Underrated Horror Movies

[Rational Gaze]

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[Rational Gaze]

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[rogue06]

Not sure if I'd call either Signs with Mel Gibson or Pitch Black which started a franchise as necessarily being "underrated"

[Adrift]

Screamers is a great film, though I suppose I'd classify it (and a couple others on the list) sci-fi. Was Kontroll a horror film? Seen it, I think twice, but I can't remember.

Just saw Under the Skin the other day. Sort of an artsy horror. Hard to say anything without giving anything away (whatever there is to give away), but basically it's about Scarlett Johansson playing a succubus of sorts. Pretty slowly paced. Definitely not for everyone, but if you like artsy, surreal horror films, then this might scratch your itch. Reminded me a bit of Beyond The Black Rainbow, not in style so much, but in the way that both are the sort of films I suppose I could see myself studying as a gallery installation. Trivia note about the film, apparently most of the scenes were improvised with non-actors and hidden cameras.

[Zymologist]

You can stream the first episode of Ash vs. Evil Dead on the Starz website for free. It's good! Adrift, have you seen it yet?

[Adrift]

You can stream the first episode of Ash vs. Evil Dead on the Starz website for free. It's good! Adrift, have you seen it yet?

I have, and it's fantastic. I would say there's a slight drop off in quality after the first episode. I mean, you can kind of tell when Raimi isn't hands-on directing, but its still really great. That first episode is so good though. Like, seeing old Ash back in action honestly gave me goosebumps. lol.

[Zymologist]

I have, and it's fantastic. I would say there's a slight drop off in quality after the first episode. I mean, you can kind of tell when Raimi isn't hands-on directing, but its still really great. That first episode is so good though. Like, seeing old Ash back in action honestly gave me goosebumps. lol.

"The other first thing I need to do is some cardio."

[Jesse]

I have, and it's fantastic. I would say there's a slight drop off in quality after the first episode. I mean, you can kind of tell when Raimi isn't hands-on directing, but its still really great. That first episode is so good though. Like, seeing old Ash back in action honestly gave me goosebumps. lol.

Gotta agree 100% on this. Brujo I think has been the worst one so far. It just seemed out of place to me. I am happy it's starting to pick back up now though. Can't wait to see what the second season holds .


Underrated Horror Movie:

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Here is a great one that I don't see many people mention. When you think of Frank Henenlotter, you think of Basket Case and Frankenhooker. I'm of the opinion that Brain Damage is an infinitely better film then those mentioned.

[Jesse]

Trick 'r Treat

From 2007 this anthology of several interwoven stories set on Halloween night in the same town provides several genuine chills and some great twists. Reminiscent of the Tales from the Crypt approach but IMHO better.

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Loved it! I can't wait to see Michael Dougherty's new movie Krampus.

Bing's quiz this morning was on horror movies - is it weird that I knew two of the three despite the fact I've never seen either of those movies and don't generally watch any horror movies?

Either you are more of a horror fan than you realize, or those 3 horror movies have been shown way too much.

[Adrift]

Saw Krampus couple weeks ago. It was...ok. I feel pretty much about it that I felt about Trick R Treat. People seem to absolutely love it though, so I'm definitely in the minority for feeling very lukewarm about it.

[Jesse]

Saw Krampus couple weeks ago. It was...ok. I feel pretty much about it that I felt about Trick R Treat. People seem to absolutely love it though, so I'm definitely in the minority for feeling very lukewarm about it.

Well that is sad to hear . Is there something in particular that you don't like about Michael Dougherty movies? I didn't think Trick 'r Treat was an amazing movie by any means, but as anthologies go, I thought it was solid and pretty fun. We don't get many good anthologies these days.

Is Krampus better or worse than Trick 'r Treat? Or perhaps the same?

[Adrift]

Well that is sad to hear . Is there something in particular that you don't like about Michael Dougherty movies? I didn't think Trick 'r Treat was an amazing movie by any means, but as anthologies go, I thought it was solid and pretty fun. We don't get many good anthologies these days.

It's been awhile since I've seen it, so can't remember specifically what I didn't like about it. I don't think there was anything particular about it that I didn't like. I just came away thinking "oh. ok." It wasn't scary. None of the vignettes were particularly inventive or original. Just kinda thought it was ho-hum. In fact, for the longest time the only reason I thought it got the attention that it did was because it had a relatively big budget and was intended for a theatrical release, but then went straight to DVD. So, like, people mostly liked it because it was underrated. But talking to a number of horror fanatics recently, and people legitimately think it's an excellent film.

Is Krampus better or worse than Trick 'r Treat? Or perhaps the same?

I don't know. I guess I probably liked it better than Trick r Treat, if for no other reason than I liked the non-anthology aspect of it better (though I do like anthologies). My problem with the film is that it attempts to be both silly and scary, and I don't feel that it really achieves either of these very well. Some of the writing feels a bit rushed. The storyline, again, isn't very original. And some of the effects feel cheap. It looks like most of the effects are practical, which I totally approve of, but those practical effects don't feel like they've grown any from the 80s. In fact, you could put this on any 80s movie rental shelf, and it wouldn't feel too out of place. There's very much the sense that it's attempting to emulate the spirit of Gremlins here. I don't think it's as successful though. Maybe if I had watched it back in the 80s it would have clicked for me, but it just didn't do anything for me.


Again though, I think my experience is the exception and not the rule. Most people I've talked to absolutely loved it, so take my comments with a grain of salt.

[Cerebrum123]

Well, the movie Insidious(at least I think that's what it was called) really creeped me out.The part where they had Tiny Tim haunting them and playing his "Tip Toe Through the Tulips" was particularly creepy. The movie wasn't what I would call scary, but definitely creepy.

[Adrift]

Well, the movie Insidious(at least I think that's what it was called) really creeped me out.The part where they had Tiny Tim haunting them and playing his "Tip Toe Through the Tulips" was particularly creepy. The movie wasn't what I would call scary, but definitely creepy.

I think we mentioned this film previously, or at least James Wan, the director. I appreciate Wan's film from the perspective that he's making horror films more mainstream (Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring, Anabelle), but I just can't help but feel he's so derivative. Every thing he does I feel is a rip off of films that have pulled it off so much better. I don't know. I just can't shake the feeling that there's something...cheap about his films.

Dang, I sound like such a negative nancy critiquing all these films. I'd rather not be that way, but I guess it sort of happens when you've seen as many films I have. It makes just sitting down and enjoying something without critiquing it to pieces pretty difficult.

[Jesse]

It's been awhile since I've seen it, so can't remember specifically what I didn't like about it. I don't think there was anything particular about it that I didn't like. I just came away thinking "oh. ok." It wasn't scary. None of the vignettes were particularly inventive or original. Just kinda thought it was ho-hum. In fact, for the longest time the only reason I thought it got the attention that it did was because it had a relatively big budget and was intended for a theatrical release, but then went straight to DVD. So, like, people mostly liked it because it was underrated. But talking to a number of horror fanatics recently, and people legitimately think it's an excellent film.

So if I am reading you right, you didn't like it because not much stood out to you? It was unmemorable in other words? If that is the case, then I do agree with you. I didn't think any one vignette really stood out (like a few did in the first two V/H/S movies), but I found Surprise Party and Meet Sam to be enjoyable. I really liked the out of order presentation coupled with the Creepshow like comic book narration. The fact that they made Sam the one who enforces Halloween traditions was a nice touch as well.

I guess for me, it was the entire package that I enjoyed. Not just one or two stories. I think if you take it as a whole, it has a lot that someone can appreciate. For me at least . I can't speak on why others liked it, but those are my reasons.

I don't know. I guess I probably liked it better than Trick r Treat, if for no other reason than I liked the non-anthology aspect of it better (though I do like anthologies). My problem with the film is that it attempts to be both silly and scary, and I don't feel that it really achieves either of these very well. Some of the writing feels a bit rushed. The storyline, again, isn't very original. And some of the effects feel cheap. It looks like most of the effects are practical, which I totally approve of, but those practical effects don't feel like they've grown any from the 80s. In fact, you could put this on any 80s movie rental shelf, and it wouldn't feel too out of place. There's very much the sense that it's attempting to emulate the spirit of Gremlins here. I don't think it's as successful though. Maybe if I had watched it back in the 80s it would have clicked for me, but it just didn't do anything for me.


Again though, I think my experience is the exception and not the rule. Most people I've talked to absolutely loved it, so take my comments with a grain of salt.

Well, I like knowing what your opinion is because you are very knowledgeable and we seem to like more than dislike the same Horror. So if you don't like it, in my view, there is probably a good reason for it. I have been waiting for this one ever since it was announced. Opinions on it seem to be mixed from what I am hearing. I read an article that Dougherty was going for an 80's Gremlins/Home Alone feel. That might be why it all felt so old. He said that only a few things in it would be CGI. I am still excited to see it. Though that has tapered off a bit with some of the mixed opinions I have been getting.