Halloween Movies
For a nice round-up of some scariest/most shocking/best horror films, check out IFC Blog’s list of lists.
Perhaps it would have been better to present this earlier in the day, but here’s a list of some good Halloween movies for your perusal:
The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari
Directed by Robert Wiene, 1920
- Try watching this with Radiohead’s Kid A playing as the soundtrack. It doesn’t sync, but it’s an interesting match.
Nosferatu
Directed by F.W. Murnau, 1922
The Skeleton Dance
Directed by Ub Iwerks, 1929
- The first of Walt Disney’s “Silly Symphony” series. It’s a great animated short.
Frankenstein
Directed by James Whale, 1931
- This may not be Mary Shelley’s Frankesntein, but there’s a reason Whales’ film is a classic.
Vampyr - Der Traum Des Allan Grey
Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1932
King Kong
Directed by Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack, 1933
- Quite possibly still the best monster movie ever made.
Bride Of Frankenstein
Directed by James Whale, 1935
- Some say it’s better than the first — depends on how much you like camp.
Donald Duck And The Gorilla
Directed by Jack King, 1944
- Remember when it was okay to scare children? This is one of the most tautly suspenseful films you’re likely to see. Yes, a Donald Duck cartoon.
Orphée
Directed by Jean Cocteau, 1949
- Should this movie be on the list? The dude has to go to the Underworld to retrieve his wife — that qualifies it.
The Thing From Another World
Directed by Christian Nyby, Howard Hawks, 1951
- What’s that frozen creature under the ice and is it peaceful or hostile? Take a guess.
Them!
Directed by Gordon Douglas, 1954
- Giant, radioactive ants as communist menace. Scarily good.
The Seventh Seal
Directed by Ingmar Bergman, 1957
- Face Death… in a game of chess! The horror!
The Blob
Directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr., Russell S. Doughten Jr., 1958
- Communism is spreading! And so is the blob! Oh, and Steve McQueen, too!
The Exorcist
Directed by William Friedkin, 1973
- Pea soup, rotating heads, Christ compelling you with his power. Creepy.
Young Frankenstein
Directed by Mel Brooks, 1974
- It’s rare that the satire surpasses its subject.
Carrie
Directed by Brian De Palma, 1976
- Puberty sure is scary. Maybe it’s the new communism?
ABBA: The Movie
Directed by Lasse Hallström, 1977
- Someone is likely to get a beating for including this… cheap jokes sure are easy.
Alien
Directed by Ridley Scott, 1979
- Actually quite a bit like The Thing From Another World, except in space.
The Shining
Directed by Stanley Kubrick, 1980
- Which is scarier? Jack Nicholson with an axe or those two little girls? Actually, maybe the most intimidateing thing is the sound design of little Danny’d big wheel rolling from carpet to hard floors through long tracking shots.
An American Werewolf
Directed by John Landis, 1981
- From the director of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video — and only slightly longer!
The Evil Dead
Directed by Sam Raimi, 1981
- Best use of a 2×4 in cinematography ever.
Poltergeist
Directed by Tobe Hooper, 1982
- A lesson to always check that any home you may purchase is not built over desecrated Indian burial grounds. Common sense, right?
Vincent
Directed by Tim Burton, 1982
- Tim Burton and Vincent Price. Macabre enough for you?
Ghostbusters
Directed by Ivan Reitman, 1984
- Who you gonna call?
The Fly
Directed by David Cronenberg, 1986
- For some reason, it just makes sense that Jeff Goldblum should play a fly.
Evil Dead II
Directed by Sam Raimi, 1987
- Part remake, part sequel, and possibly better than the first.
Beetle Juice
Directed by Tim Burton, 1988
- Tim Burton has issues.
Edward Scissorhands
Directed by Tim Burton, 1990
- Tim Burton is working through his issues.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Directed by Henry Selick, 1993
- Someone else takes a crack at Tim Burton’s issues and does a pretty damn good job of it.
The Blair Witch Project
Directed by Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez, 1999
- What happens when you give Hanseland Gretel video equipment and the witch doesn’t need gingerbread to lure in the children?
Mullholland Drive
Directed by David Lynch, 2001
- As close a thing to a nightmare put on screen as, perhaps, possible.
28 Days Later
Directed by Danny Boyle, 2002
- Now with faster zombies!
Shaun Of The Dead
Directed by Edgar Wright, 2004
- Now with funnier zombies!
Corpse Bride
Directed by Tim Burton, Mike Johnson, 2005
Wallace & Gromit In The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit
Directed by Steve Box, Nick Park
ABBA the Movie is only scary when someone pummels you as you mock the film.
Do you remember when we saw a screening of this a couple of years ago and at first I was bummed that there were only a handful of people in the theater, then I realized (to your chagrin) that this factor would enable me to sing loudly along to all of the songs in the film? Remember? I’M A MARIONETTE