New Discussion: Your Favorite Horror Movies That Aren’t Actually Horror Movies?
Fuck you Hollywood
Hey there loyal readers (wow sorry; I sound like Stan Lee!!!). Once again we wrapped up another killer discussion … this time about out favorite “giant creature” flicks. But earlier I was thinking about just how diverse the horror genre is (a topic we’ve discussed often here). Then I started thinking about how Hollywood studios HATE giving their new releases the “scarlet H”. Hollywood can pay tribute all they want during the Oscars but us true horror fans know Hollywood hates horror. But there are a lot of big Hollywood flicks out there marketed as thrillers and psychological thrillers that are actually horror flicks!!
Tell me this isn't horrifying??!?
Some examples of “horror movies that aren’t actually horror movies” are Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream (2000), just tell me watching Ellen Burstyn’s decent into addiction wasn’t fucking chilling; Bryan Singer’s Apt Pupil (1998), the first movie where the Nazi wasn’t the monster; and Neil Jordan’s The Butcher Boy (1997), which details “the making of” a sociopath. I’m not saying all these movies are hardcore horror flicks, just that they were all painted with a broad horror paint brush.
My hands down favorite, though, has to be Adrian Lyne’s Jacob’s Ladder (1990). I can still remember the first time seeing that movie: I was a sophomore in college and I gathered a few buddies up to check it out. I was completely mesmerized by what I was seeing on the screen. Jacob (played by Tim Robbins in perhaps his best performance ever) plays a Vietnam vet returning home. He was obviously traumatized in Vietnam as seems to be experiencing some serious PTSD. Since he’s been home he seems to be seeing demons everywhere and he’s having trouble with reality (every time he wakes up he’s married to a different women).
I had NO IDEA what the fuck was going on the entire flick, but I loved it. I knew I was watching a phenomenal movie. Lyne threw around the idea of a conspiracy where the U.S. government was testing a drug to make soldiers more aggressive. Or is it that Jacob is just going off his nut? And what was so amazing about this flick is that you have no clue what’s going on until literally the last 5 minutes of the movie. After those last 5 minutes I was stunned as I sat there in the theater, the credits rolling as I tried to process what I’d just seen. My mind re-played the entire movie over again testing to see if the “big reveal” actually made sense and that it explained everything. And it did. I’m getting chills sitting here as I write this just thinking about it.
Thanks for the nightmares!!
And I went to see Jacob’s Ladder because I thought it was a horror movie. IMDB.com now lists Jacob’s Ladder under the following genres: Drama, thriller, mystery, and FINALLY horror. But back in 1990 Ladder was never given the “horror” label. But if you’ve seen it (and if you haven’t drop whatever you’re doing and go buy this movie) you know it’s full of some of the creepiest images and surreal moments ever captured on film. Jacob’s Ladder isn’t just my favorite “horror movie that’s not actually a horror movie”, its possibly my favorite movie of all times.
So what’s you fav horror movie that’s not really a horror movie? There’s a lot of possible flicks out there that fit this bill. Can’t wait to hear your picks!!
Seven. One of the best movies ever made, horror, not-really-horror, or otherwise.
Great picks Negatron!!! Se7en definitely falls into this category. I would call it a horror flick hands down but IMDB.com labels it as crime, drama, mystery, & thriller. Fucking retards … it was one of the best horror flicks of 1995!!
Nice choice.
I watch a lot of movies, of all genres, so it’s going to be a little hard to remember. But yes, he nailed it with Se7en. Then there is Tim Olyphant’s ‘The Perfect Getaway’. Paul Walker’s ‘The Lazarus Project’, really underrated movie. Even the awesome ‘Pandorum’ counts, it’s marketed as a sci-fi, Ben Foster fucking killed it in this flick!
I really liked The Perfect Getaway and thought Olyphant was fantastic in it. With his performance you were never 100% sure if he was full of shit or if if stories were true (& ya never knew until the very end if he was good or not). I would personally consider Pandorum a horror flick and am pretty sure it was marketed as a horror/scifi. But I agree on that one … It reminded me a lot of Event Horizon: Both were seen more as scifi movies but really the deep space settings were just that; a setting where the movies took place. Event Horizon and Pandorum are primarily horror flicks!!
I haven’t seen The Lazarus Project. I honestly stayed away from it because I thought it was a Christian flick disguised as a thriller/mystery. But I might check that out now.
Glad to see you’re not getting “spammed” anymore!!
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Please check this out whether you are a fan of Barker’s or not because this is one of the few artists in our time who is pure in heart, spirit, and in his art! You can not help but respect someone who lives their principals and actually stands for something. Brilliant and Refreshing and explains why I have always been drawn to his works!
Great choice with Se7en. Agree 100%. Fits what this topic is perfectly!
Big fan of ‘Requiem’, Burnstyn’s performance is amazing! Love ‘Jacob’s Ladder’ too! ‘Blue Velvet’ Dennis Hopper’s Frank Booth character is one of my favourite psychotic and violent socio-paths of all time!
Its been too long to remember, but if Burstyn didn’t get a, Academy nomination for her role in Dream then all hope is lost. I don’t care what other flicks were out there in 2000; Burstyn should have walked away with the Oscar for Best Actress 2000. Period!!
Nice pick with Blue Velvet!!! Actually all of Lynch’s films could be in this category of “horror flicks that aren’t really horror flicks”. I love love LOVE Twin Peaks and both the TV series and the movie are full of horrific moments. But my fav Lynch film of all time has to be Wild at Heart (1990) starring Nick Cage and Laura Dern. Its an amazing flick all around: great performances (before Cage went off his nut choosing REALLY bad roles), great story, and enough horrific images to fill 10 movies. And who could forget Willem Dafoe’s character, Bobby Peru (“just like the country”). Bobby Peru may just be the sleaziest, more a-moral, sociopathic character in modern film history. I’ll put Bobby Peru up against No Country for Old Men’s Anton Chigurh any day!!!
I love Jacob’s Ladder. Definitely horror. And you already know how I feel about Pandorum. It surprises me that some people didn’t like it. There are so many great images in that movie.
I’m with Ifaz on this one. I watch a lot of movies, so it’s hard to remember what was horror and what was horrific, but not technically horror. I guess the only thing I can come up with off the top of my head is Brazil, but in all honesty, it kind of defies labels.
Hell Candace … Terry Gilliam himself defies labels!!! Tim Burton gets all the praise (and rightly so) for his visionary films, but I think Gilliam’s visions are more spectacular and mind blowing than even Burton’s!! 12 Monkeys; Tideland; The Fisher King; Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas … all fucking amazing flicks. And in fitting in with this discussion, they are all worthy of being labeled “horror films that aren’t actually horror films.”
I’m putting together a Top 20 List for this topic!!! Its a good one!!
Brava! Brazil is horror outstanding choice!
I agree Bill!! All of Gilliam’s movies flirt with horror in one way or another. Have you seen his Adventures of the Baron Von Munchausen? Awesome pic that has definite horror elements in it. And Time Bandits?? Well Sean Connery was horrifying in it
I’m gonna go with Antichrist.
I still haven’t gotten around to watching Antichrist but it’s in my ever-growing pile of DVDs!!!
I assume you liked it Scumchrist??
Great call on Jacob’s Ladder Scott that is one of my favs too. That and Shawshank Redemption are Robbins best films. I would put “A Clockwork Orange” (1971) up there as a horror flick which is listed as anything but one Crime | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller. This movie contains some of the most intense horror, fear, empathy, and torture put on the big screen at that time. It has all the classic elements of a horror film of government experiment gone awry, holliganism at its most brutal, and just plain insanity.
Clockwork Orange is an excellent choice! It’s also one of the few movies inspired by a book in which I prefer the movie. I think it was the made up slang. It was a lot easier to follow when you saw people using it on the screen than by reading it and flipping back and forth to the dictionary at the end of the book. It was already hard enough following the real slang, let alone made up stuff.
What I really loved about Clockwork Orange though was the classical music. I actually owned the sound track in vinyl, cassette, and cd, and passed each one on to my brother when I got the new version. So many movies lack that swell of sound that comes with classical music that elevates a movie from merely a movie, to a classic, which is ironic considering many people don’t even notice the background music any more. I think every movie that I truly love has had really incredible, atmospheric scores to go with it, even Chronicles of Riddick which lodes of people didn’t like but I adored (despite the goofy air elemental monologue at the end). Pitch Black and Chronicles are both technically SF I think, but I’d say they have elements of horror. So there’s two more.
Candace, nice to know another Riddick fan too. I also love that film and “Pitch Black” (2000). “Bladerunner” (1982) for crying out loud also has great gothic/dark atmospherics and is seen by most as just a sci-fi, detective flick but it is indeed much more. Another interesting sci-fi crime thriller is “Outland” (1981) starring Sean Connery. That also has some very cool dark atmospheric elements to it.
Nice Bill!! I haven’t seen or thought about Outland in years!!! I know it’s just High Noon in outer space, but it works!!
Lots of excellent points in that posting Candace!! Even though it’s nit horror in any way, I’d put 2001: A Space Odyssey in that category of music making the film. 2001 was as amazing to listen too as it was to watch. (and I completely agree with you on Clockwork Orange; I prefer the movie to the book as well).
I loved Pitch Black (100% a horror flick) and really enjoyed Riddick (scifi/horror). I’m not sure why people hated that movie? Visually it was stunning, it has a great story, & tons of action!!! I hope they make another on the franchise!!
I have heard that they’re reconsidering another Riddick movie. First they were doing one, then they’d definitely decided not to, and now they are again but swear it’s the last.
Outland and Blade Runner are good picks too.
I’d be the 1st in line to see another Riddick flick … its a great character, and after the 2nd movie they proved they can put that character into a solid script.
How Clockwork Orange ISN’T considered a horror movie is beyond me!!! Yes it has dramatic moments; yes it has “thrilling” moments; yes it has “mystery” moments; & I’ll even be generous and say it has scifi moments. But COME ON!!! First & foremost it’s a fucking horror flick!!
Also does They Live count? This is a tough subject…
I would totally include They Live on this topic. IMDB.com tags it as scifi | thriller | mystery | horror. But I remember when it 1st came out it was pretty exclusively marketed as scifi.
Best extended bare-knuckle fight seen ever!!!
They Live with the skeletal, mirror-eyed aliens and Mr Rowdy Roddy Piper? Movie gold! I love that movie. They should have had sequels, with more Rowdy Roddy Piper! heh
Oh hell ya; Roddy kicking ass because he’s all outta chewing gum!!! Its not a great movie but its a damn entertaining one!!!
Adventures of the Baron Von Munchausen is also a fav and yes it has horror and comedic elements which all defy stereotype or labels. Great flick and Gilliam is genius!
I don’t know why Gilliam doesn’t make more flix!! But hell, for all I know it could be his choice. But yes; he has an amazing eye and a unique vision. I’d watch anything he makes.
“American Psycho” (2000) listed only as Crime | Drama | Thriller?
“The Crow” (1994) listed only as Action | Crime | Fantasy | Romance | Thriller?
“The Silence of The Lambs” (1991) listed only as Crime | Thriller?
If these three films are not proof enough of the scarlet H that is put on horror by Hollywood then I do not know what more proof is needed. All of these are among my favorites and have superb horror elements in them and I believe all should be labeled as horror movies. In “American Psycho” Christian Bale embodies his character Patrick Bateman to horrific heights. The disections scenes are some of the most graphic and repulsive displays of shear brutality captured on film. The uncut version on DVD is just insane. “The Crow” comes from the traditional gothic camp of horror and Brandon Lee’s potrayal of Eric Draven is mesmerizing and the wicked Michael Wincott as Top Dollar delivers some of the most brutal tortures and murders at the hands of his henchmen. This movies oozes dark gothic horror beauty and has enough of a body count to pack a horrific punch. “Silence of The Lambs” was the first horror movie to earn best picture Oscar recognition by not being labeled as a horror picture because God forbid if the academy would ever award an Oscar to a horror flick. One scene clinches it as horror for me over any other and that is when the bodies of the two police officers who were guarding a caged Dr. Hannibel Lecter are found gutted and hanging in perverse blood stained angelic poses. Just vicious and horrific especially with one of the officer’s missing part of his face that Lecter bit off. Jonathan Demme shot that scene with such artistry and the use of shadow, light, color, atmosphere, etc. made the viewer just gasp for air. Brilliant. All three movies here proved the scarlet H to be true and Hollywood better get savy and recognize that some of the most original and creative minds exist and thrive in this genre.
Excellent Bill. I had no idea that those three movies avoided the “horror” moniker!! Is there anyone, horror fan or not, who doesn’t think the 3 movies you listed are first and foremost horror flicks?? There aren’t to many movies out there with the word “psycho” in the title that isn’t a horror flick. Although I’ll be quick to point out that Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) is listed as a Thriller | Mystery | Drama. REALLY?? Psycho is a fucking horror movie, albeit an extremely well done one at that.
Both Gene Hackman and Michelle Pfeiffer turned down the roles of Lector (Hackman) and Clarice (Pfeiffer). Guess they didn’t wanna be in a horror flick (yes; there’s more to the story than that). But how can a story about a man kidnapping fat broads, throwing them down a hole, starving them so their skin hangs, skinning them, and making a “skin suit” NOT be a horror flick??? And let’s not forget the scene where Buffalo Bill Tucks and dances …. I don’t think that I’ll ever purge that horrifying image from my mind!!!
I’ll stay away from any Terry Gilliam talk because I always get in trouble for giving my opinion on his work. Instead, some favorite non-horror horrors:
Bug
Threads
Picnic At Hanging Rock
The Rapture
Irreversible
Those are solid picks!! But I’m more interested on your thoughts on Terry Gilliam. I’m assuming you don’t care for his movies. What about them don’t you like? And remember that I’m the guy who hates Danny Boyle.
Gah. I appreciate Gilliam, but aside from 12 MOnkeys, I just can’t stand his films. They give me headaches. Brazil is visually interesting but I just don’t ever want to put myself through it again. Baron Von Munchansen made me feel like I was being shouted at for 2 hours. I respect the guy, but I just don’t enjoy him.
Makes sense to me Deadlydolls. Like I said, I can’t stand Danny Boyle and his horror movies (his non-genre flicks aren’t too bad). 28 Days Later did nothing for me; not an original idea in the entire flick. And Sunshine … well I thought that was a fucking pathetic movie from opening to closing credits.
I totally see what you’re saying about Gilliam. 12 Monkeys was definitely his strongest/best flick. It was also the most accessible to a general audience (I mean hell, it stars Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt). I really like all his movies but can understand them not having a huge following. I think of Gilliam as what Tim Burton would be if Burton was more experimental.
Interesting point about Gilliam/Burton. I can see that. Both need to be reined in, but I think after the Brazil production hell, Gilliam will just keep going really far down his own path. It’s fine and I can understand why people like him, but his stuff just annoys me. Burton is a whole different story. That’s a guy who needs to escape his comfort zone if he ever wants to make another ‘great’ movie.
I couldn’t agree more with ya about Burton. He never steps outside his comfort zone. Hell; he won’t even hire a lead actor who isn’t Johnny Depp!!!
The one time I thought Burton did leave his comfort zone was when he made Sleepy Hollow. Sure he had Depp as the star, but he treaded into the gothic & horror realms (which was new territory for him) & he ended up making a fucking fantastic movie!!
I like Johnny Depp, but there are other actors in the sea Mr Burton. lol But seriously, Depp is excellent at playing characters who are completely over the top, but after a while it gets a little old. He’s practically typecast at this point, and you start to feel like you’re not watching different characters, you’re just watching Johnny Depp acting (like himself) weird and thus the characters come off as flat despite their antics. It’s hard to get into the movie if you can’t believe the characterization any more. I bet Depp is great at children’s parties, but I’m starting to think I’ve outgrown him. I think he needs to do something non-Burton related to break the mold and be his own actor again. Kind of like Jeffrey Combs went and did Star Trek and other roles outside of Lovecraft movies, which in my opinion gave him more depth as an actor.
Depp’s character in Alice in Wonderland and Depp’s Willie Wonka …. same character??? I think so!!
Ooohhhh … Jeffrey Combs in a Burton flick …. I LOVE the sound of that!!
heh, I think we need to spearhead a letter writing campaign to Combs and Burton to breath life into this vision. It does make me wonder what a Lovecraft film would look like in Burton’s hands… maybe something like Uzumaki. If I had to pick one Asian horror flick that completely surprised me, it would be this one. It was just so… weird.
I’m not embarrassed to admit it, but I got a little aroused thinking about what Tim Burton could do getting out of his comfort zone, hiring Jeffery Combs, and doing a Lovecraft flick. Hell YEAH!!!!
Totally agree with Uzumaki; that is one odd flick that took me by total surprise. I didn’t hate it; I didn’t love it.
Wait for what I have in MY bag for this discussion. Ready? hear goes….
“District 9″!!!
No no no; I totally buy that District 9 is a horror that’s not actually horror. That was a really smart and well made movie!!
District 9 is definitely a horror film. Ironically, I heard the whole set was salvaged from a failed Halo movie.
The sets were indeed salvaged from a doomed Halo set. The director, Neill Blomkamp, was supposed to helm the movie version of Halo!!
Put District 9 in any genre ya want, its a great flick. But yes; its definitely a horror flick!!