At this point I'm just a small speck in the rearview mirror. Too many films for me to catch up on, but it's nice to see several of my films starting to pop up on the countdown, especially the ones I'd lost hope in appearing, like
Repulsion and
The Blair Witch Project.
Repulsion was my #9. One of the most effective and terrifying examinations of psychosis that I've seen. Deneuve is great in the lead role, at times vacant, vulnerable, violent; a ticking time bomb of mental madness. The cinematography is exquisite (and it's even more impressive when you factor in the restrictive setting). The use of sound (or lack thereof) heightens the sense of paranoia and dread. I love all the surreal imagery, especially the iconic hallway with its molesting hands. There's a ton of symbolism and subtle hints to the possible cause of Deneuve's rapidly declining mindset. It's a film that's gotten stronger and scarier with every viewing. Psychological horror at its finest.
28 Days Later was my #13. A game-changer at the time, tossing out the stale, slow-shuffling zombies of yesteryear for a modernized, adrenalized, 2000's-Xtreme reimagining of Romero's undead creation. Boyle's kinetic direction perfectly complements the frenetic action. The opening scenes involving the hauntingly empty streets of London have never lost their potency. Everyone in the cast does a great job. I love the road trip feel and the emphasis on family that makes up the first half of the film. I know a lot of people don't care for the second half with the soldiers, but as someone who thinks that man will forever be the scariest monster, those sequences are arguably more frightening and intense than the rabid "infected."
The Blair Witch Project was my #14. My classmates swore at the time that it was real, and it's possible that I would've been naïve enough to believe that they were right, but fortunately I never watched the film until I was old enough to know better. (Although I did see the lesbian soft-core spoof,
The Bare Wench Project, at an early age. Priorities, man!) Even with the is-it-real? mystique long since dead,
The Blair Witch Project remains one of the scariest horror films I've seen. I've lived in rural areas most of my life and I've been lost in the woods on a few occasions (although thankfully never at night!), so for me the film expertly taps into that vulnerable, disoriented state. As far as I know, it's the first film to be entirely filmed in the found-footage style, and its influence continues to this day. A few weeks ago I watched the remake/sequel,
Blair Witch, and thought it was god-awful, as it completely misunderstood what made the original so successful: ambiguity and the unseen.
Nosferatu was my #16. In general, I find tales of Dracula and his vampire underlings rather uninteresting, but the two versions of
Nosferatu are the exception. You can have your Christopher Lee's and your Bela Lugosi's, your Anne Rice aristocrats and your Stephanie Meyer diamond-sparklers. Give me the bald, rat-fanged, bat-eared grotesquerie of Max Schreck and Klaus Kinski. I go back and forth on which version I prefer, 1922 or 1979. Kinski's eyes carry within them a reservoir of centuries-old pain and longing, but I find Max Schreck's appearance and performance far more frightening. Dude is straight nightmare fuel. Thank God I wasn't around in 1922 or I never would've slept again. The underseen 2000's meta-horror
Shadow of the Vampire speculates that Schreck was the real thing, and it's easy to think that when you watch this eerie early-horror template.
Nosferatu feels less like a studio film than a relic unearthed from some ancient tomb.
Shaun of the Dead was my #19. Unless I'm blanking on something, it's my favorite horror-comedy. Before zombies became oversaturated (and I'd argue that the success of this film and
28 Days Later, and, to a lesser extent, Zack Snyder's
Dawn of the Dead remake, had a lot to do with reigniting interest in zombies, resulting in the countless zombified takes on TV shows and movies over the past 15 years), I was a huge fan of the subgenre, often speculating what it would be like to live in such a world.
Shaun of the Dead answers that question with great wit and aplomb, transporting people like myself who grew up on Romero and
Resident Evil into zombie movie heaven. Edgar Wright pays homage to past entries in the genre that paved the way, parodying with respect, but his movie also works on its own as he provides his own unique take on the crowded genre. Tons of laughs, tons of clever gags, tons of gore, and you also get a side-helping of genuine pathos to go along with the disembowelments. A horror-comedy classic that never gets old.
My List So Far:
#1) Cannibal Holocaust
#2) The Devil's Rejects
#4) Peeping Tom
#9) Repulsion
#13) 28 Days Later
#14) The Blair Witch Project
#16) Nosferatu
#19) Shaun of the Dead
#20) The Last House on the Left
#25) Dead Heat (one-pointer)
Seen: 68/80
Closed Thread
Cannot tell a lie.
