Horror Film Recommendations

[Gavster]

I feel conned! The first movie I bought in years turned out to be a huge waste of time. The seed was planted by Mark Kermode in his online blog, giving a glowing review of a new Hammer film that has been declared an instant classic. Other film critics have rated it 4/5 stars, which for a horror, is a decent achievement.

I was hooked! Who wouldn't be?

Well it turned out to be a fanfare of utter bull shit.

The film in question was Wake Wood, the second in a new series of films from the iconic Hammer franchise. Set in Ireland, we find a couple having just lost their young daughter to a vicious dog attack, move to the sleepy village, Wake Wood to make a fresh start. Life seems ideal at first, until the wife notices a dark ritual, which transpires to be ceremony to wake the recently dead for three days so their loved ones have a chance to say a proper goodbye.

So... cue the obvious. They re-awaken their daughter and all hell breaks loose.

Now the main stars are Timothy Spall and Aiden Gillen. Spall is decent, but Gillen is tragically bad; there's just something not quite right about him or his performance. The flow of the film is not much better. There is little suspense for such a spooky and dramatic genre, even the ritual is lame by Hammer's standards. The couple are far too quick in going ahead with the awakening - there's no mention of ethics or even the slightest undertone of something going wrong. And when it does go wrong, the girl isn't particularly menacing, nor does she look in any way malevolent, apart from the fact she keeps killing people and cattle.

Going back to the Omen, there was always an undercurrent of evil with Damien, even when he was being nice.

Critics suggest similarities to Don't Look Now, Wickerman and Pet Cemetery. I only see a pale imitation of Pet Cemetery, which itself was quite dreary.





The next film on my list was jointly panned by critics, partly due to its exorcist routes. It seems any film involving exorcism will forever be compared to The Exorcist and therefore, be sentenced to eternal damnation.

The film is The Rite, starring Anthony Hopkins as an experienced and unconventional 'Welsh' exorcist based in Rome

An American seminary school drop-out is sent to Rome to study the art of exorcism, as the American Catholic Church has identified a sudden surge in demonic possession and attacks. My answer would be to take Bill O'Reilly off Fox News, but nevertheless, the young American is sent to learn the trade from Hopkins.

Much of the film is based around convincing the wee lad that demons do exist. Jeas, the kid has issues believing in God, so it would take much more than one deep bellowing voice from a little girl to convince him. Eventually, Hopkins becomes the prey for the demon we eventually come to know as, Baal - and he's a scary bugger to say the least. Hopkins is back to his Hannibal Lecter best once possessed by one of Satan's minions and really gives the film some raw energy.

I have to say, I enjoyed it and can't understand why it was panned when Wake Wood was seemingly over hyped.

[slick]

I didn't know 'Hammer' still made films Gav, allthough to be fair they were shite when they were at their peak, speak to anybody about Hammer films and they'll talk about either virgins, lesbians, tits or fannys, I work with a guy who knows every fcukers name that ever got their tits out in a hammer film, I'll say something like ever watch 'The Devil rides out'? as it didn't half shit me up as a kid. And he'll reply with soemthing like, "Yes, ain't that the one where Brenda Russell exposed her breasts just after making a round of toast"!! , i'll say fcuked if i know as i was hiding behind the fcuking couch.

I watched 'The Rite' last weekend and all i can say is don't fcuking bother, it was so shite i can't even remember what happened , I was just staring at the screen thinking of the City match trying to look interested as the wife wanted to watch it, why Anthony Hopkins got involved in something like this I'll never know, he can't be that hard up surely.
It's a sort of cross between the Exorcism and Stigmata but doesn't come close to any of them, its also tooooooh predictable and nothing shocks, this has to be one of the worst horrors ever made considering the budget it had.

[slick]

I watched Insidious at the weekend and was utterly dissapointed, after watching the reviews I expected to be at least entertained with the odd flutter of a heartbeat but it turned out to be the most ludicrous movie i have ever watched.

In short its about a boy who falls off a pair of atttic steps in the new house he has just moved into and ends up in a coma, on further examination by the hospital the fall never caused the coma as there's nothing physically wrong with him, so what can it be? well it just so happens the cnut is possessed and starts waltzing about here there and everywhere when every fcuker think's he's comatosed in bed.

It stared off normally enough with a yeah thats possible then ehhm not so possible but it's a film so I'll let it go, then just goes fcuking stupid with figures that resemble something out of a 60's horror film and supposedly demons wearing outfits that anybody could get from a fancy dress shop, the movie had so much promise but descends into a carnage of comedy, so much so that by the end your just left nodding your head as to why!

The movie is crass and reminded me of an episode of 'goose bumps' which the kids used to watch when they were about 6 yrs old.
Give this one a wide berth.

I also watched 'Limitless' which wasn't an horror but a cracking film i thought with an original storyline.
It was about a dropout who meets up with his ex 'bro in law' who's an ex drug dealer but now makes out he is going straight in the pharmacutical business, for old times sake they go for a drink and the bro in law gives the dropout a new pill to try that hasn't reached the market yet.
later on that night whilst home alone the dropout takes the drug with reservation and it unlocks his mind into thoughts that are not usually accessable, he can reach into his mind and pull out things now matter how trivial, for instance like any facts he had read from from a book during his life that you would think would be forgot about. Basically he becomes a genius and a very successfull one at that in certain circles, so long that is he can take this drug daily which considering he was only given one to start with is the basis of the story.

I won't go any further as it will spoil the film but I can highly recommend it.

[slick]

I'm going to watch REC tonight, I taped it off SKY during the week and will bung it on after my curry has arrived, just watched a wee trailer as I forgot what it was about and it looks like one for upping the volume on the surround sound, I've not seen any good horrors for a while so I'm looking forward to this, I also recorded REC2 while i was at it but I've not seen the reviews of that yet.

I've also just downloaded Sinners and saints, Tracker, Seconds apart, Trust; and Unknown, if anybodys seen any of those and they are shite plse let me know.

[Gavster]

Your previous post about Incidious was spot on Slick. I did enjoy most of the film until it got to the astral projection part. I half expected Derek Acorah to mince in half possessed, but there was however, an element of following the same path as Poltergeist with that journey over to the other side to rescue their innocent child. What happened to the good old fashioned haunted house films eh?

That demon was laughable. You'd expect to see something quite horrific with limitless powers rather than an over-the-top gay pride costume.


I'm surprised you didn't like The Rite, Slick. I enjoyed it. It wasn't the Exorcist by any stretch, but there was a continual undercurrent of evil, which I like, especially when it goes all demonic.


Have you watched Anti-christ yet?

[slick]

No not yet m8 allthough I have watrched Debbie does Bury and Teen nymphs in bikini tops since you suggested it as they have similar graphics
Like i said Gav; I do most of my film watching on a Saturday night with the family so watching films that show actual sex scenes could be a bit awkward, it looks like one I'll have to watch at work with the lads during a dinner break.

Right; Currys allready arrived and been consumed so I'll get on with putting on the first movie.

[Winrew]

Unknown , is that the Liam Nielson one , if it is , wasn't a bad movie ...

[slick]

I think so Win's, I read that many reviews that i forget where I'm upto.

Just watched 'Rec' and it wasn't 4 bad, not a classic by any means but i didn't think it helped watching it in daylight even though i did shut the curtains, It was a bit comedy like at first and for some reason I couldn't take it seriously, it did have a good 'jump out of your skin' moment though which I appreciated.

After that i was all for watching something else but the daughter insisted we watched 'Rec 2' and tell the truth I thought it was better than 'Rec' as it got straight into the action but that maybe because I watched them in tandom as Rec 2 is a direct follow on from Rec in so much that it continues the action from where Rec left off unlike a lot of sequels. It was much more edge of the seat horror which Rec 1 was lacking.

That thing in the Penthouse was a bit weird wasn't it, the wife's fcuking face when i said "I think I've found your tits" was a picture.

I'm just watching 'The Human Centipede' now on Syfy HD and what a strange film this is, I've seen it mentioned before on TDP but never bothered reading into it as the title alone say's it all, its strangely fascinating but fcuking ridiculous.

[slick]

I've turned the Human Centipede off, what sort of mind comes up with shite like this, no wonder there's so many sick fcukers knocking about.
It's not clever and its not entertainment, it's some fcuker trying to cause a stir to get noticed and make money, by all accounts it worked and more the fool those that promoted this garbage.

I'm as open minded as they come but i can see why the powers that be want to ban the Human Centipede 2, In fact the original should never have been allowed to take off as its treading dangerous ground and setting a precedent for other sick fcukers to ply their wares.
If it was only adults who watched this stuff then i wouldn't have a problem with it but the thought of kids watching this sort of thing , which happens in dysfunctional households frightens me to death.

[Rob44]

i love horror movies (and sci-fi) - it's really nerdish i know, but i've always dug the fantasy element of movies from a young age, ever since i saw House of Usher and it scared me shitless. you'd think being scared would turn you off? but i just wanted to see more.
i'm not much into new stuff though and only catch them if there's a real buzz, like Pan's Labyrinth or Let the Right One In.
On dvd i'm catching up on on the really shockingly bad movies of the 50s like Plan 9 From Outer Space - they are hilarious after a few beers

[kompressaur]

I used to like my horror when i was younger Gav. 4-30 poss. Monster double bills on a saturday night got me into them. Now i couldnt even look at them.

Films
Nosferatu (both versions)

Shadow of The Vampire (about the making of Nosferatu)

Lair of the White Worm (stoker novel starring Hugh Grant of all people)

Street Trash - Not horror persa but still hits the spot for me. Some classic scenes especially the one when the 'man' kills the hero halfway through the film and pisses on his dead body.

Evil Dead - probably 1,2 and 3

The Entity

Something Wicked This Way Comes - Love the book and the film is ok too

Any George Romero Zombie flick.

And others no doubt too.

books
Anything by Graham Masterton bar his non horror

House On The Borderland - which is free online
Fiction: The House on the Borderland: Contents

Son Of The Endless Night -John Farris (man i love folks being possessed and the government knowing about it)

and again lots of others though i dunno if i can be doing with horror in my old age.

[dimitrios]

The Island of terror.
Peter Cushing.

[FC Basher]

Not one mention of Friday the 13th,scary.

[slick]

The Island of bleeding Terror, bloody hell Dimitrios you must be easily shaken, I suppose the hammeresk type films were a wee biit scary when i was a nipper but I wouldn't have them down as Horror as in HORROR films where you shit your kecks.

The original Friday the 13th was one of the best horrors ever, probably the film that set the precedent in teen slasher movies. The ending was pure horror classic, epsecially in the cinema with sound effects, I think the Carrie ending is the only other that comes close to it.

I was about 15 when i watched that and have to admit that its the only film I've ever watched where I've shit myself walking home afterwards, i was giving doorways a wide berth as i walked past them.

[Gavster]

I remember watching the first Nightmare on Elm Street, Demons and Aliens when I was about 7, but surprisingly, the film that affected me the most was American Werewolf in London. Those scenes in the London Underground are classics and I'm always reminded of the film when in a particularly old section of the underground.