Thursday, 24 October 2013

Movies to watch before Halloween - Part 4

Here's the penultimate part of this series, before I reveal my ideal Halloween night 'Triple-Bill' next week!



Shutter Island (2010)


Films in which Leonardo Dicaprio plays someone who may (or may not) be losing their mind were like buses in 2010 - in the same year he did this, and 'Inception'..!  Joking aside, this is, despite its bleak story and harrowing revelations, a joy to watch - it is beautifully and evocatively shot, every performance is excellent, and the story just draws you in.  For me, this is one of those films that if you happen upon it while flicking through the channels on TV, it doesn't matter how far along it is, I have to watch it.  With its stormy, wind-swept setting, this is another of those films which really feels autumnal, so to me it is very much at home in this list of films to be watching right now.


A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)


I feel sorry anybody of the current generation who's first exposure to Freddie Kruger was via 2010's utterly forgettable remake; having said that, there was a point in the late 1980's/early 1990's where Freddie had become more of a jokey anti-hero.  But in the original 1985 movie, it's easy to see why he became an instant icon of horror: a terrifying, indefatigable, and nigh in-escapable character - with a wicked and sadistic sense of humour to boot.  Although this movie established some genre formula which the director, Wes Craven, would go on to poke fun at with the 'Scream' films, here there is a gleeful brutality to the deaths which mean their impact isn't diminished.  I use that word 'gleeful' deliberately - although this film succeeds in being an effectively scary horror movie, it is also a ton of fun, and it knows it - it really demonstrates how the '80's were a heyday for horror movies which could entertain as well as frighten you!


Halloween (1978)


I'm sure that quite a few people would wonder why I've not included this in my final 'Halloween-night Triple Bill'; obviously, it is an auto-include on any list of films to watch in the run-up to Halloween.  And deservedly so - not just because it is synonymous with the holiday (well, duh!), but because of what a bench-mark it is in the horror genre: there were 'slasher' movies before this, but until this film none had the impact that this did.  The funny thing I find when watching this movie now is that it's pretty clear that it wasn't filmed around the time of year when it's set: all the trees are still covered in a lush, green spread of leaves - so it's not really one to include in this list because of an 'Autumnal' feel!  Despite the fact this is a tremendous film, I've not included it in my 'final three' because I've chosen another classic horror, which like this one plays the scares seriously, and is also a high bench mark for the genre.


Slither (2006)


This movie is a loving, big-budget tribute to the grimy, gruesome, yet gleefully fun b-movie shlockers which were a staple of '80's video rental stores.  The cast are clearly enjoying this - from Michael Rooker's alien-infected Grant Grant (yes, really!), Nathan Fillion's heroic Sheriff, to the under-appreciated Elizabeth Banks as the tenacious damsel-in-distress Starla, all play it at just the right level to make the jumps shocking, the horror gruesome, and - above all - the humour just the right side of parody.  The balance of horror and tongue-in-cheek, slightly black comedy is spot on in this film - it's not necessarily the most frightening horror film, but it certainly is one of the most fun of the last decade.  Halloween is about having fun after all, so that's why 'Slither' is in this list.


Well, that's it for this week - more to come in the last few days before Halloween is actually upon us, thanks for reading!

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