October 23rd is "National Horror Movie Day" mainly to honor Sam Raimi's birthday and another excuse to watch Horror flicks close to Halloween. Heck, Sam Raimi's "Evil Dead" films are fun & scary watches! There are traditional scary movie favorites like: "Psycho" (An essential film period), "The Halloween Franchise", "A Nightmare On Elm Street", "Friday The 13th", "Child's Play", etc. Maybe you're into the classic "Universal Monster" OR "Hammer Films" horror movies! Either way we all have blind spots in our cinema watching, so see some scary movie ideas below (if you dare)!
"Vampyre" (1932) An absolute masterpiece from Danish filmmaker, Carl Theodor Dreyer! It's pretty much a silent film and apparently had it's released delayed nine months to make room for the American Universal Monster films! After it's release in Germany, the film received negative reviews, but has become a bonafide cult classic masterpiece! The jaw-dropping visuals are absolutely stunning & unforgettable! Click here for a preview!
"Cat People" (1942) & "I Walked With A Zombie" (1943) When visionary filmmaker, Jacques Tourneur & creative producer Val Lewton teamed up, you knew you were in for a real treat! These films are amongst the greatest of all time, not only for the story, subtext and themes, but also for the incredible use of lighting and cinematography! Truly top tier supernatural horror films (and cinema in general)!
Click here to watch a preview for "Cat People".
Click here to watch a preview for "I Walked With A Zombie"!
"Night Of The Hunter" (1955) The only film from award winning actor, Charles Laughton and it's a doozy! Robert Mitchum is in top form here (perhaps his greatest performance) as a serial killer who poses as a preacher and pursues two children to find some stolen cash hidden by their father! This film is scarily just as relevant today (perhaps even more so)! Another box office flop but has gained not only cult classic status but also recognized as one of the greatest films ever made! Click here for a preview!
'Peeping Tom" (1960) Perhaps the first "slasher horror film" (it came out a few months before Hitchcock's "Psycho")!? The film is about a serial killer who murders women with his camera just so he can record their dying expressions!? Wow! This film barely shows any blood, but is so disturbing, mainly because of the psychological themes in the film (some involve children)! Genius filmmaker, Michael Powell gives us a truly horrifying experience from start to finish! Click here to watch a preview!
"Kwaidan" (1964) A Japanese anthology horror masterpiece from the great Masaki Kobayashi! Four Japanese ghost stories from an American writer, Patrick Lafcadio Hearn, who later became a Japanese citizen and changed his name to Yakumo Koizumi! The film creeps up on you in it's three hour running time because of the brilliant scenery, atmosphere and colors along with the eerie music and sound effects! Do not watch this by yourself in the dark! Click here to watch a preview!
