Anna Bowman is a junior English and telecommunications major and writes ‘Film Annalysis’ for the Daily News. Her views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. Write to Anna at aabowman@bsu.edu.
Now is the season for horror movies, but which are the best to watch? Netflix has a lot of classics, but there are also many to avoid. These three films stand out as some of the best to watch this Halloween.
“Night of the Living Dead” (1968)
95 minutes
Have you ever wondered why this movie is such a cult classic? I did. So when I finally saw the zombie-infested story, dramatic lighting and splatter-tastic gore, I understood the appeal of this 1968 George A. Romero film.
Yes, this is recognized as a typical zombie film, but it’s so much more than that. Not only does the word “zombie” never once creep into the dialogue, but the film also redefines what it means to be a zombie. Inspired by Richard Matheson’s novel, “I Am Legend,” Romero said “Night of the Living Dead” is about revolution and how those affected react to it. It’s not about the zombies; it’s about the human response to the challenges they present.
As far as the aesthetics go, the lighting is phenomenal in creating mood. It has its faults, as the light source is never shown and there are shadows where there shouldn’t be, but the tension is drastically enhanced with the frugal use of necessary light. This allowed the background to go almost entirely black, leaving the audience in the dark, and gave a clandestine effect to the plot.
Along with its fantastic lighting, the film also practically invented the word “splatter.” In one of the most pivotal scenes, one of the living dead stabs a woman with a garden spade. The effect is magnificent. The blood stains and obvious disregard for realism makes this film a work of art. In fact, Romero is credited for inspiring the horror film subgenre called “splatter cinema.”
“Blair Witch Project” (1999)
81 minutes
With an experimental film like this, you’re bound to have doubts about its merit. However, if you’re looking for a film that commits to its documentarian storyline, doesn’t show its malefactor, and reveals more emotion than an episode of “Days of Our Lives,” this film is for you.
When you start this film, you should not expect to see a finished product. “The Blair Witch Project” is centered around three college kids, Heather, Josh and Michael, who go into an infamous forest on their quest to make an honest documentary about its haunting. Anticipate a documentary in the process, as that is what the film is about. This explains the shaky shots, unedited sequences and jerky camera movements, as well as the in-the-moment fear you feel when you can’t look away.
And you can’t look away because you keep hoping to see what is causing so much terror in the three main characters. Spoiler alert: you never do. That’s the true beauty of this film — fear of the unknown is greater than fear of the thing itself. You can’t fight something when you don’t know what it is, and this is the challenge the characters face throughout the film.
This is evident when you see the characters’ uncensored feeling when they hear mysterious noises outside their tent, see strange arrangements in the sticks surrounding them in the forest, and get lost in the never-ending trees and rivers. Not only is there intense fear guiding their emotions, but there is also intense anger. Much tension arises between the three as they travel deeper into the forest, and the way they show it is not easy to forget.
“The Awakening” (2011)
106 minutes
This 2011 film is not so much scary as it is spooky. It has a way of making your spine tingle without making your heart drop to your stomach. With its disbelief in the supernatural, its ominous boarding school setting and strong female lead, this film is for the classy bunch.
Unlike most horror films, “The Awakening” finds a way to dig itself out of the paranormal cliché and still genuinely frighten its audience. The plot is based around Florence Cathcart, who makes a living debunking ghost stories. However, don’t be fooled by her occupation; strange events occur, and at some point, Cathcart comes up empty for an explanation.
“There’s no place on earth people understand loneliness better than here” is how the housekeeper — eerily played by Imelda Staunton, aka Dolores Umbridge — describes the boarding school. It’s safe to say this locale is already dismal at best. Add in a couple of ghosts and a roomful of sad children, and you’ve got quite the setting for a horror film. The colors and lighting used in this film make the backdrop even more foreboding.
Finally, a horror film with an intelligent and confident woman as the main character. Compared to “Night of the Living Dead,” with its limp and unmotivated leading lady, this movie is from a different world. Cathcart starts the film with a smart and cutting attitude, and ends with an emotional revelation that will leave the audience stunned. She is a breath of fresh air with her ability to keep calm under pressure, as well as her brutally honest analysis of the house and its inhabitants.
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