They’re back!!! Sam Raimi and Gil Kenan are remaking the horror classic Poltergeist, and not even Hollywood rumors about a deadly curse are enough to stop them. What makes the original 1982 version so terrifying? Let’s recap. An average everyday family, living in a run-of-the-mill suburban house, begin to notice some strange things are happening in …
Kairo (Pulse) Written and directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa Japan, 2001 With our obsession of technology and isolation, would we realize it if the human race suddenly disappeared one day? We’ve spent decades refining technology that can allow us to be much more sociable, and connect with people from other parts of the world. And yet, …
There is an absolute basic terror to be found in Danny Boyle’s kinetic, vivid take on zombie films. Upon first viewing, 28 Days Later is one of the most viciously terrifying films made. It’s only on multiple viewings do you begin to see how amazing Boyle was in creating a world inhabited by monsters but made even scarier by the humans still left.
The etymologic history of the giallo sub-genre is well-documented by now. Giallo, Italian for yellow, refers to the cheap mystery books that at least partially inspired a cross-section of gruesome murder films from the likes of Mario Bava, Dario Argento, and Lucio Fulci. Bava’s The Girl Who Knew Too Much from 1963 is commonly referenced …
No one probably would have expected Kenneth Branagh’s follow up to Henry V to be a black and white, neo-noir, dark romance with gut-wrenching psychological thrills. Dead Again is equal parts suspense and supernatural puzzles but also a very strange send up to classic Hollywood and Hitchcock.
If any case could be made for the advantage of running zombies in the zombie film sub-genre, Dead Set would easily trump any argument against the device. While I’m a zombie enthusiast who loves the lumbering dead, Dead Set not only endorses running zombies, but makes turns them on to a world of lazy, complacent …
One of the most integral parts of slasher films (1970s and onwards) is the concept of the “Final Girl”. Not only is it now a really iconic and interesting term, it’s one that’s evolved over the years as societal views in the horror genre has too. Coined by American film professor Carol J. Clover, the …
Hellraiser Directed by: Clive Barker Written by: Clive Barker USA, 1987 For my final film for the 31 Days of Horror I wanted to choose one that isn’t the traditional ‘haunted house’ film. I wanted something that went beyond the walls of a house and cultivated its fear from something a little deeper. Hellraiser was …
The ABCs of Death Directors: Banjong Pisanthanakun Angela Bettis Adrian Garcia Bogliano Jason Eisener Ernesto Diaz Espinoza Bruno Forzani and Héléne Cattet Xavier Gens Lee Hardcastle Thomas Malling Yoshihiro Nishimura Simon Rumley Marcel Sarmiento Jon Schnepp Srdjan Spasojevic Timo Tjahjanto Andrew Traucki Nacho Vigalondo Jake West Ti West Ben Wheatley Adam Wingard Yûdai Yamaguchi 2012, …
The Curse of Frankenstein Written by Jimmy Sangster Directed by Terence Fisher UK, 1957 Having enjoyed success with the sci-fi horror film The Quatermass Xperiment (1955), the Hammer studio was keen to further exploit the apparent appeal of darker content – Quatermass had notably been one of the early recipients of the ‘X’ certificate – …
Inland Empire Written by David Lynch Directed by David Lynch USA, 2006 So much has been written and posited about the works of David Lynch – not just his films, but his art and music as well – that more column inches will always struggle to unearth any new readings or insights. Lynch is probably …
Rosemary’s Baby Directed by Roman Polanski Written by Ira Levin and Roman Polanski USA, 1968 Without actress Mia Farrow, Roman Polanski’s 1968 film Rosemary’s Baby perhaps isn’t the classic that we know today. Inhabiting the crucial and now infamous lead role with such sheer force and authenticity, the slender actress would become a trailblazer for disturbed female characters …
The Fearless Vampire Killers Written by Gérard Brach and Roman Polanski Directed by Roman Polanski USA/UK, 1967 Roman Polanski’s comedy was his first foray into both Hollywood and colour filmmaking, and, whether intentional or not, feels like a deliberate parody of the Hammer studio’s brand of gothic horror. Polanski’s film has similarly striking castle locales, …
The Innkeepers Directed by Ti West Written by Ti West 2011, USA Great horror films are made with the understanding that our imaginations only need a gentle nudge to send us spirally down a rabbit hole of fear. Our minds can wander to some terrible places when left to their own devices. In the Innkeepers …
John Dies at the End Directed by Don Coscarelli Written by Don Coscarelli 2012, USA Based on the horror novel written by Jason Pargin (under the pseudonym David Wong), and first published online as a web-serial in 2001, John Dies at the End follows two college dropouts Dave (Chase Williamson) and John (Rob Mayes), who …
Angst (Fear) Written by Gerald Kargl and Zbigniew Rybczynski Directed by Gerald Kargl Austria, 1983 When it comes to cinematic portraits of killers, there is a tendency towards the mythic. Because, as a society, we like to keep a safe distance from those who consciously choose to kill others (whether for visceral enjoyment or personal …
Demon Seed Directed by Donald Cammell Written by Dean R. Koontz USA, 1977 Donald Cammell’s Demon Seed barely bypasses its routine silliness to become little more than an effective sci-fi-thriller/body-horror entry. Based on a novel of the same name by Dean R. Koontz, the film functions as a close relative to the later works of …
Gothic Written by Stephen Volk Directed by Ken Russell UK, 1986 Natasha Richardson (in her leading role debut) plays Mary Godwin, later Mary Shelley, in Ken Russell’s fictionalised take on the inception of both her classic novel Frankenstein and John Polidori’s The Vampyre. It is based on the Shelleys’ visit with Lord Byron at Villa …
Dracula Directed by Tod Browning Written by Garrett Fort U.S.A., 1931 Sound on Sight’s 31 Days of Horror series makes a decisive switch of gears on Tuesdays with a look at some of the horror genre’s unmistakable gems: its classic monsters. These films will all be from the 1950s, 40s and even the 30s, the …
Amityville II Directed by Damiano Damiani Written by Tommy Lee Wallace 1982, USA If Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap directed a movie, it would be Amityville II, because everything in this film is turned up to 11. It has all the subtlety and grace of a jackhammer hitting a gas line and exploding into a …