1.
Mars Attacks! (1996)
If you know me, you know I’m a huge fan of Tim Burton’s
earlier work. Some of my favorite movies were written and/or directed by
Burton. I hate to say that his recent work hasn’t been as good, but Mars Attacks is from the 90s when he was
still making quality movies. I’ve never seen it before and I was excited to
possibly watch a hidden gem. The film pays homage to the sci-fi and horror
B-movies from the 50s. There is definitely a heavy Ed Wood influence throughout
the film. Mars Attacks is an ensemble
film of many famous actors. The film is about aliens that come to America and
how their invasion affects people from many different walks of life.
I hate to say it, but this wasn’t a great movie. There were
some good parts, but it wasn’t what I expected from a Burton film. I will say
that for the time that it was made, the CGI was really good. Most of the actors
were enjoyable to watch, but there were a lot of really awkward scenes. I
watched Plan 9 from Outer Space,
earlier this month and this film was meant to be a tribute to that. Personally,
I think Plan 9 is much more enjoyable to watch.
2.
Hellraiser (1987)
This movie is the main reason why you don’t mess with
joo-joo. Hellraiser has always been one of those movies that I purposefully
avoided, and not something I would ever watch by choice. Even the cover of the
VHS/DVD always freaked me out, but I guess Creepy Cinema is the perfect time to
try new things? Right? Well Hellraiser is hard to describe, but it’s basically
about a man that unlocks a mystical box which unleashes demons or other-wordly
beings that torture people. Although, the demons are only part of the movie, while
the crux of the film focuses on the main character preying on people for their
flesh.
3. The
Equinox (1970)
This 70s flick is well known for being
super long and campy. Dennis Muren, the creator and an award winning special
effects artist, decided to create a horror film with his friends. This film
actually has been noted for its similarities to Evil Dead, which I don’t 100%
agree with. Yes, there are many
similarities. Both films involve young couples that go on an outing that ends
in disaster. They both unknowingly unleash an evil force and experience the
terrifying consequences. However I think that’s where the similarities end.
4.
Horror Express (1974)
This
film is a moody cult classic that stars one of last year’s Creepy Cinemahotties, Peter Cushing as Dr. Wells. The
plot revolves around an English anthropologist, played by Christopher Lee, who
has discovered a frozen monster in the wastes of Manchuria, which he believes,
may be the Missing Link. He brings the creature back to Europe on a trans-Siberian
train, but during the trip the monster thaws out and starts killing the
passengers.
My initial thought was…SO MUCH FACIAL HAIR. But once I got
over that, the story was quite interesting. The movie is a bit slow, but many
of the films this year have been slow. I really enjoy both Cushing and Lee. I
loved watching them last year in The Mummy. I was a bit surprised at the real
culprit in Horror Express. I thought
it was going to be something very simple, but it ended up being something completely
different and that was a nice pleasant surprise. I was happy to finally watch
something that wasn’t what I thought it would be.
5.
Troll 2 (1990)
I think this movie is the epitome of a cult classic. It has
all the qualities of what would be expected. The film is called Troll 2, but not once do they say the
word troll in the movie. The movie takes place in the fictional town of
“Nilbog” where strange things start happening. Creepy goblin like creatures
start turning humans into plants and eating them. This is the source of that famous
clip, starring Darren Ewing, that went viral on YouTube a few years ago.
“They’re eating her…and then they’re going to eat me…OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOD…”
Even though this is probably one of the worst movies I’ve
ever seen, it was so good. I really liked it. It’s so bad it’s good. I read a
bit about the movie and learned that the director was Italian and didn’t speak
a word of English. The entire crew also didn’t speak English. They cast inexperienced
actors who had to read their script verbatim. The director wrote the film because
many of his friends were becoming vegetarians and he wasn’t too keen on that.
It’s pretty incredible and a movie that I suggest everyone sees at least once.
6.
Night of the Living
Dead (1968)
This film is the George A Romero classic that kick-started
the zombie genre for years to come. It’s an undead legacy that’s inspired
generations of moviemakers, most notably Edgar Wright with Shaun of the Dead. The film focuses on one night and the “living
dead” that terrorize a small group of people.
7. Shaun of the Dead
(2004)
I cannot express how much I love this movie. Even before
Creepy Cinema, this was the one film that I’ve watched so much that I could
quote it to you in its entirety. I really, really, really adore this movie. It
has tons of gags and dialogue that tips its hat to great cult classics like Night of the Living Dead and Evil Dead. I love the comedic take on
the zombie genre. The film is about a lazy loser who becomes a bit of a hero
during a zombie apocalypse in London.
As I said before, I love this movie. I remember that the
first time I saw I instantly fell in love. Edgar Wright makes such great films.
They’re always witty, tightly edited and have great comedic timing…just fun to
watch. Somehow it manages to combine
comedy, romance and horror. Even after watching it multiple times it never gets
old. To me it’s as close to a perfect movie as you’re going to get.