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Thursday 29 November 2018

My favourite horror films

Generally I don’t consider myself a horror fan. But here are the films I like: 
The Innocents (1961), dir. Jack Clayton 
Eyes Without a Face (1960), dir. Georges Franju 
The Silence of the Lambs (1991), dir. Jonathan Demme 
Psycho (1960), dir. Afred Hitchcock 
The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920), dir. Robert Wiene 
Hour of the Wolf (1968), dir. Ingmar Bergman 
Ringu (1998), dir. Hideo Nakata 
The Sixth Sense (1999), dir. M. Night Shyamalan 
The Others (2001), dir. Alejandro Amenábar 
Dead Ringers (1998), dir. David Cronenberg 
Plus a film I don’t know how I feel about: Suspiria (1977), dir. Dario Argento 

In this list, the 1st 2 are probably unusual choices. They are not the films people usually think of when talking about horror films, because they are more than horror—they have deeper meaning and convey something else. The films are eerie and haunting more than terrifying. The Innocents is possibly the most aesthetically pleasing horror film I’ve ever seen (not Suspiria), and among the best films ever made. 



Eyes Without a Face is very poetic—a word that we normally wouldn’t use for a horror film, but watch it and you’ll know what I mean. 
Once in a while I watch a film not in my favourite genres, and get a lovely surprise.

1 comment:

  1. To an aficionado of the genre such as myself, to be “more than a horror film” is not in itself a recommendation, and neither is “nothing more than a horror film” a negative criticism. For a “horror film” is primarily all that we are looking for. If it can provide more – as “The Innocents” does – then fine: but it is not something we look for. But yes, “The Innocents” is my favourite horror film as well.

    I know you did not like the Hammer film you saw, but that’s possibly because you were not in sympathy with the nature of the genre. I think those Hammer films, at least at their best, project a dreamlike world that evoke childhood nightmares, much like the Grimms’ fairy tales.

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