The Horror Thread II: The Return

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  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    I know it's probably controversial but my favorite is Snyder's Dawn of the Dead remake. I love it so much, it's so damn visceral.

    That film is in my top 5 too. Right now, I'm going

    1) Dawn Of The Dead 1978
    2) Night Of The Living Dead 1968
    3) Dawn Of The Dead 2004
    4) 28 Weeks Later
    5) Resident Evil

    Great list! I think the original NOTLD would make my Top 5 too. Any reason for your preference of 28 Weeks Later over 28 Days Later? I really enjoyed both and will always pine for a 28 Months Later.

    I was expecting this question. ;-) To be frank, while 27DL is intellectually more compelling, I find 28WL more exciting and shocking, strictly from the point of view of tension and adrenaline. The escape from London, for example, or the first moments of the new outbreak, are scenes that have stayed glued to my retina since I first saw them. Even the opening scene of the film rendered me stone-cold: I froze like a corpse. The horror stays strong in that film, from the first to the last scene, with only a temporary break in-between. 28DL addresses several themes; it discusses our fear of a societal collapse in almost all of its aspects and it partially relies on metaphor and satire for that. 28WL does so to a far lesser extent. That film is purely focused on survival horror, on providing a thrill-ride. The first film wants us to do some soul-searching, hard thinking and philosophizing. The second film basically wants us to just soak in the adrenaline. I think 28DL is the better film, but 28WL raises my pulse, and the tension junky in me prefers the latter for that reason alone.

    I hope that makes sense. ;-)
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    Great post, @DarthDimi! I haven't seen it in quite some time now so I won't comment on my overall thoughts but that opening always stands out to me as being a masterclass in tension and fear. I rewatched 28 Days Later around Halloween, I believe, and should've included this one too.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    edited February 2022 Posts: 3,152
    My five favourites are the standards everyone's already mentioned. In chronological order: Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, 28 Days Later, Dawn of the Dead remake, 28 Weeks Later. There's probably some very good reasons that these seem to make the most impact on the most people.
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,483
    I've never seen the older zombie flicks. I should defintely watch Dawn of the Dead 1978...
    28 Days Later is one of my favourites. Also because it was the first I saw and made me interested in those movies. The empty Westminster Bridge is iconic. And Gleeson great as always.
    28 weeks is also very good. I never forgot the moment where they start to shoot everyone running out...not knowing who was infected...and the beginning is intense.
    Dawn of the Dead 2004 was also a cool flick.
    And I never forgot the guy with the hayfork from the movie "The Crazies". I loved this film. Definitely in the top 5 for me and sadly not as famous as it should be.
    Thanks to this thread I watched Train to Busan last year. Also very good.

    And my favourite movie with zombies: Shaun of the Dead :)
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    Has anyone else seen Dead Set?
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Dead Set?

    Not yet. Any good?
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Dead Set?

    Not yet. Any good?
    I don't know if you saw my post on the last page but 100%.
  • Posts: 1,631
    It's been quite a while since I've watched any zombie films, but these are the ones that I remember enjoying quite a bit.
    • Night of the Living Dead (1968)
    • Dawn of the Dead (2004)
    • 28 Days Later
    • Day of the Dead (1985)
    • Maggie
  • For the longest time my response would have been the first three Romeros, 28 Days Later, and Shaun of the Dead. That may still be true, but I also have to mention One Cut of the Dead (which may count even less as a zombie movie than 28 Days Later, though still it remains a surprisingly fresh take on a genre that had been shuffling along for nearly 15 years since the revitalization of SOTD and 28DL). Also very much enjoy the Dawn remake, [•REC] and [•REC]², and assorted Resident Evils.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    Actually think the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a lot of fun.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    I haven't seen it yet @Denbigh, though I have skimmed through a spoiler free review.


    I would say that it couldn't be worse than the last film, but I said that last time...
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    It sounds like I'm going to hate it but will probably give it a watch later on today and hope for the best.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    I'll be interested to hear what you guys think :)
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    Recently saw Fede Alvarez s Don t Breathe and Don t Breathe 2. Not sure if you can call them horror, but they are in that neighbourhood. I thought those were pretty good.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    Denbigh wrote: »
    I'll be interested to hear what you guys think :)

    I gotta say, I've seen way worse from this series. It felt fresh (despite the meta/legacy horror angle most of these films take on lately that's tiring) in some respects, the moments of practical gore were very sweet, the pacing worked well with the shorter runtime and it had some solid moments throughout. It still had its issues and isn't the best thing ever but far and away the best installment since the 2003 remake.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited February 2022 Posts: 5,970
    Couldn't agree more @Creasy47, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it, and as you say it has a lot of issues, some dumb horror moments, but its easy to ignore cause its a really fun horror movie, and probably the truest to its title haha ;)
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Couldn't agree more @Creasy47, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it, and as you say it has a lot of issues, some dumb horror moments, but its easy to ignore cause its a really fun horror movie, and probably the truest to its title haha ;)

    I thought my genuine level of pessimism and being underwhelmed with the marketing was the final nail in the coffin before I even started watching, but all in all, definitely not too bad. I had a lot of fun with it!

    And indeed, despite the laziness of the title, it certainly delivers in the "massacre" department.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited February 2022 Posts: 5,970
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Couldn't agree more @Creasy47, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it, and as you say it has a lot of issues, some dumb horror moments, but its easy to ignore cause its a really fun horror movie, and probably the truest to its title haha ;)

    I thought my genuine level of pessimism and being underwhelmed with the marketing was the final nail in the coffin before I even started watching, but all in all, definitely not too bad. I had a lot of fun with it!

    And indeed, despite the laziness of the title, it certainly delivers in the "massacre" department.
    I honestly wouldn't even mind a sequel or prequel to this if the makers wanted to.

    It'll also be interesting to see how it does, but I'm not really sure how it works with Netflix.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Couldn't agree more @Creasy47, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it, and as you say it has a lot of issues, some dumb horror moments, but its easy to ignore cause its a really fun horror movie, and probably the truest to its title haha ;)

    I thought my genuine level of pessimism and being underwhelmed with the marketing was the final nail in the coffin before I even started watching, but all in all, definitely not too bad. I had a lot of fun with it!

    And indeed, despite the laziness of the title, it certainly delivers in the "massacre" department.
    I honestly wouldn't even mind a sequel or prequel to this if the makers wanted to.

    It'll also be interesting to see how it does, but I'm not really sure how it works with Netflix.

    I think for them, it’s all about viewership after the first few weeks of release. I’ve seen a lot of people reviewing and discussing it, bad reviews aside.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Must say I like this film a whole lot better than the previous two. It's not great and it doesn't capture the madness of the original, but I like it enough to want another one like this.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    Ok, now i’m intrigued.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Ok, now i’m intrigued.
    The film is short and fast-paced, so they don't have to clog their script with useless tween drama. It's a gory enough experience to be pleased. Just understand that it is a Netflix film. It is what it is.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Ok, now i’m intrigued.
    The film is short and fast-paced, so they don't have to clog their script with useless tween drama. It's a gory enough experience to be pleased. Just understand that it is a Netflix film. It is what it is.

    This. The bloodshed begins barely 20 minutes in. It’s very brisk.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Ok, now i’m intrigued.
    The film is short and fast-paced, so they don't have to clog their script with useless tween drama. It's a gory enough experience to be pleased. Just understand that it is a Netflix film. It is what it is.

    This. The bloodshed begins barely 20 minutes in. It’s very brisk.

    Yes, and given the film's concept, I'd say brisk is the only way to fly. I rather have this than a protracted mixture of tension and tedious filler material.

    One more thing, and I know this is usually a "bad" thing, but the film hints at certain themes early on, yet constantly defies expectations by not really addressing them in any way. A negative review might say that the film tries to talk about things but fails miserably at doing so; I myself, in a more positive review, would rather say that the film just lets things happen and takes them for granted without lecturing us. It's refreshing to see a film that prepares us for debates on
    race, gender, teen angst and PTSD

    and then just shrugs it off by keeping the story going. Its central message may actually be that when Leatherface launches himself at us,
    the petty troubles that Facebook and Twitter enjoy so much, suddenly mean so little. He'll get you, indiscriminately, whoever you are and whatever your story is.

    Thwarting expectations is what Alvarez is good at, so yeah, the more I think about this film, the more I like it. It's refreshing to see another TCM that I can actually enjoy, for the first time in a decade-and-a-half.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    I've now seen it. It tries to hard to be the Halloween 2018 of the TCM films, but it doesn't quite stick the landing. To be honest, for most of the film, I was distracted by questions I had. What happened to the rest of the Family? Was Sally living in the Sawyer house? What was with the old woman and Leatherface in the Orphanage? Though there were some nice practical effects, especially on the bus.


    1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
    2. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
    3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
    4. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
    5. Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)
    6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
    ***7. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)***
    8. Leatherface (2017)
    9. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited February 2022 Posts: 5,970
    Ah nice @MajorDSmythe, I actually thought it was almost taking the piss out of Halloween (2018), and as for the questions, I have a few too, but I think that excites me for if they did do a sequel or prequel. With the end-credits, I feel a sequel is probably more on the cards, but a prequel down the line if possible would be interesting so we can get some of those questions answered.

    Oh, and here's my own ranking:

    1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
    2. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
    3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
    4. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)
    5. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)
    6. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
    7. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
    8. Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)
    9. Leatherface (2017)

    You might be surprised by my positioning of The Next Generation, but I think it's more to do with it being a guilty pleasure of mine. I laugh at that film so much that I'm much more entertained by that than the any of the other sequels, and those sequels are to blame for the downward slope this franchise goes on. I don't need to explain the bottom two haha :D
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    @MajorDSmythe, my girlfriend and I had the very same question regarding whether Sally was living in the Sawyer house or not; they seemed to linger on it as she drove off. I know there's a mid-credits scene that may confirm or deny that but I didn't realize there was one until after I turned it off.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    I get what you're saying, @MajorDSmythe, but I guess I came in with such low expectations, I was happy just to see a finished film. Seeing them pull the gore off, I was almost in a state of euphoria. 😉 My ranking is similar to @Denbigh's although with 5 and 6 switching places.
  • edited February 2022 Posts: 328
    Just saw the latest Texas Chainsaw...what a waste of time. Not one single character was likable. I have no idea why the blonde chick went with the cops and the old woman and then the old chick Sally had leatherface dead to rights in his room and let him slowly walk out, leave the building and again almost kill the 2 girls before uselessly trying to shoot him. The only thing horrific about these so called horror films these days is the level of incompetence of most of the characters.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    edited February 2022 Posts: 24,183
    mod edit: I put the post above in spoiler tags because @Jimjambond so desperately wanted to give away a few big ones. ;)
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