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Songfactor's Top 10 Movies {HORROR / THRILLER}


MindCrime

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The majority of the selections so far ... aren't scary . They are tried and true classics who's effects have worn off years ago with repetitive viewings - if they ever were 'scary ' ! Even 'The Shining' or 'The Birds ' or 'Carrie ' are hardly more than a psycho-dramas - but not true horror films . A horror film should make you ill at ease after watching it , and make you contemplate the unreality or evil beyond that you know - as well as scare you , to the point it is hard to 'admire' it . :D :jack:

The Changeling and The Exorcist are about the only ones ...

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Now that show -and people's interest in it IS scary . :laughing:

No , I just don't want to see a list of Hollywood top 50's that are rather dull , as 'horrors ' , except for some fine acting/directing in the genre they belong to . Who is REALLY disturbed anymore watching ' The Birds ' or 'The Shining ' ? Pick stuff that is really frightening . I may even vote for BA's, though, I haven't seen it , but I know he likes his horror . Something that undermines your sense of well being ...

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A horror film should make you ill at ease after watching it , and make you contemplate the unreality or evil beyond that you know - as well as scare you , to the point it is hard to 'admire' it . :D :jack:

The Changeling and The Exorcist are about the only ones ...

What's the name of that movie from the seventies about two little twin boys? (I thought it was called "Twins" but cannot find it... not the Jeremy Irons one) They had a Russian grandmother...

Now "The Omen" is a movie that makes you think.

I also loved The Company Of Wolves by Neil Jordan.

"Christine" was a good film too...

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I think I know what film you're talking about -> The Other (1972)

I've only seen it once on TV (probably around '74) and barely recall anything other than it starred John Ritter (Jack Tripper, Three's Company) and a pitchfork in the barn scene.

And speaking of TV, there was this made for tv movie that scared the frickin' poop out of me. They must of aired this film 3 or 4 times in a couple of years (in Canada anyway) and really, really, really freaked me out. --> The Screaming Woman

The synopsis: A wealthy former mental patient goes home to her estate to rest and recuperate. While walking the grounds one day she hears the screams of a woman coming from underneath the ground who has been buried alive. Her family, however, refuses to believe her story, and sees the incident as an opportunity to prove the woman's mind has snapped so they can take control of her money.

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but not true horror films . A horror film should make you ill at ease

the subject also calls for "thrillers." Which I interpret to be suspense. So while my noms are not "horrors" by any stretch, they are most definitely "thrillers."

And if you think about it, no movie is going to be as suspenseful/horror-filled/thrilling after the first time you watch it, they remain good examples of the genre if they accomplished those purposes in the first place.

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Now that show -and people's interest in it IS scary . :laughing:

No , I just don't want to see a list of Hollywood top 50's that are rather dull , as 'horrors ' , except for some fine acting/directing in the genre they belong to . Who is REALLY disturbed anymore watching ' The Birds ' or 'The Shining ' ? Pick stuff that is really frightening . I may even vote for BA's, though, I haven't seen it , but I know he likes his horror . Something that undermines your sense of well being ...

That's very difficult for me because I don't get frightened or creeped out easily unless it is real (e.g., a few clips from Faces Of Death, beheading videos, animal cruelty videos, etc.). In the realm of the art of filmmaking and videomaking, it is about style - how did it look and sound? You want to see something a bit above what's listed here? Check a few of these out:

The original version of "The Vanishing" from The Netherlands called Spoorloos, dir. by George Sluizer. It's suspenseful and eerie, even the bits of music move the audience to feel light-headed, exasperated, and unesasy.

sjff_01_img0466.jpg

Michael Haneke's Benny's Video is neither a Horror movie nor does it have the aspects of a Thriller/Suspense movies. It's fairly straight-forward with cinematography that is cold and sharp (great image quality) and which captures things that would leave most audiences feeling something other than happy and content...

Front-1.jpg

I'd watch Maniac merely for the few gore sfx scenes that Tom Savini made (the guy is revered as the master of gore make-up in the Zombie subgenre). Still, the movie itself is not that bad as a Slasher movie.

maniac-1.jpg

There's also Jess Franco's Ilsa, The Wicked Warden. The entire movie is trash, but fast-forward on this clip to the last minute :beatnik: I like the jungle animal samples in the tropical music:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2mHQrbZyF8

This is sfx galore (MADE IN JAPAN!). No story, no decent dialogue, no cute side-kicks, no redeeming value other than 45 to 60 minutes of pseudo-snuff; pretty gruesome stuff. These videos are to the Horror genre as Pink Films are to the Erotic genre :beatnik:

GuineaPig-FlowerofFleshandBlood.jpg

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I could go on listing...

I cannot be bothered too much with the supernatural aspects of the Horror genre since it's all fantasy, whether it be in movies, books, paintings, and real life. I think Carrie, Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist, and The Changeling are exemplary of what constitutes a good Supernatural Horror movie. Personally, I felt dirty after watching Luchino Visconti's La Caduta Degli Dei/The Damned (lit, "The Fall Of The Gods") :beatnik:

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Here are both my noms together MC:

The Shining - Directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Jack Nicholson

^^ c'mon, you know this movie scared the bleep outta you, It's The Shiningfor cryin' out loud. Heeere's Johnny. ;)

And:

Wait Until Dark - Directed by Terrence Young, starring Audrey Hepburn & Alan Arkin (1967)

^^ I don't expect any votes for this one, but it deserves a mention. If you've not seen it, you're missing one of the best thrillers ever made. Take the time to watch it if you can. Not only is it freaking scary, unlike many of the films in this genre, it also features great acting. ;)

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the subject also calls for "thrillers." Which I interpret to be suspense. So while my noms are not "horrors" by any stretch, they are most definitely "thrillers."

And if you think about it, no movie is going to be as suspenseful/horror-filled/thrilling after the first time you watch it, they remain good examples of the genre if they accomplished those purposes in the first place.

That's a good point ,Shawna . I should have looked a little more closely as to how the category expanded rather than just skimming the thread . I guess then even 'Jaws' could make the list, as it scared the hell out of people at the time of it's release -but now is rather schlocky . I guess I was thinking more along the lines of movies that retain a bit of their 'edge' upon repeated viewings .

Actually , I'm hoping to pick up some ideas for an Amazon Halloween order from these noms . :)

How about :

" Halloween " (1978)

" Ghost Story " (!981)

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