Thanks for sharing this, Cindy. I love the old Universal Horror films, but number one for me is still the original, 1933 version of King Kong. The way they managed to create tension, with the great musical score, and Willis O'Brien's magic with stop action motion, created scenes that are still seared into my memory. I still have King Kong dreams. I think The Bad Seed was pretty scary, too, in a different way.
Anything with Bela Lugosi in it still draws my interest. He was paid only $3500 for his iconic role as Dracula, and thereafter the studios took advantage of him at every turn. I also love Val Lewton's creepy, atmospheric films of the 1940s, especially The Seventh Victim, about a Satanic cult in NYC, starring Hugh Beaumont (Ward Cleaver) as the hero!
Thanks--The Bad Seed scared the crap out of me, as well. Now, we live with Bad Seed people in power......My first nightmare was King Kong's fist breaking through the head of my crib. I remember climbing out of it and running to my mom. I must have been like 3---pretty old for a crib, especially since I could get in and out myself. I have never seen The Seventh Victim. It sounds like a film that MST3K would have riffed. They did a lot of films with good old Hugh--they called him "Huge Beaumont" LOL. I remember they riffed The Lost Continent with Huge Beaumont.
I love the old Universal classics and the Hammer UK classics with Peter Cushing, Vincent Price and Christopher Lee.
Night of the Living Dead and its sequels are faves too, but please check out John Carpenter's oeuvre, especially They Live and his version of The Thing and the original The Thing is great too.
Also love Roger Corman's films, especially those inspired by Poe and Val Lewton's The Black Cat is up there too!
And of course I lost count how many times I have seen King Kong (1933)!
The Japanese are ace at horror starting with the original Godzilla and all the versions of cat demon hauntings and vengeful ghost haunting stories set in pre-modern Edo Period.
For me, the benchmark of a great horror movie was how badly it could scare you if you weren't even in the same room as the tv. I remember back around 1960 I was in middle school and trying to go to sleep on one school night evening. My parents decided to watch a Bela Lugosi Dracula film on tv in another room, and unfortunately there was no door separating the rooms. I tried hard to block out the sounds coming from the tv, even putting the pillow over my head along with the blanket. No luck.
Great thread and discussion, Cindy! The ending of Hereditary was so crazy compared to the rest of the film; Toni Collette was insanely good. Have you seen the sci-fi/horror Splice with Sarah Polley? That one stuck with me.
1964 - sitting in the living room with my Dad. I must have been not feeling well and so was up later than usual. My mother was at a Mother's Club meeting or something. Normally we were all in bed by 7:30.
"The Haunting". I will never forget it. By this time it was on TV. Scariest movie I ever saw. Julie Harris. Claire Bloom.
For years after that I wondered what had happened to the movie. Never saw it again!
Funny those certain memories you have. And the anomlies that accompany them. Like my being up that late. And my dad watching it with me. He was not a tv watcher per se.
I am not a scary movie person so really cannot compare it to others, but like one other commenter, I think "Rosemary's Baby" was pretty damn creepy/scary. I think the movie even surpassed the book in creepiness. Ruth Gordon, John Cassavettes. Brilliant cast.
Anyway, thank you for the memory of The Haunting. I never would have thought someone else had the same reaction.
Ooh, Only Lovers Left Alive was really good. I'm not a horror person, so maybe it struck me more as a romance. And the atmosphere is so mezmerizing, I've seen it several times.
I like Cronenberg and Carpenter. A lot of the ones you mentioned are Scifi to me. I just reached both of the Carpenter films you mentioned. Yes, super good! The Prophecy was also great
You’re a soul sister for sure! Haunting of Hill House was SOOO scary, and Juan is right about Rosemary’s Baby…frightening and possibly the movie which best hewes to the book ever…
As with your giving "The Shining" a second chance, so to speak, I experienced the same but with respect to a novel. Namely Peter Matthisson's "Men's Lives." First "reading" [as if 10-15 pages counts] left me completely uninspired. Nonetheless, backing for a 2-yr tour in Bolivia, I added "Men's..." to the stack. Maybe it was the setting where I returned to this work & and am damned glad I did. It is a masterwork. BB in VA
Spoorloos (1988). A true masterpiece regardless of genre with the best ending of any film. Not a drop of blood in the film but it stayed with me for weeks after viewing. Available on YouTube for free.
I'll sound snarky, but I always associate two separate movie titles. Those are a) the Haunting of Hill House {listed here] and b)) "Legend of Hell House." I still need to see a) but in the meantime, i strongly recommend b.
I'm not a devotee of pure 'horror' films, but I do like that genre mixed with sci-fi. The original Village of the Damned, The Last Man on Earth, the original Alien, etc. are some of my favorites.
I overlap with you and Don Jeffries. I have DVD collections of the old Universal films, just for the pure nostalgia more than fear. I agree with the impact of "The Haunting" which I first saw with my brother on TV. I even remember saying, "Wow that's Riff from West Side Story." But as a film fanatic who re-watches films with no limits, "The Haunting" hasn't held up for me once the initial fear of the first time was experienced. Still a good film, but not lingering. I believe "King Kong" holds up as lingering and great, even knowing every coming scene and detail ahead of time. Think some of the Roger Corman films, mostly with Vincent Price, deserve a mention. Perhaps "The Tomb of Ligeia" most. Speaking of Price, I always thought "House of Wax" underrated. There was also a period of idolizing Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Great idea for a post!
1951 The Thing from Another World (The Thing) gave me nightmares as an 8yo.
1968 Rosemary's Baby. 1973 The Exorcist.
The remake of The Thing is good, as well. The other two are classic
Thanks for sharing this, Cindy. I love the old Universal Horror films, but number one for me is still the original, 1933 version of King Kong. The way they managed to create tension, with the great musical score, and Willis O'Brien's magic with stop action motion, created scenes that are still seared into my memory. I still have King Kong dreams. I think The Bad Seed was pretty scary, too, in a different way.
Anything with Bela Lugosi in it still draws my interest. He was paid only $3500 for his iconic role as Dracula, and thereafter the studios took advantage of him at every turn. I also love Val Lewton's creepy, atmospheric films of the 1940s, especially The Seventh Victim, about a Satanic cult in NYC, starring Hugh Beaumont (Ward Cleaver) as the hero!
Thanks--The Bad Seed scared the crap out of me, as well. Now, we live with Bad Seed people in power......My first nightmare was King Kong's fist breaking through the head of my crib. I remember climbing out of it and running to my mom. I must have been like 3---pretty old for a crib, especially since I could get in and out myself. I have never seen The Seventh Victim. It sounds like a film that MST3K would have riffed. They did a lot of films with good old Hugh--they called him "Huge Beaumont" LOL. I remember they riffed The Lost Continent with Huge Beaumont.
I love the old Universal classics and the Hammer UK classics with Peter Cushing, Vincent Price and Christopher Lee.
Night of the Living Dead and its sequels are faves too, but please check out John Carpenter's oeuvre, especially They Live and his version of The Thing and the original The Thing is great too.
Also love Roger Corman's films, especially those inspired by Poe and Val Lewton's The Black Cat is up there too!
And of course I lost count how many times I have seen King Kong (1933)!
The Japanese are ace at horror starting with the original Godzilla and all the versions of cat demon hauntings and vengeful ghost haunting stories set in pre-modern Edo Period.
I could talk about this stuff forever!
Too many, but I loved They Live. More sci fi . I 🤔 nk. John Carpenter is SOOO good. Corman is good but not scary. Corny, to me. But worth watching
South Koreans are scary. Have you seen Last Train to Busan?
Oh yes! Fantastic good scary!
For me, the benchmark of a great horror movie was how badly it could scare you if you weren't even in the same room as the tv. I remember back around 1960 I was in middle school and trying to go to sleep on one school night evening. My parents decided to watch a Bela Lugosi Dracula film on tv in another room, and unfortunately there was no door separating the rooms. I tried hard to block out the sounds coming from the tv, even putting the pillow over my head along with the blanket. No luck.
Great thread and discussion, Cindy! The ending of Hereditary was so crazy compared to the rest of the film; Toni Collette was insanely good. Have you seen the sci-fi/horror Splice with Sarah Polley? That one stuck with me.
Splice is a Frankenstein story, from a more female point of view
no, thanks I will check it out!
Oh my goodness.
1964 - sitting in the living room with my Dad. I must have been not feeling well and so was up later than usual. My mother was at a Mother's Club meeting or something. Normally we were all in bed by 7:30.
"The Haunting". I will never forget it. By this time it was on TV. Scariest movie I ever saw. Julie Harris. Claire Bloom.
For years after that I wondered what had happened to the movie. Never saw it again!
Funny those certain memories you have. And the anomlies that accompany them. Like my being up that late. And my dad watching it with me. He was not a tv watcher per se.
I am not a scary movie person so really cannot compare it to others, but like one other commenter, I think "Rosemary's Baby" was pretty damn creepy/scary. I think the movie even surpassed the book in creepiness. Ruth Gordon, John Cassavettes. Brilliant cast.
Anyway, thank you for the memory of The Haunting. I never would have thought someone else had the same reaction.
What a nice diversion from the usual haunting.
thanks, Judith---and thanks for sharing your story of The Haunting
xo
C
Cronenberg's early ones not to be ignored:
Shivers
Rabid
Scanners
Videodrome
and Dead Ringers especially for the girls
Best vampire movie:
Only Lovers Left Alive - Jim Jarmusch
and how can we not mention: THE THING
In the Mouth of Madness - John Carpenter
The Prophecy - Christopher Walken as archangel Gabriel
everlasting life: The Man From Earth
Ooh, Only Lovers Left Alive was really good. I'm not a horror person, so maybe it struck me more as a romance. And the atmosphere is so mezmerizing, I've seen it several times.
I like Cronenberg and Carpenter. A lot of the ones you mentioned are Scifi to me. I just reached both of the Carpenter films you mentioned. Yes, super good! The Prophecy was also great
first time I watched In the Mouth of Madness ... I was quite stoned, so I could watch it again, remembering little about the first scary encounter!
THE FLY - Cronenberg's remake.
"The Little Girl who Lives Down the Lane" is a creepy movie. Early Jody Foster and Martin Sheen.
Also Trump's appointments are really horrifying....
You’re a soul sister for sure! Haunting of Hill House was SOOO scary, and Juan is right about Rosemary’s Baby…frightening and possibly the movie which best hewes to the book ever…
Hitchcock's The Birds.
As with your giving "The Shining" a second chance, so to speak, I experienced the same but with respect to a novel. Namely Peter Matthisson's "Men's Lives." First "reading" [as if 10-15 pages counts] left me completely uninspired. Nonetheless, backing for a 2-yr tour in Bolivia, I added "Men's..." to the stack. Maybe it was the setting where I returned to this work & and am damned glad I did. It is a masterwork. BB in VA
Spoorloos (1988). A true masterpiece regardless of genre with the best ending of any film. Not a drop of blood in the film but it stayed with me for weeks after viewing. Available on YouTube for free.
Never heard of it, though I will check it out.
There is an American remake which is bad. Make sure to watch the original. You won’t be disappointed. 👍
I'll sound snarky, but I always associate two separate movie titles. Those are a) the Haunting of Hill House {listed here] and b)) "Legend of Hell House." I still need to see a) but in the meantime, i strongly recommend b.
Hell House is in my Top 20 for sure
I'm not a devotee of pure 'horror' films, but I do like that genre mixed with sci-fi. The original Village of the Damned, The Last Man on Earth, the original Alien, etc. are some of my favorites.
Hmm....read tomorrow
I may do a sci fi one soon. I love sci fi as well
I overlap with you and Don Jeffries. I have DVD collections of the old Universal films, just for the pure nostalgia more than fear. I agree with the impact of "The Haunting" which I first saw with my brother on TV. I even remember saying, "Wow that's Riff from West Side Story." But as a film fanatic who re-watches films with no limits, "The Haunting" hasn't held up for me once the initial fear of the first time was experienced. Still a good film, but not lingering. I believe "King Kong" holds up as lingering and great, even knowing every coming scene and detail ahead of time. Think some of the Roger Corman films, mostly with Vincent Price, deserve a mention. Perhaps "The Tomb of Ligeia" most. Speaking of Price, I always thought "House of Wax" underrated. There was also a period of idolizing Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Great idea for a post!
Great points. Stay tuned for tomorrow's list.
Cushing and Lee partnered in many great Hammer films