hanshotfirst1138

Slant did another one of these a while ago to list the best horror films of the 2000s, and Zombie's Halloween II was on that list as well. Clearly, someone there has a deep affection for that film shared by no one else. They gave four stars to The Lords of Salem too, but panned The Devil's Rejects. Whatever.

Norm de Plume

No Session 9 in a top-25 of the '00s?! Purely my opinion, of course, but that's possibly the best horror film of the last 20-25 years.

JumpCutz

Scorsese lists his 11 scariest films...

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/martin-...cariest-films/

JumpCutz

Session 9 is in my top ten horror films off all time. It's creepy to a fault and Gordon is such a multi-layered character. The old Danvers Hospital makes for a perfect backdrop for the horror. Some great turns by Peter Mullen, David Caruso and Josh Lucas. The sound design is something else.

Anderson of course, made another brilliant film with The Machinist.

inri222

Pretty good list except for The Entity and Isle of the Dead. Both good films, but compared to the others on the list not even close.
Ok Marty we know you and Barbara Hershey are good friends but come on.

DaveyJoe

Agreed, Session 9 is oozing atmosphere and just is plain unnerving to watch. The Machinist was also great. Here's hoping Anderson has a return to form soon.

inri222

Another fan of Session 9 & The Machinist here. Have not seen Transsiberian but have heard good things about it. His next film Eliza Graves sounds promising. It is based on a short story by Poe and stars Kate Beckinsale, Jim Sturges, Ben Kingsley, Michael Caine, David Thewlis & Brendan Gleeson.

Norm de Plume

Agree with your write-up, though, offhandedly, for me the movie is probably somewhere in my top-30-or-so horror films ever. The last 20 years haven't yielded all that many gems in the genre.
You're right that the sound design is a pivotal part of the movie's effect. "Do it, Gordon!" The movie has a crescendo effect, building to a positively unnerving last few minutes.

I'm also very fond of The Machinist.

DaveyJoe

Plus:

TheySentYou

in for the Session 9 love!

Transsiberian was wonderful, too. one of the best modern Hitchcock flicks i've ever seen. of course, Ben Kingsley as a villain always steals the show.

Anderson's 'Vanishing on 6th Street' or whatever... that shit was awful.

mightysparks

I always get so excited by new horror lists and then I've always either seen all of them or am missing just one - in this case Halloween II

Brack

If you're talking about Rob Zombie's Halloween II, it's a waste of time.

mightysparks

Yeah, I'm not really a fan of the original Halloween series, but I don't have much hope for that one either (hence, still not watched it :P ).

mightysparks

I don't like the movie much, but it's worth it just for that moment. I lost it laughing.

Crocker Jarmen

Just watched Salem's Lot yesterday, and I was blown away by how incredible the vampire effects were. They really looked scary! Probably the best looking vampires in any movie. The fangs looked so painful, like scorpian tails. This was the first time it got under my skin, thinking about how awful and painful it would be to be bitten. In most movies the vampire teeth seem to go in easy, like needles, but the teeth in Salem's Lot you know are going to hurt.

Was funny seeing young Fred Willard in there.

The kid at the window looks great, such a beautiful effect, it looks magical and surreal instead of dated. Also, the scene when the old guy opens the door and the dead guy is sitting there in the rocking chair, staring at him for the longest time, is so creepy.

TomOpus

It was pretty good for a made-for-tv show.

Norm de Plume

Yeah, I'd consider it the only other good movie Hooper has made, of those I have seen. The Funhouse is fair.

inri222

For a made for tv movie I think that it gives the majority of theatrical vampire films a run for their money.
It has some decent acting and a creepy atmosphere.

Norm de Plume

Agreed, and it's not too long even at its full 200-minute running time.

JumpCutz

I agree with you guys on the Hooper filmography, but I do have a soft spot for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre II, although a complete departure in tone from the first film, it is so over the top in regards to the violence and contains some very good black comedy and of course William Moseley's Chop Top. The production history is also pretty interesting.

Eaten Alive is a guilty pleasure. It's not very good, but it has a certain garish charm. Plus an interesting cast (Neville Brand, William Finley, Stuart Whitman, Carolyn Jones, Marlyn Burns etc...).

I have almost everything Hooper's ever done, including crap like Crocodile and Spontaneous Combustion... I haven't found a copy of Eggshells yet.

Being a completist has it's drawbacks.

Norm de Plume

Oh, I completely forgot about TCM II. You're right. It's not too bad. Is Chop Top the guy who keeps scraping and eating bits of flesh from his head with the coat hanger? He was hilarious. The scary scene in the radio station is the one I remember best. TCM II is the most recent Hooper film I have seen.

Eaten Alive is baffling to me. Made only two years after the masterly TCM, it's hard to believe this is the same director's work. The cast is good, you're right, but I found it a crashing bore from beginning to end.

JumpCutz

Indeed, Chop Top is THAT guy.

Eaten Alive has a pretty neat 2 disc SE DVD. The film itself is no great shakes, but Hooper develops an atmosphere somewhat akin to TTCM (though of course nothing can touch that film) and the low budget sets somehow work within the constraints of the film. Wayne Bell a TTCM holdover provides the score (along with Tobe). But yeah, it's pretty terrible.

Lifeforce is another interesting train wreck. It's all over the board. It's a cocaine fueled Hooper channeling Mario Bava's Planet of the Vampires crossed with Alien and several other genre pictures, and a score by Henry Mancini.

Mathilda May though...is a sight to behold.

Norm de Plume

Ah, Lifeforce. I haven't seen that one, mainly because sci-fi isn't a genre that particularly appeals to me.

Such a shame about Hooper. Just imagine the phenomenal movies he could have added to his repertoire if he hadn't... I don't know, did he sell out? Did he lose his passion? Hard to know.

hanshotfirst1138

I've always heard a rumor that he had some drug problems, don't know if there's any truth to it or just tabloid buzz.

DaveyJoe

Big coke head.