the return of horror

Watching Shaun of the Dead made me think of the state of the horror movie industry these days. It seemed like the 1980's were an awesome time for horror movies. Heck, we even had films like Friday the 13th, Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street producing half a dozen (or more) successful sequels. These days, we're lucky to see one sequel to a horror film, and the excitement around the is noticeably weak. I wonder why that is...

Perhaps it is the fact that regular action and drama films have begun to incorporate gore and horror aspects into their scripts, so we've become desensitized. Another theory is that may of the big horror writers have ceased to produce new works of fiction to base new movies on. People like Wes Craven, Stephen King and Clive Barker had their heyday in the 1980's film industry and few have made waves since.

Just as I am pondering these possibilities, I was presented with an opportunity to talk about a The Mist by Stephen King. After a long wait, we are being treated to a new film that has the potential to bring the horror and psychological drama genre back to the mainstream. The trailers look promising, and while King has produced some rather forgettable TV series in the not too distant past, I can't forget that this is the same fantastic writer who brought me favorites like The Shining and Kujo.

Kujo is one of my all time favorites, and what I really like about it is that I can watch it with my kids. It's rated R for its fear, language, and a little bit of gore but it's something that my kids can handle. Sure, that may seem cruel, but I have no problem teaching my kids to fear strange animals and be wary of large dogs. Since we live near the forest, I think it is important for our kids to learn about the dangers of rabies. And yes, we've shown them Old Yeller, but it doesn't seem to drive the fear home like a good Stephen King film can.

So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this new King movie will be a phenomenal return to the hey dey of horror. We've already seen a return to the musical styles and fashion of the 1980's, so why not the horror film industry?

movie review - shaun of the dead

I know that it has been a few years since this movie Shaun of the Dead came out, but we just picked it up at the local library, and I felt compelled to share my thoughts. Ever since I had seen the previews for it, I was curious to see it. I don't think it lasted very long in the theaters, but don't trust that as an indicator of its quality.

I'm a BIG horror movie fan, particularly zombie movies. The "night/dawn/day of the dead" trilogy by George Romero are some of the favorite films, which this movie plays off of a bit. Based on the previews and the name, I originally assumed that Shaun of the Dead would primarily be a spoof of Dawn of the Dead. Fortunately, it isn't. This is no ridiculous horror spoof like Scary Movie. Instead, we're treated to a very funny British comedy that combines walking dead ala Dawn of the Dead with the dry wit of the comedy series The Office.

There's no Ricky Gervais on this one, but a couple of his costars appear in the film. Shaun, in fact, has a few Gervais moments here and there. The film takes a very matter of fact approach to the zombie concept, reminding me a bit of Fright Night's approach to vampirism. The makeup and special gore effects are top notch, the acting is decent, and the plot is sensible. The movie has a good flow from beginning to near the end. I was a bit disappointed in the ending, as it seemed to lose momentum, but it wasn't bad.

I don't want to give much of it away, but I seriously recommend that you see it if you are a horror fan, especially if you are a George Romero fan. There are scenes that are obviously dedicated to George Romero ("We're coming to get you, Barbara"), and it even uses some of the same music. Shaun's tubby flatmate is a hilarious slob with some obscenely comedic one liners. It had us rolling out of our seats in laughter. Check out the special features for some great outtakes, too.