The Horror Thread - Part 1

[Loki882]

I'm with you on Friday the 13th, I loved it. Thought it was a great update and got more right than either the Halloween or NOES did .

If I were to add one to your list I'd add the Blob (1988), thought it was fantastic.

I haven't seen that version of the Blob in a LONG time. I'll have to go back and rewatch it, thanks for the suggestion.

 

[BH/HHH]

I haven't seen that version of the Blob in a LONG time. I'll have to go back and rewatch it, thanks for the suggestion.

It still holds up and has that awesome 80s feel

 

[Matt.S99]

The biggest problems with Rob Zombies Halloween movies was he felt the need to explore why Michael was the way he was. It was always most effective in the original, he's just simply evil no explanation and I much prefer that.

Probably didn't help that Zombie turned the whole family into crazy hillbillies either. He just made the usual garbage he makes. I was worried when he stayed on for the sequel and boy I was right to be cause he took it even farther away from what Halloween is.

Yeah, I hated that. It honestly made me say, ''well, no wonder he is so messed up, look at his family. I don't blame him.''

Not a sentence I should be saying for a horror movie villain.

 

[jonathancrane]

I thought Zombie didn't want to do that at all and the studio made him.

Fully agree that showing any backstory on MM is NOT the way to go. Once you humanize him he loses something. One things for sure, leave a classic like Halloween alone. IMO any remakes or sequels just pale in comparison. Even some of the original part 2 is really lame.

I always wonder if JC would remake his own movie or what he would have done differently if he had a larger budget.

I'm a huge Hammer nerd and I've always heard that he wanted Cushing and Lee in Halloween.

Lee turned down the role, if I recall correctly. Carpenter has claimed that he has an idea for a Halloween film....but, seeing as his post Nineties work has been ****, I think it is for the best that he enjoy his cinematic retirement.

 

[BH/HHH]

Yeah, I hated that. It honestly made me say, ''well, no wonder he is so messed up, look at his family. I don't blame him.''

Not a sentence I should be saying for a horror movie villain.

Yeah exactly, I think it completely took away from the mystique of the character. We're in an era of film now where they feel the need to over explain everything, sometimes things are better left unexplained.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

Here are a list of remakes that I consider legitimately good movies in their own right:
-John Carpenter's The Thing.
-Scareface (Al Pacino version).
-The Crazies (Timothy Olyphant version).
-Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Donald Sutherland version).
-Dawn of the Dead.
-Friday the 13th (I liked it, can't help it).
-Piranha 3D.
-The Evil Dead (2013).
-Fright Night.
There are others, but those are just the ones that I can think of off the top of my head.

I have to agree with you except with the Fright Night remake, while it wasn't terrible it wasn't good either, the original is just a true product of it's time some 80's films are just perfectly set in that era, modernizing doesn't work for everything.

The rest of your list I actually quite enjoy, even the F13th remake which also suffers from modernization.

 

[culver3vlr22]

I love fans when talking about the f13 remake. When I say it had every thing I need: teens partying, drugs and sex, token black guy whose comedic relief, Jason, hockey mask, good kills(almost a best of) and topless women. Every F13th fan says that's not what Friday the 13th is the first one played out likea murder mystery. Or that Freddy vs Jason ruined the characters. I don't see how FvJ ruined anything can someone who believes it's the worst movie in both franchises explain that to me ?

I would say the F13th remake was the best reboot of all the slasher remakes. Sorry about the FvJ thing it just pisses me off I love FvJ and it may be the movie I've seen the most. Out of any movie ever. Lol

 

[Tanin]

I love the F13 remake. Better then most of the sequels.

As for FvJ..... just a silly publicity stunt with two characters. They made Jason smaller so he would physically compete with Freddy even though it isn't even the point of the characters. I wouldn't say they ruined anything but it certainly was a pretty weakly written film.

 

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

Freddy vs. Jason is what it is, but I like it just for the simple fact of the premise. It's like the old Universal monster mash movies and it's sure as hell a lot better than "Jay and Silent Bob Meet Hellraiser" could have ever been.

 

[Rocketman]

Freddy vs. Jason sucks, but I love it.

Jason has had the most disservice given to him over Freddy and Michael. Jason Goes to Hell and Jason X are just unforgivable.

 

[The Shape]

I thought Zombie didn't want to do that at all and the studio made him.

Fully agree that showing any backstory on MM is NOT the way to go. Once you humanize him he loses something. One things for sure, leave a classic like Halloween alone. IMO any remakes or sequels just pale in comparison. Even some of the original part 2 is really lame.

I always wonder if JC would remake his own movie or what he would have done differently if he had a larger budget.

I'm a huge Hammer nerd and I've always heard that he wanted Cushing and Lee in Halloween.

They probably forced Zombie to include some of the original scenes, so I guess the studio shares the blame with him as to how awful the final product was. Either way, if Zombie had full creative control on the remake (as he seemed to with H2), who knows what kind of atrocity he might have come up with. It probably would've been "Halloween" in name only. Doesn't even matter at this point. What's done is done.

Still, the main point is that Rob Zombie WAS NOT the man for the job. No way, no how. And for that, I blame the studio. Just think of how ridiculous of a decision that was:

You're sitting on a gold mine of a property -- Halloween, arguably the greatest and most iconic slasher film ever. The film that literally gave birth to other imitators like Jason. A pure classic in every sense of the word, revered by horror fans and casual movie-watchers alike for decades. After the cheap, cash-in sequels have run their course, you decide it's finally time to remake this classic and introduce Michael Myers to a whole new generation of potential fans. This should have been a fairly high-profile project that wouldn't even require a big budget. With the right script and director, you could have attracted some great talent to the project.

So who do you hire to not only direct the film, but write the script and produce the picture? Rob Zombie. Rocker-turned-director with not a hit under his belt. Yes, The Devil's Rejects is cool and widely considered to be an improvement over House of 1000 Corpses...but that's not saying much. Not only would I never have hired him to direct Halloween, but I NEVER would have signed off on a script like that. I wonder if anyone at the studio even read it or did they just not give a ****?

The tagline on the poster was "EVIL HAS A DESTINY". No. Just...no. Sorry for the rant, but it's depressing to think about this whole fiasco.

 

[The Shape]

FvJ was fun enough to watch, and despite it sucking, I'm glad it happened. It was just cool to see those guys in the same movie.

Worst thing about it was the loser who stepped in to play Jason over Kane Hodder. Ronny Yu got rid of Kane Hodder because wanted Jason to have "soulful eyes that could reflect pain and loss". Did anyone notice Jason's soulful eyes in FvJ because I sure didn't. The guy who played Jason was stiff, walked like Frankenstein, and beyond that, his overall design was so dumb. His bald head was like a shiny, black, rubber ball.

 

[Loki882]

Actually, I did in fact notice Jason's eyes in that movie. FvJ wasn't really a horror movie per se, it was an action move. I enjoyed it on that level, the fights were really entertaining.

 

[Ant-manic]

I love the F13 remake. Better then most of the sequels.

As for FvJ..... just a silly publicity stunt with two characters. They made Jason smaller so he would physically compete with Freddy even though it isn't even the point of the characters. I wouldn't say they ruined anything but it certainly was a pretty weakly written film.

huh? i could be wrong but isn't Ken Kirzinger (6'5") bigger than Kane Hodder (6'4")? i think they actually mention in an interview that they wanted to accentuate the size difference by picking a larger Jason. Kane Hodder might have even been the one complaining about it. or are you mainly complaining about girth?

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

FvJ was fun enough to watch, and despite it sucking, I'm glad it happened. It was just cool to see those guys in the same movie.

Worst thing about it was the loser who stepped in to play Jason over Kane Hodder. Ronny Yu got rid of Kane Hodder because wanted Jason to have "soulful eyes that could reflect pain and loss". Did anyone notice Jason's soulful eyes in FvJ because I sure didn't. The guy who played Jason was stiff, walked like Frankenstein, and beyond that, his overall design was so dumb. His bald head was like a shiny, black, rubber ball.

To this day when I watch FVJ all I can do is picture how BADASS it would've been had Hodder been cast, it really is one of the worst casting decisions of all time.

 

[Tanin]

huh? i could be wrong but isn't Ken Kirzinger (6'5") bigger than Kane Hodder (6'4")? i think they actually mention in an interview that they wanted to accentuate the size difference by picking a larger Jason. Kane Hodder might have even been the one complaining about it. or are you mainly complaining about girth?

Girth of course. Ken looked like the wind could blow him over.

 

[Ant-manic]

See that's where my issue lies, they kept promoting and talking up how scary they made Freddy again, and like I said I had no issue with JEH's Freddy but I didn't find anything in the film scary whatsoever. Dark, dingey, serious and gritty yes, but not scary at all.

The contrast of bright settings and characters in the original offset the darkness of Freddy so when he came on screen it took you to another place, a scary and evil place. The remake's characters were all so dark and depressed they fit right in with Freddy, no contrast means no scares imo.

that's where a lot of current horror movies fail; casting the protagonists. the easiest way to scare someone is to put someone they identify with (or, simply, empathize w/) in a scary situation.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

There's not one fan I've ever met or see post on a messageboard that felt re-casting Jason for FVJ was a good idea, not ONE.

 

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

I thought Broker was the better Jason than Hodder.

 

[Ant-manic]

I saw a report Friday that they are working on a Smallville-esque show about Jason. Like, Crystal Lake's early years or something

ki ki kill me now!

 

[Ant-manic]

There's not one fan I've ever met or see post on a messageboard that felt re-casting Jason for FVJ was a good idea, not ONE.

i didn't say that it was. i was wondering why you thought it was about his size.

 

[Ant-manic]

I would say a proper remake is in order but to be honest, I really don't care to see it happen at this point I think it's best to just leave it alone.

can't be worse than the April Fool's Day remake. that reminds me, i didn't hate the 'My Bloody Valentine' remake; even with the 3D gimmick.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

i didn't say that it was. i was wondering why you thought it was about his size.

I wasn't the one that mentioned his size, as a F13 fan I never felt the bigger Jason was the bigger the threat, a giant hulking monster only works for so many characters.

 

[StarLord]

Actually, I did in fact notice Jason's eyes in that movie. FvJ wasn't really a horror movie per se, it was an action move. I enjoyed it on that level, the fights were really entertaining.

I liked the fights too, but the characters annoyed the hell outta me and I was waiting for them to be killed.

No sympathy at all for any of them, especially Kelly Rowlands' character.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

I liked the fights too, but the characters annoyed the hell outta me and I was waiting for them to be killed.

No sympathy at all for any of them, especially Kelly Rowlands' character.

I honestly hated the fact that she was in the film so much that when she was killed I cheered in the theater, such a terrible actress that's probably why she never acted in anything ever again.