Vladimir Rakhmanin
Staff Writer
With the recent release of The Woman in Black, I was taken back to what is one of my favourite genres – horror. Every horror film seems to achieve what they set out to do; scare people. I just can’t get over how so many of the directors and writers know how to write a good movie script consistently, it baffles me. Everybody loves horror, even if they say they don’t, and these writers just seem to know how to nail them on the head. As an audience of horrors, there’s always something morbid within us that wishes to be terrified, disturbed, traumatised… What started in my mid-teenage years as a kind of dare to see if I could ‘handle’ the films that my friends recommended quickly turned into a passion. After watching a lot of horror, I have created my own personal list of what I consider to be the best of the genre. Oh and if you’re looking for somewhere to watch films online, try altadefinizione.
To qualify, these films have to frighten the viewer not momentarily, but for a significant period of time. Anyone can jump out and shout ‘boo!’ at the camera – it is only skilled filmmakers that can have you lying awake at night months after the viewing.
I also did not include films in which gore is the main attraction, i.e. ‘slashers’, or ‘torture porn’. While films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Saw may have a massive fanbase, I simply consider them to be part of a different genre. Horror doesn’t disgust – horror terrifies.
One final word – these films have to be scary now. While Nosferatu and Dracula may be classics of the genre, they simply do not have the same fear factor today as they did back then.
And so, without further ado, here they are – my top ten horror films.
10. Eraserhead
David Lynch is a very odd man who makes very odd films. In fact, saying that they are merely ‘odd’ is a massive understatement. Eraserhead, while not intended to be horror, remains the creepiest arthouse film that I have ever seen. Lacking a coherent plot (although you can always check out the numerous forums dedicated to unravelling meaning from the weird symbolism in this film), Eraserhead is like an acid trip gone wrong. Goat babies, exploding heads and the creepiest fat-cheeked woman you will ever see all add up to be one of the most unnerving experiences in cinema. The song “In Heaven Everything Is Fine” will haunt you for a very long time.
9. The Orphanage
The Orphanage is a film directed by Guillermo Del Toro, of Pan’s Labyrinth fame. Out of all the films on this list, this is probably the most traditional one – to put it simply, this is a haunted house ghost story. The fact that it is set in an orphanage makes it a lot creepier. The tension builds at a glacial pace, but when the plot reaches its climax, the results are spectacular. I was jumping out of my seat at every creak of every floorboard. It’s a pity that the denouement isn’t particularly strong – still, that does little to hurt the impression of the first brilliant two hours.
8. Ju-On
It was either Ju-On or The Ring. Both of these Japanese films were remade (poorly) by Hollywood in the mid 00’s, and both were traditional Japanese kwaidan (ghost stories). One was mostly focused on plot development, while the other threw any notion of plot out the window in favour of extremely disturbing imagery. In the end, The Ring is a better film; Ju-On is rather poor in terms of story development. But man, is it scary. Using a non-chronological timeline (I gave up trying to understand the plot about halfway through the film), Ju-On tells the story of several ghosts who haunt a particular house. One of the ghosts is a little boy who meows like a cat. Yes, it’s as terrifying as it sounds. This leads up to a scene in the staircase which I consider to be one of the greatest scenes in any horror film. YouTube it. Sweet dreams.
7. Don’t Look Now
Don’t Look Now is perhaps the most subtle out of all the films on this list. Gorgeously shot in Venice, it is about a couple’s for their daughter, who drowned while wearing a red coat. It is this use of the colour red that sets this film aside from usual horror fare. Vague flashes of the aggressive colour give even the most ordinary situations a menacing tone, making the viewer constantly on edge, perhaps showing how the memory of their daughter still haunts the couple. The sharp editing also does wonders to suggest certain disturbing ideas about the plot.
6. A Tale of Two Sisters
Surprisingly enough, with all the hype about J-Horror, the best Asian horror film that I have seen comes from Korea. It starts out with a standard plot situation – twin girls, cruel stepmother, indifferent father – but soon enough, you realise that something is not quite right. The relationship between the characters seems somehow off. The second half of the film descends into pure madness, with the viewer trying to (unsuccessfully) guess what the main plot twist is, while being bombarded with unbelievable freaky imagery. When the twist is finally revealed, it is immensely satisfying. Watching the film again for the second time with it in mind really makes you appreciate the double-sidedness of the narrative. It’s a shame that the plot isn’t resolved in a more comprehensive way, though.
5. Shutter Island
The most recent film on the list, Shutter Island concerns a US Marshal, played magnificently by Leonardo DiCaprio, and his partner, who are called in to investigate a seemingly impossible disappearance from a psychiatric hospital. The medical staff, however, are less than helpful, and DiCaprio’s character begins to realise that something sinister may be going on on the island. Shutter Island has a relatively predictable twist, one that’s possible to guess about halfway through the film. Even with full knowledge of the ending, though, it’s a delight to watch the brilliantly constructed narrative unfold. The way the plot suggests two possible interpretations has a lot in common with traditional ghost stories, such as The Turn of the Screw. The soundtrack is also outstanding, and the dream sequences drip with atmosphere.
4. Alien
I said in the introduction to this article that I wouldn’t include ‘slasher’ films in the list. Alien could indeed be considered a ‘slasher’ film in the vein of A Nightmare on Elm Street, or Texas Chainsaw Massacre – what sets it apart from those films, though, is the brilliant use of the sci-fi setting. Ridley Scott taps into our claustrophobia by setting the film on a spaceship. As the immortal tagline states, ‘in space, no one can hear you scream’. Add to that incredibly surreal monster design, a sympathetic protagonist and complex mythology, and you have the ingredients of a great horror film. The ‘chestburster’ scene (which I won’t spoil) is infamous in the genre, particularly because none of the actors were told exactly how brutal the scene would be. The terror on their faces is real. The terror on your face will be real, too.
3. The Box
Here’s one you probably don’t know about. This short film (only about 35 minutes long) is part of a trilogy of Asian horror films, released in the West as Three Extremes. While the first two films in the anthology are average, The Box is one of the most deeply unsettling experiences in cinema. The film is directed by Takashi Miike, who also directed Ichi the Killer and The Audition. If you have seen those two films, then you’d be forgiven for thinking that this is another ultra-violent blood-soaked murder-fest. It’s not. This is a quiet, beautifully shot film about a woman who remembers the horrific events that occurred during her childhood. Or then again, maybe it’s about something else entirely. The last shot flips the entire film on its head, and will have you wondering about what exactly you just watched. Try to find the DVD of it somewhere, or search for it on YouTube (given its short length, it shouldn’t be difficult to find) – this is an insanely overrated, intensely creepy horror film.
2. The Exorcist
The Exorcist does the exact opposite of The Box in terms of building atmosphere – instead of subtly building up the creepiness, it brings out the biggest barrage of disturbing and taboo topics, and dumps it all on your head. Like all good ideas, The Exorcist is simple – a little girl becomes possessed. What makes this film worthy of the #2 spot, though, is the way with which it is executed. The amount of classic scenes here is overwhelming – my personal favourite is the head rotation. There’s something deeply unnatural about a human head rotating a full circle. The scene of the actual exorcism is nail-bitingly intense. The fact that we saw the little girl before the possession makes us sympathise with her, no matter how many blasphemous expletives she directs at the audience – and it is this emotional core that makes the, quite frankly, absurd story shine.
1. The Shining
Stanley Kubrick. I’m convinced that the man is a genius. To work in so many different genres – sci-fi, horror, war – and manage succeed in all of them is a heroic feat. The Shining is Kubrick’s first and last foray into horror – and the result is, in my opinion, astounding. Absolutely everything shines in this film adaptation of a Stephen King novel – Jack Nicholson is amazing, the steady camera work (which has since become a staple for the genre) is amazing, the attention to detail is amazing. Fans of the novel, and even the author himself, were deeply disappointed – Kubrick changed a lot, the ending in particular – but I think that that made the story that much stronger. The borderline maniacal control that the director had over the production allowed for the insertion of many subtle hints into the ambiguous plot. Pay close attention to any scene with mirrors, for example, and you might discover something new. Even if we ignore the stunning production values, at its core, The Shining is frightening story of a family trapped in a hotel with an insane/possessed (that’s up to you to decide) father . The imagery, however, raises the film from being merely frightening to absurdly terrifying – the blood from the elevator, the twin little girls, the woman in the bathtub… The “Here’s Johnny” scene is also perhaps the most recognizable scene in all of horror. This is a true masterpiece.
