Category Archives: Top 10

Vic’s Top 10: Twilight Zone Episodes / 5 thru 1

13 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by in Netflix, The Twilight Zone, Top 10

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5 – Living Doll

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– Of course, we all know dolls can’t really talk, and they certainly can’t commit murder. But to a child caught in the middle of turmoil and conflict, a doll can become many things: friend, defender, guardian. Especially a doll like Talky Tina, who did talk and did commit murder – in the misty region of the Twilight Zone –

4 – Nightmare at 20, 000 Feet

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– Portrait of a frightened man: Mr. Robert Wilson, thirty-seven, husband, father, and salesman on sick leave. Mr. Wilson has just been discharged from a sanitarium where he spent the last six months recovering from a nervous breakdown, the onset of which took place on an evening not dissimilar to this one, on an airliner very much like the one in which Mr. Wilson is about to be flown home – the difference being that, on that evening half a year ago, Mr. Wilson’s flight was terminated by the onslaught of his mental breakdown. Tonight, he’s traveling all the way to his appointed destination, which, contrary to Mr. Wilson’s plan, happens to be in the darkest corner of the Twilight Zone –

3 – The Monsters are Due on Maple Street

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– The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices – to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill – and suspicion can destroy – and a thoughtless frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own – for the children – and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is – that these things cannot be confined – to the Twilight Zone –

2 – (Tie) To Serve Man and It’s a Good Life

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– Respectfully submitted for your perusal – a Kanamit. Height: a little over nine feet. Weight: in the neighborhood of three hundred and fifty pounds. Origin: unknown. Motives? Therein hangs the tale, for in just a moment, we’re going to ask you to shake hands, figuratively, with a Christopher Columbus from another galaxy and another time. This is The Twilight Zone –

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– No comment here, no comment at all. We only wanted to introduce you to one of our very special citizens, little Anthony Fremont, age 6, who lives in a village called Peaksville in a place that used to be Ohio. And if by some strange chance you should run across him, you had best think only good thoughts. Anything less than that is handled at your own risk, because if you do meet Anthony, you can be sure of one thing: you have entered The Twilight Zone –

1- (Tie) A Stop at Willoughby and The Howling Man

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– This is Gart Williams, age thirty-eight, a man protected by a suit of armor, all held together by one bolt. Just a moment ago, someone removed the bolt, and Mr. Williams’ protection fell away from him and left him a naked target. He’s been cannonaded this afternoon by all the enemies of his life. His insecurity has shelled him, his sensitivity has straddled him with humiliation, his deep-rooted disquiet about his own worth has zeroed in on him, landed on target, and blown him apart. Mr. Gart Williams, ad agency exec, who, in just a moment, will move into the Twilight Zone – in a desperate search for survival –

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 [Opening Narration] The prostrate form of Mr. David Ellington, scholar, seeker of truth and, regretably, finder of truth. A man who will shortly arise from his exhaustion to confront a problem that has tormented mankind since the beginning of time. A man who knocked on a door seeking sanctuary and found, instead, the outer edges of The Twilight Zone –

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[Closing Narration] Ancient folk saying: ‘You can catch the Devil, but you can’t hold him long.’ Ask Brother Jerome. Ask David Ellington. They know, and they’ll go on knowing to the end of their days and beyond – in the Twilight Zone.

TZ Collage Source: Google Search Pinterest

TZ Collage Source: Google Search Pinterest

 

Honorable Mentions:

TZ DVD Custom Covers

TZ DVD Custom Covers

I Shot an Arrow into the Air

Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?

Mirror Image

The Midnight Sun

Masks

Two

Mr Denton on Doomsday

Long Live Walter Jameson

Eye of the Beholder

Where is Everybody?

Sixteen Millimeter Shrine

Third from the Sun

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Vic’s Top 10: Twilight Zone Episodes / 10 thru 6

26 Monday Oct 2015

Posted by in The Twilight Zone, Top 10

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Vic’s Top 10: 

Twilight Zone  Episodes: List One

10 thru 6:
Grimace

10 – Night Call

An elderly woman gets late night phone calls from a mysterious person with a disembodied voice. The person seems to know her but she cannot make out who the person is. Who is it? Why does he call only at night? Watch this one and the classic twist will throw you for a loop. Creepy and moody as hell. Also makes for a suspenseful and haunting episode which resonates much like the well done supernatural mystery thrillers of the 30’s and 40’s.

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9 – Time Enough at Last

A mis-treated, mis-understood bookworm (and bank teller) who loves to read, gets a chance to escape from his frantic and unrewarding reality. Will he forever have the time to retreat to his world of literature uninterrupted? It just may not be that simple. A killer (if somewhat sad) ending with a memorable and brilliant performance from TZ mainstay, Burgess Meredith.

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8 – The Invaders

A backwoods frontier woman who lives alone in a rustic home gets visited by some little and aggressive “explorers” from a distant world, who rudely interrupt her quiet dinner. But they may have met their match when she struggles to protect her homestead.

A fantastic emmy nominated performance from Agnes Moorehead and a killer reveal that you will never forget.

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7 – Walking Distance

A hard working man living in the fast lane gets a second chance to slow down and appreciate the things he’s forgotten and takes for granted. All by visiting where he grew up. Except, this isn’t quite the town he thought he left behind. Or is it? One of the most revered episodes with a touching story at it’s heart. Gig Young’s performance is the soul of this episode.

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6 – (Tie) Judgement Night and The Hitch-Hiker

Judgement Night is a powerful and cautionary maritime story about karma (if you believe in that sort of thing), guilt, retribution and living in one’s personal hell. The stoic and hearty Nehemiah Persoff (Twins, Some Like It Hot) plays Carl Lanser, a passenger aboard a perpetually fog covered British Liner headed for the United States.

This episode excels in establishing mood, confusion and doubt as Lanser tries to understand his purpose on the ship and unravel why he has cryptic and uneasy feelings of familiarity and danger. It is an effective tactic to build suspense and this Season One episode unwinds into a mystifying and frienzied conclusion that remains one of TZ’s best twists to date. Look out for a cameo appearance from a young James Franciscus (Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Naked City).

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The Hitch-Hiker is an all together different beast that predominates many other Season One episodes with a very prominent presence of danger, paranoia and oozes with a dream-like quality that provokes uneasiness, misgivings and undeniable suspicion. Inger Stevens brilliantly plays Nan Adams in this episode written by Serling, which was based on a radio play.

As she makes her way back (not before blowing out a tire) to the west coast after a buying trip, Nan begins to see a dingy, suited man with a dusty hat at just about every intersection asking to be picked up and deliberately asking: “Going my way?” So, who is this guy? Why is he following Nan and how is he able to always be ahead of Nan on the road?

Serling kicks up the story in notches every time we see the hitch-hiker relentlessly trying to get Nan to pick him up. This episode is indeed another nightmarish encounter that Serling inundates with foreshadowing and trepidation. Nan’s arc, which also involves a U.S. Sailor looking for a ride as well, is sublime and provocative making the twist very significant and grounding the episode as one of my most revisited entries from Season One.

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Stay Tuned TZ fans for the next List which will be Episodes 5 to 1! Thanks for checking into…”The Twilight Zone.”  (Sorry, I couldn’t resist…)

– Vic

My Busy Summer or “How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Buy a House”

11 Friday Jul 2014

Posted by in Movie Reviews, On The Set, Top 10, Top 5

≈ 32 Comments

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Hey, everyone! Vic here to announce that I will be taking a bit of a break from posting new reviews for the rest of the summer and quite possibly most of the fall. My family’s summer has been very busy with various outdoor activities like picnics, trips, cook-outs and visits to beaches along Lake Ontario.

As many who live here, in Rochester or Western New York already know, the summers are short and if you don’t take advantage of the great weather, you’ll blink and it will already be October. Like we say here: “Rochester has 2 Seasons. Winter and Construction.”

The other, even more exciting reason, would be that my wife and I are house hunting, and what all of you home owners already know, is that it is a grueling, tiring, exhaustive process but with the greatest reward in the end. After we decide on a home, the move and settling in will be taking up most of my time.

So, in the meantime, I will be doing some other types of posts to fill in a bit. I may re-edit some older reviews, do some Top 5 or 10 lists, whip up some On The Set or Behind the Scenes posts or have some of my great contributors help out during my hiatus.

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My sincerest thanks to everyone who drops by on a regular basis to like my posts, leave comments and feedback as well as sharing and re-tweeting on social media. I cannot stress enough how grateful and appreciative I am for the support and interaction. You are all the best followers, readers, and blogger brothers and sisters that a normal everyday shmoe like me and my small modest blog could ever have. I will keep you all posted and updated on any new movie reviews that are on the way.

Once things settle down, I will have drafts ready to post for some of the following movies:

Rob the Mob

Jodorowsky’s Dune

Snowpiercer

In Fear

Dom Hemingway

Life Itself

Sparks

Bad Words

They Came Together

Doc of the Dead

Wolf Creek 2

Moby Dick

Cuban Fury

Joy Ride

Cold Prey II

Anna

In The Blood

Joe

The Rocket

Vinyl

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and more!

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So stay tuned, please stay in touch and thanks so very much for stopping by ‘The Den!

All the Best,

Victor

 

 

Brian’s Top 10: Best Movies of the 1970’s

15 Thursday May 2014

Posted by in Brian's Reviews, Top 10

≈ 16 Comments

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Brian’s Note – I just wanted to say that this list is only my opinion. I’d also like to point out that the 1970’s was, in my opinion the best decade for American Film in history and this list was very hard to make and compile.

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10. Barry Lyndon

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Kubrick’s haunting and gorgeously shot (some feel the most beautiful cinematography ever and it would be hard to disagree) costume epic about one man’s quest to climb the social ladder no matter the cost. The emphasis on hostility hidden behind the manners of the day is so well conveyed by Kubrick that it will stay with you for days.

9. Rocky

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Stallone wrote and starred in this masterpiece that set into motion a chain of sequels, parodies, and knock offs that did their best to diminish the power of the original and yet it still endures. The greatest sports films are more about the characters than they are about the actual sporting event. It would be easy to label this as a boxing movie particularly because its sequels are exactly that. But, it isn’t. It’s a love story about two imperfect souls who couldn’t be more perfect together.

8. Star Wars

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The grand-daddy of all the big budget Sci-Fi films to follow that can’t hold a candle to this movie. There’s not many people on this planet that haven’t seen this movie so I won’t waste my time telling you about it. I’ll just throw in a quick factoid. This movie was made for 6 million dollars. How in the hell did they do that when there’s films today with 20 times that budget don’t seem as grand and epic?

7. Apocalypse Now

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Coppola’s version of Joseph Conrad’s Hearts of Darkness set during Vietnam is a gut shot of a film. It doesn’t try to document the war like Oliver Stone did with Platoon but to create an artistic expression of war as madness and despair. The further Martin Sheen travels down the river, the worse his psyche,  and ours along with him, get lost. The best part is that this movie only gets better with age.

6. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

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This swept all five major Academy Awards (Best Picture, Actress, Actor, Director, and Screenplay) in 1975. And, for once, they actually got it right. The greatest trait of this film is the was director Milos Forman mixes comedy with drama. You laugh with these characters and get attached to them. It makes it all that more effective when things turn tragic. It also contains the greatest performance of Jack Nicholson’s career.

5. A Clockwork Orange

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Another Kubrick masterpiece that asks the question: “Can you cure a thrill criminal?” Malcolm MacDowell is utterly brilliant as Alex, a psychopath who almost approaches likeability if it weren’t for his obsession with hurting others. Kubrick wisely shoots the film entirely from his perspective and you see the world as he sees it: a playground of animalistic urges.

4. Jaws

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The greatest popcorn movie of all time and the first summer blockbuster. I’ve read the Peter Benchley novel and quite frankly, it isn’t very good. The film improves every aspect of the story and Spielberg’s camerawork is utterly flawless. He would go on to make many hit films but this still remains his best.

3. The Exorcist

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A film about love, sacrifice, and faith disguised as a horror movie. If all this film was about was a possessed girl puking pea soup on a priest, it would not be the revered classic it is today. The greater proof to my theory on that is the litany of bad sequels, ripoffs, and derivative crap that has come over the year. Not one of them has been any good.

2. Taxi Driver

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Scorsese’s first masterpiece, like Apocalypse Now, is a descent into madness. Setting the story in NYC makes Travis’s tale of loneliness all the more profound. He’s surrounded by millions and yet not one person there even remotely understands him. The story also works because while he’s hailed as a hero near the end, his violent repression was going to come out one way or the other. If it hadn’t been against a group of pimps and lowlifes, it would have come against a U.S. Senator who could have become president. De Niro and Scorsese have never been better.

1. The Godfather and The Godfather Part 2

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I’m going to cheat and name both the first and second Godfather because they are really two halves of an entire story. Once you actually get to the end of the second film you realize that it’s how a Father and son could be so alike and yet so different. Vito is a man of business but he still looks out for and cares people. Michael on the other hand is also all business but will cut the throats of even those closest to him. Its poetry, acting, and wonderful cinematography is why I chose these as the best films of the 1970’s.

Here are some Trailers to these Incredible Films –

The Godfather Part II

The Exorcist

Jaws

Barry Lyndon

Honorable Mentions:

The French Connection

Superman: The Movie

Badlands

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Halloween

Aguirre: The Wrath of God

Cries and Whispers

Chinatown

Deliverance

Amarcord

Alien

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Mean Streets

Days of Heaven

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Carrie

Eraserhead

Dawn of the Dead

Sound off below, gang. Let us know your favorite films of the 1970’s! Hope you enjoyed the post and thanks once again to Brian for a fantastic piece.

– Vic

Vic’s Top 10: Noir Films

16 Wednesday Apr 2014

Posted by in Top 10

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Film Noir
ˌfilm ˈnwär/
noun
  1. 1.
    a style or genre of cinematographic film marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, and menace. The term was originally applied (by a group of French critics) to American thriller or detective films made in the period 1944–54 and to the work of directors such as Orson Welles, Fritz Lang, and Billy Wilder.

Who doesn’t enjoy a film noir every once I a while? I know I do. Very much. But it was not always so. I did not come to really appreciate the methodology, relevance and unique attributes that permeate this amazing and shadowy genre until the late 1980’s.

That was when I started to seek out and purchase classic black and white thrillers on VHS then graduated, eventually, to Laser-discs when I purchased “The Maltese Falcon” from director John Huston. After watching that film my interest and respect for noir was solidified forever. Since then I have watched and re-visited many noir titles from different film directors who all had different but singular visions.

Noir has been know to come in many forms and incarnations, but ultimately, despite the approach, the films consists of some of the same lasting qualifications and they seem to follow some rules and “hard boiled” conventions and characteristics: Femme fatales, isolation, stark angles, the night, crime, deception, light and shadow, mysterious women, stalwart men, fog, private eyes, distortions, evil henchmen and so on and so on. These are all pretty much in your basic noir classic.

I have gathered here some noir films that, over the years, I have come to really love and watch often or whenever I can. Some titles I have not seen in some time but they have left a considerable impression. I hope you enjoy the Top 10 and please let me know which are some of your favorite noir classics! Thanks and on to the list!

Vic’s Top 10: Noir Films

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10 – The Big Heat (1953)

Directed by Fritz Lang

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Tough cop Dave Bannion takes on a politically powerful crime syndicate.

9 – The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

Directed by John Huston Image

A major heist goes off as planned, until bad luck and double crosses cause everything to unravel.

8 – Touch of Evil (1958)

Directed by John Huston Image

A stark, perverse story of murder, kidnapping, and police corruption in a Mexican border town.

7 – They Live by Night (1948)

Directed by Nicholas Ray Image

An escaped convict is injured and is helped by a woman with whom he has an ill-fated relationship.

6 – (Tie) Suspicion (1941) and Notorious (1946)

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock Image

A shy young English woman marries a charming gentleman, then begins to suspect him of trying to kill her. Image

A woman is asked to spy on a group of Nazi friends in South America. How far will she have to go to ingratiate herself with them?

5 – Double Indemnity (1944)

Directed by Billy Wilder Image

An insurance rep lets himself be talked into a murder/insurance fraud scheme that arouses an insurance investigator’s suspicions.

4 – The Big Sleep (1946)

Directed by Howard Hawks Image

Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a rich family. Before the complex case is over, he’s seen murder, blackmail, and what might be love.

3 – Chinatown (1974)

Directed by Roman Polanski Image

A private detective hired to expose an adulterer finds himself caught up in a web of deceit, corruption and murder.

2 – The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Directed by John Huston Image

A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a gorgeous liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.

1 – (Tie) The Third Man (1949) and Citizen Kane (1941)

Directed by Carol Reed and Orson Welles

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Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, black-market opportunist Harry Lime. Image Following the death of a publishing tycoon, news reporters scramble to discover the meaning of his final utterance.

Honorable Mentions –

Blood Simple,  The Killing,  In a Lonely Place,  Out of the Past , The Wrong Man,  Strangers on a Train , The Lost Weekend , White Heat , Blade Runner , Odd Man Out / Murder my Sweet, Dark Passage, Vertigo

Let’s not forget: “Sunset Boulevard” from Billy Wilder! (Thanks to Bill from Crash Palace Productions)

Enjoy some selected Noir trailers below!

 

Brian’s Top 10: Favorite Films of All Time

28 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by in Top 10

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My Top 10 Favorite Films of all Time

By Brian Volke

I’m hoping that all of the contributing writers can add their own favorite films list. I think some of the most interesting things you can learn about a person are the various forms of art and media they consume. Their favorite music, books, art, and of course films, can say a lot about the type of human being they are.

I won’t pretend that my list is the definitive list of the ten greatest films ever made but they are the movies that I find myself returning to over and over because every time I experience them, I notice or am enchanted by new and different aspects of the film. I also won’t place these in a top 10 format. It was hard enough to narrow it down to ten, much less rank them. That would be next to impossible.

Mulholland Drive

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The definitive David Lynch film. It’s more than just a normal linear film. It breaks down everything we ever knew about linear storytelling and crushes it down to create a work of art that has almost no peer. The greatest way I can describe is that it’s a mystery film that lies somewhere between heaven and hell and the main storyteller is the experiences we bring to it. A visual, stunning masterpiece.

La Dolce Vita

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Fellini’s surrealistic statement about excess and selfishness in the heart of Rome. The more I watch it, the more I fall in love with the way that it weaves from dream to dream until it reaches its climax that is firmly rooted in a mirror of reality that is truly depressing.

Jaws

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The most fun, suspenseful, well directed, and well acted “monster movie” ever made. Its palpable sense of dread and mystery surrounding the shark are only enhanced by the way Spielberg treats it as a force of nature that hunts and kills but isn’t seen.

The unpredictability of the shark mixed with the classic score by John Williams are only part of the experience. What really takes it over the top is the humanity provided by the three male leads of Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and Robert Shaw. Their chemistry is absolutely fantastic and raises the movie to another level.

Pulp Fiction

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The most stylistic and fun independent movie ever made. This is the one that made Quentin Tarantino a household name and returned John Travolta to super stardom. The dialogue is unforgettable, the sense of style unmistakable, and the energy level it maintains throughout is unmatched.

Glengarry Glen Ross

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My favorite screenplay ever written for the big screen contains career performances from one of the best male ensemble casts ever formed. It manages to weave a tightly bound balance between funny, tragic, depressing, angry, and thoughtful the way that few movies ever could.

2001: A Space Odyssey

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The greatest science fiction film ever made. It asks far more questions than it answers by the time of its completion but it is so intelligent, so well shot and directed, and so amazingly written that it almost exists in a plane above all other movies. It manages in a 2 hour time frame to show the human race as it started, into the future, and how it could potentially evolve into something greater.

The Godfather Part 2

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I love the original Godfather almost as much but I chose the second because I felt it tells a more interesting tale. The original was about how Michael Corleone could possibly become a part of his family’s business. But, the second shows how he could go off the deep end and put the business ahead of his family. The original story of Don Vito weaving with the tale of Michael is a feat of epic storytelling that should not be missed by anyone who loves cinema.

The Seven Samurai

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Akira Kurosawa’s visionary masterpiece mixes American westerns with Eastern samurai culture to create something unmatched in either genre in terms of style and storytelling. Each character is fleshed out in real and believable ways that will have you gripped from start to finish. It’s the greatest Japanese film ever put on celluloid.

Halloween

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I live for the “out of body” feeling that you get when you watch a movie that is so stylistically and thematically confident that you feel that you’re standing next to the characters on screen. John Carpenter’s film doesn’t have great acting, great dialogue, or even a strong story. But, what it does have is a visceral and powerful way of grabbing a hold of you and not shaking you from the experience. The camerawork, lighting, and mood are unmatched with its genre and I find myself just as on the edge of my seat now, when I know the scares, as I always have.

Taxi Driver

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Martin Scorsese’s brilliant masterpiece about the loneliest man on Earth in the one of the most populated places there is. Robert Deniro’s Travis Bickle is a man who doesn’t exist within any form of sane normalcy. What makes the film so great is that it isn’t interested in you viewing him as crazy.

It’s more interested in showing the world from his perspective so that you can feel what it’s like to share his thoughts and fears. It’s a powerful statement about what’s really sane in our culture and the power of violence when shown from a different angle.

I hope you enjoyed my list and feel free to share your thoughts as well as your own top ten lists!

– Brian

From Parlor of Horror: 10 Things you Didn’t know about John Carpenter

16 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by in Horror Movies, Sci-Fi Movies, Top 10

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In honor of Mr Carpenter’s Birthday, I’d like to present this latest guest post from Parlor Of Horror!

10 Things you Didn’t know about John Carpenter

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List compiled by Mike from Parlor of Horror / http://parlorofhorror.wordpress.com/

Here are some projects you probably didn’t know John Carpenter was directly or indirectly involved with…

10) The Eyes of Laura Mars (1978) (writer)

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A taut thriller with Carpenter’s trademark stalking and killing. Must see for Carpenter fans!

9) Black Moon Rising (1986) (writer)

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Sci-fi, company espionage film with Tommy Lee Jones and Linda Hamilton

8) The Philadelphia Experiment (1984) (executive producer)

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Sci-fi film rumored to be a true military experiment gone wrong.

7) Planet Terror (2007) (music)

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Carpenter’s music compositions ‘Back to the Pod/The Crazies Come Out‘ used in the Robert Rodriguez “Grindhouse” film.

6) The Coupe de Villes – mid-1970s rock band

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5) F.E.A.R. 3 – video game story line writer/consultant (with Steve Niles)

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4) Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992) (director)

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A Comedy starring Chevy Chase and Daryl Hannah

3) Gorgo vs. Godzilla (short)

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In 1969 he made an independent short called Gorgo vs. Godzilla – I would love to see it – anyone have a copy?

2) ELVIS (1979) (director)

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TV movie about ‘The King’ Elvis Presley starring Kurt Russell

1) Dark Star (1974)

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Writer and Director – Low budget Sci-Fi comedy

Extras: He won an academy award for Best Live-Action Short Subject for ‘The Resurrection of Broncho Billy’ (1970). He was married to Adrianne Barbeau from 1979 -1984. They had one son together. He is currently married to Sandy King from 1990 to present.

Extras: Mr Carpenter is also responsible, along with his wife, Sandy King with bringing us the popular “John Carpenter Presents: Asylum” Comic Book.

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More info at : http://www.theofficialjohncarpenter.com

Thanks for this amazing contribution, Mike! This post rocked!

– Vic

Vic’s Top 10: Horror Movie Weapons

18 Monday Nov 2013

Posted by in Horror Movies, Movie Reviews, Top 10

≈ 14 Comments

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Hey gang, here is another Top 10 list for you all. It is my Top 10 best horror movie weapons! Hope you enjoy the list and of course the list is not in any particular order. Have fun!

– Vic

10) The Corkscrew –

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9) The Spear Gun –

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8) The Chainsaw –

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7) Dynamite –

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6) The Axe –

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5) The Knife –

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4) The Machete –

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3) Finger Knives –

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2) The Flame Thrower –

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1) The Rifle –

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HONORABLE MENTION goes to

The Automobile –

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Hope you all enjoyed the list!  Let me know some of your favorite Horror Movie weapons!

– Vic

From “Dark Corners” comes The Best of Alfred Hitchcock

21 Monday Jan 2013

Posted by in Movie Reviews, The Hitchcock Films, Top 10

≈ 2 Comments

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Hi gang! I am very excited to bring you a very cool essay contributed to Vic’s Movie Den  from Robin over at Dark Corners about one of my favorite subjects: Mr. Alfred Hitchcock. the one and only visionary master of suspense who has brought us some of the most frightening, original and dynamic movies of all time. From The 39 Steps to Frenzy. Hitchcock has just about covered it all. Please visit Robin’s great review page at his You Tube Channel. Don’t miss his great reviews of classics like the Micheal Caine film “The Swarm” –

Don’t miss the review for “The Giant Claw” either!  (hehe My favorite) –

Here is Robin’s / Dark Corner’s very interesting, entertaining and informative article on Director Alfred Hitchcock. Enjoy, gang!

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  The Best of Hitchcock

 With a 50 year directorial career, at least 52 features to his name (depending on which you count), and more classic films than any other director, it’s hard to pick the best of Hitchcock. He is also one of the most examined and analysed of directors and his most celebrated films regularly crop up on best of lists and retrospectives. Long story short, the absolute best of Hitchcock is pretty familiar, so here are a few bests that might have slipped you by (and a couple that almost definitely haven’t).

 The Best You’ve Never Heard Of

Hitchcock’s directing career began in 1926, and between then and 1929 he made ten silent films, of which The Lodger is certainly the best known, but not necessarily the best. The Ring displays Hitchcock at his most technically brilliant but The Manxman is the most interesting. Based on a novel and already adapted as a somewhat overwrought stage melodrama, The Manxman is a relationship drama based around a love triangle. For those who only know Hitch as the master of suspense, it is an eye-opening film, brilliantly shot, intimately staged and heart-achingly poignant. It also features the first of Hitchcock’s favoured blondes – Anny Ondra.

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Anny Ondra

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The Lodger

The Best of British

Hitchcock’s early talkies are a mixed bag as he found his feet in the new medium, but he hit his stride with 1934’s The Man Who Knew Too Much, which he followed up with a string of great films culminating in the sublime The Lady Vanishes. Despite a lead actor who distrusted him and writers who outright disliked him, Hitch delivered one of the most assured films of his career, deftly balancing comedy and drama. For all its light-hearted build, The Lady Vanishes has steel at its core, with the final standoff in particular showcasing the British bulldog spirit, at a time when the shadow of war was falling across Europe.

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 The Best Story

With the possible exception of Psycho, no Hitchcock movie has a more famous premise than Strangers On a Train. In fact, uniquely in the Hitchcock canon, the most famous thing about the film is its story. While most Hitchcock films are remembered for their striking visual sequences (the shower scene, the crop-duster, the birds on the climbing frame), Strangers On a Train is better known for its set-up, a set-up that has been referenced in everything from CSI to the Simpsons. Despite this, Hitch’s trademark visual flair is here in abundance, and particularly in the tense carousel climax. And watch out for a prominent supporting role for Hitch’s daughter Pat.

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 The Best of the Best

There are a handful of Hitchcock films which stand as classics amongst classics; Psycho, North by Northwest, Rear Window, and of course, Vertigo. There’s little sense in arguing which of these is best but Vertigo is my personal favourite. Owing to delays in shooting Hitch had longer than usual to lavish on the script and it features one of the most daring ‘rule breaks’ the director ever attempted.

Throughout the first half of the film we learn everything with Jimmy Stewart’s Scottie, but then, halfway through we learn one piece of information he does not have. This means that for the rest of the film we are one step ahead, yelling at the screen. It’s a simple trick that provokes a level of audience engagement most films can only dream of.

Vertigo also features one of Hitchcock’s most downbeat endings, and it’s interesting to learn that a more comfortable coda was shot and discarded, Hitch choosing to stick with the stark visual that currently ends the film.

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The Last of the Best

By the seventies Hitchcock was regarded as a spent force, his last two films had been poor and the last four had been financial failures, it was general assumed that he would not direct again. But with a reduced budget (Universal would risk nothing more), a title appropriated from an unrealised project, and his first English setting for over 30 years, Hitchcock set out to make the darkest film of his long career. Frenzy was critically acclaimed, and deservedly, it is his last truly great film (Family Plot is at best fun), it was also the culmination of all he had learnt as a director.

The film features the killings of two women and the first is as violent, sexual and censor-baiting as Hitch could make it. A lesser director would have tried to top that with the second, but Hitch lets the camera retreat, away from murderer and victim, back out into the street; he knew he could not top the first killing so left the second to his audience’s imagination, where the censors could not touch it. The other notable thing about Frenzy is that, despite all the crime films he made, it was the first time Hitch, who had a morbid fear of policemen, allowed a policeman to be his hero.

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Frenzy

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Frenzy Trailer –

Vertigo Trailer –

Dark Corners You Tube Channel and Playlist here – Enjoy! –

www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6EF2D18AD0AB7504&feature=plcp

Thanks to Robin for his awesome contribution and wonderful essay! Come back anytime to Vic’s Movie Den. I’d be happy to have you!

– Vic

Vic’s Top 10: Favorite “Batman” Comic Book Stories

22 Saturday Dec 2012

Posted by in Top 10

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Here are my Top 10 Favorite Batman Comic Book stories. I hope you have enjoyed some of these as much as I have.

Vic’s Note: They are not in any real order with the exception of the Top 3 of Course. Enjoy the pics!

10 – “Hush”

Written by Jeph Loeb

Art by Jim Lee

Inks by Scott Williams

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9 – “The Killing Joke”

Written by Alan Moore

Art by Brian Bolland

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8 – “Son of the Demon”

Written by Mike W. Barr

Art by Jerry Bingham

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7 – “Batman Reborn”

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Mike Quitely and Phillip Tan

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6 – “Red Rain”

Written by Doug Moench

Art by Kelley Jones

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5 – “Arkham Asylum”

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Dave McKean

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4 – “Batman – Noel”

Written by Lee Bermejo

Art by Lee Bermejo

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3 – “The Long Halloween”

Written by Jeph Loeb

Art by Tim Sale

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2 – “Batman – Year One”

Written by Frank Miller

Art by David Mazzuchelli

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1 – “The Dark Knight Returns”

Written by Frank Miller

Art by Frank Miller

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RUNNER UP:

DEATH OF THE FAMILY

By Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo

Batman: "Death of the Family"

Batman: “Death of the Family”

Vic’s Top 10: Best Horror Movie “Damsels in Distress”

28 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by in Horror Movies, Top 10

≈ 13 Comments

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Hi, everyone! I thought I’d put together a quick Top 10 today. It is nothing at all elaborate just a quick filler post. Like usual, gang, the list is no particular order and I am pretty darn sure I’ve left some off that may be more popular or more recognizable.

Chime in and let me know what you thought of the list and who should have been mentioned or included. These, though, come to mind more vividly for me…for now. Enjoy Everyone!

– Vic

#10 – Sigourney Weaver as Ripley

A L I E N

#9 – Tippi Hedren as Melanie

T H E  B I R D S

#8 – Heather Langenkamp as Nancy

A  N I G H T M A R E  O N  E L M  S T R E E T

#7 – Judith O’ Dea as Barbra

N I G H T  O F  T H E  L I V I N G  D E A D

#6 – Neve Campbell as Sidney

S C R E A M

#5 – Grace Kelly as Margot

D I A L  “M”  F O R  M U R D E R

# 4  – Janet Leigh as Marion

P S Y C H O

#3 – Olivia Bonamy – as Clementine

T H E M

#2 – Julie Adams as Kay

C R E A T U R E  F R O M  T H E  B L A C K  L A G O O N


#1 – Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode

H A L L O W E E N

Hope you all enjoyed the list. Let me know which are your favorite damsels in distress!

– Vic

Honorable Mention:

Kate Beckinsale – Vacancy

Liv Tyler – The Strangers

Marilyn Burns – The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Naomi Watts – The Ring

Sarah Butler – I Spit on your Grave

Mia Farrow – Rosemary’s Baby

Nicole Kidman – Dead Calm

Vic’s Top 10: Scariest Haunted Houses in Film

14 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by in Horror Movies, Top 10

≈ 29 Comments

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Hey gang! Usually, I trim most lists down to a Top 5 but in this particular case I feel that there are enough pretty good haunted house flicks out there to warrant a Top 10.

Some of these picks will not be plain Houses to say…some may be something bigger or even more elaborate than your basic haunted dwelling. It can either be a mansion or a hotel or even…oh hell, you get the point just read on and have fun! I will keep the descriptions very short for brevity’s sake, too. Don’t forget to chime in with some feedback if you don’t see one on the list that you think should have been included.

Remember this is NOT a  best Haunted House Movies list!  Just the houses themselves must be haunted. Then it can  make the list as the scariest and they aren’t in any order either.

Thanks and enjoy!

– Vic

10 – The Overlook Hotel

“The Shining” (Kubrick’s)

Cavernous, twisted, ghostly and extremely powerful. Stephen King’s immensely popular Hotel from his novel The Shining gets an amazing and terrifying film counterpart from no other than Stanley Kubrick himself. Kubrick makes The Overlook Hotel a character all on it’s own.  Menacing and involving camera work and the restless dead that slowly drive Jack Nicholson insane are some of the reasons that puts The Over Look Hotel easily on the list.

Scary Overlook Hotel Moment –  The murdered Twin Grady girls haunting Danny in a Hallway with a grotesque vision.

9 – The Bly Estate

“The Innocents”

Gothic, dark, winding and minimally lit hallways (Shot by Freddie Francis) and spirits that are out for vengeance makes this large British Estate frighteningly realistic. The Estate leaps out at you much like it’s literary counterpart from The Turn of the Screw by Author Henry James. Deborah Kerr has the solemn and dangerous duty of facing these unwanted phantoms in a very haunted home that also houses 2 innocent and endangered children. The Mansion is actually located in Sheffield Park, Sussex.

Scary Bly Estate Moment – Quint’s appearance to Miss Giddens at the window. Scared the crap outta me.

8 – The Windward House

“The Uninvited” (1944)

A young brother and his sister (Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey) in Lewis Allen’s eerie chiller fall in love with a seaside Home and find out that some “not living” entities live there too. Entities that can take over one’s body. DP Charles B Lang lights the house with quiet menace and uneasy shadows and noises permeates the breezy ocean view estate. It is just plain creepy and very effectively photographed in black and white. Even the winding stairs are spooky and precarious much like the cliff the house sits upon.

Scary Windward House Moment – Rick hears the disembodied voice of a woman crying. Creepy and it easily gave me goosebumps.

7 – The Freeling Home

“Poltergeist”

Where do I begin on this one? Insanely haunted by the spirits of relocated dead people, The Freeling home looks just like any other Suburban home until Tobe Hooper pulls all the stops and completely scares and terrifies the shit out of the audience. Closets that suck people in, TV’s that channel ghosts, possessed clown dolls, lights that spark and pianos and furniture that move by themselves. We get it all here in this wildly scary film from 1982.

Scary Freeling Home Moment –  Paranormal Investigative dude rips his own face off over a utility sink and also sees maggots erupt from a rare piece of steak. Gross and Grosser. Scary shit.

6 – The Amityville / Lutz House

“The Amityville Horror” (1979)

The film’s terrifying and tragic opening sets the tone for the rest of this very creepy film from 1979 based on Jay Anson’s popular book. Based on the haunting of the Lutz family, the film outright makes the Amityville house a villain and a very monstrous evil that succeeds in making the audience uncomfortable and afraid of what may come next. The house has copious amounts of flies, toilets that ooze tar, bleeding walls, cold spots and noxious odors that makes Nuns puke. Let’s not forget that creepy basement and the “red room”

Scary Amityville House Moment – The “Get Out” scene with Rod Steiger. Classic and completely fucking chilling. A rare horror movie scene where I want to cover my ears rather than cover my eyes.

5 – The Stewart Estate

“The Others”

This large and cavernous house in the Channel Islands is shot beautifully by Javier Aguirresarobe. It surrounded by fog, huge trees, lush countryside and what is within it’s haunted walls is even more terrifying to say the least. Large rooms abound with maze-like hallways and inter-connecting rooms that need to have the large doors secured from one end to the other. Since it is always dark and dim within  it’s interiors (part of a plot device) the house always appears menacing and foreboding.

Scary Stewart Estate Moment – The discovery of the “Book of Corpses” by Grace (Nicole Kidman)

4 – The Witzky House

“Stir of Echoes”

Another quaint and un-assuming house makes the list. No battlements, no moats or large gargoyles  to make it scary. What makes this house so scary for me is that the hauntings occur matter of factly and gives the house a chilling and other-worldy dimension. Based on the popular “A Stir of Echoes” by the brilliant Richard Matheson, the Witzky home is always creepy and you never know what lies around each dark corner. The basement is hands down the scariest section of the house as David Koepp deftly creates a claustrophobic residence that hides a very evil secret.

A scary Witzky House Moment – As Tom prepares to rest on his Sofa, “Ghost” Samantha appears next to him. It scared the bejesus out of me after I first watched it.

3 – The House on Haunted Hill

“The House on Haunted Hill” (1959)

While not completely scary, The Loren House from William Castle’s famous movie sports some freaky images that stay with you long after viewing the movie. Presented in “Emergo” there are Vats of acid, dark and frightening rooms, walls that move and the famous floating skeleton. Castle brilliantly plays it a bit hokey but many films since use the same type of suspenseful and goofy gimmicks to set their haunted house movies apart. Poltergeist come to mind with the “moving chairs” sequence. At first it’s weird and fun but later it gets real and horrifying. I feel this Vincent Price haunted house film deserves to be on this list

Scary Haunted Hill Moment – The Skeleton rising out of the vat of acid. Classic and spooky for sure.

2 – Hill House

“The Haunting” (1963)

Ok, now we are getting to the good stuff. Shirley Jackson establishes that her literary Hill House is a character on it’s own. Robert Wise follows her lead (with the help of writer Nelson Gidding) and his Hill House is just an amazing thing to watch. Ettington Hall in Warwickshire UK stands in for Hill House. It was used for the exteriors after being picked by Wise from a list of British Haunted Houses. With the combination of 30-40mm lenses for Panavision, infra-red film stock, lighting and camera settings (low angles for example) Wise and DP Davis Boulton brilliantly create their “Monster House” It is claustrophobic, eerie, menacing and just about every other frame is filled with corridors, hallways and rooms that drip dread, evil and implied horror. Robert Wise makes the audience uneasy at every turn by having his actors react to Hill House very naturally and honestly. It’s what you don’t see that will scare the shit outta you. Highly recommended.

Scary Hill House Moment – Eleanor, believing it to be Theo, feels a presence in her bed while it holds her hand.

1 – The Carmicheal Mansion

“The Changeling”

Wanna know a secret? The Carmichaell Estate is one big prop. The House was a large exterior mock up used by Medak and the cast and crew of this terrifying haunted house thriller which is still, to this day a very chilling and suspenseful horror movie. The interior scenes were all sets and they are impeccably rendered here. I looks just like a real house! DP John Coquillon shoots the house from every conceivable angle.

Low, establishing, tight and even POV. The house has long winding stairs, large eerie windows, cavernous hallways, secret dusty and spider webbed rooms, vines that appear alive, closed off passageways and a rustic kitchen that has a strange plumbing problem. There are loud banging noises, sounds of children crying and windows that explode outward. Like I said earlier, this list is not in any order but I would definitely say that this creepy house could easily be the top spot on many people’s list. Don’t miss this one gang!

Scary Carmicheal Mansion Moment – When George C. Scott watches a small red ball, which he tossed off a bridge, come back down the stairs when he returns.

Let me know about some of your scariest haunted houses! Sound off, gang!

Honorable Mention –

Insidious

The Devil’s Backbone

The Orphanage

The Exorcist (MacNeil Residence)

The House on Haunted Hill (remake)

Prince of Darkness (Haunted Church)

The Sixth Sense