Really Bitchin' Horror Flicks

[quark]

I'm a horror movie nut, but have been really disappointed with the quality of horror movies recently. However, the other day I watched an excellent, genuinely gives-you-the-creeps horror movie. One that was so good that it has been placed into my list of really sweet horror movies. The movie? "The Descent"
Just so I don't give too much away (cause this movie is best viewed without knowing very much) it's basically about a group of six women that go exploring in a cave. They get lost, and mayhem ensues. Frightening, gorey, nightmarish mayhem. What I loved most about this movie is that even before the mayhem ensues, the movie is incredibly creepy. Dark, tiny enclosed spaces? Ohhh, gives me the willies. It was refreshing to watch a horror movie that was using some of the more base human fears, like the dark, closed spaces, and the unknown instead of just focusing on WILD MANIAC TRYING TO KILL YOU OH NOES
So, for my list of Really Bitchin' Horror Flicks, I submit:

Night of the Living Dead (original)
Dawn of the Dead (original)
The Shining
28 Days Later
The Descent
Saw
Audition
Ju-on
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (original)

What are your guys Really Bitchin' Horror Flicks?

[DavidN]

I'm a bit surprised to see the inclusion of Saw in there, as I would have thought it was the kind that glorified violence and gore rather than being cleverly creepy like the kind of film you described in the post. I'm a bit of a wimp and haven't seen it, but I do find its idea rather clever as a sort of extreme version of The Crystal Maze.

I'm not a huge horror film fan - I find the Silent Hill series of games to be very cleverly frightening, but the film version was duffed up a bit. The only film that could be classified as 'horror' that I really like is Freddy vs. Jason as it's so unintentionally hilarious - and that I dislike every character in it so much that I don't really care how violently they're killed off.

[jellyhurwit]

Audition, really?

I...w-w...do you know what happens at the end when her neck deflates/has various things crawling in it?

[quark]

I'm a bit surprised to see the inclusion of Saw in there, as I would have thought it was the kind that glorified violence and gore rather than being cleverly creepy like the kind of film you described in the post. I'm a bit of a wimp and haven't seen it, but I do find its idea rather clever as a sort of extreme version of The Crystal Maze.


I actually almost turned Saw off the first time I saw it, because it was, just like you described, total glorified violence. But at the same time, I also thought it was a rather clever movie, and when I saw the ending, that just solidified my love for Saw. I remember sitting there in the dark after it ended, and I had chills up my spine, cause the ending spooked me so much. Also, I want to punch anyone who goes "Oh yeah, I saw the ending to Saw a mile away bla bla"


I'm not a huge horror film fan - I find the Silent Hill series of games to be very cleverly frightening, but the film version was duffed up a bit. The only film that could be classified as 'horror' that I really like is Freddy vs. Jason as it's so unintentionally hilarious - and that I dislike every character in it so much that I don't really care how violently they're killed off.


I actually rather enjoyed the Silent Hill movie too, but I never played the game. I saw the movie with a friend of mine who really liked the games, so he was sitting there recognizing the music and locations. I was just enjoying the weirdness of it.
And oh man. Freddy vs. Jason was such a cheese fest. But to be honest, I've never been a fan of Nightmare On Elm St. or Friday the 13th, even though they are considered horror classics. They never scared me, or interested me in the slightest. I guess the same could be said for every Wes Craven film I've seen.

And don't worry about being a wimp. I am too. I usually can't watch horror movies on my lonesome because I get so creeped out. For example, after I saw Ju-on, I had to do routine checks before bed every night to make sure there weren't any little ghost boys, or scary cackling ghost ladies in my room.

[Mega Wolf]

I perfer the remake of Night of the living dead to the original. Nothing against Romero, but the original was just too low budget and you can tell Romero was still working on fine-tuning the perfect zombie. Dawn of the Dead was one of the best zombie flicks I've ever seen. :3

In terms of how scary things are, The Silent Hill games are by far the scaryest things I've seen. Nothing even comes close. The movie was ok, but half way through it just got all preachy and crap. -.-

Someone Kill Uwe Boll before he tries to make a Silent Hill movie sequal!!

[capthavoc123]

I think the best horror movie I've ever seen has to be Psycho. Yeah, I know it kinda falls into the Suspense/Drama area too, but it still creeps the fuck out of me. Hitchcock really knew how to make a good movie.

[DavidN]

The great thing about Psycho is the whole setup of it - constructing an elaborate plot at the start then suddenly killing her off and going in a completely different direction. And the part with the body in the basement is very unusual - no suspenseful music or dramatic chords, it's just... there.

Mega Wolf, I thought exactly the same thing about the SH film - it's as if they were two completely separate films that somehow got stuck together, with one half being done by a director who wanted to stay true to the game and one who didn't but had played them a couple of times.

[diarmaidhuthence]

The Eye is a good creepy film (with quite an ending when you finally figure out why the dark, blurry ghosts show up en masse). Try The Brood. Old, maybe, but quite an intelligent take on divorce and anger once you get past the pseudo-science.

[DruoxTheFurrinator]

"The Virus"

[Rostam The Grey]

I thought the Grudge was OK.

I loved:
Silent Hill
The Thing
Aliens (The second one where they return to the planet, not Alien)

[The LP]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE The Shining!

[nobuyuki]

I like shitty horror movies mostly!

But if you want a thriller, go see Red Dragon.

[Horrorshow]

"Snakes on a Train"

Scariest movie /ever/.

[Option7]

Crap horror films are better in my opinion, because they're more numerous and they're hilarious.

However, occasionally we see a good one come about.
Saw and Saw II were awesome (haven't seen Saw III yet).
Texas Chainsaw Massacre was also a pretty good one.
And to an extent Hostel was pretty good. Although the effects weren't the best, the general concept was ace.

[Damaratus]

I'm really more of a good old psycho thriller person most of the time. Movies like Perfect Blue and Silence of the Lambs I find more enjoyable to watch than regular horror.

I will say that I prefer some of the horror from my childhood over recent things:

Poltergeist I and II
Friday the 13th (just the first one despite how campy it was)
Hellraiser I and II
Something Wicked This Way Comes (it was Disney nonetheless)

My guess is that it was easier to be frightened of things back then, and so it kind of lingers on in my adulthood.

[Mega Wolf]

Anyone remember Phantasam? How about 'The people under the Stairs'?

How about 'The Gate'?

[Rostam The Grey]

Oh ya! Poltergeist I and The Gate are good ones!

[quark]

I'm really more of a good old psycho thriller person most of the time. Movies like Perfect Blue and Silence of the Lambs I find more enjoyable to watch than regular horror.


Oohh, I love, LOVE Perfect Blue, but I love Satoshi Kon stuff in general. But Perfect Blue was so delightfully creepy, and just seemed to delight so much in messing with the audience. Paranoia Agent was pretty creepy and bizarre as well, but I've yet to finish off Paranoia Agent. The Silence of the Lambs movie I didn't care for so much, but I think it was because I had seen it when I was around 15, and I had read the book first, and had really, really liked the book, and just didn't feel that the movie was as good as the book. I think I should check it out again.

[Damaratus]

Oohh, I love, LOVE Perfect Blue, but I love Satoshi Kon stuff in general. But Perfect Blue was so delightfully creepy, and just seemed to delight so much in messing with the audience. Paranoia Agent was pretty creepy and bizarre as well, but I've yet to finish off Paranoia Agent. The Silence of the Lambs movie I didn't care for so much, but I think it was because I had seen it when I was around 15, and I had read the book first, and had really, really liked the book, and just didn't feel that the movie was as good as the book. I think I should check it out again.


I'm the same way, I really like Satoshi Kon's work. Which is why I'm looking forward to Paprika (http://www.paprikamovie.com). ^^

[imnohbody]

Hitchcock really knew how to make a good movie.


QFT

Personally, I've not seen a good horror movie in ages. The last 20 years or so of "gorror" (GORe+horRor) movie flicks, like Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street, isn't really my cup of tea, so to speak. I want to be scared out of my wits, not grossed out of my lunch. :P

[DruoxTheFurrinator]

The Super Mario Brothers' Movie.....

[imnohbody]

"horror" as in scary, not as in "horrible", Druox. :P

[ValentineCrow]

i prefere older (lol, now the original) movies - tho they may be B&W and have 'special effects' that aren't 'scary' today, i find they amp the backgrounds/scene to help push subconscious freak-out cues.

I enjoyed : The Spiral Staircase (suspense), The Shining, Psycho (janet leigh please), Peeping Tom (which has an interesting backstory btw), Silence of the Lambs, The Exorcist (that flashing face of the devil is beyond creepy)

but then again i'm not a horror person and most of these are suspense. But i'll always fear reanimated dead things and pitch darkness. AND SPIDERS. ick!

[Esplender]

My personal favourite:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKmp6SKrI-o

I hate the Hollywood remakes, they ass up the whole thing so bad.

[Landis]

Dunno if you would call it horror but wild zero is awesome!!!

[Natsumi]

I just watched the Japanese version of Dark Water. It's much better than the American, but the graphics on the monster girl aren't as good.
Anyways, good movie! I get scared easily, so any horror movie will make me scream.
By the way, Rostam the Gray said Silent Hill. That movie was really lame compared to the games.... so eeewww!!!

<3<3

[WelcomeTheCollapse]

I don't know about films, but Natsumi's signature freaks me the hell out.

XD

[Natsumi]

I don't know about films, but Natsumi's signature freaks me the hell out.

XD


O_O wha??? How can something so cute scare you??

[1337intellect]

I don't know about films, but Natsumi's signature freaks me the hell out.

XD


O_O wha??? How can something so cute scare you??


Maybe because that's actually a guy in your picture.

[radio_ardilla]

To Quark- Since you enjoyed The Descent I'd recommend seeing the writer/director's previous film "Dog Soldiers". Instead of a group of girls, it's a group of guys, military guys, facing off against werewolves. This film has considerably more humor than The Descent and the frequent nods and references to other films might be a bit overdone, but it's still a fine flick.

I've also seen other people make mention of Silent Hill (either the film or game), and with that in mind I have to recommend "Jacob's Ladder"- some people have said that this is the film that Silent Hill pretty much plagarized. I can't say for sure on that, since I'm not a gamer, but it one of the few Hollywood films that not only is viewed, but is experienced as well. I felt physically, emotionally and mentally drained at the end of the film. But strangely uplifted as well.

If you want stylishly surreal then you can't go wrong with Dario Argento's "Suspiria". The Japanese horror hacks seem to be trying to ape maestro Argento's style and always fall misearbly short. Of course Argento himself has been a pale shadow of his former self for the past decade or so.

Oh yeah, and one overlooked gem of a film is "A Stir Of Echoes"- you might notice some similarities to The Shinning in this film, but keep in mind it's based on a novel written in the '50's, and the writer of that novel, Richard Matheson, is who influenced Stephen King to do horror.

And one more: "Near Dark"- imagine a vampire film crossed with a pseudo-western/road film set in moden times. Ok, that's not the best nor most accurate description, but it seems the most fitting.

I could go on and on, but I think that'll suffice for now.

[DavidN]

Silent Hill (the original game) was an odd thing - it was like a whole lot of old horror films and Stephen King novels stuck together, but Jacob's Ladder is definitely the one that stands out as having the most influence. The scene to watch for is the wheelchair ride through the increasingly demented hospital, where much of the scenery resembles the other dimension in the first and third games.

And Dog Soldiers is pretty great too - I particularly remember the crockery-throwing scene at the end that resembles a Chewin' The Fat "Angry Man" sketch.

[chomomma]

_D_ i love glorified violence in saw nyah

did anyone see .. oh whatsit.. you know the Hills Have Eyes? well there's a b-rated movie that i really liked that that movie was based off of. Ima wear ur skinz ohhoho

i suppose i shouldnt say i like horror films.. i like anything scary.. and anything that pretends to be scary but actually is comic gold (Jeepers Creepers 2).

its sad. im terrified of the dark, and pay for my carnal desires to see horror films at 5 in the morning while im getting ready for work. wassat in the woods? OMGZ ZOMBIES *jumps in car*

the first few chuckie movies scare the nonsense out of me..

mmmm and i loved Hostel. i dont know if i can bring myself to see Hostel 2. OHNOES

final notes: silent hill was like watching my boyfriend's passion being plastered on a screen, so it was more like.. a visual treat than a horror movie. purely subjective thought there..
and, i dont know if it would fall in the horror genre, but has anyone seen Battle Royale? (japanese flick) cause i havent and need to so, so bad.

edit: THE DESCENT (sp?).. ugh. stupid american film butchering. i need to find the British version and watch it so my soul can rest in piece

[DavidN]

Battle Royale isn't terribly frightening to watch, but the scary part is the entire premise of it. (That and someday, someone responsible for reality TV programming is going to see it.)

I never quite understood the ending, where he's lying dead on the floor, gets up to answer the phone, says something about biscuits and then dies again.

[chomomma]

Battle Royale isn't terribly frightening to watch, but the scary part is the entire premise of it. (That and someday, someone responsible for reality TV programming is going to see it.)

I never quite understood the ending, where he's lying dead on the floor, gets up to answer the phone, says something about biscuits and then dies again.


XD i have got to see it. i think its the premise, like that short story The Lottery, is what makes it so truely horrifying.

haha. Survivor is for pansies. Japanese Middle Schoolers don't go home, they go to FIGHT

[Icarus]

http://www.listsofbests.com/list/1635

these.
(I haven't watched them all, but most of them seem to be from the 80's when horror flicks were REALLY good. *to me*)

That I have watched:
Se7en
Hellraiser

[starla]

Hmm. I find that many 'horror' films are actually weak thrillers with a bit of gore thrown in, but the best true horror films for me are Saw 3, Evil Dead 2 and the uncut, Japanese version of Resident Evil Apocalypse.