My Top 10 Horror Films Of 2007

I have been anticipating this double feature from both Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino since I first heard about it and I can tell you that I wasn't disappointed. This is the most fun I have had watching a film in a while and I loved everything second of it! Here are my individual reviews of each of the film and fake trailers:

...the films...

"Planet Terror" - Rodriguez' gory zombie opus is a highly entertaining and rocking-good time from start to finish. The cast are all great in their roles (Rose McGowan and Freddy Rodriguez were terrific in the lead roles and it is nice to see Michael Biehn back on the screen again), the John Carpenter-esque score was right on the money, the humour was twisted but hilarious, the zombies were great and the action scenes were well staged. The only thing that slightly annoyed me was the ending but that was no biggy.

"Death Proof" - Tarantino's segment while little bit slow is still a fun romp that had me through out. The mostly female cast were very good in their well developed roles (Rosario Dawson, Syndey Tamia Poitier, Traci Thoms, Vanessa Ferlito were the stand-outs but the biggest props go to real life stuntwoman Zoe Bell, who gives both a charming and confident performance in her frirst acting role), Tarantino's direction was great and his script is well written (some of the dialogue seemed a bit forced but it didn't bother me too much), the soundtrack is great and the car chases/crashes were awesome (Bell's stuntwork was amazing in some of these scenes). Despite all that the film really belongs to Kurt Russell who is excellent as the villian "Stuntman Mike", while he isn't in it as much as I thought he would but he is great when he is onscreen. Some people probably won't like this one but I really enjoyed it.

...the fake trailers...

"Machete" - This is a very entertaining action-packed trailer from Rodriguez that I can't wait to see this made into a film. Danny Trejo is great in it and it features some great lines: If you want Machete yo kill the bad guy, you better make damn sure that the bad guy isn't you!" LOL

"Werewolf Women Of The SS" - While Rob Zombie's tariler may not the best of the lot but it is well made and I also wouldn't mind seeing this expanded into a film as well. What makes this a stand-out is Nicolas Cage's awesome and hilarious cameo.

"Don't"- Not as good as I thought it was going to be but Edgar Wright's haunted house trailer was pretty amusing and all the cameos made it really fun.

"Thanksgiving" - Eli Roth's slasher film trailer would have to be my favourtie of the lot. It has a exact look and feel of what slashers were like during the late 70's/early 80's. It's nicely gory and funny.

Overall this is a fun ride all round and I recommend for everyone to check out!

It's offical. Every Stephen King adaptation must be written & directed by Frank Darabont. Great cast (Marcia Gay Harden is terrific), great script, great monsters and, oh man, that ending! I haven't been punched in the gut by an ending like that since both "Dogville" and "United 93".

This is a highly entertaining and superbly made South Korean monster movie that deserves all the praise that it has been getting. The cast all do a great job with their performances and Joo-Ho Bong's direction is extremely well done. The monster himself is well design and his attack scenes are well staged (especially the first attack, which is very memorable). The script is well written because it is nicely laced with thrills, laughs and satire. Definitely check this one out for sure!

This sequel to the terrific 2003 film "28 Days Later" is a well amde, scary and intense follow-up that expands the world of the original without rehashing it. While the characters aren't as fleshed out as they were in the first film but they are well established enough for us to care about them (trust me because we do) and the cast all do a great job with their performances (Robert Carlyle and Jeremy Renner are the stand-outs). The direction is both gritty and fast=paced, the action scenes are well staged and the score is terrific. The shaky handheld camera style might annoy some viewers (it sometimes did it with me every now and again) but it reflects the chaos of the situation in which the characters are in. Also the opening is really fantastic. If you liked the first film than check this one out!

This adaptation of Stephen King's short story would have the scariest ghost film since both "The Sixth Sense" and "The Ring". John Cusack gives a fantastic performance in the very creepy and chilling horror film that had me from the very beginning to the very end. It could have easily have been boring since that it is mostly set entirely in a hotel room but the director and the writers keep us involved with the main character's time within the room. Samuel L. Jackson is also great in very small but important role and the music, the cinematography and the production design are all terrific. This is a great horror film that everyone needs to check out!

Writer/director Greg McLean's follow-up to his excellent Aussie horror debut "Wolf Creek" is an old fashioned, suspenseful and entertaining monster movie about a group of tourists, including tour guide Kate (Radha Mitchell) and American travel writer Pete (Michael Vartan), who get an attack by a huge 7 meter man-eating crocodile in the Australian outback. While it isn't as good as his debut but McLean makes a highly effective horror film that is well acted by its cast (although some of the Aussie actors are a bit on-or-off with their overseas accents), McLean's direction is stylishly terrific, the cinematography is beautifully picturesque and the score is great. However the film's plot is routine and predicable and the supporting characters are underdeveloped (some of them are pretty much there for croc food) but they didn't bother me too much because this film doesn't try reinvent the wheel but it takes more of a realistic, serious and entertaining approach, trust me when I say that it is definitely 100 times better than most shitty killer croc films (especially that horrible film "Primeval"). Also I have to mention that the star of the film is the croc himself, unlike most other killer crocs in the genre McLean doesn't play it as a monster but rather as an animal. Luckily McLean takes the "Jaws" route, so that you never really see it until the very end. When you finally see it is a fantastic creation of both CGI and animatronics, I swear that there were times where I actually forgot that it was a CGI character. It is so realistic in its look, colouring and movements that you would think that it was the real thing. Overall it isn't the most original horror film ever made but it still a well crafted and intense film that I think everyone will enjoy and it also proves that McLean is as a future master of horror.

This would have to be the most original and cleverest horror film that you will see this year. The mixture of mockumentary and slasher film makes it a smart and entertaining satire. The cast all do a good job (Nathan Baesel is outstanding in his debut role as the title character, Angela Goethals is equally good as the film student who is doing the documentary on Leslie Verson and also veterans Scott Wilson and Robert Englund are both also solid in their small roles). The direction is well handled and the script is full of great ideas and wit. The only thing that disappointed me about the film was that the last 30 minutes failed to live to the great things that were established during the first hour. However this is a really good horror film that fans of horror will definitely have a good time with.

I must admit that I have never read Richard Matheson's classic novel (although I have seen the second adaptation of the book The Omega Man) but I still found this film to be an entertaining sci-fi/horror that had me hooked with its story and its terrific performance by Will Smith. I agree with a lot of people that this is two-thirds of a great film: the first hour was eerily stunning but the last half hour was pretty weak (although it didn't bother me too much). The only problem I had with this film is, why were the creatures done in CGI? While I didn't think that were as bad as everyone made it out to be (the CGI wasn't great but it wasn't bad either)but they would have been much scarier with they were done with make-up and prosthetics (kind of like the Crawlers in "The Descent"). While it isn't a perfect film and it has its flaws but I really liked it nonetheless.