic to film?
There's a ton of great stuff out there in horror fiction that may never be adapted since Hollywood is terrified of new ideas.
Lot 13 from Vertigo / DC Comics (Steve Niles, Glenn Fabry) is pretty fantastic so far. Fabry's art is on par with the best Stan Winston / Tom Savini creature effects.
I resent the lame ass stretched mouth non-effect that has become a standard in horror since The Mummy 2 played it out. A stretchy mouth is hardly a special effect. Please hire some talented concept and effects artists.
The lead actor in the first Grave Encounters really sold the reality TV douchebag for me. It was pretty enjoyable.
I was hoping for something good. I fast played the gratuitous director wank in the final third of the movie, and left unsatisfied at the conclusion.
I'm still waiting on Clive Barker to deliver on his story where he kills off Pinhead once and for all. :\
Modern horror movies need good writers. That seems to be the missing element. Right now it's a bunch of sickos in love with their gruesome ideas, but with no story to hold it together or any reason for the viewer to give a shit about any of the characters.
There's a ton of great stuff out there in horror fiction that may never be adapted since Hollywood is terrified of new ideas.
Lot 13 from Vertigo / DC Comics (Steve Niles, Glenn Fabry) is pretty fantastic so far. Fabry's art is on par with the best Stan Winston / Tom Savini creature effects.
A few trailers (click the images):
Grave Encounters 2
I resent the lame ass stretched mouth non-effect that has become a standard in horror since The Mummy 2 played it out. A stretchy mouth is hardly a special effect. Please hire some talented concept and effects artists.
The lead actor in the first Grave Encounters really sold the reality TV douchebag for me. It was pretty enjoyable.
I was hoping for something good. I fast played the gratuitous director wank in the final third of the movie, and left unsatisfied at the conclusion.
I'm still waiting on Clive Barker to deliver on his story where he kills off Pinhead once and for all. :\
Modern horror movies need good writers. That seems to be the missing element. Right now it's a bunch of sickos in love with their gruesome ideas, but with no story to hold it together or any reason for the viewer to give a shit about any of the characters.
Another vote for The Thing as one of the greatest, if not the best, horror movies ever, and certainly my favorite. Seeing it in theaters with a crowd last year was incredible.
I'm at a point where I've seen most of the known horror films, but I'm always on the lookout for good new stuff. Love the genre.
I'm at a point where I've seen most of the known horror films, but I'm always on the lookout for good new stuff. Love the genre.
Nemesis_
Member
Yeah, The Descent was one of my stand outs from whatever year it was released. I really feel like they got the atmosphere down PERFECTLY. The isolated area, the fact that the caves are so dank and dark, the limited exposure to the creature itself, and the fact that you really have no idea how big or how deep these caves go, and there's no familiarity with the structure.
That fucking ending was just HEARTBREAKING though.
That room with the blood pool and the torch was very atmospheric, it really made me feel weird, no idea how to put it into words though.
Also in the sequel, I found it a bit stupid that whatever her name was managed to
survive
return
the thing is a great movie but it's not even the best john carpenter horror movie, let alone horror movie.
halloween 1978 is one of the greatest films ever made.
i'm with ya, i was pretty unimpressed with that movie. almost as bad as chernobyl diaries in terms of wasting a good horror location with a bad horror movie.
halloween 1978 is one of the greatest films ever made.
i'm with ya, i was pretty unimpressed with that movie. almost as bad as chernobyl diaries in terms of wasting a good horror location with a bad horror movie.
BattleMonkey
Member
I don't really mind usually, since really they could just slap a number on these movies and call them sequels. I mean so many horror films often completely ignored their previous sequels, go in different directions, or feel completely disconnected from each other. Heck for example the F13th remake could have simply could have been called Part 11 for all anyone cares with how loose the continuity is. And how about how crazy the TCM series go?
water_wendi
Water is not wet!
Last horror movie that actually did something for me
If you havent seen Noroi and you like horror you need to.
Count Dookkake
Member
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FrenchMovieTheme
Member
i loved the original The Thing and really disliked the remake. i can't really pinpoint everything i disliked about it but to start with i didn't like the casting. of course i didn't expect a boss like kurt russell to be there but the main girl just fucking annoyed me. i didn't care much for the interaction between the characters and everything just rubbed me the wrong way
The Take Out Bandit
Member
Sorry man, our degrees of cinematic coprophilia don't jibe.
Martyrs just lacked any tension for me. The second act just kept getting dumber, and dumber. The actual ending
the exchange between the old woman and her people was pretty good
Count Dookkake
Member
.
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
It's not my all-time fave (that might actually be The Changeling), but I'm with you on Session 9 being great.
Anyway, watched Grave Encounters 1 and 2 not too long ago. I actually liked the sequel the most, even though it goes kinda batshit towards the end.
Also watched Troll 1 and 2 earlier this week. Troll 1 was kinda eh, mediocre but not awful. Troll 2, on the other hand.. God damn. Unbelievably terrible.
The Return of
Banned
Pretty much agree on both. Session 9 was pretty much definition of a waste of horror location. Also I'd put Prince of Darkness above the Thing. I originally preferred The Thing, but I think Prince of Darkness aged better.
Psych's Friday the 13th tribute episode was pretty awesome, although it didn't have jason vorhees.I remember that Supernatural were gonna do an episode with Jason Vorhees, but it didn't happen in the end because of right issues.
It would have been so good
Bobby Roberts
Banned
I'm glad people can get something out of Prince of Darkness, but for me, that might be the single worst thing John Carpenter's ever done. It's incoherent, silly, sweaty, coke-fueled self-indulgence. That said - the opening and closing are strong as hell. The image of Lisa Danforth going through the mirror is legitimately freaky shit.
But damn - evil is represented by a giant lime slurpee that shoots seltzer water in the open mouths of the idiots dumb enough to wander towards it. Alice Cooper slowly pushes a bike frame through a howling idiot. It's horribly paced and just amateurish as all hell. Plus, it's almost entirely not scary. That'd be something if the sense of dread it was pushing for was achieved with any consistency, but for me, it's basically just the open and the close, and a whole bunch of blandness and shouting inbetween. It might also be the worst cast of all his movies. Even Dennis Dun is grating, which is quite a feat considering how fun Dennis Dun is in Big Trouble in Little China.
How has the Thing aged poorly, for you? It seems pretty timeless, outside the computer chess, rollerskating and the boombox. And even then, I think that stuff is easy to look past. The paranoia on display is pretty timeless. Some of the best jump scares ever constructed.
water_wendi
Water is not wet!
i dont disagree with you but its nowhere near his worst movie (Ghosts of Mars?). Prince of Darkness had some great ideas in it but was encumbered by the issues you brought up in your post. It has some absolutely terrifying imagery (the dream transmission and the mirror place) and ends on a high note (the music at the end with the chime or whatever as the credits roll is amazing, imo).
Hi i'm Caleb
Member
Hey thanks. Gonna watch it. I'm ready to get spooked.
Hell yeah buddy, my favourite horror movie also.
Kurt Russell is a badass mofo in that movie and the physical effects shit on CGI.
The paranoia, isolation and distrust seep out of that movie.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
Oh shit.
See, at some point I'd tried to wash all memory of Ghosts of Mars out of my head, and it appears to have worked, because you're right - I completely short shrifted how terrible that movie is. Apologies.
And I agree with you - that ending is maybe the only thing in the whole movie that works on the level I think Carpenter made himself believe the whole movie worked at. I was groaning/laughing throughout the whole thing, but that ending STILL creeped me the fuck out on first watch.
totally unrelated: I've gotten in arguments with some other film nerds over whether Jacob's Ladder counts as a horror movie. I say yeah, but I've been told it's more a psychological thriller, and those don't "count" as horror films.
The Return of
Banned
I think Prince of Darkness is more inconsistent but it has higher highs. I was referring to the Thing special effects by the way. Some of it still looks nice till this day while other stuff just isn't good to look at and not in a this is so creepy type of way. It personally doesn't even scare me or have jump scares either, but that's not why I like the Thing. I should say though that I have not seen the blu ray copy and I don't know if it is worth picking up, so my opinion could change on that if I saw it.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
That blu-ray is pretty damn clean. I really love the score on that movie, too. It's Ennio Morricone doing a John Carpenter impersonation, and it's great. But the final form of the Thing is pretty shady/dodgy looking. The stop-motion hasn't aged well. Most of the other practical effects still hold up. Rob Bottin was out of his fucking mind on that movie.
The dog pen scene is still pretty mortifying.
Count Dookkake
Member
.
There is a ton of horror comics.
Just to take it a step further, I've been looking for some good horror novels, in particular, audiobooks. I recently listened to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. I listened to most of it lying in bed alone in the dark. It really wasn't that scary, just a little creepy, but the experience made me want to find good audiobooks for this.
Anybody got any suggestions?
The Take Out Bandit
Member
Mister B. Gone on audiobook is enjoyable since it's read by Pinhead, Doug Bradley IIRC?
Read Torment per Drinky on the Cruncheons and really enjoyed that. Hypothetical end of the world story if Christian belief were real. All sorts of fun, if a little ropey here and there.
Currently reading an Amazon serial The Scourge. I have reached a level of intolerance for zombie media, but knights versus zombies? I'm interested!
I don't classify it as a horror movie, to be honest. It isn't scary in the slightest. It's more a thriller/action movie with a horror aesthetic and fantastic special effects.
Kinda like how Aliens takes the horror aesthetic of Alien but makes it into an action film, except not as many bullets.
Or, I guess, it's horror in the proper literary sense - you recoil in horror at gruesome things. But there's no terror. There's nothing making you afraid to keep watching, nothing working on the emotions and mind.
BattleMonkey
Member
Black Christmas holds up pretty well. The original slasher film from 74 (yeah yeah Psycho whatever)
good for a holiday viewing.
Can't wait for Mama with Jessica Chastain, looks creepy.
Black Christmas is fantastic, I consider it up there with Halloween as 2 of my favorites.
FUBAR McDangles
Member
Name was Sarah. And I'm watching it now and basically she got PTSD/brain blocked it all out/amnesia of all of it and the cops just ask her what happened and then force her to go. Kind of lame but not that stupid.
But either way they set it up all wrong. Should have had unrelated people go in. Period piece or something set in the 70s or 80s, imo.
never saw the second one but they should have done a period piece in the 80s with the team that put the climbing hook in that the girls found.
Lumpy Onion
Member
The Changeling was really good. Great ghost story film that kind of appeared out of nowhere a few years ago for me. Definitely got some goosebumps from that one. The chilling moments in horror are what attracts me to the genre. Especially when there's an interesting mystery attached to it.
Just watched Grave Encounters. It was pretty good. I certainly had some good scares. Certainly better than a lot of things I have seen lately. Might have to check out the sequel now.
Glad to see all the Noroi love in this thread. I think the scariest thing in that movie happens in the first couple of minutes where you see something in a window. So subtle, but terrified me to the core.
TAJ
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
I'm not seeing a downside here.
It's a clear downgrade from the HD-DVD.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
Lumpy Onion
Member
Having just finished watching Grave Encounters a few minutes ago I agree 100% about the stretched mouth thing. As soon as that effect started to show up I became a lot less scared. The effect made me think I was watching a movie, which is probably not what they wanted me to feel.
The lead was deliciously sleazy though. Great character for sure.
TAJ
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
It's all been downhill since Freddy Snake, really.
NaughtyCalibur
Member
Surprised nobody here has mentioned House of the Devil yet. I would say to not even watch the trailer and just dive right in. It's one of the best horror movies on Netflix right now.
When I first tried watching it a few years ago I couldn't get into it, but after giving it another shot on Netflix I'm convinced it's one of the best horror films to come on in years. It's a 2009 film that looks and feels like an 80s film, which just works on so many levels. It's also one of the most believable horror films I've ever seen.
Seriously, give it a shot.
I also hear great things about Antichrist but never got around to watching it.
-Pyromaniac-
Member
a lot of it yes, but probably not all on that front.
Lumpy Onion
Member
It had some cheese, but I wouldn't call it a comedy. I actually just saw it for the first time a few months ago and absolutely loved it. Not scary, but it was a really fun action sci-fi movie. It was pretty decent sci-fi imo. I thought the concept behind the antagonists was kind of cool. Was honestly surprised to see how hated the movie was on the net. Oh well, I had a great time and it didn't insult my intelligence.
BuddyJoeHooker
Member
Yes! House of the Devil was great, I would also recommend The Innkeepers by the same director, he is great at suspense. Can't wait to see what he does next.
Nemesis_
Member
Yeah, it's been so long since I watched them.
There is still room for a prequel to be made if they really wanted to, right? Or did the second one not perform so they've just left it alone for now?
The Take Out Bandit
Member
I believe it goes Rio Bravo > Assault on Precinct 13 > Ghost of Mars. They're all essentially the same flick.
I enjoyed Ghosts, it's not Carpenter's best; but it was worth a rent if you know what to expect going in.
Plus having visual design by Brom never hurts.
Horseticuffs
Full werewolf off the buckle
One of the things about grave encounters was that, though there was profanity, there was no sexual stuff and I could watch it with my kids.
As I do before before we watch any movie I checked IMDB and it said it had a bunch of references to masturbation and such. It's a shame because I was gonna rent it but rented Deadly Silence instead.
I'm always up for a horror movie I can watch with my kids.
As I do before before we watch any movie I checked IMDB and it said it had a bunch of references to masturbation and such. It's a shame because I was gonna rent it but rented Deadly Silence instead.
I'm always up for a horror movie I can watch with my kids.
The Take Out Bandit
Member
The remake of Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is a good horror movie for the younger crowd.
I had a great deal of nostalgia for the original TV movie and was looking forward to the remake, and it mostly delivered. I was expecting something a bit more creepy / frightening, but it was still good and the horrific moments in it that are there are quite unsettling.
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
Have you seen Coraline?
scar tissue
Banned
Insidious was horribly boring. I wasn't scared a single time.
And the end twist was lame and predictable as fuck.
Too bad, I was really looking forward to it because it's 100% played straight, no comedy elements.
Don't get me wrong, I love me some funny horror too (Tuck & Dale, Cabin in the Woods, Severance,...) but scary and 100% serious horror movies are my favorite.
Any recommendations, GAF? Last really good serious horror I've seen was The Descent.
Alex Connolly
Member
The last film I saw that I found unsettling - and it's more unsettling than outright horror - was Lake Mungo. Big fan. One of the better uses of 'found footage' horror.