Fools idol
Banned
Since I was a kid, I have had an intense passion for horror films and games. As I near my 35th birthday I have seen just about every western horror film ever released, from great to terrible, as well as thousands of asian masterpieces and duds to boot.
I spent my youth renting every one I could from our local videostore, spending all my weekends looking for obscure imports from Japan and lusting after something new and frightening. I had the type of parents that would be strict about age restricted content, so my hobby here was entirely in secret in the attic via a refurbished VHS and DVD player I stole from a neighbours garage one time.
For me, my top 5 is easy. By modern, I simply mean post black and white era. Other then the top spot these are not it any particular order, just my personal favourites.
1. Alien
It goes without saying, I love this film as many others do. It was the first one I saw, and it put my young mind into a state of terror at 9 years old. The sense of a truly destructive and evil entity of unknown origin, ancient and primal motives to kill, and the general uneasy setting of a claustrophobic spaceship was masterfully done by Ridley Scott.
2. Rosemary's baby
Secret cults, intruging plot, and a dark undertone that immerses the viewer in the mind of a vulnerable person being gaslighted and preyed upon. Whilst this film isn't remotely scary to me any more, and nothing compared to others on my list, it is a masterfully made film with a simple yet great plot.
3. Hereditary.
Ahhh, Ari Aster. I realise this one is quite marmite in nature, but a true modern masterwork in my eyes. The ties to it's inspirations are thinly veiled, and it reminds me a lot of Rosemary's baby again, but I say that in a positive way. I am a huge fan of mystery in horror, and this movie has subtle cults and folklore to boot.
Incredibly dark and intense subject matter, brilliantly acted, disturbing body horror and a thick atmosphere that filled me with dread from the first half an hour. The ending buildup and eerie clues throughout the film are excellently done. This one is worth multiple watches to catch all the clues you missed as Ari Aster laid them on plain sight.
4. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (original)
Imho the greatest of it's era, a secluded farmhouse in the middle of nowhere and a deeply disturbed family of fucking nutjobs and a chainsaw, and a bunch of hapless idiot teenagers. It spawned a whole culture, and many tried to mimic it's harrowing nature and brutal scenes.
5. Noroi: The Curse
For me, Japanese horror is all at it's best when it's psychological. The delicious fear of the unknown and the often bizarre execution asian horror films have. Many will name the obvious choices like Grudge, Ring, and all the other-decent-yet samey ghost stories.
Noroi on the other hand took my expectations for Japanese horror flicks and kurbstomped it into dust. This film is horrendously intense, slow burning, and psychologically disturbing.
You never quite know what the fuck is going on, what the characters are hiding and even better, what the curse actually is until the devastating final scenes... and enough is left to the imagination that you feel isolated and alone while watching the events play out. I often found myself pausing the film and rewinding it looking for clues or to better understand what was going on.
There is a ton of symbology in here, and excellent (slow) pacing.
So GAF, what are yours and why?
I spent my youth renting every one I could from our local videostore, spending all my weekends looking for obscure imports from Japan and lusting after something new and frightening. I had the type of parents that would be strict about age restricted content, so my hobby here was entirely in secret in the attic via a refurbished VHS and DVD player I stole from a neighbours garage one time.
For me, my top 5 is easy. By modern, I simply mean post black and white era. Other then the top spot these are not it any particular order, just my personal favourites.
1. Alien
It goes without saying, I love this film as many others do. It was the first one I saw, and it put my young mind into a state of terror at 9 years old. The sense of a truly destructive and evil entity of unknown origin, ancient and primal motives to kill, and the general uneasy setting of a claustrophobic spaceship was masterfully done by Ridley Scott.
2. Rosemary's baby
Secret cults, intruging plot, and a dark undertone that immerses the viewer in the mind of a vulnerable person being gaslighted and preyed upon. Whilst this film isn't remotely scary to me any more, and nothing compared to others on my list, it is a masterfully made film with a simple yet great plot.
3. Hereditary.
Ahhh, Ari Aster. I realise this one is quite marmite in nature, but a true modern masterwork in my eyes. The ties to it's inspirations are thinly veiled, and it reminds me a lot of Rosemary's baby again, but I say that in a positive way. I am a huge fan of mystery in horror, and this movie has subtle cults and folklore to boot.
Incredibly dark and intense subject matter, brilliantly acted, disturbing body horror and a thick atmosphere that filled me with dread from the first half an hour. The ending buildup and eerie clues throughout the film are excellently done. This one is worth multiple watches to catch all the clues you missed as Ari Aster laid them on plain sight.
4. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (original)
Imho the greatest of it's era, a secluded farmhouse in the middle of nowhere and a deeply disturbed family of fucking nutjobs and a chainsaw, and a bunch of hapless idiot teenagers. It spawned a whole culture, and many tried to mimic it's harrowing nature and brutal scenes.
5. Noroi: The Curse
For me, Japanese horror is all at it's best when it's psychological. The delicious fear of the unknown and the often bizarre execution asian horror films have. Many will name the obvious choices like Grudge, Ring, and all the other-decent-yet samey ghost stories.
Noroi on the other hand took my expectations for Japanese horror flicks and kurbstomped it into dust. This film is horrendously intense, slow burning, and psychologically disturbing.
You never quite know what the fuck is going on, what the characters are hiding and even better, what the curse actually is until the devastating final scenes... and enough is left to the imagination that you feel isolated and alone while watching the events play out. I often found myself pausing the film and rewinding it looking for clues or to better understand what was going on.
There is a ton of symbology in here, and excellent (slow) pacing.
So GAF, what are yours and why?
Last edited:
