One of our favorite folks, good ol' The Mike of From Midnight, With Love is participating in the "It's a Horror to Know You!" challenge at his home base HERE! Click on over because he's got some excellent picks including 1960's THE CITY OF THE DEAD aka THE HORROR HOTEL which you can watch below in its entirety! If you've not checked it out before please do. It should provide a perfect Sunday afternoon view! Thanks The Mike!
It's a Horror to Know You: Wednesday's Child of Deep Red Rum!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
The Changeling (1980) was the first. granted it was one of the first I saw, around '81, but it still scares me now. All I have to do is think of the sound of the EVPs saying, "my father, my medal" and I get a little freaked out.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
The 2009 Australian film Lake Mungo got to me in a big way. It raises all sorts of what ifs about fate, psychic abilities, and the horror of being trapped as a ghost on Earth.
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
Curtains, the 1983 Canadian slasher. The relational aggression between the female characters plus the fear of insanity are enough to make this one a scary must see.
Event Horizon from 1997. Everyone I know who has seen this was scared silly by it, even if they saw it as an adult; the trouble is, not that many people saw it!
1989's Beyond Dream's Door. Ignore the low-budget rubber monster, this movie perfectly captures the cyclical, fatalistic feeling of your worst nightmare, the kind that sticks with you long after you wake up.
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
Pieces (1983). What can I say? I love the dance class, the stupid kung-fu fighter, Lynda Day George yelling "Bastaaaaard!" and Jack Taylor as a bitchy red herring.
Ghosthouse AKA La Casa 3 (1988). As with The Changeling, it's the sound effects that get me, every time that clown doll plays that stupid nursery rhyme.
The Dark Power (1987). I can't recommend it to anyone but those who like bad movies because they're bad, but it's in heavy rotation at my house. Plus, there's a hilarious handyman minor character who exemplifies why I love hilarious minor horror characters.
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
Aloha Mister Hand – This girl is one of the most prolific horror bloggers out there, and she has good taste.
At the Mansion of Madness – I love discovering the best of Italian horror with Giovanni Susina.
Goregirl's Dungeon – This lady watches all the movies, she knows her stuff and she puts so much work into her site with videos of her reviewing in costume as well as her excellent YouTube Channel with soundtracks. I'm sending you to two places with this one blogger!
Wide Weird World of Cult Films – This guy is freakin' hilarious! Yes, he's also my husband, but that doesn't make me biased, it makes me lucky.
It's a horror to know you: Arbogast of Arbogast on Film!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
The first time I can remember clapping my hands over my eyes for fear of what I was about to see was DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE, at that moment when the Count wraps his cloak around Zena the Barmaid. That may have been the last time I ever shielded myself from what I was about to see, or not see, in a horror movie. I was pretty hearty through my first ten years of horror movie viewing but the first reel of DAWN OF THE DEAD had me so full of dread that I actually turned to my friend and said "Want to leave?" Priceless.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
Horror films don't often scare me and a fear response isn't my top priority. The last horror movie that disturbed me was probably Tom Shankland's THE CHILDREN, because it really took its time to set things up and give you a nice sense of cause and effect, enmeshed with a healthy dose of what-the-fuck. The last movie to make me gasp audibly was THE OTHERS, over a decade ago.
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
Name *only* three horror movies that are underrated? Talk about your Sophie's Choice! Actually, we can get ourselves into a semantic suckhole here – are we saying generally underrrated (like, say, LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH or CARNIVAL OF SOULS) or underrated within the horror fanbase, by people who should know better but so often don't? I'll assume we're talking the latter and I would nominate in this category Armando Crispino's AUTOPSY (1975), which makes a meal of illusion versus reality, John Hough's THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE (1973), which is a deceptively frank look at family dynamics and the hidden cruelties of language, and Stuart Walker's WEREWOLF OF LONDON (1935), which is just such a beautiful tragedy about the price of curiosity and how fate can turn people of inherently good will against one another.
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
Ray Danton's THE PSYCHIC KILLER with Jim Hutton is so sleazy-looking that it was initially hard to see past that… and yet when I was able to kick the kitsch factor, I found the movie incredibly moving and tragic. I love all of the RESIDENT EVIL movies but probably the first one the best. I think M. Night Shyamalan's THE HAPPENING is very interesting, if not entirely successful; people jump on this guy's shit but he's one of the few horror filmmakers who thinks globally and puts people into arguments for purposes other than dividing heroes from villains.
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
Jason Willis' SCAR STUFF blog is no longer being updated but there's an incredible fund of information there about vintage Halloween and horror recordings. Due to a cease and desist order, he has had to pull most of the links to the actual recordings but if you're a good Internet detective you can still track a lot of this stuff down.
Howard S. Berger and Kevin Marr's DESTRUCTIBLE MAN blog is a great place to sit and read and reconsider movies both cherished and new (to you). You may not agree with all of their assessments but you can't fault their footwork or their devotion. Exhaustive is only the beginning.
(HERE)'s a site of Vincent Price recordings, which should be in your listening device-of-choice.
It's always nice to put a name to a face and if you like Euro-cult movies, you should find value (HERE)…
(HERE)'s an interesting article about cemeteries in the Manhattan outer borough of Queens. Think CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD.
It's a Horror to Know You: Jaakko of The Groovy Age of Horror!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
A Finnish comedy horror musical called Lepakkolinna. The whole thing is on Youtube, and here's the clip that scared the me the most:
At around 4:00 Dracula enters a room with his mouth open, and that made the six-year-old me whimper with fear. What can I say, I had never seen anything like a horror movie before.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
The original Japanese version of Dark Water managed to somehow kick me in the nuts, I thought it was boring and cliche, until suddenly it wasn't.
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
Hmm, well, I feel that two out of three sequels are better than the original, I guess that answers both questions better than any list would. I'm more of a horror gamer, anyway, so I'll give you three horror games that I think are underrated:
1. Rule of Rose
2. Fear Effect
3. Galerians
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
Outside gaming blogs, every blog I follow is already on your sidebar. Can't send you anywhere new, sorry!
It's a Horror to know You: Chuckles72!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
Escape to Witch Mountain (1975). Not a scary film unless you are four years old and have no idea what is going on. I could not understand why these authority figures were intent on doing bad things to the kids. Completely freaked me out.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
Honestly, the last horror film that got my heart pounding was The Blair Witch Project (1999). I found myself alone, deep in the woods a few days after watching it and basically had a panic attack.
While not terrorized, I was very, very creeped out by Lake Mungo (2008).
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
There are so many but….
a. John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness (1987). IMHO the most underrated horror film ever.
b. Trick 'r Treat (2007). I am confounded that this excellent film did not get more hype.
c. Angel Heart (1987). Everybody was obsessed with the steamy scenes, but this is a very unsettling and gruesome film.
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
a. Seed of Chucky (2004).
b. Night of the Comet (1984).
c. The Craft (1996).
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
a. Retronaut
d. Scary Horror and Mindf*ck Games List (oft updated):
e. Oglaf My favorite, bizarre web comic. NSFW! NSFW! (did I mention NSFW?)
UNK SEZ: THE RAVEN opens today and hence our Super Poe Funhouse! What do you guys think? I'm on the fence with this one. It looks pretty slick but am I ready for Poe jumping away from explosions? Not that I know that happens in this; I'm just guessing. Today's Funhouse should be easy and that's a good thing because we're going to start posting some "It's a Horror to Know You!" posts a little later! We're getting so many fascinating responses and I can't wait to start sharing them with you! Big thanks to everyone who is joining in!
Hey, I put a mini questionnaire together that I'm hoping that many of you will take part in. That's the title up there "It's a Horror to Know You." To provide an example I will now fill out the inaugural questionnaire myself (cracks knuckles)…
It's a Horror to Know You: Unkle Lancifer of Kindertrauma!
(I know, you're already here but if someone else filled this out than this is where I'd link to their blog or website. If their name was Bianca Butters and they just wrote a book called Hell Flea, then it would say; It's a Horror to Know You: Bianca Butters author of Hell Flea! And I'd link to the official Hell Flea page.)
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
My first experience with real terror was thanks to the T.V. movie "Satan's Triangle." I also distinctly recall being freaked out by Marjoe Gortner in "Earthquake" and catching a few too many moments of "The Omen" on cable while at a friend's house.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
"Martyrs" threw me for a loop, the ending of "Eden Lake" felt like a pile of cinder blocks falling on my head and the opening credits of "Irreversible" made me want to run out of the movie theater before the film even started.
(Those questions could have been answered with singular movie titles but I'm feeling gabby.)
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
1. "Blood and Lace" (1971) I say all slasher movies owe this one a beer!
2. "Brotherhood of Satan" (1971) Hokey but brilliant with a super eerie vibe.
3. Dear Dead Delilah (1972) So unique, atmospheric and ahead of its time gore-happy!
Honorable mention: "The Perfume of the Lady in Black" (1974). Oh, and "Pin" (1988)! "Pin" is so great and I should remember to say so more often.
(Notice how I threw in "honorable mentions" to squeeze in extra picks? Another great trick if you want to do that is to declare a tie between two movies!)
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
(We're talking about guilty pleasures here but I refuse to use that term because you should never feel guilty about enjoying a movie.)
1. "Cathy's Curse" (1977) Because it hurts my head and is a fascinating mess.
2. "Shriek of the Mutilated" I'm sort of in love with the monster.
3. "Black Christmas" (remake) I have a thing for Christmas horror movies and this one rises further up my favorites list with each passing year. I never said I was deep.
5. Send us to five places on the Internet! (Include the URLs!)
1. Fascination With Fear. Where the quietest and loudest horrors collide!
2. Too Much Horror Fiction. I can look at horror paperback covers all day.
3. Freddy in Space. Unmatched horror enthusiasm by the truckload.
4. Horror Digest. Andre sees with fresh eyes and never fails to crack me up.
5. Dinner with Max Jenke. Because Jeff Allard rules.
So that's it! That was simple! Hopefully we've learned a little about this person (who is in this case, me), have gained a few movie titles that we might investigate further and have some websites to explore. Nothing wrong with all that! If you'd like to play along you don't have to have a blog or anything to pimp, you can just answer these questions and we'll post your responses. If you do have something to promote just remember to tell us about it!
Also, if you should get tagged in that last question, please don't feel you have to play along if you don't want to. This is just about gathering info from those who want to participate. All those who are game just answer the five questions and send the results to Kindertrauma@gmail.com. I promise it will be borderline fun if you do and remember, it's a horror to know you too!
NOTE: The questions sans answers are in the comments section for easy copying!
A ways back somewhere on these pages I was talking about a story my older brother told me that I took as gospel and later found out was an urban legend. As per usual with such tales, there are a multitude of variations floating about one of which is captured in a short film from 1978 called PANIC. It's directed by JAMES DEARDEN, the guy who wrote FATAL ATRACTION and from what I've heard, it was known to appear on the USA network and before features in UK cinemas. Why we've never received a traumafession for this one, I'll never know so I thought I'd throw it up on the Kindertrauma wall hoping that some day somebody looking for it will find it here. Do you guys remember this story? A woman in a car picks up a stranded old lady. As they drive the woman starts to suspect that there is something not quite right about the oldster. The driver figures out a way to get the creepy stranger out of her car but she leaves behind a handbag. When the purse is opened it reveals…
Hey look, it's another CABIN IN THE WOODS-themed funhouse! Why is that happening? I was just thinking that this weekend is just as good as last weekend to check it out! What's all this nonsense about horror fans going to see stuff the first week or not at all anyway? Get it together people! Now I can't guarantee you'll like CITW because I know a few who didn't, but part of the fun of movies is taking that risk and finding out for yourself. Give it a go. If you do like it, chances are it will be in a big way. Since CABIN has been out a full week I think I can leak a smidge of spoilage (ew.) and reveal that it loosely references many a famous fright flick. The image above is made of scraps of films that CABIN kinda sorta tips its roof to. Can you guess them all? If you do, you are the super king!
I got so busy this past weekend I forgot to tell you all about my successful, highly NON-disappointing excursion to see THE CABIN IN THE WOODS. I feel like it might almost be too late as you've probably heard the good news elsewhere but if I can convince one fence-sitter to go and check it out, then I'd like to give it a shot. Trouble is, if ever there was a movie you should know little or nothing about before seeing it, it's this one. So how can I persuade you without wrecking the whole thing? I went twice. Does that work? As soon as the movie was over I checked when the next show time was and then I saw it again. Now, would I do that for a terrible movie? Frankly, yes I would, but you're missing my point, I had to see THE CABIN IN THE WOODS twice because once was not enough to fully process its wonder. I can't wait to own this movie because I need to pause it on a couple scenes and nibble every single pixel. I want to watch it with close captioning so that no word can elude me. AMY ACKER is in this. I love her.
So yeah, I may have a bit of a raging predisposition for CABIN too. The sad truth is that for years, while secretly mocking the world's religions, I have also been hypocritically praying in the temple of JOSS WHEDON. I try to keep a lid on it. I know how it must sound but in the wee hours of the night when nobody's around, I'm watching a BUFFY episode for the gazillionth time and experiencing euphoric highs while weeping and speaking in tongues. JOSS WHEDON's face once appeared to me on an Eggo waffle. Ok that's not true but it's sort of basically true-ish. THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, which WHEDON co-wrote with director DREW GODDARD (who also penned some of my favorite BUFFY episodes), justifies my reverence and is an accumulation of the type of genre smudging and creative cajoles that ignited my zealotry. This sermon is only an hour and a half rather than seven years so jump on the express train to glory my brothers and sisters. Halleluiah!
Also while you are in church shut up. You're there to listen and observe not to try to figure it out before other people do or ponder the differences between what you thought it might be and what it is. Every horror fan should see this but those who bemoan sequels and remakes and wail for originality should be forced to see it at gunpoint. Be glad I'm not in charge because each ticket would also come with a mandatory ball gag. As a courtesy, I will soften expectations by saying this is not the type of thing you endure and then boast to your friends that it didn't faze you because you're so cool. It's not trying to impress you with hackneyed depravity; it's more of a boundary butcher that gets off on how limitlessly imaginative the genre could be if we stopped giving people what they want and start giving them what they need. CABIN is no way the be-all end-all. I enjoy many flavors to choose from and I'm not convinced that the rules and tropes it subverts need be fully abandoned. Still, in my eyes, this movie craftily climbs to a peak position where it can both revel in where horror has been and scout out the infinite possibilities ahead. Every New Testament should be this much fun.
