Horror Movies Not to Miss

First saw this as a young kid and it was scalded into my mind (much like Return of the Living Dead or It). When I purchased the DVD in my teens, I still loved it. Reviewing it today, it's still a great horror concept awesomely executed, though my high rating is due to my high like of the characters and setting of this flick. A must-see for horror fans or Barkerites.

the most poetic vampire film I have ever seen. Beautiful, emotional, raw, engaging, and vastly under-seen and under-rated.

few films in the zombie genre achieve what Severed does: solid acting, great gore, awesome zombies, engaging screenplay, visual consistency. a must see for zombie fans

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
This is one of the best zombie movies you've never heard of. We get everything here - from gruesome outbreak, characters we'd like to see live, scenes where an audience member can actually be afraid of a lumbering dead thing, gore galore, gritty but not annoying (actually quite effective) cinematographic aesthetic, ambiguous/down ending, a survivor camp of grizzled brutal men, and an underlying corporate conspiracy that doesn't eat away camera time but nicely explains these zombies, Severed has everything a solid zombie movie needs.

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
Ramp Noir is comprised of four short pieces all based upon the writings of valued horror writer Edogawa Rampo. The first is the most art-house, avant-garde, lacking sound and existing within a world of its own colors and kineticism. The next is an astoundingly creepy detective horror with a superb mythical-meets post-modern/surreal ending. The third is one of the most beautiful disgusting movies you'll ever see, with much astute - no, plain genius - subtext. The final piece feels like a good end, as it has the least ambiguous conclusion and the most gratuitous beautifully rendered decay and madness.
Everyone should see this so that they can know what proper modern horror film is supposed to be.

"So Fucked Up" highlight:
wife simultaneously copulates with and tortures her crippled mute husband, who sort of likes it

A new benchmark for slasher films. I love the self-referential genre film, especially one executed as nicely as this one (all puns intended). I hope this is the start of a gagillion Les movies. Dark, ironic, and revealing in theme, the story flows well. I found the killer to be genuinely scary, both in art design and character pschology.

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
This is one of my top indie zombie flix, and I prefer it better to its other Australian peer Braindead by Peter Jackson. Though some audience members are frustrated with the genre-blurring that occurs because the film-makers are looking to up the visual ante of their movie, and they are thusly accused of being Spielbergian because of some of their additional creatures design and action-based horror scenes. I think it's all done just right, including the occasionally stiff acting. There are so many innovative zombie scenes, my favorite being a pair of walking legs with accompanying spinal cord, sans a torso. The protagonists are given action-style cinematic hyping, but it's justified and cool, not unnecessary and forced. Here's a zombie that not only bothers with continuity and structure, but the independent film-makers, two brothers, behind it further proved their dedication to this project by doing all of the CGI themselves on a 700mhx processor computer, for three years after shooting concluded. These effects are on par, and in some cases better, to what big Hollywood bucks is turning out even years later. This is truly proof that auteurs are still alive and, beyond that, still bothering to work with a concept/genre considered exhausted like zombies.

One of my favorite zombie movies of the decade. Fido is an interesting and comical social satire, exactly what zombies were meant for. Matrix star Carrie Anne Moss is married to Dylan Baker, living in a 1950's setting ; the couple decide, against Baker's wishes, to get a zombie slave for helping around the house. When the zombie starts to bond with their son, the couple is split by their feelings towards the "domesticated zombie". Just an awesome movie.

the most visually astonishing vision of hell to ever be rendered on screen

The premise of The Crazies receives the treatment and production the concept deserves in this new flick. Enough blood to satisfy any media vamps out there, and more than enough story to hold the cynical horror fan tendencies at bay. Some nice little scenes of insanity, and I don't want to give anything away because you should just see it. There are a few things the discerning viewer would gripe about, but compared to its contemporaries, this is a freshly sliced chunk of violent psychological horror that implements enough fun little cinematic techniques to tickle even the staunchest of classical film students. This is a horror film that I can confidently recommend to those outside the horror hound camp; this is a damn good scary movie as well as a thoughtfully structured tale and depiction. See it!

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
This German film centers around the fictional alliance of medical professionals who believe in a credo antithetical to the Hippocratic Oath, that is their goal is to advance science without regard for the patient instead of vowing to preserve the patient's life above all other duties. This features some of the better effects I've seen in a long time, as the med students of the anti-Hippocratic order use their classmates to make groundbreaking educational installations of human anatomy. Set within the med school, the central heroine gets keen to this practice, and must unravel what is going on before she ends up as the next feature in her professors' exhibit. The plot doesn't get more interesting beyond that, but the gore is amazing and the anatomic installations are beautiful.

A good intro to select horror classics of the 70s. The best part of this documentary is that it is padded by interviews with the directors and film-makers. This group of film-makers examines the themes and subtext of their own and their peers' work, and how this greatly affected the path horror film-making took afterwards. Also, you might find a gem you haven't gotten around to yet.

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
I recommend you obtain the fully-featured DVD version of this, as many of the purposefully unanswerable questions about production that the movie raises are all answered in a documentary featurette and an "only when relevant" commentary from director Deodato and the movie's main protagonist. This film is infamous because it sparked legal action regarding the use of animals in film and the director Deodato was arrested under suspicion of murdering his actors (he didn't kill any people) and the film was banned in virtually every country, and had the unconfirmed reputation of being "the most banned movie in history".
Besides all that great hoop-la and film history, Cannibal Holocaust has got a great premise and the tactic of showing "found documentary footage" that is consuming the horror genre now, though 'The Blair Witch Project' is usually credited in mainstream sources with this innovation. Some extremely brutal scenes that leave no question in the viewer's mind as to why audiences thought all or most of the violence was real.

"So Fucked Up" highlight: the adultery punishment ritual

a fun, yet seedy and grotesque little B movie romp

Must-see horror. Best to go into this knowing nothing. A new classic, with some of the most gripping gore to splatter the screen in decades. This is one of those movies where I feel the only substantial thing I have to say is, "Why haven't you seen this yet?"

"So Fucked Up" highlight: supposedly dead and eyeless policeman rises and fights back

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
Vincent Price, in glorious color with an AMAZING primary set, plays an ingenious serial killer who kills his victims in odd ways, the scenes of which are still innovative and original in today's market. The film also holds onto Prince's signature Gothic horror themes with the character of Phibes and his lair. A vastly underrated Price movie, and a hugely underseen horror classic.

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
Great cinematography and a Gothic plot quite controversial for a feature film on its time. Compared to Hitchcock's Psycho in terms of visual language, it does deliver but didn't strike me as the "perfect piece" it was hyped to me as. Still, most viewers will be able to bite into this a bit more firmly, as my big gripe was predictability of this film within the whole of Gothic horror tales.

Second/third screening: see it for the B movie it is, but still an essential step in Romero's career. I think the only thing failing him is the budget; given bigger production values, this could have been a much better movie and potentially a classic.

First screening reaction:
This is awesome!!! Solid acting, stunning action, interesting story concept and well executed plot, and wow doesn't Romero know how to use 35mm for his first time! It's clear to see from this movie how the director's subsequent film was a watershed work.

solid indie horror flick. great production, good acting, fun gore scenes, interesting and humorous characters.

"So Fucked Up" highlight:
the "installation" that is really real

I watched the whole August Underground series in one go, and this is the only movie I kept in my collection. It's the most extreme, feels the most natural and charged, and finally does the good deed of working with three killers. A vast improvement over the first and far better than its followup; perhaps that has something to do with the fact that Fred Vogel is no longer charged with directing. This is extreme for snuff even, with the most intense scene involving a severed penis rape. Perfect balance between camera quality and effects quality (effects are extremely high quality and better than most professional productions). The visual quality is compromised on purpose to capture the handheld/found footage aesthetic and of all three movies this strikes the best balance between overplanninng and underplanning in terms of shot composition and how much jerky hand tremble shooting is allowed. A great extreme movie, and the only entry in the August Underground series worthy of notice.

"So Fucked Up" highlight: forcing guy to cut his own penis off, the friend's basement playroom

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
This middle movie of Herschell Gordon Lewis' Blood trilogy offers a great contrast of the grotesque with large celebration. The acting gets a bit annoying, and any gore hound will complain that their isn't enough blood on the screen, but I think what is there and what is implied is sufficient. I get tired of the victims wandering about befuddled and acting poorly in a "middle of a Twilight Zone episode" sort of way, but it pays off when those scenes cut to a killing ritual occuring simultaneously on the other side of town. Don't waste your time with the over-gored and shitty remake '2001 Maniacs' until you've watched Lewis' hugely influential piece.
"So Fucked Up" highlight:
the barrel roll

I actually like this one better than the first Demons, because I think Bava is allowed more freedom and expression on his set. The plot may start slow and unsteady, but once the gore kicks in, this movie moves at the perfect pace for horror. I love the strong tone of trapped dense panic in the garage scene. This scene feels more realistic than Demons, as realistic as giallo is allowed to be .

This is such a fun exploitation flick. It suffers from a few filming problems (jump cuts that don't reveal what just happened, esp the race against the random "Boy Next Door" at the beginning). A great thriller story, and you can clearly see the influence on today's directors, especially Tarantino, and the rumor that he would do a remake of this has been reported numerous times on cinephile sites, but he sort of did his version of this with Death Proof and the Kill Bill films.
For my horror fan friends, this isn't horror perse but it is a very cool psychological thriller you need to check out if you have appreciation for compelling story as opposed to just gore. The body count is plenty high, but the accent here is on the distinctive characters and this odd world they've happened into. A must-see for anyone interested in film history as this film personifies much of the commonalities in exploitation film and bridges the gap between the masters of the 50s and the upped visual ante of the 70s.

"So Fucked Up" highlight:
conclusion of the story

good genre flick and a great directorial debut

For people who can still appreciate something made in the prior century (and those numbers are dwindling), Murnau's vision of "Faust" begins with what was at the time a revolutionary visual, and still today is a provacative and effective image. There are any many variations on Faust, and I like the plot details of this one the best. The Faust and Mephistopheles are well acted; I particularly like the facial expressions of this Faust.

Definitely do not watch this unless it's the DVD version because the whole time you will be driving yourself mad asking, "Which is Fulci and which is Bruno Mattei?" Mattei clears that up himself in the DVD extras, so you need to see that.
Apparently, Fulci was sick and disinterested when he made this movie and it shows in his segments. It's still good and superior to any zombie flix rolled out today, but it is not comparable to Zombi 2. Zombie fans must see this, as it shows a culmination of the ideas brought forth by genre directors of this era. We have the white suits of 'The Crazies', the zombies of "Zombi 2', the relationship scenes with talking zombies akin to 'Return of the Living Dead', and the final death scene is awesome, clearly influencing today's storylines and set design. It's best not to view this as a Fulci film, but as a prototypical action film of the zombie genre.

Even though, it's 35 minutes before the plot launches into kill mode, it is obviously time well spent, as the characters feel like real people that I actually cared about. Considering that the premise is Rat-People, this is a very well written and engaging horror movie; in an age of overwhelming mediocre horror scripts, this story is refreshing, and if I were a rat, it'd be simply *the* cheese. Acting wise, the bit parts reveal some green talent, but the main cast are all pretty natural actors who maintain believable people, very hard in horror. The infected people/creatures of Mulberry Street, in terms of design and scare factor, are on par with Argento's Demons or some of Jackson's odder creatures in Braindead, and better than the rage victims of the "28 Later" series or Snyder's running zombies from 04's "Dawn" remake. I'd like to see some more rat people movies, but I just hope they're as compelling in terms of story and acting as this movie is. Talking of the image now, I love it. There is no huge focus on any particular kill or gore scene, but, for once, the editing works in conjunction well with handheld to create a sense of tension that does not require heavily calculated gore shots to scare the audience. This is a great and fun indie flick, and I hope to see more from this director.

Instead of watching a crap modern American horror movie, indulge in this evenly paced supernatural thriller. The dubs on the version I saw surely did not do the actors justice (they dub screams and sobs as well as dialogue). The gore scenes are evenly placed from each other, but linked together by compelling setup scenes. When the gore does kick in, we are introduced to some incredible visuals and also truly inventive ways to be killed. My only genuine criticism of this movie is that it is not good as other modern Asian horror, but that still makes it five heads above any recent Lions Gate releases.
Every horror fan MUST see the "snails" scene in this flick, it is too badass to skip.

"So Fucked Up" highlight:
the snails sequence

This is standard Asian shock horror (or Asian Extreme as the dsitributor would like you to label this genre of new ultra-gory ultra-absurd, yet incredibly realistic towards the portrayal of absurd violence, movies).
I liked the first 'Art of the Devil'; the story/script, as is typical for Asian shock imports, is much more amped, with more twists, and certainly more characters than the first movie, and certainly more than an American audience would get in a ported release. Instead of one twist in your typical shite American scareflick, you get about five. Instead of one character with a dark past, the majority of main characters have bloody and nasty secrets. And I say "gimme more, more, more" because that's the way this genre works. Americans screw up imports of similar titles to this by simplifying the plot (less writers to pay), scaling down the amount of characters (less actors to pay), copying the gore scenes essentially cut for cut, but then KEEP all the plot holes and continuity errors and DROP the consistent pacing, which in a "gorefest", these plot/script flaws are only excusable when they are done to the max as in Asian horror. So mindfick me all you want, just do it as much as you can, like this movie does, or else the movie will suck. The only annoying thing in this movie is that it is dubbed instead of subbed, but I'd rather that over a full-blown American ported version anyway.
I love the aesthetic qualities given to the production design of the blood, ghosts, and, in this movie, featured amphibians and aquatic life. I don't know why, but Asian directors just have a better grasp of what makes a f-ed up scenario look as f-ed as it actually is; meaning I think the kills are amplified and beyond the reach of your typical Dimension or Lions Gate trash. Even compared to the elaborate, and my only favorite of the series, Saw 3, the inventive diabolical behavior and mutilation is effectively executed in this movie to scare or stun me, as oppposed to me laughing at it (I'm talking about Eli Roth And Darren Lyn Bousman in particular here).
I've rated this the same as its predecessor, but I do think it is better and you don't have to see the first to understand this one. The premise is: people put curses on each other and no characters from the two movies cross over so feel free to skip the first, as it is slower paced. While the first really pays off all around, in the non-violent and grotesque scenes, this movie only shines for the grotesque, which is more abundant and equally creative, though if you like this, you must see the first, at least fast forwarding to all the kills, particularly the "snails" murder which is stunningly shot. In this one, the top murder is...tied between the "hooks" and "newts" scene. It's really badass. You gotta see this, horror fans.
"So Fucked Up" highlight:
finding out what's in the fish soup

This is a vastly underseen film, and in my opinion, this film is a Gothic horror classic, and I think this should be on a few more film/media/literature professors' syllabuses. This may be Corman's best work with Price.

Frightening for its realism, tight characterization, solid dialogue, and shocking shots, this is a superior examination of serial murders, and not a genre film, but a legitimate drama with psychotic twists.

"So Fucked Up" highlight:
the conclusion

Wes Craven's debut has caused me to have many a debate with other horror fans, who think the movie doesn't have the same ability to shock in today's market, but I was freaked out, whereas most current stuff of this type just makes me laugh. I think the characters have alot, for me, to do with sustaining the fear this movie can generate.

Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
As so many films have been influenced by this one little no budget indie project (and two of horror's biggest names Craven and Sean Cunningham began their careers with it), it is essential viewing for horror students. And for those who want a movie with realistic killers and fully expressed personalities, watch this instead of your SawHostel tripe.
"So Fucked Up" highlight: forcing the girl to urinate herself (actress really did it on set)

A magnum opus. One thinks of great and iconic first horror films: Craven's "Last House on the Left", Carpenter's "Halloween", Hooper's "Texas Chainsaw Massacre", Romero's "Night of the Living Dead", Argento's "The Bird with Crystal Plumage". And we should be reminded of these as these are the films that the directors, Alexandre Aja and Gregory Levasseur, studied and adored in their youth. More specifically, they wanted to pay tribute to this new form of horror film which emerged in the early to mid 1970s. But this isn't a big allusion-fest, this is a contemporary extreme thriller. Aja and Levasseur have clearly digested the films they've seen and are capable of using that knowledge to create fantastic film.
Horror Not to Miss List Commentary:
THERE IS NO REASON WHY YOU SHOULD NOT SEE THIS FILM.

It's gre