Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. I am including documentaries, short films and mini series, only as special mentions – along with a few features that can qualify as horror, but barely do.
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Special Mention:
Häxan
Directed by Benjamin Christensen
Denmark / Sweden, 1922
Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft,...
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Special Mention:
Häxan
Directed by Benjamin Christensen
Denmark / Sweden, 1922
Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft,...
- 10/30/2013
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
I first discovered Dario Argento at age 13. While flipping through channels I came across this beautiful old film, drenched in red lights and red blood. It was Dario Argento’s Suspiria, and I was hooked. Argento sparked my love of Italian film.
So it was with great admiration - and some trepidation (because I knew his English wasn’t very good and I failed out of college Italian) - that I set about to interview Argento for his newest film, Dracula 3D. Despite the language barrier, I got some interesting info from one of my idols - and bragging rights for the rest of my life.
Why was now the right time for you to take on Dracula?
The idea for Dracula came many years ago. To do a film about the undead man... it was interesting. I thought about it a long time ago, but I didn’t find...
So it was with great admiration - and some trepidation (because I knew his English wasn’t very good and I failed out of college Italian) - that I set about to interview Argento for his newest film, Dracula 3D. Despite the language barrier, I got some interesting info from one of my idols - and bragging rights for the rest of my life.
Why was now the right time for you to take on Dracula?
The idea for Dracula came many years ago. To do a film about the undead man... it was interesting. I thought about it a long time ago, but I didn’t find...
- 10/16/2013
- by Alyse Wax
- FEARnet
Throughout the month of October, Editor-in-Chief and resident Horror expert Ricky D, will be posting a list of his favorite Horror films of all time. The list will be posted in six parts. Click here to see every entry.
As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. It was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried and eventually gave up.
****
Special Mention: Gremlins
Directed by Joe Dante
Written by Chris Columbus
1984, USA
Gremlins gets a special mention because I’ve always considered it more of a comedy and a wholesome Christmas flick than an actual horror film. This tribute the 1950s matinee genre stands the test of time from a time when parents would take their children to family films that pushed the boundaries of the MPAA. Joe Dante is...
As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. It was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried and eventually gave up.
****
Special Mention: Gremlins
Directed by Joe Dante
Written by Chris Columbus
1984, USA
Gremlins gets a special mention because I’ve always considered it more of a comedy and a wholesome Christmas flick than an actual horror film. This tribute the 1950s matinee genre stands the test of time from a time when parents would take their children to family films that pushed the boundaries of the MPAA. Joe Dante is...
- 10/15/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
On October 26-28 Celluloid Screams, the Sheffield Horror Film Festival, will be delivering its fourth year of thrills, spills and chills at Sheffield’s Showroom Cinema. The folks behind Celluloid Screams have lifted the curtain on just which twisted delights are in store for the weekend. Dig in!
Friday, October 26
7:00pm – Opening Gala:
Sightseers
with Certified (Short – UK Premiere)
Chris (Steve Oram) wants to show Tina (Alice Lowe) his world and he wants to do it his way – on a journey through the British Isles in his beloved Abbey Oxford Caravan. Tina’s led a sheltered life and there are things that Chris needs her to see – the Crich Tramway Museum, the Ribblehead Viaduct, the Keswick Pencil Museum and the rolling countryside that accompanies these wonders in his life. But it doesn’t take long for the dream to fade. Litterbugs, noisy teenagers and pre-booked caravan sites, not to mention Tina’s meddling mother,...
Friday, October 26
7:00pm – Opening Gala:
Sightseers
with Certified (Short – UK Premiere)
Chris (Steve Oram) wants to show Tina (Alice Lowe) his world and he wants to do it his way – on a journey through the British Isles in his beloved Abbey Oxford Caravan. Tina’s led a sheltered life and there are things that Chris needs her to see – the Crich Tramway Museum, the Ribblehead Viaduct, the Keswick Pencil Museum and the rolling countryside that accompanies these wonders in his life. But it doesn’t take long for the dream to fade. Litterbugs, noisy teenagers and pre-booked caravan sites, not to mention Tina’s meddling mother,...
- 9/16/2012
- by Pestilence
- DreadCentral.com
Director Phyllida Lloyd proved, with Mamma Mia!, that there was a massive audience for female-led films. Now for the next challenge: helping Meryl Streep bring Thatcher to the screen in The Iron Lady
One of the most emotive moments in the shooting of The Iron Lady took place at dawn. Cameras had been secreted in the bushes of Belgravia, as Meryl Streep, swaddled in prosthetics, swayed through the streets, her character bound for home after an illicit trip to buy milk. When Streep finished the scene, says the film's director, Phyllida Lloyd, "she looked exultant, and fizzing with excitement, from having been in the street, anonymous. The revelation was that she couldn't get anybody to look her in the eye."
This was surprising not just because she is Meryl Streep, but because she was in a double-take of a disguise as the woman who towered over the western world, fascinating and infuriating us,...
One of the most emotive moments in the shooting of The Iron Lady took place at dawn. Cameras had been secreted in the bushes of Belgravia, as Meryl Streep, swaddled in prosthetics, swayed through the streets, her character bound for home after an illicit trip to buy milk. When Streep finished the scene, says the film's director, Phyllida Lloyd, "she looked exultant, and fizzing with excitement, from having been in the street, anonymous. The revelation was that she couldn't get anybody to look her in the eye."
This was surprising not just because she is Meryl Streep, but because she was in a double-take of a disguise as the woman who towered over the western world, fascinating and infuriating us,...
- 1/6/2012
- by Kira Cochrane
- The Guardian - Film News
Director Phyllida Lloyd proved, with Mamma Mia!, that there was a massive audience for female-led films. Now for the next challenge: humanising Thatcher
One of the most emotive moments in the shooting of The Iron Lady took place at dawn. Cameras had been secreted in the bushes of Belgravia, as Meryl Streep, swaddled in prosthetics, swayed through the streets, her character bound for home after an illicit trip to buy milk. When Streep finished the scene, says the film's director, Phyllida Lloyd, "she looked exultant, and fizzing with excitement, from having been in the street, anonymous. The revelation was that she couldn't get anybody to look her in the eye."
This was surprising not just because she is Meryl Streep, but because she was in a double-take of a disguise as the woman who towered over the western world, fascinating and infuriating us, throughout the 1980s. For about half of The Iron Lady,...
One of the most emotive moments in the shooting of The Iron Lady took place at dawn. Cameras had been secreted in the bushes of Belgravia, as Meryl Streep, swaddled in prosthetics, swayed through the streets, her character bound for home after an illicit trip to buy milk. When Streep finished the scene, says the film's director, Phyllida Lloyd, "she looked exultant, and fizzing with excitement, from having been in the street, anonymous. The revelation was that she couldn't get anybody to look her in the eye."
This was surprising not just because she is Meryl Streep, but because she was in a double-take of a disguise as the woman who towered over the western world, fascinating and infuriating us, throughout the 1980s. For about half of The Iron Lady,...
- 1/4/2012
- by Kira Cochrane
- The Guardian - Film News
The term “giallo” initially referred to cheap yellow paperbacks (printed American mysteries from writers such as Agatha Christie), that were distributed in post-fascist Italy. Applied to cinema, the genre is comprised of equal parts early pulp thrillers, mystery novels, with a willingness to gleefully explore onscreen sex and violence in provocative, innovative ways. Giallos are strikingly different from American crime films: they value style and plot over characterization, and tend towards unapologetic displays of violence, sexual content, and taboo exploration. The genre is known for stylistic excess, characterized by unnatural yet intriguing lighting techniques, convoluted plots, red herrings, extended murder sequences, excessive bloodletting, stylish camerawork and unusual musical arrangements. Amidst the ‘creative kill’ set-pieces are thematic undercurrents along with a whodunit element, usually some sort of twist ending. Here is my list of the best giallo films – made strictly by Italian directors, so don’t expect Black Swan, Amer or...
- 10/26/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Lights, camera, arias! Sell-out shows bring in new audiences and serious cash for leading opera houses
Tonight, most British cinema audiences will be settling down with a Coke and a carton of popcorn for the weekend's big movies: the latest in the Narnia franchise, perhaps, or Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in The Tourist.
But not all of them. In around 80 UK cinemas, audiences will instead be preparing themselves for a performance, beamed in live by satellite from New York's Metropolitan Opera, of Verdi's Don Carlos.
You'd be lucky to get a ticket though, despite the £25 price tag (reflecting the double cinema slot occupied by these often lengthy works). Tickets are sometimes snapped up in just two hours for a screening nine months away, according to Lyn Goleby, managing director of the independent cinema chain Picturehouse. "Opera in cinema is," she says, "a phenomenon."
The Royal Opera House, eager...
Tonight, most British cinema audiences will be settling down with a Coke and a carton of popcorn for the weekend's big movies: the latest in the Narnia franchise, perhaps, or Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in The Tourist.
But not all of them. In around 80 UK cinemas, audiences will instead be preparing themselves for a performance, beamed in live by satellite from New York's Metropolitan Opera, of Verdi's Don Carlos.
You'd be lucky to get a ticket though, despite the £25 price tag (reflecting the double cinema slot occupied by these often lengthy works). Tickets are sometimes snapped up in just two hours for a screening nine months away, according to Lyn Goleby, managing director of the independent cinema chain Picturehouse. "Opera in cinema is," she says, "a phenomenon."
The Royal Opera House, eager...
- 12/11/2010
- by Charlotte Higgins
- The Guardian - Film News
Anyone who loves opera and classical music was stunned by the announcement this morning of the death yesterday of the opera singer Shirley Verrett at the age of 79.
One of the truly great singers from the 50′s until the mid-80′s Verrett along with other African-American opera singers such as Leontyne Price, Grace Bumbry and Martina Arroyo broke through opera’s “color line” and was known for her uniquely fiery intensity and powerful voice. Truly one of the last of the great ones.
Among her many roles no doubt her signature role was as Lady Macbeth in Verdi’s opera of the Shakespeare play Macbeth. Here’s a clip of Verrett singing the role in a 1987 film version of the opera. One of a kind and truly irreplaceable.
One of the truly great singers from the 50′s until the mid-80′s Verrett along with other African-American opera singers such as Leontyne Price, Grace Bumbry and Martina Arroyo broke through opera’s “color line” and was known for her uniquely fiery intensity and powerful voice. Truly one of the last of the great ones.
Among her many roles no doubt her signature role was as Lady Macbeth in Verdi’s opera of the Shakespeare play Macbeth. Here’s a clip of Verrett singing the role in a 1987 film version of the opera. One of a kind and truly irreplaceable.
- 11/6/2010
- by Sergio
- ShadowAndAct
To celebrate the release of their latest batch of Dario Argento DVDs, Arrow Video and The Associates are teaming up with Dread Central to give two lucky UK readers a triple-threat pack including The Card Player, The Stendhal Syndrome, and Terror at the Opera!
The Card Player (review here)
“A serial killer is on the loose in Rome, kidnapping women and using them as the stake in a series of deadly games of poker played with the police over the internet. If the police win, the victim is set free; if they lose, the victim dies and the police are rewarded with a gruesome video of the murder being committed. When a British tourist becomes involved, disgraced Irish cop John Brennan (Liam Cunningham) is sent to Rome to investigate. There, he teams up with Anna Mari (Stefania Rocca), the no-nonsense Italian detective heading up the investigation. Once they set about tracking down the killer,...
The Card Player (review here)
“A serial killer is on the loose in Rome, kidnapping women and using them as the stake in a series of deadly games of poker played with the police over the internet. If the police win, the victim is set free; if they lose, the victim dies and the police are rewarded with a gruesome video of the murder being committed. When a British tourist becomes involved, disgraced Irish cop John Brennan (Liam Cunningham) is sent to Rome to investigate. There, he teams up with Anna Mari (Stefania Rocca), the no-nonsense Italian detective heading up the investigation. Once they set about tracking down the killer,...
- 3/23/2010
- by Pestilence
- DreadCentral.com
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