THE OCTOBER PROJECT Part 30.5

WHAT WAS LEFT OFF AND WHY

31 just isn't enough. Here are some titles that didn't make the list but deserve a mention:

JAWS (1975):  Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" is one of my very favourite movies and it's certainly full of scares and suspense, but I've never really thought of it as a horror film. I've always approached it as a suspense thriller that morphs into an adventure film at about the halfway mark.

CARRIE (1976): Great movie and one of the fundamental works of modern horror. I would have happily written about it but I just couldn't find a spot on my list.

THE OMEN (1975): I love "The Omen" but I've never found it scary at all. It's a solid, classy, well made film with an a-list cast and I do recommend it, but it's also kind of stupid.

RE-ANIMATOR (1985): Arghhh, I hated leaving this film off the list! Stuart Gordon's black comedy Lovecraft adaptation is hilarious, gross, sexy (kinda), offensive and highly entertaining, with a terrific career defining performance from Jeffrey Combs. Basically it came down to this and "Ginger Snaps" and I went with the Canadian choice.

PRINCE OF DARKNESS (1987) &  IN THE MOUTH OF MADNESS (1994): Two wonderfully entertaining films from John Carpenter that, along with "The Thing", form a  sort of loose "apocalypse trilogy." "In the Mouth of Madness" is a particular favourite of mine.

DOG SOLDIERS (2002): Neil Marshall's debut feature is an entertaining riff on "Aliens" and "Night of the Living Dead" featuring soldiers holed up in a remote farmhouse surrounded by ravenous werewolves. Lot's of fun, but I went with his follow up "The Descent" which I think is a scarier, more powerful film.

DEAD ALIVE  (aka BRAINDEAD) (1992)  &  THE FRIGHTENERS (1996) : Two fun features from a pre-LOTR Peter Jackson. "Dead Alive" is a great over the top zombie "splat-stick" comedy but, as enjoyable as it is, I ultimately end up finding it a bit tiresome in it's endless parade of goofy jokes and gore gags. ""The Frighteners" is a sadly underrated horror fantasy that came very close to making my list.

THE ORPHANAGE  (EL ORFANATO)  (2007): A lovely yet creepy ghost story from Spain, produced by Guillermo del Toro. Despite my admiration for this film, I ended up going with "The Devil's Backbone" instead.

WITCHFINDER GENERAL (aka THE CONQUERER WORM) (1968): Michael Reeves' film is really more of an historical drama than a horror movie so I decided to leave it off the list, although I recommend it highly. If nothing else it contains what I believe is Vincent Price's finest ever performance. Seriously, he's great.

BLACK SUNDAY  ( LA MASCHERA DEL DEMONIO) (1960): I could include any number of films on this list from the great Mario Bava, including "Black Sabbath", "The Whip and the Body" or 'Bay of Blood" but I'm sticking with what may be his masterpiece.  A beautifully atmospheric Gothic horror story with stunning black and white cinematography, this film contains images as striking and elegant as any found in Jean Cocteau.

THE MIST (2007): Another strong Stephen King adaptation from Frank Darabont, this story of desperate people trapped in a supermarket by a mysterious mist filled with horrible monsters is one the best and most underrated American horror movies of the decade. If it has any major flaw it's a tendency towards heavy handed allegory but his is more than made up for by the devastating, uncompromising ending.

REPULSION (1965): Supreme psychological horror film from director Roman Polanski that remains one the the most disturbing portraits of madness in the cinema. Who would believe that the ethereally beautiful Catherine Deneuve could be so frightening.

....and I could go on but I'll stop here. I would be remiss if I didn't mention one more film though.

PSYCHO (1960)  Of course it's a masterpiece. Of course it's an absolutely essential work of American cinema that opened up whole new doors for mature and challenging content. Of course Anthony Perkins creates one of the all time greatest, and scariest, film characters in Norman Bates.
So, why isn't it on my list? Basically, I just wasn't interested in writing about it. You know what it is, and if you haven't seen it by now it's your loss.

So that's it. Be back tomorrow with my final movie which is also my all time favourite horror film.
I'm sure you all suspect what it is by now but please, no spoilers.