A Horror Movie Gourmand’s Menu

10.21.11 | George D. Allen | Staff NotesPrint this Post

MovieFanFare Fiends, we are approaching that most sacred of calendar days for horror film buffs. It can be a trying affair indeed, poring through your cobweb-strewn video cupboards and that messy movie meat locker in search of just the right combination of ingredients to blend together for the perfect fright flick feast. It can be a grueling challenge even for a shock-xpert like our own Ghouly Irv.

Fear not!

You are now guaranteed to have an enjoyably eerie holiday meal. Just choose wisely from the following menu designed by your horrorday gourmand (gore-mand?), and after the lights come back up, you will no doubt lean back from your TV table sated with a belly full of butterflies, the delightful clacking of teeth, and the mood music of your gasps, shrieks, and howls.

Have you come with a hearty appetite? I bid you welcome. Let’s dig up—uhm, that is, dig in:

Amuse-Bouche

Morsels designed by your chef to prepare you for the flavor of the entire menu to come

   
   
   

Vincent (1982), Un Chien Andalou

The Tim Burton short, in part a delightful tribute to the legendary Vincent Price, will bring to mind your love of the great chillers of Hollywood’s Golden Age, while the zesty surrealism of the Buñuel prepares you for the occasional irreverent spice.

Complimentary Wine

to deliver a tingle to the taste buds

The Mummy (1932)

This Karloff chiller is of an exceptional vintage, directed by famed cinematographer Karl Freund. Its primary bouquet is a strongly disciplined performance by Boris with a decidedly lean flavor that is pleasing to the palate, leavened by the hypnotically weird presence of the lovely and eccentric Zita Johann and the musty, dusky charm of Edward van Sloan. The blend of romance and dread leaves an intoxicating aftertaste. 

Appetizers, Hors d'oeuvre

to sustain you before the main course

   
   

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The Blair Witch Project

Prepare for the main course by taking in these two tasty works that could be said to encompass the whole of horror film history, from its earliest stirrings in German Expressionism to the first ghastly gasp of the “found footage” genre. The flamboyant unreality of Caligari contrasts strongly with the hyper-realistic approach of the 1999 independent sensation.

Relevés

a lighter serving before the entrée

Mad Monster Party?

As you are about to indulge in our satisfying onslaught of pure terror, clear the way by revisiting the famous Rankin/Bass animated comedy that brings together your favorite movie monsters, and the voices of both Karloff and Phyllis Diller. This one’s a hoot (and safe for the children!). 

Main Course/Entrée

The Bride of Frankenstein, Horror of Dracula, Night of the Living Dead, The Exorcist III, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), The Wolfman (2010), and Titus

Begin with the 1935 James Whale classic, one of the greatest monster films ever and a beguiling blend of horror, romance, and humor; enter the revolutionary period of the Hammer Films era with perhaps the most thrilling, efficient, and diabolical of all Dracula films, featuring a most charismatic Count in Christopher Lee and a wily, intellectual nemesis in Peter Cushing; rather than the expected inclusion of the William Friedkin possession classic starring Linda Blair, we add some surprise to the plate with the satisfyingly scary second sequel starring George C. Scott and Jason Miller; venture deeper into relentless fear with the only fictionalization of the infamous Ed Gein story to rival Psycho.

Then, cap off your main course with a double helping of Hannibal himself, Anthony Hopkins. First, enjoy him playing dad to Benicio del Toro, who plays things half-Lon Chaney, half-Oliver Reed, in this old-fashioned and underrated remake of the 1941 man-beast movie; finally, watch Sir Anthony take center stage in director Julie Taymor's reinvention of Shakespeare’s goriest play, a thrilling spectacle of horror, humor, and pathos.

Alternate entrée, fish

   
   

The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Jaws

If you prefer tasting tales of the aquatic variety, there are simply no substitutes for the original Gill Man and the ever-hungry Bruce the Shark.

Salad

 

The Body Snatcher, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Gojira, and A Serbian Film

For extra nutrition, consume first this thoughtfully terrifying tale, from producer Val Lewton and director Robert Wise, that incorporates the Burke-and-Hare story into a morally challenging, sinister new stew with character actor Henry Daniell at its vital center, while Karloff goes against Bela Lugosi for the final time; study the famed Robert Louis Stevenson tale of man’s duality anew with the Dan Curtis-produced version that features a delicious performance by Jack Palance; contemplate the nuclear horrors of the past with the original, unsurpassed Godzilla film; as for roughage, it doesn't get any rougher than the 2010 feature that has spawned outrage the world over. (ALLERGY WARNING: No kidding, A Serbian Film is not for all tastes. Or most tastes. We are not responsible for how difficult it may be for you to digest.)

Dessert

Treehouse of Horror, The Addams Family, and Young Frankenstein

Sample sublime horror spoofery via the ingenious holiday specials from The Simpsons (though sadly, The Devil and Homer Simpson, pictured here, appears to be scarily unavailable); savor the dark wit of television’s kookiest, ookiest clan; and gorge yourself on the endless delights to be found in Mel Brooks’ sweetly hysterical ode to ye olde chiller classics.

Cheese and Nuts

   
   

The Blob (1958), Tetsuo: The Iron Man 

No cheese is sharper and more flavorful than the original goo-on-the-loose spectacular starring Steve McQueen; and rare is the horror film nuttier than 1989’s frenzied and freakish Japanese saga of man merging with metal from writer/director Shinya Tsukamoto.

Palate Cleansers

   
   

The Spanish version of Dracula (1931), Willard (2003)

No dining-in-dread adventure can be complete without sampling the Spanish-language rival to the revered 1931 Universal Studios vampire classic. Shot on the same sets at night after the English-language crew left, director George Melford's alternate vision of the Lugosi film features the voluptuous Lupita Tovar and the brilliantly batty Pablo Àlvarez Rubio as Renfield; then clear your plate with this far-from-ratty remake, a truly demented dash of Crispin Glover! 

Since this menu offers but one way to satisfy one’s ravenous appetite for screen scares, other chefs are more than welcome to cook up their own specialties in the kitchen below.

As it was famously uttered in The Little Shop of Horrors…

Feed me!

 
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  • Blair Kramer.

    I think "The Horror Of Dracula" is one of the best versions of the Dracula legend ever committed to film. And it's just perfect for a Halloween fright night!

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  • ed

    what no the thing

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    That's true, ed, a person should always eat their carrots. Perhaps I should have added a "frozen treats" course.

  • Isabelle

    Where's House of Wax..surely this would be great for Halloween night.

  • William Sommerwerck

    Congratulations to Mr Allen for understanding the difference between scaring people and revolting/disgusting them.

    Might I add "Nosferatu" (silent) and "Vampyr" to the list?

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Isabelle, "House of Wax" is an excellent selection for those who enjoy their eerieness flame-broiled, though I would stick to the two-strip Technicolor steak of the original "Mystery of the Wax Museum."

    And William S, thanks for adding two chilly classics of the blood-drinking variety. "Vampyr" is terrific, though if you've already seen it many times (as I have, since I own it), I'd recommend instead the unusual, recently released Criterion "The Phantom Carriage," the movie that reportedly inspired Ingmar Bergman to make films. It's a powerful & unsettling & often quite grim meditation on death, solitude, human misery, all those things that turned Bergman on.

  • David Pierce

    I'm very surprised. Most of the films listed look really good and I've only seen about 20% of them. I took film history in collage: horror films and bought everything shown in class and have added to them 20 films a year ever since. I would replace the Simpsons with Scooby doo and zombie island + the halloween tree + the brothers Quay vol 1 & 2 + the adventures of ichabod and mr. toad for children and yourself if you haven't seen them.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    David P, well done with a recommendation of The Brothers Quay! They would be the caviar on this menu, for sure, and yes, I'd go with the two-volume collection of shorts rather than their features.

    In the same "vein," those wishing to go truly batty with a Dracula pick couldn't do better than Guy Maddin's "Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary": http://www.moviesunlimited.com/musite/product.asp?sku=D65216

  • speedle

    I tend to agree with Kramer. "The Horror of Dracula" and just about all the old Hammer films were far and away superior to anything else in their time. They were just well done without a lot of complicated special effects, but with superior scripting and acting.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Some "Horror of Dracula" fans might not have heard this, but there are rumblings now about Hammer restoring some long-unseen seconds from the film (including a little extra footage of Mr. Lee decomposing during the climax):
    http://www.hammerfilms.com/news/article/newsid/314/dracula-resurrected

  • Mitch in SF

    Since no ghost story seems to be included, may I add Thorold Dickinson's THE QUEEN OF SPADES (1949)? It's truly stylish.

  • Mitch in SF

    And to the discussion of Hammer films, I would like to also add THE KISS OF THE VAMPIRE (1963). Hammer Film Productions uses of both color and music were always masterful and I can think of no better example than this.

  • jake

    Hmmm...all the above would do really well at a banquet, but to those whose tastes run more to a smorgasborg, perhaps a few more samplings would be in order:

    As an alternative wine, may we suggest the 1934 "The Black Cat," with Karloff, Lugosi and director Edgar G. Ulmer provided both picquancy and pungency?

    The "found footage" concept was more of a resurgence than one initiated by "Blair Witch." For the full-flavored taste of the original there's "Cannibal Holocaust."

    Then, by all means, take samplings of other alternative morsels:

    "Dracula, Prince of Darkness" has perhaps a bit more bite (!) to it than "Horror of Dracula."

    (Though, for my money, the meatiest thing ever tenderized by putting the Hammer to was, oddly enough, "The Hound of the Baskervilles", from '59.)

    "Bride..." is a very popular choice on the menu, no question...but of late many have come to prefer the unadorned original "Frankenstein."

    Of course, there's no taking away from virtually anything that chef Lewton ever produced in the RKO kitchens, so all we can do is recommend that, along with "Body Snatcher," you also take a sampling of "Cat People" and (highly recommended by this gourmand, though evidently not for all tastes) "Isle of the Dead."

    And for those whose tastes range to the exotic (and whose stomachs are strong), there's "Audition" and Ken Russell's "The Devils."

    And finally, for sweets, may we also recommend "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," and (probably the best horror-comedy since "Young F.,") "The Frighteners?"

    (By the way, odd that you go out of your way to obviously overlook such classics as "Frankenstein" and "The Exorcist" while still throwing old standbys like "Night of the Living Dead" and "Texas Chainsaw" on here. Are you recommending obscure films or not? Or just throwing in a little bit of everything to tantalize discriminating pallettes?)

    Of course, we try to appeal to all discriminating tastes, but there's no way to serve up everything in one helping. Come back another time and the kitchen will possibly have dished up servings of "The Cell," "Halloween," "The Thing," "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," any of the Hammer Quatermass movies (and their obscure but refreshingly enjoyable offspring, "Lifeforce"), "Session 9" and "The Ring" (seasoned to American or oriental tastes), as well as a cornucopia of others.

    (I'm a little offput that you say "The Devil and Homer Simpson" isn't available. Has it been cut out of a release, or is it just that the entire episode isn't available yet?)

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Mitch in SF, nice adds of "Kiss..." (which is still available on The Hammer Horror Series release) and "Queen..." (which appears to have vanished from print, having once been available on a double-bill with "Dead of Night")

    No ghost stories per se, though Henry Daniell is quite unforgettably haunted by Karloff in "The Body Snatcher" ("Never get rid of me, nevergetridofme, never, never, NEVER...!")

    Jake, now that's some fine menu you've cooked up! Ulmer's Black Cat is indeed a delicacy!

    I did indeed go occasionally to the less-than-typical choices once in a great while just to spice it up a little. I mean, you start to feel just a little listless by robotically putting the same 10 or 15 horror movies on the "great" lists all the time, yes? So here I tried to craft a menu that wasn't, say, quite so stale from repitition, while at the same time looking to avoid SOOOO much of the inevitable "How could you leave out (THIS), or (THAT), or..." Not that it isn't gonna happen anyway. :)

    Meanwhile, "The Devil and Homer Simpson" was available as part of the complete "Simpsons" season 5 that seems to have gone out of print at least for the moment. I was dismayed to discover it but didn't want to remove it from my menu, 'cause it's my favorite of the Treehouse shorts.

  • David Pierce

    I was just looking over my collection - I'd add the City of lost children instead of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and The Blair Witch Project - which are both solid classics. It's creepy and perfect before the Kid's go trick or treating. They'll be less likely to stay out to late.

  • Larry Wiseman

    WELL, I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD SEE THIS, BUT A LIST OF HORROR FILMS WITHOUT VINCENT PRICE??? WHO IS DOING THIS? I COULD ALSO MENTION, I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF, AND BLACK SUNDAY (NOT THE FOOTBALL MOVIE) & BLACK SABBATH! THANK YOU!!!

  • G. Darrell Russell, Jr.

    How about the original The Thing with James Arness and also all the Alien movies.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    It's time for my ultimate confession, Larry W...your email address perhaps reveals a little something about the all-caps thing, I must say...but anyhow, here's the confession:

    I respect the talent & greatness of Price, but he was just never one of my favorites.

    I don't omit him "on purpose," though--if I'm making, say, a Poe list, "The Fall of the House of Usher" would be right up there, 'cause it's a great movie, and Price is great in it. I just never grew attached to the Price films & never really explored them until I was a little older. I was far more obsessed with the Universal/Hammer monster movies. I would watch Price if he were on, but I was much more partial to other films.

    For the record, my favorite Prices are Usher as mentioned above, and "The House on Haunted Hill." If you want a Vincent Price fix, enjoy this tribute to the man:
    http://www.moviefanfare.com/staff-notes/vincent-price/
    Or, you could watch Ghouly Irv pay his own tribute to Vincent's '50s frightfare here:
    http://www.moviefanfare.com/movie-buzz/moviefrightfare-invasion-of-terror-ific-trivia/

    Nice Black Sunday pick, btw.

    G. Darrell R.: The Alien movies, of course! I knew I forgot to add some eggs.

  • jake

    Thanks for the kind comments, George! You're welcome in my kitchen, anytime! (We'll compare recipes!)

    Meanwhile, is it just me, or does it seem as though there's been a strict rationing, for some reason, of the spices necessary to present a good ghost story?

    Arguably the best dish ever, "The Uninvited," is still lamentably (and perplexingly) unavailable, as is "Blithe Spirit," and even (inexplicably) "Topper Takes a Trip." What gives? (Why are the other two available--though admittedly one is in public domain--while this one isn't?)

    Happily, "The Canterville Ghost" (the original) is finally available to be savored once again, albeit as an archive issue, but (since you brought it up), why is "Dead of Night" (which includes a ghost story, and belongs on any haunting list, anyway) out of print?

    Anyway...oddly enough, I've found that some of the most deliciously terrifying entres I've ever run across don't tend towards the supernatural at all, but rather to the mundane. I think, for instance, that film noir, a style that evolved back in the day when true horror films were "for kids," were more or less horror films for grownups. It's easy to dismiss vampires as just fantasies; it's a bit harder to dismiss the very real possibilities of people in identifiable situations who just keep sinking deeper and deeper into pits of their own making. (And, after all, there's nothing supernatural about "Psycho," or most slasher films...though I'd hardly put the run-of-the-mill of them on a list of tastiest horror pictures.) And, given the times and the right frame of mind, it's hard to beat "Fail-Safe" or "The Deer Hunter" for leaving that taste of complete hopeless terror in your mouth.

    And for the child in you that still remembers your old nightmares, there's "The Night of the Hunter," woefully misunderstood by many today who are evidently expecting one dish and quite unexpectedly tasting another. "It's the stuff dreams are made of," to quote someone from a noir flick...and a ghoulish (goulash?) nightmare, at that. But I guess some people just expect their noodles to be noodles.

  • DIRK

    you gotta have HALLOWEEN (1978) on the day of Halloween!

  • jake

    No, I think Larry had a couple of points (and I'm sorry I overlooked them, but then, I have a list of what I consider to be THE scariest movies--at least that I've ever seen--and it's up in the 50's now, so I haven't listed everything... besides, we're talking about Halloween movies, not just scariest ones).

    "Black Sunday" is certainly on my list, even though I hadn't mentioned it until now. (And if you're into foreign flavors, I'm surprised Argento hasn't come up!)

    As for Vince, I'm sorry that you didn't "get" him, George, but he was a truly class act and a great ham and so much fun when fright flicks were woefully in need of a dash of it!

    My personal choices from the menu would be "Pit and the Pendulum" (what an astonishing ending!), "Masque of the Red Death" (Corman's well-done homage to Bergman) and, for a little lighter spice, "Theatre of Blood."

    Or, going back to my noir argument, and Vince's pre-horror days, there's "Shock" and "His Kind of Woman," an outrageous mixed bag, wherein Vince plays an Errol Flynn-type matinee idol! (No one seems to know what to do with that movie anymore! The heck with categorizations...just enjoy it!

    By the way, speaking of Halloween movies (which, after all, are what this is all about), we haven't brought up many real Halloween movies (not mentioning the franchise, itself, which I finally brought up before). I've always kind of liked the first two "Night of the Demons" films (far from cinema genius, but good fun in a Halloween way) and (oddly enough) Disney's "Hocus Pocus." For honorable mention I'd have to add "Arsenic and Old Lace," even though Capra just tacked Halloween onto his film version of the play to give it a little more flavor.

  • version

    Very good. I would suggest offering something for the vegans - like Attack of the Mushroom People (a/k/a Matango,1963); Attack of the Killer Tomatoes;
    Also the killer cabbages from the Bodysnatchers;

    The wine tasting from The Raven
    Maybe Theater of Blood - offered an interesting dining experience;

    And of course 120 Days of Sodom (1975) - yikes!

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    version, if you think "Salo" would be the film to add to give you indigestion on this list, I am going to make a guess you haven't yet seen "A Serbian Film."

    I am what you would call a pretty jaded viewer at this point, and that movie left me feeling like I was covered with a thin layer of grime by the final frames. The film is a true tough call to recommend, even to the most open-minded of viewers, because it is both truly nasty in its content but also quite well made, which has the effect of adding to the power of the really offensive material in the story.

    There are plenty of cheap movies that go out of their way to "shock" and "offend" with disgusting material, but few films of recent vintage have accomplished it as strongly or as smartly as this one.

  • version

    correct George Allan I have not seen A Serbian Movie and was intrigued seeing it listed - I could only come up with Salo in referrencing a nightmarish, disturbing dish of a film. You make an interesting assessment - your senses weren't assulted by buckets of fake blood or gratuitous violence, but they were hit with something. Thanks

  • John Richards

    So great to see the wonderful selections and the comments picked up obvious omissions so between the two, certainly a horror gourmet's delight. I do agree that Hammer had one up on everybody in their era and particularly with Horror of Dracula, my favorite (sorry Bela!). And of course, Halloween with Jamie Lee Curtis is a must.

  • Blair Kramer.

    Say George...

    Since Hammer went belly-up some time ago, who owns the rights to their films? They can't all belong to the corporations that individually released each film, can they? I ask this question because I wonder how previously edited footage would be added to "The Horror Of Dracula" without access to the Hammer vaults, assuming those vaults still exist. Please advise, oh movie master. We rely on you.

  • William Arthur Grove

    I'm surprised that nobody mentioned Ghost Story with Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas, Douglas Fairbanks,Jr. John Houseman and Alice Krige. Really scary, kids.

  • William Arthur Grove

    I think the rights to the Hammer films belong to either Warner Bros. or MGM.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    BK,

    Hammer is not currently out of business. In fact, their latest, "The Woman in Black," with Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is the latest fright flick coming since their resurrection. They were also (partially) responsible for the English-language redo of "Let the Right One In," shortened (for us attention-deficit-plagued Yanks) to the less polysyllabic "Let Me In."

    Anyway, click the link I provided in the comment about the "Horror..." restoration and that'll take you straight to the story from the Hammer website. :)

    William is right also about Warners (he's probably right about MGM too, though off the top of my head I can't remember which of the Hammers they've put out), but Warners had put out most all the Dracula, Frankenstein pics. Unfortunately "Prince of Darkness" and "Scars" (I believe they were both put out by Anchor Bay, I have 'em, but am too lazy to confirm that right now) are OOP for now. Too bad, both have excellent audio commentaries by Lee.

  • Lizzie

    Just one word, one title: "Halloween" - the best of the best!

  • roger lynn

    anything with the great Peter Cushing-Christopher Lee is grand in any season

  • Gord Jackson

    Being one who generally goes in for the more 'cheesy' as opposed to 'intense' stuff (altho one of the latter makes the list), I would recommend the following, some of which have already been mentioned by others:

    "The Day the Earth Stood Still" - oh fuddle duddle; trapped in an elevator at high noon. Lunch will just have to wait.

    "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" - Mad scientist and highschool bad boy fashion killer fangs to chowdown on tender morsels/mortals.

    "The Incredible Shrinking Man" - Be careful of fad diets. Less is not always more.

    "The Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956 or 1979) It's true; them there pods ain't homegrown peas.

    "Cat People" - Kitty (not Morris) feeds on more than Nine Lives.

    Night of the Living Dead" - finger lickin' good!

    "Fatal Attraction" - just add water and stew.

    "The Thing" (1948) - vanilla ice-cream hides insiduous walnut.

    "The Undead" (1957) - regurgitation via reincarnation?

    "Curse of the Cat People" - bring on the Bromo.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Gord, I appreciate you working out your list in the culinary style! Excellent picks all -- I missed ever seeing "The Undead," though with a credit listing Dick Miller as "The Leper" it looks to be well worth one's time. :)

  • Barbara

    SO glad we got "the Uninvited" on VHS!Classy, funny, scary, with beautiful interiors and exteriors- watched it last night. We do a scary movie every night in Oct.
    Also, would pick: double-header Shadow of the Vampire + Nosferatu, then Cronos and Let the Right One In; Night of the Living Dead + Night of the Living Bread; Rocky Horror; The Other (Uta Hagen and those scary twins); Something Wicked This Way Comes; Titus; The Last Man on Earth/Omega Man/I Am Legend; the Innocents; all the versions of Island of Dr. Moreau.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Barbara, love the creative pairings, especially "Something Wicked..." + "Titus"!

    "Shadow of the Vampire" is an underrated mini-classic.

    ALL the Dr. Moreau movies? I'm not sure I could bring myself to look at the Brando version again...though it does have that unforgettable moment when Nelson de la Rosa ("world's smallest actor") pours ice into Dr. Moreau's funny hat.

  • masterofoneinchpunch

    Hammer Studio: I'm still upset that Shatter is so hard to find (the two R1 versions are OOP) one of two coproductions with Shaw Brothers. The one I have seen is Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires which is a fun, if not a great watch.

    The fun thing you can do for October is to mix as many different sub-genres in the horror/suspense realm to keep your watching interesting (in the idea of this post of course). Since there is so much good film out there it is impossible to recommend everything in a post leaving it to us in the comments.

    Asia: Now can I get anyone to watch The Boxer's Omen (1983; works well while you are eating :) ) or A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)? :D If you need horror and martial arts together than Human Lanterns is a great watch (guess what the lanterns are made of). There are so many great Hong Kong, South Korean and Japanese horror films. Audition is not exotic compared to many other Takashi Miike films :D

    Disturbing: Henry: The Portrait of a Serial Killer always has a special place of films I do not want to watch again.

    Good to see The Phantom Carriage mentioned. Funny that I watched that recently alongside the Bergman influenced The Masque of the Red Death (1964: Roger Corman). If you have not seen The Seventh Seal, put that in a watch between the three films.

    I'm a Vincent Price fan, so not much to add here that has not already been written except to add The Comedy of Terrors (1963: Jacques Tourneur) which I was surprised how much I liked.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    MOIIP is responding to my own mention of "The Phantom Carriage"--movie fans may want to read his own enjoyable review of the film on a forum devoted to Criterion releases:
    http://www.criterionforums.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=1171&view=findpost&p=31011

    Strictly speaking, it's not a horror film, but more like a far grimmer "Christmas Carol"-type tale. A quality work though and a must-see for Bergman fans eager to learn about the movie that is said to have inspired him.

    Agreed on "Henry," too. if I take you right to say that it's effective but you're not jumping up and down to experience it again. (I sort of feel the same way about "Man Bites Dog," though I recall not liking the film so very much on first viewing and am often tempted to check it out again).

  • masterofoneinchpunch

    Thanks George.

    I don't really want to watch Man Bites Dog again either (unfortunately I remember most of the film and technically I do not think it is as good as Henry).

    I tend not to like overly mysogynistic work, so some of these type of films I try to avoid. Miike's work fits under this category (like Full Metal Yakuza), however, he is a good filmmaker so films like Ichi the Killer remained talked about.

    Random recommendation: Ju-on: The Gruge (2002 release, not the later sequels) or the first two Japanese video shorts of Juaon are pretty cool as well.

  • masterofoneinchpunch

    that came out weird: I will repost:

    I don't really want to watch Man Bites Dog again either (unfortunately I remember most of the film and technically I do not think it is as good as Henry).

    I tend not to like overly mysogynistic work, so some of these type of films I try to avoid. Miike's work fits under this category (like Full Metal Yakuza), however, he is a good filmmaker so films like Ichi the Killer remained talked about.

    Random recommendation: Ju-on: The Gruge (2002 release, not the later sequels) or the first two Japanese video shorts of Juaon are pretty cool as well.

  • frank

    Congratulations Jake! " The Black Cat" is a unique blend of necrophillia, homoeroticism & style over substance that defies description. My favorite Karloff/Lugosi film collaboration!

  • frank

    Another Lugosi gem, the recent Criterion DVD of "Island of Lost Souls" is a tasty blend of medical experiments gone amok with with a side dish of interspecies sex. At 61 minutes you can't go wrong because the movie is so wrong in so many levels.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    Funny you should mention "Island of Lost Souls," frank -- make sure you take note that yes, I have recommended a re-watching of that film for the very reason that it's now out by Criterion!

    Go here to see that, plus 2 other classics to watch "instead of Human Centipede 2":
    http://www.moviefanfare.com/horror_movies/the_human_centipede_ii/

  • Gil

    This list is eye candy for my Halloween weekend viewing! And Jake, I couldn't agree with you more - you listed several of my all-time favorites. If anyone is looking for a newer, good, old-fashioned ghost story, I ran across a British film, "Knife Edge" on Netflix the other night. Cuddle up with your special someone and enjoy...it has it all...set in the English countryside; a beautiful old mansion; ghosts; a stormy night and mind games. Happy Halloween everyone!

  • Blair Kramer.

    Say George,

    Regarding Hammer's "The Lady In Black" (thanks mucho for the link by the way. I guess I haven't been keeping up.), didn't Superman have an encounter with "The Lady In Black" way back in the mid 50's in an episode of "The Adventures Of Superman"...?

    By the way... No one has yet mentioned Lon Chaney's "The Phantom Of The Opera" or "London After Midnight." Wassamatta, don't silent movies count?

  • Barbara

    George,
    I might be mis-remembering, but isn't the Brando version of Island of Dr Moreau the one where the guy is being carried on a chair, really fat, and wearing (white) zinc oxide all over his face? We always laughed and said, "Michael Jackson, the later years". Of course, now it's not funny...
    Also, forgot to add "Magic" to our Oct list- really creepy.

  • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

    BK,

    Ah, well the Hammer movie is called "The Woman in Black" (a redux of the 1989 version) as opposed to "LADY in Black," but yea, that's one of those excellent Supermans when they were still B&W and pretty grim on occasion (remember Supes leaving crooks stranded atop an icy mountain after they learn his identity? I forget what that one's called but it was great)

    I imagine nobody picks "London.." because nobody's actually seen it, sadly. I have Caligari in the menu though, so silents are well represented. If I had to shoehorn a Lon Chaney in here, I'd probably go with his talkie "Unholy Three" remake, which I included in my Shocking Stuffers picks from last year:
    http://www.moviefanfare.com/movie-mashups/christmas-shocking-stuffers-for-horror-movie-fans/

    Barbara, you are indeed correct about Brando arriving in whiteface in a kinda-sorta-Popemobile. And yes, he was pretty fat then, too. Watch his previous movie "Don Juan Demarco" for GOOD fat Brando...

  • scribe_well

    "Things" that help celebrate the witching season: DRACULA (1931); ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN; MAD MONSTER PARTY?; CREEPSHOW; TRICK R TREAT; all of the Halloween-themed episodes of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER; and, of course, that old staple: IT'S THE GREAT PUMPKIN CHARLIE BROWN.

  • Blair Kramer.

    George...

    The episode of "The Adventures Of Superman" in which Superman went naked (only kidding!) because someone stole his costume was called "The Stolen Costume." It was an early 50's, first season episode that happens to be one of the very best shows of the entire series. "The Lady In Black" was a mid 50's, second season episode. It's not one of the best episodes but it IS very good. By the way... The easiest way to tell the difference between first and second season black and white episodes of "The Adventures Of Superman" is by simply noting who plays Lois Lane. If Phyllis Coates plays Lois, it's a first season show. If Lois is played by Noel Neill, it's the second season (except... Lois doesn't appear in "The Stolen Costume" at all! Hmmm...!)!

  • connie ferrell

    As for creepy ghost stories, try "The Haunting" with Julie Harris, nd "The Innocents" with Deborah Kerr, (based on Henry James' "Turn of the Screw").

    • http://www.moviesunlimited.com George D. Allen

      (Ghouly) Irv loves "The Haunting" (as do I!)--you can see here that it made one of his "Top 10 Horror Movies of all Time"
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pS3SizK-zeQ

      I'd love to watch "The Innocents," I've missed that one.

  • Geri

    Thanks, William G, for mentioning Ghost Story - one of my favorites and not-to-be missed. And really, folks, you have to love Vincent Price - he is Halloween personified!

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