Ashley says: As the countdown continues, my No. 3 pick actually differs from that of my co-writer. My No. 3 pick seems almost fitting to be at this spot this since it is a trilogy of three films that I find unable to simply just choose one from to showcase. At No. 3 I choose the “Evil Dead” trilogy.
The trilogy began with 1981’s “Evil Dead” which was filmed at a cabin in Morristown, Tenn., and directed by now famous Sam Raimi. “Evil Dead” is the story of Ashley “Ash” J. Williams, played by Bruce Campbell, and his small group of friends whose simple camping trip turns deadly when they discover a decrepit looking book and a small recorder. When one of the friends plays the recorder back they awaken the evil within the book.
The Necronomicon, otherwise known as the Book of the Dead, soon starts to turns Ash’s friends into Deadites, demon possessed walking dead that seem one step up from the common zombie, leaving Ash the lone survivor. The movie ends with a cliffhanger as Ash is attacked by the unseen evil.
“Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn” picks up where the last left off and most see this movie as a remake more than a sequel of the first due to its similar storyline. The only difference is the much better special effects due to the higher budget. It is in this movie that Ash becomes the iconic movie character fans know and love, when his hand is possessed by the evil and he is forced to cut it off and takes on the second wave of evil with a sawed-off shotgun and a chainsaw strapped to his stump where his hand once was.
Once more the film ends much like the first, Ash is the only survivor to face the unseen evil, when he is sucked into a vortex and sent to the 1300s, which with where the final of the trilogy of films, 1992’s “Army of Darkness,” takes place. This film is considered one of the most quoted of the trilogy and left fans hoping for more adventures of Ash and his “boomstick.”
Since no plans have been announced in the 16 years since the last movie, it looks like fans like me will just have to stick with the DVDs and recently released comic series and hope that one day Ash will make his triumphant return to theaters.
Until then in the iconic words of Ashley “Ash” J. Williams, “Hail to the king, baby!”
Morevoer, I finally get down to the first of two horror movie characters that left me having nightmares as a child. The first of the two and the one that claims the No. 2 spot in this countdown really is the stuff of nightmares, because that’s where he lives. My No. 2 spot goes to Wes Craven’s 1984 classic “A Nightmare on Elm Street.”
Iconic horror movie character Freddy Kruger started his reign of terror in this movie. “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” for those who may have never seen it, is the story of a group of teenagers coming face-to-face with the pedophile murder Freddy Kruger that their parents literally burned alive years prior.
What makes Freddy different from other slashers is that unlike you Jason or Leatherface, Freddy Kruger kills you in the one place you feel most secure, your dreams.
As a child I was terrified of this character for his bunt flesh and glove made of sharpened razors, but when I re-watched the movie as a teenager I realized that his appearance wasn’t the most terrifying aspect of his character, instead it was the fact that he could trap you in your dreams and murder you in the one place no one could protect you.
Robert Englund brought to life a character that is not only physically horrifying but actually human in a sense.
He may kill you mercilessly, but he’ll also crack a joke or two about it or kill you in some of the most creative ways ranging from dragging you into your bed, as seen in the famed scene staring a young Johnny Depp, to literally making you a corpse puppet as seen in later sequels.
His wardrobe has become as iconic as the character himself. Much like Ash from the “Evil Dead” trilogy with his sawed off shotgun and his chainsaw hand, Freddy Kruger isn’t Freddy Kruger without his red-and-green-striped sweater, his fedora hat and that razor blade fingered glove that he uses in many of his murders.
Freddy Kruger in “A Nightmare on Elm Street” is one of the most unique and most terrifying characters and movies to date. And it also leaves viewers a little more than spooked, especially when they hear the famous “nursery rhyme” that accompanies the film and character:
“One, two, Freddy’s coming for you. / Three, four, better lock your door. / Five, six, grab your crucifix. / Seven, eight, better stay awake. / Nine, ten, never sleep again.”
So just remember, whatever you do, don’t fall asleep.
Amanda says: My No. 3 pick for the Halloween Countdown is the 1963 version of “The Haunting.” Robert Wise’s chilling display of the psychologically thrilling and the physically haunting is well worth viewing for the satisfying of your scare fix this Halloween.
Hill House is marked for its disturbing secrets and unexplainable happenings; suicides, insanity and violent, tragic “accidents.” To study the psychological effects of such a place on the human mind and to prove the existence of the immortal, Dr. Markway, a psychic researcher, assembles a group of people with pasts linked to the paranormal.
Eleanor had childhood experiences with a poltergeist and recently dealt with the death of her mother. Her paranormal inclinations consistently tie her to the spiritual inhabitants of Hill House. Theodora is a clairvoyant woman who befriends the often emotionally unstable Eleanor; she believes in the paranormal but tends to sort through unusual occurrences with logistical explanations.
Luke is a skeptic who stands to inherit the old mansion and who is present merely to stake his claim. The four set out on an eerie adventure they never expected to turn out to be so real, so pressing, so inescapable and deadly.
“The Haunting” is a classic horror film, and though remade in the early 21st century, the original remains the best version, bone-chilling and psychologically disturbing, combining two of the most important elements of a horror flick. I give it two thumbs up and recommend you watch it in the company of others.
My No. 2 pick this week is Stephen King’s all time horror classic, “The Shining.” Released in 1980, the tale of a secluded hotel requiring upkeep has chilled viewers throughout the last few decades.
It was an epic film in its time and has managed to maintain its status of one of the most disturbing films of all time, over the last 28 years.
Jack Nicholson plays Jack Torrence, a recovering alcoholic with an anger problem who interviews and takes a job at the Overlook Hotel in Colorado as an groundskeeper for the winter months.
He takes his wife Wendy (Shelly Duvall) and his psychic son, Danny in hopes of starting a new life and catering to his passion for writing.
Though having been warned of a man in similar condition who went crazy and killed his wife and two daughters’ years before, Jack ignores the signs and decides to stay on at the hotel.
Danny has visions of bloody elevators and the two dead daughters of Delbert Grady and Jack begins to become severely psychologically disturbed.
As the winter goes on, trapped by snow and secluded from the outside world, the family struggles, physically and psychologically with the spiritual inhabitants of the hotel, and everyone but the disillusioned Jack begin to realize the longer they’re stay, the less likely they will ever check out.
This movie is, in my opinion the best and most horrific out of all Stephen King films and it will go on defying time to maintain its status as a masterpiece.
It is a creative, ghastly display of the inner workings of King’s twisted mind.
It’s a great Halloween and practically anytime film to give you goose bumps and raise the hairs on the back of your neck. I would give it three thumbs if I could.