Part 1: 1900-1969
Hi all,
So, Octopus books and General Editor Steven J Schneider recently released the newest, 5th anniversary edition, of the epic book "1001 Films To See Before You Die". What follows is a list of the horror films which made the list (in chronological order). This list should presumably represent the best of the genre and, hopefully, get people thinking, debating, complaining and chiming in with their own 2 cents. I will also include a very brief (no more than 3 sentence) review of those films on the list which I have seen, hopefully showing a pretty good cross section of one fan's (or type of fan's) opinion. Ideally, with the gauntlet thrown down last night, Mr B will pick up the baton and give his own brief views on the films HE has seen, becoming a more comprehensive reviews list and an intriguing comparison in some cases between we 2 fans on the same subjects. Hopefully you're suitably intrigued so lets get on with the list...
- Les Vampires (1915)
- The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) **** 4/5
Seminal German expressionist work where the plot is somewhat less memorable than the epic atmosphere and creepy images, vitally important to forming several key visual tropes of the genre as a whole, if a little dull itself in moments.
- The Phantom Carriage (1921)
- Nosferatu, A Symphony of Terror (1922) ***** 5/5
The true expressionist masterpiece and one of the best screen interpretations of the Dracula legend, where everything exists in a truly mesmering and chilling world of shadows and symbols, and the freakiest, most iconic monster in horror cinema history, so iconic it was parodied in everything from The Fast Show to The Simpsons, and inspired the later film Shadow of the Vampire.
- Haxan (1923)
- The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
- Dracula (1931)
- Frankenstein (1931) **** 4/5
Brilliant early horror which, along with its sequel, remains the best of the Universal output of its classic heyday in my opinion, fantastically shot and performed and remaining inherently watchable, asking all the right questions in its script too. Despite heavily relevant scenes including the monsters first (and only) kill and the ensuing, now archetypal, "villagers with pitchforks" mob violence. Sadly hasn't dated well as a whole.
- M (1931)
- Vampyr (1932)
- Freaks (1932) ** 2/5
Overly exploitative, arguable horror, which leaves a bad taste in the mouth and which is notable for showing an acclaimed director honing his craft and not much else, remains one of my mums favourite movies though so must speak to some people, somehow.
- King Kong (1933) ***** 5/5
Cinema history 101 pushed the boundaries of effects, screenplay and what could be presented in the medium and is the oldest film in this list that I can put on and watch right now and still dig on, top marks for sure.
- The Black Cat (1934)
- Bride of Frankenstein (1935) ***** 5/5
One of few sequels that better the original, dealing brilliantly with the themes of inhumanity and monstrousness (and how reversed these can be from expectations) from the previous film, and adding an additional theme of gender politics, also contains one of the best death lines in the movies ("We Belong Dead"). Does however contain a clearly queer subplot which unfortunately distracts from the films merits and ALMOST drops it a star, but quality shines through.
- The Wolf Man (1941)
- Cat People (1942) **** 4/5
A surprisingly seminal work, often overlooked, again showcasing a director at the height of his abilities, here showing masterfully how to build tension and fear from suggestion and what you don't see, one of the best old school B movies but still a little bit trashy for my tastes to be a true great. Did however give us the jump shocks so prevalent in practically every US horror since.
- I Walked With A Zombie (1943) * 1/5
Good direction but the title is better than anything in the film, a product of that being presented first and Val Lewtons contrary nature.
- The Seventh Victim (1943)
- Laura (1944)
- Detour (1945)
- Les Diaboliques (1954)
- The Mad Masters (1955)
- The Night of the Hunter (1955)
- The Seventh Seal (1957)
- Dracula (1958)
- Eyes Without a Face (1959)
- Psycho (1960) Full review will be posted at some point soon...
- Black Sunday (1960) **** 4/5
Sensual and powerful film, with striking imagery which really shocks the sense and presents an intriguing visual representation of the supernatural, awesome villain acting from the female lead too but at times the production can veer a bit "Scooby Doo" in its own intricacy of traps and signification of detail.
- Peeping Tom (1960) *** 3/5
Uncomfortable but undoubtedly merit-worthy film, some directorial decisions alone earning a whole star but not on a par with the film its often compared to: Psycho. Surprisingly decent however, speaking to the voyeur in us all whether we like it or not.
- The Birds (1963) *** 3/5
Hitchcock on auto-pilot, still notable and memorable, with flourishes of brilliance, but too ponderous at times and overshadowed by its siblings Psycho and Rear Window.
- The Haunting (1963) *** 3/5
Tense without being overblown with a true impact on various branches of horror film theory, sadly the speculation about hidden meanings is more interesting than anything actually presented but at times this is a good thing when true tension and top notch camera placement and framing works at effectively scaring you, at others it is frustratingly tame for a more advanced audience.
- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
- Viy (1967)
- Rosemary's Baby (1968)
- Night of the Living Dead (1968) ***** 5/5
Set the scene for every zombie outing to follow and remains a brilliantly allegorical piece on one level and also a brilliantly executed horror b-movie, the dead rose, and so did critics who took notice. Influential and enjoyable, a true roller coaster ride.
So, Octopus books and General Editor Steven J Schneider recently released the newest, 5th anniversary edition, of the epic book "1001 Films To See Before You Die". What follows is a list of the horror films which made the list (in chronological order). This list should presumably represent the best of the genre and, hopefully, get people thinking, debating, complaining and chiming in with their own 2 cents. I will also include a very brief (no more than 3 sentence) review of those films on the list which I have seen, hopefully showing a pretty good cross section of one fan's (or type of fan's) opinion. Ideally, with the gauntlet thrown down last night, Mr B will pick up the baton and give his own brief views on the films HE has seen, becoming a more comprehensive reviews list and an intriguing comparison in some cases between we 2 fans on the same subjects. Hopefully you're suitably intrigued so lets get on with the list...
- Les Vampires (1915)
- The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) **** 4/5
Seminal German expressionist work where the plot is somewhat less memorable than the epic atmosphere and creepy images, vitally important to forming several key visual tropes of the genre as a whole, if a little dull itself in moments.
- The Phantom Carriage (1921)
- Nosferatu, A Symphony of Terror (1922) ***** 5/5
The true expressionist masterpiece and one of the best screen interpretations of the Dracula legend, where everything exists in a truly mesmering and chilling world of shadows and symbols, and the freakiest, most iconic monster in horror cinema history, so iconic it was parodied in everything from The Fast Show to The Simpsons, and inspired the later film Shadow of the Vampire.
- Haxan (1923)
- The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
- Dracula (1931)
- Frankenstein (1931) **** 4/5
Brilliant early horror which, along with its sequel, remains the best of the Universal output of its classic heyday in my opinion, fantastically shot and performed and remaining inherently watchable, asking all the right questions in its script too. Despite heavily relevant scenes including the monsters first (and only) kill and the ensuing, now archetypal, "villagers with pitchforks" mob violence. Sadly hasn't dated well as a whole.
- M (1931)
- Vampyr (1932)
- Freaks (1932) ** 2/5
Overly exploitative, arguable horror, which leaves a bad taste in the mouth and which is notable for showing an acclaimed director honing his craft and not much else, remains one of my mums favourite movies though so must speak to some people, somehow.
- King Kong (1933) ***** 5/5
Cinema history 101 pushed the boundaries of effects, screenplay and what could be presented in the medium and is the oldest film in this list that I can put on and watch right now and still dig on, top marks for sure.
- The Black Cat (1934)
- Bride of Frankenstein (1935) ***** 5/5
One of few sequels that better the original, dealing brilliantly with the themes of inhumanity and monstrousness (and how reversed these can be from expectations) from the previous film, and adding an additional theme of gender politics, also contains one of the best death lines in the movies ("We Belong Dead"). Does however contain a clearly queer subplot which unfortunately distracts from the films merits and ALMOST drops it a star, but quality shines through.
- The Wolf Man (1941)
- Cat People (1942) **** 4/5
A surprisingly seminal work, often overlooked, again showcasing a director at the height of his abilities, here showing masterfully how to build tension and fear from suggestion and what you don't see, one of the best old school B movies but still a little bit trashy for my tastes to be a true great. Did however give us the jump shocks so prevalent in practically every US horror since.
- I Walked With A Zombie (1943) * 1/5
Good direction but the title is better than anything in the film, a product of that being presented first and Val Lewtons contrary nature.
- The Seventh Victim (1943)
- Laura (1944)
- Detour (1945)
- Les Diaboliques (1954)
- The Mad Masters (1955)
- The Night of the Hunter (1955)
- The Seventh Seal (1957)
- Dracula (1958)
- Eyes Without a Face (1959)
- Psycho (1960) Full review will be posted at some point soon...
- Black Sunday (1960) **** 4/5
Sensual and powerful film, with striking imagery which really shocks the sense and presents an intriguing visual representation of the supernatural, awesome villain acting from the female lead too but at times the production can veer a bit "Scooby Doo" in its own intricacy of traps and signification of detail.
- Peeping Tom (1960) *** 3/5
Uncomfortable but undoubtedly merit-worthy film, some directorial decisions alone earning a whole star but not on a par with the film its often compared to: Psycho. Surprisingly decent however, speaking to the voyeur in us all whether we like it or not.
- The Birds (1963) *** 3/5
Hitchcock on auto-pilot, still notable and memorable, with flourishes of brilliance, but too ponderous at times and overshadowed by its siblings Psycho and Rear Window.
- The Haunting (1963) *** 3/5
Tense without being overblown with a true impact on various branches of horror film theory, sadly the speculation about hidden meanings is more interesting than anything actually presented but at times this is a good thing when true tension and top notch camera placement and framing works at effectively scaring you, at others it is frustratingly tame for a more advanced audience.
- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
- Viy (1967)
- Rosemary's Baby (1968)
- Night of the Living Dead (1968) ***** 5/5
Set the scene for every zombie outing to follow and remains a brilliantly allegorical piece on one level and also a brilliantly executed horror b-movie, the dead rose, and so did critics who took notice. Influential and enjoyable, a true roller coaster ride.
Some good stuff, no? Stay tuned for part 2, coming soon, it only gets better!...
Amazingly good stuff. As you've gone to the effort, I'll certainly be taking the films you discuss here and providing my own commentary. I've definitely seen a few more than you, though whether I remember them is another thing...
ReplyDelete