It’s Halloween Time
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 Myers one 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.
So would love to see your list of horror flicks which you like. And yes strictly for fans of horror genre.
Tags: Evil Dead, Halloween, Horror Movies, Pyscho, Shining, Slasher flicks, Wes Craven, Zombie Movies
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
What about some Hindi horror flicks–Ram Jane, Ganga Jamuna Saraswati, Anjam, Mela(Amir). Bandhan(SAlman), Anjam, Mohabbatein?
Hey Ratnakar ,.Khattarnaak Post!!!
I love Horror Films,.
from 1930’s to British Hammer movie to Mario Bava,.
Love them all,.(mostly B movies)
…
my favourite ones
not in particular order
…
Bride of Frankenstein
Sleepy Hollow
Raven
Cronos
Devils Backbone
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Nightmare before Christmas
Dracula (Bela Lugosi)
Black Sunday or the Mask of Satan
Old Dark House
Dr. Terror’s house of Horror
And the list goes on …..
Hey Ratnakar,. Khattarnaak Post!!!
I love Horror movies from 1930’s to British Hammer films to Mario Bava,.
Love them all
Here it is my small list,
Not in particular order
……………
Bride of Frankenstein
Sleepy Hollow
Raven
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Nightmare before Christmas
Dracula (Bela Lugosi)
Black Sunday or the Mask of Satan
Old Dark House
Dr. Terror’s house of Horror
And the list goes on …..
@ Adhik
Arre bhai, if i have to make a list of those Hindi horror flicks you mentioned, that would be a never ending list. Aur phir usme, i would have to give a special mention to Mithun Da horror flicks Chandaal, Gunda, Hitler, Ravan Raj, which is an entire sub genre in itself.
Well my nickname for Mohabattein was “Yashraj Chamber of Horrors” considering you have a Frankenstein( Amitabh Bachan) and Dracula( SRK with his cape), clashing over a bhootni in white( Aishwarya Rai). Well Frankenstein and Dracula were good enough, but what do you make of zombies like Uday Chopra, Shamita Shetty, Kim Sharma??
@ Shekar
Oh yes, i forgot Sleepy Hollow, one of my favorite Tim Burton flicks, it was just awesome.
And yeah my other favorite horror flick, The Ring. The scene where Samara’s ghost walks out from the TV screen is chilling.
And yes Manoj Night Shyamalan’s movies The 6th Sense, Signs.
Please talk about only “The Horror” films;
Not a sarcastic way of Horror films
ya
“Samara’s ghost walks out from the TV screen is chilling. ”
that was indeed terror scene,..
6th sense is also great,..
but , kya kare, I’m more into old fashion B movie style guy,..
Ha, i do love the B movie stuff, and that includes apna Ramsey Brothers. Keep watching their classics on late night TV, Darwaza, Guest House, Sannata being some 1 can recall off hand.
Blair Witch Project, The Ring, Mahal, Bhoot, Raat, The Shining, Sleepy Hollow, Sweeney Todd(had some classical horror elements), The Descent(zombie/body-horror), Planet Terror(for love of B-films), The Birds, Exorcist, The Omen, even Thriller.
ha ha,. good old Ramsey,..
but If you watch B movies from West( like Roger Corman, George Romero)
British Hammer Films,. Italian Horror like Black Sunday,.
these movies are not funny even these days,..
they are nicely made,.(even in low budget)
but if I watch Ramsey these days,. I laugh about the acting and Technic,..
(Kal Veerana dekha tha)
@ Tushar
“Mahal” is good one,.
I called it ‘Indian Gothic’
Sweeny Todd is propper Horror,.
and Michael Jacson’s Thriller
Nice list
I loved the Hammer Dracula series, one of the best i could say.
I somehow never liked Copolla’s Dracula, too long, too overdrawn, and on top of it Keanu Reeves. Anthony Hopkins and Gary Oldman were the only saving grace.
The best Dracula would be the Christopher Lee version for me.
Well even Bees Saal Baad, was a good horror flick, the old one starring Biswajeet and Waheeda Rehman, it had a great score by Hemant Kumar. The other version starring Mithun and Dimple was just plain Yucky.
For that matter i was shit scared when i saw Sigappu Rojakkal for first time, the Tamil original of Red Rose. Bharatiraja effectively creates a creepy environment.
I like “Bees Saal Baad”, (old one)
I think it is based on
Arthur Connan Doyal’s “The Hound of Baskervilles”
…
I havent seen “Sigappu Rojakkal”,
Is it available on DvD?
Shekhar, let me share some of my horror notes with you. They might be wrong.
So George Romero is the guy behind Night of the Living Dead, whose kinda sequel/take/spoof was Dawn of the Dead(1978), remade in 2004.
Then come Brit hammer(?)/spoof genre. Shawn of the Dead(Robert Wright)- a smart spoof-tribute to the horror comedy genre with clever references to the zombie films of the 70’s, combines the gore with a contemporary troubled protagonist narrative-turned out to be quite a cult favorite.
I saw Hot Fuzz recently and kind of got the drift. Another wonder by Wright, but tighter and sleeker than anyone could imagine. Loved the film, much beyond what any other take film could do, it had layers galore, thanks to a brilliant production and wonderful troupe of actors.
BTW guys, I might attract your attention towards another wonderful discussion we had 2 Halloweens ago, thanks to Mr. Suparn ‘Horror Guru’ Verma…
http://passionforcinema.com/for-adults-only-the-bastard-child/
@Tushar
Sahi hai !!!
“Shawn of the Dead” was funny,.
“Hot Fuzz” is also entertaining,..
Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” is Terror,.
@Tushar,.
Nice Link,..
I completly forgot about my favourite Horror Trilogy
“EVIL DEAD”
I , II and last one ‘Army of Darkness’ ,
these movies are Inspiration,..
and recent one,
“Man with the Screaming Brain”
directed by one and only “Bruce Cambell”
I don’t know if you guys have seen Danny Boyle’s “28 Days Later”, but it’s probably the best zombie (although not exactly) flick I’ve ever seen. It’s got inventive camera work and believe-it-or-not: a deeper plot, drawing parallels between the savagery inflicted by viruses and humans.
Also, even though it’s not a horror flick, 2001: A Space Odyssey scares me more than most horror movies because it deals with the uncertainty of mankind’s future and it’s control on destiny. combine that with a super-eerie soundtrack and fascinating visuals, and you have an effective horror film.
Nice man. Need to take a Horror Vacation now.
Papaji,.
‘2001: A Space Odyssy’
is ‘mast’ example of Horror
Still on Halloween, let me share some more PFC gems with you guys…
http://passionforcinema.com/from-beyond-gods-monsters-and-that-sexual-feeling/
http://passionforcinema.com/eyes-without-a-face-horror-of-sadness-of-pain/
http://passionforcinema.com/28-weeks-later-an-eye-on-the-apocalypse/
http://passionforcinema.com/sweeney-todd-the-demon-barber-of-fleet-street-dance-macabre/
bruce campbell is a maestro.. the stuff of legend!! his evil dead trilogy is a filmmaking school for anyone with a low budget and a hi-concept. wrote more about them in my early post…
http://passionforcinema.com/chainsaws-demons-gore-oh-my/
bubba ho-tep was another good horror-comedy with bruce.
exorcist, omen, sleepy hallow, 6th sense
d original japanese version of the ring is really scary..saw it in the afternoon and was still freaked out..rgv can be forgiven for all his recent flops just for making raat, bhoot and kaun which were really genuinely scary movies, very rare in hindi cinema…
Oh ya, Bubba Ho-tep was supercool. Low budget high concept..aur kya chahiye!
@ Tushar
Good list there from you. Have not seen Descent in the list. Omen, Exorcist will always be favorites, though i did not like Birds very much.
Hmm interesting discussion going on there. Shekar, by the way, u can get Sigappu Rojakal on DVD, and it is regularly telecast on Sun TV too. Bees Saal Baad, has traces of Hound of Baskervilles, set against a Thakur-Haveli backdrop.
Hot Fuzz was a great movie, saw it on a flight. But hey it was directed by Edgar Wright, not Robert Wright, and for that matter even Shaun of the Dead.
The Jap movies give me the creeps! Also Gehrai was scary for me back when I was a kid. The true test for a scary movie, for me is that it should stay with you after the movie is gotten over, for days. Like the Exorcism of Emily Rose was a court room drama but it had scenes which were done quite eerily.
Remember TV serial on Doordarshan:
“Kile ka Rahasya”;
(Yeh Kila hai bahut purana, usme tum bhool kar bhi mat jana,. mat jana)
Shekar, speaking of Bruce Campbell, look out for My Name is Bruce, that will be comming soon. This mixes Chinese horror with American style.
Papaji, i missed out on 28 Days, but heard a lot of it. But do check out for 30 Days of Night,about a bunch of vampires terrorizing a remote Alaskan town, during the winter. It has got a really scary mood to it.
2001 is a classic for sure, and in fact i feel Ridley Scott, was heavily influenced by it, when making Alien. Many scenes in Alien, bear a close resemblance to 2001 in the shot taking.
Yash, i checked out Ringu on HBO i think, and it was pretty much scary. Well just as he revolutionized the gangster genre in Bollywood, RGV did the same to the horror genre, though i would say Raat is a much better movie.
In fact i also liked Darna Mana Hai, some of the stories were genuinely scary for me, especially the Nana Patekar-Vivek Oberoi one.
Ratnakar, thanks I’ll look up 30 Days of Night. As far as Alien goes, for some reason I’ve resisted watching that movie…I don’t know why but maybe it’s time I give it a try especially now that you are telling me about 2001’s influence on it.
Shekhar bhai, mooh ki baat chheen li
(mouth of talk snatched)
Kiley ka rahasya ne hi hamaare andar horror ke beej boye they.
(Fort of mystery only our inside horror of seeds sown)
Hi
Never been a horror flick fan. Somehow I could never really connect with these movies. Not that I have not watched any of them.
Have been through all of them, Exorcist, Omen (the first two parts), most of the Ramsay brothers offerings (for some time they were our first choice movies).
While horror per se is ok, what puts me off is the gore. Take the Saw movies. I saw only part of it was totally turned off by the graphic cutting off of body parts.
I think these were best parodied in the Scary Movie series.
Now about Mithunda movies. Please Ratnakar, don’t ever call a Mithun flick horrifying. entertaining, irreverent, senseless yes, horrifying no.
Of course I would entirely support you in categorising the YashRaj brand of films, post Silsila even, as the tops in horror movies.
RGV’s horror flicks are comic at best. The only decent one being Raat, Revathi in fact coming up with a decent show in such a flick. The Darna series took liberal inspiration from the Tales from the Crypt and stuff.
I mean it was even lampooned by RGV himselfin the second Darna… flick, the first segment directed by Sajjid Khan. Funny and at the same time quite scary.
Sixth Sense was scary but Signs??? Hmmm. Good flick and all that, but definitely not horror.
Of course the best part about horror flicks, and touched upon in the movie ‘Scream’ I think, is the ‘love’ scenes.
you know the part where a couple ‘retire’ to have a moment together and we all know that someone is going to get wasted then. Frustrating too, ‘cos the slasher/evil ghost would decide to do his/her job right when the girl had just about started to undress. Aaargh!!!
And the best part about Ramsay flicks, the comedy track featuring in most cased Jagdeep and the heavily boosomed Huma Khan. Unintentionally hilarious, even though it was the slapstick variety.
could go on and on, but would like to end with Coppolla’s version of Dracula. Eerie, with Goldman giving one of his best performances, and stuck as close to the book as possible. you know, the thing being a romantic story and not a horror.
Opps forgot. Have seen my share of teen slasher flicks, tops being I know what you did last summer, Urban Legends, Wrong Turn etc etc.
Also there has been mention of Sam Raimi as starting out with a horror flick. Funnily enough another big time Hollywood director who started out with horror flicks was LOTR’s Peter Jackson.
If you get the time check out Bad Taste. As the title suggests this is really in bad taste, but so bad that you actually might love it.
Makes the Ramsay offerings seem like Oscar worthies. :0
One of his next ventures was also a horror flick, starring Michael J. Fox. Can’t seem to remember the name, IMDB it, as opposed to google it.
Might make for an interesting post in itself that two of Hollywoods biggest names had humble beginnings.