Halloween weekend this year is an extended event. One thing I feel certain about is that there will be plenty of kid and adult parties.
The other thing I am certain of is that some people will be hosting a huge horror film fest.
Let me be honest – this is my least favorite genre. I get nightmares easily and these scary movies do me in every time. When 28 Days Later came out, I had to do some intense romantic comedy movie watching to get the images out of my head before bedtime.
But that doesn’t mean I have thrown out the whole genre with the bath water. There are some excellent movies that have a horror/psychological thrill to them. What I am going to do is make ten (10) suggestions that range the ages for those people who want to watch scary – although not necessarily gory – movies.
Let’s start for little, little kids. I am talking pre-school through third grade. These kids want to be like their older siblings but they cannot handle the more extreme scary movies. To allow a small child to watch the intense PG-13 or R rated horror/scary movies is child abuse in my book and it means a little work on the parent’s part to find the right type of scare for the various age groups.
My fallback plan for pre-school to third grade ages is always anything (1) Scooby Doo. The stories focus on a monster, there are a couple of scary chase scenes and the capture of the villain. The newer animated movies and series have a ‘real’ spirit at times but it is never more than kids in this age group can handle.
Another cute movie for this age group is (2) The Little Vampire starring Jonathon Lipnicki, that cute little boy from Jerry McGuire. The story is about a lonely little boy who discovers a vampire family has moved into his neighborhood. Soon, he is helping them find a way to end the curse that made them vampires. It is scary at bits but appropriate for the younger kids.
When it comes to the pre-teens, they are thinking scary on the level of what you see on the Disney Channel. The scares here are a little more intense and in settings that are more likely to happen. This age group might like (3) Monster House which stars a young Mitchel Musso as the best friend to our protagonist. In this beautifully animated movie, a tweener boy realizes that the spooky house across the street might be something more. There are some great scary scenes, especially when the house ‘eats’ the rotten boyfriend.
Another series I like is the (4) Goosebumps movies. I find they always focus on something that is very close to real life but the resolution comes quickly as well. Gotcha moments galore happen here but our lead characters tend to be relatable and likable.
If you want to edge a tweener child into horror films start with the classics of (5) Count Dracula, 1931; Frankenstein, 1931; and The Wolf Man, 1941. These movies have some scary imagery without the big scares or the gore factor. They are fun and campy with a slight edge.
Now once kids get to those teenage years, you can take off the gloves. They know what they can and cannot watch if they do not want nightmares. Parents who came up during the 70s and 80s may want to share their love of the ’slasher’ movies with their kids. (6) Halloween, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street are good, solid movies at their core. They have interesting premises with plenty of gotcha moments and interesting death scenes.
A sub section of the horror genre that has become quite popular in recent years is the zombie movie. The classic series is (7) the Living Dead movies directed by George Romero. The dead have risen and are looking for something to eat – preferably your brains.
But these are not the ones I love the best. Recent zombie movies have been fabulous for either being completely action packed or a humorous take on the genre or BOTH. I love 28 Days Later is one of the best zombie movies for the action and the reasoning for the virus in the first place. Shaun of the Dead has Simon Pegg trying to lead his friends to safety during a zombie invasion. It takes some well deserved jabs at the genre while still packing a few good scares.
My latest favorite is Zombieland starring Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson as they travel across the country looking for other survivors and killing zombies. There are funny bits and serious bits mixed together with moments that are just wonderful. Maybe not as action packed as Resident Evil but what a movie.
It is the monster that matters in some movies and one of the best is (8) Alien. Who can forget that big John Hurt’s moment or how Sigourney Weaver battles this thing? Sure, the movie has been made fun of over the years. But watch it again and let the terror wash over you.
Another very satisfying monster is (9) Hannibal Lector. Anthony Hopkins made this cannibal appealing so that the audience actually likes him but he is a devastating killer. Smart, crafty with a polished air, Lector can fool you into a sense of well being. But every moment when you are not the hunter, you are the prey.
There is only one movie I consider the best of all scary movies and that is (10) Psycho from 1960, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The blood is chocolate syrup and the villain is who we least suspect. It is filled with drama, tense moments and a shuddering death. The music of that scene will forever remain as one of sharp, piecing noise.
The best way to watch this movie is completely in the dark on the biggest TV screen you or a friend owns, and no one in the room is making a sound. The scariest part of this movie? Hearing the knife rip into flesh through the shower curtain.
What are some of your favorite scary movies?