Boo! Hi, it’s me, Haint. Did you recognize me? I thought I’d explain a little about the kind of spooky movies I like. Look, I’m old, okay? I was raised on films where a take might last more than a minute (a Fred Astaire dance routine was usually done in one take…maybe two, possibly three) and directors didn’t rely on computer graphics.
Classic spooky that I like in no particular order: Midnight Lace*, The Omen, Psycho, The Birds, Carnival of Souls**, Night Tide, Night of the Living Dead, Children of the Damned, Trilogy of Terror, The Old Dark House*, Rosemary’s Baby, The Innocents, The Uninvited, The City of the Dead, Dead of Night*, And Soon the Darkness**, (any of the Hammer Horror films), (any of the Vincent Price Poe adaptations), Diabolique (original or remake), Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, Cat People, The Legacy**, The Devil Rides Out*, The Wicker Man**, Kwaidan, Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark**, Burnt Offerings*, Shadow of the Vampire*, Skeleton Key*, What We Do In the Shadows*, The Lost Boys**, Sixth Sense**, Mothman Prophecy*, Shaun of the Dead, The Others, The Whip and the Body**, Plan Nine from Outer Space*… you get the idea.
* = really liked!
Oh, and special mention for Blair Witch Project — I know, I know, some folks didn’t like it, a lot of shaky cam in the woods, “I’m so scared.” Whoopedy-doo. But have you seen the documentary about the making of the movie? You have to at least acknowledge the back story–the making of it is almost better than the movie. Brilliant marketing. And how the actors were directed? No, no, no… I would not have been well. If I were the lead? They would have gotten more than snot nose, they would have gotten footage of me losing my stuffing completely. Proceeds to cover my care in the psych ward.
Still with me?
I hope so. Anyhoo, I’ll keep posting reviews. I’ve got quite a few gialli in mind. Just watched one called The Killer Reserved Nine Seats, a variation on the classic Ten Little Indians/And Then There Were None theme. Pretty good mystery. So funny! The first thing you do when there’s a murder and you’re in a group is split up, right? Hey! I suddenly, desperately need to wander around in the basement by myself. What could POSSIBLY go wrong? The dubbing and subtitling go a bit wonky a few times, but it passes. Here’s a link if you’re interested, full movie on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKEXNzy68hc
Haint's Retreat 