the Collegian: 10
Variety
26 October 2015
Creepiest Horror Movies Spookiest Horror Games
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Trent Gibbons Student Writer
t’s such a shame to know October is already almost over. After the spooky climax of Halloween, it won’t be long before Thanksgiving is totally eclipsed by gingerbread houses, candy-canes, fir trees and poorly-wrapped presents. For those desperately resisting this incoming assortment of holiday cheer, here are a few noteworthy horror films to fan the fading flames of terror. Alien: Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), arguably the strongest female protagonist in horror, and her crew are forced to fight for their lives after their massive cargo-bearing spaceship is breached by an unknown element. Ridley Scott’s masterpiece is a marriage of sci-fi and horror, and uses only the best elements of both. The Thing: A research team in the Antarctic finds themselves victim to a parasitic extraterrestrial—one that can almost flawlessly imitate its prey. Paranoia consumes both the characters and audience in this disturbing remake by director John Carpenter, starring Kurt Russell. Evil Dead trilogy: Ash Williams, undoubtedly the strongest male protagonist in horror, transforms from inexperienced everyman to wisecracking deadite-hunter over the span of this horror-comedy trilogy. The first two see him hold a single cabin against an assault of evil forces which have corrupted the surrounding forest; the third follows his time-traveling escapades in medieval fantasy. The Shining: Stanley Kubrick’s loose adaptation of the Stephen King novel is a cleverly unsettling film. Jack Nicholson is brilliant in his role as Jack Torrance, whose solution to marriage troubles seems to be isolating himself and his family in a haunted hotel for the winter season. This is a patient thriller, subtly themed and elaborately puzzling. The Fly: David Cronenberg mixes body horror and relationship drama about an aspiring inventor whose teleportation machine splices his DNA with that of a fly. Few things in film are so sorrowful and simultaneously terrifying as Jeff Goldblum’s mental decay, and especially his gradual physical transformation from man to insect. The movie is grisly, disgusting and heartfelt all at the same time. Poltergeist: A relatively kind-hearted inclusion, this 1981 film saw a suburban family experience the horrors of a vengeful spirit inhabiting their home. A horror movie you can watch with your family unashamed! -for whatever that’s worth. The characters feel more real than most in the genre, like their motivations actually exist in the realm of reality. An American Werewolf In London: Two American tourists are mauled by a werewolf while hiking through the English countryside. The monster is killed, but not before one boy is fatally injured and the other bitten. It isn’t long before the latter, our good-natured protagonist, realizes his curse:
Jacob Eddy Student Writer
to hunt and kill innocents every night of the full moon. John Landis’s cult hit is an 80s take on a classic tale: exploitative, experimental and campy. Under The Skin: This minimalist film follows a mysterious beauty as she stalks and seduces desperate men all across Scotland. Her intent is a mystery, her identity even more so. Scarlett Johannson is surprisingly talented in the lead role as the siren herself, looking one second cold and detached, the next as if she’s truly fallen in love. Rosemary’s Baby: A young married woman (Mia Farrow) becomes an expecting mother not long after she and her husband, a struggling actor, move into an apartment building in New York City. Soon her neighbors, a nosy bunch of seemingly well-meaning elders, intrude her life and obsess over her pregnancy. The film is as terrifying in its demonic nightmare sequences as it is in its portrayal of people with incessant, unwarranted advice. Psycho: Alfred Hitchcock is a proven master of suspense, and his chilling masterpiece Pyscho lends itself well to this fact. The movie follows the visitors of the quaint isolated Bates Motel and the darkly twisted family that runs it. Infamous for its ‘shower scene,’ the film helped to define a genre of fright, and legitimize it in the eyes of critics. One of the most famous horror movies of all time—and with good reason.
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ooking for a great interactive horror experience that doesn’t involve walking around “the bad part of town?” Have movies become too predictable to successfully scare you? This Halloween, why not try one of these top ten horror videogames? Outlast: This game is a great experience to play alone or with a group of friends. Set in an insane asylum, it boasts a plethora of jump scares and horrific encounters with no guns or offensive weapons to defend yourself. It can be found on almost any platform. Five Nights at Freddy’s (series): Looking for a game that is cheap but effective? Five Nights at Freddy’s has you covered. This game (or any of its sequels) can be picked up on PC for anywhere between five and seven dollars. It is comprised almost solely of jumpscares, but is a great game to play with friends. Dead Space (1 or 2): Asylums and pizza restaurants not your thing? Try taking a vacation in the cold vacuum of Dead Space. Featuring futuristic settings, zombie-like abominations and copious amounts of dismemberment, this game is a solid choice for those looking to be spooked in space. It can be picked up on Playstation 3, Xbox 360 as well as PC.
Alien: Isolation: In space no one can hear you scream. And scream you will, either out of fear or frustration of this difficult game. Alien: Isolation is a great example of high budget horror done right. With stunning graphics, intelligent enemies and a lot of sneaking around, this game is one of the best choices on this list and can be found on almost any platform. Slender: the Eight Pages: It was popular a few years ago and is still around for those who want to play a horror game at the low price of zero dollars. It’s similar to Five Nights in the sense that it mostly relies on the feeling of something coming to get you mixed with the occasional jump scare and is probably best played with friends. Amnesia: the Dark Descent: Nightmare castles, dark dungeons, tortured monsters; if any of these sound like a great experience, check out Amnesia on PC. It can be purchased on Steam and is just the right thing to scratch that “spooky dungeon” itch. Bioshock: Bioshock, while a little dated in graphics, remains an eerie experience. It is set in the failed underwater city of Rapture where looting and insanity have become the norm. The dimly lit art deco hallways of a once great metropolis are filled with danger. This game isn’t quite as horror driven as the others on this list, but it is still worth checking out and can be found on most last gen platforms and PC. SOMA: Created by the same minds behind Amnesia, this game is set in an underwater base named PATHOS-II. You must outsmart your way around ever-present danger, as there is no way to fight back in this game. It can be purchased on PS4 and PC. Silent Hill (series): The silent hill series is to horror games what The Exorcist is to horror movies. Relying mostly on psychological horror and atmosphere, this series inspired many others to take the atmospheric and less gorebased approach to creating Horror games. These games can be found on Xbox, Playstation and PC. Resident Evil (series): Another grandfather of survival horror to make this list, this game strives less for atmospheric and mental horror and more for the gritty/gory type of encounter. The earlier games in the series provide a classic horror experience, while the newer games provide a challenging adventure. These games can be found on Xbox, Playstation and PC.
Crimson Peak stitches romance and horror into one plot
Guillermo del Toro offers a good ghost story with great visuals in his latest film despite the heavy romantic theme. Nathan Gibbons Student Writer
In Guillermo del Toro’s newest film, which is set around the turn of the twentieth century, Mia Wasikowska plays Edith Cushing, a woman who has been able to see ghosts her whole life. She falls in love with a mysterious English baronet (Tom Hiddleston), and accompanies him and his creepy sister (Jessica Chastain) overseas to live in their dilapidated mansion. Meanwhile, she is visited by her mother’s ghost for the first time since her childhood and warned of a place called ‘Crimson Peak.’ Guillermo del Toro is one of those directors who believes the unreal should have substance on the big screen. His other films, such as Pan’s Labyrinth, The Devil’s Backbone, and even (say what you will) Hellboy and Pacific Rim boast great looking sets, costumes and violence, as well as a healthy avoidance of computer generated effects (when possible). Crimson Peak is no different. It shows off great nineteenth century dresses, suits and buildings, but the real quality is to be found in the mansion. The work put in the mansion alone makes the movie worth seeing. Red clay oozes from rotting floorboards like thick blood, a gaping hole in the roof allows snow to gather in the main room, moonlight shines through long, empty hallways, etc. Films like Paranormal Activity, who for years have been using the excuse that a familiar-looking house is better, are put to
shame. The mansion isn’t plagued by the nowfamiliar slamming doors or invisible ghosts, either. Doug Jones, who played both the faun and ‘the pale man’ in Pan’s Labyrinth, puts in a great deal of effort under a great deal of makeup. When he asked del Toro what he should tell people he’s playing in Crimson Peak, del Toro advised to “tell them it’s a haunted house story...and ask them what they f-ing think you’re going to play.” However, Crimson Peak has received a lot of criticism for not just being a haunted house movie. For any unsuspecting audiences, such as the group to my above right
in the theatre, the romance received far too much attention. I disagree. True, the romance takes up a startlingly large part of the first half of the film. Edith and baronet Sharpe find each other interesting, dance and are frowned upon by Edith’s father. Cheesy love is abundant, the drama rises, and it’s hard not to step back and realize how mushy some scenes are. I’m not that fond of romance films and don’t know how cliché a lot of the mush was, but it works on the whole. What’s important is the second half, where the horror really gets started. The romance reaps its rewards here. We aren’t
The romance found in Crimson Peak improves the horror in the latter half of the movie.
being immediately thrust into a story of newlyweds moving into a haunted house. We know their characters, and have our suspicions and guesses from early scenes. The movie’s ending isn’t anything groundbreaking, but it works a lot better than other movies thanks to its context. It’s debatable how scary the film is. Perhaps we’re all too conditioned to bloody ghosts and jump-scares, but I was never on the edge of my seat. That may vary person to person, of course. As a haunted house movie, I enjoyed Crimson Peak entirely for its quality. You might not want to watch it for Halloween, but should see it unless you can’t stand romance.
courtesy AMC Theaters