Category: You Should Watch This

Reviews, You Should Watch This

Sex and Violence as an Art Form in Ti West’s ‘X’

Ah, A24. You bring us so much wonderful, weird horror. From slow, understated supernatural dramas like It Comes at Night and Witch to visceral, chaotic nightmares like The Lighthouse and Midsommar, A24’s horror selection has touched on just about every subgenre that could comfortably fit within the boundaries of what some critics have (somewhat obnoxiously) dubbed ‘elevated horror.’ These are ‘respectable’ horror films, movies that … Continue reading Sex and Violence as an Art Form in Ti West’s ‘X’

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Reviews, You Should Watch This

‘Pig,’ and Why We Should All Worship the Ground Nic Cage Walks On

I will defend Nicholas Cage until my dying breath. Sure, he’s a little eccentric. And okay yes, maybe he doesn’t exactly always make the smartest career choices. There’s The Wicker Man, of course. And Ghost Rider. Knowing. The second Ghost Rider. You get the idea. Some real stinkers. And sadly, because of that, there seems to be a consensus within the public, pop-culture consciousness that … Continue reading ‘Pig,’ and Why We Should All Worship the Ground Nic Cage Walks On

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You Should Watch This

‘Pumpkinhead’ and How Design Can Elevate a Horror Film from Good to Great

Pumkpkinhead is one of my absolute favorite Halloween-season movies. There’s just something about the bleak, spooky atmosphere and the classic, almost fairy-tale story that makes it a perfect movie for a chilly October night. But if you broke it down into its composite parts, there’s really not much on the surface that seems all that special about it. From a narrative perspective, it’s a fairly … Continue reading ‘Pumpkinhead’ and How Design Can Elevate a Horror Film from Good to Great

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You Should Watch This

Leslie Vernon: The King of the Meta-Slasher

In our previous discussion of the 1983 cult-classic Sleepaway Camp, we talked about how slasher films can fall into a trap of being overly self-important and stagnantly serious. Slashers are inherently goofy, even when played straight, and to pretend otherwise often leads to disaster. Of course, you can have serious slasher flicks, but even the most noteworthy among them like Halloween and Black Christmas still … Continue reading Leslie Vernon: The King of the Meta-Slasher

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Rankings and Lists, You Should Watch This

Two-Tone Terror: Horror in Black-and-White

There’s a certain tendency with younger audiences, one which I myself can be guilty of as well from time to time, to naturally skew towards newer films rather than those that came out before they were born. If you give them a choice between a modern release and something from decades ago, especially if it’s in black-and-white, they will almost certainly choose the contemporary option. … Continue reading Two-Tone Terror: Horror in Black-and-White

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Lists, You Should Watch This

Scares from Space: The Best of Extraterrestrial Horror

Most horror is Earthbound. The terror on our screens is based on monsters from our own world, or at the very least, worlds that are connected to ours. Creatures emerge from the woods or the sea to hunt us for dinner. Murderers and psychopaths escape from asylums or wander out of abandoned campgrounds to stalk us from the shadows. Vengeful spirits and malevolent demons arise … Continue reading Scares from Space: The Best of Extraterrestrial Horror

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Reviews, You Should Watch This

‘Re-Animator:’ Lovecraftian Horror in it’s Most Delicious, Digestible Form

I hate H.P. Lovecraft. Sure, I love the meme-ry of his work in pop culture, all the references to Cthulu, Elder Gods, and Old Ones, all that fun stuff. I know the Shoggoths and the city of R’lyeh, and I’m pretty well-versed in all the horrors of Dunwich and the madness in the mountains. But man, his writing is just… no fun. At all. Lovecraft … Continue reading ‘Re-Animator:’ Lovecraftian Horror in it’s Most Delicious, Digestible Form

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Rankings and Lists, You Should Watch This

Back From the Dead: The Best Horror Remakes

I’ve made this argument before here on this hellish collection of rambling, incoherent thoughts I call a blog, but I’ll say it again: As a general rule, I hate remakes. It’s the absolute bottom of the barrel in terms of sheer creative bankruptcy. It’s a studio and a collection of writers, producers, directors, and actors all getting together and saying “Hey, we don’t have a … Continue reading Back From the Dead: The Best Horror Remakes

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Reviews, You Should Watch This

Willow Creek, and the Dangers of Finding Bigfoot

Try to think of a goofier monster than Bigfoot. I dare you. Despite being a mysterious, enigmatic cryptid, a creature that could possibly really exist somewhere out there in the forests of the American Pacific northwest, it’s been pretty much rendered a hokey joke by pop culture. The name Sasquatch doesn’t so much conjure the image of an elusive, majestic mythological beast so much as … Continue reading Willow Creek, and the Dangers of Finding Bigfoot

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Rankings and Lists, You Should Watch This

Keep Filming: The Best of Found Footage Horror

A lot of horror cinema is very gimmick-centric. While the goal of every film is ultimately to get enough butts in enough seats to turn a profit on the production, it seems that horror in particular has taken that goal as a challenge. Going back to the 1950s and 60s with the films of William Castle, who was the king of the theater gimmick, horror … Continue reading Keep Filming: The Best of Found Footage Horror

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