The Un-Scary 90's - Page 3

Also in the 70's and 80's there was a coherent group of artists making Horror films; not just the Masters of Horror, but screen writers (Dan O'Bannon, who wrote Alien but also wrote and directed Return of the Living Dead), and of course makeup artists (Savini, Bottin)

Now in the 2000's I know who Eli Roth is, even though I've only seen his trailer for Grindhouse.

Ancillaries were not the driving force they became. Also, low budget studios didn't have as much control over their video as they do now because it was seen as last scaps. Also, Gorgon video, etc. what, maybe had 10,000-20,000 copies out there. And - of course - most of those were cheap international scores. Also, no one really talks about the late era Corman thriller/horror almost DTV titles.

That's a good point - the 90s is when we started going up our own ass with nostalgia in a big way. Looking backward instead of forward. Lots of the lower-budget guys were either chasing the Tarantino/Kevin Smith business model or were Jim Van Beber.

I don't know about SHE WOLF OF LONDON, but maybe good horror did relocate to television for the 90s: TWIN PEAKS, THE X-FILES, TALES FROM THE CRYPT, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER. Hell, I even still like the first half of THE STAND mini.

Late to the party. Lots of good discussion going on here.

I used to think Seven was the stronger film too. Now I appreciate the subtlety of Lambs a lot more. Seven is great but it's very much: LOOK! LOOK AT THIS VIDEO OF A PLANE CRASH WITH ALL THE BODY PARTS AND SHIT - HOLY SHIT!

Goldman would have done well to not create the Richard Farnsworth character and leave it completely centered on Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes - like the book. But, really, how else could they have adapted Misery? I think you're being a little hard on it. It's actually a very solid character piece and the two leads are excellent.

Exactly. And that cuts to the heart of it, right? It's a generational thing. WE consider that the golden age. 15 or so years from now, we'll have people who are growing up now holding up the shitty 90s films in a kinder light.

I'm not saying that the 70s and 80s didn't produce stronger movies. They did. But I also think that it's cyclical. Which is why we ultimately saw some very good stuff in the last 10 years. And really good horror stuff is being churned out now. I didn't much like Paranormal Activity. But its heart was in the right place.

Still... Calling the 70s and 80s a "golden age" and just leaving it at that is a little unfair. Shit is produced every decade. As has basically been stated, there was an abundance of quality horror in those decades because there was an abundance of film in general. Tax shelters made it possible and a young filmmaker's gut instinct is always to try and go out and do a genre piece. Specifically horror because it allows you to play with effects and gore and all this fun stuff. Reagan killed the tax shelters and it became harder.

Although Landis's best movie happens to be a horror film, I've always seen it as inaccurate and wrong to group him with the horror guys. Innocent Blood is more than "ok" in my book. But, by that same token, it's hardly a horror movie in the traditional sense of the word.

But Landis did shit the bed in the 90s. Aside from Blood, I really can't think of a single good movie made by him in that decade. Maybe Oscar. But that's about it.

Scott Bakula can do no wrong.

I want that set and engraved in stone.

It's the movie that lets him down.

Projects in general let him down. He should be the most successful and popular motion picture star in the modern world. Truckloads of women, booze and cocaine should be delivered to his house on a daily basis.

Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world.

*bump*

 

MY TOP TEN OF THE 1990s:

 

10. The Blair Witch Project (1999) - Sometimes dumped on, other times overly lauded with praise, The Blair Witch Project stands as one of the most polarizing movies of the last twenty years. One thing that is irrefutable, however, is how great the hype machine behind it was. In 1999 I was actually able to convince my mother to go see this with me, that's how much it had permeated the mainstream. She didn't enjoy it, but I did. I never bought in to the "true story", but the experience and, yes, gimmick, were actually quite effective.


9. In the Mouth of Madness (1994) - In many ways, this movie feels like it was never fully realized. There's so much potential, and it feels like the best horror movie ever filmed is bubbling just below the surface, clamoring to get out, but it just never quite makes the leap. That's not to say that the film isn't good (and genuinely creepy), it just feels incomplete. That said, there is a lot to like about In the Mouth of Madness. First and foremost the story is a mindCINECAST! that is an intricately woven web just waiting for an unsuspecting viewer to fall in. And ol' Johnny Carpenter is no slouch behind the wheel of a film, either.


8. Braindead (1992) - Known most commonly as Dead Alive in America, this is one of Peter Jackson's (Lord of the Rings) early efforts that comes all the way from New Zealand. An early zom/com (or zombedy), Braindead took a lot of growing on me. It's always been a big hit with the cult crowd, it just didn't hold my attention until I re-watched it most recently. Sometimes labelled as the "goriest film ever made", Braindead is pretty much a must-own for any genre fan, boasting such draws as a zombie baby and a lawnmower-zombie-massacre.

7. Cronos (1993) - This thrilling little Mexican film (directed by Guillermo Del Toro) is a wonderful piece of fantasy that is a great forerunner to Del Toro's later efforts like Pan's Labyrinth. A different take on the vampire film, Cronos is the story of an aging antique dealer that comes upon an anqique mechanical scaraab that has a secret. Better than, say, Interview with the Vampire, Cronos lends much needed creedence to the Mexican horror film here. The film is really dark and moody, and the effects (thanks to Del Torro) are magnificent!


6. Dust Devil (1992) - This strange, and brillaint, little South African films stars Robert John Burke (Simple Men) and is directed by Richard Stanley (Hardware). The tagline for the film is, "He's not a serial killer. He's much worse." and that's apt, probably enough of a description to entice you in. It's a very dark story, a supernatural tale of evil that you don't want to miss. The best thing about the film is the cinematography. Filmed in South Africa, the cinematography of Dust Devil is on par with some of the best American westerns of the sixties.

5. Scream (1996) - In one deft, brilliant move Wes Craven takes the modern horror tale, which he helped weave, and turns it on its head. One of the first, and the most notable, instances of post-modern horror in the mainstream. More have been made since, Behind the Mask comes to mind, but none better than the original Scream. The story is a retread, purposefully, up until the final reel where we find out that there's a fairly big twist. For better or worse, this is the film that really kickstarted Dimension, started a whole new slew of bad slashers, and birthed the other two films in the franchise.

4. The Sixth Sense (1999) - M. Night who? Another surprise hit in 1999, the Sixth Sense was everywhere. From the catchphrase ("I see dead people") to people wanting to blow the surprise ending, you couldn't get away from this film if you wanted to. Luckily, I didn't want to. I was able to see this one in the theater as well, and the experience was quite rewarding. I won't say what the ending entails, on the very off chance that you still don't know, but it did blow me away the first time I watched it. Luckily, the film is well built enough, and utilizes a very creepy atmosphere and great turns by that precocious little kid and Bruce Willis to make it rewatchable, even with a spoiled ending.

3. Army of Darkness (1993) - This sequel to Evil Dead II finds the completely inept Ash once again fending off deadites...only the this time on a much grander scale. Taking the Evil Dead formula and blowing it up into epic proportions, Army of Darkness succeeds as a formidable successor to the second film, but is still unable to capture the same charm that the second film had. Bruce Campbell is a wonderfully hokey leading man that I wish had gotten more play in the early to mid nineties, and the set pieces are pretty magnificently constructed. Throw in Danny Elfman's score, and we've got a winner.

2. Jacob's Ladder (1990) - More psychological in nature than most of the other films on this list, Jacob's Ladder is the tale of a Vietnam veteran who begins to see ghosts and is attacked by horned demons. Extremely visceral, the tale is so engaging and the final act so engrossing that you will absolutely have to finish the film once you start it. The film features Tim Robbins, Danny Aielo, Ving Rhames, and is directed, brilliantly, by Adrian Lynne (it fits snugly in between all of his sexual thrillers/dramas). I'm not sure why Jacob's Ladder doesn't get more play, but it is a fantastic piece of film making that deserves to be shared.

1. Dellamorte Dellamore (1994) - Horror just got incredibly cerebral. Someone based on the Dylan Dog comic series, Cemetery Man (the film's inept US title) is the story of Francesco Dellamorte and Gnaghi, caretakers of a cemetery with a secret. The film, directed by Michele Soavi, takes the philosophical conondrums that are intrinsic to zombie films and makes them explicit, forcing the viewer to deal with issues of love, and of death. If you don't want to be bothered by all of that, then here's the tagline: "Zombies, guns, and sex, oh my!", and the film actually delivers on that promise. If you've never seen it, watch it. You'll be doing yourself a huge favor.

Has anyone seen the director's cut of DUST DEVIL?

I haven't watched it yet but I do have that big Final Cut Special Edition.  Apparently I should bump it up on the list of things to watch.

Thank ye.