Top 15 Movies To Watch On Halloween - Part III
Posted on October 30, 2007
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Here it is. The post you’ve all been waiting for (I hope). You’ve seen Parts I and II (numbers 15 through 6) of my Top 15 Movies to Watch on Halloween. Here is the conclusion - numbers 5 through 1.
Each of these final flicks was made in the 70’s or early 80’s. Obviously they were doing something right back then, like making original movies instead of remakes.
5. The Shining (1980)
A family is voluntarily stranded in a huge hotel in the mountains. Oh yeah, it’s also haunted and the father slowly goes insane.
What happens? If you don’t know you should really see this flick. Herrrrreeeee’s Johnny!
4. The Exorcist (1973)
Another classic and just a freaky, scary and gross movie. This flick stands the test of time.
3. The Evil Dead (1981)
Believe it or not, the director of the Spider-Man movies, Sam Raimi, is responsible for The Evil Dead (the movie, not evil dead . . . whatever). This flick just happens to be one of the best and most notorious horror films of all time. Another freaky, freaky movie.
2. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
I didn’t think the remake of this flick was that bad, it was just a different type of movie, one with a slick production and lots of gore.
Unlike the remake, the original is a gritty, nasty, grainy flick that has the feel of a documentary. Notwithstanding the title of this movie (which includes the words “Chain Saw” and “Massacre”) there is very little gore. Instead you have real scares, freaky characters (there’s that word again) and some incredibly creepy sets.
A word of warning: when you get done watching it, you may feel the need to take a shower (unless of course you endured a double feature of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Psycho).
1. Halloween (1978)
A little obvious? Maybe, but in my humble opinion, John Carpenter’s Halloween is the best horror movie of its kind and the best flick to watch on, well, Halloween.
Like the original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, there is a noticeable lack of gore in Halloween. However, it isn’t needed. Halloween is scary as is. Besides, is gore scary anyway?
In the hands of a master, ordinary homes in a typical neighborhood can be scary as hell, especially when an escaped mental patient returns home to finish a job he started fifteen years earlier. John Carpenter used all of the tools at his disposal to create an eerie atmosphere on a fall day and night in a typical Midwestern town, including a perfect soundtrack and incredible lighting and camera angles.
I could go on and on, but I won’t. This flick speaks for itself.
If you think I omitted a movie that deserves to be in this list, or disagree with my rankings, please feel free to yell (or scream) at me. Happy Halloween!
Tags: halloween, horror, john carpenter, list, movies, psycho, remake, Sam Raimi, the evil dead, the exorcist, the shining, the texas chain saw massacre, top 15, top 15 movies to watch on halloween
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Top 15 Movies To Watch On Halloween (Part II)
Posted on October 25, 2007
Filed Under Holiday Movie Lists | 4 Comments
As promised, here are Nos. 10 through 6 in my list of the Top 15 Movies to Watch on Halloween (you can find Part I here).
10. High Tension (2005)
We start off with an intense flick.
“Haute Tension,” a 2003 French horror film, was released in the U.S. as High Tension in 2005. It was directed by Alexandre Aja, who directed the remake of The Hills Have Eyes, another intense flick.
For those of you terrified by subtitles, don’t fret - this movie has few subtitles and you forget that you’re even watching a foreign film. Besides, why not expand your horizons a little? OK, High Tension is not going to expand your horizons. Unless you desire to expand your horror movie horizons and subject yourself to an intense, shocking, gory, terrifying and disturbing movie.
You’ve been warned. I’m serious.
9. Friday the 13th (1980)
Ahhh, the original and best. Featuring a young Kevin Bacon, post Animal House. The sequels got progressively inane and were essentially the same movie rehashed after Part II (the first appearance of Jason, pre-hockey mask), but the original is a good “slasher” movie.
The trailer is kind of annoying though. Anybody else with me on that?
8. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Admit it, you were a little scared to sleep after you saw A Nightmare on Elm Street. Come on, you know it’s true. Blame it on Wes Craven. He did an excellent job making scenes look like nightmares - Freddy’s five-foot (or so) long arms in the alley, Nancy running up the stairs only to have her feet get stuck in some gooey substance, etc., etc.
If you need another reason to watch it - a pre-21 Jump Street Johnny Depp stars in this flick.
7. The Thing (1982)
The Thing is a remake of a 1951 monster/science fiction movie and number two on my list of favorite John Carpenter movies. Carpenter is a master at creating an atmosphere of fear, dread, panic and isolation. If you haven’t seen this flick, do so. It’s a horror masterpiece.
6. Psycho (1960)
A classic. After all these years, Psycho is still creepy and scary as hell.
While watching the trailer (which is long, but stick with it), be sure to take note of the happy/cheerful music and Hitchcock’s delivery. Genius.
So, what do you think so far? Part III is coming up next Tuesday, the day before Halloween. Yeah, I timed it that way. Pretty cleaver, I mean clever, huh?
Don’t forget, I will reveal No. 86 in my Top 100 Movies tomorrow.
Have fun watching The Office tonight.
Ok, that’s it. Boo.
Tags: 21 jump street, a nightmare on elm street, alexandre aja, alfred hitchcock, animal house, foreign film, freddy, friday the 13th, halloween, haute tension, high tension, horror, jason, john carpenter, johnny depp, kevin bacon, list, monster, movies, psycho, remake, science fiction, slasher, the hills have eyes, the thing, top 15, trailer, wes craven
