"HAPPY HALLOWEEN 2"........2005
Oct 17 '05
The Bottom Line I already gave them. Otherwise for a few hours pretend your not Roger Ebert, and just enjoy the movies.
The Sequel.....Hey with all the bleeping sequels Hollywood spews out, I might as well have my own.
I was planning on writing a 10 best horror list every year, but I missed last year. I know in most lists people see the same old movies, but hopefully my lists will contain at least 1 or 2 movies that mabey, have not been seen by the majority of people. Lets face it most of the newer horror films are remakes. Most recently "The Fog"
Or just recycled stories with a little bit different plot to them.
So it makes it tough to put up an original list. Unless you put up a list of foreign horror films, which 99.9% of those I hate. Onward with the 2005 list.... The following lists of movies will be put in order from newest to oldest.........
1) (DAWN OF THE DEAD) (2004)
Of course this is the remake of the original classic,
and I have to admit I enjoyed it more. I liked the faster
pacing and the additional characters. The slick F/X
doesn't hurt either. The story line is the same with
the main characters being holed up in a shopping mall
surrounded by thousands of zombies with the munchies.
I thought this version had just the right amount of humor
to it while still being able to maintain a tense level
of who's going to get eaten next. Not only a great zombie
film, but also an entertaining action film ooozing with
gore.
2) (PITCH BLACK) (2001)
For the few who haven't seen this one, this is a horror
film in the ALIENS movie vein. Vin Diesel plays an
intimidating convict aboard a spacecraft that crash
lands on a planet with 9 other survivors.
Only problem is Diesels character (Reddick) isn't the
only one the survivors have to worry about killing
them. The planet they crash on just happens to be
occupied by flying creatures that devour humans. Not
only that, but the planet they land on is about to be
consumed in complete darkness, which is what allows the
creatures to come out of hiding, for feeding time.
For an Alien monster film, the movie adds some original
twists that make it interesting and suspenseful to watch
3) (RELIC) (1997)
This is a Peter Hyams film starring, (Penelope Ann Miller,
Tom Sizemore, Linda Hunt and James Whitmore.)
Fans of old Sci-fi films will remember James Whitmore as
the head cop in the movie "THEM"
The movie starts off with 2 crates being sent to a museum
from Brazil containing leaves, and a smashed relic.
Penelope Ann Miller and James Whitmore are evolutionary
biologist who discover a fungus on the leaves, but don't
discover the evilness behind the Fungus nor the relic
before it evolves into a killing machine.
Tom Sizemore plays a superstitious Police LT. assigned to
the case that leads him to the museum to solve the
mystery behind the current rash of decapitations in
Chicago.
"RELIC" plays like a haunted house movie as dozens of
people are trapped inside the museum with the creature.
They fight for there lives to escape the museum as the
creature plucks them off 1 by 1.
The movie contains very good special effects courtesy of
Oscar Winner Stan Winston (Jurassic Park,Aliens,Terminator
and many other outstanding films) The movie is a very
well made suspense thriller, horror flick.
Audrey Lindley(Mrs Roper) of "Threes Company" fame,
plays a wise cracking coroner who delivers the best line
in the movie when she tells Tom Sizemore,
"7 decapitations in 1 week, don't you just hate someone
who only takes head, but never gives it."
4) (ARACHNOPHOBIA) (1990)
If you have a fear of spiders this is probably not the
movie for you. Since this movie is pre-CGI effects, the
spiders are real. This is a great movie to run your
fingers across someones shoulder during the spider scenes.
I promise you they will they jump. I proved this in the
theater, when I made a friend of mine who unwisely sat in
front of me during the movie, scream like a little school
girl. (Sorry Rick)
Movie takes place in a small town where (Jeff Daniels)
becomes promoted to Town doctor after the previous one
dies from a spider bite. Dr. Ross Jennings (Daniels)
suffers terribly from arachnophobia (fear of spiders).
Something he developed as a toddler.
His family purchases a large old house that has a barn out
back. The barn unfortunately ends up being ground zero
from where the killer spiders are hatched. The movie is
not only tense and thrilling, but very amusing. Once the
spiders go on there rampage watch out, because they kill
everything in there path.
Not only great performances from the actors, but getting
the spiders to perform the way they did in the movie was
amazing.
5) (THE ENTITY) (1983)
Starring Barbara Hershey and Ron Silver. This movie is
supposedly based on a true story about a woman who was
repeatedly....gulp...raped by a ghost. Yes I know it
sounds silly, but the movie is quite effective on the
chills level. I have to admit movies based on true
stories involving ghosts, always make a movie more
interesting.
The movie is greatly helped by a strong performance
from Barbara Hershey who plays a single mom with 3 kids.
Her character Carla Moran is attacked several times by
a ghost that she cannot see, but can feel. She is beaten,
slapped, and raped by the Entity. Unfortunately for Carla
no one believes her story, even though her body is
covered in bruises.
Ron Silver who also gives a solid performance as a
skeptical psychologist, tries to understand and help
Carla deal with her supposed attacker. Of course he feels
that everything she is experiencing is in her head. And
he suggests that she enlist the aid of Tom Cruise, and
try taking some vitamins and exercising....lol sorry I
couldn't resist. Ok that part didn't happen, but he does
think the supernatural phenomenon is all in her mind.
Carla than turns to parapsychologist for help, and
fortunately for her, they are able to record
evidence of the entity in her home, and agrees to
help her. The movie is an interesting horror/thriller.
It's strength lies in its story and 2 lead actors.
6) (SCANNERS) (1981)
Directed by the "King of Squeam" David Cronenberg.
Stars (Jennifer O'neill, Stephen Lack, and
Michael Ironside).
Story is about a group of humans with telekinetic powers
that have the ability to get into other peoples minds,
and make there heads explode. literally. (Ironside)
of course plays the bad scanner who uses his power to
murder people and other scanners. A young scanner played
by (Lack) is recruited to hunt down Ironside and end his
violent tirade.
For a 1981 movie, the FX are very impressive and very
gory. You can't help but cringe as you watch victims
shake in agony as there bodies are being manipulated by
scanners. The famous head exploding scene still looks
remarkably realistic.
7) (DRESSED TO KILL) (1980)
I consider myself a Brian De Palma fan, and it's safe to
say this is one of his best. Starring (Michael Caine,
Angie Dickinson and Nancy Allen).
Angie Dickinson plays a frustrated woman looking
for love in all the wrong places. Michael Caine plays her
therapist. And Nancy Allen as the Beaver...ahem I mean a
hooker.
I guess the best way to describe the movie is, it's a
slasher film with class. The opening scene with Dickinson
in the shower is classic. De Palma shocks his audience
with scenes of violence and sex in some interesting
places.
The two lead women in the movie are stalked by a psychotic
killer. (Nancy Allens) character teams up with
(Dickinsons) son played by (Keith Gordon) of "CHRISTINE"
fame, to catch the killer. Sometimes slowly paced, but
never boring easily one of the top thrillers from the 80's
8) (INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS) (1978)
This of course is the remake of the 1956 classic.
Starring (Donald Sutherland,Brooke Adams,Leonard Nimoy,
Veronica Cartwright) and a very young (Jeff Goldblum).
Not quite as good as the original, but definitely worth a
look if you never seen it before. This time the invasion
takes place in San Francisco where (Sutherland) who plays
a health inspector named Mathew slowly discovers all is
not well in Frisco. Seeds that have drifted from outer
space have landed in San Fran, and are duplicating the
living while they sleep.
Once the seed-pods have fully developed, the human body
dies, and the body grown from the pod takes over. The new
life form is an identical twin in form, but has no human
emotions. This is what separates them from being
completely human. There not looking to exist with humans,
but to completely take over our world, exterminating all
humans.
Unlike most remakes, this one takes on original twists
and turns. The movie has a nice mix of chills, and
humor to put you in the halloween mood.
9) (RACE WITH THE DEVIL) (1975)
This movie finally was released on DVD this year (2005).
Easily one of my most favorite low-budget movies.
The movie stars (Peter Fonda, Warren Oates, Loretta Swit,
Lara Parker, and R.G. Armstrong).
Story starts off with 2 couples going on vacation in
there 32 foot RV. They pull off the road near a small
river to sleep for the night. While there wives are
getting ready for sleep, Frank and Roger
(Oates and Fonda) sit outside the RV drinking there
beers.
While reminiscing, they spot a large fire up on a hill a
couple of hundred yards away, and go and investigate.
There they see a group of people dancing around in the
nude and chanting. Frank and Roger find this amusing,
until a girl is held up in the air by 4 people in the
group, and has a knife plunged into her chest.
Frank and Roger are spotted by the cult when Franks wife
Alice (Swift) steps out of the RV yelling out there names
to come inside. The cult members hear her, and the chase
begins. No CGI of course back in 1975 so all the car
stunts are real in the chase scenes. The couples RV
becomes a fortress pummelled constantly by attacks from
cult members as they relentlessly pursue them from town
to town.
Every time the couple seems to be breaking away from the
cults clutches, they seem to only end up getting deeper
and deeper into there web. The movie is low budget, but
still offers suspenseful chase scenes, and a creepy
atmosphere.
And, oh by the way the the remake of this movie comes
out next year. (2006) Same title.
10) (THE NIGHT THAT PANICKED AMERICA) (1975)
This was a made for TV movie back in "75 that once in
awhile gets replayed on cable right around Halloween.
No DVD of it has been made in the states yet, but I was
able to purchase one from Canada off Ebay.
It stars a rather large cast of recognizable names and
faces including, (Vic Morrow,Eileen Brennan,Meredith
Baxter,Tom Bosley,John Ritter) and Paul Shenar who plays
Orson Welles in the movie.
The movie is a recreation of the actual 1938 broadcast
of the "War Of The Worlds" radio show.
Of course this is the broadcast that was performed by a
young Orson Welles, who for a few hours terrified
millions of Americans and Canadian listeners into
believing that we were being invaded/attacked by Mars.
Is the movie scary? No of course not. But it is fun as
hell to watch the actors recreate that night and watch
how people reacted in fear and panic to a radio show.
(Paul Shenar) plays a terrific young Orson Wells. The
entire cast that recreated the Mercury Theater actors
all give top notch performances.
For the average viewer this movie may seem silly in how
people could have believed the Martian invasion. But
considering that radio was there quickest source for
news and information, and with WW2 starting in
Europe it's understandable. I imagine they had the same
fear I had during 9/11 watching the Twin Towers come
down on TV, and not knowing why, or if, and when the
terror was going to come to an end.
I imagine not being able to see what was going on, was
probably even a more terrifying experience for them. Only
being able to hear your country is being attacked by
an unstoppable force, and relying on a voice from the
radio to relay information to you makes the actions of
the people back in 1938 very understandable.
If your looking for blood, killings, and gore you won't
find it in this film. If your looking for great acting, a
great script and a fascinating true story, than you'll
enjoy this movie.
Well there it is, hours of typing for 5 minutes of
reading. Next year keep an eye out for the next
installment, Actually next year is going to be, what my
2004 list was supposed to be, and that was..............
"THE LIGHTER SIDE OF HALLOWEEN" It will be a list of
movies that blend comedy with horror. And no,
"Ghost Busters" and "Young Frankenstein" won't be on it.
They're a little to obvious. But, that kind of gives you
an idea of what direction my list will be heading.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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