HALLOWEEN HORROR PICTURE SHOW 2022
Hello and welcome to Firewood Media’s Halloween Horror Picture Show. My name is Cole McCormack and I’ll be reviewing 31 horror films throughout the 31 days of October. The films that I reviewed here are ones that I think are extremely significant to not only film history but the foundation of the horror genre.
THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL (1896)
Le Manoir du diable (translated in English to The House of the Devil) is widely considered to be the very first horror film, a short one at that, with a runtime of three minutes and nineteen seconds. While it does utilize a lot of horror conventions in order to show off the special effects work by Méliès, this is definitely more of a comedy than a standard horror film...
THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920)
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Released on February 26, 1920, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari was one of the first German films to be shown overseas following the end of the first World War. While the movie’s critical and commercial reception at the time is unknown, what is known is that this film has stood the test of time and has been extremely influential to countless modern day horror films...
HAXAN (1922)
Häxan or Witchcraft Through the Ages as it was released in a 1968 US theatrical run, is a silent horror film originally released on September 18, 1922 in Sweden. The film is more or less a hybrid of documentary footage mixed with narrative footage. Written and directed by Danish filmmaker Benjamin Christensen, Haxan is remembered nowadays for its special effects that were far ahead of its time, as well as the horrific nightmare inducing imagery littered throughout the film of the devil, demons, and of course; witchcraft.
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925)
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Lon Chaney, a man revered for his skill in portraying tortured souls and sympathetic monsters, was often dubbed by many as "The Man of a Thousand Faces". After all, he was much more than an actor. Chaney was an innovator and quite industrious in the world of makeup and special effects. He was responsible for the look of countless horror icons like Quasimodo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Hypnotist from London After Midnight. Outside of horror, Chaney also played Fagin in 1922’s Oliver Twist and Blind Pew in 1920’s Treasure Island. As is the fate of countless silent films, most of Lon Chaney’s body of work is unfortunately lost to time. In spite of that, the legacy of Lon Chaney still lives on as he is still remembered to this day as a horror icon and a maestro in the makeup chair. However, if I had to pick one…Chaney’s most well known and admired film is 1925’s The Phantom of the Opera.
DRACULA (1931)
Originally released on Valentine’s Day in 1931, Dracula was the very first talkie adaptation of the Bram Stoker novel. While it may not be the most faithful adaptation, it’s still a damn good movie and it was responsible for turning Bela Lugosi into a horror icon. The film follows a man named Renfield who travels to Transylvania to meet with the mysterious Count Dracula. In a not so shocking turn of events, Dracula is revealed to be a vampire. It does not end well for Renfield, who ends up getting hypnotized and succumbs to madness. Dracula moves to London and begins sucking the blood of young women, turning them into vampires. It seems that the only person capable of stopping Dracula’s rampage is Dr. Van Helsing, a vampire-hunter. Has Dracula met his match?
FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
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Originally released on November 21, 1931, Frankenstein was one of the first talkie adaptations of Mary Shelley’s novel of the same name. The film is nowhere near a perfect adaptation of the book, but it really doesn’t need to be. If anything, the 1931 film adaptation has superseded the novel in the cultural zeitgeist. The film follows Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and Fritz (Dwight Frye), Henry’s hunchbacked assistant. The two men spend their time robbing graves and harvesting the corpses in order to play God and create a human (Boris Karloff). They succeed but the monster can really only be described as horrifying to look at. Regardless of his appearance, the monster is quite innocent and seemingly has the mind of a child. Despite just wanting to be left alone, Fritz torments the monster which causes him to go on a rampage.
THE WOLF MAN (1941)
Originally released on December 12, 1941, The Wolf Man is one of Universal’s most iconic monster flicks. We also covered the silent horror film The Phantom Of The Opera which starred the famous Lon Chaney in the lead role. His son, Lon Chaney Jr. would carry on his father’s legacy playing Frankenstein’s Monster in The Ghost of Frankenstein and the lead role in, of course, The Wolf Man...
INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)
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In America, the 1950s were a time of economic prosperity and paranoia. There was an inane fear of communism and the concept of collectivism as a whole. The cold war was well under way at this time and people were very much afraid of communist ideologies. There was an inkling of distrust among middle class Americans as they asked themselves…does my neighbor secretly harbor communist beliefs? Americans at this time were scared of losing their individuality. They were afraid of losing that part of themselves that made them feel like themselves...
PSYCHO (1960)
You’ve likely seen this shower scene parodied countless times. The harsh black and white cinematography, the frantic editing, Hitchcock’s impeccable and precise direction, the iconic performance by Janet Leigh, and of course that hauntingly memorable score by Bernard Herrmann. I would argue that Psycho is the most historically and culturally significant horror film to ever be created. The slasher subgenre was debatably created in this very movie. Not to mention, the basic groundwork for horror exploitation as a whole is laid out here. The legacy of Psycho cannot be understated.
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
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Originally released on October 1, 1968, Night Of The Living Dead served as the directorial debut of horror icon George Romero. The film is widely considered by many as the first real zombie movie. The rules established in this film have been carried on and appropriated by countless zombie films and stories. For example, in order to kill a zombie, you have to cut off its head and if you get bit by a zombie, you are infected and will turn into a zombie.
WAKE IN FRIGHT (1971)
Premiering at the Cannes film festival on May 13, 1971, Wake In Fright was an extremely controversial film that was banned in several countries. For a long time, the uncensored version was unavailable and widely regarded as lost media. The film is extremely significant for being one of the best Ozploitation films, a genre of exploitation movies made in Australia.
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Special Thanks To Billy Rowlands from Woodstock Roadshow!
THE EXORCIST (1973)
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While the 80s was remembered for being the decade of satanic panic, the late 60s and early 70s helped ramp up that fear and anxiety many christians felt towards satanic imagery and even demonic possession. Films like Rosemary’s Baby and The Omen really scared audiences but one film stands alone as one of the scariest sacrilege themed horror films. Originally released on December 26, 1973, The Exorcist is still considered to this day as one of the scariest movies of all time.
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (1974)
Originally released on October 11, 1974, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was an extremely controversial film upon release. The Los Angeles Times called it "despicable" and the movie was even banned in several countries due to the gore and violence. The film follows a group of friends; Pam, Kirk, Jerry, Sally and her brother Franklin; who travel out to a rural part of Texas in hopes of visiting the grave of Sally and Franklin’s grandfather. While on their trip, they stumble across a deserted home where they find Leatherface, a cannibalistic serial killer who wields a chainsaw and wears a mask made of his victims’ flesh.
JAWS (1975)
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Originally released on June 20, 1975, Jaws is considered by many to be the very first blockbuster. The film made waves at the box office and was a pop culture milestone. This was also the film that put Steven Spielberg on the map. Jaws has remained popular in the cultural zeitgeist due to just how memorable and quotable the film is. When a Great White Shark wreaks havoc on Amity Island, a New England tourist town, it's up to Amity Island’s police chief, a meek and nerdy marine biologist, and an old weathered sailor to hunt the shark down.
ERASERHEAD (1977)
Originally released on March 19, 1977, Eraserhead would gradually become widely regarded as a cult classic and a cornerstone in the culture of midnight movies. The film served as the directorial debut of David Lynch, one of the most fascinating filmmakers out there today. The film follows a man named Henry who discovers his girlfriend, Mary, is pregnant with his child. Neither of them are prepared to be parents but carry out the pregnancy anyways. The child is born but is extremely disfigured and deformed. It constantly cried out, likely in pain. The sound it makes is absolutely ear splitting. As a result of the psychological and emotional stress of having to take care of the constantly crying deformed child, Mary leaves and Henry is forced to take care of the baby by himself…
HALLOWEEN (1978)
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On Halloween night in 1963, a six year old boy named Michael Myers murdered his sister. After being incarcerated at Smith's Grove Sanitarium for fifteen years, he escapes and returns to his hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois to wreak havoc on the townsfolk…
ALIEN (1979)
The elevator pitch for Ridley Scott’s Alien is a haunted house set in space. The plot centers around a group of astronauts, who are the equivalence of futuristic space truck drivers, accidently bring a deadly alien on board their spaceship; The Nostromo. It is now up to the crew to kill the alien before it kills them…
THE SHINING (1980)
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The Shining follows recovering alcoholic Jack Torrance and his family as they travel to the Overlook Hotel for the winter, working as caretakers during the offseason. Despite the owner of the hotel warning Jack that the last caretaker murdered his family and then ended his own life, Jack still chooses to take the job anyways. Well, not so surprisingly things begin to go very wrong for the family. Jack’s son, Danny, sees two twin girls standing at the end of a hallway and Jack begins to have dreams of killing his family and due to the isolation, he slowly starts to go insane…
THE EVIL DEAD (1981)
The Evil Dead is a supernatural splatter flick directed by Sam Raimi. The film stars Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams. Raimi and Campbell had been friends since high school and made a lot of ameauter Super 8 films together with 1978’s It’s Murder! being the first feature film by Sam Raimi. However, The Evil Dead is much more well known for really being the film that kickstarted Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell’s careers in the film industry.
EVIL DEAD II (1987)
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Evil Dead II is a supernatural splatter flick directed by Sam Raimi. It’s a sequel to 1981’s The Evil Dead. Bruce Campbell returns as Ash Williams to kill even more deadites in this iconic horror comedy masterpiece. The film starts with Ash Williams taking his girlfriend Linda to an abandoned cabin in the woods. This is a bit confusing due to Linda dying in the previous film. Apparently this is a way to recap the first film to the audience. Raimi didn’t own the rights to use footage from the first film so he reshot a condensed version for the first 10 minutes of Evil Dead II. If you saw my review of the first film that I released yesterday, you should be mostly caught up to speed. Regardless, Linda becomes a deadite. Ash kills her with a chainsaw. Insanity ensues from there…
ARMY OF DARKNESS (1992)
Army Of Darkness is a horror comedy directed by Sam Raimi. It’s a sequel to The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II. Yet again, Bruce Campbell returns as Ash Williams to kill even more deadites, this time in the Middle Ages. The film picks up from the end of Evil Dead II, with Ash stranded in the Middle Ages. He is captured by King Arthur who believes Ash is a spy for the rival Duke Henry. After killing a deadite, Ash is heralded as a hero. After attempting to get back to his own time, he unknowingly unleashes the Army of Darkness and must help King Arthur defend his people from the Evil Dead…
THE THING (1982)
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The Thing follows a team of American research scientists in Antarctica who encounter a shape-shifting extraterrestrial that gradually picks off every scientist one by one. After killing one of the men, the creature will then shape-shift into them and mimic their form. It creates this sense of mystery. The characters, as well as the audience, have no idea who is human and who is the monster pretending to be one of them. Tension brews between members of the research team, leading viewers to wonder if they can band together and stop this otherworldly threat or die fighting amongst themselves…
PREDATOR (1987)
Predator feels like two films in one and I mean that in the best way. At first, the movie appears to be just another standard macho eighties action film with actors like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Jesse “The Body” Ventura being featured front and center as key players. However, the tone shifts and becomes a slasher movie featuring an eight foot tall extraterrestrial that hunts these supposed invincible 80s action heroes for sport.
JACOB'S LADDER (1990)
Originally released on November 2, 1990, Jacob’s Ladder is a film that was mostly forgotten about upon release but gradually became a cult classic following its release on home video. The film follows a Vietnam war vet named Jacob Singer, who deals with PTSD following events that occurred during the war. He experiences these horrific and vivid hallucinations that make him unsure of what is real and what is merely happening in his own mind.
SCREAM (1996)
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Scream is a wonderful balance of horror and comedy that expertly satirizes the slasher genre. Ironically enough, the director of the film, Wes Craven, had previously directed Nightmare On Elm Street. Looking back on it, Scream was so far ahead of its time and I don’t think it gets enough props for that. The film is centered around a serial killer known as Ghostface, who has been on a killing spree for the past year, murdering teenagers left and right. Sidney Prescott and her friends as they try to figure out how to stop the murderer. They notice patterns in the killings that align with slasher films of old. The movie is filled with references to these horror classics while also creating iconic moments in its own right.
THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999)​
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In 1994, three film students named Mike Williams, Heather Donahue, and Josh Leonard, went missing in the small town of Burkittsville, Maryland while making a documentary about an urban legend known as the Blair Witch. A year later, the missing students’ film equipment and the unfinished documentary footage was found. While it may not be the very first found footage horror movie, as that honor belongs to 1998’s The Last Broadcast, The Blair Witch Project made waves upon its release; absolutely shocking and horrifying audiences to their core. As a result of its now infamous marketing campaign, many people thought the footage in the film was genuine.
28 DAYS LATER - (2002)
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When a group of animal rights activists unknowingly free a chimpanzee infected with the “Rage” virus, a dangerous pandemic ravages London and the rest of the world. The people who catch the virus become zombie-like monsters. After waking up in a coma one month after the end of the world, a man named Jim tries to survive the zombie apocalypse…
SAW (2004)
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Two men, a photographer and an oncologist, wake up in a dirty bathroom and discover that they are chained to pipes on opposite ends. They realize that they’re in a trap designed by a serial killer named Jigsaw. Can they escape with their lives or will they lose the game and pay the ultimate price?
SINISTER (2012)
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Sinister is a movie that has terrified me for a very long time. I remember seeing the trailer for it on TV when I was ten and it absolutely horrified me. The imagery of the Bagul in the tree watching Ethan Hawke’s character always sent chills down my spine. I remember one of my cousins told me she saw it in theaters and she didn’t sleep for days after the fact. I finally got around to seeing the movie for the first time when I was in middle school and it absolutely shook me to my core. So much so, that it took me three days to watch the entire film. It scared me that much! Nowadays, I’m still freaked out by it but not as much.
GET OUT (2017)
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Originally released on February 24, 2017, Get Out is the directorial debut of Jordan Peele. The film received critical and audience acclaim upon its release. The film even won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, something that rarely happens for horror movies. It’s odd nowadays to remember that Peele was mostly known for his comedic roles in the show Key & Peele and Mad TV. The film follows Chris, a black photographer played by Daniel Kaluuya, who travels to upstate New York for the weekend to meet his white girlfriend’s family. Things are a bit awkward at first but appear to be going well, that is until Chris is faced with a shocking and horrifying revelation about the family…
THE LIGHTHOUSE (2019)
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I decided to end this month on Robert Eggers’ The Lighthouse, which I think is a wonderful homage to the horror films of yesteryear. The film follows two wickies, Ephraim Winslow and Thomas Wake, who try their best to avoid going insane while on a remote island in the late 1800s. Winslow, the younger wickie played by Robert Pattinson, is ordered around by Wake, the older wickie played by Willem Dafoe.