The Sublimation of Fear
Here is one of the fundamental genres of cinematography that has produced hundreds of must-see movies. Why are horror movies, horror literature so loved and know no crisis? Because it gives a solution to one of the fundamental needs of the human being, that of sublimating the deepest and most irrational fears, fears that escape the rationality of conscience. Because with fear you don’t live well at all and you have to get rid of it. On the contrary, one does not live with fear at all. In what sense?
Many think that the opposite of love is hate. In reality, love and hate are two sides of the same coin. The opposite of love is fear. With fear it is impossible to love and be happy. Fear is also connected to something that does not really exist in the present moment: it is a bad premonition that is in a hypothetical future.
Something we fear can happen to us. Which may or may not happen. Fear lives in our imagination in most cases: it is a threat that comes from the imagination of the future. Through a novel or a film of terror we come face to face with our fears. They materialize on the screen or on the written page and we experience them as something that is really happening, in the present. Experiencing the greatest fear means knowing it better, resizing it and finally sublimating it. When fear is no longer something indefinite and takes shape, we can draw its boundaries, accept it and overcome it.
The Birth of the Horror Genre
The horror genre has its roots in ancient times, in the literature of ancient Greece and ancient Rome. These are tales inspired by folklore and religious tradition, inspired by fears of what is invisible, unknown or monstrous. Stories populated by supernatural beings, ghosts, vampires, werewolves, assassins and everything related to Evil.
One of the first traces of the horror genre we find it in Plutarch, In his work Parallel Lives describes the evil spirit of the assassin Damone, who is killed in a public bathroom in Chaeronea. Pliny the Younger tells the story of Athenodore who isolates himself in a haunted house to write his book. Frankenstein’s modern novel finds inspiration in classical Greek literature with the characters of Prometheus and Hippolytus.
Horror Movies at the Origins of Cinema
Horror cinema almost begins with the invention of the cinema itself. The first horror film is attributed to Georges Melies and was entitled Le manoir du diable, followed by another short film by the French director-magician The cursed cave.
The best horror films of the silent era have marked the history of films as Murnau’s Nosferatu the vampire, Dreyer’s Vampyr, or Doctor Caligari’s Cabinet, the film that started the motion picture movement expressionism. In those years, Horror cinema would have had a great flowering among German directors.
In addition to avant-garde cinema, Hollywood also produces horror masterpieces that would have remained etched in memory, such as James Whale’s Frankenstein and Tod Browning’s Dracula. In the 1920s there was the appearance of the first deformed monster in the history of cinema, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. In 1925 Hollywood produced another unforgettable film The Phantom of the Opera, starring actor Lon Chaney.
The Best Horror Movies of the 30s and 40s
In the 1930s, Universal specialized in horror movies, creating a long gallery of monsters. After Dracula and Frankenstein they produced films such as The Mummy, The Invisible Man. Other studios like Paramount and Warner Brothers produced fewer horror movies, but with some good results like The Wax Mask and Dr. Jekyll.
In the 1940s Universal focuses on werewolves with films such as The Wolf Man, and on a long series of films about Frankenstein. RKO produces The Leopard Man, I walked with a zombie, the kiss of the panther, directed by Jacques Tourneur.
The Best Horror Movies in the 50s and 60s
In the 50s, thanks to technology and special effects, horror cinema crosses science fiction to tell the dark atmosphere of the cold war, with films such as The Thing from Another World by Howard Hawks and Invasion of Body Snatchers.
Between the end of the 50s and the beginning of the 60s the first production company specialized exclusively in horror movies was born, the Hammer film. With director Terence Fisher they produced prototypes of what would become modern horror movies. Some titles to remember are The Mask of Frankenstein, Dracula the Vampire, the remake of The Mummy.
Roger Corman produced countless horror movies, specializing in so-called b movies, and bringing several short stories by Edgar Allan Poe to the screen. In the 1960s, horror cinema becomes more explicit and more violent. Horror films are also used to describe fears related to politics and technological and consumer development, for example in the film Assault on the Earth.
At the end of the 60s the classic monsters take a back seat and Horror cinema becomes psychological with films like Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho and Michael Powell’s The Killing Eye. Numerous low-budget independent films are also made such as Blood Feast (1963) and Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964) that usher in the bloodiest splatter genre. In 1968 George Romero brings the Zombie genre to the fore. With a very low budget he made one of the most important horror movies of the time The night of the living dead.
Horror Movies in the 70s
In the 70s, however, the predominant theme of the horror genre seems to be the demonic possession of children and adolescents. Some titles are Roman Polanski’s Rosemary Baby, William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, Audrey Rose, The Omen. A horror subgenre that will continue in the following decades. The Vietnam War also affects films such as Don’t Open That Door and the Last House on the Left.
The growing phenomenon of consumerism and lifestyle change inspired numerous horror movies, such as David Cronenberg’s The Demon Under Your Skin and George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead sequel Zombie, in which the protagonists are trapped. in a mall.
In Italy the thrill master is Dario Argento. The Italian director makes many high-impact horror movies, exported all over the world. Meanwhile, the young and brilliant directoralso tries his hand at the genre, Brian De Palma creating one of the greatest horror masterpieces in the history of films: Carrie. Even John Carpenter in the late 70s and early 80s will implement several horror. One of them becomes the biggest hit of the slasher genre, a horror sub-starring a group of young people persecuted by a serial killer. This is Halloween.
In 1979 the horror genre returns to merge with science fiction inmasterpiece Ridley Scott’sAlien. Meanwhile, a new fertile production of B series horror movies is born in Europe with Italian directors such as Mario Bava, Lucio Fulci, Ruggero Deodato. Spanish directors such as Paul Naschy, Amando de Ossorio and Jesús Franco. Even the Hong Kong cinema is very prolific in the horror genre.
Horror Movies in the 1980s
In the 1980s, horror movies became commercial hits with a less original language and directors with fewer personalities. Horror movies such as Poltergeist, Friday the 13th Nightmare, Hellraiser and many more come out. The exception is masterpiece The Stanley Kubrick’s Shining, a 100% arthouse film that also manages to have a great success. John Carpenter creates a beautiful sci-fi horror, set in the ice of the polo, which, however, is not very successful. This is The Thing, from 1982.
Home video contributed to the growth of a thriving market in VHS with commercial horror movies and b-movies of various genres. Many directors make independent ultra-low budget horror movies for the home video market without going through theatrical distribution. Films like Motel Hell, from 1980, and Basket case, from 1982, took up themes from previous horror movies but with a more ironic and grotesque tone. Some directors like Sam Raimi and Peter Jackson create a new kind of comic horror movies with titles like House 2 and Out of the Head, both low-budget indie films.
The low-cost independent production of 1980s horror cinema gives rise to the creation of different genres for different niches of audiences. The most successful is the splatter genre, which shows blood and violence in the most explicit and gruesome way. A series of characters are born that had not been used before horror cinema, such as the Gremlins, the evil elves and the killer dolls.
Horror Movies in the 90s
In the 90s, horror cinema did not produce great news. The sub-genres and the prototypes tested from the 80s continue. Many sequels are shot, including those of Halloween and Nightmare. Director John Carpenter continues his business with horror movies with very interesting social and political implications, such as The Seed of Madness. The film Scream again brings the subgenre of comic horror movie.
One of the few original productions, in 1997, is the Canadian film The Cube which tells the fears connected to social issues such as bureaucracy. In the 90s, horror cinema takes a back seat compared to other genres. Too many mediocre home video films, excessively gory splatters, had saturated the market and fed up teen audiences. Young people began to prefer science fiction films, increasingly spectacular thanks to the use of modern digital special effects.
An exception is Francis Ford Coppola’s Dracula which brings horror back to the classic tradition of the Hammer film. In 1999 the independent film The Blair Witch Project, shot for a few thousand euros by a group of American children, became a worldwide success, grossing more than 200 million dollars worldwide. It is actually a mediocre film, but launched through innovative internet marketing strategies to an audience of teenagers.
Horror Movies in the 2000s
In the 2000s, the horror genre worsened further and tried to pursue box office success with an endless series of remakes and sequels. Video games push production companies to invest in new zombie movies and only produce mediocre results. A long line of personalityless commercial horror movies are produced such as Amityville horror, The Ring, The Exorcist – the genesis, Freddy versus Jason, Resident Evil, Final Destination, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Saw, The Riddler, Hostel, Rec .
An exception to standardization, growing of horror cinema of the 2000s is the film of Rob Zombie, as the movie House of 1000 Corpses. Rob Zombie is one of the few directors to feed his horror cinema with interesting social and political references, as incinema John Carpenter’s. There are no distinctions between good and evil, between good and bad. Monsters are often the victims of a monstrous and violent social mechanism.
Horror Movies of the 2010s
In the 2010s there is a rebirth of author horror cinema with very interesting works such as Escape – Get out by Jordan Peele and films by director Ari Aster such as Hereditary – the roots of evil and Midsommar – the village of the damned.
Horror Movies to Watch Absolutely
Here is a list of horror movies that are absolutely worth watching at least once: from great classics, masterpieces and cult films to lesser-known independents and funny b movies that you may have never seen or heard of.
The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (1920)
Opera founder of the expressionist movement is one of the films that marked the history of cinema. Doctor Caligari brings a sleepwalker to exhibit as a freak at village festivals. The doctor says that he is able to guess the past and to predict the future. Film about the invisible masks we wear is about the doubling of the personality, it is a Cult film that brings directorial and scenographic elements that had never been seen before, such as deformed sets to reproduce dream images and stylized acting.
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Haxan (1922)
Unique horror masterpiece in the history of cinema Haxan is a movie about witches and also an arthouse film, a fake documentary and a denunciation film. It was made by the brilliant Swedish director Benjamin Christensen, who plays the devil in the film. Desecration of graves, torture, demon-possessed nuns and witches’ sabbath: Haxan, Witchcraft Through the Ages is an incredibly original and out-of-the-box horror film that has become legendary over time. Not just a horror movie but a film of incredible moral and spiritual depth.
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Nosferatu (1922)
It is a 1922 German Expressionist gothic horror movie directed by F. W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as Count Orlok, a vampire who takes advantage of the girlfriend (Greta Schröder) of his real estate agent (Gustav von Wangenheim) and brings havoc on their community . It is considered one of the great films to be seen absolutely and has gone through a century keeping its charm and expressive power perfectly intact.
The Hands of Orlac (1924)
“The Hands of Orlac” is a 1924 film directed by the Austrian director Robert Wiene. It is a silent film from the era of expressionist cinema German, known for its unsettling storyline and its use of distorted visual techniques.
The film follows the story of Paul Orlac, a celebrated pianist who loses both of his hands in a train accident. Pressured by his ambitious wife, Yvonne, Orlac undergoes a hand transplant that allows him to play the piano again. However, Orlac begins to fear that the new hands are those of an assassin, as he begins to experience disturbing visions and nightmares.
The film explores themes such as identity, psychology and inner conflict, using a highly stylized visual approach. Wiene’s direction uses lighting and camera angles to create a sense of tension and disorientation, while the interior and costume design is highly stylized and surreal.
The film has been the subject of numerous reshoots and adaptations, including a 1935 adaptation starring Peter Lorre and a 1960 remake titled “The Hands of Orlac.” The film is considered a classic of German Expressionist cinema and influenced a number of later directors, including Alfred Hitchcock and David Lynch.
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
It is an American film adaptation of 1925 of the novel Le Fantôme de l’OPéra by Gaston Leroux of 1910, led by Rupert Julian and played by Lon Chanay in the role of the protagonist of the ghost that infested the theater of the Opera di Paris, committing murders and troubles In an attempt to make the woman who loves a celebrity. The film remains famous for the scary and self-ideal make-up of Chany. The film also includes Mary Philbin, Norman Kerry, Arthur Edmund Carewe, Gibson Gowland, John St. Polis and Snitz Edwards. The film was launched on September 6, 1925, previewed at the Stastr Theater in New York.
A Page of Madness (1926)
One of the forefather films of Japanese Horror cinema, shot by Teinosuke Kinugasa in 1926 and then lost for 45 years, is actually a masterpiece of extreme avant-garde that mixes expressionism and surrealism. In a country asylum, in torrential rain, the caretaker meets patients with mental illness. The next day a young woman arrives who is surprised to find her father there working as a caretaker. The woman’s mother first went mad because of her husband when he was a sailor.
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Frankenstein (1931)
It is a 1931 American science fiction horror film directed by James Whale, written by Carl Laemmle Jr., and also adapted from a 1927 play by Peggy Webling, which was later based on Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein. Colin Clive plays Henry Frankenstein, a researcher who collects human remains with his helper to create a living being. The being, Frankenstein, is played by Boris Karloff. The makeup for the monster was done by Jack Pierce. In addition to Clive and Karloff, the film stars Mae Clarke, John Boles, Dwight Frye and Edward Van Sloan.
The film was a hit upon its launch, and was well received by both audiences and film critics. It spawned a number of spin-offs and sequels, and has also had a significant influence on pop culture: the images of a “crazy” researcher with a hunchbacked sidekick became famous.
Dracula (1931)
It is a 1931 American horror film directed and co-produced by Tod Browning from a screenplay created by Garrett Fort and also starring Bela Lugosi. It is based on the 1924 stage play Dracula by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston, adapted from the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. Lugosi plays Count Dracula, a vampire who emigrates from Transylvania to England and sucks the blood from his victims. Dracula was a hit and upon launch, as well as leading to a number of follow-ups and spin-offs. It has had a huge impact on pop culture.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)
It is a 1931 American horror film, directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Fredric March, who plays an expert doctor who discovers a new formula that can unleash satanic forces in people. The film is an adaptation of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Also Mr Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 story about a man who takes a cure that transforms him from a mild-mannered man of science into a bloodthirsty lunatic. The film was a hit upon its release. Chosen for 3 Academy Awards, March won Best Actor.
Dr. Henry Jekyll (Fredric March), a quiet English doctor in Victorian London, argues that every man lurks both bad and good impulses. He is crazy about his future wife Muriel Carew (Rose Hobart) and wishes to marry her. His father, Brigadier-General Sir Danvers Carew (Halliwell Hobbes), orders them to wait. While strolling home one evening with his colleague, Dr. John Lanyon (Holmes Herbert), Jekyll meets a bar singer, Ivy Pierson (Miriam Hopkins), who is shot by a man outside her house. Jekyll drives the man away and takes Ivy into her house to take care of her.
The Mummy (1932)
It is a 1932 American horror film directed by Karl Freund. John L. Balderston’s film screenplay was adapted from a screenplay written by Nina Wilcox Putnam and Richard Schayer. Launched by Universal Studios as part of the Universal Classic Monsters franchise, the film stars Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners, Edward Van Sloan and Arthur Byron.
In the film, Karloff plays Imhotep, an ancient Egyptian mummy who was disposed of for trying to revive his deceased lover, Ankh-esen-amun. After being discovered by a group of excavators, he disguises himself as a modern Egyptian called Ardeth Bey and searches for Ankh-esen-amun, who he thinks has reincarnated into the contemporary world. While far less culturally impactful than its forerunners Dracula and Frankenstein, the film was still a good hit, spawning numerous sequels, remakes, and spin-offs.
Vampyr (1932)
Late at night, Allan Gray comes to an inn near the Courtempierre community and also a rest area. Gray is immediately disturbed by an old man, who enters the area and also leaves a square plan on the table: on the cover card it is composed “Opening up to my fate”. Gray takes the bundle and heads to an old castle where he sees an old woman and meets another old man. Glancing through the windows of the house, Gray sees the owner of the castle, the same male who offered him the plan. The man is suddenly killed by a gunshot.
Vampyr by Carl Theodor Dreyer is one of the greatest masterpieces in the prolific horror sub-genre of vampire movies, made in the years of the transition between sound cinema and silent cinema, using the aesthetic language of the previous one to bring the horror genre into the new era. In Vampyr there is a constant feeling of suffering and subtle elements that lurk in every corner. Rudolph Maté’s photography documents every nuance of light and even darkness in an extraordinary dance. Very famous shots, such as that of a man with a scythe ringing a bell and also the indication of an inn protruding against a dark sky. Cult scenes such as the one in which Dreyer uses a subjective claustrophobic that allows the audience to “enter” the coffin where Alan is placed.
The Invisible Man (1933)
It is a 1933 American science fiction horror film directed by James Whale based on H. G. Wells’ 1897 novel The Invisible Man, produced by Universal Pictures, and starring Gloria Stuart, Claude Rains and William Harrigan. The film features Dr. Jack Griffin (Rains) covered in plasters and with his eyes covered by dark glasses, the result of a secret experiment that makes him invisible, who takes up residence in the town of Iping, until his landlady does not discover the secret. Lion returns to Dr Cranley’s (Henry Travers) research laboratory, and reveals his invisibility to Dr Kemp (William Harrigan) and his wife Flora Cranley (Gloria Stuart) who discover that Griffin has become dangerous, even committing murder. The film remained in promotion for Universal as early as 1931, when Richard L. Schayer and Robert Florey recommended that Wells’ novel would make an excellent sequel to the horror film Dracula. Universal chose rather to make Frankenstein in 1931. This caused a number of film script adjustments as well as a variety of potential directors
Upon the film’s 1933 release, it was a major financial success for Universal and garnered solid reviews from numerous magazines. The film spawned several follow-ups that were unrelated to the initial film in the 1940s. It is one of their favorite films by directors John Carpenter, Joe Dante and Ray Harryhausen.
Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
It’s a mystery horror movie 1933 American directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Glenda Farrell and Frank McHugh. It was released by Warner Bros. and recorded in two-color Technicolor.
In London in 1921, Ivan Igor is a carver who runs a wax gallery that is in financial difficulty. One rainy evening, he offers a visit to a close friend, Dr. Rasmussen, and an art film critic, Mr. Galatalin, showing them his sculptures of Joan of Arc, Voltaire and his favorite, Marie Antoinette. Enthusiastic, Galatalin offers to send Igor’s work to the Royal Academy after he returns from a trip to Egypt, and he and Rasmussen leave. Igor’s partner Joe Worth won’t be producing macabre exhibitions like the ones that attract groups to their rivals, he walks in and suggests they disband their gallery to raise insurance cover of ₤10,000.
Them! (1954)
It is an American Horror science fiction film from 1954 by Warner Bros. Written by David Weisbart, directed by Gordon Douglas, and played by James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon and James Arness. The film is based on an adaptation of George World Yates’ story, which later became the screenplay for a Ted Sherdeman film and also adapted by Russell Hughes. This film is only one of the first films on the nuclear monsters of the 1950s, and also the first feature film on the “big insect” to use parasites as monsters.
A nest of huge irradiated ants is discovered in the New Mexico desert; They become a national threat when it turns out that two young queen ants have escaped to build new nests. National research eventually leads to a battle in the Los Angeles exhaust pipes system.
Dementia (1955)
A visionary, dialogue-free nightmare during a lonely woman’s night in Los Angeles. Between horror, film noir and expressionist film, initially conceived as a short film by the director based on a dream told him by his secretary, Barrett, who has also become the interpreter of the film. Filmed by John Parker in 1955, it is a waking nightmare between horror, expressionist film, noir and experimental cinema.
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The Undead (1957)
A woman is put into a psychic trance and sent back in time directly into the body of one of her medieval ancestors, who is doomed to die as a witch. She escapes and a real witch named Livia (Allison Hayes), who works with the devil. There is also another witch, a rogue who helps Livia, and one of the psychics who travels back in time with her.
Produced and directed by Roger Corman, this is an offbeat and entertaining B-movie: violence, reincarnation, time travel, comedy and fun. There are funny scenes with the witch and the leprechaun turning into animals. Even the undertaker is entertaining with his witty rhymes and discussions. Satan is awesome, with his constant laughter and a huge pitchfork. On Saturdays, he summons a trio of dead girls to climb from the grave and dance.
The film is particularly notable for actress Hayes’ appearance, her very skintight dress. Hayes was arguably a 1950s B-movie starlet, mostly due to her appearance in Attack of the 50-Foot Woman. The film was shot in six days on a budget plan of $70,000, in an old supermarket. It has a cult following among fans of scary movies, drive-ins, small budget independent films. If you like any of those, you need to check them out next.
I Vampiri (1957)
I Vampiri is a 1957 Italian horror film directed by Riccardo Freda and finished off by the film’s cinematographer, Mario Bava. In the cast Gianna Maria Canale, Carlo D’Angelo and Dario Michaelis. The film deals with a series of murders of girls who are discovered with blood drainage tubes. The newspapers talk about a serial killer called the Vampire, which motivates the young journalist Pierre Lantin to investigate the crimes.
At the time of its release the film was perceived as an original and strange object for followers of the horror genre. The really scary scenes boil down to a few sequences. The film established the requirement for an aesthetic design that would be the framework for many similar Italian horror films: cobwebs, creaking doors, degeneration and fantastic lighting. Anyone curious about Italian horror cinema should see it: an ignored and underrated film, with suggestions from neorealist cinema.
A Bucket of Blood (1959)
A Bucket of Blood is a 1959 American comedy horror film directed by Roger Corman. It stars Dick Miller and was inducted into West Coast beatnik culture in the late 1950s. The film, produced on a $50,000 budget, was shot in 5 days and shares many low-budget cinematic styles typically associated with Corman’s work.
The film is a dark comic satire about a somewhat dimwitted and impressionable young waiter who works in a cafe, known as a fine sculptor. He unintentionally kills his landlady’s cat and hides its body in the clay of a sculpture to hide the evidence. It ends up being a serial killer when forced to produce similar work.
A Bucket of Blood was the first of a trio of collaborations between Corman and Griffith in the entertaining horror category, which include The Little Shop of Horrors, which filmed on the same sets, and Creature from the Haunted Sea. The film is a satirizing not only Corman’s films, but also the world of abstract art in addition to low-budget 1950s teen films. The film was applauded in many circles as a candid and indiscriminate representation of the many elements of beatnik culture.
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Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
It is a 1960 American horror comedy film directed by Roger Corman. Written by Charles B. Griffith, the film is a farce about a florist who grows a plant that eats human blood.
Gravis Mushnick owns a flower and designer shop, run by himself and 2 staff members, sweet Audrey Fulquard and awkward Seymour Krelboined. Found on skid row, the rundown shop has little organization. Mushnick fires Seymour when he ruins a flower delivery for evil dentist Dr. Farb. Seymour informs him of a unique plant he actually grew from seeds he obtained from a “Japanese Garden Enthusiast on Central Avenue.” Seymour confesses that he named the plant “Audrey Jr.”, which excites the real Audrey.
Jack Nicholson, describing the reaction to a screening of the film, said the audience laughed so hard you could barely hear the dialogue. The actor said that he had never had such a favorable reaction from the public before.
Among Corman’s gems, a crazy subject that was written in one evening. A successful film, with entertaining performances provided by the cast and excellent directing results from Corman while working under the self-imposed pressures of fast shooting and a budget plan.
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Black Sunday (1960)
A cruel witch and her evil servant return from the grave and embark on a bloody plan to recover the body of the witch’s beautiful doppelganger descendant. Director: Mario Bava. Starring: Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checchi, Ivo Garrani. Critics of modern Italian cinema have panned this Italian gothic movie negatively, although some have noted its cinematography. The film has beautiful camera movements, and Bava’s aesthetic design produces poetry and emotion as well as sensational. Bava is an author of pictorial films and this is one of his best works.
Psycho (1960)
This horror movie based on a true story of Ed Gein and from the murders in Wisconsin. There have been several sequels to this masterpiece of cinematic history directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Gein did the housework on his ranch. He has cordoned off the spaces used by his mother, consisting of the upstairs shop, the downstairs shop and the living space, leaving them clean. While the rest of the house has become progressively repulsive, these spaces have continued to be excellent. Gein later lived in a small room next to the kitchen. At this time he became curious about pulp publications and travel stories, especially those involving cannibals or Nazi crimes. Gein was a handyman and obtained ranch aid from the federal government starting in 1951. He periodically helped out with the community road crew as well as the threshing crop personnel at the site.
Eyes Without a Face (1960)
The instructor Génessier, a famous surgeon specialized in transplants, is responsible for an accident with which his son Christiane came out alive but with a terribly mutilated face. With the help of an assistant, he attracts women in his laboratory, to take the skin from their faces and use it for his boyfriend’s wounds. An operation so difficult that Génessier needs to replicate it continuously, after every failure of the grafts. Christiane, a mask on the face, still does not understand absolutely anything …
French critics said that it was either a repetition of German expressionism or simply a disappointment for the jump of the director of director of documentaries to gender films. The British press said that when a director like Georges Franju makes a horror film, you cannot try to find allegories or levels of reading. Eyes Without a Face was released in theaters in September 1986 to accompany the retrospectives to the National Film Theater in London and the Cinématèque Française. With a new interest, the film has started to be re -evaluated. French criticism has been significantly more encouraging than it was at its preliminary release. The public found the poetic nature of the film by comparing it with the work of the French poet and director Jean Cocteau.
Carnival of Souls (1962)
Extraordinarily successful and original low-budget independent film, a source of inspiration for directors such as David Lynch. A group of friends in a car crosses a bridge and falls into the river. Everyone dies except the protagonist Mary, who emerges completely unharmed from the muddy waters.
From that moment Mary, in shock from the accident, lives in a kind of psychological limbo and decides to move to another city to work as an organ player in a church. However, a creepy-looking man begins to haunt her everywhere. The mysterious man is played by director Herk Harvey himself.
The Brain that Wouldn’t Die (1962)
It is a horror film of American science fiction with 1962 body horror contaminations directed by Joseph Green and written by Green and Rex Carlton. The film was finished in 1959 with the title The Black Door, but was not launched in theaters until May 3, 1962, when it was launched with its new title as a double feature film with Invasion of the Star Creatures. The film focuses on a crazy doctor who creates a way to keep part of the body alive. He keeps the cut head of his future wife alive for days, as well as keeping a deformed man alive, among his previous experiments. The particular narrative tool of a crazy doctor who discovers a way to keep a human head alive had previously been used in narrative, as well as various other versions on this issue. He shares numerous elements of history with the horror film of western Germany The Head (1959).
The three faces of fear (1963)
The film consists of 3 episodes, each of which represents a terrible story. The phone: Rosy spends a particularly demanding night, intercepted on the phone by a perfect unknown that reveals her death … the Wurdalak: a vampire gestures a woman to infest the Slavic campaign. The last drop: perhaps Miss Chester shouldn’t really have taken the ring among her customers who have just disappeared …
The most disturbing feature of the film is its scenography, in particular the pictorically fantastic interiors. The script and dubbing are above average methods “. The episode” The drop of water “is the best of the 3 stories and has been called” the most frightening work of Bava “.” The Wurdalak “is a” small Work of art “thanks also to Karloff’s interpretation that recalls something of the night of the living dead. It is a fantastic anthology of horror, full of suspense and fear throughout the duration.
Onibaba (1964)
The aesthetic component of Kaneto Shindo’s cinema is evident in Onibaba, horror film that tells the story of two women left to fend for themselves who live by robbing and killing stray Samurai. Inspired by an ancient Buddhist fairy tale, the film tells the story of two women who live in extreme poverty, in a hut on the bank of a river. They survive by killing and robbing samurai exhausted by combat, with techniques they have refined over time.
One day a neighbor, Hachi, tells the two women that the son of one of them, who went to war, is dead. The man also proposes to help them in their thefts and murders. But women don’t trust and refuse. But over time one of them will slowly fall in love with Hachi. One night the woman kills a mighty knight in a creepy mask with one of the tested traps. But when he takes off his mask, he discovers that behind it are the non-human traits of a frightening demon.
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
The last man on Earth is a 1964 post-apocalyptic horror science fiction film based on the 1954 AM Legend by Richard Matheson’s 1954. The film was directed by Ubaldo Ragona and Sidney Salkow. In the cast Vincent Price and Franca Bettoia. The screenplay of the film was written in part by Matheson, however the writer was disappointed by the result.
It is 1968 and Dr. Robert Morgan remains in a land where every other person has been contaminated by a virus that has actually transformed them into non -dead, vampiric animals that cannot stand the sun, they are afraid of mirrors and are also rejected by the garlic. They would certainly eliminate Morgan if they could, yet they are not very intelligent as well as weak. Every day Morgan performs the same identical ritual: he wakes up, collects his tools and goes in search of vampires, eliminating as many as possible and burning the bodies to prevent them from returning. During the night, he hides inside his home.
The film was not considered a success at the time of its launch, later it became a classic, perhaps the most interesting role of Vincent Price. There was a 1971 remake with Charlton Heston, The Omega Man, but it is not at the same level.
The Night of the Living Dead (1968)
It is an independent film of the 1968 American horror genre directed, photographed by George A. Romero, with a screenplay by John Russo and Romero, and also played by Duane Jones and Judith O’Daa. The story follows 7 individuals who are trapped in a country farm in western Pennsylvania, who is under attack by a group of carnivorous zombies. After passing through numerous drafts, the last screenplay of Russo and Romero was inspired by the novel I AM Legend of Richard Matheson of 1954. The main filming took place between July 1967 and January 1968 in the Evans City area. The actors and the team included the director’s family members, friends, local and amateur actors, as well as owners of local houses. The film was the launch of Romero’s directed by Romero who used many of the guerrilla heading strategies that had perfected in his commercial work and managed to finish the film with a spending plan of about 100,000 dollars.
After his preview in Pittsburgh on 1 October 1968, the night of the living dead in the end earned 12 million dollars at the local level and $ 18 million worldwide, earning his budget plan more than 250 times and making him between one of the most rewarding cinematographic productions ever made at the time. The violence and blood of the film were considered revolutionary for the time, causing a large debate and unfavorable evaluations to its first launch. In the end he collected a cult of adhesion and recognition among the doubtful, and appeared in the lists of the best films ever made by points. Regularly recognized as the first modern zombie movie and also an example in the progress of the horror genre, the film contains a criticism of the United States society during the 60s, and was one of the first films to play an African American in the main role.
Kuroneko (1968)
Another particularly interesting horror film by Kaneto Shindo is Kuroneko. In the Japanese Jidai-geki era, which began in the 17th century, a terrible civil war tore apart the villages of the country. Two women living in a bamboo house are raped and killed by a group of unscrupulous samurai. Some time later, in the same area, some samurai are found bled dead. The governor sends a valiant samurai to investigate.
Hour of the Wolf (1968)
A young artist couple retreat to a cabin on the small island of Baltrum in this film psychological horror Swedish film master Ingmar Bergman which transforms sleep disturbances and isolation into terrible visions. The painter Johan Borg and his pregnant young wife Alma live on the small island of Baltrum. Johan shares pictures of scary visions he has had with Alma and begins to give them names, including Birdman, Insects, Meat-Eeaters, Schoolmaster and Lady With a Hat. As her insomnia worsens, Alma lies awake by his side.
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
As an agnostic, Roman Polanski he intentionally wove a thread of uncertainty into his adaptation of the book. That uncertainty increases the element of psychological horror by Rosemary’s Baby. When a young couple, Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and Guy (John Cassavetes), move into a New York house and befriend an elderly couple, their lives begin to take different paths.
The man’s profession is in flux, yet Rosemary imagines strange scenarios. Rosemary’s growing fear could be due to a mental disorder or it could be due to something sinister happening inside the apartment. Rosemary’s Baby is a horror masterpiece that ended up being one of the milestones of the subgenre.
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970)
It is an Italian horror Giallo movie from 1970 directed by Dario Argento, in its launch to the direction. The film is the progenitor of the Italian yellow film ranking. At its release, the film had a considerable success, collecting 1,650,000,000 Italian lire. It was also a success outside Italy. Sam Dalmas is an American writer on vacation in Rome with his English girlfriend, Julia, who is experiencing the author’s blockade and is about to return to America, however he witnesses the aggression of a girl in an art gallery from part of a strange type with black gloves using a waterproof. Attempting to reach it, Sam is captured between 2 glass doors mechanically operated and can see the man run away. The girl, Monica Ranieri, was attacked and the authorities took Sam’s passport to prevent him from leaving the nation. The enemy is believed to be a serial killer who is eliminating women throughout the city and Sam is an essential witness.
Silent Night, Bloody Night (1972)
Parent of the American horror-slasher genre, even before Halloween – John Carpenter’s Night of the Witches, Silent Night, Bloody Night was filmed in 1972 by Theodore Gershuny. A dangerous man in an asylum inherits a large house. After a few years he comes out of the asylum to sell the house because he needs the money. A series of heinous murders take place in the small town.
Independent film with a very particular direction that displaces and surprises the viewer. Shot with dull, leaden colors in a gloomy winter atmosphere, shot with makeshift means, it is by no means a packaging film, and this makes it an authentic tale, immersing you directly in the places where the story takes place.
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The Last House on the Left (1972)
It is a 1972 revenge film directed by Wes Craven. The film was written by Craven and the plot follows the story of two teenagers, Mari and Phyllis, who are kidnapped by a group of fugitive criminals. During their kidnapping, the girls are subjected to serious physical and psychological violence, including torture and sexual violence.
The criminals, in the end, hide in the house of a couple of parents of the girls, unaware of their presence. When they discover the truth about their guests, parents decide to take revenge on the death of their daughters.
The plot is full of twists and turns and intense and disturbing moments, and the film has been considered a social criticism of violence and impunity. However, the representation of violence has aroused many criticisms and has led to numerous disputes. The film was acclaimed as one of the first slasher movie and inspired many other films in the same category.
The Werewolf of Washington (1973)
It is a horror comedy movie on the 1973 directed by Milton Moses Ginsberg. The plot follows the journalist Jack Whittier, who is sent to Budapest as a presidential envoy during Nixon’s presidency. After being bitten by a werewolf, Jack turns into a werewolf and must fight to maintain control of his actions. The film has been criticized for his acting and his unconscious plot, but is considered a cult film of the 70s.
The plot follows the journalist Jack Whittier, who is sent to Budapest as a presidential envoy during Nixon’s presidency. While there, Jack is bitten by a werewolf and begins to develop the symptoms of transformation into a werewolf. Over time, Jack begins to lose control of his actions and to have night nightmares. Despite his efforts to hide his condition, Jack is investigated for a series of murders and must fight to maintain control of his actions before it is too late. In the meantime, he also tries to solve the mystery behind his transformation and to find out who or what is behind his werewolf condition.
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist is the progenitor and the best film of the exorcism horror subgenre, a thrilling art film that has astounded audiences around the world. Some viewers even fell ill during the screenings. Directed by William Friedkin, written by William Peter Blatty, cinematography by Owen Roizman, masterfully interpreted by Jason Miller, Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow and Linda Blair as the possessed Regan, it is one of the great masterpieces in the history of films. The film goes beyond just being scary, ending up being a profound drama – it’s the human element that hits home.
Even those who haven’t seen it associate it with the scariest movie ever made. Others aren’t even exorcism movies—they’re just movies that aren’t “The Exorcist.” Anything else is an imitation. Blair’s Regan MacNeil is possessed by the devil Pazuzu, and Burstyn’s Chris is desperate to help her. A thrilling journey into pure horror, it begins with magnetic resonance imaging and medical diagnoses with which Chris tries to understand the conditions of her daughter, up to cult scenes that have terrified viewers from all over the world. What’s even more scary, it’s a horror inspired by a true story.
Carrie (1976)
Shy 16-year-old Carrie White, living with her mentally unstable and religiously fanatical mom Margaret, struggles in college and is bullied by her peers. When Carrie experiences her first period in the institution’s shower, she becomes concerned about her, unaware of the phenomenon. Carrie’s classmates humiliate her. Following conversations with Miss Collins and the principal, she Carrie is expelled from school for a day. Upon arriving home, Margaret informs Carrie that her periods are caused by sin, and she locks Carrie in an altar-like “prayer cabinet” to pray for mercy.
Carrie is a supernatural horror movie based on the first released book by Stephen King. Director Brian De Palma was captivated by the story. It is the first of more than 100 film and television productions adapted from or based on King’s published works. Carrie became a cult film shortly after its release and is considered one of the best book-to-film adaptations of all time.
The House with Laughing Windows (1976)
It is an Italian horror film from 1976 written and directed by Pupi Avati. The film was shot at Lido degli Scacchi in the province of Ferrara. Stefano (Lino Capolicchio) lives in a country of the Comacchio valleys where he was called to restore a fresco that shows what seems the martyrdom of San Sebastiano, who was painted on a destroyed wall of the church by a strange disappeared artist called Legnani ..
As he lives for a short period in the house that was owned by the 2 brothers of the disappeared painter, Stefano begins a love relationship with Francesca (Francesca Marciano) and discovers that the painter had actually been a madman. In particular, Stefano discovers that the artist, assisted by his 2 equally crazy brothers, had been a murderer. Some inhabitants of the village are killed, including his girlfriend, and Stefano thinks that the killer is trying to prevent him from discovering the reality behind the artist of the painting.
Suspiria (1977)
Suzy, a young American, arrives in Freiburg to take lessons in an illustrious dance academy. The basic environment of the school surprises the girl, it is a disturbing and strange environment. Terrible misadventures happen to her: a young apprentice is killed, a blind pianist has a throat cut to his pet … Suzy is often sick. Suzy discovers that school was the house of a terrible witch nicknamed the mother of the whispers. What if the school was still under its control?
Rich in suspense but often ruined by artificial and inadequate English discussions, Suspiria is mainly blood, with little plot or intrigue, Suspiria was considered lower than the launch of silver the bird with crystal feathers (1970. Some label it as a weak replica de l’Esorcista.
Silver works hard with shock cuts, colored lights and strange camera corners and makes a movie that is a delight for the eyes. In the years following its release, Suspiria has been mentioned by critics as a cult film, an extreme horror prototype applauded by historians and cinematographic critics for its work of intricate colors and scenography: each frame is made up of a creative and surprising attention to the color, considered among the most scariest movies ever.
Halloween (1978)
Is there still anyone who hasn’t seen John Carpenter’s Halloween? Perhaps. October 31, 1963, in a small town in the American province of Haddonfield, little Michael Myers stabbed his sister Judith to death. He is hospitalized in a psychiatric institution but 15 years later, he manages to escape and return to his city. Dr. Sam Loomis, the psychiatrist who has followed Michael over the years, knows him very well and knows what his moves may be. Michael kills a mechanic, puts on his clothes and returns to his dilapidated, now abandoned, native home. An independent film shot on a very small budget, it grossed over $ 80 million worldwide at the time. It is the slasher movie most successful, classic horror to watch on Halloween, and one of the 5 most profitable films in the history of cinema.
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The Fury (1978)
“The Fury” is a 1978 revenge film directed by Brian De Palma and starring Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, Amy Irving and Carrie Snodgress.
The plot of the film follows Gillian, a young woman with paranormal powers, who is kidnapped by a secret government organization that wants to exploit her powers. His father, Peter Sandza (played by Douglas), a CIA agent, undertakes a fight against time to save her.
The film was positively accepted by the criticism for his visually impressive direction and for the interpretations of the actors, but was also criticized for his unreliable plot. It is considered a classic of horror science fiction of the 70s.
The Driller Killer (1979)
The first film by director Abel Ferrara made independently and at a very low budget. The artist Reno Miller (played by the director himself Abel Ferrara) and his girlfriend Carol enter a church where a tramp approaches who wants to talk to the artist, but Reno and Carol, frightened, run away. Reno comes home and finds a big electricity bill, a phone bill, and can’t afford to pay the rent. Slowly Reno transforms into a murderous psychopath, in a descent into hell with no return.
Aliens (1979)
Among alien horror movies nothing beats the suspense of Ridley Scott’s “Alien”. Aboard the Nostromo spaceship, Officer Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and the rest of her team land an unwanted stowaway. The 1979 film won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and is one of the creepiest films in the sci-fi genre.
The starship Nostromo is returning to Earth with a team of seven: Captain Dallas, Executive Officer Kane, Warrant Officer Ripley, Navigator Lambert, Science Officer Ash, and Engineers Parker and Brett. Discovering a transmission from a nearby moon, the ship’s computer system, the Mother, awakens the team from their slumber. For company policy which requires accepting any possible request for help, they arrive on the moon despite Parker’s misgivings. Engineers remain aboard for repair work while Dallas, Kane and Lambert survey the surface. They discover that the signal is coming from a ruined alien ship and enter it, losing contact with the Nostromo. Ripley analyzes part of the transmission, identifying it as a warning, however he cannot relay the details to anyone on the ruined ship.
The Shining (1980)
“Shining” is a 1980 movie directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. The film is considered a classic of the horror genre and is often mentioned as one of the best films of all time.
The story follows Jack Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson, who accepts a job as a winter guardian in a large hotel isolated in the mountains. With his wife Wendy (played by Shelley Duvall) and their son Danny (played by Danny Lloyd), Jack sets himself in the hotel during the winter season, but soon begins to experiment with hallucinating visions and losing his health while the hotel is gripped by supernatural forces.
“Shining” is famous for its excellent direction, breathtaking cinematography and Kubrick’s frightening music. Jack Nicholson provides an iconic and intense interpretation like Jack Torrance, and the film has become a symbol of his career. The scene in which Jack breaks the door of Danny’s room with an ax has become an iconically frightening image in popular culture.
The exact month of the first Friday 13, Shining is not just a horror film of the 80s. It is a film that has left an indelible mark, like almost all the films of Maestro Stanley Kubrick. A film of articles with an extraordinary photograph, the skill of the Star Shelley Duvall and Jack Nicholson. He is the only horror film shot by Kubrick in his career. The Shining remains a disturbing and chilling cult film with a great impact on modern cinema.
Inferno (1980)
Inferno is a 1980 supernatural horror movie written and directed by Dario Argento and played by Irene Miracle, Leigh McCloskey, Eleonora Giorgi, Daria Nicolodi and Alida Valli. The plot follows the investigation of a girl on the disappearance of her sister, who lived in an apartment in New York City who also served as home for a centuries -old witch. A thematic sequel to Suspiria (1977), the film is the second part of the trilogy of the three mothers of silver, although it is the first ever in the trilogy to explain the concept of the three mothers. All 3 films are partly originating from the work of Thomas de Quincey of 1845 Suspiria de Profundis, a collection of prose poems in which it proposes the principle of 3 “Ladies of Sorrow” (Mater Lachrymarum, Mater Suspiriorum and Mater Cartebarum) , in conjunction with the 3 park and thanks in Greek folklore.
Rose Elliot, a poet who lives alone in the Upper West Side in New York, acquires a book from an antique dealer, entitled the three mothers. The book, written by an alchemist named Varelli, tells of 3 evil sisters who govern the world with pain, tears and darkness and lives within several houses that had actually been built for them by the alchemist. Mater Suspiriorum, the mother of the sighs, lives in Freiburg. Mater Lachrymarum, the mother of tears, lives in Rome, and Mater Cartebarum, the mother of darkness, resides in New York. Rose believes he was residing in the structure of Mater Scherum and writes to his brother Mark, apprentice of music in Rome, pushing him to visit her. Using the ideas offered in the book, Rose explores the cellar of the building and finds a hole in the floor that can be reached in a dance room full of water.
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Thanks to An American Werewolf in London, the tradition of horrific transformation scenes and unwelcoming bars began, duplicated in many subsequent films. For a director with an abundant heritage from comedy movies, “An American Werewolf in London” is a perfect fit for John Landis. It’s a horror comedy with a big black comic heart, surpassing the titles of the same years. Rick Baker’s moonlight transformation was a breakthrough, an incredible scene where bones and skin stretched until they were torn apart. It’s a horror film with genuine depth, true to werewolf costume, but with an avant-garde edge.
The Evil Dead (1981)
It is a 1981 horror splatter film directed by Sam Raimi. The story follows a group of young people who go to an isolated hut in the middle of the forest and meets demonic forces. The film has become famous for its violence and the use of special effects, and is considered a classic of the horror genre. It was followed by two sequels and a television series.
The film was distributed in 1981 and had a budget of $ 350,000. The original distribution of the film took place in the United States, where it was presented in some cinemas and in independent film festivals. Subsequently, the film was distributed in other countries, including the United Kingdom, and has acquired a vast sequel to worship.
Scanners (1981)
Scanners is a science fiction film with 1981 Body Horror elements directed by David Cronenberg. The film follows the story of a man who discovers that he has the ability to read the thoughts of others and who becomes involved in a struggle between two factions of scanner who fight for the control of their mind. The film has earned popularity for its violent scenes and for its disturbing images and also called Cronenberg as one of the main directors of the horror/sci-fi genre.
Scanners follows the story of Cameron Vale, a man who discovers he has the ability to read the thoughts of others and influence their minds. Vale is recruited by a secret organization that wants to use his skills to combat another faction of scanners who are trying to take control of the world. The story focuses on the struggle between Vale and the leaders of the evil faction, which have control of many scanners and are trying to increase their power. Vale must find a way to stop the plans of the faction and save the world from their destructive mental influence.
Scanners was welcomed with mixed reviews when he released in 1981. Some critics praised the film for his dystopian approach to technology and for his violent and disturbing scenes, while others criticized the confused plot and unconvincing acting. Despite the mixed reviews, Scanners had a fair commercial success at the box office and gained a certain popularity in the following years. The film called David Cronenberg as a talented director and influenced many other films of the horror/sci-fi genre. Today, Scanners is considered such a classic and is often mentioned as one of the best science fiction films of the 80s.
The Thing (1982)
Among the variety of scary arthouse films directed by John Carpenter, The Thing was not well received by critics or audiences during its initial release. Forty years later, it is one of the most popular sci-fi horror movie in the cinematic landscape. The directors are still researching Rob Bottin’s incredible state-of-the-art special effects.
Videodrome (1983)
“Videodrome” is a body horror of 1983 directed by David Cronenberg. It is a sci-fi thriller that explores the dangers of technology and the distortion of reality through the mass media. The film is considered a science fiction film classic and is often cited as an example of a “body horror” film that explores the themes of technology and the manipulation of reality.
The storyline of “Videodrome” follows television producer Max Renn, who seeks extreme programming for his network. When he comes across “Videodrome”, a program that appears to show live torture and murder, Max is instantly captivated and determined to broadcast it. However, he soon discovers that “Videodrome” has a hallucinogenic effect on his mind and is manipulating his perception of reality. Max finds himself fighting against dark forces who want to use “Videodrome” as a weapon to control the minds of the masses. The plot becomes increasingly surreal and disturbing, with Max having to face not only the threat of “Videodrome”, but also his own identity and the nature of reality.
The Fly (1986)
It is a 1986 sci-fi body horror film directed by David Cronenberg. The film received praise for its acting, visual effects and suspense. The plot follows the story of genius scientist Seth Brundle, who is working on a teleportation machine that could change the world. However, during a test, Brundle accidentally teleports a fly into the machine with him, causing a genetic fusion between the two organisms.
Brundle gradually begins to notice changes in his body and demeanor, becoming increasingly monstrous and losing control of his actions. His ex-girlfriend Veronica, who is also a journalist, discovers the truth about his condition and tries to help him find a cure, but Brundle is becoming increasingly dangerous and unpredictable.
Aliens (1986)
“Aliens” is a 1986 film directed by James Cameron and starring Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn and Paul Reiser. It is the sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1979 film ‘Alien’. The film follows ship’s officer Ellen Ripley, who joins a team of marines to deal with an alien threat on the remote colony of LV-426. After being trapped in hibernation for 57 years, Ripley joins the mission to defeat the aliens and survive.
‘Aliens’ was critically acclaimed for its spectacular realism, outstanding direction and the intense performances of its actors. The film was also very commercially successful and won two Academy Awards for Best Cinematography and Best Sound. Furthermore, ‘Aliens’ is regarded as one of the best sequels of all time and a cornerstone of the science fiction genre. Its mix of action, adventure and horror has influenced many other films of the genre and made the “Alien” franchise one of the most popular and longest-running in the history of cinema.
Moving the main location from a haunted house to the Vietnam War, “Aliens” has its strength in still telling the character of Ripley as much as the initial film. Simply increase your reach and scale. The Xenomorphs are back, but this time they’ve brought their mom. Thanks to a deleted scene from “Alien,” the life cycle of the ferocious beasts was never fully disclosed. So here comes a much scarier monster: the Alien Queen. “Aliens” is also a perfect script, without a wasted frame or line of dialogue.
They Live (1988)
A biting sci-fi horror comedy and scathing critique of capitalist culture, it’s one of them movie you must see absolutely if you haven’t already. The comedy element is not the main aspect here, but there are several funny scenes. In They Live, one of best dystopian movies never made, the director John Carpenter shows us the occult power of the television media. Roddy Piper plays Nada, a drifter who discovers a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see the world as it is: run by monstrous zombies with subliminal messages that hypnotize people into bowing down to the god of money and being dominated by an alien species who wants world power. Among the various funny scenes one of the most famous fist fights of all time between Piper and Keith David.
Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989)
“Tetsuo: The Iron Man” is a 1989 Japanese film directed by Shinya Tsukamoto. It is a cyberpunk science fiction film that explores the themes of technology, human mutation and subjectivity.
The plot follows the character of a man who, after being involved in an accident with a cyborg, gradually begins to develop metallic characteristics. As his body transforms, the character becomes increasingly crazed and violent, causing chaos and destruction wherever he goes.
The film was acclaimed for its surreal and disturbing take on technology and its relationship to humanity, as well as its outstanding direction, cinematography and editing. ‘Tetsuo: The Iron Man’ has also had a great impact on popular culture and has inspired many other works in the science fiction and horror genres.
The messy and sensual journey of the Japanese director Shinya Tsukamoto takes cyberpunk to some extraordinary brand new places, using innovative low-budget effects to tell the surreal story of a “metal fetishist” whose death in a car and truck crash triggers an outrageous chapter in human progress.
Fire Walk With Me (1992)
Launched as a prequel to the Twin Peaks TV series, Fire Walk with Me is a 90s horror movie that takes audiences through the story of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), up to the point where the previous series begins. Fire Walk with Me uses Laura’s voice, depth and social context to describe the horror surrounding her murder situations. The film was negatively received at the Cannes Film Festival and by critics. Even the public, who expected more clarifications on the mysteries left in the first series, did not particularly like the work, generally judged too chaotic. In the following years the “chaos” became the best quality of the film: the visionary and dreamlike style of David Lynch. An avant-garde film made in serial format, twenty years before streaming TV series. Only Lynch could be so brilliant.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
‘Dracula’ is a 1992 horror drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel of the same name. The film presents a reimagined version of the original Dracula story, focusing on the relationship between Count Dracula and young writer Mina Harker.
Gary Oldman plays Count Dracula, while Winona Ryder is Mina Harker. The cast also includes Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reeves and Richard E. Grant. The film won praise for its top-notch performances, Coppola’s visually captivating direction, and his elaborate portrayal of Count Dracula.
The film also received much criticism for its loose and controversial portrayal of the original story, as well as its romantic and sexual nature of Dracula and Mina’s relationship. Despite this, 1992’s “Dracula” is considered a classic of the horror genre and continues to have a following of fans around the world. This cult horror of the 90s reinvents Stoker’s 19th century story. Its photography, costume style and use of color make it a whimsical gothic horror.
Thesis (1996)
“Thesis” is a spanish horror movie of 1996 directed by Alejandro Amenabar. It is a thriller that explores the academic world and the consequences that can arise from a university research.
The protagonist, Angelika, is a young film student who is working on her thesis on representations of death in film. During his research, he meets a student who is working on a similar topic, but with a focus on snuff movies, i.e. films that depict the real death of people. As Angelika continues to delve into the dark world of snuff movies, she encounters many difficulties and encounters people who try to stop her from continuing her research. He also begins to receive threats and fear for his life.
“Thesis” was very well received by critics and considered one of the best Spanish films of the 90s. It has won numerous awards, including four Goya awards, which are the most important Spanish film awards. The film is interesting because it offers an insight into the dangers of academia and how research can lead to unpredictable consequences. Also, the gripping storyline and psychological puzzles made ‘Thesis’ a film that stuck in the minds of many people. This film is the winner of 7 Goya 1996 awards, consisting of the awards for best film, best original screenplay and best director.
Oldboy (2003)
If you’re looking to find timeless Korean horror, check out Park Chan-wook‘s 2003 revenge thriller “Oldboy.” Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik) was imprisoned in the exact same space for 15 years. He has no idea who imprisoned him or why. One day, he is voluntarily released, which starts the search for those who ruined his life so that he can carry out his revenge on him. Along the way, Dae-su falls in love with a young chef, which complicates his preparation for revenge.
This is a film filled with twists, turns, conspiracies and lies; when you think you know where the movie is going, Park turns your expectations upside down. Park is an exceptionally gifted director and records the subtlety and complexity of revenge, a style he expands on in the rest of his Revenge Trilogy, which consists of ‘Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance’ and ‘Lady Vengeance’.
The devil’s house (The Devil’s Rejects, 2005)
It is a 2005 splatter film directed by Rob Zombie. It is a horror film that follows the history of the Firefly family, a group of criminals that is chased by a sheriff determined to stop them. The film is known for its intense and raw representation of violence, as well as for its bold direction and its compelling plot. The film had a mixed reception from the criticism and the public. Many praised Zombie’s direction and its intense and raw representation of violence, but others criticized the film for its free representation of violence and for its disturbing content. It is a film that divided the public and the criticism by its intense and raw representation of violence and for its disturbing content. However, many fans of the horror genre praised Zombie’s direction and his compelling plot.
First Bite (2006)
Gus is a charming man who works as a chef at an Asian restaurant in Montreal. His manager sends him to a remote island in Thailand to meet a master of Zen food and to improve the high quality of his recipes. There he finds a strange girl named Lake living in a cave and informs him that the Zen food preparation master is dead. Gus is most likely to stay in the cave and start a relationship with Lake.
Bite is a Canadian independent film that crosses various film genres in its narrative, suddenly shifting from romance to thriller to ghost horror. The direction, editing and writing are never banal, supported by shots with wide-angle lenses that increase tension and by actors in superb form.
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Martyrs (2008)
“Martyrs” is a 2008 French splatter film written and directed by Pascal Laugier. The plot of the film follows the story of a young woman who has been kidnapped and tortured by a mysterious group since she was a child. After being freed, the young woman sets out on a mission to take revenge on her captors and uncover the truth behind their group.
The film was hailed by many critics as one of the most disturbing and intense films ever made and is often described as a very introspective horror/thriller that deals with spiritual matters and explores themes such as torture, revenge and faith. ‘Martyrs’ was also hailed as an aesthetically and technically remarkable film, with much praise for its direction, cinematography and acting.
Thirst (2009)
The korean horror film Park Chan-Wook’s 2009 “Thirst” is a touching, captivating, and gory vampire story that offers a fresh take on the sub-genre. Sang-hyun (Song Kang-ho) is a priest who is secretly in love with a wife called Tae-ju (Ok-bin Kim) and this puts his faith in crisis. In an effort to show his commitment to God, Sang-hyun volunteers to be a test subject for a vaccine against a fatal infection. The experiment goes wrong and he turns into a vampire. Sang-hyun struggles to prevent his craving for human blood, but ultimately fails to curb his appetite.
When Sang-hyun feeds, it’s not just violent; it’s really impressive. “Thirst” has perhaps the most popular sex scene ever in a horror film. Tune, who played the evil patriarch in “Parasite,” once again stars as a vampire filled with apathy for his new state of being. Sang-hyun comes into direct conflict with Tae-ju, totally free and sensual, who wishes to wield power over those who question her.
Shutter Island (2010)
Leonardo DiCaprio stars in this horror thriller set in asylum. Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island is an intriguing film full of conspiracies and fear that leaves the truth hanging. As always when Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio team up, the film is a work of art of American cinema. In 1954, widowed United States Marshal Edward “Teddy” Daniels and his new partner, Chuck Aule, board a ferry to Shutter Island, home of Ashecliffe Hospital for the criminally insane, to investigate the disappearance of a patient, Rachel. Solando, who was jailed for drowning her three children. Despite being kept in a locked cell under constant supervision, she escaped the hospital and the island.
This is a film to see if you are looking for an intelligent noir that engages with intriguing philosophical concerns about psychiatry while delivering sensational visuals. For all of its previous successes from the 1970s onwards, Shutter Island ended up being Martin Scorsese’s highest-grossing film until it was surpassed by The Wolf of Wall Street. The impact of the film on the senses is devastating.
The Skin I Live In (2011)
A cosmetic surgeon living on a gorgeous rental property hides dark makeup and a lovely woman in this Goya Award-winning psychological horror film. The Skin I Live In begins with a doctor who attempts to establish a method of preserving burn victims after his wife dies in a terrible fire, choosing an unwitting girl as a guinea pig for a new artificial skin, and eventually the story escalates in an odyssey that develops something abominable.
Much more than the story of a mad researcher and his beast, this Spanish horror film from acclaimed director Pedro Almodovar goes beyond clichés and chronicles loss, pain and the meaning of life through its trademark sexual ambiguity. A film composed of melodrama, morality, secrets and murders.
The Love Witch (2016)
Elaine, a gorgeous young witch, is driving to Arcata, California, a town where witchcraft is accepted, to start a new life after the death of her husband Jerry. Maybe Elaine could have killed him. When there, he rents a Victorian house owned by Elaine’s teacher, Barbara, and furnished by her interior decorator, Trish Manning. In an attempt to befriend the girl, Trish takes Elaine to a teahouse, where she meets her husband Richard, who quickly falls in love with Elaine. Wanting to find a new lover, Elaine performs a ritual to discover one and meets Wayne, a literature teacher at the college. The two travel to Wayne’s house, where she makes him consume a concoction that includes hallucinogens. When the two make love, Wayne ends up possessive, which makes Elaine anxious. He dies the next day, and Elaine buries his body with an amulet against witchcraft that contains his urine. She decides the next man she will try to seduce will be Richard because he is married and cannot be possessive.
Anna Biller’s The Love Witch is unlike any other horror comedy recent. The film leans heavily on its wonderful 60s-style cinematography, which has the power to recall Dario Argento’s films in some scenes. There is a beauty of the look that Anna Biller has built in all its technicolor splendor that immediately casts a spell on you. The Love Witch takes care of being both dark and light, it is a witch movie with some really wonderful and ironic lines thanks to the perfect actress for the story, Samantha Robinson.
The Handmaiden (2016)
Park Chan-wook he is among the fantastic visionaries of our time. He speaks a specific poetic language in much of his work and, through a whimsical sexual psychology, manages to explore the invisible sides of the human being. Park’s 2016 film, ‘The Handmaiden’ is a 3-part story of greed, desire and betrayal, with beautiful cinematography by cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung.
When a maid named Sook-hee (Kim Tae-ri) arrives at Lady Hideko’s (Kim Min-hee) extravagant estate at the behest of Count Fujiwara (Ha Jung-woo), she is caught up in darkness. Here things are never as they appear. On the one hand, Sook-hee and Fujiwara are planning to take over Hideko’s family fortune. On the other hand, as Sook-hee gains Hideko’s trust, an unexpected love blossoms with explosive force. This is just the beginning. The complexity of the story and everyone’s participation gets more convoluted with each chapter, and Park’s ability to keep you hooked for 144 minutes is impressive.
A Cure from Wellness (2016)
It is a film that follows the tradition of the gods in an original way asylum movie, filmed in 2016 directed by Verbinski Mountains. The film follows the story of a man named Lockhart, played by Dane DeHaan, who is sent to a remote wellness clinic in Switzerland to retrieve his company’s CEO.
Once there, Lockhart discovers that the clinic is strange and eerie, and that his patients are trapped there against their will. With the help of a young nurse, played by Mia Goth, Lockhart begins to investigate the clinic and its mysterious founder, who seems to have the ability to heal the most serious illnesses.
The film was met with mixed reviews, with some lauding it for its eerie atmosphere and tangled narrative, while others criticized it for its lack of coherence and muddled conclusion. Despite this, ‘The Cure for Wellness’ is considered a cult film among fans of the horror/thriller genre and continues to have a dedicated following.
A Cure for Wellness was filmed in a real World War I medical facility where Hitler himself could have been admitted. A psychological thriller set primarily in a remote “health” spa in the Alps that has all the visual characteristics of a tuberculosis-era asylum.
Suspiria (2018)
More than forty years after its release, the classic of Italian horror movies by Dario Argento has a remake, directed by Luca Guadagnino. Set in a dance school, where murders of girls take place, Suspiria uses Dakota Johnson for its lead role, surrounded by Chloë Grace Moretz, Mia Goth, and Tilda Swinton and Sylvie Testud as oppressive instructors and maybe more. Among the most anticipated scary movies of 2018 is a film that transforms Dario Argento’s original film into something completely different, with a rigorous directorial language that makes it much more than just supernatural horror: an extraordinary arthouse film.
