Oct 31, 2008 08:32 AM
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Well, actually not been very much on MS nowadays, as having become a full fledged writer on Passion For Cinema. com, I am finding it hard to do a balancing act. Anyway considering its Halloween, I just felt like putting up this review on some favorite Horror flicks of mine. This has already been published before at PFC.
It is Halloween, that time of the year, when it is cool to be a ghost, zombie, vampire or werewolf. And also that time of the year when you start to take stock of your favorite horror flicks. Ironically for a fan of the horror genre, it was something I avoided like plague, for close to 16 years . Somehow I could never really bring myself to watch a horror flick in a theater. Then one fine day, I finally took the plunge and watched my first horror flick in 1985, it was Poltergeist, the Steven Spielberg produced movie about a spirit that wreaks havoc on a family. To date I still remember that pretty eerie scene, where the ghost comes from a TV screen, and tries to communicate with Carol Anne, the 5 year old girl.
And after that it was an exploration of the horror flicks, some good, some bad and some plain ugly. Also considering that in my home town, most of the English movies released were either horror or sci fi or action stuff, it was by default, that I developed a taste for the horror genre. . So here are some favorite horror flicks of mine.Again this is not a very exhaustive list, there are still some I missed out. And I am yet to see some cult horror flicks like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, From Dusk to Dawn and The Hills Have Eyes
Alien(1979)-Ridley Scott’s movie about a space ship crew terrorized by an Alien. The scene of the alien bursting from one of the crew member’s chests, is still scary. As also the mounting tension and the eerie feel. And the final conflict between Sigourney Weaver and the Alien. But as much as I loved James Cameron’s Aliens, I somehow don’t take it as a horror flick. Most of the movie, looked like a video game to me, with aliens comming out from everywhere, though the climax scene, when the Alien splits the android into 2 halves was a shocker.
Predator(1987)- One of my favorite movies, the storyline is similiar to Alien, but set against a jungle backdrop. Apna, Arnold Schwarznegger, leads a team of mercenaries on a mission into the jungle. On their way back however he finds that his team members are being mysteriously killed one by one. Absolutely rivetting, and has a great background score by Alan Silvestri.
Halloween(1978)- This was the movie that made Mike Myersone of the most scary movie characters, and gave John Carpenter a reputation as a horror flick maker. The movie is about a teen girl, Laurie( Jamie Lee Curtis), who is stalked by a man in a white mask. One of the best slasher flicks of all time.
Pyscho(1960)- A classic in the slasher genre, from the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. The way the director creates that scary feeling, with that lonely atmosphere of the motel, and Bernard Hermann’s music, enough to scare the wits out of you. And yes the iconic shower scene.
The Evil Dead(1981)-Sam Raimi’s cult classic horror movie, about 5 university students who stumble on a Book of Dead, a Babylonian text referred to as Naturon Demonto. Famous for the scene where one of the female leads is raped by the woods comming alive. It also gave rise to 2 sequels Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness, both of which however were more of comic horror.
Child’s Play(1988)- This was a movie that I just saw off the cuff, with nothing else to do. And trust me I really loved this flick. The story of a kid’s doll possesed by the spirit of a killer, Chucky, is scary enough and keeps you engaged. Incidentally the real name of Chucky, Charles Lee Ray, is derived from 3 real life killers- Charles Manson, Lee Harvey Oswald( Kennedy’s assasin) and James Earl Ray( Martin Luther King’s assasin).There were many sequels on this, but none was really entertaining.
The Exorcist(1977)-One of the best horror flicks, this movie was a sensational when it released. There were reports of people fainting in theaters. Well actually my mother saw this movie, when I was a kid, and for a week or so, she was scared to go near my sister, who was around 2 years old. The climax, where Reagan, is exorcised from the spirit, is just brilliant. Though RGV’s Bhoot had some part influenced by the Exorcist, the scenes where Urmi is possesed, it was his earlier movie Raat that was much more closer.
The Omen(1976)- Another favorite horror flick of mine. The movie stars Gregory Peck as an Ambasaddor, who finds that his son could be the Devil incarnate itself. Two scenes give me the goosebumps every time I watch it, one where the photographer is beheaded by a sheet of flying glass and another one where Peck and the photographer, are attacked in the graveyard by a pack of wolves. None of the sequels really lived up to the first one. And yes Jerry Goldsmith’s chilling score, especially those chants of “Sanguis bibimus, corpus edimus, tolle corpus Satani”, at key moments.
The Shining(1980)- Watch out for Jack Nicholson at his maniacal best, as Jack Torrance, a half crazed writer. Stanely Kubrick, sets up the eerie mood of the cinema in the opening sequence itself, when Jack drives down to the Overlook Hotel, the atmosphere pretty scary. And yes the ending scene, when the camera zooms on to the photograph titled Overlook Hotel, July 4th Ball, 1921, and we see a younger Jack in it.
Nightmare on Elm Street(1984)-This movie was the debut for a certain Johnny Depp, in a small role. The lead character Nancy has a series of nightmares in which she is continously stalked and attacked by a mysterious stranger. And she is convinced that he is the same person who killed her friend Tina. The key to her dreams lies in Freddy Kruger, a long dead serial killer, whose spirit is supposed to be roaming around still.
