FILM 1859: CAMPFIRE TALES

FILM 1859: CAMPFIRE TALES

TRIVIA: Film debut of Jacinda Barrett.

Originally intended for a theatrical run, the film was eventually released direct-to-video in 1998.

ANOTHER TOP FIVE: HORROR MOVIES

I realized when making the last top five that I love horror films so much and there are so many good ones that I couldn’t leave it at one top five so as it’s Halloween and all here’s another list…

1. THE HAUNTING (1963)

The remake of this doesn’t even come close to the original. It’s a truly haunting story of a group taking part in a paranormal experiment in a super creepy house. The scenes with the banging coming from just outside the door make actual hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

2. DEAD OF NIGHT (1945)

The original, and in some ways the best, British anthology horror film. It starts with a man talking about a strange dream, which leads to others in the group to tell their tales of the supernatural, the ventriloquist dummy is the one that stands out here though.

3. HIGH TENSION (2003)

This is a gory entry into the top five, I don’t shy away from gore, I just don’t find it as scary as the kind of horrors that are more understated and uses your own imagination to create the fear. That being said, I was on the edge of my seat watching the seemingly unrelenting dread-fest that was this film. The suspense was immense and the ending was unusually surprising.

4. MISERY (1990)

This is one of those films that I can watch over and over. It’s maybe not classed as a horror by everyone – but the scene with the legs (if you’ve seen it, you know) I think is more horrific that a lot of modern gore-based horror. The psychology behind the character of Annie Wilkes is fascinating and the idea of a kindly sinister psychopath is terrifying.

5. THE EXORIST (1973)

This is a classic, and for a good reason. When I was a kid I was so keen to watch this (and wasn’t allowed to) that I read the book (some of it was a little dull and the film is a lot better). Not only is the film great, with some really ingenious tricks to make the special effects (the documentary of the making of is a really interesting watch), but the added bonus of the stories of the curse surrounding it makes it one of the most famous horror films of all time. Plus a bonus piece of trivia – did you know that a real life murderer was cast as an extra in this film?  See more information here: http://www.blumhouse.com/2017/04/13/did-you-know-theres-a-serial-killer-in-the-exorcist/

Just because I could go on forever I’m going to add more honorable mentions to the list:

PONTYPOOL (2008)

THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE (1974)

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET(1984)

ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)

THE CONJURING (2013)

THE STRANGERS (2008)

JU-ON: THE GRUDGE (2002)

THE COLLECTOR (1965)

THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS (1946)

TWISTED NERVE (1968)

DOROTHY MILLS (2008)

BASKET CASE (1982)

EYES WITHOUT A FACE (1960)

FILM 1707: TALES OF TERROR

TRIVIA: The "Black Cat" segment was recycled for The Comedy of Terrors (1963) (even the presence of a meddlesome cat). Many of the same actors appear in both films, only here Peter Lorre plays the drunk married to devoted Joyce Jameson, with Vincent Priceintroduced as the third member of the triangle; in "Comedy of Terrors" Price and Lorre exchange roles, and Jameson essentially repeats her performance. Not only that, but Price's line "What place is this?" from the "M. Valdemar" segment of "Tales of Terror" is recycled as a running gag for Basil Rathbone in "Comedy of Terrors".

TOP FIVE: HORROR MOVIES

1. THE SHINING (1980)

A classic, and for a good reason. This wins in terms of style, suspense and horror. Every shot looks like a beautifully macabre photograph.

2. TALES FROM THE CRYPT (1972)

I love a horror anthology, the British do it best, in my opinion. This one has some classic stories. The thing I love most about these stories are the fact that the bad guys always get their comeuppance. Other great horror anthologies include (because I couldn’t include them all… The Vault of Horror (1973), Asylum (1972), From Beyond the Grave(1974), and of course the more modern Creepshow (1982) and Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990)

3. THE BAD SEED (1956)

There’s nothing scarier than a ‘cute’ psychopathic little girl.

4. THE POUGHKEEPSIE TAPES (2007)

A whole set of video tapes are found in an abandoned house showing what appears to be the life’s work of a truly horrific serial killer. The mockumentary style just makes the whole thing scarier because you can image what you’re seeing is real.

5. SLEEPAWAY CAMP (1983)

This almost falls into the so bad it’s good category, The twist makes it even better.

FILM 1529: WILD TALES

TRIVIA: This is the seventh film from Argentina to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and the third in a row with Ricardo Darín as a leading star (after Son of the Bride (2001) and The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)).

The site of the bridge, in which the tale "The Strongest" was filmed, is actually the 60th kilometer on the route between Cafayate and Salta, as the character in the tale mentions. This place has become a kind of a tourist attraction nowadays, as can be seen in Google Street View at coordinates (-25.730669,-65.6967926).

During the credits at the beginning, each main actor of each tale is identified with a wild animal. In the director's case, it is a fox. Szifrón said that this was because his father had liked foxes a lot, and had used to watch lots of documentaries about them. He also felt identified with that picture, more specifically with the fox's gaze, as the job of a director is in the gaze.

Damián Szifrón, the writer and director of the film, wrote most of the tales in his bathtub. He actually said: " The bath is a great place". He even lit some candles and poured himself a drink.

Selected by Time as one of the best films of 2014.