Monday 9 November 2015

List of Funny Horror Movies

What are the best funny horror movies available now? this list includes some of the most well known and best humorous horror films.

The first movie I watched from this list was the Little Shop Of Horrors, I was only very young at the time and it did scare me. Another early favorite was Gremlins, again as a child I did find it a little scary, but it wasn't difficult to scare me back then, when Lou Ferrigno would turn into the Hulk I would hide behind the sofa.

Some of the films on this list are cheap slap stick movies which are not classics by any means, but they do offer some entertainment value. A couple of the Scary Movie films are actually funny, the first and the third are good if I remember correctly, it has been awhile since I watched them.

This list of funny horror movies does offer some very good films in there own right, films such as the Evil Dead movies including the Army Of Darkness are among my favorites. Shawn Of The Dead is very funny using more intelligent humour, which is a nice change from the slap stick style.

List of Funny Horror Movies

Little Shop Of Horrors 1986

Director Frank Oz

Writers Charles B. Griffith - Howard Ashman

Cast Rick Moranis - Ellen Greene - Vincent Gardenia

Gremlins 1984

Director Joe Dante

Writers Chris Columbus

Cast Zach Galligan - Phoebe Cates - Hoyt Axton

Gremlins 2 The New Batch 1990

Director Joe Dante

Writers Chris Columbus - Charles S. Haas

Cast Zach Galligan - Phoebe Cates - John Glover

Beetle Juice 1988

Director Tim Burton

Writers Michael McDowell - Larry Wilson

Cast Alec Baldwin - Geena Davis - Michael Keaton

Zombieland 2009

Director Ruben Fleischer

Writers Rhett Reese - Paul Wernick

Cast Jesse Eisenberg - Emma Stone - Woody Harrelson

Shawn Of The Dead 2004

Director Edgar Wright

Writers Simon Pegg - Edgar Wright

Cast Simon Pegg - Nick Frost - Kate Ashfield

Scary Movie 2000

Director Keenen Ivory Wayans

Writers Shawn Wayans - Marlon Wayans

Cast Anna Faris - Jon Abrahams - Marlon Wayans

Scary Movie 2 2001

Director Keenen Ivory Wayans

Writers Shawn Wayans - Marlon Wayans

Cast Anna Faris - Marlon Wayans - Anthony Acker

Scary Movie 3 2003

Director David Zucker

Writers Craig Mazin - Pat Proft

Cast Anna Faris - Charlie Sheen - Regina Hall

Scary Movie 4 2006

Director David Zucker

Writers Craig Mazin - Jim Abrahams

Cast Anna Faris - Regina Hall - Craig Bierko

Scary Movie 5 2013

Director David Zucker

Writers Steve Leff - John Aboud

Cast Anna Faris - Anthony Anderson - Regina Hall

Ghost Busters 1984

Director Ivan Reitman

Writers Dan Aykroyd - Harold Ramis

Cast Bill Murray - Dan Aykroyd - Sigourney Weaver

Ghost Busters II 1989

Director Ivan Reitman

Writer Dan Aykroyd

Cast Bill Murray - Dan Aykroyd - Sigourney Weaver

Evil Dead 1981

Director Sam Raimi

Writer Sam Raimi

Cast Bruce Campbell - Ellen Sandweiss - Richard DeManincor

Evil Dead 2 1987

Director Sam Raimi

Writer Sam Raimi

Cast Bruce Campbell - Sarah Berry - Dan Hicks

Army Of Darkness 1992

Director Sam Raimi

Writer Sam Raimi

Cast Bruce Campbell - Embeth Davidtz - Marcus Gilbert

Fright Night 1985

Director Tom Holland

Writer Tom Holland

Cast Chris Sarandon - William Ragsdale - Amanda Bearse

Fright Night 2011

Director Craig Gillespie

Writer Marti Noxon

Cast Anton Yelchin - Colin Farrell - David Tennant

Sunday 1 November 2015

List of French Horror Movies

This page has a list of some of the best French Horror Movies, including year of release and movie information.

I will admit to knowing very little about French Horror and I haven't watched any of the below movies myself. If you have seen any of these movies and would like to submit a review please contact me, or if you would like to add to the list. I will make it a challenge to get hold of some of these and watch them, then I can recommend the good ones.

French Horror Movies


Livid 2011

Director Alexandre Bustillo - Julien Maury

Writers Alexandre Bustillo - Julien Maury

Cast Beatrice Dalle - Catherine Jacob - Marie-Claude

La Horde 2009

Director Benjamin Rocher - Yannick Dahan

Writers Arnaud Bordas

Cast Jean-Pierre Martins - Doudou Masta - Eriq Ebouaney

Caged 2010

Director Yann Gozlan

Writers Yann Gozlan - Guillaume Lemans

Cast Zoe Felix - Eric Savin - Arie Elmaleh - Ivan Franek - Igor Skreblin

Mutants 2009

Director David Morlet

Writers Louis-Paul Desanges - David Morlet

Cast Helene de Fougerolles - Dida Diafat - Francis Renaud

Baby Blood 1990

Director Alain Robak

Writers Alain Robak - Serge Cukier

Cast Emmanuelle Escourrou - Jean-Francois Gallotte - Christian Sinniger - Francois Frapier

Last Screening 2011

Director Laurent Achard

Writers Laurent Achard - Frederique Moreau

Cast Pascal Cervo - Charlotte van Kemmel - Karole Rocher - Austin Morel

Inside 2007

Director Alexandre Bustillo - Julien Maury

Writers Alexandre Bustillo

Cast Alysson Paradis - Beatrice Dalle - Nathalie Roussel - Tahar Rahim

The Hands of Orlac 1960

Director Edmond T. Greville

Writers Edmond T. Greville - Donald Taylor - John V. Baines

Cast Mel Ferrer - Dany Carrel - Lucille Saint-Simon

Comments French and British made film

Martyrs 2008

Director Pascal Laugier

Writers Pascal Laugier

Cast Morjana Alaoui - Mylene Jampano�

Comments French and Canadian made film

Frontier(s) 2007

Director Xavier Gens

Writers Xavier Gens

Cast Aurelien Wiik - Samuel Le Bihan - Estelle Lefebure

Possession 1981

Director Andrzej Zulawski

Writers Frederic Tuten - Andrzej Zulawski

Cast Isabelle Adjani - Sam Neill

Them 2006

Director David Moreau - Xavier Palud

Writers David Moreau - Xavier Palud

Cast Olivia Bonamy - Michael Cohen

Monday 5 October 2015

Evil Dead (2013) Preview

Remake of the classic (1981) movie Evil Dead, Evil Dead is one of my favorite Horror Movies, how will this compare?
 
Release date 13th March (US) 19th March (UK)

Director Fede Alvarez

Writers Fede Alvarez - Diablo Cody

Cast

Jane Levy - Mia
Shiloh Fernandez - David
Jessica Lucas - Olivia
Lou Taylor Pucci - Eric
Elizabeth Blackmore - Natalie
TriStar Pictures - Running time 91 minutes

A group of friends head off to an isolated cabin, while there they find a very old and creepy looking book called the book of the dead, after reading from the book the group unknowingly summon an evil entity. The entity possesses members of the group which turns into a fight for survival for the others.

Evil Dead is a favorite horror movie of mine and this remake remake is much welcomed. The original story is a very simple one but the idea was brilliantly executed in the original movies, however to the modern viewer the original is looking very dated and the remake has come at a time which makes sense.

There's no CGI in this Evil Dead remake which is a nice refreshing change from what we have seen lately, this should also please the old school fans of the original movies. The director decided early on that no CGI would be used, instead opting for old style special effects and illusion techniques.

Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell are involved, while it would of been nice to see Bruce Campbell back in his role as Ash, it was decided early on that this would not happen. Sam Raime and Bruch Campbell are both involved in the production of this remake, I see this as definitely being a good thing, having the main influences of the original movies involved in this remake should capture some of the atmosphere from the 1981 movie.

Sunday 27 September 2015

Dracula 2000 Review

Dracula 2000 Review, Gerard Butler stars in this modern vampire film, a group of thieves steal Draculas coffin.
Director Patrick Lussier

Writer Joel Soisson

Cast

Gerard Butler, Count Dracula
Christopher Plummer, Abraham Van Helsing
Jonny Lee Miller, Simon Sheppard
Justine Waddell, Mary Heller
Jeri Ryan, Valerie Sharpe
Colleen Fitzpatrick, Lucy Westerman
Danny Masterson, Nightshade

Dimension Films, Running time 99 minutes.

A group of thieves break into Van Helsings antique shop, which is filled with expensive items. The thieves find and gain access to the shops vault, while in the vault they find a metal Coffin, thinking it will contain something very expensive they attempt to open it, they soon discover the coffin has been booby trapped. Unable to open the coffin and convinced it must contain something very valuable they steal the coffin, unaware of the danger inside.

Dracula 2000 has a good cast, decent acting and the movie has a nice atmosphere and feel, some of the effects are good, there is some blood and gore which is used nicely, they haven't gone silly and over used the special effects. Gerard Butler does a good job of playing Dracula as a monster with great power and as a charismatic likable character. The other cast members also do a good job, apart from Simons (Jonny Lee Millers) accent which sounded a bit forced. Dracula 2000 offers its own fairly interesting story behind the creation of Dracula, something that becomes known near the end of the film.

While I did enjoy this movie, I didn't find the story engrossing and I didn't find myself caring particularly about any of the characters, I was easily distracted which are not the ideal ingredients for a master piece movie.

I can certainly recommend this to any vampire fans, as it gives us a healthy dose of vampire action, those that are not vampire fans may struggle to enjoy this as I am not sure there is enough to keep their attention.

6 out of 10

Sunday 20 September 2015

Dog Soldiers Review

Dog Soldiers is a 2002 British horror film set in Scotland, an army training exercise turns into a war against werewolves.

Director Neil Marshall

Writer Neil Marshall

Cast

Kevin McKidd, Private Cooper
Sean Pertwee, Sergeant Harry G. Wells
Emma Cleasby, Megan
Chris Robson, Private Joe Kirkley
Leslie Simpson, Private Terry Milburn
Liam Cunningham, Captain Ryan
Darren Morfitt, Private "Spoon" Witherspoon

A group of army soldiers are sent on a routine training exercise, they're expected to meet up with some SAS soldiers before beginning their training in the highlands of Scotland. Upon arrival they discover the SAS members torn to pieces, it turns out there is one remaining survivor, Captain Ryan. Captain Ryan gives the soldiers hints about what attacked him and killed his troops, clearly distressed and traumatized Captain Ryan is unable to explain clearly what happened.

There are not many good werewolf movies, which is surprising when you consider how popular the werewolf actually is, I am talking about true werewolf movies, not films that simply include werewolves like the Twilight films. So we have the British horror movie Dog Soldiers, a low budget British horror movie, I didn't have particularly high hopes for this as I am not a big fan of British movies.

Dog soldiers certainly has plenty of action, lots of shooting, blood and swearing, the pacing is good which prevents boredom. I like the Werewolf designed, they're a humanoid type of creature, big, fast and very deadly, the way they should be.

There is no CG used, the werewolves are just men in suits which is fine, but at times the low budget does show in the effects, both the werewolves and the gore.

The acting is good enough for the most part, some of the dialog is a bit cheesy and crude which is very common in British movies, but this one isn't to bad. Sergeant Harry G. Wells is the most likeable character providing some funny moments.

Overall it's nothing special but it has some good moments, Dog Soldiers is entertaining and certainly worth a watch for any werewolf fan.

5.5 out of 10

Sunday 6 September 2015

Dead End Review 2003

Dead End Review, Frank Harrington decides to take a short cut while they drive to his in-laws for Christmas.
Director Jean-Baptiste Andrea - Fabrice Canepa

Writers Jean-Baptiste Andrea - Fabrice Canepa

Cast

Ray Wise - Frank Harrington
Lin Shaye - Laura Harrington
Amber Smith - Lady in White
Mick Cain - Richard Harrington
Billy Asher - Brad Miller
Alexandra Holden - Marion Harrington

Frank Harrington has been driving to his in-laws every Christmas Eve for the last 20 years, this time however Frank is feeling very tired and he decides to take a different route to help keep him focused. Despite Franks attempt to keep himself awake he falls asleep at the wheel and has a near crash, after a quick inspection of the car everything seems ok and they carry on with their journey. As they continue to drive they come across a women dressed in white carrying a baby, this is when some of the family members start to go missing, and shortly after a strange black car drives past them with the recently missing family member in the back.

Dead End is a very good example of how to make a low budget horror movie, most of the film takes place in the family car while they drive through a woodland area at night, it's a very basic setting yet it manages to be very atmospheric and creepy and totally immersive.

The actors are well cast and they give good performances, there is some good dialog and some humours moments to keep the viewer entertained, it doesn't take itself too seriously yet it manages to create more atmosphere and tension than many bigger budget horror movies.

Some people seem to have difficultly following what's going on, you just have to begin watching it with an open mind, and just don't expect to much from the location and setting as visually you don't get to see much more than a road, some trees and a shed. However it does encourage your imagination and it will keep you guessing right to the end.

6.9 out of 10

Monday 31 August 2015

Dawn Of The Dead Review (1978)

Dawn of the Dead, a group find a shopping mall where they hide from the zombie infested population.
Director George A. Romero

Writers George A. Romero

Cast

David Emge - Stephen Andrews
Ken Foree - Peter Washington
Scott Reiniger - Roger DeMarco
Gaylen Ross - Francine Parker
David Crawford - Dr. Foster
David Early - Mr. Berman
Richard France - Scientist
Fred Baker - Commander
Jim Baffico - Wooley
Howard Smith - TV Commentator
Daniel Dietrich - Givens

Laurel Group, Running time 126 minutes.

Dawn of the dead is the sequel to Night of the living dead, and picks up right where Night of the living dead left off. The main story is about four individuals that find a deserted shopping mall, and lock themselves in, hiding from the zombie infested population.

I have always had a very strong interest for the zombie taking over the world story line, this film is the best example of that story that I have seen, It holds nothing back, it's very graphic and gory, in fact it was feared of being banned before it was released.

It creates a great sense of fear and survival that is yet to be replicated by any other movie, like with many other great films it will totally immerse you in the story.

The films visuals and effects are solid, although they're showing there age this doesn't stop the film from being enjoyable.

Night of the living dead was first, but the original dawn of the dead is responsible for and inspired many if not all of the recent zombie recreations. If you're a fan of scary movies and zombie movies this is one you should make time to watch.

7 out of 10

Sunday 30 August 2015

Dark Skies Review

The Barret family suddenly become victim to a series of strange and unexplained events around their home, they discover that something is after their children.

Director Scott Stewart

Writer Scott Stewart

Cast

Keri Russell - Lacy Barrett
Josh Hamilton - Daniel Barrett
J.K. Simmons - Edwin Pollard
Dakota Goyo - Jesse Barrett
Kadan Rockett - Sam Barrett
Myndy Crist - Karen Jessop
Annie Thurman - Shelly Jessop

When a family begin to become victim to strange activity which is escalating, they begin their own research to discover if anybody else has experienced similar events. What they discover is very disturbing, they seek help from a specialist, but all that he can do is give them advice on the matter as he is powerless to do anything else. The family must fight the dark forces which look to abduct members of the family.

It's fairly obvious what this movie is about based on the title, while the idea is not original it's refreshing to have a horror movie which does not revolve around a haunted house of some kind, or include ghosts or demons, while these types of movies are great! we have just been inundated with them in recent years.

Dark Skies is more of a psychological horror using tension to create scares rather than special effects or gore, and it does a decent job of this. The acting is solid, good timing and a nice creepy atmosphere all add to the whole experience. Dark Skies does provide some genuinely scary moments.
It follows the pattern of many other types of psychological horror movies, with strange and unexplained events happening, like members of the family sleep walking and strange configurations being created in the house out of house hold items. Not exactly original but it still seems to be a good way of building tension.

Overall Dark Skies is a well put together psychological horror movie, it's nothing amazing or ground breaking and it's somewhat predictable, but if you enjoy this type of horror movie then this is definitely worth a look.

6.5 out of 10

Sunday 23 August 2015

British Horror Movies

This page is dedicated to listing some of the best British horror films, see this list of movies, including film information.

Some of the films on this list are not solely British productions, some are British and American productions. I am not a huge fan of British Horror films but there are a few good ones. My personal favorite is the American Werewolf In London, I would recommend this film to anybody that hasn't seen it.

British Horror Movies


An American Werewolf In London 1981

Director John Landis

Writers John Landis

Actors David Naughton - Jenny Agutter - Griffin Dunne

The Cottage 2008

Director Paul Andrew Williams

Writers Paul Andrew Williams

Actors Andy Serkis - Reece Shearsmith - Steve O'Donnell - Jennifer Ellison

The Descent 2005

Director Neil Marshall

Writers Neil Marshall

Actors Shauna Macdonald - Natalie Mendoza - Alex Reid - Saskia Mulder

The Descent: part 2 2009

Director Jon Harris

Writers James McCarthy

Actors Michael J. Reynolds - Shauna Macdonald

28 Days Later 2002

Director Danny Boyle

Writers Alex Garland

Actors Cillian Murphy - Naomie Harris - Christopher Eccleston - Megan Burns

28 Weeks Later 2007

Director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Writers Rowan Joffe

Actors Jeremy Renner - Rose Byrne

Devil's Playground 2010

Director Mark McQueen

Writers Bart Ruspoli

Actors Danny Dyer - Craig Fairbrass - Jaime Murray

The Hunger 1983

Director Tony Scott

Writers

Actors Catherine Deneuve - David Bowie - Susan Sarandon

Dog Soldiers 2002

Director Neil Marshall

Writers Neil Marshall

Actors Sean Pertwee - Kevin McKidd - Liam Cunningham

Creep 2004

Director Christopher Smith

Writers Christopher Smith

Actors Franka Potente - Ken Campbell - Vas Blackwood

Outpost 2008

Director Steve Barker

Writers Rae Brunton

Actors Ray Stevenson - Julian Wadham - Richard Brake

Sparrow 2010

Director Shaun Troke

Writers Matthew Mosley - Justin Di Febo

Actors Faye Sewell - Thomas James Longley - Alexis Jayne Defoe

The Awakening 1980

Director Mike Newell

Writers

Actors Charlton Heston - Susannah York - Jill Townsend

Triangle 2009

Director Christopher Smith

Writers Christopher Smith

Actors Melissa George - Liam Hemsworth - Rachael Carpan

Kill List 2011

Director Ben Wheatley

Writers Ben Wheatley - Amy Jump

Actors Neil Maskell - Michael Smiley - MyAnna Buring

My Little Eye 2002

Director Marc Evans

Writers David Hilton - James Watkins

Actors Sean Cw Johnson - Kris Lemche - Stephen O'Reilly

Blessed 2004

Director Simon Fellows

Writers Robert Mearns - Jayson Rothwell

Actors Heather Graham - James Purefoy

The Children 2008

Director Tom Shankland

Writers Tom Shankland - Paul Andrew Williams

Actors Eva Birthistle

Saturday 22 August 2015

Blade Trinity Review

Blade Trinity Review, the third film in the Blade series, Blade has more than just Vampires to worry about.
Director David S. Goyer

Writer David S. Goyer

Cast

Wesley Snipes, Blade
Jessica Biel, Abigail Whistler
Ryan Reynolds, Hannibal King
Dominic Purcell, Dracula / Drake
Kris Kristofferson, Abraham Whistler
Parker Posey, Danica Talos
Natasha Lyonne, Sommerfield
Callum Keith Rennie, Asher Talos
Triple H, Jarko Grimwood

Imaginary Forces, New Line Cinema, Running time 113 minutes.

The vampires are losing direction, they need a leader, this motivates a group of vampires to search for the first ever vampire (Drake) also known as (Dracula). The Vampires have also managed to trick blade into killing a human causing him to be hunted and captured by a specialist team of law enforcement officers for murder. While in captivity Blade is rescued by two vampire hunters known as the Night Stalkers.

Blade Trinity offers us more of the same plus some new additions into the mix, the introduction of Dracula made this third instalment appealing to me. I was interested to know how Dracula would be portrayed and if blade would finally meet his match, I was getting tired of blade killing vampires so easily. Blade after all is more of a action martial arts movie with a vampire theme, so I wasn't expecting anything special, the character of Dracula helps to keep things interesting, but I don't think making him look like some kind of male aftershave model helped me to take the character seriously.

We also have the Night Stalkers played by Ryan Reynolds and Jessica Biel, trained vampire hunters, Ryan Reynolds is his usual fast talking comical self, combined with some good comical exchanges with some of the other characters makes this the funniest Blade movie.

There's certainly a lot going on in this movie, probably to much, but overall this is good entertainment, nothing special but fun to watch with some replay value.

6 out of 10

Sunday 16 August 2015

11 Best Horror Movies of the last Decade 2002/2012

1. The Cabin in the Woods 2012

Group of friends travel to an isolated cabin deep within the woods, while there they discover a cellar which is full of old creepy objects and books, one of the group's members reads a passage from one of the books unknowingly releasing a family of killer zombies.

I loved The Cabin in the Woods, I wasn't too sure about it to begin with, however after giving it a chance it turned out to be one of my favorite ever horror films. I was just expecting some run of the mill predictable teen horror movie, however I was completely wrong. The Cabin in the Woods is funny, original, very surprising and incredibly entertaining.

2. The Mist 2007

After what appears to be just a short lightning storm a mist begins to engulf the small town, at first the town's population believe the fog is a result of experiments from the nearby military base, however something evil lives within the mist.

I love films that create a feeling of isolation and The Mist is one of the best examples of that, it's incredibly engrossing and very atmospheric and I was completely hooked after the first few minutes. I have enjoyed much of the work of Steven King but this is him at his best. Many people criticize the ending which is fair enough, and while the fathers actions may have been in hast, I did find the ending disturbing, unexpected and also memorable.

3. Insidious 2010

Shortly after their son Dalton falls into a coma, his mother begins to hear strange voices and see ghostly figures. After the doctors are unable to determine what is wrong with Dalton, his parents seek another type of specialist to help their son.

Insidious is here because I found it to be one of the scariest and creepiest movies that I have ever seen. The scene in the bed room, with the demon standing next to the bed pointing at the child is probably the creepiest things I have seen in a horror movie. There are some great shock scares happening throughout the movie, however it's the psychological tension building that really gave me chills.

4. Saw 2004

Two men wake up chained with a dead body lying in the middle of the room, they must follow certain rules and undertake certain challenges to keep them and their families alive.

I was hooked from the very start, great tension and atmosphere and very mysterious that keeps the viewer guessing. Good original idea with good acting, overall a very solid movie with some nice twists and turns, plus some nice gore to top it off, intelligent horror with a great horror villain.

5. Slither 2006

A meteorite crashes near a small town, one of the towns folk find the crash site but he is then infected by some kind of parasite which mutates him, the parasite aims to infect and take over the entire town.

Slither is a great horror/science fiction/comedy which is highly entertaining, it has borrowed elements from classic horror movies like The Thing, Invasion of the Body Snatches and various zombie movies but it adds its own uniqueness to them. Slither is great fun, it has a great cast, good solid special effects if somewhat a little disgusting at times.

6. Paranormal Activity 2007

When a young couple move into a new home, shortly after moving in strange and unexplained things begin to happen. In the beginning the unexplained activity is minor however as the days pass the paranormal activity becomes more serious.

I was in the cinema when I first started watching Paranormal Activity, and as it began not realizing that it was a first person camera style movie I almost walked out, not being much of a fan of that style of movie. However I decided to stay and I am glad that I did because Paranormal Activity turned out to be one of the scariest movies that I have ever seen. Paranormal Activity is such a basic movie, yet I was completely engrossed and it gave me chills like no movie had done before, It surprised me and I found it very entertaining.

7. The Hills Have Eyes 2006

A family are traveling through what is thought to be an uninhabited area of America that was once used by the government for nuclear testing. During their journey their camper van breaks down, it turns out there are people living in the area after all, and they have brutal intentions.

A great remake and better than the original 1977 movie in my opinion, one of the most tense and brutal movies that I have ever seen, there are actually a couple of the scenes that were difficult to watch, I remember turning my head away while watching it in the cinema. It also provides a great revenge story and a very satisfying ending.

8. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2003

Passing though Texas a group of friends get stalked and murdered by a deformed killer, the survivors have to fight for their lives.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake is a definite favorite of mine, very atmospheric with some nice tension building moments. It includes a good cast, good solid acting with brutal and graphic murders, for me this is better than the original.

9. Mirrors 2008

An ex cop (Ben) starts working as a night watch man in a department store which was partly damaged by a fire. During his patrols he comes across a large and strangely undamaged mirror, while looking into the mirror (Ben) begins to see disturbing images in the reflection.

Mirrors may not be an original idea with many of the scenes being done before or something very similar. Despite the fact that we have seen similar style movies before about mirrors, I think Mirrors does a better job of recreating those scenes with better tension and definitely better effects. I found Mirrors to be scary with decent and not over used special effects with good tension and atmosphere, definitely a favorite recent horror movie.

10. Hostel 2005

Three young American back backers travel to Slovakia because they hear the local girls love Americans, however it's all too good to be true as they soon discover.

Hostel is a very brutal and cruel movie showing the worst in humanity and actually being believable at the same time, which I think makes this even more disturbing. Hostel is very entertaining and engrossing, I hadn't seen anything like this before and it also has a nice revenge story which provided a good satisfying ending.

11. The Grudge 2004

An American nurse is living and working in Japan, she is given the job of looking after a mentally disturbed women, she soon discovers that there is something evil inhabiting the house.

The plot is very simple it's not hard to follow and certainly not mentally taxing. However The Grudge has a very creepy atmosphere throughout, it has a similar feel to the remake of The Ring, however in my opinion The Grudge has more tension and it's scarier overall. The Grudge doesn't have much reply value but as a first time viewing it's one of the scariest movies I have seen.

Saturday 15 August 2015

An American Werewolf in London Review

Two American travelers get attacked by a Werewolf.

Director John Landis

Writer John Landis

Cast

David Naughton, David Kessler
Jenny Agutter, Nurse Alex Price
Lila Kaye, Barmaid
Frank Oz, Mr. Collins
Griffin Dunne, Jack Goodman
John Woodvine, Dr. J.S. Hirsch

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Running time 97 minutes.

Two American friends traveling through the English country side are attacked by a werewolf, one of the friends is killed and the other is badly hurt. While in hospital the surviving friend begins to see the ghost of his recently deceased friend. His dead buddy explains that he was killed by a werewolf and he is now cursed and forced to walk the earth as a rotting ghost, he explains that the only way to lift the curse is to end the werewolf blood line.

An American Werewolf in London is probably my favorite werewolf movie of all time and in my opinion one of the best films of the 80s. It has a very simple story yet it's told very well with good charismatic performances from the actors, especially David Naughton as David Kessler who is largely responsible for making this movie stand above many others.

There are some great memorable scenes, like when David Kessler wakes up in the Zoo wolf enclosure completely naked and in broad day light and then he tries to remain unseen and escape the Zoo. There is a really good sense of humour and some good banter throughout. My favorite moment is the transformation scene which is very intense and it still looks good to this day. It also includes a good sound track which adds a great deal to the experience, the music is well paced throughout the film.

Some of the effects are looking a bit dated now, there are a couple of scenes with the werewolf which are looking a little unrealistic these days.

Overall a very entertaining and funny movie which is probably the best werewolf movie ever made, I would personally like to see a remake.

7 out of 10

Wednesday 12 August 2015

Aliens Review

Aliens Review, Aliens is the amazing sequel to the master piece movie, Alien.

Director James Cameron

Writer James Cameron

Cast

Sigourney Weaver - Ellen Ripley
Carrie Henn - Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden
Michael Biehn - Cpl. Dwayne Hicks
Paul Reiser - Carter Burke
Lance Henriksen - Bishop
William Hope - Lt. Gorman
Al Matthews - Sgt. Apone
Mark Rolston - Pvt. Drake
Bill Paxton - Pvt. Hudson
Jenette Goldstein - Pvt. Vasquez

20th Century Fox, Running time 137 minutes.

50 Years after the first alien, the planet in Alien LV426 has been colonized, some years later, contact has been lost with the colony and the marines are sent in to investigate.

Some people prefer Aliens to Alien and I can understand why, while Alien is slow paced, this film is very different. Alien maybe my favorite but Aliens is arguably a scarier film, the atmosphere it creates is some of the best, combine that with the intensity of the well written and executed scenes and it creates one of the scariest films ever made.

The cast is also great in this film, Aliens is full of memorable characters and dialog, the acting is great, good character development, you actually care about what happens to the characters. The cast alone makes this an entertaining movie, then include the tension, atmosphere and the Aliens themselves makes this one very complete movie.

The visuals still look good to this day, the action scenes are well executed and memorable, the scenes with the marines using the motion trackers are some of my favorite ever tension building movie moments.

The first time I watched Aliens it was an incredibly intense and scary experience which has never been matched. The fear factor is lost after watching it a few times, however I still find it enjoyable to watch.

8.7 out of 10

Tuesday 11 August 2015

Alien Review

Alien is a classic science fiction horror movie and one of the best movies ever made, my review.

Director Ridley Scott

Writer Dan O'Bannon

Cast

Tom Skerritt - Dallas
Sigourney Weaver - Ripley
Veronica Cartwright - Lambert
John Hurt - Kane
Yaphet Kotto - Parker
Harry Dean Stanton - Brett
Ian Holm - Ash

20th Century Fox, Running time 117 minutes

Alien maybe getting on in years but it still looks surprising good, solid visuals and very solid overall, great example of how to make a good science fiction horror movie, or any type of movie for that matter.

I find this film totally captivating, even after watching it dozens of times, this is one of the most atmospheric films ever made. It's very difficult to find a flaw with this film including the visuals which is amazing considering the age of the film. The only real flaw I could say was with the way Kane (John Hurt) situation was handled when he was brought back onto the ship with a face hugger attached, he should of been quarantined and frozen until they got back to earth. I find it difficult to believe the situation would of been handled so badly. I can't help but think that if I was aboard that ship that whole alien mess could of been avoided, although that may of messed up the rest of the story.

The way the movie is directed and filmed is fantastic, the atmosphere that is created by the visual aspects and the sound track is unmatched by any other film. The story is basic yet well written and excellently executed which is easy to follow and completely immerses the viewer. The Alien creature itself is probably the greatest movie monster of all time, you both fear it and respect it.

Movies like this should be used as a training aid for upcoming directors. Alien is an almost perfect movie which I can happily watch again and again, it has great acting, directing and atmosphere, it's a must own for any film fan.

9 out of 10

Monday 10 August 2015

30 Days Of Night: Dark Days Review

Director Ben Ketai

Writer Steve Niles

Cast

Kiele Sanchez - Stella Oleson
Rhys Coiro - Paul
Diora Baird - Amber
Katharine Isabelle - Stacey
Ben Cotton - Dane
Mia Kirshner - Lilith
Monique Ganderton - Betty
Harold Perrineau - Todd

Stage 6 Films, Running time 92 minutes.

A year after the incident in Alaska, Stella Oleson has relocated to Los Angeles, she is still troubled by the events in Alaska and the death of her husband. Stella spends her time trying to tell her story and to make the events in Alaska and the existence of Vampires known. She is tracked down by a group of vampire hunters that are searching for a vampire queen that is responsible for the attack in Alaska.

The 30 Days of Night Dark Days has a smaller budget than the original which is responsible for less action and less well known actors. The lack of money spent on this sequel seems obvious, much of the movie running time gets used up by longer than necessary scenes where not much happens, these scenes led to me losing interest in the story and getting a little bored.

On a positive the acting is fairly good throughout with solid dialog, the effects are decent and the vampires look good, in some respects it's a fairly solid film. I actually enjoyed the first half an hour, I found myself being very immersed, it's a shame it couldn't maintain that level.

I find it difficult to recommend 30 days of night: dark days because it just becomes boring, I feel it's the victim of a small budget, it's a shame because it did have potential.

4 out of 10

30 Days Of Night Review

Director David Slade

Writer Steve Niles

Cast

Josh Hartnett, Sheriff Eben Oleson
Melissa George, Stella Oleson
Danny Huston, Marlow
Nathaniel Lees, Carter Davies
Manu Bennett, Deputy Billy Kitka
Ben Foster as The Stranger
Mark Boone Junior, Beau Brower
Mark Rendall, Jake Oleson
Amber Sainsbury, Denise

Columbia Pictures, Running time 113 minutes.

Barrow an Alaskan town is about to fall into a Polar Night, 30 days of night. All communication and means of leaving the town of Barrow has been mysteriously disrupted, there is no way out for the Towns inhabitants. It turns out Vampires are behind the towns problems and they begin to kill the towns residents, the few remaining people have to fight for their survival.

I really like the location of this movie, setting it in snowy isolated Alaska creates a great atmosphere which provides a foundation to make a really good movie. Combine that with convincing acting and dialog and we have the setting for a really good Horror movie. It's also visually very good, the vampires look great and menacing, there is also a fair amount of blood and guts yet they haven't over used it and the gore looks realistic. Some of the cinematography is very nice and original, adding to the experience and the unique feel.

Josh Hartnett plays his part well, which helps to draw in the viewer and keep attention, Danny Huston is great as the head Vampire and he does a good job of being the main bad guy, he portrays a character of power in which to fear.

It's nice to get a modern Vampire film that portrays Vampires for how they were originally meant to be, Monsters! These Vampires see humans as a food source only and slaughter them, not like these recent romantic vampire movies and TV Shows, not that there is anything wrong with many of them.
I highly recommend this to anyone that enjoys a good Vampire Horror movie.

7 out of 10

Top 10 Horror Movies

Top 10 Horror Movies, this list includes 10 of the best and highest rated scary movies ever made.
This top 10 has been influenced party by my own personal opinion and partly influenced by what films are considered to be the best horror movies by professional film critics and overall reviews and ratings. Feel free to comment below if you have any suggestions.
Top 10 Horror Movies

1. Alien (1979)
Director Ridley Scott
Stars Sigourney Weaver - Tom Skerritt - John Hurt
A masterpiece of direction, great atmosphere and visuals, near perfect movie that is still very engrossing no matter how many times I watch it.

2. The Thing (1982)
Director John Carpenter
Stars Kurt Russell - Wilford Brimley - Keith David
Great atmosphere and suspense, A group of scientists in Antarctica accidentally unleash a shape shifting Alien. Being set in Antarctica helps to create a brilliant feeling of isolation, one of my favorite films of all time.

3. Aliens (1986)
Director James Cameron
Stars Sigourney Weaver - Michael Biehn - Carrie Henn
Great sequel, great actors and direction, many memorable lines and scenes, one of the most atmospheric and tense movies I have ever seen.

4. The Shining (1980)
Director Stanley Kubrick
Stars Jack Nicholson - Shelley Duvall - Danny Lloyd
A very creepy atmosphere to this movie, it has a very unique feel which is unlike anything I have ever seen, plus Jack Nicholson is fantastic in his role.

5. Halloween (1978)
Director John Carpenter
Stars Donald Pleasence - Jamie Lee Curtis - Tony Moran
Best of the Halloween series and the first of the modern slasher movies, setting the rules and the standards for other slasher movies to follow.

6. Psycho (1960)
Director Alfred Hitchcock
Stars Anthony Perkins - Janet Leigh
Psycho is considered by many to be the greatest horror suspense movie ever made.

7. The Exorcist (1973)
Director William Friedkin
Stars Ellen Burstyn - Max von Sydow
Many people consider The Exorcist to be the scariest movie ever.

8. Evil dead 2 (1987)
Director Sam Raimi
Stars Bruce Campbell - Sarah Berry - Dan Hicks
Fantastically entertaining movie, includes some of the scariest and weirdest looking monsters and demons I have ever seen, yet comical at the same time. Includes some great memorable moments.

9. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Director Wes Craven
Stars Heather Langenkamp - Johnny Depp - Robert Englund
One of the most memorable and recognizable movie monsters of all time, at the time a very original horror and one of my favorite movie characters.

10. Dawn of the dead (1978)
Director George A Romero
Stars David Emge - Ken Foree - Scott H. Reiniger
The father of the modern zombie movie, I love the end of the world zombie infested story line, creating a involving feeling of survival. It's showing its age now but it has influenced some great recent Zombie Movies.