Candycorn and Scary Movies...Part Two!

Darn it!  I could not stop myself.  I kept thinking and thinking and there are so many good scary/horror movies that I love and I only pick thirteen!  Really?!?! So...I did some soul searching and here are thirteen other awesome ones that you can't go wrong with...

Night of the Living Dead (1968) - Really in so many ways the movie that started it all.  Modern horror started here.  Scary and thought-provoking; it's as much a horror movie as it is a social commentary on what was going on at the time and the black and white still helps create a disturbing and minimalist masterpiece.

The Descent - What starts as a girls' weekend trip to go caving, quickly turns bad as they get lost and then gets really bad as they discover that they are not alone in the caves.  Strong women characters fighting for their lives while they are trapped with no escape.  Not for the claustrophobic.

Scream - Oh how quickly we forget just how good this movie was.  Sure the series got less and less good as time went on, but the original and arguably the first sequel were great.  Smart and funny and scary and launched and/or killed a few film careers all the while reinventing a genre for a new generation.

The Exorcist - Heck...the scenes in the hospital are scary enough for most people, but the movie is so disturbing in so many ways.  One of those few horror movies that are based on things that might have happened and it is all the scarier for it.

The Shining - Few things are scarier than Jack Nicholson at his best and this...this is him at his best.  The sense of isolation only adds to the overall sense of dread that looms over the whole movie.  Add to it a creepy kid, gallons of blood, and random disturbing scenes and you will forgive the lackluster ending.

The Keep - Why this movie isn't more widely available, I will never know.  To my knowledge, it isn't on either DVD or Blu-Ray, but it can occasionally be found on Laser Disk, VHS, and streaming.  Michael Mann creates a masterpiece of horror complete with Nazis, angels, and a very menacing evil force.  Add to it a great performance from Ian McKellen and you end up with a movie that more people need to see.

Saw - The movie that started the whole "torture-porn" thing was actually really good.  We tend to forget that it was good more for the intelligence it brought and less about gore...though that was lost in the subsequent sequels.  Twisty and suspenseful and will keep you guessing till the very end.

The Faculty - Two words...John Stewart.  No...not the Green Lantern, but the actor...as a teacher in a creature feature with a modern twist.  Strong performances that play on the sense of alienation we all had in high school creates an update to the whole Invasion of the Body Snatchers trope.

Halloween - Just the music alone will make you draw the covers up close to you.  Arguably the best of the slasher movies was a low budget wonder that made a career for John Carpenter.  So many jump out of your seat moments that will have you yelling for Jamie Lee Curtis to just get out of the house already.

Frailty - Bill Paxton and Matthew McConaughey in a movie that should so be a stinker is so very good.  The tale of brothers raised to kill demons by their father and how their lives change as they grow up.  The twist end is one that you will make you smack your forehead for not seeing coming. 

The Wicker Man (1973) - My God...not that Nick Cage turd.  No...the original with Count Dooku and that guy from The Equalizer.  The story of a good cop trying to solve a murder that doesn't seem to want to be solved that snowballs to and ending that is disturbing in so many ways.

Nosferatu - Black and white and silent and so very creepy.  As much a propaganda piece about Jews as a horror movie, it features one of the most iconic representations of a vampire.  Should be watched before seeing...

Shadow of the Vampire - ...this one.  A movie about the making of Nosferatu where the vampire really is a vampire.  Disturbing and funny at times with probably the best use of Willam Dafoe's funny shaped head to add to the creepiness of the vampire character.  A really good movie with a satisfying and scary end.

Man...that was fun.  I hope I finally have that out of my system.  I so love this time of year.  Feel free to add your own ideas of awesome movies...I love finding new stuff.  Till next time...