I really thought "horror" movies didn't scare me until

[Contratrombone64]

Well, I was in my local DVD shop last night and said to the guy there I wanted something edgy, thriller maybe, not necessarily horror but confronting. So he recommended I watch The Descent. I have never been so terrified in my life (not since seeing Alien at the movies when it first came out). Anyone else seen The Descent?

Mental note, never, but never EVER go caving.

 

[marval]

No, I haven't seen it. I have yet to see a film that terrifies me, maybe this will be the one.

Bother, I want to watch it now.


Margaret

 

[Contratrombone64]

Here's a review of it I just penned ... (doesn't really contain a spoiler).

Six girls in their early twenties go on a caving expedition in a previously unexplored cave. When the entrance to the cave collapses, the girls must try to find another way out. However, it soon appears that they are not alone in the cave.

This movie appealed to me for several reasons. First of all, it really scared me, really bloody scared me, which most horror movies unfortunately don't do. This movie brought to me some pretty vivid images that stuck to my mind for hours after watching this, AND made me hide under a blanket on my sofa!!

Secondly, the movie went straight to the chase. As movie watchers, we are often subject to movies moralising over certain questions, as for example religion (boring) and politics (even more boring), even though these issues are not part of the plot of the movie, and this moralisation can sometimes be quite irritating. British-made "The Descent" didn't have any of this. It is clear already from the beginning that the director has one single goal—which is to scare the heck out of you.

Thirdly, I'm very glad that the "hero" in this film isn't the average Hollywood hero who has some kind of weakness that he/she manages to overcome in the end of the film. The characters in "The Descent" are characters you could find in a good novel. None are pure good and none are pure evil. You actually have to use your brains in order to make up your mind what to think of them.

The minus (if I have to say that) with this movie was that the plot was too thin, and even though a horror movie's main goal is to scare people, there should be a good story behind it. Since I all the same was thrilled from beginning to end, I only remove one point from the total score and give it a 9/10.

Good points: the film is low budget (basically) and uses lighting and ambience to help with the terror AND it does that with excellence. I'd HATE to think how such an film would have ended up in the hands of an American director with a big budget. The lighting, for example is basic: caver's helmet lights and flouro sticks, and the odd flame, that's it. Really creepy!!

Special effects: brilliant, but you'll need to see it as any description will give it away.

 

[marval]

That is a good review, thank you. Now I definately want to see it. It does take a lot to scare me in films. The only film that gave me a slight shiver was "Picnic at Hanging Rock", maybe because it was supposed to be a real story.


9/10 is good, must get to see it.


Margaret

 

[greatcyber]

I saw this film a while back and enjoyed it but then I love horror/thriller flicks. CT, good review.

 

[Corno Dolce]

Although its not directly a horror flick, the director Julie Taymor has produced quite a blood-curdling interpretation of Shakespeare's *Titus Andronicus*.

 

[drummergirlamie]

I'm a life-long horror film fan and I'll throw a few stars in there for it, absolutely. It was actually quite the nail biter, I thought.

 

[drummergirlamie]

I still feel nothing tops The Exorcist in terms of how bold that was for 1973. Wow. I just wish that after all this time people realized the base objective was to not frighten necassarily, but engender deeper thought on God and The Devil and which you think most often prevails in the world as we know it.

 

[Krummhorn]

Phantasm (1979) was the last horror flick I ever watched ... before that, some of the Lon Chaney films were pretty good for their time.

 

[greatcyber]

If you want to see a good one, get "the changeling" and see what you think. I'm a huge devotee of the genre but that one did (and still does when I think about it) give me shivers.

It's not that it's soooo scary, but so believable.

I just watched the descent again two nights ago. It's on satellite here over and over.

I'm downloading The Happening right now and Quarantine.

 

[Fretless]

The Descent is on my list of horror movies to see, and since it's the season maybe I will rent it. Horror used to be a favorite genre of mine, though not so much any more. I've found a few asian films to be quite creepy of late--not necessarily scary perhaps, but the kind that get under your skin. Audition, A Tale of Two Sisters, and Kairo (aka "Pulse", but not the awful American remake) were all pretty darn good.

Someone wrote about Kairo:

This is an apocalyptic horror movie about loneliness and how people may become distant islands and ghosts even through connecting technology like cellphones and the internet. I don't know how anyone can make a horror movie about loneliness and make it creepy as hell but Kiyoshi Kurosawa pulled it off.

I also liked the first Saw film and I'm interested in seeing the sequels, though I think those fall under the "torture porn" (new genre-name being tossed around now) category than real scare-films. Though I did think the first Saw film had a fresh idea and execution to it.

One of my favorite horror films is John Carpenter's "Prince of Darkness". Excellent nail-biter. My wife won't watch it again.

 

[Tûrwethiel]

Here's an utter shocker which is supposed to be a horror flick, but is side-splittingly funny - http://www.geocities.com/headhunter32746/Chopper_Chicks_in_Zombietown.html

 

[drummergirlamie]

Not exactly my idea or a horror flick, but my favorite title would have to be, "Something Wicked This Way Comes." Damn good movie, just not frightening in the least. I would like to track that down and see it again, actually.

 

[elpless]

I still feel nothing tops The Exorcist in terms of how bold that was for 1973. Wow. I just wish that after all this time people realized the base objective was to not frighten necassarily, but engender deeper thought on God and The Devil and which you think most often prevails in the world as we know it.

i can recall seeing that when it came out and i found it quite frightening, lately i think the original version of 'The Ring' i found genuinely disturbing, very strange unusual images and a real feeling of 'unease'

 

[methodistgirl]

I will tell you of one that I can never get the nerve to watch and that
is the first movie of Alien before S. Weaver stared. It really had me
leaving the movie and watching Disney to calm my nerves. What was
so gory was when they were eating a pasta dish and this thing came
out of this astronaut while he was eating. Of course blood went every
where and this thing jumped out of his stomach after eating through.
It got where I couldn't stand anymore and wouldn't watch anymore of
it. I've gotten used to Jason,Freddy Kruger,and the Halloween movies.
All these three want to do is kill and murder. When I got home from this
Alien movie I read the bible for hours. Even quoted out loud some passages.
judy tooley

 

[Contratrombone64]

Judy

Actually - i think you'll find that Sigourney Weaver was in that one, the first, and yes, it's the best of the lot in my humble opinion.

 

[greatcyber]

David,

Have you seen either of these: The Feast or Endangered? Both are Aussie flicks, gore fests, actually. Saw them last week after finding them on the web. Really creapy ones.

Leg of Limb, mmmmm.

 

[Tûrwethiel]

Ha! If you want to see something truly revolting, take a look at Black Sheep - http://www.blacksheep-themovie.com/ (I love it!). It's a movie from New Zealand made by, I reckon, the next Peter Jackson. Mr Jackson started with splatter movies that are amusing and horrifying at the same time - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Jackson . Think zombies, think lawn mowers.

I love thefirst two Alien movies. The first one, in particular, was very scary and elegant. I can't bear to watch the Freddy, Halloween etc movies.

Cheers

Vicki

 

[greatcyber]

I'm afraid I haven't outgrown my love of bad horror movies. Of course, I prefer good ones. Freddie and Michael kind of slasher movies don't scare me, they make me laugh most of the time. Right off the top of my head, I can't think of the last one I saw that actually scared me.

 

[sunwaiter]

If you ask me about the last time i had to shut down my tv in the middle of a movie, i'll answer Wolf Creek. Actually it's a particular scene that made me behave like this: One of the "heroins" is caught by the nasty redneck in the garage, and gets her fingers cut off, before she's turned into a "head on a stick". I just can't stand pain as realistic as in this scene (the screams, etc). So i can also conclude the actress is quite good. Despite this detail, i managed to watch it until the end, and i find it's a good movie.