It's not all that bad after all... (Recent Horror films that are good.)

senordingdong

I always thought Pitch Black was more of an action adventure buzz.

supernic

Alright, enough is enough, i don't think i have any new films to add to the list. i am a huge horror fan and i think i've seen just about all the films mentioned here, and well done to the peeps for coming up with such an expansive list with analysis and everything.

The Devils Rejects is a great call (although House of 1000 Corpses is ok too) as is Wolf Creek (yeah, so some of it was cliched but i haven't felt fear like that in a horror film since i was a kid and watched a 'true' story called Fortress about some guys who kidnap a tiny little school in rural Oz. if anyone can find that, now that was bloody scary!). and pats on the back to Ravenous (pure gold), Ginger Snaps (absorbing story), The Descent (for the tense), Hostel (for the gore), and... ok i'll stop going on, we've heard it all before. i don't spose we'd class Old Boy as horror, but i bet there's not a horror fan out there who wouldn't like it so get hold of it, it's brilliant!

However i can no longer sit by and listen to people go on and on about how good Saw was. Saw was completely ridiculous. The story was stupidly over the top, the scares weak, the twists unbelievable to the extreme and the acting was absolutely appalling. Cary Elwes should have left it alone with The Princess Bride (fab film!), i have never laughed so hard during

that stupid sawing off his leg scene, what the hell was that?!!

(unfortunately upsetting alot of people in the theatre except for my boyfriend who was also laughing, but by that point I was too annoyed to care). the biggest shock for me was my discovery during the credits that it was done by that Aussie guy Lee somebody, who i had to endure on endless saturdays on 'Recovery' (Aussie teen music/variety show) while i was in highschool, he was doing crap movie reviews and making an arse out of himself. i can't believe that annoying little weed is a billionaire now!). Major disappointment.

i don't know, Saw was watchable but i'm shocked that so many discerning and respectable horror fans loved it that much, i really missed something there...

now go and watch 'Friday 13th: Jason's Dead' and bloody well enjoy it!

Den_M

I kept thinking about Robin Hood : Men In Tights during saw cos Cary Elwes was in that too. I didnt enjoy any of the three Saw films. If I had to rate in order though, it' d go 1, 3, 2

senordingdong

In fairness...Saw had Shawnee Smith!

niallon

Ok I'm not going to lie and say I've thoroughly read every post so far so forgive any repitition but my feelings on modern horror is that it is judged far too quickly i.e before it's bloody released! Take the Hitcher remake for example. Myself and DerekP11 have endlessly debated this project and it's validity for being remade but at the end of the day my feelings remain the same: wait until we see it! Sean Bean, for me, has aways been a safe bet. At the moment that's really all I have in support of it (except for the knowledge that the truck scene remains! woo! :biggrin:) but in general when it comes to remakes I've aways given the benefit of the doubt. Take the Amityville remake for example. I was hugely disappointed with the original. I had read the story and been terrified and then the film involved Margot Kidder looking severely bored. The remake however genuinely had some scares and a great performance from Ryan Reynolds (shock!). Under normal circumstances I would have dismissed the film but instead I decided not to judge a book by it's cover.


On the other hand some remakes must be judged by their cover: Last House On The Left, Day Of The Dead, Hellraiser etc. but the thing is that these are films that one hundred percent don't need to be remade! As I pointed out, Amityville Mk One was brutal so a remake was perfectly accebtible. As you'll see in the Halloween thread I do make exceptions but that is simply because I can't wait to Mikey pick up that knife again! In general my feelings on remakes are: if you think it needs it, give it a chance but if it's sacrelige á la Day Of The Dead, leave it alone and pray for a tragic on set accident!


But back to the actual topic of this thread, the modern horror films that have done it for me, as mainly mentioned already, are:

28 Day's Later
Land Of The Dead
Wrong Turn
Wolf Creek
House Of 1000 Corpses

A few others, speaking of which, spot
on Karl; The Other's is a true masterpiece of the genre.

Karl Hungus

Karl Hungus wrote:

It's been noted that in this day and age, the Horror genre has suffered more than any other. Whether it's been the overly rampant remakes, original films getting a raw deal like The Woods, or just outright bad film-making, it definetly seems like Horror is getting shafted.

But with all the fist shaking going on, might we be overlooking something? Perhaps all the collective vitriol is making horror films lose sight of the fact that good films can sometimes find a way? So I'm dedicating this thread to recent films in the Horror genre that haven't been crap.

First of all, I have to say that The Others is well worth seeing if you want to see a proper ghost story, filled with atmosphere. Horror films that don't rely on shock tactics and cheesy jump scenes (That damn cat must have a great agent) are a rarity these days, and The Others is a film that uses mood and tension to create a genuine feel of fear. Likewise, a seemingly overlooked gem is Session 9, which again builds up it's mood slowly and subtly. It's well worthing seeing, and has a great cast with interesting characters, making a very refreshing change from the constant teen fodder of more mainstream films.

The Devil's Rejects is a far superior film to it's predecessor, and I honestly think it's one of the best films in the Slasher vein. As much of a fanboy pleaser it is to see favourites like Ken Foree and Michael Berryman, and brutal gore, it's an entirely gripping film with a very good story. William Forsythe's preformance is fantastic. While we're talking Slashers, Haute Tension is another brilliant one, and I think what makes this such a special film is it's absolutely relentless pacing.

Personally, I loved Land Of The Dead. Quite a few people hated it, and I can't blame them for that, but there's just something about Land that made it an instant classic in my eyes, it had that special Romero magic. I don't know quite how to put it into words, but it really just clicked with me. While we're on the subject of zombies, another film I loved was Dawn Of The Dead, which is a complete shock what with it being a remake, but I think what made this film work so well was the fact that aside from the name and general premise, it was a vastly different film to the original and as such could well and truly be judged on it's own merits. 28 Days Later was another fantastic modern zombie tale, and needs little introduction. And of course, Shawn Of The Dead was an absolute masterpiece, which accomplished what most Zombie movies failed miserably with; characters you actually cared about rather than simple fodder.

Silent Hill was a film I really loved for a few reasons, mainly being an adaptation of a game that didn't suck, aswell as being one of the few Horror films made today that didn't rely on suprises and sudden, loud noises. Tension, atmosphere and disturbing, jarring imagery that was all very faithfull to the game experience. Granted, every time Sean Bean was onscreen was grating because of his horrible American accent, but apart from that, I thought Silent Hill was a real winner. It's also worth checking out Director Christophe Gans' previous film Brotherhood Of The Wolf, which isn't strictly Horror, but a cracking good film filled with adventure and mystery reguardless.

On the subject of wolves, Dog Soldiers is an excellent, action-filled werewolf film which follows the old Night Of The Living Dead formulae of main characters baricading themselves up in a farmhouse, fighting for their lives. There's plenty of dark humour involved, and a running theme of football related jokes. Yes, sounds odd, but it works very well, especially with the rather sinister Liam Cunningham as the nasty Captain Ryan.

So, there's a handfull from me. Thoughts? Anything to add?

I was reading your post and I can't believe you did'nt mention The Devil's Backbone, surely one of the high points of horror cinema in recant years.

Also I completely agree with you on Silent Hill. Easily the best game to film transaction and a great film on it's own merits.

Karl Hungus

Deleted User wrote:

I was reading your post and I can't believe you did'nt mention The Devil's Backbone, surely one of the high points of horror cinema in recant years.

You've just gone and embarressed me now.

Karl Hungus

Karl Hungus wrote:

You've just gone and embarressed me now.

My most sincere apologies. I assume it was an oversight on your part.

Karl Hungus

Deleted User wrote:

My most sincere apologies. I assume it was an oversight on your part.

Aye, must've completely slipped my mind at time of writing.

So, for those of you who have just tuned in, Karl Hungus highly recommends The Devil's Backbone. It's a masterpiece.

Karl Hungus

Karl Hungus wrote:

Aye, must've completely slipped my mind at time of writing.

So, for those of you who have just tuned in, Karl Hungus highly recommends The Devil's Backbone. It's a masterpiece.

Here's something to look forward to. Del Toro has called it a companion piece to The Devil's Backbone, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0813981/

Karl Hungus

Deleted User wrote:

Here's something to look forward to. Del Toro has called it a companion piece to The Devil's Backbone, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0813981/

I look forward to everything Del Toro does. He's one of the few director's I keep a close eye on to see what he's up to, and what he's scheming.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Pan's Labyrinth (Missed it in the cinema I'm afraid) when it comes out on DVD. Can't wait for the second Hellboy film, aswell as the animated Hellboy episodes, and if he ever gets around to doing it, At The Mountains Of Madness.

Karl Hungus

Karl Hungus wrote:

I look forward to everything Del Toro does. He's one of the few director's I keep a close eye on to see what he's up to, and what he's scheming.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Pan's Labyrinth (Missed it in the cinema I'm afraid) when it comes out on DVD. Can't wait for the second Hellboy film, aswell as the animated Hellboy episodes, and if he ever gets around to doing it, At The Mountains Of Madness.

I'm the same way. Del Toro is my favourite director.

I also missed Pan's Labyrinth. I downloaded a version of it but the quality wasn't the best so I decided to wait for the DVD..

The Hellboy cartoons are very good and we'll worth picking up.

I dream about Del Toro's At The Mountains Of Madness. The way he talks about Lovecraft's works and how he want's to adapt them is something to behold. He understands the complexities of the writing and the seems to genuinely love the source material.

christophicus

Yeah i saw the others quite a long time ago but I remember I really liked the end of it, it was a great movie.


I know so many people hate The Ring but I thought it was really very good, and I much preferred it to the original, by the way i saw The Ring 2 or 3 years after it was released, So it wasnt because it was all new to me that I thought it was good. but I thought it was really very good, and I much preferred it to the original.I thought the american version was much scarier then the japanese original, especially with the "video " from the movie being one of the extras oin the dvd. I thought the grudge was quite good too, although not as good as The Ring.

With regards to Saw and partially house of 1000 corpses, I dont think these movies are scary per say, they are just absolutely repulsive!!! Which is exaclty the kind of movie that i like.

I thought saw was ok after I had watched the original, but looking back on it I absolutely love that movie now, the second was good too, but odviously not as shocking, seeing as you kind of knew what to expect. And when I started watching the 3rd I was kind of dissappointed, it seemed to be good, but dragging out with too many unnecisary scenes. But then the end MY GOD!!!! the end was really good and completely unxpected, because by that time I had accepted that the movie was not great. But the end brought all of the semmingly unnecesary scenes together, to create a great ending. It just about made up for the first dissapointing three quaters of the film.

TerrorFirmer

Karl Hungus wrote:

I'm really looking forward to seeing Pan's Labyrinth (Missed it in the cinema I'm afraid) when it comes out on DVD.

Pan's Labyrinth was excellent, while I'm not generally an overly huge fan of Del Toro I do at least have a certain expectation that's never really disappointed when I watch any of his stuff. There aren't a whole lot of movies that I genuinely feel are a better experience on the big screen bar the obvious CGI fests, but Pan's Labyrinth was one of those few. Very graphic film too, and mixed a whole lot of genres seamlessly, none of them taking away from the others in the slightest. The opposite, in fact.

Also one of the very few films in general the past few months that totally exceeded my expectations on all counts.

christophicus

Someone said that they were scared of ther water after watching session 9. I scuba dive, is there a chance i could be put off diving after watching that movie?

Karl Hungus

Karl Hungus wrote:

I look forward to everything Del Toro does. He's one of the few director's I keep a close eye on to see what he's up to, and what he's scheming.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Pan's Labyrinth (Missed it in the cinema I'm afraid) when it comes out on DVD. Can't wait for the second Hellboy film, aswell as the animated Hellboy episodes, and if he ever gets around to doing it, At The Mountains Of Madness.

I'm just after watching Pan's Labyrinth, (it's an Xtravision exclusive) and all I can say is wow. Del Toro has really exceeded all my expectations. The way he weaves the multiple story arcs together is a wonder to behold.

I highly urge you to get down to your nearest Xtravision store and grab a copy as soon as possible.

faceman

Deleted User wrote:

I'm just after watching Pan's Labyrinth, (it's an Xtravision exclusive) and all I can say is wow. Del Toro has really exceeded all my expectations. The way he weaves the multiple story arcs together is a wonder to behold.

I highly urge you to get down to your nearest Xtravision store and grab a copy as soon as possible.

keep an eye out in case it makes it in UCI as one of those Director's Chair screenings. (where they show an older film) Film was best experienced on silver screen

Karl Hungus

Deleted User wrote:

I'm just after watching Pan's Labyrinth, (it's an Xtravision exclusive) and all I can say is wow. Del Toro has really exceeded all my expectations. The way he weaves the multiple story arcs together is a wonder to behold.

I highly urge you to get down to your nearest Xtravision store and grab a copy as soon as possible.

Oh, awesome. Is it an exclusive for rent or to buy though?

faceman

Karl Hungus wrote:

Oh, awesome. Is it an exclusive for rent or to buy though?

just for rent at the mo

Karl Hungus

faceman wrote:

just for rent at the mo

Ah I'll wait untill it's for sale so.

faceman

Karl Hungus wrote:

Ah I'll wait untill it's for sale so.

hopefully some del toro goodies on the dvd, hes good for extras.

Karl Hungus

faceman wrote:

hopefully some del toro goodies on the dvd, hes good for extras.

Yeah, he's fairly indepth alright. I'm just sorry I didn't wait for the big special edition of Hellboy. Might nab it and sell the old 2 Disc one.

The DVD is a two disc set so expect so very nice goodies. I know he recorded a commentary for the film and Doug Jones said that some of his video diaries would be included.

Amazon have an exclusive edition with a slip case and art cards, it's the same price as the retail version. I'm after preordering my copy.

For anyone who does'nt own Del Toro's other masterpiece, The Devil's Backbone then there's a box set including Pan's Labyrinth, Cronos and The Devil's Backbone. Three of my favourite films ever, and threee films everyone should see.

faceman

I just checked the UCI cinemas in dublin and as follows for Director's chair:

Pan's Labyrinth:
06/03/07 - Blanch
13/03/07 - Coolock
13/02/07 (coming tuesday!) - Tallaght

Fysh

Deleted User wrote:

The DVD is a two disc set so expect so very nice goodies. I know he recorded a commentary for the film and Doug Jones said that some of his video diaries would be included.

Amazon have an exclusive edition with a slip case and art cards, it's the same price as the retail version. I'm after preordering my copy.

For anyone who does'nt own Del Toro's other masterpiece, The Devil's Backbone then there's a box set including Pan's Labyrinth, Cronos and The Devil's Backbone. Three of my favourite films ever, and threee films everyone should see.

If Cronos is any good, it looks like I'll be buying that box set. Saw Pan's Labyrinth at the Kino and loved every second of it, and then checked out Devil's Backbone and loved that as well.

Once you've seen the film, have a read of this interview with Del Toro. Some interesting points in it, although spoilers galore if you haven't seen it yet.

christophicus

yeah is cronos any good?

Fysh

Fysh wrote:

If Cronos is any good, it looks like I'll be buying that box set. Saw Pan's Labyrinth at the Kino and loved every second of it, and then checked out Devil's Backbone and loved that as well.

Once you've seen the film, have a read of this interview with Del Toro. Some interesting points in it, although spoilers galore if you haven't seen it yet.

Cronos is excellant. Unlike most vampire films, Cronos establishes it's own mythos and doesn't follow the clcihes on which other vampire films have become so reliant on. Like all of Del Toro's work it's best to watch knowing as little as possible beforehand.

It also established the relationship between Del Toro and Ron Perlman.

Necronomicon

Karl Hungus wrote:

Yeah, he's fairly indepth alright. I'm just sorry I didn't wait for the big special edition of Hellboy. Might nab it and sell the old 2 Disc one.

Do, it's excellent. I'm not always a huge extras buff, but I watched just about everything on the SE.

Play.com have an exclusive DVD release of Pan's Laybrinth also. The boxset is also consderably cheaper than amazon.