The Haunt Of Fear: ILX Top 100 HORROR Movies Poll Results Thread

The Descent was released in North America with approximately a minute cut from the end. In the American cut, Sarah escapes from the cave and sees Juno, but the film does not cut back to the cave.

yes, all the recent stuff like freaks and cabinet of dr caligari

"Ah, the Necro-NOM-icon, my favorite COOKBOOK!"

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7086/7248902598_4c83b91859_o.jpg

31. THE EVIL DEAD
Sam Raimi, USA, 1981
(501 points, 17 votes)

It's kind of related to the "pictures of you and famous people" thread. Me and my husband met Bruce Campbell last year and he was very funny, nice, etc. My husband was going to have his picture taken with Bruce and Bruce asked me if I wanted to be in the picture. I made this disgusted face and said something like "Ugh, no" because I really hate having my picture taken -- and then I realized he thought I was revolted at the idea of having my picture taken with him. So somewhere out there Bruce Campbell thinks I'm a haughty bitch.
― Nicolars (Nicole), Monday, October 20, 2003 4:39 PM (8 years ago)

The first one is funny by accident. The sequels were intentionally comedic.
― Anthony (Anthony F), Thursday, January 15, 2004 8:35 PM (8 years ago)

The original Evil Dead was funny and looks it and I'm not talking about "so cheesy it's hilarious" funny but "oh my God some of this slapstick rivals Tati" funny.
― Eric H. (Eric H.), Sunday, January 18, 2004 8:08 PM (8 years ago)

that Nicole story is still hilarious

You can tell a lot about a person based on whether they prefer Evil Dead 1 or 2.

hmmm, what an arbitrary TV categorization thingy (The Kingdom Part I is what, 4.5 hrs?)

Well, in total, but it's made up of several smaller episodes. I mean, they even have LVT appear at the end as a delineator of each one to tell us to tune in again. Do you think of Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a theatrical epic?

You can tell a lot about a person based on whether they prefer Evil Dead 1 or 2

This is so incredibly true. I kind of don't fully trust the people who choose the other one from the one I choose.

A million xposts to piscesx - I had the briefest instant of thinking people had voted for that House, too.

Voted for the Descent at #39. I don't remember being put off by any shift in the movie. I just remember being freaked out.

Freaks was my #13. It's worth noting that Elvira and Jenny Lee Snow and Schlitzie were circus performers when the movie was made, so I don't think being in a movie was any more exploitative than their daily lives. Also, the movie is really humanizing in a way that I imagine being a side show attraction at a circus was not.

This better mean that ED2 is top 20, because this is pretty low!

And, of course, those who choose Army of Darkness over both are not even relevant.

As I said just a bit earlier today, I voted for this Evil Dead instead of the second one, as I voted for that in the comedy poll and did want to rep for both, as I kind of like them about the same - this one definitely has funny moments, but works better for me as a horror film.

You can tell a lot about a person based on whether they prefer Evil Dead 1 or 2.

first by a huge margin

I choose Evil Dead 2 and I don't care what this says about me. But I love ED original because it was one of the first horror movies i saw that I actually, I dunno, enjoyed? Like it was almost funny. And then ED2 made it actually funny and I was happy.

and I love Army of Darkness but it's different to the the other 2 ED movies. more like a wacky funny adventure weird thing.

also Bruce forever

http://www.hairballmedia.com/evil_dead_cabin_1.jpg

My biggest take away from Freaks...

<3 this guy!

http://www.girlsandcorpses.com/images/issueprint5/johnny.jpg

Evil Dead 2 is essentially a remake done with more resources. And it's really great and all that, but the first one is just so jaw-dropping in its zero-budget audacity and wild (without being super-knowingly wild) set-pieces. They both belong on this list but it's no contest for me.

I completely lost interest in Lynch after "Lost Highway" and have seen nothing since.

In the parlance of the thread, this is roughly equivalent to, "I completely lost interest in Romero after Knightriders and have seen nothing since."

I had no idea there was an alternate ending to The Descent in American theatres. Glad I saw the restored version on DVD, cozied up to the big screen TV, late at night with the lights off.

One of the best DVD commentary tracks I've ever listened to is the one w/ Sam Raimi & Bruce Campbell which is attached to at least one 'special edition' version of ED. Not only are they predictably witty and hilarious throughout, but the recounting of how they were able to improvise shots and effects with next to no budget is remarkable (iirc the initial efforts behind ED basically constituted Raimi's senior thesis for undergrad film school).

Shame the director went off his rocker. I saw that "Escape from New York" homage he did after "The Descent." Snooze. Then he did some gladiator movie?

I've mentioned this elsewhere on ILX, but as a young teen, I watched Evil Dead on a first date and the tree rape scene happened and it was really awkward.

I saw all the Evil Dead movies long after their theatrical release and (accidentally) in reverse order. I appreciate Evil Dead as the low-budget original, but I had already seen Evil Dead II and experienced Evil Dead as a rehash of what I'd already fallen in love with. And it's amazing! But II just nailed it for me.

Shame the director went off his rocker. I saw that "Escape from New York" homage he did after "The Descent." Snooze. Then he did some gladiator movie?

i half liked the descent, but wasn't into dog soldiers from the beginning. even in those movies, i think you can tell that he really wanted to be making tough, gritty, high-octane thrillers, and that's not my kind of thing at all.

iirc the initial efforts behind ED basically constituted Raimi's senior thesis for undergrad film school

er, i meant 'senior project'

"More like Generation M-EEEEEEEEEEE!"

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7072/7248902760_a3643df760_o.jpg

30. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
Philip Kaufman, USA, 1978
(511 points, 15 votes)

Is it about AIDS?
― .ada.m. (nordicskilla), Tuesday, January 18, 2005 11:55 AM (7 years ago)

woah!

YES

the dog with a man's head is in my Top Scares Ever.

AIDS existed in '78, but no one knew it. SF was a time bomb.

This was somewhere in my top 20.

Although it was #13 on my ballot, I'm glad to see it place at all, since it seems a surprising number of people have never seen it.

In advance of its release, there were full-page ads on the back covers of Marvel comics for months, and at the age of 9 all I could think was I MUST SEE THIS MOVIE.

the dog with a man's head is in my Top Scares Ever.

Yep.

the idea of *having* to stay awake for weeks on end or something will kill you is p much Own-Personal-Room 101 level fear for me.

i should have voted for this but considered it sci-fi when compiling my ballot, bit daft given the allowances i made in other directions. great pic.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lnss3vqTh11qm84g9o1_500.jpg

wow, that's messed up! I really need to see this btw.

"It's a caper."

"It's a rat turd."

http://imagecache6.allposters.com/LRG/54/5488/O6BWG00Z.jpg

Unbelievably, I can't remember HOW the human-faced dog enters into this wonderful movie.

gaaah! well the guy falls asleep on a park bench with his dog in one scene, and in the next during a melee of sorts it's clear that his genes/cells have all got messed up with the pooch's and.. oh god..

In advance of its release, there were full-page ads on the back covers of Marvel comics for months,

I remember that, those were GREAT ads

movie ads were well scarier back in the day

http://virulentwordofmouse.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/invasion_of_the_body_snatchers_1978_poster_06.jpg

I think I cut Body Snatchers with the weak justification of "it's SF", but really I think I just had a *too canon* ballot already and wanted at least some oddballs in there.

"My favorite audition comes courtesy Marvin Haml-ISH's 'A GORE-US LINE' -- "What does she want from me? Should I try to FLEE? So many PIECES OF MY BODY all around and here we go!"

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7248902990_4dc7b42c77_o.jpg

29. AUDITION [aka オーディション]
Takeshi Miike, Japan, 1999
(519 points, 18 votes)

Takashi Miike is obviously a director with huge amounts of energy and innovative thoughts, but he seems to have trouble controlling that energy to make coherent, flawless movies. The more of of his films I see, the more I begin to suspect he'll never something as good as Audition, the one film of his which is coherent from the beginning to the very end.
― Tuomas (Tuomas), Monday, October 20, 2003 4:27 AM (8 years ago)

I've never enjoyed Audition more than when I rented it to watch with my girlfriend. She was not familiar with it & I did not tell her it was a horror film & really enjoyed the process of watching her watch it, esp. around the halfway point when the bottom just falls out from under it (around the scene w/ the ringing telephone & unidentified man in bag). Even tho this scared the bejeezus out of her in the short term, she was ultimately glad she knew nothing about it going in & I really wish I could say the same for when I originally saw it.
― Screeching Weerasethakul (Pillbox), Friday, February 5, 2010 3:25 PM (2 years ago)

audition though, i loved. even though i almost fainted at the movie theater. i have a fear of strangulation and things touching my neck, so the piano wire scene was omg.
― phil-two (phil-two), Sunday, April 10, 2005 3:07 AM (7 years ago)

I think Miike Takashi deliberately made the first half of Audition boring to sucker everyone into thinking it'd end normally.
― Ork Alarm (Matt #2), Friday, February 5, 2010 3:21 PM (2 years ago)

as an ultra-confirmed horror stan, im just going to out myself here right now and say that i do not get the appeal of audition (and actually cant get into most miike stuff).
― I AM ENJOY TO PARTY? (jjjusten), Friday, February 5, 2010 3:18 PM (2 years ago)

I have the Invasion of the Body Snatchers Fotonovel. I love Fotonovels!

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3249/2917885247_1983922522.jpg

yeah fotonovels were amazing. i've got the Close Encounters one; in the early 80s it was THE only place you could see stills from the original cut of CE because it had been banished from video/ TV in light of the Special (rubbish) Edition.

Vinyl lovers should be aware that Denny Zeitlin's jazz-avant-chamber score for Body Snatchers is totally amazing sui generis stuff. Never released on CD.

I thought I'd finally conquered my Miike queasiness & then I went and watched his banned "Master of Horror" episode and it was like NOPE.

Whole thing available here for sickos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C248DmRYbqU

In advance of its release, there were full-page ads on the back covers of Marvel comics for months,

ha yes! totally remember these. was years before I saw the actual movie.

ichi the killer was scarier, gorier ... and better. but i can live w/ audition being in the Top 100.

Body Snatchers 78 is one of my all-time favorites! Sutherland, Goldblum, slimy Nimoy, the sounds the pod-people make, the pathos of the man-dog, ... i know it's mainly because it's San Francisco and the man-dog has a beard, but sometimes when i'm in the Mission, i think, "what if all the scruffy-bearded hipster guys' genes merged with those of their dogs while having brunch at Boogaloo's?"

raimi directed the evil dead when he was 20

oh wow I am really behind here

is Body Snatchers Nimoy's only decent film aside from the good Star Trek ones? i think it must be. surprising really.

LOL sarahell