A List of Little Known Horror Treasures — By Amanda By Night
[EDITOR'S NOTE: In our 2-year plus history at Horror Yearbook we have done our best to bring you the best in overlooked and unappreciated horror films. We may have covered some of these films in the past, but once is never enough. For more great, older horror film suggestions, check out Brain Hammer's Picks From the Crypts, and keep updated on all Amanda By Night's articles in her HYB Archives here.]
What makes a great horror film anyway? Of course the answer is subjective and it truly relies on your ability to open yourself up to your own fears. The rest depends on the madmen behind and in front of the camera. Dario Argento says his greatest inspirations come from his dreams and almost any great horror film I can think of does lie in a surrealistic domain where one can feel the impossibility of the situation. But all dreams come from some germ of reality so in the end, the movie also has to anchor the viewer in a place, however strange, where we relate to at least a nugget of truth either in the situation or within ourselves.
That’s a full plate of want from people who enjoy a good, scary movie but it has been done and it has been done well. This list obviously doesn’t encompass every little known great horror movie, but it does pay tribute to films that deserve more praise and a more viewings.
Continue reading ‘Overlooked and Unappreciated: A List of Little Known Horror Film Treasures’
Published by Gary Gaymon October 14th, 2008
in Gary G's Archives and TOP TEN LIST.
Set at a small mid-western college during an all night scavenger hunt, Girls Nite Out follows a bunch of sexually voracious cheerleaders who are viciously slaughtered by an intensely bloodthirsty killer, who is disguised as the dancing bear mascot that’s supposed to be cheering the scavengers on. I‘ll repeat just incase the retardedness of it didn’t sink in. The killer is disguised as a giant bear, complete with long, sharp, metal claws.
The slasher genre always did get a bum rap. It might have made oodles of dinero for the production companies, but they still turned their back on their product for fear of becoming victims to the backlash. Still, as with any tried and true formula, the slasher blueprint became a staple in other types of films. They might deny it, but many a film took the conventions and just dressed them up all pretty, hoping no one would notice the soiled underpinnings. Here are the 10+ movies that came to mind when I thought about films that fell into different genres but retained a little of the slash.
Published by wil June 2nd, 2008
in TOP TEN LIST.
When you hear the phrase Movie of the Week it normally doesn’t bring to mind horror films. But made-for-TV horror movies are actually not all that uncommon. Before every family had a VCR and a Blockbuster appeared on every corner, made for TV movies were the only way people could see feature length films without going to the theater. These movies were never known for being the most groundbreaking films, but that did not stop families across the country from tuning into their major networks or basic cable station to watch them each week. Like everything else in the movie world the films were mostly dramas or kid friendly, but there were also your occasional thriller and horror feature from time to time. So Horror Yearbook and NBC’s Fear Itself proudly presents Ten Great Made For TV Horror Movies – from the mind of Brain Hammer written by WIL.
This is part three of our exhausting 2007 Year in Review. We already gave you an in depth look at Eli Roth and Rob Zombie (Read Here), the two most influential people in the horror genre right now, then we listed our Top Ten Horror Films of 2007 (Read Here), now I give you The Best Alternative, Overlooked and Unappreciated Horror Films of 2007, again presented by our wonderful and eclectic 10% gay staff.
Published by wil December 30th, 2007
in TOP TEN LIST.
Published by wil December 21st, 2007
in ORGINAL ARTICLES/ RANTS and TOP TEN LIST.
Well here it is our first and maybe last top ten horror movies of the year list. I realized something about top ten lists; they are a lot of fun when someone else picks them. Since this was such a major pain in the ass, and our original motto at HYB (even though we are far removed from our original vision) was to leave no horror film behind, this is actually part two of three of our “Year in Review.” Part one was our in-depth look at the film careers of Eli Roth and Rob Zombie. (Read LEADERS OF THE SPLAT: An examination of the films and careers of Rob Zombie and Eli Roth Here).
Published by wil February 9th, 2007
in TOP TEN LIST.
WIL’s “Top Ten Touching Horror Movie Moments”: Just in time for Valentine’s Day! Warning: May Contain Spoilers.
Baise-Moi – A rape victim and a former prostitute join forces on a cross country killing spree. This a Rape/ Revenge flick directed by a woman and Yes, there is a REAL hardcore rape scene featuring penetration. Most men hate this feminist look at rape, but I rather liked it. Best line: “I don’t care about their scummy cocks, I don’t keep anything precious in my cunt for them to take.” Features: the obligatory rape scene, a gun shot into a dude’s ass, period dripping into a sink, and a guy run over in his own car.
Not a year goes by that I don’t Irish up a cup of coffee, get all snuggly on the couch, and enjoy the Christmas staples; “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, “A Christmas Story”, the Rankin/Bass classics, and my personal favorite, “Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas”. But as the evenings grow longer and the nights get darker, the horror fan in me needs a little something more than even The Riverbottom Nightmare Band can deliver. So here’s a little X-Mas gift for you horror fans; the Top Five Holiday Horror films of all time!
Published by wil August 17th, 2006
in TOP TEN LIST.
Horror Yearbooks Top 10 Rape/Revenge Films (Off the top of our heads)
Originally posted on our My Space Blog before we had a website.
[Editor's Note 1-6-08: When I originally posted this when we launched HYB I really had no idea anyone would ever read it. After a year of being on the Internet this is one [...]
