The fun thing about Halloween is that you never know what you’re going to get - a trick or a treat. The same can be said of the scary movies that folks will break out on All Hallows Eve. From traditional classics such as the “Friday the 13th” series to newer slasher flicks like the “Saw” franchise, it’s hard for viewers to know whether they won’t be sleeping that night out of terror or frustration.

But, considering the trick-or-treating, the candy-eating, the age-inappropriate costume wearing and the spirituous imbibing that happens during the festive occasion, the quality of the scary movie usually isn’t enough to ruin a good Halloween.

So, keeping that in mind, we’ve decided to offer up eight off-the-beaten-path horror movie picks that will either provide Great Pumpkin-like tricks or chilling Crypt-Keeper worthy treats. It’s up to you to separate the treats from the tricks.

Happy Halloween!

1. CANDYMAN (1992) - We dare you to say his name five times while looking in the mirror. Virginia Madsen stars in this horror about a Chicago urban legend known as Candyman, the son of a former slave murdered because of his love affair with the daughter of a white plantation owner. Not to be confused with Christina Aguilera’s “Candyman” or the children’s game “Candyland,” though personal preference will determine which of the three is the scariest.

2. CHILDREN OF THE CORN (1984) - You’ll never look at corn on the cob the same again. The movie, loosely based on a short story by Stephen King, stars Peter Horton (of “thirtysomething” fame) and Linda Hamilton (”Beauty and the Beast”) as a couple whose car breaks down in rural Nebraskan town. To make things worse, the town happens to be controlled by mysterious boy-preacher Isaac and his right-hand man Malachai, who have killed all of the adults in the town and set their sights on the newcomers.

3. IT (1990) - What debuted as an ABC miniseries has become a cult classic and a reason many Gen-Xers have an unhealthy fear of clowns. (Maybe that accounts for their pessimistic outlook.) Based on a Stephen King novel, the movie starred several funny men from the small screen (Harry Anderson, John Ritter and Tim Reid) as childhood friends who take on a child-killing monster they refer to as “It,” which often takes the form of Pennywise the Dancing Clown.

4. RE-ANIMATOR (1985) - An updated take on Frankenstein, “Re-Animator” stars Jeffery Combs (of various “Star Trek” spinoffs) as a medical student who develops a formula to revive the dead. (This includes a severed head and a not-so-fluffy cat.) There’s zombies, gore, mayhem and science - a killer combination in any horror flick.

5. SLEEPY HOLLOW (1999) - It’s got Johnny Depp as Ichabod Crane and Christopher Walken as the Hessian Horseman. And what it lacks in cowbell, it makes up for in gore. Crane, reimagined as a New York City police constable, is dispatched to the upstate village of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a series of brutal murders in which the victims have been found decapitated. Locals believe in the power of witchcraft and the supernatural, while Crane believes in logic and reason…until he meets the Headless Horseman.

6. SEVEN (1995) - While not technically a horror movie, the ending is one of the scariest and most haunting of any movie. Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman star as detectives on the trail of a serial killer (Kevin Spacey) that bases his crimes on the seven deadly sins. It’s the brutality of his crimes and what he does to Gwyneth Paltrow’s character that gets you. One warning - if you like spaghetti, have it before you watch this film. You won’t want to eat it afterwards for awhile.

7. TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE NEXT GENERATION (1995) - The fourth installment of the “Texas Chainsaw” series features Matthew McConaughey and Renee Zellweger before they were stars. A semi-remake of the original, four teenagers end up in a secluded old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere, where they try to escape a family of psychopaths. Aliens and secret government agents also fit into the mix.

8. THEY LIVE (1988) - Aliens living among us is the theme of this 80s thriller starring “Rowdy” Roddy Piper of wrestling fame. In the film, Piper is a homeless construction worker who discovers the presence of aliens after finding sunglasses that protect his eyes from harmful UV rays and allow him to distinguish real humans from aliens that have taken on human form. He then goes on a rampage, putting the smackdown on the extra-terrestials while trying to alert humans to their existence.

Source: http://www.gastongazette.com/articles/movie_26548___article.html/horror_stars.html

October 31st, 2008
Categories: Horror Movies . Author: admin

3 Comments

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI

Leave a comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.