Movies
13 Film Treats for Hallowe'en
Published Monday, Oct 30 2006, 12:25 GMT | By Ben Rawson-Jones | Add comment
Hallowe'en is upon us again. A time to hollow out those pumpkins, scatter the house with plastic creepy-crawlies, and board up the windows in case those pesky chavs come trick or treating again. Oh yes, it's also the time to gather round the TV in a dark room, pop in a scary DVD, and shiver your way through some scary movies!
We're sure you're all well versed with the usual flicks that are dug out this time of year to make you feel queasy - your Halloweens, Hellraisers, Friday the 13ths, Elm Streets and anything starring Martin Lawrence. So here's a suitably numbered thirteen sinister cinematic treats that deserve an airing on October 31st as well...
1. Night of The Living Dead (1968)
The dead rise from their graves to terrorise humanity, particularly a group of survivors trapped in a remote farmhouse…
"They're coming to get you Barbara!" With those words a legend was born. George A Romero's seminal zombie pic may have had a minimal budget, but the effect on cinemagoers and filmmakers remains huge to this day. An isolated house represents not only a national disaster, but a melting pot of the day’s social, racial and political divides that still resonate for contemporary viewers. So this visceral film plays on your little grey cells as well as chipping away at your fingernails.
Bleak, surprising and containing one of cinema's great endings, the zombies show us you don’t need any fava beans and a nice Chianti to enjoy the taste of human organs.
2. The Birds (1963)
A small town suddenly finds itself increasingly under attack from avian creatures...
These everyday little creatures that peck at worms and crap on your car – and now they turn on humanity. Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, based on a short story by Daphne Du Maurier, is littered with terrifying sequences and an increasing sense of futility in the fight for survival.
The tension grows along with the number of crows, and you’ll begin to feel trapped within this bleak avian apocalypse. The bird attack scenes are particularly frightening, especially with their use of the birds’ piercing squawks to overwhelm your senses. Those with sharp minds have a juicy Oedipal subtext to peck at too…
3. Night of The Comet (1984)
Americans line the streets to watch a seemingly harmless comet fly overhead…not knowing that exposure will turn them to dust or zombies. Two unexposed teenage girls fight for survival…
One of those big ‘what if?’ films where the world changes overnight, from one of normality to one of terror. Ignored at the time of release, the film has slowly gathered a cult following. Put yourself in the position of the young female protagonists, ignoring their hideous 80s mullets, as they struggle to overcome this ultimate mindf**k.
Chunks of this movie come across as lightweight teen horror - only for some seriously sinister twists to take you by surprise. As with quite a few horror films, the real enemies are often not the monsters, but mankind itself...
4. Duel (1971)
An everyday businessman finds himself followed along the roads by a huge truck out to destroy him…
For those wishing to watch a film on Hallowe'en and not risk regurgitation, here's a gore-free film that still taps into our basic, primal fears. Cleverly forcing us to see through the eyes of Dennis Weaver as he desperately tries to evade the big truck trying to kill him, Steven Spielberg reused the basic 'cat and mouse' concept for Jaws. Set in broad daylight and thus distancing itself from many horror film conventions, the tension is as intricately constructed as Weaver’s moustache.
A film to set your hearts pounding, but not your dinner flying.
5. Wolf Creek (2005)
A group of backpackers fight for their lives as they are captured by an evil bushman determined to make them suffer…
As the modern viewer becomes more desensitised to violence it’s increasingly rare for new films to come out and genuinely shock the audience. But there’s a feeling if real, pure horror as we watch the gruesome and helpless predicament the young backpackers find themselves in.
The sparse Australian location is used brilliantly by director Greg McLean, as the vast landscape offers few hiding places for those managing to escape the bushman’s lair.
There’s nothing supernatural or unearthly offered in Wolf Creek – just pure, human evil.
6. Young Frankenstein (1974)
A retelling of the classic story, with Dr Frankenstein’s grandson seeks to emulate his experiments and create his own monster…
Those weary of being overwhelmed by too much morbidity would do well to check out this fine horror comedy by Mel Brooks. Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman combine to great effect to affectionately spoof the Universal horror films of the 1930’s - whilst managing to retain lashings of the eerie atmosphere that pervaded the originals. Hailed as a classic, this film manages to combine two polarised genres in superb style - a feat that so many have tried and utterly failed to do over the years.
7. Return of The Living Dead Part 3 (1993)
After his girlfriend dies in a motorcycle accident, a distraught teenager revives her with some re-animating gas from a nearby military base... but she now has a taste for human flesh.
Who says Halloween should be all about gore and horror? Check out this small gem of a film and you’ll be touched by a nice helping of romance to thaw even the coldest of hearts. Well, that’s if gormless males romancing zombiefied chicks pushes your button. A great central performance by Mindy Clarke as the living dead lady is bound to spark a few furious debates of 'would you?' amongst red-blooded males in the house.
So cuddle up with your loved one and devour the ‘love conquers all’ spirit throughout the film. A few brains being splattered here and there won’t dent the romantic ambiance too much…
8. Eraserhead (1977)
A miserable factory worker has a mutant baby with his girlfriend in an abandoned building, comforted by a lady in a radiator singing to him. You seriously expect a simple plot explanation for a David Lynch film? Dream on bud…
This is for you highbrow horror aficionados. Don’t look for an easily digestible plot – or even one that you’ll choke on for that matter. This David Lynch classic, filmed over five years, feels like scraping sandpaper over your eyeballs and inner ear at times – but in a compulsive way. The fragmented, industrial sounds are particularly used as tools to unsettle your senses and jar your mind.
There's every chance that when the movie ends you'll say 'that was great, but what the devil was it about?' - a typical response to seeing most David Lynch film's for the first time. Your mind may be confused, but your senses will be heightened.
9. The Thing from Another World (1951)
American airmen and scientists find a massive craft buried under the snow near a remote arctic outpost... and cut out a body from the wreckage. Bringing the creature – trapped in a block of ice - back to their base, they don't suspect the menace that will emerge once the ice thaws...
The classic isolated ‘base under siege’ scenario was masterfully deployed in this 1951 Howard Hawks production. A criticism of many horror films is that they show you the menace too often and don't retain an air of mystery. For the vast majority of this film your imagination is left to run wild at what devilish monstrosity lurks outside in the snow. Here the film relies on building tension and letting your mind do the work.
Capturing the Cold War paranoia of 1950’s America, your ears will be pricked up listening for any faint sounds outside. Just check those doors and windows are firmly bolted…
10. The Blair Witch Project(1999)
Footage is found belonging to three student filmmakers who ventured into the woods in pursuit of a legendary creature lurking within…
Adored by some, spat at by others, this film must be seen in the right environment to have the desired effect of terror. So what better time than Halloween? Filmed in documentary style, the realist nature of this film rewards complete attention. Turn off the lights, unplug the phone, and line the pavements with glue to prevent any trick or treaters from disturbing you and yanking you out of the film's reality. Once immersed, you'll be keeping those lights on at bedtime and avoiding forests like the plague.
Beware of what lurks in the darkness. The shadows are not on your side…
11. Dreamscape (1984)
A project enabling psychics to enter the dreams of others and unravel their nightmares takes on a sinister nature for one man…
Although this comes across as fairly dated to the modern viewer, this Dennis Quaid vehicle contains some fascinating concepts about the terrors that can lurk within your mind and how to confront them. The imaginative sequences where Quaid enters the nightmares - particularly of one petrified child - still have the power to shock. So leave any sneery cynicism about the ropey production values at the door and instead lap up the nightmarish visions within.
12. Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn (1987)
A group of strangers holed up in a remote cabin, led by the ‘groovy’ Ash, try to fend off the efforts of a devil desperately trying to possess them…
Pretty much a retread of the original Evil Dead, but with the fun, thrills and gore all pumped up to the max. If the sight of Bruce Campbell wielding a chainsaw as a replacement limb ain’t enough to put a smile on your face then it’s time to hit the Prozac.
Devilish sounds, demonic trees and manically macabre humour add up to a fun treat for Halloween. Has there ever been a horror movie as visually astounding as this Sam Raimi masterpiece? Doubtful.
13. Audition (2002)
A lonely widower picks a cute young lady from a fake audition to be his next wife, but her vendetta against males soon makes her lash out in nasty ways…
Feel the above films will barely make you blink, let alone make your guts rumble? Then check out this gruesome Japanese film that reels you in with a friendly, warm opening then starts to churn out your insides. Before long your fingers will be glued over your eyes – especially during one bedroom torture scene that will stay with you for a long time indeed. You can sense the loneliness of the characters within, as their detachment from both love and society runs deep. As will your horror as events unfold…
We're sure you're all well versed with the usual flicks that are dug out this time of year to make you feel queasy - your Halloweens, Hellraisers, Friday the 13ths, Elm Streets and anything starring Martin Lawrence. So here's a suitably numbered thirteen sinister cinematic treats that deserve an airing on October 31st as well...
1. Night of The Living Dead (1968)
The dead rise from their graves to terrorise humanity, particularly a group of survivors trapped in a remote farmhouse…
"They're coming to get you Barbara!" With those words a legend was born. George A Romero's seminal zombie pic may have had a minimal budget, but the effect on cinemagoers and filmmakers remains huge to this day. An isolated house represents not only a national disaster, but a melting pot of the day’s social, racial and political divides that still resonate for contemporary viewers. So this visceral film plays on your little grey cells as well as chipping away at your fingernails.
Bleak, surprising and containing one of cinema's great endings, the zombies show us you don’t need any fava beans and a nice Chianti to enjoy the taste of human organs.
2. The Birds (1963)
A small town suddenly finds itself increasingly under attack from avian creatures...
These everyday little creatures that peck at worms and crap on your car – and now they turn on humanity. Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, based on a short story by Daphne Du Maurier, is littered with terrifying sequences and an increasing sense of futility in the fight for survival.
The tension grows along with the number of crows, and you’ll begin to feel trapped within this bleak avian apocalypse. The bird attack scenes are particularly frightening, especially with their use of the birds’ piercing squawks to overwhelm your senses. Those with sharp minds have a juicy Oedipal subtext to peck at too…
3. Night of The Comet (1984)
Americans line the streets to watch a seemingly harmless comet fly overhead…not knowing that exposure will turn them to dust or zombies. Two unexposed teenage girls fight for survival…
One of those big ‘what if?’ films where the world changes overnight, from one of normality to one of terror. Ignored at the time of release, the film has slowly gathered a cult following. Put yourself in the position of the young female protagonists, ignoring their hideous 80s mullets, as they struggle to overcome this ultimate mindf**k.
Chunks of this movie come across as lightweight teen horror - only for some seriously sinister twists to take you by surprise. As with quite a few horror films, the real enemies are often not the monsters, but mankind itself...
4. Duel (1971)
An everyday businessman finds himself followed along the roads by a huge truck out to destroy him…
For those wishing to watch a film on Hallowe'en and not risk regurgitation, here's a gore-free film that still taps into our basic, primal fears. Cleverly forcing us to see through the eyes of Dennis Weaver as he desperately tries to evade the big truck trying to kill him, Steven Spielberg reused the basic 'cat and mouse' concept for Jaws. Set in broad daylight and thus distancing itself from many horror film conventions, the tension is as intricately constructed as Weaver’s moustache.
A film to set your hearts pounding, but not your dinner flying.
5. Wolf Creek (2005)
A group of backpackers fight for their lives as they are captured by an evil bushman determined to make them suffer…
As the modern viewer becomes more desensitised to violence it’s increasingly rare for new films to come out and genuinely shock the audience. But there’s a feeling if real, pure horror as we watch the gruesome and helpless predicament the young backpackers find themselves in.
The sparse Australian location is used brilliantly by director Greg McLean, as the vast landscape offers few hiding places for those managing to escape the bushman’s lair.
There’s nothing supernatural or unearthly offered in Wolf Creek – just pure, human evil.
6. Young Frankenstein (1974)
A retelling of the classic story, with Dr Frankenstein’s grandson seeks to emulate his experiments and create his own monster…
Those weary of being overwhelmed by too much morbidity would do well to check out this fine horror comedy by Mel Brooks. Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman combine to great effect to affectionately spoof the Universal horror films of the 1930’s - whilst managing to retain lashings of the eerie atmosphere that pervaded the originals. Hailed as a classic, this film manages to combine two polarised genres in superb style - a feat that so many have tried and utterly failed to do over the years.
7. Return of The Living Dead Part 3 (1993)
After his girlfriend dies in a motorcycle accident, a distraught teenager revives her with some re-animating gas from a nearby military base... but she now has a taste for human flesh.
Who says Halloween should be all about gore and horror? Check out this small gem of a film and you’ll be touched by a nice helping of romance to thaw even the coldest of hearts. Well, that’s if gormless males romancing zombiefied chicks pushes your button. A great central performance by Mindy Clarke as the living dead lady is bound to spark a few furious debates of 'would you?' amongst red-blooded males in the house.
So cuddle up with your loved one and devour the ‘love conquers all’ spirit throughout the film. A few brains being splattered here and there won’t dent the romantic ambiance too much…
8. Eraserhead (1977)
A miserable factory worker has a mutant baby with his girlfriend in an abandoned building, comforted by a lady in a radiator singing to him. You seriously expect a simple plot explanation for a David Lynch film? Dream on bud…
This is for you highbrow horror aficionados. Don’t look for an easily digestible plot – or even one that you’ll choke on for that matter. This David Lynch classic, filmed over five years, feels like scraping sandpaper over your eyeballs and inner ear at times – but in a compulsive way. The fragmented, industrial sounds are particularly used as tools to unsettle your senses and jar your mind.
There's every chance that when the movie ends you'll say 'that was great, but what the devil was it about?' - a typical response to seeing most David Lynch film's for the first time. Your mind may be confused, but your senses will be heightened.
9. The Thing from Another World (1951)
American airmen and scientists find a massive craft buried under the snow near a remote arctic outpost... and cut out a body from the wreckage. Bringing the creature – trapped in a block of ice - back to their base, they don't suspect the menace that will emerge once the ice thaws...
The classic isolated ‘base under siege’ scenario was masterfully deployed in this 1951 Howard Hawks production. A criticism of many horror films is that they show you the menace too often and don't retain an air of mystery. For the vast majority of this film your imagination is left to run wild at what devilish monstrosity lurks outside in the snow. Here the film relies on building tension and letting your mind do the work.
Capturing the Cold War paranoia of 1950’s America, your ears will be pricked up listening for any faint sounds outside. Just check those doors and windows are firmly bolted…
10. The Blair Witch Project(1999)
Footage is found belonging to three student filmmakers who ventured into the woods in pursuit of a legendary creature lurking within…
Adored by some, spat at by others, this film must be seen in the right environment to have the desired effect of terror. So what better time than Halloween? Filmed in documentary style, the realist nature of this film rewards complete attention. Turn off the lights, unplug the phone, and line the pavements with glue to prevent any trick or treaters from disturbing you and yanking you out of the film's reality. Once immersed, you'll be keeping those lights on at bedtime and avoiding forests like the plague.
Beware of what lurks in the darkness. The shadows are not on your side…
11. Dreamscape (1984)
A project enabling psychics to enter the dreams of others and unravel their nightmares takes on a sinister nature for one man…
Although this comes across as fairly dated to the modern viewer, this Dennis Quaid vehicle contains some fascinating concepts about the terrors that can lurk within your mind and how to confront them. The imaginative sequences where Quaid enters the nightmares - particularly of one petrified child - still have the power to shock. So leave any sneery cynicism about the ropey production values at the door and instead lap up the nightmarish visions within.
12. Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn (1987)
A group of strangers holed up in a remote cabin, led by the ‘groovy’ Ash, try to fend off the efforts of a devil desperately trying to possess them…
Pretty much a retread of the original Evil Dead, but with the fun, thrills and gore all pumped up to the max. If the sight of Bruce Campbell wielding a chainsaw as a replacement limb ain’t enough to put a smile on your face then it’s time to hit the Prozac.
Devilish sounds, demonic trees and manically macabre humour add up to a fun treat for Halloween. Has there ever been a horror movie as visually astounding as this Sam Raimi masterpiece? Doubtful.
13. Audition (2002)
A lonely widower picks a cute young lady from a fake audition to be his next wife, but her vendetta against males soon makes her lash out in nasty ways…
Feel the above films will barely make you blink, let alone make your guts rumble? Then check out this gruesome Japanese film that reels you in with a friendly, warm opening then starts to churn out your insides. Before long your fingers will be glued over your eyes – especially during one bedroom torture scene that will stay with you for a long time indeed. You can sense the loneliness of the characters within, as their detachment from both love and society runs deep. As will your horror as events unfold…
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