The Conservative Cave
The Bar => The Lounge => Topic started by: Duke Nukum on March 01, 2008, 05:25:16 PM
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I just stopped at the Best Buy and bought some low budget horror movies which made me think it might be a good topic for the lounge:
What is your favorite horror movie of all time?
For me it is a little known gem out of Mexico in the 1970's called Alucarda directed by Juan Lopez Moctezuma at a time when Mexico's film community had some freedom.
Alucarda is everything a great horror movie should be:
It is derivative and novel, horror movies should seem familiar but the director should rearranging the parts in surprising new ways.
It doesn't make any logical sense and yet it has it's own kind of inner logic. Horror movies should be like the nightmare, they should have their own kind of rules that makes sense while you are watching but don't stand up to the cold light of logic. Horror doesn't make any sense, that is why it is horror.
If there is gore, it should be hyper exaggerated. Gore is not essential for horror but if it is there, it should be like in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, it should be there in buckets or not at all. Alucarda has blood by the bucketful.
Alucarda is also relentless. Once the fire starts, it burns everything and everyone including the viewer. The only way to stop the fire is to not watch.
I guess a close second to Alucarda would be Stuart Gordon's Re-Animator.
In the end, nothing should really be resolved or explained. In fact, it should seem like the horror it too big to be contained and it continues on after the events of the movie.
And a good horror movie should always be cathartic. The viewer should feel a sense of relief that it is finally over. The problems of every day life should seem small by comparison.
Juan Lopez Moctezuma also directed another strange gem called The Mansion of Madness loosely based on the Edgar Allen Poe story The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether but I recommend watching this one before Alucarda because Mansion seems almost pedestrian by comparison and really it probably isn't. I can't say for sure, having watched them in the wrong order.
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More monster then horror but my all time favorite movie is the original (1933) King Kong.
Of modern ones then Tremors would top the list.
I am not into slasher or gory ones but the Nightmare on Elm Street ones are the best of that lot imo.
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More monster then horror but my all time favorite movie is the original (1933) King Kong.
Of modern ones then Tremors would top the list.
I am not into slasher or gory ones but the Nightmare on Elm Street ones are the best of that lot imo.
King Kong is a great movie, I would probably put it more in the realm of an adventure movie but great effects for the time and I think they hold up relatively well.
Tremors was a great movie. One of those that was both derivative and novel. The Jaws of the dessert. I don't know if I saw all the sequels to that one but I liked the one that was a western.
The first Nightmare on Elm Street was one of the greatest horror movies ever. I think it was Johnny Depp's first movie and it really fits all my criteria quite well. I think the glut of sequels ends up diminishing the original somewhat in my mind. When something is alone and unique, it seems more memorable and has a greater value.
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The original "War of The Worlds" scared the heck out of me.
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
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I just stopped at the Best Buy and bought some low budget horror movies which made me think it might be a good topic for the lounge:
What is your favorite horror movie of all time?
For me it is a little known gem out of Mexico in the 1970's called Alucarda directed by Juan Lopez Moctezuma at a time when Mexico's film community had some freedom.
Alucarda is everything a great horror movie should be:
It is derivative and novel, horror movies should seem familiar but the director should rearranging the parts in surprising new ways.
It doesn't make any logical sense and yet it has it's own kind of inner logic. Horror movies should be like the nightmare, they should have their own kind of rules that makes sense while you are watching but don't stand up to the cold light of logic. Horror doesn't make any sense, that is why it is horror.
If there is gore, it should be hyper exaggerated. Gore is not essential for horror but if it is there, it should be like in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, it should be there in buckets or not at all. Alucarda has blood by the bucketful.
Alucarda is also relentless. Once the fire starts, it burns everything and everyone including the viewer. The only way to stop the fire is to not watch.
I guess a close second to Alucarda would be Stuart Gordon's Re-Animator.
In the end, nothing should really be resolved or explained. In fact, it should seem like the horror it too big to be contained and it continues on after the events of the movie.
And a good horror movie should always be cathartic. The viewer should feel a sense of relief that it is finally over. The problems of every day life should seem small by comparison.
Juan Lopez Moctezuma also directed another strange gem called The Mansion of Madness loosely based on the Edgar Allen Poe story The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether but I recommend watching this one before Alucarda because Mansion seems almost pedestrian by comparison and really it probably isn't. I can't say for sure, having watched them in the wrong order.
FWIIW, "Alucarda"="adracula" backwards="Dracula (english)"
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The original "War of The Worlds" scared the heck out of me.
That is one of my favorites. George Pal was a great director. And while I think of it more in the Science Fiction genre, I can see it fitting many of my criteria for a great horror. It is a real nightmare and once the fire starts it is relentless until the end.
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The original "War of The Worlds" scared the heck out of me.
That is one of my favorites. George Pal was a great director. And while I think of it more in the Science Fiction genre, I can see it fitting many of my criteria for a great horror. It is a real nightmare and once the fire starts it is relentless until the end.
Did you see the remake? I have been thinking of seeing it.
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
Yes! Phantasm fits all of my criteria quite well and was especially good the first time I saw it. Angus Scrimm is a national treasure!
It could probably have used a little tighter editing and it would still stand up quite well and I think it stands up well enough.
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The original "War of The Worlds" scared the heck out of me.
That is one of my favorites. George Pal was a great director. And while I think of it more in the Science Fiction genre, I can see it fitting many of my criteria for a great horror. It is a real nightmare and once the fire starts it is relentless until the end.
Did you see the remake? I have been thinking of seeing it.
Yes, and I liked it, it has its own merits but the George Pal version will always be the official version in my mind.
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
Dood! That movie scared the PISS out of me way back when!!!
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
The cheeziest one I ever saw and it scared the heck out of me was this..
(http://goodbadugly.coldfusionvideo.com/equinox.jpg)
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Serpent and the Rainbow
Nothing says horror like a hammer, nail and a chair
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and there is always . . .
(http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/MMPH/240476~Hellraiser-Posters.jpg)
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but the all time trend setter in the "cheezy horror flick" genre is probably
(http://www.cyber-cinema.com/bestseller/evil_deadBest.jpg)
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
The cheeziest one I ever saw and it scared the heck out of me was this..
(http://goodbadugly.coldfusionvideo.com/equinox.jpg)
Equinox was great! It was so surprising the first time I saw it on TV. I have the DVD that has the original cut of the film. Oddly, I remember it differently than it is.
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but the all time trend setter in the "cheezy horror flick" genre is probably
(http://www.cyber-cinema.com/bestseller/evil_deadBest.jpg)
Evil Dead is another great movie. In a lot of ways, it reminds me of Equinox.
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(http://retrodc.wordpress.com/files/2007/06/phantasm.jpg)
Phantasm. I was young, and didn't realize how cheezy it was. :-)
The cheeziest one I ever saw and it scared the heck out of me was this..
(http://goodbadugly.coldfusionvideo.com/equinox.jpg)
Equinox was great! It was so surprising the first time I saw it on TV. I have the DVD that has the original cut of the film. Oddly, I remember it differently than it is.
I saw it once,probably 25 or more years ago and for some reason it still gives me chills.
No idea why really.
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Does "From Disk 'till Dawn" count? Or "Bubba Ho Tep"?
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Does "From Disk 'till Dawn" count? Or "Bubba Ho Tep"?
If one or both of them are favorites of yours then yes, they count.
I have mixed feelings about Dusk, myself, it doesn't quite work for me but I can watch it and enjoy it on some level.
I love Bubba Ho Tep but I consider it more like a comedy.
I love Ossie Davis as JFK! He slays me. And his performance is so good, I really believe he is JFK!
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/bubba-ho-tep.jpg)
I think he passed on not too long after completing Bubba Ho Tep but he went out on a high note.
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I'd have to go with The Exorcist.
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I'd have to go with The Exorcist.
The Exorcist was one of the scariest movies I never saw when I was a kid. The whole idea just scared the bejesus out of me! Radio commercials, TV commercials. Ugh!
When I first saw it on broadcast TV I watched it with a newspaper in front me to hide behind.
I saw The Version You've Never Seen when it was re-released in theaters, it really is a well-crafted movie.
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I'd have to go with The Exorcist.
doesn't the exorcist actually have a plot? it would seem to be disqualified from the genre you described.
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I'd have to go with The Exorcist.
doesn't the exorcist actually have a plot? it would seem to be disqualified from the genre you described.
Yeah, that's why I left it out but really, the plot is incidental if you watch carefully. Or accidental even. But it is too high class a movie to be on my best of list. But it still scared me.
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The Exorcist reminds me of two other movies, wait, three other movies that scared the crap out of me w/o even seeing them. One is too good for my criteria, that is Alien, which I had nightmares about years before I actually saw it, though I did read the novelization by Alan Dean Foster.
But the number two movie that does fit my list, somewhat, that scared me and gave me nightmares w/o ever seeing it was the Larry Cohen classic It's Alive:
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/Its_alive_movie_poster.jpg)
Sadly, when I finally did see the movie, it was too cheesy and didn't live up to the hype my mind created.
The other movie that gave me nightmares was Humanoids from the Deep. I thought for sure these bad boys were sneaking into the swimming pool over night!
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/Humanoids-from-the-Deep-Poster-C101.jpg)
The thing that made it so scary was they were humanoids, from the deep, which really sent my imagination into overdrive. I had no idea what they could be. The actual movie also doesn't live up to the hype in my head but I think it is a pretty good monster movie overall. At least that is what I thought last time I saw it.
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(http://ia.imdb.com/media/imdb/01/M/==/QM/0c/DN/yU/jN/wc/TZ/tF/kX/nB/na/B5/lM/B5/FO/0Q/DO/5g/DM/wk/TM/B5/VM._SY400_SX600_.jpg)
I used to watch alot of horror movies back in the day. This was the first one that had a twist I didn't see coming. ;)
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(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/happy_birthday_to_me.jpg)
I used to watch alot of horror movies back in the day. This was the first one that had a twist I didn't see coming. ;)
I have to admit I have never seen that one. I am not a big fan of the slasher subgenre but one that I ended up liking was April Fool's Day:
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/april_fools_day_poster_1.jpg)
Of course, it had a plot so it could never be one of my favorite favorites but when I watched it I was mad because it wasn't my choice and it was another slasher movie. I was happy by the end.
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I've never been a fan of horror movies. I did like the first couple Friday the 13th moveis. The Elm Street movies were okay for their time.
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The Friday the 13th references made me think of
(http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/ciu/ff/aa/ce74923f8da036d6c8189010._AA240_.L.jpg)
A very funny spoof movie. I thought I may buy a copy on Amazon....they want from between 46.00 to 95.95 for USED dvd's
Ho
Lee
She
It
:o :o :o :o :o :o
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The Frightners is on Starz in a few minutes. That's kind of a good one.
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I love the Japanese and Korean horror films, but for pure schlock you can't beat Theater of Blood (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070791/)
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I don't watch too many horror shows, but I do like psychological thrillers :mental:. I think my favorite was The Shining, followed by Silence of the Lambs.
Blue Velvet was creepy too. :-)
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Great topic. Funny enough but I was in zombie mode last night watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space last night. (ahhhh late Sat night basic cable) For the record, not one of my favorites.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v604/woncothesane/klownsbox.jpg)
For my money Shaun of the Dead is an absolute favorite of mine but I'll go even further and say that I have never seen a bad zombie movie. Never. :-)
Creepshow really scared me as a kid. LOL
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Anyone ever see "I Spit on Your Grave"? That was pretty disturbing.
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I love the Japanese and Korean horror films, but for pure schlock you can't beat Theater of Blood (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070791/)
Theater of Blood is a great one as it combines several of my loves all in one package:
Shakespeare
Dianna Rigg
Vincent Price
Hammy acting
In that same vein, I really like the first Doctor Phibes movie.
For Asian movies, I discovered a few years ago some great Malaysian movies. My favorite of which and the only one I can remember right now is Lady Terminator which was a Terminator knock off. From what I remember, and I haven't mined this subgenre too far yet, but the Malaysian movies I have seen all dealt with a mythical goddess/monster known as The South Seas Queen and in Lady Terminator, it is the South Seas Queen who possesses the body of a beautiful young woman and goes on a Terminator-like killing spree. I'll have to look at that one again soon :-)
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I don't watch too many horror shows, but I do like psychological thrillers :mental:. I think my favorite was The Shining, followed by Silence of the Lambs.
Blue Velvet was creepy too. :-)
Silence of the Lambs is a great, great movie. When I watched it again for the first time in a few years, a few years ago, I became aware on how much influence that movie had on the 1990's. Especially on one of my favorite shows of the 1990's, the X-Files.
The Shining really should be on my list as it makes no sense and has gore by the bucketful. It does have a plot but it is a nightmarish plot. I'll have to give it another look. My problem with it has always stemmed from The Shining has been one of the scariest books I have ever read and I don't think the movie does it justice.
Blue Velvet is one of my favorite movies. It certainly is nightmarish. I am a big David Lynch fan. I have just been rewatching Twin Peaks, only three episodes left. I really like Mulholland Drive too, I think that is his best movie that I have seen to date. I have Inland Empire on DVD but haven't watched it yet because I tend to be a pleasure delayer. I figure after I finish Twin Peaks I'll pop that in.
Which brings me full circle in this post because along with Silence of the Lambs, I think Twin Peaks had one of the greatest influences on the entertainment of the 1990's.
I have many favorite psychological thrillers and that should probably be it's own thread one day.
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Great topic. Funny enough but I was in zombie mode last night watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space last night. (ahhhh late Sat night basic cable) For the record, not one of my favorites.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v604/woncothesane/klownsbox.jpg)
For my money Shaun of the Dead is an absolute favorite of mine but I'll go even further and say that I have never seen a bad zombie movie. Never. :-)
Creepshow really scared me as a kid. LOL
I love Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Clowns are to me what bunnies are to Ptarmy :-)
Yes, I agree with you, I have never, ever seen a bad zombie movie. Zombies are my favorite subgenre and deserve their own thread.
Fulci Lives!
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Anyone ever see "I Spit on Your Grave"? That was pretty disturbing.
Yes, I saw it once. It some ways it reminds me of Last House on the Left. Both are a little too disturbing for me.
I understand Last House is a remake of Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring but I have never seen it.
I guess since they are all revenge fantasies they owe much to Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, but that one I like. Maybe the Elizabethan English takes the edge off?
And Titus brings me full circle in the round of posting back to Theater of Blood which hammy and overacted is how I prefer my revenge fantasies. That could be a quote:
Revenge is a dish best served overcooked with lots of ham.
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I don't watch too many horror shows, but I do like psychological thrillers :mental:. I think my favorite was The Shining, followed by Silence of the Lambs.
Blue Velvet was creepy too. :-)
Silence of the Lambs is a great, great movie. When I watched it again for the first time in a few years, a few years ago, I became aware on how much influence that movie had on the 1990's. Especially on one of my favorite shows of the 1990's, the X-Files.
The Shining really should be on my list as it makes no sense and has gore by the bucketful. It does have a plot but it is a nightmarish plot. I'll have to give it another look. My problem with it has always stemmed from The Shining has been one of the scariest books I have ever read and I don't think the movie does it justice.
Blue Velvet is one of my favorite movies. It certainly is nightmarish. I am a big David Lynch fan. I have just been rewatching Twin Peaks, only three episodes left. I really like Mulholland Drive too, I think that is his best movie that I have seen to date. I have Inland Empire on DVD but haven't watched it yet because I tend to be a pleasure delayer. I figure after I finish Twin Peaks I'll pop that in.
Which brings me full circle in this post because along with Silence of the Lambs, I think Twin Peaks had one of the greatest influences on the entertainment of the 1990's.
I have many favorite psychological thrillers and that should probably be it's own thread one day.
Oooh... You just reminded me that I should add Twin Peaks into my netflix queue.
A thread on psychological thrillers would be most cool. :-)
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I don't watch too many horror shows, but I do like psychological thrillers :mental:. I think my favorite was The Shining, followed by Silence of the Lambs.
Blue Velvet was creepy too. :-)
Silence of the Lambs is a great, great movie. When I watched it again for the first time in a few years, a few years ago, I became aware on how much influence that movie had on the 1990's. Especially on one of my favorite shows of the 1990's, the X-Files.
The Shining really should be on my list as it makes no sense and has gore by the bucketful. It does have a plot but it is a nightmarish plot. I'll have to give it another look. My problem with it has always stemmed from The Shining has been one of the scariest books I have ever read and I don't think the movie does it justice.
Blue Velvet is one of my favorite movies. It certainly is nightmarish. I am a big David Lynch fan. I have just been rewatching Twin Peaks, only three episodes left. I really like Mulholland Drive too, I think that is his best movie that I have seen to date. I have Inland Empire on DVD but haven't watched it yet because I tend to be a pleasure delayer. I figure after I finish Twin Peaks I'll pop that in.
Which brings me full circle in this post because along with Silence of the Lambs, I think Twin Peaks had one of the greatest influences on the entertainment of the 1990's.
I have many favorite psychological thrillers and that should probably be it's own thread one day.
Oooh... You just reminded me that I should add Twin Peaks into my netflix queue.
A thread on psychological thrillers would be most cool. :-)
Older Stephen King books and stories are very good for that kind of thing.
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Older Stephen King books and stories are very good for that kind of thing.
"It".... shiver... hold me, Carl. :-)
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Older Stephen King books and stories are very good for that kind of thing.
"It".... shiver... hold me, Carl. :-)
Gladly... :naughty:
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Let's not give short shrift to the classics here people!!
(http://www.fangoria.com/blogs/media/blogs/a/chudk.jpg)
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Let's not give short shrift to the classics here people!!
(http://www.fangoria.com/blogs/media/blogs/a/chudk.jpg)
C.H.U.D. is a great movie. One of the first great surprises of my forays into the video store.
It is so sad about C.H.U.D. II Bud the Chud. WTH? It should be illegal to do that sort of thing.
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I just finished watching Planet Terror
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/Planet_terror.jpg)
Starring Rose McGowan and some other people:
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/pt4.jpg)
It could be an instant classic like it says on the DVD box.
Next week the other Grindhouse movie is going to be on Starz. Can't wait!
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Great topic. Funny enough but I was in zombie mode last night watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space last night. (ahhhh late Sat night basic cable) For the record, not one of my favorites.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v604/woncothesane/klownsbox.jpg)
For my money Shaun of the Dead is an absolute favorite of mine but I'll go even further and say that I have never seen a bad zombie movie. Never. :-)
Creepshow really scared me as a kid. LOL
I love Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Clowns are to me what bunnies are to Ptarmy :-)
Yes, I agree with you, I have never, ever seen a bad zombie movie. Zombies are my favorite subgenre and deserve their own thread.
Fulci Lives!
Zombie movies rock.
I didn't hate Killer Klown's but it felt a lot like a 70's horror flick instead of a late 80's one for my taste. :p
Never-the-less....
You were on to something Duke with the OP. Horror movies are much better with the "nightmare" thing going. Anyone or any animal or any "thing" that can't be reasoned with is scary. Be it, Jaws, zombies or clowns from outer space. Reason is the tool for beating fear and some nightmares just don't respond to reason.
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OMG! OMG! Did anyone know there was a zombie movie called Zombie Honeymoon!
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/zombie_honeymoon.jpg)
I just stumbled onto the last 6 minutes of it so I have no idea of it is any good but I did read one review that said it was.
I so set my DVR to record it the next time it's on in HD.
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I really have to think on this one. I'm such a fan of the whole suspense/horror genre that it is hard to pin down one...let me think.
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I really have to think on this one. I'm such a fan of the whole suspense/horror genre that it is hard to pin down one...let me think.
Don't limit yourself. Just pick the first three that pop into your head, as an example.
Originally, I meant this thread to be more for obscure/really strange horror movies but it ended up being more inclusive.
Just today I was thinking of some really good and classy horror movies, like Val Lewton's. Specifically, I was thinking of I Walked With A Zombie:
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a46/maplebob/bb_zombie.jpg)
One of the creepiest moments of this movie isn't the zombies but a guy singing a song that serves as exposition. As Count Floyd might say: Scary!