Anyone who knows me knows I'm a film nut. I've even postponed a vacation by two hours just to watch the 1699 Japanese classic, Godzilla Versus the Sea Monster. I love movies of every kind, but I'm partial to good horror films. There's nothing like the feeling that you might actually die while sitting in front of the TV, or in most cases, later that night in your bed. Any movie that scares the living breath out of a grown man is a cinematic masterpiece in my opinion, and unfortunately, I have been the screaming, jumping, trembling victim of a few, whether or not I'll admit it in person. In this space, however, I've decided to share. Here are a few horror film gems that really got me going.
After watching 2002's The Ring I had nightmares for weeks. On the whole it's not the scariest movie I've ever seen, but there is one particular scene that I will never forget. At the end of the movie a simple video on a television set in an apartment and a young girl with long, stringy black hair crawling out of a well really freaked me out. Her body, mechanical and disjointed, moves creepily toward the screen until she is crawling right through the television set, and into the living room of the apartment just as the film fades to black. For a split second I thought she'd do it again, right into my living room. That one scene alone made a good movie something special (and horrifically disturbing), and continues to haunt me when I think about it too much�like I am right now.
Many horror film fans offer up The Exorcist as the scariest movie of all time and it's easy to see why. The film definitely has its charm, I agree, but there is one scene in a version not everyone has seen that is so much better than anything else in the original. At a dinner party Regan, played by Linda Blair, scampers down the staircase just like a spider, upside down with her hands leading the way and her belly pointed up in the air. It is one of the creepiest, most effective horror scenes in cinematic history, and sends shivers down my spine to this day. I've suddenly realized that I have a deep fear of weird, contorted movements...
I was recently fortunate enough to catch Paranormal Activity on DISH On Demand, and have to admit that it was very effective as a modern horror film. One of the very best horror scenes of all time comes near the end of the film, when Katie, led by her foot, gets dragged out of bed and down the hallway by a totally unseen force. I was actually afraid that night that if I accidentally let my foot hang off of the side of the bed while sleeping I'd be done for, I spent most of the night in a rigid plank position in the middle of the bed. I'm still bothered to this day by that scene.
When Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, comes face-to-face with one very nasty alien in 1979's Alien, I honestly thought I could feel the alien's breath on me. This was incredibly effective because most sci-fi films are not very horrific, and most horror films are not sci-fi. The blending of the two genres was brilliant pioneering, and made the prospect of space very, very scary. When E.T. came out three years later I still wasn't quite over it.
Hellraiser, from 1987, will forever stand out in my mind and for one very particular scene. I actually felt like I was becoming possessed at the moment Pinhead, the lead Cenobite, says, "The box. You opened it. We came." Seven little words uttered with the sound of what could only be total oblivion reverberating through every syllable was enough to get me thinking I needed a blanket and a sucker. Don't judge me. In that moment I knew something very special was unfolding on the screen.
Well, there you have it. Possibly five of my worst moments and five of TV horror's best. For the greatest in horror films, check out all of the premium movie channels on DISH Network. Get the latest in Hollywood blockbusters on HBO, Cinemax, Starz, and Showtime, on Pay-Per-View, and of course with DISH On Demand, which lets you watch the movies you want when you're ready to watch them available in many DISH Network Packages.
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