Fragile (2005)

Fragile is a 2005 Spanish-British paranormal thriller ghost film. I watched it on Amazon Prime. It's available free on VUDU. There are ads either place.

trailer:

Horror News gives it a positive review, calling it atmospheric and innovative.

Requiem (2006)

Requiem is a 2006 German film loosely based on the life of Anneliese Michel. from Wikipedia:

It stars Sandra Hüller as a woman with epilepsy, Michaela Klingler, believed by members of her church and herself to be possessed. The film steers clear of special effects or dramatic music and instead ... focuses on Michaela's struggle to lead a normal life, trapped in a limbo which could either represent demonic possession or mental illness, focusing on the latter.

This film takes great liberties with the subject matter and doesn't cover the ensuing trial at all.

Eye for Film has a positive review, as does The Guardian. Moria has a comparison between this film and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, which is based on the same case. Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics score of 86%.

Ravenous (2017)

Ravenous is a 2017 award-winning French language Canadian zombie film. This is fascinating, giving us a completely different look at zombies. I watched it on Netflix.

trailer:

Hollywood Reporter calls it "artsy". Eye for Film says it's "One of the most artful and creative zombie films for some years". Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critic rating of 87%.

The Lighthouse

The Lighthouse is a 2019 award-winning psychological horror film starring Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe. Dafoe is good in everything he does and worth looking for. This ain't your typical anything. Definitely different. I watched it on Amazon Prime.

trailer:

The Guardian calls it "a sublime maritime nightmare". The Chicago Tribune says, "I’d see it a second time for any number of reasons".

Vulture has a positive review. Indiewire calls it a "gripping psychodrama". Vox says it's "easily one of the wildest films of the year".

Roger Ebert's site says, "It has the feel of watching someone else’s nightmare, and it’s not one that’s going to end well." Rotten Tomatoes has a critics consensus score of 90%.

Tagged

Tagged is a horror short film (2 minutes 43 seconds).

Hubie Halloween

Hubie Halloween is a 2020 comedy horror film. Sweet. Cute. If you want something seasonal but not typically "horror" this might just be the thing. It stars Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Ray Liotta, Rob Schneider, June Squibb, Kenan Thompson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Steve Buscemi. I watched it on Netflix.

trailer:

Have a seasonal beverage

and join me in taking part in the T Stands for Tuesday blogger gathering.

Ayuda

Ayuda is a 2018 horror short film (11 1/2 minutes):

The Rickety Lady

The Rickety Lady is a horror short film (2 1/2 minutes):

The Damned Thing (Masters of Horror)

The Damned Thing, inspired by the Ambrose Bierce short story, is a 2006 episode of the Masters of Horror television series.

The Invitation

The Invitation is a 2016 horror film. I watched it on Netflix, but it looks like it's gone from there now. You can watch it on Tubi.

trailer:

The Guardian calls it an "elegant film that treats its audience like adults and gets the payoff it deserves." Roger Ebert's site says, "“The Invitation” is a dinner-party-from-hell scenario best served as unspoiled as possible. After all, a psychological thriller built upon slow-simmering tension is only as good as its surprises." Rotten Tomatoes has a critics consensus score of 88%.

The Magician

The Magician is a 1958 film directed by Ingmar Bergman and starring Max von Sydow, Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Björnstrand, and Bibi Andersson. Blending elements of psychological drama and horror, the film was distantly inspired by G.K. Chesterton 's play Magic, which Bergman numbered among his favourites (from Wikipedia). It's available on several paid services (if you have Hulu you're in luck), but I can't find it freely available anywhere. You can rent it on YouTube, Amazon Prime, or Apple TV.

trailer:

Moria says,

In The Magician, Bergman’s greatness is his evocation of the characters – the mephistophelean presence of the sickly Max Von Sydow; the cocky Tubal; the androgynous Aman; the haughtily hypocritical ministers.

Bergman’s art is not even necessarily his ability to offer penetrating character analysis but rather to cast actors perfect for the parts and to reveal everything through the dialogue.

Rotten Tomatoes has a critics consensus score of 100%.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1911)

The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1911 French silent short film.

Martin's Close

Martin's Close is a 2019 television horror short film, a BBC Four adaptation of the M.R. James short story. It stars Peter Capaldi.

The original story can be read online here, and you can hear the Librivox recording here. It begins:

Some few years back I was staying with the rector of a parish in the West, where the society to which I belong owns property. I was to go over some of this land: and, on the first morning of my visit, soon after breakfast, the estate carpenter and general handyman, John Hill, was announced as in readiness to accompany us. The rector asked which part of the parish we were to visit that morning. The estate map was produced, and when we had showed him our round, he put his finger on a particular spot. ‘Don’t forget,’ he said, ‘to ask John Hill about Martin’s Close when you get there. I should like to hear what he tells you.’ ‘What ought he to tell us?’ I said. ‘I haven’t the slightest idea,’ said the rector, ‘or, if that is not exactly true, it will do till lunch-time.’ And here he was called away.

We set out; John Hill is not a man to withhold such information as he possesses on any point, and you may gather from him much that is of interest about the people of the place and their talk. An unfamiliar word, or one that he thinks ought to be unfamiliar to you, he will usually spell—as c-o-b cob, and the like. It is not, however, relevant to my purpose to record his conversation before the moment when we reached Martin’s Close. The bit of land is noticeable, for it is one of the smallest enclosures you are likely to see—a very few square yards, hedged in with quickset on all sides, and without any gate or gap leading into it. You might take it for a small cottage garden long deserted, but that it lies away from the village and bears no trace of cultivation. It is at no great distance from the road, and is part of what is there called a moor, in other words, a rough upland pasture cut up into largish fields.

‘Why is this little bit hedged off so?’ I asked, and John Hill (whose answer I cannot represent as perfectly as I should like) was not at fault. ‘That’s what we call Martin’s Close, sir: ‘tes a curious thing ‘bout that bit of land, sir: goes by the name of Martin’s Close, sir. M-a-r-t-i-n Martin. Beg pardon, sir, did Rector tell you to make inquiry of me ‘bout that, sir?’ ‘Yes, he did.’ ‘Ah, I thought so much, sir. I was tell’n Rector ‘bout that last week, and he was very much interested. It ‘pears there’s a murderer buried there, sir, by the name of Martin. Old Samuel Saunders, that formerly lived yurr at what we call South-town, sir, he had a long tale ‘bout that, sir: terrible murder done ‘pon a young woman, sir. Cut her throat and cast her in the water down yurr.’ ‘Was he hung for it?’ ‘Yes, sir, he was hung just up yurr on the roadway, by what I’ve ‘eard, on the Holy Innocents’ Day, many ‘undred years ago, by the man that went by the name of the bloody judge: terrible red and bloody, I’ve ‘eard.’ ‘Was his name Jeffreys, do you think?’ ‘Might be possible ’twas—Jeffreys—J-e-f—Jeffreys. I reckon ’twas, and the tale I’ve ‘eard many times from Mr. Saunders,—how this young man Martin—George Martin—was troubled before his crule action come to light by the young woman’s sperit.’ ‘How was that, do you know?’ ‘No, sir, I don’t exactly know how ’twas with it: but by what I’ve ‘eard he was fairly tormented; and rightly tu. Old Mr. Saunders, he told a history regarding a cupboard down yurr in the New Inn. According to what he related, this young woman’s sperit come out of this cupboard: but I don’t racollact the matter.’

Queen of Earth

Queen of Earth is a 2015 psychological thriller. I have trouble distinguishing this film genre from horror, to be honest, so I'm including it as horror this month.

trailer:

Variety says, "Hell is other people — especially the ones who know you best — in Alex Ross Perry's acidly funny and unnerving portrait of a psychological breakdown."

Vulture says it "Mingles Genres and Captures the Details of a Corrosive Friendship" and "the agony, the paranoia, the sheer existential terror of grief becomes sublimated into the very style of the film. Queen of Earth is a psychodrama shot like a horror movie — Persona meets The Shining. Right down to the haunting, minimalist score".

Roger Ebert's site opens with this:

Alex Ross Perry’s “Queen of Earth” is as unsettling as any horror film that you’ll see this year but it so by virtue of its filmmaking and its performances instead of a twisting and turning narrative. Echoing dramas of internal conflict turned into threats of physical danger like “Persona” and “Repulsion,” Perry explores the concept that it is the human mind and its emotional undercurrents that is the most terrifying thing in the world. Anchored by incredible performances from Elisabeth Moss and Katherine Waterston, this is one of the most mesmerizing pictures of the year.

Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics score of 94%.

Deathdream

Deathdream is a 1974 horror film that begins with the death of a soldier in combat and then the sound of the voice of his mother saying, "You can't die, Andy, you can't die. You promised, Andy. You promised you'd come back. You promised, Andy." It was inspired by the well-known short story The Monkey's Paw, by W.W. Jacobs, and ends as you might imagine it would.

Slant Magazine gives it 4.5 out of 5 stars. Dread Central closes with this: "Overall, Deathdream is definitely an under-appreciated and hidden horror that needs more love. So give it the love that it deserves and go watch it. NOW! It’s a great one. Point blank. PERIOD."

Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics score of 83%.

Inhuman Kiss

Inhuman Kiss is a 2019 Thai horror film about a woman who is a krasue, a woman by day and a demon by night. This is a Southeast Asian folk tale figure. I watched it on Netflix.

trailer:

Far East Film concludes,

All in all, this is a high quality story of ghosts among humans, finding a new approach to a time-honoured horror story. Think of it, perhaps, as Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands meeting James Cameron’s Titanic.

Boys in the Trees

Boys in the Trees is a 2016 horror/dark fantasy Australian film, a coming-of-age movie with bullying elements.

The Guardian says, "it’s a film exploring childhood regret: in particular, how petty schoolyard games can fracture friendships." Horror News says, "The story and characters are so intriguing, it’s really easy to get lost in this film. This can be credited to the beautiful writing style of Nicholas Verso which allows the dialogue and style of the film to flow effortlessly."

Most Rotten Tomatoes critics like it.

Alice, Sweet Alice

Alice, Sweet Alice is a 1976 horror film. This was Brooke Shields' film debut.

I watched it on tubi tv. It's also on Daily Motion:

Slant Magazine has a review. Dread Central concludes, "Alice, Sweet Alice is a wonderful low-budget horror flick made with a lot of care and thought. If it weren’t for a bit of rough acting every now and then, I’d be tempted to call it a masterpiece." DVD Talk says, "It's a film that rewards repeated viewings." Rotten Tomatoes has a critics consensus score of 82%.

Black Cat Mansion

Black Cat Mansion is a 1958 Japanese horror film, an atmospheric ghost story. It was never released theatrically in the U.S. and was never dubbed in English, but the video embedded below has English subtitles. It's just over an hour long.

The Monkey's Paw

The Monkey's Paw is a 1902 short story by W.W. Jacobs. You can read it online here or listen to it read to you at the bottom of this post. It begins,

Part I

Without, the night was cold and wet, but in the small parlour of Laburnum villa the blinds were drawn and the fire burned brightly. Father and son were at chess; the former, who possessed ideas about the game involving radical chances, putting his king into such sharp and unnecessary perils that it even provoked comment from the white-haired old lady knitting placidly by the fire.

"Hark at the wind," said Mr. White, who, having seen a fatal mistake after it was too late, was amiably desirous of preventing his son from seeing it.

"I'm listening," said the latter grimly surveying the board as he stretched out his hand. "Check."

"I should hardly think that he's come tonight, " said his father, with his hand poised over the board.

"Mate," replied the son.

"That's the worst of living so far out," balled Mr. White with sudden and unlooked-for violence; "Of all the beastly, slushy, out of the way places to live in, this is the worst. Path's a bog, and the road's a torrent. I don't know what people are thinking about. I suppose because only two houses in the road are let, they think it doesn't matter."

"Never mind, dear," said his wife soothingly; "perhaps you'll win the next one."

Mr. White looked up sharply, just in time to intercept a knowing glance between mother and son. the words died away on his lips, and he hid a guilty grin in his thin grey beard.

"There he is," said Herbert White as the gate banged to loudly and heavy footsteps came toward the door.

The old man rose with hospitable haste and opening the door, was heard condoling with the new arrival. The new arrival also condoled with himself, so that Mrs. White said, "Tut, tut!" and coughed gently as her husband entered the room followed by a tall, burly man, beady of eye and rubicund of visage.

"Sergeant-Major Morris, " he said, introducing him.

The Sergeant-Major took hands and taking the proffered seat by the fire, watched contentedly as his host got out whiskey and tumblers and stood a small copper kettle on the fire.

At the third glass his eyes got brighter, and he began to talk, the little family circle regarding with eager interest this visitor from distant parts, as he squared his broad shoulders in the chair and spoke of wild scenes and doughty deeds; of wars and plagues and strange peoples.

"Twenty-one years of it," said Mr. White, nodding at his wife and son. "When he went away he was a slip of a youth in the warehouse. Now look at him."

"He don't look to have taken much harm." said Mrs. White politely.

"I'd like to go to India myself," said the old man, just to look around a bit, you know."

"Better where you are," said the Sergeant-Major, shaking his head. He put down the empty glass and sighning softly, shook it again.

"I should like to see those old temples and fakirs and jugglers," said the old man. "what was that that you started telling me the other day about a monkey's paw or something, Morris?"

"Nothing." said the soldier hastily. "Leastways, nothing worth hearing."

"Monkey's paw?" said Mrs. White curiously.

"Well, it's just a bit of what you might call magic, perhaps." said the Sergeant-Major off-handedly.

His three listeners leaned forward eagerly. The visitor absent-mindedly put his empty glass to his lips and then set it down again. His host filled it for him again.

"To look at," said the Sergeant-Major, fumbling in his pocket, "it's just an ordinary little paw, dried to a mummy."

He took something out of his pocket and proffered it. Mrs. White drew back with a grimace, but her son, taking it, examined it curiously.

"And what is there special about it?" inquired Mr. White as he took it from his son, and having examined it, placed it upon the table.

"It had a spell put on it by an old Fakir," said the Sergeant-Major, "a very holy man. He wanted to show that fate ruled people's lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow. He put a spell on it so that three separate men could each have three wishes from it."

His manners were so impressive that his hearers were conscious that their light laughter had jarred somewhat.

"Well, why don't you have three, sir?" said Herbert White cleverly.

The soldier regarded him the way that middle age is wont to regard presumptuous youth."I have," he said quietly, and his blotchy face whitened.

"And did you really have the three wishes granted?" asked Mrs. White.

"I did," said the sergeant-major, and his glass tapped against his strong teeth.

"And has anybody else wished?" persisted the old lady.

"The first man had his three wishes. Yes," was the reply, "I don't know what the first two were, but the third was for death. That's how I got the paw."

His tones were so grave that a hush fell upon the group.
...

Please share a post with a drink in it and join the T Stands for Tuesday blogger party hosted by Bleubeard and Elizabeth.

P (2005)

P is a 2005 Thai-language horror feature film directed by Paul Spurrier. A young orphan who was taught magic by her grandmother in rural Thailand finds her life getting darker as she uses the magic in the city. I watched it on Netflix. It's gone from there, but it looks like Vudu has it for free.

trailer:

Eye for Film calls it "too grim and depressing to be fun and too stylised and sanitised to be taken seriously?"

The Witch (2015)

The Witch is an award-winning 2015 horror film. It takes place in 1630s Puritan New England. Those woods are a looming, ominous threat; and witches are real and are not wise healers. I watched it on Netflix, though it's not still there.

trailer:

Roger Ebert's site gives it 3.5 out of 4 stars, calls it "consistently engrossing". Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics rating of 90%.

The Lady of the House of Love

The Lady of the House of Love is a short story by Angela Carter. You can read it online here. It begins,

At last the revenants became so troublesome the peasants abandoned the village and it fell solely into the possession of subtle and vindictive inhabitants who manifest their presences by shadows that fall almost imperceptibly awry, too many shadows, even at midday, shadows that have no source in anything visible; by the sound, sometimes, of sobbing in a derelict bedroom where a cracked mirror suspended from a wall does not reflect a presence; by a sense of unease that will afflict the traveler unwise enough to pause to drink from the fountain in the square that still gushes spring water from a faucet stuck in a stone lion’s mouth. A cat prowls in a weedy garden; he grins and spits, arches his back, bounces away from an intangible on four fear-stiffened legs. Now all shun the village below the château in which the beautiful somnambulist helplessly perpetuates her ancestral crimes.

Wearing an antique bridal gown, the beautiful queen of the vampires sits all alone in her dark, high house under the eyes of the portraits of her demented and atrocious ancestors, each one of whom, through her, projects a baleful posthumous existence; she counts out the Tarot cards, ceaselessly construing a constellation of possibilities as if the random fall of the cards on the red plush tablecloth before her could precipitate her from her chill, shuttered room into a country of perpetual summer and obliterate the perennial sadness of a girl who is both death and the maiden.

The Others

The Others is a 2001 English-language Spanish gothic horror film. It's a haunted house mystery and stars Nicole Kidman. This is one of my favorites.

trailer:

Roger Ebert says the director creates "a languorous, dreamy atmosphere". Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics score of 83%.

The Dead One

The Dead One (aka Blood of the Zombie!) is a 1961 horror film. It takes place on a Louisiana plantation where cousins -one a businessman, one a voodoo practitioner- are fighting over control of the family land. Long thought lost, it was rediscovered in 2002. I'm thinking we wouldn't have missed much if it'd been left undiscovered. I didn't finish it. You can watch it online at Plex.

trailer:

City of the Living Dead (1980)

City of the Living Dead (aka The Gates of Hell) is a 1980 Italian horror film directed by horror master Lucio Fulci. Fulci has a cameo. It is the first installment of the "Gates of Hell" trilogy which also includes The Beyond and The House by the Cemetery.

Time Out calls it "the sort of disreputable movie the Surrealists would have loved".

Horror Movies

Join me in a cuppa something cozy:

and wander through my ever-growing list of "horror" movies. I hope you find something you like, whether it's a comedy, an atmospheric ghost story, a haunted house tale, or... I've quit updating episodes of TV shows since there's no end to them. I welcome recommendations for movies, especially in these days when there are so many choices. I prefer ghosts and haunted houses and avoid body horror and films featuring torture.

There are numerous lists online that can be helpful in deciding what to watch if you'd like to stick your toe in the waters. The Museum of Pop Culture has an annotated list of 100 horror films to see before you die. Rotten Tomatoes has a top 100 list. IndieWire has an annotated list of the 125 greatest horror movies of all time.

I have an all-day 1960s movie marathon planned, all films I've seen before:

The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
The Innocents (1961)
Carnival of Souls (1962)
The Haunting (1963)
Repulsion (1965)
Night of the Living Dead (1968)

I'm joining the T Stands for Tuesday blogger gathering hosted by Bleubeard and Elizabeth, where the price of admission is a drink reference in your blog post.

Nightbreed

Nightbreed is a 1990 fantasy horror film directed by Clive Barker and based on his novella. I watched it on tubi TV. Here's a trailer:

The Hitcher (1986)

The Hitcher is a 1986 horror movie starring Rutger Hauer. Rutger Hauer is always worth watching, but he plays a serial killer in this so be warned.

The Gate (1987)

The Gate is a 1987 horror film about two boys who release a horde of demons into their home through a hole made when a tree is removed. I agree with those who say it's a great introduction to the horror genre for kids, but it's also enjoyable for any age. I watched it on tubi TV. Here's a trailer:

Dread Central says it's "a great gateway (natch) to horror movies for kids." Horror News calls it "a wonderful example of 1980’s horror."

Darling (2015)

 Darling is a 2015 American psychological horror film. IMDb describes it as "A lonely girl's violent descent into madness." I like horror films that explore madness, and this is a good one. It might remind you of Repulsion, if you've seen that.

I watched it at tubi TV. Here's a trailer:

The Hollywood Reporter praises Carter's performance. AV Club calls it "audaciously stylish". Dread Central calls it "a gripping slow-burn of a film" and says, "Beyond its foremost appeal as art house eye-candy, Darling’s perfectly cast players notably elevate the story to something we can really care about. No talent is wasted here..."