Kim Williams
Staff Reporter
The Exorcist: A classic that follows the demonic possession of a young girl, Regan, this movie tops the list in terms of delivering terror. With rumors ofinspiration from true events and the fact that it taps into an understandable fear of demons, something decidedly unnatural, evil and powerful, this film is a must see for any true horror enthusiast. Although older than many of the others on my list, this film has escaped the downfall of many older horror movies for me by managing to not date itself with special effects. Finally, the reason this movie is worth turning on is that no matter how many times I have watched it, The Exorcist still manages to chill me to the bone every time, even if I know exactly what is going to happen.
The Strangers: A picture that follows a night where intruders with masks enter and attack the summer home of a couple, Kristen and James, I first thought it would be delegated to the category of a gory slasher flicks but I was proven wrong. The threat of violence, the looming presence of the unknown intruders and the inhumanity of the killers in The Strangers gives this movie a decidedly psychological twist. In addition, I put this on my list because while in many movies the viewer is able to calm down by noting the many ways the victims could have easily thwarted the bad guys, in this case the couple do almost everything right and are continually thwarted. The Strangers is realistic and the idea of such brutality in anyone’s home left me quaking. This is one motion picture I could not shake off after leaving the theatre and every time a commercial for it comes on TV, I have to turn the channel. So I put this on my top five and advise you to make sure you’re not sleeping alone the night after you watch this.
El Orfanato (The Orphanage): The tale of a child named Sim?n, who goes missing, his mother Laura, and a chilling mixture of supernatural and plain out natural tragedy, The Orphanage is a must see. Not only is this movie incredibly creepy, but it is beautifully made. The Orphanage is heart-wrenching and touching while at the same time capable of forcing me to close my eyes closed or jump out of my seat on more occasions than I would like to admit. In addition, it’s in Spanish, so if you are taking a Spanish course this semester remember that finals are approaching and use that as an excuse to call a movie night.
Saw: Let me clarify. My suggestion is to see the first installment of Saw, where two men, Adam and Lawrence, try to figure out how to escape the room they have been trapped in by following the instruction left. I thoroughly denounce the following movies as any movie that has so many sequels is really unnecessary and loses its original appeal. However, the first Saw is original, shocking, and though gore is prevalent, the horror of the film does not depend on this. Anyone who has not seen Saw is truly missing out if you want to squirm in your seat.
Dawn of the Dead: While I personally found the older versions lacking something, perhaps as a result of the over the top gore, the 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead is one of my all time favorite movies period. A glimpse into the lives of people struggling to survive in a world inhabited and overrun by zombies, this movie offers both heart pounding fear over the attacking army of zombies, tragedy over the fates of people both known and unknown and even humor in a dire predicament. There is tension between people in a contained space, the drama of family bonds, and come one, the dead walk! I am going to stop describing this movie so you can go see it now.