Halloween Movies

Since this is the last blog entry before we begin the 13 Nights of Hallowe'en I thought it only appropriate to talk about Halloween movies. Some people call most to all horror movies Halloween movies. Personally, I think only certain classes of horror movies should earn that moniker. Halloween is about the time of the year when the veil between the land of the living and the land of the dead is at its thinnest and things bleed through from one side to the other. This means that Halloween movies should be firmly rooted in the supernatural vein. I like a slasher flick as much as the next fan, but most of them lack that certain something, the unnatural element. Of course not all of them are rooted in mortal killers. Some even make the transition from one style to the other through sequels.

On the flip side there has been a recent trend of non-supernatural horror movies coming out around Halloween that the newest crop of horror fans will gladly call Halloween movies. This is of course the Saw franchise. The sixth film in the series is set to premier October 23, 2009. The IMDB already has an entry for Saw VII in 2010. As usual it is all a matter of perspective and preference.

So what of the division in supernatural movies? There are monster movies including vampires, werewolves, and zombies. Then there are the possession and haunting movies. Is one of these groups more a propos than the other? I would say not really. The costumes and scares of Halloween were meant to say to spirits, don't mess with me I'm no more natural than you and maybe even scarier. The others of course fit right into the fear of being haunted on All Hallow's Eve.

No matter how you slice it or label your movies the point is the same, a fun scare in the Halloween season, or just any time. See you on the 19th for the first night of our extravaganza.

Mood: creepy.

Music: The Unforgiven by Metallica and Haunted by Evanescence.

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Best Necrotised Foot Forward

The other day I answered a survey about DVDs. When questions came up regarding as to which genres I was buying I noticed something I felt was interesting. For the Horror genre, they had chosen what might be an obvious choice, but at the same time made me wonder, is this really the best representative for the genre currently. Their choice of representative for horror was the movie Saw. I have to admit I haven't seen this movie yet myself. As such I cannot judge whether this is an excellent choice or a poor choice or anywhere in between.

I have a fair idea I think in regard to what Saw is about, and as far as the sub-genre I believe it belongs in, I have to think, based on reviews, that it sounds like the best example of that kind of movie. This is without regard to the film's popularity, and obvious success. Saw seems to be one of those father films that spawn a lot of progeny. People saw (oh the pun!) how well it did and started making their own movies in the same vein. There is nothing wrong with that as long as you are differentiating yourself rather than being derivative. So, we have Saw, and then we have others like Hostel and Touristas just for example. Of the batch of them I think I'm only interested in seeing Saw.

Back to the representation aspect I do ask, is Saw the best foot forward? The survey is just naming a movie that I as a buyer in the genre am likely to have heard of, but what went into their decision to use it as the sole example? I have to ask, given that the first Saw film is not that new, why not say The Texas Chainsaw Massacre as an example? Either the remake or the original could be held up as an example of which people have heard. The remake spawned its own sequel, which in context says great things about it, given the number of sequels out there from the original. What movie would you pick to be representative of the genre, and at the same time be popular enough for practically any moviegoer/watcher to have heard of it?

Mood: calm.
Music: Pour Some Sugar on Me by Def Leppard and Inertia by Bruce Dickinson.

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