It’s trick or treats time again! Halloween is nearly here so read on for my list of the top ten horror films of all time! Plus this week’s releases including the latest Ice Age, the latest Woody Allen, a creepy Halloween horror film and a very violent ridiculous actioner the type of which we all love
This weeks Releases
Ice Age –Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Cast: Cast: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Queen Latifah, Denis Leary, Chris Wedge, Simon Pegg
Manny, Diego and pals find themselves tangling with T-rexes for this, a third outing, after Sid the Sloth discovers a forgotten dino paradise buried deep beneath the ice. It’s yet another excuse for the woolly troupe to set out on an epic journey, following in the well-trodden tracks of its predecessors. Simon Pegg’s (Hot Fuzz, Run Fat Boy Run) swashbuckling Buck, a plucky, one-eyed weasel brings a welcome note of derring-do to the proceedings. Don’t worry about the characters interacting with dinosaurs that’s sure to make paleontologists bleed out of their ears, it’s a fun for the whole family cartoon and kudos to the studio for not bothering to release in 3D, we all know it doesn’t work.
Whatever Works
Cast: Larry David, Ed Begley Jr., Patricia Clarkson, Conleth Hill, Michael McKean, Evan Rachel Wood,
Woody Allen is back in his beloved New York and has brought Larry David along for the ride. What could be better than this dream team? Woody Allen's latest, is the filmmaker's best feature since Match Point and his most effective pure comedy in a dozen years. A collaboration with Larry David the man who brought us Seinfeld should have come years ago. The Curb Your Enthusiasm star plays a cranky pessimist who becomes the initially unwilling husband to a much younger Southern girl with a father fixation. But when her conservative mother arrives, all hell breaks loose as Mom tries to drive her daughter away from the old guy and toward a much younger model.
Orphan
Cast: Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Fuhrman, CCH Pounder, Jimmy Bennett
Just in time for Halloween comes this creepy tale. It's the story of a couple - played by Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard - who lose their baby and decide to adopt a 9 year-old girl, only to get more than they bargained for. Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman, the Goth Dakota Fanning) is a precocious orphan with a sinister Russian accent and a penchant for vintage dresses. Her adoptive parents ignore all the warning signs, like knowing glances from nuns and the mysterious death of Esther’s former adopted parents, and decide that this little loner is the perfect Band-Aid for their family. Esther is an entertaining and solid addition to the Evil Child story. There may be something wrong with Esther, but there’s nothing wrong with “Orphan.” Very highly recommended.
The Tournament
Cast: Ving Rhames, Robert Carlisle, Kelly Hu.
Every 7 years, in a small, clueless town somewhere in the world, 30 of the world’s best assassins are brought together to compete in a kill-or-be-killed tournament, whereby the last one standing wins a cool $10 million. Meanwhile, gamblers bet on the game from the comforts of the tournament holder’s operation center. An excuse for a film that consists of a whole lot of wanton bloodshed? Maybe, enjoyable? You bet; 30 contestants, with the more notable ones being Chinese hitwoman Lai Lai Zhen (Kelly Hu), the crazy Texan Miles Slade (Ian Somerhalder), and the reigning champ Joshua Harlow (Ving Rhames). Of course there are more, but since most of them get shot, blown up, or decapitated early on, they aren’t worth mentioning. The final contestant is Father Macavoy (Robert Carlyle), the alcoholic non violent priest who finds himself pulled unknowingly into the tournament. Only thing missing is Jean-Claude Van Damme, still you can’t have everything.
Thanks to Alliance films I had a screening copy and boy did I enjoy this movie, a perfect way to relax!**#!
The Spotter’s Top 10 Horror Titles Ever!
(not in any particular order, that’s too difficult)
The Exorcist – Definitely the scariest movie ever made, trust me I was there in the cinema when it first came out and witnessed real screaming and an ambulance parked outside!
Halloween – John Carpenter’s classic that introduced us to Michael Myers the original slasher and Jamie Lee Curtis; this was the one that started it all.
Alien – OK not really a horror film, this is Ridley Scott’s sci- fi masterpiece with a really great alien monster, brilliant movie score and superb direction.
The Pit and the Pendulum – Vincent Price in a very campy movie using the same sets and background used in many other Roger Corman productions, but this was the first horror film I ever saw in a cinema. I sneaked in through the back door when I was a boy and I couldn’t sleep for a week thinking of that pendulum swinging downwards and Vincent Price hamming it up as a demented inquisitor; wonderful!
Trick R Treat – A new release that you have to see (go rent it now!) a first class Halloween tale broken up into episodes neatly joined together.
Saw; Saw 2; Saw et al – Very original with complex flashbacks-within-flashbacks explaining how the characters have come to these frightening predicaments and a satisfying mystery to go with its ghastly claustrophobia. Also a great serial killer to boot! All the sequels worked, which in itself is very rare.
Night of the Living Dead – This is George Romero’s masterpiece from 1968. Romero’s black and white “home movie” with its occasional bad lighting and amateurish acting made it seem like a real event was unfolding. Adding to this is the radio broadcast that gradually updates us on the latest news, a not so subtle way of narrating over the script. The last broadcast confirming that dead people are literally coming back and seeking the living; Romero created a surreal Hell on Earth that haunted for days after first seeing this terrific zombie movie.
Psycho – Alfred Hitchcock’s really scary movie about Norman Bates and his “mother”. The shower scene is cinematic history; Bernard Hermann’s score around this 2 minute wonder is now legendary. Psycho not only set off a raging controversy around censorship, but it also ruined the morning shower for a generation of Americans.
The Ring - This remake of the J-horror hit 'Ringu,' about a mysterious video tape that kills anyone who watches it. It's drenched in taut suspense, and boasts a finale that'll have you sprinting away from your TV set featuring a young lady with the worst haircut in movie history! This one is really scary; you have been warned.
Nosferatu – Horror films have been around since the invention of the movies; there has and will always be a market for scaring viewers especially those of the weaker sex, presumably so their dates can hold them close to keep them safe from those evil people on the screen. This 1922 movie despite being an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' novel, director F.W. Murnau's seminal vampire flick is lauded as one of the best silent films ever. And Max Schreck is so chillingly creepy as bloodthirsty antagonist Count Orlok (aka Count Dracula) that the actor himself was believed to be a vampire.
Some notable movies I did not include but still warrant a mention.
“Scream”; Wes Craven’s homage to classic horror films.
“Friday the 13th” Admit it, just the mention of "summer camp" or "Crystal Lake" has you glancing over your shoulder, listening for a noise in the woods and swearing off hockey masks.
“Evil Dead” Sam Raimi’s cult classic, and don’t forget his latest “Drag Me to Hell”
“A Nightmare on Elm Street” The ratty red-and-green sweater, the grotesquely burned visage, the glove made of knives, the ability to turn Johnny Depp into a puree of blood and guts: If ever a man was made to haunt dreams; and murder people in them; it was Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund).
“28 Days Later” The zombie genre goes even darker in Danny Boyle's malevolent take, in which flesh-eating is a viral affliction and the stricken are possessed with rabid ferocity and superhuman speed.
“Texas Chainsaw Massacre” No, it's not based on real events as advertised in the opening credits (that tricky Tobe Hooper!), but that doesn't make it less terrifying. This shocking low-budget scare about limb loss in the Lone Star State set the stage for Michael Myers, Freddy and Jason, awful sequels and all.
Well that’s it for this year. I know I missed some of your favorites, why not email me and let me know?
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