5 Horror Films You May Not Have Heard Of Which Are Absolutely Worth Your Time (and one that's not)
It's Halloween on Wednesday so get yourself ready by digging out these horror gems and shitting yourself stupid.
1. The Zombie Diaries
An under the radar UK made indie film that came out in 2006, you know, back in in the glory days before we hit peak zombie. It's all filmed on handheld cameras which gives the footage a raw, realistic and claustrophobic quality. It's an intense ride with some seriously scary moments which will have you squirming in your seat throughout. Do not confuse The Zombie Diaries with George Romero's Diary of the Dead from 2007 because that film is shite. Sorry George.
2. Train to Busan
More zombies. Fucking fast, fucking ravenous zombies. Train to Busan is a 2016 Korean film that follows a man and his daughter on a train from Seoul to Busan as a deadly virus starts turning people into bloodthirsty maniacs. It's not super scary but it has some fantastically intense hand to hand fight scenes with the surviving passengers battling their infected foes and is quite original for a modern zombie film. It drags a little towards the end but overall it's great fun.
3. Let The Right One In
A Swedish language film from 2008 set during the long, dark and cold winter months, Let The Right One In follows a young, shy boy, an obvious target for bullying, who meets and befriends a mysterious young girl with a dark secret. Okay the secret's out; she's a murderous bloodthirsty vampire. The film was remade for an American audience as Let Me In in 2010 but if you're not averse to subtitles then the original is the one to watch.
4. Ichi The Killer
If you are familiar with director Takashi Miike then you might have an idea of what to expect from Ichi The Killer but probably not. This is a seriously gruesome and fucked up Japanese body horror film which follows "a psychologically damaged man who is manipulated into assaulting or killing rival faction members of feuding yakuza gangs while being pursued by a sadomasochistic enforcer". I figured that quote from Wikipedia said it better than anything I could write. Not for the squeamish or feint of heart.
5. The Chaser
Ok so The Chaser is more of an action thriller but I'll use any excuse and take any opportunity to mention it because it's bloody brilliant. The film is Korean from 2008 and follows an ex cop turned pimp who is trying to track down his "girls" who have started going missing. We watch as he tries and fails to track down a serial killer that we as the audience know is the cause of the disappearances. It's smart, exciting, frustrating, horrifying, violent and ultimately an absolutely essential film.
And now for the one to avoid...Jack Frost
I could have taken the easy route and gone for Troll 2 but that would have been way too obvious (and at least it's so bad it's good). Instead I've gone for...Jack Frost.
No, not the sickeningly heartwarming family movie starring Michael Keaton as a magic snowman who comes back from the dead to spend a few days with his son that he didn't get to say goodbye to; although that's a pretty awful film too... I'd still watch that over this. No I'm talking about the Jack Frost which concerns a convicted killer, transformed into a mutant snowman after a crash with a genetics truck, who then goes on a murderous rampage and revenge mission. Some of you might think that sounds great but trust me, it's fucking terrible and an insult to mankind. If you ever come across a copy of Jack Frost , smash it. SMASH IT WITH A HAMMER UNTIL IT'S DEAD. Its cruel reign of terror must come to an end.
Peace.
