Going ‘80s!

Over the last few days I’ve been in an ‘80s horror film mood having watched THE KISS (1988), THE TOMB (1986), DEATH SHIP (1980), DEADLY OBSESSION (1989), and GHOST TOWN (1988). Some of these films have gone on to become cult classics while others have simply been forgotten and ignored. While DEATH SHIP is a highly sought after DVD item, who actually remembers DEADLY OBSESSION or the offbeat Egyptian vampire of THE TOMB?

When I was young I watched all of these films when they came out (with the exception of DEATH SHIP at which time I was too young). I saw all these films before I was even a teen (I was born in ’76) and therefore many of these films had me in total suspense and awe and (dare I say it) may have even scared me. It’s now more than twenty years later and I’ve still got a fondness for THE KISS, I still love DEATH SHIP, and GHOST TOWN and THE TOMB are fun anomalies. DEADLY OBSESSION is just too dated to really do anything for me anymore; I know recognize it as a very cliché film with no whit or substance or even any campy nostalgic charm.

What watching these films did remind me of (other than that many horror films weren’t really all that scary) is that there was more to the genre than Freddy or Jason or Michael Myers and that there were many films that never made it to franchise level yet still remain worthwhile films even to this day. Watching these films reminded me of the quality and quantity of horror films being released then (during the VHS boom) and just how much diversity there was.

Whereas, GHOST TOWN had a cop being thrust into a cursed town in search of a missing girl who was kidnapped, DEATH SHIP had survivors of an ocean liner disaster plagued while on a ship with a mind of its own. The former was played with a tinge of dark humor (it was produced by Charles Band) while the later was played dead serious. THE TOMB was very tongue in cheek (as directed by Fred Olen Ray) while THE KISS had nuances of sexual overtones played serious. Each film had its own identity.

As I was watching these films I couldn’t help but realize how innovative the filmmakers of yesterday were compared to today. Although there will always be filmmakers who “jump on the band wagon” with copying from recent hit films (i.e. the hit PARANORMAL ACTIVITY verses the straight to DVD copycat PARANORMAL ENTITY) its more prevalent now than then. As soon as the remakes of TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE and THE HILLS HAVE EYES were hits you had every Sam, Dick, and Harry making a low budget film about people who get abducted by hillbilly throwbacks (these films still seem to pop up even after the sequels to those hits failed at the box office). In the ‘80s it took a little longer for films to become unquestionable hits and copycats may not have arrived for a year or two. I don’t really recall another film about a haunted ship until 2002’s GHOST SHIP.

Every young filmmaker wants to emulate the films of the ‘80s and for good reason. Some were sexy, some were scary, and some were even funny, but most important of all the films of the ‘80s never felt like other films of the ‘80s. It was unique era in horror cinema in which not only fans of the genre enjoyed the films but also people of all ages and groups (I was only 11 or 12 at the time when I saw THE TOMB and I still remembered parts of it before re-watching it) unlike today where it is a rare occurrence when a true horror film connects with a large audience (PARANORMAL ACTIVITY anyone?).

I miss the ‘80s like many people who grew up in that decade like I did and it is a gem when a filmmaker takes the time to acknowledge these classics and produce a film that reminds us of what the films of that decade were really like. Although filmmakers like Eli Roth, Rob Zombie, and Quentin Tarantino claim to be making throwbacks to the ‘80s, I remember very few films from then like HOSTEL, the remake of HALLOWEEN, or DEATH PROOF. There were films back then like those, don’t get me wrong, but they were few and far in between. I remember the ‘80s as being a mixture of thought provoking horror (i.e. THE DEAD ZONE, DEAD RINGERS, THE SERPENT & THE RAINBOW) or horror spectacle (i.e. C.H.U.D., THE EVIL DEAD, SCANNERS, THE THING, THE FLY, RE-ANIMATOR, FROM BEYOND) or all out great fun (i.e. WATCHERS, ALIGATOR, CHRISTINE, SHOCKER, TH EVIL DEAD 2, DOLLS). That’s what I remember about the ‘80s and these handful of films just reminded of why I loved horror films from that decade when I was growing up.

Horror Film Hits of 2007 (For Those of You Who Would Like To Know)

2007 was a huge year for the horror genre as it had two films that grossed north of $100 million (i.e. I Am Legend and Ghost Rider) while the rest of the successful genre films were filled with sequels (i.e. Saw IV and Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem) and remakes (i.e. Halloween and Premonition) not to mention animation (i.e. Beowulf) and even a musical (i.e. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street). Yes, 2007 was a successful year all around for the horror genre and following is a list of the top 10 for us to review once again, in case you missed one or more of them.

At the bottom of the list is the Sandra Bullock psychological thriller Premonition ($47.9 million), which was a remake of an Asian film. An interesting remake to say the least that focused more on story and character rather then scares although there were many suspenseful moments in the film. Similar in tone to such films as The Butterfly Effect and Jacob’s Ladder, Premonition was an interesting departure for Bullock best known for such films as While You Were Sleeping and Miss Congeniality.

For many filmgoers Resident Evil: Extinction ($50.6 million) was a return to form after the abysmal second film Apocalypse. This next chapter of a world over-run with the undead takes place years after the previous film in a time when nature has reclaimed most of the Earth. With most of the horror occurring during the daylight hours, this was a more stylistic film then the previous one and made audiences believe that there was no place to hide in a world ravaged by zombies.

And the winner for best horror musical of the year goes to Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ($52.9 million), which was a huge departure for both director Tim Burton and star Johnny Depp but audiences didn’t care as this was a hugely successful adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. Not only was it a visual tour de force but it also had great music as well.

Next up is the infamous Rob Zombie remake of Halloween ($58.3 million), which was still successful despite harsh criticism of the film from both critics and fans of the John Carpenter original. I for one did not mind Zombie’s revision of the film which was better then most of the sequels in the series.

Coming in at number six on the list is Saw IV ($63.3 million), which was less successful then the previous two films in the series but nevertheless popular with fans of the series. This was the number one “true” horror film of the year as the rest of the list includes more mainstream genre fare.

Stephen King was popular this year as one of his most acclaimed short stories finally made it to the big screen with 1408 ($72 million). This psychological haunted hotel thriller was a surprise success for many who didn’t think it was possible to bring the character heavy story to the big screen. John Cusack’s stellar performance holds this mostly one-person film together when it could have so easily fallen flat on its face.

Next up is the teen thriller Disturbia ($80.2 million), which held its own despite the lack of any star talent. This was just a film that had all the right elements in the right place at the right time that delivered a suspenseful thrill-ride for audiences of all ages.

The animated Beowulf ($82.3 million) took audiences by surprise when it debuted on both regular and digital 3D screens (not to mention the IMAX Digital 3D as well). This uncompromising Robert Zemekis directed film took the original epic story to new heights delivering an action packed epic adventure. It was filled with monsters and blood and gore like no other mainstream animated film before it.

Now I know I will be criticized for putting this film on the list but the film adaptation of the Marvel Comics character Ghost Rider ($115.8 million) comes in at number two. Fans of the comic book know that the original stories had many elements of horror contained within, but this big-budget film watered-down all those elements to deliver a mostly “comic” and camp film with no redeeming qualities of the original source material. Nevertheless, many audiences (who knew nothing about the original comic) enjoyed the film and made it a huge success. Not since the adaptation of Spawn (1997) have so many fans been so disappointed.

And the highest grossing horror film of the year goes to I Am Legend ($256.4 million). Starring the always bankable Will Smith this loose adaptation of the Richard Matheson novel was not well received by die hard Matheson fans, but there is no denying that the film (like all the other adaptations of the novel) had a life of its own allowing it to become one of the biggest horror films in history. Not since Tom Hanks’ performance in Cast Away (2000) has an actor commanded such a performance. It may not be exactly Matheson’s novel but this version of I Am Legend holds its own.

As you can see 2007 had genre films for everyone and along with those top 10 there were many other noteworthy films including Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem ($41.8 million), 30 Days of Night ($39.6 million), The Messengers ($35.4 million), Zodiac ($33.1 million), 28 Weeks Later ($28.6 million), and The Mist ($25.6 million), to name a few, so if you don’t feel like watching any of the top 10 take a look at a few of these, you’ll be glad you did.

As box office information was provided by Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com).

"My Trip To HOUSE ON HORROR HILL!"

Several people read and saw pictures about my trip to Netherworld this past Halloween and wanted to know what I thought about the "other" haunted house I visited this year which was the House on Horror Hill. Nothing can compare with the vastness and budget of Netherworld but it's always good to keep an eye out for the smaller venues and competition because you never know what you'll get.

Having gone to Netherworld first (three days earlier so it was still frest in my mind) Horror Hill was a bit guvenile as it's primary audience was for eight to sixteen year olds as only they would be scared on the antics of this type of house/attraction. The venue was made up of several rooms depicting scenes from which patrons would be simply squeezed into the room and allowed the scenes to unfold before having all the lights turned out (thus ushering the strobe lights) and the actors in the scenes would thene grab out at the patrons as they were pushed from that room into the next. The whole experience was very "militaristic" as we were marched from one room to the next and I didn't enjoy any of the rooms regardless of some of the rooms and scenes actually being very well made with actors who really put an effort into their work.

There were too many people crammed into each group and the person leading the group from from room to the next was someone whom you think didn't want to be there. This being said, me and my friends did go on the busiest day of the season - HALLOWEEN, so I'm willing to forgive them a little. I do have to say that the people behind the actual production of the venue did care about the quality of what they were putting together as they gave comment cards to every person who went through the house wanting to know which were their favorite and least favorite of the rooms.

Although I now know that this in not the venue for me, it's definitely a place I could take my little nephew who would actually get a kick out of the place.