Looking for some classy movies for Halloween

[Anthile]

Well, I'm not a big fan of horror flicks since they tend to be boring, predictable and unimaginative. But hey, it's Halloween, so why not do a horror movie-athon?
I'm really more interested in psychological horror or, in general, movies that don't try to insult my intelligence. I do not like excessive violence, so-called torture porn and slashers.
I've seen pretty much every mainstream horror movie so I need some more obscure stuff. My favorites are: The Shining, The Mist, The Thing, Prince of Darkness, In the Mouth of Madness, Cemetery Man (which is probably one of the best films ever made), Cube and Suspiria.


:smiley_emoticons_mr

 

[EyeSeeCold]

Eh all I got is Invasion of the Body Snatchers (old), Night of the Living Dead (old) and I Was A Teenage Werewolf.

Try IMDB.

 

[terraxceles]

What about Japanese horror?

YouTube - Noroi the curse trailer

Try Noroi. Easily the scariest film I've ever seen.

 

[Vegard Pompey]

I'm calling bullshit on your statement that you've seen all mainstream horror movies and I'm recommending whatever comes to mind. Horror movies don't really scare me and I only watch them because I love horror movie imagery when used well so you can trust all my recommendations to be something more than just ordinary slashers.

Kairo and Suicide Club are technically horror films, maybe, but they're a bit weird and you can't really categorize them as such. In any case I love them both.

Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead are all amazing, and the Dawn of the Dead remake is surprisingly good as well.

Candyman and May, both of them very colourful and original.

Cabin Fever 2 and Final Destination 2 are both sequels that you probably wouldn't expect much out of yet outdo their predecessors significantly.

Martyrs and Audition are on my toplist of "movies that would scare me if movies could scare me".

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the original, duh) can be pretty dull but it utterly redeems itself during the climax.

The Stepfather - Terry O'Quinn plays the eponymous villain and does as good a job as you would expect. If that's not all I need to say, something is seriously wrong with you.

The Untold Story - Chinese movie about a restaurant owner who makes meat buns out of people. Better than it sounds. An underground classic that well lives up to its hype.

I can't tell if The Human Centipede is a black comedy or just so bad it's good. In any case, it's quite funny. Speaking of so bad it's good, Cube 2: Hypercube is an offense to the original, but hilarious if you can get past that.

 

[BigApplePi]

Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, Young Frankenstein.

 

[nemo]

The Room. Campy as hell.
Hard Candy. Psychological thriller i think... I've heard it's great. But dark.

 

[Cavallier]

Rosemary's Baby - This is a classic horror from the late 1960s. It preys on everyone's fear of social and physical helplessness. It may be that this movie is more disturbing for women but I think every one can relate to fearing social and physical helplessness. It also highlights the nagging fear we are surrounded by a pervasive evil from which there is no escape. The final scene is very campy but appropriate for the hyper-Christian Americana audience it was originally made for.

Cabinet of Dr. Caligiari - This a silent film from the 1920s (1919?). I think silent films disturbing because I can't shake the feeling that the characters are little dolls stuck in a box. This film reinforces that feeling. Also, this is a fun watch since it's one of the first horror films made and you can see the roots of the horror film genre.

EDIT: Oops. You've already seen The Thing. You've got good taste in horror if I do say so myself.

The Thing - This is my go to horror film. It's got some truly horrible early 1980s special effects but it's my favorite monster film. I really like the isolation aspect. (Okay, that's why I love horror movies in general.) I saw this movie originally when I was a child living in Alaska so the painfully cold and isolated Antarctic was something I could relate to. Also, I like the refreshingly direct final solution the characters take.

Needful Things - This is a wonderful psychological movie. I really like Ed Harris in the role of a sane man surrounded by crazies. There is something very dependable and no none-sense about him that reinforces the surreal quality of the violent and increasingly demented behavior of the other characters. The climactic scene is really good. To top it off I really like the setting of this film. Sure, it's supposed to be a small American town in anywhere USA but the specific town they used is picturesque. (I never read the book the film is based on and I hear that might be a good thing. The book is supposedly better.)

Mr. Brooks - This isn't technically a horror in that it doesn't have any monsters or any supernatural aspect to it. However, you do spend the entire time (most of?) inside a serial killer's mind. It's fascinating following a character around who outwardly seems psychologically stable, normal, and not in any way a serial killer live an average life with a little killing on the side. The main character is very intelligent and easy to relate to. You find yourself wondering how your character will escape only to realize you've been willingly rooting for a killer. Don't read any of the reviews for this movie because there are a few plot twists that people seem to love giving away.

 

[BigApplePi]

Hard Candy is great. Worthy of its name. I liked it too.

 

[yes]

YouTube - Masters of Horror - Imprint - trailer

pee in your pants

 

[Melllvar]

1408 was pretty good.

The Host is a pretty good Korean monster flick.

Night Watch and Day Watch are great Russian... um... I don't even know what to call them. They'd both make my top 5 list (and not just horror movies).

I also second the recommendation for the remake of Dawn of the Dead.

Edit: Also, while I personally hated it and wouldn't touch it again for all the money in the world, Vinyan is certainly one of the most creepy and f'ed up movies I've ever seen in my entire life. Watch at your own risk.

 

[Cavallier]

Oh, I forgot to mention that my all time favorite zombie horror is 28 Days Later. This is so much more than a zombie flick. The sequel was hideous.

 

[BigApplePi]

I can certainly appreciate the need on Halloween to experience unrelenting fear, unredeeming horror and exquisite pain, but if you should by any chance wish a break from all that, may I recommend this alternate movie?


http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi1549533721/

 

[Anthile]

So, I have my list ready for tomorrow and I hope that all the torrents finish in time but I don't really worry about. I probably should have mentioned that already gathered some flicks. It looks like this:

[REC]
The Last Broadcast
Vampyr
Hausu (got that from cracked.com)
From Beyond
Vinyan
1408
The Host

I'll probably check out some of the other recommendations later on.

Night Watch and Day Watch are great Russian... um... I don't even know what to call them. They'd both make my top 5 list (and not just horror movies).

I watched the first movie and I'd say it's really more urban fantasy than horror. Then I read all the books and they are even more awesome than the movies.

 

[Melllvar]

I watched the first movie and I'd say it's really more urban fantasy than horror. Then I read all the books and they are even more awesome than the movies.

Just to warn you, Vinyan is probably less actual horror than Night Watch was, it's probably more of a psychological thriller. But I stand by the creepy-factor. I still have no idea how I came by that movie at blockbuster, considering their usual editing and family-safe orientation.

Definitely gonna have to read the books now. I'm not actually sure why I haven't already, considering what a fan I am of the movies.

 

[Vegard Pompey]

Needful Things - This is a wonderful psychological movie. I really like Ed Harris in the role of a sane man surrounded by crazies. There is something very dependable and no none-sense about him that reinforces the surreal quality of the violent and increasingly demented behavior of the other characters. The climactic scene is really good. To top it off I really like the setting of this film. Sure, it's supposed to be a small American town in anywhere USA but the specific town they used is picturesque. (I never read the book the film is based on and I hear that might be a good thing. The book is supposedly better.)

This is an absolutely horrible movie. Yes, I did read the book first, but I don't think I would have liked it much better if I hadn't. And I didn't exactly love the book. The highlight of the book was the cast, they were all reasonably multidimensional and it was fascinating to see Gaunt corrupt them and turn them against each other. But in the movie, all characters are either one-dimensional and/or completely derailed. For an example, Gaunt in the book starts out being a charismatic gentleman but slowly becomes more and more demonic and also shows different faces to different customers. He's a much more frightening, unpredictable embodiment of senseless evil than even the lauded King villain Randall Flagg.
Sydow portrays this villain in the movie as a charismatic gentleman. And nothing else. And the same can be said for every other character; they are superficially similar to their counterparts in the source material, but they lack any of the depth.
I don't demand that adaptations be perfectly true to their source material. If accuracy gets in the way of quality, sure, get rid of it. But the Needful Things movie is devoid of the one thing that above all made the book worth reading in the first place, devoid of the one reason you would even want to adapt it. It's not that the movie is outright bad in this regard, there are plenty of worthwhile movies with worse casts, the acting is only mildly questionable, it's just not at all good. And add to that an atrocious soundtrack and you have a steaming pile of shit.

Edit: Also, while I personally hated it and wouldn't touch it again for all the money in the world, Vinyan is certainly one of the most creepy and f'ed up movies I've ever seen in my entire life. Watch at your own risk.

I've heard great things about that movie and it's one I plan to watch. It's supposedly similar to Lars von Trier's Antichrist, which I loved.

 

[nemo]

OH. I forgot to mention: The Housemaid (1960). It's one of the 'classics' of South Korean cinema, and is...well, kind of out there. Very campy. You probably won't even find it scary. But apparently it's real good. (Don't watch the 2010 remake though.)

Happy Halloween everybody! :smiley_emoticons_mr

 

[Cavallier]

This is an absolutely horrible movie. Yes, I did read the book first, but I don't think I would have liked it much better if I hadn't. And I didn't exactly love the book. The highlight of the book was the cast, they were all reasonably multidimensional and it was fascinating to see Gaunt corrupt them and turn them against each other. But in the movie, all characters are either one-dimensional and/or completely derailed. For an example, Gaunt in the book starts out being a charismatic gentleman but slowly becomes more and more demonic and also shows different faces to different customers. He's a much more frightening, unpredictable embodiment of senseless evil than even the lauded King villain Randall Flagg.
Sydow portrays this villain in the movie as a charismatic gentleman. And nothing else. And the same can be said for every other character; they are superficially similar to their counterparts in the source material, but they lack any of the depth.
I don't demand that adaptations be perfectly true to their source material. If accuracy gets in the way of quality, sure, get rid of it. But the Needful Things movie is devoid of the one thing that above all made the book worth reading in the first place, devoid of the one reason you would even want to adapt it. It's not that the movie is outright bad in this regard, there are plenty of worthwhile movies with worse casts, the acting is only mildly questionable, it's just not at all good. And add to that an atrocious soundtrack and you have a steaming pile of shit.

Damn. Yet another reason for me to not read the book.

 

[Melllvar]

Oh, I thought of some others, just for reference, if anyone is interested:

The Signal - weird sort of artsy zombie(?) movie. It's divided into three parts, each of which was done by a different director.
Altered - Some rednecks kidnap an advanced alien and all hell breaks loose in their garage. By one of the writers/directors who did the Blair Witch Project.
Phantoms - Kinda cool, based on a Dean Koontz novel.

Oh, I forgot to mention that my all time favorite zombie horror is 28 Days Later. This is so much more than a zombie flick. The sequel was hideous.

Yes I agree (except it's not my favorite). Although I am happy that they've picked the same director who did 28 Weeks Later to do the new Bioshock movie, as I could see the style of that movie being much better with Bioshock's story. I could see the...

Spoiler

scene where Jack kills Andrew Ryan with the golf club being just like the eye gouge scene from 28 Weeks.

Of course, if 28 Days is your favorite zombie movie, the let down of 28 Weeks must be all that much worse.

I've heard great things about that movie and it's one I plan to watch. It's supposedly similar to Lars von Trier's Antichrist, which I loved.

I might have been overly harsh on it. I think I rented it wanting to see a more typical scare-fest, and instead got a serious drama about a couple's descent into madness while they search for their child in the jungles of Burma. I couldn't quit thinking, "You people are idiots, don't you realize how badly this is going to turn out?"

 

[Anthile]

So, it's 11am and I watched three movies so far. I think I'll write down my experience with them.

Room 1408

This one was pretty good and reminded me a lot of Jacob's Ladder but also movies like In The Mouth of Madness and The Skeptic. I really liked the main character and John Cusack's performance in this is great. I also think I'm in love with his voice. I can only recommend this.

Hausu

What. The. Fuck. This is pretty much the weirdest thing I have ever watched, only second to the legendary Motor Fantasy Laserdisc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOBCMoDGGZU

Every fucking scene in this movie is like this. Seriously.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBatYO_9Yg0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnWFhPCNHbQ

I'd like to imagine that white kitty is Minuend.

Vampyr

This one is pretty old (1932) and mostly silent but still uses title cards. Loved the eery atmosphere and the creepy imagery. The pacing is rather dreadful though - but it's only 72 minutes long. It's kinda like a surreal Nosferatu.

 

[Cavallier]

That's House from the 60s right? Quality. I think it was recently remastered and re-released by Criterion. I. Must. Watch.

 

[Anthile]

Soo, I watched the next three movies!

The Host

The Host is really good but it's really a family drama disguised as monster movie. There are some creepy moments like with the bones but don't watch it, if you want a scary movie! I really enjoyed it anyway.

Vinyan

This was really boring. I didn't expect anything but I still ended up being disappointed. I couldn't connect to the main characters at all and it seemed obvious from the start that they were chasing phantoms. The cinematography was great and they made great use of the locations. The acting was no better than subpar. Overall the worst movie I watched today.

The Last Broadcast

Because of the faux documentary style often compared to Blair Witch Project, it actually came out a couple of years before it, somewhere in the mid-90s. This movie is really intense. We see a documentary about the murder of the filming crew that tried to investigate a somewhat mythical figure called "the Jersey Devil" and that the police probably punished the wrong person... I don't really want to explain much more but the ending is absolute genius. It may seem a bit dry at some points if you expect bloodshed - but it's definitely worth it.

That's House from the 60s right? Quality. I think it was recently remastered and re-released by Criterion. I. Must. Watch.

I think it was re-released this year in January. One source said it's from 1972 while the other says it's from 1976.


Now for the last two movies...

 

[Anthile]

Sooo, One thing I forgot to mention about about Room 1408: of all the possible names they could choose for a haunted hotel, they named it Dolphin Hotel. That had me pause the movie and laugh for a while. No wonder it#s so messed up there!

Alright, here we go!

[REC]

The Spanish original, the American remake is called Quarantaine. Well, pretty much the whole movie is set in the same apartment complex. We follow a reporter and her cameraman as they themselves follow a team of firefighters to what at first looks like a routine mission but then... zombies! It's nothing mind-bending but it's well-made and relentless like a zombie movie should be. The whole shaky camera gazebo can be a bit annoying at times but it didn't bother me too much. The whole movie is only 75 minutes long but hey, I'd rather say about a movie it's too short than too long. They knew exactly when they were running out of ideas and they cut the movie short at that point. I appreciate it. I'll probably get the sequel too these days.

From Beyond

I'm quite shocked that I have never heard of this gem before yesterday. It's an actual Lovecraft adaption and quite a competent one! Well, it's probably not too accurate but at least it's entertaining enough to make up for that. The whole movie is very reminiscent of the works of John Carpenter, especially The Thing, but it never quite reaches the master himself.
The plot goes basically that two scientists create a machine that stimulates the pineal gland - with the odd side effect that they now see creatures MAN WAS NOT MEANT TO KNOW but unfortunately for them, the creatures can sense them now too! Things start to go awry real fast from there and, well, it wouldn't be a Lovecraft story if it would work out for anyone involved. Definitely a forgotten gem.