387. The Third Man
The Palme d’Or winner in 1949, Carol Reed’s masterpiece drew on covert sources and unexpected styles and techniques to deliver a melancholic mystery.
Tag Archives: Horror
357. The Shining
In adapting Stephen King’s best-seller, Stanley Kubrick drew on a genre other than horror and used a new motif that he would repeat for the rest of his career.
354. Let The Right One In
The vampire genre is ripe with themes; sexuality, feminism, xenophobia, disease, yet Let The Right One In broke new ground.
344. The Double Life of Veronique
Krzysztof Kieślowski avoids all the clichés of doppelgängers, doubles and lookalikes to deliver a meditation on freedom.
334. La Belle et la Bête
Fairytales transcend not just generations but cultures. Which may explain why La Belle et la Bête exists in so many guises and confronts so many issues.
328. Nosferatu
Long before it was revered as a masterpiece, F.W. Murnau’s radical reimagining of Bram Stoker’s classic vampire novel had to be saved from the furnaces.
301. Alien
We are told we watch horror films because they offer a vicariously thrilling, and thus safe experience. I don’t believe that. I believe horror films are instructive.
299. The Fly (1986)
David Cronenberg’s adaptation of George Langelaan’s short story is appropriately, a fusion of Icarus, Prometheus, Frankenstein and Beauty and the Beast.
296. Un Chien Andalou
This film lasts seventeen minutes, features mutilation, insects and dismemberment. Yet it is one of the most influential ever made.
295. The Silence of the Lambs
Jonathan Demme’s film is a classic because its Little Red Riding Hood plot mines the moral depths of its central characters.
262. The Handmaid’s Tale
There is only one time to tell Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale. Right now. Which means always.
260. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’s influence is so great it reaches far beyond horror and into sci-fi, thrillers, and historical romances.
230. Chinatown
Roman Polanski’s masterpiece is often called film noir. But lacking a dark look and a femme fatale, it’s not. It’s a very rare Hollywood breed; a true tragedy.
223. Pan’s Labyrinth
Guillermo del Toro says he is “in love with monsters.” In Pan’s Labyrinth, set in the Spanish Civil War, he uses them to navigate history and the world.
199. Se7en
Mention Se7en and chances are talk will lead to the head in the box. But while that makes the ending so unforgettable, it’s also the film’s biggest problem.
193. Aliens
James Cameron took a risk in tackling a sequel to Ridley Scott’s Alien. But his follow-up added other elements to the sci-fi/horror: action, adventure and all out war.
183. Room
In adapting Emma Donoghue’s award-winning novel, Lenny Abrahamson extends a cinematic tradition established by French master, Robert Bresson.
173. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
How do you make a film about a character who can neither move nor speak, but can only blink his left eye?
158. The Big Sleep
How can Howard Hawks’ adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s labyrinthine detective novel be heralded as a classic when it is impossible to follow?
146. Invasion of the Body Snatchers
There have been four adaptations of Jack Finney’s novel. But what new angle could you bring to the classic sci-fi allegory?
123. The Terminator
Because The Terminator is not about a cyborg but a resilient woman, James Cameron’s landmark film presented him as a unique feminist.
90. Halloween
Producer Irwin Yablans originally called it The Baby-Sitter Murders, and put up $325,000. Under John Carpenter’s direction, Halloween made over $70m.
67. The Exorcist
Based on a 1971 best-selling novel that was inspired by a real-life case of demonic possession said to have occurred in 1949, is this really the scariest film ever made?
Alien
This video-essay on Ridley Scott’s Alien examines the origins of horror and science-fiction and uses them to illustrate the disparate themes, ideas and influences that came to bear on the film’s creation.
