CWR’s Halloween Movie Recommendations II

Well readers, it’s that time of the year again.

Decorations are going up, costumes are coming out, and here at your favorite blog in the whole wide world, we’ve got your latest batch of chilling and thrilling movie recommendations.

Let’s get to it.

Splice

You know all those classic monster movies with heavy-handed messages about scientists playing God?

This isn’t one of ’em.

Quite the opposite, in fact: Splice is arguably a movie showing just the reverse, the danger of not providing scientists with the necessary resources and trust. And while that’s a long overdue message, beyond that, Splice is a simply fantastic horror flick. Well-acted, well-funded, well-shot, and even if you manage to see certain plot points coming, they’re only made all the more disturbing for it.

Stoker

Created by Park Chan-Wook, the brilliant writer and director of such films as Oldboy and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Stoker is- without a doubt- the single most visually stunning film I’ve ever seen. I’d recommend you watching this film even just for the cinematography- “enthralling” isn’t a word strong enough. Backing that up, however, is a great story- not explicitly what you’d call pure “horror”, but definitely horrifying. I can’t recommend this one enough, folks.

Event Horizon

In spite of having been made back in ’97, Event Horizon not only manages to hold up after nearly two decades, but still works as a disturbing and engrossing sci-fi horror film all on its own. While far from perfect, Event Horizon nevertheless manages to create some genuinely creepy scenes, and the slowly but steady descent into madness is well worth the wait.

The Mist

Even Stephen King, the author of The Mist, admitted he liked the ending of the 2007 adaption better than his own. While again not a perfect movie (the religious woman scenes being especially campy), the cast (the actors from The Walking Dead– tank-zombie included) nevertheless do a great job of keeping the Lovecraftian tale engaging and visceral. And if the ending doesn’t get ya- nothing will.

The Strangers

Now here’s a movie that’ll unnerve even jaded horror fans. No silliness, no goop, no attempts at being parodying or self-referential. The Stangers remembers the goal of horror movies is to horrify, and the 2008 flick does an amazing job of tapping into our culture’s most visceral fears and anxieties. This will send shudders down your spine.

The Ring (Either Version)

Japanese horror films (AKA “J-Horror”) has always been a fascinating cultural element, and one I’m hoping to unwrap a bit later in this month. For present time, all that you need to know is The Ring aint half bad. As much as it’s been parodied since it’s American release in 2002, I challenge anyone to tell me that it’s not an interesting and eerie film- even with the days of video-tapes and VCRs long gone.

The House of the Devil

If you saw posters for The House of the Devil, you might be tempted to think that it’s just some cult-classic from the 80s being given an traditional release for the fans. Actually made in 2009, the film is set in the 80s and directly addresses the culture of the time- particularly the paranoia about witchcraft, cults, and satanism that was sweeping the nation at the time. This is another one whose praises I can’t sing enough- we’re talking about one heck of a slow-burn, but with agonizing tension the whole way, and a degree of unapologetic sincerity so often lacking in this genre.

And there it is, folks. Just like last year, grab yourself some candy corn, a flashlight, and a couple friends dumb enough to watch these with ya in the dark!