I do sometimes feel like I'm set in my ways where Horror cinema is concerned so this October I saw it as a bit of a challenge to broaden my horizons by seeking out cult oddities from the past as well as looking at more contemporary fare rather than simply revisiting old favourites. I did mention on this blog how the 2010s felt like a period of stagnation in Horror cinema but I'm still ever hopeful of finding potential modern classics that have so far eluded me. Over the years I've come to see Horror cinema of the 1990s and 2000s as a much more fecund period for the genre than I did at the time the films of those eras were released.
Here's a list of the titles I watched for this year's October Horror Marathon.
My viewing choices certainly had an international flavour this year, with films featured from countries such as Hong Kong (Mr. Vampire), the Netherlands (The Lift), Spain (Cuadecuc, Vampir), France (The Beast), Iran (A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night), Australia (The Babadook), New Zealand (Kitchen Sink), Mexico (Alucarda), Japan (Blind Beast), the former Czechoslovakia (The Ear), the UK (The City of the Dead), US (Wendigo) and Germany (Anatomy). I was greatly aided in my selections by a copy I borrowed of the splendid BFI Screen Guides book '100 European Horror Films', edited by Stephen Jay Schneider. I had seen just over half the films listed at the start of October and was able to catch several more that were mentioned over the past 4 weeks. I will certainly use it to help inform future selections.
Through streaming services I looked at some of the more acclaimed modern Horror titles, including The Conjuring, It Follows, The Babadook and A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. The modern "contenders" all felt a bit too calculated for my tastes, with similar scare tactics employed in all of them and a certain pretentious quality that has helped coin the "Elevated Horror" label that I actively loathe. Alas, none of these were the major discoveries that I'd hoped for, lacking the grace notes of the best Horror fare, but it wasn't for want of trying and they all helped me gain insights about recent trendsetters. I got more enjoyment from 2013's rather less-heralded Willow Creek. It was available on Shudder, to which I signed up for a free 7 day trial. Shudder also made it possible to see 2020's lockdown Horror sensation Host and a Creepshow Animated Special. Netflix have catered well to aficianados this month by adding to their selection the likes of The Haunting of Bly Manor, His House, Cadaver & Hubie Halloween. I only caught the last of those titles but the others are on my watchlist. Several of my best finds were from the 1970s - the sensual, blasphemous delirium of Alucarda, Robert Mulligan's disturbing childhood tale The Other and Jean Rollin's The Iron Rose, which, much to my delight, takes places entirely within the grounds of a giant cemetery over a single night.
In many ways I think Horror found its ideal medium in the cinema and the way (to paraphrase Ingmar Bergman) it can delve in to the subconscious like no other form. I feel the opposite way about science fiction, which has its perfect outlet in literature and most SF films or TV cannot hope to achieve the depth and intellectual rigor of the best novels in the field. Although I've read several Horror classics I realised recently that I've explored relatively little Horror literature over the years. My Horror and Horror-related reading this month included 'Songs of a Dead Dreamer' by Thomas Ligotti, 'Fear' by L. Ron Hubbard, 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson and 'The Odyssey and the Idiocy', the memoir of actress Candace Hilligoss, which I mainly got hold of for the chapter on her starring role in Carnival of Souls but have found the whole thing to be a very engrossing read. Recently I got a copy of 'Fear', the autobiography of Dario Argento, as a birthday present and to which I greatly look forward to delving in to. I also intend to read the recently published 'The Living Dead', a novel that George Romero was working on before his passing that has been finished by Daniel Kraus.
It's already something of a cliche to talk about how 2020 has developed in to a nightmare worthy of the Horror realm. The genre scored one of the last major successes in cinemas before lockdown with Blumhouse's The Invisible Man. Among the many high profile titles that have been pushed back in the release schedules were potential Horror hits like A Quiet Place Part II, the Candyman remake and Halloween Kills. While I had little interest in any of those it is pleasing that other macabre new offerings have been made available via streaming/VOD such as Gretel & Hansel, Relic and Robert Zemeckis's new version of Roald Dahl's The Witches. Another welcome announcement was the news of John Carpenter releasing a new LP, titled 'Lost Themes III', in February next year.
Among the many bits of devastating news we've had this year was the death of Stuart Gordon in March, which undoubtedly factored in my decision to rewatch Dreams in the Witch House this month. Also sadly gone in April was Nobuhiko Obayashi, whose 1977 masterpiece House I intend to revisit soon.
I did watch several Horror titles during lockdown but there's something about the Autumn atmosphere that adds immeasurably to the viewing experience of these films. As someone who doesn't feel safe returning to cinemas any time soon I'll be skipping this year's Leeds Film Festival in November, besides some titles I would like to see via their online player. One of the few things that hasn't been cancelled or radically altered for me in 2020 was my annual October Horror marathon so this feels like an achievement of sorts. Somewhat unusually, I find watching Horror films to be a source of actual comfort and joy right now.
Happy Halloween!
