I figured I'd give it a shot, since I wouldn't even have to fill out a new app or anything...
1_ What is Your Favorite Horror Film or Which Horror Film Has Stood Out Most in Your Memory. Why?
Well, I used to say that my favorite horror film was Takashi Miike's Audition, but I havn't even watched that for about eight months or so, so I don't think that I can make that a valid statement. I really am not sure what my favorite horror film is, so instead I will discuss the horror film that has stood out most in my recent history; Silent Night, Bloody Night (Theodore Gershuny, 1973). This movie was included in the "Evil Places" DVD four pack that I purchased at best buy mainly for the classic made-for-tv movie, Satan's School For Girls (David Lowell Rich, 1973). I watched the first three movies in the collection almost right away (the other two being House on Haunted Hill, which I already had, and Don't Go In The Basement, another wonderful little flick), and for some reason failed to watched the last. Finally a couple weeks ago I decided to give the movie a shot. Within the credits I was already ecstatic, because I saw that Warhol regulars Candy Darling and Ondine were in it. The very first thing that struck me about the movie, at least for the first fourty-five minutes or so, was the atmosphere. The movie had an incredibly over-whelming sense of dread. Now, people talk about movies being tense, but this is the best example of a tense movie that I can think of. I was literally glued to my seat at terrified at the prospect of a man come into a small town to sell a mansion. In the first fourty-five minutes, even the good guys are creepy. A prime example that I can think of is when real estate agent John Carter (played wonderfully by Patrick O'Neal) goes into a meeting with the town regulars to discuss the selling of the house. He tells them the bizarre requirements if they'd like the house (which they do, as they want to destroy the house [kids play in it, it gets vandalized, etc, and the city has to care for it]), and all of the crazy town folks reply in the most bizarre manner, almost in question like form. However, once the first slasher murder (of John Carter and his mistress), the movie takes a sad turn to the banal. People keep going to the house, and keep getting murdered, while ambigious phone calls beckon more to come to the mansion (although I suppose in 1973 this wouldn't be so banal, as the slasher genre had not really launched yet). Luckily, the film picks up again for the last twenty minutes or so, explaining the "evil" history of the house with bizarre flashbacks (this is where Candy Darling and Ondine appeared). Anyway, the incredible forebearing dread of the first half of this movie is what really stuck with me, and I would recommend it to anybody who's interested by my brief explanation.
2_ Name Your Top 10 Horror Films and Give a Short Explanation for Each:
_1_Daughters of Darkness (Harry Kümel, Belgium / Italy / France / West Germany 1971)
If you hadn't figured it out from my long rant on Silent Night, Bloody Night, I love horror movies with intense moods. The atmosphere of this film reminds me a lot of that in Last Year at Marienbad, without all of the ambiguity. I can indicate a single scene that put this movie onto my top ten: in the foyer of the hotel, Countess Bathory tells the tale of Elizabeth Bathory to the young couple, and the camera circles around the happy group until tensions build to such a point that Valerie snaps, and Countess Bathory starts laughing. In my personal opionin, this scene epitomizes what horror strives to be; A story told until someone snaps. Aside from the tension and mood, I've always had a thing for giant hotels, the eroticism in this movie "drips off the scene" (as a suprisingly accurate IMDB.com reviewer notes), and the story is absolutely captivating.
_2_Possession (Andrzej Zulawski, France / West Germany 1981)
Isabelle Adjani's acting alone could make this a winner in my book, but the addition of a wonderfully complex, symbolic storyling and wonderful cinematography just amaze me. Plus it's utterly creepy because of how intense and apocalyptic it is, which is always a plus. Yet again, the mood of this is so over the edge and bizarre that it really drives the movie. With it's two hour run time it never becomes boring, and I think that's something that's hard to accomplish within the confines of the genre.
_3_Naked Blood aka Megyaku: Akuma no yorokobi (Hisayasu Sato, Japan 1995) There are two simple reasons that I love this film: One, it has terribly creepy gore portrayed in very disturbing situations (a girl accidentally fries her hand and discovers she likes the taste of her own flesh...so she starts eating herself) and two, the story line of a teenage mad scientist creating a drug that turns pain into pleasure has finally been hatched into a hybrid of creepiness that could come from nowhere but Japan. I got into an argument with a member of the community [info]disturbingfilms about this film. He claimed the film had no substance and made no sense, and was simply made as an excuse for explicit gore. I highly contend this, as I believe the film is one of the most searing portraits of a child trying to live up to his fathers expectations ever made. Although I'm sure the same point could have been made without all the nastiness, it's the nastiness that makes this film stand out from others.
_4_The Wickerman (Robin Hardy, UK 1973)
There are three things I take into account when I'm evaluating a horror movie: the story, the way the movie looks, and the soundtrack. This movie scores high marks in all departments. I love all of the songs and listen to the soundtrack a lot... and I think a lot of the songs are gently disturbing, such as Gentle Johnny and The Maypole Song. Also, the story is nothing terrible new; Christianity versus Paganism; but the care it is handled with and Christopher Lee's (as well as the rest of the cast's) acting are what carry the film.
_5_Der Todesking (Jörg Buttgereit, Germany 1989)
This movie is one of the most utterly devastating movies ever made. The last segment of the film made me cringe from being so uncomfortable, and any film that can accomplish that obviously deserves merit. I'll admit that a few of the segments are mildly slow and not very interesting, but it's the overall picture of suicide that makes the movie so wonderful. With any other director the movie could have come off as exploitive, but Buttgereit's careful hand made the movie perfect.
_6_Virgin Among the Living Dead aka Christina, princesse de l'érotisme (Jess Franco, 1973)
Jess Franco is one of my favorite directors, so picking one movie to represent him is a hard thing. This movie contains all of the things I love about Jess Franco: blood, creepy storylines, sacrilige, family ties, confusion, and of course, death. I heard that Franco originally intended this movie for Cannes, and I can see that being true. It is probably Franco's most artful and least exploitive film, and is in my opinion the pinnacle of his genius. Well, a combination of this and Eugenie, the Story of her Journey Into Perversion would compromise the pinnacle of Franco's genius.
_7_All Night Long 2 aka Ooru naito rongu 2: Sanji (Katsuya Matsumura, 1995)
This, in my opinion, is the best of the series. I tend to love films which attempt social commentary through taboo or immoderate subjects, and this filmd does just that. It's only about an hour, but every scene is tautly controlled and it all adds up to the protaganist's peak and then his descent through madness. It's gruesome, not very PC, and pretty disturbing.
_8_Kairo (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2001)
I had discovered Kiyoshi Kurosawa when I watched his film, Cure, first semester. It had some of the most ingenious ideas thrown into a movie that I've seen in recent years (as it reminded me mildly of Bergman's The Magician-- if you've seen both you know why), so I made a mental note to check Kurosawa out in more detail. Gladly, I traded for a copy of this film and was blown away by it. It's also pretty devastating and uncomfortable, but the protaganist (well, the female character who turns into the protaganist at the end) somehow remains hopeful, and that shows. I think I just really like movies about ghosts which don't just come out and show the ghosts, and I just felt that this movie really worked.
_9_Audition (Takashi Miike, 2000)
I used to put this as my favorite movie, becuase I loved the execution and the joke-and-punch-line way of telling the story. It's particularly devestating if you watch it waiting for more than the last scene, showing a little girl destroyed and the effects that her childhood had on her life. Well, maybe that was her childhood. Plus I love the randomly interjected scene where the guy visits the bar that Asami supposedly works at and gets told the story of the corpse found with certain body parts missing. It's rather creepy and a nice subtle touch to the movie. It's also my favorite Takashi Miike movie, but that might only be because it's the first one I saw.
_10_Manhattan Baby (Lucio Fulci, 1982)
Okay, so this ought to come as a suprise to any horror elitist. "What? How can the only Fulci movie he puts on his list be Manhattan Baby! Is he insane? That's the worst Fulci film ever!" I'm fully aware that there aren't many people who liked this film. But with me, the right chord was struck, and I fell in love. Probably the 3rd or 4th Fulci film I saw, the film that made me fall in love with him. Ever since a kid, I had an attachment to all things "Egyptian," so right away the story held my attention. Sure, a lot of the parts don't make any sense, and sure, god-damned Bob from House by the Cemetary is back with the same god-awful dub job, but still, it kept my attention and thoroughly entertained me.
3_ Favorite Horror Scores/Composers:
Composers: Fabio Frizi, Goblin, John Carpenter (particularly the score for The Fog), Lech Jankowski (he does most of the music for the Brothers Quay), Howard Shore
Sountracks: Der Todesking, Carnival of Lost Souls, and The Wickerman
4_ Recent Horror In Your Life and Your Thoughts On Each:
a) Last Horror Film Seen in Theater? I can't honestly think if there's been a horror movie I've seen in theaters since the Texas Chainsaw Massacre "remake," and frankly I don't feel like revisiting my feelings on that.
b) Last Horror Film Seen at Home? Behind the Green Door (The Mitchell Brothers, 1972), which incidentally is also a hardcore porno movie. Towards the end, the scene where everybody, to be blunt, starts to blow their loads, is essentially what it would look like had Kenneth Anger directed hardcore heterosexual porno. Although if you don't like that answer, Horrifying Experiments of the S.S. Last Days (Luigi Batzella, 1977). Basically, it was alright (it was no Ilsa, She Wolf of the S.S). It definently wasn't very good, but it kept me entertained and the "beast" in the cage made me laugh a few times. Low-budget exploitation at it's best I suppose.
5_ Favorite Director(s):
a) Non-Horror Directors: Brothers Quay, Michael Haneke, Peter Greenaway, Kenneth Anger, Maya Deren, Jean Cocteau, Richard Kern, Werner Herzog, Radley Metzger, Russ Meyer, Jan Svankmejer
b) Horror Directors: Lucio Fulci, George Romero, Jörg Buttgereit, Takashi Miike, Jess Franco, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Jean Rollin, Dario Argento, Armando de Ossario, Herschell Gordon Lewis
6_ State Your Thoughts on the Horror Cinema to be Produced in the Following Countries and Name One to Three Favourite Film For Each Country:
American: I like the big studio movies of the 70s like The Omen, The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby. But naturally my favorite american horror movie would have to be Night of the Living Dead. Americans tend to be the ones to handle the horror comedy (Like Return of the Living Dead and Video Violence: When Renting is Not Enough) best though. Most movies from the 90s and beyond has been crap though. But H.G. Lewis' stuff from the 60s is awesome., specifically Wizard of Gore, and The Gore Gore Girls.
British: Hellraiser, The Wickerman, and The Abominable Dr. Phibes are faves. I can't really typecast British horror, as I havn't seen very much. I've been meaning to watch more Hammer films, but basically have just been lazy about it.
German: I like German horror a lot because it tends to be wayyyy over the top and have lots and lots of gore and blood. Favorites would be Nekromantik, Der Todesking, Violent Shit, and The Burning Moon.
Asian: I consider east-Asia to be making the equivalent of 1970s exploitation films, except even more over the top, realistic and disgusting. Favorites include Suicide Club, Inugami, Naked Blood, and almost every asian horror movie I watch.
Italian: Exploitation never fails to amuse me. I don't even always laugh, but I'm always entertained. Italy set the landmark for the sleaze to come in the 70s, and rightfully so. Naturally, a lot of greats came out of Italy too, but I think exploitation films are where it's at when it comes to Italy. Favorites include Nightmare City, Cannibal Ferox, House at the Edge of the Park, and Beyond the Darkness.
Mexican: The only mexican horror film that I've seen has beenAlucarda, but if that's representative then BRING IT ON!
Spanish: I think the Spanish offer a nice counter part to the Italians, especially with Jess Franco on their side. Faves include Virgin Among the Living Dead, The Awful Dr. Orlof. Plus I love Armando de Ossario's Blind Dead Saga. Though not strictly horror, I love Jodorowski's El Topo and Fando and Lis.
French: Someone in here described the french as being more prone to sexual overtones in their films. While that may be true, I don't think that's an description that can be solely applied towards the French. Anyway, I think of French horror as being closely related to Spanish horror, basically because the Jess Franco link. Also, I think France has put out better erotic films (well, second only to America who has Radley Metzger), but they're quite good at horror too. My favorite french horror director is Jean Rollins. French faves: Living Dead Girl, Night of the Hunted, and Les Yeux Sans Visage.
7_ Which Era is Your Favourite For Horror and Which Era do You Believe Generated the Best of Horror? Discuss:
I would probably say the 1970s, because I think that's where the broadest range of horror comes from. We had the blockbuster horror films in America, like Rosemary's Baby, The Omen, and The Exorcist, we had exploitation and art-shockers like Suspiria, Zombie, and Antroprophagus from Italy, along with France and Spain.
8_ First Horror Movie You Remember Seeing?
No idea. I remember seeing Puppet Master (1989, David Schmoeller) at an early age with my brother, but that's definently not the first horror movie I saw. That just sticks out the most, I guess.
9_ Five Favorite Non-Horror Movies? Discuss Each.
Institute Benjamenta: The most perfect movie ever made. Period.
Piano Teacher: Amazingly powerful in the emotions and depictions of a sexual life destroyed by pornography and the people around it.
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover: This is representative of every Peter Greenaway film ever made, because there is no such thing as a bad Peter Greenaway film. I love his self-referential, ambigous, gamic style.
Puce Moment: The most perfect six minutes ever commited to film. Thank you Kenneth Anger, I can watch this film over and over and never get bored or disillusioned.
Chinese Roulette: My favorite Fassbinder film, possibly one of the most complex marrital affairs ever described. The acting is superb and the tension is miraculous.
10_Three Favorite Guilty Pleasure Horror Movies, The Ones You Know Are Terrible But Love Anyway:
Vampyros Lesbos: No coherent plot, but great music and lovely scenery with an interesting story. The acting isn't the best, but in a Jess Franco film, does it really need to be?
Sleepaway Camp II: Okay, I thought this movie was awesome. It's got great death scenes, a hot male lead, and well, I don't know energy?
Devil In Miss Jones: I only feel guilty because it's a porno, but it's also very dark and creepy. Well, I guess it's almost standard early 70s exploitation with hardcore scenes thrown in, but I love it anyway.
11_Favorite Genre Actors/Actresses:
Vincent Price, Delphine Seyrig and Laura Gemser, Udo Kier.
12_ The Worst of The Worst.
a) Name and Discuss in Detail the Two Horror Films You Consider to be Most Over Rated: (I can't think of three)
The Beyond
This is probably my least favorite Fulci film. Sure, it had nice gore, but I didn't like it's mood. City of the Living Dead has the same mood, but it was never hyped up to be Fulci's best. The story wasn't coherent, as per usual, but things didn't even fit nicely together, like things in Fulci films normally do. I'm not saying I don't like this movie-- I like it quite a bit, but I just feel that it's terribly over-rated.
Burning Moon
Olaf Ittenbach's "greatest film" was something I was looking forward to seeing for a while. I finally traded for it after reading page after page of people praising the "infamous hell-scene, one of the most brutal scenes ever filmed!" and what did I get? About six people in a basement with lots of blood. Puh-fucking-lease. I still liked the movie though, but the hell scene is super overrated.
b) Name and Discuss in Detail the Three Horror Films Which You Consider to be the Absolute Direst Z Grade Junk:
Nothing. I think there is merit in every movie ever made, with the exception of Boondock Saints and the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but that's just becuase those are the two worst movies I've ever seen in my entire life-- and hopefully nothing will ever surpass those.
To be honest, that's from January 18th, 2004, so it's a tad bit out of date.
1_ What is Your Favorite Horror Film or Which Horror Film Has Stood Out Most in Your Memory. Why?
Well, I used to say that my favorite horror film was Takashi Miike's Audition, but I havn't even watched that for about eight months or so, so I don't think that I can make that a valid statement. I really am not sure what my favorite horror film is, so instead I will discuss the horror film that has stood out most in my recent history; Silent Night, Bloody Night (Theodore Gershuny, 1973). This movie was included in the "Evil Places" DVD four pack that I purchased at best buy mainly for the classic made-for-tv movie, Satan's School For Girls (David Lowell Rich, 1973). I watched the first three movies in the collection almost right away (the other two being House on Haunted Hill, which I already had, and Don't Go In The Basement, another wonderful little flick), and for some reason failed to watched the last. Finally a couple weeks ago I decided to give the movie a shot. Within the credits I was already ecstatic, because I saw that Warhol regulars Candy Darling and Ondine were in it. The very first thing that struck me about the movie, at least for the first fourty-five minutes or so, was the atmosphere. The movie had an incredibly over-whelming sense of dread. Now, people talk about movies being tense, but this is the best example of a tense movie that I can think of. I was literally glued to my seat at terrified at the prospect of a man come into a small town to sell a mansion. In the first fourty-five minutes, even the good guys are creepy. A prime example that I can think of is when real estate agent John Carter (played wonderfully by Patrick O'Neal) goes into a meeting with the town regulars to discuss the selling of the house. He tells them the bizarre requirements if they'd like the house (which they do, as they want to destroy the house [kids play in it, it gets vandalized, etc, and the city has to care for it]), and all of the crazy town folks reply in the most bizarre manner, almost in question like form. However, once the first slasher murder (of John Carter and his mistress), the movie takes a sad turn to the banal. People keep going to the house, and keep getting murdered, while ambigious phone calls beckon more to come to the mansion (although I suppose in 1973 this wouldn't be so banal, as the slasher genre had not really launched yet). Luckily, the film picks up again for the last twenty minutes or so, explaining the "evil" history of the house with bizarre flashbacks (this is where Candy Darling and Ondine appeared). Anyway, the incredible forebearing dread of the first half of this movie is what really stuck with me, and I would recommend it to anybody who's interested by my brief explanation.
2_ Name Your Top 10 Horror Films and Give a Short Explanation for Each:
_1_Daughters of Darkness (Harry Kümel, Belgium / Italy / France / West Germany 1971)
If you hadn't figured it out from my long rant on Silent Night, Bloody Night, I love horror movies with intense moods. The atmosphere of this film reminds me a lot of that in Last Year at Marienbad, without all of the ambiguity. I can indicate a single scene that put this movie onto my top ten: in the foyer of the hotel, Countess Bathory tells the tale of Elizabeth Bathory to the young couple, and the camera circles around the happy group until tensions build to such a point that Valerie snaps, and Countess Bathory starts laughing. In my personal opionin, this scene epitomizes what horror strives to be; A story told until someone snaps. Aside from the tension and mood, I've always had a thing for giant hotels, the eroticism in this movie "drips off the scene" (as a suprisingly accurate IMDB.com reviewer notes), and the story is absolutely captivating.
_2_Possession (Andrzej Zulawski, France / West Germany 1981)
Isabelle Adjani's acting alone could make this a winner in my book, but the addition of a wonderfully complex, symbolic storyling and wonderful cinematography just amaze me. Plus it's utterly creepy because of how intense and apocalyptic it is, which is always a plus. Yet again, the mood of this is so over the edge and bizarre that it really drives the movie. With it's two hour run time it never becomes boring, and I think that's something that's hard to accomplish within the confines of the genre.
_3_Naked Blood aka Megyaku: Akuma no yorokobi (Hisayasu Sato, Japan 1995) There are two simple reasons that I love this film: One, it has terribly creepy gore portrayed in very disturbing situations (a girl accidentally fries her hand and discovers she likes the taste of her own flesh...so she starts eating herself) and two, the story line of a teenage mad scientist creating a drug that turns pain into pleasure has finally been hatched into a hybrid of creepiness that could come from nowhere but Japan. I got into an argument with a member of the community [info]disturbingfilms about this film. He claimed the film had no substance and made no sense, and was simply made as an excuse for explicit gore. I highly contend this, as I believe the film is one of the most searing portraits of a child trying to live up to his fathers expectations ever made. Although I'm sure the same point could have been made without all the nastiness, it's the nastiness that makes this film stand out from others.
_4_The Wickerman (Robin Hardy, UK 1973)
There are three things I take into account when I'm evaluating a horror movie: the story, the way the movie looks, and the soundtrack. This movie scores high marks in all departments. I love all of the songs and listen to the soundtrack a lot... and I think a lot of the songs are gently disturbing, such as Gentle Johnny and The Maypole Song. Also, the story is nothing terrible new; Christianity versus Paganism; but the care it is handled with and Christopher Lee's (as well as the rest of the cast's) acting are what carry the film.
_5_Der Todesking (Jörg Buttgereit, Germany 1989)
This movie is one of the most utterly devastating movies ever made. The last segment of the film made me cringe from being so uncomfortable, and any film that can accomplish that obviously deserves merit. I'll admit that a few of the segments are mildly slow and not very interesting, but it's the overall picture of suicide that makes the movie so wonderful. With any other director the movie could have come off as exploitive, but Buttgereit's careful hand made the movie perfect.
_6_Virgin Among the Living Dead aka Christina, princesse de l'érotisme (Jess Franco, 1973)
Jess Franco is one of my favorite directors, so picking one movie to represent him is a hard thing. This movie contains all of the things I love about Jess Franco: blood, creepy storylines, sacrilige, family ties, confusion, and of course, death. I heard that Franco originally intended this movie for Cannes, and I can see that being true. It is probably Franco's most artful and least exploitive film, and is in my opinion the pinnacle of his genius. Well, a combination of this and Eugenie, the Story of her Journey Into Perversion would compromise the pinnacle of Franco's genius.
_7_All Night Long 2 aka Ooru naito rongu 2: Sanji (Katsuya Matsumura, 1995)
This, in my opinion, is the best of the series. I tend to love films which attempt social commentary through taboo or immoderate subjects, and this filmd does just that. It's only about an hour, but every scene is tautly controlled and it all adds up to the protaganist's peak and then his descent through madness. It's gruesome, not very PC, and pretty disturbing.
_8_Kairo (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2001)
I had discovered Kiyoshi Kurosawa when I watched his film, Cure, first semester. It had some of the most ingenious ideas thrown into a movie that I've seen in recent years (as it reminded me mildly of Bergman's The Magician-- if you've seen both you know why), so I made a mental note to check Kurosawa out in more detail. Gladly, I traded for a copy of this film and was blown away by it. It's also pretty devastating and uncomfortable, but the protaganist (well, the female character who turns into the protaganist at the end) somehow remains hopeful, and that shows. I think I just really like movies about ghosts which don't just come out and show the ghosts, and I just felt that this movie really worked.
_9_Audition (Takashi Miike, 2000)
I used to put this as my favorite movie, becuase I loved the execution and the joke-and-punch-line way of telling the story. It's particularly devestating if you watch it waiting for more than the last scene, showing a little girl destroyed and the effects that her childhood had on her life. Well, maybe that was her childhood. Plus I love the randomly interjected scene where the guy visits the bar that Asami supposedly works at and gets told the story of the corpse found with certain body parts missing. It's rather creepy and a nice subtle touch to the movie. It's also my favorite Takashi Miike movie, but that might only be because it's the first one I saw.
_10_Manhattan Baby (Lucio Fulci, 1982)
Okay, so this ought to come as a suprise to any horror elitist. "What? How can the only Fulci movie he puts on his list be Manhattan Baby! Is he insane? That's the worst Fulci film ever!" I'm fully aware that there aren't many people who liked this film. But with me, the right chord was struck, and I fell in love. Probably the 3rd or 4th Fulci film I saw, the film that made me fall in love with him. Ever since a kid, I had an attachment to all things "Egyptian," so right away the story held my attention. Sure, a lot of the parts don't make any sense, and sure, god-damned Bob from House by the Cemetary is back with the same god-awful dub job, but still, it kept my attention and thoroughly entertained me.
3_ Favorite Horror Scores/Composers:
Composers: Fabio Frizi, Goblin, John Carpenter (particularly the score for The Fog), Lech Jankowski (he does most of the music for the Brothers Quay), Howard Shore
Sountracks: Der Todesking, Carnival of Lost Souls, and The Wickerman
4_ Recent Horror In Your Life and Your Thoughts On Each:
a) Last Horror Film Seen in Theater? I can't honestly think if there's been a horror movie I've seen in theaters since the Texas Chainsaw Massacre "remake," and frankly I don't feel like revisiting my feelings on that.
b) Last Horror Film Seen at Home? Behind the Green Door (The Mitchell Brothers, 1972), which incidentally is also a hardcore porno movie. Towards the end, the scene where everybody, to be blunt, starts to blow their loads, is essentially what it would look like had Kenneth Anger directed hardcore heterosexual porno. Although if you don't like that answer, Horrifying Experiments of the S.S. Last Days (Luigi Batzella, 1977). Basically, it was alright (it was no Ilsa, She Wolf of the S.S). It definently wasn't very good, but it kept me entertained and the "beast" in the cage made me laugh a few times. Low-budget exploitation at it's best I suppose.
5_ Favorite Director(s):
a) Non-Horror Directors: Brothers Quay, Michael Haneke, Peter Greenaway, Kenneth Anger, Maya Deren, Jean Cocteau, Richard Kern, Werner Herzog, Radley Metzger, Russ Meyer, Jan Svankmejer
b) Horror Directors: Lucio Fulci, George Romero, Jörg Buttgereit, Takashi Miike, Jess Franco, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Jean Rollin, Dario Argento, Armando de Ossario, Herschell Gordon Lewis
6_ State Your Thoughts on the Horror Cinema to be Produced in the Following Countries and Name One to Three Favourite Film For Each Country:
American: I like the big studio movies of the 70s like The Omen, The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby. But naturally my favorite american horror movie would have to be Night of the Living Dead. Americans tend to be the ones to handle the horror comedy (Like Return of the Living Dead and Video Violence: When Renting is Not Enough) best though. Most movies from the 90s and beyond has been crap though. But H.G. Lewis' stuff from the 60s is awesome., specifically Wizard of Gore, and The Gore Gore Girls.
British: Hellraiser, The Wickerman, and The Abominable Dr. Phibes are faves. I can't really typecast British horror, as I havn't seen very much. I've been meaning to watch more Hammer films, but basically have just been lazy about it.
German: I like German horror a lot because it tends to be wayyyy over the top and have lots and lots of gore and blood. Favorites would be Nekromantik, Der Todesking, Violent Shit, and The Burning Moon.
Asian: I consider east-Asia to be making the equivalent of 1970s exploitation films, except even more over the top, realistic and disgusting. Favorites include Suicide Club, Inugami, Naked Blood, and almost every asian horror movie I watch.
Italian: Exploitation never fails to amuse me. I don't even always laugh, but I'm always entertained. Italy set the landmark for the sleaze to come in the 70s, and rightfully so. Naturally, a lot of greats came out of Italy too, but I think exploitation films are where it's at when it comes to Italy. Favorites include Nightmare City, Cannibal Ferox, House at the Edge of the Park, and Beyond the Darkness.
Mexican: The only mexican horror film that I've seen has beenAlucarda, but if that's representative then BRING IT ON!
Spanish: I think the Spanish offer a nice counter part to the Italians, especially with Jess Franco on their side. Faves include Virgin Among the Living Dead, The Awful Dr. Orlof. Plus I love Armando de Ossario's Blind Dead Saga. Though not strictly horror, I love Jodorowski's El Topo and Fando and Lis.
French: Someone in here described the french as being more prone to sexual overtones in their films. While that may be true, I don't think that's an description that can be solely applied towards the French. Anyway, I think of French horror as being closely related to Spanish horror, basically because the Jess Franco link. Also, I think France has put out better erotic films (well, second only to America who has Radley Metzger), but they're quite good at horror too. My favorite french horror director is Jean Rollins. French faves: Living Dead Girl, Night of the Hunted, and Les Yeux Sans Visage.
7_ Which Era is Your Favourite For Horror and Which Era do You Believe Generated the Best of Horror? Discuss:
I would probably say the 1970s, because I think that's where the broadest range of horror comes from. We had the blockbuster horror films in America, like Rosemary's Baby, The Omen, and The Exorcist, we had exploitation and art-shockers like Suspiria, Zombie, and Antroprophagus from Italy, along with France and Spain.
8_ First Horror Movie You Remember Seeing?
No idea. I remember seeing Puppet Master (1989, David Schmoeller) at an early age with my brother, but that's definently not the first horror movie I saw. That just sticks out the most, I guess.
9_ Five Favorite Non-Horror Movies? Discuss Each.
Institute Benjamenta: The most perfect movie ever made. Period.
Piano Teacher: Amazingly powerful in the emotions and depictions of a sexual life destroyed by pornography and the people around it.
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover: This is representative of every Peter Greenaway film ever made, because there is no such thing as a bad Peter Greenaway film. I love his self-referential, ambigous, gamic style.
Puce Moment: The most perfect six minutes ever commited to film. Thank you Kenneth Anger, I can watch this film over and over and never get bored or disillusioned.
Chinese Roulette: My favorite Fassbinder film, possibly one of the most complex marrital affairs ever described. The acting is superb and the tension is miraculous.
10_Three Favorite Guilty Pleasure Horror Movies, The Ones You Know Are Terrible But Love Anyway:
Vampyros Lesbos: No coherent plot, but great music and lovely scenery with an interesting story. The acting isn't the best, but in a Jess Franco film, does it really need to be?
Sleepaway Camp II: Okay, I thought this movie was awesome. It's got great death scenes, a hot male lead, and well, I don't know energy?
Devil In Miss Jones: I only feel guilty because it's a porno, but it's also very dark and creepy. Well, I guess it's almost standard early 70s exploitation with hardcore scenes thrown in, but I love it anyway.
11_Favorite Genre Actors/Actresses:
Vincent Price, Delphine Seyrig and Laura Gemser, Udo Kier.
12_ The Worst of The Worst.
a) Name and Discuss in Detail the Two Horror Films You Consider to be Most Over Rated: (I can't think of three)
The Beyond
This is probably my least favorite Fulci film. Sure, it had nice gore, but I didn't like it's mood. City of the Living Dead has the same mood, but it was never hyped up to be Fulci's best. The story wasn't coherent, as per usual, but things didn't even fit nicely together, like things in Fulci films normally do. I'm not saying I don't like this movie-- I like it quite a bit, but I just feel that it's terribly over-rated.
Burning Moon
Olaf Ittenbach's "greatest film" was something I was looking forward to seeing for a while. I finally traded for it after reading page after page of people praising the "infamous hell-scene, one of the most brutal scenes ever filmed!" and what did I get? About six people in a basement with lots of blood. Puh-fucking-lease. I still liked the movie though, but the hell scene is super overrated.
b) Name and Discuss in Detail the Three Horror Films Which You Consider to be the Absolute Direst Z Grade Junk:
Nothing. I think there is merit in every movie ever made, with the exception of Boondock Saints and the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but that's just becuase those are the two worst movies I've ever seen in my entire life-- and hopefully nothing will ever surpass those.
To be honest, that's from January 18th, 2004, so it's a tad bit out of date.
